CHAPTER XVI
CARDYKE TO THE RESCUE
The collision with the iceberg had, as Fielding anticipated, completely unnerved the Dago crew. Even Juan Cervillo realised that there were great difficulties and perils in his path that were as formidable as the retributive warships he had hitherto escaped. As the Independencia steamed off on her aimless course the Spanish captain contrived to induce some of the engineers to go below and shut off steam, and, gradually losing way, the cruiser came to a standstill. Cervillo would wait till the fog lifted rather than risk another collision. It might be for days, but there were enough provisions and water to last for nearly a month.
As soon as the vessel had slowed down an examination of the damage caused by the collision was made. The principal injury was to the bows, where the massive steel plating had been fractured and buckled for a distance of twenty feet from the stem. The whole of the fore-peak was flooded; but the inrush of water was prevented from making its way aft by the water-tight bulkheads. Even the foremost of these was strained to such an extent that the doors let in a considerable quantity of water. As the cruiser slipped off the berg the torrent of ice-laden sea that broke over her decks literally swept everything removable as far as the base of the after tripod mast, while of the boats taken from the Steephill Castle only three remained. The aftermost funnel, struck by a huge fragment of ice, had been carried away, leaving a jagged ridge of steel projecting five or six feet above the casings. This accounted for the loss of ten of the crew; another thirty or forty had been swept away when the Independencia had dipped beneath the waves, while several more were severely injured by the first concussion and the subsequent violent motion of the stricken craft.
No wonder, then, that Juan Cervillo was almost at his wits' end. He realised that he had made a mistake in seeking refuge in northern waters. The irresistible craving to increase the amount of his booty, instead of retiring to a South American port with the proceeds of his successful captures, had caused his present plight. In a partially crippled ship, incapable of making more than ten knots, and separated from his ultimate port of refuge by thousands of miles of carefully patrolled ocean, his position was hazardous in the extreme. Further captures by the Independencia were almost impossible, since the usual speed of tramp steamers considerably exceeded that of the damaged cruiser.
In the midst of these calamities Cervillo's thoughts were not for the safety of his rascally crew, but how he could effect his own escape with the riches that the pirates had so unlawfully acquired. The question of fellow-feeling for his comrades in distress troubled him not one moment; they could shift for themselves as best they might, provided he was safely off the disabled ship with the booty. How could this be done? he asked himself. It was more than the task of a single man; but did the crew know of his plans his life would not be worth a moment's purchase. Plan after plan flashed across his mind, only to be condemned as impracticable, till his cunning brain evolved a scheme that seemed capable of being put into execution.
"Da Silva," he exclaimed, addressing one of his officers, a Spaniard like himself. "I want to speak to you in my cabin."
Side by side the two men walked aft till they reached the after hatchway. It was closed, the bo'sun, in anticipation of bad weather, having given orders for this to be done. In obedience to a hail a dozen seamen came running through the fog-laden atmosphere, and tackles were rove to the heavy steel plates covering the means of communicating with the half-deck and the officers' cabins.
Slowly the metal slab rose till there was a space of nearly three feet between the lid and the coaming. One of the seamen slipped through with the intention of clearing away a chain slung on the underside. As he did so a report rang out. The man clapped his hands to his head and toppled across the framework of the hatchway. Simultaneously the other seamen, alarmed at the noise, hurriedly let go the tackles, and the hatch-cover fell back with a resounding clang.
"Caramba! The prisoners are loose!" exclaimed Cervillo.
By a prematurely fired shot all chances of "rushing" the pirates were thrown away. One of the Frenchmen, with the mercurial excitability of his race, seeing the pirate enter the hatch, had foolishly discharged one chamber of his revolver. Before the men under Hiram B. Rutter's command could rush up the companion ladder the falling of the armoured slab had rendered their attempt absolutely impossible.
"Hang it, man!" exclaimed Fielding, who had hastened to the base of the after ladder on hearing the shot and the clang of the cover. "We've made a hopeless mess of things this time."
Recriminations would have been a mere waste of time. Fielding blamed no one. He knew, however, that an attempt to storm the quarter-deck when the hatch was again removed would be useless, as the pirates would by that time have taken elaborate precautions. As a matter of fact Cervillo had ordered twenty armed men to come aft, while a quick-firing gun was temporarily mounted so that its muzzle gaped menacingly over the aperture leading to the half-deck.
"Yes, Mr. Rutter," continued the sub. "We must sit tight. They can't very well turn us out, neither can we turn them out, so we must make ourselves comfortable as best we can. Luckily our quarters are not so cramped as hitherto, and our circle of acquaintances has widened considerably."
"That's about right, I guess," agreed the American. "We've only to keep our eyes skinned and allow no low-down pirate to get down here, and I reckon we'll come out on top."
Accordingly ten men were stationed at each ladder, ready to pour in a destructive fire should the crew of the cruiser attempt to descend from the quarter-deck. This done, the rest of the involuntary guests were sent to explore the steerage and orlop-decks.
In the captain's and officers' cabins the electric light was still in working order, although in the quarters previously occupied by the hostages lamps and candles were the only means of artificial illumination allowed. There was enough good fare to allow all the new masters of the after part of the ship to partake of a sumptuous meal, which, after the meagre fare they had been compelled to subsist upon, was appreciated with great gusto.
"I wonder how Cervillo will get on without the use of his cabin?" asked Cardyke.
"He can jolly well go on short commons, as we had to do," growled Fielding. "Finished, Cardyke? Good! Now cut below, take Hardy with you, and make an examination of the bread-room, and the compartments in the flats. Be sure to find out whether there is any fresh water. Either the wardroom pump is out of order or the supply is getting low."
Accompanied by the faithful coxswain the mid. descended the several flights of iron ladders till he reached the flats. An examination of the fresh-water tank showed that there was barely enough to last over another day. The bread and spirit rooms were comparatively well stocked.
"We'll do the rascals out of their grog, sir, if we don't do anything more," observed Hardy, pointing to the open spirit-room.
"They've plenty for'ard, I don't doubt," replied Cardyke. "Those fellows don't follow service routine. They've most likely a pannikin of rum at their fingers' ends or a few puncheons of wine ready broached. But what's in this place, I wonder?"
The mid. pointed to a store-room adjoining the after submerged torpedo compartment, which, unlike the spirit-room, was securely padlocked.
"Can't say, sir," replied Hardy. "Used to be the store for warheads of torpedoes; but they can't very well have got hold of any o' they."
"We'll jolly soon find out," asserted Cardyke. "It's something of importance, for there's been a sentry stationed here; look at the cigarette-ends. He must have bolted up on deck at the time of the collision."
"Then he won't return to his post just yet awhile," rejoined Hardy. "D'ye want me to prise the door open, sir? I suppose there ain't dynamite or stuff of that sort stowed away here?" And the coxswain drew his revolver.
"Better be careful," said the mid., warningly. "Don't blow the lock off. See if you can lay hold of a crowbar."
Hardy departed on his quest, and presently returned with a hack-saw.
"This'll do a mighty lot better'n a crowbar, sir," said he. "Would you mind steadying the padlock while I set to work?"
Five minutes sufficed to saw through the heavy brass framework, and Cardyke threw open the door. Within the room were piles of iron-clamped boxes, reaching almost to the ceiling. One or two had been wrenched open, but it took the united efforts of the midshipman and the burly coxswain to set one of the chests upon the floor. It was full of gold ingots.
"Lawks!" ejaculated Hardy, at a loss to say anything else, for the sight of untold wealth almost capsized his equilibrium.
"We've done the pirates very nicely," said Cardyke. "They'll be wild with fury to think that we've recaptured the booty."
"Strikes me this is mighty queer. We can't hand the stuff back to its rightful owners, sir; and the bloomin' pirates can't make use of it now they've got it on board."
"There's one consolation—it's one in the eye for the rascals," added the mid. "I'll go and report matters to Mr. Fielding."
"Yes, it's some satisfaction to know we've scored," observed the sub. when Cardyke made his report. "Sooner than let the rascals lay their hands on the stuff I'd have the whole lot pitched overboard. But that's a serious business, the shortage of water. I don't know what we can do."
"I have it," announced Cardyke. "There's plenty of ice floating about; we can get a lot of it on board, and melt it down."
"Don't quite see how," objected Fielding.
"The ship's not moving through the water. We can lower a bucket from one of the ports in the captain's cabin. I don't think it will attract attention."
"Much more good this," interrupted General Oki, who had overheard the conversation. "Let man down by rope; pick up ice, and put in sack. Sack full above top in no time."
"A man would stand a good chance of being frozen to death in five minutes," objected the sub. "Besides, it would mean a bullet through his head if the pirates discovered what he was up to."
"Me speak to Mr. Hokosuka," said the general; and turning to his compatriot he explained the state of affairs.
"Hokosuka he go to-night," announced Oki. "Heap plenty of fresh water tomorrow."
The rest of the day passed without interruption. The fog showed no signs of lifting, while at intervals came the thunderous crashes as the icebergs in the vicinity of the cruiser toppled over or split asunder. As Cardyke had said, there was plenty of fresh water in a solid form close at hand. Some of the fragments of ice were so large that the noise they made as they scraped the ship's sides could be distinctly heard.
Shortly after dark, for the sun did not set till half-past ten, Hokosuka was ready for his enterprise. The Jap had stripped off his clothing and had smeared himself from head to foot with a mixture of mineral oil and animal fat. This done, he reclothed himself in some old yet thick garments, so that he would be better able to withstand the numbing effects of the water. Three large canvas sacks were prepared ready to be lowered out of the port to the water's edge. These Hokosuka proposed to fill with lumps of ice before he was hauled back to his comrades.
Noiselessly the deadlight covering the port was unscrewed; Hokosuka fastened a rope round his waist, and was preparing to clamber through the port when he was struck in the face by a man's toes that mysteriously appeared from without. Before he could recover from his astonishment the owner of the toes slid feet foremost through the port, and to the surprise of all who recognised him, the wily Mukyima gravely saluted his compatriots and the two Englishmen.
The man had contrived to understand the position of affairs, and, taking advantage of his marvellous agility, dropped over the side, and crawling aft by means of the torpedo-net shelves, gained the open port. Luckily for him it was open, for all the other ports and scuttles were secured by deadlights. But what surprised Fielding and Cardyke more than the feat the Jap had successfully performed was the matter-of-fact way in which the Japanese took the reunion. Hokosuka was astonished—not at seeing his friend once more, but by the sudden blow in the face. Beyond that there were no visible expressions of welcome or delight upon the visages of the unfathomable Asiatics.
Without further delay Hokosuka departed on his perilous errand. In five minutes the first sack was hauled up. Another eight minutes passed before the second consignment arrived; then there was an ominous delay.
"The man is frozen to death," exclaimed Fielding. "Haul away as fast as you can."
The sub., Cardyke, Rutter, and four or five more tugged at the rope—it broke.
Thrusting his head out of the port Fielding tried to peer through the darkness. No call for aid came from the surface of the night-enshrouded sea. He placed his hand upon the rope holding the third. It was heavy—far too heavy for a bag filled with ice only.
"He's hanging on to this rope," announced the sub. in a low tone. "It's not stout enough to haul him up."
A hand touched his shoulder. He withdrew from the port-hole, and, turning, saw Cardyke, clad in a pilot-coat and with a rope made fast round his waist.
"I'll see what I can do," said the mid., quietly. "I'll take another length of rope with me. There's no time to waste."
The next instant he had vanished. Scraping down the rusty-streaked grey side of the ship, guiding his descent by means of the rope attached to the weighted sack, Cardyke proceeded on his errand of rescue. For full thirty feet he was lowered before he touched the mouth of the ice-filled bag. By giving two tugs upon the supplementary line the mid. signalled to his friends to stop lowering, and, fumbling with his hands, he strove to find the hapless Jap. But still success did not reward his efforts. He realised that the piercing cold was beginning to make itself known in a most unpleasant fashion. His hands were already numbed, the keenness of the air stung his face like repeated blows of a whip.
Three tugs—lower still. The mid.'s feet were in the water. Again he groped. His fingers touched Hokosuka's grease-covered face. The man gave no sign of life. Perhaps he was already dead with exposure. Labouringly Cardyke passed the end of the second rope under the Jap's shoulders, and with a painful effort succeeded in tying a running knot. This done he tugged frantically at the rope. It was a last effort—the cold had completely paralysed his muscles.
Limply Cardyke was hauled up, and as willing hands assisted him through the port, he had barely strength to utter "Haul away on the other line" ere he fainted.
Half a minute later Hokosuka, bound to the third sack with the severed portion of the rope by which he had been lowered, was dragged into the cabin. Mukyima bent over him, and placed his hand on the unconscious man's heart. It still beat feebly.
While the Japanese were attending to their courageous comrade Rutter approached.
"Can you come this way?" he asked, addressing Fielding. "I guess they're trying to break in. The hatch-cover is all a-shake."