The Survivors of the Chancellor: Chapter 32

Chapter 32

CHAPTER XXXII.

DECEMBER 8th to 17th.--When night came we wrapped ourselves in
our sails.  For my own part, worn out with the fatigue of the
long watch in the top-mast, I slept for several hours; M.
Letourneur and Andre did the same, and Miss Herbey obtained
sufficient rest to relieve the tired expression that her
countenance had lately been wearing.  The night passed quietly.
As the raft was not very heavily laden the waves did not break
over it at all, and we were consequently able to keep ourselves
perfectly dry.  To say the truth, it was far better for us that
the sea should remain somewhat boisterous, for any diminution in
the swell of the waves would indicate that; the wind had dropped,
and it was with a feeling of regret that when the morning came I
had to note down "weather calm" in my journal.

In these low latitudes the heat in the day-time is so intense,
and the sun burns with such an incessant glare, that the entire
atmosphere becomes pervaded with a glowing vapour.  The wind,
too, blows only in fitful gusts and through long intervals of
perfect calm the sails flap idly and uselessly against the mast.
Curtis and the boatswain, however, are of opinion that we are not
entirely dependent on the wind.  Certain indications, which a
sailor's eye alone could detect, make them almost sure that we
are being carried along by a westerly current, that flows at the
rate of three or four miles an hour.  If they are not mistaken,
this is a circumstance that may materially assist our progress,
and at which we can hardly fail to rejoice, for the high
temperature often makes our scanty allowance of water quite
inadequate to allay our thirst.

But with all our hardships I must confess that our condition is
far preferable to what it was when we were still clinging to the
"Chancellor."  Here at least we have a comparatively solid
platform beneath our feet, and we are relieved from the incessant
dread of being carried down with a foundering vessel.  In the
day-time we can move about with a certain amount of freedom,
discuss the weather, watch the sea, and examine our fishing-
lines; whilst at night we can rest securely under the shelter of
our sails.

"I really think, Mr. Kazallon," said Andre Letourneur to me a few
days after we had embarked, "that our time on board the raft
passes as pleasantly as it did upon Ham Rock; and the raft has
one advantage even over the reef, for it is capable of motion."

"Yes, Andre," replied, "as long as the wind continues favourable
the raft has decidedly the advantage; but supposing the wind
shifts, what then?"

"Oh, we mustn't think about that," he said; "let us keep up our
courage while we can."

I felt that he was right, and that the dangers we had escaped
should make us more hopeful for the future; and I think that
nearly all of us are inclined to share his opinion.

Whether the captain is equally sanguine I am unable to say.  He
holds himself very much aloof, and as he evidently feels that he
has the great responsibility of saving other lives than his own,
we are reluctant to disturb his silent meditations.

Such of the crew as are not on watch spend the greater portion of
their time in dozing on the fore part of the raft.  The aft, by
the captain's orders, has been reserved for the use of us
passengers, and by erecting some uprights we have contrived to
make a sort of tent, which affords some shelter from the burning
sun.  On the whole our bill of health is tolerably satisfactory.
Lieutenant Walter is the only invalid, and he, in spite of all
our careful nursing, seems to get weaker every day.

Andre Letourneur is the life of our party, and I have never
appreciated the young man so well.  His originality of perception
makes his conversation both lively and entertaining and as he
talks, his wan and suffering countenance lights up with an
intelligent animation.  His father seems to become more devoted
to him than ever, and I have seen him sit for an hour at a time,
with his hand resting on his son's, listening eagerly to his
every word.

Miss Herbey occasionally joins in our conversation, but although
we all do our best to make her forget that she has lost those who
should have been her natural protectors, M. Letourneur is the
only one amongst us to whom she speaks without a certain reserve.
To him, whose age gives him something of the authority of a
father, she has told the history of her life--a life of patience
and self-denial such as not unfrequently falls to the lot of
orphans.  She had been, she said, two years with Mrs. Kear, and
although now left alone in the world, homeless and without
resources, hope for the future does not fail her.  The young
lady's modest deportment and energy of character command the
respect of all on board, and I do not think that even the
coarsest of the sailors has either by word or gesture acted
towards her in a way that she could deem offensive.

The 12th, 13th, and 14th of December passed away without any
change in our condition.  The wind continued to blow in irregular
gusts, but always in the same direction, and the helm, or rather
the paddle at the back of the raft has never once required
shifting; and the watch, who are posted on the fore, under orders
to examine the sea with the most scrupulous attention, have had
no change of any kind to report.

At the end of a week we found ourselves growing accustomed to our
limited diet, and as we had no manual exertion, and no wear and
tear of our physical constitution, we managed very well.  Our
greatest deprivation was the short supply of water, for, as I
said before, the unmitigated heat made our thirst at times very
painful.

On the 15th we held high festival.  A shoal of fish, of the
sparus tribe, swarmed round the raft, and although our tackle
consisted merely of long cords baited with morsels of dried meat
stuck upon bent nails, the fish were so voracious that in the
course of a couple of days we had caught as many as weighed
almost 200lbs., some of which were grilled, and others boiled in
sea-water over a fire made on the fore part of the raft.  This
marvellous haul was doubly welcome, inasmuch as it not only
afforded us a change of diet, but enabled us to economize our
stores; if only some rain had fallen at the same time we should
have been more than satisfied.

Unfortunately the shoal of fish did not remain long in our
vicinity.  On the 17th they all disappeared, and some sharks, not
less than twelve or fifteen feet long, belonging to the species
of spotted dog-fish, took their place.  These horrible creatures
have black backs and fins, covered with white spots and stripes.
Here, on our low raft, we seem almost on a level with them, and
more than once their tails have struck the spars with terrible
violence.  The sailors manage to keep them at a distance by means
of handspikes, but I shall not be surprised if they persist in
following us, instinctively intelligent that we are destined to
become their prey.  For myself, I confess that they give me a
feeling of uneasiness; they seem to me like monsters of ill-omen.

Back to chapter list of: The Survivors of the Chancellor