IN THE DOMINIONS OF THE FRENCH
It was not a long voyage from Bangkok to the mouth of the Mekhong River; and the sight of land was not as thrilling an incident as it had often been in the experience of the voyagers, and they were not in condition to appreciate the feelings of Captain Columbus when Watling"s Island broke on his vision four hundred years before. It had been smooth sailing all the way; the Gulf of Siam had been as gentle and affectionate as a maiden among the flowers, and the China Sea was scarcely more ruffled.
Mr. Gaskette had finished up his new map of Cochin China, so that it was as creditable to his skill and taste as his former efforts had been; and it was displayed on the frame in Conference Hall, which was the usual sitting apartment of the company, though some of them did a great deal of walking on the promenade deck. The water was deeper insh.o.r.e than farther out at sea, where several spots were marked at eight fathoms; and the pa.s.sengers had a view of the land before they were within a hundred miles of the entrance of Saigon River.
"There is a broad opening in the coast, which must be the Cambodia, or Mekhong River," said Morris.
"That is Batac Bay, with a large island in the middle of it," replied Captain Ringgold. "It is one of the mouths of the Mekhong; for there is a Delta here extending about a hundred miles, the Saigon River being the most easterly."
"Mekhong seems to me a new word, though doubtless it was the native name of the great river; but when I went to school we never called it anything but the Cambodia," added Uncle Moses.
"It is now called by both names, and both are usually found on the maps and charts," said the commander.
A couple of hours later he pointed out the mouth of the great river. All the land was very low, and much of it was sometimes under water. Felix had become the owner of an excellent spy-gla.s.s, which he had purchased at second-hand at Aden; and he made abundant use of it. It was too large to be worn in a sling at his side, and he always carried it in his hand when the ship was in sight of land. After lunch, in the middle of the afternoon, he stationed himself in front of the pilot-house, and kept a sharp lookout ahead.
"Saigon light!" he shouted, some time before it could be made out without a gla.s.s.
The steamer was headed for Cape St. Jacques, near the entrance to the river by which she was to reach the city. The light soon came into view, and a boat was seen pulling out of the mouth. The signal for a pilot had been displayed on the ship, and one of the men in it was believed to be the person desired. The screw was stopped as he approached her, and the ladder lowered for his ascent to the deck. As usual, all the pa.s.sengers wanted to see him. He was an old man, or at least well along in years.
"Good-day, sir," said Louis, who had gone to the main deck with the third officer to receive him; and he spoke to him in French.
He was conducted to the promenade deck, and presented to the captain. He said that he was born in France, but had been in Cochin China nearly thirty years. He was first sent down to Monsieur Odervie for a lunch after he had given the course, and the ship continued on her way. The cook was very glad to meet a compatriot; and, as he was getting dinner, he had several nice dishes, from which he treated his new friend. But the pilot"s services were soon needed in the pilot-house. He spoke a little English, consisting mainly of nautical terms.
He took his place on the starboard side of the wheel, with Quartermaster Bangs on the other side, steering himself; perhaps because he was not willing to trust his English in giving orders. But the quartermaster seconded all his movements, and they steered together in silence. The ship was soon well in the river, and the pa.s.sengers had enough to do in observing the sh.o.r.es on both sides.
There were many openings in the banks of bayous and cut-offs, and the land was as flat as it had been during the last hundred miles of the voyage. The soil was very rich, and produced abundant crops where it was cultivated. A very few villages were to be seen; but each of them had its temple or paG.o.da, and the houses hardly differed from those they had seen in Siam.
"I suppose this is all an alluvial soil, Brother Avoirdupois," said Dr.
Hawkes, as the ship was pa.s.sing a rice-field.
"So say the books I have consulted, Brother Adipose Tissue. It is just the right land for rice, and that is the staple product of all this region," replied Uncle Moses.
Both of these gentlemen weighed about two hundred and twenty-six pounds apiece, and they continued to call each other by the appropriate names they had given each other even before the ship left New York on her voyage all over the world.
"What is alluvial soil, Doctor?" asked Mrs. Blossom, who had read very little besides her Bible and denominational newspaper.
"It is the soil or mud which is brought to its location by the action of water; and here it is brought down by the mighty river which spreads itself out into a delta where we are," replied the doctor good-naturedly, and without a smile at the ignorance of the worthy lady; for though her education had been greatly neglected, she was esteemed and respected by all on board, for in sickness she had been the nurse of the patients. "It is just the right soil for rice," he added.
"I have seen so many rice-fields out here, that I should like to know something more about them," suggested the good lady.
"Naturalists cla.s.s it as a kind of gra.s.s; but I will not vex you with any hard words. Rice is the food of about one-third of all the people on the globe. It requires heat and moisture for its growth, and it is raised in considerable quant.i.ties on the low lands of Georgia and South Carolina and elsewhere in our country. The plant grows from one to six feet high. I don"t know much about the culture of this grain in the East; but in South Carolina they first dig trenches, in the bottom of which the rice is sown in rows eighteen inches apart. The plantation is prepared so that water can be let in and drawn off as desired. As soon as the seed is sown, the water is let in till the ground is covered to the depth of several inches. As soon as the rice comes up, the water is drawn off, and the plant grows in the open air rapidly under the hot sun. The field is again flooded for a couple of weeks, to kill the weeds, and again when the grain is ripening. The rice is in a hull, like wheat and other grains; and you have found parts of this covering in the rice when you were cooking it. It is threshed out by hand or machinery after it is dried, and then it is ready for market. There is a rice-field on your right; and you can see the channels which have been dug to convey the water to the plants, or to draw it off," said the surgeon in conclusion.
"I see them, Dr. Hawkes; and I am very much obliged to you for taking so much pains to instruct an ignorant body like me," replied Mrs. Blossom.
"It is quite impossible for any of us to know everything, and I often find myself entirely ignorant in regard to some things; and I have lived long enough to forget many things that I learned when I was younger,"
added the doctor with a softening smile.
The villages increased in number and in size as the ship approached the city; though they were about the same thing, except that in the larger ones the temple was a handsomer structure.
"How far is it from the sea to Saigon?" asked Bangs, speaking to the pilot for the first time; but the Frenchman could not understand him, and the quartermaster called Louis in, who repeated the question in French.
"Sixty miles if you go one way; thirty-five by another," Louis translated the reply.
"That may account for the difference in the distance given in the books," said the captain, who was in the pilot-house. "But the information we obtain from what are considered the authorities is so various on the same subject that I don"t know where the fault is."
"This is the largest village we have seen," said Louis to the pilot in French.
"Yes, sir; and the next place is Saigon," replied the Frenchman; but he was so much occupied with his duty that he would not talk much, even in his own language.
The city was soon in sight, and the pilot began to feel about for the bell-pull. He spoke to Louis, and the quartermaster was told to ring the speed-bell. A little later, off the town, the gong sounded for the screw to stop. The anchor was all ready, was let go, and the steamer swung round to her cable. The Blanche had not so readily obtained a pilot as her consort, and she was an hour behind her in arriving.
The Guardian-Mother was surrounded by boats as soon as she was at rest, but the boatmen kept their distance till the port physician and the custom-house officials came on board. Both ships pa.s.sed the ordeal of the examination, and the boats closed up. They were manned by all sorts of people, and they were in all sorts of craft. The captain said that most of them were Chinese sampans, and the boatmen were of the same nation.
"There comes the Blanchita!" exclaimed Felix, who was walking about the deck with his spy-gla.s.s under his arm.
"They got her overboard in a very short time," said the captain, who had joined the company on the promenade. "I am glad she is coming, for I desire to see the general."
The gangway had already been rigged out; and the launch came alongside the platform, containing General Noury, his wife, the rajah, Captain and Mrs. Sharp, Dr. Henderson, the surgeon of the Blanche, and the French maid of the princess. They were warmly greeted on the platform by the commander and Louis, and the ladies were a.s.sisted from the boat. They mounted to the deck; and the usual hugging, kissing, and handshaking followed in the boudoir.
"I am glad you have come, General Noury," said Captain Ringgold, after he had shaken hands with everybody. "We have been shut up on shipboard for some time now; and as we have come to a French city, I propose to take my party to a hotel for a day or two. Of course you can do as you please, General."
"I like the idea, Captain, if there is a decent hotel here," replied the pacha. "What do you think, Zuleima?" he asked, turning to his wife.
"I like it very much; and the hotel cannot be any worse than some we have lived in on our yacht voyages," replied the princess.
"Here is the medical officer, and he can tell us something about the hotels," suggested the commander.
The doctor was consulted by the general in French, and he said the Hotel de l"Europe was very good. The entire party of both ships were invited to go on sh.o.r.e, and remain at the hotel. All of them accepted, including Captain Sharp and his wife. Those on board the Guardian-Mother went below to prepare for the sh.o.r.e, and the Blanchita returned to the Blanche for the same purpose. The gentlemen were on deck again in a few minutes.
"A visitor to see you, Mr. Scott," said a seaman, approaching the third officer as he came from the cabin.
"Captain Rayburn!" exclaimed Scott as soon as he caught sight of the visitor. "I am very glad to see you, Captain;" and the young officer grasped his hand.
"I am quite as pleased to see you, Captain Scott, though I hardly knew you," replied the English captain.
"I am no longer captain, though I am the third officer of this ship; and I did not wear my uniform when I met you at Kuching."
"How are the rest of your party?" inquired the captain of the Delhi.
"Very well, and here they are."
"I am delighted to see you on board of your own ship, Mr. Belgrave,"
said Captain Rayburn, rushing to the young millionaire as he came on deck with his bag in his hand.
Felix and Morris soon appeared, and gave the captain a hearty greeting.
The commander happened to pa.s.s near them, and he was approached by Scott.