INTERLUDE
"I'm afraid it's all up, doctor."
Day had just broken. Lieutenant Underhill, standing rifle in hand athis post in a corner of the barricade, addressed Dr. Thesiger Smith,who had come to relieve him.
"You think we can't hope for relief?" replied the doctor.
"Yes. The boat must have foundered, or got lost, or perhaps has falleninto the hands of the savages. We've come to our last tin of biscuits;we've hardly ten rounds of cartridges among us."
"What can we do then?"
"Either fight till we drop, or give in; there's nothing else. The endwill be the same either way, but the first would be the quicker."
The doctor stroked his beard with his thin hand. His son joined them;not the ruddy, clean-shaven youth that had landed from the wrecktwelve days before, but a gaunt man whose hollow cheeks were dark witha stubby beard.
"Underhill gives up hope at last," said his father.
"Then I'm ashamed of him," said Tom cheerfully. "Never say die. Go andhave a sleep, old man; it's enough to give any one the blues, keepingwatch in the dark. You'll feel better after a nap. Had any trouble?"
"No, they haven't made a sound. I almost wish they had. Anything wouldbe better than this eternal keeping watch for an enemy that's afraidto come on."
"Well, not being a fighting man, I prefer for my part to keep a wholeskin as long as I can. Go and sleep, and the pater and I will talkthings over."
Underhill, who was tired out, withdrew to the centre of the camp, andthrowing himself on a tarpaulin, was soon plunged in an uneasyslumber.
It was twelve days since the wreck, ten since the boat had put off toseek assistance. When the storm had subsided, the castaways, drenchedto the skin, had taken stock of their situation. It was a wild anddesolate spot, far from the track of ships; months might pass before avessel came in sight. They had only a small store of food, barelysufficient, even if husbanded with the utmost care, to last afortnight. From their position at the foot of rugged cliffs it wasimpossible to tell what sustenance the island afforded, and the evilreputation of the natives did not give promise of peacefulexploration. While not actually head hunters, like the inhabitants ofthe New Georgian group to the south, they were said to be treacherousand vindictive. At the southern end of the island, as Underhill knew,there was a Wesleyan mission station, placed in a somewhatinaccessible spot, and at Tulagi, on Florida Island to the south, wasa Government station and the seat of the Resident. It might bepossible to reach one or the other of these, but even so they would becompelled to wait indefinitely, there being no telegraphiccommunication between either and a civilized port.
Reflections like these did not tend to cheer the castaways; but, nowthat the sun shone once more out of a clear sky, the invincibleoptimism of the British sailorman displayed itself, and the men beganto scramble up the cliffs with almost light-hearted eagerness. At thetop they found themselves at the edge of a dense and tangled forest.Underhill sent some of the crew to search for a likely camping place,while the remainder hauled up the boat's cargo. A comparatively clearspace, about a hundred and fifty yards square, was discovered within ashort distance from the cliffs. A stream running through the midstensured a good supply of water, and here Underhill determined to makehis camp.
Great havoc had been wrought in the forest by the storm. Many treeshad been snapped off or uprooted; the ground was strewn with brokenbranches; and when the whole party were assembled at the spot, and thearms and provisions had been covered with a tarpaulin, Underhill sentall hands to collect broken timber for forming a breastwork.Fortunately, a good number of tools had been brought from the vessel,and as the men came in with their loads, Rumbold, the ship'scarpenter, set to work, with the assistance of two or three, tosurround the enclosure with a rough fence. Underhill ordered them toavoid the use of hammers and axes, the noise of which, carrying far inthese solitudes, might attract the attention of the natives, who, forall he knew, had a village in the neighbourhood. There was no lack oftough creepers which were serviceable for binding the logs together,and a great number of cactus-like plants were cut down to form adefensive lining to the barricade.
In the course of three or four hours the whole encampment had beenroughly fenced. It would not, in its present condition, prove a veryformidable obstacle to a determined attack; but the day had becomevery hot, and Underhill was anxious to avoid overworking the men. Thebarricade could be strengthened next day.
Just before nightfall the company ate a spare supper of tinned meatand biscuit, and then, in a little group apart from the rest,Underhill, with his officers and the Smiths, held a council to decideon a course of action. They determined, after brief discussion, thatnext day four of the men should take the boat and try to make theirway to Tulagi. The loss of the second boat had rendered it impossiblefor the whole party to embark; but no doubt the Resident at Tulagiwould have boats of some sort at his disposal, and in these thecastaways could be taken off. When once at Tulagi, they would have towait until the first vessel touched at the island. Four men, includingVenables, volunteered to make the voyage, and were ready to start thatnight; but every one was exhausted by the adventures and fatigues ofthe day, and Underhill thought it best that they should have a night'srest before they set off. Having arranged for watches to be kept as onboard ship, he gave the order to turn in, and their clothes and theground having been well dried by the afternoon sun, they passed acomfortable and undisturbed night.
Up at daybreak, they first of all occupied themselves with completingthe barricade; then, about eleven o'clock, when they were preparing toescort the four men to the boat, which had been anchored at the footof the cliff, some one cried out that he saw brown men advancingthrough the woods. Underhill instantly ordered the barricade to bemanned, and served out arms and ammunition as far as they would goround. There were only a dozen rifles, however, among twenty men; therest armed themselves with tools and implements of various kinds.
Soon a large body of brown-skinned, fuzzy-headed natives, armed withspears, clubs, and bows and arrows, came slowly towards the camp.Their attitude was apparently friendly, but, remembering theirreputation for treachery, Underhill did not trust them, and refused toleave the shelter of the barricade in answer to their invitation,expressed by signs, to come forth and palaver with them. It was wellhe refrained, for when they were within a few yards of the camp theysuddenly darted forward with a wild whoop. Underhill ordered his mento fire a volley over their heads, hoping to scare them away withoutbloodshed; but the reports of the rifles did not make the astoundingimpression it usually produced upon savages, and Underhill could notbut believe that they were not wholly unacquainted with the use offirearms. They advanced with the more ferocity, and it was not untilseveral had fallen to another volley from behind the barricade thatthey drew back to the shelter of the woods.
It would clearly be unsafe to attempt to reach the boat while thesavages were in view. As time went on they appeared to increase innumbers, and every now and then they sent a flight of arrows into thecamp. But the garrison kept out of sight behind the barricade nearestto the enemy, and their missiles either stuck in it, or fellharmlessly within the enclosure.
So the day passed. The fact that trouble had come so soon impressedUnderhill with the necessity of sending for assistance without delay.The prospect of a siege, with only a limited supply of ammunition torepel assaults, and a scarcely greater supply of food, was verydisturbing. He had little fear of being able to beat off attack solong as ammunition lasted, but when it was all spent, the savages mustoverpower the white men by sheer weight of numbers. Venables nowwished to recall his undertaking, and remain in the fighting line; butUnderhill decided that he must go in command of the other men.Accordingly, at nightfall, the four crept through a small gap made inthe seaward face of the barricade, and clambered down the cliff.Underhill listened anxiously for a time, wondering whether the men hadbeen discovered, or whether they had safely reached the boat; butafter an hour of
silence he concluded that either the enemy had notbeen watching in that quarter, or that the boat had slipped awayunobserved in the darkness.
The night was undisturbed, but with dawn the natives reappeared. Thelesson of the previous day had not proved effectual; they cameresolutely up to the barricade in a vast yelling horde. Underhillordered his men to reserve their fire until the enemy was within a fewyards of the enclosure; then two rapid volleys with repeating riflesand revolvers opened a great gap in the throng, and the survivors,scared by their losses, once more betook themselves to the woods.Several times during the day they returned to the attack, pushing ithome each time with more determination, and towards evening with arage and frenzy that could only be due to the stimulation of strongliquor. At this last onset the defenders were almost overwhelmed,repeated volleys seeming only to inflame the fierce warriors. For someminutes there was a hand-to-hand fight as they made desperateendeavours to scale the barricade, and only when a score of theirnumber lay dead and wounded did they relinquish the contest. They tookaway the wounded, but left the dead where they lay, and in the nightthe garrison had the gruesome task of carrying the bodies to the edgeof the cliff and casting them into the sea. For some time Dr. Smithwas kept busy in attending to the wounded among his own party, andnext day one of the stokers, struck by a poisoned arrow, succumbed toblood-poisoning, and his comrades, at dead of night, gave him sailor'sburial.
Some days passed, and no serious attack was made, though the garrisonhad to be very wary to avoid the arrows which flew at intervals intothe enclosure. One evening, soon after sunset, one of the men on watchnoticed a small light approaching the barricade, and thought at firstit was one of the phosphorescent insects which abounded in the woods,and which the garrison had seen every night like little lamps amongthe trees. But as it came nearer he perceived that it grew larger andbrighter, and moved from side to side with more regularity than wasprobable with an insect, and at length he saw that it was asmouldering torch held by a native, who was waving it to and fro tocause a flame. Evidently he was coming to fire the barricade. Awell-directed shot brought him down, but to guard against any moreattempts of the same kind Underhill had the barricade constantlydrenched with water from the stream, a fatiguing job, but one that waswelcome to the men, in that it gave them something to do.
Day after day went by. It was clear that the enemy were trusting tofamine to accomplish their end. Luckily, it never entered their headsto hasten the inevitable by damming up the stream before it enteredthe enclosure. If they had done this the garrison could hardly haveheld out for a day. In that hot climate a constant supply of water wasa prime necessity. But water without solid food would not keep themalive, and as the stock of provisions diminished, and no help came,they saw the horrors of starvation looming ever nearer. Underhill andTom Smith assumed a false cheerfulness before each other and the men,but on the morning of the twelfth day Underhill was unable to keep upthe pretence any longer.
"I didn't want to show Underhill," said Tom to his father, when thelieutenant had gone; "but we're just about done, I think."
"I'm afraid so, Tom. Poor Jenkins had a touch of delirium in thenight, and we are all getting so weak that we shall go off our heads."
"Well, I've got an idea. I thought I'd mention it to you before Ispoke to Underhill. The blacks haven't been near us for a day or two,but you may be sure they are not far off. I fancy they've got a campor a village in the woods yonder. They must have food there, and Idon't see why we shouldn't try a night attack on them, and run awaywith all we can lay hands upon. If we must, perish, better perishfighting than starving."
"Yes, but it would be folly to attempt it unless we saw a chance ofsuccess, and I see none. We don't know where their camp is; they maybe constantly on the watch, and could take us in the rear and occupyour camp before we could get back. Besides, we might have to go a longway, and how could we find our way back again?"
"One difficulty at a time, Father. As to finding our way back, wecould light small fires at intervals, which would serve asguide-posts."
"And betray us to the enemy."
"But I shouldn't undertake it unless we discover that the course isclear. I don't believe these natives ever keep watch by night; we haveseen no sign of them at night since they tried to burn us. The chiefdifficulty is that we don't know the exact direction of their camp,but why shouldn't I go out to-night and locate it?"
"Very dangerous, my boy."
"There's danger anyway," replied Tom, with a shrug. "I should take mypocket compass; two or three of those insects would be enough to lightit."
"I think we had better remain all together, Tom. Help may yet come.Why should you imperil your life, perhaps in vain?"
"Well, Father, I think I ought to chance it. I'll be careful! if I'mseen I can make a bolt for it; and I fancy I can pick up my heelsquicker than the fuzzy-wuzzies, even though they don't wear boots."
Dr. Smith was still loth to acquiesce in the proposal, but Tomreturned to it more than once during the day, and at last obtained hisfather's consent. It was scarcely easier to win over Underhill; butwith him Tom cut the matter short.
"You command the men," he said, with a smile. "My father commandsme--in a sense, for I'd have you know I am over age. I'm going to havea try. Get the men ready to make a dash when I come back, for if Isucceed the sooner we set about it the better."
The knowledge of his intended expedition had a wonderful effect on thespirits of the men. Their faces brightened: they threw off thelethargy of despondence which had settled upon them, and discussedwith some animation the chances of success.
An hour after nightfall, having first looked and listened for any signof the enemy, Tom was let out through a gap in the barricade. Hecaught two or three light-giving insects in the bushes just beyond,and set off in the direction in which the natives had always retreatedwhen their attacks were beaten off.
It was pitch dark in the belt of forest. Night insects hummed around;sometimes Tom heard the rustle made by some small animal as it dartedthrough the undergrowth; there was no other sound. He was able todetermine his general direction by means of the compass, but as theforest grew thicker he began to fear that he would find moredifficulty than he had anticipated in retracing his course. The dampwarm air was oppressive; now and then he struck his head against alow branch, stumbled over a stump or a fallen bough, or found his feetentangled in the meshes of some creeping plant. He was soon bathed inperspiration; every new sound made him jump; and with every stumble hewaited and listened with beating heart, wondering if he had betrayedhis presence to the enemy. He thought ruefully that his speed as asprinter would avail him little on ground like this; he had hisrevolver, but that would be useless against numbers; discovery wouldmean death.
Amid so many obstructions his progress was terribly slow. It was seveno'clock when he started; when it occurred to him to look at his watchhe was startled to find that two hours had passed. He could not tellhow far he had come, nor guess how far he had yet to go. He hesitated;should he go back? Was there any use in struggling further? Whatchance was there in this dense forest of finding what he sought? Mighthe not even miss the savages' camp altogether, go beyond it, leave iteither on his right hand or his left, or perhaps stumble upon itsuddenly, and be discovered before he had a chance to flee? But he putthese questions from his mind. He had set out to find the camp; noharm had befallen him. There was a strain of doggedness in his nature;he had won his scholarships at school and at Cambridge by sheer grit;his tutor had declared that Tom Smith was certainly not brilliant,but he was much better: he was sound and steady; and the samequalities that had won him successes which more brilliant men envied,came out in these novel circumstances in which he was placed. Tomdecided to go on.
Presently he came to a break in the woodland; he saw the starsoverhead. He was very wary now, and waited at the edge of the clearingfor a long time, peering all round, turning to listen on every side,before he crossed and entered another belt of forest beyond. Again hehad to s
truggle through darkness and dense entanglements, thensuddenly he started; far ahead he thought he discerned amid theblackness the dull glow of a fire. With infinite caution he picked hisway through the thinning undergrowth; the glow increased; and atlength he found himself on the edge of a wide open space in the midstof which there was a camp fire, and around it the rude grass huts ofthe savages. He saw no one, heard no sound; all were asleep.
Stealthily he crept round the encampment. Here and there he sawcooking-pots, and caught the faint odour of roasted flesh. Had thesavages any store of food, he wondered. If not, his journey was vain.The fire did not give light enough for him to see anything veryclearly. At last, however, when he had almost made the circuit of thecamp, he saw a man move out from one of the huts towards the fire, onwhich he cast some logs that lay beside it. A flame shot up. As theman returned to his hut, he put his hand into one of the cooking-potsand drew out the limb of a small animal, from which he tore the fleshwith his teeth. Tom was satisfied. No doubt each of the pots containeda quantity of food. Surely if he brought his comrades to the spot, andthey fell upon the camp suddenly, with loud cries and the noise offirearms, they might strike panic into the savages, and at least havetime to possess themselves of the contents of the pots.
He looked at his watch. It was past ten o'clock.
He could return more quickly than he came, and, if he did not lose hisway, would regain his camp within half-an-hour after midnight. Therewould be plenty of time for the whole party to reach the savages'encampment before the dawn rendered it dangerous. Moving away slowlyuntil he was out of earshot, he then walked as quickly as he couldback through the forest. But he was not a mariner, and even a marinerwould have been at fault in tracking his course by compass throughdense forest. He judged his general direction accurately, but heswerved a little too far to the right, and suddenly found himself onthe brink of the cliff. He dared not go back into the forest, lest heshould lose more time in wandering, so he decided to keep as close tothe sea as possible, thinking that he must in time arrive at his camp.His path was tortuous; once he had to strike inland to avoid a deep,wooded ravine; but presently he heard the sound of falling water, and,quickening his steps, came almost suddenly upon the barricade.
The whole company were awake. They had almost given him up for lost.It was one o'clock. Underhill sternly checked a cheer from thesailors, when Tom ran up. He told what he had seen.
"Hadn't we better wait till to-morrow night?" suggested Dr. Smith.
"To-night! to-night!" cried the men eagerly. The knowledge that foodwas within reach of them was too much for famishing men. Who knew ifthey would have strength or sanity for the task after anothersweltering day? Underhill could not refuse them; he gave orders forthe whole company to march at once.
None was left to guard the camp; the little company of sixteen couldnot be divided. They set off in single file, Tom leading the way, notbecause he had any hope of treading in his former course, but becausehe alone had traversed the forest, and he alone had a compass.
The plan of lighting fires to guide them on the return journey wasgiven up. The forest was so dense that such fires would have been oflittle use; further, they might cause an immense conflagration which,though it would effectually scare the enemy, would destroy what thefamished men so urgently needed, food.
Their progress was even slower than Tom's had been. They had to stopfrequently to make sure that all were together, and, as ill luck wouldhave it, Tom found that he was leading them through a part of theforest where the entanglements were more intricate and less penetrablethan those he had formerly encountered. But he plodded on doggedly,speaking to no one of his anxiety when a glance at his watch told howtime was fleeting. If they did not reach the camp of the savagesbefore dawn their toil and fatigue would be wasted, and their perilgreater than it had ever been.
Here and there, where the trees grew less close together, he felt aslight breeze blowing in his face, and at length he detected a faintsmell of wood smoke. He halted, and told the rest, in a whisper, thatthey were approaching a settlement. From this point they advancedstill more slowly and cautiously. Then, with a suddenness that tookthem aback, they came to the edge of a clearing. At first Tom was notsure whether it was the same that he had seen before. He had indeedapproached it from a different direction. But a glance aroundsatisfied him on this point, and the party stood within the shelter ofthe trees while Underhill gave his orders. They were to fire oneshot, then rush forward with loud shouts, seize what food they couldlay hands on, and flee back in all haste. There was no time to belost, for the sky already gave hint of dawn.
Underhill had scarcely finished speaking when there was a cry from apoint near at hand. They had approached the camp from the wind-yardside; the breeze had carried either some murmur of Underhill's voice,low as he had spoken, or some faint scent which the natives, as keenin their perceptions as wild animals, had detected. Instantly the campwas in commotion: the dusky warriors poured forth from their littlehuts, and swept, a wild, yelling horde, upon the weary company.