Part 2 (1/2)
”We can settle that another time,” answered the captain, ”and to your satisfaction Until to-morrow, then--”
”Until to-morrow”
I stretched out ain Perhaps he did not perceive my movement in the darkness, at all events he ot into his boat
I was greatly surprised, and so was Arkins, when I found hi-room of the Green Cormorant and told him what had occurred His comment upon it was characteristic
”This queer captain,” he said, ”is as full of whie hisat daybreak I bade adieu to the Green Cormorant, and went down to the port, withme to the shi+p, partly in order tothe sincerity of the captain's repentance, and partly that he uerly A boat aiting at the quay, and we reached the shi+p in a few minutes
The first person whoave me a look of triumph, which said as plainly as speech: ”Ha! you see now Our hard-to-iven in at last And to whoood boatsho did his best for you, and did not boast over reasons for doubting it After all, what did it matter?
Captain Len Guy came on deck i, except for the fact that he did not appear to remark my presence
Atkins then approached the captain and said in a pleasant tone,-- ”We shall meet next year!”
”If it please God, Atkins”
They shook hands Then the boatswain took a hearty leave of the innkeeper, and was rowed back to the quay
Before dark the white sual, which rise, the former to two, the other to three thousand feet above the level of the sea, had disappeared frouelen Isles to Prince Edward Island
Never did a voyage begin er start in better spirits The interior of the Halbrane corresponded with its exterior Nothing could exceed the perfect order, the Dutch cleanliness of the vessel The captain's cabin, and that of the lieutenant, one on the port, the other on the starboard side, were fitted up with a narrow berth, a cupboard anything but capacious, an ar, various nautical instruments, a barometer, a thermometer, a chronometer, and a sextant in its oaken box One of the two other cabins was prepared to receive th, five in breadth I was accustoencies of sea life, and could do with its narrow proportions, also with its furniture--a table, a cupboard, a cane-bottostand on an iron pedestal, and a berth to which a less accoer would doubtless have objected The passage would be a short one, however, so I took possession of that cabin, which I was to occupy for only four, or at the worst five weeks, with entire content
The eight men who co-, and Stern--sailors all betweet twenty-five and thirty-five years old--all Englishmen, well trained, and remarkably well disciplined by a hand of iron
Let , the exceptionally able esture, was not the captain of the Halbrane; that man was the second officer, Jae
James West was born on the sea, and had passed his childhood on board a lighter belonging to his father, and on which the whole family lived Ail his life he had breathed the salt air of the English Channel, the Atlantic, or the Pacific He never went ashore except for the needs of his service, whether of the State or of trade If he had to leave one shi+p for another heto the latter, fro in reality he was sailing in i been shi+p's boy, novice, sailor, he became quartermaster, master, and finally lieutenant of the Halbrane, and he had already served for ten years as second in command under Captain Len Guy
Jaher rise; he did not want toor selling of cargoes; but everything connected with that ad shi+p, James West understood to perfection
The personal appearance of the lieutenant was as follows:liyhtedness and surprising penetration, sunburnt face, hair thick and short, beardless cheeks and chin, regular features, the whole expression denoting energy, courage, and physical strength at their utmost tension
Jaave his orders in a clear voice, not repeating them, but so as to be heard at once, and he was understood I call attention to this typical omcer of the Merchant Marine, as devoted body and soul to Captain Len Guy as to the schooner ffalhrane He seeans of his shi+p, and if the Halbrane had a heart it was in James West's breast that it beat
There is but one ro froe, who had held that post for eight years The boatswain and he were great friends, and indulged in frequent talks
Life on board was very regular, very simple, and itsis repose inin a dream, and I did not dislike my isolation Of course I should have liked to find out why Captain Len Guy had changed his mind with respect to me; but hoas this to be done? To question the lieutenant would have been loss of time Besides, was he in possession of the secrets of his chief? It was no part of his business to be so, and I had observed that he did not occupy hied between hi the two e, however, that I frequently caught the captain's eyes fixed upon h he had so to learn fro to learn from him But ere both silent
Had I felt the need of talking to soht have resorted to the boatswain, as always disposed to chatter; but what had he to say that could interestin most prolix fashi+on, but beyond these courtesies I did not feel disposed to go
The good weather lasted, and on the 18th of August, in the afternoon, the look-out discerned the roup The next day we passed Possession Island, which is inhabited only in the fishi+ng season At this period the only dwellers there are flocks of penguins, and the birds which whalers call ”white pigeons”
The approach to land is always interesting at sea It occurred to ht take this opportunity of speaking to his passenger; but he did not
We should see land, that is to say the peaks of Marion and Prince Edward Islands, before arriving at Tristan d'Acunha, but it was there the Halbrane was to take in a fresh supply of water I concluded therefore that the e would continue unbroken to the end But, on the ust, to my extreme surprise, Captain Len Guy ca very low,-- ”Sir, I have so to say to you”
”I am ready to hear you, captain”
”I have not spoken until to-day, for I aain, but after a pause, continued with an effort,-- ”Mr Jeorling, have you tried to discover e?”
”I have tried, but I have not succeeded, captain Perhaps, as I am not a compatriot of yours, you--”
”It is precisely because you are an Ae on the Halbrane”
”Because I am an American?”
”Also, because you come from Connecticut”
”I don't understand”
”You will understand if I add that I thought it possible, since you belong to Connecticut, since you have visited Nantucket Island, that you ht have known the faar Poe's romance?”
”The same His narrative was founded upon the manuscript in which the details of that extraordinary and disastrous voyage across the ARtarctic Sea was related”
I thought I ar Poe's roination by the most brilliant of our A that fiction as a reality
I could not answer hi myself what manner of man was this one hom I had to deal
”You have heard my question?” persisted the captain
”Yes, yes, captain, certainly, but I am not sure that I quite understand”
”I will put it to you more plainly I ask you whether in Connecticut you personally knew the Pym family who lived in Nantucket Island? Arthur Pym's father was one of the principal merchants there, he was a Navv contractor It was his son who embarked in the adventures which he related with his own lips to Edgar Poe--”
”Captain! Why, that story is due to the powerful ireat poet It is a pure invention”
”So, then, you don't believe it, Mr Jeorling?” said the captain, shrugging his shoulders three times