[image]THE GERMAN FLUNG A PAIL OF WATER OVER THE UNCONSCIOUS MEEK.When Hahn appeared, Meek had revived.'You are a fool!' cried the German angrily. He was feeling very sore. Meek had been the theme of discussion in the officers' mess, and Hahn had had to endure a good deal of heavy raillery on his account. He was told that he had been sent out to catch niggers; why had he burdened himself with a pig of an Englishman? Where had he found the man? How had a solitary Englishman, a seaman, come to be among natives in this remote part of the island? They supposed he had been shipwrecked; then why had Hahn not left the man to meet his fate among cannibals? Hahn was in a difficulty, because he had said nothing about the other white men, told nothing about his rescue by them. His escape from the cannibals, according to his story, had been due to his own ingenuity. He could not satisfactorily account for Meek, and he wished that, instead of bringing him as a prisoner, he had knocked him on the head or shot him at once.Now, however, he was actuated by another motive. The Englishman, to his vast surprise, had defied him, and his fellow-officers had chaffed him about it. The Englishman's spirit must be broken.'You are a fool,' he repeated. 'You bring all zis on yourself.. You shall haf food to-night; I am not hard, but you shall be tied up still. It is German discipline. To-morrow must you vork--understand? You are bad example to ze ozers. Zere is ze night for zinking. You shall zink. In ze morning you shall haf sense, and vork.''Never!' cried Meek hoarsely. 'Not coal. Not for German pirates!''Pig! I say you shall zink about it all night,' roared Hahn, exasperated. 'To-morrow you shall vork, or I vill shoot you dead. Understand?'Meek made no reply. Hahn savagely bade Hans give him a little food and order the sentries to keep an eye on him during the night. Then he returned to the beach, and Meek was left to contemplate the prospect of twelve hours' torture before a bullet put an end to it all.CHAPTER XIITHE LEDGEAbout an hour before sunset, two men were warily feeling their way among the boulders that strewed the steep declivity above the ledge. Slowly they moved downwards, rarely rising to their full height, but stooping as they dodged in and out between the largest of the stones, and heeding their feet with strained watchfulness. They were Trentham and Hoole. Grinson, with the rest of their party, had been left in hiding near the burnt village, unwillingly; but Trentham had remarked that his bulky form was ill suited to reconnaissance work; a call would be made on his resources later.The calm surface of the cove was spread out nearly two hundred feet below them. They could see two of the sheds, a few men moving about, and the seaplane lying high up on the beach; but the Raider, moored near the innermost shore, was at present invisible. Nor could they see the ledge, almost perpendicularly beneath them, but now and then they heard the crack of the overseer's whip, and the crash of coals as they fell upon the beach. In front of them the air was slightly darkened by dust wafted up the face of the cliff.As they climbed lower they moved still more slowly and cautiously, often pausing to rest. At one of these halts Trentham leant against a large boulder, and started back in haste as it moved, swaying slightly and noiselessly like those rocking stones which are to be found here and there on our coasts, and which, insecurely poised though they seem, are rarely moved from their seats. The risk of disturbing the boulder and betraying his presence brought a momentary pallor to his cheeks. When they moved on again, they tested every upstanding rock before putting any pressure upon it, and found more than one which very little force would cause to fall.The boulders gave effective cover from observation from the beach, and the contour of the cliff hid them from the sentry on the cliff path several hundreds of yards away. But presently the descent became steeper; they caught sight of the top of the Raider's wireless mast; the sounds from the ledge and the beach grew more distinct and the dust cloud denser. They seemed to have come to the end of the scattered mass of boulders, and peering over, they saw a fairly smooth slope, too steep to climb, lacking in cover, and ending in a sharp edge between fifty and sixty feet below. Any boulders that in times past may have rolled here had found no lodgment, or, at any rate, must have long since fallen into the cove.While they were crouching behind the lowest of the boulders, wondering how they could determine the exact position of the prisoners, they heard a shout from beyond the ledge, followed by an answering call, fainter, more distant. They shrank back, half fearing that they had been seen; but the shouts were not repeated, and there was no sign of excitement among the men on the beach.A few minutes later, apparently from a spot immediately beneath them, came the sound of a voice speaking in loud tones, yet not so clearly that they could distinguish the words. It broke off once or twice, and they listened for an answering voice, but heard none. Then one shouted word struck distinctly upon their ears. 'Pig!' Stretching forward, they strained their hearing. 'You shall zink all night ... shoot you dead. Understand?'There was silence. Trentham's and Hoole's eyes met.'Hahn?' murmured Trentham.Hoole nodded.'Bullying Meek,' he whispered.Trentham cast his eye along the irregular line of boulders. A few yards from the spot where they were crouching, two jagged rocks, between four and five feet high and about three feet wide at the base, stood almost parallel with the edge of the slope, and about two feet apart. Crawling to them, Trentham pushed them gently from behind, then more firmly, finally with all his strength. They did not yield by the smallest fraction of an inch. Carefully marking their position, the two men clambered back among the boulders, gained the top of the ridge more quickly than they had descended, and hastened to rejoin their party, guiding themselves by the trunks of trees and bushes which Hoole had been careful to 'blaze' as they came. There was just light enough to see the marks.When they regained the thicket where they had left the others, Grinson came forward eagerly to meet them.'Any luck, sir?' he asked anxiously. 'Did ye find Ephraim?''We know pretty well where he is,' replied Trentham.'Safe and sound?''That I can't say exactly, but he 's sound enough to make Hahn call him a pig.''Pig! A lamb like Ephraim! By thunder, sir, if I get my fingers on that there Hahn I 'll teach him! Ephraim a pig! Blast my--'Steady, Grinson,' interrupted Hoole. 'Meek isn't damaged by Hahn's abuse. Things are more serious than that. From what we overheard, it's pretty sure that Meek has refused to do something that Hahn ordered.''Good lad! I 'll----''Wait. Hahn has given him all night to think it over; he threatens to shoot him.'Grinson was silenced. His heat was quenched by speechless care. Fixing his eyes anxiously on Trentham, he said quietly:'Anything you order, sir.''We 'll save him if we can,' said Trentham. 'We 've hard work in front of us, but with care and good fortune--by the way, Hoole, can you find your way back in the dark?''The moon 's up, my son. She 's riding low, but she 'll last long enough for this stunt, I reckon.''Good! Now, Grinson, cut a stout pole from a tree--as strong as you can find, three to four feet long.''Ay, ay, sir!' responded the boatswain, whipping out his knife.While he was gone about his task, Trentham explained to Lafoa, the interpreter, that the position of the prisoners had been roughly located, and asked him to inform the rest of the party. They would have to march to the cliff in the waning moonlight, keeping absolute silence, and be ready to do instantly and exactly what they were ordered. The safety of their chief Flanso and his fellow prisoners would depend on their prompt obedience.On Grinson's return, Trentham ordered one of the men to unwind the rope from his body, and the boatswain to fasten one end of it to the pole. He then slung the pole over a thick branch of a tree, and bade half the party of natives hang on to it, while Grinson and the other half held the loose end of the rope. The test being satisfactory, and the rope having been wound over the pole, they formed up in single file, and, Hoole leading, set out over their former tracks for the cliff. Not a word was spoken. The bare feet of the natives made no sound; the footsteps of the white men could scarcely have been heard if any watchers had been lurking in the bush. The rays of the moon, near its setting, gave Hoole light enough to distinguish the blazed trees, and they marched rapidly. Presently the prevailing stillness was invaded by the soft rustle of the surf, and they caught sight of the glistening path of the moonlight stretching far across the sea. Slackening his pace a little, so as to reduce the slight sounds made by the white men's boots, Hoole led the party unerringly to the crest of the boulder-strewn slope. There they halted.There were whispered explanations and instructions. Grinson, in spite of his anxiety for Meek, was a little daunted by the difficulties of the plan unfolded to him. The exact position of the prisoners on the ledge was unknown. A sentry would certainly be on guard. An incautious movement, the accidental disturbance of a stone, a misjudgment of distance in the dark, might involve not only the failure of the scheme, but death to its authors. Trentham did not minimise the dangers; they had all been canvassed by Hoole and himself; indeed, he was prepared to find that some factor which he had been unable to take into account would render his plan unworkable.'But we are not going to attempt the impossible, Grinson,' he said. 'We shall first discover what 's possible, and then--well, you 're not the man to jib at a risk.''True, sir, and Ephraim is worth it. I 'll say no more.'They waited until the sinking moon gave just light enough to see the two rocks which Trentham and Hoole had marked on their previous visit; then they stole down the slope among the boulders. For greater security the white men had removed their boots. On reaching the furthermost of the boulders they halted again. Trentham placed the log of wood across the gap between the two rocks, and got Grinson to loop the loose end of the rope under his armpits. When the moon had wholly disappeared below the hills behind, and the face of the cliff was dark, he crawled inch by inch down the bare slope, and peeped cautiously over the edge.The cove, the beach, the ledge--all were now within his range of vision. His eyes were first attracted by lights below. There was a glimmering lamp on the Raider's deck forward; the deck appeared to be unoccupied, and no lights shone from the portholes. All three sheds were illuminated, and from the murmur of voices Trentham guessed that the Germans were at their evening meal. No one was moving on the beach. Then he noticed a slight intermittent glow some distance away on his right; behind it a face was momentarily lit up. Without doubt it proceeded from the pipe of the sentry on the ledge. Trentham recalled the position as he had seen it from the other side of the cove when he made his first reconnaissance. The sentry was evidently posted at the inner end of the ledge, where one path led to the beach, another wound round the cliff. These were the only avenues of escape; the other end of the ledge was blocked. The fact that the sentry was smoking argued that discipline was less strict here than it would have been on board ship; probably vigilance also was less rigid. What had the Germans to fear from their cowed slaves, and the natives of the village they had terrorised?Withdrawing his eyes from this extremity of the ledge, Trentham could just distinguish the outlines of baskets laid against the cliff wall. Then he started, and felt his pulses quicken. Surely that pallid object below him, a little to his left, was a man's face. He closed his eyes, and reopening them after a few moments found that he could see more clearly. Beyond doubt a white man was standing close against the wall. His attitude was peculiarly rigid. The explanation flashed upon Trentham; Meek was tied up.Trentham looked up and down the ledge for the native prisoners. Black though they were, he expected to be able to discover them, even in the darkness, by some movement or sound. He was as much perplexed as surprised at discerning no sign of them. Where, then, were they kept?Meek, however, was his first concern. How long had the seaman been tied up? Was he conscious, and able to assist in his release? It was impossible to tell. Wriggling along the edge of the slope until he was exactly over Meek's position, Trentham took a short peg from his pocket, drove it into the soil, and attached to it a thin line of fibre which he had brought with him. Then, holding the line, he crawled carefully up the slope, and rejoined his party.In a few whispered words he related the extent of his discoveries.'Better 'n we could expect, sir,' murmured Grinson, with a long breath of relief. 'If the look-out is smoking----''Yes,' interrupted Trentham, 'but we mustn't rely too much on that. He may be relieved at any minute; we can't tell. We must get to work while the men are still feeding. Ready, Hoole?''Sure!' was the reply.Following the guiding line, of which Grinson now held the upper end, the two men crept down the slope. Grinson understood that the line would be used to signal how to deal with the thicker rope, which was coiled round the log laid across the two rocks. When they reached the edge, Trentham transferred the coil of rope from his own arms to those of Hoole, who was to descend first on to the ledge. They were both conscious that this was a critical moment. A fall of earth as the rope strained over the edge could hardly fail to arouse the sentry. A man issuing from one of the sheds might notice, even in the dark, the white clothes of the climber, stained though they were. The first misfortune might be avoided with care; the second was at the mercy of chance.Hoole felt with his hand for a hard smooth spot upon the edge, over which the rope might pass without risk of displacing earth. Then he peered along the ledge from end to end. The sentry was still smoking; no one was visible but Meek. Sounds of talking came from the shed, punctuated by the regular recurring swish of the surf.'Good luck!' Trentham whispered.Hoole gave three jerks on the thin line he carried, then slid over the edge. The rope tightened under his armpits; the natives above slowly paid it out. He sank out of sight, and it seemed an age to Trentham before two jerks signalled that he had reached the ledge. A few seconds later a single jerk indicated that the rope might be drawn up. When it came over the edge, Trentham instantly passed the loop over his shoulders, repeated the signal for lowering, and in half a minute was standing beside Hoole, close against the cliff wall.Both were panting with excitement. No fresh sound was added to those they had already heard; their descent had been unperceived.Each went at once about the task previously agreed on. Hoole took a few paces towards the sentry, and revolver in hand, stood on guard, while Trentham, with quick, silent cuts of his knife, released the half-unconscious seaman.'Not a word, Meek,' whispered Trentham, as he placed the loop under the man's shoulders. 'Grinson is waiting for you above.'He jerked on the line. Meek slowly ascended, and his clothes being dark, his form could scarcely be distinguished against the cliff. He had only just disappeared over the edge when a light was suddenly thrown on the beach by the opening of the door of one of the sheds. There was a burst of louder talking, and a group of seamen issued forth, and ambled down to a dinghy lying a few yards above the surf. Hoole and Trentham slipped silently down, and lay flat against the wall. They heard the scrape of the boat as it was hauled over the sand, the clatter of boots as the men climbed into it, then the rattle of oars in the rowlocks. The men were boarding the Raider; from her deck they might see movements on the ledge. Was this to be the end of the adventure?For a few minutes the voices of the Germans rose from the vessel; then they ceased, and Hoole, raising his head cautiously, saw that the deck was clear.'Now for the sentry!' he whispered.Foreseeing that the native prisoners, when they should be discovered and released, might hail their deliverance with shouts of joy, Trentham had arranged with Grinson that Lafoa, the interpreter, should be lowered to the ledge when he gave the signal. But he had not expected any difficulty in finding the prisoners' whereabouts. The presence of the sentry showed that they were somewhere on the ledge, and he felt some anxiety lest they were near the German, and would be disturbed as Hoole went forward to deal with him. For this reason, when Hoole was about to grope his way along the ledge, Trentham detained him by a whisper, and signalled to Grinson by means of the line. A minute later he heard a sound above as the Papuan came dangling down at the end of the rope--a sound so slight that it could not have been heard by the sentry amid the rustle of the surf. He caught Lafoa about the body, released him from the rope, and then, in the briefest sentences of which pidgin English is capable, instructed him in the part he was to play presently.Hoole started, stealing along inch by inch under the cliff wall, taking advantage of its inequalities and of the baskets which were ranged in line against it. He had gone forward only about a dozen yards, however, when Trentham, who could just distinguish his form, saw him halt, crouching low. The sentry's pipe was still emitting its glow at regular intervals as the man puffed. It was clear that he had not been disturbed, and Trentham, wondering why Hoole had stopped, stole forward to join him, carrying the rope with which Meek had been bound.The American was lying almost flat, peering between the bars of a wooden grating that covered a hole in the cliff.'Listen!' he whispered, as Trentham came up behind him.And then Trentham heard, from behind the grating, sounds of deep breathing, as of many men asleep. Nothing could be seen in the pitch blackness within; but the two men concluded that they had found the place in which the natives were confined. Worn out by long hours of fatiguing work to which they were unused, the prisoners, no doubt, were sleeping the heavy sleep of exhaustion.Hoole was about to go forward, when he was arrested by a sound some distance ahead. He dropped flat again, and taking up handfuls of coal dust, rubbed it all over his clothes. Trentham followed his example. They now identified the sound as footsteps; in a few moments they heard a voice, then a tapping.'Sentry being relieved; knocking out his pipe,' Hoole whispered.They lay watching, listening, with their hearts in their mouths. Would the Germans come to look at the man they had tied up? Or would the relieving sentry be satisfied by his comrade's report that all was well, and take up his post without investigation? If both should come along the ledge together, it was hopeless to expect that they could be silenced without one or other having time to give the alarm. They might even see the white clothes, in spite of the coating of coal dust, before they came within reach. A single shout would arouse the Germans below, and all would be over.The footsteps drew nearer; two voices were heard. The new sentry exchanged a few words with his comrade; then the heavy boots of the latter rang on the path leading downwards to the beach. The risk was halved! A match was struck; the newcomer lit his pipe, and for a minute or two paced up and down a short stretch of the ledge. Hoole hoped that he would soon tire of this, and sit, as his comrade presumably had done, smoking placidly, dreaming perhaps of a little cottage somewhere in the Fatherland.But presently the slow footsteps approached. The scent of tobacco smoke touched the nostrils of the waiting men. The sentry was coming to look at his prisoner. Trentham and Hoole crawled back silently a few yards, and effaced themselves as well as they could behind the baskets. The German came slowly on, humming between his closed lips. He reached the tunnel, and stood at the grating for a few moments; the watchers saw the reflection of his glowing pipe on his face as he pressed it close against the bars. Humming again, he sauntered on towards the post where Meek had been tied, walking outside the line of baskets, and passing the hidden men within a couple of yards.Now was the critical moment. Feeling that the whole success of the enterprise hung on the next few seconds, Hoole pulled himself together, got to his feet, and noiselessly on his stocking soles tip-toed after the German. From below came the restless murmur of the surf. Hoole's footsteps could not have been heard, yet the German, perhaps moved by that strange sense one has of being followed, was on the point of turning round, when a hard fist caught him with the force of a sledge-hammer behind his right ear, and he fell like a log. Trentham, who had followed stealthily, instantly dashed forward, and before the stunned man regained consciousness he was bound hand and foot with the rope that had tortured Meek, and a gag, torn from Hoole's coat, was firmly wedged between his teeth.[image]NOISELESSLY ON HIS STOCKING SOLES TIP-TOED AFTER THE GERMAN.Leaving him where he lay, the two men summoned Lafoa to join them, and led him to the tunnel. Groping over the grating, Hoole discovered the wooden bolt with which it was fastened, quietly removed the cover, and signed to Lafoa to go in.There was another moment of tense anxiety. Grunts, ejaculations, the stir of movement, were heard from the depths of the tunnel. Something fell with a sharp crack--a pick which one of the men had displaced. At the mouth of the tunnel it sounded like a pistol shot, and Hoole and Trentham swung round and looked apprehensively towards the beach. All was still, there. No doubt the wash of the sea was loud enough to smother the single sharp sound at a distance.It was evident that Lafoa had intelligently grasped his instructions, for the natives, as they filed out, though their movements were quick and urgent, made scarcely a sound. In a long string they followed Trentham to the spot where the rope dangled over the wall of the ledge. Trentham found that his hands were trembling as he slid the rope over the shoulders of the first man. If only he could have multiplied the rope! Each ascent would take at least half a minute. How many men were there? What might not happen before they were all in safety above? One by one he looped them, saw them rise, caught the descending rope. Hoole, who had counted them out, came up to them and whispered 'Thirty-four.' More than a quarter of an hour must elapse before the last man had ascended, and some of those at the end of the line were showing signs of restlessness, grunting, sighing, clicking with their tongues. Moment by moment Trentham expected some of them to whoop with excitement. 'Make all fella no talkee!' he whispered to Lafoa, and the man went along the line muttering fierce threats.The thirty-fourth man had gone. Lafoa followed him, then Hoole. Not a sound had been heard from below but the murmur of the sea and the muffled voices of the men in the sheds. With intense relief, and the feeling that fortune could hardly betray them now, Trentham looped himself and signalled to be hoisted. He was barely half way to the top when a sharp clatter above made his blood run cold. Crack followed crack, then for a second there were a number of dull thuds, and finally, a tremendous crash on the ledge below, waking echoes around the cove. One of the natives, in climbing among the boulders, had displaced a large rock.The doors of the sheds were burst open. Lights shone across the cove. Men came rushing out, calling to one another, to the sentry above, to the men on the Raider. 'Faster! Faster!' Trentham cried inwardly, as he was jerked upward. He was just over the edge when a blinding light swept across the face of the cliff. The searchlight's beams fell full upon Trentham's white-clad form. Slipping out of the loop, he scrambled on hands and knees up the sloping ascent towards the boulders. Below him there was a sputtering rattle, and he felt himself splashed with earth and stones as the rain of machine-gun bullets pecked at the cliff. Something hot stung his leg; he crawled faster; in another moment his shoulders were grasped by sinewy hands, and Grinson and Hoole between them lugged him over the brink and behind the protecting boulders.'Thanks be for all mercies!' panted Grinson. 'And as for that clumsy lubber that kicked down the rock----''Shoo!' whistled Hoole, 'it's time, sure, to cut and run!'CHAPTER XIIIA FORCED LANDING'For goodness' sake keep them quiet!' gasped Trentham, clambering up among the boulders to the top of the slope. The native prisoners, hysterical in their joy, were laughing and shouting and smacking their thighs.'Say, Lafoa,' said Hoole, 'tell that chief of yours to stop the hullabaloo. Black fella no talkee this time.'Flanso gathered his men together, and reduced the hubbub somewhat. Meanwhile Trentham had gained the top.'We must get out of reach at once,' he said. 'The searchlight's no good to them now, nor the machine-gun; but if these fellows make such a row the Germans will track us.''We make for the village?' asked Hoole.'Not directly; the Germans are sure to put men on the paths. But I fancy they won't risk a regular pursuit in the dark, and if we get away from the coast and avoid the direct route to the village, we shall at any rate not run into them. How 's Meek?''Just alive, sir, that's all I can say,' replied Grinson. 'What they 've been doing to him----''Can he walk?' Trentham interrupted.'Says he ain't got no feeling in his legs. But what's the odds? I 'll heave him across my back. Lucky you 're lean, Ephraim, me lad!''Come, let's start at once. Where's Lafoa?'He explained his plan to the interpreter, who imparted it to the young chief, and the whole party moved off silently into the forest, Grinson mounting Meek pickaback.Trentham's inferences as to the actions of the enemy were better justified than he knew. All the Germans with the exception of Hahn had been thrown into a state of utter consternation by the discovery that Meek was not the only white man in their neighbourhood. Hahn, professing himself to be as much surprised as the rest, had discreetly held his tongue. Consequently the commander, ignorant of the number of the rescuers, had contented himself with posting parties of the crew on the paths which the fugitives must cross to regain their village, postponing organised pursuit until the morning.It was slow going in the darkness. Several of the natives who had been longest enslaved were weak from overwork, ill-treatment, and confinement. The stronger among them, eager to press on, were restrained by fear of the dark and the necessity of helping the weaker. Hoole noticed that Trentham was limping.'Hurt your leg?' he asked.'Got a bullet, I think, but it's nothing.''Shucks! Let me have a look at it right now. You might bleed to death.'He knelt down and groped for the wound.'The bullet has ploughed up a bit of your calf,' he said in a minute or two. 'Lucky it's no worse. Wait half a second while I tie it up; then I guess you can go on till we strike some water.'They went on, struggling over rough country amid thick bush and trees. Even the natives were at a loss in the darkness. They could not choose a definite direction, and it seemed obvious to the white men that some of them would soon collapse. Grinson was panting under his load, light though it was, but steadfastly refused to allow the others to take turns with him. At length, coming to a patch of open ground, Trentham called a halt.'We ought to be pretty safe now,' he said, 'and had better camp here till the morning. With daylight some of the natives will be able to take their bearings.'They lay down on the rough grass, already wet with dew.'How d' you feel, Ephraim?' asked Grinson, bending over the seaman.'I felt worse when I had typhoid,' said Meek faintly. 'What a lot of trouble I do give you, Mr. Grinson--a lot of trouble. And I ain't said a word of thanks to the gentlemen.''Don't bother about that,' said Trentham. 'Get to sleep if you can.''Ay, go to sleep at once, Ephraim; d' ye hear, me lad?' said Grinson.'I 'll try, Mr. Grinson, and if so be I dream horrors----''Dream! What's dreams? Why, many's the times I 've been drownded in my sleep. Dreams make me laugh. (I 'll get him off, sir,' he whispered to Trentham. 'A yarn of mine has done it afore now!) I remember once I dreamed as how I 'd got into a Salvation meeting; they was singing a hymn, but the man as played the trumpet--why, somehow the trumpet turned into a beer bottle, and I found I was playing the trumpet myself. They all come up and thanked me afterwards for my beautiful music, and then all of a sudden I was left alone, and couldn't find my hat. While I was hunting for it, that there trumpet fellow rushed in and pushed a rolled-up parcel into my hand. "Very good hat!" says he, and when I opened it, bless you, 'twas nothing but a tea-cosy.... He 's off now, sir. What have those devils been doing to my Ephraim?''We 'll hear all about it to-morrow. You had better sleep yourself, Grinson. Tell yourself a yarn.''No, sir; that's not my way. I counts over the number of sweethearts I 've had, and by the time I 've got to the third or fourth I 'm dead off; they was so dull.'It was a comfortless night on the open ground, with neither fires nor wraps to defend them against the chill air. Either Hoole or Trentham was always on guard, together with relays of the natives. By the exertion of his authority Flanso kept his men fairly quiet; but the white men were on thorns lest even the subdued murmurs of voices should reach the ears of possible scouts.At dawn the party was marshalled. It had been arranged that the weaker men among the natives should make for the village by a round-about route, in charge of Grinson and Meek, and led by Lafoa. Trentham and Hoole intended to wait a while with Flanso and the rest, and then to scout more directly eastward in order to keep watch on the Germans.They were just about to start when the natives pricked up their ears, and Flanso managed to make the white men understand that they were alarmed by a noise in the air. A few seconds later Hoole declared that he heard the seaplane's engines. Trentham signed to the natives to take cover in the surrounding bush, and with Hoole posted himself at the edge of the forest, where he might hope to escape observation. Presently the seaplane soared over the clearing, a few hundred feet above the ground, and after circling once or twice made off south-eastwards in the direction of the village.'They won't see our men in the forest,' remarked Trentham, 'but we had better start. If they drop a bomb on the village, there 'll be a frightful panic.'They hurried among the trees to re-form their party, but found that the natives, scared by the noise of this aerial monster, had disappeared. Only one man remained, Flanso himself, armed with a spear taken from one of those who had accompanied the white men from the village. Under his guidance they set off rapidly.It was perhaps a quarter of an hour later that Hoole caught sight of a native among the trees on his left hand, and thinking it was one of the missing men, shouted to him. The man at once dashed away, uttering a shrill cry.'Kafulu!' cried Flanso excitedly, and was on the point of springing after the traitor when a shot rang out, and a number of Germans came into view almost directly in front of them. The three men instantly darted away to the right, pursued by more shots, and ran until they were out of breath.'We 've outrun them,' said Trentham; 'must have gone twice as fast as they, burdened with their rifles. I must rest a bit; my leg is rather groggy.'There was no sound of pursuit. Presently they moved on again, but had not gone far before they once more heard the hum of the seaplane, apparently approaching from the south. Screened by the trees, they did not check their march until Hoole suddenly exclaimed:'Say, Trentham, that machine 's sure in difficulties.''Is it? How do you know?''Listen!' returned Hoole with a smile.The humming was intermittent, spasmodic, and presently ceased altogether.'They 're coming down,' said Hoole, 'and not far away. Let 's have a look at it.''Better push on,' said Trentham.'But it 'll do us good if the machine crashes. I 'd be glad to know it's out of action. Come on!'They turned in the direction in which the sound was last heard. Through the close-growing trees it was impossible to see far, and Trentham privately thought the search a waste of time; but after only a few minutes' walk they came to the edge of an open space sloping down to a stream some twenty feet wide.'It will be hereabout,' said Hoole, detaining the others at the top of the slope. 'But I guess this trickle isn't wide enough to float it. Let us separate, and scout along the line of bushes here, up and down stream.'In a few minutes Flanso, who had gone northward, returned to the others, and told them by signs that he had discovered the machine. Creeping back with him, they came to a bend in the stream, and there discovered the seaplane, resting partly on two small trees, partly on a bed of rushes, and awkwardly tilted. The two airmen had left their seats, and were talking together on the bank, apparently consulting a compass. Every now and again they glanced apprehensively into the bush on both sides. Then they returned to the seaplane, walked round it, put their shoulders against the fuselage, and tried to lift it. One of them took out his revolver, and was on the point of firing it into the air, when his companion hastily interposed. The two men had a brief altercation. Finally the one who had been about to fire appeared to yield to the other's warning, and they both sat down on the shelving bank, discussing the position over again.Sheltered by the dense vegetation above the watercourse, Trentham and his companions had watched their movements with interest. The tenor of their discussion was easily divined. The seaplane could not be salved without help, but they hesitated to leave it, fearful of its being discovered by the natives, with whom, as they now knew, were white men. If they parted company, which was to return to the cove? The one left would be less able to defend himself and the machine. A revolver shot might have brought assistance from the Germans; on the other hand, it might attract a horde of cannibals. What were they to do?As they sat on the bank, they were sideways to the three men watching them only a few feet above.'Let's rush them!' whispered Hoole suddenly.He seized Flanso's spear, pushed his revolver into Trentham's hand, and before the latter could utter a word, either in assent or in remonstrance, the American was half-way down the slope. Trentham had no choice but to back him up, and he dashed after his friend with scarcely a moment's delay.The Germans heard the sound of Hoole's movements through the bush, turned their heads and sprang up. One of them raised his revolver to fire, but Hoole, now only three or four yards away, launched his spear. His sudden action flurried the German's aim, his shot flew wide, and the next moment he fell back, cursing, and tearing the spear from his shoulder. His companion, seeing Trentham rushing at him with levelled revolver, hesitated a moment, and caught sight of Flanso swooping down immediately behind the Englishman.[image]ONE OF THE GERMANS RAISED HIS REVOLVER, BUT BEFORE HE COULD FIRE, HOOLE LAUNCHED THE SPEAR AT HIM.'Hands up!' cried Trentham, taking advantage of the man's momentary hesitation.Up went his hands.'Guess we 'll borrow your revolvers, gentlemen,' said Hoole, picking up the weapon dropped by the wounded man. Trentham took the other man's from his belt. 'Keep your eye on them, Trentham,' Hoole went on, 'while I kind of size up this machine of theirs.'Trentham and Flanso stood guard over the Germans while the unwounded man bathed his comrade's arm and bound up his wound. Meanwhile Hoole examined the seaplane in a manner that took Trentham by surprise. There was a sureness, a purposefulness about him; he seemed to know exactly what he was looking for. Indeed, he pulled the engine about, as Trentham afterwards told him, as if he were its maker. A very few minutes' inspection sufficed to make him wise, as he put it.'Not much wrong,' he said, coming over to Trentham and smiling. 'I guess I can put it right. But we 'll want help to get it on to the stream--yonder there, where it widens. Shall we start for home?''And these gentlemen will come as our prisoners?''Sure. We haven't any coal for them to dig, but they can start on yams.''Ve are officers; it is not correct for officers to vork,' said one of the Germans.'Say, is that so? You 're a lazy lot? Well now! And yet you 'll make a chief dig coal for you--a chief who 's as big a man here as your Kaiser in Berlin. Well, you surprise me! Come along, Trentham. Let's hurry.''How far are we from the coast?' asked Trentham of the Germans as they started.'Eight or nine mile,' was the surly response.'Bully!' exclaimed Hoole. 'With luck we 'll have time to salve the machine before it's found. Step along, Flanso!''Ze niggers vere ve go--are zey cannibals?' asked one of the Germans anxiously.'Yes,' replied Trentham. 'They nearly ate us. They mistook us for Germans.'The prisoners asked no more questions.Soon after leaving the seaplane, Hoole pointed out why it had come down in this part of the forest. The stream widened into a small lake, on which, when their engine failed, the Germans had tried to alight. Unable to reach it, they had been forced to come down on the bank of the stream.Flanso scouted ahead, every now and then stopping to listen for signs of the Germans. Once, when they were rounding a spur where the vegetation was thin, Trentham clapped his hand over the mouth of one of the Germans just as he was about to shout.'We 'll have to gag this fellow, Hoole,' he said.'Sure. Another rag from my coat. And look you here, you officers, if you make a sound, barring a natural grunt, we 'll leave you to our friend Flanso. See?''The native yonder,' explained Trentham. 'You had him on your ledge, you know.'The threat was enough. For the rest of the march the Germans were docility itself.
[image]THE GERMAN FLUNG A PAIL OF WATER OVER THE UNCONSCIOUS MEEK.
[image]
[image]
THE GERMAN FLUNG A PAIL OF WATER OVER THE UNCONSCIOUS MEEK.
When Hahn appeared, Meek had revived.
'You are a fool!' cried the German angrily. He was feeling very sore. Meek had been the theme of discussion in the officers' mess, and Hahn had had to endure a good deal of heavy raillery on his account. He was told that he had been sent out to catch niggers; why had he burdened himself with a pig of an Englishman? Where had he found the man? How had a solitary Englishman, a seaman, come to be among natives in this remote part of the island? They supposed he had been shipwrecked; then why had Hahn not left the man to meet his fate among cannibals? Hahn was in a difficulty, because he had said nothing about the other white men, told nothing about his rescue by them. His escape from the cannibals, according to his story, had been due to his own ingenuity. He could not satisfactorily account for Meek, and he wished that, instead of bringing him as a prisoner, he had knocked him on the head or shot him at once.
Now, however, he was actuated by another motive. The Englishman, to his vast surprise, had defied him, and his fellow-officers had chaffed him about it. The Englishman's spirit must be broken.
'You are a fool,' he repeated. 'You bring all zis on yourself.. You shall haf food to-night; I am not hard, but you shall be tied up still. It is German discipline. To-morrow must you vork--understand? You are bad example to ze ozers. Zere is ze night for zinking. You shall zink. In ze morning you shall haf sense, and vork.'
'Never!' cried Meek hoarsely. 'Not coal. Not for German pirates!'
'Pig! I say you shall zink about it all night,' roared Hahn, exasperated. 'To-morrow you shall vork, or I vill shoot you dead. Understand?'
Meek made no reply. Hahn savagely bade Hans give him a little food and order the sentries to keep an eye on him during the night. Then he returned to the beach, and Meek was left to contemplate the prospect of twelve hours' torture before a bullet put an end to it all.
CHAPTER XII
THE LEDGE
About an hour before sunset, two men were warily feeling their way among the boulders that strewed the steep declivity above the ledge. Slowly they moved downwards, rarely rising to their full height, but stooping as they dodged in and out between the largest of the stones, and heeding their feet with strained watchfulness. They were Trentham and Hoole. Grinson, with the rest of their party, had been left in hiding near the burnt village, unwillingly; but Trentham had remarked that his bulky form was ill suited to reconnaissance work; a call would be made on his resources later.
The calm surface of the cove was spread out nearly two hundred feet below them. They could see two of the sheds, a few men moving about, and the seaplane lying high up on the beach; but the Raider, moored near the innermost shore, was at present invisible. Nor could they see the ledge, almost perpendicularly beneath them, but now and then they heard the crack of the overseer's whip, and the crash of coals as they fell upon the beach. In front of them the air was slightly darkened by dust wafted up the face of the cliff.
As they climbed lower they moved still more slowly and cautiously, often pausing to rest. At one of these halts Trentham leant against a large boulder, and started back in haste as it moved, swaying slightly and noiselessly like those rocking stones which are to be found here and there on our coasts, and which, insecurely poised though they seem, are rarely moved from their seats. The risk of disturbing the boulder and betraying his presence brought a momentary pallor to his cheeks. When they moved on again, they tested every upstanding rock before putting any pressure upon it, and found more than one which very little force would cause to fall.
The boulders gave effective cover from observation from the beach, and the contour of the cliff hid them from the sentry on the cliff path several hundreds of yards away. But presently the descent became steeper; they caught sight of the top of the Raider's wireless mast; the sounds from the ledge and the beach grew more distinct and the dust cloud denser. They seemed to have come to the end of the scattered mass of boulders, and peering over, they saw a fairly smooth slope, too steep to climb, lacking in cover, and ending in a sharp edge between fifty and sixty feet below. Any boulders that in times past may have rolled here had found no lodgment, or, at any rate, must have long since fallen into the cove.
While they were crouching behind the lowest of the boulders, wondering how they could determine the exact position of the prisoners, they heard a shout from beyond the ledge, followed by an answering call, fainter, more distant. They shrank back, half fearing that they had been seen; but the shouts were not repeated, and there was no sign of excitement among the men on the beach.
A few minutes later, apparently from a spot immediately beneath them, came the sound of a voice speaking in loud tones, yet not so clearly that they could distinguish the words. It broke off once or twice, and they listened for an answering voice, but heard none. Then one shouted word struck distinctly upon their ears. 'Pig!' Stretching forward, they strained their hearing. 'You shall zink all night ... shoot you dead. Understand?'
There was silence. Trentham's and Hoole's eyes met.
'Hahn?' murmured Trentham.
Hoole nodded.
'Bullying Meek,' he whispered.
Trentham cast his eye along the irregular line of boulders. A few yards from the spot where they were crouching, two jagged rocks, between four and five feet high and about three feet wide at the base, stood almost parallel with the edge of the slope, and about two feet apart. Crawling to them, Trentham pushed them gently from behind, then more firmly, finally with all his strength. They did not yield by the smallest fraction of an inch. Carefully marking their position, the two men clambered back among the boulders, gained the top of the ridge more quickly than they had descended, and hastened to rejoin their party, guiding themselves by the trunks of trees and bushes which Hoole had been careful to 'blaze' as they came. There was just light enough to see the marks.
When they regained the thicket where they had left the others, Grinson came forward eagerly to meet them.
'Any luck, sir?' he asked anxiously. 'Did ye find Ephraim?'
'We know pretty well where he is,' replied Trentham.
'Safe and sound?'
'That I can't say exactly, but he 's sound enough to make Hahn call him a pig.'
'Pig! A lamb like Ephraim! By thunder, sir, if I get my fingers on that there Hahn I 'll teach him! Ephraim a pig! Blast my--
'Steady, Grinson,' interrupted Hoole. 'Meek isn't damaged by Hahn's abuse. Things are more serious than that. From what we overheard, it's pretty sure that Meek has refused to do something that Hahn ordered.'
'Good lad! I 'll----'
'Wait. Hahn has given him all night to think it over; he threatens to shoot him.'
Grinson was silenced. His heat was quenched by speechless care. Fixing his eyes anxiously on Trentham, he said quietly:
'Anything you order, sir.'
'We 'll save him if we can,' said Trentham. 'We 've hard work in front of us, but with care and good fortune--by the way, Hoole, can you find your way back in the dark?'
'The moon 's up, my son. She 's riding low, but she 'll last long enough for this stunt, I reckon.'
'Good! Now, Grinson, cut a stout pole from a tree--as strong as you can find, three to four feet long.'
'Ay, ay, sir!' responded the boatswain, whipping out his knife.
While he was gone about his task, Trentham explained to Lafoa, the interpreter, that the position of the prisoners had been roughly located, and asked him to inform the rest of the party. They would have to march to the cliff in the waning moonlight, keeping absolute silence, and be ready to do instantly and exactly what they were ordered. The safety of their chief Flanso and his fellow prisoners would depend on their prompt obedience.
On Grinson's return, Trentham ordered one of the men to unwind the rope from his body, and the boatswain to fasten one end of it to the pole. He then slung the pole over a thick branch of a tree, and bade half the party of natives hang on to it, while Grinson and the other half held the loose end of the rope. The test being satisfactory, and the rope having been wound over the pole, they formed up in single file, and, Hoole leading, set out over their former tracks for the cliff. Not a word was spoken. The bare feet of the natives made no sound; the footsteps of the white men could scarcely have been heard if any watchers had been lurking in the bush. The rays of the moon, near its setting, gave Hoole light enough to distinguish the blazed trees, and they marched rapidly. Presently the prevailing stillness was invaded by the soft rustle of the surf, and they caught sight of the glistening path of the moonlight stretching far across the sea. Slackening his pace a little, so as to reduce the slight sounds made by the white men's boots, Hoole led the party unerringly to the crest of the boulder-strewn slope. There they halted.
There were whispered explanations and instructions. Grinson, in spite of his anxiety for Meek, was a little daunted by the difficulties of the plan unfolded to him. The exact position of the prisoners on the ledge was unknown. A sentry would certainly be on guard. An incautious movement, the accidental disturbance of a stone, a misjudgment of distance in the dark, might involve not only the failure of the scheme, but death to its authors. Trentham did not minimise the dangers; they had all been canvassed by Hoole and himself; indeed, he was prepared to find that some factor which he had been unable to take into account would render his plan unworkable.
'But we are not going to attempt the impossible, Grinson,' he said. 'We shall first discover what 's possible, and then--well, you 're not the man to jib at a risk.'
'True, sir, and Ephraim is worth it. I 'll say no more.'
They waited until the sinking moon gave just light enough to see the two rocks which Trentham and Hoole had marked on their previous visit; then they stole down the slope among the boulders. For greater security the white men had removed their boots. On reaching the furthermost of the boulders they halted again. Trentham placed the log of wood across the gap between the two rocks, and got Grinson to loop the loose end of the rope under his armpits. When the moon had wholly disappeared below the hills behind, and the face of the cliff was dark, he crawled inch by inch down the bare slope, and peeped cautiously over the edge.
The cove, the beach, the ledge--all were now within his range of vision. His eyes were first attracted by lights below. There was a glimmering lamp on the Raider's deck forward; the deck appeared to be unoccupied, and no lights shone from the portholes. All three sheds were illuminated, and from the murmur of voices Trentham guessed that the Germans were at their evening meal. No one was moving on the beach. Then he noticed a slight intermittent glow some distance away on his right; behind it a face was momentarily lit up. Without doubt it proceeded from the pipe of the sentry on the ledge. Trentham recalled the position as he had seen it from the other side of the cove when he made his first reconnaissance. The sentry was evidently posted at the inner end of the ledge, where one path led to the beach, another wound round the cliff. These were the only avenues of escape; the other end of the ledge was blocked. The fact that the sentry was smoking argued that discipline was less strict here than it would have been on board ship; probably vigilance also was less rigid. What had the Germans to fear from their cowed slaves, and the natives of the village they had terrorised?
Withdrawing his eyes from this extremity of the ledge, Trentham could just distinguish the outlines of baskets laid against the cliff wall. Then he started, and felt his pulses quicken. Surely that pallid object below him, a little to his left, was a man's face. He closed his eyes, and reopening them after a few moments found that he could see more clearly. Beyond doubt a white man was standing close against the wall. His attitude was peculiarly rigid. The explanation flashed upon Trentham; Meek was tied up.
Trentham looked up and down the ledge for the native prisoners. Black though they were, he expected to be able to discover them, even in the darkness, by some movement or sound. He was as much perplexed as surprised at discerning no sign of them. Where, then, were they kept?
Meek, however, was his first concern. How long had the seaman been tied up? Was he conscious, and able to assist in his release? It was impossible to tell. Wriggling along the edge of the slope until he was exactly over Meek's position, Trentham took a short peg from his pocket, drove it into the soil, and attached to it a thin line of fibre which he had brought with him. Then, holding the line, he crawled carefully up the slope, and rejoined his party.
In a few whispered words he related the extent of his discoveries.
'Better 'n we could expect, sir,' murmured Grinson, with a long breath of relief. 'If the look-out is smoking----'
'Yes,' interrupted Trentham, 'but we mustn't rely too much on that. He may be relieved at any minute; we can't tell. We must get to work while the men are still feeding. Ready, Hoole?'
'Sure!' was the reply.
Following the guiding line, of which Grinson now held the upper end, the two men crept down the slope. Grinson understood that the line would be used to signal how to deal with the thicker rope, which was coiled round the log laid across the two rocks. When they reached the edge, Trentham transferred the coil of rope from his own arms to those of Hoole, who was to descend first on to the ledge. They were both conscious that this was a critical moment. A fall of earth as the rope strained over the edge could hardly fail to arouse the sentry. A man issuing from one of the sheds might notice, even in the dark, the white clothes of the climber, stained though they were. The first misfortune might be avoided with care; the second was at the mercy of chance.
Hoole felt with his hand for a hard smooth spot upon the edge, over which the rope might pass without risk of displacing earth. Then he peered along the ledge from end to end. The sentry was still smoking; no one was visible but Meek. Sounds of talking came from the shed, punctuated by the regular recurring swish of the surf.
'Good luck!' Trentham whispered.
Hoole gave three jerks on the thin line he carried, then slid over the edge. The rope tightened under his armpits; the natives above slowly paid it out. He sank out of sight, and it seemed an age to Trentham before two jerks signalled that he had reached the ledge. A few seconds later a single jerk indicated that the rope might be drawn up. When it came over the edge, Trentham instantly passed the loop over his shoulders, repeated the signal for lowering, and in half a minute was standing beside Hoole, close against the cliff wall.
Both were panting with excitement. No fresh sound was added to those they had already heard; their descent had been unperceived.
Each went at once about the task previously agreed on. Hoole took a few paces towards the sentry, and revolver in hand, stood on guard, while Trentham, with quick, silent cuts of his knife, released the half-unconscious seaman.
'Not a word, Meek,' whispered Trentham, as he placed the loop under the man's shoulders. 'Grinson is waiting for you above.'
He jerked on the line. Meek slowly ascended, and his clothes being dark, his form could scarcely be distinguished against the cliff. He had only just disappeared over the edge when a light was suddenly thrown on the beach by the opening of the door of one of the sheds. There was a burst of louder talking, and a group of seamen issued forth, and ambled down to a dinghy lying a few yards above the surf. Hoole and Trentham slipped silently down, and lay flat against the wall. They heard the scrape of the boat as it was hauled over the sand, the clatter of boots as the men climbed into it, then the rattle of oars in the rowlocks. The men were boarding the Raider; from her deck they might see movements on the ledge. Was this to be the end of the adventure?
For a few minutes the voices of the Germans rose from the vessel; then they ceased, and Hoole, raising his head cautiously, saw that the deck was clear.
'Now for the sentry!' he whispered.
Foreseeing that the native prisoners, when they should be discovered and released, might hail their deliverance with shouts of joy, Trentham had arranged with Grinson that Lafoa, the interpreter, should be lowered to the ledge when he gave the signal. But he had not expected any difficulty in finding the prisoners' whereabouts. The presence of the sentry showed that they were somewhere on the ledge, and he felt some anxiety lest they were near the German, and would be disturbed as Hoole went forward to deal with him. For this reason, when Hoole was about to grope his way along the ledge, Trentham detained him by a whisper, and signalled to Grinson by means of the line. A minute later he heard a sound above as the Papuan came dangling down at the end of the rope--a sound so slight that it could not have been heard by the sentry amid the rustle of the surf. He caught Lafoa about the body, released him from the rope, and then, in the briefest sentences of which pidgin English is capable, instructed him in the part he was to play presently.
Hoole started, stealing along inch by inch under the cliff wall, taking advantage of its inequalities and of the baskets which were ranged in line against it. He had gone forward only about a dozen yards, however, when Trentham, who could just distinguish his form, saw him halt, crouching low. The sentry's pipe was still emitting its glow at regular intervals as the man puffed. It was clear that he had not been disturbed, and Trentham, wondering why Hoole had stopped, stole forward to join him, carrying the rope with which Meek had been bound.
The American was lying almost flat, peering between the bars of a wooden grating that covered a hole in the cliff.
'Listen!' he whispered, as Trentham came up behind him.
And then Trentham heard, from behind the grating, sounds of deep breathing, as of many men asleep. Nothing could be seen in the pitch blackness within; but the two men concluded that they had found the place in which the natives were confined. Worn out by long hours of fatiguing work to which they were unused, the prisoners, no doubt, were sleeping the heavy sleep of exhaustion.
Hoole was about to go forward, when he was arrested by a sound some distance ahead. He dropped flat again, and taking up handfuls of coal dust, rubbed it all over his clothes. Trentham followed his example. They now identified the sound as footsteps; in a few moments they heard a voice, then a tapping.
'Sentry being relieved; knocking out his pipe,' Hoole whispered.
They lay watching, listening, with their hearts in their mouths. Would the Germans come to look at the man they had tied up? Or would the relieving sentry be satisfied by his comrade's report that all was well, and take up his post without investigation? If both should come along the ledge together, it was hopeless to expect that they could be silenced without one or other having time to give the alarm. They might even see the white clothes, in spite of the coating of coal dust, before they came within reach. A single shout would arouse the Germans below, and all would be over.
The footsteps drew nearer; two voices were heard. The new sentry exchanged a few words with his comrade; then the heavy boots of the latter rang on the path leading downwards to the beach. The risk was halved! A match was struck; the newcomer lit his pipe, and for a minute or two paced up and down a short stretch of the ledge. Hoole hoped that he would soon tire of this, and sit, as his comrade presumably had done, smoking placidly, dreaming perhaps of a little cottage somewhere in the Fatherland.
But presently the slow footsteps approached. The scent of tobacco smoke touched the nostrils of the waiting men. The sentry was coming to look at his prisoner. Trentham and Hoole crawled back silently a few yards, and effaced themselves as well as they could behind the baskets. The German came slowly on, humming between his closed lips. He reached the tunnel, and stood at the grating for a few moments; the watchers saw the reflection of his glowing pipe on his face as he pressed it close against the bars. Humming again, he sauntered on towards the post where Meek had been tied, walking outside the line of baskets, and passing the hidden men within a couple of yards.
Now was the critical moment. Feeling that the whole success of the enterprise hung on the next few seconds, Hoole pulled himself together, got to his feet, and noiselessly on his stocking soles tip-toed after the German. From below came the restless murmur of the surf. Hoole's footsteps could not have been heard, yet the German, perhaps moved by that strange sense one has of being followed, was on the point of turning round, when a hard fist caught him with the force of a sledge-hammer behind his right ear, and he fell like a log. Trentham, who had followed stealthily, instantly dashed forward, and before the stunned man regained consciousness he was bound hand and foot with the rope that had tortured Meek, and a gag, torn from Hoole's coat, was firmly wedged between his teeth.
[image]NOISELESSLY ON HIS STOCKING SOLES TIP-TOED AFTER THE GERMAN.
[image]
[image]
NOISELESSLY ON HIS STOCKING SOLES TIP-TOED AFTER THE GERMAN.
Leaving him where he lay, the two men summoned Lafoa to join them, and led him to the tunnel. Groping over the grating, Hoole discovered the wooden bolt with which it was fastened, quietly removed the cover, and signed to Lafoa to go in.
There was another moment of tense anxiety. Grunts, ejaculations, the stir of movement, were heard from the depths of the tunnel. Something fell with a sharp crack--a pick which one of the men had displaced. At the mouth of the tunnel it sounded like a pistol shot, and Hoole and Trentham swung round and looked apprehensively towards the beach. All was still, there. No doubt the wash of the sea was loud enough to smother the single sharp sound at a distance.
It was evident that Lafoa had intelligently grasped his instructions, for the natives, as they filed out, though their movements were quick and urgent, made scarcely a sound. In a long string they followed Trentham to the spot where the rope dangled over the wall of the ledge. Trentham found that his hands were trembling as he slid the rope over the shoulders of the first man. If only he could have multiplied the rope! Each ascent would take at least half a minute. How many men were there? What might not happen before they were all in safety above? One by one he looped them, saw them rise, caught the descending rope. Hoole, who had counted them out, came up to them and whispered 'Thirty-four.' More than a quarter of an hour must elapse before the last man had ascended, and some of those at the end of the line were showing signs of restlessness, grunting, sighing, clicking with their tongues. Moment by moment Trentham expected some of them to whoop with excitement. 'Make all fella no talkee!' he whispered to Lafoa, and the man went along the line muttering fierce threats.
The thirty-fourth man had gone. Lafoa followed him, then Hoole. Not a sound had been heard from below but the murmur of the sea and the muffled voices of the men in the sheds. With intense relief, and the feeling that fortune could hardly betray them now, Trentham looped himself and signalled to be hoisted. He was barely half way to the top when a sharp clatter above made his blood run cold. Crack followed crack, then for a second there were a number of dull thuds, and finally, a tremendous crash on the ledge below, waking echoes around the cove. One of the natives, in climbing among the boulders, had displaced a large rock.
The doors of the sheds were burst open. Lights shone across the cove. Men came rushing out, calling to one another, to the sentry above, to the men on the Raider. 'Faster! Faster!' Trentham cried inwardly, as he was jerked upward. He was just over the edge when a blinding light swept across the face of the cliff. The searchlight's beams fell full upon Trentham's white-clad form. Slipping out of the loop, he scrambled on hands and knees up the sloping ascent towards the boulders. Below him there was a sputtering rattle, and he felt himself splashed with earth and stones as the rain of machine-gun bullets pecked at the cliff. Something hot stung his leg; he crawled faster; in another moment his shoulders were grasped by sinewy hands, and Grinson and Hoole between them lugged him over the brink and behind the protecting boulders.
'Thanks be for all mercies!' panted Grinson. 'And as for that clumsy lubber that kicked down the rock----'
'Shoo!' whistled Hoole, 'it's time, sure, to cut and run!'
CHAPTER XIII
A FORCED LANDING
'For goodness' sake keep them quiet!' gasped Trentham, clambering up among the boulders to the top of the slope. The native prisoners, hysterical in their joy, were laughing and shouting and smacking their thighs.
'Say, Lafoa,' said Hoole, 'tell that chief of yours to stop the hullabaloo. Black fella no talkee this time.'
Flanso gathered his men together, and reduced the hubbub somewhat. Meanwhile Trentham had gained the top.
'We must get out of reach at once,' he said. 'The searchlight's no good to them now, nor the machine-gun; but if these fellows make such a row the Germans will track us.'
'We make for the village?' asked Hoole.
'Not directly; the Germans are sure to put men on the paths. But I fancy they won't risk a regular pursuit in the dark, and if we get away from the coast and avoid the direct route to the village, we shall at any rate not run into them. How 's Meek?'
'Just alive, sir, that's all I can say,' replied Grinson. 'What they 've been doing to him----'
'Can he walk?' Trentham interrupted.
'Says he ain't got no feeling in his legs. But what's the odds? I 'll heave him across my back. Lucky you 're lean, Ephraim, me lad!'
'Come, let's start at once. Where's Lafoa?'
He explained his plan to the interpreter, who imparted it to the young chief, and the whole party moved off silently into the forest, Grinson mounting Meek pickaback.
Trentham's inferences as to the actions of the enemy were better justified than he knew. All the Germans with the exception of Hahn had been thrown into a state of utter consternation by the discovery that Meek was not the only white man in their neighbourhood. Hahn, professing himself to be as much surprised as the rest, had discreetly held his tongue. Consequently the commander, ignorant of the number of the rescuers, had contented himself with posting parties of the crew on the paths which the fugitives must cross to regain their village, postponing organised pursuit until the morning.
It was slow going in the darkness. Several of the natives who had been longest enslaved were weak from overwork, ill-treatment, and confinement. The stronger among them, eager to press on, were restrained by fear of the dark and the necessity of helping the weaker. Hoole noticed that Trentham was limping.
'Hurt your leg?' he asked.
'Got a bullet, I think, but it's nothing.'
'Shucks! Let me have a look at it right now. You might bleed to death.'
He knelt down and groped for the wound.
'The bullet has ploughed up a bit of your calf,' he said in a minute or two. 'Lucky it's no worse. Wait half a second while I tie it up; then I guess you can go on till we strike some water.'
They went on, struggling over rough country amid thick bush and trees. Even the natives were at a loss in the darkness. They could not choose a definite direction, and it seemed obvious to the white men that some of them would soon collapse. Grinson was panting under his load, light though it was, but steadfastly refused to allow the others to take turns with him. At length, coming to a patch of open ground, Trentham called a halt.
'We ought to be pretty safe now,' he said, 'and had better camp here till the morning. With daylight some of the natives will be able to take their bearings.'
They lay down on the rough grass, already wet with dew.
'How d' you feel, Ephraim?' asked Grinson, bending over the seaman.
'I felt worse when I had typhoid,' said Meek faintly. 'What a lot of trouble I do give you, Mr. Grinson--a lot of trouble. And I ain't said a word of thanks to the gentlemen.'
'Don't bother about that,' said Trentham. 'Get to sleep if you can.'
'Ay, go to sleep at once, Ephraim; d' ye hear, me lad?' said Grinson.
'I 'll try, Mr. Grinson, and if so be I dream horrors----'
'Dream! What's dreams? Why, many's the times I 've been drownded in my sleep. Dreams make me laugh. (I 'll get him off, sir,' he whispered to Trentham. 'A yarn of mine has done it afore now!) I remember once I dreamed as how I 'd got into a Salvation meeting; they was singing a hymn, but the man as played the trumpet--why, somehow the trumpet turned into a beer bottle, and I found I was playing the trumpet myself. They all come up and thanked me afterwards for my beautiful music, and then all of a sudden I was left alone, and couldn't find my hat. While I was hunting for it, that there trumpet fellow rushed in and pushed a rolled-up parcel into my hand. "Very good hat!" says he, and when I opened it, bless you, 'twas nothing but a tea-cosy.... He 's off now, sir. What have those devils been doing to my Ephraim?'
'We 'll hear all about it to-morrow. You had better sleep yourself, Grinson. Tell yourself a yarn.'
'No, sir; that's not my way. I counts over the number of sweethearts I 've had, and by the time I 've got to the third or fourth I 'm dead off; they was so dull.'
It was a comfortless night on the open ground, with neither fires nor wraps to defend them against the chill air. Either Hoole or Trentham was always on guard, together with relays of the natives. By the exertion of his authority Flanso kept his men fairly quiet; but the white men were on thorns lest even the subdued murmurs of voices should reach the ears of possible scouts.
At dawn the party was marshalled. It had been arranged that the weaker men among the natives should make for the village by a round-about route, in charge of Grinson and Meek, and led by Lafoa. Trentham and Hoole intended to wait a while with Flanso and the rest, and then to scout more directly eastward in order to keep watch on the Germans.
They were just about to start when the natives pricked up their ears, and Flanso managed to make the white men understand that they were alarmed by a noise in the air. A few seconds later Hoole declared that he heard the seaplane's engines. Trentham signed to the natives to take cover in the surrounding bush, and with Hoole posted himself at the edge of the forest, where he might hope to escape observation. Presently the seaplane soared over the clearing, a few hundred feet above the ground, and after circling once or twice made off south-eastwards in the direction of the village.
'They won't see our men in the forest,' remarked Trentham, 'but we had better start. If they drop a bomb on the village, there 'll be a frightful panic.'
They hurried among the trees to re-form their party, but found that the natives, scared by the noise of this aerial monster, had disappeared. Only one man remained, Flanso himself, armed with a spear taken from one of those who had accompanied the white men from the village. Under his guidance they set off rapidly.
It was perhaps a quarter of an hour later that Hoole caught sight of a native among the trees on his left hand, and thinking it was one of the missing men, shouted to him. The man at once dashed away, uttering a shrill cry.
'Kafulu!' cried Flanso excitedly, and was on the point of springing after the traitor when a shot rang out, and a number of Germans came into view almost directly in front of them. The three men instantly darted away to the right, pursued by more shots, and ran until they were out of breath.
'We 've outrun them,' said Trentham; 'must have gone twice as fast as they, burdened with their rifles. I must rest a bit; my leg is rather groggy.'
There was no sound of pursuit. Presently they moved on again, but had not gone far before they once more heard the hum of the seaplane, apparently approaching from the south. Screened by the trees, they did not check their march until Hoole suddenly exclaimed:
'Say, Trentham, that machine 's sure in difficulties.'
'Is it? How do you know?'
'Listen!' returned Hoole with a smile.
The humming was intermittent, spasmodic, and presently ceased altogether.
'They 're coming down,' said Hoole, 'and not far away. Let 's have a look at it.'
'Better push on,' said Trentham.
'But it 'll do us good if the machine crashes. I 'd be glad to know it's out of action. Come on!'
They turned in the direction in which the sound was last heard. Through the close-growing trees it was impossible to see far, and Trentham privately thought the search a waste of time; but after only a few minutes' walk they came to the edge of an open space sloping down to a stream some twenty feet wide.
'It will be hereabout,' said Hoole, detaining the others at the top of the slope. 'But I guess this trickle isn't wide enough to float it. Let us separate, and scout along the line of bushes here, up and down stream.'
In a few minutes Flanso, who had gone northward, returned to the others, and told them by signs that he had discovered the machine. Creeping back with him, they came to a bend in the stream, and there discovered the seaplane, resting partly on two small trees, partly on a bed of rushes, and awkwardly tilted. The two airmen had left their seats, and were talking together on the bank, apparently consulting a compass. Every now and again they glanced apprehensively into the bush on both sides. Then they returned to the seaplane, walked round it, put their shoulders against the fuselage, and tried to lift it. One of them took out his revolver, and was on the point of firing it into the air, when his companion hastily interposed. The two men had a brief altercation. Finally the one who had been about to fire appeared to yield to the other's warning, and they both sat down on the shelving bank, discussing the position over again.
Sheltered by the dense vegetation above the watercourse, Trentham and his companions had watched their movements with interest. The tenor of their discussion was easily divined. The seaplane could not be salved without help, but they hesitated to leave it, fearful of its being discovered by the natives, with whom, as they now knew, were white men. If they parted company, which was to return to the cove? The one left would be less able to defend himself and the machine. A revolver shot might have brought assistance from the Germans; on the other hand, it might attract a horde of cannibals. What were they to do?
As they sat on the bank, they were sideways to the three men watching them only a few feet above.
'Let's rush them!' whispered Hoole suddenly.
He seized Flanso's spear, pushed his revolver into Trentham's hand, and before the latter could utter a word, either in assent or in remonstrance, the American was half-way down the slope. Trentham had no choice but to back him up, and he dashed after his friend with scarcely a moment's delay.
The Germans heard the sound of Hoole's movements through the bush, turned their heads and sprang up. One of them raised his revolver to fire, but Hoole, now only three or four yards away, launched his spear. His sudden action flurried the German's aim, his shot flew wide, and the next moment he fell back, cursing, and tearing the spear from his shoulder. His companion, seeing Trentham rushing at him with levelled revolver, hesitated a moment, and caught sight of Flanso swooping down immediately behind the Englishman.
[image]ONE OF THE GERMANS RAISED HIS REVOLVER, BUT BEFORE HE COULD FIRE, HOOLE LAUNCHED THE SPEAR AT HIM.
[image]
[image]
ONE OF THE GERMANS RAISED HIS REVOLVER, BUT BEFORE HE COULD FIRE, HOOLE LAUNCHED THE SPEAR AT HIM.
'Hands up!' cried Trentham, taking advantage of the man's momentary hesitation.
Up went his hands.
'Guess we 'll borrow your revolvers, gentlemen,' said Hoole, picking up the weapon dropped by the wounded man. Trentham took the other man's from his belt. 'Keep your eye on them, Trentham,' Hoole went on, 'while I kind of size up this machine of theirs.'
Trentham and Flanso stood guard over the Germans while the unwounded man bathed his comrade's arm and bound up his wound. Meanwhile Hoole examined the seaplane in a manner that took Trentham by surprise. There was a sureness, a purposefulness about him; he seemed to know exactly what he was looking for. Indeed, he pulled the engine about, as Trentham afterwards told him, as if he were its maker. A very few minutes' inspection sufficed to make him wise, as he put it.
'Not much wrong,' he said, coming over to Trentham and smiling. 'I guess I can put it right. But we 'll want help to get it on to the stream--yonder there, where it widens. Shall we start for home?'
'And these gentlemen will come as our prisoners?'
'Sure. We haven't any coal for them to dig, but they can start on yams.'
'Ve are officers; it is not correct for officers to vork,' said one of the Germans.
'Say, is that so? You 're a lazy lot? Well now! And yet you 'll make a chief dig coal for you--a chief who 's as big a man here as your Kaiser in Berlin. Well, you surprise me! Come along, Trentham. Let's hurry.'
'How far are we from the coast?' asked Trentham of the Germans as they started.
'Eight or nine mile,' was the surly response.
'Bully!' exclaimed Hoole. 'With luck we 'll have time to salve the machine before it's found. Step along, Flanso!'
'Ze niggers vere ve go--are zey cannibals?' asked one of the Germans anxiously.
'Yes,' replied Trentham. 'They nearly ate us. They mistook us for Germans.'
The prisoners asked no more questions.
Soon after leaving the seaplane, Hoole pointed out why it had come down in this part of the forest. The stream widened into a small lake, on which, when their engine failed, the Germans had tried to alight. Unable to reach it, they had been forced to come down on the bank of the stream.
Flanso scouted ahead, every now and then stopping to listen for signs of the Germans. Once, when they were rounding a spur where the vegetation was thin, Trentham clapped his hand over the mouth of one of the Germans just as he was about to shout.
'We 'll have to gag this fellow, Hoole,' he said.
'Sure. Another rag from my coat. And look you here, you officers, if you make a sound, barring a natural grunt, we 'll leave you to our friend Flanso. See?'
'The native yonder,' explained Trentham. 'You had him on your ledge, you know.'
The threat was enough. For the rest of the march the Germans were docility itself.