Chapter 19 Chapter 19 Finger's Cave
If Captain Cloriada had been in some English port for twenty-four hours, it was because he probably knew that the weather information issued was not conducive to the passage of ships across the Atlantic.
Indeed, the New York radio station had declared a squall.After crossing the western Atlantic northeast of New York, the gales were about to hit the coasts of Ireland and Scotland before dying off the coast of Norway.
Notwithstanding the absence of this weather telegram, it was seen from the yacht's barometer that the weather was about to change considerably in the near future, which a prudent sailor should take into consideration.
The captain, John Aldeko, was a little worried about the weather conditions. On the morning of September 8, he arrived at the rocky coast surrounding the west of Stafford Island. He wanted to find out what the conditions of the sky and sea were.
A few clouds with unclear shapes, and a few rags of steam that have not yet formed clouds, have quickly slid over.The breeze is strengthening and will soon turn into a storm.There are patches of white waves in the undulating sea, stretching into the distance, and the waves whizzing and crashing against the basalt reefs, the bottom of the small islands are all such reefs.
John Aldeko's hanging heart still couldn't let go.Although Clorida was relatively sheltered in Cranshall's Cove, that wasn't safe, not even a modest building there.The water surges between the small island and the dike to the east. Under the push of the water, there will be terrible turbulent waves, and the situation of the yacht will become very dangerous.Time to make a decision, and make a decision before the waterway becomes impassable.
When the captain returned to the ship, he found that the passengers were all there. He worriedly told the passengers that they must set sail as soon as possible.Had it been a few hours late the sea would have been choppy in the fifteen-mile strait that separated Stafford from the Isle of Mull.Or, just hide behind the island, preferably in Port Aquinagre, where Clorida has nothing to worry about from the gale out to sea.
"Leave Stafford," cried Miss Campbell first, "and give up such a beautiful sky!"
"I think it would be dangerous to stay at the Cranshall dock," replied John Aldeko.
"If you must go, go! My dear Helena," said Sam.
"Yeah, if it has to be like this!" Sieb went on.
Oliver, seeing how much this hasty departure might offend Miss Campbell, said hastily:
"Captain Aldeko, how long do you think this storm will last?"
"At this time, two or three days at most." The captain replied.
"Do you feel compelled to leave?"
"Must and must go at once."
"What are your plans?"
"Start sailing this morning. The wind has strengthened, and with the wind blowing, we can reach Port Akinagrey before dark. As soon as the bad weather passes, we will return to Stafford Island."
"Why don't you go back to Jona Island? Cloreda will be there in an hour," Sam asked.
"No, no . . . , not to Jonas!" said Miss Campbell, and at the sound of Jonas the shadow of Aristobulus Ursyklaus seemed to stand before her.
"We are no safer at Yona than at Stafford," reminded John Aldeko.
"Well," said Oliver Sinclair, "you go, Captain, and you set off for Port Akinagrey at once, and we stay at Stafford."
"Stay at Stafford!" said the captain, "you don't even have a room to hide in here!"
"Isn't Cranshall Cave enough to hide for a few days?" Oliver went on. "What else could we want? Nothing! There's enough food on board, bedding in the berths, and a change of clothes for us. They can all be unloaded, and the chef would like to stay here with us!"
"Yes! . . . yes! . . . " Miss Campbell applauded. "Come on, Captain, set off for Aquina Gray with your yacht, and let us stay in Stafford! We stay here like people abandoned on a desert island. We want to live here Live like a victim. With a bit of fear and anxiety, I waited excitedly for Clorida to return, just like a drifter who was so excited when he discovered a building in the sea off the island. What is the purpose of our coming here? A legend, isn't it, Mr. Sinclair? What could be more legendary than the present situation, eh, uncles? Besides, on this poetic island, a storm, a gust of wind, The fury of the extreme northern seas, and the things that set off fight like Ocion, if I miss such a magnificent landscape, I will regret it forever! You go, Captain Aldeko! We stay here waiting for you! "
"But..." The Melville brothers came out of this hesitant word almost at the same time.
"It seems the uncles have expressed their opinion," said Miss Campbell, "but I believe I can persuade them."
She went over and kissed them both as they did in the morning: "This is for you, Uncle Sam, and here's for you, Uncle Sib, I bet you don't have anything else to say now."
The brothers didn't even think about rebutting.Since staying at Stafford is suitable for my niece, why not stay at Stafford?How did they not think of such a simple, natural idea first?This idea has all benefits and no harm, and it protects everyone's interests.
But it was Oliver Sinclair who had the idea, and Miss Campbell felt that she owed him special thanks.
Having thus decided, the sailor unloaded the necessary things to a place on the island.Cranshall Cave was soon converted into a temporary residence called Melville House.It's the same as the hotel in Jonah, if not better than that.The chef found a place suitable for cooking at the entrance of the cave, in a pit, and it was obvious that the pit was used for cooking.
Captain John Aldeko left the yacht's boat for their use, and Miss Campbell, Oliver Sinclair, the Melveys, Lady Bess, and Partridge all disembarked from the Clorida.The remaining boats would help them get from rock to rock.
An hour later Cloreda, with two reefs in her sails, lowered her topmast, hoisted her bad-weather jib, and set sail to round the northern part of the Isle of Mull, to pass between the islet and the natural land. Strait to the port of Aquina Gray.Passengers on Stafford Island watched the Cloreda until it was out of sight.The boat lay in the breeze, like a seagull, skimming the water with its wings, and after half an hour, it disappeared behind Gomet Island.
Although the weather threatened to turn bad, the sky was not yet clouded with fog.The sun was still filtering through the wide gaps in the clouds, and the wind was pulling the clouds slightly apart at the zenith.You can take a walk on the island, walk along the island, and you can follow the rocky corners of the basalt cliffs.The chief concern of Miss Campbell and the Melveys was to be led by Oliver to Finger's Cave.
Visitors from Iona usually visit the cave by boat from the Oban Steamboat.But disembark from the rock wall on the right, where there is a pier that can be docked, and you can also enter the deepest part of the cave.
Oliver therefore decided to go on this expedition without the Clorida's boat.
Everyone came out of the Cranshall Grotto.Walk on the embankment that circles the eastern part of the island.The stakes went straight down, as if some engineer had driven some basalt stakes there.The tops of the pillars formed a firm, dry pavement at the foot of the boulder.During these few minutes of walking, everyone watched the island while chatting.I can't think of a more beautiful way to go to this cave.It is very fitting that the heroes of One Thousand and One Nights live in this cave.
A group of people walked to the southeast corner of the island, and Oliver asked his companions to climb a few naturally formed steps, which were not inferior to the stairs in the palace.
At the corners of the steps stood the outer columns, crowded together against the rocky walls of the grotto, as in the priorys all over Rome from Vesta, except that they were arranged side by side to conceal the masterpieces behind them. .On the outer ridge of the building rests the gigantic platform from which this corner of the island is formed.The sloping mineralization of the rocks is arranged according to the geometric section of the rocks on the soffit of the vault, and this sloping mineralization is in sharp contrast with the vertical columns.
At the foot of the steps, the sea is no longer so calm. You can feel that the outer sea is already rough, and the sea rises and falls gently as if under the action of breathing.
The entire base of the platform is illuminated there, and the dark shadow of the platform rises and falls under the water.
Oliver reached the upper stone pillar, turned to the left, and pointed out to Miss Campbell a narrow embankment, or rather a natural berm, along the rock wall, and the berm extended into the depths of the cave.The iron supports of a section of balustrade, built in basalt, form a balustrade between the wall and the pointed back of the little embankment.
"Ah!" said Miss Campbell, "this railing spoils the beauty of Finger's Palace!"
"Indeed," replied Oliver, "it is a human addition to nature's masterpiece."
"If it works, use it," Sam said.
"That's right," Sieb went on.
When entering the Finger Cave, everyone followed the guide's advice and stopped.
Before them lay a great hall, tall and deep, half-lit and full of mystery.Seen from the sea, the distance between the two walls is about thirty-four feet.On the left and right, basalt columns, crowded against each other, as in some churches of the late Gothic period, with no load-bearing walls in sight.The tops of the columns are arched with large pointed vaults fifty feet above the water.
Miss Campbell and her companions were so amazed at the sight at first glance that they reluctantly left and walked along the ledge forming the inner berm.
There are hundreds of prismatic pillars arranged in an orderly manner, but the sizes are different, like huge crystals.The delicate edges are very abrupt, just like the lines drawn by a carving knife in the hands of a decorative artist.Geometrically, the concave corners of some pillars echo the convex corners of others.The rock pillars on this side have three sides, and those on the other side have four sides, five sides, six sides, and even seven or eight sides. The artistic taste of nature is high.
Light from outside bounces off the faceted corners of these rock pillars.The water inside absorbs the light outside, bright as a mirror, and the light imprints on the rocks under the sea and on the aquatic plants, dyeing them deep red or light yellow.Wisps of light illuminate the protruding parts of the basalt, and the basalt decorates this unparalleled underground palace with irregular algae wells.
There is a roaring silence shrouded in it. If these two words can be put together, everyone does not want to break the unique silence of this deep cave.Only the wind played a long chord in it, and that long chord seemed to be composed of a series of diminished sevenths, which gradually increased and disappeared.Under the strong wind blowing, it seems that you can hear the resonation of the corner posts like the reeds of a harmonica.Is it because of this comic effect that it gets its name, "The Cave of Harmony," as the Celtic language calls the cave.
"Which name suits it better?" said Oliver. "Since Finger is Ocion's father, he should be able to confound poetry and music into an art."
"Probably," said Sam, "but, as Ossion himself said, 'When will my ears hear the poet's praises? When will my heart be moved by the deeds of my ancestors? When the harp no longer rings the wooden instruments of Sebra!"
"Yes," added Sieb, "the palace is now deserted, and the echoes no longer echo the hymns of the past!" The cavern is estimated to be about one hundred and fifty feet deep.In the depths of the nave emerged a sort of organ shell, which revealed columns, smaller than those at the entrance, but equally perfectly lined.
Oliver Sinclair, Miss Campbell and the two uncles all wanted to stop there.
From there, the view to the vast sky is beautiful.Water, soaked in light, can see the layout of the depths of the seabed.The bottom of the sea has various column angles from four to seven sides, which are inserted one into the other like the squares of a puzzle.On the rock wall on the side, light and shadow change wonderfully.When the few clouds came to the mouth of the cave, everything disappeared without a trace, like smoke blocking the front of the stage in a theater.On the contrary, when a ray of sunlight is reflected by the deep crystals, the sunlight rises to the round chamber of Dawan like a long light panel. At this time, light and shadow flicker again, and the prisms are colorful again.
In the distance, the sea breaks apart on the bottom of the vault.The frame of the sea, as black as a bird's-wood edge, imprints all the colors of the base on the vista.In the distance, the sky and water are magnificent, and you can see the island of Yona from a distance. The island is two thousand miles away from the sea, and the sky and water clearly outline the ruins of its monastery.
Facing this fairyland-like beauty, everyone was fascinated, and their inner feelings could not be expressed in words.
"What a charming palace!" said Miss Campbell at last. "How unpoetic is anyone who does not believe that this palace was made by God for Elves and Water-gods! This Aeolian harp blows on the wind, And for whom did this voice vibrate? Did Waverley in his dreams hear this supernatural music, this Selma voice, which our novelist remembers to deceive his heroes? strike the chords of this sound."
"Exactly, Miss Campbell," replied Oliver, "when Walter Scott looked for images in the poetic past of the Highlands of Scotland, he must have thought of Scotland Palace."
"It is here that I wish to awaken the ghost of Ossion!" went on the excited young girl. "Hearing my voice, why doesn't the invisible poet reappear after sleeping for fifteen hundred years? I love to think of those unfortunate Men, blind men like Homer, they hid many times in this palace. This palace also bears the name of Ocion's father! The legend of Finger here must have been influenced by Ocion's epic and lyrical inspiration. You We don't believe that old Ocion could be sitting where we are, and his harp could be mingling with Thelmus' hoarse voice!"
"How can I not believe you when you say it with such conviction, Miss Campbell?" echoed Oliver.
"What if I beg him?" whispered Miss Campbell.
With that innocent voice, she called the name of the old poet several times, and the voice spread in the trembling wind.But, in spite of Miss Campbell's desire, in spite of her many calls, only the echo answered, and Osion's shadow had not yet appeared in his father's palace.
However, the sun had disappeared beneath the thick moisture, and the cavern was full of heavy shadows.Outside, the sea was swelling, and long waves smashed against the basalt deep in the cave, making a loud noise.So we went back to the berm, the waves covered half of it, we went around a corner of the island, the wind from the open sea hit the island, and blew the corner of the island violently, we went back to the embankment and hid for a while. stand up.
For two hours, the weather has deteriorated dramatically.The gale had formed by the time it reached the Scottish coast and was threatening to turn into a hurricane, but the basalt cliffs kept Miss Campbell and her companions safe and they could easily return to Cranshall Cave.
The next day, the barometer continued to drop and the wind became more ferocious.The cloud layer was thicker and grayer, and it stopped at a slightly lower place, filling the entire universe.It hadn't rained yet, but the sun hadn't come out, not even in the few gaps in the clouds.In the face of this unexpected situation, he did not show dissatisfaction as expected.When a storm hits the island, life on the deserted island becomes chaotic.Many times, she was attracted by the poetic spectacle of Finger Cave and returned to the cave.She often thinks about it in that spare time, staying for hours.She was advised to be careful not to take the risk there, but she didn't take it to heart.
The next day, September 9, pressure was at a minimum off the coast of Scotland.In the center of the gale, the air flow moved violently, with astonishing force.This is a hurricane.There is simply no way to hold it against it on the high ground of the island.It was almost seven o'clock in the evening, and it was time for everyone to go back to Cranshall for dinner.Miss Campbell had been gone for three hours without saying where she had gone, and had not come back so far.How anxious Oliver Sinclair and the Melville brothers must have been!
They waited patiently, but with growing apprehension that it was eight o'clock and Miss Campbell was still in sight.Oliver went up to the high ground of the island several times, but he saw no one there.
The storm was raging with extraordinary ferocity, and the sea whipped up huge waves, which kept beating against the southwestern part of the island.
"Unfortunate Miss Campbell!" cried Oliver suddenly. "If she's still in Finger's Cave, go and get her out, and perhaps she's lost in there!"
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