Settlers and Scouts Part 22

The four porters shouted with delight, and plunged into the water to drag the carcase to the bank with the cords they had brought with them.

The current, however, carried it downwards, and wedged it between two rocks so tightly that, when they had tied the cords to the feet, all their hauling failed for a time to dislodge it. John was determined to secure the prey, which would provide two days' food for his whole party, so he stripped off his sole remaining garment and, first spying for crocodiles, swam to the a.s.sistance of the men. After ten minutes'

hauling the unwieldy body was freed from the detaining rocks and drawn slowly to the bank.

The men immediately set to work to cut it up with their knives. While they were engaged in this task, John resolved to go a little farther in search of more delicate fare for Ferrier and himself. Rolling on the gra.s.s to dry himself, he put on his clothes and set off up-stream with the Wanderobbo, instructing the others to retrace their steps slowly so soon as they had tied up their loads. They had proceeded but a short distance when Bill discovered the track of congoni which had recently come down to the river to drink. Following it up, they by and by came in sight of a small herd moving leisurely across the plain to the left.

Being to windward of them, it would be impossible to stalk them directly. The only chance of getting a shot was to make a long detour and come upon them from the further side. John's sporting instincts were roused. There was no fear of losing the track of his men, so he struck off with Bill at right angles to the river, and after walking rapidly for half-an-hour in a wide curve, Bill never losing sight of the game, they got ahead of them, and took cover in a clump of trees which the animals must pa.s.s if they did not change their direction. They came very slowly, and before reaching the trees swerved somewhat to the right. It was now or never. John took aim at the nearest of the herd, which presented its flank to him. His first shot brought it down: the rest, raising their heads and looking round for a moment, galloped off; and Bill hurried forward with John to cut from the dead beast as much as he could carry.

It was by this time more than an hour since they had left the men; and since it would be at least another hour before they could overtake them, John decided to hurry back as soon as Bill had prepared his load. He was sitting at the edge of the clump of trees, clasping his knees, and watching Bill's deft movements a few yards away, when he heard a slight rustling behind him. Thinking it might be a lion or hyena attracted by the scent of the game, he sprang up, grasping his rifle, only to be thrown on to his back by the onset of near a score of yelling savages.

He had no opportunity of defending himself. His rifle had been knocked from his hand and was now in the possession of a tall Swahili, who grinned at him with malicious triumph as he lay on the ground, and ordered the savages to turn him over and tie his hands behind his back.

Meanwhile some of the party had dashed after the Wanderobbo, who had fled towards the river at the first alarm. The old man was soon caught; John was hoisted to his feet; and in a few minutes he had the mortification of knowing that he was being marched, a prisoner, in a direction the exact opposite of the fort.

The men were in an ecstasy of delight over their capture. They laughed and jabbered among themselves, but John was unable to recognize the dialect. He could not ask Bill who they were, for the crestfallen old man was kept at a distance from him. His hands also had been tied behind his back. John ventured once to speak to the Swahili, but the only answer was a grunt.

They marched on, with intervals for rest, but without food, for the rest of the day. The country became more and more hilly as they proceeded, but the Swahili, who led the way, was evidently familiar with it. Just before sunset they came in sight of a stockaded village, perched up on a hill, and surrounded by wide well-cultivated fields. The Swahili called a halt while they were still some distance from the stockade, and, leaving his prisoners in the charge of a dozen of the men, went forward with the rest to the gate. There he held a long parley with the villagers, whom John could see thronging the stockade. The Swahili turned several times and pointed towards him, and then the talk began again, with much excited gesturing. John could not guess the meaning of the pantomime; the only thing that was clear was that it had some reference to him. At length, when it was almost dark, the Swahili turned away from the gate and came back to the remainder of his party.

Whatever the subject of the discussion had been, the result was evidently satisfactory, for a contented smile overspread the man's swarthy face. He gave a curt order to the men: the prisoners were lifted from the ground where they had been laid, and urged towards the village with ungentle proddings from their captors' spears. They entered the gate and pa.s.sed through a vast throng of excited people.

John was now able to exchange a few words with Bill, who told him miserably that this was the village of the "bad men" who had destroyed the ivory caravan. There was no time for more; the two prisoners were again separated; amid yells from the men and shrieks of laughter from the women John was hustled into a noisome hut, and there left, tired and famished, to chew the cud of bitter reflection, amid the pressing attentions of innumerable pestilent insects.

"Here's a pretty go!" he thought. "I suppose they won't eat me, but what will they do? This Swahili is surely one of Juma's gang, but what is he doing here? If what Bill says is true, there'll be no love lost between Juma and these people. What a precious fool I've been! I wonder if those poor wretches with the hippo meat are collared too? Good heavens! if they get back safe to the fort, I hope Ferrier won't be mad enough to come to the rescue. If he does it's good-bye for us all. Oh!

_what_ a fool I am!"

To know one's folly is a stage towards wisdom: many men never get so far.

John groaned, and shook his head and body in a vain attempt to get rid of his persistent visitors. He tried to release his arms, but failed.

At last, exhausted by fatigue and want of food, and resigned to the stings he could not avoid, he fell into an uneasy sleep.

Next morning, as soon as it was light, he was taken out of the hut, his arms were unbound, and he was given a bunch of bananas, which he ate ravenously, surrounded by a chattering, grinning crowd of villagers, men, women, and children, who watched him curiously, making what he felt to be very personal remarks. He looked around for his companion in misfortune, but could not see him. He made signs that he was thirsty, and a girl brought him a gourd of a sweetish-bitter liquor, which he drained at a draught, and felt so silly that he wondered if he was drunk. Then there was a great shouting, and the men went away. On their departure the women drew nearer, touched his clothes and his bandolier and ran back giggling, pointed to his fair skin where his shirt was open at the neck, whereat he blushed and they shrieked. One sportive damsel tugged at the leather watch-chain attached to his belt, and screamed when his silver watch came out of its fob. He thought with a kind of fuddled amus.e.m.e.nt that he might impress them by letting them hear it tick, and when one came and tried to pull his hair, he held the watch to her ear, and she fled away screeching.

What was going on? he wondered. There was a great stirring in the village. A man pa.s.sed, and John saw that his face was hideously daubed with white, and his head surrounded with the skin of some animal. He carried a spear. Others similarly attired and armed came by. He got up to watch them more closely, and the spectators fell back and made a wide circle about him. Beyond them, in the centre of the village, men were thronging together. It flashed upon him in a moment: they were forming a war-party. The Swahili had come to enlist their aid. What inducements he had held out could only be guessed. Probably he had told them that a white man with great treasure was at their mercy. "Poor old Charley!" thought John: "it'll be a miracle if he isn't overwhelmed."

For one mad moment he thought of making a dash to the gate, only to realize that he would never reach it alive. He groaned aloud, and the wretched little urchins around mocked him, booing with vast enjoyment.

Then he saw the Swahili approaching with the chief in all his war-paint.

They stood opposite him, talking loud and fast, with many gesticulations. They were growing angry: what were they disputing about? The Swahili pointed in the direction of the fort: the chief shook his head and shouted. Could they be discussing whether to take him with them or leave him behind? With all his heart he hoped they would decide for the former course: he might perhaps escape from them when they approached the fort. But no: presently the Swahili sullenly gave way: John guessed that he felt that numbers were against him. What was his fate to be? Was he to be held as a hostage for the due fulfilment of promises held out? He could not tell. It was clear that he was to be left in the village.

The muster was complete. Amid a tremendous clamour the war-party moved towards the gate. With a sinking of the heart John guessed at their number: there must be three or four hundred. They marched out, the Swahili among them, leaving two of his party evidently to keep a watch on the prisoners--or the prisoner, for where was Bill? They had of course recognized him as a Wanderobbo: had they butchered him at once?

No: there he was, at the entrance of a small hut thirty yards away. John took courage at the sight of him. If he was spared, it must be because, being employed by white men, he might have some commercial value. It occurred to John now that Juma, the prime mover in these machinations, would probably stop short of the actual murder of a white man, and might hold him to ransom. But this did not relieve his anxiety about Ferrier.

The young Canadian would certainly not yield without a struggle, and in that struggle he might well lose his life.

The two men left on guard tied his hands again and took him back to his hut. John made them understand by signs that he did not wish to be cooped up in its foetid atmosphere, and they let him sit at the entrance, standing close by with their spears. He saw now that he was at the highest part of the village, overlooking a vast expanse of the lower country. There was the war-party, already a dark blot amid the green. He could see the river winding its way for miles and miles over the plain, until it became little more than a silver streak in the sunlight. Was it his fancy, or did he descry in the far distance the island like a black spot on a silver plate?

Suddenly he remembered that he had in his pocket the little mirror with which he had signalled to Ferrier on the march from the farm. Perhaps he could signal to him now--tell him of his plight, and warn him of the reinforcement of the enemy. The warning would be of little use to him, for he could not materially strengthen his defences; but it would at least show him the folly and the impossibility of attempting a rescue.

Neither his guards nor the villagers would understand what he was about.

He took the mirror from his pocket. The group of onlookers who had never left him came nearer: what was this piece of solid water that the msungu held?

A woman approached him shyly: he held the mirror up to her; she caught sight of a black smiling face with sharp-filed teeth, and ran away in consternation, screaming that it was a devil. As she stood explaining the marvel to her friends, John threw a flash among them: they covered their eyes, and flew like the wind. Then he turned the gla.s.s towards the fort, and began to make tentative flashes. The guards watched him, curiously, stolidly; what was the msungu doing? Again and again he caught the sunbeam, and turned the mirror this way and that. For a long time there was no answer: he feared the signal had not been seen. Still he persevered. The guards had ceased to pay any attention to him. At last he thought he saw a twinkling point of light. Yes: there it was again: Ferrier was flashing back. Then he began to spell out his message--

"Prisoner: large war-party coming towards you. Good luck!"

And presently, with much difficulty, for Ferrier's watchcase was a poor instrument, he read the answer. He could not be sure of it, but it seemed to be--

"Poor old chap! Never say die."

CHAPTER THE TWENTIETH--Shooting the Rapids

The curiosity of the villagers was lulled after a time, and they went about their usual occupations. The few men left lolled and loafed and played at knuckle-bones: the women went into the fields and returned loaded with vegetables. John found that he was not to be ill-treated; he was given food when the villagers had their meals, and n.o.body molested him. The guards dozed near by. But when night came it was clear that the men had had orders to watch him strictly. He was bound both hand and foot and taken into the hut, the two men remaining with the evident intention of keeping him company through the night. Before he entered he saw that Bill was not held of so much account. He too was bound, but to all appearance he was left to himself: indeed, the hut a.s.signed to him, half in ruins, was so small that there would scarcely have been room in it for another occupant.

John's discomfort this night sprang less from the insects, to which he had become inured, than from the proximity of his guards. Armed with spears, they did not trouble to keep awake, and he soon had proof that snoring is not, as Ferrier had suggested, an accomplishment only of civilized races. They might have been trumpeters! He lay oppressed in the hot stifling air. Deep silence reigned in the village.

Escape! Why not try? The gate would be unguarded: the negro never keeps watch unless he is on the war-path, and even then very slackly. If he once gained the outside, he would have at least some hours in which to make good his flight. His guards might wake; they might or might not discover that he had gone; if they did miss him, it would be contrary to their instinct and their custom if they pursued him in the dark. There was Bill to be considered: he must not be left behind. But the first thing was to rid himself of his bonds, and that would be no easy matter.

Lying still to think out his plan, he saw a chance. All was hushed, but for the tempestuous snores. It was pitch dark. The guards lay together near the entrance. With careful movements he rolled and edged and wriggled across the floor until he knew that he was within a few inches of the men. Then, groping with his bound wrists, he sought for a spear.

He touched it, grasped it, drew it gently towards him. It resisted: the guard was lying half upon it. He pulled it again: the snoring ceased with a sudden snap, and John thought it was all over. But there was a grunt; the man turned heavily on his side; and the music began again.

The spear was now freed. By careful manoeuvring John got the head between his knees, and holding it fast, began to saw the thongs that bound his wrists. The weapon was sharp: the strands parted; he rubbed the skin to relieve the smarting pain, and then, with two sharp cuts, released his ankles.

He stood erect and listened. Only those horn-blasts at his feet. He peered through the entrance. The darkness without was scarcely less than within. Carefully, and with a shiver of apprehension, John stepped over the two stretched forms, in nervous terror lest he should plant a foot on one of them. He gained the entrance, glancing warily to right and left, and stepped into the open, snuffing greedily at the cool air.

The village was asleep, calm as the stars twinkling overhead.

The tumble-down hut in which Bill lay was thirty yards nearer to the gate. Four huts intervened. John crept round to the back of them and stole along on tip-toe. He came to the fifth hut, which was separated from the fourth by a pa.s.sage a yard wide. Groping down this, he reached the entrance, and after another look round, put his head within. All was silent. Perhaps the Wanderobbo tribe did not snore! He called the man's name softly.

"Bwana!" whispered Bill.

In a trice John was beside him. In ten seconds he had cut the ropes. In twenty both were at the back of the hut. Now Bill took the lead. He plunged into a banana plantation behind the line of huts, and made his way swiftly towards the stockade. They came to the gate: it was unguarded. Being merely a sort of strong hurdle of thorn, held in position by a few logs, its removal was easy. They pa.s.sed out, and lifted the gate back to its former position, though, of course, they were unable to fasten it. They then ran across the stretch of trodden gra.s.s outside the village, down the hill towards the river.

Far to the left a lion roared, and John heard his companion utter the strange gulping sound which in the negro indicates fright. A night journey in these wilds was a perilous undertaking. They had one spear between them, a paltry weapon if they should be pounced upon by some beast of prey. There was just enough light from the stars to enable them to choose the opener ground, avoiding bush and trees in which wild beasts might lurk. They moved fast, for John had set his heart on reaching the neighbourhood of the fort before dawn. There were few able-bodied men left in the village, but these would turn out in the morning as soon as the escape was discovered, and scour the surrounding country. This was reason enough for haste, but there was another. If they did not succeed in entering the fort before daylight, it would probably be impossible until the following night. The attack in all likelihood had not yet been made; the villagers would scarcely attempt it after their long march; John's whole mind was set on standing by Ferrier's side when the a.s.sault came.

On they went, running when the ground permitted. Every now and then John had to stop for Bill's sake, the poor old man, weakened by terror and hunger (John discovered afterwards that he had had no food all day), being unequal to the pace. Presently, in descending too rapidly a sharp declivity, John slipped and sprained himself. When he started again every movement was painful. To go at any great speed was now impossible. Still he pushed on, grudging every lost minute of the night.

He could not tell what the time was; it was too dark to see his watch.

His pain grew worse at every step, and though he limped along gamely, he had at length to confess himself done, and sank to the ground. His distress of mind was as great as that of his body. Was he doomed to fail? As he crouched miserably in the gra.s.s he heard the swirling of the river close at his right hand. He would go to it and bathe his aching legs. Bill expostulated: there were sure to be crocodiles; but John would not be gainsaid. He dragged himself towards the river, and sat down to rest on a small tree-trunk which had apparently been washed ash.o.r.e. In the faint light he saw others dotted about. An idea flashed upon him. Could they make a raft? Bill had never heard of such a thing: John did not know if there was a word for it. But he made him understand that he was to collect some of the smaller logs, and then to lash them together with strands of the creeping plants which grew in abundance around. It was hard work and slow in the darkness, John himself being unable to move freely; but at length something in the semblance of a raft lay beside him. Rising with difficulty, he helped Bill to carry it the few yards to the water; then, peering around for crocodiles, which they would hardly have seen if any had lain there, they launched the raft and managed to scramble on board, each carrying a branch to steer with. The current was swift; there was no need for paddling; and thus, perched precariously on their crazy craft, they floated down the stream.

At times they heard movements on one bank or the other. Once they heard the horrid snap of a crocodile's jaws. A little farther on the raft b.u.mped against something; there was a swirl of water, and John went hot and cold at the suspicion that they had collided with a hippopotamus.

The current bore them past in safety, to his inexpressible relief; one heave of the monster's body would have turned them over.

So they went on, how long John could not tell. The darkness seemed to be lifting: from the banks came sounds of awakening life: where were they? The river was flowing more swiftly; it was racing; and John suddenly realized with a gasp that he had entered the rapids at the head of the pool. With frantic movements of the paddles they tried to steer into the bank; but the current was too much for them; the lumbering craft was swept along at ever quickening speed; they were helpless.

Dropping their paddles--the spear was already gone--they held on for dear life to the lashings. Some of them snapped: one of the outer logs was wrenched away; the raft whirled round, and every moment John expected it to break apart and hurl them into the race. Still he clung on with convulsive grip. Bill was flat on his face with his hands over the edge. On they went, jerked and jarred, until with startling suddenness they were shot over a rock, and found themselves floating on the pool.

The raft was almost in pieces, but it floated more slowly towards the island. John's relief at finding himself and his companion yet alive was dashed by a new anxiety. Dawn was glimmering in the sky. If they were not rescued they would float through the pool to the longer and even more dangerous series of rapids at the further end. They might be seen by the enemy on the bank. He could not swim to the fort; his whole body was stiff and racked with pain; his limbs would fail him. The raft was drifting past the fort; very slowly, for it was no longer in the middle of the current; but being without anything to serve as a paddle, the two could do nothing to check its steady progress towards the lower rapids. There was only one chance. He called to Bill to shout at the top of his voice, and putting two fingers to his lips, he blew a shrill whistle which no white man would fail to recognize. In a moment there came an answering whistle from the fort. Dimly he saw figures at the wall. He shouted: a cheery cry answered him: and in a few moments he saw Ferrier and four men lug a canoe to the gate and put off to the rescue.

But the whistle and the shouts had been heard by the enemy, who were already astir. John could not yet see them, but he heard their yells, and knew that they were swarming towards the pool.

"All right, old man, we've got the start of them," cried Ferrier, as the canoe rapidly approached.

It was a race between the canoe and the current, between the rescuers and the enemy. A shot rang out: a flight of arrows hissed into the water. The raft was drifting within range of the enemy; but in the half-darkness and against the background of wood on the sh.o.r.e the small floating object offered but an indifferent mark. Had the day been even a few minutes older the occupants of the raft would have stood a poor chance against the arrows, to say nothing of the rifles, of the crowd that could now be seen flitting like shadows round the margin of the pool. The greatest source of alarm, however, was not the imperfect shooting of the enemy, but the rapids to which the raft was drawing ever nearer. Weakened as it was by its pa.s.sage of the upper rapids, it was inconceivable that it could survive the second and far more formidable strain. The rush of the water could already be heard; the movement of the raft was perceptibly quickening. Would Ferrier arrive in time? And if he did overtake the raft, would he too not run a fearful risk of being drawn into the stream and hurled along in utter helplessness? The shouts from the sh.o.r.e redoubled in volume; arrows flew more and more thickly; and John had almost yielded to despair when the canoe shot up alongside at an amazing pace. Some one grasped the raft; the crew backed water with all their might. Bill plunged into the water and scrambled on board the canoe.

"I can't move; I've ricked myself," cried John. "You must lug me in."