R. L. Wheeler

“ It was a horrible sound, especially to Brand, who, with one hoarse scream, bounded backward on beholding the apparition suddenly vanish, as if melting away in the air.
At the noise made by Brand, Turk, followed by Harry, rushed back into the hold.
"What is the matter?"
"Nothing," gasped Brand; "nothing at all."
There were big drops of sweat upon his brow, his eyes protruded, while great, purple rings spread around them.
"Nothing," said Turk; "ay, ay, now, but there must be something the matter with ye, Cap. D'ye feel hungry?" ”

“ The floor of this cave seemed to extend downward, while far ahead of them, they beheld the fiery gleam of the volcano.
"This is our way," shouted Turk. "Come, lad, come!"
He dove into the cavern, followed by his friend, both believing that when they should arrive at the terminus of this sloping tunnel, they would find a way to the top of the cliff!
Encouraged by this hope, Harry sped on with a swiftness, which soon carried him far beyond his friend.
In a few minutes he had gained the further end of the cavern, when Turk heard his wild despairing cry ringing out like that of a wounded wolf. ”

“ Mary, who, hearing of her lover's peril, had ventured on deck in spite of the storm, sprang towards him.
"Ay, ay, now, lass!" exclaimed Turk, "mustn't be in too much of a hurry to go, as there's a mighty danger of our all goin' before long. Bless your pretty eyes! that's what I call a collapse!" as Mary impulsively threw her arms around her lover's neck, in her joy at his safety.
On went the vessel, booming, crashing, thundering on her course, with all her timbers quivering, as if about to fly apart.
"Oh, Harry!" exclaimed Mary, "will this storm ever be over!" ”

“ When daylight stole upon the sea they looked toward the spot, far astern, where the island had been but where there was nothing now to mark the spot except a mass of agitated waters, gradually subsiding.
Straight and tall, at the stern of the canoe, sat the stranger guide, he whose features had previously been hidden and the breadfruit leaf, now thrust aside.
Brand, who had been gazing toward the place he occupied, ever since the day began to break, now was visibly agitated. He trembled all over, while his face was perfectly ghastly. ”

“ The scream of the imperiled one now rang down the cliff penetrating the hearts of the two men like a knife.
"Good God!" cried Harry; "oh, Turk! Turk! let us see if we cannot yet get to her, before the demons do their foul work."
The increased thunder of the volcano seemed to mock his voice. The air and sky reddened by the lurid gleam, seemed filled with a crimson mist rolling in clouds round the swaying forms, and shrouding them from sight. ”

“ Mary Manton now opened her eyes. The plank to which she was attached had by this time drifted out of range of the stream of light, but Harry and Turk could see the gleam of those bright orbs through the darkness.
"Why! where am I? Harry! Harry! where are you?" exclaimed the poor girl, while shudder after shudder convulsed her frame.
"I am here, Mary!" he answered. "Cheer up! You are with friends. We may, in time, succeed in reaching land." ”

“ Brand ate heartily, but poor Mary, almost maddened by her grief, would not even look at what was proffered her.
"Harry is dead! dead!" was the continual cry of her anguished soul.
Meanwhile the whole island was rocking like a floating ship. Showers of fire, roaring thunder, flew from the volcanic peak.
The natives looked at each other. Presently the chief spoke.
"The islee will be swallowed in fire," said he; "the spirit which spoke, did not tell right. It is a bad spirit, which Islander must not mind. It said if Islander spare white men's life, no harm come. See! here is harm. ”

“ An hour had passed, when, suddenly, Mary pointed far astern towards a long, dark object, apparently shooting out from the shore.
"What is that?"
"A canoe, by ——!" ejaculated Brand. "We may as well give up, now!"
"No!" exclaimed Harry, resolutely. "We will not give up! If I mistake not," he added, pointing towards a dark mass, floating through the air to windward of them, "there is a fog coming up! This will screen us from our pursuers!"
"I am glad of that," said Mary, thankfully.
"I'm not so sure it will screen us!" said Brand, "them savages are cunnin' rascals!" ”

“ Brand, walking his quarter-deck, kept his eyes steadily averted from her face.
Gradually darkness stole round the vessel, when, far ahead, a bright, lurid light broke upon the vision of Mary Manton.
"What is that?" she inquired of her lover.
He informed her that it was a volcano.
"Then that is the volcanic island where we are to search," said Mary.
"Yes," answered Harry, "but you must not hope to discover anything. From this point no man could hardly hope to swim to that island." ”

“ Harry did so, and was soon followed by Turk.
In the hollow tree, the two now glanced up, to see through an opening in the trunk, broken half way off, the lurid gleam of the volcanic fire.
"Here we are, moles as is moles!" exclaimed Turk.
Meanwhile the shouts of the savages, who, it was evident, had now come upon the footprints of the two seamen on the ground, were heard outside of the tree.
"They will of course discover us, after all!" said Harry, "and we will have to die. Better to have fallen in defense of Mary." ”

“ The effect was instantaneous; color came to her cheeks, and she opened her beautiful blue eyes, which were turned upon her lover before she spoke.
"Harry! Where are we now? Are you perfectly safe—uninjured—"
"Ay, ay," interrupted Turk; "that's the way with her sect, always a-thinkin' of t'others before themselves."
"I am perfectly well, and uninjured," answered Harry, as he helped Mary to her feet. "Come, Turk," he added, to the old sailor, "let us get some kind of a shelter up for this poor child!" ”

“ Still your appearance surprised me a little, as I had thought that no persons except ourselves, had succeeded in reaching this island from the wreck."
"It was a narrow escape for me," answered Brand; "the current which runs round the extremity of this island, caught me, and I would have been whirled past the land, do you see, but for my catching the spur of a rock by which I just succeeded in drawing myself ashore."
"Bad eggs always float," said Turk, making a grimace.
"What mean you, you rascal?" cried Brand; "are you regrettin' my escape?" ”

“ The white people now were nearer the canoe than the savages themselves.
"Come!" screamed the guide, as he made towards the light vessel. "Come!"
He beckoned, as he spoke, to the young girl and the seamen, all of whom made haste to follow him.
The savages below, now, for the first time, caught sight of the white party, and made for them with great swiftness, yelling and brandishing their spears.
"There's sartinly no time to lose," exclaimed Turk, as he assisted his friend to help Mary along; "if them blackskins get at us now, they'll make sure work of it by pinning us to the ground." ”

“ Harry now assisted Turk in his work on the boat. There had been found that morning in the schooner an old hatchet with which Turk had knocked away a large quantity of timber from the wreck to be conveyed to the spot where he intended erecting his boat.
Working all day, the men made good progress.
Brand worked as hard as the rest. It was not the danger from the volcano alone that urged him on in his efforts, but the continual harassing fear, of again beholding that fearful apparition of his drownded victim. ”

“ On one side of them there was a wide cleft, in which a line of fire was seen, glowing like a red hot iron. The slightest mis-step on the part of the adventurers in their endeavors to reach the ledge, must precipitate them into the cleft.
To get to their destination, they must move along a narrow ridge not more than two inches wide, with nothing at the side of the rock to clutch except a slightly rugged surface which must afford them a very insecure hold.
"This is dang'rous traveling," remarked Turk, "worse than walkin' on a railroad track over a rottin bridge." ”

“ As the young man spoke, the ship suddenly fell off, when, with a crash and a roar like a thunderbolt, a huge cataract of water was borne directly across the vessel, carrying away the wheelhouse with the man at the helm, the caboose, a part of the forecastle, and last, but by far not least, all the boats, which, as Harry had stated, were become loosened in their lashings.
This catastrophe held every man mute after he had saved himself from going overboard. ”

“ To waken Turk and Brand was the work of a moment. Both sprang up to hear Harry's explanation.
"We have no arms!" said Brand, "and so we had better be scuddin' off as soon as possible!"
Turk thrust his hand in his pocket, and pulling forth his flask of grog, eyed it wistfully and anxiously.
"Sooner than this should fall in the hands of them savages," he exclaimed, "I had better put it, do you see where by rights it belongs, meanin' the stomach of Tom Turk!" ”

“ I think I see land, now! at all events there are breakers."
Turk looked in the indicated direction, to behold a long line of white water gleaming through the darkness.
"Ay! ay!" he shouted, in a ringing voice, "there is land, sure enough. Cheer up, lass, we are near land after all."
"I am afraid our shipmates will not succeed in reaching it," said Harry, "as they must be far to leeward of us by this time."
"There's no tellin'," answered Turk; "but I'm afraid not. I hope, hows'ever, the poor lads will be picked up, [Pg 33] between this and to-morrow night, by some passing craft." ”

“ Mary struggled in vain. Brand drew her along with him into the shadow of a small cavern in the foot of the cliff.
"Hark!" he said, "you must not cry out."
Attracted probably by her cries, several natives soon presented themselves at the entrance of the cavern.
Brand, being unarmed, could do nothing. Several spears were pointed at his heart and that of his companion.
An islander—a huge fellow with great rings tattooed like bracelets all over both his arms; evidently a chief, interposed.
"No strike!" he exclaimed, in broken English, "this's too much quick death. Best take and chokee slow." ”

“ Could they reach the girl and bring her to the surface, they might easily manage to lash her to some one of the many planks and spars floating around them, and faintly revealed in the lurid gleam streaming along the waters from the volcano, now less than two miles distant.
Down under the sea, Turk and his friend finally came upon the girl, when, with one blow of his knife, hold ready in his right hand, Harry severed the rope holding Mary to the raft. ”

“ Turk went to the raft, and, procuring his flask, in which there still remained a few drops, he filled it from the hollow, and returning, presented it to Mary.
"This is for you, my lass," said he.
Meanwhile, Brand filled his bottle, holding about twice as much as Turk's.
Neither Harry nor the old seaman said anything; but they exchanged glances, which said plainly:
"When we want water for the girl, we will know where to get it."
Walking about the rocks, Harry suddenly uttered a glad cry. ”

“ This person, probably from his greater familiarity with the mountain paths, had distanced his pursuers who, like Harry Glenville and Turk, soon became puzzled as to their course, and thus lost track of the fugitive.
Coming upon the fearful scene near the fire chasm, the strong man had found it easy to leap from his position, snatch the girl from the already relaxed grasp of her tormentors, and make considerable headway before the natives could recover sufficiently from their surprise to start in pursuit. ”

“ Turk wanted to commence at once upon his boat, Brand, sullen, glowering and silent, seemed inclined to do nothing, while Mary and Glenville concluded to walk off by themselves to explore the island.
Striking through the shrubbery, the young people soon found themselves at the foot of the peak on which was the volcano. ”

“ The impetus thus given to the raft can be hardly credited.
Away it went, rippling the water, at the rate of about three knots.
It was nearly sundown, when Tom Turk suddenly balancing himself upon his toes, was heard singing out:
"Land, oh!"
"Another delusion," bitterly exclaimed Harry, not even attempting to rise from his position by Mary's side.
"I'm sartin, this time!" exclaimed the old sailor; "fog never looks like them black things thereaway," pointing westward.
Harry and Brand were up in a moment, to discover that the old tar had indeed spoken truth. ”

“ Manton!"
In a few minutes, the captain recovered, staring wildly around him, until his eye was caught by the spectacle of the old man astern, when he started back with an affrighted cry.
"It is real flesh and blood, then," he exclaimed.
"Why, of course, Cap," answered Turk, "you don't suppose, I hope, that we'd take a ghost passenger!"
"Real flesh and blood," continued Brand, an expression of relief passing over his face, as he noticed the vacant stare of Mr. Manton, showing that the latter did not recognize him. "I am glad of it—ay, very glad. ”

“ The air was still full of flying sparks, and of lava stones which dropped in showers into the water.
For full half an hour the commotion continued, when, [Pg 95] suddenly, the doomed island disappeared forever, while the agitated waves continued to bubble and boil long afterwards, over the spot where it had existed.
Gradually the fearful red lustre of sky and sea died away. A gloom, appalling from its strange suddenness, fell upon the sea.
The canoe with its occupants floated in darkness upon the agitated waters. ”

“ It's plain they're after some one among us, which I may premise by sayin' ain't me nor Harry, nor this young lass."
Brand frowned darkly.
"How know you that I'm not as good as the rest of you," said he.
"Honestly speakin', Cap, I don't think you are," exclaimed the old tar, bluntly.
"I've always led a good life," said Brand, shunning the great blue eyes of Mary.
There was a rumble like thunder under ground, then a report like the discharge of musketry.
"The devils is a-firin' off their muskets to celebrate that lie of yours, Cap," remarked Turk, as he turned to his work. ”

“ Turk, who had taken a turn round the upper branch, was thus enabled to draw him safely up.
In a few seconds both men were on the ground, about to move in the direction of the base of the cliff to meet Mary and Brand, when they beheld the forms of the natives, stealing along from their canoe.
"Ay, ay, now!" whispered Turk, "this is calamitous."
"We must save Mary at all hazards," exclaimed Harry, impulsively, as he bounded forward.
"S—sh!" whispered Turk, "jest see there! They have got the poor gal and that Brand already," pointing to the natives, lugging of their prisoners. ”

“ On the quarter deck, by the side of Mary Manton, stood Harry Granville, her lover, endeavoring to cheer her spirits, which had drooped ever since the fearful news of her father's disappearance from the Maxwell.
Brand, superintending the work aboard the vessel, watched the lovers askance. The presence of the daughter of the very man he had pushed overboard, made him feel uneasy. ”