Part 18 (1/2)

Elizabeth remained standing where she was, utterly puzzled. What could there possibly have been in what she had said to offend him? and offended he certainly was by the tone of voice in which he was giving his orders, and the expression of his face as he stood there by the wheel with his hand in the breast of his pea-jacket--she felt certain it was clenched there. It was really too unreasonable--the idea of his being jealous of a s.h.i.+p! This uncertainty about every word she spoke now was getting absolutely insupportable, and with a toss of her head she determined that she would stand it no longer, but would speak her mind to him once for all, whether it should lead to a scene or not.

No opportunity, however, for carrying out her intention occurred during the remainder of the afternoon. There appeared to be bad weather coming up, and many of the sails had to be taken in; and afterwards he paced up and down by the round-house forward for a couple of hours, purposely, as she could see, avoiding her. The crew apparently had an impression, too, that it was as well to keep out of his way, as they left him that side of the deck to himself, and stood talking in knots about the capstan, with their oilskin coats and sou'westers on, in antic.i.p.ation of dirty weather, and casting anxious glances from time to time at the banks of cloud that were rolling up darkly from the horizon to leeward, and sending already a whine through the old rigging above them. They waited impatiently for the word to take in more sail, as it was obvious that they must go with storm sails only for the night.

It was only at the last moment apparently that Salve made up his mind, for when he suddenly shouted over to them to take in topsails and put a couple of reefs in the mainsail, the storm was already upon them. He sprang aft at the same time and seized the trumpet, saying shortly and harshly to Elizabeth as he pa.s.sed her hurriedly, and almost without looking at her--

”This is not weather for sitting up on deck, Elizabeth. You had better take the child below and lie down.”

Elizabeth saw that he was right, and went; but there was a look of pained surprise in her face as she lingered for a moment and looked after him. He had never spoken to her like that before.

The crew had supposed that he would of course keep away and run before the gale, and not strain the old brig by beating to windward in such a night as they saw before them; and it was under mute protest, therefore, that they proceeded to carry out his orders to clap on preventer braces on the rags of sail which they were carrying. The old blocks creaked and screamed in the increasing darkness above the rattle of the hail squalls, and the vessel careened over and went plunging into the head seas with successive shocks that seemed likely very soon to shake her to pieces.

Nils Buvaagen was standing in moody silence, with another, at the wheel, and he could see by the light from the binnacle, which occasionally fell upon Salve's face as he walked up and down near them to leeward, that he was ashy pale. He would have liked to say something, but it didn't seem advisable.

”Topsail's flapping!” came from forward, ”she'll be taken aback!”

”She's an old craft, captain--her topmasts'll not bear a great deal,”

Nils ventured to observe.

”I'll show you that I can make the old tub go,” muttered Salve between his teeth, affecting not to have heard what was said.

”Keep her away, Nils--she must have more way--and so over on a new tack,” was his reply in a peremptory tone.

”Stand by to 'bout s.h.i.+p!”

Nils sighed: such sailing was quite indefensible; and there was not one of the crew who had not the same feeling.

Through the darkness and the blinding dash of the seas came then at intervals--

”Haul in the boom--hard a-lee--brace forward--brace aft!” and here there was a longer interval, for one of the ropes on the foremast had apparently got foul, and there was a difficulty in bracing the yard, the sail flapping with a dull noise above and making the whole mast tremble.

One of the crew had to mount the old rigging at the risk of his life, and feel over the unsteady yard in the dark for the rope and disentangle it, with the white tops of the seas breaking not far under his feet.

”Sharp up aft--sharp forward!” came then again. ”Haul the jib-sheet!”

but no sooner was the jib hauled taut and made fast, than it broke loose and hung fluttering wildly about the stay until it gradually twisted itself up into a tangle.

The sails filled on the new tack; but they were not much better off than before, the sea breaking over them with such violence that the deck, from amids.h.i.+ps forward, was only pa.s.sable with the greatest difficulty and danger. The crew began to think the captain must have taken leave of his senses; and, in fact, Salve was not himself that night. He was sailing in this reckless way in a mere fit of temper intensified by the consciousness of his own unreasonableness. Elizabeth made a mistake, he told himself by way of justification, if she thought that he on board his poor brig gave in to any officer in the navy, let him be who he might. She should see that he, too, was a man who could beat--he required no North Star under him, he would perform the same feat in a leaky old barge.

A couple of times when the cook, who looked after Elizabeth's wants, came up the cabin stairs, Salve inquired how she was getting on, and heard each time that she was sitting up not yet undressed. The last time the good-natured cook had added--

”She wants badly to see you, captain--she isn't accustomed to this sort of thing.”

He made no reply further than a scornful contraction of his features which was not visible to the other, and resumed his staggering walk to leeward, between the companion and the wheel.

Elizabeth meanwhile had been sitting a prey to most distracted thoughts.

When she went below with her child, she had a dull feeling at her heart that some great sorrow had come or was coming over her, and she had sat for some time almost without the power to think. He had never treated her like that before.

She set about putting the child to bed then in her usual way, as if she had been a mere machine. For him the rolling berth was only a rocking cradle, and he was soon sleeping quietly without an idea of danger. She stood with her arm leaning over the edge of the berth, supporting him, and gazing on his dimpled face; the lamp that swung to and fro under the beam, shedding a dim light over the narrow cabin, with its small table, and pegs full of seamen's clothes, moving solemnly backwards and forwards on the wall. Between the creaking of the s.h.i.+p's timbers and the noise of ropes being dragged across the deck, Salve's voice could be heard in harsh tones of command, and every now and then there would be a sudden concussion that would make the whole vessel shake, and the floor would seem to go from under her feet, so that she had to hold on by the rail of the berth, and keep the child from falling out as best she could at the same time. Whenever they had had such weather before, Salve had always come down from time to time to see her. Now--she didn't know what to think. From what the cook had told her, she gathered that they were beating with unjustifiable recklessness, and from the tone of Salve's voice she knew that he was in a savagely defiant mood, and that she, for some reason or other, was the cause of it. Her expression gradually changed to one of deeper and deeper anxiety of soul.

”But what have I done to him?” she exclaimed impetuously, and buried her face in the bedclothes.