Day had just broken; the sky was overspread by dark clouds.
"There is not much wind after all," Geoffrey said as he looked
round.
"No, it has fallen light during the last two hours," the skipper
replied, "but I expect we shall have plenty before long. However,
we could do with a little more now."
Tide was half out when they started. Joe Chambers had said the night
before that he intended to drop down to the edge of the sands and
there anchor, and to make across them past the Whittaker Beacon
into the channel as soon as there was sufficient water to enable
him to do so. The wind was light, sometimes scarcely sufficient
to belly out the sails and give the boat steerage way, at others
coming in short puffs which heeled her over and made her spring
forward merrily.
Before long the wind fell lighter and lighter, and at last Joe
Chambers ordered the oars to be got out.
"We must get down to the edge of the Buxey," he said, "before the
tide turns, or we shall have it against us, and with this wind we
should never be able to stem it, but should be swept up the Crouch.
At present it is helping us, and with a couple of hours' rowing we
may save it to the Buxey."
The boys helped at the sweeps, and for two hours the creaking of
the oars and the dull flapping of the sail alone broke the silence
of the calm; and the lads were by no means sorry when the skipper
gave the order for the anchor to be dropped.
Pages:
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141