Maori and Settler: A Story of The New Zealand War Page 8

  CHAPTER V.

  A BOAT EXPEDITION.

  "Well I am not sorry we are off again," Marion Renshaw said as the menran round with the capstan bars and the anchor came up from the shallowwater. "What a contrast between this and Rio!"

  "It is, indeed," Mr. Atherton, who was standing beside her, replied. "Iown I should have liked to spend six months in a snug little craft goingup the La Plata and Parana, especially the latter. The La Plata runsthrough a comparatively flat and--I will not say unfertile country,because it is fertile enough, but--a country deficient in trees, andoffering but small attraction to a botanist; but the Parana flows north.Paraguay is a country but little visited by Europeans, and ought to bewell worth investigation; but, as you say, I am glad enough to be out ofthis shallow water. In a short time we shall be looking out our wrapsagain. We shall want our warmest things for doubling Cape Horn, orrather what is called doubling Cape Horn, because in point of fact we donot double it at all."

  "Do you mean we do not go round it?" Marion asked in surprise.

  "We may, and we may not, Miss Renshaw. It will depend upon the weather,I suppose; but most vessels now go through the Straits which separateCape Horn itself from Tierra del Fuego."

  "Those are the Straits of Magellan, are they not?"

  "Oh, no!" Mr. Atherton replied. "The Straits of Magellan lie stillfurther to the north, and separate Tierra del Fuego from the mainland. Iwish that we were going through them, for I believe the scenery ismagnificent."

  "But if they lie further north that must surely be our shortest way, sowhy should we not go through them?"

  "If we were in a steamer we might do so, Miss Renshaw; but the channelsare so narrow and intricate, and the tides and currents run with suchviolence, that sailing-vessels hardly ever attempt the passage. Thestraits we shall go through lie between Tierra del Fuego and the groupof islands of which the Horn is the most southerly."

  "Is the country inhabited?"

  "Yes, by races of the most debased savages, with whom, I can assure you,I have no desire whatever to make any personal acquaintance."

  "Not even to collect botanical specimens, Mr. Atherton?" the girl asked,smiling.

  "Not even for that purpose, Miss Renshaw. I will do a good deal inpursuance of my favourite hobby, but I draw the line at the savages ofTierra del Fuego. Very few white men have ever fallen into their handsand lived to tell the tale, and certainly I should have no chancewhatever."

  "Why would you have less chance than other people, Mr. Atherton?"

  "My attractions would be irresistible," Mr. Atherton replied gravely. "Ishould furnish meat for a whole tribe."

  "How horrible!" Marion exclaimed. "What! are they cannibals?"

  "Very much so indeed; and one can hardly blame them, for it is the onlychance they have of getting flesh. Their existence is one long strugglewith famine and cold. They are not hunters, and are but poor fishermen.I firmly believe that if I were in their place I should be a cannibalmyself."

  "How can you say such things?" Marion asked indignantly. "I never knowwhether you are in earnest, Mr. Atherton. I am sure you would never be acannibal."

  "There is no saying what one might be if one were driven to it," hereplied placidly. "Anyhow, I trust that I shall never be driven to it.In my various journeyings and adventures I am happy to say that I havenever been forced to experience a prolonged fast, and it is one of thethings I have no inclination to try. This weather is perfection, is itnot?" he went on, changing the subject. "The _Flying Scud_ is makingcapital way. I only hope it may last. It is sad to think that we shallsoon exchange these balmy breezes for a biting wind. We are just saying,Wilfrid," he went on as the lad strolled up to them, "that you will soonhave to lay aside your white flannels and put on a greatcoat andmuffler."

  "I shall not be sorry," Wilfrid replied. "After a month of hot weatherone wants bracing up a bit, and I always enjoy cold."

  "Then you should have gone out and settled in Iceland instead of NewZealand."

  "I should not have minded that, Mr. Atherton. There is splendidfishing, I believe, and sealing, and all that sort of thing. But I donot suppose the others would have liked it. I am sure father would not.He cannot bear cold, and his study at home used always to be kept up atalmost the temperature of an oven all the winter. I should think NewZealand would exactly suit him."

  Before the sun set they had the satisfaction of sailing out of the muddywater of the La Plata, and of being once more in the bright blue sea.For the next week the _Flying Scud_ sailed merrily southward withoutadventure. The air grew sensibly cooler each day, and the light garmentsof the tropics were already exchanged for warmer covering.

  "Do you always get this sort of weather down here, captain?" Mrs.Renshaw asked.

  "Not always, Mrs. Renshaw. The weather is generally fine, I admit, butoccasionally short but very violent gales sweep down from off the land.They are known as pamperos; because, I suppose, they come from thepampas. They are very dangerous from the extreme suddenness with whichthey sweep down. If they are seen coming, and the vessel can be strippedof her canvas in time, there is little danger to be apprehended, forthey are as short as they are violent."

  "We have been wonderfully fortunate altogether so far," Mrs. Renshawsaid. "We have not had a single gale since we left England. I trust thatour good luck will continue to the end."

  "I hope so too," the captain said. "I grant that a spell of such weatheras we have been favoured with is apt to become a little monotonous, andI generally find my passengers have a tendency after a time to becomesnappish and quarrelsome from sheer want of anything to occupy theirminds. Still I would very much rather put up with that than with thechances of a storm."

  "People must be very foolish to get out of temper because everything isgoing on well," Mrs. Renshaw said. "I am sure I find it perfectlydelightful sailing on as we do."

  "Then you see, madam, you are an indefatigable worker. I never see yourhands idle; but to people who do not work, a long voyage of unbrokenweather must, I can very well understand, be monotonous. Of course withus who have duties to perform it is different. I have often heardpassengers wish for what they call a good gale, but I have never heard asailor who has once experienced one express such a wish. However staunchthe ship, a great gale is a most anxious time for all concerned in thenavigation of a vessel. It is, too, a time of unremitting hardship.There is but little sleep to be had; all hands are constantly on deck,and are continually wet to the skin. Great seas sweep over a ship, andeach man has literally his life in his hand, for he may at any moment betorn from his hold and washed overboard, or have his limbs broken bysome spar or hen-coop or other object swept along by the sea. It alwaysmakes me angry when I hear a passenger express a wish for a gale, inthoughtless ignorance of what he is desiring. If a storm comes we mustface it like men; and in a good ship like the _Flying Scud_, welltrimmed and not overladen, and with plenty of sea-room, we may feelpretty confident as to the result; but that is a very different thingfrom wishing to have one."

  By the time they were a fortnight out from Buenos Ayres, Mr. Athertonand James Allen were both off the sick-list; indeed the latter had beenbut a week in the doctor's hands. The adventure had bound the littleparty more closely together than before. The Allens had quite settledthat when their friends once established themselves on a holding, theywould, if possible, take one up in the neighbourhood; and they and theyoung Renshaws often regretted that Mr. Atherton was only a bird ofpassage, and had no intention of fixing himself permanently in thecolony. The air had grown very much colder of late, and the lightclothes they had worn in the tropics had already been discarded, and inthe evening all were glad to put on warm wraps when they came on deck.

  "I think," the captain said as Mr. Renshaw came up for his customarywalk before breakfast, "we are going to have a change. The glass hasfallen a good deal, and I did not like the look of the sun when it rosethis morning."

  "It looks to me very much as usual," Mr. Renshaw replied, shading hiseyes and
looking at the sun, "except perhaps that it is not quite sobright."

  "Not so bright by a good deal," the captain said. "There is a change inthe colour of the sky--it is not so blue. The wind has fallen too, and Ifancy by twelve o'clock there will be a calm. Of course we cannot besurprised if we do have a change. We have had a splendid spell ofweather, and we are getting into stormy latitudes now."

  When the passengers went up after breakfast they found that the _FlyingScud_ was scarcely moving through the water. The sails hung idly againstthe masts, and the yards creaked as the vessel rose and fell slightly onan almost invisible swell.

  "This would be a good opportunity," the captain said cheerfully, "to getdown our light spars; the snugger we are the better for rounding theHorn. Mr. Ryan, send all hands aloft, and send down all spars over thetopmast."

  The crew swarmed up the rigging, and in two hours the _Flying Scud_ wasstripped of the upper yards and lofty spars.

  "She looks very ugly," Marion Renshaw said. "Do you not think so, Mary?"

  "Hideous," Mary Mitford agreed.

  "She is in fighting trim now," Mr. Atherton said.

  "Yes, but who are we going to fight?" Marion asked.

  "We are going to have a skirmish with the weather, I fancy, MissRenshaw. I don't say we are going to have a storm," he went on as thegirls looked anxiously up at the sky, "but you can see for yourselvesthat there is a change since yesterday. The wind has dropped and the skyis dull and hazy, the sea looks sullen, the bright little waves we wereaccustomed to are all gone, and as you see by the motion of the vesselthere is an underground swell, though we can scarcely notice it on thewater."

  "Which way do you think the wind will come from, Mr. Atherton?" MaryMitford asked.

  "I fancy it will come from the west, or perhaps north-west. Look atthose light streaks of cloud high up in the air; they are travelling tothe southeast."

  "Look how fast they are going," Mary Mitford said as she looked up, "andwe have not a breath of wind here."

  "We shall have it soon," Mr. Atherton said. "You see that dark line onthe water coming up from the west. I am glad to see it. It is very muchbetter to have the wind freshen up gradually to a gale than to liebecalmed until it strikes you suddenly."

  The girls stood at the poop-rail watching the sailors engaged in puttinglashings on to every movable object on deck. In ten minutes the darkline came up to them, and the _Flying Scud_ began to move through thewater. The courses were brailed up and stowed. The wind rapidlyincreased in strength, and the captain presently requested thepassengers to go below, or at any rate to give up their seats.

  "There is nothing like having the deck cleared," he said. "If it comeson to blow a bit and there is any movement, the chairs would be chargingabout from side to side, and will not only break themselves up, butperhaps break someone's leg."

  Four sailors folded up the chairs, piled them together, and passingcords over them lashed them to two ring-bolts.

  "Now, Mr. Ryan, we will get the topsails reefed at once. There is aheavy bank there to windward, and we had best get everything as snug aspossible before that comes up to us."

  The dark bank of mist rose rapidly, and the sailors had but justreached the deck after closely reefing the topsails before it was closeupon them.

  "Now, ladies, please go below," the captain said sharply. "There is rainas well as wind in the clouds; it will come down in bucketfuls when itdoes come."

  This had the desired effect of sending most of the male passengers downas well as the ladies. A few remained near the companion ready to make adive below when the squall struck them. Suddenly the wind ceased and thetopsails flapped against the masts. There was a confused roaring soundastern, and a broad white line came along at race-horse speed towardsthe vessel.

  "Get below, lads," Mr. Atherton said as he led the way, "or you will bedrenched in a moment."

  They had but just reached the cabin when there was a deafening roaroverhead, and almost at the same moment the vessel started as if struckby a heavy blow.

  "Rain and wind together!" Mr. Atherton shouted in reply to the chorus ofquestions from those below. "Now, all you have got to do is to makeyourselves comfortable, for there will be no going up again for sometime."

  For five minutes the tremendous downpour continued, and then ceased assuddenly as it commenced. The wind had dropped too; and the silenceafter the uproar was startling. It lasted but a few seconds; then thewind again struck the ship with even greater force than before,although, as she had not lost her way, the blow was less felt by thosebelow. In five minutes the captain came below with his oil-skin coat andsou'-wester streaming with wet.

  "I have just looked down to tell you," he said cheerfully, "thateverything is going on well. The first burst of these gales is alwaysthe critical point, and we can congratulate ourselves that we have gotthrough it without losing a spar or sail--thanks to our having hadsufficient warning to get all snug, and to the gale striking usgradually. I am afraid you won't have a very comfortable time of it forthe next day or two; but there is nothing to be at all uneasy about. Thegale is off the land, and we have sea-room enough for anything. Now wehave got rid of half our cargo the ship is in her very best trim, andthough we may get her decks washed a bit by and by, she will be none theworse for that."

  So saying he again went up on deck. For the next three days the galeblew with fury. There were no regular meals taken below, for the vesselrolled so tremendously that nothing would have remained on the platesand dishes; and the passengers were forced to content themselves withbiscuit, with an occasional cup of coffee or basin of soup that the cookmanaged to warm up for them. The ladies for the most part kept theircabins, as did many of the male passengers, and the absence of regularmeals was the less felt as the majority were suffering fromsea-sickness. Wilfrid was occasionally ill, but managed to keep up, andfrom time to time went on deck for a few minutes, while Marion spentmost of her time on a seat at the top of the companion, looking out onthe sea.

  It was a magnificent sight. Tremendous waves were following the ship,each as it approached lifting her stern high in the air and driving heralong at a speed that seemed terrific, then passing on and leaving herto sink down into the valley behind it. The air was thick with flyingspray torn from the crest of the waves. At first it seemed as if eachsea that came up behind the vessel would break over her stern and driveher head-foremost down; but as wave passed after wave without damage thesense of anxiety passed off, and Marion was able to enjoy the grandeurof the sea. Wilfrid, Mr. Atherton, and the Allens often came in to sitwith her, and to take shelter for a time from the fury of the wind. Buttalking was almost impossible; the roar of the wind in the rigging, thenoise of the waves as they struck the ship, and the confused sound ofthe battle of the elements being too great to allow a voice to be heard,except when raised almost to shouting point.

  But Marion had no inclination for talking. Snugly as Mr. Atherton hadwedged her in with pillows and cushions, it was as much as she could doto retain her seat, as the vessel rolled till the lower yards almosttouched the water, and she was too absorbed in the wild grandeur of thescene to want companionship.

  "The captain says the glass is beginning to rise," Mr. Atherton said ashe met her the fourth morning of the gale; "and that he thinks the worstis over."

  "I shall be glad for the sake of the others," Marion replied, "for thesea to go down. Father and mother are both quite worn out; for it isalmost impossible for them to sleep, as they might be thrown out oftheir berths if they did not hold on. For myself, I am in no hurry forthe gale to be over, it is so magnificently grand. Don't you think so,Mr. Atherton?"

  "It is grand, lassie, no doubt," Mr. Atherton said; "but I have rather aweakness for dry clothes and comfortable meals--to say nothing of beingable to walk or sit perpendicularly, and not being obliged constantly tohold on for bare life. This morning I feel that under happiercircumstances I could enjoy a steak, an Irish stew, and a couple ofeggs, but a biscuit and a cup of coffee are all I c
an hope for."

  "I believe you enjoy it as much as I do, Mr. Atherton," the girl saidindignantly; "else why do you stay upon deck all the time in spite ofthe wind and spray?"

  "Well, you see, Miss Renshaw, you ladies have an objection to my smokingmy pipe below; and besides, what with the groans and moans from thecabins, and the clatter of the swinging trays, and the noise of thewaves, and one thing and another, there is little to tempt me to staybelow. But really I shall be very glad when it is over. The ship has beendoing splendidly; and as the wind has blown from the same quarter thewhole time, the sea though very high is regular, and everything is goingon well. Still a gale is a gale, and you can never answer for thevagaries of the wind. If it were to veer round to another quarter, forinstance, you would in a few hours get a broken sea here that wouldastonish you, and would try all the qualities of the _Flying Scud_. Thenagain we have been running south with tremendous speed for the lastthree days, and if it were to go on for a few days longer we might findourselves down among the ice. Therefore, I say, the sooner the gale isover the better I shall be pleased."

  Towards evening there was a sensible abatement in the force of the wind,and the following morning the gale had so far abated that the captainprepared to haul his course for the west.

  "We have been running south at the rate of fully three hundred miles aday," he said, "and are now very far down. The moment this warm winddrops and we get it from the south you will find that you will needevery wrap you have to keep you warm. If the gale had lasted I had madeup my mind to try to get her head to it, and to lie to. We are a greatdeal too close to the region of ice to be pleasant."

  The change in the course of the vessel was by no means appreciated bythe passengers, for the motion was very much rougher and more unpleasantthan that to which they had now become accustomed. However, by thefollowing morning the wind had died away to a moderate breeze, and thesea had very sensibly abated. The topsails were shaken out of theirreefs; and although the motion was still violent most of the passengersemerged from their cabins and came on deck to enjoy the sun, which wasnow streaming brightly through the broken clouds. The captain was inhigh glee; the ship had weathered the gale without the slightest damage.Not a rope had parted, not a sail been blown away, and the result fullyjustified the confidence he felt in his ship and her gear.

  "It is a comfort," he remarked, "to sail under liberal owners. Now, mypeople insist on having their ships as well found as possible, and if Icondemn spars, sails, ropes, or stays, they are replaced without aquestion. And it is the cheapest policy in the long run. There isnothing so costly as stinginess on board a ship. The giving way of astay may mean the loss of the mast and all its gear, and that may meanthe loss of a ship. The blowing away of a sail at a critical moment maymean certain disaster; and yet there are many owners who grudge a fathomof new rope or a bolt of canvas, and who will risk the safety of theirvessels for the petty economy of a few pounds."

  The next day the wind had dropped entirely. The topgallant masts weresent up with their yards and sails, and by dinner-time the _Flying Scud_looked more like herself. As soon as the wind lulled all on board wereconscious of a sudden fall of temperature. Bundles of wraps were undoneand greatcoats and cloaks got out, and although the sun was stillshining brightly the poop of the _Flying Scud_ soon presented a wintryappearance. There was no sitting about now. Even the ladies hadabandoned their usual work, and by the sharp walking up and down on deckit was evident that even the warm wraps were insufficient in themselves,and that brisk exercise was necessary to keep up the circulation.

  "Well, what do you think of this, Mrs. Renshaw?" Mr. Atherton asked.

  "I like it," she said decidedly; "but it is certainly a wonderfullysudden change from summer to winter. My husband does not like it at all.We never agreed on the subject of temperature. He liked what I call aclose study, while I enjoy a sharp walk well wrapped up on a winter'sday."

  "I agree with you," Mr. Atherton said. "I can bear any amount of cold,but heat completely knocks me up. But then, you see, the cold never hasa chance of penetrating to my bones."

  "Which course shall we take now, do you suppose? South of Cape Horn orthrough the Straits?"

  "It will depend upon the winds we meet with, I imagine," Mr. Athertonreplied. "If the wind continues from the south, I should say the captainwould keep well south of the Horn; but if it heads us from the west atall, we may have to go through the Straits, which, personally, I ownthat I should prefer. It has gone round nearly a point since I came ondeck this morning. If it goes round a bit more we certainly shall not beable to lay our course round the Horn, for I do not think we are far tothe south of it now."

  By evening the wind had hauled farther to the west, and the ship's headpointed more to the north than it had done in the morning. Thepassengers enjoyed the change, for the temperature had risen rapidly,and many of the warm wraps that had been got up were laid aside. Attwelve o'clock the captain had taken observations, and found that theship's position was nearly due south of the Falkland Isles.

  "We had a narrow squeak of it, Mr. Ryan," he said to the first-mate."All the time we were running before that gale I had that group ofislands on my mind."

  "So had I, sir," the mate replied. "I was praying all the time that thewind would keep a bit to the west of north, for I knew that when itbegan our position was, as near as may be, due north of them. I guessedwhat you were thinking of when you told the man at the wheel to edgeaway to the east as much as he dared, though that was mighty little."

  "By my reckoning," the captain said, "we could not have passed more thanthirty miles to the east of them. We have made about eighty miles ofwesting since we got on our course, and we are now just on the longitudeof the westermost point of the islands. They are about a hundred milesto the north of us."

  The wind continued from the same quarter, and on taking his observationon the following day the captain announced that if there were no changehe reckoned upon just making the mouth of the Straits between Tierra delFuego and the islands. On going on deck two mornings later land was seenon the port bow.

  "There is Cape Horn," the captain said; "that lofty peak covered withsnow. The island nearest to us is Herschel Island. The large island notfar from the Horn is Wollaston Island. As you see, there are severalothers. It is not the sort of place one would like to come down upon ina gale, and if I had had my choice I would rather have gone a hundredmiles south of the Horn. But the wind would not allow us to lie thatcourse, and after the gale we had the other day we have a right toreckon upon finer weather, and in light winds it might have taken usanother two or three days beating round."

  "The wind is very light now," Mr. Renshaw remarked.

  "Yes, and I am afraid it will be lighter still presently," the captainsaid.

  The vessel made but slow way, and in the afternoon the wind droppedaltogether. The _Flying Scud_ was now two or three miles from the coastof Tierra del Fuego, and the passengers examined the inhospitable-lookingcoast through their glasses. At one or two points light wreaths of smokewere seen curling up, telling of encampments of the natives.

  "I think, Mr. Ryan," the captain said, "I will take her in and anchor inone of the bays This breath of air might be enough to move her throughthe water if she were going free, but it is nearly dead ahead of us now.I do not like the idea of drifting all night along this coast. Besides,we may be able to get some fish from the natives, which will be a changefor the passengers."

  The vessel's head was turned towards the shore, and now that the lightair was well on the beam it sufficed to enable the vessel to stealthrough the water at the rate of about a knot an hour. At about fouro'clock the anchor was dropped in a bay at a distance of half a milefrom land, the sails were furled, and the passengers watched the shoresin hopes that some native craft might make its appearance; but there wasno sign of life.

  "Either the natives have no fish to sell, or rather exchange," thecaptain said, "for, of course, money is of no use to them, or they areafraid of us
. Maybe they have been massacring some shipwrecked crew, andbelieve we are a ship-of-war come down to punish them. At any rate, theyseem determined not to show."

  The next morning the sea was as smooth as glass, and there was not abreath of air.

  "Would you let us have a boat, captain?" Mr. Atherton asked. "It willmake a pleasant change, and perhaps some of the natives might come offand sell us fish, as they would not be afraid of us as they might be ofthe ship."

  "Yes, if you like to make up a party, Mr. Atherton, you can have a boat;but you must not land. The natives are very treacherous, and it wouldnot be safe to set foot on shore. Mr. Ryan, will you get the cutter intothe water after breakfast? You had better take with you two or threemuskets. I do not think there is any fear of an attack, and besides youcould out-row the native craft, still it is always as well to beprepared."

  Mr. Atherton soon made up his party. Wilfrid and the two Allens weredelighted at the offer, and Marion and the Miss Mitfords also petitionedto be allowed to go, although Mr. Atherton had not intended to takeladies with him. Two other young men named Hardy and Wilson were alsoinvited to join, and this made up the complement that the cutter couldcarry in comfort. The crew consisted of six sailors at the oars, and Mr.Ryan himself took the helm.

  "You had better wrap up well," Mr. Atherton said to the girls, "for youwill find it cold sitting in a boat. The thermometer must be down nearfreezing-point."

  Mr. Atherton was the last to take his seat, and he brought with him hisrifle.

  "Why, what are you going to shoot, Mr. Atherton?" Marion asked.

  "I do not know that I am going to shoot anything," he replied; "but itis always well to be prepared. You see I have made preparations in otherways," he added as the steward handed him down a large basket, which heplaced in the stern-sheets.

  "But we are only going for an hour or two, Mr. Atherton," Wilfridremarked. "We cannot want anything to eat when we have only justfinished breakfast."

  "I do not think it at all likely we shall want to open the hamper,Wilfrid; but you see it is always best to be prepared. The weather looksperfectly settled, but, like the natives of these parts, it istreacherous. As I proposed this expedition I feel a sort ofresponsibility, and have therefore, you see, taken precautions againstevery contingency."

  "I do not think there is any chance of a change," Mr. Ryan said. "Itlooks as if the calm might last for a week. Still, one can never bewrong in preparing for the worst. Besides, this cold weather gives one awonderful appetite, and a drop of the cratur never comes amiss."

  By this time the boat was fairly away from the ship, and the sailors,who like the passengers regarded the expedition as a pleasant change,stretched out to their oars. The mate steered for the headland to thewest, and after passing it kept the boat at a distance of a few hundredyards from the shore.

  "Is there any current here, Mr. Ryan?" Wilfrid asked as he watched therocks and low stunted trees.

  "Very little," the mate replied. "Sometimes it runs very strongly here,but at present it is not much to speak of. I do not think it was runningmore than a quarter of a mile an hour past the ship, but no doubt thereis a good deal more farther out."

  To the disappointment of those on board there were no signs of natives.

  "It will be very tiresome if they do not come out," Marion said. "I wantto see a real cannibal."

  "I do not so much care about the cannibals, Miss Renshaw, but I want tosee their fish. I have not tasted a really decent fish since I leftEngland; but in these cold waters they ought to be as good as they areat home. I believe the natives catch them by spearing them bytorch-light, and in that case they ought to be good-sized fellows." Themen after the first start had dropped into a long, steady stroke, and asthe boat glided along past bay and headland no one paid any attention totime, until the mate, looking at his watch, said:

  "Faith, we have been gone an hour and a half; I clean forgot all abouttime. I think we had better be turning. It will be dinner-time before wereach the ship as it is." The boat's head was turned. "I think," themate went on, "we may as well steer from headland to headland, insteadof keeping round the bays. It will save a good bit of distance, and thenatives evidently do not mean to show themselves."

  "They are very provoking," Miss Mitford said. "I can see smoke among thetrees over there, and I have no doubt that they are watching us althoughwe cannot see them."

  "You ought to have waved your handkerchief as we came along, MissMitford," James Allen remarked; "or to have stood up and shownyourselves. They would no doubt have come off then and offered presentsin token of admiration."

  The girls laughed. "I do not suppose they would appreciate our charms,"Miss Mitford said. "They are not in their line, you see."

  "That they certainly are not, Miss Mitford," the mate laughed. "I sawsome of them the last time I came through here, and hideous-lookingcreatures they are, and wear no clothes to speak of."

  So laughing and chatting with their eyes fixed on the shore the partynever looked seaward, until a sudden exclamation from the mate calledtheir attention to that direction.

  "Be Jabers!" he exclaimed, "here is a sea-fog rolling down on us fromthe south!"

  They looked and saw what seemed like a wall of white smoke rolling alongthe water towards them. At this moment the boat was about half-waybetween two headlands, which were a mile and a half apart, and the shoreabreast of it was three-quarters of a mile distant. The sun was shiningbrightly upon the rolling mist, and the girls uttered an exclamation ofadmiration.

  "How fast it comes!" Marion said. "Why, it will be here directly!"

  The mate put the tiller a-starboard. "Row, men!" he said in a sharpvoice; for they had for a moment ceased to pull.

  "Have you a compass?" Mr. Atherton asked in low tones.

  The mate shook his head. "I am no better than an idiot to have comewithout one," he said. "But who could have dreamt we should want it?"

  A minute later a light wreath of mist crossed the boat, and almostimmediately the great fog-bank rolled over it. An exclamation brokefrom several of those on board. So sudden was the change of temperaturethat it seemed as if an icy hand had been laid upon them.

  "It is fortunate that we are not far from shore," Mr. Atherton said tothe mate. "There is nothing for it but to coast along close in."

  "That is the only thing to do," Mr. Ryan replied. "But it will be anawkward business; for, as we noticed when we came along, the shore is inmany places studded with rocks. However, we must risk that, and by goingon slowly and carefully we may get off with slight damage even if we hitone. It is not as if the water was rough."

  The fog was so thick that they could scarcely see the ends of theoar-blades.

  "How are we to find the ship?" Marion asked.

  "There will be no difficulty about that, Miss Renshaw. They will be sureto be firing guns as signals for us. There!" he broke off as the boom ofa cannon came across the water. "Besides, with the land on our righthand and this icy breeze from the south, we cannot go far out of ourway."

  "Row easy, men," the mate commanded. "We cannot be far from shore now,and we must begin to look out sharp for rocks. Row light and aisy, anddo not make more noise with your oars than you can help. The natives maybe listening for us; and we do not want a shower of spears in the boat.Mr. Allen, will you go forward into the bows, and keep a sharp look-outfor rocks?"

  James Allen went forward, and two or three minutes later cried, "Easyall! Hold her up!" Quickly as the order was obeyed the boat's stemgrated on the shore before her way was lost.

  "Back her off, lads!" the mate cried. As the boat glided off into deepwater again there was a yell from the shore, and a dozen spears struckthe water round her. Fortunately none of them struck her, for she wasinvisible to the natives, who had been guided to the spot by the soundof the oars.

  "Not an encouraging reception," Mr. Atherton remarked quietly. "Well,ladies, you have not seen the cannibals as yet, but you have heard them.I think the best plan, Mr. Ryan, will be to t
ear up one of these rugsand muffle the oars."

  "I think we may as well do so," the mate replied "However, their sharpears are sure to hear us if we are close inshore, and we dare not go farout or we might lose our bearings altogether."

  "I do not think we can do that. In the first place, you see, there isthe breeze that brought down the fog to guide us, and in the second theguns of the ship. We cannot go far wrong with them; and I should saythat when we once get out as far as we believe the headland to lie, thebest thing will be to steer direct for the ship. The danger in that waywould certainly be far less than it is from rocks and savages if we keepnear the shore."

  "I think you are right. We will row straight out against the wind for aquarter of an hour, that will take us clear of the headland, and we willthen shape our course direct for the guns."