It was a rather gloomy prospect. The sky was thickening, and darkening rapidly. The mist kept streaming up from the water. What wind there was continued fitfully. We kept the foresail and the jib set, and jogged on, doubling amid the ice. Meanwhile the fog grew so dense, that every thing was very dim at fifty yards. But for the mist, and the danger of striking against large fragments of ice, we should have set the mainsail and the topsail to make the most of our wind ere it blew too hard; for it was plainly rising. Now and then a gust would sigh past the sheets. Supper was eaten in squads of two and three. The thermometer fell constantly. It grew so chilly, that we were glad to slip down into the galley occasionally to warm our fingers at Palmleaf"s stove. Guard had already taken up his quarters there.
"Dis am berry suddin change," the darky would remark gravely to each of us as we successively made our appearance. "Berry suddin. The gerometum fallin" fast. Srink "im all up, ser cold. Now, dis forenoon it am quite comf"ble; warm "nuf ter take a nap in the sun: but now--oo-oo-ooo! awful cold!" And Palmleaf would move his sable cheek up close to the hot stove-pipe, Guard all the time regarding him soberly from the other side.
Bidding the negro keep coffee hot and ready for us, we would hurry on deck again, and resume our places in the bow; for it required vigilant eyes to look out for all the ugly ice-cakes among which the schooner was driving. The weather grew thicker, and the sky darker. By half-past ten, P.M., although the sun must have been still high above the horizon, it was dark as one often sees it on a stormy night when there is a moon in the heavens. In fact, it grew too dark to make out the ice-patches; for, despite our watchfulness, at about five minutes to eleven we struck against a large ma.s.s with a shock which made things rattle down stairs. Guard barked, and Palmleaf showed a very scared face in the companion-way.
"Where are your eyes there, forward?" shouted the captain. "Couldn"t you see that?"
Just then we grazed pretty heavily against another cake.
"It is really getting too dark for us, captain," said Raed.
"Take in the foresail, then."
The sail was at once furled. The jib was kept on, however, to hold us steady. We were now merely breasting the current, and driving on a little with the gusts. Soon it began to rain,--rain and snow together.
The dreariness and uncertainty of our situation can hardly be imagined. We did not even know how near we were to the foot of the cliffs, and could merely keep the schooner headed as she had been during the afternoon.
"The main thing for us now is to keep her as nearly stationary as we can," said the captain. "Between wind and water, I hope not to move half a knot all night."
It was now nearly twelve.
"We may as well go below," said Kit. "No use standing here in the rain when we can do no good."
We had been up nearly twenty-one hours since our last nap. Sleep will have its tribute, even in the face of danger. Hastily flinging off our wet coats, we lay down. The wind and rain wailed among the rigging above. _Chuck-chock, chock-chuck_, went the waves under the stern; while every few minutes a heavy jarring _b.u.mp_, followed by a long raspy _grind_ along the side, told of the icy processions floating past. Those were our lullabies that night. Truly it required a sharp summoning of our fort.i.tude not to feel a little home-sick. But we went to sleep; at least I did, and slept a number of hours.
Voices roused me. The captain was standing beside our mattresses.
"Wake up!" he was saying. "Get up, and come on deck!"
At the same moment I heard, indistinctly, a strange, rumbling sound.
"What is it? what"s the matter?" cried Kit, starting up.
"Oh! don"t be scared; we"ve been hearing it for some time," replied the captain. "Put on your rubber coats."
We did so, and followed him up the stairway. The rain and snow still came fast and thick. The deck was soppy. Hobbs was at the wheel.
Donovan and Weymouth were forward. I could just make them out, standing wrapped up against the bulwarks.
"Now hark!" said the captain.
We all listened. A heavy noise, like that of some huge flouring-mill in full operation, could be plainly heard above the swash of the waves and the drive and patter of the storm.
"Thunder?--no, it isn"t thunder," muttered Raed.
"Breakers!" exclaimed Kit. "It"s the sea on the rocks,--those cliffs,--isn"t it?"
"Trull," said the captain to that old worthy, who was just poking his head up out of the forecastle,--"Trull, is that noise the surf?"
The veteran turned an experienced ear aport, listened a moment, and then replied,--
"No, sir," promptly.
"Well, what in the world is it, then?"
The old salt listened again attentively. The steady rumble continued without intermission.
"Don"t know, sir," replied Trull, shaking his head. "Never heard any thing like it."
"Are you sure it"s not breakers?" demanded Kit. "I"m afraid we"re drifting on the rocks. It"s dead ahead too!"
But neither the captain nor Trull nor Donovan could believe it was the surf.
"We began to hear it over an hour ago," remarked the captain. "It sounded low then; we could just hear it: but it grows louder. It"s either coming towards us, or else we are going towards it. I presume the storm drives us with it considerably."
"I tell you that it is some dangerous reef!" exclaimed Kit; "some hole or cavern which the water is playing through."
"It may be," muttered the captain. "Starboard the helm, Hobbs!"
At this instant a heavy, near explosion boomed out, followed momentarily by another and another.
"Good heavens!" exclaimed Raed.
"Cannon!" shouted Wade: "it"s a vessel in distress!"
"Impossible!" cried the captain. "No ship would fire cannon here, even if wrecked. There wouldn"t be one chance in ten thousand of its being heard by another vessel."
_Boom!_
"Hark! did you not hear that splashing noise that followed the explosion?" demanded Kit.
We had all heard it; for, by this time, the sailors who were below had come on deck. The heavy rumbling noise began afresh, and sounded louder than before. We were completely mystified, and stood peering off from the bulwarks into the stormy obscurity of the night.
"Are there volcanoes on these straits, suppose?" Wade asked.
No one had ever heard of any.
"There were none in my geography," said Raed. "But there may be one _forming_."
Indeed, we were so much in doubt, that even this improbable suggestion was caught at for the moment.
"But where"s the fire and smoke?" replied Kit. "Methinks it ought to be visible."
We could feel, rather than see, that the schooner was veering slowly to the left, in obedience to her helm,--a fact which left no doubt that we were, as the captain had surmised, drifting with the storm against the current; or perhaps, before this, the tide coming in had made a counter-current up the straits. The roaring noise was growing more distinct every minute; till all at once Bonney, who was looking attentively out from the bow, exclaimed,--
"What"s that ahead, captain? Isn"t there something?"
We all strained our eyes.
Dim amid the fog and rain something which seemed like a great pale shadow loomed before the schooner. For a moment we gazed, uncertain whether it were real, or an illusion of darkness; then Donovan shouted,--