_May 4._--The next morning there were many defaulters, myself amongst
the number. In lieu of the laughter and joy of the preceding evening,
there were groans, and moans, and beseechings for tea or a drink of
water. Sybil, Gatty, and Serena all rose valiantly; Gatty scornfully
repudiating the possibility of being ill. But it was in vain, "the
loftiest spirit was lowliest laid." The little girls rather courted the
notion. Being ill in bed of course precluded the idea of lessons, with
which a certain portion of every day had been threatened, and as they
lay in bed thus they discoursed:--
_Zoe._--"I really do not think it will be pleasant if we are to be like
this all the time."
_Lilly._--"Oh, Zoe, I am so snug, I have got a nice book to read, and
there will be no playing on the piano to-day."
_Winny._--"Oh! I am very sorry for that. If I did not feel so funny, I
should like to go and play very much. But I am glad we are to have no
French. Jenny says Madame is very ill indeed, and I think I heard her
groan once."
_Zoe._--"Groan, did you? then she must be very bad. I don't wish her to
groan much, but I don't mind if she is sick always from ten until two.
You know mother promised we should do no lessons after two. Here is
Jenny. Why, Jenny, what is the matter with you?"
_Jenny._--"Indeed, Miss, I don't know; but just as I was fastening Miss
Sybil's dress, I felt so queer, and I was so ashamed, I was obliged to
sit down before all the young ladies."
All the little girls at once exclaimed, "Ah, Jenny, Jenny, you know you
are sea-sick." "No, indeed, young ladies," exclaimed Jenny, vehemently,
"I am sure it is no such thing; but Master Felix would have some cold
beef with Worcester sauce for his breakfast, and that gave me a turn, it
has such a strong smell." But ere Jenny had well got the words out of
her mouth, nature asserted her rights, and after an undeniable fit, she
reeled off to bed, and was a victim for three days. Hargrave, my maid,
being of a stolid, determined, sort of stoical character, announced her
intention of not giving way; and though a victim, or rather martyr, she
never suffered a sign to appear, or neglected one thing that she was
asked to do, or showed the smallest feeling on the occasion beyond a
general sense of dissatisfaction at all things connected with the sea.
But of all our sufferers none equalled my poor cousin. Not a word was to
be got out of her, but short pithy anathemas against everybody that came
near her, everybody that spoke to her, every lurch the ship made, every
noise overhead; an expression of pity caused an explosion of wrath, a
hope that she was better a wish that she was dead, and an offer of
assistance a command to be gone out of her sight. Neither of the boys
suffered in the least. And now the increased motion of the vessel, the
noise overhead, and various other signs told us that the lovely smooth
ocean, on whose bosom we had trusted ourselves, for some cause unknown
to us was considerably disturbed, internally or externally. It was
impossible for any land-lubbers to stand; it was equally impossible to
eat in the form prescribed by the rules of polite society, food being
snatched at a venture, and not always arriving at the mouth for which it
was originally intended. One or two were pitched out of their cots, and
a murmuring of fear that this should be a tempest, and that we were
going to be wrecked, caused a message to be sent to Captain MacNab to
know whereabouts we were, for no one liked to be first to acknowledge
fear or expose our ignorance to the Captain, who had good-humouredly
rallied some on what they would do and say in case of bad weather.
Therefore the question of whereabouts are we seemed a very safe one,
likely to obtain the real news we wanted without exposing our fears to
the captain. In answer, we received a message to say we were near the
Bay of Biscay and as there was a very pretty sea, we should do well to
come up and look at it. "Come up and look at it?" that showed at once
that no shipwreck was in contemplation. But how to get up? that was the
question. The message, however, was dispatched round to the different
berths, with the additional one, "that the mother was going
immediately," that being my title amongst the young ones, and the little
mother being the title of my cousin.
On deck we were received by the captain, who welcomed us with much
pleasure, an undisguised twinkle in his eyes betraying a little inkling
into the purport of our message. To our amazement, he and the sailors
seemed quite at their ease, walking as steadily as if the vessel was a
rock, and as immoveable as the pyramids. But what a sea! I looked up and
saw high grey mountains on all sides, and ere I could decide whether
they were moveable or my sight deceptive, they had disappeared, and,
from a height that seemed awful, we looked down upon a troubled,
rolling, restless mass of waters, each wave seeming to buffet its
neighbour with an angry determination to put it down. In the midst of
all this chaos, one monster wave rose superior to all the rest, and
rolling forward with giant strength and resistless impetuosity,
threatened instant destruction to the vessel. A cry, a terrific roll, a
shudder through the vessel, and again we were in the valley of waters;
and during the comparative lull the captain roared in my ear, "Is it not
a pretty sea, Madam?"
We can now laugh at our fears, and the awe-struck faces we all
presented, but it was many hours ere some of us recovered ourselves, and
for this show of timidity Gatty scolded Sybil.
_Gatty._--"How can you be such a goose, Sybil? Why, you are trembling
now."
_Sybil._--"No, I am only a little cold; but you know, Gatty, that was
such an awful wave, if we had stretched our necks ever so high we could
not see to the top."
_Gatty._--"Well, and what did that matter? It was a glorious wave, a
magnificent fellow, I dare say a tenth wave. If we had been walking on
the sea shore we should have counted and known."
_Sybil._--"But I could not tell how we were ever to get to the top. I
thought we must certainly go through it, or it would go over us."
_Gatty_ (laughing).--"Serena, do come here, Sybil is talking such
splendid stuff, and, moreover, she is frightened out of her wits, and I
do believe wishes herself at home."
_Serena._--"Oh dear! I am so ill; going on deck has quite upset me, and
I am worse than I was."
_Gatty._--"Now, whatever you do, don't go and be so foolish, Serena. I
shall have no pleasure at all if Sybil is frightened and you are ill.
Get up, and eat a lot of roast beef with heaps of mustard and you will
be quite well."
A little small voice called to Gatty, and also asked for beef and
mustard. "I am sure, quite sure, Gatty," said the little speaker, Winny,
"it will do me a great deal of good." "Ah," said Lilly, "I wish I was
out of this place. Do, mother, ask the captain to stop and put me down
somewhere." This little idea caused infinite amusement. Time, however,
went on, and cured us all. We had lovely weather, and began to keep
regular hours, and have allotted times of the day for different things.
All attending, whatever might be our occupations, to the captain's
summons; for when anything new was to be seen, any wonders of the
ocean, any curious bird resting its weary wings on the only haven in
sight--our little vessel, any furling of sails, or any change, so did
the good-natured captain send for us, and we joyfully obeyed the
summons, listening to all his wondrous tales, watching the rolling of
the porpoises, and the wondrous colours of the sea. As we approached a
hotter climate, everything became, in our eyes, objects of new and
strange interest. In this manner we reached Gibraltar, and landed for
the first time, having been thirteen days at sea.