The Second String by Nat Gould (inspirational books to read txt) 📖

an alluring prospect after all, this amassing of wealth, there must be something a good deal better in the world. He concluded a modest income with an abundance of domestic happiness would be more to his taste.

The Great Tom mine share might go up to three pounds, even four or five.

He commenced to reckon up what he would do with his money when he had sold out for five times the amount he had invested. He'd ask Barry Tuxford's advice, it was he who made the money for him, and it was only natural he should give him a wrinkle what to do with it. Then he remembered he and Harry Marton were to go halves; it was his own suggestion and he would stick to it, but if he made a fortune and Harry failed it would be rather rough on the lucky one. He laughed to himself as he pictured Harry Marton's dismay when he handed him over half his wealth, which he did not yet possess. Harry would refuse to take it, and there must be a compromise, but he was determined if he was successful his friend should also be a gainer.

The "Heron" sailed on in sight of the "Wild Cat," and Jack Redland, young and active, was full of hope and eager anticipation. The search for fortune is more enchanting, more enthralling, than the actual realisation, which, however successful it may prove is always insufficient to stave off the craving for more.

CHAPTER TWELFTH JACOB'S YARN

"I shall be glad when we have done messing about here and set to work. We look like making a long trip; at this rate, we shall not be back at Fremantle under a twelve month," grumbled Phil.

"I'm tired of doing nothing," replied Jack, "and this is a slow way of making a fortune. We ought to be somewhere near the place by now."

"We may have slipped past it," replied Phil.

"And have to return," said Jack in dismay. "That will be shocking bad luck."

Another three days passed, and they seemed as far off their journey's end as ever, until next morning one of the men shouted out that there was a signal on a promontory jutting out into the sea.

They rushed to the fore part of the schooner, and looked eagerly at the spot. The man was right; there was a long pole with something waving at the top, evidently a signal to passing vessels.

"It may be a very old one," said Phil.

"Perhaps it is Jacob Rank's signal," replied Jack.

"Let us hope so; anyway, we will make for it. I wonder if they have seen it on board the 'Wild Cat?'"

The other schooner was some distance behind, and as Jack looked through his glasses he saw no sign of excitement on board.

"I do not think they have," he said, "but in any case they will follow in our track."

The "Heron" headed for the rock on which the signal was fixed, and as they drew near it they saw it was a projection of one side of the heads of a bay.

Their spirits rose, and Phil said—

"It's Jacob's Bay, I'll wager. It answers the description exactly. Look there; the rock jutting out bare and jagged, the other side of the channel wooded and sloping gradually down. The entrance narrow, the scene from the ocean exactly as he described it. Here we are at last, boys. Give a rousing cheer; let off a few guns, and if Rank is alive that will bring him out of his shell."

They cheered lustily, and Jack discharged the gun several times.

Harry Marton on the "Wild Cat" asked Moss the meaning of the commotion, and he replied "They must have found the place at last, and glad I am of it. We have had a long journey for nothing so far."

The "Heron" sailed steadily towards the entrance and as she passed the promontory they saw the flag at the top of the staff was made of an old shirt, or some such garment.

"It cannot have been there very long," said Phil, eyeing it through the glasses. "It has only recently been put up, so the probabilities are the man is alive."

The bay they entered was much larger than the former one, almost the size of Shark's Bay, and Phil expressed the opinion that it was a good place for pearl fishing.

Rounding the corner they saw a man who was on the look out, and he waved his arms furiously and danced about in great glee.

The schooner steered closer to the shore, and at last there came a loud shout from the solitary human being.

"By all that's wonderful, it's Jacob Rank," said Phil, and he waved back to him. "Let go the anchor, we'll row ashore," he said, excitedly.

A dinghy was soon in the water, and they scrambled in. In a very short time they were on the sand, and Phil was wringing Jacob's hand until there seemed to be a good chance of their arms coming off.

The excitement was too much for Rank, who sat down on the beach and almost wept for joy. When he became calmer he said—

"What in heaven's name brought you here, Phil?"

"The 'Heron,' and we were sent by Barry Tuxford. We have another schooner, the 'Wild Cat,' see, she is just entering the heads."

"And who is this young man?"

"Mr. Redland. He is in the venture with Harry Marton, who is on that schooner, and we are all in it with Barry."

"Then he did not believe I was dead?"

"No. The beggars said you were drowned, when they reached Fremantle, and that there was no pearl shell to be found, but Barry didn't cotton to that yarn, so he organised another expedition to find you and your boy, and here we are."

"And a precious long while you have been, it seems years since those scoundrels put me ashore here, but I'll get even with them one of these days."

The "Wild Cat" cast anchor close to the "Heron," and Harry and Hake Moss came ashore and heartily greeted Rank.

"I'll tell you what it is, before we get on to business, or anything else, I should like to go on board and have a decent meal. I have not starved here, but living on turtle, birds, and eggs, is a bit too much for me. I'd give anything for a decent bit of bread and something to wash it down," said Rank.

"Of course," quickly replied Jack. "Here we are standing talking and never thinking about you. Come along, we will row back at once."

Jacob eagerly got into the boat, and when he put his foot on board the "Heron" he gave a sigh of relief.

"To a man who has been stranded for weeks you have no idea how it feels to find yourself on a decent craft again. I have no ambition to be a second Crusoe."

Jacob enjoyed himself thoroughly, and they gave him of the best their stores could provide.

In the evening they were all anxious to hear how he came to be left in the bay, and what prospect there was of finding shells.

They sat round Jacob, who was nothing loath to satisfy their curiosity.

"It's a long story, but I'll cut it as short as possible," he said. "To begin at the beginning, when Barry Tuxford fitted me out for this job I rather fancy he had doubts as to whether I was 'kidding' him."

"You are mistaken," said Jack. "I can assure you he had, and still has, every confidence in you. I will tell you later on what he instructed us to do if we found you alive."

"I am glad to hear it," said Jacob. "It was a risky job for him to tackle, but he has plenty of pluck, and I told him the truth when I said I knew of a bay for pearl fishing that was equal to Shark's Bay in its best days. Of course he had only my bare word for it, but he's not like other men, and he generally reckons things up pretty correct.

"I got together what I thought was a decent crew, but a bigger set of scoundrels never set foot in a schooner. They were loafers, every man jack of them, and had come out with the intention of having a pleasure trip. When we reached here I saw there was trouble brewing, but I didn't think they would go as far as to leave me in the lurch. I could do nothing against the lot of them, and they put me ashore and left me to my fate, curse them. They said if the bay was full of pearl shell I might have the lot, it would be a fine fortune for me. The divers would have stuck to me, but they frightened the poor devils into submission, and the Lord knows what they did with them, put them ashore somewhere, I expect.

"I was mad with rage when I saw the schooner sail away, but I made up my mind to live through it if possible. I had an idea Barry Tuxford would not let the matter rest. If the schooner did not return he would send out to search for her, if she returned without me, and the crew concocted some cock and bull story, I doubted if he would believe them. It seems I was correct.

"For the first week or two I felt desperate. The loneliness oppressed me, I thought I should go mad. I walked for miles, shouting at the top my voice until I was exhausted. I meant making someone hear, even if it turned out to be savages. I believe in those days I would willingly have walked into the midst of a cannibal camp and taken my chance. Not a soul did I see, black or white, nor have I seen anyone until you came here."

"We saw the signal," said Phil. "I wonder no passing schooner observed it before."

"There are very few boats come in close enough for that," said Jacob. "This is a lonely, almost unknown part of the coast, and it is dangerous in rough weather. That signal pole was blown down a dozen times, I think, and I only fixed it up again a couple of days ago. It is lucky for me you saw it, lucky for all of you, too, as I will tell you.

"I found out this place once when I had been cruising around King's Sound, Roebuck Bay, and such like places. We happened on it quite accidentally. I was keeping a sharp look out and noticed the promontory at the far side of the channel. I had never sailed so near the coast before in these parts, and it struck me there might be a large bay beyond. The crew thought I had taken leave of my senses when I steered for the rock, but they had faith in me and had sailed with me several times. They were surprised to find such a bay as this, but they little knew my object in entering it. In the old days, at Cossack, I had heard an old pearler speak of a wonderful bay where there was heaps of shell that had never been touched. He described the place to me and I asked him why he had not tried it himself. He said he was too old, that he had sufficient to live on, and did not mean to worry about anything. He told me if ever I was near the northern part of Australia to try and find it, and gave me to understand it was north-west of Western Australia. When I saw the big rock at the entrance to the bay I recollected what he had said.

"I am an expert diver myself and have remained down below almost as long as the best of the Malays. At night I cautiously went down in the bay and felt about. There were hundreds of shells, big and little, and I felt certain I had struck a