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[Illustration: Lord James dropped without a groan. "You coward!—youmurderer!" she gasped. Chapter XXX]
OUT OF THE PRIMITIVE
BY ROBERT AMES BENNET
Author of "Into the Primitive," etc.
WITH FOUR ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLORS BY ALLEN T. TRUE
1911
TO MY FRIEND JAMES COLLIER
CHAPTER I
THE CASTAWAYS
The second night north of the Zambezi, as well as the first, the littletramp rescue steamer had run out many miles into the offing and laid-toduring the hours of darkness. The vicinity of the coral reefs thatfringe the southeast coast of Africa is decidedly undesirable onmoonless nights.
When the Right Honorable the Earl of Avondale came out of his close,hot stateroom into the refreshing coolness that preceded the dawn, theposition of the Southern Cross, scintillating in the blue-black sky toport, told him that the steamer was headed in for the coast. The blacksurface of the quiet sea crinkled with lines of phosphorescent lightunder the ruffling of the faint breeze, which crept offshore heavy withthe stench of rotting vegetation. It was evident that the ship wasalready close in again to the Mozambique swamps.
Lord James sniffed the rank odor, and hastened to make his way forwardto the bridge. As he neared the foot of the ladder, his resilient stepand the snowy whiteness of his linen suit attracted the attention ofthe watcher above on the bridge.
"Good-morning, m' lord," the officer called down in a bluff butrespectful tone. "You're on deck early."
"Hullo, Meggs! That you?" replied his lordship, mounting the steps withyouthful agility. "It seems you're still earlier."
"Knowing your lordship's anxiety, I decided to run in, so that we couldrenew the search with the first glimmer of daylight," explained theskipper. "We're now barely under headway. According to the smell, we'reas near those reefs as I care to venture in the dark."
"Right-o! We'll lose no time," approved the young earl. "D'you stillthink to-day is apt to tell the tale, one way or the other?"
"Aye, your lordship. I may be mistaken; but, as I told you, reckoningtogether all the probabilities, we should to-day cover the spot wherethe Impala must have been driven on the coral—that is, unless shefoundered in deep water."
"But, man, you said that was not probable."
"A new boat should be able to stand the racking of half a dozencyclones, m' lord, without straining a bottom plate. No; it's far moreprobable she shook off her screw, or something went wrong with thesteering gear or in the engine room. I've recharted her probable courseand that of the cyclone. It was as well for us to begin our search atthe Zambezi, as I told your lordship. But if to-day we fail to findwhere she piled her bones on the coral, it's odds we'll not to-morrow.On beyond, at Port Mozambique, we got only the north rim of the storm.I put in there for shelter when the barometer dropped."
"That was on your run south. Glad I had the luck to chance on a man whoknows the coast as you do," remarked Lord James. "Look at thosesteamers Mr. Leslie chartered by cable—a good week the start of us,and still beating the coverts down there along Sofala! Wasting time! Ifonly I'd not gone off on th