Breaking Away; or, The Fortunes of a Student by Oliver Optic (book club reads .txt) 📗

A moment afterwards Vallington appeared on the forward deck, wiping from his brow the perspiration, which indicated that the engine-room was a hot place, or that his mental struggles were very severe.

"What was that last bell for?" he asked, hailing me in the wheel-house.

"To go ahead," I replied.

"You haven't got the hang of the bells, commodore," said he, with a smile; "but come down, and we will talk the matter over, and find out what we are going to do."

I went down to the forward deck, quite as anxious as any one else to know what was to be done, for it seemed to me that we had "drawn an elephant" as a prize. When I reached the deck, Vallington was writing with his pencil, and handed me the paper as I joined him.[237]

"Here are your directions, Mr. Pilot," said he.

"I know the lake, but I never had any experience in a steamer," I replied, in self-defence, as I read the paper, on which was written:—

"One bell—ahead, slowly.

Two bells—stop.

Three bells—back.

Four bells—ahead, full speed."

"There are two bell-pulls in the wheel-house," I added.

"You pulled the right one the first time; the other is for the men to shift the chain-box," he replied. "Now, fellows, what shall we do? is the next question."

Nobody seemed to know what we were to do; and all were quite willing to leave the question with our bold general.

"Where is the lame man who had charge of the steamer?" he asked.

"I have fixed him," answered Tom Rush, with a significant smile.

"How have you fixed him?"

"I told him we should throw him overboard if[238] he didn't keep quiet, and gave him three dollars I picked up among the fellows."

Tom was fit to be a member of the diplomatic corps—bully and bribe in the same breath! Probably the lame man, who was only a deck hand, employed but for that day, was not disposed to make any very active opposition to our plans. At any rate, he sat on the chain-box as contented as though everything was going on regularly on board of the boat. Mr. Parasyte had pressed all hands into his service, even to the captain and engineer, in bringing off the provisions and tents. I suppose that it never occurred to the principal, or to the officers of the boat, that a crowd of boys would attempt such a desperate enterprise as the capture of the Adieno, or they would have taken some precautions to avoid such an event. It is not strange that they did not think of such a thing, for if it had been proposed to me beforehand, I should as soon have thought of carrying off the island as the steamer.

Mr. Parasyte, the captain, and engineer stood on the edge of the pier. The principal looked astonished and overwhelmed; the captain was gesticu[239]lating violently to us; and the rest of the party looked like so many statues. There was no remedy for their misfortune; they had no boat, and could do nothing. Mr. Parasyte now had the same pleasant prospect which he had spread out before us—that of staying on Pine Island without food till some one came to his assistance. We hoped he enjoyed it; and in the mean time we turned our attention to our own immediate future.

"Fellows, I am afraid we have got into a bad scrape," said Vallington, again wiping his heated brow; and we could not help seeing that he did not feel just right in view of what he had done.

"All right; we will take our chances," replied one of the students; and this was the prevailing sentiment.

"Although I think we were right in the beginning, I am afraid we are overdoing the matter. But what could we do?" continued our general, with energy. "We couldn't stay on that island and be starved out. We paid for the provisions with our own money, and they had no right to take them from us."

"No!" shouted the boys, indignantly.[240]

"Now we have the steamer; what shall we do with her?"

"Let us go on a cruise," suggested Fred Mason.

"I did not take possession of the boat with the intention of making any use of her only to get away from the island while it was possible to do so," replied Vallington.

"O, let's have some fun in her, now we have got her," added Mason.

"We are drifting over to Cannondale pretty rapidly, general," I interposed. "We must go ahead, or we shall run ashore."

"I don't exactly know what to do, or where to go," continued our perplexed leader.

"We must go ahead now, and settle that question by and by," I added.

"Can you steer her, commodore?" he asked.

"Certainly I can. I understand the wheel now, and I know all about the lake. If you can manage the engine, I can take care of the steering."

"My brother is an engineer on a Hudson River boat, and I have spent many a day with him in the engine-room. I think I understand the engine pretty well," he replied.[241]

"Let us go ahead then," said one of the impatient fellows.

"We will start her again, commodore; and I wish you would take her to some place where we can lie to, and decide upon our future course."

"I will do so, general; but I don't think it will hurt those on the island to wait a while," I answered.

"Very well; we will go where you pilot us, commodore," added Vallington, as he returned to the engine-room.

Three of the students were sent down into the fire-room, after being instructed in their duty by the general, who was careful to tell them not to put too much wood in the furnaces. By this time the Splash had come alongside, and was made fast to the stern. I invited Bob Hale and Tom Rush to occupy the wheel-house with me, and I took my place at the spokes.

"What are we going to do?" asked Bob, who had not been present at the conference on the forward deck.

"That is not decided," replied Tom. "We are[242] going to lie to somewhere, and talk the matter over."

"I don't know about this steaming it on the lake," added Bob, shaking his head. "Suppose the boat should burst her boiler—where should we be?"

"No danger of that; Vallington knows all about engines, and the commodore knows how to steer," said Tom, lightly.

I struck one bell, after looking at the paper which Vallington had given me, to make sure that I was right. In response to my signal, the wheels began to turn, and the Adieno went "ahead slowly." I soon brought her to bear on the helm, and finding I had the boat under perfect control, I ventured to strike the four bells, which indicated that she was to "go ahead, full speed."

The steam was rather low in the boilers, and "full speed" I found was not very rapid. The boat steered easily, and minded her helm so promptly, that I soon became quite fascinated with my occupation. There was something very exhilarating in the fact that I was directing the course of what to me was an immense craft; and every time I moved the wheel, and[243] saw the bow veer in obedience to her helm, it afforded me a thrill of delight, and I wholly forgot the enormity of the enterprise in which our party were engaged. I was so pleased with my employment that I came very near devoting my life to the business of piloting a steamboat.

I steered the Adieno to the northward, until she had passed clear of Pine Island, when I put her head to the west, intending to run for a couple of islands six miles down the lake, called "The Sisters."[244]

CHAPTER XXII. IN WHICH ERNEST PILOTS THE ADIENO TO "THE SISTERS."

"There comes the Champion!" exclaimed Bob Hale, pointing to the steamer that regularly made her trip round the lake every day, as she came out from behind a point of land on the north shore, beyond which she made a landing.

"We must give her a wide berth," I replied.

"Why so? Her people will not know that it isn't all right with the Adieno."

"We are in no immediate danger; but suppose the captain of this boat should find means to get to Cannondale before the Champion does, he might engage her to go in pursuit of us."

"That would be jolly!" said Tom Rush. "We should have a glorious race!"

"But the chances are against us in a race," I[245] replied, confounded by the temerity of Tom in thinking of such a thing as contending with the steamboat men on their own ground.

"Not a bit of it, Ernest. The Adieno is the faster boat of the two—that has been tried a dozen times," added Tom, as much excited as though the race had actually commenced.

"We must not attempt to beard the lion in his den."

"Why not? We might as well be hung for an old sheep as a lamb. We are in a scrape, and even Vallington thinks it is a bad one by this time. The more advantage we gain, the better terms we can make."

"I don't know about it, Tom. I feel as though we had carried this thing about far enough, and the sooner we get out of the scrape, the better it will be for us."

"Those are my sentiments. My father is part owner in this boat, and I think he will not enjoy the idea of our going off on a cruise in her," added Bob Hale.

"Pooh! we won't hurt her," replied Tom.[246]

"We don't intend to hurt her; but we are following a business just now that we don't know much about."

"Don't you know the lake, and don't Vallington know all about the engine?"

"Neither of us has had any experience."

"That's so," added Bob. "In my opinion breaking away is about played out. We have made up our minds that we can't have anything more to do with Mr. Parasyte, and we may as well return to Parkville, and go to work in a more reasonable way. We can send the circulars to our parents, and dig out of the difficulty the best way we can."

"I agree to that," I answered. Not that I cared for myself, for my "breaking away" was a much more serious matter than that of my fellow-students; but I thought it better for them to get out of the mud before they sank any deeper into the mire.

"I am willing to do as the rest of the fellows do; but I don't want to be whipped round a stump when there is no need of it," continued[247] Tom. "If the Champion chases us, I go for keeping out of the way till we can retire from the field without any broken heads."

"So far I shall agree with you, Tom," I replied. "I am not in favor of surrendering, to be kicked and cuffed by these steamboat men, who are not exactly lambs in their dispositions."

"What's the use of talking?" interposed Bob Hale. "The Champion is not after us, and it does not appear that she will be."

"It appears so to me," I answered. "I have no idea that the captain of the Adieno will stay on Pine Island all day. I found a way to get ashore this morning, and I think he will be able to do so."

"Perhaps he will."

"I am perfectly satisfied that he will reach the shore by one o'clock, if he has not already done so. No doubt he thinks his boat will be smashed to pieces, or blown up, if he does not recover her soon. He isn't going to sit down and bite his finger nails."

"He may not be able to get the Champion," replied Bob Hale, who evidently did not wish to[248] believe that there would be a contest for superiority between the two steamers.

"I don't profess to be a prophet, Bob, but I can see through a millstone when the hole is big enough. I will tell you just how I think it will be. The captain of the Adieno will make a raft, and get to Cannondale. Then he will take the Champion for Parkville, arriving about half past one. The boat does not start on her trip down the lake till five o'clock, and that will give her three hours and a half to spare. You may take my word for it, that time will be used in chasing us."

"Very likely you are right, Ernest; we shall see. It is twelve o'clock now, and we haven't