Fire in the Woods: Illustrated — John Stuart Mill — John Shaqi
Fire in the Woods: Illustrated
John Stuart Mill · en
And now Phil thought of Pat, and mentioned that he was upon the shore;
whereupon Bruce rushed to the boat to go for him. As he leaped in, Phil
and the others looked towards the place where Pat had been standing, and
saw a wagon and two persons, a boy and a man, talking with Pat.
Now, you know, that very morning Bart had left along with the priest,
on his way to the north, to carry on his search after Phil. It was
early when they left, but as the road was rough, their progress was not
particularly rapid. Still they did make some progress, and in process
of time they reached the place where the schooner lay anchored. This
schooner excited Bart’s attention, for there was something in her
general appearance that was strangely familiar. As they drew nearer they
saw a number of figures on the deck, running to and fro, and giving all
possible signs of the greatest possible excitement. Suddenly, in the
midst of this, he saw a flag ascend, and float in the breeze. It
was dark in color, and of a nondescript character, and at first its
emblazonment was not distinctly visible. Soon, however, he came near
enough to see it. Then the whole thing was disclosed.
It was the well-known flag--his flag--the flag that had waved over the
most memorable events of his life--the flag of the B. O. W. C.!
The thing was astonishing, yet not incomprehensible. He saw that the
Antelope had probably been cruising about these waters on her way to
Shippegan. He saw that he had come upon her in an amazing manner; but
what seemed incomprehensible was the excitement on her deck. What
was the cause, and what did it mean? It could not be that they had
recognized him, and had done this in honor of his arrival. No; it must
be something else.
He said nothing to the priest, but sat filled with excitement, waiting
till they should come near. In this way they approached the old
house, and beside the shore he saw a figure dancing, jumping, yelling,
shouting, waving his cap, and indulging in a thousand fantastic
gestures.
This figure was Pat.
The wagon stopped, and Bart jumped out, followed by the priest. In a
few minutes Bart understood all. First of all, Phil had been found;
secondly, he was on board the schooner, and the excitement was about
him; and thirdly, Pat claimed the honor of discovering Phil.
In the midst of this a boat approached the shore, and soon Bruce Rawdon
stood before them, giving them an uproarious welcome. The arrival of
Bart had given a new turn to the excitement of the occasion, and they
all went off to the schooner, accompanied by the priest, who entered
most heartily into the spirit of the joyous scene.
XXI.
_Where is Solomon?--The Search.--The aged
Wanderer.--Recognition.--Boating.--Fishing.--Cooking.--Swimming.--The
Preparations for the Banquet.--The savory Smell.--Solomon dances a
Breakdown, and makes a Speech._