OVER THE FALLS AND OUT ON THE OCEAN.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume VI, Issue 289, 7 December 1871, Page 2

OVER THE FALLS AND OUT ON THE OCEAN.

By F. R. G. .8. (Continued.) If, now became a question to consider whom I could induce to accompany mc in my somewhat hazardous cruise. As a noveltj', the canoe soon becanv i; ;!t.- the rage, and my friends were paddling about the smooth waters of the well-protected harbor, and consequently capsizing when they attempted to sail, from morning till night, to the frequent loss of my cushions, and general damage to the boats. I think a certain „coachbuilder there must have realised a small fortune in cushions alonp. Some of the more adventurous would, on a very calm day, venture to paddle gently.outside at low water, and come back'with the flood, but I noticed that they never did more than round the "bell buoy," and returned in haste, flying from the '"' tide rip," for fear of sharks, whose favorite cruising ground it is, being at the mouth of the River Waimea. I could seldom get one venturous euough to go out abouta mile with mc, to a certain black buoy that used to be placed on the bar. At length I began to despair, and to think that I should have to go alone, for the idea of giving up a scheme I had so thoroughly set my mind upon was never entertained for an instant.. At length fate favored mc with, I think, the pleasantest, pluckiest, most amusiug, and persevering mate it has ever been my good luck to travel with. His surname was that of a bird,' but whether it was that of a starling. a rook, or a barn door fowl doesn't matter much to the reader. It will be much shorter and less personal to give bjni his Christian name of Tom, aqd Tom, there?fore, he remaioeth to the end of the chapter. He was a short, thickset, broad shouldered chup, and very powerful iv the arms; indeed, although his profession was that of a farmer Waimea plains, he was one of the best horsebreakers in Nelson. He had watched the building of the Sandfly up at the mill, and had galloped beside us on the river bauk, watching us shoot the falls, till he got into a rocky, bad bit of road, and had to pull up, and before he could put on the steam again we were several miles ou our watery way. He was one of the few now who occasionally took a "spin" in either one or the othor, but he never capsized, sailing

or paddling. I could see be bad the knack of working them, under sail or without, in a rough seaway or in smooth water, and never took the sharks into consideration at all; and let mc state that for people who have not the knack, to go out to sea in a canoe is foolish; they might just as well, and perhaps more safely, go to sea in a washing-tub at ODce. It was now the commencement of March, and five autumn weather, and I knew it would not do to wait much longer. There was little or nothing doing up on the farms, the harvest was in, and men were resting before the winter's work began. Tom and I were out at the furthest buoy with our paddles lying athwarfcships, idly rising and falling ou the smooth-surfaced ground swell that came rolling in from the bay, the opposite side of which, with its wooded mouutains, and its tiny white houses at their feet, though 20 miles away, loomed quite close in the autumn haze. Puffing at my pipe, I thought I would strike the first blow. "Tommy," said I, using the expressive vernacular of Artemus Ward, " I think muchly of you." "Hum!" replied Thomas, "wish I could return the complimeut." This was not encouraging for a first st'»rt, so I "tried back," and went on another tack. " What do you say to a sail over to Motueka, Tom*? " "No wind," was the curt reply. " Well, a paddle over ? " "Four hours'work to get there; nothing to drink in the boats; and how about getting back in the dark, for there's no moon?', replied the cautious and farseeing Thomas. " Then," repliied I, " if we had a few necessaries in the boate, weather like tbis, aud took our time about it, you really icould go would you ? " "Like a bird," was the satisfactory answer, and after remarking that if we went "like birds" we must consider ourselves as geese with their wings clipped, because we could'Dtfly, I opened my mind, and unfolded my scheme; yea, verily, I Bpake of nuggets, and of seams, and of quartz, and of game, even of fish, and of eels, and of the feathered,fowl of the air, of pigs, and of a tent, and stores therein, and of wild gullies that bad never kuown the tread of man, till the mouth of Thomas watered so exceedingly that it put his pipe out, and he merely said "I'm on." Like Artemus Ward, "I conclooJed that were enuff for all practical purposes," aud iv silence and contemplation we drifted uavcuwotuu \_ai»» i UOt Ueaveiiwai U?), aUU getting into the strong rip, soon whirled past the hoary and storm-washed old Fifeshire rock that stands sentinel at the mouth of the haveu witb its sea-gulls everlastingly sitting at its foot, placidly gazing down iuto the pellucid depths for their evening meal, and looking as if they had sat there ever since volcanic action had forced up the old rock intp its present position, aud paddled gently down the harbor, with its shrubbery-embowered cottages, and Norfolk Is'and pines reflected in the water below, past the great ocean steamer alongside the wharf, waiting to take our mail to far-away old England, past the smaller coasting steamers, past the bluff-bowed, fiat-sided old barque that bad brought us goods from home, past a whole fleet of coasters, large and small, till we rounded a corner, and Nelson, the city of the garden of New Zealand, lay before us lovely in the evening sun. The windows of the church on the hill flashed and glittered, and the whole of the beautiful town glowed and seemed bathed in the sunset rays. Though, perhaps, it may never be my fortune to set foot in it again, I shall never forget how that lovely 3nd picturesque little city looked on that particular evening. I have since visited Sydney, Launceston, and Hobart Town, all singular for their beauty, but give mc Nelson at sunset seen from the harbor on a fine autumn evening ! Those who have been there and read this will, I am sure, agree with mc. But see, the sun has dipped behind the Motueka range, and the whole town immediately shrouds itself in a grey mist, and ifc is getting chilly, so we proceed to

" stable" our canoes, and having seen them safely suspended in their slings we lock the door, and walking slowly homewards to tea, we discuss our plans, and devise preparations for the morrow, and fix upon a day, weather permitting, for a start. (Hete follows a description of the process of loading the canoes). We decided, after loading the canoes, and taking a trial "spin" with them, under sail and paddle, of which the result was satisfactory, to cross tliß bay iv a small steamer that plied over to the Collingwood side, to save time, and having reached the furthest point we wished, to return along the coast in the canoes, exploring the creeks and lagoons, and camping wherever we found it necessary. Accordingly, the afternoon of March the 10th, 1868, saw us and our canoes on the deck of the Lady Hotham, paddle steamer (about 30 tons, more or less), taking leave of our sympathising but slightly sarcastic friends. "Leave us a lock of your hair, old man; you're certaiu never to get back alive !" " I believe it isn't very painful to be ea4;en by a shark ; it's only the tearing open of the blood vessels that's so painful at first!" " After all, perhaps canoes, loaded down to their gunwales, are the safest sea boats for a routrh coast ! " " Look out for sunken rocks ! " " Drowning is an easy death ! " " Mind you don't spring a leak more than four miles from shore !" &c, &c. Such were the encouraging words of our friends, when the revolving of the Lady Hotham's wheels put us out of earshot of their not very encouraging ohafT, and left us in peace to notice our fellow passengers. There was shortly to be an election for the House of Representatives, and we had on board one of the candidates (the lucky one as it afterwards turned out) and his horse. He was goiDg over to see his future constituents, and, being an excellent rider, had chosen the most vicious brute in his stables to take with him, on principle. He was going to visit a rough mountainous country, and his electors were rough diggers. All of them could ride, and had horses accordingly, and some of the best riders in the country could be found amongst them. Little they knew or cared about, politics. The question was far more likely to be asked concerning a new candidate, "Can he 'sit square' on a buck-jumper ? " than " Is be in favor of the two million loan," or the "Panama service ?" So it was not without some show of reason that a nanasome chestnut horse was made fast, i right iv the nose of the little craft, and stood there with its ears flat on its head, and the white of its eyes prominently developed (We afterwards heard that the worthy future member entered the principal township of the district next day about noon, when his electors were calmly smoking the posl.-prandial pipe outside their tent doors, with his horse bucking furiously all down the principal ! street, sitting him as if he were part of the beast. He need never have given them an oration had he been so disposed. The approving nods during those few minutes represented as many votes, and Prince Alfred, had he come forward to contest the seat, would not have had a ghost of a chance against him !) During the time we were taking stock of horse and rider, however, we and the member (that was to be) were standing on the bridge on the port side, and as the canoes were reposing likewise on the pore paddle-box, our united weights gave the little vessel a decided list, as sailors term it, so the captain roared out in a voice of fury, '■ Never, since I have commanded the Lady Hotham, has this occurred before ! Come down, all of ye, off my bridge, where ye've no call to be at all J D'ye want to capsize us all with your fooleries ? " Bursting with laughter (which made birn worse), we descended about oft. to the deck below, and noticed how our navi* gation was conducted. I marked that, if two or three of the passengers walked to one side of the craft, the skipper roared out to his only sailor : "Bill! pull that fore-boom over, will yer ? " this beiug to For remainder of news see fourth page.

counteract our weight on the other side. Finally, we all sat down on the only hatch she boasted of amidships, and the captain, with a glance towards us, as if we had been his natural enemies, plunged into the little cabin aft, and lay down on the cushions. Bill (the before-mentioued) was soon asleep on the hatchway, the solitary engineer was dozing over a uovel at the entrance of his engine-house (on deck), aud the wheel was lashed amidships. We were creeping along the coast, about five miles off it, about three knots an hour, and the captain below appeared to be watching the the telltale compass nbove him, to see if she was steering herself straight, until be fell asleep. _ Bill every now and then would rouse himself lazily, and take a look at the coast, and then, finding it all right, would flop down again for another snooze with a satisfied grunt. The sea was like glass, there wasn't a breath of wind, the sun was powerful, and the noise of, the Hi tie engine, with its "bump bump, whack-bang!" " bump, bump, whack-bang ! " was monotonous and soporific, and I verily believe that'for fully half an hour not one HviDg thing was awake on board the Lady Hothanrbut the chestnut horse that was to " buck" our frieod into Parliament. I almost think the eugine itself went to sleep, aud only spoke mechanically in its dreams. I know Tommy and I slept the sleep of the just, mingled only (as far as I myself was individually concerned) by dreams of sharks, iron-bound shores, and leaky canoes, the result, no doubt, of our friends' parting admonitions. All things, however, have an end, and I was awoke by the sudden stopping of the "bump, bump, whack-bang!" followed by a wheezing, asthmatic sound, as of a steampipe trying to blow itself off with a bad influenza cold on it. at the time, and found to my astonishment the scene was entirely changed. •' All hands " were awake this time, and the steamer had actually steered herself straight, for we were just floating up alongside Motueka jetty, and instead of the open bay all round us, the grand old hills, clad with their lofty forests of pine, now towered above us, and at their feet nestled the little coast village of Motueka. Five or six inhabitants came lazily smoking down the jetty when the Lady Hotham's shrill little penny whistle made itself heard, aud after some strong language and much gesticulation on the part of our irascible little skipper, we got made fast to one of the piles for the purpose of, landing the horse aud rider. That was the fun ! I see it all before mc now ! The suu getting low, " and the shadows long, the horse (knowing brute !), judging that a favorable opportunity would shortly occur for kicking somebody, pricked up his ears. The captain, acting the part of the commander of the Lady Hotham (and standing amidships for fear of upsetting his noble craft);* Bill, with fear and trembling, standing on the bulwarks, and passing a sling under the horse's belly; and the townsmen above, (for it was low water, and the jetty was 15 feet above us), stauding by the crane on the wharf-end, ready to tail on to the windlass, and hoist up the buckjumper as soon as his sling was made fast to the crane-chain hook. The end of the rope of the halter was handed up to his owner, who had clambered up the rude perpendicular steps on to the wharf, and hoisting up began. The horse, feeling the pressure underneath him, lashes out vigorously at everybody and everything Dear him; but in a few seconds he is doubled-up by the belt and off bis feet, swinging round and round, and up he goes, till he gets above the level of the wharf, when he is landed, and the question arises, who dares go near him to unhook the sling hook. This his master himself does, and after a deal of patting and coaxing, leads him gingerly and carefully along the narrow jetty till he,gets himself safely upon the bard sand, when he tightens the and is in an instant in the saddle. By this time we had all clambered up on the wharf to see the start, aud a rum start it was. The instant the brute felt the rider's weight in the saddle he set to bucking in the most artistic fashion all down the beach, the future honorable member Bticking to his saddle like a brick. " He's off!" "He's not 1" " He's down ! " " No ! he isD't! " were all the words that were heard amongst us, till horse and rider approached a gap in a low sandcliff where the road was, and disappeared from our gaze iv the most approved theatrical style, the last view we had of the pair beiog a dangerous-looking leap right into the air, wfth his back arched on the part of the horse, aud his rider bringing down, with his up-lifted arm, a thick "supple-jack," long enough to curl round him, with the force of a pile-driver. Having witnessed this little episode, the voice of the commander of the Lady Hotham was heard up-lifted in toneß of authority, for all the passengers (Tony and mc) to " come aboard," so tumbled, and went into the tiny caddy to tea, just as the "bump! bump 1 wbadkbftog I " announced that Bill bad resumed

his nap, the engineer his novel, aud the engine her dreams again:

At tea, the mighty commander unbent as it were, and forgetting bis awfu responsibilities, condescended to talk quite familiarly, as George 111. might have done when, forgetting his " Divine right," he played with his children like any othpr •* parient." We began to think him noi'a bad sort of man on the whole, uutil with his second cup of tea he introduced ghastliness into his conversation, aad affably told us of all the accidents thfit had taken place along the very line of coast we were going to explore; who been eaten by sharks, who had been "bushed," had died of starvation, and their remains not fouud for years ; how many had lost their lives by wild boars, and of the horrible nature of the death by beiog ripped-up ; how two people hud to his knowledge gone out ("just like your two selves," he was so kind as to interpolate) during the first gold rush, and how one had stopped at the tent to cook and wash, while the other had gone up gullies to explore ; how the latter had fallen down a crevice and perished miserably of starvation, while his mate waited day after Jay, expecting him who never came. In fact, Tom and I caught each other several times stealing furtive glances at one auotlipr across the table, to see how we respectively " took it." and we began to get fidgetty on our little seats. It was sufFiciemly bail hitherto, but when »t leogth Captain Hookey pushed back his stool from the rable, aud concluded by saying, ''But, Lor ! bless yer ! what's the { use of talking to the likes of you ? Iv a week's time you and your things you call canoes will be whitening your bones 12 fathoms deep, aud the cray-fish will have a good tuck-in, sure-ly !" we " conclooded " that ihe fresh air on deck was somehow better than (he close air below, and so we adjourned above, to smoke aud meditate on what we had heard, as Sunday-school teachers say. I must say that I have often had meditations on a more interesting subject, aud I noticed that Tom didn't seem incliued for conversation ; no more did 1!

However, the beauty of the coast scenery we were slowly glidiDg by soon had its effect upon our spirits. It was now about 10 o'clock, and we were passing Adele Island, seen about a mile to our beam, with its wooded heights dimly reflected in the clear water below, by the light of our floutheru constellatious and a very feebel-looking young moon. At 11 we passed the entrance of Frenchman's Bay. and shortly after midnight we began to blow our penny whistle, thereby intimating to a solitary settler's house that the Lady Hotham had brought two letters and one parcel for the proprietor, ami that he had better send off a boat. Soon a little dark speck was seen ahead of us, hopping op and down in the starlit water, and a faint cooey came borne on the breeze. " Squ-e-a-k " replied our whistle, and ihe commander of the steamer gave the highly unnecessary order to go " Quiie slow." We couldn't go any slower than we had been going all along without stopping altogether ; accordingly we stopped, aud the escape pipe immediately got the snuffles again while the boat came alongside. It was here that Tom and I had determined to go ashore, as it was easier to get into a boat from the steamer than stepping into the canoes, and we could take them in tow, but it was not pleasant, but, on the contrary, rather rough on our feeling when Captain Hookey sang out, " Bill, lend them chaps a with their coffins."