فصل 53

CHAPTER 53

GREASING THE ROLLERS

AS THE DARKNESS DEEPENED, George, ignoring the meteor display, studied the ship, making sure the last of the workers had put away their tools and left for the day. The docks were quiet now, the sailors and dock men having found their way into nearby cafes, from which spilled loud laughter and billowing tobacco smoke.

When night had completely fallen, George said, “James, Prentiss, and Thomas, you’ll come with me. Ted, you stay here. Wait for my signal.”

“What signal? To do what?”

George reached inside his robe and drew out a white handkerchief. He waved it over his head. “When you see this,” he said to Ted, “I want you to kick out this barrel.” He pointed to a barrel at the bottom of a tall stack.

Ted studied the barrels. “But if I do that,” he said, “all these barrels will fall.”

“Yes,” said George.

“Ah,” said Ted, as though he understood, which he did not.

“Once you kick out the barrel,” said George, “run for the ship. It will be moving. Jump on quick as you can.”

“But—” Ted began.

“Quick as you can,” repeated George, cutting him off.

George, with the help of Prentiss, Thomas, and James, then selected two of the barrels of olive oil and carefully rolled them down the hill to the harbor. The dry dock was essentially a large trench dug into the harborside and lined with timbers. At one end of the trench, holding back the water, was a large wooden gate secured at one end by a thick chain. Inside the dry dock, the ship, its stern tilted down toward the water, sat atop a row of big, smooth logs; it was prevented from falling over by wooden braces along both sides. Between these braces netting hung down from the deck, so workmen could climb up and down.

“The way it’s supposed to work,” said George, “is that when that gate is opened at high tide, the water comes in and lifts the ship until it just barely floats. Then the ship rides on those logs—the rollers—into the sea.”

“It must take a lot of men,” said Thomas.

“Actually, it’s mostly gravity and leverage,” said George. “You see those two winches on each side? Those lines pulled the ship up into the dry dock. When they’re released, if there’s not too much friction, the ship will slide down and into the water.”

“But there are only four of us,” said Thomas.

“Yes,” said George. “One to release each of the winches, one to open the water gate, and one on board to start preparing the sails. The tricky part is the timing. Usually the water gate is opened at low tide. As the tide comes in, the boat is lifted. But we haven’t got time to wait for that. That’s why we’ve got this.” He pointed to the two barrels of oil.

James nodded. “To help it slide,” he said.

“Precisely,” said George.

“What about the side braces?” said James.

“Most of them will fall off or break away as she slides in,” said George. “We’ll have to count on her momentum to keep her upright.”

“It might work,” said James.

“What might work?” asked Thomas, thoroughly confused.

“Never mind that now,” said George. “We’re about to get very dirty, so I suggest we get out of these robes.”

The boys took off the robes. Underneath, George still wore his suit pants and a white shirt. The other boys were in their island rags. James, a good climber, volunteered to board the ship and unfurl the mainsail. George quickly accepted. The boys spat on their hands and shook for good luck, then James was off, sliding down the timbers into the dry dock, then climbing the netting onto the ship’s deck. The sky was now bright with meteor flashes, so he was clearly visible as he began ascending the mainmast.

George told Thomas to keep watch. He and Prentiss grabbed one of the oil barrels and, grunting under its weight, worked it down into the bottom of the dry dock. They stopped alongside the rollers; the ship’s hull rose over them, blotting out the sky. The air smelled of tar pitch.

Together, the two boys supported the cask above the rollers. Prentiss pulled the bung plug from its side, and oil glugged out, sounding like a big man swallowing. They slid the barrel alongside the ship’s hull, allowing the sweet oil to seep down between the rollers. When they’d finished with the left side of the hull, they climbed out of the dry dock, carried the second cask back down, and oiled the other side.

“She’ll slip out of here like a bar of soap in the tub,” said George. “I hope.”

“But, George,” said Prentiss. “If Thomas and I work the forward winches and you unchain the sea gate, how will we get aboard the ship once it’s moving?”

“The nets,” George said. “We’ll have to jump for them.”

“Jump?” said Prentiss.

“Yes.”

They started climbing out of the trench. George looked up at James, who was high up the mainmast working on one of the sails. There were so many meteors in the sky now that at times he was as clearly visible as if it were daylight.

“George!” It was Thomas hissing at them.

“What?” said George, reaching the top of the trench.

“Those men over there!” said Thomas, pointing. “I think they’ve spotted James!” A group of men had emerged from a hillside cafe, seemingly to look at the meteors. Several of them were gesturing toward the dry-docked ship and shouting. More men were coming out of the cafe.

“This is it,” said George. He pulled the white handkerchief out of his pocket and waved it violently over his head, hoping Ted was watching. The cafe had emptied now; the men, several dozen of them, were starting down the hill.

“They’re coming!” said Thomas, unnecessarily.

“What do we do?” said Prentiss.

“You two release the winches,” said George, starting to run to the end of the dry dock. I’ll get the gate.”

“But how do we…” began Thomas.

“There’s no time!” George shouted over his shoulder. “Just release those lines!”

Prentiss and Thomas started running for the winches, not sure what they were going to do but quite sure they had better do it quickly. The mob of angry men came shouting down the hill toward them, the fury on their faces very clear under the meteor-flashing sky.