CHAPTER XXI.
The Approach to the Prison.--Baldabella's Stratagem.--The Release of theCaptive.--Wilkins's Tale of Trials.--A Well.--The Potato Crop.--TheFlying Opossum.--The Salt Plant.--Preparations for a Siege.
Cautiously and quietly the party wound, under the cover of the trees andbushes, across the plain, till they reached the wood that enclosed theabode of the savages. Then the peril increased. Jack led the way, andone after another they followed, step by step, through, under, or overthe matted brush; and, finally, the leader placed his party in aposition where they could all command a view of the rocky cave, thoughthey stood at a short distance from each other. On the cleared groundbefore the cave two women were seated, bruising nuts between two stones;and several children were playing round them. The anxious young menwatched for some minutes, but none of the men appeared; then Baldabellaproposed to go forward to introduce herself to the women, her friendspromising to rescue her if they attempted to detain her.
Disencumbering herself from the light robe she condescended to wear incivilized life, and retaining only her cloak of furs, she took herfish-spear in her hand, and penetrated to a distant part of the wood,from whence she made her appearance on the charred glade, many yardsfrom the ambush of her friends, and with slow steps, counterfeitinggreat fatigue, she walked up to the women, to demand, as she hadarranged with her friends, food and repose. As soon as they perceivedher, the women rose and looked round anxiously, and the young menexpected every moment to hear the signal call for them; but the solitaryfeeble form of Baldabella seemed to re-assure them. She drew near andtalked for some minutes to her dark sisters; and the soft and patheticinflections of her voice convinced the concealed party that she wasappealing to that compassionate feeling which is ever so strong in theheart of woman.
The women listened, and invited the stranger to sit down by them; theyfed her with the rich kernels of the nuts, and, the rain beginning tofall again, they took her with them into the cave for shelter. Howanxiously the young men waited, at one moment prompted to burst out andfree the captive, who seemed to have no gaoler but the women, and thenresolving to leave the whole affair to the shrewd management ofBaldabella. Arthur was anxiously examining the state of his rifle andammunition, which he had carefully shielded beneath his fur cloak, whenthey were roused to force their way through the bush by the loud andtriumphant voice of Wilkins, the low and apparently smothered _coo-ee_of the women, and, finally, by the appearance of Baldabella, rushingwildly from the cave, followed by Wilkins, excited, tattered, andemaciated. He carried a gun in his hand, and staggered up to his friendsas if intoxicated.
"Take this, and load it directly," said he, giving Hugh the gun. "Myhands are so cramped wi' them tough bands, that it'll be long afore Ihave any use on 'em. Rascals! rogues! Come on, I say; march while wecan; yon screeching jins will soon bring a wasp's-nest round us."
Not caring for caution now, they hacked and burst through the thickwood, till they reached the plain; and then the _coo-ee_ of the dupedwomen rang alarmingly on their ears, and was soon answered by a faintand distant cry from the absent men. Poor Wilkins, whose legs had beenbound till they were numbed, made but slow progress; and Arthur orderedO'Brien and Jack, with Baldabella, to move rapidly forward, to guard,or, if necessary, to close the pass, while Hugh and he protected theslow retreat of Wilkins.
They made no use of their arms till they saw the whole body of thesavages appear outside the wood, and spears were falling round them.Then Hugh and Arthur fired their guns simultaneously into the midst ofthe foes, who plunged screaming into the woods. Two men lingeredoutside, but another volley from the second barrel, struck down one, andhis companion disappeared in a moment.
"Now, Mr. Arthur," cried Wilkins, as he hurried forward, "now don't yetrust 'em. They're watching us; we'se be done if we make straight to ourcutting. They're sharp-eyed chaps; we'se have to bubble 'em a bit."
Wilkins was right; and though it occupied some time, they made thecircuit of the forest, before they ventured to enter; after which, theylost no time in closing up the opening with great art and care. Then therescued prisoner was conducted to the cave, welcomed with great joy,fresh clad, and fed with pheasant, biscuit, and the unfailing tea; andhis friends gathered round him to hear the tale of his hardships andtrials.
"Ay, ay! this is all as it ought to be," said he; "and God be thankedI'se out on t'clutches of them unnat'ral dogs. They tied me hand andfoot, all 'cause I couldn't be made to swear as how I'd turnbush-ranger, and start by robbing and murdering them as had cared for meand given me meat and claithes and good advice. That brute Peter bulliedme, and kicked me when he knew I was tied fast; and he'd have put aknife into me, but likely he thought to bring me into his ways; and hewere feared his blackeys might turn round on him, for they'd no illblood again me. Then he ordered as how I were to have nought given me toeat, and sure enough I'd been starved afore this; but them poor jins,'whiles, popped a few bites into my mouth, and brought me a sup ofwater, when I were like to go mad for want on't. A hempen rope wouldn'thave held me, afore I lost my strength; but them stringy bark cords arelike iron.
"It were dowly wark, and mony and mony a time, master, I thought overyour words, and all my bad life, and my coward's death, and God'sjudgment to come. And then and there I settled it in my mind, if Hepleased to set me free again, I'd niver swear another oath, I'd nivertell another lie, and I'd niver miss praying for strength, when badthoughts came into my mind. I see, Miss, ye'r crying over my black sins,and well ye may, God help me. After this, I felt a bit more cheery, andI were sure some on ye would see after me; but I niver reckoned on herto be t'first, and were quite stunned when I saw her come in witht'other jins. But I plucked up my heart; I kenned she'd mind my words,and I just said,--
"'Yer knife--cut these ropes!' and as sharp as a needle she was up tome, pulled out a knife from under her cloak, and cut me loose. But poorcreaters as we are, I couldn't move arm or leg for a good bit, and herthere, hauding a hand on one woman's mouth, and a hand on t' others,flayed as how they'd shrike out, till I come round a bit, and got myarms worked round from behind me, and my feet to shuffle on. Then Ithanked God in my heart, and off we came, and here we are; God bless yeall. I'se niver leave ye, whiles I have life. But, Mr. Arthur, we're notsafe; Peter's a cunning fish."
"There's one comfort, Wilkins," said Arthur; "they do not like to facethe heavy rain, which is now very welcome; and before it ceases, we mustmake ready for a siege; unfortunately, we want provisions."
Ruth placed herself uneasily before her poultry hutch, and Wilkins said,"There's lots of pigeons amang yon trees; I can soon trap a lot, andfetch 'em down here alive, and we'll fit up a dove-cote, and have tamebirds to eat. We'se be forced to care nought for a drop of rain, but setoff and forage about inside of t' wood."
To be besieged in a subterranean cave, from whence there was no retreat,was truly an alarming prospect; and several plans of fortification anddefence were projected during the continuance of the heavy rain; while,regardless of the weather, the active youths left the cave to forage forstores, and to survey the plains that divided them from their enemies.
"Do look at our potatoes, Arthur," said Hugh; "how they have sprung upthe last month. In another week they will be fit to eat, and we shallhave a plentiful crop of these useful roots."
Though they saw all was still on the moist plain, they did not venturebeyond the wood, but easily procured birds, figs, and oats in abundance;and after Wilkins had placed his traps for pigeons, and Hugh had takenup a root of the still small potatoes, they returned to the cave,heavily laden with good things.
Day after day they brought in fruit and grain to add to the stores, andcaptured a number of fine pigeons, for which Jack wattled off a niche inthe cave, and they were supplied with grass and brushwood for nests, andgrain for food, to induce them to settle quietly. It was impossible inthis climate to keep animal food eatable for more than two days; but solong as they had grain and potatoes they knew that they could live,provided
they could secure a constant supply of water.
This was their most perplexing difficulty; and even amidst the rain thestony lining of the reservoir was taken up that they might bore theground beneath it with long poles. Up to the waist in water, they boredineffectually for an hour, the pole always striking against the solidrock. At length the pole passed through, there was an accidental openingin the rock, and the party who watched in the caves below, saw, withdelight, the water trickle through into a recess some distance from theentrance. Then they all descended, to sink a well in the soft sandyfloor of the cave, which they lined with slabs, and looked on withpleasure as this little reservoir gradually filled from the pool above,which the continual rains kept constantly filled with water.
It was ten days before all these labors were fully accomplished; then adry day succeeded, and every hand was actively employed in digging up,carrying off, and storing the potatoes, which were of good size, and anabundant crop. They had made a number of bags of a flexible bark forcontaining stores; but now so many were filled that Margaret was afraid,if they had to set out soon, they should be unable to carry all off.
Then, after ascertaining the undisturbed solitude of the plain beyondthe wood, Arthur and Wilkins set out in hopes of procuring a change offood; but no kangaroos or emus were in sight, and they feared to venturefar from their place of refuge. They shot some opossums, filled one bagwith the leaves of the tea-shrub, at the particular request of Jenny,and another with the leaves of a salt plant, which seemed to have sprungup after the rain, and which Arthur was glad to carry off, that he mighttry an experiment of which he had read.
"But, I say, Mr. Arthur," said Wilkins, "we've gone and made a bad jobof it; just look ye here, we've niver thought that we were leaving atrack, and here it is on this plashy bog, and no mistake. We might justas well have hung out a sign-post, to ask blacky to walk in."
Arthur was much vexed at his own carelessness, but he saw nothing couldnow be done but to endeavor to confuse the track as much as possible,and he arranged with Wilkins that they should separate, branch off indifferent directions, and finally they made a circuit opposite to eachother round the wood, that the weak point might not be discovered.
"Ye see, Mr. Arthur," said Wilkins before they separated, "if Peter hasan inkling that we're aback of these trees, he'd soon cut his waythrough, with a bit of help. But then, them fools of black fellows areas bad as our fond lass Ruth; they're flayed out of their wits of thiswood, and they'll be shy of coming nigh hand it. I ken a good bit oftheir talk, ye see, but I'se a bad hand at framing their queerchirruping words. I heard 'em tell of bad sperrits as haunted this wood.But Black Peter's set on getting haud of t' master's money, and guns,and powder, and such like, and he's not good to put down. I seed MasterHugh's rifle as soon as they pulled me into that hole, and kept an eyeon't. It were no use to them, for they'd no powder; and I said tomyself, if God please to loose me, that gun goes wi' me."
They then parted to move round the dark forest, and during his walk,Arthur was alarmed to see smoke from the wood in which the cave of thesavages lay; and before he reached the opening, he heard their curiousand unwelcome cry, which proclaimed that the foe was near, and hefeared, watching their movements, and now deeply regretted that they hadleft their retreat. Gladly they returned to it, and doubly secured theentrance, determining to keep an incessant watch, lest they should besurprised in their citadel.
On their return they found that Jack, assisted by Hugh and Gerald, hadformed an oven, lined with slabs, on the hearth where the cooking-firewas usually made, and Jenny was preparing cakes of bruised oats, and apigeon-pie made in a large oyster-shell, and covered with potatoes, tobe baked in the new oven. The flesh of the opossum was not relished byany of the party. Jenny declared she would just as soon eat a monkey;Ruth was afraid to touch one, even before it was cooked; and Mr.Mayburn, after a long lecture to prove that the flesh must certainly bewholesome, from the habits and the vegetable diet of the class ofanimals to which it belonged, concluded by declining, himself, to eatof it.
"Nevertheless," he said, "I am not prejudiced by the vulgar error ofconfounding this little creature with the ugly opossum of America, towhich it bears no resemblance, except in its marsupial formation and itsplayful habits. In fact, the graceful form, delicate color, andextraordinary agility of this beautiful animal, seem to rank it ratherwith the squirrels; and from the lateral folds of membrane, which it hasthe power to expand, in order to support its flying leaps through theair, it has been named by some travellers the 'flying squirrel,' thoughdistinct from the American squirrel, and, like all the quadrupeds of thecountry, exclusively Australian."
The pretty delicate gray skins were carefully preserved, to be sewedtogether for cloaks; and the hungry boys did not disdain a stew ofopossums, which they declared was quite as good as rabbit. But previousto the cookery, Arthur showed his father the new salt-shrub; and thelarge and peculiar form of the leaves enabled them to decide that itmust be Brown's _Rhagodia Parabolica_, the leaves of which are edible.Anxious to make the experiment, the leaves were boiled for some time,strained, and the liquor filtered and evaporated several times, and atlength the exposure to great heat produced some crystals of salt, to thedelight of the young chemists, and still more to the content of Jenny,who treasured the precious salt, which had so long been the granddeficiency in her cookery. The leaves themselves were added to the stew,and not only communicating a salt flavor to the insipid meat, but formeda tender vegetable, tasting like spinach; and it was determined to omitno opportunity of searching for this valuable plant.
In the preparation and enjoyment of their abundant food, they did notneglect the necessary precautions for concealing their retreat. All thepotato stalks were thrown into the cave, for fuel, and the ground wassmoothed over as much as possible, and strewn with stones, that thetraces of cultivation might haply escape observation; a watch wascontinually kept on the heights, and every opening that lighted thecave, with the exception of some narrow crevices, was carefully coveredwith a slab of stone beneath the brush, lest an accident similar to thatwhich befell O'Brien should lead their enemies to discover thesubterranean hollow.
This precaution rendered their abode gloomy, though they left theprincipal opening--the entrance--uncovered till any serious cause ofalarm should render it prudent to enclose themselves entirely; and whena cessation of the rain permitted them, they all gladly remained in theopen air, enjoying the perfume of the revived vegetation, and the joyfulnotes of thousands of birds which sported in the air, fluttered on thetrees, or clamored noisily round the pools of water, plunging theirbeaks into the mud for the worms and reptiles on which they fed. Thesecreatures supplied the family with unfailing food, and afforded Mr.Mayburn constant amusement in studying their various habits.
But a cessation of rain brought to them also a certain increase ofperil. The natives were seen spreading over the plain below, hunting thekangaroo or opossum; and _Black_ Peter, himself, easily distinguished,as Gerald said, because he was _white_, was observed stooping down, asArthur suspected, to scrutinize the track, which he feared the rain hadfailed to obliterate. Still, occasionally heavy showers fell, anddispersed the people, who shrink from rain; and it was not till onemorning, when none was actually falling, though dark clouds hid the sun,that the whole force of the savages, certainly exceeding fifty men,appeared crossing the plain; following slowly, and it seemedreluctantly, their debased chief, Black Peter.
When they had approached within a hundred yards of the forest, thenatives halted at once, and Peter, after speaking some words to them,began again to examine the perplexed track, and drawing close to thetrees, followed it round the whole boundary, apparently puzzled andenraged. At length he paused not far from the real entrance, andswinging round his axe above his head, he called out loudly to thepeople. They answered by throwing their axes on the ground, andremaining erect and motionless. The watchers above distinctly heardrepeated strokes of the axe on the hard pine-trees; but they were wellconvinced that
the efforts of one man alone could not accomplish anentrance, even for many days, and therefore felt comparativelytranquillized.
Still there was the absolute conviction that they were in a state ofsiege; that this man was of indomitable determination, of cruel anddepraved nature, and that ultimately his obstinacy might bend even thetimid savages to his will. And at this thought, fear and anxiety stoleover every heart. Mr. Mayburn was persuaded to remain in the cave withMargaret and the three women, the sentinels promising to send reports ofthe progress of affairs to them, while, with tears and prayers theywaited the result.
"Now, Mr. Arthur," said Wilkins, "just let me say my say. We've t' beston't yet: let's keep yon pass again all them rogues, and see which sidetires first. We'll cut a canny hole to fire through at 'em, and load onegun after another; and as ye 're a bit soft-hearted yersel', ye maunjust let me be front-rank man, and I'se pick off my chaps, reet andleft, till there's not a rogue can stand again us. Folks say as howPeter's charmed; but I'se have a blaze at him, onyhow, and see if Ican't stop his mischief."
"That will be capital!" cried Gerald. "And let us dig trenches, Arthur,and then won't we pepper the rascals snugly."
"But these savages are not rascals, Gerald," said Arthur; "they are onlyignorant wretches, misled by a rascal. To fire on them from an ambushwould be cold-blooded murder, which papa would never sanction. We haveno right deliberately to destroy so many human lives."
"Ye're a real soft un, master," said Wilkins. "What's a few savages?Bless ye, t' country round about teems with 'em; they'll niver bemissed!"
Nevertheless, Arthur could not be persuaded that it was expedient orexcusable to destroy the surplus population of savages; and he preferredto reserve his charges for absolute defence.