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The Expedition of Captain Flick: A Story of Adventure

Chapter X. Southward Ho!

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Chapter X. Southward Ho!

“Below the girdle of the world
Drop down, no danger fearing
Betwixt the Horn, and Capricorn,
Let us go buccaneering;
For there the ocean's ample breast
Holds lands unknown to story,
Where we may chance on wild romance,
And gain both gold and glory.”

It is impossible to give any detailed account of that distracted time, for events so quickly followed one another, that I retain but a confused recollection of what actually took place. My most vivid memory, is, that all who succumbed to that deadly asphyxia, remained unconscious for four-and-twenty hours. Not until the following evening did we recover our senses; and then we made two terrible discoveries—Bertha was missing; the scarlet ship was gone.

It needed little thought to explain what had occurred. Attracted by the beauty of Bertha, the page 112 islanders had determined to secure her for their king; and, aided by the treacherous Dosk, whose fear of them was feigned, they had succeeded in accomplishing their object. Dosk had been entrusted with an unknown liquid, which when blended with the oil of the lamps, gave forth a poisonous perfume of a lethargic nature. The lights in saloon and forecastle had been impregnated with the drug by that abominable negro, and, with the exception of the look-out man, all gathered in those two places had been rendered unconscious. Then, in response to his signal, the islanders had boarded the yacht, and carried off the unconscious Bertha; now they were sailing for Isk with their prize.

At first Flick and Harry refused to believe that the asphyxia was produced by the impregnated oil; but I related to them the stories of medieval tyrants who had used the same means to accomplish their aims. The Borgias, in particular, made use of the drug; a few drops of which, when sprinkled on a flambeau or mingled with the oil of a lamp, amply sufficed to suffocate a room full of people. That used by the negroes only differed from the medieval drug in the result; for the latter caused death, while the former only induced an unnatural and prolonged sleep. Save that we all had headaches and were violently sick, no ill effects resulted from our lethargy. page 113 The devilish ingenuity of the islanders had stopped short of death, and we were thankful for so much mercy, as with recovery came the desire for revenge. There was not a man on board the yacht but burned to rescue Bertha and punish those who had carried her away.

I pass over my own grief and that of Aunt Chrissy, as it is necessary to relate how we followed in the trail of the spoilers. Harry swore to reach the island in the face of all obstacles and recover his sister, and in such resolve he was warmly supported by Flick and myself; for on discovering my loss I threw myself heart and soul into the project of the expedition. Moreover, Roaring Tom, mortified at being thus tricked by the man whose life he had saved, was anxious to meet with and punish the traitor for his vile ingratitude. So here we were, three obstinate Englishmen, bent on carrying through a dangerous exploration at all hazards. Had the negroes known the tempers of those with whom they had to deal, they would, no doubt, have finished more effectively their villainous work. As it happened, they left alive a number of mortified enemies who desired revenge; and who were prepared to obtain it at any cost. Never a ship sailed southward manned by more angered and dogged men.

Ignorant of the route taken by the negroes, we page 114 anxiously discussed the most likely direction towards which to direct our energies and follow in pursuit. Harry insisted that they must have sought the Indian Ocean through the Canal, that being the shortest way to their destination; I thought that, to avoid awkward questions at Suez and Port Said, it was probable that they had sailed up the Nile, with the intention of striking for the East Coast through Abyssinia; but Flick, with whom lay the casting vote, gave his word for the Straits, under cover of darkness, and round the Cape. In no other way, said he, could so unique a ship escape remark; and this, as the most sensible suggestion, was forthwith adopted.

Yet, so as to place the matter beyond all doubt, I suggested that on our way westwards it would be as well to cable to Suez from Malta, and wait at that island for the reply. If the scarlet ship ventured into the Canal, we could have her stopped, and follow on at once; while, should the answer be in the negative, it would be easy to pursue the islanders by their only remaining exit through Gibraltar Straits. I had quite abandoned the idea of the Nile route.

“That is all very well,” said Harry, when I made this suggestion, “but already they have had a start of over twenty-four hours, and should we not follow at once they will pass Gibraltar and we shall lose the trail.”

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“That's a chance, certainly. But you said yourself that they might have gone by the Canal.”

“So I did, but I have changed my mind. As Flick says, a craft of that appearance would be questioned by the authorities, so it is more than likely the negroes will slip past Gibraltar under cover of darkness, and so take to the open sea. What do you think, captain?”

Flick made no immediate reply, but nursed his chin with a thoughtful look in his eyes. As we always deferred to his experience, he knew the responsibility of the expedition lay with him, and he was therefore cautious in giving his opinion. “I am inclined to adopt your suggestion, Sir Denis,” he said at length. “Certainly while waiting a cable from Suez we may lose a few days, but the yacht at top speed can soon catch up with that rowing-boat.”

“They have sails and oars, captain, and a good start. If they pass the Straits—”

“Well, lad, if they pass the Straits, they drop south to round the Cape. We know that much, and I guess we'll catch them coasting Africa. Depend upon it, a lubberly craft like that red cock-boat won't go out of sight of land.”

Our plans being thus satisfactorily settled, we left Cythera for Malta, though there was a trifling delay on account of our propeller. The negroes, page 116 clever enough to guess what drove the ship, or perhaps instructed in such knowledge by their spy, had vainly tried to snap off the fans, in the hope of disabling us from pursuit; but, finding the ironwork too strong for them, they had lashed the screws together, so that they could not spin. This weak attempt was easily frustrated, by cutting the ropes, which impeded the revolutions, and, this accomplished, we headed the yacht south-west without further loss of time.

Poor Aunt Chrissy! she was quite broken down by the loss of niece, and blamed herself for having yielded to Flick's persuasions. If she had held firm, and remained in England, the disaster would not have happened; but, as it was, she expected never to see Bertha again. In vain I tried to calm her fears, by pointing out that Bertha, as the future wife of the king, would be treated with all honour.

“Don't tell me, Denis!” cried Mrs. Barber tearfully. “You saw what savage faces those negroes had. Depend upon it they will offer up the poor child to their horrid idols.”

“I have no fear on that score. Dosk said nothing about human sacrifices.”

“Dosk! The horrid little monster was full of falsehoods. I can believe nothing that comes from him. Oh, my poor child! Why did I ever come on this wretched voyage? She is lost—lost for ever!”

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“That she isn't,” said I determinedly. “Whatever happens, I'll bring back Bertha safe and sound to Bucksford.”

“You promise more than you can perform. I expect the whole lot of you will be killed at Isk.”

“Perhaps you would rather we did not go, Aunt Chrissy?”

“I had rather nothing of the sort, sir,” replied the old lady indignantly. “It is your duty to rescue Bertha, because she is to be your wife; and Harry's, as she is his sister. And it is the duty of Thomas also,” added she emphatically, “for he and his foolish expedition are the cause of all this trouble.”

I did not envy Flick's position, while Aunt Chrissy was on board, for she railed at him with right good will for bringing us all into such trouble. Recognizing that there was a certain amount of truth in her reproaches, Flick forebore to defend himself, and expressed his contrition on every possible occasion. This big rough seaman was wonderfully gentle with the distraught old lady, and bore her reproaches with great equanimity. Harry and I came in for our share also, as Aunt Chrissy was too angered to be just; but we made all allowance, knowing the motive which prompted her wrath.

It had been suggested that she should catch a P. and O. liner at Malta; but this she refused to do, page 118 alleging that, in the event of a negative reply from Suez, she would accompany us as far as Gibraltar, in the hope of sighting the scarlet ship before she passed the Straits. This arrangement was carried out, for on arriving at Malta, we cabled at once to Suez and Gibraltar, only to receive replies that at neither places had the red ship been seen. Therefore we adopted the only course which was left, and steamed for the Straits, with Aunt Chrissy still on board.

Flick quite expected that the Suez authorities would reply in the negative, but the cable from Gibraltar puzzled him. If the scarlet ship had taken that route -and, so far as we could see, it was the only possible means of exit from the Mediterranean—she must have passed the Rock. Her appearance was sufficiently noticeable to excite remark, so it was strange that she had not been signalled. Thereupon Flick reverted to his original idea.

“She went as she came,” said he wisely, “under cover of darkness. I'm pretty certain we are on the right trail, and we will catch her up as we drop down the African coast.”

So Flick said, so we all thought; but the sequel proved us in the wrong, for the negroes were more cunning than we deemed them to be, and they had laid their plans with a view to baffling possible page 119 pursuit. We learned all this off the Guinea coast, when it was too late to turn back on our course.

At Gibraltar we fortunately found a liner of the P. and O. Company, bound for Plymouth, and Aunt Chrissy took her passage by this, intending to return to Bucksford with all speed, and there wait the result of our enterprise. She was much affected by the parting, and kissed us tenderly, not even excepting Flick, for, as she truly said, it was a question whether she would ever see us again.

“But for all that,” she declared, like the plucky old Englishwoman she was, “don't you come back without Bertha. I would rather see none of you three, than see you return empty-handed, having left the poor child to be killed by those horrid negroes.”

Whereupon, we three adventurers swore a mighty oath that we would rescue the girl, and bring her back safe and sound to Bucksford; so, satisfied that we would do our best, Aunt Chrissy embraced us once more, and steamed for Plymouth in the outgoing liner. It was the last we saw of her for many a weary month.

Thanks to the foresight of Captain Flick, we were well provisioned for a long voyage, and, to provide against running short, we coaled at Gibraltar. All being thus ship-shape, we lifted anchor and ran through the Straits

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“You see, Harry,” said I, as the Carmen put her nose to the south trail, “I was a true prophet. It will be many a long day before we sight Plymouth Hoe again.”

“True enough, old Evans. The expedition of Captain Flick has started this time.”

“Ay,” said Flick, laying his hands on our shoulders, “but the object of the expedition is different. Then it was to gain possession of a statue; now it is to rescue the most charming lass in the world. May our enterprise be successful, lads!”

“Amen to that!” said we in a breath.

And so we began that weary search for the island of Isk.