A Chapter of Adventures, Page 2

  CHAPTER II.

  CAUGHT BY THE TIDE.

  JACK ran home.

  "I thought you would have been in by two o'clock, Jack," his mother saidreproachfully, "so as to see Lily before she went off to school again."

  "So I should have done, mother, but I had to stick at the work until wehad finished up to the water-line. Uncle Ben thought it was not worthwhile knocking off."

  Jack's meal of bread and bacon was soon finished, then he waited alittle until Lily had returned from school.

  "Come on, Lil," he said, "I have been waiting to take you out with me."

  "Be in by six," Mrs. Robson said.

  "All right, mother! We are only just going down to the shore."

  Near the little coast-guard station they came upon Bill Corbett.

  "Can you come to-morrow, Jack?"

  "Yes; uncle has agreed to do without me. What time are you going tostart?"

  "We will go out as late as we can, Jack. We can get down the creek tillthree anyhow, so at three o'clock you be ready down here."

  "Joe is going, I suppose?"

  "Oh, yes, he does to carry the cockles to the boat while we scrape themout. That is a nice bawley, that new one there; she only came in thistide. That is the boat Tom Parker has had built at Brightlingsea. Heexpects she is going to beat the fleet. She will want to be a rare goodone if she does, and I don't think Tom is the man to get the most out ofher anyhow."

  "I don't reckon he is," Jack agreed. "He would never have bought thatboat out of his own earnings, that is certain. It is lucky for him hisuncle in town died and left him four hundred pounds. He is one of thelazy ones, he is. Half the times he never goes out at all. It is eithertoo rough, or there ain't wind enough, or he don't think it is a likelyday for fish. His mother will do a sight better now that he has got aboat of his own, and she will get someone else to work hers. I shouldnot like to work on shares with him though he has got a new boat andgear."

  "Well, I must be going," Bill said. "Shall I knock at your door as Ipass in the morning?"

  "You will find me there as the clock strikes three, Bill; but if Iain't, you knock."

  Bill Corbett, who was a lad some two years older than Jack, strolledaway. Jack and Lily sat down on the sloping stage from which thecoast-guardsmen launched their boats, and began to chat to the manstanding with a telescope under his arm at the door of the boat-shed.Jack was very fond of talking to the coast-guardsmen. They had not, likethe fishermen, spent all their lives between Gravesend and Harwich, buthad sailed with big ships and been to foreign parts. One of them hadbeen in the China War, another had fought in India with Peel's NavalBrigade, had helped batter down the palace fortresses of Lucknow, andwhen in the humour they had plenty of tales of stirring incident torelate.

  Jack was a favourite with the coast-guardsmen, for he possessed thevirtue rare in boys of being able to sit still; and as his favouriteplace was the slip in front of the boat-house, and he would sit therecutting out toy boats by the hour, he generally came in for a good dealof talk with the men who happened to be on duty. This afternoon,however, the men were busy burnishing up their arms and gettingeverything into apple-pie order, as the inspecting officer was to comeon his rounds the next morning; so Jack after a time strolled along thepath between the railway and the track, Lily prattling by his side andstopping to gather wild convolvulus and grasses. The sea was out now,and the mud stretched away, glistening red and brown in the sunlight.Beyond in the Ray lay a long line of bawleys, while a score or morenearer at hand lay heeled over on the mud as they had been left by thereceding tide.

  To a stranger the black hulks would have looked exactly like each other;but the Leigh men could tell every boat afloat or ashore, even withoutlooking at the number painted on her bulwarks, just as a shepherd canpick out one sheep from a flock.

  "It is time to go back, Lily," Jack said at last. "Mother said we wereto be in at six, and it cannot be far off that now. There is theYarmouth steamer going up. It is about her time."

  "How do you know it is the Yarmouth steamer, Jack?"

  "Oh, I don't know. I know her by her look. I know pretty near all ofthem--the Yarmouth, the Scotch, and the Dutch boats."

  "They all look to me alike."

  "Ah! that is because they are a long way oft, Lily. There is a lot ofdifference between them when you are close. We know them all, and whichwhistles if we are in the way, and which will give way for us, and whichwill come right on without minding whether they run us down or not. Thecolliers are the worst for that; they just go straight on, and expectyou to get out of the way, and don't mind a rap about the rule of theroad or anything else. I should like to see half a dozen of thosecaptains hanged."

  "I do not think it is right to say that, Jack."

  "Well, I should like to see them get five dozen lashes anyhow," Jacksaid, "well laid on by some of our fishermen. They would give it 'emheartily, and it would do them a world of good, and save many a lifeafterwards. It is too bad the way those fellows go on; they don't care abit about running down a small craft in the dark. In the first place,they know very well that they are not likely to be recognized, and sosteam straight on, and leave men to drown; and in the next, if they arerecognized, they are ready to swear that black is white all round, andwill take their oaths you hadn't got your side-lights burning, or thatyou changed your course, and that they did all in their power to preventa collision. I wish some of the people of the Board of Trade would comedown the river sometimes in sailing-boats and see the way these coastersset the law at defiance, and fine them smartly. What is the use ofmaking rules if they are never observed? Well, here we are home, and thechurch is just striking six, so we have hit off the time nicely."

  By eight o'clock Jack was in bed, and having acquired the fisherman'shabit of waking at any hour he chose, he was at the door when BillCorbett and his brother Joe came along. The day was already breakingfaintly in the east, for the month was May.

  "Going to be fine, Bill?" Jack asked.

  "Dunno. Wind is blowing strong from the north, though we don't feel ithere."

  The water was off the flats and had sunk some distance in the creek.

  "It is lower than I expected," Bill said. "Come on; come on."

  "Where is she, Bill?"

  "Close to the foot of the steps."

  The boat had already taken ground; but Bill, getting into the water withhis high boots, shoved her off. The mast was stepped and sail hoisted,and she was soon running fast down the creek.

  "The boats were off an hour ago, I suppose?" Jack remarked.

  "Ay, more than that. Some of them turned out at half-past one. But thosewhose boats were down the channel didn't go for half an hour later.Father told me. I saw him before I started. He couldn't sleep with thepain in his leg."

  Twenty minutes' sailing took them down to the mouth of the creek andinto the wider channel. They now turned the boat's head directly offshore, and jibed the sail, and bore off for the sands stretching awayfrom the end of Canvey Island.

  "No other boats here this morning?" Jack asked as the boat ran ashore.

  "No; three or four of them went down to Shoebury last night. They saythere are more cockles down there than there are here now. But fathersaid we had best come here. I suppose he thought that Joe, you, and me,made but a poor cocklers' crew. Of course, with the wind blowing offshore, it is all right anyhow; but men never think us boys can doanything. Why, I would not mind a bit starting, us three, for Harwich. Ireckon these boats are just as safe as the bawleys?"

  "I think so too; but they want more handling. However, I expect we couldmanage it."

  They had now got out their implements, consisting of a shovel, a largerake, and a couple of baskets, on shore, and fastening the boat with agrapnel, went to the place where experience had taught them it was bestto dig, and were soon at work. The cockles were for the most part buriedsome five or six inches in the sand, and were found in great numbers;the two elder boys digging and raking while Joe picked them up, andthrew them into the baskets. As these were filled Bill carried them downon his shoulder to the boat, put the baskets into the water, gave them aheave or two to wash some of the sand off the cockles, and then emptiedthem into the boat.

  It was a broad-beamed craft, of over twenty feet long, and would carrymore than a ton of cockles if filled up.

  The sun had long been up, the clouds were flying fast across the sky,and the wind was working round to the east, knocking up a short choppysea as it met the ebb, and covering the river with white horses.

  The boys worked away sturdily, ceasing occasionally from their laboursto go down and shove the boat further off as the tide fell. At six itwas dead low. They had each brought with them a bag with some bread andcheese, and a tin of cold tea, and now sat down on the gunwale of theboat for breakfast. Having finished that meal, they continued their worktill nine o'clock, by which time they had got several bushels on board.

  "Look there!" Joe exclaimed suddenly; "there is a big steamer has run onto the Middle Ground."

  The boys had just thrown down their spade and rake, and had agreed toknock off, and they now ran across to the outside of the strip of sand,which had by this time narrowed very considerably.

  "She will get off easy enough as the tide rises," Joe said; "but theywon't be able to back her off now."

  "No; she does not move in the least," Jack agreed. "Her screw is workinghard astern now. Look how high her head is. She has run a long way upwith wind and tide and steam. She must have gone on it hard."

  "She had best get a couple of anchors out astern," Bill said, "beforeshe gets broadside on."

  This was evidently also the view of the captain, as two boats werelowered and anchors got into them. But it is no easy matter to row aboat with a heavy weight in it aga
inst wind and tide; and before theyhad got fairly away from the vessel she had already swung round aconsiderable distance, and was heeling over a good deal from the forceof the wind and tide. It was nearly half an hour before the boats werefar enough off to get the anchors over with any effect.

  "They won't dare to haul on them now," Joe said. "They would only comehome. Those anchors ain't heavy enough to work her stern round. I expectwhen a tug comes along they will get them to help, else she will keep ondriving higher and higher."

  "Hallo!" The exclamation came from Jack, who now happened to look roundtowards the boat. They had accidentally taken their stand on the highestpoint of the sand-bank, and in watching the steamer had forgotten allabout the tide, which, under the influence of a north-east wind, hadrisen with great rapidity. The patch of dry sand was scarcely fifteenyards wide, and would be entirely covered in a very few minutes.

  "Look, Bill, the boat has gone!"

  It was true. The grapnel, a very light one, with a short length of rope,had been thrown carelessly down on the sand when they last hauled theboat up, and as the full strength of the tide had caught the boat, ithad dragged a considerable distance, and was drifting away up the Ray.

  "What is to be done?" Joe exclaimed.

  "Do you think we could wade along to the island, Bill?" Jack asked.

  Bill shook his head. "No; there are deep channels where it would be overour heads. I can't swim a stroke, no more can Joe."

  "Shall I swim to the boat, Bill, and try and get her back?"

  Joe shook his head. "She is in deep water now, Jack, and the grapnelain't holding her a bit; she will drift as fast as you can swim. But ofcourse you can try if you like, it don't make any difference to us, foryou could never beat back against this wind and tide. What fools we havebeen, to be sure!"

  "The boats will soon be coming back now," Jack said hopefully. "Thereare some of them this side of the Chapman now."

  Bill shook his head. "It will take them three quarters of an hour tobeat up, Jack."

  Jack turned and looked the other way. "Here are three of them coming infrom the Nore, Bill. They will not be very long before they are up."

  "They will be here before the others, Jack; but I doubt if they will bein time. Water will be breast-high before they get up, and they maydrop anchor down at the mouth of the Ray, and not see us. Our bestchance is the shore."

  He shaded his eyes and looked steadily across at Leigh. "There is a manrunning from the coast-guard station," he said. "There! there are two orthree others running to meet him. Now they are going back together."

  The boys stood looking fixedly at the station.

  "Hooray!" Jack said after a minute; "there comes the boat out of thehouse. Do you see they are getting her down the slip; now she is in thewater." Another minute passed, and then a white sail appeared. "She isheading straight off to us, Bill. With this wind she will be here in aquarter of an hour."

  But the tide was already half-way up to their knees, and the wavesbeginning to splash against them.

  "Will they be here in time, do you think, Bill?" Joe asked.

  "I hope so, Joe," Bill said cheerily. "They would be in plenty of timeif it were not for the force of the tide. Still, I think it is allright."

  The minutes passed rapidly; higher and higher rose the water, and thewaves increased fast in size. It was as much as the boys could do tostand against the sweep of the stream.

  "Bill, you had better take Joe on your shoulders," Jack said. "I haveread that one man can carry another across a stream that he couldn't getover alone."

  "Jump up, young un," Bill said; "and you, Jack, get off your sea-boots.You stand just behind me and hold on, I feel much steadier now that Ihave got Joe on my shoulders. If you feel that you are going, leave goof me, you will only pull me backward holding on; and as you can swimyou are all right. You have only got to keep yourself afloat, the tidewill drift you up to the island in no time."

  "I don't mean to go if I can help it," Jack said. "Of course I could notswim with you two, but if you would lie on your back quiet I mightmanage to keep you up for a bit anyhow."

  The boat, heeling far over to the breeze, was dashing along at a greatpace towards them. It was a question of minutes. Jack found it extremelydifficult to keep his feet, the sand seemed to be scooped out from underthem by the force of the tide. The wind, which was blowing in violentgusts, added to the difficulty of withstanding the force of the currentand waves.

  "Don't pull, Jack," Bill said, "or you will have us over."

  "I can't hold on without, Bill. Which shall I do? Swim off alone, orhold on by you till we all go together?"

  "Go off by yourself, Jack; the boat will be here in five minutes now. Ithink I can hold on until then; anyhow, it is the best chance."

  They were now waist-deep; for, little by little, as the sand gave wayunder their feet, they had been driven backwards towards deeper water.

  "There is one other thing, Bill. Do you think you can shift Joe so as tosit on one shoulder? If I get on your other it will add to your weight."

  "I will try it," Bill said; "I was nearly off my feet then. Get on tomy left shoulder, Joe. Now Jack, you climb up. Yes, I think that isbetter. I should be all right if the sand would not slide away so muchfrom under my feet."

  Several times Jack felt Bill totter and sway; he was fast being sweptback into the deeper water.

  "If you do go, Bill, do you and Joe throw yourselves on your backs, andI will try and hold you up. The boat will be here in no time now."

  She was indeed less than a hundred yards away when Bill exclaimed, "I amgoing!"

  "Keep on your back, Bill!" Jack shouted as he went backwards underwater.

  The three came up close together. Jack seized the others by the hair,and throwing himself on his back, and striking out with his legs, triedto keep them in a similar position with their faces above water. Billlay quietly enough; but Joe struggled to raise his head, and turning,grasped Jack round the body, and in a moment the three were under water.

  Jack kept his presence of mind; he knew that the boat was close at hand,and strove, not to loosen the grasp of his companions, which wasimpossible, but to come to the surface occasionally for an instant.

  Two or three times he managed this, and obtained a breath of air beforehe went under again. The last time, he saw the boat close at hand, and arope fell across his face; but he could not free his hands to grasp it,and went under immediately. His senses were leaving him, when he feltsomething grasp him, and then knew no more till he opened his eyes, andfound himself in the bottom of the boat with his two companions.