Part 23 (2/2)
But though n.o.body was to be seen, and the storehouses had all the appearance of being completely abandoned, the voyagers were far too prudent to land--for which, indeed, there was no inducement--and, having satisfied their curiosity, they wore round and proceeded at once to sea, pa.s.sing out through the Narrows again just as the sun was setting.
Thirty-six hours later, or about six o'clock on the following Friday morning, they once more entered Gaunt's harbour and let go their anchor, to the accompaniment of a surprised and delighted shout of welcome from Nicholls, who--the entire party having removed on board the _Flying Cloud_--happened to be keeping the anchor watch at the time.
But little more remains to be told. Being so shorthanded, the party found it impossible to take the _Petrel_ away from the island with them; she was therefore moved to a snug berth well up the river--her cargo, of course, being first transferred to the _Flying Cloud_--and there well thatched over with palm-leaves to protect her from the weather, in the hope that if ever any unfortunates should be cast away upon the island she might prove of service in enabling them to effect their escape; and there she may possibly be at the present moment.
This done, the party made sail in the _Flying Cloud_ for Batavia, the nearest port, which, the weather still favouring them, was reached after a short but toilsome pa.s.sage. Here they were fortunate enough to pick up a s.h.i.+pwrecked crew of Englishmen who were only too glad to s.h.i.+p for the pa.s.sage home, especially as Ned felt justified in offering them the top scale of wages; and the owners of the _Cloud_ having been telegraphed to and letters written by all hands, advising their friends of their safety, sail was once more made, this time for Old England direct. On the voyage home the _Flying Cloud_ fully justified the name which had been bestowed upon her; for, carrying on night and day, Ned succeeded in making the fastest pa.s.sage on record from Anjer to the Lizard. The latter, or rather the light, was sighted one fine April night in the first watch, nearly two years after the s.h.i.+p had last pa.s.sed it; and on the following day she hauled in round Portland, stood across into Weymouth Bay to show her number, and then bore away up channel again, a fine westerly breeze prevailing at the time, which Ned was anxious to make the most of. At daylight next morning a tug came alongside in the Downs, and after the usual amount of chaffering, the tow-rope was pa.s.sed on board her and she went ahead, the s.h.i.+p's crew at the same time going aloft to stow the canvas under the watchful eye of Manners, who was acting chief-mate, and who was particularly earnest in his exhortations to them to ”be careful that you make a _harbour_ furl of it, lads!”
Gaily the good s.h.i.+p stemmed the tide as she ploughed her stately way up the river in the wake of the grimy little tug; and a right n.o.ble and beautiful sight did she present, in all the glory of fresh paint and newly-blacked rigging--laid on during a spell of fine weather experienced just before entering the channel--with her white canvas snugly stowed, yards laid accurately square, running-rigging hauled taut and neatly coiled down, with the house-flag floating at the main-royal- mast-head, the burgee at the mizen, and the red ensign at the gaff-end.
Many were the admiring glances bestowed upon her from the craft which were pa.s.sed either going up or down the river--for, being only in deep ballast trim, she towed light, and pa.s.sed ahead of nearly all the inward-bound craft--and at length a great bluff-bowed, deeply-laden barque was overtaken, the quarter-deck occupants of which appeared to manifest not only admiration but quite a surprising amount of curiosity as the two vessels closed. For a little group of men and women had gathered aft on board this barque for the evidently express purpose of getting the longest and best possible view of the _Flying Cloud_, many of them being provided with opera-gla.s.ses, which seemed glued to their eyes, albeit it was evident from their occasional gestures that they were listening intently to the eager and excited utterances of one of their number, a shortish, thick-set, grey-haired man clad in blue serge garnished with gilt b.u.t.tons, whom our friends naturally supposed to be the skipper of the craft. At length, as the _Flying Cloud_ ranged up on the larboard quarter of the barque, the excited blue-clad figure appeared to suddenly go demented altogether, for, rus.h.i.+ng to the barque's gangway, he threw himself over rather than descended the vessel's side into a boat which was towing alongside, and with imperious gestures seemed to command the boatmen to convey him to the approaching s.h.i.+p. They obeyed, and the distance of the two vessels being but short, in less than a minute a voice--well known, notwithstanding its excited, exultant ring--hailed:
”_Flying Cloud_ ahoy! heave us a rope's-end, will ye, and let your captain come on aboard!”
With a delighted shout the _old_ hands rushed to the gang way, Ned foremost; the rope's-end was thrown, the boat sheered alongside, and in another moment Captain Blyth, alive, well, and as hearty as ever, stood once more on his own quarter-deck, shaking hands convulsively with everybody who came near him, with the unheeded tears chasing each other down his cheeks as he huskily replied to the enthusiastic greetings of those who had long ago given him up for lost.
His story was a long one, but it may be condensed into a few words. The raft, contrary to all expectation, had held together and lived through the terrific hurricane, before which it was driven furiously to the southward, to be wrecked eventually upon a small islet, whence, after many months of hards.h.i.+p and privation, the skipper had been rescued by a sandal-wood trader and conveyed to Singapore. He there joined the barque, homeward bound, the hospitable skipper gladly offering him a pa.s.sage home, and, by a singular coincidence, had arrived in the river only an hour or two ahead of his own s.h.i.+p. He was full of pride and delight at the way in which Ned had outwitted the pirates at last and run away with the s.h.i.+p; and could find no words in which to express his admiration of Sibylla's courage under her long-protracted and trying ordeal, and his grat.i.tude at her escape; and when at length the stories of the various actors in this little drama had been fully told, and he had congratulated them upon their marvellous deliverance, he wound up all by saying:
”Well, I took the s.h.i.+p out, it is true, and I lost her; but, thanks be to G.o.d, I can now face my owners with the words, 'There is your s.h.i.+p, in as good order and condition as when you placed her in my charge; and if I didn't get her back from the pirates for you, I at least had the training of the man who did, which is almost as good, I take it.'”
The arrival home of the vessel, so long overdue, and the publication of the adventures of those who went out and came home again in her, created a profound sensation almost throughout the length and breadth of England, and proved quite a G.o.d-send to the daily papers for a few days; but it was soon obliterated by the occurrence of events of greater importance to the community at large, and the chief personages of the story were allowed to sink back into a welcome obscurity, although the public interest in the subject was fitfully revived from time to time by accounts of proceedings in connection with the restoration, as far as possible, to its rightful owners of the booty brought home in the _Flying Cloud's_ hold; but even this complicated matter was settled after a time, and now the good s.h.i.+p's name never appears in the public prints except in the advertising columns as being ”for Melbourne direct,” or among the s.h.i.+pping news as ”spoken” or ”arrived.”
Like most seamen, Ned was generosity itself, and had he been allowed to have his way, the treasure found at Refuge Harbour would have been equally divided among all those who had partic.i.p.ated with him in that adventurous voyage; but to such a proposal, of course, not one of the interested parties would listen. Nicholls and Price, however, eventually consented to accept a moderate pension, and the doctor and the engineer point proudly to their trophies of ancient arms as they tell the story connected with them to their friends. Captain Blyth still commands the _Flying Cloud_, s.h.i.+p and captain alike being the most popular in the trade; and Bob Manners was, at latest accounts, superintending, on full pay, the building and equipment of a magnificent yacht, in which Mrs Damerell, _nee_ Stanhope, hopes to accompany her husband on a luxurious trip round the world.
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