Still affected by the horrendous tale I had just heard, I tried to reconstruct in my mind the unfortunate lost ship and the story of the agonising event witnessed only by the gulls. A few details struck me and helped me to fill out all the twists and turns of the drama: the Captain in full dress uniform, the Chaplain"s stole, the twenty soldiers in transit. I visualised the frigate leaving Toulon at night.
As she left the port, the sea was up, the wind was terrible; but the Captain was a valiant and experienced sailor and everybody on board was relaxed.
A fog got up in the morning. A sense of unease began to spread. The whole crew were on deck. The Captain stayed on the quarter-deck. In the "tween-decks where the soldiers were billeted, it was pitch black, and the air was hot. Some of the men were sea-sick. The ship pitched horribly, which made it impossible to stand up. They talked in groups, sitting on the floor, clutching the benches for dear life; they had to shout to be heard. Some of them started to feel afraid. Listen, shipwrecks are common around those parts; the soldiers were there themselves to prove it, and what they said was not at all rea.s.suring.
Especially the Brigadier, a Parisian, who was always making quips that made your flesh creep:
--A shipwreck! How hilarious, a shipwreck. We are about to leave for an icy bath, and then be taken to Captain Lionetti"s place in Bonifacio, where blackbirds are on the menu.
The soldiers laughed....
Suddenly, there was a great creaking sound....
--What the h.e.l.l"s that? What"s going on?
--We"ve just lost the rudder, said a thoroughly sea-drenched sailor who was running through the "tween-decks.
--Have a good trip! cried the never-say-die Brigadier, but this time the remark caused no laughter.
There was chaos on deck, but everything was hidden by the fog. The sailors were all over the place, scared, and groping about.... No rudder! Changing course was impossible.... The _Semillante_ could only run before the wind.... It was at that moment that the customs" officer saw her; it was half past eleven. In front of the frigate, a sound like a cannon shot was heard.... The breakers! the breakers! It was all up, there was no hope, ship and men together were going straight onto a lee sh.o.r.e.... The Captain went down into his cabin.... After a short time he reappeared on the quarter-deck--in full dress uniform... He wanted to look right when he died.
In the "tween-decks, the soldiers were anxiously exchanged glances without saying a word.... The sick were doing their best to get on their feet.... Even the Brigadier wasn"t laughing any more.... It was then that the door opened and the Chaplain appeared on the threshold wearing his stole:
--Kneel down, my children!
Those who could obeyed, and in a resounding voice, the priest began the prayer for the dying.
Suddenly, there was a formidable impact, a cry, one cry consisting of many, an immense cry, their arms fully tensed, their hands all clasped together, their shocked faces looking at a vision of death as it pa.s.sed before them like a stroke of lightning....
Mercy!...
That is how I spent the whole night, ten years after the event, reliving, and evoking the spirit of the ill-fated ship whose wreckage was all around me. Far away, in the straits, the storm was still raging on. The camp-fire"s flame was blown flat by a gust of wind, and I could hear our boat bobbing listlessly about at the foot of the rocks, its mooring squealing.
THE CUSTOMS" MEN
The boat _Emilie_ from Porto-Vecchio, on which I had made the mournful voyage to the Lavezzi Islands, was a small, old, half-decked, customs"
vessel, with no shelter available from the wind, the waves, nor even the rain, save in a small, tar covered deckhouse, hardly big enough for a table and two bunks. It was unbelievable what the sailors had to put up with in bad weather. Their faces were streaming, and their soaked tunics steaming, as if in the wash. In the depths of winter, these unfortunate souls spent whole days like this, crouching on their drenched seats, shivering in the unhealthy wet and cold, even at nights. Obviously, a fire couldn"t be lit on board, and it was often difficult to make the sh.o.r.e.... Well, not one of these men complained.
I always saw the same calmness and good humour in them, even in the most severe weather. And yet, what a gloomy life these customs"
mariners led.
They were months away from going home, tacking and reaching around those dangerous coasts. For nourishment they had to make do mainly with mouldy bread and wild onions; they never once tasted wine or meat; these were expensive items and they only earned five hundred francs a year. Yes, five hundred francs a year. But it didn"t seem to bother them! Everybody there seemed somehow content. Aft of the deckhouse, there was a tub full of rain water for the crew to drink, and I recall that after the final gulp went down, every last one of them would finish off his mug with a satisfied, "Ah!..."; a comic yet endearing indication of all being well with him.
Palombo, a small, tanned, thick-set man from Bonifacio was the merriest, and the most well at ease of all of them. He was always singing, even in the very worst weather. When the seas were high, when the sky was overcast, dark, and hail filled, everyone was all agog, sniffing the air, their hands cupped over their ears, listening and watching out for the next squall. Even in this great silence of anxiety on board, the voice of Palombo would begin the refrain:
No, dear Sir, It will cause a stir.
Wise Lisette will stay, And never ever go away....
And the gust could blow, rattle the tackle, shake and flood the boat, still the customs" man"s song continued, rocking like a seagull on the crests of the waves. Sometimes the wind"s accompaniment was too loud, and the words were drowned, but between each breaking wave, in the cascade of draining water, the little ditty was heard once again:
Wise Lisette will stay, And never ever go away
One day, when it was blowing and raining hard, I didn"t hear him. This was so unusual, that I was moved to emerge through the boathouse hatch and shout:
--Hey! Palombo, you"re not singing, then?
Palombo didn"t reply. He was lying apparently motionless under his bench. I went up to him; his teeth were chattering and his whole body was trembling feverishly.
--He"s got a pountoura, his comrades miserably informed me.
This was what they called a st.i.tch in the side, pleurisy. I had never witnessed a more miserable sight. There was an overwhelming, leaden sky, the boat had water cascading everywhere, the luckless, fevered man was wrapped in an old rubber coat which glistened like a seal"s skin.
The cold, the wind, and the jolting of the waves, soon made his condition worse. He became delirious; something had to be done.
After doing all we could, and as evening was approaching, we put into a small, silent, lifeless port, only animated by circling seagulls. The beach was shut in by steep-sided, high rocks, impa.s.sable scrub and sombre, unseasonably green shrubs. Nearby, close to the sea there was a custom"s post, housed in a small white building with grey shutters. It was given a rather sinister air, this official outpost, numbered like the cap on a uniform, by its position, in the middle of such a deserted spot. We took the ailing Palombo down to it, though it was a despairing sanctuary for a sick man. We found the custom"s man eating by the fireside with his wife and children. Everybody had a gaunt and jaundiced look, and they were pop-eyed and feverish. The young mother, suckling a baby, shivered as she spoke to us.
--It"s a terrible post, the Inspector barely whispered to me. We have to replace our Customs" men here every two years. The marsh fever eats them away....
Nevertheless, the main thing was to get hold of a doctor. There wasn"t one this side of Sartene, many kilometres away. What could we do? Our mariners were done and could do no more, and it was too far to send one of the children. Then the woman, leaning outdoors, called:
--Cecco!...Cecco!
And in came a large, well-built chap, a typical specimen of a poacher or Corsican bandit, with his brown wool cap and his goatskin sailors jacket. I had already noticed him, as we disembarked; he was sitting in front of the door chewing his red pipe, with a rifle between his legs.
He made off as we came near; I don"t know why. Perhaps he thought we had gendarmes with us. When he entered, the Customs" woman blushed.
--He"s my cousin, she told us. There"s no danger that this one will get lost in the Corsican scrub.
Then, she whispered something to him, indicating the sick man. The man bent forward but said nothing. Then he left, whistled his dog, and was gone, leaping from rock to rock with his long legs, with the rifle on his shoulder.
The children, who seemed terrified by the Inspector, quickly scoffed down their dinner of chestnuts and white Corsican goat cheese. Then there was the inevitable water; never anything but water on the table.
And yet, a sip of wine would have really done the children some good.
Oh, what complete and utter misery! After a while, their mother saw them off to bed, while their father lit his lantern and went out to check the coast. We stayed by the fireside looking after the invalid, who was tossing and turning on his pallet, as if he was still at sea being buffeted by the waves. We warmed up some stones to put on his side to ease his pleurisy. Once or twice the hapless man recognised me as I approached his bed and put out his hand with great difficulty by way of thanks. His broad hand was as rough and hot as one of the bricks from the fire.
It was a miserable vigil! Outside, as night fell, the bad weather picked up again, and there was a crash, a rumble, and a great spurt of spray, as the battle between rocks and water broke out again. From time to time, the gusts from out at sea blew into the bay and enveloped the house. The flames suddenly flared and lit up the blank faces of the sailors around the fireplace. They had the calm expression of those who routinely experience wide open s.p.a.ces and horizons. Occasionally, Palombo moaned gently, and their eyes would turn towards the wretched place where the poor man was dying, far from home, and beyond help.
Only their breathing and sighing could be heard. This was the only reaction you would get out of these workmen of the sea who were just as patient and accepting of their own misfortune. No rebellions, no strikes. Only sighs. Just sighs. And yet, perhaps I"m kidding myself.
One of them, on his way to putting wood on the fire, whispered almost apologetically to me:
--You see, monsieur, there can be much suffering in our line of work....
THE CUCUGNANIAN PRIEST
Every year, at the feast of the presentation of Jesus, the Provencal poets publish a wonderful little book overflowing with beautiful verse and great stories. I"ve only just received this year"s copy, and inside I found this adorable little fable which I am going to try to translate for you, albeit in a slightly abridged version.... Men of Paris, prepare yourselves for a treat. The finest flowering of Provencal flour is to be laid before you, right now....