The Survivors of the Chancellor (4 page)

"What was the matter in the night, Curtis?"

He looked at me steadily, but made no reply.

"What was it?" I repeated. "M. Letourneur and myself were both of us disturbed by a very unusual commotion
overhead."

"Oh, a mere nothing," he said at length; "the man at
the helm had made a false move, and we had to pipe hands
to brace the ship a bit; but it was soon all put to rights. It
was nothing, nothing at all."

I said no more; but I can not resist the impression that
Robert Curtis has not acted with me in his usual straightforward manner.

OCTOBER 15 to October 18. — The wind is still in the
northeast. There is no change in the Chancellor's course,
and to an unprejudiced eye all would appear to be going on
as usual. But I have an uneasy consciousness that something is not quite right. Why should the hatchways be so
hermetically closed as though a mutinous crew was imprisoned between decks? I can not help thinking too that
there is something in the sailors so constantly standing in
groups and breaking off their talk so suddenly whenever we
approach; and several times I have caught the word
"hatches" which arrested M. Letourneur's attention on the
night of the disturbance.

On the 15th, while I was walking on the forecastle, I overheard one of the sailors, a man named Owen, say to his
mates:

"Now I just give you all warning that I am not going
to wait until the last minute. Everyone for himself, say I."

"Why, what do you mean to do?" asked Jynxstrop, the
cook.

"Pshaw!" said Owen, "do you suppose that longboats
were only made for porpoises?"

Something at that moment occurred to interrupt the conversation, and I heard no more. It occurred to me whether
there was not some conspiracy among the crew, of which
probably Curtis had already detected the symptoms. I am
quite aware that some sailors are most rebelliously disposed,
and required to be ruled with a rod of iron.

Yesterday and to-day I have observed Curtis remonstrating somewhat vehemently with Captain Huntly, but there
is no obvious result arising from their interviews; the captain apparently being bent upon some purpose, of which it
is only too manifest that the mate decidedly disapproves.

Captain Huntly is undoubtedly laboring under strong
nervous excitement; and M. Letourneur has more than once
remarked how silent he has become at meal-times; for although Curtis continually endeavors to start some subject
of general interest, yet neither Mr. Falsten, Mr. Kear, nor
Mr. Ruby are the men to take it up, and consequently the
conversation flags hopelessly, and soon drops. The passengers too are now, with good cause, beginning to murmur
at the length of the voyage, and Mr. Kear, who considers
that the very elements ought to yield to his convenience, lets
the captain know by his consequential and haughty manner
that he holds him responsible for the delay.

During the course of yesterday the mate gave repeated
orders for the deck to be watered again and again, and although as a general rule this is a business which is done, once
for all, in the early morning, the crew did not utter a word
of complaint at the additional work thus imposed upon them.
The tarpaulins on the hatches have thus been kept continually wet, so that their close and heavy texture is rendered
quite impervious to the air. The Chancellor's pumps afford
a copious supply of water, so that I should not suppose that
even the daintiest and most luxurious craft belonging to an
aristocratic yacht club was ever subject to a more thorough
scouring. I tried to reconcile myself to the belief that it
was the high temperature of the tropical regions upon which
we are entering, that rendered such extra sousings a necessity, and recalled to my recollection how, during the night
of the 13th, I had found the atmosphere below deck so
stifling, that in spite of the heavy swell I was obliged to open
the porthole of my cabin, on the starboard side, to get a
breath of air.

This morning at daybreak I went on deck. The sun had
scarcely risen, and the air was fresh and cool, in strange contrast to the heat which below the poop had been quite oppressive. The sailors as usual were washing the deck. A
great sheet of water, supplied continuously by the pumps,
was rolling in tiny wavelets, and escaping now to starboard,
now to larboard through the scupper-holes. After watching the men for a while as they ran about bare-footed, I
could not resist the desire to join them, so taking off my
shoes and stockings, I proceeded to dabble in the flowing
water.

Great was my amazement to find the deck perfectly hot to
my feet! Curtis heard my exclamation of surprise, and before I could put my thoughts into words, said:

"Yes! there is fire on board!"

OCTOBER 19. — Everything, then, is clear. The uneasiness of the crew, their frequent conferences, Owen's mysterious words, the constant scourings of the deck and the
oppressive heat of the cabins which had been noticed even
by my fellow-passengers, all are explained.

After his grave communication, Curtis remained silent.
I shivered with a thrill of horror; a calamity the most terrible that can befall a voyager stared me in the face, and it
was some seconds before I could recover sufficient composure to inquire when the fire was first discovered.

"Six days ago," replied the mate.

"Six days ago!" I exclaimed; "why, then, it was that
night."

"Yes," he said, interrupting me; "it was the night you
heard the disturbance upon deck. The men on watch noticed a slight smoke issuing from the large hatchway and
immediately called Captain Huntly and myself. We found
beyond all doubt, that the cargo was on fire, and what was
worse, that there was no possibility of getting at the seat of
the combustion. What could we do? Why, we took the
only precaution that was practicable under the circumstances,
and resolved most carefully to exclude every breath of air
from penetrating into the hold. For some time I hoped that
we had been successful. I thought that the fire was stifled;
but during the last three days there is every reason to make
us know that it has been gaining strength. Do what we
will, the deck gets hotter and hotter, and unless it were kept
constantly wet, it would be unbearable to the feet. But I
am glad, Mr. Kazallon," he added; "that you have made
the discovery. It is better that you should know it." I
listened in silence. I was now fully aroused to the gravity of
the situation and thoroughly comprehended how we were in
the very face of a calamity which it seemed that no human
power could avert.

"Do you know what has caused the fire?" I presently
inquired.

"It probably arose," he answered, "from the spontaneous combustion of the cotton. The case is rare, but it is
far from unknown. Unless the cotton is perfectly dry when
it is shipped, its confinement in a damp or ill-ventilated hold
will sometimes cause it to ignite; and I have no doubt it is
this that has brought about our misfortune."

"But after all," I said, "the cause matters very little.
Is there no remedy? Is there nothing to be done?"

"Nothing, Mr. Kazallon," he said. "As I told you before, we have adopted the only possible measure within our
power to check the fire. At one time I thought of knocking a hole in the ship's timbers just on her water-line, and
letting in just as much water as the pumps could afterward
get rid of again; but we found the combustion was right in
the middle of the cargo and that we should be obliged to
flood the entire hold before we could get at the right place.
That scheme consequently was no good. During the night,
I had the deck bored in various places and water poured
down through the holes; but that again seemed of no use.
There is only one thing that can be done; we must persevere
in excluding most carefully every breath of outer air, so that
perhaps the conflagration, deprived of oxygen, may smoulder
itself out. That is our only hope."

"But, you say the fire is increasing?"

"Yes; and that shows that in spite of all our care there
is some aperture which we have not been able to discover,
by which, somehow or other, air gets into the hold."

"Have you ever heard of a vessel surviving such circumstances?" I asked.

"Yes, Mr. Kazallon," said Curtis; "it is not at all an
unusual thing for ships laden with cotton to arrive at Liverpool or Havre with a portion of their cargo consumed; and I
have myself known more than one captain run into port with
his deck scorching his very feet, and who, to save his vessel
and the remainder of his freight has been compelled to unload with the utmost expedition. But, in such cases, of
course the fire has been more or less under control throughout the voyage; with us, it is increasing day by day, and I
tell you I am convinced there is an aperture somewhere
which has escaped our notice."

"But would it not be advisable for us to retrace our
course, and make for the nearest land?"

"Perhaps it would," he answered. "Walter and I, and
the boatswain, are going to talk the matter over seriously
with the captain to-day. But, between ourselves, I have
taken the responsibility upon myself; I have already
changed the tack to the southwest; we are now straight before the wind, and consequently we are sailing toward the
coast."

"I need hardly ask," I added; "whether any of the other
passengers are at all aware of the imminent danger in which
we are placed."

"None of them," he said; "not in the least; and I hope
you will not enlighten them. We don't want terrified
women and cowardly men to add to our embarrassment; the
crew are under orders to keep a strict silence on the subject.
Silence is indispensable."

I promised to keep the matter a profound secret, as I
fully entered into Curtis's views as to the absolute necessity
for concealment.

OCTOBER 20 and 21. — The Chancellor is now crowded
with all the canvas she can carry, and at times her topmasts
threaten to snap with the pressure. But Curtis is ever on
the alert; he never leaves his post beside the man at the
helm, and without compromising the safety of the vessel, he
contrives, by tacking to the breeze, to urge her on at her
utmost speed.

All day long on the 20th the passengers were assembled
on the poop. Evidently they found the heat of the cabins
painfully oppressive, and most of them lay stretched upon
benches and quietly enjoyed the gentle rolling of the vessel.
The increasing heat of the deck did not reveal itself to
their well-shod feet, and the constant scouring of the boards
did not excite any suspicion in their torpid minds. M.
Letourneur, it is true, did express his surprise that the crew
of an ordinary merchant vessel should be distinguished by
such extraordinary cleanliness; but as I replied to him in
a very casual tone, he passed no further remark. I could
not help regretting that I had given Curtis my pledge of
silence, and longed intensely to communicate the melancholy
secret to the energetic Frenchman; for at times when I reflect upon the eight-and-twenty victims who may probably,
only too soon, be a prey to the relentless flames, my heart
seems ready to burst.

The important consultation between captain, mate, lieutenant and boatswain has taken place. Curtis has confided the
result to me. He says that Huntly, the captain, is completely demoralized; he has lost all power and energy; and
practically leaves the command of the ship to him. It is
now certain the fire is beyond control, and that sooner or
later it will burst out in full violence. The temperature of
the crew's quarters has already become almost unbearable.
One solitary hope remains; it is that we may reach the shore
before the final catastrophe occurs. The Lesser Antilles
are the nearest land; and although they are some five or
six hundred miles away, if the wind remains northeast there
is yet a chance of reaching them in time.

Carrying royals and studding-sails, the Chancellor during
the last four-and-twenty hours has held a steady course. M.
Letourneur is the only one of all the passengers who has remarked the change of tack; Curtis, however, has set all
speculation on his part at rest by telling him that he wanted
to get ahead of the wind, and that he was tacking to the west
to catch a favorable current.

To-day, the 21st, all has gone on as usual; and as far as
the observation of the passengers has reached, the ordinary
routine has been undisturbed. Curtis indulges the hope
even yet that by excluding the air the fire may be stifled before it ignites the general cargo; he has hermetically closed
every accessible aperture, and has even taken the precaution
of plugging the orifices of the pumps, under the impression
that their suction-tubes, running as they do to the bottom of
the hold, may possibly be channels for conveying some
molecules of air. Altogether, he considers it a good sign
that the combustion has not betrayed itself by some external
issue of smoke.

The day would have passed without any incident worth
recording, if I had not chanced to overhear a fragment of
a conversation which demonstrated that our situation,
hitherto precarious enough, had now become most appalling.

As I was sitting on the poop, two of my fellow-passengers,
Falsten, the engineer, and Ruby, the merchant, whom I had
observed to be often in company, were engaged in conversation almost close to me. What they said was evidently not
intended for my hearing, but my attention was directed toward them by some very emphatic gestures of dissatisfaction
on the part of Falsten, and I could not forbear listening to
what followed.

"Preposterous! shameful!" exclaimed Falsten; "nothing
could be more imprudent."

"Pooh! pooh!" replied Ruby, "it's all right; it is not the
first time I have done it."