Page 270 - The Tigris Expedition

to Pakistan
Tigris and the Superships: the Voyage
the shadow of a feline; all ropes were swollen andJi^aMiight
work and bamboo tightly in place. It was again q ‘ j
that, when I woke, I could help HP to testify that Carlo an
Gherman were snoring. We could even hear the friendly gargling
and tinkling of water cut into whirls by the rudder-oars. 1 nc SKy
cleared for a moment during my night watch, and I found mysc
steering towards the Southern Cross. In the late morning it cleared
again and Norman was able to get an approximate position, and
even managed to transmit it to Bahrain Radio. Frank came back and
reported that the harbour tugboat Muscat had left Mina Qaboos at
sunrise with a speed of ten knots, and would try to contact us by
radio when far enough out.
That afternoon, at 3 p.m., Muscat met us almost nose to nose with
an English harbour-master at the wheel and our Swedish agent
Thoernwall waving among the Omanian crew. Two cases of spare
parts and a newly mounted sound camera to replace the broken one
were all transferred to Norris, who was so afraid that it might drop
into the sea that he hardly allowed anyone to give him a hand when
the precious cargo was handed from ship to ship.
Our agent was so excited and relieved at having found us at last
that he opened a bottle of champagne and drank it all himself,
toasting merrily to sea and sky as Muscat turned and raced back to
reach port before nightfall.
We turned our own bow away from the mainland, hoisted the
topsail above the mainsail, and steered deeper into the sea. We
needed no champagne to share the joy of good old Norris as he sat
on his mattress in the forward cabin, nursing his new baby, which
started the familiar hiccoughs that meant it heard every word we
said. As the sun set we registered a fabulous speed of 3*5 to 4
knots with straight course for the open ocean. Makan was gone.
The destination of Tigris was unknown.
Unknown, because I had begun to feel a secret desire to change
t c plans recently made. Our endeavours to help Norris had
rought us further north than I had considered possible in the
winter season, when the north-east monsoon should be dominant.
orman s new topsail had given us greater speed and therefore
wider steering margins. We appeared to have a choice of any part of
the Indian Ocean. There was still a chance to visit Pakistan and see
the Indus Valley. The temptation became too big, and for two days
■l?,:ln6ly tQld the men that our next port of call would be the coast
of the great Indus Valley civilisation
On the third day it was no longer a joke. I told the helmsmen to

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