第93章

The whole scene was one in which sublimity was singu-larly relieved by the picturesque.The raging of the tem-pest had a character of duration that rendered it easy to imagine it might be a permanent feature of the spot.The roar of the wind was without intermission, and the raging water answered to its dull but grand strains with hissing spray, a menacing wash, and sullen surges.The drizzle made a medium for the eye which closely resembled that of a thin mist, softening and rendering mysterious the im-ages it revealed, while the genial feeling that is apt to ac-company a gale of wind on water contributed to aid the milder influences of the moment.The dark interminable forest hove up out of the obscurity, grand, sombre, and impressive, while the solitary, peculiar, and picturesque glimpses of life that were caught in and about the fort, formed a refuge for the eye to retreat to when oppressed with the more imposing objects of nature.

"They see us," said the Sergeant, "and think we have returned on account of the gale, and have fallen to leeward of the port.Yes, there is Major Duncan himself on the north-eastern bastion; I know him by his height, and by the officers around him.""Sergeant, it would be worth standing a little jeering, if we could fetch into the river, and come safely to an anchor.

In that case, too, we might land this Master Eau-douce, and purify the boat.""It would indeed; but, as poor a sailor as I am, I well know it cannot be done.Nothing that sails the lake can turn to windward against this gale; and there is no an-chorage outside in weather like this."

"I know it, I see it, Sergeant; and pleasant as is that sight to you landsmen, we must leave it.For myself, Iam never so happy in heavy weather as when I am certain that the land is behind me."The _Scud_ had now forged so near in, that it became in-dispensable to lay her head off shore again, and the neces-sary orders were given.The storm-staysail was set forward, the gaff lowered, the helm put up, and the light craft, that seemed to sport with the elements like a duck, fell off a little, drew ahead swiftly, obeyed her rudder, and was soon flying away on the top of the surges, dead before the gale.

While making this rapid flight, though the land still re-mained in view on her larboard beam, the fort and the groups of anxious spectators on its rampart were swallowed up in the mist.Then followed the evolutions necessary to bring the head of the cutter up to the wind, when she again began to wallow her weary way towards the north shore.

Hours now passed before any further change was made, the wind increasing in force, until even the dogmatical Cap fairly admitted it was blowing a thorough gale of wind.About sunset the _Scud_ wore again to keep her off the north shore during the hours of darkness; and at mid-night her temporary master, who, by questioning the crew in an indirect manner, had obtained some general knowl-edge of the size and shape of the lake, believed himself to be about midway between the two shores.The height and length of the seas aided this impression; and it must be added that Cap by this time began to feel a respect for fresh water which twenty-four hours earlier he would have derided as impossible.Just as the night turned, the fury of the wind became so great that he found it impossible to bear up against it, the water falling on the deck of the lit-tle craft in such masses as to cause it to shake to the cen-tre, and, though a vessel of singularly lively qualities, to threaten to bury it beneath its weight.The people of the _Scud_ averred that never before had they been out in such a tempest, which was true; for, possessing a perfect knowl-edge of all the rivers and headlands and havens, Jasper would have carried the cutter in shore long ere this, and placed her in safety in some secure anchorage.But Cap still disdained to consult the young master, who continued below, determining to act like a mariner of the broad ocean.

It was one in the morning when the storm-staysail was again got on the _Scud_, the head of the mainsail lowered, and the cutter put before the wind.Although the canvas now exposed was merely a rag in surface, the little craft nobly justified the use of the name she bore.For eight hours did she scud in truth; and it was almost with the velocity of the gulls that wheeled wildly over her in the tempest, apparently afraid to alight in the boiling caldron of the lake.The dawn of day brought little change; for no other horizon became visible than the little circle of drizzling sky and water already described, in which it seemed as if the elements were rioting in a sort of chaotic confusion.During this time the crew and passengers of the cutter were of necessity passive.Jasper and the pilot remained below; but, the motion of the vessel having be-come easier, nearly all the rest were on deck.The morn-ing meal had been taken in silence, and eye met eye, as if their owners asked each other, in dumb show, what was to be the end of this strife in the elements.Cap, however, was perfectly composed, and his face brightened, his step grew firmer, and his whole air more assured, as the storm increased, making larger demands on his professional skill and personal spirit.He stood on the forecastle, his arms crossed, balancing his body with a seaman's instinct, while his eyes watched the caps of the seas, as they broke and glanced past the reeling cutter, itself in such swift motion, as if they were the scud flying athwart the sky.At this sublime instant one of the hands gave the unexpected cry of "A sail!"There was so much of the wild and solitary character of the wilderness about Ontario, that one scarcely expected to meet with a vessel on its waters.The _Scud_ herself, to those who were in her, resembled a man threading the forest alone, and the meeting was like that of two solitary hunters beneath the broad canopy of leaves that then cov-ered so many millions of acres on the continent of America.