Down the Rhine; Or, Young America in Germany by Oliver Optic (best book club books for discussion .txt) 📕

"Yes; but where are we bound?"

"Bound to sea."

"But how long are we to be out?"

"Well, I've boxed the compass, taken an observation, worked up an altitude, swung six and cast out nine,—and I've made up my mind that we shall be out till we return to port again. I may be wrong, but you can figure it up for yourself."

"O, come! Is there any secret about the vessel's destination?" added Herman.

"There's Mr. Fluxion, wearing out the planks of the quarter-deck. He's a good sailor, and a gentleman from his top-lights down to his keelson; and if you ask him, he'll tell you all he has a mind to."

"If he's a gentleman, I hope the forward officers will take lessons of him," added Herman, disgusted with the conduct of the carpenter.

"I shall, for one; for we have so many unlicked cubs on board now, that I am afraid my manners have suffered by being among them," laughed Bitts. "But do you really want to know where we are going, young gentlemen?"

"I do, for one," replied Perth, promptly.

"You won't say a word if I tell you—eh?" added Bitts, very seriously.

"Not a word."

"Well, we are bound down to the coast of Africa to get a cargo of gorillas. Mr. Fluxion is going into the show business."

"You get out!" exclaimed Perth, vexed to find himself "sold."

"I don't know but the plan was changed," continued the carpenter. "Some of them were afraid we might get things mixed on board; and after we got the cargo in, we couldn't tell the gorillas from the runaways."

Bitts thought he had said a clever thing; and, chuckling at his own wit, he turned on his heel, and walked aft to the waist.

"It's no use to ask them anything," said Herman.

"I suppose we may as well keep still, and wait till something turns up," added Perth.

"I don't see that we can do anything else."

"Unless we start the water in the tanks," suggested Perth.

"And have our own supply cut off. I had enough of that sort of thing in the ship. If we don't behave well, the first thing Fluxion will do will be to put us on salt horse and hard bread."

"We won't do anything yet. In my opinion, we shall go into port in a day or two."

At eight bells the starboard watch were piped to dinner, being relieved by the port watch. The wind continued fresh and fair; and the Josephine flew on her course, logging from ten to twelve knots all day. The portion of the crew off duty were not required to recite any lessons, or do anything else. The severe course of study to which Mr. Fluxion had subjected them, during the absence of the rest of the company in France and Switzerland, had enabled them to make up all deficient lessons. The principal had requested Mr. Fluxion not to assign any studies to his charge, unless it became necessary to do so in order to keep them out of mischief. The crew were to serve in quarter watches, from eight at night till eight in the forenoon, though the acting watch officers were to serve full time.

Night came on with the breeze freshening, and the top-gallant-sail was furled. The Josephine then had all she could carry, for Mr. Fluxion was not a fair-weather sailor, and always crowded on all the vessel would stagger under. The wind was more to the eastward than when the schooner left Brest, which still kept it fair. At eight bells in the evening, the first part of the starboard watch took the deck; and the night wore away without any exciting incident to break the monotony. Peaks and Cleats were thorough seamen, and being in authority, they compelled every seaman to do his duty.

The sea was rough in the Bay of Biscay, and the Josephine, though she made good weather of it, was rather wet on deck. But she was making a splendid voyage so far. On the forenoon of the second day out, Perth and Herman, having the watch below, had another discussion in regard to the probable length of the cruise. The vessel was still headed away from Brest; and even if she put about then, it might take her two or three days to work back to the port where they had left the ship. The prospect was decidedly sickening. The Josephine was far out of sight of land, and still headed south-west by west. The officers were as taciturn as on the previous day, so far as the destination of the vessel was concerned, though they were very considerate in every other respect. There was nothing to do after the decks had been washed down in the morning. The wind was a little lighter, and, in addition to the top-gallant-sail, the fore square-sail was set, so that her speed was at no time less than ten knots, and most of the time it was twelve.

"What do you make of it now, Little?" said Ibbotson, just before noon on the second day out. "Do you think we shall get back to Brest in a day or two?"

"Of course we shall."

"Bah! What's the use of talking? We couldn't beat back to Brest now in three days."

"Perhaps we shall make some other port in France," suggested Little, with a sickly smile.

"What! steering south-west by west? Not much! I tell you we are homeward bound."

"Nonsense! Not unless we are going by the way of Cape Horn, Behring's Straits, and the North-west Passage! Keep cool, Ibbotson; we shall come out right yet."

"But we are sold. Lowington has the weather-gage of us, and we are beaten at our own game."

"Not yet."

"Yes, we are. We shall not see the coast of France again this year. I'll bet you Fluxion's starboard whisker, our cruise for this season is up."

"Don't croak."

They all croaked when the vessel had been out thirty hours, and was still persistently headed to the south-west. The day wore wearily away, crowded with doubt, anxiety, and perplexity to the runaways. At three in the afternoon, when the starboard watch were on deck, Peaks, by order of Mr. Fluxion, stationed a lookout in the fore-top. Perth and Herman were the first to do this duty.

"I suppose our game is all up," said the latter, as they seated themselves in the top.

"It don't look very hopeful; but I suppose we are going somewhere," replied Perth. "When we make a port, I'm off, if I have to swim ashore."

"I'm with you; but those five-pound notes will suffer in the water."

"I will look out for them," answered Perth, grating his teeth with anger. "I think we are reduced to common sailors, and I can't stand it."

"One thing is certain; we can't help ourselves. If Fluxion chooses to go round the world with us, we can't do anything but submit."

"I'm not so sure of that. When we find out where he is going, we can figure up what it is best to do. We are not babies, and thirty-one of us can do something. But we will keep still till we ascertain where we are going."

"Look ahead!" said Herman, pointing a little over the port bow. "Isn't that land?"

"It looks like it; but don't say anything yet."

"What can it be?" asked Herman.

"It is Cape Ortegal, if it is anything, on the northwest corner of Spain. We can tell, in a few hours after we come up with the cape, how they head her."

They watched the dark, hazy line for half an hour longer, and then shouted, "Land, ho!" The announcement made a sensation among the runaways, but it afforded no revelation of the purposes of the vice-principal. Still the Josephine sped on her way, and in a few hours was up with Cape Ortegal. She kept on the same course, with the coast of Spain in sight, till dark. Mr. Fluxion remained on deck; for he attended to the navigation himself. At twelve o'clock at night, the first part of the port watch came on deck, and Little and Ibbotson tried to ascertain where they were. The tell-tale still indicated southwest by west as the course. A bright light on the shore bore south-east by south. Mr. Fluxion watched the light and the compass.

"Keep her south-west by south," said he to the hands at the wheel.

"South-west by south," repeated one of the seamen.

"Trim the sails, Mr. Peaks," added the vice-principal.

"Ay, ay! sir. Man the fore-sheet! Now walk away with it! Avast! Belay!" said the acting first officer; and the manœuvre was repeated upon the mainsail.

The yards were trimmed for the new course, and there was nothing more to be done. The seamen not occupied at the helm, or on the lookout, stowed themselves away in comfortable places.

"We are going nearly south now," said Ibbotson, as he and Little seated themselves under the weather rail.

"South-west by south," added Little, gloomily; for even he had almost lost hope.

"I heard Perth say there were over two points and a half variation; and that makes the course about south by west. Where do you suppose we are bound?"

"I can't guess. I suppose we shall fetch up somewhere. When we do, I'm off as soon as the mud-hook finds bottom. I'm not sure that I shall wait till we go into port," added Little, desperately.

"Why, what can you do?"

"We are not more than ten or fifteen miles from the coast of Spain. If we could only drop a boat into the water, I would risk getting ashore."

"You can't do that."

"Fluxion has turned in now. Cleats and Bitts have the next watch," continued Little, suggestively.

"They won't let you off."

"Bitts goes to sleep; and Cleats may go below for something," said Little, dropping his voice to a whisper. "We will talk it over to-morrow with Perth and Herman."

"But you can't do anything."

"Perhaps we can," answered the little villain; but there was not much of his usual elasticity of spirits in his tones.

Ibbotson had no faith, and did not even care to talk about what seemed to him such an impracticable scheme. At four bells they were relieved, and the night wore away without any incident. All the following day the Josephine kept in about the same position with regard to the shore, running rapidly to the southward. Mr. Fluxion "made no sign," and the acting officers were as reticent as ever.

"Perth, I have an idea," said Little, as they met on deck.

"So have I," replied the disgusted leader of the runaways. "I have an idea that we are going round the world. This is our third day out, and no signs of turning back."

"I mean that I have a plan."

"You always have a plan," added Perth, with a sickly grin.

"If you don't want to hear it, all right; but I mean to get out of this scrape, if I can."

"So do I. If we don't do something we shall be the laughing-stock of the whole ship's company, if we ever join them again, of which I have some doubts. Lowington has hauled us up to the bull-ring this time, if he never did before. He has the weather-gage of us."

"That's so."

"If you have a plan, let's hear it."

"O, I won't trouble you with it. You don't think much of my plans."

"Yes, I do. I regard you as a genius in that line. You gave us the plan by which we got off in the Josephine."

"This little thing is for our four fellows only," continued Little, mollified by the credit awarded to him.

"All right; propel."

"We are only ten or fifteen miles from land. This is Portugal off here, I suppose."

"Yes; we shall be off Cape Roca to-night, if the wind keeps up, and I think we go within five or six miles of the shore."

"So much the better."

"Well, what's up?" asked Perth, with a yawn which indicated that he had not much hope of any scheme.

"Cleats and Bitts will be on the mid watch to-night. I notice that Cleats goes into the cabin once or twice in our quarter watch, and I suppose