Part 34 (1/2)
”No,” I said hurriedly; and he laughed a little, rather unpleasantly, I thought, and walked forward to stand with his elbows on the bulwark watching the distant sh.o.r.e.
”There!” whispered Esau. ”Now would a fellow who was all right and square come and listen to all we said like that? Seems to be always creeping up behind you.”
”I don't think he did that purposely.”
”Well then, I do. You always take his part, no matter what I say; and it sometimes seems to me as if you were pitching me over, so as to take up with him.”
”That's right, Esau,” I replied. ”That is why we sailed off together, and left you in the lurch.”
Esau pressed his lips together, gave his foot a stamp, and then pushed close up to me.
”Here,” he said, ”punch my head, please. Do. I wish you would. My tongue's always saying something I don't mean.”
I did not punch Esau's head, and the little incident was soon forgotten in the interest of the rest of our journey. For we sailed on now in bright suns.h.i.+ne, the uneasy motion of the schooner was at an end, and there was always something fresh to see. Now it was a whale, then a shoal of fish of some kind, and sea-birds floating here and there. Then some mountain peak came into view, with lovely valleys and vast forests of pines--scene after scene of beauty that kept us on deck till it was too dark to see anything, and tempted us on deck again the moment it was light.
By midday we were in the port of Victoria, where the skipper began at once to discharge his cargo, and hence we were not long before our chests were on the rough timber wharf, side by side with those of Gunson, who left us in charge of them while he went away.
”Wish he wouldn't order us about like that,” cried Esau, angrily; ”let's go away, and let some one else look after his traps.”
”We can't now,” I said.
”But we don't want him with us any more. I say, I don't think much of this place.”
”It's very beautiful,” I said, looking away over the sea at beautiful islands, and up at the wooded hills in view.
”But it looks just like being at home in England. I expected all kinds of wonderful things in a foreign country, and not to be sitting down on one's box, with sheds and stacks of timber and wooden houses all about you. We can get that at home.”
I was obliged to own that everything did look rather home-like, even to some names we could see over the stores.
”And do you know where the skipper's going as soon as he has unloaded?”
”No,” I said.
”Up to some place with a rum name here in this island, to get a load of coals to take back. They only had to call it Newcastle to make it right. What are you looking at over yonder?”
”Those beautiful mountains across the sea, rising up and up in the suns.h.i.+ne. That's British Columbia, I suppose, and it must be up among those mountains that our river runs, and where Fort Elk lies.”
”All right, I'm ready. How are we to go?”
”We shall have to find out when some boat sails across I suppose. Let's go and find the captain, and ask him where we ought to go to get a night's lodging.”
”Here he comes back,” said Esau.
”The skipper?”
”No, Gunson. Now let's say good-bye to him, and part friends.”
”There's a little steamer goes across to the settlement at the mouth of the river this afternoon,” said Gunson; ”so we'll have your chests carried down. Here, you two can get some kind of dinner in that place, where you see the red board up. You go on and get something ready; I'll join you as soon as I've seen your chests on board. The boat starts from close by here.”
”No, no,” whispered Esau; ”we mustn't trust him, because--”