CHAPTER XVII
Still alone -- The Stranger's Request -- The Farm established at the Corral -- Twelve Years ago -- The Boatswain's Mate of the _Britannia_ -- Left on Tabor Island -- Cyrus Harding's Hand -- The mysterious Document.
These last words justified the colonists' presentiment. There had beensome mournful past, perhaps expiated in the sight of men, but fromwhich his conscience had not yet absolved him. At any rate the guiltyman felt remorse, he repented, and his new friends would havecordially pressed the hand which they sought; but he did not feelhimself worthy to extend it to honest men! However, after the scenewith the jaguar, he did not return to the forest, and from that daydid not go beyond the enclosure of Granite House.
What was the mystery of his life? Would the stranger one day speak ofit? Time alone could show. At any rate, it was agreed that his secretshould never be asked from him, and that they would live with him asif they suspected nothing.
For some days their life continued as before. Cyrus Harding andGideon Spilett worked together, sometimes chemists, sometimesexperimentalists. The reporter never left the engineer except to huntwith Herbert, for it would not have been prudent to allow the lad toramble alone in the forest; and it was very necessary to be ontheir guard. As to Neb and Pencroft, one day at the stables andpoultry-yard, another at the corral, without reckoning work in GraniteHouse, they were never in want of employment.
The stranger worked alone, and he had resumed his usual life, neverappearing at meals, sleeping under the trees in the plateau, nevermingling with his companions. It really seemed as if the society ofthose who had saved him was insupportable to him!
"But then," observed Pencroft, "why did he entreat the help of hisfellow-creatures? Why did he throw that paper into the sea?"
"He will tell us why," invariably replied Cyrus Harding.
"When?"
"Perhaps sooner than you think, Pencroft."
And, indeed, the day of confession was near.
On the 10th of December, a week after his return to Granite House,Harding saw the stranger approaching, who, in a calm voice and humbletone, said to him: "Sir, I have a request to make you."
"Speak," answered the engineer; "but first let me ask you a question."
At these words the stranger reddened, and was on the point ofwithdrawing. Cyrus Harding understood what was passing in the mind ofthe guilty man, who doubtless feared that the engineer wouldinterrogate him on his past life.
Harding held him back.
"Comrade," said he, "we are not only your companions but your friends.I wish you to believe that, and now I will listen to you."
The stranger pressed his hand over his eyes. He was seized with a sortof trembling, and remained a few moments without being able toarticulate a word.
"Sir," said he at last, "I have come to beg you to grant me a favour."
"What is it?"
"You have, four or five miles from here, a corral for yourdomesticated animals. These animals need to be taken care of. Will youallow me to live there with them?"
Cyrus Harding gazed at the unfortunate man for a few moments with afeeling of deep commiseration; then,--
"My friend," said he, "the corral has only stables hardly fit foranimals."
"It will be good enough for me, sir."
"My friend," answered Harding, "we will not constrain you in anything.You wish to live at the corral, so be it. You will, however, be alwayswelcome at Granite House. But since you wish to live at the corral wewill make the necessary arrangements for your being comfortablyestablished there."
"Never mind that, I shall do very well."
"My friend," answered Harding, who always intentionally made use ofthis cordial appellation, "you must let us judge what it will be bestto do in this respect."
"Thank you, sir," replied the stranger as he withdrew.
The engineer then made known to his companions the proposal which hadbeen made to him, and it was agreed that they should build a woodenhouse at the corral, which they would make as comfortable as possible.
That very day the colonists repaired to the corral with the necessarytools, and a week had not passed before the house was ready to receiveits tenant. It was built about twenty feet from the sheds, and fromthere it was easy to overlook the flock of sheep, which then numberedmore than eighty. Some furniture, a bed, table, bench, cupboard, andchest, were manufactured, and a gun, ammunition, and tools werecarried to the corral.
The stranger, however, had seen nothing of his new dwelling, and hehad allowed the settlers to work there without him, whilst he occupiedhimself on the plateau, wishing, doubtless, to put the finishingstroke to his work. Indeed, thanks to him, all the ground was dug upand ready to be sowed when the time came.
It was on the 20th of December that all the arrangements at the corralwere completed. The engineer announced to the stranger that hisdwelling was ready to receive him, and the latter replied that hewould go and sleep there that very evening.
On this evening the colonists were gathered in the dining-room ofGranite House. It was then eight o'clock, the hour at which theircompanion was to leave them. Not wishing to trouble him by theirpresence, and thus imposing on him the necessity of saying farewellswhich might perhaps be painful to him, they had left him alone, andascended to Granite House.
Now, they had been talking in the room for a few minutes, when a lightknock was heard at the door. Almost immediately the stranger entered,and without any preamble,--
"Gentlemen," said he, "before I leave you, it is right that you shouldknow my history. I will tell it you."
These simple words profoundly impressed Cyrus Harding and hiscompanions.
The engineer rose.
"We ask you nothing, my friend," said he, "it is your right to besilent."
"It is my duty to speak."
"Sit down, then."
"No, I will stand."
"We are ready to hear you," replied Harding.
The stranger remained standing in a corner of the room, a little inthe shade. He was bareheaded, his arms folded across his chest, and itwas in this posture that in a hoarse voice, speaking like some one whoobliges himself to speak, he gave the following recital, which hisauditors did not once interrupt---
"On the 20th of December, 1854, a steam-yacht, belonging to a Scotchnobleman, Lord Glenarvan, anchored off Cape Bermouilli, on the westerncoast of Australia, in the thirty-seventh parallel. On board thisyacht were Lord Glenarvan and his wife, a major in the English army, aFrench geographer, a young girl, and a young boy. These two last werethe children of Captain Grant, whose ship, the _Britannia_, had beenlost, crew and cargo, a year before. The _Duncan_ was commanded byCaptain John Mangles, and manned by a crew of fifteen men.
"This is the reason the yacht at this time lay off the coast ofAustralia. Six months before, a bottle, enclosing a document writtenin English, German, and French, had been found in the Irish sea, andpicked up by the _Duncan_. This document stated in substance thatthere still existed three survivors from the wreck of the _Britannia_,that these survivors were Captain Grant and two of his men, and thatthey had found refuge on some land, of which the document gave thelatitude, but of which the longitude, effaced by the sea, was nolonger legible.
THE STRANGER'S STORY]
"This latitude was 37 deg. 11' south, therefore, the longitude beingunknown, if they followed the thirty-seventh parallel over continentsand seas, they would be certain to reach the spot inhabited by CaptainGrant and his two companions. The English Admiralty having hesitatedto undertake this search, Lord Glenarvan resolved to attempteverything to find the captain. He communicated with Mary and RobertGrant, who joined him. The _Duncan_ yacht was equipped for the distantvoyage, in which the nobleman's family and the captain's childrenwished to take part; and the _Duncan_, leaving Glasgow, proceededtowards the Atlantic, passed through the Straits of Magellan, andascended the Pacific as far as Patagonia, where, according to aprevious interpretation of the document, they supposed that
CaptainGrant was a prisoner among the Indians.
"The _Duncan_ disembarked her passengers on the western coast ofPatagonia, and sailed to pick them up again on the eastern coast atCape Corrientes. Lord Glenarvan traversed Patagonia, following thethirty-seventh parallel, and having found no trace of the captain, here-embarked on the 13th of November, so as to pursue his searchthrough the Ocean.
"After having unsuccessfully visited the islands of Tristan d'Acunhaand Amsterdam, situated in her course, the _Duncan_, as I have said,arrived at Cape Bermouilli, on the Australian coast, on the 20th ofDecember, 1854.
"It was Lord Glenarvan's intention to traverse Australia as he hadtraversed America, and he disembarked. A few miles from the coast wasestablished a farm, belonging to an Irishman, who offered hospitalityto the travellers. Lord Glenarvan made known to the Irishman the causewhich had brought him to these parts, and asked if he knew whether athree-masted English vessel, the _Britannia_, had been lost less thantwo years before on the west coast of Australia.
"The Irishman had never heard of this wreck; but, to the greatsurprise of the bystanders, one of his servants came forward andsaid,--
"'My lord, praise and thank God! If Captain Grant is still living, heis living on the Australian shores.'
"'Who are you?' asked Lord Glenarvan.
"'A Scotchman like yourself, my lord,' replied the man; 'I am one ofCaptain Grant's crew--one of the castaways of the _Britannia_.'
"This man was called Ayrton. He was, in fact, the boatswain's mate ofthe _Britannia_, as his papers showed. But, separated from CaptainGrant at the moment when the ship struck upon the rocks, he had tillthen believed that the captain with all his crew had perished, andthat he, Ayrton, was the sole survivor of the _Britannia_.
"'Only,' added he, 'it was not on the west coast, but on the eastcoast of Australia that the vessel was lost; and if Captain Grant isstill living, as his document indicates, he is a prisoner among thenatives, and it is on the other coast that he must be looked for.'
"This man spoke in a frank voice and with a confident look; his wordscould not be doubted. The Irishman, in whose service he had been formore than a year, answered for his trustworthiness. Lord Glenarvan,therefore, believed in the fidelity of this man, and, by his advice,resolved to cross Australia, following the thirty-seventh parallel.Lord Glenarvan, his wife, the two children, the major, the Frenchman,Captain Mangles, and a few sailors composed the little band under thecommand of Ayrton, whilst the _Duncan_, under charge of the mate, TomAustin, proceeded to Melbourne, there to await Lord Glenarvan'sinstructions.
"They set out on the 23rd of December, 1854.
"It is time to say that Ayrton was a traitor. He was, indeed, theboatswain's mate of the _Britannia_; but, after some dispute with hiscaptain, he had endeavoured to incite the crew to mutiny and seize theship, and Captain Grant had landed him, on the 8th of April, 1852, onthe west coast of Australia, and then sailed, leaving him there, aswas only just.
"Therefore this wretched man knew nothing of the wreck of the_Britannia_; he had just heard of it from Glenarvan's account. Sincehis abandonment, he had become, under the name of Ben Joyce, theleader of the escaped convicts; and if he boldly maintained that thewreck had taken place on the east coast, and led Lord Glenarvan toproceed in that direction, it was that he hoped to separate him fromhis ship, seize the _Duncan_, and make the yacht a pirate in thePacific."
Here the stranger stopped for a moment. His voice trembled, but hecontinued,--
"The expedition set out and proceeded across Australia. It wasinevitably unfortunate, since Ayrton, or Ben Joyce, as he may becalled, guided it, sometimes preceded, sometimes followed by his bandof convicts, who had been told what they had to do.
"Meanwhile the _Duncan_ had been sent to Melbourne for repairs. It wasnecessary, then, to get Lord Glenarvan to order her to leave Melbourneand go to the east coast of Australia, where it would be easy to seizeher. After having led the expedition near enough to the coast, in themidst of vast forests with no resources, Ayrton obtained a letter,which he was charged to carry to the mate of the _Duncan_--a letterwhich ordered the yacht to repair immediately to the east coast, toTwofold Bay, that is to say, a few days' journey from the place wherethe expedition had stopped. It was there that Ayrton had agreed tomeet his accomplices, and two days after gaining possession of theletter, he arrived at Melbourne.
"So far the villain had succeeded in his wicked design. He would beable to take the _Duncan_ into Twofold Bay, where it would be easy forthe convicts to seize her, and her crew massacred, Ben Joyce wouldbecome master of the seas.... But it pleased God to prevent theaccomplishment of these terrible projects.
"Ayrton, arrived at Melbourne, delivered the letter to the mate, TomAustin, who read it and immediately set sail; but judge of Ayrton'srage and disappointment, when the next day he found that the mate wastaking the vessel, not to the east coast of Australia, to Twofold Bay,but to the east coast of New Zealand. He wished to stop him, butAustin showed him the letter!... And indeed, by a providential errorof the French geographer, who had written the letter, the east coastof New Zealand was mentioned as the place of destination.
"All Ayrton's plans were frustrated! He became outrageous. They puthim in irons. He was then taken to the coast of New Zealand, notknowing what would become of his accomplices, or what would become ofLord Glenarvan.
"The _Duncan_ cruised about on this coast until the 3rd of March. Onthat day Ayrton heard the report of guns. The guns of the _Duncan_were being fired, and soon Lord Glenarvan and his companions came onboard.
"This is what had happened.
"After a thousand hardships, a thousand dangers, Lord Glenarvan hadaccomplished his journey, and arrived on the east coast of Australia,at Twofold Bay. 'No _Duncan_!' he telegraphed to Melbourne. Theyanswered, '_Duncan_ sailed on the 18th instant. Destination unknown.'
"Lord Glenarvan could only arrive at one conclusion: that his honestyacht had fallen into the hands of Ben Joyce, and had become a piratevessel!
"However, Lord Glenarvan would not give up. He was a bold and generousman. He embarked in a merchant vessel, sailed to the west coast of NewZealand, traversed it along the thirty-seventh parallel, withoutfinding any trace of Captain Grant; but on the other side, to hisgreat surprise, and by the will of Heaven, he found the _Duncan,_under command of the mate, who had been waiting for him for fiveweeks!
"This was on the 3rd of March 1855. Lord Glenarvan was now on boardthe _Duncan_, but Ayrton was there also. He appeared before thenobleman, who wished to extract from him all that the villain knewabout Captain Grant. Ayrton refused to speak. Lord Glenarvan then toldhim, that at the first port they put into, he would be delivered up tothe English authorities. Ayrton remained mute.
"The _Duncan_ continued her voyage along the thirty-seventh parallel.In the meanwhile, Lady Glenarvan undertook to vanquish the resistanceof the ruffian.
"At last, her influence prevailed, and Ayrton, in exchange for what hecould tell, proposed that Lord Glenarvan should leave him on someisland in the Pacific, instead of giving him up to the Englishauthorities. Lord Glenarvan, resolving to do anything to obtaininformation about Captain Grant, consented.
"Ayrton then related all his life, and it was certain that he knewnothing from the day on which Captain Grant had landed him on theAustralian coast.
"Nevertheless, Lord Glenarvan kept the promise which he had given. The_Duncan_ continued her voyage and arrived at Tabor Island. It wasthere that Ayrton was to be landed, and it was there also that, by averitable miracle, they found Captain Grant and two men, exactly onthe thirty-seventh parallel.
"The convict, then, went to take their place on this desert islet, andat the moment he left the yacht these words were pronounced by LordGlenarvan:--
"'Here, Ayrton, you will be far from any land, and without anypossible communication with your fellow-creatures. You cannot escapefrom this islet on which the _Duncan_ leaves you. You will be alone,under the eye of a God who reads the depths of the
heart; but you willbe neither lost nor forgotten, as was Captain Grant. Unworthy as youare to be remembered by men, men will remember you. I know where youare, Ayrton, and I know where to find you. I will never forget it!'
"And the _Duncan_, making sail, soon disappeared. This was on the 18thof March 1855.[2]
[2] The events which have just been briefly related are taken from a work which some of our readers have no doubt read, and which is entitled _Captain Grant's Children_. They will remark on this occasion, as well as later, some discrepancy in the dates: but later again, they will understand why the real dates were not at first given.
"Ayrton was alone, but he had no want of either ammunition, weapons,tools, or seeds.
"At his, the convict's disposal, was the house built by honest CaptainGrant. He had only to live and expiate in solitude the crimes which hehad committed.
"Gentlemen, he repented, he was ashamed of his crimes and was verymiserable! He said to himself, that if men came some day to take himfrom that islet, he must be worthy to return amongst them! How hesuffered, that wretched man! How he laboured to recover himself bywork! How he prayed to be reformed by prayer! For two years, threeyears, this went on; but Ayrton, humbled by solitude, always lookingfor some ship to appear on the horizon, asking himself if the time ofexpiation would soon be complete, suffered as none other eversuffered! Oh! how dreadful was this solitude, to a heart tormented byremorse!
"But doubtless Heaven had not sufficiently punished this unhappy man,for he felt that he was gradually becoming a savage! He felt thatbrutishness was gradually gaining on him!
"He could not say if it was after two or three years of solitude; butat last he became the miserable creature you found!
"I have no need to tell you, gentlemen, that Ayrton, Ben Joyce, and I,are the same."
Cyrus Harding and his companions rose at the end of this account. Itis impossible to say how much they were moved! What misery, grief, anddespair lay revealed before them!
'HERE IS MY HAND' SAID THE ENGINEER]
"Ayrton," said Harding, rising, "you have been a great criminal, butHeaven must certainly think that you have expiated your crimes! Thathas been proved by your having been brought again among yourfellow-creatures. Ayrton, you are forgiven! And now you will be ourcompanion?"
Ayrton drew back.
"Here is my hand!" said the engineer.
Ayrton grasped the hand which Harding extended to him, and great tearsfell from his eyes.
"Will you live with us?" asked Cyrus Harding.
"Captain Harding, leave me some time longer," replied Ayrton, "leaveme alone in the hut in the corral!"
"As you like, Ayrton," answered Cyrus Harding. Ayrton was going towithdraw, when the engineer addressed one more question to him:--
"One word more, my friend. Since it was your intention to live alone,why did you throw into the sea the document which put us on yourtrack?"
"A document?" repeated Ayrton, who did not appear to know what hemeant.
"Yes, the document which we found enclosed in a bottle, giving us theexact position of Tabor Island!"
Ayrton passed his hand over his brow, then after having thought, "Inever threw any document into the sea!" he answered.
"Never," exclaimed Pencroft.
"Never!"
And Ayrton, bowing, reached the door and departed.