Part 47 (2/2)
”If he has laid-to, we may overshoot him, sir!”
”If he has tried to lay-to, he will not have a sail left in the bolt-ropes, or perhaps a mast on deck I know the stiff-neckedness of those Spanish tubs Hurrah! there he is, right on our larboard bow!”
There she was indeed, twoaith canvas split and flying
”He has been trying to hull, sir, and caught a buffet,” said Yeo, rubbing his hands ”What shall we do now?”
”Range alongside, if it blow live ihtning dazzles!”
On they swept, gaining fast on the Spaniard ”Call the men up, and to quarters; the rain will be over in tenback again, with a face white and wild-- ”Land right ahead! Port your helm, sir! For the love of God, port your helth of a bull, jammed the hel round The masts bent like whips; crack went the fore- sail like a cannon What matter? Within two hundred yards of thee dark bank rose through the dense hail, and led with the clouds; and at its foot, plainer everyfoaht be anything for thirty miles
”Lundy!” said Yeo ”The south end! I see the head of the Shutter in the breakers! Hard a-port yet, and get her close-hauled as you can, and the Lord may have mercy on us still! Look at the Spaniard!”
Yes, look at the Spaniard!
On their left hand, as they broached-to, the wall of granite sloped down from the clouds toward an isolated peak of rock, so breaker upon a sunken shelf, across which the race of the tide poured like a cataract; then, ae black fang, rose waiting for its prey; and between the Shutter and the land, the great galleon looer, and tried to broach-to But his cluled a ain, and rushed upon his doo up his hands, let go the tiller Yeo caught it just in time
”Sir! sir! What are you at? We shall clear the rock yet”
”Yes!” shouted Amyas, in his frenzy; ”but he will not!”
Another ave a sudden jar, and stopped Then one long heave and bound, as if to free herself And then her bows lighted clean upon the Shutter
An awful silence fell on every English soul They heard not the roaring of wind and surge; they saw not the blinding flashes of the lightning; but they heard one long ear-piercing wail to every saint in heaven rise frohty shi+p heel over fro down the cataract of the race, plunging her yards into the foa her whole black side even to her keel, till she rolled clean over, and vanished for ever and ever
”Sha his sword far into the sea, ”to lose rasp! Unranite ring and quiver; a bright world of flaainst which stood out, glowing red-hot every mast, and sail, and rock, and Salvation Yeo as he stood just in front of Aured into fire; and behind, the black, black night
A whisper, a rustling close beside him, and Brimblecombe's voice said softly: ”Give hi”
”Hey day?” said As in the wind!”
”We are long past the Shutter, Sir Amyas,” said Brimblecombe
”Are you mad? Cannot I trust my own eyes?”
There was no answer for awhile
”We are past the Shutter, indeed,” said Cary, very gently, ”and lying in the cove at Lundy”
”Will you tell me that that is not the Shutter, and that the Devil's-lione--and that Yeo is not standing here by me, and Cary there forward, and--why, by the by, where are you, Jack Bri to h, dear Sir Ah, blubbered poor Jack, ”put out your hand, and feel where you are, and pray the Lord to forgive you for your wilfulness!”
A great treh; half fearfully he put out his hand; he felt that he was in his hammock, with the deck beams close above his head The vision which had been left upon his eye- balls vanished like a dream
”What is this? I must be asleep? What has happened? Where am I?”
”In your cabin, Amyas,” said Cary
”What? And where is Yeo?”
”Yeo is gone where he longed to go, and as he longed to go The same flash which struck you down, struck hio and see Why, what is this?” and Amyas passed his hand across his eyes ”It is all dark--dark, as I live!” And he passed his hand over his eyes again
There was another dead silence Areat proud sea-captain, ”Oh, God, I areat horror, he called to Cary to kill him and put him out of his misery, and then wailed for his mother to come and help him, as if he had been a boy once more; while Brimblecombe and Cary, and the sailors who crowded round the cabin-door, wept as if they too had been boys once more
Soon his fit of frenzy passed off, and he sank back exhausted
They lifted hi boat, rowed him ashore, carried him painfully up the hill to the old castle, and made a bed for him on the floor, in the very roohted their troth to each other, five wild years before
Three miserable days were passed within that lonely tower Amyas, utterly unnerved by the horror of his misfortune, and by the over- excitement of the last feeeks, was incessantly delirious; while Cary, and Brimblecombe, and the men nursed him by turns, as sailors and wives only can nurse; and listened with awe to his piteous self-reproaches and entreaties to Heaven to reain, was a just judgeon talked, of course, learnedly about”adust by the over- pungency of the animal spirits,” and then fell back on the universal panacea of blood-letting, which he effected with fear and treed by which he attee bolus of aloes, was knocked down for his pains, and then thought it better to leave Nature to her oork In the meanwhile, Cary had sent off one of the island skiffs to Clovelly, with letters to his father, and to Mrs Leigh, entreating the latter to come off to the island: but the heavy westerly winds made that as impossible as it was to move Amyas on board, and the h
On the fourth day his raving ceased: but he was still too weak to be moved Toward noon, however, he called for food, ate a little, and seemed revived
”Will,” he said, after awhile, ”this roo as it is dark I feel as if I should be a sound et one snuff of the sea-breeze”
The surgeon shook his head at the notion ofhim: but Aeon, and will sail for the Indies, if I choose Will Cary, Jack Brieneral?”
”What you will in reason,” said they both at once
”Then lead me out, my masters, and over the down to the south end To the point at the south end I o; there is no other place will suit”
And he rose firmly to his feet, and held out his hands for theirs
”Let hi off of his th is a note of fresh fever, Mr Lieutenant,” said the surgeon, ”and the rules of the art prescribe rather a fresh blood-letting”
A-sticking Philistine, wilt thou make sport with blind Samson? Come near me to let blood from my arm, and see if I do not let blood fro hiiantslowly, but firmly, between his two friends