Travel Scholarships. Jules Verne
a whole year to such brief visits.
No! Those were not Mrs. Kathleen Seymour’s intentions. The Antillean School boarders would have to limit themselves to spending just a few days on his own island, to visiting any relatives or friends that were there, and to walking again on their native soil.
Under these conditions, obviously, one would first have to eliminate from the itinerary the Greater Antilles, Cuba, Haiti, Santo Domingo, and Puerto Rico, since their Spanish schoolmates had not ranked high enough in the competition; Jamaica, since none of the laureates was from that British colony; and Curacao, a Dutch one, for the same reason. Likewise for the Lesser Antilles, which, under Venezuelan domination, would not be visited: Tortigos, Marguerite, Tortuga, Blanquilla, Ordeilla, or Avas.
Thus, the only islands of the Micro-Antilles where the recipients of the scholarships would set foot would be: Saint Lucia, Dominica, Antigua—English; Guadeloupe, Martinique—French; Saint Thomas, Saint Croix—Danish; Saint Barthélemy—Swedish; and Saint Martin, half of which belongs to the Netherlands, the other half to France.
These nine islands were included in the geographical grouping of the Windward Islands, and each would be a port of call for the boarders of the Antillean School.
Nonetheless, no one will be surprised to learn that a tenth island had been added to that itinerary, one which would no doubt receive the longest and the most worthwhile visit.
It was Barbados, in the same group of the Windward Islands, one of the most important ones in the colonial domain that the United Kingdom possesses in those parts.
There, of course, lived Mrs. Seymour. It was the very least that the students, who were in her debt and felt a very natural feeling of gratitude, could do to honor her.
One can easily imagine how, since this generous English woman insisted on receiving the nine laureates from the Antillean School, they, for their part, felt the most urgent desire to meet the wealthy Barbados native and to express their thanks.
These nine islands were included in the geographical grouping of the Windward Islands.
They would not regret it either. A postscript in the letter, which was read by Mr. Julian Ardagh, showed just how far Mrs. Seymour’s generosity to them extended.
Indeed, in addition to the expenses that this voyage would incur—expenses for which she would assume total responsibility—a sum of seven hundred pounds sterling1 would be given to each one of them at the moment of their departure from Barbados.
As for the duration of this trip, would the vacation time be enough? Yes, provided that the start allowed by the rules be moved up one month, which would allow the crossing of the Atlantic to be accomplished during good weather both going and coming.
In sum, nothing was more acceptable than these conditions, which were received enthusiastically. There was no reason to worry that the families would object to a voyage so delightful and beneficial from all points of view. Taking into account any possible delays, they could assign between seven and eight weeks to the trip, and the young scholarship-recipients would then return to Europe, their hearts filled with unforgettable memories of their cherished islands on the new continent.
Finally, one last question came up, which quickly became a concern for the families.
Would the laureates be left to themselves, since the oldest among them had not yet reached his twenty-first birthday? In short, would there be no teacher’s hand to guide them, to look after them? While they visited this archipelago belonging to different European states, were certain discords to be feared—jealousies and disputes—if various questions of nationality surfaced? Would they forget that they were all Antilleans and boarders at the same school, when Mr. Ardagh would no longer be there to provide his wise and cautious guidance?
The Antillean School director reflected on these possible difficulties. If he was not able to accompany his students himself, he wondered who would be able to replace him in this task, a task that might prove at times to be somewhat arduous.
Moreover, this question had not escaped Mrs. Seymour’s very practical mind. And we will see how she had resolved it, since the prudent lady would have never allowed the young men to be completely free from all authority during this voyage.
Now, how would the crossing of the Atlantic take place? Would it be on board one of those ships that travel regularly between England and the Antilles? Would berths be held, and cabins reserved in the name of each of the nine laureates?
We repeat, they were not to spend any of their own money on this trip, and even an expense of this sort would not be taken from the seven hundred pounds that they would receive upon leaving Barbados to return to Europe.
In fact, there was a paragraph in Mrs. Seymour’s letter that addressed this specific question in the following terms:
“The transportation across the ocean will be paid out of my own funds. A ship, chartered for the Antilles, will await its passengers at the port of Cork, in Queenstown, Ireland. That ship is the Alert, commanded by Captain Paxton, which is ready to sail and whose departure is set for June 30. Captain Paxton expects to welcome his passengers at that time, and he will weigh anchor as soon as they arrive.”
Undoubtedly, the young men were going to travel if not like princes, at least like yachtsmen. A ship would be at their disposal to take them to the West Indies and to bring them back to England! Mrs. Seymour knew how to arrange things! She was seeing to everything in magnificent fashion, this Maecenas from Albion!2 Truthfully, if millionaires always spent their millions on such good works, one would only wish them to possess more, many more!
So it came to be that, in this small world of the Antillean School, if their classmates already envied the laureates when this generous lady’s terms were still unknown, their envy grew to its highest once they learned the conditions of pleasure and comfort in which this voyage would take place.
As for the nine young men themselves, they were thrilled. Reality was meeting their fondest dreams. After crossing the Atlantic, it would be on board their yacht that they would visit the main islands of the Antillean archipelago.
“And when do we leave?” they said.
“Tomorrow …”
“Today …”
“No, we still have six days,” observed the wisest ones.
“Ah! I wish I were already aboard the Alert!” repeated Magnus Anders. “Aboard our own ship!” replied Tony Renault.
And they did not want to acknowledge that there were still some preparations to be made to prepare for this transoceanic voyage.
In the first place, it was necessary to consult their parents, to ask for and obtain their permission, since it was a matter of sending the laureates, not to the Other world, but all the same to the New one.3 Mr. Julian Ardagh also had to measure up to the task. This expedition, which would last perhaps two and a half months, required him to make certain basic provisions for them; to acquire clothing and more particularly sea gear, boots, sou’westers, polished greatcoats, in a word, all the accoutrements of a sailor.
Then, the director would have to choose the trustworthy person to be responsible for these young men. Granted, they were old enough to behave themselves, reasonable enough to do without a guardian. But it was prudent to add a mentor who would have authority over them. That was indeed the intention of the wise Mrs. Seymour, expressed in her letter, and they had to conform to it.
Needless to say, the families would have to be convinced to agree to the terms Mr. Ardagh would announce to them. Among the young men, some would meet relatives in the Antilles that they had not seen for many years—Hubert Perkins in Antigua, Louis Clodion in Guadeloupe, Niels Harboe in Saint Thomas. It would be an unexpected chance to see each other again, and under exceptionally delightful circumstances.
It is true that these families had been kept informed