CHAPTER XIII
A ROYAL SALUTE
"Then I take your bishop, major," said Colonel Murphy, as he made
a move that he had taken since the previous evening to consider.
"I was afraid you would," replied Major Oliphant, looking intently
at the chess-board.
Such was the way in which a long silence was broken on the morning
of the 17th of February by the old calendar.
Another day elapsed before another move was made. It was a protracted game;
it had, in fact, already lasted some months--the players being so deliberate,
and so fearful of taking a step without the most mature consideration,
that even now they were only making the twentieth move.
Both of them, moreover, were rigid disciples of the renowned Philidor,
who pronounces that to play the pawns well is "the soul of chess";
and, accordingly, not one pawn had been sacrificed without
a most vigorous defense.
The men who were thus beguiling their leisure were two
officers in the British army--Colonel Heneage Finch Murphy
and Major Sir John Temple Oliphant. Remarkably similar in
personal appearance, they were hardly less so in personal character.
Both of them were about forty years of age; both of them were tall
and fair, with bushy whiskers and mustaches; both of them were
phlegmatic in temperament, and both much addicted to the wearing
of their uniforms. They were proud of their nationality, and exhibited
a manifest dislike, verging upon contempt, of everything foreign.
Probably they would have felt no surprise if they had been told
that Anglo-Saxons were fashioned out of some specific clay,
the properties of which surpassed the investigation of chemical analysis.
Without any intentional disparagement they might, in a certain way,
be compared to two scarecrows which, though perfectly harmless
in themselves, inspire some measure of respect, and are excellently
adapted to protect the territory intrusted to their guardianship.
English-like, the two officers had made themselves thoroughly at home
in the station abroad in which it had been their lot to be quartered.
The faculty of colonization seems to be indigenous to the native character;
once let an Englishman plant his national standard on the surface of the moon,
and it would not be long before a colony was established round it.
The officers had a servant, named Kirke, and a company of ten
soldiers of the line. This party of thirteen men were apparently
the sole survivors of an overwhelming catastrophe, which on the 1st
of January had transformed an enormous rock, garrisoned with well-nigh
two thousand troops, into an insignificant island far out to sea.
But although the transformation had been so marvelous, it cannot
be said that either Colonel Murphy or Major Oliphant had made much
demonstration of astonishment.
"This is all very peculiar, Sir John," observed the colonel.
"Yes, colonel; very peculiar," replied the major.
"England will be sure to send for us," said one officer.
"No doubt she will," answered the other.
Accordingly, they came to the mutual resolution that they would
"stick to their post."
To say the truth, it would have been a difficult matter for
the gallant officers to do otherwise; they had but one small boat;
therefore, it was well that they made a virtue of necessity,
and resigned themselves to patient expectation of the British
ship which, in due time, would bring relief.
They had no fear of starvation. Their island was mined with subterranean
stores, more than ample for thirteen men--nay, for thirteen Englishmen--
for the next five years at least. Preserved meat, ale, brandy--all were
in abundance; consequently, as the men expressed it, they were in this
respect "all right."
Of course, the physical changes that had taken place had attracted the notice
both of officers and men. But the reversed position of east and west,
the diminution of the force of gravity, the altered rotation of the earth,
and her projection upon a new orbit, were all things that gave them little
concern and no uneasiness; and when the colonel and the major had replaced
the pieces on the board which had been disturbed by the convulsion,
any surprise they might have felt at the chess-men losing some portion
of their weight was quite forgotten in the satisfaction of seeing them
retain their equilibrium.
One phenomenon, however, did not fail to make its due impression upon
the men; this was the diminution in the length of day and night.
Three days after the catastrophe, Corporal Pim, on behalf of himself
and his comrades, solicited a formal interview with the officers.
The request having been granted, Pim, with the nine soldiers,
all punctiliously wearing the regimental tunic of scarlet and trousers
of invisible green, presented themselves at the door of the colonel's room,
where he and his brother-officer were continuing their game.
Raising his hand respectfully to his cap, which he wore poised jauntily
over his right ear, and scarcely held on by the strap below his under lip,
the corporal waited permission to speak.
After a lingering survey of the chess-board, the colonel slowly
lifted his eyes, and said with official dignity, "Well, men,
what is it?"
"First of all, sir," replied the corporal, "we want to speak to you
about our pay, and then we wish to have a word with the major
about our rations."
"Say on, then," said Colonel Murphy. "What is it about your pay?"
"Just this, sir; as the days are only half as long as they were,
we should like to know whether our pay is to be diminished in proportion."
The colonel was taken somewhat aback, and did not reply immediately,
though by some significant nods towards the major,
he indicated that he thought the question very reasonable.
After a few moments' reflection, he replied, "It must, I think,
be allowed that your pay was calculated from sunrise to sunrise;
there was no specification of what the interval should be.
Your pay will continue as before. England can afford it."
A buzz of approval burst involuntarily from all the men, but military
discipline and the respect due to their officers kept them in check
from any boisterous demonstration of their satisfaction.
"And now, corporal, what is your business with me?" asked Major Oliphant.
"We want to know whether, as the days are only six hours long,
we are to have but two meals instead of four?"
The officers looked at each other, and by their glances agreed
that the corporal was a man of sound common sense.
"Eccentricities of nature," said the major, "cannot interfere with
military regulations. It is true that there will be but an interval
of an hour and a half between them, but the rule stands good--
four meals a day. England is too rich to grudge her soldiers any
of her soldiers' due. Yes; four meals a day."
"Hurrah!" shouted the soldiers, unable this time to keep their delight
within the bounds of military decorum; and, turning to the right-about,
they marched away, leaving the officers to renew the all-absorbing game.
However confident everyone upon the island might profess
to be that succor would be sent them from their native land--
for Britain never abandons any of her sons--it could not be disguised
that that succor was somewhat tardy in making its appearance.
Many and various were the conjectures to account for the delay.
Perhaps England was engrossed with domestic matters,
or perhaps she was absorbed in diplomatic difficulties;
or perchance, more likely than all, Northern Europe had received
no tidings of the convulsion that had shattered the south.
The whole party throve remarkably well upon the liberal provisions
of the commissariat department, and if the officers failed
to show the same tendency to _embonpoint_ which was fast becoming
characteristic of the men, it was only because they deemed it due
to their rank to curtail any indulgences which might compromise
the fit of their uniform.
On the whole, time passed indifferently well. An Englishman rarely suffers
from _ennui_, and then only in his own country, when required to conform
to what he calls "the humbug of society"; and the two officers, with their
similar tastes, ideas, and dispositions, got on together admirably.
It is not to be questioned that they were deeply affected by a sense
of regret for their lost comrades, and astounded beyond measure at finding
themselves the sole survivors of a garrison of 1,895 men, but with true
British pluck and self-control, they had done nothing more than draw up
a report that 1,882 names were missing from the muster-roll.
The island itself, the sole surviving fragment of an enormous pile
of rock that had reared itself some 1,600 feet above the sea,
was not, strictly speaking, the only land that was visible;
for about twelve miles to the south there was another island,
apparently the very counterpart of what was now occupied
by the Englishmen. It was only natural that this should
awaken some interest even in the most imperturbable minds,
and there was no doubt that the two officers, during one of
the rare intervals when they were not absorbed in their game,
had decided that it would be desirable at least to ascertain
whether the island was deserted, or whether it might not be
occupied by some others, like themselves, survivors from
the general catastrophe. Certain it is that one morning,
when the weather was bright and calm, they had embarked alone
in the little boat, and been absent for seven or eight hours.
Not even to Corporal Pim did they communicate the object of
their excursion, nor say one syllable as to its result, and it
could only be inferred from their manner that they were quite
satisfied with what they had seen; and very shortly afterwards
Major Oliphant was observed to draw up a lengthy document,
which was no sooner finished than it was formally signed and
sealed with the seal of the 33rd Regiment. It was directed:
_To the First Lord of the Admiralty,
London,_
and kept in readiness for transmission by the first ship that should
hail in sight. But time elapsed, and here was the l8th of February
without an opportunity having been afforded for any communication
with the British Government.
At breakfast that morning, the colonel observed to the major
that he was under the most decided impression that the l8th
of February was a royal anniversary; and he went on to say that,
although he had received no definite instructions on the subject,
he did not think that the peculiar circumstances under which they
found themselves should prevent them from giving the day its
due military honors.
The major quite concurred; and it was mutually agreed that the occasion
must be honored by a bumper of port, and by a royal salute.
Corporal Pim must be sent for. The corporal soon made his appearance,
smacking his lips, having, by a ready intuition, found a pretext
for a double morning ration of spirits.
"The l8th of February, you know, Pim," said the colonel;
"we must have a salute of twenty-one guns."
"Very good," replied Pim, a man of few words.
"And take care that your fellows don't get their arms and legs blown off,"
added the officer.
"Very good, sir," said the corporal; and he made his salute and withdrew.
Of all the bombs, howitzers, and various species of artillery with
which the fortress had been crowded, one solitary piece remained.
This was a cumbrous muzzle-loader of 9-inch caliber, and, in default
of the smaller ordnance generally employed for the purpose,
had to be brought into requisition for the royal salute.
A sufficient number of charges having been provided, the corporal brought his
men to the reduct, whence the gun's mouth projected over a sloping embrasure.
The two officers, in cocked hats and full staff uniform, attended to take
charge of the proceedings. The gun was maneuvered in strict accordance
with the rules of "The Artilleryman's Manual," and the firing commenced.
Not unmindful of the warning he had received, the corporal was most careful
between each discharge to see that every vestige of fire was extinguished,
so as to prevent an untimely explosion while the men were reloading;
and accidents, such as so frequently mar public rejoicings,
were all happily avoided.
Much to the chagrin of both Colonel Murphy and Major Oliphant,
the effect of the salute fell altogether short of their anticipations.
The weight of the atmosphere was so reduced that there was
comparatively little resistance to the explosive force of the gases,
liberated at the cannon's mouth, and there was consequently none
of the reverberation, like rolling thunder, that ordinarily follows
the discharge of heavy artillery.
Twenty times had the gun been fired, and it was on the point of being loaded
for the last time, when the colonel laid his hand upon the arm of the man
who had the ramrod. "Stop!" he said; "we will have a ball this time.
Let us put the range of the piece to the test."
"A good idea!" replied the major. "Corporal, you hear the orders."
In quick time an artillery-wagon was on the spot, and the men
lifted out a full-sized shot, weighing 200 lbs., which,
under ordinary circumstances, the cannon would carry about four miles.
It was proposed, by means of telescopes, to note the place
where the ball first touched the water, and thus to obtain
an approximation sufficiently accurate as to the true range.
Having been duly charged with powder and ball, the gun was raised to an angle
of something under 45 degrees, so as to allow proper development to the curve
that the projectile would make, and, at a signal from the major, the light
was applied to the priming.
"Heavens!" "By all that's good!" exclaimed both officers
in one breath, as, standing open-mouthed, they hardly knew
whether they were to believe the evidence of their own senses.
"Is it possible?"
The diminution of the force of attraction at the earth's surface
was so considerable that the ball had sped beyond the horizon.
"Incredible!" ejaculated the colonel.
"Incredible!" echoed the major.
"Six miles at least!" observed the one.
"Ay, more than that!" replied the other.
Awhile, they gazed at the sea and at each other in mute amazement. But in
the midst of their perplexity, what sound was that which startled them?
Was it mere fancy? Was it the reverberation of the cannon still booming
in their ears? Or was it not truly the report of another and a distant
gun in answer to their own? Attentively and eagerly they listened.
Twice, thrice did the sound repeat itself. It was quite distinct.
There could be no mistake.
"I told you so," cried the colonel, triumphantly. "I knew our country
would not forsake us; it is an English ship, no doubt."
In half an hour two masts were visible above the horizon. "See! Was I
not right? Our country was sure to send to our relief.
Here is the ship."
"Yes," replied the major; "she responded to our gun."
"It is to be hoped," muttered the corporal, "that our ball has done
her no damage."
Before long the hull was full in sight. A long trail of smoke betokened
her to be a steamer; and very soon, by the aid of the glass, it could
be ascertained that she was a schooner-yacht, and making straight
for the island. A flag at her mast-head fluttered in the breeze,
and towards this the two officers, with the keenest attention,
respectively adjusted their focus.
Simultaneously the two telescopes were lowered. The colonel
and the major stared at each other in blank astonishment.
"Russian!" they gasped.
And true it was that the flag that floated at the head of yonder mast
was the blue cross of Russia.
