Off on a Comet! a Journey through Planetary Space

  CHAPTER XIII. A ROYAL SALUTE

  "Then I take your bishop, major," said Colonel Murphy, as he made a movethat he had taken since the previous evening to consider.

  "I was afraid you would," replied Major Oliphant, looking intently atthe chess-board.

  Such was the way in which a long silence was broken on the morning ofthe 17th of February by the old calendar.

  Another day elapsed before another move was made. It was a protractedgame; it had, in fact, already lasted some months--the players beingso deliberate, and so fearful of taking a step without the most matureconsideration, that even now they were only making the twentieth move.

  Both of them, moreover, were rigid disciples of the renowned Philidor,who pronounces that to play the pawns well is "the soul of chess"; and,accordingly, not one pawn had been sacrificed without a most vigorousdefense.

  The men who were thus beguiling their leisure were two officers in theBritish army--Colonel Heneage Finch Murphy and Major Sir John TempleOliphant. Remarkably similar in personal appearance, they were hardlyless so in personal character. Both of them were about forty years ofage; both of them were tall and fair, with bushy whiskers and mustaches;both of them were phlegmatic in temperament, and both much addicted tothe wearing of their uniforms. They were proud of their nationality,and exhibited a manifest dislike, verging upon contempt, of everythingforeign. Probably they would have felt no surprise if they had beentold that Anglo-Saxons were fashioned out of some specific clay, theproperties of which surpassed the investigation of chemical analysis.Without any intentional disparagement they might, in a certain way,be compared to two scarecrows which, though perfectly harmless inthemselves, inspire some measure of respect, and are excellently adaptedto protect the territory intrusted to their guardianship.

  English-like, the two officers had made themselves thoroughly at home inthe station abroad in which it had been their lot to be quartered. Thefaculty of colonization seems to be indigenous to the native character;once let an Englishman plant his national standard on the surface of themoon, and it would not be long before a colony was established round it.

  The officers had a servant, named Kirke, and a company of ten soldiersof the line. This party of thirteen men were apparently the solesurvivors of an overwhelming catastrophe, which on the 1st of Januaryhad transformed an enormous rock, garrisoned with well-nigh two thousandtroops, into an insignificant island far out to sea. But although thetransformation had been so marvelous, it cannot be said that eitherColonel Murphy or Major Oliphant had made much demonstration ofastonishment.

  "This is all very peculiar, Sir John," observed the colonel.

  "Yes, colonel; very peculiar," replied the major.

  "England will be sure to send for us," said one officer.

  "No doubt she will," answered the other.

  Accordingly, they came to the mutual resolution that they would "stickto their post."

  To say the truth, it would have been a difficult matter for the gallantofficers to do otherwise; they had but one small boat; therefore, it waswell that they made a virtue of necessity, and resigned themselves topatient expectation of the British ship which, in due time, would bringrelief.

  They had no fear of starvation. Their island was mined withsubterranean stores, more than ample for thirteen men--nay, for thirteenEnglishmen--for the next five years at least. Preserved meat, ale,brandy--all were in abundance; consequently, as the men expressed it,they were in this respect "all right."

  Of course, the physical changes that had taken place had attracted thenotice both of officers and men. But the reversed position of east andwest, the diminution of the force of gravity, the altered rotation ofthe earth, and her projection upon a new orbit, were all things thatgave them little concern and no uneasiness; and when the colonel and themajor had replaced the pieces on the board which had been disturbedby the convulsion, any surprise they might have felt at the chess-menlosing some portion of their weight was quite forgotten in thesatisfaction of seeing them retain their equilibrium.

  One phenomenon, however, did not fail to make its due impression uponthe men; this was the diminution in the length of day and night. Threedays after the catastrophe, Corporal Pim, on behalf of himself and hiscomrades, solicited a formal interview with the officers. The requesthaving been granted, Pim, with the nine soldiers, all punctiliouslywearing the regimental tunic of scarlet and trousers of invisible green,presented themselves at the door of the colonel's room, where he andhis brother-officer were continuing their game. Raising his handrespectfully to his cap, which he wore poised jauntily over his rightear, and scarcely held on by the strap below his under lip, the corporalwaited permission to speak.

  After a lingering survey of the chess-board, the colonel slowly liftedhis eyes, and said with official dignity, "Well, men, what is it?"

  "First of all, sir," replied the corporal, "we want to speak to youabout our pay, and then we wish to have a word with the major about ourrations."

  "Say on, then," said Colonel Murphy. "What is it about your pay?"

  "Just this, sir; as the days are only half as long as they were, weshould like to know whether our pay is to be diminished in proportion."

  The colonel was taken somewhat aback, and did not reply immediately,though by some significant nods towards the major, he indicated that hethought the question very reasonable. After a few moments' reflection,he replied, "It must, I think, be allowed that your pay was calculatedfrom sunrise to sunrise; there was no specification of what the intervalshould be. Your pay will continue as before. England can afford it."

  A buzz of approval burst involuntarily from all the men, but militarydiscipline and the respect due to their officers kept them in check fromany boisterous demonstration of their satisfaction.

  "And now, corporal, what is your business with me?" asked MajorOliphant.

  "We want to know whether, as the days are only six hours long, we are tohave but two meals instead of four?"

  The officers looked at each other, and by their glances agreed that thecorporal was a man of sound common sense.

  "Eccentricities of nature," said the major, "cannot interfere withmilitary regulations. It is true that there will be but an interval ofan hour and a half between them, but the rule stands good--four mealsa day. England is too rich to grudge her soldiers any of her soldiers'due. Yes; four meals a day."

  "Hurrah!" shouted the soldiers, unable this time to keep their delightwithin the bounds of military decorum; and, turning to the right-about,they marched away, leaving the officers to renew the all-absorbing game.

  However confident everyone upon the island might profess to be thatsuccor would be sent them from their native land--for Britain neverabandons any of her sons--it could not be disguised that that succorwas somewhat tardy in making its appearance. Many and various were theconjectures to account for the delay. Perhaps England was engrossedwith domestic matters, or perhaps she was absorbed in diplomaticdifficulties; or perchance, more likely than all, Northern Europe hadreceived no tidings of the convulsion that had shattered the south. Thewhole party throve remarkably well upon the liberal provisions of thecommissariat department, and if the officers failed to show the sametendency to _embonpoint_ which was fast becoming characteristic of themen, it was only because they deemed it due to their rank to curtail anyindulgences which might compromise the fit of their uniform.

  On the whole, time passed indifferently well. An Englishman rarelysuffers from _ennui_, and then only in his own country, when required toconform to what he calls "the humbug of society"; and the two officers,with their similar tastes, ideas, and dispositions, got on togetheradmirably. It is not to be questioned that they were deeply affected bya sense of regret for their lost comrades, and astounded beyond measureat finding themselves the sole survivors of a garrison of 1,895 men,but with true British pluck and self-control, they had done nothingmore than draw up a report that 1,882 names were missing from themuster-roll.

  The island itself, the sole su
rviving fragment of an enormous pile ofrock that had reared itself some 1,600 feet above the sea, was not,strictly speaking, the only land that was visible; for about twelvemiles to the south there was another island, apparently the verycounterpart of what was now occupied by the Englishmen. It wasonly natural that this should awaken some interest even in the mostimperturbable minds, and there was no doubt that the two officers,during one of the rare intervals when they were not absorbed in theirgame, had decided that it would be desirable at least to ascertainwhether the island was deserted, or whether it might not be occupied bysome others, like themselves, survivors from the general catastrophe.Certain it is that one morning, when the weather was bright and calm,they had embarked alone in the little boat, and been absent for seven oreight hours. Not even to Corporal Pim did they communicate the objectof their excursion, nor say one syllable as to its result, and it couldonly be inferred from their manner that they were quite satisfied withwhat they had seen; and very shortly afterwards Major Oliphant wasobserved to draw up a lengthy document, which was no sooner finishedthan it was formally signed and sealed with the seal of the 33rdRegiment. It was directed:

  _To the First Lord of the Admiralty, London,_

  and kept in readiness for transmission by the first ship that shouldhail in sight. But time elapsed, and here was the 18th of Februarywithout an opportunity having been afforded for any communication withthe British Government.

  At breakfast that morning, the colonel observed to the major that he wasunder the most decided impression that the 18th of February was a royalanniversary; and he went on to say that, although he had received nodefinite instructions on the subject, he did not think that the peculiarcircumstances under which they found themselves should prevent them fromgiving the day its due military honors.

  The major quite concurred; and it was mutually agreed that the occasionmust be honored by a bumper of port, and by a royal salute. Corporal Pimmust be sent for. The corporal soon made his appearance, smacking hislips, having, by a ready intuition, found a pretext for a double morningration of spirits.

  "The 18th of February, you know, Pim," said the colonel; "we must have asalute of twenty-one guns."

  "Very good," replied Pim, a man of few words.

  "And take care that your fellows don't get their arms and legs blownoff," added the officer.

  "Very good, sir," said the corporal; and he made his salute andwithdrew.

  Of all the bombs, howitzers, and various species of artillery with whichthe fortress had been crowded, one solitary piece remained. This was acumbrous muzzle-loader of 9-inch caliber, and, in default of the smallerordnance generally employed for the purpose, had to be brought intorequisition for the royal salute.

  A sufficient number of charges having been provided, the corporalbrought his men to the reduct, whence the gun's mouth projected overa sloping embrasure. The two officers, in cocked hats and full staffuniform, attended to take charge of the proceedings. The gun wasmaneuvered in strict accordance with the rules of "The Artilleryman'sManual," and the firing commenced.

  Not unmindful of the warning he had received, the corporal was mostcareful between each discharge to see that every vestige of fire wasextinguished, so as to prevent an untimely explosion while the men werereloading; and accidents, such as so frequently mar public rejoicings,were all happily avoided.

  Much to the chagrin of both Colonel Murphy and Major Oliphant, theeffect of the salute fell altogether short of their anticipations. Theweight of the atmosphere was so reduced that there was comparativelylittle resistance to the explosive force of the gases, liberated at thecannon's mouth, and there was consequently none of the reverberation,like rolling thunder, that ordinarily follows the discharge of heavyartillery.

  Twenty times had the gun been fired, and it was on the point of beingloaded for the last time, when the colonel laid his hand upon the arm ofthe man who had the ramrod. "Stop!" he said; "we will have a ball thistime. Let us put the range of the piece to the test."

  "A good idea!" replied the major. "Corporal, you hear the orders."

  In quick time an artillery-wagon was on the spot, and the men liftedout a full-sized shot, weighing 200 lbs., which, under ordinarycircumstances, the cannon would carry about four miles. It was proposed,by means of telescopes, to note the place where the ball first touchedthe water, and thus to obtain an approximation sufficiently accurate asto the true range.

  Having been duly charged with powder and ball, the gun was raised to anangle of something under 45 degrees, so as to allow proper developmentto the curve that the projectile would make, and, at a signal from themajor, the light was applied to the priming.

  "Heavens!" "By all that's good!" exclaimed both officers in one breath,as, standing open-mouthed, they hardly knew whether they were to believethe evidence of their own senses. "Is it possible?"

  The diminution of the force of attraction at the earth's surface was soconsiderable that the ball had sped beyond the horizon.

  "Incredible!" ejaculated the colonel.

  "Incredible!" echoed the major.

  "Six miles at least!" observed the one.

  "Ay, more than that!" replied the other.

  Awhile, they gazed at the sea and at each other in mute amazement. Butin the midst of their perplexity, what sound was that which startledthem? Was it mere fancy? Was it the reverberation of the cannon stillbooming in their ears? Or was it not truly the report of another anda distant gun in answer to their own? Attentively and eagerly theylistened. Twice, thrice did the sound repeat itself. It was quitedistinct. There could be no mistake.

  "I told you so," cried the colonel, triumphantly. "I knew our countrywould not forsake us; it is an English ship, no doubt."

  In half an hour two masts were visible above the horizon. "See! WasI not right? Our country was sure to send to our relief. Here is theship."

  "Yes," replied the major; "she responded to our gun."

  "It is to be hoped," muttered the corporal, "that our ball has done herno damage."

  Before long the hull was full in sight. A long trail of smoke betokenedher to be a steamer; and very soon, by the aid of the glass, it could beascertained that she was a schooner-yacht, and making straight for theisland. A flag at her mast-head fluttered in the breeze, and towardsthis the two officers, with the keenest attention, respectively adjustedtheir focus.

  Simultaneously the two telescopes were lowered. The colonel and themajor stared at each other in blank astonishment. "Russian!" theygasped.

  And true it was that the flag that floated at the head of yonder mastwas the blue cross of Russia.