But there was a great deal of discontent among them.
"I declare I've had enough," said Pen; "and if we are not free in three days, I swear I sha'n't stir a finger to get the ship out."
"Not stir a finger!" answered Plover1; "you'd better use them in getting back. Do you think we want to stay here till next year?"
"It certainly would be a hard winter," said Pen, "for we are exposed on all sides."
"And who knows," said Brunton, "whether next spring the sea will be any freer than it is now?"
"Never mind about next spring," answered Pen; "to-day is Thursday; if the way is not clear Sunday morning, we shall turn back to the south."
"Good!" cried Clifton.
"Don't you agree with me?" asked Pen.
"We do," cried his companions.
"That's so," said Warren; "for if we have to work in this way and haul the ship along with our own arms, I think it would be as well to haul her backwards2."
"We shall do that on Sunday," said Wolston.
"Only give me the order," resumed Brunton, "and my fires shall be lighted."
"Well," remarked Clifton, "we shall light them ourselves."
"If any officer," said Pen, "is anxious to spend the winter here, he can; we can leave him here contentedly3; he'll find it easy to build a hut like the Esquimaux."
"Not at all, Pen," retorted Brunton, quickly; "we sha'n't abandon any one here; do you understand that, all of you? I think it won't be hard to persuade the commander; he seems to me to be very much discouraged, and if we propose it to him gently—"
"But," interrupted Plover, "Richard Shandon is often very obstinate4; we shall have to sound him cautiously."
"When I think," said Bolton, with a sigh of longing5, "that in a month we might be back in Liverpool! We can easily pass the line of ice at the south! Davis Strait will be open by the beginning of June, and then we shall have nothing but the free Atlantic before us."
"Besides," said the cautious Clifton, "if we take the commander back with us, and act under his commands, we shall have earned our pay; but if we go back without him, it's not so sure."
"True," said Plover; "Clifton talks sense. Let's try not to get into any trouble with the Admiralty, that's safer, and don't let us leave any one behind."
"But if they refuse to come with us?" continued Pen, who wished to compel his companions to stand by him.
They found it hard to answer the question thus squarely put them.
"We shall see about that when the time comes," replied Bolton; "it will be enough to bring Richard Shandon over to our side, and I fancy that won't be hard."
"There's one I shall leave here," exclaimed Pen with fierce oaths, "even if he should bite my arm off."
"O, the dog!" said Plover.
"Yes, that dog! I shall soon settle accounts with him."
"So much the better," retorted Clifton, returning to his favorite theory; "he is the cause of all our troubles."
"He has thrown an evil spell upon us," said Plover.
"He led us into the ice," remarked Gripper.
"He brought more ice in our way," said Wolston, "than was ever seen at this season."
"He made my eyes sore," said Brunton.
"He shut off the gin and brandy," cried Pen.
"He's the cause of everything," they all exclaimed excitedly.
"And then," added Clifton, "he's the captain."
"Well, you unlucky Captain," cried Pen, whose unreasonable6 fury grew with the sound of his own words, "you wanted to come here, and here you shall stay!"
"But how shall we get hold of him?" said Plover.
"Well, now is a good time," answered Clifton. "The commander is away; the second mate is asleep in his cabin; the fog is so thick that Johnson can't see us—"
"But the dog?" said Pen.
"He's asleep in the coal," answered Clifton, "and if any one wants—"
"I'll see to it," replied Pen, angrily.
"Take care, Pen; his teeth would go through a bar of iron."
"If he stirs, I'll rip him open," answered Pen, drawing his knife.
And he ran down between decks, followed by Warren, who was anxious to help him.
Soon they both returned, carrying the dog in their arms; his mouth and paws were securely tied; they had caught him asleep, and the poor dog could not escape them.
"And what are you going to do with him now?" asked Clifton.
"Drown him, and if he ever comes back—" answered Pen with a smile of satisfaction.
Two hundred feet from the vessel8 there was a hole in the ice, a sort of circular crevasse9, made by the seals with their teeth, and always dug out from the inside to the outside; it was there that the seals used to come to breathe on the surface of the ice; but they were compelled to take care to prevent the aperture10 from closing, for the shape of their jaws11 did not permit them to make the hole from the outside, and in any danger they would not be able to escape from their enemies.
Pen and Warren hastened to this crevasse, and then, in spite of his obstinate struggles, the dog was pitilessly cast into the sea; a huge cake of ice they then rolled over the aperture, closing all means of escape for the poor dog, thus locked in a watery12 prison.
The dog was cast into the sea
Soon they returned on board; Johnson had seen nothing of it all; the fog was growing thick about the ship, and the snow was beginning to fall with violence.
Shandon had observed in the northeast a passage, which he determined15 to try. He gave his orders to that effect; the crew obeyed with a certain activity; they wanted to convince Shandon of the impossibility of a farther advance, and besides, they had before them three days of obedience16.
During a part of the following night and day the sawing and towing went on busily; the Forward made about two miles of progress. On the 18th they were in sight of land, five or six cable-lengths from a strange peak, to which its singular shape had given the name of the Devil's Thumb.
The Devil's Thumb
At this very place the Prince Albert, in 1851, the Advance, with Kane, in 1853, had been caught in the ice for many weeks.
The odd shape of the Devil's Thumb, the barren and desolate17 surroundings, which consisted of huge icebergs18 often more than three hundred feet high, the cracking of the ice, repeated indefinitely by the echo, made the position of the Forward a very gloomy one. Shandon saw that it was necessary to get away from there; within twenty-four hours, he calculated he would be able to get two miles from the spot. But that was not enough. Shandon felt himself embarrassed by fear, and the false position in which he was placed benumbed his energy; to obey his instructions in order to advance, he had brought his ship into a dangerous position; the towing wore out his men; more than three hours were necessary to cut a canal twenty feet in length through ice which was generally four or five feet thick; the health of the crew gave signs of failing. Shandon was astonished at the silence of the men, and their unaccustomed obedience; but he feared it was only the calm that foreboded a storm.
We can, then, easily judge of the painful surprise, disappointment, and even despair which seized upon him, when he noticed that by means of an imperceptible movement in the ice, the Forward lost in the night of the 18th all that had been gained by such toilsome efforts; on Saturday morning he was opposite the Devil's Thumb, in a still more critical position; the icebergs increased in number and passed by in the mist like phantoms19.
Shandon was thoroughly20 demoralized; it must be said that fear seized both this bold man and all his crew. Shandon had heard of the disappearance21 of the dog; but he did not dare to punish the guilty persons; he feared exciting a mutiny.
The weather during that day was horrible; the snow, caught up in dense22 whirls, covered the brig with an impenetrable veil; at times, under the influence of the hurricane, the fog would rise, and their terror-stricken eyes beheld23 the Devil's Thumb rising on the shore like a spectre.
The Forward was anchored to a large piece of ice; there was nothing to be done, nothing to be tried; darkness was spreading about them, and the man at the helm could not see James Wall, who was on watch forward.
Shandon withdrew to his cabin, a prey24 to perpetual disquiet25; the doctor was arranging his notes of the expedition; some of the crew were on the deck, others in the common room.
At a moment when the violence of the storm was redoubling, the Devil's Thumb seemed to rise immoderately from the mist.
"What's the matter?" asked Foker.
Soon shouts were heard on all sides.
"It's going to crush us!"
"We are lost!"
"Mr. Wall, Mr. Wall!"
"It's all over!"
"Commander, Commander!"
All these cries were uttered by the men on watch.
Wall hastened to the after-deck; Shandon, followed by the doctor, flew to the deck and looked out.
Through a rift27 in the mist, the Devil's Thumb appeared to have suddenly come near the brig; it seemed to have grown enormously in size; on its summit was balanced a second cone28, upside down, and revolving29 on its point; it threatened to crush the ship with its enormous mass; it wavered, ready to fall down. It was an alarming sight. Every one drew back instinctively30, and many of the men, jumping upon the ice, abandoned the ship.
It wavered, ready to fall down
"Let no one move!" cried the commander with a loud voice; "every one to his place!"
"My friends, don't be frightened," said the doctor, "there is no danger! See, Commander, see, Mr. Wall, that's the mirage31 and nothing else."
"You are right, Dr. Clawbonny," replied Johnson; "they've all been frightened by a shadow."
When they had heard what the doctor said, most of the sailors drew near him, and from terror they turned to admiration32 of this wonderful phenomenon, which soon passed from their view.
"They call that a mirage," said Clifton; "the Devil's at the bottom of it, I'm sure."
But the break in the fog had given the commander a glimpse of a broad passage which he had not expected to find; it promised to lead him away from the shore; he resolved to make use of it at once; men were sent out on each side of the canal; hawsers34 were given them, and they began to tow the ship northward35.
During long hours this work was prosecuted36 busily but silently; Shandon had the furnace-fires lighted to help him through this passage so providentially discovered.
"That's great luck," he said to Johnson, "and if we can only get on a few miles, we may be free. Make a hot fire, Mr. Brunton, and let me know as soon as you get steam on. Meanwhile, men, the farther on we get, the more gained! You want to get away from the Devil's Thumb; well, now is your chance!"
Suddenly the brig stopped. "What's the matter?" shouted Shandon. "Wall, have the tow-ropes broken?"
"No," answered Wall, leaning over the railing. "See, there are the men running back; they are climbing on board; they seem very much frightened."
"What's happened?" cried Shandon, running forward.
"On board, on board!" cried the sailors, evidently exceedingly terrified.
A strange animal, with alarming motions, whose steaming tongue hung from huge jaws, was bounding along within a cable's length from the ship; it seemed more than twenty feet high; its hair stood on end; it was chasing the sailors as if about to seize them, while its tail, which was at least ten feet long, lashed38 the snow and tossed it about in dense gusts39. The sight of the monster froze the blood in the veins40 of the boldest.
A strange animal was bounding
"A strange animal was bounding along within a cable's length from the ship."
"It's an enormous bear," said one.
"It's the beast of Gévaudan!"
"It's the lion of the Apocalypse!"
Shandon ran to his cabin to get a gun which he kept always loaded; the doctor seized his arms, and made ready to fire at the beast, which by its size, recalled antediluvian41 monsters.
It drew near with long leaps; Shandon and the doctor fired at the same time, and suddenly the report of the pieces agitated42 the air and produced an unlooked-for effect.
The doctor gazed attentively43, and could not help bursting out laughing. "It's refraction!" said he.
"Refraction!" cried Shandon.
But a terrible cry from the crew interrupted them.
"The dog!" shouted Clifton.
"The dog-captain!" repeated his companions.
"It's he!" cried Pen.
In fact, it was the dog who had burst his bonds and had made his way to the surface of the ice through another hole. At that moment the refraction, by a phenomenon common in these latitudes44, exaggerated his size, and this had only been broken by the report of the guns; but, notwithstanding, a disastrous45 impression had been produced upon the minds of the sailors, who were not very much inclined to admit any explanation of the fact from physical causes. The adventure of the Devil's Thumb, the reappearance of the dog under such peculiar46 circumstances, completely upset them, and murmurs47 arose on all sides.
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1
plover
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| n.珩，珩科鸟，千鸟 | |
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backwards
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| adv.往回地，向原处，倒，相反，前后倒置地 | |
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3
contentedly
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| adv.心满意足地 | |
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obstinate
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| adj.顽固的，倔强的，不易屈服的，较难治愈的 | |
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longing
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| n.（for）渴望 | |
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6
unreasonable
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| adj.不讲道理的，不合情理的，过度的 | |
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7
hurrah
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| int.好哇，万岁，乌拉 | |
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8
vessel
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| n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管 | |
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9
crevasse
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| n. 裂缝，破口；v.使有裂缝 | |
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10
aperture
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| n.孔，隙，窄的缺口 | |
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11
jaws
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| n.口部；嘴 | |
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12
watery
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| adj.有水的，水汪汪的；湿的，湿润的 | |
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brutal
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| adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的 | |
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14
regained
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| 复得( regain的过去式和过去分词 )； 赢回； 重回； 复至某地 | |
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15
determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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obedience
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| n.服从，顺从 | |
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17
desolate
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| adj.荒凉的，荒芜的；孤独的，凄凉的；v.使荒芜，使孤寂 | |
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18
icebergs
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| n.冰山，流冰( iceberg的名词复数 ) | |
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19
phantoms
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| n.鬼怪，幽灵( phantom的名词复数 ) | |
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20
thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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21
disappearance
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| n.消失，消散，失踪 | |
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22
dense
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| a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的 | |
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23
beheld
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| v.看，注视( behold的过去式和过去分词 )；瞧；看呀；（叙述中用于引出某人意外的出现）哎哟 | |
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24
prey
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| n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨 | |
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disquiet
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| n.担心，焦虑 | |
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26
recoiling
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| v.畏缩( recoil的现在分词 )；退缩；报应；返回 | |
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27
rift
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| n.裂口，隙缝，切口；v.裂开，割开，渗入 | |
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28
cone
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| n.圆锥体，圆锥形东西，球果 | |
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revolving
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| adj.旋转的，轮转式的；循环的v.（使）旋转( revolve的现在分词 )；细想 | |
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instinctively
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| adv.本能地 | |
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31
mirage
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| n.海市蜃楼，幻景 | |
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32
admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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33
growled
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| v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 )；低声咆哮着说 | |
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34
hawsers
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| n.（供系船或下锚用的）缆索，锚链( hawser的名词复数 ) | |
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35
northward
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| adv.向北；n.北方的地区 | |
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36
prosecuted
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| a.被起诉的 | |
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37
shuddered
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| v.战栗( shudder的过去式和过去分词 )；发抖；（机器、车辆等）突然震动；颤动 | |
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38
lashed
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| adj.具睫毛的v.鞭打( lash的过去式和过去分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥 | |
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39
gusts
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| 一阵强风( gust的名词复数 )； （怒、笑等的）爆发； （感情的）迸发； 发作 | |
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40
veins
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| n.纹理；矿脉( vein的名词复数 )；静脉；叶脉；纹理 | |
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41
antediluvian
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| adj.史前的，陈旧的 | |
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42
agitated
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| adj.被鼓动的，不安的 | |
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43
attentively
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| adv.聚精会神地；周到地；谛；凝神 | |
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44
latitudes
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| 纬度 | |
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45
disastrous
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| adj.灾难性的，造成灾害的；极坏的，很糟的 | |
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46
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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47
murmurs
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| n.低沉、连续而不清的声音( murmur的名词复数 )；低语声；怨言；嘀咕 | |
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