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The Crater by James Fenimore Cooper

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But, it was impossible to penetrate further into this singular mystery,
so long as the strangers kept off the land. This they did of course, the
three vessels passing to windward of the Peak, in a line ahead, going to
the southward, and standing along the cliffs, on an easy bowline. The
governor now sent a whale-boat out of the cove, under her sails, with
orders to stand directly across to the Reef, carrying the tidings, and
bearing a letter of instructions to Pennock and such members of the
council as might be present. The letter was short, but it rather assumed
the probability of hostilities, while it admitted that there was a doubt
of the issue. A good look-out was to be kept, at all events, and the
forces of the colony were to be assembled. The governor promised to
cross himself, as soon as the strangers quitted the neighbourhood of the
Peak.

In the mean time, Heaton mounted a horse, and kept company with the
squadron as it circled the island. From time to time, he sent messages
to the governor, in order to let him know the movements of the
strangers. While this was going on, the men were all called in from
their several occupations, and the prescribed arrangements were made for
defence. As a circuit of the island required several hours, there was
time for everything; and the whale-boat was fairly out of sight from
even the Peak, when Heaton despatched a messenger to say that the
squadron had reached the southern extremity of the island, and was
standing off south-east, evidently steering towards the volcano.

Doubts now began to be felt whether the colonists would see anything
more of the strangers. It was natural that navigators should examine
unknown islands, cursorily at least; but it did not follow that, if
trade was their object, they should delay their voyage in order to push
their investigations beyond a very moderate limit. Had it not been for
the undoubted presence of savages in the ship, and the strong
probability that Waally was one of them, the governor would now have had
hopes that he had seen the last of his visitors. Nevertheless, there was
the chance that these vessels would run down to Rancocus Island, where
not only might a landing be easily effected, but where the mills, the
brick-yards, and indeed the principal cluster of houses, were all
plainly to be seen from the offing. No sooner was it certain, therefore,
that the strangers had stood away to the southward and eastward, than
another boat was sent across to let the millers, brickmakers,
stone-quarriers, and lumbermen know that they might receive guests who
would require much discretion in their reception.

The great policy of secrecy was obviously in serious danger of being
defeated. How the existence of the colony was to be concealed, should
the vessels remain any time in the group, it was not easy to see; and
that advantage the governor and Heaton, both of whom attached the
highest importance to it, were now nearly ready to abandon in despair.
Still, neither thought of yielding even this policy until the last
moment, and circumstances rendered it indispensable; for so much
reflection had been bestowed on that, as well as on every other
interest of the colony, that it was not easy to unsettle any part of
their plans--in the opinion of its rulers, at least.

A sharp look-out for the squadron was kept, not only from the Peak, but
from the southern end of the cliffs, all that day. The vessels were seen
until they were quite near to the volcano, when their sudden
disappearance was ascribed to the circumstance of their shortening sail.
Perhaps they anchored. This could only be conjecture, however, as no
boat could be trusted out to watch them, near by. Although there was no
anchorage near the Peak, it was possible for a vessel to anchor anywhere
in the vicinity of the volcano. The island of Vulcan's Peak appears to
have been projected upwards, out of the depths of the ocean, in one
solid, perpendicular wall, leaving no shallow water near it; but, as
respects the other islands, the coast shoaled gradually in most places;
though the eastern edge of the group was an exception to the rule.
Still, vessels could anchor in any or all the coves and roadsteads of
the group; and _there_ the holding ground was unusually good, being
commonly mud and sand, and these without rocks.

The remainder of the day, and the whole of the succeeding night, were
passed with much anxiety, by the governor and his friends. Time was
given to receive an answer to the messages sent across to the Reef, but
nothing was seen of the strangers, when day returned. The boat that came
in from the Reef, reported that the coast was clear to the northward. It
also brought a letter, stating that notices had been sent to all the
different settlements, and that the Anne had sailed to windward, to call
in all the fishermen, and to go off to the nearest whaling-ground, in
order to communicate the state of things in the colony to Captain Betts
and his companions, who were out. The Dragon and the Jonas, when last
heard from, were cruising only about a hundred miles to windward of the
group, and it was thought important, on various accounts, that they
should be at once apprised of the arrival of the strangers.

The governor was perfectly satisfied with the report of what had been
done, and this so much the more because it superseded the necessity of
his quitting the Peak, just at the moment. The elevation of the mountain
was of so much use as a look-out, that it was every way desirable to
profit by it, until the time for observing was passed, and that for
action had succeeded, in its stead. Of course, some trusty person was
kept constantly on the Peak, looking out for the strangers, though the
day passed without one of them being seen. Early next morning, however,
a whale-boat arrived from Rancocus, with four stout oarsmen in it. They
had left the station, after dark, and had been pulling up against the
trades most of the intervening time. The news they brought was not only
alarming, but it occasioned a great deal of surprise.

It seemed that the three strange vessels appeared off the point, at
Rancocus Island, early on the morning of the preceding day. It was
supposed that they had run across from the volcano in the darkness,
after having been lost sight of from the Peak. Much prudence was
observed by the colonists, as soon as light let them into the secret of
their having such unknown neighbours. Bigelow happening to be there, and
being now a man of a good deal of consideration with his
fellow-citizens, he assumed the direction of matters. All the women and
children ascended into the mountains, where secret places had long been
provided for such an emergency, by clearing out and rendering two or
three caves habitable, and where food and water were at hand. Thither
most of the light articles of value were also transported. Luckily,
Bigelow had caused all the saws at the mill, to be taken down and
secreted. A saw was an article not to be replaced, short of a voyage to
Europe, even; for in that day saws were not manufactured in America;
nor, indeed, was scarcely anything else.

When he had given his directions, Bigelow went alone to the point, to
meet the strangers, who had anchored their vessels, and had landed in
considerable force. On approaching the place, he found about a hundred
men ashore, all well armed, and seemingly governed by a sort of military
authority. On presenting himself before this party, Bigelow was seized,
and taken to its leader, who was a sea-faring man, by his appearance, of
a fierce aspect and most severe disposition. This man could speak no
English. Bigelow tried him in Spanish, but could get no answer out of
him in that tongue either; though he suspected that what he said was
understood. At length, one was brought forward who _could_ speak
English, and that so well as to leave little doubt in Bigelow's mind
about the stranger's being either an Englishman or an American.
Communications between the parties were commenced through this
interpreter.

Bigelow was closely questioned touching the number of people in the
different islands, the number of vessels they possessed, the present
situation and employments of those vessels, the nature of their cargoes,
the places where the property transported in the vessels was kept, and,
in short, everything that bore directly on the wealth and movable
possessions of the people. From the nature of these questions as well as
from the appearance of the strangers, Bigelow had, at once, taken up the
notion that they were pirates. In the eastern seas, piracies were often
committed on a large scale, and there was nothing violent in this
supposition. The agitated state of the world, moreover, rendered
piracies much more likely to go unpunished then than would be the case
to-day, and it was well known that several vessels often cruised
together, when engaged in these lawless pursuits, in those distant
quarters of the world. Then the men were evidently of different races,
though Bigelow was of opinion that most of them came from the East
Indies, the coasts, or the islands. The officers were mostly Europeans
by birth, or the descendants of Europeans; but two-thirds of the people
whom he saw were persons of eastern extraction; some appeared to be
Lascars, and others what sailors call Chinamen.

Bigelow was very guarded in his answers; so much so, indeed, as to give
great dissatisfaction to his interrogators. About the Peak he assumed an
air of great mystery, and said none but birds could get on it; thunder
was sometimes heard coming out of its cliffs, but man could not get up
to see what the place contained. This account was received with marked
interest, and to Bigelow's surprise, it did not appear to awaken the
distrust he had secretly apprehended it might. On the contrary, he was
asked to repeat his account, and all who heard it, though a good deal
embellished this time, appeared disposed to believe what he said.
Encouraged by this success, the poor fellow undertook to mystify a
little concerning the Reef; but here he soon found himself met with
plump denials. In order to convince him that deception would be of no
use, he was now taken a short distance and confronted with Waally!

Bigelow no sooner saw the dark countenance of the chief than he knew he
was in bad hands. From that moment, he abandoned all attempts at
concealment, the condition of the Peak excepted, and had recourse to an
opposite policy. He now exaggerated everything; the number and force of
the vessels, giving a long list of names that were accurate enough,
though the fact was concealed that they mostly belonged to boats; and
swelling the force of the colony to something more than two thousand
fighting men. The piratical commander, who went by the name of 'the
admiral' among his followers, was a good deal startled by this
information, appealing to Waally to know whether it might be relied on
for truth. Waally could not say yes or no to this question. He had heard
that the colonists were much more numerous than they were formerly; but
how many fighting men they could now muster was more than he could say.
He knew that they were enormously rich, and among other articles of
value, possessed materials sufficient for fitting out as many ships as
they pleased. It was this last information that had brought the
strangers to the group; for they were greatly in want of naval stores of
almost all sorts.

The admiral did not deem it necessary to push his inquiries any further
at that moment; apparently, he did not expect to find much at Rancocus
Island, Waally having, most probably, let him into the secret of its
uses. The houses and mills were visited and plundered; a few hogs and
one steer were shot; but luckily, most of the animals had been driven
into a retired valley. The saw-mill was set on fire in pure wantonness,
and it was burned to the ground. A new grist-mill escaped, merely
because its position was not known. A great deal of injury was inflicted
on the settlement merely for the love of mischief, and a brick-kiln was
actually blown up in order to enjoy the fun of seeing the bricks
scattered in the air. In short, the place was almost destroyed in one
sense, though no attempt was made to injure Bigelow. On the contrary,
he was scarcely watched, and it was no sooner dark than he collected a
crew, got into his own whale-boat, and came to windward to report what
was going on to the governor.




Chapter XXVII.



"All gone! 'tis ours the goodly land--
Look round--the heritage behold;
Go forth--upon the mountains stand;
Then, if ye can, be cold."

Sprague.


Little doubt remained in the mind of the governor, after he had heard
and weighed the whole of Bigelow's story, that he had to deal with one
of those piratical squadrons that formerly infested the eastern seas, a
sort of successor of the old buccaneers. The men engaged in such
pursuits, were usually of different nations, and they were always of the
most desperate and ruthless characters. The fact that Waally was with
this party, indicated pretty plainly the manner in which they had heard
of the colony, and, out of all question, that truculent chief had made
his own bargain to come in for a share of the profits.

It was highly probable that the original object of these freebooters had
been to plunder the pearl-fishing vessels, and, hearing at their haunts,
of Betto's group, they had found their way across to it, where, meeting
with Waally, they had been incited to their present enterprise.

Little apprehension was felt for the Peak. A vessel might hover about it
a month, and never find the cove; and should the pirates even make the
discovery, such were the natural advantages of the islanders, that the
chances were as twenty to one, they would drive off their assailants.
Under all the circumstances, therefore, and on the most mature
reflection, the governor determined to cross over to the Reef, and
assume the charge of the defence of that most important position. Should
the Reef fall into the hands of the enemy, it might require years to
repair the loss; or, what would be still more afflicting, the
freebooters might hold the place, and use it as a general rendezvous, in
their nefarious pursuits. Accordingly, after taking a most tender leave
of his wife and children, Governor Woolston left the cove, in the course
of the forenoon, crossing in a whale-boat rigged with a sail. Bridget
wished greatly to accompany her husband, but to this the latter would,
on no account, consent; for he expected serious service, and thought it
highly probable that most of the females would have to be sent over to
the Peak, for security. Finding that her request could not be granted,
and feeling fully the propriety of her husband's decision, Mrs. Woolston
so far commanded her feelings as to set a good example to other wives,
as became her station.

When about mid-channel, the whale-boat made a sail coming down before
the wind, and apparently steering for South Cape, as well as herself.
This turned out to be the Anne, which had gone to windward to give the
alarm to the fishermen, and was now on her return. She had warned so
many boats as to be certain they would spread the notice, and she had
spoken the Dragon, which had gone in quest of the Jonas and the Abraham,
both of which were a few leagues to windward. Capt. Betts, however, had
come on board the Anne, and now joined his old friend, the governor,
when about four leagues from the cape. Glad enough was Mark Woolston to
meet with the Anne, and to find so good an assistant on board her. That
schooner, which was regularly pilot-boat built, was the fastest craft
about the islands, and it was a great matter to put head-quarters on
board her. The Martha came next, and the whale-boat was sent in to find
that sloop, which was up at the Reef, and to order her out immediately
to join the governor. Pennock was the highest in authority, in the
group, after the governor, and a letter was sent to him, apprising him
of all that was known, and exhorting him to vigilance and activity;
pointing out, somewhat in detail, the different steps he was to take, in
order that no time might be lost. This done, the governor stood in
towards Whaling Bight, in order to ascertain the state of things at that
point.

The alarm had been given all over the group, and when the Anne reached
her place of destination, it was ascertained that the men had been
assembled under arms, and every precaution taken. But Whaling Bight was
the great place of resort of the Kannakas, and there were no less than
forty of those men there at that moment, engaged in trying out oil, or
in fitting craft for the fisheries. No one could say which side these
fellows would take, should it appear that their proper chiefs were
engaged with the strangers; though, otherwise, the colonists counted on
their assistance with a good deal of confidence. On all ordinary
occasions, a reasonably fair understanding existed between the colonists
and the Kannakas. It is true, that the former were a little too fond of
getting as much work as possible, for rather small compensations, out of
these semi-savages; but, as articles of small intrinsic value still went
a great way in these bargains, no serious difficulty had yet arisen out
of the different transactions. Some persons thought that the Kannakas
had risen in their demands, and put less value on a scrap of old iron,
than had been their original way of thinking, now that so many of their
countrymen had been back and forth a few times, between the group and
other parts of the world; a circumstance that was very naturally to be
expected. But the governor knew mankind too well not to understand that
all unequal associations lead to discontent. Men may get to be so far
accustomed to inferior stations, and to their duties and feelings, as to
consider their condition the result of natural laws; but the least taste
of liberty begets a jealousy and distrust that commonly raises a barrier
between the master and servant, that has a never-dying tendency to keep
them more or less alienated in feeling. When the colonists began to cast
about them, and to reflect on the chances of their being sustained by
these hirelings in the coming strife, very few of them could be
sufficiently assured that the very men who had now eaten of their bread
and salt, in some instances, for years, were to be relied on in a
crisis. Indeed, the number of these Kannakas was a cause of serious
embarrassment with the governor, when he came to reflect on his
strength, and on the means, of employing it.

Fully two hundred of the savages, or semi-savages, were at that moment
either scattered about among the farm-houses; or working in the
different places where shipping lay, or were out whaling to windward.
Now, the whole force of the colony, confining it to fighting-men, and
including those who were absent, was just three hundred and sixty-three.
Of these, three hundred might, possibly, on an emergency, be brought to
act on any given point, leaving the remainder in garrisons. But a
straggling body of a hundred and fifty of these Kannakas, left in the
settlements, or on the Reef, or about the crater, while the troops were
gone to meet the enemy, presented no very pleasing picture to the mind
of the governor. He saw the necessity of collecting these men together,
and of employing them actively in the service of the colony, as the most
effectual mode of preventing their getting within the control of Waally.
This duty was confided to Bigelow, who was sent to the Reef without
delay, taking with him all the Kannakas at Whaling Bight, with orders to
put them on board the shipping at the Reef--schooners, sloops, lighters,
&c., of which there were now, ordinarily, some eight or ten to be found
there--and to carry them all to windward; using the inner channels of
the group. Here was a twenty-four hours' job, and one that would not
only keep everybody quite busy, but which might have the effect to save
all the property in the event of a visit to the Reef by the pirates.
Bigelow was to call every Kannaka he saw to his assistance, in the hope
of thus getting most of them out of harm's way.

Notwithstanding this procedure, which denoted a wise distrust of these
Indian allies, the governor manifested a certain degree of confidence
towards a portion of them, that was probably just as discreet in another
way. A part of the crew of every vessel, with the exception of those
that went to the Peak, was composed of Kannakas; and no less than ten of
them were habitually employed in the Anne, which carried two whale-boats
for emergencies. None of these men were sent away, or were in any manner
taken from their customary employments. So much confidence had the
governor in his own authority, and in his power to influence these
particular individuals, that he did not hesitate about keeping them
near himself, and, in a measure, of entrusting the safety of his person
to their care. It is true, that the Kannakas of both the Anne and the
Martha were a sort of confidential seamen, having now been employed in
the colony several years, and got a taste for the habits of the
settlers.

When all his arrangements were made, the governor came out of Whaling
Bight in the Anne, meeting Betts in the Martha off South Cape. Both
vessels then stood down along the shores of the group, keeping a bright
look-out in the direction of Rancocus Island, or towards the southward
and westward. Two or three smaller crafts were in company, each under
the direction of some one on whom reliance could be placed. The old
Neshamony had the honour of being thus employed, among others. The
south-western angle of the group formed a long, low point, or cape of
rock, making a very tolerable roadstead on its north-western side, or to
leeward. This cape was known among the colonists by the name of Rancocus
_Needle_, from the circumstance that it pointed with mathematical
precision to the island in question. Thus, it was a practice with the
coasters to run for the extremity of this cape, and then to stand away
on a due south-west course, certain of seeing the mountains for which
they were steering in the next few hours. Among those who plied to and
fro in this manner, were many who had no very accurate notions of
navigation; and, to them, this simple process was found to be quite
useful.

Off Rancocus Needle, the governor had appointed a rendezvous for the
whole of his little fleet. In collecting these vessels, six in all,
including four boats, his object had not been resistance--for the
armaments of the whole amounted to but six swivels, together with a few
muskets--but vigilance. He was confident that Waally would lead his new
friends up towards the Western Roads, the point where he had made all
his own attacks, and where he was most acquainted; and the position
under the Needle was the best station for observing the approach of the
strangers, coming as they must, if they came at all, from the
south-west.

The Anne was the first craft to arrive off the point of the Needle, and
she found the coast clear. As yet, no signs of invaders were to be seen;
and the Martha being within a very convenient distance to the eastward,
a signal was made to Captain Betts to stand over towards the Peak, and
have a search in that quarter. Should the strangers take it into their
heads to beat up under the cliffs again, and thence stretch across to
the group, it would bring them in with the land to windward of the
observing squadron, and give them an advantage the governor was very far
from wishing them to obtain. The rest of the craft came down to the
place of rendezvous, and kept standing off and on, under short sail,
close in with the rocks, so as to keep in the smoothest of the water.
Such was the state of things when the sun went down in the ocean.

All night the little fleet of the colonists remained in the same
uncertainty as to the movements of their suspicious visitors. About
twelve the Martha came round the Needle, and reported the coast clear to
the southward. She had been quite to the cove, and had communicated with
the shore. Nothing had been seen of the ship and her consorts since the
governor left, nor had any further tidings been brought up from to
leeward, since the arrival of Bigelow. On receiving this information,
the governor ordered his command to run off, in diverging lines, for
seven leagues each, and then to wait for day. This was accordingly done;
the Anne and Martha, as a matter of course, outstripping the others. At
the usual hour day re-appeared, when the look-out aloft, on board the
Anne, reported the Martha about two leagues to the northward, the
Neshamony about as far to the southward, though a league farther to
windward. The other craft were known to be to the northward of the
Martha, but could not be seen. As for the Neshamony, she was coming down
with a flowing sheet, to speak the governor.

The sun had fairly risen, when the Neshamony came down on the Anne's
weather-quarter, both craft then standing to the northward. The
Neshamony had seen nothing. The governor now directed her commander to
stand directly down towards Rancocus Island. If she saw nothing, she was
to go in and land, in order to get the news from the people ashore.
Unless the information obtained in this way was of a nature that
demanded a different course, she was to beat up to the volcano,
reconnoitre there, then stand across to the cove, and go in; whence she
was to sail for the Reef, unless she could hear of the governor at some
other point, when she was to make the best of her way to _him_.