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Devils
in the Sea by
Andreas Karkavitsas
Title
of the original: Διαβόλοι στο γιαλό
Rendered
in English by Vassilis C. Militsis
Captain
Gerassimos Faraklatos was a Cephallonian seaman; a perfect
combination: both a Cephallonian and a notorious blasphemer! His
profane blasphemies outraged not only the saints of heaven but the
devils of hell, as well. Therefore, the devils resolved to punish
him.
Once,
Captain Gerassimos docked his bark at Büyükdere. He had hardly
berthed his vessel when his entire crew left him. It was typical. At
every port his sailors left and he sought a new crew. Hardly did he
make two voyages with the same sailors. He only kept his first mate
because the latter was convenient and faithful. The captain also knew
that his mate was a meek character, deeply religious, read the
scriptures and had transformed his bunk into a real altar. Because of
all these Captain Gerassimos both scorned and loved his mate.
As
the time came to set sail for the Black Sea, he went ashore at Galata
to find a new crew. He went around all the taverns at Kemeralti and
beheld an old devil accosting him.
Hello,
captain.
Hello
you, too.
I
wonder if you need hands.
Yes,
I want new hands, but you must know I’ll be a bit hard.
No
problem; I’ve got convenient companions.
I
stand no disobedience, though; my word is an order.
Don’t
worry; your word shall be an order.
How
much?
So
much.
They
agreed. The old devil gathered fifteen comrades and boarded the bark.
At night the captain came up with an idea to test his men. He got up
and summoned his boatswain (the old devil).
I’ll
go to Steni, he says, to meet an old friend of mine, a captain from
Galaxeidi. I’ve got to have a talk with him. I want you to get the
crew to paint the vessel.
It’s
already done, replied the old devil. During the night I had it
painted in the full moon.
How
come? Says the captain, I didn’t tell you to.
Of
course you didn’t but I was sure what it was on your mind.
Captain
Gerassimos was pissed off.
Let
me tell you something, says he; if you intend to have a mind of your
own, get your comrades and beat the hell out. Get it in your mind
that I’m in charge here!
But
I had no mind of my own, captain, rejoined the boatswain suavely.
You wished it, I did it.
But
I didn’t tell you to do anything!
Certainly
you didn’t but I guessed it.
To
hell with your guess! Retorted the captain springing up from his
bunk. And what paint did you use? I wanted it red, blood red like an
Easter egg.
Red
it is.
Oh,
blast! Captain Gerassimos was taken aback. No vessel had been painted
red so far. He just said so to test his boatswain but he did not
believe it. He hurried out of his cabin and looked: his ship was
shining red like an Easter egg.
Anyway,
it was time to set sail.
No
sooner he uttered the order than the anchor was up and tied on the
deck.
All
sails were automatically trimmed and full. The vessel was sailing at
ten knots. The Bosporus shores were swiftly falling behind and by
dusk the bark raised the waters of the Black Sea.
Captain
Gerassimos was enchanted with both his sailors and the voyage. His
first mate, however, was greatly concerned even from the first day.
All these tasks done in no time at all put him in deep thoughts.
Well, well, if you come to think about it. What are these, humans or
fiends? And he began to keep an eye on them. So one day, as he was
going to keep his watch, he suddenly spied somebody’s leg. “Jesus!
God help me!” he said. The leg was not human; it was a donkey’s
leg. He looks at all the men’s legs, especially the boatswain’s:
their legs were all asinine. He runs straight to the captain’s
cabin; at that time he was sleeping. How could he muster the courage
to wake him up? When roused from his slumber, the captain turned into
a wild beast. He could even throw his own child overboard if he saw
him before him. The mate scratched his head in indecision. As he was
thinking what step to take, his eyes suddenly fell upon the lamp in
front of St Nicholas icon above the head of the sleeping captain. The
oil was running low and sizzling as the wick was about to snuff out.
He then had a bright idea. He dipped his finger in the lamp and as
the oil was hot, he let a drop fall on the captain’s brow and
hurried on deck to hide. The captain woke up and began to utter the
most profane oaths. Then the mate came out of his hideout and told
him what had happened.
The
captain was immersed in deep thought. Suddenly he took to crossing
himself and doing penances regarding at the same time St Nicholas’
icon.
At
once he sprang up from his bunk and got out of his cabin; alas! His
ship had changed course heading for a different direction. He could
not raise land on the starboard.
Afterwards
he summons the boatswain and says:
Here,
take this grease and smear with it the anchor guy.
But
… the boatswain protested.
Hush!
Snapped back the captain. How dare you contradict me? We’ve agreed
that you shouldn’t talk back. So get the grease, on the double.
The
boatswain got the grease and gave it to his men to smear the guy. On
those days anchors did not hang on chains as they do now. So the old
devil and his companions smeared the anchor guy, but he secretly had
in mind to sink the ship with all hands.
The
sailors let the anchor down and the guy slid down in a flash. Hardly
was it halfway down when the captain shouted louder.
However,
the smeared guy slid through the sailors’ hands like an eel. The
harder they tightened their fists, the faster the rope slid. The
anchor touched down
Splash!
And down go the devil sailors.
You,
too, says he to the boatswain, what are you waiting for?
But…
the old devil tried to protest!
Don’t
you but me, damn you! Dive in right away, you archfiend or else I’ll
exorcise you.
Splash!
And the old devil touched bottom. The captain turned to the mate;
The
mate cut the guy off with a hatchet and it also went down to the
bottom. Then the mate sprang up to the mast while the captain got
hold of the helm and turned the vessel around until it was on its
proper course. Around sunset they docked at the port of Sinope.
But
the devils were still struggling with the anchor.
Athens,
June 1908
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