Arthur Ransome - Swallows and Amazons (Complete Series)

“Doesn’t Amazon look fine?” said Susan, looking at the little white-sailed boat ahead of them, with her fluttering black and white flag and her two red-capped sailors.

“Swallow must look just as fine,” said Captain John.

“Finer,” said Titty. “We’ve got a brown sail.”

They sailed on, tacking from one side of the lake to the other and back again, till they were within a mile of the steamer pier at the foot of the lake.

Here they were passed by one of the big lake steamers, crowded with passengers, who came to the side and pointed. The captain, who was steering her, took out his binoculars, and looked through them at the little Swallow. By now the news had run all over Rio, and up and down the lake, about the way in which the Swallows had found the box that had been stolen from Mr. Turner’s houseboat.

Suddenly a loud cheer sounded over the water, and again and again. The passengers waved their hats, and shouted.

“What is the matter with the natives in the steamer?” said Roger.

Then one of the sailors ran aft to the flagstaff at the steamer’s stern, and the big red ensign dropped to half-mast, and then rose again.

“They’re cheering at us,” said Captain John, turning very red. “How horrible.”

“They’ve saluted,” said Susan. “Oughtn’t we to answer? The Amazons are.”

They could see Peggy at the halyards, busy dipping the Jolly Roger.

Titty shut the parrot in his cage, and lowered Swallow’s flag, and raised it again.

“It’s a good thing we’re going away,” said Captain John. “They’ll have forgotten by next year.”

The big steamer hurried on. The Amazon headed into a little bay on the western shore of the lake. The Swallow followed her. There were woods all round the little bay, and a small stream ran into it. The Swallows and Amazons landed close by the mouth of the stream.

“What a splendid cove,” said Captain John.

“It’s one of our most private haunts,” said Captain Nancy. “Altogether free from natives. The road’s miles away on the other side of the woods. No one ever comes here except us, and no one can see we’re here, even from the water, unless they happen to look right in.”

They made their fire and boiled their kettle by the side of the little beck, noisy after the night’s rain. The jetsam on the shore was very wet, but in the wood they found a few dry sticks here and there. They started the fire with a handful of dry moss. It was not easy to get it going, but, once it was well lit, the fire burned well enough to boil the kettle. Here, away from the island, they spent their last day, until Captain Nancy noticed that the lake was nearly calm.

“It’s going to take us a long time to sail home,” she said. “What orders, Commodore?”

John started. He had been thinking of something else.

“The fleet sets sail and steers north,” he said.

Very slowly the two little ships moved out of the bay into the open lake. There was very little wind, though now and again a catspaw hurrying from the south helped them on their way and darkened the smooth small waves.

“You’d never think it could have blown like it did in the night,” said Roger.

They sailed up the lake with the booms well out. Up in the woods on the high hillside smoke was rising. They could hear the noise of the charcoal-burners’ axes in the now quiet air.

“They’ll still be here when we’re gone,” said Titty.

“Who?” said Susan.

“The savages,” said Titty.

The wind was dropping. The boom swung aft, and the main-sheet now and then caught the water and trailed in it.

“Sit on the lee side, Able-seaman,” said John. “That’ll keep the boom out.”

Nancy in Amazon was sitting on the lee side for the same reason.

“Hadn’t we better row?” said Roger.

“You want a motor boat,” said Captain John.

“No I don’t,” said Roger. “Sail is the thing.”

Slowly the fleet slipped past Wild Cat Island. The island was once more the uninhabited island that Titty had watched for so many days from the Peak of Darien. And yet, it was not that island. John, looking at it, remembered the harbour and the leading lights and his swim all round it, and the climbing of the great tree. For Roger it would always be the place where he had swum for the first time. For Susan it was the camp and housekeeping and cooking for a large family. Titty thought of it as Robinson Crusoe’s island. It was her island more than anyone’s because she had been alone on it. She remembered the path she had cleared, and waking in the dark, and hearing the owl. She remembered the dipper. She remembered getting Amazon out of the harbour. She looked suddenly across the lake to Cormorant Island, and then at Amazon slipping silently through the water a cable’s length away. Had she ever really been anchored in Amazon out there in the dark?

FAREWELL!

As they passed Houseboat Bay, Captain Flint rowed out to them to say good-bye once more.

“Good-bye,” they shouted.

“Till next year,” he shouted back, and rested on his oars and watched the fleet as it sailed slowly on towards the Peak of Darien.

Under the Peak of Darien the fleet broke up.

There were more shouts of “Good-bye,” “Remember the Alliance,” and “Come again next year.” “Three cheers for Wild Cat Island,” shouted John. They all cheered. “Three cheers for the Swallows,” shouted Nancy. “And for the Amazons,” they shouted back. John hauled his wind and stood in for the Holly Howe boathouse. Amazon held on her course. She was soon out of sight beyond the further point of the bay.

“I wish it wasn’t over,” said Roger.

“No more pemmican, anyway,” said Susan.

“What about singing ‘Salt Beef’?” said Titty. So they sang:

“Salt beef, salt beef, is our relief,

Salt beef and biscuit bread O!

Salt beef, salt beef, is our relief,

Salt beef and biscuit bread O!

While you on shore and a great many more

On dainty dishes fed O!

Don’t forget your old shipmate,

Fol-de-rol-de-riddle, Fol-de-ri-do!”

“Susan is the old shipmate,” said Roger.

“We all are,” said John.

“What’s the song they sing at the end of the voyage?” said Susan.

Titty began, and the others joined in at once, for they all knew it:

“Oh, soon we’ll hear the Old Man say,

Leave her, Johnny, leave her.

You can go ashore and take your pay,

It’s time for us to leave her.

Leave her, Johnny, leave her like a man,

Leave her, Johnny, leave her.

Oh leave her, Johnny, leave her when you can,

It’s time for us to leave her.”

“Who was Johnny?” said Roger. “Hullo, there’s mother and Vicky coming down the field.”

Table of Contents

Chapter I. The Swallow and Her Crew

Chapter II. Wild Cat Island

Chapter III. Horseshoe Cove and the Amazon Pirates

Chapter IV. The Able-Seaman and the Boy Explore

Chapter V. Captain John Hangs On

Chapter VI. Salvage

Chapter VII. Captain Flint: Ship’s Carpenter

Chapter VIII. Rio and Holly Howe

Chapter IX. Swainson’s Farm

Chapter X. Making the Best of It

Chapter XI. The Able-Seaman in Command

Chapter XII. Swallowdale

Chapter XIII. Shifting Camp