Foxholme Hall, and Other Tales

by William Henry Giles Kingston

“An event, however, soon occurred, to make us think differently. We were within sight of land, with the sky overhead bright and blue, and the sea calm as a millpond, when on a sudden a tremendous squall struck the ship, carrying away our topgallant masts, sails, and yards, and throwing her on her beam ends. The topsails were clewed up, and the men were sent on the yards to furl them. I was at the weather earing, on the main-topsail-yard, when just as she was righting, a second squall struck and hove her down again so suddenly that three of our best hands were shaken from their hold and hurled into the hissing waters under our lee. Their loud shrieks reached our ears, but when we looked for them they were nowhere to be seen. At that moment, I, as well as every man on board, beheld as clearly as I do you, right to windward of us, the old witch, in her skiff, skimming over the frothy waters, and pointing jeeringly at us with her bony hand.

“There was not much sea on, and as soon as we could we hove the ship to, and Captain Derick ordered a boat to be lowered to look for the men. Now I believe our crew were as brave men as any fellows of their class, but when they prepared to lower the boat, instead of flying as usual on such occasions, to try and be the first in her, they all hung back, and not one of them would go. They did not like the look of the old woman, even when they were comparatively safe on the deck of the vessel, but the idea of finding her close to them in the boat, perhaps of feeling the touch of her staff or the gripe of her bony fingers, was too dreadful to be thought of.

”‘What, you cowards, are you afraid of?’ shouted the captain, in a furious rage. ‘Your shipmates will be drowned while you’re skulking there—lower away the boat, or I’ll shoot some of you.’

“These words had the desired effect. Three hands sprang into the boat to be lowered in her, the third mate and another were following, when through the fright and carelessness of some of the people, one of the falls was let run too soon, the boat was swamped alongside, and the three hands were washed out of her before they could get hold of anything to save themselves. A loud cackling peal of laughter was heard as this second catastrophe occurred, and the witch was seen whirling her staff round on the other side of the ship.

“I thought most of the crew would have jumped overboard in their fright as they saw what she was about. The captain all the time was as cool as if nothing out of the way had happened, though his wife, who was unfortunately on deck at the time, and saw it all, had fallen down again in a swoon from terror. He scarcely heeded her; he was intent on something else.

”‘Lower the starboard quarter-boat,’ he sang out. ‘I shall go in her; who’ll follow me?’

“I and three hands declared our readiness, and this time more caution being used, the boat was got safely into the water with us in her.

”‘Take care of my wife, Mr Tanner,’ cried the captain to the first mate, as he sprang over the side; ‘see if you can bring her to.’

“We got clear of the ship, and with very misdoubting hearts pulled away in the direction where we hoped to find any of our shipmates who might still have kept themselves afloat. By this time there was a good deal of sea running, stirred up by the violence of the squall, though not so much as there would have been had we not been under the lee of the land. As the boat rose to the top of a wave we fancied that we could see one of the poor fellows who had been cast off the yard struggling in the distance, but when we got up to the spot he had disappeared. A cry from a drowning man was heard in another direction, and away we pulled towards it, but before we could clutch the poor fellow he had sunk beneath the waves.

“A third man was seen at a distance still striking out boldly—now he rose to the top of a wave, now he sank into the trough of the sea. We made sure that we at least should save him. Every nerve was strained as we bent to our oars to reach the swimmer. He saw us coming—he felt certain of being saved; but a power greater than his or ours was his enemy, and when we were within twenty yards of him we saw him throw up his arms in despair, his eyeballs started from his head, and with a shriek of agony he sank beneath the foaming waves. He was the last—the others had disappeared, and no trace of them was to be seen.