Part 22 (1/2)
The day at length dawned, and a beautiful fresh morning it was. A breeze which in a s.h.i.+p would have been only sufficient to fill all her sails, was to the small boats too much to be pleasant or safe. Still by the aid of repeated baling, they were kept comparatively free of water.
No sign of a vessel, however, appeared, and it approached noon, when the lieutenant, arranging his s.e.xtant, prepared to find out where he was.
After waiting several minutes, he was at length satisfied that he had obtained the sun's meridian alt.i.tude, and having from this deduced the lat.i.tude, he announced that the boat was not more than thirty miles from land, though what part of the land she was opposite he could not exactly tell. ”My chronometer is not a very trustworthy one, and this knocking about in the boat may have unsettled it; but if it is near right, I fancy we are actually west of the Cape; and this is possible, if the current has been very strong.”
During the day the breeze somewhat abated, and by sunset it was again nearly calm. The direction in which he was to steer was now a matter of considerable uncertainty to the lieutenant: whether he should place any trust in his chronometer, or steer according to what he believed his true course. Considering the rough use to which his chronometer had been subjected, he decided that he would steer a westerly course, keeping a little north, so as to make the Cape, and thus reach Simon's Bay.
Soon after the sun had set, a breeze sprung up from the north-east, and this being nearly favourable, a small sail was set on each boat, and they by this aid dashed merrily onwards. For the first few hours of the night the wind was not too strong for the boats to carry a sail, but it afterwards came on to blow so hard that it was no longer possible to do so. The sea, however, was not, even with this breeze, nearly so dangerous as it had been when the wind and current had been opposed to each other; and though it was necessary to keep the boats before the wind, yet both were comparatively dry.
”If this wind lasts,” said the lieutenant to Hans, ”we shall be carried far past the Cape, and how to regain it I don't know, for we shall have the current dead against us, and we have neither water nor provisions for a long voyage. There is only one cask of water, and the biscuit is, I fear, wet with salt water, so that our provisions are short; but there is no help for us; we must go on as long as this wind and this sea last, and trust to being picked up, though I believe we may be three hundred miles from the Cape.”
During the whole of the night the boats kept a westerly course, and before the wind. As morning dawned, the horizon was anxiously scanned in order to find a s.h.i.+p, but the ocean seemed deserted, and mid-day came without any signs of a vessel. The officer again tried to find his lat.i.tude, and decided that he was still upwards of twenty miles south of the Cape. From an observation he had made in the morning, he also concluded that, allowing every likely error for the chronometer, he must yet be many degrees west of the Cape, and was drifting rapidly westward.
Having come to this conclusion, he signalled for the second boat to come close alongside, when he said--
”Now, my lads, we have drifted so far from the Cape that I fear with these small boats, and such a sea as we may have to meet, we can't reach the Cape before our provisions and water are all done. We have, then, two chances: we may hang about here, and take our chance of being picked up by a vessel, or we can run on with all speed, and try to make some islands which lie out westward. I'm not sure we can get water on those islands, but we may do so, and I believe they have no inhabitants. As this is a question you are all concerned in, I'll hear what you have to say.”
The sailors talked among themselves for some minutes, and then Jones, who was in charge of the second boat, said--
”We think, sir, that we should make sail for the islands. We don't lose our chance of sighting a s.h.i.+p by doing so, though it be a bit away from the outward-bound course; but if a gale comes up, we just go down in these c.o.c.kle-sh.e.l.ls, and that's all about it. I have heerd from whalers that there is water in some of them islands, and any way we get a bit of a rest, and with our boats we can go out and look for s.h.i.+ps when the weather suits. We think, sir, that's our best chance.”
”I am of the same opinion,” said the lieutenant. ”Has any one else any thing to say?”
”We all think that's our best chance, sir,” said several of the men.
”Give way then, my lads,” said their officer. ”We ought not to be more than two days reaching the islands. We have guns, and so ought to be able to get birds or seals; and if we can only find water, we may get on well.”
The north-east wind, which a.s.sumes almost the character of a trade wind off the Cape, and which blows sometimes for weeks together, continued steadily for the next two days; and the boats during part of the time being able to carry sail, made rapid progress through the water, so that on the morning of the third day all hands were eagerly on the look out for land.
It was about ten o'clock in the morning that Jones, in the second boat, called the lieutenant's attention to what he thought was land about south-west of them. The telescope being used to discover what this was, revealed the fact of land, which was rather low, and was estimated at not more than ten miles' distance. The boat's course having been altered to enable them to make direct for this land or island, as it was known it must be, the lieutenant called to Jones to bring his boat close, in order to tell him what should be now done.
”I'll take the lead, Jones, and we must have a man standing up in each boat to look out for broken water. I think it will be better to go to the leeward of the island, and land there, unless we can see some kind of a bay. Don't you follow too close, for in case we strike a rock, or are swamped, you must be far enough off not to fall in the same way.”
”I've heerd, sir,” replied Jones, ”that these islands are surrounded by long sea-weeds that make boat navigation rather difficult; but if you know where the channel is, then you are all right, as weeds and rocks don't come near the surface there.”
As the boats neared the island, the lieutenant used his telescope in the endeavour to discover if any s.h.i.+ps were there, for he believed it possible that whalers might have made use of this island, as afterwards he found had been the case. The wind seemed to have blown itself out towards mid-day, and shortly after it fell quite calm, and as the boats neared the island, the sea had considerably diminished.
Upon reaching within about a mile of the sh.o.r.e, the surface of the sea began to be sprinkled with sea-weed in abundance, which was some of it floating, and other portions evidently growing from the rocks beneath.
Advancing slowly and cautiously, the lieutenant directed the man who was steering, and thus threading his way through thick ma.s.ses of weed, approached sufficiently close to the sh.o.r.e to see where the surf was breaking. Having noted a headland jutting out into the sea, the sailor, from his knowledge of the general form of coasts, concluded that behind this he would very probably find a bay, and such proved to be the case.
This bay was covered at the water-line with a white sand, up which the waves washed; but there seemed no sign of rocks near this, and thus it appeared in every way suitable for a landing. Steering the boat carefully round the promontory, the lieutenant made for this beach, and watching his opportunity ran the boat up, so that as the sailors jumped out, and seized her to haul her up, they were high and dry as the waves receded. The second boat, being thus guided, followed the example of the leader, and was also securely beached, the men jumping out, and being rejoiced to stretch their legs once more, after being cramped on board their small boats for so many days.
CHAPTER TWENTY SIX.
GAME FOUND ON THE ISLANDS--WANT OF WATER--WATER AT LAST--SEA-LIONS--FISH AND EGGS--A s.h.i.+P--RESCUED AND CARRIED TO SIMON'S BAY--THE TRAVELLER AMONG THE c.o.c.kNEYS.
”Carry the boats up high and dry,” said the lieutenant; ”out with the sails and oars; cover them with the tarpaulin; then get out the water casks and biscuit bag. Let's see what provisions we have.”
These orders were rapidly obeyed by the sailors, who never for a moment forgot their discipline, and acted just as though they were on board s.h.i.+p. The water was found to be very low, there being scarcely more than two pints for each man. At this all looked blank, for so essential is water that it is a matter of certain death, at least to a great many, to be without water for many days. Having divided the biscuit into as many portions as there were men, the lieutenant gave each his share, saying, ”We shall be able to keep this biscuit for any voyage we may make; for on this island we shall get birds. We can shoot as many birds as we require for food, so be careful of the biscuit.” Whilst these arrangements were being made, the Zulus had been wandering along the sh.o.r.e, looking at the ground in various directions, and pointing out to each other something which had attracted their attention. Returning to Hans, who alone understood their language, they said, ”_Amasondo m'culu kona_” (”There are large footprints there.”)
”Of what?” inquired Hans.
”We don't know,” replied the Zulus. ”The game lives in the water that makes these footmarks.”