Across India Part 5

These orders were given as the boat came within her length of the man; and Knott was unshipping his oar, when the stranger raised his left hand, pointing to the struggling person he had been observing in spite of the near approach of the cutter.

"Save that man first, for he is drowning!" he shouted in tones full of anxiety, if not positive suffering. "I can take care of myself for a while longer."

Mr. Boulong's vision had taken in the drowning man, and he fully realized that the person's situation was desperate, if he was not already hopelessly lost. He had struggled and twisted himself in his involuntary efforts, till his life-preserver had worked its way down to his hips, and then it overthrew him; for he turned a somerset, and disappeared under a coming wave. He had utterly "lost his head," and was like an infant in the fury of the billows.

The men were still backing water with their oars, in obedience to the order of the officer; but as soon as the oars would go clear of the self-possessed gentleman, Mr. Boulong gave the command to "Give way!" and again the cutter went ahead.

It required but a few strokes to give the necessary headway to the boat; and Knott was again ordered to stand by to haul him in. The great wave ingulfed and swept over him, and again left him aimlessly battling with the killing billows. The bowman was in position, and leaned over so far to reach the sufferer, that the officer ordered the next two men to seize him by the legs, to prevent him from being dragged overboard.

Knott grasped him by his upper garment, and drew his head out of the water.

He held on like an excited bulldog, in spite of the erratic vaulting of the boat and the struggles of him whom the deep sea seemed to have chosen as its victim. But the bowman was a muscular seaman of fifty, and he won the victory over the billows, and hauled the man into the cutter. He was a person of rather swarthy complexion, dressed in Hindu costume. He was pa.s.sed along through the oarsmen to the stern-sheets, where Mr. Boulong proceeded to lift him up with his feet in the air, to free his lungs from the salt water he must have imbibed.

By this time the second cutter came up to the scene, and Scott in command wondered why the first officer had pa.s.sed by one man to save another; for in the commotion of the waves he had not been able to realize the condition of the Hindu, as he appeared to be. But the cool gentleman had been over-confident; and instead of waiting for one of the boats to pick him up, he had disengaged himself from his life-preserver, and attempted to swim to the first cutter. Mr. Boulong was so occupied with his treatment of the first man rescued, that he did not see him, or hear his shout above the noise of the savage waves, and had directed the c.o.c.kswain to steer for the next man, who seemed to be an older person than either of the others.

The Hindu had not entirely lost his senses; and when he was disburdened of the load of salt water he had swallowed, he looked about him, though still in a somewhat dazed condition.

"Dr. Ferrolan!" he exclaimed. "Oh, save him!" He pointed to him as the stern of the boat rose on a billow; and he proved to be the person towards whom the c.o.c.kswain was steering the boat. "Where is Lord Tremlyn?" he asked, as he surveyed the surrounding waters. "There!" he screamed wildly, as he pointed over the stern, where the person indicated was swimming for the first cutter.

[Ill.u.s.tration: "A ready seaman seized him by the arm."--Page 45.]

"The other boat is close aboard of him, and will soon pick him up," said Mr. Boulong, turning his attention to one ahead of the cutter.

As he spoke, a booming billow struck Lord Tremlyn, as the Hindu had revealed his name, just as Scott was running his boat up to take him on board. He was caught just in the comb of the wave, and it upset him, making him turn a complete somerset, as his companion had done; but he was master of himself, and when he came up, he appeared to dive through the crest of another billow, and came out close alongside Scott's boat, near the bow. A ready seaman seized him by the arm, and, with the aid of another, hauled him into the boat, where he was pa.s.sed into the stern-sheets.

"Was Sir Modava saved?" he asked, with no little excitement in his manner, as he spit the salt water from his mouth.

"Don't know him, sir; but they just hauled a man into the first cutter,"

replied Scott.

"Which is the first cutter?" asked Lord Tremlyn, looking about him.

"The one just ahead of us, sir."

"Thank G.o.d, he is saved!" e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed his soaked lordship. "Kindly pull up to her, and let me be sure of it."

"That is easier said than done, sir. The first cutter has just picked up another man, and now she is pulling for all she is worth for the next one.

I couldn't overhaul her if I tried, and just now our business is to save those in the water," answered the third officer.

"You are right, Mr. Officer," added Lord Tremlyn, as he seated himself in the place pointed out to him.

There were still eight others in the water, and all of them were to the north of the boats. Those from the Blanche had noticed this fact, and were pulling in that direction. Mr. Boulong had directed his boat, after taking in Dr. Ferrolan, as the Hindu called him, to the person the farthest to the eastward, leaving the others to be saved by the boats nearer to them.

It is enough to say that all the wrecked party were saved, without giving the details of the picking up of each of them. The vessel in which they had foundered had entirely disappeared, and nothing was seen belonging to her.

Against the head sea all the boats pulled back to the two steamers. The first cutter of the Guardian-Mother had saved three, the second three, and the two boats of the Blanche had picked up five.

"Now give three cheers, Mr. Scott," said Louis Belgrave in a low tone, as the second cutter, ahead of the first on the return, approached the ship.

"The captain will understand from that we have saved all the party."

Scott approved the suggestion, and the cheers were given with a will, and repeated by the crew of the first cutter, not far behind. They were returned from the ship; and the voices included those who belonged in the cabin, as well as the officers, seamen, and waiters, while the ladies, clinging to the rails of the promenade, vigorously waved their handkerchiefs, as the sun rose clear from the eastern waves, though it soon disappeared in the clouds. It was evident to the officers that the gale was breaking; or perhaps, as the commander put it, the ship was running out of it.

Each of the boats got under the lee in turn; the falls were hooked on, and both cutters were hoisted up to their davits, as they had come from the scene of their exploits. Mr. Gaskette was directed to get the ship on her course again; and Captain Ringgold went aft to welcome the shipwrecked mariners, or whatever they were.

The seamen a.s.sisted the dripping pa.s.sengers to the deck; and the masculine tenants of the state-cabin crept along the life-lines to take part in the scene, or at least to witness it. As the steamer was headed to the eastward, the second cutter was the first to be hoisted up. The first person to be a.s.sisted to the deck was Lord Tremlyn, though those who had saved him were not yet aware of his quality. The commander extended his hand to him, and it was cordially grasped.

"I congratulate you, sir, on your escape from the wreck of your ship," said he. "I thank G.o.d most earnestly that we have been able to save all your party. I hope none were lost before we made you out on the wreck."

"Not one, Captain; and I join with you in reverent grat.i.tude to Him who rules the sea in calm and storm, for our preservation from certain death, which would have been our fate, one and all, but for the care and skill with which you have worked out our salvation. I thank you and the brave and n.o.ble officers and crews of your boats with all my mind and heart. I speak not for myself alone, but for all the ship's company of the Travancore, now gone to the bottom," replied Lord Tremlyn, again grasping the hand of the commander.

In a short time the saved from the first cutter joined the others on the promenade deck, and the Guardian-Mother proceeded on her course to Bombay.

"Were you the captain of the Travancore, sir?" asked the commander.

"I am only an amateur sailor," said his lordship; "but I was in command of the unfortunate vessel, which was a steam-yacht of small dimensions, in the service of the Indian government. Ah, Dr. Ferrolan," he continued as those from the first cutter crossed the deck; and he grasped the hand of the person addressed, "let us thank G.o.d first, and then the commander of this ship, that we have been preserved,--all the ship's company, I am informed."

"I join you most heartily, my Lord," replied the doctor. "Captain----"

"Captain Ringgold," prompted Mr. Boulong, by whose boat he had been saved.

"Captain Ringgold, I am your debtor for life;" and he proceeded to express his obligations more at length. "Permit me to present to you Lord Tremlyn, a gentleman who came to India on semi-official business."

"I am happy to know you, Lord Tremlyn," replied the commander; but the t.i.tle did not appear to make a very profound impression upon him.

"Captain Ringgold, allow me to introduce my particular friend, Sir Modava Rao, a gentleman high in the favor of the Indian government, and I may add of all the native princes."

"I am very happy to make your acquaintance, Sir Modava," replied the commander, taking his dusky hand.

The captain then invited the two t.i.tled gentlemen and the doctor of the party to the cabin, while the two engineers were turned over to Mr.

Sentrick, the chief engineer.

CHAPTER VI

THE GENERAL INTRODUCTION IN THE CABIN

It was still early in the morning, and the cabin party were not disposed to remain any longer on the promenade deck; for it was almost impossible for some of them to stand up, even with the aid of the life-lines and the rails, and all of them retreated to the boudoir and music-room. None of them had been introduced to the strangers; for they had asked to be excused, as they were not in a presentable condition.

The trio of distinguished individuals who had been conducted to the main cabin by the commander were of course soaked with water, and chilled after remaining so long in their involuntary bath; and for this reason no questions were asked of them to bring out an explanation of the cause of the disaster of which they had been the victims. There were three vacant state-rooms, to which they were a.s.signed, and each of them had a bathroom connected with it. The two cabin stewards had already been ordered to prepare these rooms for the occupancy of the newcomers. Warm baths were ready for them when they took possession of the apartments.

"All this is more luxurious than we have been accustomed to lately," said Lord Tremlyn, when the commander ushered him into No. 11, which was provided with everything belonging to a suite of rooms in the best hotels of the United States.

"I hope you will be able to make yourself comfortable, sir; but your greatest need at the present moment appears to be dry clothing, when you have restored your limbs to their normal condition in the bath, and I will endeavor to supply this want," replied the commander.

"You are very kind, Captain Ringgold, and I shall never cease to be grateful to you for the service you have rendered to me and my companions; for all of us would have perished when the wreck of our steamer went down, without the prompt a.s.sistance you rendered to us," said the princ.i.p.al personage of the party, who was still shivering under the influence of the chill he had received in the cold waters of the sea.

The captain retired, closing the door of the room. He went to No. 12, to which Sir Modava Rao had been shown, and then to No. 13, which had been appropriated to Dr. Ferrolan. He a.s.sured both of them that dry clothing would be provided for them, and both of them stammered forth their obligations very profusely from between their chattering teeth. The doors were closed upon them after they had been instructed to call upon the stewards outside for anything they needed.