The Prince Gregory settled slowly by the stern, and raised her bows high in the air. There she stopped, and, for a wonder, did not fall from under us.
"Get into the boat, quick!" I said to the countess, and she sprang with amazing ease into the stern, followed by her husband and the maid.
"Nix on the men!" I yelled, and grabbed the count. "Come out—women first," and I dragged him from the boat with no show of deference. He struck me savagely in the face, and I stretched him out with the boat's tiller. Seamen tossed him aside, and the swarm of women crowded up and into the craft while I held the men back as best I could.
I knew it was to be a close haul. Seven hundred men and women, and only twenty boats! The life rafts would be doing duty pretty soon, and no mistake.
I saw very little of the fracas around me, as one never does see much if he is tending to his own business, and mine at that time was getting forty-five women into a small boat, many of them in before she was lowered away.
Luckily there was no sea running at all. It was calm and foggy, the water like black oil.
I slid down the falls, and when we loaded up I took command at the tiller, and went out a little distance to clear the wreck in case of trouble. We lay at rest a hundred fathoms distant, and watched the scuffle aboard. Men yelled like mad, screamed, and fought. I caught the flash of a gun, and heard the report. I knew Hall would not stand for lawless rushing the boats, and was doing some fierce work. Pretty soon the outcry died away more and more, and still the black hull showed plainly, her bow still pointing skyward, and her stern submerged.
"God's blessing, there's no wind or sea!" I said to Driscoll, my stroke oarsman.
"You're right there, cap," said he. "What wus ut anyway?"
"Blessed if I knew—she's just blowed up, whole stern gone out of her. She can't float two hours, and there'll be no one out here before daybreak if they do get the signal."