CHAPTER TWENTY THREE.
UNEXPECTED ARRIVALS--THE RESCUE-PARTY--LOST AND FOUND--RETURN TO THESHIP.
The sixth night after the hunting-party had left the ship, Grim and FredEllice suddenly made their appearance on board. It was quite dark, andthe few of the ship's company who were able to quit their berths wereseated round the cabin at their meagre evening meal.
"Hallo, Fred!" exclaimed Captain Ellice, as his son staggered ratherthan walked in, and sank down on a locker. "What's wrong, boy? whereare the rest of you?"
Fred could not answer; neither he nor Grim were able to utter a word atfirst. It was evident that they laboured under extreme exhaustion andhunger. A mouthful of hot soup administered by Tom Singleton ralliedthem a little, however.
"Our comrades are lost, I fear."
"Lost!" exclaimed Captain Guy. "How so? Speak, my boy; but hold, takeanother mouthful before you speak. Where did you leave them, say you?"
Fred looked at the captain with a vacant stare. "Out upon the ice tothe north; but, I say, what a comical dream I've had!" Here he burstinto a loud laugh. Poor Fred's head was evidently affected, so hisfather and Tom carried him to his berth.
All this time Grim had remained seated on a locker, swaying to and frolike a drunken man, and paying no attention to the numerous questionsthat were put to him by Saunders and his comrades.
"This is bad!" exclaimed Captain Guy, pressing his hand on his forehead.
"A search must be made," suggested Captain Ellice. "It's evident thatthe party have broken down out on the floes, and Fred and Grim have beensent to let us know."
"I know it," answered Captain Guy; "a search must be made, and thatinstantly, if it is to be of any use; but in which direction are we togo is the question. These poor fellows cannot tell us. `Out on the iceto the north' is a wide word. Fred, Fred, can you not tell us in whichdirection we ought to go to search for them?"
"Yes, far out on the floes--among hummocks--far out," murmured Fredhalf-unconsciously.
"We must be satisfied with that. Now, Mr Saunders, assist me to getthe small sledge fitted out. I'll go to look after them myself."
"An' I'll go with 'ee, sir," said the second mate promptly.
"I fear you are hardly able."
"No fear o' me, sir. I'm better than 'ee think."
"I must go too," added Captain Ellice; "it is quite evident that youcannot muster a party without me."
"That's impossible," interrupted the doctor; "your leg is not strongenough, nearly, for such a trip; besides, my dear sir, you must staybehind to perform my duties, for the ship can't do without a doctor, andI shall go with Captain Guy, if he will allow me."
"That he won't," cried the captain. "You say truly the ship cannot beleft without a doctor. Neither you nor my friend Ellice shall leave theship with my permission. But don't let us waste time talking. Come,Summers and Mizzle, you are well enough to join, and Meetuck, you mustbe our guide; look alive and get yourselves ready."
In less than half an hour the rescue party were equipped and on theirway over the floes. They were six in all--one of the freshest among thecrew having volunteered to join those already mentioned.
It was a very dark night, and bitterly cold, but they took nothing withthem except the clothes on their backs, a supply of provisions for theirlost comrades, their sleeping-bags, and a small leather tent. Thecaptain also took care to carry with them a flask of brandy.
The colossal bergs, which stretched like well-known landmarks over thesea, were their guides at first, but, after travelling ten hours withouthalting, they had passed the greater number of those, with which theywere familiar, and entered upon an unknown region. Here it becamenecessary to use the utmost caution. They knew that the lost men mustbe within twenty miles of them, but they had no means of knowing theexact spot, and any footprints that had been made were now obliterated.In these circumstances Captain Guy had to depend very much on his ownsagacity.
Clambering to the top of a hummock he observed a long stretch of levelfloe to the northward.
"I think it likely," he remarked to Saunders, who had accompanied him,"that they may have gone in that direction. It seems an attractive roadamong the chaos of ice-heaps."
"I'm no sure o' that," objected Saunders; "yonder's a pretty clear roadaway to the west, maybe they took that."
"Perhaps they did, but as Fred said they had gone far out on the ice _tothe north_, I think it likely they've gone in _that_ direction."
"Maybe yer right sir, and maybe yer wrang," answered Saunders, as theyreturned to the party. As this was the second mate's method ofintimating that he _felt_ that he ought to give in (though he didn'tgive in, and never would give in, _absolutely_), the captain felt moreconfidence in his own opinion.
"Now, Meetuck, keep your eyes open," he added, as they resumed theirrapid march.
After journeying on for a considerable distance, the men were ordered tospread out over the neighbouring ice-fields, in order to multiply thechances of discovering tracks; but there seemed to be some irresistiblepower of attraction which drew them gradually together again, howeverearnestly they might try to keep separate. In fact, they were beginningto be affected by the long-continued march and the extremity of thecold.
This last was so great that constant motion was absolutely necessary inorder to prevent them from freezing. There was no time allowed forrest--life and death were in the scale. Their only hope lay in acontinuous and rapid advance, so as to reach the lost men ere theyshould freeze or die of starvation.
"Holo! look 'eer!" shouted Meetuck, as he halted and went down on hisknees to examine some marks on the snow.
"These are tracks," cried Captain Guy eagerly. "What think you,Saunders?"
"They look like it."
"Follow them up, Meetuck. Go in advance, my lad, and let the rest ofyou scatter again."
In a few minutes there was a cry heard, and as the party hastenedtowards the spot whence it came, they found Davie Summers pointingeagerly to a little snow-hut in the midst of a group of bergs.
With hasty steps they advanced towards it and the captain, with aterrible misgiving at heart, crept in.
"Ah, then, is it yerself, darlint?" were the first words that greetedhim.
A loud cheer from those without told that they heard and recognised thewords. Immediately two of them crept in, and, striking a light, kindleda lamp, which revealed the careworn forms of their lost comradesstretched on the ground in their sleeping-bags. They were almostexhausted for want of food, but otherwise they were uninjured.
The first congratulations over, the rescue party immediately proceededto make arrangements for passing the night. They were themselves littlebetter than those whom they had come to save, having performed anuninterrupted march of eighteen hours without food or drink.
It was touching to see the tears of joy and gratitude that filled theeyes of the poor fellows, who had given themselves up for lost as theywatched the movements of their comrades while they prepared food forthem; and the broken, fitful conversation was mingled strangely withalternate touches of fun and deep feeling, indicating the conflictingemotions that struggled in their breasts.
"I knowed ye would come, Captain; bless you, sir," said Amos Parr in anunsteady voice.
"Come! Av coorse ye knowed it," cried O'Riley energetically. "Och, butdon't be long wid the mate, darlints, me stummik's shut up intirely."
"There won't be room for us all here, I'm afraid," remarked Bolton.
This was true. The hut was constructed to hold six, and it wasimpossible that ten could _sleep_ in it, although they managed tosqueeze in.
"Never mind that," cried the captain. "Here, take a drop of soup;gently, not too much at a time."
"Ah, then, it's cruel of ye, it is, to give me sich a small taste!"
It was necessary, however, to give men in their condition a "smalltaste" at first, so O'Riley had to rest content. Meanwhile the rescueparty supped heartily, and, after a little m
ore food had beenadministered to the half-starved men, preparations were made forspending the night. The tent was pitched, and the sleeping-bags spreadout on the snow, then Captain Guy offered up fervent thanks to God forhis protection thus far, and prayed shortly but earnestly fordeliverance from their dangerous situation, after which they all laydown and slept soundly till morning--or at least as soundly as could beexpected with a temperature at 55 degrees below zero.
Next morning they prepared to set out on their return to the ship. Butthis was no easy task. The exhausted men had to be wrapped up carefullyin their blankets, which were sewed closely round their limbs, thenpacked in their sleeping-bags and covered completely up, only a smallhole being left opposite their mouths to breathe through, and after thatthey were lashed side by side on the small sledge. The larger sledge,with the muskets, ammunition, and spare blankets, had to be abandoned.Then the rescue party put their shoulders to the tracking-belts, andaway they went briskly over the floes.
But the drag was a fearfully heavy one for men who, besides havingwalked so long and so far on the previous day, were, most of them, muchweakened by illness and very unfit for such laborious work. The floes,too, were so rugged that they had frequently to lift the heavy sledgeand its living load over deep rents and chasms which, in circumstancesless desperate, they would have scarcely ventured to do. Work as theywould, however, they could not make more than a mile an hour, and nightovertook them ere they reached the level floes. But it was of theutmost importance that they should continue to advance, so they pushedforward until a breeze sprang up that pierced them through and through.
Fortunately there was a bright moon in the sky, which enabled them topick their way among the hummocks. Suddenly, without warning, the wholeparty felt an alarming failure of their energies. Captain Guy, who wasaware of the imminent danger of giving way to this feeling, cheered themen to greater exertion by word and voice, but failed to rouse them.They seemed like men walking in their sleep.
"Come, Saunders, cheer up, man," cried the captain, shaking the mate bythe arm; but Saunders stood still, swaying to and fro like a drunkenman. Mizzle begged to be allowed to sleep, if it were only for twominutes, and poor Davie Summers deliberately threw himself down on thesnow, from which, had he been left, he would never more have risen.
The case was now desperate. In vain the captain shook and buffeted themen. They protested that they did not feel cold--"they were quite warm,and only wanted a little sleep." He saw that it was useless to contendwith them, so there was nothing left for it but to pitch the tent.
This was done as quickly as possible, though with much difficulty, andthe men were unlashed from the sledge and placed within it. The othersthen crowded in, and, falling down beside each other, were asleep in aninstant. The excessive crowding of the little tent was an advantage atthis time, as it tended to increase their animal heat. Captain Guyallowed them to sleep only two hours, and then roused them in order tocontinue the journey; but short though the period of rest was, it provedsufficient to enable the men to pursue their journey with some degree ofspirit. Still, it was evident that their energies had been overtaxed,for when they neared the ship next day, Tom Singleton, who had been onthe lookout, and advanced to meet them, found that they were almost in astate of stupor, and talked incoherently; sometimes giving utterance tosentiments of the most absurd nature, with expressions of the utmostgravity.
Meanwhile good news was brought them from the ship. Two bears and awalrus had been purchased from the Esquimaux, a party of whom--sleek,fat, oily, good-humoured, and hairy--were encamped on the lee side ofthe _Dolphin_, and busily engaged in their principal and favouriteoccupation--eating!