The golden rooster (novel)
Der goldene Hahn , English original title The Bird of Dawning , is a novel by the English author John Masefield from 1933. A German translation by Friedrich Lindemann was published in 1936 by Verlag der Büchergilde Gutenberg . It is a naturalistically narrated seafaring adventure from the last heyday of the clipper in the 1860s, which is already overshadowed by the growing competition from steamers.
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Almost at the same time, a flotilla of sleek clippers, loaded with tea, left the Chinese port of Futschau ( Fuzhou ) on its more than three-month journey to London. For a long time these transports have also been veritable ship races, because in England the highest prices are obtained for the first tea of the new harvest. As an additional incentive, the winner can look forward to substantial bonuses and of course the fame of his seafaring achievement. Correspondingly, however, the utmost is required of the ships and crews. Reckless impulsiveness and an increasingly irritable mood also prevail on the Blackgauntlet . For the third time in a row, captain Duntisbourne sees his chances of winning dwindling, this time due to a persistent lull. Through no fault of his own , the second helmsman Cyril Trewsbury becomes the target of the captain's anger. There is calamity in the air, but no one expected the catastrophe that finally breaks out.
At night, in fog and when a storm is coming, a steamer rams the Blackgauntlet and drives off without any assistance. Determined to go down with his ship, Duntisbourne caused half the crew to die by one last spiteful act, while Trewsbury saved himself with the rest in one of the dinghies. But how long will it withstand the raging sea? The closest land, the Azores island of Faial , is 700 nautical miles away and despite Trewsbury's prudence, there is a lack of food and drinking water. Then there is the agonizing tightness in the boat and first wetness and cold, then brooding heat. In addition, Trewsbury has to deal with men of very different characters, some of whom are not entirely innocent of the predicament. Will they accept him as the new captain and obey his orders?
When, on the third day, a ship finally comes close enough to perhaps see the small boat, the hope of the castaways initially turns into fear. The supposed rescuer is drifting rudderlessly and deserted as a ghost ship and even seems close to sinking. It is the Bird of Dawning tea clipper , casually called "the rooster" by seafarers because of its figurehead . What tragedy may have played out on it? Is there the plague on board, fire, pirates or even a sea monster? Fortunately nothing like that, but someone insidiously leaked the ship, whereupon it was given up and abandoned in a headless haste. However, the damage turns out to be minor and easy to fix. So Trewsbury makes a bold decision: Instead of calling at the next port, they will sail the “rooster” home and maybe even - if the other ships were also struggling - have a say in the end of the race.
In the days that followed, the number of the crew, which was actually far too weak, did something superhuman. Risking everything, Trewsbury chases the ship under full sail into the busy English Channel in poor visibility . When the haze finally clears, it reveals three clippers zooming along just a few miles apart. The Bird of Dawning is in second place and is catching up against the leading Caer Ocvran , but the Fu Kien in third is even faster. Trewsbury's skill and coolness have to prove themselves one last time and ultimately help him to victory. After that, all horrors and hardships are quickly forgotten, especially since, in addition to the usual remuneration, there is a considerable amount of money raised for raising the Bird of Dawning . Last but not least, the puzzling attack is also cleared up, as the original team also reached the country safely.
Historical background
John Masefield went to sea himself for a number of years and was thus able to authentically describe the handling on board a sailing ship, both in routine operation and in exceptional situations, using the nautical terminology. The outer frame of the story, which is in principle fictional, also shows numerous points of contact with reality. Thus began the career of the protagonist Trewsbury on a training ship called Conway , as did that of the author. Other casually mentioned ships that actually existed are the Thermopylae and the Serica . It is said about the captain Duntisbourne that he lost the rudder in his first race and achieved a considerable travel time with an improvised emergency rudder, in reality this affected the Cutty Sark in 1872 . The crew left the Mary Celeste in 1872 for no apparent reason on the high seas . The clippers Taeping , Ariel and Serica delivered a similarly dramatic and tight final spurt as in the novel in the tar race of 1866 .
literature
- John Masefield: The Bird of Dawning. William Heinemann Ltd, London, 1933
- John Masefield: The Golden Rooster. A sea adventure. Authorized translation from English by Friedrich Lindemann, Gutenberg Book Guild, 1936