Part 2 (1/2)

”Yes, that must be it,” replied Lord Glenarvan. ”But where are the poor fellows? We have not the slightest indication of the place, meantime, nor of where the catastrophe happened.”

”Perhaps the French copy will be more explicit,” suggested Lady Helena.

”Here it is, then,” said Lord Glenarvan, ”and that is in a language we all know.”

The words it contained were these:

troi ats tannia gonie austral abor contin pr cruel indi jete ongit et 37 degrees 11” LAT

”There are figures!” exclaimed Lady Helena. ”Look!”

”Let us go steadily to work,” said Lord Glenarvan, ”and begin at the beginning. I think we can make out from the incomplete words in the first line that a three-mast vessel is in question, and there is little doubt about the name; we get that from the fragments of the other papers; it is the BRITANNIA. As to the next two words, GONIE and AUSTRAL, it is only AUSTRAL that has any meaning to us.”

”But that is a valuable sc.r.a.p of information,” said John Mangles. ”The s.h.i.+pwreck occurred in the southern hemisphere.”

”That's a wide world,” said the Major.

”Well, we'll go on,” resumed Glenarvan. ”Here is the word ABOR; that is clearly the root of the verb ABORDER. The poor men have landed somewhere; but where? CONTIN--does that mean continent? CRUEL!”

”CRUEL!” interrupted John Mangles. ”I see now what GRAUS is part of in the second doc.u.ment. It is GRAUSAM, the word in German for CRUEL!”

”Let's go on,” said Lord Glenarvan, becoming quite excited over his task, as the incomplete words began to fill up and develop their meaning. ”INDI,--is it India where they have been s.h.i.+pwrecked? And what can this word ONGIT be part of? Ah! I see--it is LONGITUDE; and here is the lat.i.tude, 37 degrees 11”. That is the precise indication at last, then!”

”But we haven't the longitude,” objected McNabbs.

”But we can't get everything, my dear Major; and it is something at all events, to have the exact lat.i.tude. The French doc.u.ment is decidedly the most complete of the three; but it is plain enough that each is the literal translation of the other, for they all contain exactly the same number of lines. What we have to do now is to put together all the words we have found, and translate them into one language, and try to ascertain their most probable and logical sense.”

”Well, what language shall we choose?” asked the Major.

”I think we had better keep to the French, since that was the most complete doc.u.ment of the three.”

”Your Lords.h.i.+p is right,” said John Mangles, ”and besides, we're all familiar with the language.”

”Very well, then, I'll set to work.”

In a few minutes he had written as follows:

7 Juin 1862 trois-mats Britannia Glasgow sombre gonie austral a terre deux matelots capitaine Gr abor contin pr cruel indi jete ce doc.u.ment de longitude et 37 degrees 11” de lat.i.tude Portez-leur secours perdus.

[7th of June, 1862 three-mast BRITANNIA Glasgow]

foundered gonie southern on the coast two sailors Gr Captain landed contin pr cruel indi thrown this doc.u.ment in longitude and 37 degrees 11” lat.i.tude Bring them a.s.sistance lost

Just at that moment one of the sailors came to inform the captain that they were about entering the Firth of Clyde, and to ask what were his orders.

”What are your Lords.h.i.+p's intentions?” said John Mangles, addressing Lord Glenarvan.

”To get to Dunbarton as quickly as possible, John; and Lady Helena will return to Malcolm Castle, while I go on to London and lay this doc.u.ment before the Admiralty.”

The sailor received orders accordingly, and went out to deliver them to the mate.