CHAPTER XXIV.
ASHORE.
The rain, which was now falling in torrents, the driving surf, and thepitching of the steamer, all served to make it difficult to keep one'sfooting on the slippery planks, and Jim motioned his companions tofollow him into the pilot-house, for now that the hawser had beenswallowed up by the waves their services were no longer requiredoutside.
"Stay on deck!" Bob cried, as he saw them moving away, and forced toshout at the full strength of his lungs in order to make himself heardabove the roar of the tempest. "In case she strikes you must be wherethere's a chance of savin' your lives. Get under the lee of the housefor'ard, an' hold on for all you're worth!"
After some considerable difficulty the boys succeeded, by working alongthe life-lines, in reaching the bow, where, partially protected by thepilot-house, it was possible to remain in comparative shelter.
"Do you think the tug will be wrecked, Jim?" Harry asked.
"I reckon she'll drive ashore."
"Then we shall be no better off than if we hadn't found the pirates'gold, for of course it'll all be lost."
"Not unless she goes to pieces!" Jim replied in a decidedly shaky voice;and then, as if this subject was an unpleasant one, he changed it byasking, without any idea the question would be answered:
"What's Bob doin' aft so long? He can't expect to pick up that hawserag'in, an' it's more dangerous there than here!"
"He's coming now," Walter replied as he crept to the corner of thehouse; and at the same instant that a huge wave rolled inboard, sweepingthe decks with almost irresistible violence, the old sailor and Joeappeared, literally working their way hand over hand by means of thelife-line.
Arriving under the lee of the pilot-house they halted, and waited insilence for the shock which should tell that the Sea Bird had beenforced into shoal water.
This unpleasant information was not long delayed. The little steamerpitched and plunged more violently than before, but without thesickening motion of being dragged under, which was apparent when the bowanchor held, and after ten minutes of this wild tossing she lurchedforward suddenly as if the screw had been set in motion.
"Hold on for your lives!" Bob shouted, and a moment later the tug struckheavily, with such force that but for the timely warning more than oneof the crew would have been hurled forward.
All hands waited with bated breath for the succeeding shocks whichwould tell that she was pounding herself to pieces on the sand; but muchto their surprise nothing of the kind was felt.
"The stern anchor is holding her down!" Bob shouted to Joe, and thewords were hardly spoken when the water dashed forward, flooding thedecks even with the rail.
"We'll be drowned here in short order!" Joe cried as he struggled towardthe boys. "Get into the pilot-house, if you can, for the danger is lessthere while the decks are being swept!"
Fortunately for all hands the door opened at the top of a short flightof stairs above the level of the rail, and this the engineer succeededin opening by watching his opportunity between the heavy waves. Harryand Walter gained this shelter before the sea rushed forward again, andat the next interval of comparative quiet the remainder of the partyjoined them.
It was now possible to converse without actually shouting, and Joe waseager to understand why the tug remained immovable when in the ordinarycourse of events she should be beating herself to pieces on the shoal.
"The anchor slipped enough to let her drive ahead a bit," Bob said, inexplanation, "an' then brought up just as she struck. You'll most likelyfind the hawser taut as an iron bar; and that, together with the holdthe sand has got on her nose, keeps everything firm."
"And if the anchor should give way once more she'd break up?"
"There's no doubt about that; but I've got an idee the wind hasn't gotas much force as it had half an hour ago. If the timbers will stand thatpoundin' astern there's a chance of our gettin' outer this scrape afterall, even though things do look so tough."
It was but natural that all hands should devote their entire attentionto ascertaining if the gale really was abating, since this was theironly hope, and when another half-hour had elapsed the question wasdecided. The seas still beat against the stranded steamer with the sameviolence, but the rain had nearly ceased, and the wind no longer howledaround the doomed craft with its former fury.
When this became an assured fact, it was, as nearly as Bob could judge,about midnight; and the weary boys thought with dismay of the many hourswhich must elapse before they could gain a place of absolute safety.
"Lie down and go to sleep, if you can," the old sailor said, much as ifhe knew of what they were thinking. "I reckon the worst is over, an'since it's only a question of waitin' you'd best get all the restpossible."
The boys followed this suggestion by curling themselves up on thecushioned locker; and, strange as it may seem, they fell asleep in avery short time despite the howling wind and raging waters. Weariness ofbody was greater than fear, and even in the midst of deadly dangers theycrossed the borders of dreamland.
Bob and Joe kept watch, and as the hours wore on the couriers of thecoming dawn dispersed the storm-clouds until the heavens were smilingblue once more, and the waves no longer uplifted their crests in anger.
"There's as big a danger passed as ever sailormen stood face to facewith!" Bob said, giving vent to a long-drawn sigh of relief. "The littlecraft is hard and fast aground, of course; but six hours ago it didn'tseem as if anything could save her from goin' to pieces, an' this samecrowd here have got a mighty big reason for bein' thankful!"
The decks were yet awash, and would probably continue so for severalhours, or until the waters of the tiny harbor had subsided into theirformer quietude; but it was possible to make one's way fore and aftwithout danger, as Joe proved when the day had dawned.
All the doors and hatches were securely closed when the gale firstsprung up; therefore everything below was in much the same condition asbefore the storm. There had not water enough entered the seams orcrevices to injure the stores, and the hull was comparatively free, asBob learned on trying the hand-pump.
"I don't reckon we can count on leavin' this key in the Sea Bird," hesaid as he dropped the lead over the bow. "She has stuck her nose mightydeep in the sand, an' though that cable is strainin' hard astern,there's little chance it will work her off."
"And according to your ideas, those who stole the Bonita are ashoresomewhere; so as long as we're obliged to stay here it's safe to saythere's a chance of trouble from them?"
"That's about the size of it, my hearty; but they may take a notion toput to sea, for it's likely their boat was cared for after comin'ashore. Howsomever, we won't look trouble in the face before it comes.Let's rouse up the boys an' get breakfast under way, for I'm growin'sharkish."
It is needless to make any attempt at depicting the joy of those in thepilot-house, when they opened their eyes, to see the bright sun smilingand the raging winds subsiding into the gentlest zephyrs that were everwafted over a coral reef. This decided change was so pleasing that,despite all the trouble which surrounded them, they were very cheerful.
Jim bustled about in the galley as if cooking was the one delight of hislife, and while Bob and Joe raised once more the awning to shelter themfrom the burning rays of the sun, Harry and Walter did their best towardspreading the breakfast-table in such a manner that it would at leastlook inviting.
The only immediate trouble which might be apprehended was from those whohad probably taken refuge on the key, and with this they were confrontedmuch sooner than the most timid expected.
Harry had just come on deck to announce that breakfast was ready, when ashout from the shore caused all hands to glance in that direction,where could be seen the red-nosed man and his companions emerging fromthe thicket.
"Halloo!" he shouted in a friendly tone, and without replying Bob heldup his hand in token that the hail had been heard.
"The brig has gone to pieces, an' we're here with no chance of leavin'the ke
y," the man continued, much as if giving valuable information.
"Where's the boat? You came ashore in one, I reckon."
"Yes: but she went adrift during the gale."
"If you couldn't take better care of her there's no reason why youshouldn't stay there till the schooner from Nassau puts in here again!"Joe shouted angrily. "We're aground, and likely to remain so; but that'sno reason why there should be any communication between us!"
"Will you send us some grub ashore?" the red-nosed man asked after ashort pause, during which he stood as if trying to control his anger.
"Not so much as a biscuit if you were hungry; but that can't be, for itisn't likely you put off from the brig without provisions."
"All right!" the man cried with a threatening gesture. "You can do asyou please an' we've got the same privilege, so it's a question as towho has the best end of the trade!"
"They thought we might be fools enough to take some grub ashore, when,all three of 'em were ready to seize the boat," Bob said, as the mendisappeared in the thicket. "It's a case of standin' by with ourweather-eyes liftin', for if their yawl has gone adrift they'll try hardto steal ours. I'll go on watch while the rest of you get breakfast, forthe water around the bow ain't so deep but that they can wade out here;"and the old sailor seated himself on the starboard rail as Joe and theboys went into the forward cabin.