Jack at Sea Part 81

There was no reply.

"'Sleep, Ned?" said Jack, looking toward him.

There was still no reply.

"Poor fellow! Let him rest a bit," thought the boy; and then he began to think of what news it would be when he got back to the yacht, to announce that the arm was restored. The yacht brought up the thought of sailing right away over the blue waters, gliding easily on, with the warm sun upon his cheek and the soft breeze fanning his brows, and Jack Meadows went on sailing away, but it was only in fancy, for he too, utterly worn out by the morning's exertions, was fast asleep, without a thought that danger might be near.

CHAPTER THIRTY FOUR.

COOKERY UNDER QUEER CIRc.u.mSTANCES.

"Ah-e! Ah-e! Ah-e!"

A loud peculiar call, followed by a repet.i.tion from a distance, too long after to be a reverberation, though strange echoes had been heard from far up the mountain when a shot was fired well down in one or other of the ravines which scored the slopes of the volcano.

There was a pause of a few minutes, another cry came again, and was answered or echoed.

The first time it had no effect whatever upon Jack, who lay upon his back fast asleep, in the deep slumber which comes to the hungry after that hunger has been appeased.

But there was the strange instinct of self-preservation awake in the lad, and that had started into watchfulness, though the body remained inert, and when the cry was repeated the body was warned, and Jack aroused into wakefulness, feeling, he knew not why, that something was wrong.

It was close upon sunset, and the cap of the mountain glowed once more as if it had burst into eruption, but all was perfectly still save the whistling and shrieking of birds at a distance.

He did not move, but turned his eyes toward where Ned lay snoring softly; then he cast his eyes toward the fire, which was apparently quite out, but the next moment the soft sea-breeze came with a gentle puff, and the embers glowed faintly, showing that with a little tending there was enough left to revive the blaze again.

The silence in face of that wondrous glow overhead was oppressive, and the feeling of danger at hand seemed to grow, and then began to die out, for there was nothing visible, till all at once a peculiarity close up by the glowing wood ashes took the lad's attention, and then he shuddered slightly, for there, evidently attracted by the warmth, toward which they had crawled, were several snakes, with the possibility of there being more which he could not see. For the most part they were small, but a part of the coil of one showed that its owner must be as thick as his arm, and beyond lay in a kind of double S one that was far larger.

Then all at once there came the peculiar cry which had awakened him, and it had hardly died out when it was answered from the edge of the forest beyond the opening, at one side of which they lay.

"All right, Mr Jack, sir," said Ned in a muttering, ill-used tone.

"We'll toddle on now. Needn't be so hard on a fellow. Only just closed my eyes."

Jack turned his head to the speaker, but Ned had not stirred, and after a momentary glance in the direction from which the call had come-- evidently the ravine leading down to the sea--he rolled over three times, and brought himself close enough to touch his companion. But in the act of turning he felt something move, there was a sharp struggling, and a snake glided from beneath him hissing angrily, and he turned cold at the thought that another of the dangerous creatures had been sleeping coiled up closely to him for warmth.

Worse still, the hissing and rustling had startled those by the fire.

Two malignant heads suddenly started up a few inches, and there was that peculiar gliding of coils in which the same serpent seems to be going in several directions at once.

For a few minutes Jack lay perfectly still, feeling as if he were yielding to that peculiar fear which paralyses in the presence of a serpent. But he closed his eyes, set his teeth hard, and remained motionless, mentally combating the sensation of horror and mastered it.

While upon unclosing his eyes and looking in the direction of the fire, he saw that the coiling and uncoiling had ceased, and the raised heads had been lowered as if to resume the interrupted sleep.

Jack felt that action was the best safeguard against the horrible, paralysing sensation, and softly pa.s.sing his hand along till he could touch Ned's face, he tapped his cheek sharply.

"Don't!"

He tapped again.

"I'm awake, I tell you. Guv'nors' call?"

"Ned!--Ned!"

"Eh? yes!--all right. That you, Mr Jack?"

"Yes. Hush!" whispered the lad. "Don't move; don't raise a hand.

Listen. Are you quite awake?"

"Yes, sir. What's the matter?"

"We're in danger, Ned."

"Yes, sir, I knew that before I shut my eyes; but it was no use to holloa about it. What is it now?"

The call was repeated and answered before Jack spoke.

"Oh, that's it, is it, sir?" said Ned quietly. "Pretty creatures.

After us again, eh? Well, if we lie still they won't see us, and--yes-- shadow's rising on the mountain, it will be dark directly. All we've got to do is to make out which way they go, and then go the other, so the sooner they show the better for us--I mean before it gets dark.

Such a stupid place too; there ain't no evening, it's dark directly."

"There's more danger, Ned," whispered Jack.

"Eh? what, ain't that enough, sir? Well, what is it?"

"Turn your head very gently, so that you can look at the fire."

"Yes, sir.--Well, it's out."

"Don't you see anything there?"

"Whoo!" e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed the man in a tone full of horror, "snakes, hundreds of 'em! Oh, we mustn't stand that, sir; they're waiting till it's cool enough, so as to get our 'taters."

"Nonsense: after the warmth. Now you see, Ned. What's to be done?"

The man was silent for a few moments. Then softly--

"This is nice, Mr Jack; we can't get up and run away because of the n.i.g.g.e.rs, and we can't stop here because of the snakes. Yes; what's to be done?"

Jack was silent in turn for a few moments.

"Let's crawl a little way off, Ned."

Jack set the example, and it was very willingly followed, till they were a dozen yards farther from the fire; but before half the distance was covered, the shouting of the blacks was heard again.

"I say, Mr Jack," whispered Ned, as they subsided, "you're a very clever fellow over your books."

"Am I, Ned?" said Jack sadly.

"Oh, yes, I've often heard the guv'nor and Doctor Instow say so. Well then, there's me. I'm sharp enough over my work--sort of handy chap."