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From Powder Monkey to Admiral: A Story of Naval Adventure, a novel by William H. G. Kingston |
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Chapter 12. A Raft Built--Mysterious Disappearance Of Jack Peek |
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_ CHAPTER TWELVE. A RAFT BUILT--MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE OF JACK PEEK Not till their raft was complete did the two boys think of again eating. They had been working, it must be remembered, for several hours since the meal they took soon after they got on board. Having finished the beef and cheese, they lighted a couple of lanterns which they found hung up in the forepeak, and hunted about for more food. They discovered some casks of salt beef, and another of biscuits, a drum of cheese, and several boxes of dried fruit. They had thus no lack of provisions, but they did not forget the necessity of supplying themselves with a store of water. Hunting about, they found two small vessels, which they filled from one of the water-casks. There were several oars below, three of which they took and placed in readiness on deck--one to steer with, and the other two for rowing. They had, lastly, to rig their raft. A fore-royal already bent was found in the sail-room, and a spar served as a mast. How to step it, and to secure it properly, was the difficulty, until Bill suggested getting a third chest and boring a hole through the lid, and then, by making another hole through the bottom, the mast would be well stepped, and it was easy to set it up by means of a rope led forward and two shrouds aft. Knowing exactly what they wanted to do, they did it very rapidly, and were perfectly satisfied with their performance. The tide must come up again, however, before they could launch their raft. It would not be safe to do that unless the wind was off shore and the water smooth. Of this they were thoroughly convinced. Some hours must also elapse before the hitherto tumultuous sea would go down; what should they do in the meantime? Bill felt very unwilling to go away without wishing their friends the Turgots good-bye. He wanted also to tell Jeannette of the smugglers' store. The Turgots, at all events, would have as good a right to it as any one else, should the proper owners not be in existence. Jack did not want him to go. "You may be caught," he observed, "or some one may come down and discover the vessel, and if I am alone, even should the tide be high, I could not put off." "But there is no chance of the tide coming up for the next three hours, and I can go to the village and be back again long before that," answered Bill. At last Jack gave in. "Well, be quick about it," he said; "we ought to be away at daylight, if the wind and the sea will let us; and if we don't, I'm afraid there will be very little chance of our getting off at all." Bill promised without fail to return. There was no risk, he was sure, of being discovered, and it would be very ungrateful to the Turgots to go away without trying to see them again. He wished that Jack could have gone also, but he agreed that it was better for him to remain to do a few more things to the raft. Before he started they arranged the tackles for launching it; and they believed that, when once in the water, it would not take them more than ten minutes or a quarter of an hour to haul the empty casks under the bottom and to step and set up the mast. They might then, should the wind be favourable, stand boldly out to sea. This being settled, Bill lowered himself down on the sand by a rope, and ran off as fast as he could go. Jack quickly finished the work he had undertaken; then putting his hand into his pocket, he felt the gold pieces. "It's a pity we shouldn't have more of these," he said to himself. "I don't agree with Bill in that matter. If he does not care about them for himself, I do for him, and he shall have half." As he said this he emptied his pockets into one of the chests. "I shall want a lantern by-the-bye," he said; and springing below, he secured one with a fresh candle in it. Having done this, he forthwith lowered himself, as Bill had done, down on the sand, and quickly made his way to the cavern. He had left the basket with the tinder-box, and the remnant of their provisions at their camp, which he soon reached. His desire to obtain the gold overcame the fears he had before entertained of ghosts and spirits. Having lighted his lantern he took up the basket, which had a cloth in it, and pushed forward. The pale light from his lantern, so different from that of a couple of blazing torches, made the objects around look strange and weird. He began not at all to like the appearance of things, and fancied at last that he must have got into a different part, of the cavern; still he thought, "I must have the gold. It would be so foolish to go away without it. It belongs to us as much as to anybody else, seeing that the owners are dead. Their ghosts won't come to look for it, I hope. I wish I hadn't thought of that. I must be going right. It would have been much pleasanter if Bill had been with me. Why didn't I try to persuade him to stop?" Such were the thoughts which passed through Jack's mind; but he was a bold fellow, and did not like giving up what he had once determined on. He saw no harm in what he was doing; on the contrary, he was serving his friend Bill as well as himself, or rather his mother, for he wanted the gold for her. In the meantime, Bill was hurrying on towards the Turgots' cottage. He should astonish them, he knew, by waking them up in the middle of the night, or rather so early in the morning; but they would appreciate his desire to wish them good-bye, and would be very much obliged to him for telling them of the treasure in the cavern. It would make their fortunes, and Jeannette would be the richest heiress in the neighbourhood; for, of course, he would bargain that she should have a good share. There might be some difficulty in getting the goods away without being discovered, which would be a pity, as they were of as much value as the boxes of gold. However, he was doing what was right in giving them the opportunity of possessing themselves of the treasure, though he considered that he could not take it himself. He got round to the back door, under the room where Pierre slept. He knew that he would not be out fishing then, as the weather would have prevented him. He knocked at once. No answer came. The third time, and he heard some one moving, and presently Pierre sang out, "Who's there?" "It's one you know; let me in," answered Bill, in a low voice, for he was afraid of any one who might by chance be in the neighbourhood hearing him. Pierre came downstairs and opened the door. Bill explained all that had happened, except about the treasure. "You going away!" cried Pierre. "It would be madness! You will only float about till another storm arises and you will be lost." "You don't know what we can do," answered Bill. "We shall probably be picked up by one of our ships before we reach England; and, if not, we shall get on very well, provided the wind holds from the southward, and after the long course of northerly gales there's every chance of its doing that." "I must consult my father before I let you go," said Pierre. "You would not keep us prisoners against our will," said Bill, laughing, as if Pierre could only be in joke. "Come, call your mother and father and Jeannette, and let me wish them good-bye. I haven't many minutes to stop, and I've got something to tell them, which I've a notion will be satisfactory." Pierre went to his father and mother's and Jeannette's rooms, and soon roused them up. They appeared somewhat in _deshabille_, and looked very astonished at being called out of their beds by the young Englishman. "What is it all about?" asked Captain Turgot. "We are going away," replied Bill, "but we could not go without again thanking you for all your kindness; and to show you that we are not ungrateful, I have to tell you how you can become a rich man in a few hours, without much trouble." On this Bill described how they had found the smuggler's treasure. Captain Turgot and the dame held up their hands, uttering various exclamations which showed their surprise, mixed with no little doubt as to whether Bill had not been dreaming. He assured them that he was stating a fact, and offered, if Captain Turgot and Pierre would accompany him, to show them the place, as he thought that there would be time before daylight, when he and Jack had determined to set sail. "I am sure he's speaking the truth," cried Jeannette; "and it's very kind and generous of you, Bill, to tell us of the treasure, when you might have carried it off yourself. I know of the cave, for I saw it once, when I was very nearly caught by the tide and drowned, though I don't think many people about here are acquainted with it; and very few, if any, have gone into the interior." Captain Turgot and Pierre confessed that they had never seen it, though they had gone up and down the coast so often; but then, on account of the rocks, they had always kept a good distance out. At last Bill and Jeannette persuaded them that there really was such a cave; but on considering the hour, they came to the conclusion that the tide would come in before they could make their escape from it, and they would prefer going when the tide had again made out. Bill, they thought, would only just have time to get on board the vessel, if he was determined to go. "But if you have so much gold, you could purchase a good boat," said Captain Turgot; "and that would be much better than making your voyage on a raft." Bill acknowledged that such might be the case, but he was unwilling to risk any further delay. He trusted to his friends' honour to let him go as he had determined. He had come of his own accord to bid them farewell, and they would not really think of detaining him against his will. The fact, however, was that Captain Turgot doubted very much the truth of Bill's story. Had any band of smugglers possessed a hiding-place on that part of the coast, he thought that he should have known it, and he fancied that the young Englishman must in some way or other have been deceived. "Where is the gold you speak of?" he asked. "You surely must have secured some for yourself." Bill replied that Jack had, but that he had not wished to touch it. "Then you give it to us, my young friend," said Captain Turgot; "where is the difference?" "No! I only tell you of it, that you may act as you think right. If you find out the owners, I hope you will restore it to them; but, at all events, it's Frenchmen's money, and a Frenchman has more right to it than I have." Captain Turgot did not quite understand Bill's principles, though perhaps Jeannette and Pierre did. "Well, well, my young friend, if go you must, I will not detain you. You and your companion will run a great risk of losing your lives, and I wish you would remain with us. To-morrow, as soon as the tide is out, Pierre and I will visit the cavern, which, I think, from your description, we can find; and we will take lanterns and torches. Again I say I wish you would wait, and if there is a prize to be obtained, that you would share it with us." Jeannette and Pierre also pressed Bill to remain, but he was firm in his resolution of rejoining Jack, and setting off at once. He was so proud of the raft they had made, that he would have been ready to go round the world on it, if it could be got to sail on a wind, and at all events he had not the slightest doubt about its fitness to carry him and Jack across the Channel. Bill had already delayed longer than he intended, and once more bidding his friends good-bye, he set off for the wreck. He hurried along as fast as he could go, for he felt sure that at daybreak it would be seen, if not from the shore, from the sea, and that people would come and interfere with his and Jack's proceedings. As he knew the way thoroughly, he made good progress. On getting abreast of the wreck, he looked out for Jack, but could nowhere see him. The water was already coming round the vessel, and in a short time would be too deep to wade through. He thought that Jack must have gone below, but he was afraid of giving a loud shout, lest his voice might be heard. He accordingly, without stopping, made his way on board. Great was his alarm when he could nowhere discover Jack. Could he have gone to the cavern? or could he have been carried off? The latter was not probable, for had the stranded vessel been discovered, people would have remained in her. "He must have gone to the cavern, and to save time, I must follow him," he said to himself; and sliding down the rope, he made his way as fast as he could towards its mouth. He quickly climbed up, and hurried on as fast as he dare move in the dark, holding out his hands to avoid running against the sides, or to save himself should he fall. He knew that there were no pitfalls or other serious dangers, or he could not have ventured to move even so fast as he did. He shouted out as he went Jack's name. "How foolish I was not to bring a lantern with me," he said. "Jack is sure to have taken one if he went to get more gold, and that I suspect is what he has been after; if he has a light, I shall see it, but I don't." "Jack! Jack!" he again shouted out; but the cavern only echoed with his voice. Bill was a fine-tempered fellow, but he felt very much inclined to be angry with Jack. All their plans might be upset by his having left the wreck. Even should he soon find him, they would have to swim on board, and set off in their wet clothes; but that was of little consequence compared with the delay. At last his hands touched the rock near their camping-place, and he thence groped his way on; for having so often traversed the cavern in the dark, he found it as easily as a blind man would have done. He soon felt his feet treading on the ashes of their former fires, and feeling about, he discovered the things which Jack had thrown out of the basket. Among them was a candle and the tinder-box. Jack having a lighted lantern, had not troubled himself to bring it. The basket was gone! This convinced him that Jack had been there. He quickly lighted the candle, and as there was not a breath of air, he was able to walk along with it in his hand. The stalactite formations, which appeared on both sides, looked as weird and strange to him as they had to Jack, but he, knowing perfectly well what they were, did not trouble himself about their appearance. He went on, keeping his gaze ahead, in the hopes of meeting Jack. He was sorry that he had not made more determined attempts to persuade Captain Turgot and Pierre to accompany him; for if anything should have happened to his companion, they would have assisted him. But what could have happened? that was the question. Sometimes he thought that Jack might, after all, not have come to the cavern; but, then, who could have carried away the basket? Brave as he was, the strange shadows which occasionally seemed to flit by made him feel that he would much rather not have been there all alone. Suppose, too, the smugglers should have returned, and, perhaps, caught Jack; they would seize him also, and it would be impossible to persuade them that he had not come to rob their store. Still, his chief anxiety was for Jack. He thought much less about himself, or the dangers he might have to encounter. Bill was a hero, though he did not know it, notwithstanding that he had been originally only a London street boy. "I must find Jack, whatever comes of it," he said to himself, as he pushed on. At last he reached the low entrance of the smugglers' store-room, as Jack and he had called it. He crept on carefully, and as he gained the inner end of the passage, he saw a light burning close to where the goods were piled up, but no voices reached his ear. If the smugglers were there, they would surely be talking. He rose to his feet, holding out the candle before him. Seeing no one, he advanced boldly across the cavern. There lay a figure stretched upon the ground! It was Jack! _ |
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