The Quest Of The 'Golden Hope' Part 26

This done, it was thought prudent to dismantle and evacuate the stockade.

The ordnance was removed and taken aboard the brig; the powder, of which we had a considerable reserve, was carefully stowed in her magazines. Silas Touchstone had proposed to destroy the stockade and the buildings within it by fire, but to this proposal Captain Jeremy refused to give his consent, observing that they might be useful to any castaways who might have the misfortune to land on the island.

The small craft that had been taken from the buccaneers after their rout by Silas Touchstone were beached as far as possible in the most secluded part of the harbour. Though the wind and the sun would ere long reduce them to mere wrecks, Captain Jeremy, in his humanity, thought they might also be of service to others.

Then, having watered the ship, filling all the available barricoes in addition to the tanks, for we knew not whether to make straight for home or to put into Port Royal, we prepared to spend our last night in the harbour of Treasure Island. Accordingly, having, as we thought, finally severed our connection with the sh.o.r.e, we hoisted in our boats, preparatory to making a start at dawn.

About an hour after sunset I was pacing the deck, when I heard a hail from sh.o.r.e: "_Golden Hope_, ahoy!"

Several of the watch on deck also caught the cry, but, too astonished to reply, they crowded to the bulwarks and listened with awestruck feelings for a repet.i.tion of the hail.

Again the shout, "_Golden Hope_, ahoy!" pierced the darkness.

"Who can it be?" muttered one of the men. "All hands are aboard, for they were mustered just before eight bells."

"I like it not," replied another, with a shudder. "'Tis the ghosts of the slain men. We'll never reach home after this."

"Run and tell the Cap'n," suggested a third, with more good sense than his comrades.

Just as Captain Jeremy came on deck the hail was again repeated.

"Who are ye, and what d'ye want?" shouted our Captain. He, too, was puzzled by the mysterious cry. Something was shouted in reply, but the words were unintelligible.

"Lower away a boat," ordered Captain Jeremy curtly.

The men moved aft to obey, obviously with reluctance.

"What are ye afraid of?" demanded our commander. "I'll go ash.o.r.e in her. Take arms and a lantern, and we'll soon sift this business."

The boat was lowered and the falls cleared, and the men, tumbling into her, brought her round to the gangway. Here Captain Jeremy stepped into the stern sheets, whither I followed, eager to solve the mystery.

When within twenty yards of the sh.o.r.e the boat was turned till her stern pointed landwards. Captain Jeremy stood up, striving by the aid of the lantern that one of the men held behind him to penetrate the darkness. I could distinguish a knot of men close to the water's edge.

"Who are ye, and what d'ye want?" repeated Captain Jeremy.

"We've come back," replied a voice that I failed to recognize. Then, after a pause, it continued: "Tom Cherry and the long-boat's crew."

"Run her ash.o.r.e, men," shouted Captain Jeremy excitedly, and as the boat's forepart grounded on the shingle our men jumped out to welcome those who we thought were dead.

They were all present, nine all told, but with what a change in their appearance! Even the yellow light of the lantern failed to disguise the pale, gaunt features of Tom Cherry and his men. Their clothes were in rags, and shoes they had none, though most of the poor fellows had their feet bound with strips of cloth.

"The boat's safe enow, sir," exclaimed Cherry feebly, as he raised his hand to the salute with an effort. "She's----"

"Never mind that," replied our Captain. "Get aboard as fast as you can, and don't say another word till you are fed and rested."

'Twas easy to order the men to hasten aboard the boat, but so weak were they that they had to be a.s.sisted over the gunwale, while, to get them over the side of the _Golden Hope_, a bos'n's chair had to be rigged. At length they were safely aboard, where it was painful to see the poor wretches devour the food that was given them. Had they had their will, they would a.s.suredly have killed themselves by their ravenousness; but having supplied them with small quant.i.ties of broth, Captain Jeremy ordered them to be placed in their hammocks and fed again in an hour's time.

The return of Cherry and the long-boat's crew prevented our sailing at the appointed time, for since their craft was, according to the gallant c.o.xswain, "safe and sound", Captain Jeremy decided to bring it back to the ship, as it was the most useful boat we carried.

The sufferers recovered sufficiently by the morning to tell us of their hazardous adventures. When caught by the squall they were swept to leeward of the _Neptune_ just as she disappeared, but were unable to save any of the mutineers. Every moment they expected to find themselves struggling in the water, for the boat was being carried right over the shoals, on which the breakers were falling heavily. But for the presence of mind of Tom Cherry, who ordered the mast and sail to be lashed to the gra.s.s rope and thrown overboard, so that the boat's head was kept to the crested waves, the long-boat would not have kept afloat. As it was, this floating anchor acted as a kind of breakwater, much of the force of the waves being expended ere they pa.s.sed under the boat. Even then several seas broke over it, necessitating continuous bailing.

Ere the rain squall ceased they had been carried past the south-western extremity of the island, where, being more under the lee of the land, and the sea being deeper, the waves did not run so high. Nevertheless, in their exhausted condition, they could not make headway, and when two oars broke they were compelled to let themselves drift, riding in comparative safety to their sea anchor.

During the night the wind dropped and the sea subsided, but being without a compa.s.s and unable to see the island in the darkness, they had to drift about till nearly two hours after midnight. Then, the sky becoming clear, they were enabled to take a rough bearing by the stars. Dawn found them with the island nearly below the horizon, but after five hours' hard and laborious pulling they managed to land at a little cove at the south end.

Here they found a path leading northwards, and after several hours'

walk, during which time they made a sorry meal of berries and water, they recognized their road as being the same as we had taken when we recovered the treasure. After great privations, and filled with fears that the _Golden Hope_ had sailed, they managed to struggle through the forest by the path we had made during our first expedition into the interior, and arrived at the sh.o.r.e, having lost their way more than once in the intense darkness.

During the day one of our boats was dispatched to bring back the long-boat. As Cherry had reported, she was practically undamaged, and with a favourable breeze both craft were alongside the brig well before sunset.

At daybreak on the following morning the welcome order to weigh was given, and as the capstan revolved to the cheery song of the seamen the anchor came home, after an acquaintance of nearly two years with the bed of the bay.

The wind had again backed, and blew lightly from the north'ard, so that it was unwise to attempt to beat through the shorter and more recently discovered channel that pa.s.sed inside the shoal on which I had had such a hazardous adventure.

Nevertheless, we negotiated the bends of the other pa.s.sage in safety, thanks to the replacement of the navigation mark on sh.o.r.e, though everyone was anxious till the lead gave a depth of forty fathoms.

An hour later the highest peak of Treasure Island had vanished 'neath the horizon. We were homeward bound.

CHAPTER x.x.x

The Last of my Sworn Enemy

That same day the wind, hitherto mainly from the north'ard, suddenly changed, and blew freshly from the south-west. Nevertheless, as we were in the joint current caused by the union of the North Equatorial and the Canaries' Stream, our progress was slow.

Neither could we hope for long to be favoured by the breeze, as we were in the zone of the north-east Trades; so Captain Jeremy decided to skirt the windward side of the Lesser Antilles and the Bahama Islands, and thus gain the double advantage of the Gulf Stream and the prevailing south-westerly winds off the coast of North America.

Having progressed thus far, the proposal at one time talked of to repair to Port Royal was given over, and our first place of call was to be the Bermudas.

'Enery was now relegated to the post of first mate. He seemed quite content with the reversal of his position, since he hoped, should he reach England safely, to purchase an interest in a ship, and sail in command.

I do not believe that there was a discontented man on the ship.

Thanks to our good fortune, the individual share of the treasure would be considerable, and everyone was in high glee; and as each hour brought us nearer to Old England's sh.o.r.es, the men's spirits rose to such an extent that I wondered what they would be like when they set foot in Poole once more.

On the third day of our homeward voyage we were sailing close-hauled on the larboard tack, with the island of Barbuda just visible away to windward.

The day was hot and sultry, and, the breeze being light, the _Golden Hope_ was barely doing more than two knots.

Suddenly there was a shout from the look-out on the fo'c'sle that a small craft was in sight. As this served to break the monotony, there was a rush for'ard to see what kind of vessel it might be.

"It's a deserted boat," exclaimed Clemens, who had s.n.a.t.c.hed up a telescope. "At least, I can perceive no one in her."

As the _Golden Hope_ was heading almost straight for the derelict, a very slight alteration in her course would bring her close alongside, so Captain Jeremy ordered this to be effected.

"There's a man in her, a-lyin' with his head over the side," shouted a seaman. "I can see him moving his arm."