Settlers and Scouts Part 28

[Ill.u.s.tration: "John ordered his askaris to fire among the negroes on the left bank."]

Night had now sunk upon the land. The moon would rise late, and for several hours the voyage must be continued in darkness. John called to Ferrier to ask whether he had not better run into the bank and wait until there was a little light upon the course.

"I can see well enough at present," was the reply. "Besides, those beggars are keeping it up."

His expectation that the pursuit would be abandoned as soon as it became dark was not borne out. It was obvious from the shouts that were heard on either side from time to time that the enemy had screwed their resolution to an uncommon pitch. Their dread of the darkness was no less, but their savage resentment and vindictive desire for revenge was more. John was able to account for their pertinacity when he remembered what lay before him. The rapids! If he, on his light raft, had barely escaped with his life, how much less was the chance that two heavy-laden rafts would survive the battering they must receive! If they were not wrecked and broken up before they reached the pool, they would then become exposed to a terrific attack. He dared not think of what the fate of the safari would be if they were cast into the river and thrown upon the mercy of the enemy. Did they come safe through the first series of rapids and cross the pool, there was the second series beyond, sweeping through the gorge, from the heights of which the enemy could pour down upon them not merely a hail of bullets and arrows, but an avalanche of rocks which could not fail to send the rafts to the bottom.

Great as were the perils which had beset him since he quitted the farm, he recognized with a momentary sinking of heart that they were trifles compared with those that were to come. He felt that his confidence would be greater if he could be beside Ferrier on the first raft. Their comrades.h.i.+p during the past few months had brought them very close together. He wished that they could talk things over quietly; whereas now they were separated by forty feet of rope, and anything either had to say must be uttered in a bawl.

As the darkness thickened the navigation became increasingly difficult.

Sometimes, when long stretches of the river were banked by woods, it was pitch dark, and whatever obstacles might have occurred in the course, it would have been impossible to avoid them. Ferrier did his best to keep his raft in midstream, for he knew that crocodiles lurked on the banks; hippos might be sleeping in the shallows; and heavy as the raft was, he had little doubt that a heave of a hippo's huge body, a swish from a crocodile's terrible tail, would cause it to capsize, or at least break a gap in the breastwork.

At one such gloomy patch the raft ran ash.o.r.e upon a mud-bank projecting into the stream. Before Ferrier could pole it off, the second raft, borne on by the current, collided with it; there was a shock, John's raft spun round, and rocked so violently that the men yelled with fright. The attaching rope, however, pulled it up with a jerk, which had the effect of hauling the first raft off the bank. Their positions were now reversed; Said Mohammed was foremost down-stream, Ferrier last.

It was obviously impossible that the voyage could be continued thus.

John and Ferrier ran each to the forward end of his own raft.

"Run her ash.o.r.e again," shouted Ferrier, "and let me swing clear."

John obeyed. He would not have s.h.i.+rked the task of leading, but Ferrier's experience might make all the difference between success and failure, and it was certainly not a time to run any avoidable risks.

Some minutes pa.s.sed before he managed to strike the bank, and then the raft crashed against the projecting stem of a tree with a violence that threw John on to his back. Up in an instant, he clutched a branch just in time to prevent the raft from drifting away, and held on until Ferrier had pa.s.sed in mid-stream, and the vessels had regained their former order. During this interlude nothing was heard of the enemy. The banks of the river were fortunately too steep and too densely wooded to allow their access.

For a little while all went well. Where the banks were low and free from tall trees the level rays of the rising moon threw a faint light upon the water, enabling Ferrier to use his pole with more confidence.

But on entering a narrower reach where the trees came down to the water's edge, the sudden pa.s.sage from comparative light to absolute darkness prevented him from seeing a rocky ledge jutting out from the right bank. The raft sc.r.a.ped it for a few feet, then stuck fast. The second raft, coming directly in its wake, did not this time sweep by, but b.u.mped the first, and both were now end to end on the rock. The most energetic work with the poles failing to dislodge them, John said--

"Let's have a rest. There's no sign of the enemy, and I'm desperately hungry."

"That's all very well," replied Ferrier, "but the longer we delay the worse off we shall be presently. It gives the enemy time to get ahead of us, and they'll be waiting for us at the pool. I rather fancy they've already outstripped us by cutting across country; the river winds a good deal."

"All the same, we shan't be any the better off for being famished when we meet them. Besides, I want to talk to you; we haven't settled what we're going to do."

"Very well; we'll have a tuck-in. What's the time? My match-box is empty."

John struck a match. His watch had stopped.

"The spring must have broken when I toppled over," he said. "Isn't yours going?"

"It hasn't been going for a couple of days. We can't tell how far we've come. How is our direction?"

"We're pointing north-west," replied John, after a glance at his compa.s.s. "There must be a big curve here. I fancy we must have just about got to the place where Bill and I launched our raft. If so, it will be getting light by the time we reach the pool. What do you think of doing then?"

"That depends on the look of things when we get there. How long are the rapids?"

"About half-a-mile, I should think."

"Any rocks?"

"Upon my word I don't know. I was too anxious about holding on to notice. But judging from the battering we got I should say plenty."

"Then the safest course would be to unload the rafts when we get to the head of the rapids and make a portage--carry the things along the bank until we come to the pool. We can't do that if the enemy are in force.

We shall simply have to shoot the rapids and take our chance."

"I'm sorry for us. If my little raft was nearly smashed, what condition will these clumsy things be in when we get through!"

"Well, I can only do my best. Left to themselves they'd be smashed up in no time, but if I can manage to steer clear of the rocks we may get through. It won't be safe to go roped together, though. You had better moor yours while I take down the first; then I'll go ash.o.r.e and come back for you."

"Rather dangerous, that, if the enemy are about."

"Perhaps. But I'm inclined to think they'll wait for us lower down. In that case I should be back before they could catch me. But really it's not much good settling on anything until we see how the land lies. The most important thing will be to take care we are not caught in the rapids before we know it. If we are, we can only let ourselves go and trust to luck."

After a delay of nearly an hour, during which the whole party made a meal of the fruits they had brought with them, they strove again to pole the rafts off the rock. The task was an impossible one while the vessels were so heavily laden. Accordingly the breastwork was removed from the sh.o.r.eward side of each, and a portion of the goods was conveyed to the bank. Thus lightened, the rafts were got off by vigorous poling, and allowed to drift a few yards down-stream until they came once more into the moonlight. Then they were run into the bank and moored while the stores were fetched and the breastwork replaced. This took up a considerable time, and it could no longer be doubted that the enemy, unless they had halted, must arrive at the pool long before the rafts.

As the moon rose higher in the sky the voyage became easier, and it was continued without incident until there were signs that day was breaking.

Feeling sure that the rapids could not be far ahead, Ferrier steered into the right bank, followed by John.

"I must take a look round before we go any farther," said Ferrier. "I don't hear anything of the enemy; perhaps they are behind us after all."

He set off alone, making his way cautiously among the trees. It seemed hours before he returned, in almost broad daylight.

"We're in for it," he said as he came up. "We're within six hundred yards of the rapids. I went on round the curve until I got a view of the pool. The fort is manned. Juma must have got well ahead of us and crossed the river somewhere. But I don't think the others have arrived on the scene yet."

"Have they left n.o.body on the right bank?"

"n.o.body at all. They're very poor tacticians. I suppose they rely on our being smashed up in the rapids, and think they'll have us at their mercy. They ought to have held both banks. It gives us a chance. We may have time for a portage, but only to the pool. We can't hope to get past the second rapids on land; but as we shall be hidden from the enemy until we actually come to the pool, there ought to be time to load up again there before they can get round to us."

"What then?"

"We shall have to shoot the second rapids in the rafts just as we are.

Can't stop for another portage. From my recollection as we came up past the gorge, they're much longer and swifter than the first, besides being straighter and less rocky. I had a good look at the first as I went down the bank. There's a nasty bit about half-way through: a narrow channel between two irregular lines of sunken rocks. But it's no worse than the Long Saut on the St. Lawrence; not so bad, indeed; and I'm going to run through all right. The only doubt I have is whether we can get to the second rapids before the enemy occupy the bluff above the gorge."

"If we can't----!"

"We shall have the pleasure of being targets for at least ten minutes for bullets and arrows and stones. But we must just go through with it now; there's no retreat for us. Now we'll unload my raft and send the men along with the ivory. When we've given them time to get half-way to the pool, I'll go down with the raft."

"Alone?"

"Yes. It won't do for you to come, and leave the men, in case they're attacked; and I don't think any of them would be much help to me. Coja and two or three of the askaris can escort the convoy. We must make 'em understand they are to wait for me when they get to the pool; unless, indeed, I'm there first: the current is pretty swift."

"There's bush enough to hide them, but you're bound to be spotted from the fort as soon as you get to the end of the rapids."

"It will take Juma a long time to get round with his men."

"But they can swim it!"

"They won't! They can't attack us when swimming, and they'll be afraid of getting their heads broken against the raft."

During this conversation the men had already begun the work of unloading the first raft. The breastwork on the right-hand side was removed, and the ivory conveyed tusk by tusk to the bank. Enough was left at the rear to balance Ferrier's weight at the forward end. When all was ready, the men set off with their loads, Coja and two askaris with rifles going ahead.

"Get your raft unloaded while I'm gone, old chap," said Ferrier. "In fact, the men had better start with it straight away; if Juma has the sense to come round at once to meet us it'll be a very near thing to get loaded up again."

"All right. I'll go with them myself and leave a couple of men to guard the raft."