CHAPTER X
"MISSING AT LLOYD'S"
Elsie had slept long and soundly: she found herself in a new world ofsunshine and calm. When she looked over the side to examine thecrudely fashioned canoe, she was astonished by the limpid purity of thewater. She could see white pebbles and vegetation at a vast depth. Itseemed to be impossible that a few hours should have worked such achange, but Suarez assured her that the streams which tumbled down theprecipitous gorges of the hills ran clear quickly after rain, owing tothe sifting of the surface drainage by the phenomenal tree-growth.
"Wherever timber can lodge on the hillsides," he told her, "fallentrunks lie in layers of fifteen or twenty feet. They rot there, andyoung saplings push their way through to the light and air, whilecreepers bind them in an impenetrable mass; in many places small treesand shrubs of dense foliage take root amidst the decaying stumpsbeneath, so that even the Indians cannot pass from one point toanother, but are compelled to climb the rocky watercourses or followthe slopes of glaciers. When you see what appears to be a smooth greenspace above the lower brown-colored belt of copper beech, that is not amoss-covered stretch of open land, but the closely packed tops of youngtrees, where a new tract has been bared by an avalanche."
She was in no mood this morning to assimilate the marvels of HanoverIsland. Her brain had been cleared, restored to the normal, byrefreshing sleep. With a more active perception of the curiousdifficulties which beset the _Kansas_ came a feeling akin to despair.The brightness of nature served rather to convert the ship into aprison. Storm and stress, whether of the elements or of the lesscandid foes who lurked unseen on the neighboring shores, made the_Kansas_ a veritable fortress, a steel refuge seemingly impregnable.But the knowledge of the vessel's helplessness, and of the equallydesperate hazard which beset her inmates, was rendered only morepoignant by the smiling aspect of land and sea.
Elsie was not a philosopher. She was just a healthy, clean-mindedEnglishwoman, imbued with a love of art for art's sake, a girl whosewholesome, courageous temperament probably unfitted her to achievedistinction in the artistic career which she had mapped out forherself. So the super-Alpine glories surrounding that inland sea, andthe prismatic hues flashing from many a glacier and rainbow of cataractmist, left her unmoved, solely because the rough-hewn Indian craftbobbing by the side of the great ship called to mind the extraordinaryconditions under which she and all on board existed.
But she was hungry, and that was a saving sign. She guessed that manyof the men, after mounting watch until broad daylight, were asleep.Others were at work below, as was testified by a subdued sound ofhammering, with the sharp clink of metal against metal. Walker wastinkering at the engines. With him, in all likelihood, were thecaptain and Tollemache. She and Suarez were the drones of the ship,and Suarez, poor fellow, had earned an idle hour if only on account ofthe scrubbing he had given himself to wash away the tokens of fiveyears of slavery.
Before going in search of the cook, she walked a few steps towards thebridge. At the top of the companion she saw Joey, sittingdisconsolately on his tail, a sure indication that Courtenay wasoccupied in depths approachable only by steep iron ladders whither thedog could not follow.
She whistled softly to her little friend, knowing that Christobal, andperhaps Mr. Boyle, would be on the bridge, keeping the lookout, and shewas not inclined for talk at the moment. The doctor would haveunderstood at once that the girl was below par, owing to the strain ofthe preceding days, and the lethargic rest which exhaustion had imposedon her. Yet, there are times when science does not satisfy. . . .
But Joey, who recked naught of philosophy, and to whom the alarms andexcursions of fights on deck came as a touch of mother earth to thesole of Antaeos--Joey, then, sprang down the stairs, barking joyously,and leaped into her outstretched arms.
He honored no other person on board, except his master, with suchextravagant friendship, and, as the girl carried him aft to the cook'sgalley, she asked herself why the dog had taken such a liking to her.
She blushed a little as she thought:
"It may be that I resemble the lady whom Captain Courtenay is going tomarry. I wonder why he did not show us her photograph that day whenIsobel and I visited his cabin and looked at the pictures of his motherand sister. I should like to see her, but how can I manage it? Isimply dare not tell him I read that scrap of a letter, even by chance."
The dog, apparently, found her an excellent substitute; he licked herear contentedly. That tickled her, and she laughed.
"I fear you are a fickle lover, Joey," she said aloud. "But you willsimply be compelled to remain constant to me while we are in thishorrid place, and that may be for the remainder of our lives, dear."
Joey tried to lick her again to show that he didn't care. What couldany reasonable dog want more than fine weather, enough to eat, and theprospect of an occasional scrimmage?
When Elsie did ultimately climb to the chart-house, the fit ofdespondency had fled. Boyle was there, having been carried up in adeck chair early in the day. He was alone.
"Huh!" he growled pleasantly. "You 're lookin' as bright as a new pin,Miss Maxwell. Now, if I had been among the pirates, I'd have taken youwith me."
"Do you mean to say that you are actually paying me compliments?" saidshe.
"Am I? Huh; didn't mean to. I'm an old married man. But pirates,especially Spanish ones, are supposed to be very handy with knives andother fellows' girls."
"You see they did not consider me a prize."
"The rascals! Good job you missed that boat. Christobal has beentellin' me all about it. They've gone under."
"Do you really think so?"
"Can't see any chance for them, Miss Maxwell."
"But we are almost as badly situated here?"
"Huh, not a bit of it. Lucky chap, Courtenay. He couldn't lose a shipif he tried. She 'd follow him 'cross country like that pup. Look atme: lost three, all brand new from the builders. One foundered, oneburnt, an' one stuck on the Goodwins. I'm careful, steady as any mancan be, but no owner would trust me with a ship now, unless she was aback number, an' over-insured. Even then my luck would follow me. I'd bring that sort of crazy old tub through the Northwest passage. SoI'm first mate, an' first mate I'll remain till my ticket gives out."
A good deal of this was Greek to Elsie. But she knew that Boyle was aman of curt speech, unless deck hands required the stimulus of a tonguelashing. Such a string of connected sentences was a rare occurrence.It argued that the "chief" was not unwilling to indulge in reminiscence.
"Why do you consider Captain Courtenay so fortunate?" she asked,flushing somewhat at the guile which lay behind the question.
"Huh," snorted Boyle, amazed that even a slip of a girl should needinforming on so obvious a fact. "Don't you call it luck to be givencommand of a ship like the _Kansas_ at his age? An' to get fivehundred pounds an' a gold chronometer because the skipper of the_Florida_ was too full to hold on to the bridge? You mark my words.He'll be made commodore of the fleet after he pulls the _Kansas_ out ofthis mess."
"What happened to the _Florida_?"
"Haven't you heard that yarn? Bless my soul, she was our crack ship.She broke her shaft in a gale, an' the skipper was washedoverboard--you always tell lies about deaders, you know--so A. C. justwaded in an' saved the whole outfit, passengers an' all."
"But he has had reverses, too. He was in the Royal Navy, I have beentold, and he had to give it up because his people--"
"More luck. The Royal Navy! Huh, all gold braid, an' buy your ownvittals. There's no money in that game."
"Money is not everything in the world. A man's career may be more tohim than the mere monetary aspect of it."
"If ever you meet my missus, you 'll hear the other side of thequestion, Miss Maxwell. S'posin' Courtenay was in the Navy, an' had awife an' family to keep. Could he do it on his pay? Not he. As itis, he's sure to marry a girl with a pile, and wind up a managingowner."
"Perhaps he is engaged to some such young lady already?"
"Haven't heard so. You may be sure there's one waitin' for himsomewhere. _I_ know. There's no dodgin' luck, good or bad. I thoughtit was goin' to be that friend of yours, but she's off the register,poor lass. There! I didn't mean that. I 'm an idiot, for sure. Yousee, I don't talk much as a rule, Miss Maxwell, or I should know betterthan to chin-wag like a blazin'--huh, like a babblin' fool."
Elsie turned her face aside when he mentioned Isobel. It seemed to hersensitive soul an almost unfair thing that she should be gossipingabout trivialities when the girl who had commenced this unlucky voyagein such high spirits was lying beneath that grim sea behind the smilingheadland. Yet she knew that Boyle meant no harm by his chatter. Hewas weak from his wound, and perhaps a trifle light-headed as theresult of being brought from the stuffy saloon to the airy and sunlitchart-room. So she crushed a sorrow that was unavailing, and strove toput the sailor at his ease again.
"I do not find any harm in your remark," she said resolutely. "Were itpossible, I should have been very pleased to see Miss Baring married toa man of strong character like Captain Courtenay. By the way, who iskeeping watch on deck?"
"The doctor was here with me until a few minutes ago. Then the skippertelephoned him. I guess there is some one on the lookout, but youmight just cast an eye shorewards. I'm not supposed to move yet."
He wriggled uneasily in his chair, for the spirit was willing; butElsie made him lie quiet; she rearranged his pillow, and stepped on tothe bridge. By walking from port to starboard, and traversing theshort length of the spar deck, she could command a view of the bay andof most parts of the ship. She heard the dog scuttling down thecompanion; on reaching the after-rail, she saw the captain engaged inearnest, low-toned conversation with Tollemache and Walker. They werestanding on the main deck near the engine-room door, and examiningsomething which resembled a lump of coal; she saw the engineer takethree similar lumps from a pocket.
Christobal appeared, carrying a bucket of water, into which the lumpswere placed by Walker, who handled them very gingerly. After a slightdelay, he began to crumble one in his fingers, still keeping it in thewater, until finally he drew forth what Elsie recognized at once as astick of dynamite. Though it was blackened by contact with the coal,she was certain of its real nature. She had visited a great manymines, and the officials always scared the ladies of the party bytelling them what would happen if the explosives' shed were to blow up.She had even seen dynamite placed in the sun to dry, as it is verysusceptible to moisture, and she wondered, naturally enough, why such adangerous agent should be hidden in, or disguised as, a piece of coal.
She thought that the men should be made aware of her presence, so sheleaned over and said:
"May I ask what you four are plotting?"
They looked at her in surprise. They were so engrossed in theirdiscovery that they had eyes for nothing else. Walker straightwayplunged the sausage-shaped gray stick into the water again.
"What are you doing with that dynamite?" she demanded. "Do you intendto visit the Valley of the Golden Sands? If so, please take me. I amvery poor."
It was Courtenay who answered.
"Are you alone?" he asked.
"Mr. Boyle is in the chart-house."
"I know; but is any one else up there?"
"No."
"Then we shall join you at once."
Notwithstanding the serious demeanor of the men, Elsie was far fromguessing what had happened. But she was soon enlightened.
"In which bunker was the coal placed which we shipped at Valparaiso?"Courtenay asked Boyle.
"In the forrard cross bunker," was the instant answer.
"And that was the first coal used in the furnaces?"
"Yes, sir."
The captain's tone was official, exceedingly so, and the chief officertook the cue from his superior in rank.
"Did we get up steam with it?"
"There might have been a hundred-weight or two lying loose in thestoke-hold, but, for all practical purposes, we have used nothing butthe Valparaiso bunker since we left port."
"The rest of our coal was shipped at Coronel?"
"Yes, sir."
"You hear? It is exactly as I have told you," said Courtenay, glancingat the others. "I must explain to you, Mr. Boyle, that I wished you tostate the facts in front of witnesses before I gave you my reasons forcross-examining you on the matter. Mr. Walker and I have been certain,all along, that the furnaces were blown up wilfully. Now oursuspicions are proved. This morning, after a careful scrutiny, we cameacross a number of lumps of coal cleverly constructed out of smallpieces glued together. In the center of each lump was a stick ofdynamite, protected by an asbestos wrapper. It was undoubtedly theintent of some miscreant that a number of these lumps should be fedinto the furnaces. This actually occurred, as we know, but, by themercy of Providence, the ship did not experience the full power of theexplosion, or she must have sunk like a stone."
"Huh," grunted Boyle. "Who holds the insurance?"
"The shippers of the cargo, of course--Messrs. Baring, Thompson &Miguel."
"Worth a quarter of a million sterling, ain't it?"
"Yes."
"Huh, it's a lot of money."
There was a momentary silence. Elsie's eyes grew larger, and shebecame rather pale. As was her habit when puzzled, she placed a fingeron her lips. Christobal noted her action. Indeed, he missed few ofher characteristic habits or expressions. He laughed quietly.
"I think you are quite right, Miss Maxwell," he said. "This is one ofthe many instances in which silence is golden."
Taken by surprise, she blushed and dropped her hand. But Courtenaysaid promptly:
"There are some instances in which silence may be misinterpreted. Letme state at once that the shippers of the valuable cargo on board the_Kansas_ will suffer a serious financial reverse if the ship is lost.Two thousand tons of copper may be worth a considerable fixed sum, butthe lack of the metal on the London market at the end of January willhave far-reaching consequences in a fight against the bull clique inParis, and that is why Mr. Baring made this heavy shipment."
"Those consequences could be foreseen and discounted," put inTollemache, dryly.
"Exactly. But by whom? By the man who sent his only daughter as apassenger on this vessel?"
Every one scouted that notion. But Tollemache, though disavowing anythought of Mr. Baring as a party to the scheme, stuck to his guns.
"Somebody will make a pile when the _Kansas_ is reported missing," hesaid.
"The insurance money would not be paid for a long time," Courtenayexplained.
"No, but the copper market will respond instantly."
"Then the process has commenced already. The _Kansas_ should have beenreported yesterday from Sandy Point. The news that she has not arrivedwill soon reach the nearest cable station. There will be terrificexcitement at Lloyd's when that becomes known."
"It is distinctly odd that Suarez should turn up last night, and tellus how gold slipped through his fingers five years ago. Let us hopethe parallel will hold good for the gentleman who so amiably endeavoredto send the _Kansas_ to the bottom of the Pacific," said Christobal.
"It is rather a rotten trick," broke in Tollemache, "just a bit ofSpanish roguery-- Well, I'm sorry, Christobal, but I can't regard youas quite a Spaniard, you see."
"Nevertheless, I am one," and the doctor stiffened visibly.
"What Tollemache means is that he would expect you to take the Englishand straightforward view of a piece of rascality, doctor." ThenCourtenay paused in his turn. "By the way," he continued, with thefrowning dubiety of one whose thoughts outstrip his words, "does anyone here know a man named Ventana?"
"It is a name common enough in Chile," said Christobal.
"If you mean Senor Pedro Ventana, who is associated with Mr. Baring inmining matters, I am acquainted with him," said Elsie. The men seemedto have forgotten her presence.
They were wrapped up in the remarkablediscovery which Courtenay himself had made by diligent search among thecoal ready for use in the furnaces when the explosion took place.
For no reason in particular, save the unexpectedness of it, Elsie'sstatement was received with surprise. They all looked at her, and someof them wondered, perhaps, why her smiling eyes had lost their mirth.Yet there was nothing unreasonable in the mere fact that a certainChilean named Ventana, who had business relations with Mr. Baring,should make the acquaintance of Isobel Baring's friend. As quickly asit had arisen, the feeling of strangeness passed.
Courtenay even laughed. Elsie as the Jonah of the ship was a quaintconceit.
"I mentioned Ventana because I was told he took some part of theinsurance on his own account," he explained. "But he was a member ofBaring's copper syndicate, and, indeed, was spoken of as a miningengineer of high repute. Believe me, I was not jumping to conclusionson that account."
"I know him to be a very bad man," said Elsie, slowly. Her face waswhite and her eyes downcast. It was evident that the suddenintroduction of Ventana's personality was distressing to her, butCourtenay, preoccupied with the dastardly attempt made to sink hisship, did not observe this feature of a peculiar discussion.
"Bad! In what sense, Miss Maxwell?" he asked unguardedly.
"In the most loathsome sense. He is evil-minded, vicious, altogetherdetestable. If Mr. Baring knew his character as I know it, Ventanawould not be allowed to enter his office."
"Pedro Ventana?" interrupted Christobal. "Is he a half-caste, a tall,brown-skinned man, who affects an American drawl when he speaksEnglish--a man prominent in Santiago society and in mining circlesgenerally?"
"Yes," said Elsie.
"That is odd, exceedingly so. I once heard a rumor--but perhaps it isunfair to mention it in this connection. Yet it cannot hurt any one ifI state that Isobel Baring and he were--well--how shall I put it?--atany rate, there was a lively summer-hotel sort of attachment betweenthem."
"Isobel has never told me that," said Elsie, nerving herself for apersonal disclosure which was obviously disagreeable. "I own a smallranch near Quillota, and, as there was a chance of copper being locatedthere, Mr. Baring advised me to employ Ventana as an expert prospector.Indeed, Mr. Baring himself sent Ventana to examine the property andreport on it. He came to see me. He told me there were no minerals ofvalue on my land, but I could never free myself from him afterwards.Indeed, I am running away from him now."
She uttered the concluding words with a genuine indignation whichforthwith evaporated in its unconscious humor. Everybody laughed, eventhe girl herself, and Boyle grunted:
"Huh, shows the beggar's good taste, anyhow."
Courtenay, perhaps, thought that if he encountered Ventana again hewould take the opportunity to reason with him in the approved manner ofthe high seas. And, as there was no need to prolong a topic whichcaused Elsie any sort of embarrassment, he hastened to say:
"I have brought names into the discussion largely to show what adoubtful field is opened once we begin to suspect without real cause.The only witness of any value we have on board is Frascuelo, and hisevidence merely goes to prove a secret design to interfere with, orcontrol, the trimming of the bunker. That particular hatch must besealed, and the specimens we have secured put away under lock and key.I feel assured that the remainder of our coal is above suspicion. Wecan carry the inquiry no further while we remain here. Now, Mr.Walker, you have something of a more cheering nature to communicate, Ithink."
The engineer grinned genially.
"I don't wish to bind myself to a day or so, Miss Maxwell andgentlemen," he said, "but I've had a good look at the damage, an' Ifeel pwitty shu-aw I'll get up steam in one boil-aw within ten days ora fawt-night. It'll be a makeshift job at the best, because I have sofew spa-aw fittin's, an' no chance of makin' a castin', but I'll bet aye'aw's scwew the _Kansas_ gets a move on her undaw her own steam soonaftaw New Ye-aw's Day."
New Year's Day! What a lump in the throat the words brought. In threedays it would be Christmas, in seven more the New Year! Though, fromthe beginning of the voyage, they were prepared to pass both festivalsat sea, there was all the difference in the world between a steadyprogress towards home and friends and the present plight of the_Kansas_. Death, too, had thrown its shadow over them. Some therewere to whom the passing of the years would mean no more in this world.Others, the great majority of the ship's company, were probably hiddenby the same eternal silence; the last sight they had of them was a dimvision of boats rushing into a chaos of angry seas and sheeted spray.
But Courtenay would have none of these mournful memories. He hadsolved the mystery of the ship's breakdown, and an expert mechanicalengineer had just pledged his reputation to restore wings to the_Kansas_--somewhat clipped wings, it is true, but sufficient, givenfair weather and reasonable good fortune, to bring her to a civilizedsettlement in the Straits. Why, then, should they yield to gloom?
"Isn't that glorious news?" he cried. "Now, Christobal, that motortrip in June through the Pyrenees looks feasible once more. And you,Miss Maxwell, though you have never quailed for an instant, can hope tobe in England in the spring. As for you, Tollemache, surely you willsay that our prospects are 'fair,' at the least."
"I would say more than that if it were not for these poisonousIndians," replied Tollemache. "Here they come now, a whole canoe loadof 'em. I have never seen such rotters."
And, indeed, Francisco Suarez, detailed to keep watch and ward over theship until noon, ran up the companion and cried excitedly:
"Four head men have just put off from Otter Creek. They have missedme, I expect. They will want me to go back. I beseech you, senorcaptain, not to give me up to them, but rather to send a bullet throughmy miserable heart."
"Tell him to calm himself," said Courtenay, coolly, when Christobal hadtranslated this flow of guttural Spanish. "He has no cause to fearthem now; let him nerve himself, and show a bold front. A palaver isthe best thing that can happen. We must display all the arms wepossess. Bid any of your invalids who can stand upright showthemselves, Christobal. We must lift you outside, Boyle. Bring yourcamera, Miss Maxwell. If we could give these fellows a good picture ofthemselves it would scare them to death."
The captain of the _Kansas_ was not to be repressed that day. Herefused to look at the dark side of things. He even found cause forcongratulation in the threatened visit of cannibals whom Suarez fearedso greatly that he preferred death to the chance of returning to them,although they had spared his life.
And Courtenay infected them all with his splendid optimism. It waswith curiosity rather than dread that they watched the rapid approachof the canoe and its almost naked occupants.