Sail Ho! Part 33

"Horrible, Dale, but I will master it. This is no time for giving way like a young lady in a hot room. There, that's better. Nothing like making a fight for it. Come."

"Oh no; I'm not very much hurt, sir," I cried. "Wait till you are easier."

"Come closer," he said firmly. "Off with your jacket, and open the neck of your shirt."

I obeyed him unwillingly, and making another determined effort to master the faintness from which he suffered, he carefully examined my chest and side, giving me such intense pain the while that I too felt sick, and would gladly have prescribed for myself a draught of the medicine he had taken.

"There," he cried at last, "that's perfectly satisfactory. No ribs broken, Dale, but you had a tremendous blow there from the nearest box.

It's a wonder that we were not killed."

"Then I shan't want strapping or bandaging, sir?"

"No; I'll give you some arnica to bathe the place with. You'll have some terrible bruises all up your side, but that will be all. Now then, my lad, that we have repaired damages, the next thing is to see what we can do for other people."

"Yes, and about re-taking the ship," I said excitedly, though I could not then see the slightest chance of success.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN.

Mr Frewen and I were both too weak and faint from the terrible shock we had had, to do anything that day but lie back and rest, my place being chosen close to the hole I had bored, so that I could be ready to answer Mr Preddle's questions, which were constantly coming, and to listen to his lamentations about his fish--about the trouble he had taken, the water which must be drying--till, as I lay back there with my ear close to a second hole which I had bored lower down, every now and then from pain, heat, and the consequent faintness, I kept on dropping into a curious half-dreamy state, in which I seemed to be watching Mr Preddle's fish swimming about with their fat little mouths gasping at the surface of the water, and all looking as if they were so many hundreds of tiny Preddles asking me to get them out of prison.

Oh, what a wretched time that was, and how I wished that I could go right off to sleep--a sleep without any dreams--and keep asleep till my side had left off aching. But it was no use to wish, for though Mr Frewen was sleeping, so sure as I nearly dropped off, Mr Preddle would put his lips to the hole I had made for my own torture, and whisper something.

"Dale, I've been thinking that if Mr Frewen could seize the man who opens your door and attends upon you, and hold him while you ran out and opened mine, you and I could then go and open two more cabins, and so on, and then we could seize the ship."

"Yes," I said heavily, and there was a pause. Then just as I was dropping off to sleep again--"Dale!"

"Yes, sir."

"We ought to do it when it is dark. I'm quite strong, and not hurt a bit. Do you think Mr Frewen is well enough?"

"Oh yes!" I said drowsily, though all the time I knew he was not, but I couldn't help it.

"Then I think we ought to try to-night. But what is your opinion of Mr John Denning?"

"Haven't any opinion of him," I said, almost talking in my sleep.

"Oh, but that's not fair. He certainly is very irritable, but he might be useful, and I think he is brave. A man who is in bad health is frequently irritable, and if we have to fight, as I suppose we very likely shall have to, his irritability would be of great advantage to us, because it would be vented upon our enemies."

That's as far as I can remember what he said, for nature would bear no more, and I was fast asleep with a murmuring sound close to my ear shaping my dreams, which lasted till there was a rattling sound at the door, which as I started up was flung open, and two men brought in what was intended for our supper and dinner together.

The supply was very coa.r.s.e, and only consisted of cold salt beef, bread, and water, but if it had been a repast of the most delicious nature, it would not have tempted Mr Frewen or me. The fresh water was all we cared for, and a sip of this from time to time was most refreshing.

But as soon as the men had left our cabin and closed the door, we heard them go into the next, and as we sat listening, we could hear almost every word that was said, for Mr Preddle questioned the men sharply, but obtained no answer, the door being roughly closed just in the middle of one of his speeches. Then as we sat listening we could hear the men go from cabin to cabin down one side of the saloon and back along the other.

After this we began to talk in a whisper about our future prospects, and our plans were soon made--to wit, that as soon as Mr Frewen felt himself strong enough to act, an attempt should be made to evade the vigilance of the men on guard, and communicate with the captain or Mr Brymer, and then try to make some plan.

"There don't seem to be much chance," I said, rather dolefully, for I was in a good deal of pain.

"You never know what is going to happen, my lad," said Mr Frewen. "As for me, I feel quite cheerful about our prospects. These men never can get on without quarrelling, and if they are divided, then is our chance."

"But suppose they do not quarrel, and are not divided?" I said.

"Don't suppose impossibilities, Dale. I've been at sea long enough to understand a little about sailors. This man Jarette has won their ear for the time, but he will soon begin to behave tyrannically to them, and then they will be as ready to rebel against him as they were against Captain Berriman. We have to wait for that moment, and take advantage of it if we can."

But three days glided on without our having a chance of knowing what was going on in the other cabins. We knew that we were sailing away south, and that the men seemed to be enjoying themselves, for there was a good deal of singing and shouting--strong indications of drinking going on.

Mr Frewen was far better, and my pains had pa.s.sed into an unpleasant stiffness; otherwise, I was all right.

As for Mr Preddle, he would sit against the bulk-head and bemoan his fate as long as he could get a listener, and half his discourse would be about his fish, the other about the unfortunate pa.s.sengers.

I had cut a way through into his cabin by boring a great many holes, and then joining them with my knife, so that I could pa.s.s it through for him to try if he could communicate with the cabin further on. But that proved to be empty, and we could do nothing that way.

So we sat through the hot day talking about the mad act on the part of the men, and watched the horizon in the hope of seeing a ship to which we could signal, but nothing came in sight.

The fourth night had arrived, and now Mr Frewen had made up his mind that our plan ought to be to work at a board in the bulk-head till we could get enough loose to draw a piece out; and then, after getting into Mr Preddle's cabin, work a way through into the next, the empty one, which was pretty sure to be open.

Mr Preddle was almost speechless with excitement when the plan was broached to him, and he declared it to be too good for there to be any failure.

"Why, we have only to loosen a board or two on my side, go through, watch our opportunity, and then go from cabin to cabin and let out our friends; then wait till the mutineers are all quiet below, and fasten the hatches tight down upon them. Alison Dale, my dear boy, we shall re-take the ship, save the ladies, and I shall, after all, get across with the greater part of my consignment of salmon and trout."

He had his plump round face to the opening looking in at us as he said all this, and I could see that his eyes were sparkling with pleasure at the thought of the great success that was coming.

"It is very easy in theory, Preddle," said Mr Frewen, "but I don't know that it is going to turn out so satisfactory in practice."

"Oh, my dear Frewen, don't throw cold water on the plan, pray," he cried.

"Not a drop," said Mr Frewen.

"And you will try?"

"Oh yes; anything that promises success in any shape. We cannot sit still. We must master them."

"But are you strong enough to try?"

"I'll make myself strong enough," said Mr Frewen, quietly.

"Then which board shall we try to loosen first?"

"Hist! some one coming," I said quickly, and I moved a couple of bottles belonging to Mr Frewen's store across the little opening, and took down another bottle to remove the stopper and begin sniffing at it as there was a sudden rattling at the door, which was thrown open, and Jarette entered. He left a bodyguard of five or six well-armed men outside, among whom I saw Bob Hampton, and I felt so enraged against him that I fixed him with my eye, but he seemed in no wise abashed, looking boldly back at me, and giving me quite a friendly nod.

"Treacherous brute!" I muttered, and turned away to find Jarette looking at me searchingly.

"Not dead yet then?" he said, with a half-laugh. Then to Mr Frewen--

"Well, doctor, you've patched yourself up, I see. What do you say to come under my flag?"

"Prison flag!" said Mr Frewen, contemptuously.