CHAPTER THREE.
EARLE'S PROPOSITION TO DICK CAVENDISH.
It was the rays of the newly risen sun shining in through the open portthat awakened Dick Cavendish on the morning following his greatadventure. He was occupying the upper bunk in the cabin, and the firstsound to greet his ears was the deep, regular breathing of the stillsleeping Earle in the bunk beneath. Dick, being a sailor, awoke withall his senses completely about him; the occurrences of the previousnight came back to his memory in a flash, and even before he opened hiseyes he was fully aware that he was in the top berth of one of the_Bolivia's_ cabins, and that it was the companion of his adventure whowas in the bunk beneath him.
The next thing of which he was aware was the perfect stillness of theship, the complete absence of that peculiar tremor due to the throb ofthe engines and the beat of the propellers when a ship is under way; andthe thought that the _Bolivia_ was still "standing by" caused him toopen his eyes, rise up in his bunk, and peer through the open port athis elbow. The picture which then presented itself to his gaze was thatof a brilliant morning, with a sky of turquoise blue faintly streakedhere and there with the merest suggestion of a few mares' tails, a seaof sapphire blue wrinkling and sparkling under the softest imaginablebreathing of a westerly air of wind, the horizon obscured by a thin veilof haze that seemed to be already melting in the warmth of the sun, agreat two-funnelled steamer lying motionless about a mile away, with afilm of smoke issuing from her funnels and "feathers" of steam tremblingat the top of her waste pipes, a whole flotilla of boats pulling slowlyand apparently aimlessly hither and thither, and a few masses of ice ofvarying dimensions, from small fragments of a square foot in area to agreat berg fully sixty feet high, thinly dotting the surface of the sea.
Presently there came to Dick's ear the sound of a quietly spoken orderout on deck, followed by a subdued stir, accompanied by certain soundswhich the youngster's experience told him was the prelude to thematutinal rite of scrubbing the decks, succeeded a few minutes later bythe gush and splash of water and the sound of scrubbing brushesvigorously applied. Then the cabin door opened, and a steward enteredbearing on a tray two cups of steaming coffee and a plate of butteredbiscuits.
"Mornin', sir--mornin', gen'lemen both," remarked this functionary as astir in the bottom berth announced that his entry had awakened itsoccupant. "Hope you've both slep' well and ain't feelin' none the worsefor last night's happenin's."
"Good morning, steward," answered Dick. "Thank you. Answering formyself, I slept like a top, and am feeling A1 this morning. I see thatwe have not moved during the night, and that the boats are still out.What ship is that out there on our port beam?"
"That's the _Platonic_, sir. Arrived 'bout three hours ago. And the_Cotopaxi_--belongin' to your own company--and the _Nigerian_, they'relyin' about half a mile off to starboard of us. They comed up prettynear together, 'bout two hours ago, and all of 'em lowered their boatsstraight away. Don't know exactly what luck they've had. They'vepicked up a good many, I b'lieve, but I'm afraid very few of em'll bealive after floatin' about so many hours in the cold. Clothesgenle'men? Yes, certainly. They're in the dryin' room. I dessaythey're quite dry by this time. I'll fetch 'em for ye in a brace ofshakes."
"How are the others getting on, steward?" demanded Earle. "You pickedup everybody from the boats, I suppose? What with them and your regularpassengers, the ship must be like a rabbit warren!"
"So she is, sir," grinned the steward. "They're scattered about allover her. We make up shake-downs for 'em wherever we could find ablessed inch of space. They're in the smoke-room, the ladies' boodwor,the lib'ry, the drorin'-room, dinin' saloon, the officers' quarters,and--why, some of the men is even down in the stokeholds. Oh yes, wetook 'em all aboard, of course. But I expect we shall thin 'em out agood bit presently. Ye see they was all bound for Noo York, and the_Platonic_ and _Nigerian_ are both goin' there, so I expect they'll takethe bulk of 'em between 'em. And if there's any as wants to go backhome, the _Cotopaxi_ and us'll take 'em. I haven't heard how they'refeelin' after their spell in the boats, but I reckon they're all right.That wasn't no very great hardship for 'em, exceptin' for the kiddies.They was a bit frightened, naterally. And now, if you'll excuse me,gen'lemen, I'll go and get your clothes, for there'll be a lot to dopresen'ly."
There was. For after the entire area of the surrounding sea had beencarefully swept by the boats until it was ascertained that no moreliving or dead were to be found, there came the task of providingbreakfast for everybody, in itself a task of no small magnitude underthe circumstances. And while the meal was in progress, the officers ofthe _Bolivia_ were going round among the rescued people, carefullynoting the names of the survivors for transmission to England andAmerica by wireless. Then followed the gruesome task of identifyingsuch of the dead as had been found; after which came the separation ofthose who wished to go on to New York from those who wished to return toEngland, this in turn being followed by the trans-shipment of therescued in accordance with the arrangement come to by a council composedof the captains of the rescuing ships.
As for Dick, it scarcely needed the interview which he had with CaptainWilson, of the _Cotopaxi_, to decide him to return to England in thatship. It was, indeed, the only thing for him to do; he had no businessin New York; while, on the other hand, there would, of course, be ajudicial inquiry into the circumstances connected with the loss of the_Everest_, at which his presence, as the sole surviving officer of theship, would be imperatively required. He communicated his decision toEarle immediately that the question was raised, and was surprised, andnot a little pleased, when the American announced his intention to alsoreturn to England.
"You see," the latter explained, "my only, or at least my principal,reason for going to New York fizzled out when the _Everest_ took mycollection of hunting trophies with her to the bottom of the Atlantic.If I went on to New York there would be nothing for me to do, while Ihave a scheme in my head that can be worked out in Europe as well as, orbetter than, in New York. Besides, to be quite frank with you,Cavendish, I've taken a very strong liking for you altogether, apartfrom the fact that you saved my life, and I guess I don't want to losesight of you. And I'll tell you why. If this scheme of mine--which Ihave had in my mind for a long time--should eventuate, as I guess itwill, I shall want you to take a hand in it. You are exactly the sortof young fellow that I have been looking for, and I guess I can make itquite worth your while to chip in with me. But I won't say any moreabout it just now--there will be plenty of time to talk matters overlater on. Now let us go ahead and get aboard the _Cotopaxi_."
It was well on toward noon of that day before all the arrangements madewere completed, and the several ships proceeded towards their respectivedestinations. But long before that the wireless operators had beenbusily engaged in transmitting the intelligence of the disaster to thetwo hemispheres; and by the time that the ships were dipping theirensigns to each other in farewell the newsboys of Europe and Americawere charging through the streets of hundreds of cities and towns,yelling in a dozen different languages, "Spechul edition! Wreck of the_Everest_! Fearful loss of life! Full partic'lars and list of thesaved! Spechul!"
It was not until the Fastnet lighthouse showed above the horizon on the_Cotopaxi's_ port bow that Earle reverted to the topic of his "scheme,"although there had been ample opportunity for him to do so during theeastward run, he having privately so arranged matters with the purserthat he and Cavendish were berthed in the same cabin during the voyage.But for reasons best known to himself he had devoted the opportunitythus afforded him to elicit as much as he possibly could of Dick'sprevious history; and Dick, open and candid as the day, and with nothingto conceal, had told a great deal more than perhaps some people wouldhave considered quite prudent; so that when the Fastnet hove in sight,Earle knew practically all that there was to know about Dick, includingeven the fact that the latter had a sister, who, Earle gathered, from anumber of cursory and incidental remarks, mus
t be a girl very well worthknowing.
On this particular morning, however, when, after breakfast, the pairsnugly ensconced themselves in a couple of deck chairs on the boat deck,which just then happened to be clear of other occupants than themselves,Earle suddenly broke ground with:
"Say! Cavendish, have you ever heard of the city of Manoa?"
"The _City of Manoa_!" repeated Dick. "Is she a steamer, or a sailingship? I know the _City of Paris_, of course, and the--"
"No, no," interrupted Earle with a laugh. "Can't you get ships out ofyour head anyway? I'm not talking now about a ship, but about a genuinesure-'nough city, the Golden City of Manoa, to be precise. Ever heardof it?"
"Can't say I have," returned Dick, "excepting, of course, the fabledcity of that name, supposed to be ruled over by a certain El Dorado, whowas so enormously rich that he used to gild himself--"
"Exactly," agreed Earle. "That's the guy. And it is his city that I amtrying to talk to you about. You--in common with almost everybodyelse--speak of it as the `fabled' city, because, although it has beenmuch talked about and eagerly sought, the fact that it was actuallyfound has never been conclusively demonstrated. The story of itsexistence originated of course with those old Spanish conquistadors who,under that king of freebooters, Pizarro, conquered the Incas, andthereby amassed incalculable wealth. You have, of course, heard thestory of his treacherous capture of the Inca Atahualpa, and of how thelatter, having noticed the Spaniard's greed of gold, offered to ransomhimself by filling with gold to as high as a man could reach, the roomin which he was confined. That offer it was that seems to have fullyopened the eyes of Pizarro and his followers to the enormous potentialwealth of the country; and when, through their treacherous murder ofAtahualpa, they had to a considerable extent cut off from themselves thesupply of further enormous contributions, they naturally began to huntabout for the source of the wealth that had already fallen into theirhands.
"It was through the inquiries thus instituted that the story of ElDorado and his golden city first came to their ears. They were toldthat far away in the north there lived a people called the Chibchas, apeople as civilised as, and far more wealthy than, the Incas. They weregiven to understand that the Chibcha country abounded not only in goldbut also in gems, especially emeralds, and in illustration of thebounteousness of this wealth certain customs of the Chibchas weredescribed. The particular custom which gave rise to the legend of ElDorado was that which was observed on the occasion of the accession of anew monarch to the throne; and it was carried out somewhat after thisfashion:--
"The proceedings began with elaborate religious ceremonies, including along and rigorous fast, which was observed by the entire nation. Thisperiod of penance over, the inhabitants proceeded to the shores of LakeGuatabita, where, upon the day arranged for his coronation, the newruler was brought forth from his place of penance, and, escorted by thepriests, was led down through the assembled multitude to the margin ofthe lake, where the priests first smeared his body from head to footwith a certain sticky kind of earth, powdered him all over with golddust, and then dressed him in his coronation robes, which were stiffwith golden decorations and gems. This done, the new monarch entered avessel loaded with costly ornaments of gold, emeralds, and otherprecious stones, where he was received by the four most importantcaciques, who were also clad in their most gorgeous dress, and the craftwas forthwith rowed out toward the middle of the lake. Arrived here,the freight of gold and precious stones was solemnly thrown overboard asan offering to the gods who were supposed to inhabit the depths of thelake, the people ashore meanwhile celebrating the sacrifice by dancingto the accompaniment of musical instruments until the monarch returnedto the shore.
"Guatabita was a sacred lake, and was the recognised receptacle forvotive offerings of enormous value upon every possible occasion, and itmust therefore at this day contain wealth beyond the dreams of avarice,several attempts to secure which have already been made; and it was onthe shore of this lake that the golden city of Manoa was at firstsupposed to be situated.
"Of course, we know now that such was not the case, for the lake hasbeen often visited, and no traces of the city have been found; butGuatabita was the original objective of the seekers of El Dorado.
"When at length it was conclusively demonstrated that Manoa was notsituated upon the shore of Lake Guatabita, its existence began to bedoubted for a while; but the belief, and the desire to discover it, wererevived somewhere about the middle of the 16th century by acircumstantial story related by one Martinez, a lieutenant of Diego deOrdaz, who declared that, having been shipwrecked, he was taken inlandto the city--which he called Omoa--and there entertained in regalfashion by El Dorado himself. So circumstantial and full of gorgeousdetail was his story, that his chief Ordaz himself undertook the quest;but the search resulted only in disappointment, as did that of manyothers, including your own Sir Walter Raleigh.
"Now, the mistake made by all those people was, to my mind, that theydid not look for Manoa in the right place. Their very eagerness misledthem. So hungry were they for wealth that any old story was good enoughto start them off upon a wild goose chase. I am not hungry for wealth;I have more of it than, with my moderate desires, I know what to dowith. I am not a multi-millionaire, but I have quite enough to enableme to gratify all my cravings, of which the predominant ones areexploration and hunting. I also have a hankering to ferret out secrets;and the secret, which has haunted me for years is that connected withthe city of Manoa. Did or did it not exist? That is what I want tofind out. For years I have been digging and delving after every scrapof information that I could possibly get track of upon the subject; andyou would be surprised if you could see what a mass I have accumulated.But it was not until about a fortnight ago that, in your British Museum,I unearthed a certain manuscript which furnished me with the onedefinite and decisive clue I wanted. I won't bore you with details, butwill just mention that with the help of this clue I have been able toworry out the situation of the much sought city within a hundred milesor so; and I have come to the definite conclusion that it lies withinthe territory of Peru, on the eastern slope of the Andes. And, havingtold you that much, I suppose you will not be greatly surprised to learnthat I have determined to seek for it; for by so doing I shall be ableat one and the same time to gratify my state for exploration and my loveof hunting.
"You will remember, perhaps, that on the morning when we were picked upby the _Bolivia_, I told you that I had a certain scheme in my head.Well, that's the scheme. You will also probably remember that I said,if the scheme should eventuate I should want you to take a hand in it.The scheme is going to eventuate--I've taken time to think it over andmake up my mind--and the question now is: Will you take a hand in it?Stop a bit, I don't want you to answer off-hand. Let me just tell youthe nature of my proposition first.
"There will be plenty of danger attaching to the expedition, and that isone reason why I want you to become a member of it, because I noted yourbehaviour aboard the _Everest_ while she was sinking. I had my eye uponyou for some time before you became aware of my existence, and I couldnot avoid being impressed by the coolness and firmness which youdisplayed at a moment when those two qualities were essential to preventthe breaking out of a desperate and disastrous panic. Then you saved mylife; and I confess to being a bit superstitious on that point. I havethe conviction that the individual who has saved one's life is a goodfriend to have, and likely to bring one luck. Finally, what I have seenof you since has caused me to conceive a strong admiration of and likingfor you--three good reasons, I think, for my desire that you shouldbecome a member of my party.
"Now, as to the terms which I am prepared to offer you. I shall, ofcourse, defray all the costs of the expedition, including outfit, sothat you will not be put to a cent of expense. And I will enter into acontract with you, engaging you for a definite period of three years,even though the expedition should, not last for so long as that; while,should it last longer, you will be pa
id full salary for the whole of thetime. And I will pay you at the rate of one hundred and fifty dollars--or thirty British pounds, if you prefer it--per month, arranging with mybankers to pay in that sum every month for three years, to any bank inthe United States or England that you choose to name. Now, my friend,what do you say? Will you come?"
"Do you require an answer at once?" demanded Dick.
"No, I don't," answered Earle. "Take time to think it over, if youlike, between now and our arrival at Liverpool."
"Yes," said Dick. "I should like a few hours to consider the matter.For, you see, your proposal has come upon me quite unexpectedly; and itinvolves a break of something like three years in my career as a sailor,which may make it a bit difficult for me to take up the life again justwhere I lay it down. And, quite apart from that, there is the matter ofthe inquiry into the loss of the _Everest_. That may not come on forsome time, and when it does it may be a lengthy affair. That wouldprobably mean some months of delay; while, of course, you will beanxious to start at once, now that you have made up your mind to go."
"No," answered Earle. "I am in no hurry at all; on the contrary, two orthree months of delay would be welcome rather than otherwise to me,because it would afford me time to extend my investigations a bit, withthe possibility of securing further and still more definite clues."
"Then, in that case," said Dick, "I will give your proposal my mostcareful consideration, and let you have a definite reply before weland."
And so the matter was left, for the moment. But the proposal appealedvery strongly to Dick for a variety of reasons, the chief of which wasthat his acceptance of it would enable him to provide for his sisterGrace for at least three years. The flavour of adventure attached tothe enterprise also powerfully appealed to him, for adventure was thevery breath of life to him; and as for the rest--well, like alladventurous spirits, he was disposed to let the future take care ofitself. Therefore, he did not wait for the arrival of the _Cotopaxi_ atLiverpool, but, having thought the matter carefully over, informedEarle, on the evening of the same day, that he gratefully and gladlyaccepted his proposal.
The following day saw the arrival of the _Cotopaxi_ at Liverpool, andas, of course, it had been known for several days beforehand thatcertain survivors from the _Everest_ were on board her, and as, thanksto frequent wireless communications with her, the time of her arrivalwas known almost to a minute, and had been made public, the landingstage was packed with people when the ship drew alongside, most of them,it is true, animated by nothing more than mere morbid curiosity to gazeupon those who had recently passed through a very terrible experience,but among them were a few who had come down to welcome back to life therelatives or friends who had escaped. And among these were Mr JamesMcGregor, the manager of the Mount S.S. Company; and with him, GraceCavendish, the purpose of the latter being, of course, to welcome herbrother, while Mr Mcgregor's business was to see that Dick did notprematurely fall into the hands of the reporters. Dick and Earle, beingboth destitute of baggage, were among the first to cross the gang plank,landing together; and thus it came about that Earle naturally saw GraceCavendish, and was introduced to her, with results that may hereafter bedisclosed. And it is significant that whereas Earle's originalintention had been to proceed direct to London he now somewhat surprisedDick by informing him that he intended to take up his abode in theAdelphi Hotel, Liverpool, for the present.
The events of the ensuing two months, during which period the judicialinquiry into the loss of the _Everest_ was prepared for and carried out,have very little to do with this story, and they may, therefore, bedismissed in a few words. It was, of course, only natural that MrMcGregor, in his capacity of manager to the company owning the lostliner, should have frequent and long interviews with Dick and Earle, forthe purpose of eliciting information upon various points connected withthe disaster, as they were raised by the company's counsel, and thoseinterviews soon resulted in the development of a strong mutualfriendship between the trio, in consequence of which Dick and Earlebecame frequent visitors at the manager's house overlooking Prince'sPark. And, quite as naturally, it soon came about that Dick informedMr McGregor of Earle's proposal, and invited the manager's opinion asto the effect which his acceptance of it would have upon his futureprospects. The result was that, after the three had fully talked thematter over together, the manager came to the conclusion that not onlywas the proposal much too advantageous for Dick to refuse, but that hisacceptance of it would not very materially affect his maritime career,should he determine to resume it upon the termination of the adventure,ending up with the assurance that Dick might always count upon his (themanager's) influence and help.
For the rest, Dick arranged with Earle that the former's salary shouldbe paid in monthly to Grace's credit, in a Liverpool bank, so that hissister might be effectively protected against any unforeseen reverse offortune; while Grace made it clear that she was so happy in her presentposition that she would continue in it so long as the Mcgregors had anyneed of her; thus, when at length the inquiry was over and Dick was oncemore free, he was able to bid his sister farewell with the pleasantconsciousness that her future was as secure as human foresight couldmake it.
The first week of August witnessed the arrival of Dick and Earle in NewYork, where the pair took up their abode in the latter's comfortablehome in Fifth Avenue during the progress of their preparations for thegreat adventure. The precise nature of these preparations need not berevealed at this point of the story, since the details will appear asthe narrative proceeds; the only fact that need now be mentioned beingthat, after long and anxious consideration of the question, Earle hadfinally determined that the starting point of the expedition should bethe junction of the river Tecuachy with the Javari, a tributary of theAmazon, to which point he and Dick would proceed in the former's steamyacht _Mohawk_, a comfortable little craft of two hundred and fifty tonsregister. At this point, on the left, or northern, bank of thetributary, stands, on Peruvian soil, a small town called Conceicao, andabreast of this town the _Mohawk_ came to an anchor about mid-afternoonof a certain day in the month of November, not so very many years ago.
At the moment when the yacht came to an anchor, her deck was encumberedwith two long canoe-shaped craft, each measuring six feet beam by thirtyfeet in length. They were practically flat-bottomed, to ensure lightdraught, and were built in sections, to provide the maximum ofportability, which quality was further ensured by the fact that thematerial of which they were constructed was an amalgam largely composedof aluminium. They were completely decked from stem to stern with alight covering of the same material, rendering them absolutelywatertight; but by an ingenious arrangement of wing nuts these deckscould be removed in a few minutes; while, by a similar arrangement, thehulls could almost as quickly be taken apart.
No sooner was the _Mohawk's_ anchor down and the craft riding stem-on tothe current than the crew proceeded to launch the two canoes overboard,when proof of their extreme lightness became manifest in the fact thatit needed the strength of only ten men to lift each of them and heavethem bodily over the rail, after which they were passed astern andsecured by a painter. A number of beams and planks, all carefully cut,fitted and marked, were then brought on deck, after which half a dozenmen descended to the two canoes; the beams and planks were passed downto them as required, and within an hour the whole was fitted together inthe form of a double canoe, twenty feet broad, with a space of eightfeet between the two hulls--with a plank deck of twenty feet width inthe middle and twenty feet long. This curious looking craft was nextfitted with two masts and a bowsprit, arranged to carry two standinglugs and a jib, and by the time that this was done the tropical nightwas descending upon the workers, and their labours for the day came toan end.
Meanwhile, an official visit had been paid to the yacht by the Inspectorof Customs of Conceicao, who inquired into the reasons for the visit ofthe yacht, inspected her papers, and--upon learning that hunting andexploration were the objects of the expeditio
n--levied a substantialamount in the shape of duty upon the guns, ammunition and generalequipment of the party, notwithstanding the fact that the Tecuachyflowed through Brazilian territory; after which he dropped his officialattitude and offered his services--for a consideration--in furtheringthe objects of the expedition. All that Earle needed at the moment,however, was to engage the services of a dozen natives possessing someknowledge of the country to be traversed--and also a knowledge of theSpanish language, of which the American was a fluent linguist--and thesethe inspector faithfully promised to produce on the morrow.
It was past the hour of noon on the following day when the inspectorturned up aboard the _Mohawk_ with his dozen recruits. Earle and Dickwere sitting down to luncheon on the after deck, beneath the awning whenthey arrived; but subsequent inspection of the party seemed to justifythe delay, for, so far at least as physique was concerned, the menappeared to be everything that could be desired. They were allfull-blooded Indians--which Earle pronounced to be infinitely preferableto half-breeds--and seemed, so far as might be judged from appearances,to be civil, capable, and fairly intelligent fellows. They allunderstood Spanish, although they spoke the language but imperfectly;but when it came to questioning them upon their knowledge of the countrywhich they would be called upon to pass through, they all franklyconfessed utter ignorance of it, beyond the fact that from hearsay theyunderstood it to be full of perils of every imaginable description. Butthis, they explained, had not deterred them from enlisting when theylearned that their leaders were to be two white men, for they had heardthat white men were possessed of strange powers, enabling them toconquer every conceivable kind of peril, while, as for themselves, theywere quite willing to work hard, and fight hard, too, provided that thepay was good.
By that time the fitting and equipment of the double canoe had beencompleted and she was ready for an immediate start; as soon, therefore,as the new hands had been paid three months' wages in advance, whichthey entrusted to the inspector to transmit to their relatives, and assoon also as the inspector had been paid a certain sum as head money forhis services in finding the men, the whole party quitted the yacht andgot under way, heading across the river for the mouth of the Tecuachy,before entering which they saw the _Mohawk_ heave up her anchor andstart upon her return journey to New York.