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King o' the Beach: A Tropic Tale, a fiction by George Manville Fenn |
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Chapter 9 |
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_ CHAPTER NINE. The raft was not launched the next morning, and Bostock did not even begin to make preparations with the blocks and pulleys for getting it over the side. Carey was rather restless when he went to bed, the thought of the coming change and the idea of gliding over the smooth waters of the lagoon producing in his still weak state enough excitement to keep him awake for hours, so that it was well on towards morning before he went off soundly to sleep; but when he was once off he slept as if he meant to indulge himself for eight-and-forty hours. "Hullo!" he cried when he awoke, "anything the matter?" For he found the doctor sitting reading close to his berth. "Matter? No, I hope not," replied the doctor, closing his book. "Had a good rest?" "Yes, I have been sound asleep. What made you call me so early?" "Early, eh? What time do you suppose it is?" Carey glanced towards the round window, which looked dim and grey, and the cabin quite gloomy. "I don't know," he said. "Close upon sunrise, I suppose." "Close upon mid-day. Don't you hear the rain?" "Rain? Yes, I was wondering what it was." "A regular tropical downpour. No going ashore to-day." "Oh, how tiresome! I say, though, why did you let me sleep so long?" "Because Nature said you wanted rest. It was better to let you have your sleep out." "But it will soon clear up, will it not?" "I'm thinking it will not," said the doctor. He thought right, for on and off the downpour lasted a fortnight, with storm after storm of thunder and lightning, and the occupants of the stranded vessel were kept close prisoners, only getting a short visit occasionally to the drenched deck, where Carey used his glass to watch the torrent ashore, which had grown into a tremendous fall, whose roar came like muffled thunder to his ears. "It's horribly disappointing," he said, gloomily, on the fourteenth day. "I did so want to go ashore." "Out of evil comes good," said the doctor, cheerily. "You have had another fortnight's enforced rest, and it has done wonders towards the knitting up of the bone." "No," said the boy, quickly, "it's not so well. It aches more than ever to-day." "That's only from the weather," said the doctor, laughing. "I daresay you will feel aching sensations like that for months to come, whenever there's a change in the weather." Carey looked at him with so pitiful a countenance that the doctor laughed now heartily. "I don't see anything to laugh at," said the boy. "Bah! you don't mind a little pain. Come, cheer up; this long wait has been all for the best. You are a wonderful deal stronger now." "But look here, Doctor Kingsmead," said the boy, earnestly; "am I really better and stronger, or are you saying that to comfort me?" "I am saying it because it is the simple truth." "Ha!" ejaculated Carey, and his face lit up, and then grew brighter still, for the sun came out, glorifying everything, the clouds were floating off the hills so that they could once more be seen, looking dazzlingly green, and the island, as far as they could see, appeared ten times more beautiful than ever. "You'll have the raft lowered at once now?" cried Carey, eagerly. "What, while everything is still drenched with rain? No, let's wait till to-morrow." "And then it may be raining again." "I think not," said the doctor. "Use your glass a little, and you'll see that everything ashore is so saturated that we could not go a dozen yards without being drenched." "It does look rather wet," said Carey, grudgingly; but he soon brightened up, and looked on while the doctor got out his gun and cleaned a few specks of rust from the barrel, while that afternoon Bostock prepared everything for the launching, getting done in such good time that, as there were a couple of hours' more daylight, it was decided to try and get the raft over the side. It looked cumbersome enough, but there was no difficulty in levering it along the deck by means of capstan bars, after which the rope running through the block high up was made fast to one side, and the doctor and Bostock began to haul: but the effect was not satisfactory, and Bostock stopped and scratched his head. "Here, let me help," cried Carey; but the doctor roared at him, and the boy wrinkled up his brow. "Well," said the doctor, when, after hauling one side up a little, they had lowered it again. "Seems to me, sir," said the old sailor, "that we've got our work cut out to haul her up and lower her down." "Yes, we want a couple of men to help," said the doctor. "And we aren't got 'em," growled Bostock. "Why don't you haul one side up till the raft's edgewise, and then work it out through the gangway with the levers till it overbalances and tumbles in?" said Carey. "Ah, to be sure, sir," said Bostock, mopping his dripping face; "why don't we?" "What, and shake the thing all to pieces with the fall?" said the doctor. "Nay, nay, nay, sir; don't you say such a word as that," grumbled Bostock. "I don't do my work like that. I took lots o' time over her, didn't I, Master Carey?" "You did, Bob," said the boy, with a queer cock of one eye. "Consekens is, she's as strong as can be." "You think it would hold together then?" said the doctor. "Sure on it, sir." "Let's try, then." The rope was fastened, the capstan bars were seized, and in a few minutes, as the two men turned, the rope tightened, the raft gradually rose, and soon after stood up edgewise, resting on two of the corner tubs, and without the slightest disposition to topple over. Then the rope was slackened so as to allow enough to act as a painter to moor the unwieldy framework to the side, levers were seized, and inch by inch it was hitched along the deck to the gangway, and then on and on till a quarter of it was outside, when there was a halt for inspection to see if all was right for it to fall clear. Bostock declared that it was, but the doctor shook his head. "It is my belief," he said, "that it will turn wrong side up when it falls." "I believe it will tumble all to pieces," cried Carey, mischievously. "If she do I'll eat my hat," growled Bostock. "Let's have her in and chance it, sir. Mebbe if she falls topsy-wopsy we can get the capstan to work and turn her back again." "Well, we'll try," replied the doctor. "Come on then, sir," said the old sailor, picking up the capstan bar again; "and you stand well back, Master Carey. We don't want to break you again if she topples over." The boy drew back and the levers were thrust in beneath, and once more the raft began to move inch by inch outside the gangway. "Both together, sir," cried the old sailor; "easy it is--heave ho--heavy ho--steady--ay, oh! One, two, three, and a cheerily ho! One more, sir. Two more, sir. Yo, ho, ho, and lock out; over she goes!" For the clumsy structure was hitched on and on till it was pretty well on the balance. Then a couple more touches did the business, for the half projecting through the gangway began to sink, overbalancing more and more till all at once, after hanging for a moment as if suspended in the air, it plunged outward, falling with a tremendous splash, sending the spray flying in all directions; and then, to the delight of all, after seeming to hesitate as it rose, turning over and floating high out of the water and right way up. Carey gave a hearty cheer, while Bostock threw down his capstan bar with a rattle on the deck. "Play up, you lubber!" he shouted to an imaginary fiddler, as he folded his arms and then dashed off in the sailor's hornpipe, dancing frantically for a couple of minutes, and ending with three stamps and a bow and scrape. "Now then," he cried, panting hard with his exertions, "did she tumble all to pieces, sir? I knowed better than that." "Capital, Bostock," said the doctor. "It floats splendidly, but will it bear all three?" "Will it bear all three, sir? Yes, and a ton o' stuff as well. Here, just you wait a minute." He ran and got hold of the rope, hauled the raft alongside, and made it fast, before sliding down on to the raft, where he repeated his hornpipe performance, the buoyant framework rising and falling a little, but seeming as safe as could be. "There," he cried, shouting up breathlessly to those looking out from the gangway; "it seems to me that she's far safer than any boat I could make, and you can pole her, or row her, or put up a sail, and go anywhere on her; but, you know, I don't say as she'll be fast. No; I don't say that." "You ought to be proud of your work, Bob," cried Carey, laughing. "Proud on her, sir? I just am. Them tubs are good uns; no fear o' them leaking for years." "Leaking for years, Carey," said the doctor, in a low tone of voice; "he speaks as if he were quite settled down to staying here." "Well, it will be nice," said the boy. "I mean," he added, hastily, "for a month or two, for, of course, we expect to be fetched away soon." "Yes," said the doctor; "of course we expect to be fetched away soon." The doctor turned away and went down into the cabin, leaving the boy looking after him. "How strangely he spoke," thought Carey; "just as if he didn't like what I said. Of course, I don't want to stay here, but to go on to Brisbane to see _them_. Only, after being shut up like a cripple so long, it's natural to want to go ashore on this island and see what the place is like. I say, Bob," he cried, going to the side, "do you think there's a volcano--a burning mountain, up yonder where the clouds hang so low?" "Might be anything, sir. I shouldn't be a bit surprised. You never know what you're going to find in an island where nobody's been before." "Want a hand up?" "Nay, sir; I can swarm up the rope. We must lower down some steps, though, so as we can haul 'em up again of a night and keep out the savages as might come in their canoes." "Savages? Canoes? Do you think there are any, Bob?" "One never knows, sir. I don't think there's any here now, or we should have seen some of 'em; but they goes wandering about far enough, and they might turn up any time. Rather nasty ones they are, too, off the west coast and to norrard there, Noo Guinea. There we are," he continued, climbing on deck. "Won't take me long to-morrow morning putting on the oars, poles, and mast, and the bit o' sail we have made." "Then we shall go to-morrow morning?" "If it keeps fine," said the old sailor, shading his eyes and looking round. "And fine weather it is, my lad, as far as I can see." _ |
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