Another hour or so passed, yet there were no signs of 'Enery. The heat began to be intense, for the sun was now as high in the heavens as it could possibly be, and its rays, pouring down upon the decks, caused the atmosphere of the hold to become stifling.
The wind, too, had dropped, for the ropes and sails no longer rattled and flapped. But Captain Jeremy was not the kind of man to allow his crew to remain idle, for I could hear water being poured on the deck to clean away the dirt brought aboard from the quay. This, to a certain extent, cooled the hold, and I felt all the better for it.
"A breeze! A breeze from the nor'east!" I heard a voice exclaim, and almost immediately after came the sounds of men rushing hither and thither, and the creaking of blocks and tackle. Then, with the measured tramp of feet as the capstan revolved, the cable descended slowly into its tier, adding to the odours of the hold the pungent smells of seaweed and mud.
The regular heel of the brig gave place to a confused pitching and tossing, signs that I hailed with delight, in spite of a qualmish sensation which the motion seemed to encourage.
The _Golden Hope_ had crossed the bar, and was curtsying to the waves of the English Channel.
I waited a little longer, then began pounding on the hatch with the butt of the iron rod.
At first no notice was taken of my efforts; then, without apparent warning, the hatch was whipped off. A flash of dazzling sunshine temporarily blinded me, and before I could realize my surroundings rough hands seized me by the shoulders and dragged me on deck, while a man shouted:
Captain Jeremy Miles was standing under the break of the poop, his sunburnt face darkened to a brick-red colour with anger.
"What d'ye mean, you rascal, stowing yourself aboard my ship?"
I must have looked a pitiable object, for, in addition to my soot-blackened face, my clothes were covered with dust and tar, the former from the roads, the latter from the timbers of the hold, though, until I came on deck, I was unaware of it.
My garments were also rent in several places, my hands were bleeding from the result of the rats' bites, and my left eye was becoming rapidly closed, by reason of the blow I had received when flung across the cable tier.
