CHAPTER XIV--THE BOAT'S CREW
The state of his cabin hardly troubled Fosterdyke. He never even wentto investigate the extent of the damage, for the moment the airship'smotors were re-started he hastened back to the navigation-room.
"Got a fix yet, Bramsdean?" were his first words.
Peter handed him a slip of paper.
"Well out of our course, sir," he remarked.
The position was given as lat. 3 deg. 15' 20" S., long. 58 deg. 20' 5"E.
"We are," agreed Fosterdyke gravely. "Well to the west'ard. We ought tobe within sight of the Seychelles."
"Any chance of getting petrol there, I wonder?" asked Bramsdean."Judging by the name it seems a likely place to get 'Shell brand.'"
"Don't prattle, Peter," exclaimed Kenneth, facetiously.
Fosterdyke laughed at the joke.
"Rotten puns, both of them," he said. "All the same I wish we hadanother two hundred gallons of 'Pratt's' or 'Shell' or any other oldbrand of petrol. But it's no use going still farther out of our courseon the off-chance of getting juice, so we'll just carry on."
With the passing of the cyclone the wind fell light. What little therewas was dead aft. The sea, viewed from an altitude of three thousandfeet, appeared as smooth as glass, although in reality there was a longrolling ground swell.
In order to economise the petrol consumption the speed of the "GoldenHind" was reduced to ninety miles an hour. Should the favouring windhold, the airship stood a good chance of making the Australian coast.If it changed and blew from the south-east, then Fosterdyke's chances ofwinning the race would be off.
Just before eleven o'clock in the morning of the day following thestorm, Frampton, one of the crew on duty in the navigation-room,reported a boat about three miles away on the port bow.
By the aid of glasses it was seen that the boat was a ship's cuttermoving slowly under sail in an easterly direction. Her crew were hiddenfrom view by a spare sail rigged as an awning over the stern sheets.
"Something wrong there," remarked Bramsdean. "A small boat hundreds ofmiles from the nearest land requires some explanation. Inform SirReginald, Frampton; tell him I propose coming down within hailingdistance."
Before Fosterdyke could reach the navigation-room the noise of the"Golden Hind's" aerial propellers had attracted the attention of theoccupants of the cutter, and six or seven men, whipping off the awning,began waving strips of canvas and various garments.
Slowing down and descending to fifty feet, the airship approached theboat. The latter was hardly seaworthy. Her topstrake had been stove inon the starboard side, and had been roughly repaired by means of a pieceof painted canvas. Her sails were patched in several places, while indefault of a rudder she was being steered by means of an oar.
"Poor chaps! Look at them!" ejaculated Kenneth. "They're almost donein."
The boat's crew were indeed in desperate straits. They were ragged,gaunt, and famished. Their faces and hands were burnt to a brick-redcolour with exposure to the wind and tropical sun. Three of them,seeing that help was at hand, had collapsed and were lying inertly onthe bottom-boards.
Viewed from a height of fifty feet the length of the ocean rollersbecame apparent. The sea was not dangerous, since there were noformidable crests to the long undulations, but there was considerablerisk of the lightly built fuselage sustaining damage should the boatsurge alongside. On the other hand, it was almost a matter ofimpossibility to get the men on board otherwise than by the airshipdescending and resting on the surface. Obviously they were far too weakto attempt to climb the rope-ladder, while the use of bowlines was opento great objection both as regards the length of time and the risk ofinjury to the rescued men.
Being a ship's boat the cutter was provided with slinging gear. Thequestion was whether in her damaged state the boat would break her backin being hoisted; but Fosterdyke decided to take the risk.
Accordingly wire hawsers were lowered from the two bow-hawser pipes, andby dint of careful manoeuvring the shackles were engaged. Then, underthe lifting power of additional brodium introduced into the for'ardballonets, the "Golden Hind" rose vertically until the boat was clear ofthe water. The motor winches were then started and the cutter hauled upuntil her gunwales were almost touching the underside of the airship'snacelle.
One by one the exhausted men were taken on board the airship by means ofthe hatchway through which Kenyon had gone to the rescue of EnricoJaures. This done, two of the "Golden Hind's" men dropped into the boatand passed slings round her. When these took the weight of the cutterthe wire hawsers were unshackled and the two men clambered back to theairship, which had now risen to nearly a thousand feet. One end of eachsling was then slipped, and the boat, falling like a stone, splinteredto matchwood as she struck the surface of the sea.
The seven rescued men were given food and drink in strictly moderatequantities. Vainly they begged for more, but Fosterdyke knew the dangerof starving men being allowed to eat and drink their fill. Nor did heattempt to question them at that juncture, beyond ascertaining thatthere were no more boats belonging to their ship. They were put intobunks and made to sleep.
It was not until ten o'clock on the following morning that four of therescued men put in an appearance in Fosterdyke's cabin. The remainingthree were too ill to leave their bunks.
They were, they said, the sole survivors of the American barque _HildaP. Murchison_, thirty days out from Albany, Western Australia, and boundfor Karachi. Three hundred miles east of the Chagos Archipelago anexplosion took place, but whether external or internal the survivors didnot know. One of them thought it might have been a mine. But it wassevere enough to sink the _Hilda P. Murchison_ in less than fiveminutes, and the sole survivors were the first mate and six hands of theduty watch, who managed to scramble into the only boat that had not beenshattered.
Without food and with only a small barrico of water, they set off tomake their way back to Australia, knowing that with the prevailing windsthey stood a much better chance of making land there than if theyattempted a three-hundred-mile beat to windward, with the risk ofmissing the Chagos Archipelago altogether.
That was eight days ago. They contrived to exist upon raw fish, tallowcandles--which they found in a locker--and half a pint of water per manper diem.
Once they sighted a vessel, but their signals for assistance wereunnoticed. Then they encountered a white squall, the tail end of astorm that ripped their sails before they could stow canvas, and carriedaway the rudder.
The blow was succeeded by a flat calm. For hours the cutter driftedidly, her roughly repaired sails hanging listlessly in the sultry air.Almost overcome by hunger, fatigue, and the tropical heat, they were onthe point of despair when the timely arrival of the British airshipsnatched them from a lingering death.
"I hope we'll be able to set you ashore at Fremantle within the nexteight or ten hours," said Fosterdyke. "Meanwhile we'll get in touchwith the wireless station there and report your rescue. Oh, yes, youmay smoke in the for'ard compartment, but you'll find this ship as 'dry'as the land of the Stars and Stripes."
During the rest of the day progress was well maintained. The westerlybreeze increased to half a gale, which meant an addition of thirty toforty miles an hour to the airship's speed. Barring accidents the"Golden Hind" would reach Fremantle with petrol still remaining in hertanks.
"It's not often one gets a westerly wind in the Twenties," observed thebaronet. "South-east Trades are the usual order of things. We're lucky.Normally we should have to go as far south as 40 deg. to rely upon awesterly wind."
"It will help us from Fremantle to New Zealand," said Peter. "Iremember reading in the paper not so many months ago of the skipper of asailing vessel who tried for days to beat up from Melbourne toFremantle. Finally he gave up beating to wind'ard as a hopeless job, sohe turned and ran before the westerly breeze, sailed round the Horn andthe Cape of Good Hope, and actually arrived at Fremantle several daysbefore another vessel that had l
eft Melbourne at the same time as hedid."
"Let's hope we'll find an equally favouring wind to help us across thePacific," remarked Fosterdyke. "We'll want it."