The Secret of the Sands Part 20

Ella presided, doing the honours of the small table with the grace of a princess, and I began to feel as though I had suddenly become an inhabitant of fairy-land.

As soon as my meal was over I relieved Bob, and he went below for his share of the good things; and though Miss Ella had been very demure with me, I soon discovered, by the peals of musical laughter which, mingled with Bob's gruffer cachinnations, floated up through the companion, that the two had completely broken the ice between them.

As soon as the remains of the meal had been cleared away, and the wants of her pet kitten attended to, the little lady came on deck and commenced an animated conversation with Bob and me, as we smoked the pipe of peace (Ella declaring that she quite liked the odour of tobacco), asking a thousand questions, and full of wonder that such a "dear little tiny yacht" had come all the way from England.

She was most anxious to try her hand at steering, which she thought she could do quite well; and I promised I would instruct her at a more favourable opportunity, explaining that we were just then so circ.u.mstanced that none but _experienced_ helmsmen could be trusted with the tiller, it being more difficult to steer properly when running before the wind than at any other time.

"But it _looks_ quite easy," she persisted, "to hold that handle. _You_ do not move it much, and surely I could do the little you are doing. I used to steer the _Copernicus_ sometimes, but she never _would_ go straight with _me_; and it was _so_ tiring to keep turning that great wheel round."

Bob laughed joyously at this quaint speech, and proceeded laboriously to hold forth on the science of the helmsman, interlarding his lecture copiously with nautical ill.u.s.trations and sea phrases, which were so much Greek to his pupil, who listened with an open-eyed earnestness which was most entertaining.

She heard Bob with the utmost patience and attention until he had utterly exhausted his entire stock of precepts, when she thanked him as courteously and sweetly as though she had understood every word of it; and then electrified us both, and set me off into a fit of perfectly uncontrollable laughter, by asking him, in the same breath, to sing her a song.

Whatever Bob's accomplishments might be, singing was certainly not one of them. He could hail the fore-royal-yard from the taffrail in a gale of wind, and make himself pretty plainly heard too; but when it came to trolling forth a ditty, he had no more voice than a raven; and my sister had often thrown him into a state of the most comical distress by proffering a similar request to that now made by his new friend.

As soon as she found that Bob really could not sing, she tried me; and, as I was considered to have a very tolerable voice, I immediately complied, giving her "Tom Bowling" and a few more of Dibdin's fine old sea-songs, as well as one or two more frequently heard in a drawing-room, which I had learnt under my sister's able tuition.

She then sang us a few favourites of her own in a sweet clear soprano, and with a depth of feeling for the sentiment of the song which is but too seldom heard in the performances of amateurs.

About ten o'clock she wished us "good-night," and retired to her cot; and Bob then also went below and turned in, it being his "eight hours in" that night, and I was left to perform the rest of my watch alone.

The next morning, Bob turned out of his own accord, and made a surrept.i.tious attempt to resume the duties of the _cuisine_; but at the first rattle of the cups and saucers he was hailed from the fore-compartment and ordered to desist at his peril, and in a very short time the little fairy appeared, blooming and fresh as the morning, and Master Bob received such a lecture that he was fain from that time forward to leave the cookery department entirely in her hands, and he retired discomfited to the deck, and began forthwith to wash down.

A permanent improvement now occurred in our style of living, and we began to enjoy many little comforts which, it is true, we never had missed, but which were singularly welcome nevertheless; and altogether we found ourselves vastly gainers by the presence of the sweet little creature on board.

She quickly learned to take the chronometer time for my observations, and that, too, with a precision which Bob himself could not surpa.s.s; and in a very short time she could steer as well as either of us, which was an immense advantage when shortening or making sail. Add to all this the amus.e.m.e.nt we derived from her incessant lively prattle, and the additional cheerfulness thus infused into our daily life, and the reader will agree with me, I think, that it was a lucky day for us when we first fell in with little Ella Brand.

Volume Two, Chapter II.

A MIRACLE.

By the time that our fair guest had been on board a week or ten days, she had put me in possession of probably every circ.u.mstance of importance which had occurred in her past history, and had also touched lightly upon her future, which, notwithstanding the natural buoyancy of her temperament, she seemed to regard with considerable apprehension.

It appeared that, in the first place, she had but a very imperfect idea as to the whereabouts of her relatives in England. She knew that her grand-father had a place somewhere down in Leicesters.h.i.+re, and she thought he also had a house in town; but, as her mother had never heard from him since her marriage, Ella had been utterly unable to find any clue to the old gentleman's address, after a most thorough search through such papers belonging to her parents as had fallen into her hands after her father's death.

Then, bearing in mind many conversations between her parents which had occurred in her presence, she felt the gravest doubt as to whether any of her relatives, when found, would even condescend so far as to acknowledge her as a relative, much less a.s.sist her in any way. She inclined to the opinion that they would not, and there were many circ.u.mstances to justify this sentiment, notably one which had occurred a short time previous to the departure of her parents from England.

Her father was at the time suffering from nervous debility and severe mental depression, the result of over-work and incessant anxiety; and to such a deplorable condition was he reduced that, for a considerable time, he was completely incapacitated for work of any kind.

The family resources dwindled to a low ebb, the process being materially hastened by heavy doctors' bills and other expenses connected with Mr Brand's condition, and the wife and mother found herself almost at her wit's-end to provide necessaries for her husband and child, utterly forgetful of herself all the time. At last, in sheer desperation, she wrote to her father describing her position, and entreating that a.s.sistance which he could so bountifully bestow--and her letter remained unanswered. She then wrote to her mother, and this time the letter was returned unopened.

She then tried her two brothers in succession, and finally her sister, and all her attempts to communicate with these unnatural relatives were treated with the same cold blooded silence. Matters would soon have crone hard indeed with the Brand family had not a former suitor of Mrs Brand's (who had been rejected in favour of the man she afterwards took for her husband) chivalrously came forward at this juncture, not only relieving their immediate necessities, but also using all his influence, which was potent, to obtain for Mr Brand the appointment which the poor fellow held until his death.

"And supposing," said I, after listening to this disheartening recital--"supposing that your relatives will _not_ help you, have you any plans laid to meet such a contingency? 'Hope for the best and provide for the worst' is a favourite motto of your friend Bob; and I really think it is singularly applicable in your case."

"No," she replied rather despondently; "no very definite plan, that is.

I am fairly well educated, I believe. Dear mamma was most accomplished, I have often heard papa say, and she taught me everything she knew. I speak French, German, and Italian, and seem to have a natural apt.i.tude for music; and I sketch a little in water-colours. I have all my materials with me, and a few sketches which I may perhaps be able to sell when I reach home--I will let you see them some day--and I think I may perhaps be able to get a situation as governess, or maintain myself respectably by teaching music and drawing. And then, you know, I am not absolutely dest.i.tute. I have about twenty pounds with me, and I sent home three hundred, the proceeds of the sale of our furniture, to England; and some friends of poor papa's in Canton say they are sure he must have some money invested somewhere, and they have promised to find out if it really is so, and to realise it for me: and I have given them the necessary powers to do so; so you see I shall not land in England actually a beggar."

"G.o.d forbid!" I earnestly e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed. "With regard to your landing in England, I ought perhaps to tell you that you must not hope to do so very soon. We are now in a part of the world quite out of the usual track of s.h.i.+ps, and I fear it may be some time before we shall fall in with any, and when we do, it is questionable whether they will be quite the cla.s.s of vessel you would like to make the voyage home in. My great hope is that we may soon fall in with a sandal-wood trader, in which case you would have an opportunity of returning to China, and re-s.h.i.+pping from thence home."

"I hope we shall," she responded; rather dolefully, I thought. "You have been very good to me, and"--her eyes welling up with tears--"I shall never forget you; but I know my presence must be a great inconvenience and embarra.s.sment to you."

"Pray stop!" I interrupted. "You are under the greatest misapprehension if you suppose your presence on board the _Water Lily_ is any other than a source of the most unqualified gratification to her crew. You are evidently quite ignorant of the beneficent influences of your presence here, or you would never have spoken of it as an inconvenience. Your departure will occasion us the keenest regret whenever it takes place, and were it not that our cramped accommodations must occasion you very considerable discomfort, I should rejoice at almost any circ.u.mstance which would necessitate your remaining with us for the rest of the voyage."

"Do you really mean it?" she exclaimed, her sweet face brightening up at once. "Oh, I am _so_ glad! Do you know I have thought your anxiety to meet with a s.h.i.+p arose from my being in your way, and troublesome? And you are really willing to let me remain, and go home with you? How very kind it is of you! I will be quite good, and do whatever you tell me; and, indeed, I will not cause you the least bit of trouble. And"--her face clouding over again for a moment--"I so dread arriving in England an utter stranger, and having to search, quite una.s.sisted, for grandpapa; and it would be _so_ dreadful if he were to turn me away from his doors. And I should feel, oh! miserably friendless and lonely if I had really to go about from place to place seeking for a situation, or trying to get pupils. But if you will let me stay here and go home with you, I shall not feel it so much, for I am sure you will help me in my search for my friends; and it is so delightful"--brightening up again--"to be dancing over this bright, sparkling sea day after day, in this dear little yacht, and to see the kind faces of that darling old original Bob and--and--and--the kitten."

"And the fowls," I suggested demurely. "But, in electing to remain on board the _Water Lily_, you must bear in mind, my dear Miss Brand, that it is not always with us as it is at present. Just now we are fortunate in the enjoyment of a fair wind and smooth sea, but we have been exposed to many dangers since we left England, and it is only reasonable to suppose we shall have to encounter many more before we return; and if you went home in a larger vessel, if you did not escape them altogether, they would probably bring less discomfort in their train than they will here."

"What would you advise me to do?" she asked, looking ruefully up into my face.

"Well," I replied, "since you ask me, my advice is this. If we fall in with a comfortable s.h.i.+p, bound to England, or to any port whence you can trans-s.h.i.+p for England, go in her if the s.h.i.+p is _not_ comfortable, and it comes to a choice of inconveniences, you can be guided by your own judgment, but do not leave us until you are sure of gaining some advantage by the change."

So it was settled. That same afternoon, as I was lying down on the lockers in our little cabin aft, I overheard the following conversation on deck, between Bob and Ella.

"Bob," said Ella (she soon dropped the Mr in his case, but it was still "Mr Collingwood" to me)--"Bob, are we likely to meet any s.h.i.+ps very soon, do you think?"

"s.h.i.+ps!" echoed Bob, in consternation; "no, missie, I hopes not. You surely ain't tired of the little _Lily_ yet, are ye?"

"No, indeed," replied Ella; "and I hope you are not tired of _me_. Tell me, Bob, am I very much trouble here, or very much in the way?"

"_Trouble! in the way_!" repeated Bob; "Well, I'm--"--then a strong inspiration between the teeth, as though to draw back the forcible expression quivering on his lips--"but there, it's because you don't know what you're sayin' of, that you talks that a'way. What put that notion into your pretty little head?"

"Harry--Mr Collingwood, I mean--seems anxious that I should go home in some other vessel," Ella replied, dolefully.

"Well, now, that's news, that is," answered Bob. "Since when has he taken that idee into his head?"

"We were talking about it this morning," said Ella; "and he said it would be more dangerous for me to go home in the _Water Lily_ than in a large s.h.i.+p. _Is_ the _Water Lily_ dangerous, Bob?"

"Dangerous!" exclaimed Bob, in a tone of angry scorn. "Was she dangerous in that blow off the Horn, when a big s.h.i.+p capsized and went down with all hands, close alongside of us? Was she dangerous when we had that bit of a brush with the pirates? If she hadn't been the little beauty that she is she'd ha' gone down in the gale, and a'terwards ha'

been made a prize of by the cut-throats." (Bob, in his angry vindication of the cutter's character, was wholly oblivious of the "bull" he had perpetrated, and Ella seemed too much interested to notice it.) "Dangerous! why, what's the boy thinking about, to take away the little barkie's character that a'way?"

"I wish, Bob, you would not keep calling Ha--Mr Collingwood, a _boy_ he is quite as much a man as you are, though of course not so old. I don't like--I don't think it sounds respectful," exclaimed Ella rather petulantly.

"Not call him a boy?" echoed Bob; "why what _should_ I call him then missie? In course, now you comes to mention it, I knows as he _is_ a man, and an uncommon fine speciment too; but, Lord, when I knowed him fust he was quite a dapper young sprig; and it comes nat'ral-like to speak of him as a boy. Hows'ever," continued he apologetically, "in course, since you don't like it, I won't call him a boy no more. What _shall_ I call him, so please your ladys.h.i.+p?"

"Now you are laughing at me, you horrid old creature," said Ella, with a little stamp of pa.s.sion upon the deck; "and I never said I did not like it, I merely said that it did not sound respectful. Why do you not call him captain?"

"Why not, indeed?" answered Bob. "He's got as good a right to be called 'skipper' as e'er a man as ever walked a deck; and dash my old wig if I ain't a good mind to do it, too my eyes! how he would stare. 'Twould be as good as a pantomime to see him;" and the worthy old fellow chuckled gleefully as his fancy conjured up the look of surprise which he knew such a t.i.tle on his lips would evoke from me.

"I declare," exclaimed Ella in a tone of great vexation, "you are the most provoking--But there, never mind, Bob dear, I do not mean it; you are very kind to me, and must not take any notice of my foolish speeches. And so you really think the _Water Lily_ is _not_ dangerous?

Why then should Mr Collingwood wish me to leave her? He told me this morning that he should be sorry if I did so, and yet he seems unwilling to let me stay."

Don't you believe it, little one, I heard Bob answer. "He don't want ye to go; it's some kind of conscientious scruple as he's got into his head that makes him talk that a'way. Between you and me"--here his voice sank to a kind of confidential growl, but I distinctly heard every word, nevertheless--"it's my idee that he's got some sort of a notion as we may yet fall in with that infarnal _Albatross_ ag'in; but, if we do, we've got chances of getting away from the chap that large s.h.i.+ps haven't; and for my part, if I must be in their blackguard neighbourhood, I'd a deal rather be in the _Lily_ than in a large s.h.i.+p.

Their best chance of getting the weather-gage of _us_ is by surprise; but in a little barkie like this here we larns the knack of sleeping with one eye open, and they'll have to be oncommon 'cute that surprises us."

"Oh!" exclaimed Ella, "I hope and pray that we may not see those wretches; it would be dreadful beyond description to fall into their hands. Do you think Mr Collingwood would send me away if I said I did not want to go?"

"Not he, dearie," answered Bob; "why, can't ye see that he--But there, I mustn't tell tales out of school. If we gets a _good_ chance, perhaps it _might_ be as well for ye to take advantage of it; but we ain't going to get it, so I lives in hopes of having your sweet face to brighten us up for the rest of this here v'yage. But it's eight bells, and time to rouse the 'skipper,' so just step down, dearie, will ye, and give him a call."