CHAPTER THIRTEEN.
A splintering crash as of a heavy mass of stone or metal striking fullupon the thwart behind him, while crash again, right upon the firstsound, there was a duller and more crushing noise.
"Here, hi! Hullo! Here, what in the name o' thunder! Ahoy! Help!"
Tom Bodger was standing bolt upright as he uttered these last words,fully realising what had happened as he stared down at a rugged hole inthe frail planking of the bottom of the boat, up through which the waterwas rising like a thick, squat, dumpy fountain.
"What game d'yer call this, Master Aleck? Eh, not there? I seed hisshadder. He must ha' let it fall. Went through like a sixty-four-poundshot. Master Aleck! Ahoy! Frightened yerself away, my lad? Here,quick; come and lend a hand--the boat's going down!"
Tom Bodger talked and shouted, but he did not confine himself to words,for he saw the extent of the emergency. The boat seemed to be fillingrapidly from the salt fount in the middle prior to going down. So,acting promptly, he hopped on to the next thwart, down into the water inthe bottom, which came above his stumps, and then on to the next thwartforward and the locker. From here he put one peg on to the bows andswung himself on to the lowest step, where he could seize the boat'spainter, fastened to a huge rusty ring in the harbour wall.
It was not many moments' work to cast the rope loose, and then he beganto haul the rope rapidly through the ring, just having time to send theboat's head on to one of the steps under water, and hanging on with allhis might, while the water rose and rose aft, till, with the bows stillresting on the stone step, the after part of the boat was quitesubmerged.
As a rule there were fishermen hanging over the rail on the top of thecliff a couple of hundred yards or so away, men busy with trawl or seinenet on the smacks and luggers, and a score or two of boys playing aboutsomewhere on the pier; but there was, as Tom Bodger had said, somethinggoing on in the town, and as soon as those ashore had done watching theman-o'-war's men and seen them row off, there was a steady human currentsetting away from the harbour, and not a listening ear to catch thesailor's hails and pass the word on for help, as he hung on to theboat's rope with all his might, feeling assured that if he slacked hisefforts she would glide off the slimy stone and go to the bottom.
"I arn't got no breath to waste in hollering," he panted. "Why, there'sa good fathom and a half or two fathom o' water under her keel, and if Islack out down she'll go. Wants a couple o' boats to back in, one oneach side, and get a rope under her thwarts. They could get her ashorethen. Oh, dear! oh, dear! oh, dear! For him to leave me in charge, andthen come back and find I've sunk her! I warn't asleep, for I wasstandin' up at work, so I couldn't ha' dreamed I heard him come, and seehis shadder cast down. No; it's all true enough. But what could hehave had in his hands? I see his shadder plain, with a something heldup in his hands. Paper, didn't he say, he'd come to fetch? Well,paper's heavy when it's all tight up in a lump, and he must ha' pitchedit down off the pier to save carrying it and to let it come plop, so asto frighten me, not thinking how heavy it was, and then as soon as hesee the mischief he'd done he squirms and runs away like a bad dog withhis tail between his legs. Why, I wouldn't ha' thought it on him.
"Oh, dear! what a weight she is! If I could only get a turn o' the roperound anywhere I could hold on easy, but if I move an inch down she'llgo.
"Can't do it!" he groaned; "it's quite impossible. One hitch round thering or a catch anywhere else'd do it, but I've got enough to do to holdon, and if I try any other manoover I shall make worse on it. It's nogood, Tommy, my lad, that there's your job; bite yer teeth hard and holdon. Bime by it'll be too much for yer, and she'll begin to slide andslither; but don't you mind, it'll be all right--up'll go your handswith the rope, and then in they'll go, fingers first, into the ring.It's big enough to take your pretty little fists as far as yerknuckleses, and then they'll jam and jam more, and the more they jamsthe tighter they'll hold the rope till some 'un comes. Take the skinoff? Well, let it. Sarve it right for not being stuck tighter on tothe hones. Have to grow again, that's all. I arn't going to let MasterAleck's boat sink to the bottom if I die for it. But, hub, there!Ahoy! Is everybody dead yonder up town? Why, I'd say bless him now ifI could on'y set a hye on the wery wust o' them boys."
The poor fellow hung on desperately, but he knew from his symptoms thathe could not hold on much longer. The perspiration stood in huge dropsall over his face, and they began to run together and trickle down,while now a queer thought flashed across his brain, bringing hope forthe moment, but only for his heart to sink lower directly after.
"No, no," he groaned, "I couldn't do it. If I could it'd be just fine;but who's to hang on with his hands and double hisself up enough to takeaim with both his wooden pegs at once so that they could go right intothat ring and stopper the rope like a cable going through a hawse hole?
"Can't be done, can't be done; but--ahoy there! Dozens on yer hangingabout if yer warn't wanted, and now not a lubber within hail. Ahoythere! Ship ahoy! Is everyone dead, I say? Ship a-a-hoy-y-y-y!" heyelled, in a despairing voice.
"Ahoy there! What's the matter? That you, Tom Bodger?"
"Bodger it is, Master Aleck. Here, quick, or I shall have both my handsoff as well as my legs, and you'll have to put me out of my miserythen."
"Why, Tom," cried Aleck, wildly. "What ever--oh!"
The lad wasted no more breath, for he grasped the position as soon as hereached the head of the steps.
"Can you hold on a minute?"
"I can't, sir, but my fists will," groaned the man, and then in a hoarsewhisper--"Rope!"
"I see," cried Aleck, and he ran back a dozen yards along the pier towhere he could see a coil of small rope for throwing aboard vessels inrough weather to bring back their looped cables and pass them over theposts.
He was back again directly, uncoiling it as he came and leaving ittrailing, while, end in hand, he reached the top of the steps, went downto where the poor fellow hung on, and shouting out words ofencouragement the while, he passed a hand down, got hold of the loosepainter below Bodger's, and with the quick deft fingers of one used tothe sea and the handling of lines he effected a quick firm knotting ofthe two ropes.
This done, he made for the next ring hanging from the harbour wall,passed the fresh rope through, and hauled in all the slack.
"Now, Tom," he cried, "both together--ahoy--ahoy!"
He threw all his strength into the hauling, aided by the man-o'-war'sman's last remaining force; no little either, for despair gave the poorfellow a spasmodic kind of power, so that the rope passed through thering and whizzed and quivered, it was so tight. Then another stay wasfound and a hitch taken twice round that before Aleck fastened off, and,panting heavily, went up a step or two to the assistance of his humblefriend.
"You can let go now, Tom. I have her fast."
"Sure, Master Aleck?"
"Yes, certain. Let go; and mind what you're about, or you'll slipoverboard."
"It's all right, sir," said the man, in a hoarse whisper. "I've let gonow."
"Nonsense! What are you thinking about? You've got hold tight asever."
"Nay, I arn't, Master Aleck. I let go when you telled me. I'm on'yleaning agen the rope to keep from going down into the water."
"Why, Tom, what's the matter with you?" cried Aleck, wonderingly, as heplaced his hands on his companion's. "I tell you that you're holding onas tight as ever."
"Eh?" said the man, feebly. "No, sir, I arn't; 'strue as goodness Iarn't."
"But you are," cried Aleck, angrily, as he now grasped the fullmisfortune to his boat--not the very full, for he was not aware of thehole in her bottom. "Your fingers are clasped tightly round the rope."
"Are they, sir?"
"Yes."
"'Tarn't my doing then, sir. I hoped and prayed as they might hold onto the last, and I s'pose that's how it is. Ah-h!"
He uttered a low groan, his eyelids dropped, and his fingers sudde
nlybecame inert, while it needed all the lad's strength to keep the poorfellow from slipping off the wet steps into the deep water of theharbour.
"Tom," he shouted; "rouse up, lad. Do you hear?" he cried, frantically,as he held the man erect, and then in obedience to a sudden flash ofthought forced him back into a sitting position on one of the steps.
"Hah!" he panted. "I couldn't have held you much longer. Hold up, man.Can't you hear what I say?"
"Eh? Yes, Master Aleck, on'y don't talk so far off like, and--and--tell'em to leave off ringing them bells in my ears."
Coupled with the loss of the boat, Aleck's first thought was that theman had been indulging in a sailor's weakness and was the worse for rum;but a second glance at the ghastly face below him opened the lad's eyesto the simple truth, and he spoke more gently:
"Feel faint, Tom?"
"Ay, sir, I s'pose it's that. I feel just as I did after that therecannon ball took off my legs. I'm getting better now you've stoppedthat ringing o' the bells in my ears."
"That's right, Tom."
"But is the boat safe, sir? Don't let her go right down."
"She's safe enough so long as the rope doesn't part."
"Then look at her knots, sir. I did teach yer proper. Don't say asyou've tied one as'll slip."
"The rope's all right, Tom."
"Hah!" groaned the man. "Then if you wouldn't mind, sir, just help meup the other steps and lie me down flat on my back for a minute. I feelas if that would set me right."
"Come on, then," said Aleck; "but you must help, or we shall both gooverboard."
"I'm a-going to help, sir," said the man, with his voice beginning togrow stronger. "I think I can keep upright on my pegs again if you'lllend me a hand. No, hold hard a minute like, sir; there's no room fortwo on these bits o' steps. You've got plenty o' slack line, sir?"
"Yes."
"Then pass the end round under my arms and make fast. Then you go atopand haul, and you can twist the line round a post so as I can't slip."
"Of course," cried Aleck, and following out the poor fellow'sinstructions he went up to the pier, passed the rope round the nearestpost, and hauled steadily, while without rising to his feet the poorfellow hitched himself, after a way he had learned, in a sittingposition by means of his hands, right on to the pier, where once landedhe rolled over with a groan, and fainted dead away.