Ella, poor child! looked terribly pale and careworn, as well she might, for I afterwards learned that during the whole of that fearful time she had never once lain down to rest; such sleep as she had been able to obtain being snatched at uncertain intervals in a chair by the side of my cot. Bob had, of course, insisted sturdily and stubbornly on performing his full share of the watching but my poor little darling could not even then tear herself away, though she was able to do but little beyond supplying my incessant demands for water, it being utterly impossible during the whole time to renew any of the bandages.
And now ensued the terrible state of exhaustion and utter prostration consequent on my great loss of blood and the fever which had so long been devouring me. I had not strength even to raise my hand without assistance, and as to turning myself, I might as well have attempted to fly.
For nine days did I thus lie hovering between life and death, my weakness being such that my wounds had to be dressed one at a time and at intervals; and the very pressure of the sheet—the only cover it had been possible to throw over me from the time that I was first brought on board—seemed almost more than I could endure.
At length, however, the assiduous care and ceaseless attention which were bestowed upon me had their effect, and I began to rally and, the turning-point once passed, soon mended rapidly.
The moment that my recovery seemed at all probable Bob got the tents rigged up ashore again; and, one fine morning when I appeared a little stronger than usual, and seemed able to bear the removal, I was transferred to the boat and thence to the shore where my own hammock, carefully slung and provided with clean linen, awaited me. The change from the confinement of the small cabin to the tent, the fresh and balmy air, scent-laden from the adjacent groves, and, above all, the view from the open end of the tent of the clear sparkling water gently ruffled by the passing breeze, with the tree-crowned, sunlighted cliffs on either side, did more for me than the most skilful doctor or the most potent drugs could have effected, and I felt that I was drawing in new life with every inhalation.
I now slept much and soundly, the effect, no doubt, of the fresh, cool air which was freely admitted to the interior of the tent; and when I was not sleeping I was generally eating, Ella exerting all her ingenuity, which was great, in the concoction of light, tempting dishes, to provoke my languid appetite.
Bob, too, was indefatigable in his exertions in my behalf; now ranging the woods with his air-gun, in search of a species of pigeon which he had discovered; anon going away in the canoe (in which Ella had escaped, and which he had contrived to retain) to the rocks, and bringing in sundry delicately-flavoured fish; and then off to the woods again for fruit, of which the island afforded any quantity of various kinds.
As I progressed toward recovery, so did Ella regain in a measure her former cheerfulness of manner, which intense anxiety had greatly subdued; and now that she was once more able to take her natural rest, the roses speedily returned to her cheeks, and her eyes began to resume their former brightness.
At length the day arrived when I was considered strong enough to listen to Bob’s story, and be made acquainted with all that had occurred since the disastrous afternoon of our walk on the south side of the island.
You must know, he began, “that as soon as I left you and your precious little dearie here ashore, I went straight away back to the channel, and anchored the craft in a bit of a nook in the first reach, where I thought as I should find some sport. Well, I didn’t get so much as a nibble, and, at last—whether ’twas the heat of the sun, or what ’twas, I can’t tell ye—I dropped clean off to sleep. How long I slept I can’t say, but I was woke up by the tug-tugging of the line, which I’d made fast with two or three turns round my finger. I started to haul in, and had got my fish very nigh out of water, when he broke away, and I lost him. I was just baiting my hook afresh, when I thought I heard your rifle; and I fancied I’d overstayed my time, and that you was firing a signal to jine company. So I rouses up my killick, and makes sail; and whilst I was doing it, I hears two reports, one close upon t’other. I guessed at once’t that something was amiss; so I crowds all sail upon the craft, and steers as straight as she would go for the p’int. Whilst I was running down towards it I fancied I heard a shout, though I couldn’t be sure, but you may depend upon it I was now pretty anxious to get round the pint, and see where you was and what was going on. As soon as I cleared it, I sees you and dearie hurryin’ towards the beach, as though somethin’ was amiss, but what it was I couldn’t at first make out, until I see’d the blackies jump out of the bushes, and then I knowed at once what a reg’lar fix you was in. I see’d ye fire at ’em, lad, and bring ’em up with a round turn, and my fingers was just all of a itch to be alongside of ye with one of them same revolvin’ rifles in my fist, though I’m, a’ter all, no great matter of a shot. Well, I see’d ye run, and I see’d the little lady here step into the canoe and lie down and then in course I knowed what you was after, so I shapes a course accordin’. You knows what foller’d, lad, but you don’t know, and I can’t tell ye, what I felt when I saw ye struck down almost within reach of my arm, and dragged away by them incarnate devils. It seemed to me as though every mother’s son of ’em was fighting for the first blow at ye, and I give ye fairly up for lost, sartain. But there warn’t much time for thinkin’, for some of ’em started to launch their canoes at once’t in chase of dearie here, and I only had jist time to sheer alongside and take the craft in tow, when they was afloat and a’ter us. I stood away to the south’ard, hardly knowing what I was doin’, and soon ran away from ’em hand over hand. I was getting little miss here out of the canoe into the boat the best way I could, for she’d fainted, when the idee comes into my old head that if I could but entice the whole lot of ’em to chase me, I might lead ’em far enough away to give ’em the slip and run back and get your body—for I never doubted but what you was dead. So I goes for’ard and lets run the main-halliards, and down comes the sail, accidental like. The niggers gives a shout as soon as they sees this, and I hauls my wind as though I couldn’t go no further to leeward without my mainsail; and, sure enough, the trick answered to perfection, for the whole posse of ’em comes scurryin’ down to the beach, launches their canoes, and shoves off, paddling like mad to the south’ard, to cut me off. ‘All right, my hearties, go it,’ says I, ‘but,’ says I, ‘you haven’t the pleasure of knowin’ a sartain Robert Trunnion,’ says I, ‘if you supposes as you’re going to circumvent him that a’way.’ So I lets ’em come well up with me, and the nearer they got, the louder they yells, and the harder they paddles; and you might ha’ thought by the row that all hell had broke loose, as perhaps it had, or them devils wouldn’t ha’ been there. Well, I’d got the main-halliards led aft to where I was sittin’, and as they closed, I gently sways the sail up, a few inches at a time, and keeps grad’lly away, until we was all spinnin’ away dead to the south’ard, they paddlin’ like fury, and I just keepin’ far enough ahead to be out of range of their harrers. We’d run, I s’pose, a matter of four knots, when I sees that the reef sinks lower and lower below the water and by the time that we had gone another couple of miles, there was unbroken water all over it. So I edges easily away to the west’ard, they following, till we’d got an offing of about four miles from the shore, and there was a tidyish jump of a sea for ’em to paddle ag’in, though I know’d ’twould make no matter of difference to the boat; and then I gives the tiller to the little lady, who’d come round ag’in, goes for’ard and h’ists the sail full up, and then hauls sharp up and goes about, keeping as straight away for the bay ag’in as I dared for the reef. The devils set up another yell at this, and round they goes like tops, heading about east, to cut me off; but I soon seed as they was pretty well done up—for I’d kept ’em paddlin’ all they knowed, in the hopes of coming up with me—and I felt satisfied as I’d be able to get back in time to get your body and be off ag’in afore they could overhaul me. Well, you knows that part of the story too; so it needs no telling. Directly you was in your cot, I rouses the gun out of the cutter into the boat, takes a goodish lot of cartridges, shot and shell with me, and out I goes agin, fallin’ in with the rascals just off the nor’-western end of the cliffs. They was hugging the shore pretty close, and I was dreadful afraid as they knowed the cove, and was bound in there. So as I’d loaded the gun afore starting, I just gives ’em a shell, right into the thick of ’em, and that seemed to sicken ’em all at once; for they ups helm, and away they goes faster even than they’d come, and I a’ter ’em. The first thing I did was to get between them and the land and as soon as they see’d that there warn’t no chance of gettin’ ashore and takin’ to their cursed woods ag’in, away they all goes helter-skelter for our passage, and directly they was fairly in it, I heaves the boat to, loads the gun ag’in, and a’ter ’em once more, for I was determined that I’d drive ’em fairly out to sea, and then blow ’em all to hell, where they come from and—to make a long story short—that’s just what I did, lad, bearing down upon a canoe until I couldn’t miss her, and then plumping a shell into her at one eend and out at t’other. I tarred the whole lot with the same brush, except one little craft with only four hands in her, and she I chased clean out to sea altogether, givin’ ’em a shot close past ’em, as a freshener of their energies, just as I hauled my wind; and if ever they gets back to their own country—wherever ’tis—I’ll bet my life they’ll never be for coming to this here island ag’in.”