Salt Water Part 8

"Both the mates died, and we were left without any officers.

Fortunately the crew were very steady, and behaved well; and at last the fever went away, and those who were sick recovered. The carpenter was the only person on board who had any idea how we should steer, so the rest made him act as captain."

"It was a mercy, under such circ.u.mstances, that you found your way into the Chops of the Channel."

"Where is that?" asked Miss Alice, naively.

"Where we now are," said I; and I should probably have gone on to explain the reason of the name, but that I was very anxious to hear more of her account. As far as I could make out, three very anxious weeks pa.s.sed by while the ship remained in this condition, when, as they were getting near soundings, a gale sprang up and drove her furiously before it. "One evening," continued the little girl, "papa and I were in our cabins, when suddenly the ship rolled over dreadfully on her side, and-- most horrible!--the water came rushing down into them. At the same time there was a frightful crash, and we heard sad shrieks and cries. Poor papa flew into my cabin, and seized me in his arms, for he thought the ship was sinking, so did I, and we wished to die together."

"The ship had broached to, and had been thrown on her beam-ends, and the masts had gone by the board," I remarked. "It was fortunate they did so, or she would have been sent to the bottom to a certainty. When the masts went the ship righted, and you saw there was a chance of escape."

"I was too frightened to think anything just then," said she. "All I know is, that papa, carrying me in his arms, found his way in the darkness to the companion-ladder, and then up on deck. When we got there, I wished that we were in our cabin again. We were in the midst of high, black, foaming waves and bright flashes of lightning; and when I looked up, there were no masts and no sails, but the deck was covered with their broken remains. It was so very dreadful, I cannot talk more about it now. I did not cry or faint, but I felt my heart beat very quick as I clung to papa, while he held tight to the companion-hatches, which, as you see, still remain firm."

"But where have you lived all the time you have been on the wreck?" I asked.

"Oh, I remained where you first found me," she answered. "At night they covered me up with cloaks and a sail, and in the daytime I was able to walk about, for the sea, fortunately, was tolerably smooth. The kind sailors also, though suffering much from hunger, I heard papa say, brought me all I required to eat, which was not much, you may suppose."

This was all about the shipwreck I heard from Miss Alice at the time.

It appeared that when the masts had been carried away, the mizen-mast had hung on by some of the rigging, and by dragging astern had a.s.sisted in making the head of the ship pay off. This caused her to drive before the gale, and saved the decks from being swept by the seas, which would otherwise have cleared them of every human being. As soon as all the damage had been committed, the wind and sea began to go down, and by the morning there was only a moderate breeze. The carpenter, however, discovered that the ship had sprung a leak, and all hands were now summoned to work the pumps; but weakened by disease and famine, and overcome with fatigue, they were soon obliged to give up the almost hopeless task. Three days of horror pa.s.sed away without any ship coming near them, while several of them died from sheer starvation.

Fortunately, at last they discovered some gunpowder which, being in tin cases, was not spoilt, and with it they managed to fire the guns which had attracted our attention.

Miss Alice told me many more incidents, which I now forget. Our conversation was interrupted by Jack Stretcher, who came aft.

"Sir," said he, touching his hat, "I'm afraid we shall have to take to the boat, for the people are almost all knocked up; and, do all we can, the ship won't float much longer."

"I'm sorry to hear that, for I should have liked to have got her safe into harbour," I answered. "But I suppose there is no help for it."

"We'll take another spell at the pumps before we give in," he replied.

"But I wanted to tell you, sir, that to my mind that poor gentleman will be killing himself if he works away as he does; and as he is of no great use to us, it would be better if he sat down and rested himself."

On hearing this, Miss Marlow darted forward to her father, and seizing him by the arm, tried to force him away from the pumps. He soon yielded to her entreaties, and almost fainting with fatigue, came and sat down aft.

"Now, my lads," cried Jack to the men, who, one after the other, had thrown themselves down on the deck, "we'll see if we can't keep the old craft afloat till we get her into harbour."

But no one responded to his summons. Just then my eye fell on the white sail of a vessel appearing above the dark horizon right ahead of us. I pointed it out to Jack.

"It's the cutter, sir, to a certainty," he exclaimed, after scrutinising it attentively. "Huzza! my lads, there's help at hand, if you will but hold out an hour longer."

The men, encouraged by his words and example, resumed their labours, and again sent the water gushing through the scuppers. It was an anxious time; for after all I felt that the sail in sight might not prove to be the cutter, or she might be crossing our course and not see us. Our last remnant of food and water had been served out, with the exception of a biscuit, which I had kept for the little girl and her father; so that all hands were very hungry as well as fatigued. I had tightened my belt round my waist to serve me for my breakfast. I watched the vessel as she rose higher and higher above the horizon; and, to my great joy, I at length saw that she was, at all events, a large cutter, beating up towards us. I called Jack to look at her again.

"She's the _Serpent_, and no mistake," he exclaimed. "She'll be down to us in another hour, if the wind holds. My doubt is if the ship will swim as long," he added in a whisper to me; "but we'll do our best, sir."

"Let me know in time if the water gains much on us, that we may get the young lady and the gentleman into the boat," said I.

"Ay, ay, sir," he answered, as he went forward, and with a loud cheer, resumed his labours.

The minutes dragged slowly on; for, though I had no fear for our lives, I was anxious to get fresh hands to keep the ship afloat.

"Is that little vessel yours?" asked Miss Marlow, pointing to the cutter as she approached.

"Yes," said I. "I hope before long to take you on board her."

"That will be very nice; for dear papa and I want to leave this dreadful ship. You will carry us home to Old England, will you!" she said.

"If the cutter makes us out, I hope to get you on sh.o.r.e this evening or to-morrow," I replied. "But I am not quite certain that she sees us."

She had just then tacked, and was apparently standing away from us. I watched her eagerly. Again she tacked, and I was certain she saw us. I steered towards her, and now, the breeze freshening, we rapidly neared each other. She stood on, and pa.s.sing under our stern, kept alongside of us.

"Hillo, D'Arcy, my boy, how did you get there?" hailed my uncle, as he recognised me at the helm.

"Fell in with her, sir. Pray send some fresh hands, for we are sinking; and some prog, for we are starving," I shouted, in return.

The cutter flew by us, and hove-to a short distance ahead. A boat was lowered, and as we came up, she hooked on to our main-chains, and my uncle stepped on board. I was thus speedily shorn of the honour of command. As soon as I had introduced Mr Marlow and his daughter to him, and given him a brief account of what had occurred, he invited them on board the cutter, ordering me to take charge of them, and to send Hanks with another boat's crew to a.s.sist in working the ship. He had brought some provisions, which very soon restored my hungry people, and enabled them to pull me and my charges on board the cutter, while the fresh hands took their places at the pumps. Even when Miss Alice discovered my unexalted position, she did not seem to esteem me the less, for I had already, I rather fancy, established myself in her good graces. I did my best to make her and her father comfortable in my uncle's cabin; and Flitch, his steward, soon placed before them such a breakfast as they had not seen for many a long day, to which I, at all events, did not fail to do ample justice. The young lady appeared to think that naval officers were very hungry mortals, as she saw numberless slices of bacon and eggs disappear down my throat.

"We have no lady's maid on board to attend on you, Miss Marlow," said I, as I got up to leave the cabin; "but Flitch will put your berth to rights; and if you'll follow my advice, you'll turn in and take a good snooze, for you want it, I think."

The poor little girl was almost falling asleep at table. Mr Marlow thanked me for my good advice, which he said he and his daughter would follow.

When I went on deck I found that the cutter had taken the ship in tow, and that we were running up Channel. My uncle soon came on board, and praising me for my behaviour, said he should try and carry our prize into Portsmouth. He was in high spirits, for he expected to get a good round sum for salvage. The breeze held favourable, and in two days we were steering safely through the Needles pa.s.sage.

CHAPTER EIGHT.

ALICE AT DAISY COTTAGE--A BOAT'S CREW CAPSIZED--PICK UP d.i.c.kY SHARPE-- OUR FRIENDSHIP COMMENCED.

I may as well say that my uncle got a fair round sum for the salvage of the good ship the _Poictiers_, and a very welcome addition to his year's pay. Our pa.s.sengers went on sh.o.r.e at Portsmouth, and as soon as we arrived there, I thought I was to see no more of them, when, having accompanied them to the door of the George Hotel, I was about to bid them farewell.

"What! we are not going to part yet," said Mr Marlow. "Come in, young gentleman--come in."

There was the usual bustle consequent on the arrival of a party at an inn. It soon subsided. Rooms were selected, and we found ourselves seated in a parlour, which looked doubly comfortable after the deck of the dismasted ship and the small cabin of the cutter.

"You will come and dine with us to-day, Mr D'Arcy; and I must beg you to convey an invitation to your uncle," said Mr Marlow.

As midshipmen are not always their own masters, I had to explain that I would, if I could; though I did not think my uncle would refuse me leave. I was not disappointed; and at six o'clock I found myself seated at Mr Marlow's dinner-table, and opposite my Commander. I thought the little lady, Miss Alice, still looked very much fatigued.

"She is scarcely yet fit to perform the journey to London," observed her father. "Still I am anxious to be there, and must also visit Liverpool in the course of a few days."

"If you will allow her to remain with Mrs O'Flaherty, I can answer for my wife being most happy to receive her," said my uncle.

To my great joy, though I was afraid of showing if, Mr Marlow at once acceded to the proposal.

"I will, then, bring Mrs O'Flaherty over to fetch her," added my uncle.

"You will, I suspect, agree very well, Miss Alice."

"Indeed, my dear sir, you are laying me under a tenfold obligation,"

said Mr Marlow. "All our connections are, I believe, in the North, and in dreary London there is no one with whom I could leave the dear child."

I don't remember the rest of our conversation. I know that I discussed a very good dinner; and that same evening we got under weigh and ran over to Ryde, and my uncle went up to Daisy Cottage. The next morning my aunt accompanied him on board, and we returned to Portsmouth. She received little Alice, as I knew she would, most kindly, and before many hours had pa.s.sed they became great friends; and, to make a long story short, Miss Marlow became an inmate for several weeks of Daisy Cottage.