A couple of boats were
swung, ready to drop on the instant. But, as if to crown the
tragedy with completeness, a heavy squall, which had risen
unnoticed, suddenly burst upon the ship with great fury, the
lashing hail and rain utterly obscuring vision even for a few
yards. So unexpected was the onset of this squall that, for the
only time that voyage, we lost some canvas through not being able
to get it in quick enough. The topgallant halyards were let go;
but while the sails were being clewed up, the fierce wind
following the rain caught them from their confining gear, rending
them into a thousand shreds. For an hour the squall raged--a
tempest in brief--then swept away to the south-east on its
furious journey, leaving peace again. Needless perhaps to say,
that after such a squall it was hopeless to look for our missing
ones. The sudden storm had certainly driven us several miles
away front the spot where they disappeared, and, although we
carefully made what haste was possible back along the line we
were supposed to have come, not a vestige of hope was in any
one's mind that we should ever see them again.
Nor did we. Whether that madness, which I had feared was coming
upon Goliath during our previous night's conversation, suddenly
overpowered him and impelled him to commit the horrible deed,
what more had passed between him and the skipper to even faintly
justify so awful a retaliation--these things were now matters of
purest speculation.
Pages:
265
266
267
268
269
270
271
272
273
274
275
276
277
278
279
280
281
282
283
284
285
286
287
288
289