CHAPTER II
First Trial of the Canoe -- A Wreck on the Coast -- Towing -- Flotsam Point -- Inventory of the Case: Tools, Weapons, Instruments, Clothes, Books, Utensils -- What Pencroft misses -- The Gospel -- A Verse from the Sacred Book.
On the 9th of October the bark canoe was entirely finished. Pencrofthad kept his promise, and a light boat, the shell of which was joinedtogether by the flexible twigs of the crejimba, had been constructedin five days. A seat in the stern, a second seat in the middle topreserve the equilibrium, a third seat in the bows, rowlocks for thetwo oars, a scull to steer with, completed the little craft, which wastwelve feet long, and did not weigh more than 200 pounds.
The operation of launching it was extremely simple. The canoe wascarried to the beach and laid on the sand before Granite House, andthe rising tide floated it. Pencroft, who leapt in directly,manoeuvred it with the scull and declared it to be just the thing forthe purpose to which they wished to put it.
"Hurrah!" cried the sailor, who did not disdain to celebrate thus hisown triumph. "With this we could go round--"
"The world?" asked Gideon Spilett.
"No, the island. Some stones for ballast, a mast, and a sail, whichthe captain will make for us some day, and we shall go splendidly!Well, captain--and you, Mr. Spilett; and you, Herbert; and you,Neb--aren't you coming to try our new vessel? Come along! we must seeif it will carry all five of us!"
This was certainly a trial which ought to be made. Pencroft soonbrought the canoe to the shore by a narrow passage among the rocks,and it was agreed that they should make a trial of the boat that dayby following the shore as far as the first point at which the rocks ofthe south ended.
As they embarked, Neb cried,--
"But your boat leaks rather, Pencroft."
"That's nothing, Neb," replied the sailor; "the wood will getseasoned. In two days there won't be a single leak, and our boat willhave no more water in her than there is in the stomach of a drunkard.Jump in!"
They were soon all seated, and Pencroft shoved off. The weather wasmagnificent, the sea as calm as if its waters were contained withinthe narrow limits of a lake. Thus the boat could proceed with as muchsecurity as if it was ascending the tranquil current of the Mercy.
Neb took one of the oars, Herbert the other, and Pencroft remained inthe stern in order to use the skull.
The sailor first crossed the channel, and steered close to thesouthern point of the islet. A light breeze blew from the south. Noroughness was found either in the channel or the green sea. A longswell, which the canoe scarcely felt, as it was heavily laden, rolledregularly over the surface of the water. They pulled out about half amile distant from the shore, that they might have a good view of MountFranklin.
Pencroft afterwards returned towards the mouth of the river. The boatthen skirted the shore, which, extending to the extreme point, hid allTadorn's Fens.
This point, of which the distance was increased by the irregularity ofthe coast, was nearly three miles from the Mercy. The settlersresolved to go to its extremity, and only go beyond it as much as wasnecessary to take a rapid survey of the coast as far as Claw Cape.
The canoe followed the windings of the shore, avoiding the rocks whichfringed it, and which the rising tide began to cover. The cliffgradually sloped away from the mouth of the river to the point. Thiswas formed of granite rocks, capriciously distributed, very differentfrom the cliff at Prospect Heights, and of an extremely wild aspect.It might have been said that an immense cartload of rocks had beenemptied out there. There was no vegetation on this sharp promontory,which projected two miles from the forest, and it thus represented agiant's arm stretched out from a leafy sleeve.
The canoe, impelled by the two oars, advanced without difficulty.Gideon Spilett, pencil in one hand and note-book in the other,sketched the coast in bold strokes. Neb, Herbert, and Pencroftchatted, whilst examining this part of their domain, which was new tothem, and, in proportion as the canoe proceeded towards the south, thetwo Mandible Capes appeared to move, and surround Union Bay moreclosely.
As to Cyrus Harding, he did not speak; he simply gazed, and by themistrust which his look expressed, it appeared that he was examiningsome strange country.
In the meanwhile, after a voyage of three quarters of an hour, thecanoe reached the extremity of the point, and Pencroft was preparingto return, when Herbert, rising, pointed to a black object, saying,--
"What do I see down there on the beach?"
All eyes turned towards the point indicated.
"Why," said the reporter, "there is something. It looks like part of awreck half buried in the sand."
"Ah!" cried Pencroft, "I see what it is!"
"What?" asked Neb.
"Barrels, barrels, which perhaps are full," replied the sailor.
"Pull to the shore, Pencroft!" said Cyrus.
A few strokes of the oar brought the canoe into a little creek, andits passengers leapt on shore.
Pencroft was not mistaken. Two barrels were there, half buried in thesand, but still firmly attached to a large chest, which, sustained bythem, had floated to the moment when it stranded on the beach.
"There has been a wreck, then, in some part of the island," saidHerbert.
"Evidently," replied Spilett.
"But what's in this chest?" cried Pencroft, with very naturalimpatience. "What's in this chest? It is shut up, and nothing to openit with! Well, perhaps a stone--"
And the sailor, raising a heavy block, was about to break in one ofthe sides of the chest, when the engineer arrested his hand.
"Pencroft," said he, "can you restrain your impatience for one houronly?"
"But, captain, just think! Perhaps there is everything we want inthere!"
"We shall find that out, Pencroft," replied the engineer; "but trustto me, and do not break the chest, which may be useful to us. We mustconvey it to Granite House, where we can open it easily and withoutbreaking it. It is quite prepared for a voyage, and, since it hasfloated here, it may just as well float to the mouth of the river."
"You are right, captain, and I was wrong, as usual," replied thesailor.
The engineer's advice was good. In fact, the canoe probably would nothave been able to contain the articles possibly enclosed in the chest,which doubtless was heavy, since two empty barrels were required tobuoy it up. It was, therefore, much better to tow it to the beach atGranite House.
And now, whence had this chest come? That was the important questionCyrus Harding and his companions looked attentively around them, andexamined the shore for several hundred steps. No other articles orpieces of wreck could be found. Herbert and Neb climbed a high rock tosurvey the sea, but there was nothing in sight--neither a dismastedvessel nor a ship under sail.
However, there was no doubt that there had been a wreck Perhaps thisincident was connected with that of the bullet? Perhaps strangers hadlanded on another part of the island? Perhaps they were still there?But the thought which came naturally to the settlers was, that thesestrangers could not be Malay pirates, for the chest was evidently ofAmerican or European make.
All the party returned to the chest, which was of an unusually largesize. It was made of oak wood, very carefully closed and covered witha thick hide, which was secured by copper nails. The two greatbarrels, hermetically sealed, but which sounded hollow and empty, werefastened to its sides by strong ropes knotted with a skill whichPencroft directly pronounced sailors alone could exhibit. It appearedto be in a perfect state of preservation, which was explained by thefact that it had stranded on a sandy beach, and not among rocks. Theyhad no doubt whatever, on examining it carefully, that it had not beenlong in the water, and that its arrival on this coast was recent. Thewater did not appear to have penetrated to the inside, and thearticles which it contained were no doubt uninjured.
FLOTSAM AND JETSAM]
It was evident that this chest had been thrown overboard from somedismasted vessel driven towards the island, and that, in the hope thatit wo
uld reach the land, where they might afterwards find it, thepassengers had taken the precaution to buoy it up by means of thisfloating apparatus.
"We will tow this chest to Granite House," said the engineer, "wherewe can make an inventory of its contents, then, if we discover any ofthe survivors from the supposed wreck, we can return it to those towhom it belongs. If we find no one--"
"We will keep it for ourselves!" cried Pencroft "But what in the worldcan there be in it?"
The sea was already approaching the chest, and the high tide wouldevidently float it. One of the ropes which fastened the barrels waspartly unlashed and used as a cable to unite the floating apparatuswith the canoe. Pencroft and Neb then dug away the sand with theiroars, so as to facilitate the moving of the chest, towing which theboat soon began to double the point to which the name of Flotsam Pointwas given.
The chest was heavy, and the barrels were scarcely sufficient to keepit above water. The sailor also feared every instant that it would getloose and sink to the bottom of the sea. But happily his fears werenot realised, and an hour and a half after they set out--all that timehad been taken up in going a distance of three miles--the boat touchedthe beach below Granite House.
Canoe and chest were then hauled up on the sand, and as the tide wasthen going out, they were soon left high and dry. Neb, hurrying home,brought back some tools with which to open the chest in such a waythat it might be injured as little as possible, and they proceeded toits inventory. Pencroft did not try to hide that he was greatlyexcited.
The sailor began by detaching the two barrels, which, being in goodcondition, would of course be of use. Then the locks were forced witha cold chisel and hammer, and the lid thrown back. A second casing ofzinc lined the interior of the chest, which had been evidentlyarranged that the articles which it enclosed might under anycircumstances be sheltered from damp.
"Oh!" cried Neb, "suppose it's jam!".
UNPACKING THE MARVELLOUS CHEST]
"I hope not," replied the reporter.
"If only there was--" said the sailor in a low voice.
"What?" asked Neb, who overheard him.
"Nothing!"
The covering of zinc was torn off and thrown back over the sides ofthe chest, and by degrees numerous articles of very varied characterwere produced and strewn about on the sand. At each new objectPencroft uttered fresh hurrahs, Herbert clapped his hands, and Nebdanced--like a nigger. There were books which made Herbert wild withjoy, and cooking utensils which Neb covered with kisses!
In short, the colonists had reason to be extremely satisfied, for thischest contained tools, weapons, instruments, clothes, books; and thisis the exact list of them as stated in Gideon Spilett's note-book:--
Tools:--3 knives with several blades, 2 woodmen's axes, 2 carpenter'shatchets, 3 planes, 2 adzes, 1 twibil or mattock, 6 chisels, 2 files,3 hammers, 3 gimlets, 2 augers, 10 bags of nails and screws, 3 saws ofdifferent sizes, 2 boxes of needles.
Weapons:--2 flint-lock guns, 2 for percussion caps, 2 breech-loadercarbines, 5 boarding cutlasses, 4 sabres, 2 barrels of powder, eachcontaining twenty-five pounds; 12 boxes of percussion caps.
Instruments:--1 sextant, 1 double opera-glass, 1 telescope, 1 box ofmathematical instruments, 1 mariner's compass, 1 Fahrenheitthermometer, 1 aneroid barometer, 1 box containing a photographicapparatus, object-glass, plates, chemicals, etc.
Clothes:--2 dozen shirts of a peculiar material resembling wool, butevidently of a vegetable origin; 3 dozen stockings of the samematerial.
Utensils:--1 iron pot, 6 copper saucepans, 3 iron dishes, 10 metalplates, 2 kettles, 1 portable stove, 6 table-knives.
Books:--1 Bible, 1 atlas, 1 dictionary of the different Polynesianidioms, 1 dictionary of natural science, in six volumes; 3 reams ofwhite paper, 2 books with blank pages.
"It must be allowed," said the reporter, after the inventory had beenmade, "that the owner of this chest was a practical man! Tools,weapons, instruments, clothes, utensils, books--nothing is wanting! Itmight really be said that he expected to be wrecked, and had preparedfor it beforehand."
"Nothing is wanting, indeed," murmured Cyrus Harding thoughtfully.
"And for a certainty," added Herbert, "the vessel which carried thischest and its owner was not a Malay pirate!"
"Unless," said Pencroft, "the owner had been taken prisoner bypirates--"
"That is not admissible," replied the reporter. "It is more probablethat an American or European vessel has been driven into this quarter,and that her passengers, wishing to save necessaries at least,prepared this chest and threw it overboard."
"Is that your opinion, captain?" asked Herbert.
"Yes, my boy," replied the engineer, "that may have been the case. Itis possible that at the moment, or in expectation of a wreck, theycollected into this chest different articles of the greatest use inhopes of finding it again on the coast--"
"Even the photographic box!" exclaimed the sailor incredulously.
"As to that apparatus," replied Harding, "I do not quite see the useof it; and a more complete supply of clothes or more abundantammunition would have been more valuable to us as well as to any othercastaways!"
"But isn't there any mark or direction on these instruments, tools, orbooks, which would tell us something about them?" asked GideonSpilett.
That might be ascertained. Each article was carefully examined,especially the books, instruments and weapons. Neither the weapons northe instruments, contrary to the usual custom, bore the name of themaker; they were, besides, in a perfect state, and did not appear tohave been used. The same peculiarity marked the tools and utensils;all were new, which proved that the articles had not been taken bychance and thrown into the chest, but, on the contrary, that thechoice of the things had been well considered and arranged with care.This was also indicated by a second case of metal which had preservedthem from damp, and which could not have been soldered in a moment ofhaste.
As to the dictionaries of natural science and Polynesian idioms, bothwere English, but they neither bore the name of the publisher nor thedate of publication.
The same with the Bible printed in English, in quarto, remarkable in atypographical point of view, and which appeared to have been oftenused.
The atlas was a magnificent work, comprising maps of every country inthe world, and several planispheres arranged upon Mercator'sprojection, aid of which the nomenclature was in French--but whichalso bore neither date nor name of publisher.
There was nothing, therefore, on these different articles by whichthey could be traced and nothing consequently of a nature to show thenationality of the vessel which must have recently passed theseshores.
But, wherever the chest might have come from, it was a treasure to thesettlers on Lincoln Island. Till then, by making use of theproductions of nature, they had created everything for themselves,and, thanks to their intelligence, they had managed withoutdifficulty. But did it not appear as if Providence had wished toreward them by sending them these productions of human industry? Theirthanks rose unanimously to Heaven.
However, one of them was not quite satisfied: it was Pencroft. Itappeared that the chest did not contain some thing which he evidentlyheld in great esteem, for in proportion as they approached the bottomof the box, his hurrahs diminished in heartiness, and, the inventoryfinished, he was heard to mutter these words--
"That's all very fine, but you can see that there is nothing for me inthat box!"
This led Neb to say,--
"Why, friend Pencroft, what more do you expect?"
"Half a pound of tobacco," replied Pencroft seriously, "and nothingwould have been wanting to complete my happiness."
No one could help laughing at this speech of the sailor's.
PENCROFT'S SUPERSTITION]
But the result of this discovery of the chest was, that it was morethan ever necessary to explore the island thoroughly. It was thereforeagreed that the next morning at break of day they should set out, byascending the Mercy so as to reach the we
stern shore. If any castawayshad landed on the coast, it was to be feared they were withoutresources, and it was therefore the more necessary to carry help tothem without delay.
During the day the different articles were carried to Granite House,where they were methodically arranged in the great hall.
This day--the 29th of October--happened to be a Sunday, and, beforegoing to bed, Herbert asked the engineer if he would not read themsomething from the Gospel.
"Willingly," replied Cyrus Harding.
He took the sacred volume, and was about to open it, when Pencroftstopped him, saying,--
"Captain, I am superstitious. Open at random and read the first versewhich your eye falls upon. We will see if it applies to oursituation."
Cyrus Harding smiled at the sailor's idea, and, yielding to his wish,he opened exactly at a place where the leaves were separated by amarker.
Immediately his eyes were attracted by a cross which, made with apencil, was placed against the eighth verse of the seventh chapter ofthe Gospel of St. Matthew. He read the verse, which was this:--
"For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth."