CHAPTER XXIII.

Otago Witness, Issue 876, 12 September 1868, Page 16

CHAPTER XXIII.

The breeze declined at sunset, but it rained at intervals during the night ; and by the morning they were somewhat chilled.

Death had visited them again during the night. Prince was discovered dead and cold ; his wounds were mere scratches, and there seems to be no doubt that he died by gorging himself with more food than his enfeebled system could possibly digest.

Thus dismally began a day of comparative bodily comfort, but mental distress, especially to Miss Eolleston and Mr Hazel.

Now that this lady and gentleman were no longer goaded to madness by physical suffering, their higher sensibilities resumed their natural force, and* the miserable contents of the blood-stained boat shocked them terribly. Two corpses and two wounded men.

Mr Hazel, however, soon came to one resolution, and that was to read the funeral service over the dead, and then commit them to the. deep. He declared his intention, and Cooper, who, though wounded, and apparently sinking, was still skipper of the boat, acquiesced readily.

Mr Hazel took the dead men's knives and their money out of their pockets, and read the burial service over the bodies; they were then committed to the deep. This sad ceremony performed, he addressed a few words to the survivors.

" My friends, and brothers in affliction, we ought not to hope too much from Divine mercy for ourselves ; or we should come soon to forget Divine justice. But we are not forbidden to hope for others. Those who are now gone were guilty of a terrible crime ; but then they were tempted more than their flesh could bear ; and they received their punishment here on earth : we may therefore hope they will escape punishment hereafter. And it is for us to profit by their fate, and bow to Heaven's will. Even when they drew their knives, food in plenty was within their reach, and the signs of wind were on the sea, and of rain in the sky. Let us be more patient than they were, and place our trust What is that upon the water to leeward? A piece of wood floating T' Welch stood up and looked. te Can't make it out. Steer alongside it, miss, if you please." And he crept forward. Presently he became excited, and directed those in the stern how to steer the

boat close to the object without going over it. He begged them all to be silent. He leaned over the boat side as they neared it. He clutched it suddenly with both hands, and flung it into the boat with a shout of triumph; but sank exhausted by the effort. It was a young turtle ; and being asleep on the water, or inexperienced, had allowed them to capture it. This was indeed a godsend : twelve pounds of succulent meat. It was instantly divided, and Mr Hazel contrived, with some difficulty, to boil a portion of it. He enjoyed it greatly ; but Miss Eolleston showed a curious and violent antipathy to it, scarcely credible under the circumstances. Not so the sailors. They devoured it raw, what they could get at all. Cooper could only get down a mouthful or two ; he had received his death wound, and was manifestly sinking. He revived, however, from time to time, and spoke cheerfully, whenever he spoke at all. Welch informed him of every incident that took place, however minute. Then he .would nod, or utter a syllable or two.

On being told that they were passing through seaweed, he expressed a wish to see some of it, and when he had examined it, he said to Hazel, " Keep up your heart, sir ; you are not a hundred miles from land." Be added gently, after a pause, " but I am bound for another port !"

About five in the afternoon, Welch came aft, with the tears in his eyes, to say that Sam was going to slip his cable, and had something to say to them. They went to him directly, and Hazel took his hand, and exhorted him to forgive his enemies. " Han't a got none," was the reply. Hazel then, after a few words of religious exhortation and comfort, asked him ! if he could do anything for him. "Ay," said Cooper, solemnly. "Got pen and ink aboard, any of ye ?" "I have a pencil," said Helen, earnestly ; then tearfully, " oh, dear ! it is to make his will." After searching in vain for paper, she offered her prayerbook, which had two blank leaves under each cover.

The dying man saw it, and rose into that remarkable energy which sometimes precedes the departure of the soul.

"Write!" said he, in his deep, full tones.

"I, Samuel Cooper, able seaman, am going to slip my cable, and sail into the presence of my Maker." He waited till this was written. " And so I speak the truth."

"The ship Proserpine was destroyed wilful."

' " The men had more allowance than they signed for."

" The mate was always plying the captain with liquor."

" Two days before ever the ship leaked the mate got the long-boat ready."

" When the Proserpine sank, we waa on her port quarter, aboard the cutter, was me and my messmate Tom Welch."

" We saw two auger holes in her stern, about two inches diameter."

"Them two holes was made from within, for the splinters showed outside."

" She was a good ship, and met with no stress of weather to speak of, on that voyage."

" Joe Wylie scuttled her and destroyed her people. " " D n his eyes !"

Mr Hazel was shocked at this finale ; but he knew what sailors are, and how little meaning there is in their set phrases. However, as a clergyman, he could not allow these to be Cooper's last words ; so he said earnestly, "Yes, but my poor fellow, you said you forgave all your enemies. We all need forgiveness, you know." " That is true, sir." " And you forgive this Wylie, do you not ?"

" Oh, Lord, yes," said Cooper, faintly. " I forgive the lubber ; d n him !" Having said these words with some difficulty, he became lethargic, and so remained for two hours. Indeed, he spoke but once more, and that was to Welch ; though they were all about him then. " Messmate," said he, in a voice that was now faint and broken, " you and I must sail together on this new voyage. I'm going out of port first ; but" (in a whisper of inconceivable tenderness and simple cunning), " I'll lie-to outside the harbor till you come out, my bo." Then he paused a moment. Then he added, softly, " For I love you, Tom." These sweet words were the last of that

rugged, silent sailor, who never threw a* word away, and whoso rough breast enclosed a friendship as of the ancient world,, tender, true, and everlasting, that sweetened his life and ennobled his death. As. he deserved mourners, so he had true ones. His last words went home to theafflicted hearts that heard them, and the lady and gentleman, whose lives he had saved at cost of his own, wept aloud over their departed friend. But his messmate's eye was dry. When all was over,, he just turned to the mourners, and said, gravely, "Thank ye, sir : thank ye kindly,, ma'am. " And then he covered the body decently with the spare canvass, and lay quietly down, with his own head pillowed upon those loved remains.

Towards afternoon, seals were observedsporting on the "waters ; but no attemptwas made to capture them. Indeed, Miss Eolleston had quite enough to do to sail the boat with Mr Hazel's assistance.

The night passed, and the morning brought nothing new, except that they fell in with seaweed in such quantities, the boat could hardly get through it. Mr Hazel examined this seaweed carefully, and brought several kinds on board. Amongst the varieties was one like thin green strips of spinach, very tender and succulent. His botanical researches included seaweed, and he recognised this as one of the edible rock- weeds. There was very little of it, comparatively, but he took great pains, and in two hours' time had gathered as much as might fill a good slop-basin. Ha washed it in fresh water, and then asked Miss Kolleston for a pocket handkerchief. This he tied so as to make a bag, and contrived to boil it with the few chips of fuel that remained on board.

After he had boiled it ten minutes therewas no more fuel, except a bowl or two,, and the boat-hook, one pair of oars, and the midship and stern thwarts. He tasted it, and found it glutinous and delicious ; he gave Miss Eolleston some, and then led Welch with the rest. He, poor fellow, enjoyed this sea-spinach greatly ; he could no longer swallow meat. While Hazel was feeding him, a flight of ducks passed over their heads, high in. the air.

Welch pointed up at them. . said Helen, "if we had but their wings !"

Presently a bird was Been coming in thesame direction, but flying very low ; itwabbled along towards them very slowly, and at last, to their great surprise, came flapping and tried to settle on the gunwale of the boat. Welch, with that instinct of slaughter which belong to men, struck the boat-hook into the bird's back, and it was soon despatched. It proved to be I one of that very flock of ducks that had passed over their heads, and a crab wasfound fastened to its leg. It is supposed that the bird, to break its long flight, had. rested on some reef, and perhaps, been, too busy fishing, and caught this Tartar. Hazel pounced upon it. " Heaven has sent this for you, because you cannot eat turtle. " But the next moment he blushed, and recovered his reason. " See," said he, referring to her own words, " thispoor bird had wings ; yet death overtook her."

He sacrificed a bowl for fuel, and boiled the duck and crab in one pot, and MissKolleston ate demurely, but plentifully, of both. Of the crab's shell he made a little drinking vessel for Miss Eolleston.

Cooper remained without funeral ritesall this time ; the reason was that Welch lay with his head pillowed upon his dead, friend, and Hazel had not the heart todisturb him.

But it was the survivors' duty to commit him to the deep, and so Hazel sat down by Welch, and asked him kindly whether he would not wish the services of the Church to be read over his departed, friend.

"In course, sir," said Welch. But th& next moment he took Hazel's meaning, and said, hurriedly, " No, no ; I can'tlet Sam be buried in the sea. Ye see,, sir, Sam and I, we are used to one another, and I can't abide to part with him,, alive or dead."

"Ah!" said Hazel, "the best friendsmust part when death takes one." "Ay, ay, when t'other lives. But, Lord bless you, sir ! I shan't be long: astarn of my messmate here ; can't you see that V

"Heaven forbid!" said Hazel, surprised and alarmed. " Why, you are not. wounded mortally, as Cooper was. Have* a good heart, man, and we three will all see old England yet." "Well, sir," said Welch, coolly, "I'll I tell ye : me and my shipmate, Prince, were a cutting at one another with our knives a smart time, (and I do properly wonder, when 1 think of that day's work, for I liked the man well enough ; but rum atop of starvation plays hell with seafaring men,) well, sir, as I was a- saying,, he let more blood out of me than I could afford to lose under the circumstances. And, ye see, I can't make fresh blood, because my throat is so swelled by the

drought I can't swallow much meat, so I'm safe to lose thenumber of my mess ; . and, another thing, my heart isn't altogether set towards living. Sam, here, he give me an order; what, didn't ye hear * him ? ' I'll lie-to outside the bar,* says he, ' till you come out.' He expects me to come out in his wake. Don't yfe, Sam —that was ?" and he laid his hand gently on the remains. " Now, sir, I shall ax the lady and you a favor.' I want to lie alongside Sam. But if you bury him in the sea, and me ashore, why d n my eyes. if I shon't be a thousand years .or so before I can find my own messmate. Etarnity is a 'nation big place, I'm told, a hundred times as big as both oceans. No, sir ; you'll make land, by Sam's reckoning, to-morrow, or next day, wind and tide permitting. Til take care of Sam's hull till then, and we'll lie together till the angel blows that there trumpet ; and then we'll go aloft together, and as soon as ever we have made our scrape to our betters, we'll both speak a good word for you and the lady ; a very pretty lady she is, and a good-hearted, and the best plucked one I ever did see in any distressed craft ; now don't ye cry, miss, don't ye cry, your trouble is pretty near over ; he said you was not a hundred miles from land ; I don't know how he knew that, he was always a better seaman than I be ; but say it he did, and that is enough, for he was a man as never told a lie, nor wasted a word." Welch could utter no more just then, for the glands of his throat were swollen, and he spoke with, considerable difficulty.

What could Hazel reply 1 The judgment is sometimes ashamed to -contradict the heart with cold reasons.

He only said, with a sigh, that he saw no signs of land, and believed they had gone on a wrong course, and were in the heart of the Pacific.

Welch made no answer, but a look of good-natured contempt. Tike idea of this parson contradicting Sam Cooper ! The sun broke, and revealed "the illimitable ooean ; themselves -a tiny speck on it.

Mr Hazel whispered Miss Rolieston that Cooper must be buried to-day.

At ten a.m. they passed through more seaweed ; but this time they had to eat the sea- spinach raw, and there was very little of it. At noonthe-sea was green in places. Welch told them this was a sign they were nearing land.

At four p.m. a bird, about the size and color of a woodpecker, settled on the boat's mast.

Their glittering eyes fastened on it-; and Welch said, " Come, there's a supper for you as can eat it."

" No, poor thing !" said Helen Relleston. " You are right," said Hazel, with a •certain effort of self-restraint. " Let our sufferings make us gentle, not savage ; that poor bird is lost like us upon this ocean. It is a land-bird." •' How do you know that ?" " Water-birds have webbed feet — to swim with."

The bird, having rested, flew to the north-west.

Helen, by one of those inspired impulses her sex have, altered the boat's course directly, and followed the bird.

Half an hour before sunset, Helen Rolieston, whose vision was very keen, • Baid she saw something at the verge of the horizon, like a hair standing upright.

Hazel looked, but could not see anything. In ten minutes more Helen Rolieston pointed it out again ; and lihen Hazel did see a vertical line, more like a ship's mast than anything else one could expect to see there.

Their .eyes were sow strained to make it out, and, as the boat advanced, it became mope and more palpable, though it ■was hard to say exactly what it was.

Five minutes befone the sun set, the air became clearer than ever, and rfc stood out clean against the sky.— A tree — a lofty, solitary tree, with a tall stem, like a column, and branches only at the lop.

A palm-tree — in the middle of the Pacific.