“Yes; to take care of you, there will be Hercules, Bat, Actaeon and Austin. Negoro, too, I presume, means to remain here,” said Dick, glancing towards the cook.
“Perhaps,” replied Negoro, sparing as ever of his words.
“We shall take Dingo,” added Dick; “likely enough he may be useful.”
At the sound of his name the dog had entered the grotto. A short bark seemed to testify his approval of Dick’s proposal.
Mrs. Weldon was silent. She looked sad and thoughtful. It was hard to reconcile herself to the division of the party. She was aware that the separation would not be for long, but she could not suppress a certain feeling of nervousness. Was it not possible that some natives, attracted by the wreck, would assault them in hopes of plunder?
Every argument he could think of, Dick brought forward to reassure the lady. He told her that the Indians were perfectly harmless, and entirely different to the savage tribes of Africa and Polynesia; there was no reason to apprehend any mischief, even if they should chance to encounter them, which was itself extremely unlikely. No doubt the separation would have its inconveniences, but they would be insignificant compared with the difficulty of traversing the country en masse. Tom and he would have far greater freedom if they went alone, and could make their investigations much more thoroughly. Finally he promised that if within two days they failed to discover human habitation, they would return to the grotto forthwith.
“I confess, however,” he added, “that I have little expectation of being able to ascertain our true position, until I have penetrated some distance into the country.”
There was nothing in Dick’s representations but what commanded Mrs. Weldon’s assent as reasonable. It was simply her own nervousness, she acknowledged, that made her hesitate; but it was only with extreme reluctance that she finally yielded to the proposition.
“And what, Mr. Benedict, is your opinion of my proposal?” said Dick, turning to the entomologist.
“I?” answered Cousin Benedict, looking somewhat bewildered, “Oh, I am agreeable to anything. I dare say I shall find some specimens. I think I will go and look at once.”
“Take my advice, and don’t go far away,” replied Dick.
“All right; I shall take care of myself.”
“And don’t be bringing back a lot of mosquitoes,” said old Tom mischievously.
With his box under his arm, the naturalist left the grotto.
Negoro followed almost immediately. He did not take the same direction as Benedict up the cliff, but for the second time bent his steps towards the river, and proceeded along its bank till he was out of sight.
It was not long before Jack’s exertions told upon him, and he fell into a sound sleep. Mrs. Weldon having gently laid him on Nan’s lap, wandered out and made her way to the water’s edge. She was soon joined by Dick and the negroes, who wanted to see whether it was possible to get to the Pilgrim, and secure any articles that might be serviceable for future use. The reef on which the schooner had stranded was now quite dry, and the carcase of the vessel which had been partially covered at high water was lying in the midst of debris of the most promiscuous character. The wide difference between high and low-water mark caused Dick Sands no little surprise. He knew that the tides on the shores of the Pacific were very inconsiderable; in his own mind, however, he came to the conclusion that the phenomenon was to be explained by the unusually high wind that had been blowing on the coast.
Not without emotion could Mrs. Weldon, or indeed any of them, behold the unfortunate ship upon which they had spent so many eventful days, lying dismasted on her side. But there was little time for sentiment. If they wished to visit the hull before it finally went to pieces there must be no delay.
Hoisting themselves by some loose rigging that was hanging from the deck, Dick and several of the negroes contrived to make their way into the interior of the hull. Dick left his men to gather together all they could in the way of food and drink from the storeroom, and himself went straight to the stern cabin, into which the water had not penetrated. Here he found four excellent Purday’s Remington rifles and a hundred cartridges; with these he determined to arm his party, in case they should be attacked by Indians. He also chose six of the strongest of the cutlasses that are used for slicing up dead whales; and did not forget the little toy gun which was Jack’s special property. Unexpectedly he found a pocket-compass, which he was only too glad to appropriate. What a boon it would have been had he discovered it earlier! The ship’s charts in the fore-cabin were too much injured by water to be of any further service. Nearly everything was either lost or spoiled, but the misfortune was not felt very acutely because there was ample provision for a few days, and it seemed useless to burden themselves with more than was necessary. Dick hardly needed Mrs. Weldon’s advice to secure all the money that might be on board, but after the most diligent search he failed to discover more than five hundred dollars. This was a subject of perplexity. Mrs. Weldon herself had had a considerably larger sum than this, and Captain Hull was known always to keep a good reserve in hand. There was but one way to solve the mystery. Someone had been beforehand to the wreck. It could not be any of the negroes, as not one of them had for a moment left the grotto. Suspicion naturally fell upon Negoro, who had been out alone upon the shore. Morose and cold-blooded as the man was, Dick hardly knew why he should suspect him of the crime of theft; nevertheless, he determined to cross-examine him, and, if need be, to have him searched, as soon as he came back.
The
