The fort of Saint Jacques, in La Haute, looked strong enough to keep
almost any squadron at bay; and as the _Sirius_ lay pretty close in,
those on board could see the French flag flying upon the solid square
citadel, below which, and running out like arms, were outworks which
seemed to bristle with cannon beside the low, cunningly-contrived
batteries on the rocks near the entrance of the harbour.
"A strong place, Bracy," said the captain, "and one where they ought to
be able to sink any vessels we could bring against them."
"Yes, sir, if we went at it hammer-and-tongs, shot for shot."
"Exactly," said the captain, thoughtfully, as he held his glass to his
eye, "and they would have English oak to fire at, while we had to send
our shot against stone. Ye-es, a quiet combined attack some night with
a few hundred determined men in our boats, and we ought to take the
place without firing a shot."
"That's it, sir," said the first lieutenant; "and the only way."
"But I don't like that," said the captain.
"That stone, sir," replied the first lieutenant, as he looked back at an
isolated patch of rock which rose up like the top of a mountain behind
them about four miles astern. "That would be an ugly spot for annoying
us if they had had the gumption to stick a couple of guns there. It
would harass the attack terribly."
"The wonder is, that they have not fortified the rock as an outwork to
their fort."
"Frenchmen don't think of everything, sir," said the lieutenant, dryly.
"We must seize that rock, Bracy," said the captain, decisively. "I'll
communicate with the _Orion_ my intentions at once."
Signals were made, a boat lowered down, and communications passed
between the two commanding officers; and then Captain Belton gave orders
for an exploring party to go and try and land on the rock, and see what
its capabilities were for occupation.
The second lieutenant received the instructions; the first cutter's crew
was piped up, and as the lieutenant was about to assume his command, he
caught sight of an eager-looking face.
"Well, Mr Belton," he said, kindly. "Want to go?"
"Oh yes, sir," said Syd, eagerly.
"In with you, my lad."
Syd wanted no second invitation, and the next minute he was seated in
the stern-sheets looking back at the side of the frigate, as the men's
oars dipped regularly, and the boat gently rose and fell as she glided
over the smooth water.
The rock had a wonderful attraction for Sydney, as it rose clear out of
the bright blue water; and as he lay back and half-closed his eyes, it
was easy to imagine that it was the ruins of some old castle rising up
with walls tier after tier to a height of about a hundred and fifty
feet, with only a place here and there shelving down to the level of the
water, the rock rising up for the most part perpendicularly from the
deep sea which rose against the time and water-worn sides to fall back
in sparkling foam.
"What are we coming here for, Mr Dallas?" said Syd, in a low tone.
"To survey the rock, and see if it will do for occupation."
"But nobody would want to live here, sir."
"More likely have to die here, my lad. But we sailors are not allowed
to ask questions. We are told to do things, and we do them."
"I only wanted to know," said Syd, apologetically.
"I was not finding fault, Belton. Now, let me see; we've got to land.
Where's the best place?"
As he spoke he altered the direction of the boat, which he kept a short
distance from where the sea broke, and steered right round the rock,
while his companion divided his time between examining the various
ledges and gazing into the transparent depths below.
It was soon evident that landing would be rather difficult, only two
places suggesting themselves as being feasible; one being like a rough
pier, the other a spot where masses of coral rock run down into the sea,
with here and there awkward, jagged-looking, scattered pieces showing
their heads, sometimes just level with the water, and at others being
completely covered.
After the boat had been completely round the rock, which apparently
covered a space of some acres, the young officer gave the word, and the
lead was thrown over to try for soundings and the possibility of there
being good anchorage for a ship that might want to lay off the edge.
But the lead went down, down, down to the end of the line wherever it
was cast, even close in to the rock, indicating that it rose up almost
steeple-like from profound depths.
"Soon settled that point, Mr Belton," said the lieutenant. "The next
thing is to land. Back in, my lads, on the swell, and as soon as we
jump off pull clear again. I think we can do it yonder where the tuft
of green weed is growing."
The men obeyed, and after one or two cautious approaches, the young
officer, who had carefully watched his time, sprang from the thwart
before him right on to the rock, made a second bound, and was clear of
the following wave before it had time to flood the natural pier.
"Now, Mr Belton, can you do that?"
For answer, as the boat was again backed in, Syd leaped out, but did not
calculate his time well, and sprang into a few inches of water, which
went flying amidst the laughter of the men. But the next spring took
him up alongside Mr Dallas.
"A little too soon, Belton," he said. "Now, one of you lads come too.
Keep her well off, coxswain; sometimes a good roller comes unexpectedly,
and if you are not prepared she may be thrown high and dry, stove in."
"Ay, ay, sir," shouted the coxswain. Then the man told leaped ashore
easily enough, and the primary survey of the place began.
It was not an easy task, for from the few square yards of level stone
where they stood there seemed to be no means of getting farther, till
Syd suggested that if they could get up a bit of wall-like rock there
was a ledge from which they could work themselves sideways to a rift in
the side over the sea, and from that perhaps they could get higher.
"But we must be careful; it is only a few inches, and if we lose our
hold, down we go into deep water."
"It would only be a bathe, sir," said Syd, laughing.
"Oh, I don't mind the bath, Belton. I am thinking there may be hungry
sharks about."
"Ugh!" ejaculated Syd, with a shudder, as he glanced at the clear blue
water.
"No fear of a fall though, if we are careful."
"Beg pardon, sir; I could get along there," said the man.
"Yes, my lad; but I'll try it first," said the lieutenant; and he was
about to start along the perilous little shelf after a short climb, when
Syd suggested that they should have a line thrown to them from the boat.
"Good idea, Belton," said the lieutenant, who hailed the boat, now lying
fifty yards away, and she came in; the rope was thrown to them, made
fast about Syd's chest, and while the lieutenant and the sailor held the
slack ready to pay out, the boy clambered on about twenty feet, and then
stepped boldly out upon the narrow shelf in the face of the almost
perpendicular rock, crept carefully along to the rift, and entered it to
come back and shout all right.
With Syd holding the rope tightly round the edge of the cleft, and the
sailor keeping it fast, the lieutenant had no difficulty in getting
along; the sailor followed, and they passed along a natural passage to
where the rock sloped away sufficiently for them to mount again to a
fairsized ledge, from the end of which there was a ridge of broken rock
giving foothold for climbers. This they surmounted, Syd going up first
like a goat, and holding the rope for his officer, and lowering it in
turn for the sailor.
"Why, Belton," said Mr Dallas, "this place is a natural fortress. All
we should have to do would be to make parapets, and mount some guns.
It's a little Gibraltar in its way."
They went on exploring, or rather climbing from block to block and ledge
to ledge, till after some little difficulty the summit was reached, from
which the lieutenant signalled with a handkerchief, an acknowledgment
being seen from the ship.
The top was a slope of some twenty by thirty yards, and from here as
they looked about over the edge a better idea of the capabilities of the
place could be formed, and they looked down on what only needed a little
of the work of man to make the place impregnable so long as there was no
treachery from within.
The great peculiarity of the rock was, that from where they stood they
could gaze down into a chasm beyond which rose a mass similar to that on
which they stood. In fact, roughly speaking, the stony mount seemed to
have been cleft or split in twain, giving it somewhat the aspect of a
bishop's mitre, save that the lower part between the cleft expanded till
it reached the sea.
"Well," said the lieutenant, in a satisfied tone, as they climbed down
into the chasm, and gazed from the bottom out at either end toward the
sea, in the one case to see the _Sirius_ lying with her masts describing
arcs on the blue sky; in the other case the white houses and port of
Saint Jacques. "Well, Belton, if I had been set to work to design a
rock upon which to plant a fort, I could never have schemed so good a
one as this."
"Why?" said Syd, in his outspoken way. "It's very awkward to get up
unless you make some stairs."
"The more awkward the worse for an enemy. But can't you see, my lad, we
can mount our guns on platforms at either end of this tiny valley; and
stow our men, stores, and ammunition there in the bottom of the rift.
Nothing can reach them from outside. Gibraltar's nothing to it."
"Isn't it?" said Syd, who felt that he ought to say something.
"No, my boy, nothing. There's one thing though--I don't see water."
"Water?" said Syd, laughing, as he looked round at the sea.
"Drinking water, sir. An enemy would have very little difficulty in
taking a fort where the defenders have no water. Must make a cistern
and store some up. Come along."
He led the way, and they descended without much difficulty to a spot
from whence it seemed possible to mount the other mass of rock, up which
they toiled with more difficulty, for in some places it nearly
approached the perpendicular. Had it not been for a series of rough
cracks or splits in the side, some of which seemed to descend to vast
depths, but whose edges gave good foothold, the ascent would have been
impossible.
They reached the top, through a little mutual help, signalled again, and
after gazing down into the chasm, which the lieutenant looked upon as a
splendid find, they slowly went down to the little natural pier, the
boat was carefully backed in, the sailor leaped lightly from the wet
rock on to the gunwale, and then stepped into his place.
"Now you, Mr Belton," said the lieutenant; "and don't get wet this
time."
"No," said Syd, "I'll time it better;" and he let the sea flood the rock
as the boat rose high, and then descend twice before he made this
attempt.
"Now then!" cried the lieutenant, as the wave glided back from the rough
surface, and the boat's stern was seen descending easily a few feet
away.
Syd trotted over the wet rock with the water flying up and glittering in
the sunshine at every step, reached the edge, and sprang lightly on to
the gunwale just as the boat was at its lowest. Nothing in fact could
have been better timed, but he had not calculated upon one thing.
The sailor had left the edge of the boat wet, and Syd's shoes were
soaked and slippery, so that one of them glided sidewise; there was no
chance of recovery, and he went down headlong into the deep. It was so
sudden that he was below the surface with the water thundering in his
ears almost before he was aware that he had fallen. But he was a good
swimmer, and had practised diving often enough, and he knew that he had
only to take a few strokes to rise clear of the boat, and then a few
more in order to be taken in.
As he swam below after going down some distance he was aware of what
seemed to be a black cloud over his head, which he knew was the boat;
then he was rising again through the sunlit water, and as his head rose
into the sunshine a cold chill of horror paralysed every energy, for he
knew that he was almost within the jaws of death.
It was all so rapid that he hardly knew how it took place; but he had
been long enough at sea to know that the long, thin, curved shadow
approaching him was a huge shark, and that before he could reach the
boat the monster would have seized him.
He was conscious of a wild shouting in the boat, of the rapid beating of
oars which made the water fly up in fountains; then, as he swam with all
his might, of a violent blow on the shoulder followed by a jerk, and
then half insensible from the shock he was being dragged over the boat's
side.
Amid the babel of voices that ensued, Syd made out a few words here and
there.