CHAPTER TWENTY NINE.
A RUNAWAY JOURNEY AND A TREMENDOUS EXPERIMENT.
As winter advanced, Captain Vane continued to keep up the interest ofthe Eskimos, and to increase their respect for the Kablunets, bygradually unfolding the various sources of power which were at hiscommand.
He did this judiciously, just giving them a taste of the marvellous nowand then to whet their appetites. He was particularly careful, howevernot to practise on their credulity or to pass himself off as a conjuror.He distinctly stated that all his powers were derived fromGod,--_their_ father and _his_,--and that he only excelled them in somematters because of having had better opportunities of acquiringknowledge.
Among other things, he effected an adaptation of his kites whichproduced results so surprising that we feel bound to describe themparticularly.
During the winter he found, as he had expected, that the averagetemperature at the Pole was not nearly so cold as that experienced inlower latitudes. As far as mere feeling went, indeed, the cold seemedsevere enough; nevertheless it was not sufficiently intense to freezethe great ocean, which remained an "open basin" all the year round,--aresult which was doubtless owing to the upflow of the warmunder-currents from the equator, referred to in a previous chapter.
This, however, did not apply to the waters lying directly around thePoloe and Flatland groups. In these archipelagos the waters beingshallow, the frost was quite intense enough to cool them to the bottom.Hence the sea immediately round the islands was covered with a thickcoat of solid ice, which resembled in all respects the ordinary Arcticsea-ice, being hummocky in some places, comparatively smooth in others,with a strong iceberg here and there caught and imprisoned amongst it.
As this ice surrounded all the Polar land, and stretched out to sea farbeyond the reach of vision, it followed that there was little or nodifference between the winter experience of our discoverers and that ofall other Arctic voyagers. This realm of what we may style island-icestretched away, all round, in the direction of the Arctic circle,getting thinner and thinner towards its outer margin, until at last itbecame sludgy, and, finally, melted away into the open sea. This opensea, in its turn, stretched southward, all round, to the known Arcticregions. Thus the Arctic basin was found to be a zone of open water,surrounded by ice on the south, and with a patch of ice and land in itscentre.
Now, it was a strong desire on the part of Captain Vane to visit thesouthern edge of this central ice-patch on which he dwelt, that inducedhim to try the kite adaptation before referred to.
"Benjy, my boy," said he, one fine winter day, when the galaxy of stars,the full moon, and an unusually brilliant aurora, diffused a stronglight over the undulations of Cup Valley, "I have a notion of taking atrip to the s'uth'ard soon."
"Which s'uth'ard d'you think of going to, father?" asked the boy.
In case any reader should hastily exclaim, "What a ridiculous question;there can be only _one_ southward!" we beg leave to point out that atthe North Pole _every_ direction lies to the southward, and that, asthere is necessarily no east or west at all, there is therefore nopossibility of stating by compass to what part of the south one intendsto go. Of course it was open to the Captain to have said he intended todescend south on one of the degrees of longitude, or between any two ofthem, and then, immediately on quitting the Pole the old familiar eastand west would, as it were, return to him. But he found it moreconvenient, on the whole, having got beyond all latitude, to indicatehis intended route by well-known objects of the land.
"I'm going to steer for the starboard side of Poloeland," he said, "paya short visit to Grabantak and Amalatok in passing, and then carry onsouth to the open water."
"It'll be a longish trip, father."
"Not so long as you expect, my boy, for I mean to go by express."
Benjy's eyes twinkled, for he knew that some new device was working inhis father's brain, which brain never failed to bring its plans tomaturity.
"What is it to be, father?"
"You go and fetch two of the kites, Benjy, and you'll soon find out.Overhaul them well and see that everything is taut and shipshape. LetButterface help you, and send Alf and Chingatok to me. I suppose Leo isoff after musk-oxen, as usual."
"Yes; he pretends that the camp wants a supply of fresh meat. He'dpretend that as an excuse for hunting even if we were all dying ofsurfeit."
Soon afterwards the Captain was seen, followed by his usual companionsand a company of Eskimos, dragging two sledges to the upper ridge of CupValley. One sledge was lightly, the other heavily, laden.
"You've brought plenty of supplies, I hope, Alf?" asked the leader.
"Yes, enough for three weeks. Will that do?"
"Quite enough, lad; but it may not be wanted, as I'm going south in adirection we've not yet tried, where I expect to find the open waterclose to us. It's well, however, to have enough of meat at all times."
"No fear of its being too much, father," said Benjy. "When Butterfacegoes with us, a three weeks' allowance usually disappears in afortnight."
"Nebber mind, Massa," said the negro seriously. "You've plenty for treeweeks dis time, 'cause I's off my feed. Got Polar dimspepsy, or suffin'o' dat sort, I tink."
"You've brought the electrical machine, of course, and the dynamite,Alf?" asked the Captain.
"Of course. I never prepare for a trip without these. There's nosaying, you see, when we may require them--either to blow upobstructions or astonish the natives."
"The natives are past astonishing now," remarked Benjy; "nothing shortof a ten thousand jar battery would astonish Chingatok, and I'm quitesure that you couldn't rouse a sentiment of surprise in Oolichuk, unlessyou made him swallow a dynamite cartridge, and blew him inside out.But, I say, daddy, how long are you going to keep us in the dark aboutyour plans? Don't you see that we are in agonies of suspense?"
"Only till we gain the ridge, Benjy. It will be down-hill after that,and the snow-crust comparatively smooth as well as hard."
Arrived at the ridge, one of the kites was unfolded and sent up. Thebreeze was steady, and sufficiently strong. It took twenty Eskimos tohold it when allowed full play, and even these it jerked about in amanner that highly diverted them. These Eskimos were very fond ofkite-flying, for its own sake, without reference to utility!
"I knew you were going to try it on the sledge," exclaimed Benjy, withsparkling eyes.
"Why did you ask me about it, then?" returned the Captain.
"Do let _me_ make the first trial, father!"
Captain Vane was fastening the drag-line to the fore part of the lightsledge, and refused, at first, to listen to the boy's entreaties,fearing that some accident might befall him.
"You know how accustomed I am to manage the kites, father. There's notthe least fear; and I'll be superhumanly cautious."
There was no resisting Benjy's tone and eyes. He was allowed to takehis place on the sledge as manager. Butterface sat behind to steer.Steering was to be managed by means of a stout pole, pressed varyinglyon the snow on either side.
"Don't go more than a mile or so, my boy," said the Captain, in aserious tone. "It's only a trial, you know. If it succeeds, we'lldivide the loading of the sledges, and make a fair start in company."
Benjy promised to manipulate the check-string with care. The strugglingnatives were ordered to let the kite straighten the slack of the linegradually.
"Are you ready, Ben?"
"All right, father."
"Got your hand on the check-string? Mind, it will pull hard. Now--letgo!"
The natives obeyed. Benjy at the same instant hauled sharply on thecheck-string, intending to tilt the kite well forward, and start in aslow, stately manner, but there was a hitch of some sort somewhere, forthe string would not act. The kite acted, however, with its full force.Up went the fore part of the sledge as it flew off like an arrow from abow, causing Butterface to throw a back somersault, and leaving himbehind.
Benjy held on to the head of the sl
edge, and made violent efforts tofree the check-string. Fortunately, the surface of the snow was smooth.
"After him, lads," roared the Captain, setting a brave example, and forsome time heading the natives in the chase; but a few moments sufficedto prove the hopelessness of the race.
Tug as Benjy would at the regulator, it refused to act. Fortunately,being made of silk, it did not break. By this time the kite hadattained its maximum speed, equal, as the Captain said, to a twenty-knotbreeze. At first the surface of the snow was so smooth and hard, thatBenjy, being busy with the obdurate regulator, did not appreciate thespeed.
When he gave up his attempts with a sigh of despair, he had leisure tolook around him. The sledge was gliding on with railway speed. One ortwo solitary hummocks that looked like white sentinels on the levelplain, went past him with an awful rush, and several undulations causedby snow-drift were crossed in a light leap which he barely felt. Benjywas fully aware of his danger. To meet with a hummock no bigger than awheelbarrow, would, in the circumstances, have entailed destruction; hetherefore seized a pole which formed part of the sledge-gear, and triedsteering. It could be done, but with great difficulty, as he had to sitin the front of the sledge to keep it down.
Recklessly jovial though he was, the boy could not contemplate hisprobable fate without misgiving. Nothing was visible in all the whiteillimitable plain save a hummock here and there, with a distant berg onthe horizon. He could not expect the level character of the ice toextend far. Whither was he going? South he knew; but in thatdirection, his father had often told him, lay the open sea. The moonseemed to smile on him; the aurora appeared to dance with unwontedvigour, as if in glee; the very stars winked at him!
"What if a chasm or a big hummock should turn up?" thought Benjy.
The thought seemed to produce the dreaded object, for next moment alarge hummock appeared right ahead. Far away though it was, the awfulpace brought it quickly near. The poor boy struggled--he absolutelyagonised--with the pole. His efforts were successful. The hummock wentpast like a meteor, but it was a horribly close shave, and Benjy felthis very marrow shrink, while he drew himself up into the smallestpossible compass to let it go by.
A bump soon after told that the ice was getting more rugged. Then hesaw a ridge before him. Was it large or small? Distance, the uncertainlight, and imagination, magnified it to a high wall; high as the wall ofChina. In wild alarm our hero tugged at the regulator, but tugged invain. The wall of China was upon him--under him. There was a crash.The sledge was in the air. Moments appeared minutes! Had the vehiclebeen suddenly furnished with wings? No! Another crash, which nearlyshut up his spine like a telescope, told him that there were no wings.His teeth came together with a snap. Happily his tongue was not betweenthem! Happily, too, the sledge did not overturn, but continued itsfurious flight.
"Oh, you villain!" exclaimed Benjy, shaking his fist at the airy monsterwhich was thus dragging him to destruction.
If Benjy had been asked to state the truth just then, he would havefound it hard to say whether consternation or delight were uppermost.It _was_ such a glorious rush! But then, how was it to end? Well, hedid not dare to think of that. Indeed he had not time to think, fortroubles came crowding on him. A violent "swish!" and a sudden delugetold him that what he had taken for glassy ice was open water. It wasonly a shallow pool, however. Next moment he was across it, and bumpingviolently over a surface of broken ice.
The water suggested the fear that he must be nearing the open sea, andhe became supernaturally grave. Fortunately, the last crash had beenpassed without dislocating the parts of either sledge or rider. A longstretch of smooth ice followed, over which he glided withever-increasing speed.
Thus he continued to rush over the frozen sea during a considerable partof that night.
Poor Benjy! he became half-mad with excitement at last. The exaltationof his little spirit at the risky neck-or-nothing dash, coupled withhorror at the certainty of a terrible climax, was almost too much forhim. He gave vent to his feelings in a wild cheer or yell, and, justthen, beheld an iceberg of unusual size, looming up on the horizonbefore him. Knowing by experience that he would soon be up to it, heused his pole with all his might, hoping to steer clear of it. As hedrew nearer, he saw a dark line on either side of the berg. A feelingof deadly alarm filled him. It was the open sea! and he had to choosebetween being plunged into it or dashed against the berg. It occurredto him then, for the first time, that a third resource was open--hemight cut the rope, and let the kite go free! Amazed at his stupidityin not thinking of this before, he took out his clasp-knife, but beforeapplying it, made a last effort to move the regulator. Strange to say,the silken cord yielded to the first pull, as if nothing had been wrongwith it at all! The head of the runaway kite was thrown forward, and itcame wavering down in eccentric gyrations, while the sledge graduallylost way, and came to a standstill not fifty yards from the berg.
Up to this point what may be termed the northern island-ice continuedunbroken, but beyond the berg it was broken up into floes, and, not sixhundred yards out, it tailed away to the southward in what whalers termstream-ice. The berg itself was obviously aground.
The first object that met Benjy's eyes, after coming to a halt, was anenormous polar bear. This was no strange sight to the boy by that time,but it was awkward in the circumstances, for he had neither gun norspear. Even if he had possessed the latter he was too young and lightto cope successfully with the shaggy white king of Arctic beasts.
From the attitude of the animal it appeared to be watching something.In truth, it was so intently engaged with a sleeping seal that it hadnot observed the approach of the sledge. Profiting by this, Benjyquietly moved away round a colossal buttress of the berg, and tookrefuge in an ice-cave. But such refuge, he knew, could avail himnothing if the bear should scent him out and search for him. Lookinghastily round and up into the dark blue cavern, he espied a projectingledge of ice about thirteen feet above the level of the floor. On thishe resolved to perch himself.
His first care was to examine the contents of the sledge. We have saidit had been lightly laden at starting, which was the reason of thetremendous pace at which it travelled. Although there was neither spearnor gun, the anxious boy was somewhat comforted to find an axe strappedin its accustomed place; also a blanket, sleeping-bag, and musk-ox skin,besides a mass of frozen blubber, but there was nothing else of aneatable nature. There was, however, a box containing the captain'ssextant, the electrical machine, and a packet of dynamite cartridges.
Regarding these latter objects with a sigh of disappointment, Benjyseized the axe and hastened towards the ledge of ice, muttering tohimself in a confidential tone--
"You see, old boy, if that bear takes a fancy to call on you, it will beas well to be able to say, `Not at home,' for he could make short workof you, much though you think of yourself. Yes, this ledge is highenough to bid you defiance, mister bear, and it's long and broad enoughto hold me and my belongings. The knobs by which to climb to it, too,are easy--too easy--but I'll soon rectify that. Now, then, look alive,Benjy, boy, for if that bear don't catch that seal he'll be sure to lookyou up."
Ceasing to speak, he actively conveyed the contents of the sledge to hisshelf of refuge. Then he cut away the knobs by which he climbed to it,until there was barely sufficient for his own tiny toes to rest on.That done, he went to the mouth of the cavern to look about him.
What he saw there may be guessed from the fact that he returned nextmoment, running at full speed, stumbling over ice lumps, bumping hisshins and knees, dropping his axe, and lacerating his knuckles. He hadmet the bear! Need we add that he gained his perch with the agility ofa tree-squirrel!
The bear, surprised, no doubt, but obviously sulky from the loss of theseal, entered the cave sedately with an inquiring look. It saw Benjy atonce, and made prodigious efforts to get at him. As the monster rose onits hind legs and reached its paws towards his shelf, the poor boy'sspirit s
eemed to melt, indeed his whole interior felt as if reduced to awarm fluid, while a prickly heat broke out at his extremities,perspiration beaded his brow, and his heart appeared to have settledpermanently in his throat.
These distressing symptoms did not, however, last long, for he quicklyperceived that the bear's utmost stretch did not reach nearer than threeor four feet of him. Some of the alarm returned, however, when thecreature attempted to climb up by his own ladder. Seven or eight timesit made the attempt, while the boy watched in breathless anxiety, buteach time it slipped when half-way up, and fell with a soft heavy thudon the ice below, which caused it to gasp and cough. Then it sat downon its haunches and gazed at its little foe malignantly.
"Bah! you brute!" exclaimed Benjy, whose courage was returning, "I'm nota bit afraid of you!" He leant against the wall of his refuge,notwithstanding this boast, and licked the ice to moisten his parchedlips.
After a rest the bear made another trial, and twice it succeeded inplanting the claws of one huge paw on the edge of the shelf, but Benjyplaced his heel against the claws, thrust them off, and sent the beardown each time howling with disappointment.
Sailing softly among the constellations in the aurora-lighted sky, themoon sent a bright ray into the cavern, which gleamed on the monster'swicked eyes and glistening teeth; but Benjy had begun to feelcomparatively safe by that time, and was becoming "himself again."
"Don't you wish you may get me?" he asked in a desperately facetiousspirit.
The bear made no reply, but turned to examine the contents of theice-cave. First he went to the hatchet and smelt it. In doing so hecut his nose. With a growl he gave the weapon an angry pat, and in sodoing cut his toes. We fear that Benjy rejoiced at the sight of blood,for he chuckled and made the sarcastic remark, "That comes of losingyour temper, old fellow!"
That bear either understood English, or the very sound of the humanvoice caused it irritation, for it turned and rushed at the ice-ledgewith such fury that Benjy's heart again leaped into his throat. He had,however, recovered sufficiently to enable him to act with promptitudeand discretion. Sitting down with his right foot ready, and his handsresting firmly on the ice behind him, he prepared to receive the chargein the only available manner. So fierce was the onset that the monsterran up the ice-cliff like a cat, and succeeded in fixing the terribleclaws of both feet on the edge of the shelf, but the boy delivered hisright heel with such force that the left paw slipped off. The left heelfollowed like lightning, and the right paw also slipped, letting thebear again fall heavily on the ice below.
This was more than even a bear could bear. He rushed savagely about thecavern, growling hideously, dashing the sledge about as if it had been amere toy, and doing all the mischief he could, yet always avoiding theaxe with particular care--thus showing that polar bears, not less thanmen, are quite awake to personal danger, even when supposed to be blindwith rage! At last he lay down to recover himself, and lick his bloodynose and paw.
While Benjy sat contemplating this creature, and wondering what was tobe the end of it all, a bright idea occurred to him. He rose quickly,took the electrical machine out of its box, and happily found it to bein good working order--thanks to Alf, who had special charge of thescientific instruments, and prided himself on the care with which heattended to them. The bear watched him narrowly with its wicked littleeyes, though it did not see fit to cease its paw-licking.
Having arranged the machine, Benjy took the two handles in his lefthand, pressed his knee on the board of the instrument to hold it steady,and with his right hand caused it to revolve. Then he held down thehandles as if inviting the bear to come and take them.
The challenge was accepted at once. Bruin cantered up, rose on his hindlegs, and stretched his neck to its utmost, but could not reach thehandles, though the boy stretched downward as far as possible toaccommodate him. The dirty-white monster whined and snickered withintense feeling at thus finding itself so near, and yet so far, from theattainment of its object.
Sympathising with its desires, Benjy changed his posture, and managedjust to touch the nose of his enemy. The bear shrank back with a sortof gasp, appalled--at least shocked--by the result! After a little, notfeeling much the worse for it, the brute returned as if to inviteanother electric shock--perhaps with some sinister design in view. Butanother and a brighter idea had entered Benjy's brain. Instead ofgiving the bear a shock, he tore off a small bit of seal-blubber fromthe mass at his side, which he dropped into its mouth. It swallowedthat morsel with satisfaction, and waited for more. Benjy gave it more.Still it wanted more.
"You shall have it, my boy," said Benjy, whose eyes assumed thatpeculiar glare of glee which always presaged some desperate intention.
He opened another small box, and found what he wanted. It was a smallobject scarcely a couple of inches in length. He fastened the wires ofthe electric machine quickly to it, and then imbedded it in a smallpiece of blubber which he lowered, as before, to the bear.
"You'll probably break the wires or smash the machine, but I'll riskthat," muttered Benjy through his set teeth. "I only hope you won'tchew it, because dynamite mayn't be palatable. There--down with it!"
The bear happily bolted the morsel. The wires seemed to perplex him alittle, but before he had time to examine the mystery, the boy gave theinstrument a furious turn.
Instantly there was a stupendous crash like a very thunderbolt. Thebear burst like an overcharged cannon! Benjy and the berg collided, andat that moment everything seemed to the former to vanish away in smoke,leaving not even a wrack behind!