My Danish Sweetheart Volume II Part 14

'Was she insured, madam?' he asked.

She answered briefly 'Yes,' not choosing to enter into explanations.

He surveyed her thoughtfully, with his head on one side; then, addressing me, he said:

'The man Abraham, now. I take it he was skipper of the lugger?'

'Yes, he was so,' said I.

'Is it possible that he knows anything of navigation?'

'I fear his acquaintance with that art is small. He can blunder upon the lat.i.tude with the aid of an old quadrant, but he leaves his longitude to dead reckoning.'

'And yet he was going to Australia!' cried the Captain, tossing his pale, fleshly hands and upturning his eyes. 'Still, he is a respectable man?'

'A large-hearted, good man,' cried Helga warmly.

He surveyed her again thoughtfully with his head on one side, slowly combing down one whisker, then addressing me:

'I am rather awkwardly situated,' said he. 'Mr. Ephraim Jones and myself are the only two white men aboard this vessel. Jones is an only mate.

You know what that means?'

I shook my head in my ignorance, with a glance at Helga.

'Captain Bunting means,' she answered, smiling, 'that only mate is literally the only mate that is carried in a s.h.i.+p.'

He stared at her with lifted eyebrows, and then gave her a bow.

'Right, madam,' said he. 'And when you are married, dear lady, you will take all care, I trust, that your husband shall be _your_ only mate.'

She slightly coloured, and as she swayed to the rolling deck I caught sight of her little foot petulantly beating the plank for a moment. It was clear that Captain Bunting was not going to commend himself to her admiration by his wit.

'You were talking about Abraham,' said I.

'No, I was talking about Jones,' he answered, 'and attempting to explain the somewhat unpleasant fix I am in. The man who acted as second mate was the carpenter of the barque, a fellow named Winstanley. I fear he went mad, after we were a day out. Whether he jumped overboard or fell overboard, I cannot say.' He made a wild grimace, as though the recollection shocked him. 'There was nothing for it but to pursue the voyage with my only mate; and I, of course, have to keep watch-and-watch with him--a very great inconvenience to me. I believe Abraham Wise--or Vise, as he calls himself--would excellently fill Winstanley's place.'

'He wants to get home,' said I.

'Yet I might tempt him to remain with me,' said he, smiling. 'There's no melody so alluring to a Deal boatman's ears as the jingling of silver dollars.'

'You will find him thoroughly trustworthy,' said Helga.

'We will wait a little--we will wait a little!' he exclaimed blandly.

'Of course, Captain Bunting,' said I, 'your views in the direction of Abraham will not, I am sure, hinder you from sending Miss Nielsen and myself to England at the very earliest opportunity.' And I found my eye going seawards over the barque's bow as I spoke.

'The very first vessel that comes along you shall be sent aboard of, providing, to be sure, she will receive you.'

I thanked him heartily, and also added, in the most delicate manner I could contrive on the instant, that all expense incurred by his keeping us should be defrayed. He flourished his fat hand.

'That is language to address to the Pharisee, sir--not to the Samaritan.'

All this was exceedingly gratifying. My spirits rose, and I felt in a very good humour with him. He looked at his watch.

'Five o'clock,' said he. 'Mr. Jones,' he called to the mate, who was standing forward at the head of the little p.o.o.p ladder, 'you can go below and get your supper, then relieve me. Tell Punmeamootty to put some cold beef and pickles on the table. Better let him set the ham on too, and tell the fool that it won't bite him. Punmeamootty can make some coffee, Mr. Jones; or perhaps you drink tea?' said he, turning to Helga. 'Well, _both_, Mr. Jones, _both_,' he shouted: 'tea _and_ coffee.

Make a good meal, sir, and then come and relieve me.'

The mate vanished. Captain Bunting drew back by a step or two to cast a look aloft. He then, and with a sailorly eye methought, despite his whiskers and dingy fleshy face and fixed smile, sent a searching glance to windward, following it on with a cautious survey of the horizon. He next took a peep at the compa.s.s, and said something to a mahogany-coloured man who had replaced the fierce-looking fellow at the wheel. I observed that when the Captain approached the man stirred uneasily in his shoes, 'twixt which and the foot of his blue dungaree breeches there lay visible the bare, yellow flesh of his ankles.

I said softly and quickly to Helga, 'This is a very extraordinary s.h.i.+pmaster.'

'Something in him repels me,' she answered.

'He is behaving kindly and hospitably, though.'

'Yes, Hugh; still, I shall be glad to leave the barque. What a very strange crew the s.h.i.+p carries! What are they?'

'I will ask him,' said I, and at that moment he rejoined us.

'Captain,' I exclaimed, 'what countrymen are your sailors, pray?'

'Mostly Malays, with a few Cingalese among them,' he answered. 'I got them on a sudden, and was glad of them, I can tell you. I had s.h.i.+pped an ordinary European crew in the Thames; and in the Downs, where we lay wind-bound for three days, every man-jack of them, saving Mr. Jones and Winstanley, lowered that quarter-boat,' said he, nodding to it, 'one dark night, chucked their traps in and went away for Dover round the South Foreland. I recovered the boat, and was told that there was a crew of Malays lodged at the Sailors' Home at Dover. A vessel from Ceylon that had touched at the Cape and taken in some coloured seamen there had stranded, a night or two before my men ran, somewhere off the South Sand Head. She was completely wrecked, and her crew were brought to Dover. There were eleven of them in all, with a boss or bo's'n or serang, call him what you will--there he is!' He pointed to a dark-skinned fellow on the forecastle. 'Well, to cut the story short, when these fellows heard I was bound to the Cape they were all eager to s.h.i.+p. They offered their services for very little money--very little money indeed,' he added, smiling, 'their object being to get home. I had no idea of being detained in the Downs for a crew, and I had no heart, believe me, to swallow another dose of the British merchant sailor, so I had them brought aboard--and there they are!' he exclaimed, gazing complacently forward and aft, 'but they are black inside and out.

They're Mahometans, to a man, and now I'm sorry I s.h.i.+pped them, though I hope to do good--yes,' said he, nodding at me, 'I hope to do good.'

He communicated to this final sentence all the significance that it was in the power of his countenance and manner to bestow; but what he meant I did not trouble myself to inquire. Mr. Jones remained below about ten minutes: he then arrived, and the Captain, who was asking Helga questions about her father's s.h.i.+p, the cause of her loss, and the like, instantly broke off on seeing the mate, and asked us to follow him to the cabin.

The homely interior looked very hospitable, with its table cleanly draped and pleasantly equipped with provisions. The coloured man who apparently acted as steward, and who bore the singular name of Punmeamootty, stood, a dusky shadow, near the cabin-door. In spite of a smoky sunset in the western windy haze, the gloom of the evening in the east was already upon the ocean, and the cabin, as we entered it, showed somewhat darksome to the sight; yet though the figure of the Malay, as I have already said, was no more than a shadow, I could distinctly see his gleaming eyes even from the distance of the companion steps; and I believe had it been much darker still I should have beheld his eyes looking at us from the other end of the cabin.

'Light the lamp, Punmeamootty!' said the Captain. 'Now, let me see,'

said he, throwing his wideawake on to a locker; 'at sea we call the last meal supper, Miss Nielsen.'

'Yes, I know that,' she answered.

'Before we go to supper,' he continued, 'you would like to refresh yourself in a cabin. How about accommodating you, Mr. Tregarthen? That cabin is mine,' said he, pointing, 'and the one facing it is Mr.

Jones's. There are four gloomy little holes below, one of which was occupied by poor Winstanley, and the others, I fear, are choke full of stores and odds and ends.' He eyed her for a moment meditatively.

'Come,' said he: 'you are a lady, and must be made comfortable, however short your stay with me may be. Mr. Jones will give up his cabin, and go into the steerage!'

'And Mr. Tregarthen?' said Helga.

'Oh, I'll set some of our darkeys after supper to make ready one of the berths below for him.'

'I do not wish to be separated from Mr. Tregarthen,' said Helga.

Captain Bunting looked at her, then at me, then at her left hand, for the coloured steward had now lighted the lamp and we were conversing close to it.

'You are Miss Nielsen?' said the Captain. 'Have I mistaken?'

The blood rose to the girl's cheek.