Chapter 28

"SEA-RUNES GOOD AT NEED."

"Well, boys, I suppose you want to be off early," said the Yarl next morning, when he came in for breakfast and found his young guests in a ferment of excitement asking each other, "Where did you put the knives?" "Have you remembered matches?" "I vote we take a whole ham with us." "You've left out the log-book." "For goodness' sake, somebody carry a pencil."

"You look like business, on my word," their host added, smiling; "and I wish I were a boy too."

"Never mind, sir; come with us all the same," cried Yaspard, but old Halsen shook his head.

"The glamour of boyhood is wanting. I could not enjoy such a voyage of adventure and exploring in the right way now. But I shall want to hear all about it; so mind you use Garth's note-book and keep an accurate log."

"I'll see to that," quoth Harry; and Tom added, "I do the messing, and Harry does the writing."

When all preparations were made, the Yarl insisted that they should march to the shore in proper style, with Yaspard walking in front carrying his new flag, hoisted for the occasion on Mr. Halsen's walking-stick.

It was a lovely flag indeed. Isobel had been working on it for a long time, intending it for Fred, but he had asked that it might be given to his young friend, and she willingly agreed.

The device was not uncommon, but Isobel's artistic fancy had made it a perfect work of art. It was the figure of a youth clad in armour holding high in his right hand a white cross with "Onward" worked in gold letters upon it.

The flag was blue, with a crimson star in the corner; and altogether any prince might have been proud to start upon a high quest under such a banner.

The two girls accompanied the procession, we may be sure; and many were Gerta's injunctions to "take care of yourselves, and don't be foolhardy."

Just as the good-byes were being said, Thor called out from his basket, "Uncle, uncle! Bad, bad, bad!"

"Why on earth have you taken that uncanny fowl with you?" Amy Congreve asked.

"You ought to know by this time," said Garth, speaking for our Viking-boy, "that the sea-rovers never went out to maraud or explore without the bird of Odin."

"I shouldn't like to have a creature like that calling out 'Bad, bad!' as I started on a voyage of discovery. It is not a good omen," Amy replied in lower tones, which did not reach the ears of the young adventurers, for their boat was off, and the Yarl and Garth were cheering the _Osprey_ as it slid away from the land.

"What very odd fancies that boy has!" Mr. Halsen remarked as they returned to the house. "Some of his notions are almost childish at the first glance one takes--so simple, and full of the exaggerated fancy of a mere child. But soon one finds the germ of the right kind of stuff in all his fancies; and he carries them out with the shrewd common sense, the cool determination, energy, and daring of a grown man. It is a strange mixture."

"It is a mixture that makes a fascinating character, uncle," said Gerta. "I like Yaspard Adiesen very much just because of that child-way and man-manner he has. He will do something grand one of these days."

Yaspard thought he was doing something grand that very day, you may be sure. He was started on an exploring expedition: and when we remember that the Shetland group consists of over one hundred islands, large and small; that many of these have seldom been visited by any one, some never trod by human foot, and the greater number uninhabited save by the wild birds and sea creatures, we will see that our hero's voyage was not unlikely to be one of discovery and adventure.

Some other time I will give you the _Osprey's_ log, carefully kept by Harry Mitchell, who every evening recorded all the day's doings, however trivial these had been. Many of their adventures were so startling that he might well have been excused if his attention had been occasionally diverted from this duty; but that diary was a model of faithful discharging of a promise given to more than one of the dear home friends, whose thoughts we know were with the Viking-boys. At present I can only tell you a small part of what happened during the week which the _Osprey_ spent in cruising among the lonely skerries and holmes of Hialtland.

More than once our lads had spoken a haaf-boat, and sent messages to Lunda, from whence Fred had taken care to despatch the news, "_Osprey_ spoken. All well," to Boden and Burra Isle.

They never landed on any inhabited spot, but preferred to camp for the night on some lofty rock, whose steep sides they had to scale at the risk of their bones, or on some green holme, where the waves lapped round the place of their rest, tossing spray on them as they slept.

They always kept a watch, knowing from past experience how swiftly the squalls arise. It would be no joke, they knew, if their boat were caught by the sea in some geo while they slept on the high rock above; and well they knew that a very little increase of wind would cause the waves to wash them from the low holmes in a moment. They kept a wary eye on the weather, and always contrived to have a safe port to lee when atmospheric disturbance threatened.

They gathered a strange, even valuable, collection of curiosities in various departments of science; nothing escaped Harry in the shape of plant-life, shells, or geological specimens, and the others followed his example in other lines. A great many rare and beautiful curiosities were brought up on the fishing-line. Tom Holtum came to grief more than once climbing after birds' nests, and Bill Mitchell had to be rescued from drowning again and again in consequence of his ardour in pursuit of wreckage.

There are always mournful trophies of the power of ocean to be found floating around those isles, and our young adventurers were frequently reminded of this by discovering oars, planks, casks, or other flotsam, which had belonged to some lost ship that had disappeared for ever.

I ought to tell you that Thor was not kept a prisoner in his basket all this time. Yaspard knew that the bird would remain by him and the well-known boat when all familiar land-marks were beyond his ken, therefore he was allowed to hop about as he so pleased. Being always well fed and caressed, Thor began to think that a voyage of discovery had something to recommend it on the whole, and was in a very amiable frame of mind all the time. Indeed, so much did he show himself attached to the _Osprey_ and her roving crew, that some of them began to think he would not be inclined to leave them even when they might wish him to do so. For be it known that Yaspard meant to send Thor home before him with a message, and had told Signy to look every day for the coming of the raven.

When they had been out a week, and had led a most delightful Robinson Crusoe life, they found that their provisions were getting near an end; as the Yarl had advised their return about that time, therefore he had not supplied them with more than a week's food. The store had been supplemented by many a fine catch of fish, as well as shell-fish; but the lads were healthy and hungry, and had not spared the ferdimet. They might have landed near some cottages and renewed their supplies, but such a prosaic and ordinary method was scouted by all. Besides, they had agreed to return as advised about that time; so the homeward voyage was begun, not without some regret, but with many a resolution that this should only be the first of many such expeditions.

They sailed steadily onwards all that day without turning once aside, though many a tempting islet lay by their course. When the evening drew near they were well in sight of the Heogue and the hills of Lunda; while, not far away on their lee, rose the cliffs of Burra Isle.

"Suppose we land for the night on Swarta Stack?" said Harry. "It is a good-sized place, and has a first-rate geo where our boat can lie as snug as possible."

"Swarta Stack gets a bad name for mair raisons than ane," Gloy Winwick remarked, as the _Osprey_ made for the island, according to Harry's suggestions.

"Is it haunted?" Gibbie asked.

"I dinna ken aboot that," replied his cousin. "The minister tells us it's a' nonsense aboot haunted places and the like; but it's said that Swarta Stack was an ill place when the folk were no' ower particular o' the way they got prül[1] frae the sea."

"You mean there were wreckers hereabout?" Yaspard asked, and Gloy answered, "I've heard sae."

"I wish I could meet them. I just wish I could catch a wrecker at his evil work. Wouldn't I pitch into him!" exclaimed the Viking-boy; whereat Harry, laughing, said, "That's all done with now. Wreckers went after the Vikings, didn't they?"

"With the exception of fule-Tammy," retorted Yaspard.

"And yourself," said Tom.

"Maybe they left as bad behind them," Yaspard said quickly. "Men who cheat in trade, who scamp work, evade taxes, rack-rent the poor, are no better than pirates and wreckers."

"Here we are at the Stack," Harry exclaimed. "Look out there with the sail! Captain, mind your helm. There now; you nearly had her aground! I declare we've skimmed over a bau!--we may thank our stars we didn't capsize on it--all through your jabber about wreckers who left this planet a century ago."

They landed on Swarta Stack, and made themselves comfortable for the night not far from the geo where the _Osprey_ was moored. It was too late to explore the Stack that night, so after supper all rolled themselves up in rugs, as had been their wont for a week, and were soon in the mysterious land of dreamless sleep.

[1] Odds and ends, or plunder.