登陆注册
19471600000247

第247章

She swung round.The masts bent like whips; crack went the fore-sail like a cannon.What matter? Within two hundred yards of them was the Spaniard; in front of her, and above her, a huge dark bank rose through the dense hail, and mingled with the clouds; and at its foot, plainer every moment, pillars and spouts of leaping foam.

"What is it, Morte? Hartland?"

It might be anything for thirty miles.

"Lundy!" said Yeo."The south end! I see the head of the Shutter in the breakers! Hard a-port yet, and get her close-hauled as you can, and the Lord may have mercy on us still! Look at the Spaniard!"Yes, look at the Spaniard!

On their left hand, as they broached-to, the wall of granite sloped down from the clouds toward an isolated peak of rock, some two hundred feet in height.Then a hundred yards of roaring breaker upon a sunken shelf, across which the race of the tide poured like a cataract; then, amid a column of salt smoke, the Shutter, like a huge black fang, rose waiting for its prey; and between the Shutter and the land, the great galleon loomed dimly through the storm.

He, too, had seen his danger, and tried to broach-to.But his clumsy mass refused to obey the helm; he struggled a moment, half hid in foam; fell away again, and rushed upon his doom.

"Lost! lost! lost!" cried Amyas madly, and throwing up his hands, let go the tiller.Yeo caught it just in time.

"Sir! sir! What are you at? We shall clear the rock yet.""Yes!" shouted Amyas, in his frenzy; "but he will not!"Another minute.The galleon gave a sudden jar, and stopped.Then one long heave and bound, as if to free herself.And then her bows lighted clean upon the Shutter.

An awful silence fell on every English soul.They heard not the roaring of wind and surge; they saw not the blinding flashes of the lightning; but they heard one long ear-piercing wail to every saint in heaven rise from five hundred human throats; they saw the mighty ship heel over from the wind, and sweep headlong down the cataract of the race, plunging her yards into the foam, and showing her whole black side even to her keel, till she rolled clean over, and vanished for ever and ever.

"Shame!" cried Amyas, hurling his sword far into the sea, "to lose my right, my right! when it was in my very grasp! Unmerciful!"A crack which rent the sky, and made the granite ring and quiver; a bright world of flame, and then a blank of utter darkness, against which stood out, glowing red-hot every mast, and sail, and rock, and Salvation Yeo as he stood just in front of Amyas, the tiller in his hand.All red-hot, transfigured into fire; and behind, the black, black night.

.......

A whisper, a rustling close beside him, and Brimblecombe's voice said softly:

"Give him more wine, Will; his eyes are opening.""Hey day?" said Amyas, faintly, "not past the Shutter yet! How long she hangs in the wind!""We are long past the Shutter, Sir Amyas," said Brimblecombe.

"Are you mad? Cannot I trust my own eyes?"There was no answer for awhile.

"We are past the Shutter, indeed," said Cary, very gently, "and lying in the cove at Lundy.""Will you tell me that that is not the Shutter, and that the Devil's-limekiln, and that the cliff--that villain Spaniard only gone--and that Yeo is not standing here by me, and Cary there forward, and--why, by the by, where are you, Jack Brimblecombe, who were talking to me this minute?""Oh, Sir Amyas Leigh, dear Sir Amyas Leigh, blubbered poor Jack, "put out your hand, and feel where you are, and pray the Lord to forgive you for your wilfulness!"A great trembling fell upon Amyas Leigh; half fearfully he put out his hand; he felt that he was in his hammock, with the deck beams close above his head.The vision which had been left upon his eye-balls vanished like a dream.

"What is this? I must be asleep? What has happened? Where am I?""In your cabin, Amyas," said Cary.

"What? And where is Yeo?"

"Yeo is gone where he longed to go, and as he longed to go.The same flash which struck you down, struck him dead.""Dead? Lightning? Any more hurt? I must go and see.Why, what is this?" and Amyas passed his hand across his eyes."It is all dark--dark, as I live!" And he passed his hand over his eyes again.

There was another dead silence.Amyas broke it.

"Oh, God!" shrieked the great proud sea-captain, "Oh, God, I am blind! blind! blind!" And writhing in his great horror, he called to Cary to kill him and put him out of his misery, and then wailed for his mother to come and help him, as if he had been a boy once more; while Brimblecombe and Cary, and the sailors who crowded round the cabin-door, wept as if they too had been boys once more.

Soon his fit of frenzy passed off, and he sank back exhausted.

They lifted him into their remaining boat, rowed him ashore, carried him painfully up the hill to the old castle, and made a bed for him on the floor, in the very room in which Don Guzman and Rose Salterne had plighted their troth to each other, five wild years before.

同类推荐
  • 五母子经

    五母子经

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • Russia

    Russia

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 山国轨

    山国轨

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • BUNNER SISTERS

    BUNNER SISTERS

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 慈悲药师宝忏

    慈悲药师宝忏

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
热门推荐
  • 无赖时代

    无赖时代

    他拥有韦小宝的一切,但却也拥有韦小宝所没有的本事!他对女人时将无赖发挥到及至,面对兄弟时将义气诠释的完美,面对敌人时又将心狠手辣表现到极端!且看他如何只手遮天,将整个时代变成他的时代,无赖的时代!
  • 阴天修真之旅

    阴天修真之旅

    一个人,一场梦,两个世界,缘起缘灭,是退缩,是舍得,还是相忘于江湖?爱的选择,阴天的修真之旅!
  • 追婚总裁:傲娇小妻请深爱

    追婚总裁:傲娇小妻请深爱

    言欢欢没有想到自己一觉醒来变成18岁小少女,从此走上了勾引未来老公的艰难道路。
  • 情景规划:为不确定的世界规划未来

    情景规划:为不确定的世界规划未来

    本书诠释了情景规划的思想精髓,详细介绍了情景规划的实施方法,并将未来世界的可能情景作为案例向读者作了介绍。
  • EQ情商

    EQ情商

    什么是情商?1983年哈佛大学心理学家霍华德·加德纳在《精神状态》一书中提出,人有“多元智慧”,开启了情商学说的新智。1991年耶鲁大学心理学家彼得·塞拉维和新罕布什尔大学的琼·梅耶首创EQ情商一词。1995年《纽约时报》专栏作家丹尼尔·戈尔曼出版《情绪智力》一书,将情商推向高潮。EQ在美国掀起轩然大波,并风靡全世界。情商概念的提出是人类智能的第二次革命,其主要观点包括:情商是个体的重要的生存能力,是一种发掘情感潜能、运用情感能力影响生活各个层面和人生未来的关键的品质因素。一个人在社会上要获得成功,起主要作用的不是智力因素,而是他们所说的情绪智能,前者占20%,后者占80%。
  • 芙蓉锦

    芙蓉锦

    一部考验你心脏承受虐恋能力的经典之作!看到这本书的时候,蓦然让我想起张爱玲的那句脍炙人口的佳句“也许每一个男子全都有过这样的两个女人,至少两个。娶了红玫瑰,久而久之,红的变了墙上的一抹蚊子血,白的还是“床前明月光”;娶了白玫瑰,白的便是衣服上沾的一粒饭黏子,红的却是心口上一颗朱砂痣。”这句佳话用来形容女子版本的芙蓉锦再合适不过,因为女主角灵魂中徘徊着的两名重要男子,便是如红玫瑰与白玫瑰一般,烈焰和静水之间的区别。而这两名男子亦分别给贺兰带来不同的毁灭、热烈和拯救重生的爱。情节虚构,切勿模仿
  • 斗玲珑

    斗玲珑

    重病不治而终,被告知自己抽中了地府大奖可以自行选择下一世的去向。越昔年就这样来到了武国的越将军家。越昔年是大家闺秀的反面教材。琴棋书画不会,刀枪棍棒不精,碌碌无为地做了十几年的透明人。不想嫁人的她也到了该嫁人的年纪,忧心忡忡越昔年终于等到了她的契机。不过为什么她要以那个叫司徒独醒的男人的徒弟身份离开,并且被使唤地很麻溜?到底是谁在威胁谁来着?谁比谁更七窍玲珑?斗过江湖惹庙堂,百般算计,万千心思。他不过比她多了个心眼儿。看似体弱多病的缺心眼小徒和无节操师父,无非三言两语能说透,就请字里行间细看来。
  • 妖武乾坤

    妖武乾坤

    传说中,六道是众生轮回之道途,既然这个世界有人,就会有神和妖,我要讲的就是妖的故事……他是妖王的转世,觉醒后是继续安然的做洪门掌门还是带领妖族杀上九重天,让天道摧毁一切建立新的纪元?千年的等待只为今生与你再次相遇……
  • 我体内有恶魔

    我体内有恶魔

    一个不慎被一个恶魔附身,周清不得不投靠恶魔,和恶魔合作。原本以为投靠恶魔会给自己带来一些好处,却没想到那是一个被满世界神魔追杀的恶魔。周清:“你还能再坑爹一些吗?”恶魔:“努力吧!奋斗吧!投靠恶魔的少年!推倒越多妹子,就能少奋斗好多年!”于是,周清不得不朝着伟大的奋斗目标前进!
  • 豪门影后:国民男神拐回家

    豪门影后:国民男神拐回家

    乐笙儿明明是国民女神,一线影星,谁来告诉她,为毛她要亲自上刀山下油锅,在戏里扛锄头,修灯泡,六月烤火炉,二月进冰川。她是上得了刀山,下得了火海,扮得了女神,演得了汉子的国民女神乐笙儿,突然高调宣布结婚息影,引起娱乐圈一片哗然。可就在结婚前夕,她不仅撞到未婚夫和男人红浪翻滚基情四射,还砸了自己未来BOSS,国民男神陆之渊,从此惹上了化身为狼的冷傲总裁大人。冤家路窄,六月飞雪。乐笙儿:“陆之渊,你有完没完。”陆之渊:“别急,慢慢玩!”…...欢喜冤家,一宠到底。乐笙儿:“陆之渊!你特么的是不是有病?”陆之渊唇角上扬:“相思成病。”乐笙儿:“……”