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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Adrift on the Pacific, by Edward S. Ellis
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Adrift on the Pacific
+
+Author: Edward S. Ellis
+
+Release Date: August 11, 2009 [EBook #29667]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ADRIFT ON THE PACIFIC ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Roger Frank and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net
+
+
+
+
+
+ADRIFT ON THE PACIFIC
+
+A Boys Story of the Sea and its Perils
+
+By EDWARD S. ELLIS
+
+Author of
+
+"The Young Pioneers," "Fighting to Win," "Adrift in the Wilds,"
+"The Boy Patriot," Etc.
+
+A. L. BURT COMPANY; PUBLISHERS
+
+NEW YORK
+
+
+
+
+Copyright, 1911
+
+By A. L. BURT COMPANY
+
+Adrift on the Pacific
+
+
+
+
+ADRIFT ON THE PACIFIC
+
+CHAPTER I
+
+CAPTAIN STRATHMORE'S PASSENGER
+
+
+A few hours before the sailing of the steamer _Polynesia_, from San
+Francisco to Japan, and while Captain Strathmore stood on deck
+watching the bustle and hurry, he was approached by a nervous,
+well-dressed gentleman, who was leading a little girl by the hand.
+
+"I wish you to take a passenger to Tokio for me, Captain Strathmore,"
+said the stranger.
+
+The honest, bluff old captain, although tender of the feelings of
+others, never forgot the dignity and respect due to his position, and,
+looking sternly at the stranger, said:
+
+"You should know, sir, that it is the purser and not the captain whom
+you should see."
+
+"I have seen him, and cannot make a satisfactory arrangement."
+
+"And that is no reason, sir, why you should approach me."
+
+The captain was about moving away, when the stranger placed his hand
+on his arm, and said, in a hurried, anxious voice:
+
+"It is not I who wish to go--it is this little girl. It is a case of
+life and death; she must go! You, as captain, can take her in your own
+cabin, and no one will be inconvenienced."
+
+For the first time Captain Strathmore looked down at the little girl,
+who was staring around her with the wondering curiosity of childhood.
+
+She was apparently about six years of age, and the picture of
+infantile innocence and loveliness. She was dressed with good taste,
+her little feet being incased in Cinderella-like slippers, while the
+pretty stockings and dress set off the figure to perfection. She wore
+a fashionable straw hat, with a gay ribbon, and indeed looked like a
+child of wealthy parents, who had let her out for a little jaunt along
+some shady avenue.
+
+When Captain Strathmore looked down upon this sweet child, a great
+pang went through his heart, for she was the picture of the little
+girl that once called him father.
+
+Her mother died while little Inez was an infant, and, as soon as the
+cherished one could dispense with the care of a nurse, she joined her
+father, the captain, and henceforth was not separated from him. She
+was always on ship or steamer, sharing his room and becoming the pet
+of every one who met her, no less from her loveliness than from her
+childish, winning ways.
+
+But there came one awful dark day, away out in the Pacific, when the
+sweet voice was hushed forever, and the rugged old captain was bowed
+by a grief such as that which smites the mountain-oak to the earth.
+
+The little girl who now looked up in the face of Captain Strathmore
+was the image of Inez, who years before had sunk to the bottom of the
+sea, carrying with her all the sunshine, music and loveliness that
+cheered her father's heart. With an impulse he could not resist, the
+captain reached out his arms and the little stranger instantly ran
+into them. Then she was lifted up, and the captain kissed her,
+saying:
+
+"You look so much like the little girl I buried at sea that I could
+not help kissing you."
+
+The child was not afraid of him, for her fairy-like fingers began
+playing with the grizzled whiskers, while the honest blue eyes of the
+old sailor grew dim and misty for the moment.
+
+The gentleman who had brought the child to the steamer saw that this
+was a favorable time for him to urge his plea.
+
+"That is the little girl whom I wished to send to Tokio by you."
+
+"Have you no friend or acquaintance on board in whose care you can
+place her?"
+
+"I do not know a soul."
+
+"Is she any relative of yours?"
+
+"She is my niece. Her father and mother are missionaries in Japan, and
+have been notified of her coming on this steamer."
+
+"If that were so, why then were not preparations made for sending her
+in the care of some one, instead of waiting until the last minute, and
+then rushing down here and making application in such an irregular
+manner?"
+
+"Her uncle, the brother of my wife, expected to make the voyage with
+her, and came to San Francisco for that purpose. He was taken
+dangerously ill at the hotel, and when I reached there, a few hours
+ago, he was dead, and my niece was in the care of the landlord's
+family. My wife, who is out yonder in a carriage, had prepared to
+accompany me East to-morrow. Her brother had made no arrangements for
+taking the little one on the steamer, so I was forced into this
+unusual application."
+
+While the gentleman was making this explanation, the captain was
+holding the child in his arms, and admiring the beautiful countenance
+and loveliness of face and manner.
+
+"She does look exactly like my poor little Inez," was his thought, as
+he gently placed her on her feet again.
+
+"If we take her to Japan, what then?"
+
+"Her parents will be in Tokio, waiting for her. You, as captain, have
+the right, which no one would dare question, of taking her into your
+cabin with you, and I will compensate you in any manner you may
+wish."
+
+"What is her name?" asked Captain Strathmore.
+
+"Inez."
+
+"She shall go," said the sailor, in a husky voice.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II
+
+THE CAPTAIN AND INEZ
+
+
+The steamer _Polynesia_ was steaming swiftly across the Pacific, in
+the direction of Japan--bravely plunging out into the mightiest
+expanse of water which spans the globe, and heading for the port that
+loomed up from the ocean almost ten thousand miles away.
+
+Although but a few days out, little Inez had become the pet of the
+whole ship. She was full of high spirits, bounding health--a laughing,
+merry sprite, who made every portion of the steamer her home, and who
+was welcome wherever she went.
+
+To the bronzed and rugged Captain Strathmore she was such a reminder
+of his own lost Inez that she became a second daughter to him, and
+something like a pang stirred his heart when he reflected upon his
+arrival at his destination and his parting from the little one.
+
+Inez, as nearly as the captain could gather, had been living for
+several years with her uncle and aunt in San Francisco, from which
+port her parents had sailed a considerable time before. The stranger
+gave a very common name as his own--George Smith--and said he would
+await the return of the _Polynesia_ with great anxiety, in order to
+learn the particulars of the arrival of his niece in Japan.
+
+However, the captain did not allow his mind to be annoyed by any
+speculations as to the past of the little girl; but he could not avoid
+a strong yearning which was growing in his heart that something would
+turn up--something possibly in the shape of a social revolution or
+earthquake--that would place the little girl in his possession again.
+
+And yet he trembled as he muttered the wish.
+
+"How long would I keep her? I had such a girl once--her very
+counterpart--the sweet Inez, my own; and yet she is gone, and who
+shall say how long this one shall be mine?"
+
+The weather remained all that could be wished for a number of days
+after steaming out of the Golden Gate. It was in the month of
+September, when a mild, dreamy languor seemed to rest upon everything,
+and the passage across the Pacific was like one long-continued dream
+of the Orient--excepting, perhaps, when the cyclone or hurricane,
+roused from its sleep, swept over the deep with a fury such as strews
+the shores with wrecks and the bottom with multitudes of bodies.
+
+What more beautiful than a moonlight night on the Pacific?
+
+The _Polynesia_ was plowing the vast waste of waters which separates
+the two worlds, bearing upon her decks and in her cabins passengers
+from the four quarters of the globe.
+
+They came from, and were going to, every portion of the wide world.
+Some were speeding toward their homes in Asia or Africa or the islands
+of the sea; and others living in Europe or America, or the remote
+corners of the earth, would finally return, after wandering over
+strange places, seeing singular sights, and treading in the footsteps
+of the armies who had gone before them in the dim ages of the past.
+
+Now and then the great ship rose from some mighty swell, and then,
+settling down, drove ahead, cleaving the calm water and leaving a wide
+wake of foam behind. The black smoke poured out of the broad funnels,
+and sifted upward through the scant rigging, and was dissipated in the
+clear air above. The throbbing of the engine made its pulsations felt
+through the ponderous craft from stem to stern, as a giant breathes
+more powerfully when gathering his energy for the final effort of the
+race. A few drifting clouds moved along the sky, while, now and then,
+a starlike point of light, far away against the horizon, showed where
+some other caravansary of the sea was moving toward its destination,
+thousands of leagues away.
+
+Although Captain Strathmore was on duty, and it was against the rules
+for any passenger to approach or address him, yet there was one who
+was unrestrained by rules or regulations, no matter how sternly they
+were enforced in other cases.
+
+The captain was standing on the bridge, when he felt some one tugging
+at his coat, and he looked down.
+
+There was Inez demanding his attention.
+
+"Take me up, pop," said she.
+
+"Bless your heart!" laughed the captain as he obeyed the little
+empress; "you would ruin the discipline of a man-of-war in a month."
+
+While speaking, he perched her on his shoulder, as was a favorite
+custom with him.
+
+The day had been unusually warm, and the night was so mild that the
+steady breeze made by the motion of the steamer was scarcely
+sufficient to keep one cool. Little Inez had thrown aside her hat with
+the setting of the sun, and now her wealth of golden hair streamed and
+fluttered in fleecy masses about her shoulders.
+
+The steamer was plowing straight to the westward, cutting the waves so
+keenly that a thin parabola of water continually curved over in front
+of her from the knife-like prow.
+
+Perched aloft on the shoulder of the captain, Inez naturally gazed
+ahead, and the figure was a striking one of innocence and infancy
+peering forward through the mists and clouds toward the unknown
+future. But Inez was too young to have any such poetical thoughts,
+and the captain was too practical to be troubled by "æsthetic
+meditations."
+
+He chatted with her about their arrival in Japan, saying that she
+would be glad to see no more of him, when she replied:
+
+"If you talk that way, I'll cry. You must go home and live with us.
+Uncle Con says papa has a big dog, and if we haven't room in the
+house, you can sleep with him, and I'll feed you each morning--oh,
+look!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III
+
+AN ACCIDENT
+
+
+That which arrested the attention of the little girl in the arms of
+Captain Strathmore, was a sight--unique, rare and impressively
+beautiful.
+
+All around the steamer stretched the vast Pacific, melting away into
+darkness, with here and there a star-like twinkle, showing where some
+ship was moving over the waste of waters. Overhead, the sky was clear,
+with a few stars faintly gleaming, while the round, full moon, for
+whose rising so many on the steamer had been watching, had just come
+up, its disk looking unusually large, as it always does when so close
+to the horizon.
+
+Just when the moon was half above the ocean, and when the narrowing
+path of the illumination stretched from the ship to the outer edge of
+the world, a vessel under full sail slowly passed over the face of the
+moon.
+
+The partial eclipse was so singular that it arrested the attention of
+Inez, who uttered the exclamation we have recorded. It was seen by
+nearly all the passengers, too, most of whom were looking toward the
+horizon for the rising of the orb, and expressions of delight were
+heard from every quarter, for such a sight, we say, is rare.
+
+When observed by the passengers on board the _Polynesia_, the moon had
+barely cleared the horizon, as we have stated, and the top of the
+mainmast just reached the uppermost portion of the periphery, while
+spars, rigging and hull were marked against the yellow disk as
+distinctly as if painted in India ink.
+
+Such an obscuration, like a total one of the sun, could last but a few
+seconds, for the _Polynesia_ and the other ship were moving in
+opposite directions, while the moon itself was creeping upward toward
+the zenith. Slowly the black ship glided toward its destination--hull,
+masts and rigging gradually mingled with the gloom beyond, until the
+moon, as if shaking off the eclipse, mounted upward with its face
+unmarred, excepting by the peculiar figures stamped there when it was
+first launched into space.
+
+When the wonderful exhibition was over there were murmurs of
+admiration from the passengers, who, grouped here and there, or
+promenading back and forth, had stood spellbound, as may be said,
+while it was in progress.
+
+Captain Strathmore and two of his officers had seen the same thing
+once or twice before, but they had been favored in this respect above
+others, and could hardly expect anything of the kind again.
+
+The captain now prepared for an interesting and novel ceremony, which
+he had announced would take place that evening by moonlight.
+
+Descending to the deck, and approaching the stern, where the expectant
+passengers had gathered together, the group were silent a minute,
+while he stood among them holding little Inez by the hand. A few
+minutes later the purser came aft, carrying a parcel in his hand,
+which he carefully placed upon the taffrail. Then he spoke in a
+sepulchral voice.
+
+"Ladies and gentlemen, we all have lost minutes and hours, but it is
+seldom that we deliberately throw away a day. But we are to do so now.
+We are about to bury a day. To-day is the Twentieth, to-morrow will be
+the Twenty-second, and where, then, is the Twenty-first? There it
+lies" (pointing to the parcel on the taffrail). "Life is short enough,
+without deliberately casting an entire day into the sea; but there is
+the consolation of knowing, on your return, that it shall be restored
+to you, and thus beautifully does nature preserve the equilibrium
+throughout the world. What more fitting than that the day should be
+buried by the hands of one whose life is as spotless as the snow upon
+the peaks of the Sierras we have left behind us?"
+
+All now uncovered their heads--that is, the gentlemen did--and the
+captain advanced, leading Inez Hawthorne by the hand. Holding her up a
+short distance from the deck, she called out:
+
+"Good-by, Twenty-first of September!"
+
+She repeated the words correctly, for the captain whispered them in
+her ear, and as she spoke she gave the parcel a slight shove, and
+overboard it went, striking the water with a splash, and instantly
+sinking out of sight. The package was nothing but some old iron,
+wrapped about with coarse brown paper.
+
+The ceremony of burying a day, as the reader knows, is a common, and
+it may be said, a necessary, one with vessels sailing westward over
+the Pacific, as the picking up of a day is necessary on the return. At
+first sight it seems incongruous, but it is in fact the only way in
+which the reckoning of time can be kept correctly.
+
+The little ceremony naturally caused the matter itself to become one
+of discussion, and probably a goodly number of young ladies and
+gentlemen picked up more knowledge of the matter than they had ever
+dreamed of before.
+
+Two curious things happened within a half hour of this novel
+ceremony.
+
+The _Polynesia_ was driving along with that steady motion in which the
+throbbing of the vessel can only be detected by carefully standing
+still and watching for it, when every passenger, and especially the
+captain and his officers, suddenly felt an alarming jar, which shook
+the steamer from stem to stern. It was noticed that the engine
+instantly stopped and the enormous ship gradually came to rest upon
+the long, heaving swell of the Pacific.
+
+In a few minutes it was ascertained that the steamer had broken the
+shaft of her propeller, thus rendering the all-important screw
+useless. This necessitated the hoisting of her sails, and a monotonous
+voyage to her destination, a return to San Francisco, or a long
+deviation to Honolulu for repairs.
+
+While the necessary investigation was going on, a sail had been
+sighted bearing down upon them, and in half an hour it came-to, a
+short distance off, in the hope of being able to afford some
+assistance--as the sight of a steamer lying motionless on the water
+meant that something was amiss.
+
+This new craft was the schooner _Coral_, a stanchly-built, sharp-bowed
+little vessel of forty tons burden, built for the Honolulu trade. She
+was about seven years old, very fast, and constructed as strongly as
+iron and wood could make her. The forecastle, cook's quarters and
+cabin were all under deck, so that in heavy weather there was no
+danger of being washed from one's bunk whenever a big sea came
+thundering over the rail.
+
+The skipper or captain of this trim little craft was Jack Bergen, of
+Boston, and he with his mate, Abram Storms, had made the trip across
+the continent by rail to San Francisco--thus saving the long,
+dangerous and expensive voyage around Cape Horn.
+
+In the Golden Gate City they--for the mate and captain were joint
+partners--bought the _Coral_ at auction, paying just two-thirds the
+sum they expected to give for the vessel they needed. However, when
+she was fitted up and provisioned, they found very little of their
+funds left, and they could but feel some anxiety as to the result of
+the extraordinary enterprise upon which they were engaged. The crew of
+the little schooner consisted of the two sailors, Hyde Brazzier,
+Alfredo Redvignez, and a huge African, Pomp Cooper, who shipped as
+cook and steward, with the liability of being called upon to do duty
+in an emergency.
+
+But of these, more hereafter.
+
+Captain Bergen, after his craft came-to, was rowed across the short,
+intervening distance with his mate, and they were assisted upon deck,
+where they were received most courteously.
+
+"Is there anything I can do to help you?" he asked after he and his
+brother officer were received by Captain Strathmore.
+
+"I'm obliged to you, but I'm afraid not," was the courteous response.
+"You know, there's no way of telling when a piece of iron is going to
+fracture, and so there is no way of providing against such an
+accident."
+
+"Is the shaft broke?"
+
+"Yes; broken clean off."
+
+"Where?"
+
+The captain of the steamer smiled, for he saw no need of such a
+question, since he considered the damage irremediable.
+
+"Quite a distance from the screw, and it's a curious fracture. Would
+you like to look at it?"
+
+"I would, indeed. You see, we have got considerable out of our
+course--being too far west--and we shall make a pretty sharp turn to
+the south, toward Honolulu."
+
+"I am debating whether to go there, turn back to San Francisco, or
+keep on under sail to Tokio."
+
+"This is my mate, Abram Storms, from Enfield, Connecticut," said
+Captain Bergen, introducing the two. "I bring him along because he is
+the most ingenious man ever turned out by that home of ingenuity; and
+when I saw that something was the matter with you, I came alongside,
+more because I believed he could help you, than in the expectation
+that I could be of any service."
+
+"Captain Bergen does me too much honor," protested the stoop-shouldered
+New Englander, who, had there been more of daylight, would have been
+seen to blush under the compliment.
+
+"I have no doubt he speaks the truth," replied Captain Strathmore,
+leading the way below to where the broken shaft rested motionless;
+"but this trouble is too much like a broken neck for any surgery to
+help."
+
+A minute later, a group of half a dozen stood about and stooped over
+the broken shaft, and examined it by the aid of lanterns, the chief
+engineer showing a more courteous spirit than is usual under such
+circumstances.
+
+As one looked at the huge cylinder of solid iron, gleaming with a
+silvery whiteness all over the jagged face where it had been twisted
+off, the wonder was how it could be possible for any force to be
+tremendous enough to do such damage. The peculiarity about the
+breakage, however, was that, instead of snapping nearly squarely off,
+the fracture extended longitudinally for fully eighteen inches, so
+that the face of each part was a great deal broader and longer than is
+generally the case in such accidents.
+
+The group surveyed it a minute or two in silence, stooping down and
+feeling of the innumerable jagged protuberances, the indentations, and
+the exceedingly rough surface, the minute particles gleaming in the
+lamp-light like a mass of silver ore split apart.
+
+The first remark came from the New Englander, Abe Storms.
+
+"That is curious, for there are no signs of crystallization, nor can I
+detect a flaw."
+
+"Nevertheless, it must be there, for perfect iron would not have
+broken in that manner," said the chief engineer.
+
+"I beg your pardon," said the mate, courteously, "but it frequently
+happens. There has been some peculiar combination of the movement of
+the steamer on the swell of the sea, with the position of the screw at
+that moment--a convergence of a hundred conditions--some almost
+infinitesimal, but necessary, and which convergence is not likely to
+take place in a million revolutions of the screw--that has brought an
+irresistible strain upon the shaft--one that would have wrenched it
+off, had the diameter been twice what it is."
+
+The group looked wonderingly at the speaker, for every intelligent man
+felt that the theory of the New Englander had a stratum of truth
+beneath it. It was hard to make clear what the mate meant, but all to
+a certain extent understood, and no one ventured to gainsay it.
+
+"However," added Abe Storms, "there's one good thing about this; it
+will be easy to mend it."
+
+Captain Bergen smiled, for he expected something of the kind, and he
+knew that that wonderful Yankee mate of his never boasted, and would
+demonstrate every assertion he made. But the others stared at the
+speaker with something like consternation, and seemed to be debating
+whether he was crazy or a natural born idiot.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV
+
+MISSING
+
+
+"Mend a broken shaft?" repeated the chief engineer, in amazement. "How
+do you expect to do that?"
+
+"I will show you," replied the mate of the little schooner, who
+immediately proceeded to business.
+
+The first thing he asked for was several coils of wire, which were
+immediately furnished him. Then, with great labor, the two parts of
+the shaft were fitted together and the wire was twisted tightly around
+the fractured portion over and over again.
+
+As the tenacity of iron is tremendous, the shaft was securely
+fastened, but this was not enough. Ropes and chains were bound around
+the iron in turn, until there was really no room to bandage the broken
+shaft further.
+
+"There, sir!" exclaimed Storms, as he stepped back and viewed his
+work. "That is as secure as before, though, if you can possibly do so,
+you should avoid reversing the screw until you reach Tokio, for you
+can understand that to reverse and start will wrench the shaft to a
+dangerous degree."
+
+The captain now told the engineer, who had been assisting in the
+operation, to start the engine slowly and with great care.
+
+Captain Bergen ran on deck to see that the _Coral_ was in position to
+receive no harm from the forward motion, while the rest of the group
+watched the movements with intense interest, standing away from the
+shaft so as to escape the "splinters," that more than one thought
+might be flying about their heads the next minute.
+
+There came the sound of steam, of plunging rods and cylinders from
+ahead, then there was heard a furious splash at the stern, and all saw
+that the shaft in its entirety was revolving.
+
+The keen eyes of Abe Storms, who had leaned directly over his
+handiwork, lamp in hand, his nose almost touching the gleaming chains,
+detected the very yielding which he had prophesied. He heard the
+creaking of the chains, the faint gasping, as it may be called, of the
+rope, and the soft grinding of the fine wire beneath.
+
+All this showed what an enormous strain was brought upon them, and
+almost any other person detecting the rasping of the ragged edges of
+iron against each other would have started back appalled, believing
+that everything was about to fly apart. But it was precisely what the
+mate expected, and what was inevitable under the circumstances. Then,
+at his request, the engineer was ordered to put on a full head of
+steam, and the _Polynesia_ plowed forward, cleaving the water before
+her.
+
+Abe Storms knelt down and bent almost lovingly over the round mass
+revolving on its axis. Then he beckoned to the engineer to approach
+and do the same. He obeyed, as did several others, and placing their
+ears close, they listened intently to the revolution of the shaft.
+
+Not even the faintest noise could be detected to show that there was
+anything but a normal movement of the shaft. Every one saw, too, that
+the revolutions were not only going on regularly, but would continue
+so for an indefinite time. The shaft was practically whole again, with
+the exception that a reverse movement would be likely to undo
+everything, and by scraping the corrugated surfaces of the fractures,
+render it impossible to do anything of the kind again.
+
+Captain Strathmore and his officers stood for a full hour more
+steadily watching the revolving shaft, and at the end of that time
+they were satisfied. Then the new acquaintances saluted and bade each
+other good-by, the officers of the _Coral_ passing over the rail, and
+were rowed back to their own vessel, which had followed in the wake of
+the steamer, as may be said.
+
+By this time it was midnight, and the captain returned to his
+station on the bridge, reflecting to himself that some of the most
+insurmountable difficulties, apparently, are overcome by the simplest
+means, and that there are some persons in the world who really
+seem capable of inventing anything.
+
+The hour was so late that all the passengers had retired, and little
+Inez, as a matter of course, had become invisible long before. She had
+declared several times that she was going to sit up with the captain,
+and she tried it, but, like most children under such circumstances,
+she dropped off into slumber by the time it was fairly dark, and was
+carried below to the cabin.
+
+The child was like so much sunshine flitting hither and thither upon
+the steamer, and whose presence would be sorely missed when the hour
+came for her to go. But Captain Strathmore was a disciplinarian, who
+could never forget his duty, and he remained at his post until the
+time came for him to go below to gain the few hours' sleep which
+cannot be safely dispensed with by any one, no matter how rugged his
+frame.
+
+Tumbling into his berth, he stretched out with a sigh of comfort, and
+went to sleep.
+
+"Inez will be in here bright and early to wake me," was his
+conclusion, as he closed his eyes in slumber.
+
+But he was disappointed, for when he was called from his couch, it was
+not by the little one whom he expected to see. At the breakfast-table
+she did not appear, and then Captain Strathmore, fearing that she was
+ill, made inquiries. He heard nothing, and filled with a growing
+alarm, he instituted a thorough search of the vessel from stem to
+stern and high and low. Not a spot or corner was omitted where a cat
+could have been concealed, but she was not found.
+
+And then the startling truth was established that little Inez
+Hawthorne was not on board the steamer.
+
+"Oh!" groaned poor Captain Strathmore, "she became my own child! Now I
+have lost her a second time!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V
+
+THE NEW PASSENGER
+
+
+Captain Strathmore rewarded Abe Storms liberally for the service he
+had rendered them, and the mate and captain of the schooner, as we
+have said, were rowed back to the boat by Hyde Brazzier.
+
+Reaching the deck of the _Coral_, they watched the progress of the
+great steamer until she vanished from sight in the moonlight, and then
+the two friends went into the cabin to "study the chart," as they
+expressed it.
+
+It may be said that this had been the principal business of the two
+since leaving the States, though the statement is not strictly
+correct. The hum of conversation went on for hours; the night
+gradually wore away, but still the two men sat talking in low tones,
+and looking at the roll of paper spread out between them, and which
+was covered with numerous curious drawings. The theme must have been
+an absorbing one, since it banished all thought of the passage of time
+from their minds.
+
+"I tell you," said the captain, as he leaned back in his chair, "there
+isn't the remotest doubt that a colossal fortune is awaiting us, and
+unless some extraordinary accident intervenes, we shall gather it
+up."
+
+"So it would seem," replied the mate, with a weary look, "and yet I
+sometimes feel certain that it will never be ours--Good gracious!"
+
+The two men almost leaped out of their chairs, and their hair fairly
+rose on end. They were absolutely certain that no one else was in the
+cabin besides themselves. Redvignez was at the wheel, and Brazzier
+awaited his call in turn at the end of the watch. But just then both
+heard a rustling, and saw a movement in the berth of Captain Bergen,
+which showed something was there. It couldn't be a dog or cat, for
+there was nothing of the kind on board. Besides which, just then, the
+two men caught sight of the little white hand which clearly belonged
+to some one of their own species. Then the covering was thrown back; a
+mass of tangled golden hair was observed, and instantly after, the
+fair face of a young child peered wonderingly out, as if seeking to
+learn where she was.
+
+Of course the little one was Inez Hawthorne, though neither of the two
+men had ever seen or heard of her before, and it is, therefore, idle
+to attempt to picture their overwhelming astonishment when they
+became aware so suddenly of her presence in the cabin.
+
+Neither of the two men was superstitious; but there was good excuse
+for their being wonder-struck. If an individual in the middle of a
+desert should suddenly become aware of the appearance of a strange
+person at his elbow, a situation apparently in which he could only be
+placed by supernatural means, it would be a very mild word to say he
+would be surprised.
+
+Flinging the coverlet from her shoulders and throwing back her mass of
+rich golden hair, Inez assumed the sitting position, with her dimpled
+legs swinging over the side, and her little hands resting on the rail,
+as if to steady herself during the long swells of the sea, while she
+looked at the two men as if trying to recollect where she was and who
+they were.
+
+"Well, if that doesn't beat anything that was ever heard or read of
+before!" exclaimed the captain, turning about and staring at her.
+"Where in the name of the seven wonders did you come from?"
+
+Abe Storms, the mate, did not speak, but seemed to be waiting to see
+whether the child had a voice, and thus settle the question in his
+mind as to whether it was mortal or not.
+
+The problem was quickly solved, for Inez was never backward in
+asserting her individuality.
+
+"How did I come here? That's a great question to ask! I got tired and
+lay down to sleep, and have just woke up. I think this is a real nice
+boat. Are you the captain? My name is Inez Hawthorne--what is yours?"
+
+These questions, uttered with childish rapidity and ingenuousness,
+threw some light upon the apparent mystery.
+
+"She belongs to the steamer," said Abe Storms, with his eyes fixed
+wonderingly upon her. "She has managed to get in our boat in some way,
+and we have carried her off. Did you ever see anything so pretty?"
+
+As the reader has learned, there was good cause for this admiring
+question. Both of the men were bachelors, but they possessed natural
+refinement, and they could reverence the innocence and loveliness of
+childhood. With the discovery that she was an actual human being, the
+awe-struck wonder of the two men vanished, though their curiosity was
+great to learn how it was she was carried away from the steamer.
+
+"Won't you come here and talk with me?" asked Storms, reaching out his
+arms invitingly, but a little doubtful whether she would respond,
+though the stoop-shouldered inventor was always popular with children.
+The answer of Inez was a sudden spring, which landed her plump into
+the lap of the mate, while she flung her arms around his neck with a
+merry laugh, and then wheeled about on his knee, so that she could
+look in the face of either of the men, who, not unnaturally, felt a
+strange and strong attraction toward the beautiful child.
+
+Then the two began a series of questions that were answered in the
+characteristic fashion of childhood, but from which the friends
+succeeded in extracting something like a clear explanation of her
+presence on board the _Coral_--so many miles from the steamer on which
+she had set sail at San Francisco.
+
+They learned that Inez--who was such a pet on the _Polynesia_ that she
+was allowed to do as she chose--was invited by one of the crew to
+visit the _Coral_, while she lay so close to the disabled steamer. The
+one who gave this invitation was Hyde Brazzier, and he was struck with
+the wonderful loveliness of the child, when she questioned him about
+the schooner.
+
+There is no nature, however steeped in crime, in which there is not a
+divine spark which may be fanned into a flame--which, perchance, may
+illumine the whole soul; and but for the subsequent strange events,
+little Inez Hawthorne might have proved, in the most literal sense, a
+heaven-sent messenger upon that craft, which carried so much
+wickedness in the forecastle.
+
+Brazzier rowed the short intervening distance, and then took the child
+by the hand and showed her through the schooner, there being little to
+exhibit. Finally she was led into the cabin, where she said she was
+tired and wished to lie down. Thereupon Brazzier lifted her upon the
+captain's berth and drew the coverlet over her. A minute later the
+weary eyes closed in slumber and he left the cabin.
+
+Brazzier had no intention, up to this time, of using any deception in
+the matter; but, under the persuasion of Redvignez, he gave way to the
+innate wickedness of his nature, and chuckled over the lamentable
+occurrence. They felt pleasure in the certainty that what they were
+doing was sure to make other hearts ache.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI
+
+"PORT YOUR HELM!"
+
+
+When a thorough search of the steamer _Polynesia_ made known the truth
+that little Inez Hawthorne was nowhere upon it, the sorrowful
+conclusion was that she had fallen overboard in some manner and been
+drowned.
+
+But the belief was scarcely formed, when the discovery was made that
+such was not the case; that in fact she had been taken away by the
+schooner _Coral_, whose mate performed such good service in mending
+the broken shaft of the _Polynesia_.
+
+The story as told Captain Strathmore was as follows:
+
+The two officers of the schooner were rowed to the steamer by one of
+the crew, who climbed up the ladder at the side of the _Polynesia_,
+and spent a few minutes in inspecting the broken shaft. He then came
+back. His attention was attracted to little Inez, whose childish
+curiosity was excited by the appearance of a stranger who had but one
+eye, and who looked so different from the trim-looking members of the
+steamer's crew. The two fell into conversation, and Inez asked so many
+questions about the schooner that the stranger invited her to take a
+look at it. He was heard to say that the captain and mate would be
+engaged for two or three hours, and there would be plenty of time to
+row the child over the intervening distance, explore the _Coral_, and
+come back before Captain Bergen and his mate would be ready to leave.
+
+Naturally, Inez gladly accepted the invitation, and the sinister-looking
+man, picking her up, carefully descended the ladder to his small boat,
+and rowed away to the schooner.
+
+This story, it will be observed, corresponded with that told by
+Brazzier himself.
+
+No one thought anything of the proceeding, which was one of the most
+natural in the world, and there was nothing to arouse misgiving on the
+part of those who witnessed it.
+
+Inez was almost a spoiled child from the indulgence shown her by every
+one with whom she came in contact. She distrusted no one, because she
+had never had any reason to do so. It was night when the officers of
+the schooner were rowed back, and those who had seen Inez taken away
+did not observe that the boat returned without her. Holding no thought
+of anything wrong, they gave no further attention to the strange
+sailor.
+
+The moment Captain Strathmore learned these facts, he caused an abrupt
+change to be made in the course of the _Polynesia_. For he was
+determined that no effort should be spared to recover the lost child,
+who had so endeared herself to every one on board the steamer.
+
+The precise point where the accident had befallen the shaft was
+recorded on the log, as a matter of course, and it was within the
+power of the chief officer to return wonderfully close to that spot.
+If the schooner _Coral_ should remain anywhere in that latitude and
+longitude, she could be found and Inez recovered.
+
+"But it is not likely the schooner is near there," reflected Captain
+Strathmore, as he swept the horizon with his glass and failed to catch
+sight of a sail. "They could not have taken away the child ignorantly,
+and instead of remaining there or attempting to find us, the captain
+has headed in some direction which is not the one he named, as if by
+accident, when he was aboard."
+
+The captain was in that mood that it would have been dangerous for him
+to come upon the daring thieves. He could conceive of no explanation
+that would relieve them from his wrath, and as the steamer described
+a huge curve in the sea and headed toward the point where he hoped to
+gain sight of the sail, full steam was put on, and she ran at a rate
+of speed which, in the condition of her shaft, was certainly dangerous
+to a high degree.
+
+It may be said there was not a heart on board the _Polynesia_ that did
+not share in the general anxiety, and there was scarcely an eye that
+did not scan the broad ocean again and again in the hope of catching
+sight of the schooner.
+
+Several sails were descried in the course of the day, but not one was
+that of the _Coral_, and when the night descended not only had there
+been a complete failure, but the captain was convinced that it was
+useless for him to delay the steamer by hunting further.
+
+With an angry and sad heart he gave over the search, and the
+_Polynesia_ was headed once more toward the far-off imperial Japanese
+city of Tokio.
+
+"I would give a thousand dollars to know what it all means," said
+Captain Strathmore, as he stood on the bridge debating the matter with
+himself. "There is something about the whole business which I don't
+understand. In the first place, Inez came under my charge in an
+extraordinary way. I don't believe that that man who brought her down
+to the wharf told the truth, and I very much doubt whether the parents
+of the little one have ever been in Japan. She may have been stolen
+from some one, and this means has been resorted to in order to get her
+out of the way. I wish I had questioned her more closely," continued
+the perplexed captain, following up the train of thought, "for she let
+drop an expression or two now and then that showed she had some
+remembrances which it would have been interesting to call up. It's too
+late now," added the old sailor, with a sigh, "and probably I shall
+never see her again. She had nestled down into that spot in my heart
+which was left vacant many weary years ago, when my own Inez died and
+my only boy became as one dead, and there is no sacrifice I would not
+make would it but bring this one back to me. It is curious, but the
+feeling is strong upon me that somewhere at some time we shall meet
+again."
+
+"Port your helm!"
+
+This was the startling order which the quartermaster sent to the
+wheel-house at that moment, and which was obeyed with as much
+promptness as is possible on such a gigantic craft as an ocean
+steamer.
+
+The night, for a rarity, was dark and misty, a peculiar fog resting
+upon the water, and shutting out the view in every direction. It would
+seem that there could be little danger of a collision on the broad
+bosom of the mightiest ocean of the globe, but there must always be a
+certain ratio of danger, and none realized this more than Captain
+Strathmore.
+
+The _Polynesia_ had been running at half speed ever since the sun went
+down, and her whistle blew at irregular intervals. At the moment the
+startling order was communicated to the man at the wheel, the lights
+of another steamer were discerned directly ahead. And these were
+scarcely observed when the mountainous hull loomed up to view in
+appalling proximity, and a cold shudder ran through every officer and
+sailor at the sight, for there was just a single second or two when it
+seemed certain that the two crafts would come together with an
+earthquake shock and such an irresistible momentum as would crash the
+two prodigious hulls to splinters, and send the crews and passengers
+to join the multitudes who have gone before them to the bottom of the
+sea.
+
+Signals and commands were rapidly exchanged, and the slight
+misunderstanding which existed between the two steamers at first was
+quickly removed. The shouts and orders, the tinkling of the engineer's
+bell, and even the sound of hurrying feet, were heard on one ship as
+distinctly as on the other.
+
+Most fortunately the officers of each were sensible men, who enforced
+discipline, and who, therefore, did not lose their heads when sudden
+peril came upon them.
+
+There was desperate need of haste on the part of all, but the haste
+was intelligent, and something was accomplished.
+
+The stranger instantly reversed her screw, while the _Polynesia_ was
+equally prompt in her backward movement. They escaped by a chance so
+narrow that it was terrifying. The bow of the _Polynesia_ grazed the
+side of the stranger as they passed upon their diagonal courses, and
+every one on the two ships who understood the dreadful peril drew a
+deep breath and uttered a prayer of thankfulness when it swept by, and
+the two steamers vanished from each other's sight in the misty
+darkness.
+
+The engineer of the _Polynesia_ was signaled to go forward again, and
+the screw was started; but, if the one who uttered the order had
+forgotten the contingency against which they had been warned, the one
+who executed that order had not, and he gave the engine just enough
+steam to start the shaft.
+
+As he did so, listening intently the meanwhile, he heard an ominous
+crunching, grinding and jarring in the after hold, and he knew too
+well what it meant. He instantly shut off steam, and with the captain
+hastened to make the investigation. As they feared, the broken shaft
+had been wrenched apart again, and it looked as if it were injured
+beyond repair.
+
+But what man has done, man can do, and the ingenious recourse of Abe
+Storms was resorted to again. With great care the fractured pieces
+were reunited and bound, but the task was, in reality, harder than
+before, since the terrific grinding and wrenching to which it had been
+subjected broke off much of the corrugated surface.
+
+The work was completed after many long hours of hard work, and once
+more the _Polynesia_ started slowly under steam for the strange
+island-empire of Asia. This unexpected delay, as the reader will see,
+doubtless had much to do with the failure of the schooner to find the
+steamer, since it threw out all possibility of calculating where the
+larger craft could be.
+
+"Now, if we have no more vessels trying to run into us," muttered the
+captain, as he resumed his place on the bridge, "we stand a chance of
+reaching Japan after all, without calling on our sails to help us."
+
+But, standing at his post, with everything going well, his thoughts
+naturally reverted to the strange mischance by which little Inez
+Hawthorne was lost to him.
+
+"I don't believe Captain Bergen or his mate, Abe Storms, would
+knowingly take off the child in that fashion, though the girl was
+enough to tempt any one to steal her. There is something about the
+whole business which I don't understand. We ought to have found each
+other, though, if he is still hunting for me. This second breakage of
+the shaft will tend to keep us apart."
+
+The long voyage of the steamer to Japan terminated without any
+incident worth the recording, and Captain Strathmore naturally became
+anxious to meet the parents of Inez, though sorrowing very much over
+the story he would be forced to tell them. But no one appeared at
+Tokio to claim the child, and the wondering captain proceeded to make
+inquiries.
+
+It was easy to obtain from the church authorities a list of the names
+of the Christian missionaries in Japan, and they were scanned
+carefully by the captain, who was given such assistance by the
+officials themselves that there could be no mistake. Among them was no
+one by the name of Hawthorne. It was plain then that deception had
+been used when the man in San Francisco declared that the parents of
+Inez were missionaries in Japan.
+
+As day after day passed and the steamer _Polynesia_ was gradually
+prepared for her return voyage to California, there was one strong,
+harrowing conviction which forced itself upon the distressed captain:
+
+"Had Inez not been stolen from the steamer, no one would have come to
+claim her, and she would have been mine."
+
+His heart thrilled at the thought of how close he had come to
+obtaining such a priceless prize for his possession, and then he
+added, as if to cheer himself:
+
+"Never mind; the earth is far and wide. She is alive somewhere upon
+its face, and at some time, at heaven's own pleasure, she and I shall
+meet again."
+
+Brave and rugged Captain Strathmore! Was the spirit of prophecy upon
+you when you muttered the cheering words?
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII
+
+THE REASON WHY THE VOYAGE WAS UNDERTAKEN
+
+
+At this point it is necessary that the reader should be made
+acquainted with what has been only hinted up to this point. We mean
+the reason why it was that the little schooner _Coral_, under the
+charge of Captain Bergen and Abram Storms, the mate, was on the
+Pacific Ocean, voyaging toward the South Seas.
+
+The skipper was fond of telling the strange story, and the mate heard
+it many times, as repeated to him one stormy night, around the roaring
+fire of Captain Bergen's hearthstone in New England. It ran thus:
+
+"You see, Abe, I was going down Washington Street, in Boston, one day,
+when I came upon a drunken sailor, who was suffering a terrible
+beating at the hands of a couple of land-sharks, that were were
+evidently determined to rob him, if they had not already done so.
+
+"It r'iled my blood to see such scandalous proceedings going on, and I
+sailed in.
+
+"Then I helped pick up Jack tar, and he was taken to the hospital,
+where his wounds were found to be of a dangerous nature. His
+assailants were so badly hurt that they went to the hospital, and when
+they came out they were shifted to the penitentiary, where they're
+likely to stay for a good many years to come.
+
+"Having taken the part of Bill Grebbens, as he told me his name was, I
+called at the hospital to see him every day, for I wasn't busy just
+then. The poor fellow was very grateful for the service I had done
+him, though sad to say I was too late.
+
+"Bill had been on such a terrible spree that his system wasn't in
+condition to resist disease, and before long it was plain he was going
+to make a die of it. He was a plucky fellow, and when the doctor told
+him he had to go, he didn't weaken.
+
+"Just before he died, he took me by the hand, and told me he hadn't a
+living relative in the world, nor one who had been such a friend to
+him as I had proved to be. By that time my own eyes were getting
+misty, and I begged him to say nothing about it.
+
+"I told him I would see that he had a decent burial, and would attend
+to anything he wanted me to do. He said there wasn't anything, for it
+could make no difference to him what became of his body after his
+death, and for his part he would as lief the doctors should have it.
+
+"However, he took this paper from under his pillow and showed it to
+me, and told me all about it. I thought at first his mind was
+wandering, but I soon saw that his head was level, and he knew what he
+was talking about."
+
+The paper which Captain Bergen produced at this point of his narrative
+was covered with some well-executed drawings, which, having been done
+by the sailor himself, showed that he was a man of education.
+
+"Those dots there represent the King George Islands of the South
+Pacific, lying in about fifteen degrees south latitude and one hundred
+and forty-three degrees west longitude. To the north here is Mendina
+Archipelago, and here to the east are the Paumotu Islands, sometimes
+known as the Pearl Islands. There are a good many of them, and away to
+the northeast of the group is another island, which, although much the
+larger on the map, is really a small coral island, with a lagoon, and
+so unimportant that it has no name, and cannot be found on any map I
+ever saw.
+
+"You will observe the figure and directions marked on this paper,"
+added Captain Bergen, who invariably became excited at this point in
+his narration, "which, with his explanations, are so easily understood
+that no one can go astray.
+
+"Well, Bill Grebbens once belonged to a party of mutineers of a
+British vessel, who found it growing so hot for them that they put in
+to this island, scuttled and sunk their ship, and lived there two
+years. It was uninhabited, and they led a lazy, vagabond life in that
+charming climate till a strange sort of sickness broke out among them
+and carried off eight, leaving only Grebbens and a single shipmate.
+
+"These two spent several months longer in wandering about the island
+looking for and yet dreading to see a sail, when one day they
+discovered a bed of pearl-oysters, which they examined and found to be
+of surpassing richness. The majority of the shells contained pearls,
+many of them of great size, and the two men saw that an immense
+fortune lay only a few fathoms under the surface.
+
+"They instantly set to work with great eagerness; but it is seldom
+that a man obtains wealth in this world by walking over a path of
+roses.
+
+"Within the first half-hour, a huge man-eating shark glided into the
+clear water, and with one snap of his enormous jaws actually bit the
+body of the other sailor in two. The horrified Grebbens managed to get
+out just in time to save himself.
+
+"He had enough of pearl-diving, and he shudderingly turned his back
+upon the spot, and began looking out to sea again for a sail,
+determined now to leave, no matter if he should be carried to England
+and executed.
+
+"He managed to set up the topmast of the wreck, and to catch the
+attention of a whaler a few days later, and was taken off. Before
+going, however, he made a careful drawing of the place, and by
+studying other charts on the American whaler which took him away he
+was able to locate the island with such correctness that he could
+return to it at any time, his intention, of course, being to do so at
+some period when he could go provided with means to prosecute his
+search without such frightful risk.
+
+"But Bill never saw the time, for he was too fond of liquor when
+ashore. He met his death just as I told you, and he gave me this chart
+or map of the locality, telling me that a fortune lay at that point
+where my finger is resting to whosoever should go after it."
+
+Such was the story of Captain Bergen, as he related it to his friend,
+Abe Storms, to whom he proposed that they should fit out an expedition
+to go to the South Seas in quest of the fortune that awaited them in
+the shape of pearls.
+
+Abe was slower and more deliberate, but he finally fell in with the
+scheme, and the two, as we have already stated, became joint partners
+in the grand enterprise.
+
+Both were frugal men, and they now decided to invest all their funds
+in the scheme, which promised to make or break them. Instead of
+sailing from the port of Boston, they took an important cut "across
+lots" by going by rail to San Francisco, thus saving the longest and
+most dangerous portion of the voyage, which otherwise would be
+necessary. In San Francisco, at a sale of bankrupt property, they
+bought the schooner, which has already been described, and shipped
+their crew.
+
+The wonder was that two men possessing the shrewdness of Storms and
+Bergen should have been so deceived respecting their men.
+
+Hyde Brazzier was an American sailor, with blotched, bleared face,
+with one eye gone, while over the sunken, sightless cavity he wore a
+green patch, his face covered by a scraggly beard, and his single eye,
+small and deep-set, added to the sinister expression of his
+countenance.
+
+He had the reputation of being a good seaman, and undoubtedly he was,
+and being strong and vigorous, in the prime of life, he was considered
+an especially valuable man to Captain Bergen, who paid him five
+dollars more per month than he expected.
+
+Since Captain Bergen had pursued a rather original course from the
+beginning, he continued to do so. He engaged his men without any help
+from the shipping-master, and had hardly reached an understanding
+with the American when Alfredo Redvignez put in an appearance and
+applied for a berth, saying that he had heard the best kinds of
+accounts of the captain's seamanship and humanity--even in far-away
+Boston.
+
+Redvig--so called for convenience--said that he had been employed in
+the East India trade, and was a sailor of nearly twenty years'
+experience. It struck both Captain Bergen and Mate Storms that, as
+they were going to the tropics, he was likely to prove a useful man,
+and he was engaged.
+
+The captain ventured to ask Brazzier's opinion of the other sailor,
+but the American said he had never heard of him before--though he
+liked the cut of his jib, and was glad he had been hired. But had any
+one been watching the faces of the American and Spaniard, he would
+have detected several suspicious signals which passed between them;
+and this, added to the fact that, in a very short time, they became
+intimately acquainted, as may be said, looked as if there had been
+deception on that point.
+
+The fact was, the two had arranged the matter beforehand, so as to go
+together in this business--somewhat on the same principle that their
+employers entered into partnership. They were both serving under
+assumed names, and were obliged to take no little precaution to keep
+their identity concealed, for they were "wanted" for serious crimes in
+more than one port.
+
+Redvig was a small, swarthy, muscular man, with coal-black, curling
+hair, short, curly beard and mustache, black eyes, with an aquiline
+nose, and both he and Brazzier had a fashion of wearing small gold
+ear-rings. Their arms and breast were plentifully tattooed, so that
+but for the great exception of their evil dispositions, they might
+well have passed for good specimens of the proverbial Jack tar.
+
+It was different with the huge colored man, Pomp Cooper, who had been
+known about the wharves of San Francisco for a number of years. He was
+jolly and good-natured, possessed of prodigious strength, and had been
+on shipboard enough to acquire a fair knowledge of navigating a
+coasting vessel.
+
+While many believed he possessed the proverbial loyalty of his race,
+and could not be induced to commit any grave crime, yet it must be
+admitted that there were ugly rumors afloat concerning him. It was
+asserted by more than one that he was a river and harbor pirate, and
+belonged to one of the worst gangs that ever infested the harbor of
+San Francisco.
+
+While Captain Bergen was not ignorant of these rumors, yet he placed
+no credence in them, and believed Pomp to be one of the most valuable
+men he could obtain. Such in brief was the crew of the _Coral_, when
+she sailed on her long voyage to the South Seas, in quest of
+pearls--the location of which had been given by the dying sailor in
+the Boston hospital.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII
+
+VOYAGING SOUTHWARD
+
+
+It was certainly very wonderful that little Inez Hawthorne should have
+been transferred from the steamer to the schooner, and that many hours
+should have passed before the discovery was made by the respective
+captains of the craft.
+
+Yet such was the fact, and Captain Bergen and Mate Storms had no
+sooner learned the real situation than Hyde Brazzier was sent for to
+tell how it occurred. As he was the one who rowed the small boat,
+there could be no doubt that he knew. The story he told was the true
+one, with the exception of the supplement--that he actually forgot
+about the little girl after she went into the cabin and fell asleep.
+
+It was impossible, it may be said, that such could be the fact, and
+the officers looked knowingly at each other. They knew he was
+falsifying, but they made no comment, except to declare that she must
+be taken back to the steamer without an hour's delay.
+
+Captain Bergen learned from Inez that she had no relatives on board
+the steamer, and she did not show any special distress over being
+where she was. But, for all that, the honest New Englander felt that
+she should be restored, and he immediately took every means for doing
+so.
+
+His supposition was that she would be speedily missed from the
+_Polynesia_, which would at once make search for the schooner.
+Accordingly, the _Coral_ was headed northwest, under all sail, the sun
+just rising at the time this change of course was made.
+
+"The steamer will go so much faster than we," said the captain, "that
+there is no possibility of overhauling her, unless her shaft should
+give out again."
+
+"There's no danger of that. More likely she'll turn about and look for
+us."
+
+As the sun climbed the heavens, the horizon was anxiously scanned for
+some point where the black column of a steamer's smokestack could be
+seen staining the clear sky. Far away to the northward, a vapor was
+observed, which at first was set down as the sight for which they were
+searching; but it was soon learned that it was a peculiarly-formed
+cloud, resting almost upon the water.
+
+The upper rigging and sails of possibly an American whaler were
+descried a long distance to the northward, and a full-rigged ship was
+detected closer in, and further to the eastward. But no sign of the
+_Polynesia_ was discovered through the powerful binocular glasses
+with which Captain Bergen swept the horizon. There was strong hope, in
+spite of this, that she would be seen before sunset, and the _Coral_
+held to her course toward the southwest, not only for that day and
+night, but for the two succeeding ones. But it is useless to dwell
+upon the search made by the smaller vessel, which was without the
+faintest glimmer of success.
+
+Captain Bergen and Mate Storms did their utmost to undo the wrong act
+of their sailors, but at the end of the third day they held an anxious
+consultation as to what was the right course left to pursue. They had
+given up hope of meeting the _Polynesia_ except by chasing her all the
+way to Japan, they having learned that Tokio was her destination.
+
+Should the _Coral_ follow her there, or first fulfil its own destiny
+in the Paumotu Islands? This was the all-important matter to be
+settled.
+
+When a man makes a great invention or discovery, his first dread is
+that some one else will anticipate him and gather to himself all the
+glory and profit. This had been a constant fear in the case of the
+captain and mate of the schooner _Coral_ ever since they began their
+preparations for the journey to the South Seas. It cost them a pang of
+dread when, therefore, they headed the schooner about in the hunt for
+the steamer, for, as will be readily understood, the apprehension of
+which we have spoken intensifies the nearer one gets to the goal.
+
+There were other considerations which entered into the question as to
+whether they should go on or turn about. Inez Hawthorne had, as might
+have been expected, adapted herself to her new position as passenger
+on the schooner, and ran hither and thither at will, just as she did
+on the _Polynesia_, and she climbed all over the captain and mate, as
+if they were Captain Strathmore and his officer, or some of the
+passengers.
+
+She occasionally expressed a longing to see the grizzled old
+sea-captain, whom she called her second, or new "papa," but there was
+no one else for whom she particularly longed. Her affection was
+distributed so equally and spontaneously that among several hundred it
+could not be very profound. Only in the case of the brave old Captain
+Strathmore was it deep and steadfast.
+
+It would delay the voyage to the Pearl Islands not for weeks, but for
+months, to sail away to Asia, and then turn about and put back to the
+southern seas, and during that interval what might not take place?
+What assurance could there be that the precious pearl-bed would not be
+devastated?
+
+With the plans which Abe Storms had perfected on the way from home, it
+was believed that a week's time after their arrival at their
+destination would be sufficient to make them enormously wealthy, and
+thus the voyage which they would afterward take to Japan would be
+delayed only a month or two, perhaps. Furthermore, the parents and
+friends of Inez would have every reason to believe she was in safe
+hands, and would soon be restored to them. All these were weighty
+considerations, it must be confessed, and they decided the question.
+
+"We have done all that can be done," said Captain Bergen, standing at
+the stern with his hand upon the wheel, while Abe Storms, thoughtfully
+smoking his pipe, was at his elbow, with his arms folded and his eyes
+gazing dreamily toward the western horizon, where the sun was about to
+dip into the ocean.
+
+"I agree with you," was the reply of his mate, who was as conscientious
+in everything he did as was the captain. "I consider that the chance is
+as one in a thousand that we shall meet the steamer this side of
+Tokio, and if we undertake to follow, we shall lose several months
+of most precious time, without accomplishing any commensurate good. The
+child is contented and happy here."
+
+As if to emphasize this assertion, the laugh of Inez was heard at that
+moment as she came bounding up the steps of the cabin, and ran toward
+the bow, where the giant negro, Pomp, was leaning against the
+gunwale, his arms also folded, and an expression of contentment upon
+his broad, shiny countenance.
+
+The instant he caught sight of Inez his face lighted up and his white,
+even teeth were displayed with pleasure, as she ran toward him.
+
+It was singular, indeed, that, ever since her first awaking on board
+the _Coral_, Inez had shown not a positive dislike of Redvig and
+Brazzier, but what may be called a lack of friendship toward them. She
+was trusting and loving to Pomp and the two officers, but it was
+evident that she avoided the others. Possibly she could not have told
+the reason had she tried, and it is equally possible that she was not
+aware of it herself. But every one else on board saw it plainly.
+
+When two men in authority talk as did the captain and mate of the
+schooner _Coral_, the conclusion is inevitable. The decision was made
+to go on to the Paumotu Islands, after which the voyage would be made
+to Japan, and, alas! that it was so.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX
+
+GROPING IN THE DARK
+
+
+Life on board the schooner _Coral_, bound for the South Seas, now
+became like one delightful dream.
+
+The sails, fanned by the steady trade-wind, hardly ever required
+attention, since the course of the craft never varied more than a few
+points for days at a time, and whoever it was at the wheel, he might
+as well have lashed it fast and gone to sleep, for all the necessity
+there was of keeping awake.
+
+There had been some elemental disturbances which required seamanship
+to weather, but nothing like that usually encountered in the Atlantic.
+But there came a long spell of weather, faultless in every respect,
+and whose only drawback was the dread that each day would be the last
+of such delight. The sun rose clear and bright, and at high noon, as
+they approached the equator, it was sometimes hot, but the breeze
+which continually swept the deck tempered it to the crew and
+passenger. Had they been caught in a calm the heat would have been
+suffocating; but Providence favored them, and they sped along like a
+seagull toward their destination. There seemed to be times when the
+green surface of the sea was at perfect rest; but the regular rising
+and sinking of the _Coral_ showed that the bosom of the great deep was
+heaving as it always does, though the long swells came only at
+extended intervals.
+
+The water was of crystalline clearness, and, looking over the gunwale,
+one could see far into the depths, where strange-looking fish were
+sporting, sometimes coming to the surface and then shooting far down
+beyond the reach of human vision. Now and then, too, as little Inez
+leaned over the side of the vessel and peered downward, she caught
+sight of something like a shadow, gliding hither and thither,
+apparently without the slightest effort to keep pace with the
+schooner, which was bowling along at a rapid rate. It was one of those
+monstrous sharks, that will snap a man in two as quickly as if he were
+but an apple, should he fall overboard.
+
+Not a day passed without descrying one or more sails at varying
+distances, but our friends did not hail or approach any. Both Captain
+Bergen and Mate Storms were in a nervous condition, and were morbidly
+apprehensive of being anticipated by some one in dredging for the
+invaluable pearl-oysters. They were afraid their errand would be
+suspected, or they would be attacked after they should secure their
+prize.
+
+One day, under the pretense of wanting medicine, Hyde Brazzier
+suddenly appeared at the cabin door. The mate and captain were, as
+usual, studying the chart, and while the mate was ransacking the
+medicine chest for the drug, that single eye of the sailor secured
+five minutes' sharp scrutiny of the all-important map.
+
+Redvignez and Brazzier were not much together, as a matter of course,
+for one was in the captain's watch and the other in the mate's, but
+during the long, pleasant days and nights when they were voyaging
+toward the South Seas, they obtained many opportunities for
+confidential talks. All this might have been in the natural order of
+things on board the schooner, where the discipline was not strict, but
+Abe Storms had become pretty well satisfied that harm was meant, and
+mischief was brewing. He saw it in the looks and manner of these two
+men, who, while they were watching others, did not suspect they were
+watched in turn.
+
+About Pomp he was not so certain. The steward and cook seemed to be on
+good terms with the two sailors, and he frequently sat with them as
+they formed a little group forward, on the bright moonlight nights,
+when they preferred to sit thus and smoke and spin yarns to going
+below and catching slumber, when it was their privilege to do so.
+
+"I believe he is in with them," was the conclusion which Storms, the
+mate, finally reached, after watching and listening as best he could
+for several days. "They're hatching some conspiracy--most likely a
+mutiny to take possession of the ship. Captain Bergen doesn't suspect
+it--he is so absorbed in the pearl business; and I'll let him alone
+for the present, though it may be best to give him a hint or two to
+keep him on his guard."
+
+It never can be known what the restraining power of little Inez
+Hawthorne was on board that vessel on her extraordinary voyage to the
+Paumotu Islands, in the South Seas. She lived over again the same life
+that was hers during the few days spent on the _Polynesia_. She ran
+hither and thither, climbing into dangerous places at times, but with
+such grace and command of her limbs that she never once fell or even
+lost her balance. She chatted and laughed with Brazzier and Redvig,
+but she preferred the others, and showed it so plainly in her manner,
+that, unfortunately, the two could not avoid noticing it.
+
+"See here," said Captain Bergen, one evening while sitting in the
+cabin with the child on his knee, "I want you to try and think hard
+and answer me all the questions I ask you. Will you?"
+
+"Of course I will, if you don't ask too hard ones."
+
+"Well, I will be easy as I can. You have told me all about the big
+steamer that you were on when we found you, and you said that you
+lived with your Uncle Con in San Francisco, and that it was he and
+your Aunt Jemima that put you on board."
+
+"I didn't say any such thing!" indignantly protested Inez. "I haven't
+got any Aunt Jemima--it was my Aunt Letitia."
+
+The captain and mate smiled, for a little piece of strategy had
+succeeded. They had never before got the girl to give the name of her
+aunt, though she mentioned that of her uncle. But she now spoke it,
+her memory refreshed by the slight teasing to which she was
+subjected.
+
+"That's very good. I'm glad to learn that your uncle and aunt had two
+such pretty names as Con and Letitia Bumblebee."
+
+"Ain't you ashamed of yourself?" demanded Inez, turning upon him with
+flashing eyes. "I never heard of such a funny name as that."
+
+"I beg pardon. What, then, is their name?"
+
+The little head was bent and the fair brow wrinkled with thought. She
+had tried the same thing before, though it must be believed that she
+could not have tried very hard, or she would not have failed to
+remember the name of those with whom she lived but a short time
+before. But she used her brain to its utmost now, and it did not take
+her long to solve the question. In a few seconds she looked up and
+laughed.
+
+"Of course I know their name. It was Hermann, though he sometimes
+called himself George Smith."
+
+"The other sounds German," remarked Storms, in a lower voice. "Go
+ahead and get all you can from her."
+
+"How long did you live with them?"
+
+"Let me see," said Inez, as she turned her lustrous blue eyes toward
+the roof of the cabin, as if she expected to read the answer there. "I
+guess it was about two--three hundred years."
+
+She was in earnest, and Storms observed:
+
+"She must be a little off on that; but take another tack."
+
+The captain did so.
+
+"Do you remember living with any one excepting your Uncle George and
+Aunt Letitia?"
+
+Inez thought hard again, and replied, after a few seconds:
+
+"I don't know. Sometimes he was Uncle George and sometimes Uncle Con.
+We lived in the city a good while, where there were, oh, such lots of
+houses! but there was a time before that when we come such a long,
+long way in the cars. We rode and rode, and I guess we must have come
+from the moon, for we was ten years on the road."
+
+"Do you remember what sort of looking place the moon was?"
+
+"It was just like San Francisco--that is, it was full of houses."
+
+The officers looked at each other with a smile, and the mate said:
+
+"It's plain enough what that means. She has come from New York, over
+the Union Pacific, and her trip was probably the longest of her
+life."
+
+"Do you remember your father and mother?"
+
+"I don't know," said Inez, with a look of perplexity on her young face
+which it was not pleasant to see. "Sometimes I remember or dream of
+them, before we took such a long ride on the cars. My mother used to
+hold me on her lap and kiss me, and so did my father, and then there
+was crying, and something dreadful happened in the house, and then I
+can't remember anything more until I was on the cars."
+
+"It may be all right," said Captain Bergen to his mate, "for this
+could occur without anything being amiss."
+
+"It is possible; but I have a conviction that there is something wrong
+about the whole business. I believe, in short, that the person who
+placed her on board the steamer _Polynesia_ had no claim upon her at
+all."
+
+"That, in fact, the man stole her?"
+
+"That's it, exactly; and still further, I don't believe she has any
+father or mother in Japan, and that if we had gone thither we should
+have lost all the time and accomplished nothing."
+
+"It may be, Abe, that you are right," said the captain, who held a
+great admiration for his mate, "but I must say you can build a fraud
+and conspiracy on the smallest foundation of any man I ever knew. But,
+Abe, you may be right, I say, and if you are, it's just as well that
+we didn't go on a fool's errand to Tokio, after all."
+
+"The truth will soon be known, captain."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X
+
+THE MUTINEERS
+
+
+A few degrees south of the equator, the schooner _Coral_ ran into a
+tempest of such fury that with all the skilful seamanship of her
+captain and crew, and the admirable qualities of the schooner itself,
+she narrowly escaped foundering.
+
+There were two days when she was in such imminent peril that not an
+eye was closed in slumber, excepting in the case of little Inez
+Hawthorne, who felt the situation only to the extent that it compelled
+her to stay close in the cabin, while the vessel pitched and tossed
+from the crest of one tremendous billow, down, seemingly, into the
+fathomless depths between, and then laboriously climbed the mountain
+in front, with the spray and mist whirling about the deck and rigging
+like millions of fine shot. But the gallant _Coral_ rode it out
+safely, and the steady breeze caught her and she sped swiftly in the
+direction of the Pearl Islands.
+
+The little girl had run hither and thither, until, tired out, she had
+flung herself upon the berth in the cabin, where she was sleeping
+soundly, while the captain was doing the same; Abe Storms, the mate,
+being on deck at the wheel. It was yet early in the evening, and Hyde
+Brazzier and Alfredo Redvignez were sitting close together, forward,
+smoking their pipes and conversing in low tones. The breeze was almost
+directly abeam, so that the sails carried the craft along at a rapid
+rate, the water foaming and curling from the bow, while the rising and
+sinking of the schooner on the enormous swells were at such long
+intervals as almost to be imperceptible. As far as the eye could
+extend in every direction, no glimpse of a sail or light could be
+perceived, nor had any been observed through the day, which confirmed
+what Bill Grebbens, the sailor in the Boston hospital, said, to the
+effect that, despite the location of the Paumotu Islands, the approach
+to them from the direction of California took one in a section where
+the sails of commerce were rarely seen.
+
+The captain and mate had been consulting their chart, and had taken
+their reckoning more frequently and with greater care than ever
+before. The conclusion at which they arrived was that they were
+already south of the northernmost island of the Paumotu group, and
+were close to the Coral Island, along whose shore were to be found the
+precious pearls which were to make them all, or rather the two,
+wealthy.
+
+"It's a curious business," reflected Abe Storms, while holding the
+wheel motionless. "When I consider the matter fairly, I don't see why
+the expedition should not succeed. But it is so different from the
+coasting business, in which the captain and I have been engaged for
+years, that it is hard to believe we're going to make anything out of
+it."
+
+He listened a minute to the murmur of the voices forward, and then he
+added, pursuing the same train of thought:
+
+"What an extraordinary thing it is that we should have this little
+girl for a passenger! Suppose we carry her back to Tokio after this
+pearl hunt, and fail to find her parents?"
+
+He took but a minute to consider the question, when he answered:
+
+"It can never make any difference to Inez herself, for her sweet face
+and winning ways will secure her a welcome and a home in a hundred
+different places."
+
+While the mate was indulging in these fancies and reveries, Brazzier
+and Redvignez were holding an important conference forward.
+
+"I'm sure we won't have much further to sail," observed the Spaniard,
+with a slightly broken accent. "We're in the latitude of the
+Paumotus."
+
+"Have you ever been there?" asked his companion.
+
+"No; but I know something about them, and then you had a glimpse of
+the chart, which they're continually looking at, and I'm certain from
+what you said that the particular spot we're after isn't far off."
+
+"I conclude you're right, more from the way they're acting than
+anything else. I wish I could get hold of that chart."
+
+"What would you do?" asked Redvignez, with a significant side-glance
+at his companion.
+
+"What would I do? Why, I wouldn't wait--that's all."
+
+"I don't see as it will make much difference," said the other, in the
+most matter-of-fact voice, as he coolly puffed his pipe. "We might as
+well take them there and make sure of the spot, before we knock them
+in the head."
+
+Brazzier gave a contemptuous sniff and a vicious puff of his pipe, and
+remarked:
+
+"Did you ever see two such fools, Redvig?" He continued, with mock
+solemnity: "Beware of the temptations of wealth. Behold those two
+specimens, who have come all the way from Boston to fish for pearls in
+the Paumotu Islands. Some old sailor had the secret, and told the
+captain about it, and he has told his friend, and they have formed a
+partnership and hired us to go with them to dredge up the oysters."
+
+"What is there so foolish in all that?" asked the Spaniard, with a
+grin, which showed his white teeth in the moonlight.
+
+"Nothing; for you or I would have done the same had we been placed in
+their shoes. But we would have shown more sense than they. They
+believe we do not suspect what their business is; and yet we both
+understand the whole thing. Here we are within a few hours' sail of
+the spot, and what's to be done?"
+
+The Spaniard indulged in a light laugh, and replied:
+
+"To think that we should consent to take twenty-five dollars a month,
+while they scooped in their thousands--their millions--it strikes me
+sometimes as the greatest joke I ever heard. But, Brazzier, the best
+plan is for us to be good boys, and go on to the island and help take
+up the pearls; for then we shall be sure of the right spot, and there
+shall be no mistake; whereas, if we should take possession now, we
+might miss the place, even with the help of the chart."
+
+"I don't know but what you're right, Redvig, though it galls me to
+wait. You know a lot of us took charge of the _Spitfire_, and set the
+captain and first-mate adrift, off Valparaiso. You were in favor of
+waiting, and it was well if we had done so, for we came nearer
+running our necks into the halter that time than we ever did since,
+and there wasn't anything aboard the old hulk that was worth the
+saving."
+
+"But what about Pomp?" asked Redvig, in a half-whisper, and with an
+accent which showed that he considered the question of the highest
+importance. "Is he all right?"
+
+"You needn't have any fear about him. I had a long talk with him last
+night, and we shook hands on the question."
+
+The negro was an important factor in this business, for, a giant in
+stature and strength, whichever side he precipitated himself and his
+prowess upon was sure to win--judging from the ordinary human
+standpoint.
+
+Pomp, as we have hinted further back, was not an African with a
+perfectly clear record. The rumors about his belonging to a gang of
+river pirates in San Francisco were correct, and he had been engaged
+in some deeds which were of a character that the law puts the severest
+ban upon. He was known to be daring, and possessed such prodigious
+power, united to activity, that, beyond a doubt, if he were placed
+upon an even footing, he could have conquered the captain, mate and
+the two sailors, without any special effort upon his own part.
+
+The importance of his declaring himself can therefore be understood.
+He was a far better man than either of the two Caucasians, who
+hesitated about approaching him. As it had to be done, however, the
+matter was skilfully broached, after they had left San Francisco and
+were sailing southward.
+
+It was agreed by the two mutineers that, if the negro held off, he was
+to be gotten rid of by some treachery, though it was such a serious
+matter that they hesitated long as to how it could be safely
+accomplished. To their surprise and delight, however, Pomp listened
+eagerly to the project and expressed his willingness to go into it,
+though he insisted there should be no murdering done, as he was not
+base enough at heart to wish the death of either of the officers.
+
+Brazzier consented; but in doing so he deceived the negro. A mutiny,
+such as he contemplated, could never be carried to a successful
+conclusion without disposing finally and forever of the two officers
+themselves. If they should be spared, the mutineers would never be
+safe. But Pomp was misled from the first, because it was believed he
+could be won over before the time came to strike the blow. Redvignez
+set himself very skilfully to do so, for Pomp was ignorant and
+exceedingly greedy for wealth. Redvignez began by telling him of a
+large number of fictitious mutinies, in which the mutineers had made
+their fortunes and lived happy and respected afterwards, and the
+narrator made certain to impress upon the African the fact that the
+job was rendered a perfect one by following out the proverb that dead
+men tell no tales. Then he incidentally mentioned others in which the
+mutineers came to grief, all from the fact that they allowed
+themselves to be controlled by a foolish sentiment of mercy. The evil
+seed thus sown did not fail to take root and bring forth its fruit,
+just as the sower intended.
+
+These little incidents were multiplied, and by-and-by Pomp was told
+that there was but one way in which to secure the enormous riches that
+lay in the little bay in the South Seas, awaiting their coming, and
+that was by making themselves complete masters of the situation. The
+negro could not mistake the meaning of this, and, after a feeble
+opposition, he gave his assent, and said he would help carry out the
+terrible programme, as it had been arranged from the first.
+
+It was certainly very curious how the coming of little Inez Hawthorne
+upon the ship threatened for awhile to disarrange every plan; but so
+it was. There was a time when the better nature of the two evil men
+asserted itself, and they began to consider the question in the light
+of their awakened consciences; but these divine monitors were only
+roused into temporary wakefulness and speedily dropped asleep again.
+The manifest distrust which Inez showed toward them seemed to fill
+their hearts with the most atrocious feelings, and neither of them
+would have hesitated to fling her overboard, had the opportunity been
+given. Incredible as it may seem, it is the fact that they would have
+preferred to do so, being restrained by the simple question of policy.
+They saw that Pomp had grown very fond of her, and any such action on
+their part might alienate him--a catastrophe which they were anxious
+to avert above everything else.
+
+"You say he shook hands with you upon it?" repeated Redvignez. "What
+does all that mean?"
+
+"It means that he is with us heart and soul. He sees the necessity of
+putting the captain and mate out of the way, and he will help do it."
+
+"But what about the little girl--the viper?"
+
+"It was a bad thing for us, Redvig, when we played that little trick,
+for I have been ready to despair more than once, but the remedy is so
+simple that I wonder we have not thought of it before."
+
+"How is that?"
+
+"We will spare her, for Pomp gave me to understand that on no other
+conditions would he go into it. She will be a pleasant playmate for
+him, and will help keep him true to us. She is so young and
+simple-hearted that we can make her believe that some accident has
+befallen the other two, by which they came to their death, so there
+will be no danger from anything she ever can tell. When we have
+gathered in all the pearls we will set sail for South America. At
+Valparaiso or some of the ports we will place the girl in some convent
+or school, with enough money to take care of her, and then we will
+land at another port, sell the schooner, divide up the proceeds and
+separate, each taking a different route home, if we choose to go
+there, and then all we'll have to do, Redvig, is to enjoy the wealth
+which shall be ours."
+
+"How much do you think it will be?" asked the Spaniard, with sparkling
+eyes.
+
+"There is no telling," was the reply. "I hardly dare think, but I know
+it runs into the hundreds of thousands, and it is not at all
+impossible that it touches the millions."
+
+Redvignez drew a deep breath and his heart gave a great throb, as
+would be the case with the most phlegmatic being who contemplated the
+near possession of such vast wealth. Visions of the wild round of
+dissipation and excesses in which they would indulge came up before
+the two evil men, and it was no wonder that they were impatient for
+the hour to come when they should strike the blow for the prize. Like
+the officers, they were so full of the scheme that they had no desire
+to sleep; and while the figure of Mr. Storms was visible at the wheel,
+and the _Coral_ sped on to the southward over the calm, moonlit sea,
+these two men talked about and agreed upon the particulars of the
+frightful crime which had been in their hearts, as may be said, from
+the moment they hoisted sail and passed out of San Francisco harbor.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI
+
+CAPTAIN BERGEN MAKES TWO IMPORTANT DISCOVERIES
+
+
+Before the faintest streak of light appeared in the eastern horizon,
+Captain Bergen was awake and in the rigging, with the binocular
+glasses in his hand.
+
+The most careful computation showed they were in latitude about 19
+south and longitude 140 west. They had passed to the eastward of the
+Mendina Archipelago, catching a glimpse of one of the islands, where
+the mate proposed they should touch and obtain some supplies. But the
+captain was too eager to push ahead, and Grebbens had told him that
+one peculiarity about the little island which was their destination
+was that it contained fresh water, with some tropical fruit, while
+there could be no difficulty in catching all the fish they wished.
+
+Since the island was altogether uninhabited, and very rarely
+visited, it would have been a good thing for the party could the
+suggestion of the mate have been carried out. But it was the
+conviction of Captain Bergen that they would not spend more than
+two weeks at the fishery--if such it might be called--and, under
+the circumstances, it cannot be said he was imprudent. Steadying
+himself with one arm about the mast, the captain stood firmly in his
+elevated position, and, as the sun came slowly up and the golden
+radiance spread over the sky and sea, he swept the arch of the
+horizon to the south, east and west, straining his keen vision for the
+first sight of the eagerly-wished-for land.
+
+"Water, water," he murmured, despondingly. "Water everywhere, and no
+sight of the haven! Hello!"
+
+His heart gave a great bound, for, just in the edge of the horizon--at
+the very point where ocean and sky met--he saw a dark substance, like
+a fleecy vapor, no bigger than a man's hand.
+
+"It may be a cloud," said the captain to himself, as he carefully
+scrutinized it, "and it may be land; and, by the great horn spoon, it
+is land! Land ho!"
+
+"Where away?" called back Storms, from below, quite confident what the
+answer would be.
+
+"Two points on the weather-bow."
+
+The mate headed toward the point indicated, and then silence reigned
+for awhile on board, excepting in the case of Inez, who bounded up on
+deck, and was here, there and everywhere.
+
+The captain was left to himself, for Abe Storms knew he would come
+down and report as soon as he had anything definite; and, in the
+nature of things, he could know nothing positive for a considerable
+time to come.
+
+As the _Coral_ sped forward--sometimes on the long, sloping crest of
+an immense swell, and then again in the valley between--the captain
+saw and thought of nothing else but the little island ahead, which was
+slowly rising out of the ocean. He had discovered that it was circular
+in shape, quite small, and fringed with vegetation. This corresponded,
+in a general way, with the description given by the sailor in the
+hospital; but there are hundreds of other islands in the South Seas to
+which the same description will apply, and it was not impossible that
+the _Coral_ was many a long league astray.
+
+"When I was on the island, ten years ago," said Grebbens, "I found
+remains of a ship that had been wrecked there but a short time before.
+There was a portion of the mast, which we managed to erect by scooping
+a deep hole in the beach and then packing the sand about the base. On
+the top of this we kept our signal of distress flying, in the hope of
+catching the notice of some passing vessel, as was the case after a
+long while. It was my jacket which fluttered from the top of that
+mast, and the old garment has been blown away long ago; but I don't
+know any reason why the pole itself shouldn't be standing, and if it
+is, you will find it on the right of the entrance to the lagoon."
+
+The island, it will be understood, was an atoll--that is, a circular
+fringe of coral, with a lagoon of the sea inside which was entered
+through a comparatively narrow passage from the ocean. The atoll to
+which the old sailor referred was extensive enough to furnish fresh
+water and fruit, while at the entrance, and in other places, there was
+a sufficient depth of sand to afford secure "anchorage" for the pole
+which they erected. Peering through the spy-glass, Captain Bergen
+could see the white line where the sea beat against the coral shores
+and was rolled back again in foam. And while he was gazing, his
+practiced eye detected a gap in the line of breakers--that is, a spot
+where the white foam did not show itself. This must necessarily be the
+opening through which the ocean flowed into the lagoon within the
+island. Since it met with no opposition, it swept inward with a
+smooth, grand sweep, which proved that the water was deep and without
+any obstruction.
+
+"Suppose he deceived me?"
+
+Captain Bergen asked himself the question while he was scanning the
+island.
+
+It was the first time the thought suggested that maybe the sailor,
+dying in the Boston hospital, had told him an untruth, and such a
+shuddering, overwhelming feeling of disappointment came over the poor
+fellow at that moment that he grew dizzy and sick at heart, and came
+nigh losing his balance.
+
+"No, it cannot be," he repeated, rallying himself, with a great
+effort. "I have a better opinion of human nature than that."
+
+His glasses were still pointed in the direction of the island, and he
+was peering with an intensity that was painful at the spot where the
+dark break in the foamy breakers showed the entrance to the atoll,
+when he detected a black, needle-like column which rose from the beach
+at one side of the entrance. It was so thin that he could not make
+sure it was not some trick of his straining vision, and in doubt as to
+its reality, he relieved his aching eye by removing the glass for a
+moment and looking down on the deck beneath him.
+
+He saw Redvignez and Brazzier standing at the bow, also gazing toward
+the island, which was plainly visible from the deck. They occasionally
+spoke, but their tones were so low that no word could be distinguished
+by any ears excepting those for which they were intended. Mr. Storms
+was at his post, and as Pomp and Inez were invisible, the conclusion
+was inevitable that they were in the cabin, whence issued the
+appetizing odor of cooking fish, and where no doubt the young lady
+was receiving the attention which she expected as her right.
+
+At this instant a peculiar experience came to the captain of the yacht
+_Coral_. A slight flaw in the breeze, which was bearing the vessel
+forward, caused the sails to flap, and must have made a sort of funnel
+of one of them for the moment; or rather, as may be said, it made a
+temporary whispering gallery of the deck and rigging of the craft. And
+being such, it bore the following ominous words to Captain Bergen,
+uttered, as they were, by Hyde Brazzier in a most guarded undertone:
+
+"We shall be the two richest men in America!"
+
+Captain Bergen was in that state of intense nervous sensibility in
+which his perceptions were unnaturally acute, and he felt, on the
+instant the words struck his ear, that they had a frightful meaning.
+
+The two continued their cautious conference, but the sail favored
+acoustics no longer, and the listener did not catch another syllable.
+
+"They mean to kill Abe and me," he said to himself, "and run away with
+the pearls. If they had determined to be honest men, and we had
+secured any particular amount of wealth, they would have been rewarded
+liberally. Forewarned is forearmed."
+
+Captain Bergen was a brave man, and there was no fear of his
+displaying any shrinking in the crisis which was evidently close at
+hand.
+
+Once more he raised the glass to his eye and gazed toward the inlet of
+the atoll. During the few minutes that he had spent in looking down
+upon the deck and listening, the schooner had made good speed, and the
+island was less than a half mile distant. When the instrument was
+pointed toward the place, he saw clearly and unmistakably the figure
+of the mast standing beside the inlet, where it had been placed years
+before by Grebbens and his companions.
+
+This, then, was Pearl Island, as the New Englanders had named it; and
+here it was that the bed of pearl oysters of fabulous richness was to
+be found.
+
+Something like a feeling of depression came over the captain when he
+realized that the land of promise had risen on his vision at last. For
+days, weeks and months this had been the one absorbing theme of his
+mind. He had dreamed of it until he was almost, if not quite, a
+monomaniac, and he had built air-castles until the whole sky of his
+vision was filled with gorgeous structures. And it should be added, in
+justice to both Bergen and Storms, that these structures were
+creditable to the builders; for, realizing in the fullest sense that
+about all they could extract personally from riches was their own
+board and lodging, they had perfected a number of colossal schemes
+for benefiting humanity; indeed, charity was the foundation-stone of
+all these castles. And now, after these long months of waiting, he
+seemed to see the wealth lying within his grasp, and something like a
+reaction came to him.
+
+"Is it worth all this?" he asked himself. "Is the gain likely to pay
+for the peril in which we have placed ourselves?"
+
+Still further, the ominous words which he had overheard impressed him
+vividly with the impending danger in which he and his mate were
+placed. He saw now that in taking Brazzier and Redvignez he had taken
+two mutineers aboard, and two who, in all probability, had won the
+giant African, Pomp, over to their side.
+
+What was to be the outcome of all this?
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII
+
+IN THE HAVEN AT LAST
+
+
+As Captain Bergen descended the rigging to the deck of the schooner he
+was greatly depressed, for the conviction was strong upon him that in
+entering this promised land--as he had sometimes termed the little
+circle of coral and earth which he had named Pearl Island--he would
+never leave it. The immense wealth which lay hidden along its coast,
+awaiting the coming of some one to gather it, would never be carried
+away by those who had already come more than half-way round the globe
+to garner it.
+
+As the captain stepped upon deck, Redvignez and Brazzier respectfully
+saluted him, and looked as if they were the most loyal of sailors.
+
+Captain Bergen forced himself to respond to their salute, and then he
+walked quietly over to where Abe stood at the wheel.
+
+"Well, what do you make of it?" asked the mate, in a low voice.
+
+"It's the island!" replied Bergen.
+
+"Are you sure of it?"
+
+"Yes; there can be no doubt. I made out the landmark that Grebbens
+told me would identify it beyond all question. That's the mast which
+they erected on the shore, close to the inlet. You can see it without
+the glass," added the captain, turning about and looking in that
+direction.
+
+Such was the case, and Storms observed it plainly.
+
+"What's the matter, captain?" asked the mate, bringing his gaze back
+to the face of his friend, and scrutinizing him keenly. "You look pale
+and agitated. Have your nerves given out after this strain?"
+
+"Abe," said the captain, in a carefully-guarded voice, and glancing
+over his shoulder, "I learned, a few minutes ago, that those two men
+forward intend to mutiny and run away with the pearls."
+
+"Is that all? Why, I knew that weeks ago!"
+
+"You did?" demanded the astounded captain. "Why, then, didn't you tell
+me?"
+
+"I thought it was better to wait till we reached the island, by which
+time their plans were likely to be more fully developed."
+
+"That sort of reasoning I don't understand," said the captain,
+anything but pleased with his mate. "But never mind about it now. Tell
+me what you have learned."
+
+"Not a great deal more than you have told. Those two men, I am
+satisfied, are old acquaintances, who have been partners in more than
+one crime, though we supposed them strangers at the time we shipped
+them; and I have no doubt they began planning our deaths from the day
+we sailed out of San Francisco harbor."
+
+"What about Pomp?"
+
+"They had a hard time, but they have won him over, and he is pledged
+to go with them."
+
+"And you have tried to gain the good will of Pomp?"
+
+"I have done my utmost, and have treated him with unusual leniency,
+making him many presents, some of which I gave him to understand came
+from you. But they've got him, for all that. There's our greatest
+safeguard."
+
+As the mate spoke, he pointed to Inez, who, at that moment, came
+bounding up the steps of the cabin and ran laughing forward.
+
+"Pomp thinks all the world of her, and she will be the peacemaker,
+perhaps."
+
+"But don't they like her as well?"
+
+"No; they wouldn't hesitate any more over killing her than they would
+in killing us."
+
+"The villains!" muttered the horrified captain. "I never conceived it
+possible that any human being could fail to love such beauty and
+innocence as hers."
+
+"There is no immediate danger," said the mate, somewhat surprised to
+observe how completely the discovery had taken possession of the mind
+of the captain. "Let's give our attention now to the business upon
+which we came, and there will be time enough to think of the other
+matter between now and nightfall."
+
+Captain Bergen was sorely perplexed, but the circumstances were such
+that he was able to follow the suggestion of his faithful mate. They
+were now close to the island, which was of that singular formation so
+frequently seen in the Pacific. Countless millions of tiny insects,
+toiling through many years, had gradually lifted the foundations of
+coral from the depths of the ocean, until the mass, in the form of a
+gigantic ring or horse-shoe, was above the surface. Upon this had
+gradually gathered sand, seeds and vegetable matter, in the usual way,
+until beneath the tropical sun and the balmy climate the "desert
+blossomed like the rose." This took a long while, but the process it
+went through was similar to that of hundreds of much larger islands
+which to-day rest like nosegays upon the bosom of the vast Pacific.
+
+Among these fruits were the banana, plantain, breadfruit, and a sort
+of mango, found in Farther India, and which, at first disliked,
+becomes in time a great favorite with every one. Most singular of all
+was the fact that at two widely-separated points burst forth a spring
+of clear, fresh water.
+
+One might well wonder where the supply for this came from, since the
+whole island had its foundation in salt water--but there are many
+strange distillations going on at all times in nature's laboratory
+beyond the power of man to fathom.
+
+These were probably stored away in some of the hidden vaults of the
+island, and bubbled forth, the fountain being renewed before the
+precious contents were exhausted.
+
+The entrance to the interior was through a deep passage, toward which
+Mr. Storms directed the vessel. As the _Coral_ glided into this
+"inland sea," Captain Bergen took the helm, being as familiar with the
+contour of the atoll as if he had spent a dozen years upon it. He knew
+where the best anchorage was to be found, and he headed over toward
+the eastern shore, where it was safe to run close enough in to spring
+from the deck to the land. He was a good seaman, and he brought his
+craft to with as much skill as a stage-driver brings his team to a
+halt before the door of an inn. The anchor was let go at the proper
+moment, and the _Coral_ slowly swung at her mooring in the very
+position her master desired, both bow and stern being so close to
+shore that there would be no occasion to use the small boat which is
+generally called into requisition on such occasions.
+
+The scenery and situation were peculiar and novel in the highest
+degree. These atolls are the natural harbors of the ocean, and if any
+vessel can run through the openings into the calm waters within, she
+may ride in safety from the severest tempest.
+
+The water within the lagoon was as calm as the surface of a mill-pond.
+On every hand rose the trees and vegetation so dense that the only
+portion where a glimpse of the ocean could be caught was at the
+entrance, which, it would seem, the builders of the island had left on
+purpose for the ingress and exit of endangered shipping.
+
+Despite the alarming discovery which Captain Bergen had made but a
+short time previous, he carried out the purpose formed weeks before,
+and which the mate urged him to fulfil. The schooner having been
+secured in position and everything put in ship-shape order, he
+addressed the three men who composed the crew:
+
+"My friends, when I engaged you to go upon this voyage, I did not tell
+you whither, and you may think it is late in the day to give you such
+information, now that we have reached our destination. Some time ago,
+before I sailed, I received information that a bed of oysters existed
+at a certain portion of this island unusually rich in pearls. It is
+to obtain them I have come, and now I wish to say, what I determined
+to say from the first, that if you work faithfully, and give me all
+the assistance you can, each of you three shall receive enough to make
+you rich for life. In an enterprise of this kind the business is a
+partnership, and you shall be liberally treated, provided you prove
+worthy."
+
+During the utterance of these words, both the captain and the mate
+carefully watched the faces of the three men to see the effect
+produced.
+
+Had the African been alone he would have been won over, and as it was
+he turned about in an inquiring way, and looked toward the two men as
+if seeking to see how they took it. Their countenances were so
+immobile that he gained no information from the looks there; but both
+the officers did. Abe Storms, especially, was a skilful physiognomist,
+and that which he saw convinced him that the speech, coming as it did,
+was a mistake. As is frequently the case, it was accepted as an
+evidence of timidity on the part of the officers, and the conspirators
+were given a confidence which otherwise would not have been theirs.
+
+"It was a blunder," whispered Storms, when the captain stepped beside
+him. "Those wretches mean mischief, and it is coming within
+twenty-four hours."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII
+
+THE OYSTER BED
+
+
+Little Inez Hawthorne was overrunning with delight at the prospect of
+a romp on shore, after having been confined so long in the cramped
+quarters of the schooner, and she was darting hither and thither,
+eager to start upon her frolic.
+
+"I say, captain," said Hyde Brazzier, bowing profoundly and with
+great humility, "we be greatly surprised by what you tell us about
+the pearls, and we are very much obliged for your kindness, which
+the same is a great deal more than we expected; but it has set us
+all topsy-turvy, as we may say. If it's all the same, we would like
+to go and take a look at that same pearl-oyster bed, if it isn't
+inconvenient."
+
+The captain and mate both understood the meaning of this, for it
+showed only too clearly how impatient the men were to commit the crime
+which they had in mind. Still, there was no excuse for refusal, and
+the officers were anxious enough to see the place for themselves. Each
+had his revolver carefully shoved into his pocket, and each knew that
+the six chambers were fully charged, when they sprang over the
+vessel's side and started toward the northernmost part of the island.
+The captain and mate led the way, for they were sure they were in no
+personal danger so long as the oyster-bed remained undiscovered.
+
+The fringe of coral trees was quite broad, but, as the little party
+made their way through them, they could catch the gleam of the water
+on each side, while the roar and boom of the breakers never ceased.
+
+The sun seemed to linger in the horizon to their left, as if to guide
+them in the search they were making.
+
+As they advanced, all observed that the outer rim of this fringe was
+very irregular, as if it had been broken up and changed by the action
+of fierce tempests for many decades. This peculiarity, if such it may
+be termed, left many places where the ocean was as calm as within the
+atoll, and it was in one of these that the oyster-bed for which they
+were searching was to be found.
+
+Mate and captain advanced quite spiritedly for some distance, until
+they were close to the northernmost portion, when they hesitated,
+slackened their gait, looked to the right and left, conferred in low
+tones, and then the captain suddenly exclaimed:
+
+"This looks like the spot!"
+
+The words were scarcely out of his mouth when the two men dashed down
+the slight slope, ran a short distance, and then abruptly halted close
+to the water's edge, at a point where the sea was locked in so that it
+was only slightly disturbed by the ordinary swell. Close behind them
+were Redvignez and Brazzier, while Pomp brought up the rear. The three
+men exchanged only a word or two while following, and those were heard
+by the leaders, because they were of no significance, but it is safe
+to conclude they did a great deal of thinking.
+
+The five grouped themselves along the water, standing side by side and
+peering down into the depths before them. This perhaps averaged three
+fathoms, and the water itself was as clear as crystal, without even
+the tinge of green generally seen in the ocean. The bottom was quite
+even and flat, resting upon a substratum of coral. The glinting rays
+of the sun helped, so that a marble could have been distinguished many
+fathoms down. And looking downward, the quintette saw the bottom
+strewn with oysters of unusual size, lying so close together that in
+many places they seemed to touch each other.
+
+For a full minute the five stood motionless and speechless. It was
+Pomp who was the first to recover his voice:
+
+"My gracious! am dem 'isters full of pearls?"
+
+"That can only be told by examination," was the quiet reply of Mr.
+Storms.
+
+"Dat's ruther deep to dive down, an' how 'bout sharks?"
+
+The mate smiled.
+
+"We thought of all that before we left home, Pomp."
+
+"Well, what good did all de thinkin' do? Dat won't drive away de
+shark, dat would as lief bite a man in two as to swaller a fish."
+
+"If you and Redvig will return to the vessel and get that coat of mail
+on deck, I will agree to go down there and take all the risks."
+
+The three mutineers, as they may be called, exchanged glances, but
+said nothing. The captain and mate noted this telegraphy of the eyes,
+and they, too, were silent, but it was a little test which they had
+determined upon before leaving the _Coral_, lying some distance away,
+safely moored close inshore. Evidently the three could think of no
+valid excuse, and Brazzier said, in a low voice, which was heard by
+all:
+
+"Go, men, and hurry back."
+
+Pomp started off at once, Redvignez following close behind him. The
+mate and captain saw they were speaking together; but, of course, it
+could only be conjectured what they were talking about.
+
+The three who remained behind were in an embarrassing situation, for
+there could be no doubt that Brazzier, the leader in the plot, had had
+his suspicions aroused by this little incident, and it was hard work
+for him to conceal a certain uneasiness at the thought that he had
+lost the confidence of the two officers of the _Coral_.
+
+With a view of strengthening his position, Captain Bergen took out his
+revolver, looked at it in an inquiring way, and then shoved it back
+into his hip-pocket. Abe Storms did precisely the same thing,
+excepting that he perhaps made a little more display about it.
+
+Not one of the three as yet had spoken a word; but Brazzier, as if to
+conceal his uneasiness, advanced to the edge of the water and peered
+down into the crystal depths at the supposed wealth which lay
+scattered over the bottom, awaiting the hour when some one should draw
+it forth from the hiding-place it had occupied for so many years.
+
+"If they've got pearls in 'em," observed Brazzier, "it'll make a good
+haul for us."
+
+"There is reason to think so," replied the captain, holding his peace,
+for he began to suspect that too much deference had already been paid
+to the crew.
+
+Since Pomp and Redvignez were making good time, they soon reappeared,
+bearing between them the coat of armor which Abe Storms had
+constructed before leaving his New England home. This, it may be said,
+was an invention peculiarly his own, containing some conveniences not
+generally attributed to diving-bells or armor, and which, if they
+withstood the test to which they were sure to be subjected, would be a
+great step forward in the rapid improvements that have been made in
+submarine armor during the last few years. A superficial examination
+would not discover anything out of the usual order in the make of the
+armor, with its bulging glass eyes and general resemblance to the
+coats of mail such as were used by the crusaders and knights of the
+middle ages. There were the two pipes, one of which went in at the
+top of the helmet, as if the man were going to breathe through the crown
+of his head, while the other was adjusted so as to come nearer the
+front of the face. One of these was for the admission of fresh air, and
+the other for the expulsion of that which was exhaled. Besides this,
+there was the rope, fastened around the waist of the diver, to assist
+him to the surface should a sudden necessity arise. But, without
+going into any detailed description, we may say that the ingenious New
+Englander had so constructed it that he required the assistance of no
+second person at any portion of the work.
+
+Storms immediately began adjusting the apparatus, the others standing
+off and looking on, for he had declined their proffers of service.
+The armor had never been tested, and the man might well pause, now
+that he was going to stake his life upon the issue, as may be said.
+
+But it was not that fact which caused the mate the most uneasiness,
+for his confidence in his own invention was so strong that he would
+not have hesitated a moment to trust himself in water of twice the
+depth. Indeed, the pearls were so near at hand that a very ordinary
+diver would have found no difficulty in bringing them up without the
+help of any armor at all--the latter being required by other
+considerations.
+
+"Now, all I want done is to allow the two upper ends of the pipes to
+be kept clear," said Storms, when he had adjusted the "harness" about
+him. "I will do the breathing for myself, provided I am not interfered
+with."
+
+The two ends were secured among the coral in such a way that there was
+no danger of their being drawn in by any action of the armor itself,
+and then Storms, taking an immense sheath-knife in his hand, promptly
+stepped off from the shore, and as promptly sank under water.
+
+It was a singular sight the four companions whom he left behind saw,
+when they approached to the edge of the water and looked over.
+
+The mate, incased in his armor, looked like some huge, curiously-shaped
+shellfish or monster, whose weight was such that he went as straight
+down as an arrow, and, a few seconds later, was seen bent over and
+moving about the bottom, loosening up the oysters.
+
+This first venture of Storms' was more in the nature of an experiment
+or preliminary reconnoissance. He wished to find how the land lay, as
+the expression goes. If everything should prove to be in good shape,
+he would venture down again, with a basket, and the real work of
+gathering the pearl-oysters would begin.
+
+As we have intimated, Abe Storms felt no misgivings concerning his
+armor when he moved off from solid land and was submerged in the edge
+of the Pacific, for he had constructed so many contrivances and
+machines that he had learned to understand fully what they would do
+before they were put to work. He carried the enormous sheath-knife in
+his right hand, and when his feet lightly touched the shells on the
+bottom, he began turning them over with the point of his knife. The
+depth of the water being so moderate, he found no difficulty in
+breathing, and indeed the conditions were such that whoever chose to
+collect the oysters in this armor was not likely to experience the
+slightest difficulty.
+
+Down where he was at work the water seemed to be of a light-yellowish
+tint, caused by the refraction of the sunlight as it made its way to
+him. He noticed the mild glow, which, of course, would steadily
+diminish as the sun went down, when all at once it was eclipsed so
+suddenly by a dark shadow that he instantly suspected the true cause.
+
+Looking upward, he saw an immense shark, certainly a dozen feet in
+length, that had halted and was evidently surveying with some
+curiosity this intruder upon his domains.
+
+The man-eater being directly over the diver, was not in the best
+position to use his fearful jaws with effect, but he was evidently
+reconnoitering with a view to hostilities. Abe observed that this
+shadowy figure was motionless, its fins slightly moving back and forth
+as if it were using them like a balancing-pole, to maintain itself
+motionless in position, and he marked the horridly-shaped mouth which
+yawned over his head. Reaching upward with his long-bladed knife, he
+touched it against the white belly of the monster, and then gave it a
+strong push.
+
+It was so keen and sharp that it entered deep into the yielding flesh
+and inflicted a severe wound. Just then the gigantic man-eater
+suspected he had committed a blunder, and with a lightning-like whirl
+of his huge body, he dashed out to sea, leaving a crimson trail after
+him.
+
+Indeed, his charge was so sudden that the huge knife was wrenched from
+the grasp of Abe Storms, and he was drawn forward off his balance.
+Had it been in the open air, he would have been hurled to the ground
+with great force. But he managed to recover himself, and caught a
+shadowy glimpse of the great shark darting off, as the knife dropped
+from the wound and sank to the bottom. Not wishing to lose the
+valuable weapon, Storms walked forward, and seeing it lying on the
+bottom, at a point which seemed to be the edge of the oyster-bed, he
+stooped over and recovered it.
+
+He had now been down a considerable while, and muttered:
+
+"The captain promised to signal me if trouble came, and he hasn't done
+so. But, for all that, I don't believe it will be safe for me to stay
+down here much longer. I may as well----"
+
+The sentence was never finished, for it received a startling
+interruption. The rubber pipes by which he breathed were suddenly
+closed, and Abe Storms knew it had been done purposely by some one
+above.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV
+
+THE REVOLT
+
+
+For a brief while after the descent of the mate of the _Coral_,
+incased in his new diving armor, the four men above did nothing more
+than merely wait for his coming up. But all the time the parties were
+watching each other, for Captain Bergen was convinced that the crisis
+was at hand. The mutineers had learned where the oyster-bed was, and
+therefore could be no longer restrained by that consideration. They
+could get on without the diving-armor, though they saw how convenient
+it might be to have it; but, since it was connected with the shore, it
+could be drawn in and recovered if they should need it.
+
+The mate was down in the ocean, and the captain was standing on terra
+firma. What more favorable separation was likely to present itself?
+Here were three men against one, and the three had gained the secret
+which had restrained them so long.
+
+"I say," said Hyde Brazzier, "does the mate down there find things as
+he expected?"
+
+"We can tell that better after he comes up," was the reply of the
+captain, who kept his hand at his hip, where it could rest on the butt
+of his revolver. "But there is reason to believe that he isn't
+disappointed."
+
+"And he breathes through these pipes that lie here?" pursued Brazzier,
+while the expression on the face of Pomp and Redvignez convinced
+Skipper Bergen that serious mischief was coming.
+
+"You can see that without asking me," replied he, stepping back a pace
+or two so as to keep the men before him.
+
+"Well, if a man can't get what air he wants, what is likely to
+happen?" continued Brazzier, with an insolent swagger that was
+exasperating, following upon his fawning sycophancy.
+
+"Any fool would know that he would die."
+
+"Well, now that we've landed, I don't see as there is any need of a
+mate or a captain neither, with this crew--do you, boys?"
+
+And he turned toward his companions with a laugh.
+
+"Of course not. The best place for him is in Davy Jones' locker!" said
+Redvignez.
+
+"Now you is talkin' right!" was the characteristic comment of the
+negro, Pomp, who seemed the most eager of the three, when the mutiny
+had come to a head.
+
+It was evident that Brazzier had determined to drown the mate while he
+was below the surface.
+
+"The first man who interferes with those pipes I will shoot dead!"
+
+Captain Bergen spoke the words in a low voice, but there could be no
+mistaking his deadly earnestness. Feeling that the crisis had come,
+the captain determined to give the signal agreed upon with Abe Storms,
+which was a sudden jerk of the rope fastened to the one around the
+waist of the mate. The latter would understand that his presence above
+was needed at once.
+
+The captain was in the act of stooping over, when Redvignez sprang
+behind him with the stealth and agility of a cat, and struck his arm a
+violent blow. His purpose was to knock the revolver out of the
+captain's hand, so that he and his friends could secure the use of it.
+But he overdid the matter, for the revolver went spinning out of the
+captain's hand and dropped into the water, where it sank out of sight.
+Startled and shocked, he straightened up without giving the signal to
+Abe Storms below the surface.
+
+None of the party had any firearms, but Captain Bergen saw it would be
+madness for him to make any resistance. Without a moment's hesitation,
+therefore, he wheeled about and ran with all the speed of which he was
+capable.
+
+His flight was not altogether an aimless one, for he hoped to reach
+the schooner, lying an eighth of a mile away, far enough in advance of
+his pursuers to seize one of the rifles carefully concealed there, and
+to make defense against his foes. The instant he broke into a run, his
+pursuers did the same, uttering loud shouts, as if they were American
+Indians who were certain of their prey.
+
+For the time, it was a question of speed between pursuers and pursued.
+If the latter could reach the craft considerably ahead of the others,
+there was a chance of his making a successful defense against the
+three who were seeking his life. If he failed to attain the goal, he
+felt it would be all over with him, for they were not the men to show
+any mercy.
+
+Darting among the palm-trees, therefore, he strained every nerve to
+draw away from his enemies, while they strove, with equal desperation,
+to overtake him.
+
+It was a straight run, and comparatively an unobstructed one, for the
+palm-trees were far enough apart to give him a pretty fair course,
+which was of equal advantage to all parties. Perhaps it is possible,
+therefore, to imagine the anxiety with which, after running a short
+distance, Captain Bergen glanced over his shoulder to see how his
+pursuers were making out. But it is not possible to appreciate his
+consternation when he saw that two of them were outrunning him, and,
+as he had striven to his very utmost, the frightful truth was manifest
+that he was sure to be overtaken before he could reach the _Coral_.
+
+Those who were gaining upon him were Pomp, the negro, and Brazzier
+himself. But the fact that they were gaining upon him was no cause for
+the fugitive falling down and yielding without a struggle. He still
+had his sheath-knife, which he grasped with a despairing feeling as he
+realized, during those awful seconds, that complete, disastrous
+failure, instead of the brilliant success he had counted upon, had
+overtaken him at last.
+
+The pursuers gained rapidly, and not one-half the distance was passed,
+when all three of the men were almost within striking distance, for
+Redvignez was at the elbow of his companions. Captain Bergen looked
+over his shoulder, and was about to throw his back against a
+palm-tree, with the view of turning at bay and fighting to the last,
+when, like the historical John Smith of our own earlier times, his
+lack of attention to his feet precipitated the very fate against which
+he was struggling. His feet struck some obstruction, and being
+exhausted from his extraordinary exertion, he pitched forward and fell
+on his face. As he went down he was conscious of hearing two widely
+different sounds--one the exultant cries of the pursuers, and the
+other the terrified scream of a little girl.
+
+Captain Bergen attempted to rise, but Redvignez and Brazzier were upon
+him, and the knife of the latter was upraised with the purpose of
+ending the matter then and there forever, when the cry of the child
+was heard the second time, and little Inez sprang, like Pocahontas,
+between the uplifted arm and the intended victim.
+
+"Oh, don't hurt him! Please don't hurt him! Please, please don't hurt
+him, 'cause I love him!" pleaded the agonized child, with all the
+earnestness of her nature.
+
+The position of the prostrate captain attempting to rise, and the
+little one interceding for him, was such that the mutineer hesitated
+for the moment, for he could not strike without endangering her life.
+Seeing this, with the wonderful quickness which sometimes comes over
+the youngest child in such a crisis, Inez persistently forced her body
+with amazing quickness in the way of the poised knife as it started to
+descend more than once--the other two holding back for their leader to
+finish the work.
+
+Brazzier was a man of tigerish temper, and he became infuriated in a
+few seconds at this repeated baffling of his purpose.
+
+"Confound you!" he suddenly exclaimed, with a fierce execration. "If
+you will keep in the way, then you must take it!"
+
+The arm was drawn still further back, with the intention of carrying
+out this dreadful threat, when the wrist was seized in the iron grip
+of Black Pomp, who said:
+
+"Hold on, dere! None ob dat! De man dat hurts a ha'r ob dat little
+gal's head will got sot down on by me, an' mashed so flat dat he'll
+neber rose ag'in. Does you hear me, sah?"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV
+
+THE FRIEND IN NEED
+
+
+There was no excuse for not hearing this warning, for it was uttered
+in a voice loud enough to reach over the whole extent of the atoll.
+
+Both Redvignez and Brazzier were enraged at the interference, and
+there was an instant of time when the two were on the point of
+attacking him. But he was a terrible foe for any one to assail, and he
+would have made warm work, as they well knew, for he was not afraid of
+the two together.
+
+Brazzier was quick to comprehend the situation, and he refrained.
+
+"Take away the girl, then," he commanded, "so I can get at him."
+
+"I will not leave him," declared Inez, throwing her arms about the
+neck of the captain, who was rising to his feet. "You mean to hurt
+him, and you shan't hurt him without hurting me. He has been kind, and
+he's a good man."
+
+"Take her away," commanded Brazzier, with difficulty repressing his
+anger at the repeated delay.
+
+"Oh, Pomp! You won't let him hurt the captain?" pleaded Inez, turning
+toward him, and ready to throw her arms about his dusky neck, were it
+not that she was afraid to leave the captain for the moment--he having
+risen to his feet, while he held her hand and looked at his enemies,
+panting from his own great exertion, though he did not speak a word.
+
+Even in the dreadful peril which enveloped him, he was too proud to
+ask for mercy from such wretches.
+
+But the appeal of Inez to Pomp had produced its effect. When she
+turned her misty eyes upon him, and pleaded in such piteous tones for
+mercy, the mouth of the huge African twitched, and any one could see
+that a hard struggle was going on within.
+
+"If you don't keep those bad men from hurting Captain Bergen," she
+added, in the same impassioned manner, "I'll never speak to
+you--never, never, never--there!"
+
+This was accompanied by a stamp of her tiny foot, and then she burst
+into weeping--sobbing as if her heart would break.
+
+Hyde Brazzier stood irresolute, and seemed on the point of leaping,
+knife in hand, upon the captain. But the prayer of the innocent child
+had settled the question, and the sable Hercules sprang in front of
+the endangered man.
+
+"Dis 'ere thing hab gone fur 'nough; let de cap'in alone. If dere's
+any killin' to be done, why I'm de one dat's gwine to do it."
+
+The two mutineers were wild with fury, for this unexpected show of
+mercy promised to upset the whole scheme they had been hatching for
+weeks. Both Redvignez and Brazzier protested vehemently, seeking to
+show that it was imperatively necessary that both the officers should
+be put out of the way, and that since the mate was gone, it was the
+sheerest folly to allow the captain to remain.
+
+But the words were thrown away.
+
+The prayer of little Inez Hawthorne had reached the heart of the
+gigantic African, and the sight of the child standing there weeping
+was more than he could bear, although it but served to add to the
+exasperation of the other two savages.
+
+Captain Bergen did not stand mute and motionless during all this rush
+of events, which really occupied but a few seconds. As soon as he saw
+the way open, he took the hand of little Inez and began moving in the
+direction of the schooner, his purpose being to secure refuge upon
+that if possible. As he moved away he saw Pomp and the two mutineers
+in conference, for Brazzier and Redvignez at that moment would have
+given a large share of their prospective wealth for the purpose of
+disposing finally and forever of the captain.
+
+"We have been in mutinies before, Pomp, and the only safe course--and
+that ain't safe by any means--is to follow the rule that dead men tell
+no tales."
+
+"Dat may be de rule, but it ain't gwine to work in dis case; an' de
+reason am 'cause de little gal dere don't want it done. You can talk
+an' argufy fo' fourteen years, but it won't do no good. De only way
+you can finish up de job am by killin' me fust."
+
+The foregoing is the substance of the protests and replies of the two
+parties to the angry discussion. It so happened, as we have shown,
+that the African held the balance of power. He was strong and
+courageous, and he was armed and ready to fight, and they knew it.
+They did not dare to attack him openly, where the result was so likely
+to be disastrous to both, and they were compelled to fall in with his
+scheme of saving the captain, though it can well be understood that it
+was the most distasteful thing to which they could consent.
+
+This discussion lasted but a few minutes; but, as we have said, it was
+improved by Captain Bergen, who saw that the wisest course for him to
+pursue was to remove the cause as far as practical. He walked backward
+a few steps until he was some way off, when he turned about, still
+holding the hand of Inez in his, and they continued until a number of
+palm-trees intervened, when he sped so rapidly that the child was kept
+on a run to maintain her place at his side. She had ceased her crying,
+but her face and eyes were red, and she was in an apprehensive,
+nervous and almost hysterical condition from the terrible scene she
+had witnessed--a scene such as should never be looked upon by one of
+her tender years.
+
+A minute later Captain Bergen caught sight of the trimly-built
+schooner lying at rest in the lagoon, close to the shore, and his
+heart gave a throb of hope, that, if he could once secure position on
+her deck, he would be able to hold his own against the mutineers.
+
+During the next few hurried minutes occupied in the passage to the
+schooner, the conviction had grown upon him that this mercy which had
+spared his life for a brief while would not be continued. Pomp Cooper
+would not continue to be his friend after his spasm of affection for
+Inez should spend itself, and devoid as the African was of intellect,
+he was likely to understand that the true course of the party who had
+entered upon the villainy was to make thorough work of it.
+
+The captain saw the three men still talking and gesticulating angrily
+when he reached the schooner.
+
+In a twinkling he had lifted Inez upon the deck, and then he sprang
+after her. He ran into the cabin, reappearing in an instant with the
+three loaded rifles.
+
+"Now," said he, with a sigh of relief, "let them come! I am ready."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI
+
+A STRANGE VISITOR
+
+
+But the mutineers took good care not to show themselves just then; and
+the captain, deeming such a course prudent, tugged at the anchor until
+it was lifted, when he managed to shove the craft off, and reaching
+the middle of the lagoon, the anchor was dropped.
+
+"Now they won't be likely to approach without my seeing them," was his
+conclusion; "and so long as I can keep awake, I can hold them at bay.
+I hate to shoot a man, but if ever a person had justification for
+doing so, I have. I am rather inclined to think that if either
+Brazzier or Redvignez should wander into range, one of these rifles
+would be likely to go off!"
+
+Seeing no immediate danger, Captain Bergen descended into the cabin
+for a few minutes. Poor, tired Inez had thrown herself on the hammock
+and was sound asleep.
+
+"Sleep, little one," murmured the captain, as he lingered for a minute
+to look at the sweet, infantile face, in the gathering twilight. "It
+is a sad fate which orders you to witness so much violence, and sorry
+I am that it is so; but where would I have been excepting for you?"
+
+Then he softly left the cabin and took his position on deck. The moon
+was full, which was gratefully noticed by the captain, for he could
+easily keep awake all night, and thus detect the approach of his
+enemies. In fact, his nerves were so unstrung that he would not be
+able to sleep for many hours to come.
+
+"But what is to be done hereafter?"
+
+This was the question he put to himself, and which had to be
+answered.
+
+The mutineers kept carefully out of sight, and, as night settled over
+the scene, the captain remained wide awake and vigilant. There was
+ample food for thought and reflection--the cutting of the hose-pipes
+of the diving apparatus, the attack by the mutineers, the terrible
+flight and pursuit, the interference of Inez--all these and more
+surged through the brain of the captain, while he slowly paced back
+and forth, with eyes and ears wide open. Inez still slumbered, and all
+was silent, excepting the boom of the ocean against the coral-reef;
+while, as the night wore on, the captain maintained his lonely watch.
+
+Captain Bergen scanned the fringe of shore which circled about him,
+like a great wall thrown up between the lagoon and the Pacific, that
+steadily broke on the outside. But turn his keen eyes wheresoever he
+chose, he could detect not the slightest sign of the mutineers. He
+thought it likely they would start a fire somewhere, but no starlike
+point of light twinkled from beneath the palm-trees, and he was left
+to conjecture where they were and what they were doing.
+
+"They will probably wait till they think I am asleep," was his
+thought, "and then they will swim quietly out and try to board."
+
+He believed it would be either that way or they would construct a raft
+and paddle themselves out to the schooner. Knowing the captain was on
+the Coral, and knowing how important it was that he should not be
+allowed to run away and leave them there, they would neglect no
+precaution to prevent his going off. They, too, would understand what
+it was he was waiting for, and they were seamen enough to know the
+hour when he would be able to sail, and, consequently, what they were
+to do to prevent it.
+
+"They have no way of closing the channel, or they would do so, and it
+remains----Hello!"
+
+He was standing at the prow, looking carefully about him, and with all
+his senses alert, and he stood thus fully twenty minutes, expecting
+something whose precise nature he had already conjectured.
+
+"That splash meant something, and I think----"
+
+Just then he heard a commotion in the water directly under the prow,
+and, looking over, he saw a strange-looking object, like one of the
+uncouth monsters of the deep, come to the surface and begin climbing
+up by aid of the fore-chains.
+
+"I say, cap'n, can't you give a fellow a lift?"
+
+It was the mate, Abe Storms, who asked the question, and, as the
+captain extended his hand, he said, in a low, fervent voice:
+
+"Thank heaven! I was about giving you up for lost!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII
+
+ON THE CORAL
+
+
+Captain Bergen and Abe Storms, as may be supposed, greeted each other
+ardently when the latter stepped upon the deck of the schooner, clad
+in his diving-suit.
+
+"I was growing very anxious about you," said the captain, "for I could
+not understand what kept you away so long."
+
+The eccentric New Englander, removing his headgear, but leaving the
+rest of his armor on, laughed and asked:
+
+"Tell me what took place after I went down."
+
+The captain hurriedly related his experience, which has been already
+told the reader.
+
+"We took a good deal of risk, as you know," said the mate, "and when I
+went down in the water, I was a great deal more uneasy than I seemed
+to be. I was expecting a signal from you, and when it did not come I
+started for the surface. The shore is rough and craggy, you know, so
+that it was something like climbing up stairs.
+
+"Well, I had got pretty well up when the pipes were cut. I understood
+what it meant, and, holding my breath, with the water rushing down the
+two hose-pipes, I scrambled for the top.
+
+"It may have been a perilous thing for you that the rascals pursued
+you with such enthusiasm, but it was fortunate for me, for, although I
+had a dry revolver under my armor, it was several minutes before I was
+in a condition to use it.
+
+"As soon as possible, however, I made ready, believing you were in
+sore need of help. Crawling forward on my hands and knees, I took a
+quick look over the bank, and saw you and Inez walking off in the
+direction of the schooner, with the three scamps sullenly watching
+you.
+
+"I suspected what you tell me was the truth, and I was on the point of
+rushing forward and making short work of them with my revolver, but it
+flashed upon me that they possessed a fearful advantage over us.
+Redvignez and Brazzier are as cunning as serpents, and one of them,
+more than likely, would have caught up the little girl and held her in
+front of him as a screen.
+
+"Inez would have proved an effectual armor, indeed, and, with her in
+their possession, they would have been masters of the situation, and
+could have dictated whatever terms they chose to us. Pomp would have
+been transformed into a bitter enemy at once, and the chances of
+disaster to us all were so great that I remained quiet, but watchful,
+ready to dash forward to your assistance should it become necessary.
+
+"I lay down in a secluded place to rest, when--shall I confess it?--I
+fell asleep, and did not wake up until half an hour ago. After
+thinking the matter over, I decided still to deceive the rascals. I
+was quite certain that the water in the lagoon was not very deep, so I
+fastened the upper ends of the hose to floats, and walked out here on
+the bottom."
+
+"Did you see anything of them?"
+
+"No; I don't know where they are; but you can feel sure they'll never
+take their eyes off the schooner."
+
+After further discussing the exciting events of the day, they
+considered the all-important question as to what should be their own
+line of action. The decision which they reached was a most remarkable
+one, being no less than to make a direct proposition to the mutineers
+to turn over the schooner to them, with a portion of the oysters, and
+to allow them to depart, while the captain, mate and little girl were
+left upon the island.
+
+The captain was not convinced that this was altogether wise, and he
+said:
+
+"Since your plan is for us to stay on the island, and allow them to
+leave with the schooner, will you tell me how we are to depart, when
+ready?"
+
+The mate indicated the inlet, where the mast was still pointing toward
+the sky.
+
+"We've got to run our chances. We may be taken off in a week, and
+possibly not for years; but, with all these probabilities before us, I
+am in favor of surrendering the schooner, and allowing them to leave
+us forever, if they will agree to do so."
+
+"But, if we make the proposition, will they not suspect our purpose,
+or take it as a confession of weakness on our part?"
+
+"We must prevent that. But, captain, I've had all the sleep I want,
+and you are in need of it. Better secure it, therefore, while you can.
+Go below in the cabin and take your rest. I will stand guard here, and
+you need have no fear of my dropping into slumber again."
+
+The captain remained some time longer, and even then was loth to
+leave, but he consented to do so, and finally descended into the
+cabin, where he threw himself upon his hammock without removing his
+clothes.
+
+The incidents of the day were exciting enough to keep him awake, and,
+despite the exhaustion of his body, he lay a long time before he
+closed his eyes in slumber. Even then his sleep was haunted by
+horrible dreams, in which he lived over again the scenes through which
+he had passed, when, but for the piteous pleadings of little Inez, he
+would have fallen a victim to the ferocity of the mutineers, and he
+awoke more than once with a gasp and a start, which showed how
+disturbed his mind was.
+
+He had not slept long when he suddenly awoke again, and looked around
+in the gloom. The lamp overhead had been extinguished, and he was in
+utter darkness, though the silvery glow of the moonlight outside was
+perceptible through the windows and partly-open door. He could hear
+the dull booming of the breakers on the outside of the atoll, but all
+else was quiet, except the gentle breathing of Inez, in the berth
+beneath his.
+
+"God protect her and us all!" he prayed, his heart, in the solemn
+stillness and solitude, ascending to the only being who could assist
+him and his friend in their dire extremity; for Captain Bergen was
+sure that no one could be placed in greater peril than were he and Abe
+Storms, so long as they remained among the Pearl Islands.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII
+
+A VISIT FROM SHORE
+
+
+In the meantime Abram Storms was acting the part of a vigilant
+sentinel at his station on deck.
+
+There was no doubt in his mind that the mutineers were fearful the
+schooner would sail away and leave them on the lonely coral island,
+and they were certain, as he viewed it, to make some effort to prevent
+such a disaster to them. But precisely how this was to be done was a
+serious question. They knew that the captain, having reached the
+_Coral_, had several rifles at command, and would not hesitate to
+shoot them the instant any attempt was made against him or little
+Inez, under his charge.
+
+Nothing was more certain than that an unremitting watch would be kept
+upon the _Coral_, and, though they might believe there was but the
+single man there, yet unquestionably he commanded the situation.
+
+"They will try some trick," muttered the mate; "but I shall have a
+very small opinion of myself if they win. Pomp Cooper's affection for
+Inez led him to interfere, when his interference accomplished a good
+deal more than he imagined. Ah!"
+
+At that moment the mate heard a ghostly "Halloo!" from the shore, and
+he recognized the voice as belonging to Pomp.
+
+"Just as I suspected," said Storms, to himself; "they're using the
+negro as a cat's-paw. Well, I'll see what they are driving at."
+
+Imitating the tones of Captain Bergen as closely as possible, the mate
+shouted:
+
+"What do you want?"
+
+"Am you dere?" was the rather superfluous question.
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Won't you let me come on board?"
+
+"What for?"
+
+"I'm sick ob dis business. I hab quarreled wid Redvig an' Brazzier,
+an' I want to jine you an' git away from dis place."
+
+Abe Storms was not deceived for a moment by this transparent story. He
+knew there had been no quarrel, but that the mutineers had planned to
+get the negro on the schooner with the hope of deceiving the captain
+and gaining a chance to overpower him when off his guard.
+
+"Come on out here, then," replied the mate, who quickly determined his
+course of action.
+
+Almost at the same instant a loud splash was heard, and the head of
+Pomp was descried in the moonlight, swimming toward the boat. The mate
+kept himself concealed as much as he could, stepping back when the
+negro began clambering up the fore-chains. Panting from his exertion,
+he speedily came over the gunwale upon the deck.
+
+"Yes, cap'in, I's tired ob dem willains, an' I'm gwine----Oh! oh!
+oh!"
+
+At that instant his eyes fell upon the figure of the mate, clad in his
+diving-armor, with the exception of his face, which was so clearly
+revealed in the moonlight that there could be no mistaking his
+identity.
+
+Worse than that, the mate, standing as rigid as iron, had a gleaming
+revolver pointed straight at him. Pomp sank on his knees in the most
+abject terror.
+
+"Oh, my heben!" he chattered, clasping his hands, "I t'ought dat you
+was drowned. Am you sartin dat you ain't?"
+
+"I am quite well satisfied on that point. But, Pomp, get up; I've got
+a word or two to say to you."
+
+"I will, I will; but please p'int dat weepon some oder way."
+
+The mate complied, and the African, somewhat reassured, though still
+considerably frightened, listened to the words of the man who he
+supposed was drowned hours before.
+
+"I am alive and well, Pomp, as you can see, and so is the captain, who
+is taking a short nap in the cabin. We are well armed, as you
+know----"
+
+"Yas! yas! yas!" chattered the negro.
+
+"And we can sail away in the morning, at the turning of the tide, and
+leave you here----"
+
+"Dat's what I want you to do, an' I'll go wid you."
+
+"You can't go! I know well enough what you came out here for. You
+thought you would find a chance to get the upper hand of the captain,
+and would let the other villains on board. There! you needn't deny it.
+I understand the matter too well to be deceived."
+
+"Didn't I sabe de cap'in's life?" quavered Pomp, still fearful of the
+cold, measured tones of the mate.
+
+"You befriended him at a critical moment, and therefore I won't shoot
+you, when I have such a good chance to do so. But you have regretted
+your interference more than once, and you are seeking now to undo all
+the good you have done. We have it in our power not only to go away,
+but to bring back a force which shall hang every one of you three, as
+you deserve to be, but----"
+
+"Oh! oh-o-o-o!"
+
+"But we don't propose to do it. We are not going away to leave you
+here. To-morrow we shall have a proposal to offer to your mates, which
+they will be glad to accept. That is about all I have to say to you."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX
+
+THE DEPARTURE
+
+
+As Mate Storms said, he had but little more communication to make with
+the negro.
+
+"You may now swim back to your friends and say that we will be ready
+to negotiate to-morrow morning. If they will come down to the shore,
+we will have a talk and arrange the whole business. Now, perhaps, you
+had better go back."
+
+Pomp Cooper was quick-witted enough to understand that this utterance
+was in the nature of a hint for him to depart, and he stood not on the
+order of his going.
+
+"Good-by, sah," he called out. "Much obleege fo' your kindness, dat I
+shall remember a good while."
+
+Mate Storms stood motionless, watching him until he was perhaps a
+hundred feet from the craft, when he said, just loud enough to be
+heard:
+
+"Sharks are mighty plenty hereabout, and I saw a big one yesterday.
+Shouldn't wonder if he has a leg bit off before he gets back."
+
+Pomp heard the words, and they "disturbed" him, to put it mildly.
+Evidently he had forgotten the peril to which all persons are exposed
+in tropical waters, and, as the truth was impressed upon him with such
+suddenness, he uttered a "whiff" like a porpoise and began swimming
+with fierce energy toward the shore. In fact, he never put forth so
+much effort in all his life. The expectation of feeling a huge
+man-eating monster gliding beneath you when in the water is enough to
+shake the nerves of the strongest swimmer. He kept diving and swimming
+as far as he could below the surface, and then came up and continued
+his desperate efforts until he reached the land, where he joined his
+companions.
+
+Abe Storms stood looking and listening, his face expanded in a broad
+smile, when he heard a light laugh at his elbow. Turning his head, he
+found the captain there.
+
+"I heard your summons to him," said the captain, by way of explanation,
+"and I came up to hear what it meant. I must admit, you managed the
+case well."
+
+"It might have been worse. My only fear is that the imps won't believe
+we honestly intend to hold the conference with them, and offer a
+compromise."
+
+"They will find it out at daylight, and meanwhile they can't help
+themselves. It is useless for me to stay below, Abe," added the
+nervous captain. "There's too much on my mind to sleep."
+
+Therefore, the two remained on watch until the sun rose, at which time
+there was nothing to be seen of the mutineers.
+
+"They're suspicious," concluded the mate, who called out, in a loud
+voice that reached every portion of the island:
+
+"Hello, men! come and show yourselves. We want to have a talk with
+you!"
+
+A few minutes later Hyde Brazzier appeared on the shore and answered
+back again. It was deemed best to give the mutineers a proof of their
+sincerity, and instead, therefore, of holding the conversation from
+the deck of the schooner, the small boat was lowered, and both the
+captain and mate entered it and rowed ashore, where all three awaited
+them, as may be supposed, with some degree of astonishment.
+
+Storms and Captain Bergen were not without some misgivings, and they
+did not venture unprepared into the lion's den. Both carried a loaded
+revolver at command, and in case of an attack the business would have
+been lively. But it was unreasonable to suppose that our friends would
+be assailed under the peculiar circumstances. Furthermore, as the
+parties understood each other, there was no time wasted in reproaches
+or recriminations, but Captain Bergen came directly to the point.
+
+"This state of things can't last," said he; "we are deadly enemies,
+and we would kill each other on the slightest pretext. The island is
+too small to contain us all. Either you three or we two must leave
+before the sun reaches meridian, or we shall go to fighting like caged
+tigers. Neither can we go away together, for I would not trust any of
+you again, nor would you trust either of us; therefore, one party must
+go, and the other must stay--which shall it be? We were prepared to
+leave, when we reflected that if we should be caught in some of the
+storms which sweep over this region, the mate and I would hardly be
+able to manage the schooner, and we are anxious to take care of the
+little girl, to whom we are greatly attached. There are three of you,
+all able-bodied seamen, and in case of a tempest you would be able to
+navigate the _Coral_. It would be safer, therefore, for you to take
+the vessel and go to some of the ports, secure assistance and send
+them after us. We make, therefore, this proposition: We will turn over
+the schooner to you, on condition that you leave with us such stores
+as we may choose to take, and that you proceed at once to the nearest
+of the inhabited Paumotu Islands and send assistance to us.
+Furthermore, as you know all about the pearl-oysters, we will agree
+to divide with you. You can take up half of what are on the bed out
+yonder, and you may carry them away with you, leaving a moiety to us.
+You are to sail just as soon as the oysters are placed on board.
+That's our proposition--what do you say?"
+
+There could be no doubt that the mutineers were astonished by the
+generosity of the offer, coming, as it did, from those who were in
+reality masters of the situation.
+
+Had they been a little more cunning, they might have suspected there
+was something behind it all, which was kept carefully out of sight;
+but the terms were so good that Brazzier answered, the instant the
+question was put to him:
+
+"We'll do it, and carry out our part fair and square."
+
+"Very well; there's no need of delay. We'll bring the schooner inshore
+and take out what we want, and then turn the craft over to you."
+
+This amazing programme was carried out to the letter. Captain and
+mate, accompanied by Pomp, rowed back in the small boat, and the
+schooner was carefully worked toward the shore.
+
+Abe Storms and Captain Bergen saw that among the possibilities of the
+future was a long stay on the lonely island, and they therefore
+prepared for such a contingency, having an eye mainly to securing
+that which little Inez would be likely to need. Pomp informed the
+officers that there was a small cabin a short distance away, which had
+no doubt been put up by the sailors of whom Grebbens had told the
+captain. It was made of planking that had come ashore from the wreck,
+and the fact that it had stood so long proved that it must have been
+built with much skill as well as strength.
+
+It was found just as represented by Pomp--there being two compartments,
+each a dozen feet or so square, and one of these was so well put
+together that it seemed to be waterproof. Our friends were greatly
+surprised and pleased over the discovery, for Grebbens had never said
+anything about the structure.
+
+The goods from the _Coral_ were carried to this building and deposited
+in the rear room, which was so tight that one would have almost
+suffocated had he remained in it during the tropical weather which
+prevails among the Paumotu Islands most of the time.
+
+The goods stowed there were of a varied assortment, including the
+three breech-loading rifles, ammunition, tool-chest and contents, a
+portion of the medicine-chest, some biscuits, cooking utensils, and a
+trunk of calicoes, linens and materials such as are used in the making
+of feminine costumes. It was a singular coincidence that Abe Storms
+had provided a considerable quantity of this before leaving San
+Francisco, knowing as he did the fondness of savages for such finery,
+and having a suspicion that it might be turned to good account in the
+way of barter in some of the South Sea islands. Little did he suspect
+the use to which it would be put, and thankful indeed was he that it
+was at his command, when it was so likely to be needed for Inez
+Hawthorne.
+
+There was a goodly amount of stock, which was transferred to the
+cabin, the mutineers assisting with the rest, for all felt there was
+no time to lose. There was mistrust at first, each party seeming to be
+suspicious of the other, but it soon wore off, and any one looking
+upon them could not have been made to believe they were deadly
+enemies.
+
+When the transfer was completed, it was evident that the current was
+close upon its turn, and unless they should leave the island soon,
+they would be compelled to wait perhaps twelve or twenty-four hours
+longer.
+
+Since the sea was very calm, Hyde Brazzier proposed that the schooner
+should be taken outside and anchored directly over the pearl-oyster
+bed, so that sail could be hoisted as soon as they were ready. There
+was a slight risk in the action, but it was done, and after some
+careful maneuvering the _Coral_ was secured in position.
+
+It looked very magnanimous and somewhat stupid for Abe Storms to
+volunteer to go down in his coat of armor and scoop the oysters into a
+huge basket, for the very parties who had tried so hard to drown him
+when similarly engaged the day before. Nothing, it would seem, could
+be more absurd, and yet the reader is requested to suspend judgment
+until he shall have read the following chapter.
+
+All this was done, and in the course of the succeeding two hours fully
+three-fourths of the oysters scattered over that particular bed were
+dumped upon the deck of the _Coral_, and Abe Storms, pretty well
+exhausted, was pulled to the surface. The captain and mate, with the
+armor, rowed themselves the short distance ashore in the small boat.
+The _Coral_ hoisted sail, and, heading out to sea, rapidly sped away
+over the Pacific.
+
+And all this time the three mutineers felicitated themselves upon the
+manner in which they had gotten the best of the bargain. And yet,
+never in all their lives had they been so completely outwitted as they
+were by Abe Storms and Captain Jack Bergen, as we shall now proceed to
+show.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX
+
+HOW DIAMOND CUT DIAMOND
+
+
+The three mutineers on board the schooner Coral had sailed away and
+disappeared from view on the face of the vast Pacific, and the captain
+and mate were left with little Inez alone upon a small, lonely member
+of the Paumotu Group, in the distant South Seas.
+
+Inez was too young to realize the gravity of the situation, and she
+ran hither and thither, delighted with her new home, though she found
+the cabin too warm inside to be comfortable, and she made frequent
+draughts upon the spring of cool, clear water near which the former
+residents of the atoll had built the cabin. Then, too, she had found
+that there was considerable tropical fruit growing in the place, and
+she made such havoc among it that Captain Bergen felt impelled to
+caution her, if she should become sick on their hands, she would be
+apt to fare ill, for they had little medicine at command.
+
+While she was thus engaged, captain and mate were reclining on the
+ground, in the shade of the palm-trees. They spoke only now and then,
+but there was a peculiar expression on their faces as they watched the
+schooner gradually disappearing in the distance, for it was a long
+while in sight. The time came at last, however, when even their
+straining vision could not detect the faintest resemblance to a sail
+in the horizon, though it was still visible, as a matter of course,
+through their glasses.
+
+"I believe she is gone," said Storms, looking toward the captain.
+
+"Yes; I see nothing of her."
+
+"Then it's about time to shake."
+
+The two brawny hands clasped, and the friends greeted each other with
+remarkable cordiality; and, as they did so, they laughed heartily, and
+the mate almost shouted:
+
+"Captain, but it was a good trick!"
+
+"So it was; and I give you the credit of inventing it. I never would
+have thought of it."
+
+"Shake again; and now to work."
+
+The mate had deposited some of the oysters brought up on the bank, and
+they were carefully opened. They were eight in number, and there was
+not found a single pearl among them.
+
+In all probability the entire lot which were carried away upon the
+schooner were not worth as much as the same quantity of bivalves from
+Chesapeake Bay. In short, this was not the pearl-oyster bed which had
+brought the two friends the greater part of the way around the globe.
+Suspecting--or, rather, knowing--the evil intentions of the mutineers,
+Abe Storms proposed the ruse, by which the visit was made to the wrong
+place. The mutineers themselves were outwitted, and, under the belief
+that they were carrying away a cargo of fabulous wealth, they did not
+wait to make an examination of the mollusks until they were well out
+to sea.
+
+When they should open and examine them they were not likely to suspect
+the trick, but would think that the whole journey was a failure, and
+the three left on the island were, in reality, worse off than
+themselves.
+
+And yet the true bed of oyster-pearls remained to be visited.
+
+"It is possible they may suspect something and come back again," said
+the mate, "but it is hardly probable."
+
+"Are they likely to send any friends to take us off?" asked the
+captain, with a quizzical look.
+
+"Not to any great extent. They will be sure to give us as wide a
+berth hereafter as possible. In the meantime, I propose that we
+investigate."
+
+The two rose to their feet, and, lugging the armor between them,
+moved off toward a point whose location was as well known to them as
+if they had spent years upon the atoll.
+
+While they were thus walking, the mate, who was much the better-educated
+man, said:
+
+"This pearl-hunting is a curious business. Those specimens that I
+brought up were the genuine species, and yet they have very few or no
+pearls among them. It must be because the conditions are not favorable
+for their creation or development, while, at the place we are about to
+visit, the mollusks are the same, and yet there are conditions
+existing there which cause an abnormal growth of the precious
+jewels."
+
+"Did you make a careful examination of those other oysters?"
+
+"Yes. As I told you, they are genuine, but they have no pearls of any
+account, the conditions being unfavorable for their formation. You
+know the pearls grow within the oysters, being composed of slimy
+secretions deposited around some foreign substance that enters them.
+It may be that a peculiar action of the tide drives a grain of sand
+into the mollusks, where we are to visit--though that is all
+conjecture."
+
+But Mate Storms, who was only fairly launched out in the discourse
+upon pearls, was here interrupted by the captain exclaiming:
+
+"This must be the spot."
+
+The particular bank had been designated so clearly that there could be
+no mistake, and had the chart, or map, fallen into the hands of the
+mutineers, they would have discovered the trick played on them in an
+instant. The spot was a peculiar one where the two friends stopped.
+Instead of being partly landlocked like the other, it opened out
+fairly upon the sea, and appeared to be entirely unprotected from the
+force of the breakers, which boomed against the beach.
+
+It would have been supposed naturally that the true course was for the
+fishermen to go out in a small boat, and make their explorations from
+that, but Grebbens had instructed the captain that the formation was
+so peculiar that nothing would be gained by this course. The shore
+sank like the side of a wall to a considerable depth, and the oysters
+lay on the bottom, with some clusters clinging to the rocks, where
+they could be torn off like sponges.
+
+It can be understood that the work of removing these would be almost
+impossible for any one excepting a professional diver, unless, as was
+the case with our friends, he should have some artificial assistance.
+But for the diving-armor, it is hardly possible that Abe Storms would
+have made a serious attempt to secure anything, knowing the danger
+from sharks, and the difficulty of retaining his breath for any
+extended time below the surface of the water.
+
+It was near the middle of the afternoon when this spot was reached.
+The sea was calm, but there were signs in the sky ominous of a coming
+storm, so that the two were anxious to make a beginning without any
+unnecessary delay. Stooping almost upon their faces, when the swell
+had receded enough to permit them, they peered down into the crystal
+depths, and caught shadowy glimpses of the prizes. They saw the craggy
+clusters, big and brown, clinging to the rocks, while others were
+outlined on the floor of the bank.
+
+"They're there, beyond a doubt," said Storms, "and it now remains to
+see whether they are worth the gathering. Help me get on this suit."
+
+Both worked deftly, and it was soon adjusted. The main thing was the
+breathing apparatus, Storms having some fear that at such a depth the
+pressure would be so great as to close the pipes, and thus shut out
+the air. However, the only way to learn was by experiment, and he did
+not wait. Carefully coiling his pipe, he took the rope in his hand and
+began descending, the two having arranged the signals so that with
+ordinary care no accident need result. Captain Bergen held one end of
+the rope in his hand, ready to draw his friend to the surface the
+instant he should receive notice that it was necessary.
+
+"It is a long way to the bottom!" exclaimed the captain, standing like
+the harpooner in a whale-boat, and saw the line steadily paying out.
+
+"It won't do for him to go much further," was his conclusion,
+noticing, with some alarm, that but little more of the hose was left
+on the ground. "I wish those pearls had fixed themselves not
+quite----Hello!"
+
+He knew from the instant cessation of the weight on the rope, and the
+motionless condition of the hose, that the bottom had been reached by
+Abe Storms, and none too soon, either. Peering carefully into the
+clear depths, Captain Bergen saw, too, that his mate was attending to
+business.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXI
+
+AT LAST
+
+
+Mate Storms, so far as could be seen, looked like an immense crab at
+work on the bottom of the pearl bank and along the rough rocks. He was
+so far below the surface that he was insensible to the long, heavy
+swells, which at intervals broke upon the beach with a thunderous
+boom, and so long as the breathing apparatus kept right he could
+pursue his labor without difficulty.
+
+As he anticipated, he had not been long at work when several sharks
+made their appearance and reconnoitered the mysterious intruder upon
+their domains. They were evidently puzzled over the appearance of the
+strange visitor, and when Storms gave one of them an ugly prod with
+the point of his knife, he darted out of sight, instantly followed by
+the others, who seemed to suspect they were in danger from the
+monster, whose slightest touch was so emphatic.
+
+It did not take long for the diver to fill his basket, and when he
+gave the signal, Captain Bergen pulled with might and main, and, a
+few minutes after, the man in his armor scrambled upon shore, tumbled
+over by a huge swell, which broke at that moment. The basket was full,
+and catching it up, Captain Bergen left his friend to himself and
+began hurriedly prying open the mollusks with his sheath-knife. His
+heart throbbed, for they were the largest oysters he had ever seen,
+and he was full of high hope.
+
+The first bivalve opened disclosed a pearl almost as large as a
+robin's egg. It possessed the faint yellowish tinge which is
+recognized in the East as belonging to the most valuable species.
+
+With trembling, eager hands, Captain Bergen opened the second, and
+discovered another, nearly as large as the first. Half beside himself,
+he snatched up the largest oyster in the heap, and forced it apart
+with such precipitancy that he cut his hand. There lay a pearl before
+him fully a third larger than the first, with the purest tint, oval in
+form, and worth thousands of dollars.
+
+Captain Bergen could contain himself no longer, but springing to his
+feet he threw his hat in the air, and shouted, and danced about like a
+madman.
+
+Mr. Storms did not remove his armor, for he intended to go down again.
+His laugh, muffled and sounding strangely from within the visor, was
+heard as he joined in the demonstrations of his companion.
+
+When, encumbered as he was with his awkward armor, he began executing
+a double shuffle on the beach, the sight was so grotesque that the
+captain came near going into convulsions. But the exercise was too
+exhausting, and the mate speedily sat down on the shore and also began
+opening oysters. His ardor was somewhat dampened when he failed to
+discover anything in the first, and he became quite solemn when the
+second was equally barren of results; but the third yielded a
+beautiful pearl, fully equal to the first which the captain brought
+forth. There could be no doubt now that the men had struck a pearl
+bank of marvelous richness.
+
+"There are plenty more down there," said the mate, preparing to
+descend with his knife and basket again.
+
+Captain Bergen allowed him to go, while he took the rope in hand,
+restraining his excitement with difficulty, for he was now sure that
+the wildest dreams in which he had indulged promised to be more than
+realized, and he considered the fortune of himself and friend
+assured.
+
+"The fools," he muttered, referring to the mutineers; "if they had
+acted the part of honest men they might have shared this, but they
+chose to be scoundrels, and truly they have had their reward."
+
+He noticed this time that the mate drew more upon the hose than
+before--so much so, indeed, that he threatened to draw the upper ends
+under water--and the captain gave a warning tug at the rope, to
+apprise him that he must venture no further. The warning was heeded,
+and when, a few minutes later, the diver was helped to terra firma
+again, his basket was filled heaping full.
+
+This was dumped out, and he prepared to descend once more. Captain
+Bergen was so occupied in attending to his friend that he gained
+little time to open the oysters, and could only look longingly at
+them. Now and then, while the diver was cautiously working below, the
+captain snatched one up and pried the shells apart, and the success he
+met with was enough to turn the head of the coolest and most
+unconcerned of men. Beyond question, as we have said, the bank
+contained oysters of astonishing richness, fully three-fourths
+possessing pearls of extraordinary size and value.
+
+Abe Storms went down and came up with the basket heaped to the top six
+separate times, and then doffed his armor.
+
+"What's the matter?" asked the captain, in surprise.
+
+"That's all!"
+
+"What! are there no more?"
+
+"Not another one, so far as I can see."
+
+"That's too bad," observed the captain, in a tone of disappointment.
+"I supposed there was enough to keep us employed several days."
+
+"Ah, Jack," replied the mate, in a reproving tone, "see the emptiness
+of riches, and how little they can do to satisfy the cravings of the
+human heart. There is enough wealth there at your feet to make you and
+me independently rich for life, and yet you complain because you have
+so little."
+
+"It was wrong," said the captain, meekly. "I am in such a nervous
+condition that I'm hardly myself. I am truly grateful for what we have
+here, and glad that we made the long voyage to secure them. We have
+enough--to crave more is wicked."
+
+They now set to work opening the shells between which were nestling
+the pearls, and the result was simply astonishing. It was hard work to
+get some of the thick, ridgy bivalves apart, but when they succeeded
+they rarely failed to be rewarded munificently. Some of the pearls
+were small, the majority large, and about twenty of enormous size and
+clearness. When the entire lot was placed in a little pile, there were
+found to be one hundred and twenty-odd; and, although it was
+impossible to estimate their value, Mate Storms--who was the better
+informed--believed they were worth at least a quarter of a million of
+dollars. All these had been taken in a few hours, though the
+preparations and the voyage thither had occupied many long, long
+months.
+
+"I think I will go down and take a farewell look," said Abe, when the
+task was finished. "I have a suspicion that I may have missed
+something."
+
+"I am quite sure you have," replied the captain, assisting him with
+his armor; "and you have but a short time at your disposal, either,
+for I think a storm is brewing."
+
+This time the mate meant to proceed differently. In descending along
+the rocks the first time, he paused to break off some of the clusters,
+and he thought he caught the shadowy glimpse of an enormous oyster,
+further in; but there were so many closer at hand, and he was so
+excited--despite his natural coolness--that he forgot about it until
+now, when he determined to look further, half hoping, more than
+believing, that it might possess a still larger pearl than any he had
+seen. He was confident that this was the only one he had missed, for
+the search he made during his last descent, in other respects, was
+thorough and left nothing to be done over again.
+
+Carefully he sank into the depths of the ocean, with one hand grasping
+the rope, ready to give the signal to stop lowering the instant it
+should become necessary. He passed several yawning crevices in the
+rocks, which, of course, were of coral formation, and all at once he
+tugged smartly at the rope. He recognized the spot, and his feet were
+still about three yards from the bank upon which he had walked back
+and forth so many times. Captain Bergen responded at once, and held
+him suspended where he was, which was anything but a comfortable
+position, inasmuch as he could find no support for his feet, and his
+left hand was of little use.
+
+Immediately before his face the rock made an inward sweep, showing an
+abrupt ledge, a yard in width and depth. Scanning this as closely as
+he could in the dim twilight of the ocean-cavern, Storms thought he
+saw something resembling an oyster, which was fully a foot in length.
+Uncertain as to its identity, he shoved his hand in and found it was
+suspended to the rock above, and after two or three violent wrenches,
+and by using his knife as well as he could, he broke it loose and drew
+it out.
+
+It was an oyster, indeed, of prodigious size, and he instantly
+signaled to the captain to draw him up. The latter did so with a vigor
+that threatened to dislocate the armor itself.
+
+"Here it is," he exclaimed, the moment he reached the air. "But I
+don't know whether there is anything in it or not."
+
+"My stars! Is that an oyster?" asked the captain, picking it up and
+turning it over like a huge stone, with inquiring eyes.
+
+Little Inez Hawthorne had come to the spot while the mate was down the
+last time, and she danced with delight at the sight of the beautiful
+pearls piled upon the ground like a heap of tiny cannon balls.
+
+"What are you going to do with that?" she asked, surveying the big
+bivalve, with an expression of disgust on her pretty face.
+
+"That is yours," said the captain, earnestly.
+
+The mate looked at him and said:
+
+"Do you mean that, captain?"
+
+"I do. Whatever we find inside of that shall be consecrated to the use
+of Inez Hawthorne--to be hers absolutely. There may be nothing at all,
+but if there be a pearl, it will possess a value which we cannot
+estimate."
+
+The mate reached out his hand.
+
+"The proposition does credit to your heart, captain, and I join it
+without reservation. Now do you open it."
+
+The captain hesitated a moment and looked at the big shell curiously,
+as if afraid to make the investigation.
+
+While thus employed, Storms called attention to the fact that the two
+shells were already slightly separated, as if the mollusk were gasping
+for air, which could not be the case. Captain Bergen held up the huge
+shell and peeped inside. He did so but an instant, when he dropped it
+upon the sand, and exclaimed, with a pale face and trembling voice:
+
+"It's there!"
+
+Mate Storms knew what it meant, and he in turn raised the oyster, ran
+his knife in carefully, worked hard for a minute, and then managed to
+get the two shells apart.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXII
+
+THE PEARL OF THE PACIFIC
+
+
+There, at the front of the oyster, and slightly to one side, was the
+most marvelous pearl upon which the eyes of the men had ever rested.
+It was the size of an ordinary hen's egg, clear and pure, and worth a
+sum of money which neither of the astounded men dared attempt to
+guess.
+
+For a few seconds they were speechless, and then Inez clapped her
+hands with delight, and asked:
+
+"Is that for me?"
+
+"Yes, that is yours," replied Captain Bergen. "The mate and I give it
+to you, to be yours and no one's else."
+
+"Isn't it splendid?" cried Inez, catching it up, passing it from one
+hand to the other, holding it up in the sunlight, and showing as much
+genuine pleasure as if she were a veritable South Sea Islander,
+presented with some new trinket.
+
+"That," said Mate Storms, "may be called The Pearl of the Pacific!"
+
+"No," objected the captain, "it is she who is the pearl of this great
+ocean, for it was upon its surface that we first saw her, and she has
+proved herself far above the worth of pearls or diamonds or rubies. To
+her, under heaven, my life, and not impossibly yours, is owing. The
+greatest pleasure of this voyage has come from her companionship, and
+all that I ask now is that we shall be able to preserve this wealth
+for her, and that the opportunity may be ours to do our full duty
+toward her."
+
+Mate Storms looked admiringly at the captain, who had so eloquently
+expressed his own sentiments.
+
+"You are right, Jack," said he, speaking in his familiar way. "It is
+she who is the Pearl of the Pacific!"
+
+The men surveyed, with the greatest pleasure, the frolicsome delight
+of the little one, who was all unmindful of the immense treasure which
+had fallen to her lot, and of the title of honor which her friends had
+given her. Naturally, the entire party were so absorbed that for a
+time they hardly glanced beyond their immediate surroundings; but when
+Abe Storms came up for the last time, he glanced, by the merest
+accident, out to sea, and exclaimed:
+
+"Oh, my goodness! Just look there, Jack!"
+
+No more than half a mile distant, a flying proa was seen, speeding
+with great swiftness over the water, while a number of dark figures
+were discovered on the deck, evidently looking with no little
+curiosity at the white men.
+
+The singular craft, however, came no nearer, and soon vanished in the
+distance. Its appearance caused some apprehension and uneasiness on
+the part of our friends, and after discussing the matter they decided,
+as a matter of precaution, to bury the pearls.
+
+Inez was persuaded, without difficulty, to trust hers to the keeping
+of her friends, who dug a small well in the sand, and inclosing the
+entire number of pearls in strong canvas bags, made for that purpose,
+buried them out of sight, there to remain until one or both of the men
+should choose to dig them up again, and it was agreed that that should
+not be done until the way opened for them to leave the island.
+
+The long afternoon was well advanced when this task was completed,
+they fixing the precise spot so clearly in their minds that there was
+no necessity of landmarks, either being sure of finding it whenever it
+should become necessary.
+
+"It seems to me the swells are larger than usual, and they make more
+noise when they break upon the beach," observed Mr. Storms, looking
+curiously at the sky.
+
+They had just dumped back the remains of the pearl-oysters into the
+sea, so as to leave no trace of their work, and Captain Bergen
+straightened up and surveyed the sky.
+
+"There's a storm coming--a regular screamer! Look, by the great horn
+spoon!" he added, in no little excitement.
+
+There was good cause for the emotion of the captain, for the light of
+the sun was obscured by a thick, yellow haze, which was fast
+overspreading the sky, and, far out to sea, the long line of mist
+seemed to be churning the water into foam, and to be advancing rapidly
+toward the island, where stood the two men contemplating the coming
+fury of the elements.
+
+The light of the sun was obscured, and there was a perceptible
+chilliness in the air, and the barometer--which they had brought from
+the _Coral_--showed a most startling change. One of the fiercest of
+the tropical tempests was gathering, and was sure to break upon the
+island in a few minutes.
+
+This was alarming to contemplate, for the men knew well what kind of
+elemental disturbances spring up on the shortest notice in the South
+Seas. But it was not this alone which startled them.
+
+Looking directly out to sea, toward the yeasty waters, they saw a
+schooner sinking and rising upon the long swells, and certain to be
+caught, in the very vortex, as may be said, of the hurricane, or
+tornado, or typhoon, or whatever it should be termed. The craft was
+not an unfamiliar one--both knew it well--for it was the _Coral_, with
+the mutineers on board.
+
+Unarmed as they were, they would not dare place themselves in the
+power of those toward whom they had shown such enmity, but that they
+were literally forced to do so to escape almost certain destruction
+from the impending tempest.
+
+If they should run into the lagoon to wait until the storm should
+subside, neither the captain nor mate would disturb them--provided
+they took their departure as soon as it became safe. Still, knowing
+their treacherous character so well, Bergen and Storms did not mean to
+trust them at all. Inez was therefore placed within the cabin, while
+her protectors made certain they were armed and ready for any
+contingency.
+
+Now that the sun was shut out from sight, a darkness like that of
+night overspread land and water, while the strong gale howled among
+the palms, which swayed and bent as if they would soon be uprooted and
+flung out into the boiling sea. The swells were topped with foam, and
+large drops of rain, sweeping almost horizontally across the island,
+struck against the face like pebbles.
+
+The mutineers were heading, so far as was possible, towards the
+opening in the atoll, but they were not in position to strike it, and,
+with the deepening darkness and increasing tempest, the task was
+becoming more difficult every minute. Suddenly a vivid flash of
+lightning illumined the gloom, and the schooner _Coral_ was observed
+on the crest of a high wave, heading toward the island; but the two
+men who saw her, saw also, that she missed the opening and was too
+close in to make it.
+
+The rumble of thunder continued for some minutes, when once more a
+blinding flash swept across the murky sky, lighting up sea and island
+for the instant, as if with the glare of the noonday sun. Captain
+Bergen and Mate Storms were straining their eyes to catch sight of the
+little schooner and its crew, but it was invisible. In that single
+searching glance, they could not have failed to see her had she been
+afloat. The conclusion, therefore, was inevitable. She and her crew
+had gone to the bottom of the sea.
+
+Such was the fact. The mutineers had met a frightful though merited
+fate, and could trouble our friends no more.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIII
+
+A DISMAL HOME
+
+
+Captain Bergen and his mate were not certain that one or more of the
+mutineers had not survived the foundering of the schooner _Coral_, and
+had managed to reach the island.
+
+If such were the case, they considered it important that it should be
+known as soon as possible, and on the morrow, therefore, they made
+careful search, but none of the three men was ever seen again. A few
+fragments of spars, floating here and there, were all the signs that
+such a craft had ever sailed over the Pacific.
+
+Since the captain and mate were now given the opportunity to think of
+their own situation, they did so like men of gravity and sense. They
+were safely upon Pearl Island, as they had named it. They had secured
+the prize for which they had come so many thousand miles, and they
+were, as the world goes, wealthy men. More than that, they had found a
+pearl of such marvelous size and purity that, being dedicated to
+little Inez Hawthorne, it was a great fortune indeed to her.
+
+And yet, in one sense, the little party were paupers; that is, so long
+as they were held prisoners upon the atoll, for the treasure of pearls
+could not purchase them food, clothing, friends, happiness--nor, in
+fact, were they anything more than so many valueless pebbles. They
+must reach civilization again to realize anything from the riches
+which had come into their possession.
+
+But how were they to leave the island? This was the one great question
+which faced them, and which they were called upon to solve, for now
+that there was no further cause for staying, the homesickness of the
+men increased, and it was not long before they felt they would give
+half their wealth for the means of getting back to Boston.
+
+Since they were absolutely without this means, it was evident they
+could do nothing but rely upon Providence to send some vessel to their
+relief. It was not impossible that Abe Storms, gifted as he was with
+so much wonderful ingenuity, might have attempted to construct some
+sort of craft from the palm trees, and it is quite likely he would
+have succeeded in making something that could be utilized. But the
+awful blotting out of the _Coral_, before their eyes, had alarmed
+both, and made them more timid than they otherwise would have been.
+
+It was a good many miles to the nearest inhabited island, as laid down
+on their chart, and they might succeed in reaching it, provided they
+could be assured of a week of good weather. But there could be no such
+assurance, and a disturbance meant the same fate that overtook the
+mutineers.
+
+It is not at all unlikely, too, that the presence of little Inez
+Hawthorne increased this timidity. Had they been without her, they
+would not have hesitated to take great risks, but, somehow or other,
+her life was inestimably precious in their eyes, and they would never
+have forgiven themselves had any ill befallen her through their
+dereliction of duty.
+
+"There is a mystery about her life which shall yet be cleared up," Abe
+Storms frequently remarked; "and we must not do aught that shall
+endanger or delay the solution of the question."
+
+There were comparatively few stores which the schooner had left them
+before its final departure, and the survivors were forced to rely
+mainly upon what the island afforded. Of course there were fish in
+abundance, and they frequently rowed out in the lagoon in the tender,
+or small boat, or cast out their lines from shore, and never failed in
+a short time to catch all they wanted.
+
+The spring of clear, cool water bubbled and trickled steadily, and
+never failed them. And the several species of tropical fruits about
+them were used sparingly, the men having the prudence to seek to
+prevent the supply giving out.
+
+It was a great relief to Storms and Bergen to find, after the most
+thorough exploration they could make, that there were no poisonous
+reptiles upon the island.
+
+"We may as well face the situation," said Captain Bergen, after they
+had held frequent consultations; "we have been here five weeks now,
+and we haven't caught sight of the first sail, with the exception of
+our own, which has gone to the bottom, and it may be that weeks and
+months more may pass before we shall see another."
+
+"It is not unlikely that it may be years," added Storms, gravely;
+"for, according to the narrative of Grebbens himself, he was here a
+long time before he was taken away. The wisest thing we can do is to
+prepare ourselves for an indefinite stay."
+
+A long time before, the captain had laboriously climbed the mast which
+was erected in the sand by the inlet, and had securely fastened an old
+garment to the highest point. There it was still, fluttering in the
+wind, when there was enough breeze to raise the irregular folds, but,
+alas! it had not brought the friendly sail which they longed for, and
+they had been forced at last to look upon an extended residence upon
+the island as not only possible, but very probable.
+
+Like philosophers, they governed themselves accordingly. The signal
+was kept flying and they busied themselves fishing, talking or doing
+odd things which were done simply to pass away time. But the two felt
+that a most urgent duty was upon them, respecting Inez Hawthorne.
+
+"We must do what we can for her," said Storms. "With the material
+which I have on hand we can construct garments that will keep her clad
+with comeliness, though she may not be in the fashion; and yet I don't
+know but what she will," he added, with a smile, "for we may strike
+some of the vagaries without knowing it. Then, too, she must be
+educated."
+
+"I'm not well up in the line of an education," said the captain, with
+some embarrassment, "being as I never attended any other than a
+district school, but I believe you graduated, didn't you, Abe?"
+
+"Yes, I went through Harvard three years ago, and stood second in my
+class. I haven't any fear that I won't be able to teach her, for she
+is a child of unusual brightness."
+
+And, as may be supposed, the mate went to work thoroughly in the
+instruction of Inez Hawthorne, who proved herself one of the most apt
+of pupils, and advanced with a rapidity which delighted her teacher.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIV
+
+THREE YEARS
+
+
+Three years have passed, and still Captain Bergen, Mate Storms and
+Inez Hawthorne are upon the lonely Pearl Island in the South Sea.
+
+Could they have believed when they left Boston that they would be
+doomed to such an imprisonment, it may well be doubted whether they
+would have made the voyage, even if assured of the vast fortune which
+thereby came into their hands.
+
+The three years had been dismally monotonous to them, and their
+courage had been tried to the utmost, for there had been times when
+both agreed that they would probably stay there until released by
+death, and then they fell to speculating as to which would be the last
+one to survive. According to human logic, it would seem that that lot
+would fall to Inez, and their hearts sank at the thought of her being
+left to perish in the lonely spot.
+
+When the coat fluttering from the top of the mast was blown away by
+the gale, Captain Bergen climbed up and nailed another in its place,
+grimly remarking that it looked as if they were going down with their
+colors flying.
+
+It was surprising what was done by Mate Storms, whose ingenuity was
+almost incredible. With the material at his command, he kept Inez
+clothed in a tasteful manner.
+
+She wore dresses and shoes which fitted her well, and her hat was
+renewed with extraordinary skill, from material obtained from the
+palm-trees.
+
+Those three years, although of indescribable weariness at times, were
+marked by some startling incidents, and by many worthy of record. The
+great object of Storms was to educate Inez, and he did his utmost in
+that direction, assisted by the bright intellect of the girl and her
+own ardent desire to explore the wonders of knowledge.
+
+There were few facilities in the way of furniture, considered so
+indispensable in these later days. He had no pens or ink, and only a
+Bible in the way of books. He had some blank paper and a single lead
+pencil, which were utilized to their fullest extent. For a slate or
+blackboard, he used the beach, as did Archimedes of the olden time.
+
+Selecting a place where the water had left it hard and smooth, Storms,
+with a sharp-pointed stick, made his characters and gave his
+instruction in the mysteries of mathematics.
+
+It would sound incredible were we to say that, during those three
+years, the dwellers on the lonely atoll had never descried a sail; and
+such was not a fact, for there are few shores on this globe where a
+human being can bury himself so long from sight of the white-winged
+birds of commerce. They had seen many ships, but it looked very much
+as if they themselves had not been seen, nor had their presence been
+suspected by any of them.
+
+"The idea of our being so nervous lest some one should get here ahead
+of us," remarked Storms, more than once, "when we might have delayed
+our coming a dozen years without any danger from that cause."
+
+They had discovered the cloud-like picture of the canvas sail as it
+came up over the horizon, and their hearts swelled as it expanded and
+came closer. But all hope faded again when it grew less in the
+distance and finally passed from view altogether.
+
+This had happened repeatedly, and more than once Captain Bergen had
+laboriously made his way up the smooth mast to the very top, where he
+swung his hat wildly; but it must have been that the little island in
+the South Seas possessed slight interest in the eyes of the navigators
+who occasionally drifted in that direction, for had they seen the
+signal of distress, or caught sight of the man frantically waving his
+hat from the top, they would have learned what its meaning was.
+
+The greatest dejection which took possession of the couple was when
+they, through the glass, saw the Stars and Stripes fluttering from the
+mizzen of the ship which came the nearest and then made off again. The
+sight of that most beautiful banner in the world was like a glimpse of
+their distant New England home, and they seemed to feel the cool
+breeze fanning their hot brows as it bore steadily toward them.
+
+When it went over the convex sea out of sight, Captain Bergen covered
+his face with his hands and wept, and when, after awhile, he looked up
+again, he saw the tears on the cheeks of Abe Storms, who stood
+motionless and gazing silently off upon the deep, as if he expected
+the vessel would come back to them. It was a severe blow, and it was a
+long time before they recovered from it.
+
+The exact age of Inez Hawthorne when she became, by an extraordinary
+turn of the wheel of fortune, the protégée of the two sailors, was, as
+given by herself, six years, but both the captain and mate were
+confident that she was fully one, if not two years older.
+
+Now, at the termination of the period named, she was a girl as fully
+developed mentally and physically as one of a dozen years, and she was
+growing into a woman of striking beauty. She was still a child, with
+all the innocence and simplicity which distinguished her at the time
+she was taken from the deck of the steamer _Polynesia_, but in a few
+years more, should she be spared, she would become a woman.
+
+Captain Bergen and Mate Storms were honest, conscientious men, and
+Christians, and they performed their full duty in that most important
+respect to Inez Hawthorne. Never passed a day in which Storms did not
+read, in an impressive voice, from the great Book of all books, and
+the sublime passages, the wonderful precepts, the divine truths and
+the sacred instruction from that volume were seed which fell upon good
+ground and bore its fruit in due season.
+
+If ever there was a good, pure, devout Christian, Inez Hawthorne
+became one, and her greatest desire, as she repeatedly expressed it,
+was that she might go out in the great world among all people, and do
+her utmost to carry the glad tidings to them.
+
+"The time will come," replied Abe Storms, when he listened to these
+glowing wishes. "God never intended you should live and die upon this
+lonely island when there is such need for missionaries like you. I
+don't see that we are of much account, but I believe He has something
+for us, too, and we shall be given the opportunity to do it."
+
+"Ah," said the skipper, with a sigh, "you have been saying that for
+three years, and the sails that come go again and care nothing for
+us. I am beginning to believe we are to stay here for the rest of our
+lives, and that I am to be the first one to take the long, last sleep
+that awaits us all."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXV
+
+AN ARRIVAL
+
+
+When Captain Bergen was inclined to become pessimistic, the mate
+treated it lightly, for he feared the strong sailor would break before
+long from sheer homesickness.
+
+It was fortunate that neither had any family, the mate being one of
+those who are without any close living relative, while the captain had
+a sister in New England, and his aged mother was in San Francisco,
+living with a nephew, of whom she was very fond.
+
+Thus the three years passed away, and the second era in their lives
+approached. There was something curious in the fact that all the
+inhabitants of the lonely Pearl Island had lost their reckoning. No
+two could agree on the day of the week, and when they compromised on
+one, which was called Sunday, and observed as such, they were much in
+doubt whether they were right, and, as it afterward proved, they were
+not.
+
+One afternoon, when the sun had hardly passed the meridian, the mate
+and captain were stretched upon the beach under the shade of a
+palm-tree, and looking out upon the sea, over which they had come to
+this desolate spot so long before. The day was cooler than usual, and
+a steady breeze blew, rendering the position of the friends in that
+respect as pleasant as they could wish, though their weary, homesick
+feeling was telling upon them. Both the ragged sailors were thinner,
+and there was a yearning, far-away look in their eyes, especially in
+those of the captain, which presaged the approach of insanity or death
+at no distant day, unless a change were made in their condition and
+surroundings. This lamentable state was partly due, no doubt, to the
+diet to which they had been subjected for many months.
+
+Inez, who seemed happy everywhere and at all times, was busying
+herself in the cabin, where she could find plenty to do; and ever and
+anon the sound of her voice could be heard, as she sang some snatch of
+song, which came through the mist of memory from her infancy.
+
+"I tell you what it is," said Captain Bergen, in his low, determined
+voice, "this thing cannot continue much longer."
+
+"You are no more weary of it than I, Jack; but show me the way in
+which it can be ended."
+
+"We've got to take the risk. The tender there is large enough to
+carry us and a good supply of provisions--that is, enough water, to
+last several days. We can rig some sort of sail, and, in less than a
+week, by keeping to the northwest, we shall reach some inhabited
+island, unless we should be picked up before that time, which I
+consider quite likely."
+
+"I've thought a good deal of it, Jack," said the mate, in a voice of
+equal seriousness. "We have been restrained heretofore by the fear
+that it would endanger too greatly the safety of Inez, and mainly by
+the feeling that we couldn't stay here long without assistance being
+summoned by that signal fluttering up there. And yet, three years have
+come and gone," continued the mate, "and not a living soul has come to
+us. There have been hundreds of days within this long period when we
+might have embarked on board the little boat and safely made our way
+to some other port, but we could not know it, and the result is--here
+we are."
+
+"And the situation is very different from what it was when we first
+landed, for it is now a choice between staying here with the certainty
+of miserably perishing--every one of us--and of starting boldly out
+upon an unknown sea, as it may be called, with the chances between
+life and death about even."
+
+"You have stated the case correctly," assented Mr. Storms; "and though
+it is your place to command, yet as you have deferred to me, I give
+you my promise that to-morrow we shall begin rigging the best sort of
+sail we can, and at daylight on the next day we will start for
+whatever port Providence directs us."
+
+"That has put new life into me, Abe. I feel now as I did three years
+ago, when we first caught sight of those pearls. I am ten years
+younger. I prefer a bold stroke for life to a weak submission to fate,
+with this dismal waiting for help to come to us. By the great horn
+spoon! a thousand such pearl banks as we cleaned out wouldn't tempt me
+to spend another year on this hated island----"
+
+At this instant the voice of Inez was heard, excitedly calling to
+them, and while they rose to the sitting position and looked
+inquiringly in that direction, she was seen to spring through the open
+door of the cabin, and to come running toward them on the beach,
+bareheaded and with her long, yellow hair streaming in the wind.
+
+"What can be the matter with her?" exclaimed the captain, rising to
+his feet. "What is she saying?"
+
+"Hark!"
+
+The distance was so short that the girl was at their side a second or
+two later. She was laughing, and uttering something in her excitement,
+which, until that moment, they did not understand.
+
+"Who ever saw any one so stupid?" she called out, cheerily. "What are
+your eyes for? Why don't you look out to sea?"
+
+The two obeyed, and an exclamation of amazement escaped both, for
+there, while they had lain on the beach talking in such disconsolate
+tones, and looking dreamily out upon the ocean, a craft had been
+steadily approaching, and neither of the two saw it.
+
+At the furthest, it was no more than a mile distant, and, since it was
+heading straight in toward the atoll, the chances were a hundred to
+one that the signal of distress had been seen, and the lonely island
+at last was going to have a visitor.
+
+Captain Bergen muttered something about the "great horn spoon," under
+his breath, while Storms said nothing, but gazed steadily at the
+craft, upon which his hopes were so suddenly and strongly fixed. It
+might be that the hearts of all three bounded with hope at this sight
+of a vessel, but the hope was mixed with apprehension, for the sailors
+saw it was not the sort of vessel for which they had been praying so
+long.
+
+Instead of a gallant ship, with the Stars and Stripes streaming from
+the fore, it was what is termed a flying proa, which is the name
+applied to the narrow canoes used principally in the Ladrone Islands.
+They are about thirty feet long, three feet wide, and are steered by a
+paddle at either end. The sail is lateen, with a boom upon one mast;
+the prow and stern curve to a high point, and the depth being
+considerably greater than the width, the proa would, if unsupported,
+capsize instantly, but a hollow log or heavy-pointed spar rests on the
+water, parallel with the windward side, and, being secured in place,
+acts as an outrigger and removes the danger of overturning. The same
+name is applied to the boats used by the Malays, and which are
+propelled by both oars and sails.
+
+But the one which greeted the astonished eyes of Storms and Bergen had
+its huge lateen sail spread, and was moving with great velocity, for
+the proas of the Indian and Pacific oceans are probably the fastest
+boats in the world. It rode the waters like a bird, and would soon
+enter the lagoon within the island, for there could be no doubt that
+the men on board had seen not only the signal, but the persons
+themselves who were waiting for them.
+
+Inasmuch as a couple of men were discernible with the naked eye on the
+proa, it followed that the latter must descry the three individuals
+who were standing out in full view upon the shore of the island.
+
+"How about this?" asked Captain Bergen, stepping to the side of his
+mate, and speaking in an undertone. "Shall we rejoice or not?"
+
+"It's uncertain," was the dubious reply. "Those boats generally carry
+the vagabonds of the ocean, and the last motive which, as a rule,
+brings them to a spot like this is humanity."
+
+"Where's your glass?"
+
+"I declare, I never thought of that--I was so surprised!"
+
+Storms carried it with him always, and he now brought it to bear upon
+the singular-looking craft approaching. It was so close inshore that,
+with the aid of the instrument, he was able to see everything
+distinctly, especially as the boat at that moment bore off a little
+and then headed toward the entrance again.
+
+So far as could be ascertained, there were three persons on the boat,
+and the captain reached the same conclusion after using the glass.
+
+"If that's the case," said Captain Bergen, "we haven't anything to
+fear from them, for, with our guns and ammunition, we can hold our own
+against a dozen South Sea Islanders."
+
+"There may be others concealed about the craft, but I incline to think
+not. However, it's best to be prepared. So let's get to the house and
+make ready to receive them--whether they come as enemies or friends."
+
+The suggestion was a prudent one, and the two men hurried up the beach
+in the direction of the cabin, while Inez remained to watch the proa.
+The men examined their rifles and saw they were loaded and ready for
+instant use, and then, bearing one apiece, they came forth again. As
+they did so, something like a shadow seemed to shoot through the
+trees, and, looking toward the lagoon, they saw the cause. The proa
+had entered the quiet waters within, and was coming to rest as
+gracefully as a sea gull stops in its flight.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVI
+
+THE FLYING PROA AND ITS COMMANDER
+
+
+The lateen sail of the proa descended with a rattle and bang, the man
+at the oar gave it several vigorous sweeps, and the strange-looking
+but astonishingly swift craft came to rest almost in the same position
+that the schooner _Coral_ occupied three years before.
+
+"Helloa, there! How are you? How long have you been here?"
+
+When it is stated that this hail came from aboard the proa, it is
+unnecessary to say that our two friends were surprised, for they
+supposed that the visitors were natives, who at the best could not
+speak more than a few words of broken English.
+
+This astonishment was turned to literal amazement when they saw that
+the speaker was a Caucasian like themselves, one of the two standing
+at the prow, and looking out upon them with a smiling countenance.
+There was no mistaking the ruddy, sunburned face, the curling hair,
+and the regular, European features of the young man, whose expanded
+smile showed a set of white, even teeth, and he seemed to enjoy their
+astonishment after hearing his words.
+
+It was curious that they had failed to notice him before, inasmuch as
+his dress was dissimilar from the others, he having the usual
+tarpaulin hat and the broad trowsers of the American and English
+sailor. It was plain, too, that he was scarcely a man, being, in fact,
+a boy, who by some strange means was adrift in this part of the
+world.
+
+As soon as the proa was within reach of land, the youth sprang ashore,
+and, walking straight up to Captain Bergen, extended his right hand to
+him and his left to Mr. Storms, shaking both warmly, while, as he
+spoke, he looked from the face of one to the other.
+
+"How long have you been in this place? Judging from your clothes and
+looks, I should say about twenty years? Do you want to emigrate? Where
+are you from? What are your names? How came you here? My name is Fred
+Sanders, and I've been knocking about among the South Sea Islands for
+the last five years."
+
+There was no resisting the jolly good-nature of the young man, who had
+a habit of laughing heartily, when no one else could see anything to
+laugh at, and whose high spirits always infected others with whom he
+came in contact. But it would not have required much study for any one
+to discover that he was a wild, reckless youth, who had probably run
+away from home, and taken to bad ways from a natural inclination in
+that direction.
+
+While this interview was going on, Inez Hawthorne was absent, she
+having withdrawn at the suggestion of her friends, though of course
+the visitors knew of her presence, from having seen her on the beach.
+
+Captain Bergen replied to the greeting of his friend:
+
+"We have been here full three years. If I'm not mistaken, it is three
+years and two weeks this very Thursday."
+
+"Then that's just where you _are_ mistaken!" broke in Fred Sanders,
+with his ringing laugh, "for it so happens that to-day isn't Thursday,
+by a long shot!"
+
+"Of course not," Mr. Storms hastened to say. "I don't know how many
+arguments I have had with the captain to prove he was wrong, and that
+this is Friday----"
+
+And Fred threw back his head and roared louder than ever.
+
+"It's a toss up between you. I don't wonder that you got muddled when
+you were forced to stay in such an outlandish place as this so long. I
+think I would have got mixed myself."
+
+"Pray tell me what day of the week it is."
+
+"This is Tuesday afternoon, with a half-dozen hours of daylight left
+to you yet."
+
+While this brief conversation was going on, the two natives were upon
+the boat, waiting as if for permission to land. They sat as meekly as
+children, in a partly crouching position, intently watching, with
+their glittering black eyes, the three figures before them. They
+appeared to listen with absorbing attention to the words, as if they
+understood them--which they did not, excepting so far as they were
+interpreted by the vigorous gestures.
+
+Inez Hawthorne, as we have stated, had withdrawn to the house, when
+requested to do so by her teacher, but her curiosity led her to step
+forth and look upon the parties and listen to the conversation--the
+distance being so short that she could hear all that was said. The
+natives saw her, and so did Fred Sanders, who occasionally glanced
+over the shoulders of the two men with whom he was talking, in a way
+which they understood. The visitors could not fail to be greatly
+interested in her, but Fred refrained for a time from referring to the
+girl.
+
+Mate Storms explained that the craft in which they came to this
+portion of the world was wrecked, and that three of the crew were
+lost, and the captain, mate and a single passenger saved. Since then
+they had looked in vain for the coming of some friendly sail; plenty
+enough, however, having appeared, only to depart again and leave them
+in greater depths of gloom than before.
+
+"Where are you from?" asked the captain, putting the question directly
+to the young man.
+
+"I'm an American, born in New England, and am seventeen years old, and
+it is a long time since I have seen my home."
+
+"How came you in this part of the world?"
+
+"Why not here as well as anywhere else?" asked Fred Sanders, in reply.
+"I left home when I was only ten years of age, and have knocked about
+the world ever since."
+
+"But you are now among the Paumotu Islands."
+
+"Where I have been for a good while. Some time, perhaps, I will give
+you the whole history, but it is too long to tell now."
+
+It was apparent, from the manner of the boy, that he wished to conceal
+some facts of his previous life, and neither the captain nor mate
+pressed him--for, in truth, it was of no special interest to them,
+their all-absorbing subject of mental anxiety being as to how they
+were to get away from the hated place.
+
+"Where are you directly from?" asked Mr. Storms.
+
+"From an island, the name of which I have never heard in English,
+though its native name is something like Wauparmur."
+
+"Inhabited, of course?"
+
+"Yes. There are four or five hundred natives and their families. The
+island is a dozen miles in extent, is very fertile, and has several
+native towns. At one place is a good harbor, and nearly always some
+foreign vessel is there. Sometimes I have seen three or more, and when
+I left, four days ago, a trading-ship from Boston had arrived."
+
+"Oh!" exclaimed Abe Storms. "So near and yet so far!"
+
+"I think it will probably stay a week longer, for they are doing a
+good trade with the islanders."
+
+"You have awakened a hope that is really painful," said Captain
+Bergen, while the pale face of Mr. Storms showed he was affected fully
+as profoundly.
+
+"I don't know why it need be painful," said the young man, in his
+off-hand manner, which was so captivating; "for we were going on a
+little cruise, when we caught sight of your signal flying, and we put
+in to find out what the trouble was."
+
+"And are you willing to take us off?" asked Storms, who, while he felt
+the question was unnecessary, was still trembling with anxiety lest
+something should prevent their going.
+
+"Will we take you off?" asked Fred, with a ringing laugh. "That's a
+pretty question to ask us, when we came for the express purpose of
+doing so. Of course, we'll take you straight away to the island we
+came from, and, of course, we'll put you in the way of getting back to
+Boston as soon as possible, and we only regret that we hadn't the
+chance to get here three years sooner, so as to save you this dreary
+waste of time."
+
+Tears came to the eyes of both the men, and, as Captain Bergen took
+the hand of the youth, he said:
+
+"We will thank you forever, and will pay you well."
+
+It was an unfortunate speech, and the cooler-headed mate would never
+have uttered it.
+
+It might result in no harm; but why let the reckless youth know that
+they possessed the ability to pay him well? It would be time enough to
+present him with some of their valuable pearls after reaching
+Wauparmur, when no possible complication could result from Sanders
+knowing that these two ragged sailors were very wealthy men. But the
+words had been said, and could not be recalled, though a vague
+uneasiness shot through the mind of Abe Storms when he saw a sudden
+flash of the dark eyes of the youth, who said, in the cheeriest of
+voices, slapping the captain on the shoulder with a vigor that
+staggered him:
+
+"Who talks of paying one for doing his simple duty? If you or your
+friend repeats that insult, there will be war between us; and
+then--excuse me, but ain't you joking when you talk of paying well?
+For, begging pardon again, you don't look like millionaires with a
+very heavy bank account."
+
+Storms trembled, but he could not restrain the captain.
+
+"Of course, we wouldn't insult you, but you will be remembered; and
+though we are not very extravagant in the way of dress, and don't look
+like very wealthy men, yet I can promise you you shall be well
+recompensed, and, what is more, we can carry out the promise, too, in
+a way that will open your eyes."
+
+Having uttered these compromising words, Captain Bergen laughed in a
+way which alarmed the mate still more; for there was a peculiarity in
+his friend's actions which he had never noticed before.
+
+"I know we are dressed very poorly," added the captain, "and we
+wouldn't be very popular in a drawing-room, but if you set us down as
+poor men you will make a great mistake. Won't he, Abe--eh, boy?"
+
+And he facetiously punched the astonished and grieved mate in the
+side, and danced about as if he had perpetrated the best joke of his
+life.
+
+Just then Storms caught the eye of Fred Sanders, and he significantly
+tapped his own forehead to signify that the captain was not exactly
+right, mentally. And, when he did so, the kind-hearted mate spoke the
+truth.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVII
+
+FRED SANDERS
+
+
+Captain Bergen was so affected by the joyful awakening to the fact
+that his long, dismal sojourn on the lonely island in the Pacific had
+reached the end at last, and by the belief that now he would be
+carried as rapidly as wind and sail could take him to his beloved New
+England again, that his mind was unsettled and he behaved in a way
+that pained, as much as it astonished, his companion.
+
+Inasmuch as such was the fact, Mr. Storms hoped that it would be
+accepted as an explanation of the strange utterances in which he had
+indulged, for he believed that the cupidity of the young man had
+already been excited, and a most unfortunate complication threatened.
+
+"You will excuse the excitement of my friend," said he to Sanders,
+"though mine is nearly as great; but he had almost settled into the
+belief that we were doomed to perish in this desolate spot, and the
+reaction caused by your joyous tidings is too much for him."
+
+"Oh, that's all right!" was the cheery response. "I understand how
+that is. But, begging pardon, I believe you have another companion?"
+
+Fred looked so earnestly at the figure of Inez Hawthorne, standing a
+short distance off, that his meaning could not be mistaken.
+
+"It is I who should beg your pardon," said Storms, in turn, beckoning
+to Inez to approach; "but we were so much interested in you that we
+forgot her for the time."
+
+While the girl was approaching the group, Captain Bergen turned about,
+and without a word, walked slowly away in the direction of the cabin,
+his manner showing still more clearly than ever that his mind was
+unbalanced--a fact which caused Storms great discomfort. Aside from
+his love for the good, honest man, he saw that he had already
+imperiled, and was likely still further to imperil, their great
+possessions by his rambling, and yet significant, talk.
+
+The pearls still lay some distance away, buried in the sand in their
+canvas bags, and must be procured before leaving the island.
+
+Since the captain had already awakened suspicion respecting the truth,
+the difficulty of getting the prizes away without detection was
+immeasurably increased, while the likelihood of his making still
+further disclosures remained.
+
+Storms was fearful that this sudden movement on the part of Bergen
+meant something of the kind, but the situation was such that he could
+not interfere, and all he could do during the few minutes remaining of
+the trying interview, was to keep a furtive watch, so far as possible,
+upon the movements of the captain.
+
+"Mr. Sanders," said the mate, "this is Inez Hawthorne--a little girl
+who became a companion of ours through no fault of hers or of either
+of us. She has been here during the three years we have spent on the
+island, and though she has stood it so much better than we, she is
+fully as anxious to get away. Inez, this is Mr. Fred Sanders, who has
+come to take us off."
+
+The handsome young fellow doffed his hat and bowed with a certain
+grace and deferential regard in his manner, which led Storms, who was
+narrowly watching him, to suspect that he was of high birth and had
+moved in good circles before he had made his début in this strange
+part of the world. Inez possessed the same charming simplicity which
+had distinguished her in her earlier years, though she was more
+reserved, as was natural with her. She extended her hand to Sanders,
+who gave it a gentle pressure, while he said:
+
+"When I saw the signal fluttering up there I suspected there were
+persons here who wanted help, but I never dreamed that we should find
+you."
+
+"And why not me as well as any one else?" asked Inez, with a smile.
+"Is there any reason why I shouldn't have misfortune the same as other
+persons? If there is any such rule, I have never heard of it."
+
+"I know of none; but shipwreck, as a general thing--and certainly in
+the case of your companions--has been a great injury to them. They
+look emaciated and ill, and the captain is surely injured in the mind.
+But you--why--well, never mind."
+
+Fred laughed and broke down, for he really meant to say nothing that
+could be construed into flattery or impertinence. There was an air of
+goodness and refinement about the girl which compelled the respect,
+for the time at least, of the wild youth.
+
+"I am so glad you have come," said Inez, without commenting upon his
+last words; "for though I have been as cheerful as I could, it has
+been mainly on account of the captain and Mr. Storms. I saw how
+dejected they were, and tried to cheer them as best I could."
+
+"Which was very kind in you. But, thank heaven! it is all over now,
+and I hope we shall soon bear you away from this place, that no doubt
+has become so detestable in your eyes that you never want to see it
+again."
+
+"I cannot say how dreadful it is and how much I dislike it. The ship
+which ought to have taken us away as it brought us, was broken to
+pieces on the beach, and the mutineers, who thirsted for our lives,
+were drowned when almost in reach, as may be said, of the shore."
+
+Here was some more unexpected information that greatly interested Fred
+Sanders, who began to think he would get at all the facts by
+interviewing each member of the little company.
+
+Mr. Storms heard the remark of Inez; but, while he regretted it--on
+the ground that it might raise some more uncomfortable suspicions--he
+did not care particularly, for the sad story was one that could easily
+be told, and upon which he was ready for cross-examination. But what
+more interested him at that moment was the fact that Captain Bergen
+just then reached the cabin, and, instead of stopping within, passed
+on beyond.
+
+The conclusion of Storms was natural that he had gone to the upper
+part of the island to dig up the pearls; in which case, in his
+peculiar mental condition, he would, most likely, lose them all. This
+would never do, and the mate excused himself, saying:
+
+"I am a little uneasy respecting the captain, and I will leave you two
+here while I look after him."
+
+Fred Sanders saluted him, and told the truth when he said he would
+forgive his departure with pleasure; with which the ragged mate went
+hurrying after the ragged captain.
+
+"Won't you step on board the proa for a little while?" asked Fred, who
+was rather tired of standing on the sand under the palm-trees. "As it
+is to be your dwelling-place for a few days, you may like to select
+your apartments."
+
+Inez said she would be glad to do so, and Fred uttered some sharp
+exclamation, which caused both of the dusky natives to spring to
+their feet and hasten to the side of the proa nearest the shore, where
+they waited the chance to help her aboard. Inez noticed that the
+islanders were muscular, athletic fellows, with such a peculiar
+appearance that she could not avoid staring at them for a few seconds.
+Each was fully six feet in height--an unusual stature among the South
+Sea Islanders--and their breasts, arms and legs were tattooed with
+all sorts of figures and representations. Since these portions of
+their anatomy were uncovered, the singular ornamentation was very
+prominent.
+
+They had the curious tattooing on their cheeks, noses and foreheads,
+so that their appearance was repellent. Besides this, their teeth were
+black, their noses large and flat, and their mouths wider than there
+was any necessity for. Their heads were bare, and, indeed, were
+furnished by nature with all the covering they could need. The hair
+was very long, but frizzly, so that as it curled up about their ears
+and crowns, it formed an immense bushy screen, which gave their heads
+prodigious size. Their hands and feet were very large, and it would
+have been hard, in short, to discover anything in their looks that
+could attract a person toward them. Surveying them dispassionately,
+one could not help suspecting they belonged to a tribe of cannibals.
+
+However, Inez did not show any repulsion which she might have felt,
+but stepping close to the proa took the extended hand, and sprang
+lightly aboard of the strange craft. The natives immediately withdrew,
+leaving the young captain, as he appeared to be, to conduct the fair
+visitor around the "ship," whose dimensions did not require much time
+to investigate.
+
+Fred explained that the proa was a vessel peculiar to the Indian and
+Central Pacific oceans, and that it could sail with great swiftness,
+going either forward or backward with equal readiness. It is a
+favorite boat used for inter-communication between hundreds of the
+islands of the South Seas, and the Malays employ them in a different
+form for their piratical expeditions. They owe their swiftness mainly
+to the fact that they stand so high out of the water, are very narrow,
+and present such a large surface to the wind.
+
+"They are good for short voyages," said Fred, "but I shouldn't want to
+start for New York or Liverpool in one of them."
+
+"How long will it take us to reach the island from which you came?"
+asked Inez.
+
+"If we start early to-morrow morning, with a good wind, we ought to be
+there at the end of two days."
+
+This was shorter time than he had given Mate Storms, but he was now
+striving to speak the truth.
+
+"And suppose we are overtaken by one of those terrible tempests which
+sometimes visit this part of the world?"
+
+"We cannot escape the risk, no matter where we are. The storm that
+would sink a proa might cause a seventy-four to founder, and the only
+way you can shun danger is to stay here all your life. I hardly think
+that such is your wish, Miss Inez."
+
+"No; I am as anxious to leave as are Mr. Storms and the captain.
+Indeed, I think I am more so, for I understand that they expect to
+wait until to-morrow morning, while if I had my wish I would start
+this very hour."
+
+"We are at the disposal of yourself and friends," Sanders courteously
+responded; "but the reason for delay is that thereby we expect to be
+compelled to spend but a single night on the voyage, while if we
+started now we should have two."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVIII
+
+THE MATE BECOMES CAPTAIN
+
+
+"Poor Jack!" murmured Abe Storms, hastening after him. "I have been
+fearing this very thing. He has taken the matter more to heart than I,
+and there has been a look in his eye in the last few weeks which
+showed he was not right; but I thought, when he found he was going
+back to his home again, he would almost instantly regain his mental
+equipoise.
+
+"But it has operated the other way, and I shouldn't wonder if he is as
+wild as a loon. When we get him away, dress him up, change his food,
+and give him a sight of a Boston vessel, he will be sure to come
+around; but, he has said too much already.
+
+"I wonder what sort of a fellow that Fred Sanders is?" added Storms,
+whose intellect seemed to be sharpened by the same cause which
+overturned that of the captain. "I would be glad to trust him fully,
+but somehow, I can't. While he is courteous and kind--and, no doubt,
+means to carry us all to the inhabited island, where we shall be able
+to take care of ourselves--there is something about him that awakens
+distrust. The fact of his having been five years, as he says, in these
+South Sea Islands, shows that all is not right, which is confirmed by
+his dislike of saying anything about his earlier history.
+
+"The best thing in his favor is his youth, and yet," continued Storms,
+thoughtfully, "that, after all, may be the worst. It would seem that
+he is too young to have done a great deal of evil; and yet, if he has
+committed many transgressions, it is a woful record for such a lad. It
+was too bad that the captain hinted that we have so much means, and he
+wouldn't have done it had he been in his right mind; but it has
+produced an effect upon Sanders, as I could see by the flash of his
+eyes, and the apparently indifferent questions he asked afterwards.
+
+"But we have saved our ammunition," muttered Storms, a minute later,
+compressing his lips; "and I know how to use my revolver, and it is
+only for a short time that I shall have to maintain watch."
+
+While Abe Storms was talking to himself in this fashion, he had his
+eye on the captain, who was walking slowly toward that portion of the
+island where the pearls had been concealed so carefully, and there
+could be no doubt of his errand. He did not hear the soft footstep
+behind him, which was so regulated that it came up with him just as
+the latter paused at the all-important spot.
+
+The captain first looked out to sea, and then behind him, catching
+sight, as he did so, of the smiling countenance of his mate--so far as
+his countenance could be seen through the wealth of beard.
+
+"Hello! What are you doing here?" asked the captain, in a voice which
+showed some perplexity, if not displeasure.
+
+"What are you doing here?" asked Storms, in turn, slapping him
+familiarly on the shoulder. "I suppose we came upon the same errand,
+as we are so soon to leave for home. The pearls are buried here, and
+we must carry them away with us."
+
+"How do you know that's what I came for, Abe?"
+
+"I'm only saying I suspect it's your business. I know it's mine."
+
+Captain Bergen was a little bewildered by the sharp manner in which
+the good-natured mate caught him up, and, while he seemed to be
+debating with himself what to say, Storms took his arm and led him a
+short distance off, and, seating him on the beach, said:
+
+"There's no hurry about the business, Jack, for we won't start until
+to-morrow morning at daylight, so as to have as few nights on the
+voyage as possible, and we had better decide on the proper course for
+us to take."
+
+"That is correct," replied the captain, assenting so quietly that his
+friend hoped he would remain easily manageable.
+
+"You remember, Jack, that when we buried the pearls there, we divided
+them--your half is in a strong canvas bag, so packed that they won't
+rub together, or make any noise; and mine are in another sack. The
+single pearl which belongs to Inez is also carefully covered; and now
+we must manage to get away with them, without letting Sanders know
+they are in our possession."
+
+"What do you want to do that for?" demanded the captain, turning
+fiercely upon the mate. "I like that fellow. He's going to put me on a
+ship and send me back to Boston; and any one who does that does me a
+service worth more than all the pearls in the world. I am going to
+give him all mine, and I hope Inez will do the same. I shall do my
+best to persuade her, and if you don't, Abe, you and I are deadly
+enemies, and I'll kill you the first chance!"
+
+Storms showed his shrewdness by the manner in which he managed the
+poor fellow.
+
+"That's all right, Jack," he replied, assuming a look and expression
+of anger, as he glared upon the lunatic, well aware that he must make
+him afraid of him. "If it's any fun for you to talk in that style,
+I'll let you do it once, but don't you try it again. Did I ever tell
+you about those sixteen persons that I killed up in New Hampshire
+before we started out with the _Coral?_"
+
+"No!" gasped the captain, looking at him with awe.
+
+"Well, I won't tell you now," said the mate, with the same frightful
+earnestness, "for it would make you feel too bad. If they hadn't made
+me mad, I wouldn't have killed them, and I'll let up on you if you do
+not say anything of the kind again. If you do, I'll get mad, Jack."
+
+"By the great horn spoon!" exclaimed the alarmed captain, "I'll let
+the matter drop, if you will."
+
+"All right," said the mate, relenting somewhat. "And, mind you, don't
+you go to talking to Sanders about it. Don't you tell him another
+thing, and never mention the word pearls."
+
+"I won't--I won't!" was the meek rejoinder of poor Captain Bergen, who
+had been completely cowed by the fierceness of his mate.
+
+"I'm an awful man when my wrath is roused!" Abe Storms thought it best
+to add; "and it was just rising to the boiling-point when you were
+lucky enough to take back your foolish expression."
+
+"What are we going to do now?" asked the captain, apparently anxious
+to turn the current of conversation into a more agreeable channel.
+
+"We'll go back and make ready to leave on the proa. We have
+considerable to do before we depart. There are a number of things in
+the cabin that we must carry with us."
+
+"Yes, that's so; I forgot that. But, Abe--don't you get mad!--what
+about them?"
+
+"Just never you mind," replied the mate with an important wave of the
+hand. "I'll attend to them."
+
+"All right. I was afraid you would forget 'em!"
+
+It pained Storms to tyrannize over his superior officer in this
+fashion, but stern necessity compelled him to become the real captain.
+The intention of the mate when he first followed his friend was to dig
+up the pearls and give him his share, but he saw that that would never
+do. It would precipitate a tragedy to allow the lunatic any option in
+the matter. So, without any further reference to the pearls, the two
+rose to their feet and walked slowly back in the direction of the
+proa, talking on no particular subject, since the mate was desirous of
+diverting the mind of the captain as much as possible.
+
+The discoveries of the next few minutes did not serve to lighten the
+apprehension of Storms, for when he reached the proa the two islanders
+seemed to be enjoying a siesta, while neither Fred Sanders nor Inez
+was in sight.
+
+Suspecting what was wanted, one of the natives roused up and pointed
+toward the sea, jabbering some odd words, which could not be
+understood, but which Storms concluded were meant to indicate the
+direction taken by the couple.
+
+"That's almost the path to the spot where we were," he thought, as he
+turned and walked away, holding the arm of the captain within his
+own.
+
+Sure enough, they had not gone far when they caught sight of Fred and
+Inez sitting on the beach, just as if they were at some fashionable
+seaside resort in summer time, and were chattering no particular sense
+at all. Storms noticed that the place was such as to command a view of
+that where he and the captain had held their conversation, and where
+their precious possessions were buried.
+
+"I wonder whether that was done on purpose?" he thought. "It may be he
+meant nothing, but I fear he took Inez along merely to hide the fact
+that he was playing the spy upon us."
+
+It was not pleasant to believe this, and yet the suspicion was rooted
+pretty firmly in the mind of the mate, who, perhaps, was becoming
+over-suspicious.
+
+"Ah, how are you?" asked Sanders, with a laugh, changing his lounging
+to the sitting position. "I conducted Miss Inez over the proa, so as
+to make her acquainted with the craft, as you may say, and since that
+didn't take long, we thought we would try a little stroll down here,
+where we could have a talk without those natives staring at us. How is
+your friend?" asked the young man, suddenly lowering his voice to
+such a sympathetic key that Storms felt guilty for the moment for ever
+having suspected him capable of wrong.
+
+"I'm a little uneasy about him," was the reply, as both glanced at the
+captain, who sat down beside Inez and began talking to her, "for he
+seems to have broken up all at once. He was such a strong man, just in
+the prime of vigorous manhood, that it would hardly be supposed he
+would give away so suddenly."
+
+"I think he will soon recover, for the change will be so radical, and
+the awakened hope so strong, that he will be sure to rally in the
+course of a few days."
+
+"I hope so," was the response, "but he must be watched very
+carefully."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIX
+
+FAREWELL TO THE ISLAND
+
+
+The weather remained enchanting. The tropical heat was tempered by the
+ocean breeze, which stole among the palms, and across the island, and
+where the crew, and those who had lived there so long, lounged in the
+shadow, or sauntered in the sunshine, when the orb sank low in the
+western sky.
+
+It was curious that now, after the coming of the proa, when no other
+help was needed, the signal at the masthead, as it may be called,
+seemed to have acquired an unusual potency; for, on two separate
+occasions during the afternoon, the island was approached by vessels,
+who were given to understand that the parties on shore were provided
+for. Mate Storms, now the captain, very much doubted whether he did a
+wise thing in declining this proffered assistance, but the main reason
+for doing so was the fact that the pearls were still buried, and he
+knew of no way of getting them without discovery.
+
+One of the ships was a Dutch one, from Java, and the other was
+British, bound for Ceylon--neither very desirable, as they would have
+compelled a long, roundabout voyage home. But Storms would have
+accepted the offer of one on account of his distrust of the young man,
+Fred Sanders, but for the reason given.
+
+Captain Bergen, after the "setting back" given him by Storms, became
+quiet and tractable, and stayed almost entirely with Inez, for whom he
+showed the greatest affection. Since she was tenderly attached to him,
+and sympathized in his affliction, this kept the two together almost
+continually--an arrangement which it was plain to see was not
+agreeable to Fred Sanders, though he was too courteous to make any
+mention of it.
+
+During the afternoon such goods as were deemed necessary were
+transferred to the proa, which lay at anchor in the lagoon. These were
+not very numerous or valuable, and consisted mostly of garments which
+Storms had manufactured for Inez.
+
+When night came, after a meal had been eaten on shore close to where
+the proa lay, it was arranged that Sanders should sleep on board with
+his crew--if two men might be termed such--while the others should
+stay in their cabin, as was their wont.
+
+Storms contrived this on the plea that his companion, the captain,
+would be more tractable. His real purpose was to gain a chance to
+secure the pearls unnoticed. The young man made not the slightest
+objection to the plan, for he had too good sense to do so; nor did his
+silence in that respect lull the suspicions of Storms himself.
+
+"I wish there was not such a bright moon," said the mate to himself,
+not far from midnight, "for I need all the quiet and darkness I can
+get; and I don't see any use of waiting longer," he added.
+
+Captain Bergen had been sleeping quietly for several hours, while the
+silence in the apartment of Inez showed that she, too, was wrapped in
+slumber, and possibly dreaming of far-away scenes, of which her memory
+was so misty and indistinct.
+
+As to those upon the proa, everything must necessarily be conjecture;
+but, in the middle of the night, with his senses on the alert, and his
+imagination excited, Abe Storms conjured up all sorts of fancies and
+suspicions. There were many times when he believed that these men,
+including the boyish leader, were the worst kind of pirates, who were
+only waiting the chance to secure the pearls, when they would either
+desert or treacherously slay them. But, since meditation and idleness
+could avail nothing, he rose from his couch upon the floor, and,
+making sure that his loaded revolver was in place, he stole out from
+among the palm trees, and began moving in the direction of the spot
+where his treasures lay hid.
+
+He did this with the utmost precaution, glancing in every direction at
+each step, frequently pausing and changing the course he was pursuing,
+and, in short, doing everything he could think of to prevent
+detection. The full moon rode high in an almost unclouded sky, and the
+air was as charming as that of Italy. The solemn roar of the ocean and
+the irregular boom of the long, immense swells breaking against the
+shore and sending the thin sheets of foam sliding swiftly up the bank,
+were the only sounds that greeted his ears.
+
+"That is wonderful!" exclaimed the searcher, for all at once he
+descried a ship, under full sail, seemingly within two hundred yards
+of shore. "If these parties hadn't arrived to-day this craft wouldn't
+have come within a score of miles of us."
+
+The ship looked like a vast bird, when with all sail set and her black
+hull careening to one side under the wind, she drove the foaming water
+away from her bows, and sped forward as if pursuing or fleeing from
+some enemy.
+
+Whether the watch saw the signal of distress in the moonlight, cannot
+be known, but the vessel speedily passed on, and vanished in the
+night, while Mate Storms, recalling his thoughts, and seeing no one
+near him, moved directly to where he had deposited his riches such a
+long time before, and to which he only made an occasional visit.
+
+He had advanced too far to retreat, whether he was seen or not, and he
+stooped down and began digging with his hands and sheath-knife. It was
+only a short distance, when he struck something, and a moment after
+drew up a small, strong canvas bag. Soon came another, and then a
+smaller one, which contained the wonderful pearl that belonged to Inez
+Hawthorne. They were all there, and had not been disturbed.
+
+"Now, it only remains to keep these in my possession," was his
+thought, as he straightened up and started to return. "I would give
+half of them if they were at home and safe in the bank--Hello!"
+
+Perhaps the vision of the sailor was unusually keen just then, for
+when he paused with a start he caught sight of a shadowy figure, which
+seemed to glide, without any effort of its own, over the sand, and
+immediately disappeared among the palm trees. There was something so
+peculiar in its movements that Abe was chilled with awe as he stood
+still and watched it for the few seconds it remained in view. But
+there could be no doubt of its identity. It was Fred Sanders, who had
+been on the watch, and who must have seen the mate dig up the
+treasures, and knew they were now in his possession.
+
+Storms was in anything but a comfortable frame of mind while walking
+thoughtfully back to the cabin, which he entered.
+
+"What more likely than that he will steal up here in the night,
+believing I am asleep, and try to shoot me? Well, if he does so, he
+shall find me prepared for him, anyway."
+
+The first proceeding of the mate was to deposit the pearls contained
+in the three diminutive canvas sacks in a small valise, which he had
+carefully preserved all through the years, and which now held a few
+necessities that he meant to take away with him. The addition of these
+precious contents taxed the receptacle to its fullest capacity, but,
+after all, this was the best thing to do, and he believed he would be
+able to keep it under his eye during the comparatively short time they
+would be on the voyage to Wauparmur Island.
+
+It may be said, indeed, that there was nothing else to be done, which
+rendered it unfortunate that he could not secure a few hours' sleep
+before venturing away in the proa. But the nerves of the mate were too
+unstrung by his position to feel easy, and he placed himself by the
+opening of the cabin, with his hand upon the weapon, prepared to watch
+until daylight.
+
+As might have been supposed, in spite of his uneasiness, he gradually
+became drowsy, and it was not long before his head sank on his breast,
+and he, too, was asleep. It was well he did so, for he gained the rest
+so necessary, and as it was, he might have slept longer had he not
+been awakened by outside causes.
+
+Captain Bergen slept on, but Inez was on her feet at an early hour,
+and seeing that Storms was unconscious, she passed out without
+disturbing him, and made her way to the spring, where she always
+performed her morning ablutions.
+
+It was natural that the mate, going to sleep as he did, with his mind
+filled with the most dismal of fancies, should find his slumbers
+visited by horrible phantasies. He was struggling with the figure of a
+man, who had the face of Fred Sanders, and they were bearing each
+other over an immense cliff, when his opponent got the upper hand,
+and, holding him suspended for the moment, began to laugh at his
+calamity. The laugh grew louder, until it awoke the startled sleeper,
+who, opening wide his eyes, saw the veritable figure of Fred Sanders
+before him, laughing as heartily as he had been doing in the struggle
+in sleep.
+
+"Mercy! where's the valise?" gasped the bewildered Storms, clutching
+at the receptacle which lay at his side. "I thought you had stolen
+it----"
+
+Just then the quick-witted sailor recalled his situation, and he, too,
+broke into mirth, in which there was not much heartiness.
+
+"What a curious dream I had, Sanders! I really believe I have been
+asleep!"
+
+"And what is strange about that, since a full night has passed since
+we last met? I hope you have had a good rest, even though your awaking
+was not so pleasant."
+
+Abe Storms was excessively chagrined, for his very action, when
+aroused so unexpectedly, would, of itself, have turned suspicion to
+the satchel, which he snatched up like a startled miser. This action,
+united with what Captain Bergen had said, and with what the young man
+himself had witnessed the preceding night, could not have failed to
+tell him that that rusty-looking valise--about which the owner was so
+careful--contained a great amount of wealth in some form.
+
+But what of it?
+
+This was the question Storms put to himself as he sprang up and called
+to Inez--who immediately appeared--and began the preparation for the
+last meal they expected to eat upon the detested island.
+
+Captain Bergen was quiet and thoughtful, but the others were in high
+spirits.
+
+The two natives made their meal on board the proa, where they stolidly
+awaited the coming of the passengers, the "baggage" having been
+transferred the day before. And the sun was no more than fairly above
+the horizon when the proa started on her eventful voyage to Wauparmur
+Island--a voyage destined to be marked by events of which no one on
+board dreamed.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXX
+
+ON THE FLYING PROA
+
+
+At last the friends who had been left on Pearl Island three years
+before, and whose hearts had been bowed with despair more than once,
+saw the atoll gradually fade from view, until the top of the tallest
+palm-tree dipped out of sight in the blue Pacific and vanished from
+view forever.
+
+"It seems hardly possible," said Abe Storms, when at last his
+straining vision could detect no shadow of the spot, "that we have
+been rescued. I'm so full of joy and hope at the prospect before me
+that it is hard work to restrain myself from shouting and jumping
+overboard."
+
+"What is your idea in jumping overboard?" asked Sanders, with a laugh,
+in which Inez Hawthorne joined.
+
+"Merely to give expression to my exuberance of joy; after I should
+cool off, I would be cooler, of course."
+
+Captain Bergen, to the grief of his friends, showed no signs of
+mental improvement, though his hallucination took a different form.
+Instead of being talkative, like he was the day before, he became
+reserved, saying nothing to any one, not even to answer a simple
+question when it was put to him. He ensconced himself at the stern in
+such a position that he was out of the way of the man with the
+steering oar, where he curled up like one who wished neither to be
+seen nor heard.
+
+"Humor his fancies," said Sanders, "for it will only aggravate him to
+notice them. It was the same with Redvignez and Brazzier that I was
+speaking about last night."
+
+"Redvignez and Brazzier?" repeated Inez; "where did you ever see
+them?"
+
+"I sailed a voyage with them once from Liverpool, and I was telling
+Mr. Storms last night that I saw them both so frightened without cause
+that their minds were upset for a while. And may I ask whether you
+know them?" asked the young man, with a flush of surprise, addressing
+the girl.
+
+"Why, they and a negro, Pomp, were the three mutineers who were the
+means of our staying on the island. They tried to kill the captain and
+mate, but----"
+
+"She saved us," broke in Storms, who thereupon gave the narrative told
+long ago to the reader, omitting the attempt that was made upon his
+own life by cutting the hose-pipes which let the air down to him,
+inasmuch as that would have caused the telling of the pearl fishing
+also.
+
+Fred Sanders listened with great interest, for he had known the men
+well, and it may as well be stated that the danger to which the
+scoundrels were exposed, as referred to by him, was that of being
+executed for mutiny; and, as it was, the part of Sanders himself was
+such that he would have been strung up at the yard-arm in short order
+had it not been his extreme youth, which pleaded in his favor.
+
+Since Storms and his companions had revealed some things that might
+have been better concealed, so Fred Sanders himself felt he had hinted
+at a little story which was likely to injure his standing in the eyes
+of those toward whom he was playing the part of the good Samaritan.
+
+The proa was arranged as comfortably as possible, Inez Hawthorne being
+given a place in front, where a sort of compartment was made for her,
+by means of stretching awnings of cocoa-matting and a portion of the
+reserve fund of lateen on hand. The others disposed themselves so that
+she was left undisturbed whenever she chose to withdraw to her "state
+room," as Captain Fred Sanders facetiously termed it.
+
+The two natives had little to say, and they obeyed orders like the
+veritable slaves they were. There could be no doubt they understood
+the management of the proa to perfection, and the strange craft spun
+through the water with astonishing speed.
+
+Mr. Storms deposited his valise, with its valuable contents, forward,
+where he seemed to bestow little attention on it, though, as may well
+be supposed, it was ever present in his thoughts, and quite often in
+his eye.
+
+Several times in the course of the day they caught sight of sails in
+the distance, but approached none; for, as Sanders said, the
+all-important thing now was to make the most speed possible, while the
+opportunity remained to them. There was a freshening of the breeze and
+a haziness which spread through the northern horizon that caused some
+misgiving on the part of all, for the proa would be a poor shelter in
+case they were overtaken by one of those terrific tempests they had
+seen more than once.
+
+Toward the middle of the afternoon something like a low bank of clouds
+appeared to the left, or in the west, which, being scrutinized through
+the glasses, proved to be a low-lying island. Sanders knew of it, and
+said they passed it still closer on their way to the atoll.
+
+It was also an atoll like that, but much smaller in size, and, of
+course, uninhabited. It might do for a refuge in case of the coming of
+a violent storm, while in the vicinity; but otherwise it would only
+be a loss of time to pause at it. The fact that such a place existed
+so near them caused something like a feeling of security upon the part
+of Mate Storms, such as comes over one on learning he has a good
+friend at his elbow in face of some coming trouble.
+
+As the afternoon advanced, and the proa bounded forward before a
+strong, steady breeze, Storms thought the occasion a good one to
+obtain some sleep, with a view of keeping awake during the coming
+night, and he assumed an easy position, where, his mind being
+comparatively free from apprehension, he soon sank into slumber.
+
+This left Inez Hawthorne with no one to talk to excepting Fred
+Sanders, who seemed in better spirits than usual. When they had
+discussed the voyage, and he had given her as good an account as he
+could of the island toward which they were hastening, and after she
+had answered all his questions as best she could, she turned upon him
+and asked:
+
+"How long did you say you had spent in these islands?"
+
+"As nearly as I can recollect, it is about five years."
+
+"And, as you are now seventeen, you must have been only twelve years
+old when you first came here."
+
+"That agrees with my figuring," said Sanders, with a nod of his head.
+"You can't be far out of the way."
+
+"Where did you live before that?"
+
+"Well, I lived in a good many places--that is, for two years. I was on
+the Atlantic and on the Pacific and--well, it would take me a good
+long while to tell of all that I passed through. I may as well own up
+to you, Inez, that it was a wild, rough life for a man, even without
+taking into account the fact that I was a boy."
+
+"Then you went to sea when you were only ten years old?"
+
+"That also coincides with my mathematical calculations," replied
+Sanders, somewhat embarrassed, for he saw they were approaching
+delicate ground.
+
+"Then before you were ten years of age?"
+
+"I lived at home, of course."
+
+"And where was that?"
+
+"You will excuse me, Inez, from answering that question. I have
+reasons for doing so. Let me say that I stayed at home for the first
+ten years of my existence, and was as bad a boy as can be imagined. I
+fell into the worst kind of habits, and it was through the two
+men--Redvignez and Brazzier--whom I've heard you speak of, that I was
+persuaded to go to sea with them, when I ought to have been at home
+with my father."
+
+"Is your mother living, Mr. Sanders?"
+
+The youth turned his head away, so she could not see his face, and
+when he moved it back and spoke again there was a tear on his cheek,
+and he replied, in a voice of sadness:
+
+"My mother is in heaven, where her son will never be."
+
+Inez was inexpressibly shocked.
+
+"Why, Mr. Sanders, what do you mean by that?"
+
+"A better woman than she never lived, nor a worse boy than I. You
+can't understand, Inez. You are too young and too good yourself to
+realize what a wretch I was. I deliberately ran away from home seven
+years ago, and have never been within a thousand miles of it since,
+and I never expected to do so, until within the last day or so;
+somehow or other, I've fallen to thinking more than before."
+
+"Have you a father?"
+
+"I don't know. I think he is dead, too, for I was enough to break his
+heart, and I have never heard of him since. I hadn't any brothers or
+sisters when I came away. I'm all that's left, and now there is a
+longing coming over me to hunt up my father again before he dies, that
+is--if--he--isn't--already--gone!"
+
+It was no use. Fred Sanders, the wild, reckless youth, who had passed
+through many a scene that would have made a man shudder, suddenly put
+his hands to his face, and his whole frame shook with emotion. The
+memories of his early childhood came back to him, and he saw again the
+forms of those who loved him so fondly, and whose affection he
+returned with such piercing ingratitude. Conscience had slept for many
+years, but the gentle words of Inez had awakened its voice again. The
+goodness of the girl, who was already like a loved sister to Sanders,
+had stirred up the better part of his nature, and he looked upon
+himself with a shudder, that one so young as he should have committed
+his many transgressions.
+
+No wonder that he felt so pressed down that he cried out in the
+bitterness of his spirit that heaven was shut from him. It was hard
+for Inez to keep back the sympathizing tears herself when she
+witnessed the overwhelming grief of the strong youth.
+
+The latter sat silent for some minutes, holding his face partly
+averted, as if ashamed of this evidence of weakness--an evidence which
+it is safe to say he had not shown for years, young as he was.
+
+Ah, there were memories that had slumbered long which came crowding
+upon the boy--memories whose import no one on board that strange craft
+could suspect but himself, and whose work was soon to appear in a form
+and with a force that neither Inez Hawthorne nor Mate Storms so much
+as dreamed of.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXI
+
+A STRANGE CRAFT
+
+
+"I tell you a boy who uses his mother bad is sure to suffer for it
+some time. I've seen so many cases that I know there's such a law that
+governs the whole world. I thank heaven that I never brought a tear to
+my mother's eyes."
+
+The speaker was Captain Bergen, who was talking to Fred Sanders while
+the two sat together on the proa, near midnight succeeding the
+conversation mentioned between Inez and the youth Fred.
+
+The latter might have believed, as he had jocosely remarked, that he
+had captured a small party of missionaries, who were making a dead set
+at him; but his feelings had been touched in a most tender manner, and
+he had done more thinking during the last few hours than in all his
+previous life.
+
+The only one on the proa who was on duty was Fred, who held the
+steering-oar in place, while the curiously-shaped vessel sped through
+the water. The sea was very calm and the wind so slight that they
+were in reality going slower than at any previous time, and the task
+of guiding the boat was hardly a task at all.
+
+Fred sat looking up at the stars half the time, with his memory and
+conscience doing their work. His two men had lain down, and were
+asleep, for they were regular in all their habits, and he had seen
+nothing of Inez since she had withdrawn to her "apartment."
+
+Mate Storms kept up a fragmentary conversation with the young captain
+until quite late, when he withdrew, and Fred was left with himself for
+fully two hours, when Mr. Bergen crept softly forth and took a seat
+near him, even getting in such a position that he would have been very
+much in the way had any emergency arisen. The captain was disposed to
+talk--somewhat to Fred's dislike--for he was in that mood when he
+desired to be alone; but he was also in a more gracious and charitable
+temper than usual, and he answered the old captain quite kindly.
+
+"You've a good deal to be thankful for," said he, in reply to the
+remark above given. "But my mother has been in heaven for many a
+year."
+
+"She is fortunate, after all," said the captain, with a sigh, and a
+far-away look over the moonlit sea.
+
+"Yes, a great deal more fortunate than her son will ever be."
+
+"It all depends on you, young man," said the captain, severely.
+"Heaven is reached step by step, and there's no one who cannot make
+it. If you haven't started in the right direction, now's the time to
+do so."
+
+Fred Sanders may have assented to this, but he was silent, and he,
+too, looked off over the sea as if his thoughts were running in a new
+and unaccustomed channel. "My mother must be a very old woman by this
+time," added the captain, after a minute or more of silence, during
+which nothing but the rushing of the water was heard.
+
+"How old is she?" asked Fred.
+
+"She must be close on to eighty; and I think she's dead, for she was
+very feeble when I saw her, three years ago, in San Francisco. But I'm
+going to see her very soon; yes, very soon--very soon."
+
+"It's a long way to 'Frisco," ventured Fred, mildly; "but I hope you
+will have a quick voyage."
+
+"I am not going to wait till we get there."
+
+"How are you going to manage it, then?"
+
+"This way. I'm coming, mother!"
+
+And Captain Jack Bergen sprang overboard and went out of sight.
+
+"Heavens! what was that?" exclaimed Mate Storms, leaping forward from
+where he had been dozing upon his couch.
+
+"The captain has jumped overboard!" was the horrified reply of Fred
+Sanders, who was bringing the proa around as fast as he could.
+
+Without another word, Mate Storms made a bounding plunge after him,
+leaving the young captain to manage the craft as best he could. The
+latter uttered a sharp command which brought the crew to their feet in
+an instant, and, in an incredibly short space of time, the proa came
+around, and, scarcely losing any headway, moved back toward the spot
+where the demented man had sprung into the sea, which was now a long
+distance astern.
+
+It was a startling awaking for Abram Storms, who did his utmost for
+his unfortunate captain. The mate was a splendid swimmer, and,
+plunging forward with a powerful stroke, he called to his friend again
+and again, frequently lifting himself far out of the water, when on
+the crest of a swell, and straining his eyes to pierce the moonlight
+about him, hoping to catch sight of the figure of the captain, who was
+also a strong swimmer. But if he had jumped overboard with the
+intention of suicide, it was not to be supposed he would continue
+swimming. The mate, however, was hopeful that in that awful minute
+when he went beneath the waters, something like a realizing sense of
+what he had done would come to him and he would struggle to save
+himself.
+
+But, alas, for poor Captain Jack Bergen, who had journeyed so many
+thousand miles, and had endured such a long imprisonment upon a lonely
+island! He sent back no answering shout to the repeated calls of his
+mate, whose eyes failed to catch sight of his gray head as he rose and
+sank for a brief while on the water.
+
+When Fred Sanders got the proa about he guided its movements by
+the sound of the mate's voice, and, in a short while, he ran
+alongside and assisted him on board. Nothing had been seen nor
+heard of the captain, and there could be no doubt now that he was
+gone forever. Nevertheless, the proa continued cruising around the
+place for fully an hour, in widening circles, until all were convinced
+that not a particle of hope remained, when they filled away again,
+and a long, last farewell was uttered to Captain Jack Bergen.
+
+He had procured a fortune in a comparatively easy manner, and it
+looked for a time as if the payment was small; but the price demanded
+now was his life, and what more can a man give, excepting his
+soul?--which, most happily, was not the case with him.
+
+During these minutes of excitement, Inez Hawthorne slept soundly, and
+she never knew anything of the sad occurrence until the morrow was
+well advanced. Her grief prostrated her for many hours, for she was a
+child unusually affectionate by nature, and she had been tenderly
+attached to the captain, who had been such a father to her.
+
+It spread a gloom over the boat, as may be said, the only ones who
+showed no sorrow in their countenances being the dusky islanders, who
+seemed to take everything as it came along as a matter of course, and
+who obeyed the Caucasian captain like so many machines under the
+control of an engineer.
+
+Fred Sanders was thoughtful, and, what was rather curious, had little
+to say to Inez during the first portion of the day. He uttered a few
+words of sympathy when she sought to restrain her tears, but after
+that he kept very much to himself, as if there was some new and
+important matter on his mind, as was indeed the case.
+
+It will be remembered that the expectation was that the voyage of the
+proa would terminate that night by their arrival at their destination,
+but the delay caused by the moderate wind and the search for the lost
+captain led Mate Storms to feel some doubt, and he asked Captain
+Sanders his view of the matter.
+
+"I can't tell you anything about it!"
+
+It was not these words alone, so much as the abrupt manner, which set
+the mate somewhat back. He had received nothing of the kind from the
+youth since their meeting, and it astonished him.
+
+A hot reply rose to the lips of Abe Storms, but he suppressed it and
+moved away.
+
+"I wonder whether he doesn't feel soured at the thought that the death
+of the captain will prevent his getting such a large reward for his
+services?" said the mate to himself, who, after thinking over the
+matter for a few minutes longer, reached a conclusion. "We expected to
+reach Wauparmur Island to-night, before dark. We shall be late, but,
+as it is, I shall have no trouble in keeping awake the rest of the
+voyage, and I've little fear that I will not be able to protect my
+property as well as myself."
+
+With this, he moved back to the youth, and said, in a cheery voice:
+
+"You recall, sir, that poor Captain Bergen made some promises to you
+about rewarding you liberally for your services. My friend was a
+little wild in what he said, but he was right when he declared we had
+the means, and I wish simply to say that his wishes and intentions in
+that respect, which accorded with my own from the start, shall be
+carried out to the letter."
+
+Mr. Storms immediately joined Inez, while the captain made no reply,
+much to the discomfiture of the mate, who said to Inez:
+
+"What's the matter with Sanders?"
+
+"He is watching an object over the sea yonder. He has been expecting
+to discover something, and he has caught sight of it at last."
+
+The mate instantly produced his glasses, and leveled them in the
+direction the young captain was looking.
+
+There was something, indeed.
+
+As revealed by the instrument, it was what might be termed a double
+canoe, or proa--that is, two narrow canoes were joined together, side
+by side, and connected by a sort of framework, while an enormous
+lateen sail towered above them, and carried it forward with remarkable
+speed.
+
+The surprised mate carefully scrutinized the strange craft, and saw
+that it contained a large crew, there being, as he estimated, fully
+twenty men on board. It was to the westward of the smaller proa, and
+like that was pursuing almost a northerly course, though the
+experienced eyes of the sailor told him that the paths of the two were
+converging, and that, unless changed, they undoubtedly would meet
+before nightfall.
+
+The double canoe was about two miles distant, and as it rose on the
+crest of a swell the glass revealed the white foam which curled away
+from the bows, and there could be no doubt of its remarkable
+swiftness.
+
+After watching this strange craft for a few minutes, Mr. Storms
+devoted some time to a furtive but careful study of the face of Fred
+Sanders, who was on the most elevated portion of the proa, and was
+carefully noting the course of the two vessels.
+
+The alarming conclusion reached by Abram Storms was that the other
+craft contained a gang of pirates; that Fred Sanders knew them, and he
+was guiding his own proa by an understanding previously had with
+them.
+
+And Abram Storms was right.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXII
+
+A FRIEND AMONG ENEMIES
+
+
+The double canoe, with its cumbersome lateen sail and its crew of
+twenty-odd pirates, had stolen down from somewhere among the Paumotu
+Islands, and was now gradually approaching the proa which contained
+Abram Storms and Inez Hawthorne.
+
+The experience of the preceding few years, and especially of the last
+day or two, had given Mr. Storms an astonishing acuteness, which
+enabled him often to detect the truth without difficulty. The strong
+suspicion he now formed was that Fred Sanders was expecting the
+appearance of the craft, and that he was guiding his own proa in
+accordance with some prearranged plan. This was an alarming conclusion
+to reach, but Storms felt hardly a particle of doubt that he was
+right.
+
+"He intends to betray us, and has intended to do so from the first."
+
+The New Englander took another look at the double canoe, and he saw,
+even in the few minutes that had passed, that they were closer
+together. And now that his suspicions were aroused, he detected
+several other little things which only confirmed all that had entered
+his mind. The two islanders who composed the crew were continually
+glancing off at their brothers, and frequently spoke in low tones, and
+showed by the gleam of their swarthy faces that they were on the
+tip-toe of expectation.
+
+From one corner of the lateen sail, Storms now noticed that a large
+crimson handkerchief was fluttering in the wind.
+
+"It is put there as a signal," was the decision respecting that, "and
+doubtless signifies that they have us on board and all is going
+right."
+
+Fred Sanders was so occupied with this business that he never once
+suspected that he himself was being watched in turn.
+
+"Inez," said the mate, "go to the captain and speak a few words to
+him."
+
+"But he is so occupied that he will not wish to be disturbed."
+
+"Never mind about that; I wish you to go and say a few pleasant words
+to him. Let them be sympathetic."
+
+"What shall I say?"
+
+"I can give you no further directions."
+
+"I am loth to do so, but if you wish it----"
+
+"I wish it very much."
+
+That was enough, and the girl, with some natural hesitation of manner,
+advanced to the young captain, who did not notice her until she was at
+his elbow.
+
+"Good-day, Captain Fred," she said; "you have been busy so long that
+you must be tired, for you slept none last night."
+
+He looked toward her with a quick, curious expression. There was a
+half-smile on his face, while his forehead was wrinkled with
+displeasure. Inez noticed this, and would have withdrawn had she not
+recalled the strange earnestness with which Storms made the request
+for her to utter a few pleasant words to the youth. She therefore
+determined to carry out his wishes.
+
+"Can't we relieve you of your work?" continued she.
+
+Sanders was in reality doing nothing in the way of physical labor,
+since the steering oar was in the hands of one of the crew, but he was
+absorbed in "watching things," as the expression goes.
+
+"I am sure there is no way in which you can relieve me," said Fred,
+unbending somewhat from his reserve.
+
+"We are in such deep water, and the wind is so fair, that there can be
+no danger, I suppose. But tell me, what sort of a boat is that yonder
+which is pursuing nearly the same course with us?"
+
+"That--I presume," was the hesitating response, as the young man
+glanced in that direction, "is one of the double canoes or proas which
+are often seen among these islands."
+
+"And who are the crew?"
+
+"Islanders, like my own."
+
+"Are we going to meet them?"
+
+"I hardly know what to answer to that," said Fred, looking inquiringly
+toward the large proa again, as if he had not seen it before.
+
+"Well, Captain Sanders, they must be pirates," said Inez, stepping
+close to him, and speaking in a low, tremulous voice; "but whether
+they are or not, my faith in God and in you cannot be changed. I know
+you will do all you can for us----"
+
+"There! there!" protested the young captain, with an expression of
+pain on his face, "say no more. Please go away, Inez, and leave me
+alone."
+
+"Of course I will leave you, if you do not wish me here, but gratitude
+would not let me keep silent. I know, from what you said last night,
+that you have a good heart, and henceforth conscience is to be your
+master and guide."
+
+And without looking to see the effect of her words, Inez left the
+captain to his own thoughts.
+
+Abram Storms, with folded arms, was intently watching him, and he
+carefully studied his countenance. He was still doing so, when Inez
+turned her back upon Sanders. Mr. Storms noted the strange expression
+on the handsome countenance, and just then Sanders turned and looked
+straight at the man before the latter could withdraw his gaze. As
+their eyes met, he signaled to Storms to approach, and the latter,
+with no little wonderment and some misgiving, did so.
+
+"Mr. Storms," said he, "that double canoe off yonder has twenty-three
+pirates on board."
+
+"I suspected as much," coolly replied the other.
+
+"And a set of worse villains cannot be found in the South Seas."
+
+"I am sure you are quite right."
+
+"These two men that I have on board belong to the same crew."
+
+"Indeed! I hadn't thought of that."
+
+"I belong to the same gang."
+
+"I suspected that!"
+
+"You did, eh? Did you suspect that I was in the plot to obtain
+possession of your pearls?"
+
+"I did not suspect it; I was sure of it, which is why I have carried
+my loaded revolver with me."
+
+"That wouldn't have defeated the plan we had laid, for when
+twenty-three odd savages, with their spears, war-clubs and a few
+muskets, had stolen up to the island in the darkness, and crept
+silently into your cabin, what good would your guns and revolvers have
+done you?"
+
+"Was that the plan?"
+
+"That was it precisely. By some means or other, which I never could
+understand, rumors reached Wauparmur, months ago, that two men and a
+child were on an island to the south of us, and that they had an
+immense lot of the most valuable pearls. I cannot comprehend how it
+was the natives gained such knowledge, for it must have had some basis
+of truth, inasmuch as it proved to be true."
+
+"There was a proa which passed close to the island while we were
+opening the pearl-oysters," said Storms. "We all saw it."
+
+"The rumor came from them, then," continued Sanders, "and a party was
+formed to go down there, and find out whether it was true, and, in
+case it was, the white men were to be overcome by treachery, and their
+possessions in the shape of pearls taken. Since there is no more
+desperate and wicked member of the gang than am I, of course I was one
+of the first chosen.
+
+"We started in two boats, and, as we went along, I could see
+difficulties in the way which never occurred to them. It was not
+likely you carried the pearls about with you, as a person wears his
+jewelry; but most likely they were buried, so that if we came down
+upon you and made an overwhelming attack, as was first intended, we
+might put you all to death, and then be unable to find where you had
+hidden your treasures. Besides that, I saw that it was more than
+probable you had firearms, with which you could successfully hold out
+against a large force, and it would prove no easy thing to subdue
+you."
+
+"You were correct in both your surmises," said Storms. "We were always
+prepared to make a fight, and, with our guns against your spears, we
+would have beaten you off. The pearls, too, were carefully concealed
+where you never would have found them."
+
+"I was well convinced of that, so we resorted to strategy. I was to go
+with a couple of the men and bring you away, trying all the time if I
+could to secure the pearls, which, of course, were afterwards to be
+disposed of and the proceeds divided among us--the intention being
+that when we got you on the proa, you would be pitched overboard, for
+then the situation would be so changed that we could manage it without
+trouble. If I thought it unsafe to make the attempt, I had only to
+wait until reinforcements should come up; for the larger boat, knowing
+the course I was to take on my return, had only to be on the lookout
+for us, and we would be sure to descry each other."
+
+"And that was to be your signal that you had us aboard?" said Storms,
+pointing to the fluttering handkerchief.
+
+"That's it precisely," assented Sanders. "But there was one force
+which we did not think to provide against," added the young man, in a
+low voice, in which Storms detected a slight tremor.
+
+"What was that?"
+
+"An awakened conscience," was the impressive answer. "And it was she
+who aroused the sleeper. There was something in the goodness of the
+girl--the faith which she showed not only in heaven but in me as
+well--that upset all my calculations. Then, too, she seemed to say the
+right words just at the right time; and you saw how I suffered."
+
+"Yes; and it gave me great hope; for, Fred, I distrusted you from the
+beginning. I saw many little things which you never supposed I nor any
+one else would notice. And I may add," said the mate, with a sly
+twinkle, "that I endeavored always to be prepared for you."
+
+The face of Sanders flushed, but he added, with the same seriousness:
+
+"Matters now are going in accordance with the program arranged days
+ago. The large proa yonder has been waiting for us, and we are now to
+keep on converging lines until we meet to-night."
+
+"Do you intend to follow out your agreement?"
+
+"No; I had an awful struggle with my conscience last night, after my
+talk with Inez and with the poor captain, but the evil triumphed in
+me, despite all I could do. The fight was still going on, being
+renewed this morning, and I had about yielded to Satan, when she came
+and spoke to me. That," said Fred Sanders, with a compression of the
+lips, "has settled it forever. I am now your friend, and I am ready to
+give up my life for the safety of you and her, hoping that heaven will
+take it, with my repentance, as some atonement for the many sins I
+have committed."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXIII
+
+THE PURSUIT
+
+
+There are two angels within us forever struggling for the mastery: One
+is the angel of darkness, and the other of light--of evil and of
+good.
+
+They had waged their battle in the heart of Fred Sanders for a long
+time, and too often did the restraining spirit fold her hands over her
+face and withdraw in sorrow at the triumph of the other. But the final
+struggle--the decisive warfare--was now ended, and the beauteous
+countenance of the good angel was radiant with hope and courage, for a
+soul had been saved.
+
+Abram Storms smiled with pleasure as he looked upon the manly young
+fellow, and he was filled with delight at the resolution shown by
+him.
+
+"There is no shrinking or trembling there," said Storms to himself.
+"He means every word he says, and he will stick to the end."
+
+The man tried to look calm and self-possessed, when he moved forward
+and extended his hand, but there were tears in his eyes, and he could
+only murmur:
+
+"God bless you, my boy! You have chosen the better part."
+
+They were silent for a minute or so, each one's thoughts active, when
+Fred said:
+
+"If you please, I would rather that Inez should know nothing of
+this."
+
+"She never shall know a word of it from me."
+
+"One of these days, perhaps, I will tell her what a villain she was
+the means of saving from destruction."
+
+Fred appreciated the skill, seamanship and shrewdness of Storms, and
+consulted fully with him, saying that, as he himself was captain, he
+would appoint the other to his old position--that of mate.
+
+The whole scheme had already been made clear by the youth. The large
+proa was in sight, by appointment, having been cruising back and forth
+for several days, on the lookout for the smaller boat with the party
+who it was expected would be robbed and killed for the valuable pearls
+in their possession. The signal of the fluttering handkerchief from
+the triangular sail meant that the party were on board, and the
+original program was to be carried out. That is, the pursuing boat was
+to hold off until after dark. She was to keep on a converging course,
+so as not to lose sight of the small proa, and gradually approaching,
+overhaul and attack her at the time when the chances of success were
+at the best.
+
+The plan decided upon by Captain Sanders was simply to keep away from
+the larger craft, and to do his utmost to prevent being overhauled;
+and he showed his earnestness in this respect by taking the steering
+oar and bearing away from the other, so that, instead of being
+converging, they became parallel.
+
+The two natives displayed some surprise when they observed this
+action, but they said nothing, and most likely felt no suspicion as
+yet of their captain, whose desperation and heartlessness on more than
+one previous occasion had won the confidence of the islanders.
+
+It was not long before the change was noticed on board the pursuer,
+where, most likely, it was accepted as the proper thing, possibly on
+account of the fear from the passengers.
+
+"I have no revolver like you," said Captain Fred, after they had kept
+this up for a couple of hours, "but I have a double-barreled pistol
+which is loaded to the muzzle. You have your six-chambered weapon, and
+you must keep it ready, for, when the two islanders here become
+certain of the truth, it is more than probable they will make a savage
+attack on us, for two more desperate demons never lived."
+
+"I should hardly think so," said the mate, glancing furtively at
+them.
+
+"No; they are as meek looking as lambs, but they were sent with me on
+account of their fierce courage. Why, they were ready and eager, when
+we visited you upon the island, to make an open attack, where the
+chances of their defeat were about even. They would rather fight and
+kill any moment than eat, and I had to be pretty sharp to restrain
+them."
+
+"I shan't forget your warning."
+
+"It won't do for either of us to sleep to-night, for they are as
+treacherous as cobras. They would feign slumber on purpose to put us
+off our guard, and then stab us to death in our sleep."
+
+"Will we not reach Wauparmur to-night?"
+
+"It is doubtful, for the change we have made in the course is taking
+us away from the true direction and gives the advantage to them, as
+they are closer in than we. We have lost some good ground from the
+lightness of the wind, and we shall be fortunate if we catch sight of
+the place before to-morrow's sunrise."
+
+"After all, Captain Fred, it must be a question of speed between us
+and our pursuer. Which, therefore, is the faster, the double canoe
+yonder or ourselves?"
+
+A troubled expression came over the face of the young captain, as he
+answered:
+
+"I don't know, for there has never been a test. We kept company most
+of the way out, but we rattled along without any thought of speed,
+sometimes together and sometimes apart; but my opinion is that in
+moderate weather like the present there is little difference between
+us, or if there is any it is in our favor. In a strong wind, the other
+would he apt to outspeed us."
+
+"We are going to have more wind," said the mate, looking anxiously
+about him. "I think I perceive it freshening already."
+
+"I fear the same thing," said Fred, who was manifestly very uneasy.
+"We are now about two miles apart, and the prospect is that that will
+be cut down one-half by sunset."
+
+"And then?"
+
+Fred shrugged his shoulders.
+
+"All is not lost. When the sun goes down, with us a mile apart, we
+shall be invisible; but they will crowd all speed, and stand a good
+chance of coming up with us again."
+
+"But we gain a chance to maneuver."
+
+"There is hope and yet great risk in that, for if we can throw them
+off the track we shall be safe, for we can easily get beyond their
+range of vision long before sunrise; but at the same time, in making
+these sharp turns, we shall lose a great deal of ground, provided we
+don't succeed, and if they once get in sight of us after the moon
+rises, the race will be ended, for we won't gain a chance to dodge
+them again."
+
+"And then?"
+
+"There will be the worst fight you ever saw. We shall have to begin by
+shooting these two, or pitching them overboard, if they don't happen
+to get their work in ahead of us, and then we shall have more than
+twenty savage islanders to keep off--if we can."
+
+"We are pretty well armed, Captain Fred."
+
+"Yes, we have our pistols, and there is a musket apiece for you, me
+and Inez--for she will have to take a hand in the fight."
+
+"And there will be no braver than she. Have they any firearms on
+board?"
+
+"I'm sorry to say they have, and that's what makes me more anxious
+than anything else. There are spears, knives, battle-axes and at least
+six loaded muskets, and what is more, the men who have them in hand
+know how to use them."
+
+Mate Storms looked anxious, as well he might, for this was a phase of
+the question which had not presented itself to him. The case being as
+it was, the pursuers would be likely to begin firing as soon as they
+came within range, and when close in, the matter would be entirely
+within their hands.
+
+Everything seemed to augur ill for the fugitives. The wind was
+steadily increasing and the flying proa was dashing through the water
+at a tremendous rate. The pursuing one had already shifted its course,
+so that this early in the afternoon the struggle had begun and
+settled down to a virtual test of speed.
+
+"What do you suppose they think of the whole business?" asked Mate
+Storms, looking back at the double canoe as it rose on a huge swell at
+the same moment that they themselves sank in the vast, watery waste.
+
+"I don't know whether they think anything is wrong yet or not, but
+imagine I am trying to keep off until after dark."
+
+"Why, then, don't they respect your purpose and work with you?"
+
+"The leader of that company is an islander who is somewhat jealous of
+me. He believes he knows more about such business than I do, and he
+has made up his mind to keep this in hand, no matter what my wishes
+are. So, though he may think I mean all right, yet he is sure he knows
+better, and governs himself accordingly."
+
+"These two men here on board try to look indifferent, but they act
+suspiciously to me."
+
+"And they are suspicious, too."
+
+Fred Sanders might have added further that they were not only
+suspicious, but had actually discovered the truth.
+
+They understood the purpose which had brought all three to the lonely
+island, and they knew that that purpose had been changed.
+
+Inez Hawthorne, the girl of his own race, had caused this wonderful
+transformation in the heart of the young captain, and instead of being
+her enemy, he had become the devoted friend of herself and companion.
+While they could not understand the English tongue as they heard it
+spoken, they could read the meaning of looks and gestures and the
+confidential talks which they saw going on around them. They were
+convinced that their captain intended to betray them, and prevent the
+wealth from falling into their hands.
+
+Would they submit?
+
+Far from it. They would not only refuse to give their assent to any
+such perfidy, but they would use their utmost endeavors to defeat it.
+Such was their purpose, and Fred Sanders knew it, for he understood
+the character of the wretches; well, therefore, was it that he
+whispered the warning in the ear of Mate Abram Storms.
+
+Inez Hawthorne sat at the front of the proa, in the place that had
+been assigned her, for something seemed to tell her that the men were
+so occupied with their duties that it would be better for her to keep
+away from them. It was with much reluctance that she consented to
+exchange the few words with Captain Fred Sanders, and little did she
+dream that it was those same few words which turned the young man from
+a deadly enemy into the most devoted ally, and gave some promise of
+life to herself and her companion. Yet, as we have shown, such was the
+fact.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXIV
+
+CLOSING IN
+
+
+When the sun sank in the western horizon, the situation of the two
+craft had not materially changed. The larger had perceptibly gained
+upon the smaller; but a good distance still separated them, and both
+parties were doing their utmost. The wind was blowing stronger than at
+mid-day, but it was not such a gale as had been feared, and our
+friends were not without hope of eluding the natives, who were
+endeavoring to overtake them.
+
+Inez Hawthorne could not avoid seeing how matters stood, though she
+was far from suspecting the whole truth. Mr. Storms told her that the
+other boat contained pirates, who were doing their utmost to overtake
+them, and they were striving their hardest to prevent it. As it stood,
+there was a prospect of a fight, in which she would likely be called
+upon to take part. She smiled, looked reverently upward, and said she
+was ready whenever needed, and then she remained as cool and watchful
+as either of her friends.
+
+Mr. Storms advised her not to go to sleep, as the coming night must
+decide the case one way or the other for them.
+
+"No fear of my sleeping," she said. "I realize our position too well
+to do that."
+
+"And Inez," whispered Storms, "these two savages on board are the
+worst sort of men. Keep watch, and do not place yourself in too
+dangerous a position respecting them."
+
+"I have been alarmed more than once at their looks and mutterings."
+
+As the sun went down, it was a curious sight when the double canoe
+rose on a swell and was outlined against the flaming disc behind, as
+we have described the ship and the moon more than three years before.
+
+The sight was a strange one, though it lasted but a moment, when the
+craft went down, and the smaller proa swiftly climbed the long slope
+of the watery mountain in front. The round moon speedily rose in the
+sky, and it was so bright that it was hard to tell when twilight ended
+and its light began.
+
+Never did Storms and Sanders long for utter darkness more than on the
+present occasion. Had the moon been obscured, they would have made a
+sharp turn in their flight, with every prospect of throwing the others
+completely off their trail, and with every reason to hope for a clean
+escape before sunrise.
+
+But the flood of moon light prevented either proa losing sight of the
+other.
+
+"There's only one thing left to us now," said the young captain.
+
+"And that's to fight."
+
+Fred nodded his head.
+
+"Well, we can do that. But I wish we were well rid of these fellows
+with us. It puts us between two fires, and there can be no doubt they
+suspect the truth."
+
+"I am sure of that. Hello!"
+
+Mr. Storms had hold of the steering-oar, and Fred was sitting close to
+him when he uttered the last exclamation, and, springing forward,
+hastily drew his pistol, took a quick aim and fired.
+
+A frenzied howl followed, and one of the crew made a furious plunge
+far out into the sea, and, going down like a log, never came up
+again.
+
+"Over with you, too!" shouted Sanders, in their native tongue, his
+eyes flashing; "not an instant, or I'll shoot!"
+
+The savage did not hesitate, with his knife clenched in his hand, and
+the young captain leveled his pistol at him.
+
+The sight of the muzzle so close to his skull, and the finger
+resolutely pressing the trigger, were too much, and the savage made a
+tremendous leap, like a tiger springing from his hiding-place, went
+far out into the sea, and, quickly coming to the surface, blew the
+water from his mouth, and began swimming with a swift, powerful stroke
+in the direction of the pursuing boat.
+
+"Did you see that?" inquired Sanders, beginning coolly to reload his
+pistol.
+
+"What do you mean?"
+
+"Did you know why I fired as quickly as I did?"
+
+"No."
+
+"That wretch had drawn his knife, and was moving in the direction of
+the unsuspecting Inez, sitting there. I overheard him say something
+which aroused my suspicion, and he was in the very act of raising his
+knife when I fired."
+
+"Is it possible? He deserved death, then, and you finished him. But
+what purpose could they have in killing an innocent girl like her?"
+
+"Pure fiendishness--that's all. Then they meant to make their attack
+upon us, and they would have made things lively."
+
+"But how much better it would have been had they waited until the
+others attacked, when they could have made a fatal diversion?"
+
+"Most certainly; but their course shows the nature of the wretches.
+They are so fiendish and so eager to fight that they have no
+judgment."
+
+"Are we heading toward Wauparmur, Fred?"
+
+"No; we are steering wide of it."
+
+"Since, then, we are engaged in a regular chase for that port, why not
+head straight for the island, so as to have that advantage, at
+least?"
+
+"You are right, for there is nothing to be gained by maneuvering to
+throw them off the track."
+
+Fred Sanders took a small compass from his pocket, and studied it
+carefully for a minute or two by the light of the moon. Then he gave
+directions to Storms to bear more to the left, or the westward, until
+finally he informed him that they were heading directly for the port
+where all their hopes were now centered.
+
+The wind fell slightly, but the pursuing boat steadily gained, and it
+was impossible to see how our friends could escape a hand-to-hand
+fight with the pirates, and there could be but one issue to such an
+encounter.
+
+The islanders were thoughtful enough to lower their immense sail, and
+stand by until they could pick up their comrade struggling in the
+water, actuated probably as much by curiosity to know the facts as by
+humanity.
+
+This gave our friends a show once more, and they drew away from their
+pursuers; but, alas! not to an extent to leave them out of sight, and
+until they could do so, they could not hope to accomplish anything.
+
+Mr. Storms was not without a strong hope of seeing some friendly
+sail, to which they could hasten for assistance, and he continually
+searched the horizon, telling Inez to do the same.
+
+Captain Fred did not expect anything of that nature, and, since the
+glasses were in his hands, he kept them turned most of the time in the
+direction of the double canoe, and called out his information and
+orders to his mate at the helm.
+
+Of course the distance was much less than a mile, or the proa would
+scarcely have been discernible, but the moonlight was strong, such as
+those who live in temperate zones can hardly realize, and the
+illumination of the sea was wonderfully brilliant.
+
+Both Fred and Storms, who had spent years in the South Seas, agreed
+that they had never seen anything like it before, and, for all
+purposes, it might as well have been broad day. The finest print could
+have been read with ease, and the glasses leveled at the approaching
+boat showed the crowds of swarthy pirates on board, all as eager as
+wolves to come up with the craft, which they were gaining so steadily
+upon.
+
+And the fugitives knew well enough what the sequel would be. The rival
+of Captain Fred would want no better excuse for cutting him and his
+companions to pieces, and the wealth in their possession would be more
+"loot" than the same parties could obtain in a dozen piratical
+expeditions.
+
+"But they shall never get a pennyworth of it!" said Abe Storms to
+Fred.
+
+The latter lowered his glass and looked inquiringly at him.
+
+"When it becomes absolutely certain that they have got us, I shall
+throw all the pearls overboard, so that they shall gain nothing more
+than our lives."
+
+"That's right; only," said the young captain, with a smile, "I advise
+you not to be in too much of a hurry about it, for you will feel
+somewhat mortified if we reach Wauparmur, after all, and you find you
+have cast your whole wealth into the sea."
+
+"I shan't lose my head," said the mate, with a laugh, "unless one of
+them takes it off."
+
+Inez Hawthorne was silent at the prow of the proa, where she was
+looking for the longed-for sail, which, alas! was never to appear, for
+she, too, had come to believe there was no other hope for her and her
+friends.
+
+Mate Storms and Captain Fred happened to turn their heads at the same
+moment, and were looking at the double proa coming up with them very
+rapidly, when each uttered an exclamation, for they suddenly saw a red
+flash at the prow of the boat, a puff of smoke, and then the report of
+a musket reached them almost at the same instant that the whistle of
+the bullet through the rigging was heard.
+
+"By George, they are firing at us!" said Fred, as if it was not the
+most natural thing in the world for them to do.
+
+"Yes, and they're aiming pretty well, too, for that shot went through
+the sail!"
+
+"I hardly supposed they were near enough to do that, but they are in
+earnest. Wouldn't it be a good idea to reply to their hail?"
+
+"It would, most undoubtedly!"
+
+Putting up his glass, Captain Fred dived forward, brought out one of
+the muskets, and taking deliberate aim, fired at the approaching
+craft.
+
+His shot was a fortunate one, too, for the cry which instantly
+followed showed that some one was struck. The others did not fire
+again for some time, but seemed to concentrate all their energies and
+attention upon the pursuit, which was turning more and more every
+minute in their favor.
+
+"I don't see any escaping a fight," said Fred Sanders. "Inez says she
+hasn't caught a glimpse of a sail, and I am sure she won't. We may as
+well bring our guns here and be ready to repel boarders."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXV
+
+WAUPARMUR
+
+
+Oftener than we suppose does heaven interfere directly in the affairs
+of men. Minutes had passed since Sanders and Storms had agreed that no
+earthly occurrence could avert a fight with the dusky demons, with
+scarcely a grain of hope for escape from them, when Inez uttered the
+astounding exclamation:
+
+"We are gaining on them!"
+
+It was inconceivable, and the two looked again to the rear to learn
+the cause of her unaccountable delusion. Five minutes later Sanders
+added in a husky gasp:
+
+"She is right; we are not only gaining, but we are gaining fast."
+
+"How do you account for it?"
+
+"I can't account for it."
+
+"I can."
+
+"How?" asked the amazed youth.
+
+"God interposes many times when mortals do not see it," said the New
+Englander reverently; "there is joy in heaven over one sinner that
+repenteth. You have repented, and He has extended his hand to help
+you."
+
+"Perhaps you are right," replied Sanders, much impressed.
+
+"I _know_ I am right."
+
+"And I hope to prove worthy of such undeserved kindness. All I ask is
+the opportunity."
+
+"It shall be granted you. But, humanly speaking, there has been some
+accident on board that craft yonder."
+
+"It must be that; as a sailor, you know any one of a half dozen things
+would be sufficient to throw them out of the race. A ripping of the
+sail, a fracture of the mast, the breaking of the steering gear, or
+some sudden quarrel would do the trick. Sufficient for us is it to
+know that it has been done."
+
+"God helps them that helps themselves," added Storms, "and we must
+improve to the utmost the chance thrown in our way."
+
+Naturally the fear of the two was that their pursuers might repair the
+accident which was throwing them to the rear for the time, and regain
+what was lost. They steadily fell behind, and, as soon as invisible,
+the proa made an abrupt change in her course, with the view of
+defeating the calamity that they feared threatened them. When this had
+lasted for an hour, another change was effected, with the result, as
+Sanders announced, that they were now heading directly for Wauparmur.
+
+The eyes peering backward through the vivid moonlight failed to bring
+the dreaded craft to view, and it was not yet midnight when Sanders
+announced the thrilling fact that the twinkling lights, which appeared
+in front like a constellation in the horizon, were made by the
+dwellings in the native South Sea town of Wauparmur. All danger was
+past, and about an hour later the proa glided in among the shipping in
+that excellent harbor, made fast to the wharf, and the three
+disembarked.
+
+Fred led the way to a house of entertainment near the harbor, in which
+he found good lodging for his friends.
+
+Abram Storms carried all the precious pearls to his room and carefully
+secured the door, after which he threw himself upon the bed and slept
+as soundly as an infant.
+
+Inez Hawthorne, in the solitude of her apartment, devoutly thanked her
+Heavenly Father for His care, and then she, too, slept the sleep of
+exhaustion and perfect health.
+
+It was near noon on the succeeding day when both rose and found Fred
+Sanders awaiting them. The young man had not slept at all, and was
+uneasy.
+
+"It won't do to stay here another night," said he, in explanation, as
+soon as the meal was concluded.
+
+"I am sure we have no wish to do so," replied Storms. "But wherein
+lies the particular peril?"
+
+"That whole crew of the double canoe are scattered through town, and
+they only await the chance to kill us. They will find the chance, too,
+to-night, if we remain here."
+
+"But what is the prospect of getting away?"
+
+"I was in despair nearly all the forenoon; but a little while ago I
+came upon a schooner which sails for San Francisco at three o'clock
+this afternoon. I have engaged passage on it for us three, for you
+know I go with you."
+
+"How can we ever repay you for your kindness?" said Inez, her lustrous
+eyes speaking eloquently her gratitude to the youth.
+
+"There's no service on earth that I can render you which will compare
+with what you have done for me," was the reply of Captain Fred, whose
+manner showed his sincerity. Inez Hawthorne did not understand what
+all this meant, but the speaker ventured upon no explanation at the
+time.
+
+As the three were about to start upon a long voyage, it was decided
+that some indispensable articles should be procured, and, since they
+had little spare time at command, the three set out immediately after
+dinner.
+
+Wauparmur, as we have already intimated, is a town numbering several
+hundreds--perhaps more than a thousand--in population. Among these are
+a number of foreign shopkeepers, whose places are close along shore,
+so as to be the more readily accessible to their customers, who are
+almost exclusively confined to those on board the vessels which stop
+at the island.
+
+Back from the town the land rises into hills, and the settlement
+becomes straggling and scattered. In these portions it is composed
+entirely of rude huts and cabins, in which none but natives live, and
+they are a bad lot.
+
+It was from among those who lived in the "suburbs" that the wretches
+were gathered with which to attempt to capture and murder the little
+party of Europeans for the sake of the invaluable pearls they had in
+their possession.
+
+Fred Sanders shuddered when he thought of the risk he and his friends
+ran by going straight to the inn and taking quarters for the night,
+for these miscreants must, after all, have reached Wauparmur only a
+few hours after the proa, and the wonder was that they did not manage
+to slay the fugitives in their beds.
+
+The first thing Fred did in the morning was to slip out and buy a
+revolver, and his second act was to load it.
+
+While engaged in hunting a vessel upon which to take passage, he
+encountered his own acquaintances continually, and he needed not their
+black faces and scowling eyes to tell how they thirsted to kill him
+for his treachery. It was only by his bold front and constant
+watchfulness that he kept the dusky demons at a distance. Some of them
+were seen when the three ventured out, and though the pirates dared
+not attack them in open daylight, they were on the verge of doing so
+more than once. But their fury was directed principally against
+Captain Fred Sanders, and there can be no doubt the youth spoke the
+truth when he declared that if he attempted to stay on land until
+morning, he would not live till midnight.
+
+Mr. Storms laid in a good supply of clothing, shoes and knick-knacks
+for himself and Inez, and with as little delay as possible. When they
+reached the wharf and approached the plank leading to the deck of the
+schooner, Mr. Storms noticed a small man standing a few feet off, with
+a blanket drawn up about his shoulders and neck like an Indian. His
+legs, feet and head were bare, but a huge bandage was bound around his
+forehead, giving him a grotesque appearance.
+
+His position was like a statue, and he held the blanket so high that
+little could be seen except his black, glittering eyes. Some distance
+off, on the street close to the shop-houses, was a group of other
+natives, who looked as if they were expecting some important event.
+
+So they were, indeed!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXVI
+
+HOMEWARD BOUND
+
+
+"Storms, do you notice that fellow?" asked Fred Sanders, as they
+approached the plank.
+
+"Yes; it looks odd to see him standing there so motionless, and yet
+with his eyes fixed upon us."
+
+"He's Weroo, the man who led that gang of pirates last night, and he
+hates me with such a consuming hate that he sent out his men to kill
+me, and in case they fail to do so, he has stationed himself there
+with the determination to assassinate me, for he is ready to run any
+risk rather than allow me to get away."
+
+"Are you prepared?" asked Storms, with no little anxiety.
+
+"I rather guess so! Walk ahead with Inez and leave him to me."
+
+With some hesitation, Storms did as requested, though he placed his
+hand on his revolver, so as to be ready for any emergency, the crew of
+the _Albatross_, who were busying themselves around, seeming to hold
+no suspicion of the situation.
+
+Just as Captain Fred put his foot on the plank, the islander took a
+short step forward, like a panther gathering himself for the leap upon
+its victim. At that very instant, as if by intuition, Captain Fred
+turned about and leveled his revolver at the muffled figure, which
+paused. Every one who was looking on supposed, of course, the boy was
+going to fire, but, though his finger pressed the trigger, he did not
+discharge his weapon. With the pistol pointed straight at the savage,
+Fred slowly backed up the plank, keeping his foe covered until he
+himself was on the deck of the schooner.
+
+The barbarian seemed paralyzed. After taking the slight step forward,
+he paused and stood motionless, staring and transfixed, until his
+victim was beyond his reach. Then, without a word or exclamation, he
+turned about, and strode away to where his infuriated and discomfited
+comrades were watching him with not the slightest doubt he would
+prevent the escape of the white boy. Within the succeeding hour the
+_Albatross_ was standing down the bay, with all sail spread; and her
+long voyage to distant California was begun.
+
+Ah, that journey from the South Seas across the equator and northward
+into the stern climate of the Temperate Zone!
+
+Not one of those who participated in it can forget it to his dying
+day. They had many hours of fierce, wild weather, in which the
+_Albatross_ was more than once in danger, but Captain Hardy was a good
+sailor, he had a good crew, and he safely rode through it all.
+
+Then came those delightful nights which seem peculiar to the Pacific,
+when the moonlight takes on a witchery of its own, and the calm sea
+becomes like an enchanted lake as the vessel glides over it.
+
+Captain Hardy was a kind man as well as a skilful sailor, and, since
+he received a most liberal price for the passage of the three persons
+who joined him at Wauparmur, the best treatment was given them.
+
+It was on this homeward voyage that Captain Fred Sanders told to Mate
+Storms and Inez Hawthorne the story of his life, the main points of
+which have already been hinted to the reader. He ran away from his
+home in San Francisco when but a mere boy, scarcely ten years old. He
+was led into all sorts of evil, and was so deeply implicated in a
+fierce mutiny that, as we have said, he would have been strung up at
+the yard-arm, excepting for his extreme youth.
+
+He then joined a trading vessel in the South Seas, but the crew were
+attacked and massacred by a band of pirates, and he was taken off a
+prisoner. These pirates belonged to the Wauparmur settlement, and they
+were so pleased with the bravery displayed by the boy that they
+adopted him among them. There was something in the life which was
+attractive to the wild American lad, and he embraced it eagerly, and
+spent five years among them. His bravery, skill, and natural
+"smartness," advanced him rapidly along the line of promotion, until,
+while yet a boy, he became an acknowledged leader.
+
+Captain Fred spent a portion of his time in the settlement, where he
+showed his good sense, in one respect at least, by picking up all the
+education he could from the instructors who were to be found there. He
+succeeded well--which will explain the intelligence he displayed in
+this respect while conversing with his friends.
+
+He confessed all this, and said further that his mother died before he
+ran away, and he had no idea where his father was; but, if he were
+alive, the son determined to find him, no matter where he might be on
+the broad earth. Now that his conscience had been awakened, his
+affection came back with it, and his great fear was that he would not
+see his parent alive.
+
+It was a source of never-ending wonder to Fred Sanders how it was he
+could have been so wicked a lad, and how it was that his moral sense
+could have been so totally eclipsed for years. The gentle, winning
+words of Inez Hawthorne had first aroused his conscience, until
+finally it would not allow him to rest until he had made his peace
+with it.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXVII
+
+CONCLUSION
+
+
+Many a long hour did the two--Fred and Inez--spend in talking together
+of the past and their future. They were as brother and sister to each
+other, and their prospects were discussed as if it were fixed that
+they should never lose sight of each other again.
+
+It was on this voyage, too, that Abram Storms disclosed the plan of
+action he had decided upon.
+
+"The pearls which I have in my possession I shall dispose of in San
+Francisco--or at least a portion of them. Those which were my share,
+according to the original agreement, I shall keep. The single pearl,
+which will doubtless bring a large price in New York, is the property
+of Inez, and shall be devoted to her benefit. I intend to place her in
+a school and make a systematic effort to trace her parentage. The
+pearls left by Captain Bergen go to you, Fred."
+
+But here occurred the first stumbling-block. Fred Sanders refused
+pointedly, but firmly, to accept a single one of them. He declared he
+had no claim upon any one of that little party, and he would not
+suffer himself to be dissuaded from his position.
+
+He was yet young, vigorous and ambitious, and with the help of heaven
+he would carve out his own fortune. Seeing it was useless to argue the
+question, Storms fell back upon the original intention of Captain
+Bergen, which was to devote the greater portion of his wealth to
+charity.
+
+In due time, the _Albatross_ glided through the Golden Gate, and our
+friends found themselves in San Francisco, whose streets all had trod
+years before.
+
+The first thing Storms did after establishing Inez in pleasant
+quarters was to hunt up the mother of Captain Bergen, and he
+prosecuted his search with a heavy heart, bearing the bad news which
+he did. He was relieved to find that she had been dead fully two
+years, and the nearest relative of the captain remaining was his
+cousin, who was in such affluent circumstances that Storms decided not
+to give him any portion of the wealth left by the deceased captain.
+
+While Abe Storms was engaged upon his duty, young Fred Sanders was
+busy.
+
+Although he had revealed a great deal of his past life, there remained
+one great secret, which he had reserved as a final surprise,
+especially to Inez Hawthorne, who, as yet, had not formed the
+slightest idea of what was coming. And what this secret was, and the
+particulars of not one but two astounding discoveries, we will now
+proceed to relate.
+
+The grim old sailor, Captain Strathmore, of the steamer _Polynesia_,
+has made many voyages between San Francisco and the Imperial Japanese
+city of Tokio since we last saw him, more than three years ago. There
+is little change, however, in his appearance, and the same kindly
+heart, tempered in the furnace of affliction and sorrow, throbs
+beneath his rough exterior. There are few officers holding such a
+responsible position as he who are greater favorites with the
+multitudes that go down to the sea in ships, and he promises to
+perform many valuable years of service to his employers, who
+appreciate the sterling worth of the brave, noble man.
+
+The steamer has been at the dock several days, and soon is to leave
+for her long voyage across the Pacific. The captain is sitting in his
+cabin, reading and writing some letters. By-and-by he lays down his
+pen, and wheeling his chair around, gives utterance to his thoughts,
+as he has grown in the habit of doing of late.
+
+"I shall keep in harness till I die, for idleness would take me off
+in a short time. I have striven to do my duty to God and my
+fellow-man--and though much sorrow has come to me, yet I shall never
+murmur nor complain, when I see so much around me and know that no
+race and no place in society is exempt from it.
+
+"Years ago I placed away my beloved wife in the distant New England
+hills, and then when the fair bud which she left behind blossomed,
+that, too, was gathered by the angels and I was left alone.
+
+"The darling son upon whom I centered all my hopes was a wild, wayward
+boy, and he left my roof and has never come back again. Whether he is
+or is not, I cannot tell, but I fear that, if he still treads the
+earth, he is sowing the wind and will reap the whirlwind. I have
+striven to forget that I was ever afflicted in being the parent of
+such a child. But alas, the roots of affection are planted so deep
+that it is hard to withdraw them.
+
+"Then there came to me a second Inez, and I loved her as I did the
+first. Just as she nestled around my heart, she was taken away in the
+most surprising manner. I believed then that I should see and clasp
+her again in my arms. But the years have come and gone, and still she
+comes not to me. Ah! could I but hear the music of that voice--could I
+but feel those dimpled arms about my neck as I used to do----Helloa!"
+
+Just then Fred Sanders walked briskly into the cabin, doffed his hat,
+made a bow, laughed and said:
+
+"Helloa, pop! how are you?"
+
+Captain Strathmore gasped, stared and replied:
+
+"No--no--no--Fred. Is that you, my own boy?"
+
+And Fred laughed, and then, with tears in his eyes, leaped forward and
+threw his arms about the old captain's neck and cried like a child,
+while the parent, fondly caressing him, cried too, and for a minute
+neither could speak an intelligible word.
+
+"Pop," finally said the youth, raising his head and sitting upon the
+strong knee, "I have been a bad boy. I have brought trouble to you,
+but I have come thousands of miles to ask your forgiveness and to try
+to cheer your declining years."
+
+"What are you talking about declining years for, you young rascal? I
+never was so strong and hearty in my life. You have made me twenty
+years younger! Ah, if your mother could but see this! But she is
+smiling in heaven over it, and so is our darling Inez, who joined her
+long ago. God be thanked! my boy is dead but is alive again!"
+
+And, laughing and crying, they shook hands, and talked and talked.
+
+"Tell me everything that has befallen you, my dear son."
+
+And Fred did so, as we have already told the reader, adding that he
+never so far forgot himself as to dishonor his father by bearing his
+name. He was known everywhere as Frederic Sanders, whereas his full
+name was Frederic Sanders Strathmore--which he was now proud to
+assume, and which, with God's help, he meant to honor.
+
+They sat a long time in loving converse, and, finally, Captain
+Strathmore told the story of Inez Hawthorne, who came to and went from
+him in such an extraordinary manner, and for whom he sighed and longed
+as he had for his own child, taken from him years before.
+
+Fred smiled in an odd way, while this story was being told, and then
+asked his father to walk down to the Occidental Hotel with him.
+
+"I have some very particular business," he added, "and will take it as
+a great favor if you will so so."
+
+"Of course I will," responded the cheery old captain, springing to his
+feet. "I will walk if I can, but I feel more like flying; and if
+there's any more good news, I'll set up a dancing and yelling
+carnival."
+
+"Well, there is good news awaiting you, so you had better get ready to
+put on the brakes."
+
+"What do you mean, Fred?"
+
+"Wait, and you will see."
+
+A few minutes later there was a gentle tap on the door of Inez
+Hawthorne's room at the Occidental. She was busy sewing, and she
+called out in a somewhat startled voice:
+
+"Come in!"
+
+Fred Strathmore threw the door wide open, and, taking hold of his
+father's arm, gave him such a vigorous shove that he was forced
+several steps into the apartment before he could stop himself.
+
+He caught sight of a beautiful, scared face, which stared with
+something like terror at him for a moment; and then there was a
+scream, and she made one bound forward.
+
+"Oh, father, father! my own dear father! I am so glad!"
+
+Again the arms were about the neck of the weather-beaten sea-dog;
+again the kisses were showered upon his bronzed face; again his own
+lost Inez was in his arms.
+
+Poor Captain Strathmore broke down completely. Instead of shouting and
+dancing, as he threatened to do, he sat in his chair, and, with Inez
+on his knee, overrunning with joy, delight and supreme happiness, he
+could do nothing but cry, cry, cry, and murmur his gratitude and
+thankfulness.
+
+But, after a time, he did recover himself; and then he became aware
+for the first time, as did the others, that a fourth party was
+present. This was Mate Storms, who suspected the situation before he
+was introduced to the happy captain of the _Polynesia_. Since they all
+had such an extraordinary story to relate, the captain had an equally
+remarkable one to tell them.
+
+The persistent and never-ending investigation which he set on foot
+concerning the lost Inez had resulted, not in finding her, but in
+unearthing her entire history.
+
+She was a native of the city of New York, and her father died there
+before she was a year old. A former suitor of her mother, angered
+because she would not become his wife, even after her husband was
+deceased, resorted to the atrocious revenge of stealing Inez when she
+was but an infant, and he hastened across the continent with her.
+
+When he had kept her there a brief time, he sought to open negotiations
+with the mother, with a view of delivering back her child on condition
+that the parent should become his wife; but he was shocked to learn
+that the poor, heartbroken mother had died from grief, and the child was
+upon his hands.
+
+This man finally married a woman in San Francisco, but neither of them
+could ever feel any affection for the little girl (whom, however, they
+treated quite fairly), and the wife insisted that she should be gotten
+rid of in some way. Through some whim or other, the abductor had
+always called her by her right name--Inez Hawthorne--and, seeing some
+mention of it in the newspapers, he resorted to the means which we
+described, at the opening of this story, for ridding himself forever
+of her.
+
+As soon as Inez was safely placed on the steamer, this wicked couple
+disappeared, and no further trace of them could be found. Captain
+Strathmore, who was anxious to punish them, believed they had left the
+country. Inez, therefore, was an orphan, and while a gentle sadness
+filled her affectionate heart--as she heard the particulars of her own
+history for the first time, and reflected upon that poor, heartbroken
+mother, who had gone to her rest long ago--she could not feel any
+poignant grief, for her memory of the lost one was too shadowy and
+faint. But she had found a home and friends for life.
+
+Abram Storms explained that he had met three English gentlemen who
+were making a tour of the world in a large steam yacht; and, since
+they possessed abundant means, and were very social, he had shown them
+the pearls in his possession and offered to dispose of them all. They
+were delighted with the specimens, and especially with the enormous
+one belonging to Inez. They offered twenty-five thousand dollars for
+the single one, and just one hundred thousand for the rest. This was
+less than Storms had counted upon--and doubtless less than he could
+have secured by consulting leading lapidaries in other parts of the
+world--but he was inclined to end the transaction by accepting it, and
+he asked the advice of his friends. After fully discussing the matter,
+it was agreed to close with the offer, and the exchange was completed
+that afternoon, and the money belonging to Inez was placed in the bank
+the next morning.
+
+Since Storms was anxious to return to his home, and since there was no
+call for his remaining longer in San Francisco, it was arranged that
+Inez should enter an excellent school in the Golden Gate City, where
+she should spend several years, while Captain Strathmore was to act as
+her guardian until she should attain her legal majority. The captain's
+position enabled him to find a berth under him for Fred on the steamer
+_Polynesia_, and the boy sailed with him on the next voyage to Tokio,
+and on many a subsequent one.
+
+Abe Storms is as poor as he was before he made his voyage to the South
+Seas, for, having dedicated the wealth left by Captain Bergen to
+charitable purposes, he felt it his duty to do the same with his own,
+and, since he has no one besides himself dependent upon him, he is not
+troubled by fears of not being able to make a comfortable living.
+
+THE END
+
+
+
+
+A. L. BURT'S CATALOGUE OF BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE BY POPULAR WRITERS
+
+52-58 Duane Street, New York
+
+BOOKS FOR BOYS.
+
+Joe's Luck: A Boy's Adventures in California. By Horatio Alger, Jr. 12mo,
+cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+The story is chock full of stirring incidents, while the amusing
+situations are furnished by Joshua Bickford, from Pumpkin Hollow, and the
+fellow who modestly styles himself the "Rip-tail Roarer, from Pike Co.,
+Missouri." Mr. Alger never writes a poor book, and "Joe's Luck" is
+certainly one of his best.
+
+Tom the Bootblack; or, The Road to Success. By Horatio Alger, Jr. 12mo,
+cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+A bright, enterprising lad was Tom the Bootblack. He was not at all
+ashamed of his humble calling, though always on the lookout to better
+himself. The lad started for Cincinnati to look up his heritage. Mr. Grey,
+the uncle, did not hesitate to employ a ruffian to kill the lad. The plan
+failed, and Gilbert Grey, once Tom the bootblack, came into a comfortable
+fortune. This is one of Mr. Alger's best stories.
+
+Dan the Newsboy. By Horatio Alger, Jr. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price
+$1.00.
+
+Dan Mordaunt and his mother live in a poor tenement, and the lad is
+pluckily trying to make ends meet by selling papers in the streets of New
+York. A little heiress of six years is confided to the care of the
+Mordaunts. The child is kidnapped and Dan tracks the child to the house
+where she is hidden, and rescues her. The wealthy aunt of the little
+heiress is so delighted with Dan's courage and many good qualities that
+she adopts him as her heir.
+
+Tony the Hero: A Brave Boy's Adventure with a Tramp. By Horatio Alger, Jr.
+12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+Tony, a sturdy bright-eyed boy of fourteen, is under the control of
+Rudolph Rugg, a thorough rascal. After much abuse Tony runs away and gets
+a job as stable boy in a country hotel. Tony is heir to a large estate.
+Rudolph for a consideration hunts up Tony and throws him down a deep well.
+Of course Tony escapes from the fate provided for him, and by a brave act,
+a rich friend secures his rights and Tony is prosperous. A very
+entertaining book.
+
+The Errand Boy; or, How Phil Brent Won Success. By HORATIO ALGER, JR.
+12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+The career of "The Errand Boy" embraces the city adventures of a smart
+country lad. Philip was brought up by a kind-hearted innkeeper named
+Brent. The death of Mrs. Brent paved the way for the hero's subsequent
+troubles. A retired merchant in New York secures him the situation of
+errand boy, and thereafter stands as his friend.
+
+Tom Temple's Career. By Horatio Alger, Jr. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price
+$1.00.
+
+Tom Temple is a bright, self-reliant lad. He leaves Plympton village to
+seek work in New York, whence he undertakes an important mission to
+California. Some of his adventures in the far west are so startling that
+the reader will scarcely close the book until the last page shall have
+been reached. The tale is written in Mr. Alger's most fascinating style.
+
+For sale by all booksellers, or sent postpaid on receipt of price by the
+publisher, A. L. BURT, 52-58 Duane Street, New York.
+
+
+
+
+BOOKS FOR BOYS
+
+Frank Fowler, the Cash Boy. By Horatio Alger, Jr. 12mo, cloth,
+illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+Frank Fowler, a poor boy, bravely determines to make a living for himself
+and his foster-sister Grace. Going to New York he obtains a situation as
+cash boy in a dry goods store. He renders a service to a wealthy old
+gentleman who takes a fancy to the lad, and thereafter helps the lad to
+gain success and fortune.
+
+Tom Thatcher's Fortune. By Horatio Alger, Jr. 12mo, cloth, illustrated,
+price $1.00.
+
+Tom Thatcher is a brave, ambitious, unselfish boy. He supports his mother
+and sister on meagre wages earned as a shoe-pegger in John Simpson's
+factory. Tom is discharged from the factory and starts overland for
+California. He meets with many adventures. The story is told in a way
+which has made Mr. Alger's name a household word in so many homes.
+
+The Train Boy. By Horatio Alger, Jr. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price
+$1.00.
+
+Paul Palmer was a wide-awake boy of sixteen who supported his mother and
+sister by selling books and papers on the Chicago and Milwaukee Railroad.
+He detects a young man in the act of picking the pocket of a young lady.
+In a railway accident many passengers are killed, but Paul is fortunate
+enough to assist a Chicago merchant, who out of gratitude takes him into
+his employ. Paul succeeds with tact and judgment and is well started on
+the road to business prominence.
+
+Mark Mason's Victory. The Trials and Triumphs of a Telegraph Boy. By
+Horatio Alger, Jr. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+Mark Mason, the telegraph boy, was a sturdy, honest lad, who pluckily won
+his way to success by his honest manly efforts under many difficulties.
+This story will please the very large class of boys who regard Mr. Alger
+as a favorite author.
+
+A Debt of Honor. The Story of Gerald Lane's Success in the Far West. By
+Horatio Alger, Jr. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+The story of Gerald Lane and the account of the many trials and
+disappointments which he passed through before he attained success, will
+interest all boys who have read the previous stories of this delightful
+author.
+
+Ben Bruce. Scenes in the Life of a Bowery Newsboy. By Horatio Alger, Jr.
+12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+Ben Bruce was a brave, manly, generous boy. The story of his efforts, and
+many seeming failures and disappointments, and his final success, are most
+interesting to all readers. The tale is written in Mr. Alger's most
+fascinating style.
+
+The Castaways; or, On the Florida Reefs. By James Otis. 12mo, cloth,
+illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+This tale smacks of the salt sea. From the moment that the Sea Queen
+leaves lower New York bay till the breeze leaves her becalmed off the
+coast of Florida, one can almost hear the whistle of the wind through her
+rigging, the creak of her straining cordage as she heels to the leeward.
+The adventures of Ben Clark, the hero of the story and Jake the cook,
+cannot fail to charm the reader. As a writer for young people Mr. Otis is
+a prime favorite.
+
+
+
+
+BOOKS FOR BOYS
+
+Wrecked on Spider Island; or, How Ned Rogers Found the Treasure. By James
+Otis. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+Ned Rogers, a "down-east" plucky lad ships as cabin boy to earn a
+livelihood. Ned is marooned on Spider Island, and while there discovers a
+wreck submerged in the sand, and finds a considerable amount of treasure.
+The capture of the treasure and the incidents of the voyage serve to make
+as entertaining a story of sea-life as the most captious boy could desire.
+
+The Search for the Silver City: A Tale of Adventure in Yucatan. By James
+Otis. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+Two lads, Teddy Wright and Neal Emery, embark on the steam yacht Day Dream
+for a cruise to the tropics. The yacht is destroyed by fire, and then the
+boat is cast upon the coast of Yucatan. They bear of the wonderful Silver
+City, of the Chan Santa Cruz Indians, and with the help of a faithful
+Indian ally carry off a number of the golden images from the temples.
+Pursued with relentless vigor at last their escape is effected in an
+astonishing manner. The story is so full of exciting incidents that the
+reader is quite carried away with the novelty and realism of the
+narrative.
+
+A Runaway Brig; or, An Accidental Cruise. By James Otis. 12mo, cloth,
+illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+This is a sea tale, and the reader can look out upon the wide shimmering
+sea as it flashes back the sunlight, and imagine himself afloat with Harry
+Vandyne, Walter Morse, Jim Libby and that old shell-back, Bob Brace, on
+the brig Bonita. The boys discover a mysterious document which enables
+them to find a buried treasure. They are stranded on an island and at last
+are rescued with the treasure. The boys are sure to be fascinated with
+this entertaining story.
+
+The Treasure Finders: A Boy's Adventures in Nicaragua. By James Otis.
+12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+Roy and Dean Coloney, with their guide Tongla, leave their father's indigo
+plantation to visit the wonderful ruins of an ancient city. The boys
+eagerly explore the temples of an extinct race and discover three golden
+images cunningly hidden away. They escape with the greatest difficulty.
+Eventually they reach safety with their golden prizes. We doubt if there
+ever was written a more entertaining story than "The Treasure Finders."
+
+Jack, the Hunchback. A Story of the Coast of Maine. By James Otis. Price
+$1.00.
+
+This is the story of a little hunchback who lived on Cape Elizabeth, on
+the coast of Maine. His trials and successes are most interesting. From
+first to last nothing stays the interest of the narrative. It bears us
+along as on a stream whose current varies in direction, but never loses
+its force.
+
+With Washington at Monmouth: A Story of Three Philadelphia Boys. By James
+Otis. 12mo, ornamental cloth, olivine edges, illustrated, price $1.50.
+
+Three Philadelphia lads assist the American spies and make regular and
+frequent visits to Valley Forge in the Winter while the British occupied
+the city. The story abounds with pictures of Colonial life skillfully
+drawn, and the glimpses of Washington's soldiers which are given show that
+the work has not been hastily done, or without considerable study. The
+story is wholesome and patriotic in tone, as are all of Mr. Otis' works.
+
+
+
+
+BOOKS FOR BOYS
+
+With Lafayette at Yorktown: A Story of How Two Boys Joined the Continental
+Army. By James Otis. 12mo, ornamental cloth, olivine edges, illustrated,
+price $1.50.
+
+Two lads from Portsmouth, N. H., attempt to enlist in the Colonial Army,
+and are given employment as spies. There is no lack of exciting incidents
+which the youthful reader craves, but it is healthful excitement brimming
+with facts which every boy should be familiar with, and while the reader
+is following the adventures of Ben Jaffrays and Ned Allen he is acquiring
+a fund of historical lore which will remain in his memory long after that
+which he has memorized from textbooks has been forgotten.
+
+At the Siege of Havana. Being the Experiences of Three Boys Serving under
+Israel Putnam in 1762. By James Otis. 12mo, ornamental cloth, olivine
+edges, illustrated, price $1.50.
+
+"At the Siege of Havana" deals with that portion of the island's history
+when the English king captured the capital, thanks to the assistance given
+by the troops from New England, led in part by Col. Israel Putnam.
+
+The principal characters are Darius Lunt, the lad who, represented as
+telling the story, and his comrades, Robert Clement and Nicholas Vallet.
+Colonel Putnam also figures to considerable extent, necessarily, in the
+tale, and the whole forms one of the most readable stories founded on
+historical facts.
+
+The Defense of Fort Henry. A Story of Wheeling Creek in 1777. By James
+Otis. 12mo, ornamental cloth, olivine edges, illustrated, price $1.50.
+
+Nowhere in the history of our country can be found more heroic or
+thrilling incidents than in the story of those brave men and women who
+founded the settlement of Wheeling in the Colony of Virginia. The recital
+of what Elizabeth Zane did is in itself as heroic a story as can be
+imagined. The wondrous bravery displayed by Major McCulloch and his
+gallant comrades, the sufferings of the colonists and their sacrifice of
+blood and life, stir the blood of old as well as young readers.
+
+The Capture of the Laughing Mary. A Story of Three New York Boys in 1776.
+By James Otis. 12mo, ornamental cloth, olivine edges, price $1.50.
+
+"During the British occupancy of New York, at the outbreak of the
+Revolution, a Yankee lad hears of the plot to take General Washington's
+person, and calls in two companions to assist the patriot cause. They do
+some astonishing things, and, incidentally, lay the way for an American
+navy later, by the exploit which gives its name to the work. Mr. Otis'
+books are too well known to require any particular commendation to the
+young."--Evening Post.
+
+With Warren at Bunker Hill. A Story of the Siege of Boston. By James Otis.
+12mo, ornamental cloth, olivine edges, illustrated, price $1.50.
+
+"This is a tale of the siege of Boston, which opens on the day after the
+doings at Lexington and Concord, with a description of home life in
+Boston, introduces the reader to the British camp at Charlestown, shows
+Gen. Warren at home, describes what a boy thought of the battle of Bunker
+Hill, and closes with the raising of the siege. The three heroes, George
+Wentworth, Ben Scarlett and an old ropemaker, incur the enmity of a young
+Tory, who causes them many adventures the boys will like to
+read."--Detroit Free Press.
+
+
+
+
+BOOKS FOR BOYS
+
+With the Swamp Fox. The Story of General Marion's Spies. By James Otis.
+12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+This story deals with General Francis Marion's heroic struggle in the
+Carolinas. General Marion's arrival to take command of these brave men and
+rough riders is pictured as a boy might have seen it, and although the
+story is devoted to what the lads did, the Swamp Fox is ever present in
+the mind of the reader.
+
+On the Kentucky Frontier. A Story of the Fighting Pioneers of the West. By
+James Otis. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+In the history of our country there is no more thrilling story than that
+of the work done on the Mississippi river by a handful of frontiersmen.
+Mr. Otis takes the reader on that famous expedition from the arrival of
+Major Clarke's force at Corn Island, until Kaskaskia was captured. He
+relates that part of Simon Kenton's life history which is not usually
+touched upon either by the historian or the story teller. This is one of
+the most entertaining books for young people which has been published.
+
+Sarah Dillard's Ride. A Story of South Carolina in 1780. By James Otis.
+12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+"This book deals with the Carolinas in 1780, giving a wealth of detail of
+the Mountain Men who struggled so valiantly against the king's troops.
+Major Ferguson is the prominent British officer of the story, which is
+told as though coming from a youth who experienced these adventures. In
+this way the famous ride of Sarah Dillard is brought out as an incident of
+the plot."--Boston Journal.
+
+A Tory Plot. A Story of the Attempt to Kill General Washington. By James
+Otis. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+"'A Tory Plot' is the story of two lads who overhear something of the
+plot originated during the Revolution by Gov. Tryon to capture or murder
+Washington. They communicate their knowledge to Gen. Putnam and are
+commissioned by him to play the role of detectives in the matter. They do
+so, and meet with many adventures and hairbreadth escapes. The boys are,
+of course, mythical, but they serve to enable the author to put into very
+attractive shape much valuable knowledge concerning one phase of the
+Revolution."--Pittsburgh Times.
+
+A Traitor's Escape. A Story of the Attempt to Seize Benedict Arnold. By
+James Otis. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+"This is a tale with stirring scenes depicted in each chapter, bringing
+clearly before the mind the glorious deeds of the early settlers in this
+country. In an historical work dealing with this country's past, no plot
+can hold the attention closer than this one, which describes the attempt
+and partial success of Benedict Arnold's escape to New York, where he
+remained as the guest of Sir Henry Clinton. All those who actually figured
+in the arrest of the traitor, as well as Gen. Washington, are included as
+characters."--Albany Union.
+
+A Cruise with Paul Jones. A Story of Naval Warfare in 1776. By James Otis.
+12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+"This story takes up that portion of Paul Jones' adventurous life when he
+was hovering off the British coast, watching for an opportunity to strike
+the enemy a blow. It deals more particularly with his descent upon
+Whitehaven, the seizure of Lady Selkirk's plate, and the famous battle
+with the Drake. The boy who figures in the tale is one who was taken from
+a derelict by Paul Jones shortly after this particular cruise was
+begun."--Chicago Inter-Ocean.
+
+
+
+
+BOOKS FOR BOYS
+
+Corporal Lige's Recruit. A Story of Crown Point and Ticonderoga. By James
+Otis. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+"In 'Corporal Lige's Recruit,' Mr. Otis tells the amusing story of an old
+soldier, proud of his record, who had served the king in '58, and who
+takes the lad, Isaac Rice, as his 'personal recruit.' The lad acquits
+himself superbly. Col. Ethan Allen 'in the name of God and the continental
+congress,' infuses much martial spirit into the narrative, which will
+arouse the keenest interest as it proceeds. Crown Point, Ticonderoga,
+Benedict Arnold and numerous other famous historical names appear in this
+dramatic tale."--Boston Globe.
+
+Morgan, the Jersey Spy. A Story of the Siege of Yorktown in 1781. By James
+Otis. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+"The two lads who are utilized by the author to emphasize the details of
+the work done during that memorable time were real boys who lived on the
+banks of the York river, and who aided the Jersey spy in his dangerous
+occupation. In the guise of fishermen the lads visit Yorktown, are
+suspected of being spies, and put under arrest. Morgan risks his life to
+save them. The final escape, the thrilling encounter with a squad of red
+coats, when they are exposed equally to the bullets of friends and foes,
+told in a masterly fashion, makes of this volume one of the most
+entertaining books of the year."--Inter-Ocean.
+
+The Young Scout: The Story of a West Point Lieutenant. By Edward S. Ellis.
+12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+The crafty Apache chief Geronimo but a few years ago was the most terrible
+scourge of the southwest border. The author has woven, in a tale of
+thrilling interest, all the incidents of Geronimo's last raid. The hero is
+Lieutenant James Decker, a recent graduate of West Point. Ambitious to
+distinguish himself the young man takes many a desperate chance against
+the enemy and on more than one occasion narrowly escapes with his life. In
+our opinion Mr. Ellis is the best writer of Indian stories now before the
+public.
+
+Adrift in the Wilds: The Adventures of Two Shipwrecked Boys. By Edward S.
+Ellis. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+Elwood Brandon and Howard Lawrence are en route for San Francisco. Off the
+coast of California the steamer takes fire. The two boys reach the shore
+with several of the passengers. Young Brandon becomes separated from his
+party and is captured by hostile Indians, but is afterwards rescued. This
+is a very entertaining narrative of Southern California.
+
+A Young Hero; or, Fighting to Win. By Edward S. Ellis. 12mo, cloth,
+illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+This story tells how a valuable solid silver service was stolen from the
+Misses Perkinpine, two very old and simple minded ladies. Fred Sheldon,
+the hero of this story, undertakes to discover the thieves and have them
+arrested. After much time spent in detective work, he succeeds in
+discovering the silver plate and winning the reward. The story is told in
+Mr. Ellis' most fascinating style. Every boy will be glad to read this
+delightful book.
+
+Lost in the Rockies. A Story of Adventure in the Rocky Mountains. By
+Edward S. Ellis. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+Incident succeeds incident, and adventure is piled upon adventure, and at
+the end the reader, be he boy or man, will have experienced breathless
+enjoyment in this romantic story describing many adventures in the Rockies
+and among the Indians.
+
+
+
+
+BOOKS FOR BOYS
+
+A Jaunt Through Java: The Story of a Journey to the Sacred Mountain. By
+Edward S. Ellis. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+The interest of this story is found in the thrilling adventures of two
+cousins, Hermon and Eustace Hadley, on their trip across the island of
+Java, from Samarang to the Sacred Mountain. In a land where the Royal
+Bengal tiger, the rhinoceros, and other fierce beasts are to be met with,
+it is but natural that the heroes of this book should have a lively
+experience. There is not a dull page in the book.
+
+The Boy Patriot. A Story of Jack, the Young Friend of Washington. By
+Edward S. Ellis. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges, illustrated, price $1.50.
+
+"There are adventures of all kinds for the hero and his friends, whose
+pluck and ingenuity in extricating themselves from awkward fixes are
+always equal to the occasion. It is an excellent story full of honest,
+manly, patriotic efforts on the part of the hero. A very vivid description
+of the battle of Trenton is also found in this story."--Journal of
+Education.
+
+A Yankee Lad's Pluck. How Bert Larkin Saved his Father's Ranch in Porto
+Rico. By Wm. P. Chipman. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+"Bert Larkin, the hero of the story, early excites our admiration, and is
+altogether a fine character such as boys will delight in, whilst the story
+of his numerous adventures is very graphically told. This will, we think,
+prove one of the most popular boys' books this season."--Gazette.
+
+A Brave Defense. A Story of the Massacre at Fort Griswold in 1781. By
+William P. Chipman. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+Perhaps no more gallant fight against fearful odds took place during the
+Revolutionary War than that at Fort Griswold, Groton Heights, Conn., in
+1781. The boys are real boys who were actually on the muster rolls, either
+at Fort Trumbull on the New London side, or of Fort Griswold on the Groton
+side of the Thames. The youthful reader who follows Halsey Sanford and
+Levi Dart and Tom Malleson, and their equally brave comrades, through
+their thrilling adventures will be learning something more than historical
+facts; they will be imbibing lessons of fidelity, of bravery, of heroism,
+and of manliness, which must prove serviceable in the arena of life.
+
+The Young Minuteman. A Story of the Capture of General Prescott in 1777.
+By William P. Chipman. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+This story is based upon actual events which occurred during the British
+occupation of the waters of Narragansett Bay. Darius Wale and William
+Northrop belong to "the coast patrol." The story is a strong one,
+dealing only with actual events. There is, however, no lack of thrilling
+adventure, and every lad who is fortunate enough to obtain the book will
+find not only that his historical knowledge is increased, but that his own
+patriotism and love of country are deepened.
+
+For the Temple: A Tale of the Fall of Jerusalem. By G. A. HENTY. With
+illustrations by S. J. Solomon. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges, price $1.00.
+
+"Mr. Henty's graphic prose picture of the hopeless Jewish resistance to
+Roman sway adds another leaf to his record of the famous wars of the
+world. The book is one of Mr. Henty's cleverest efforts."--Graphic.
+
+
+
+
+BOOKS FOR BOYS
+
+Roy Gilbert's Search: A Tale of the Great Lakes. By Wm. P. Chipman. 12mo,
+cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+A deep mystery hangs over the parentage of Roy Gilbert. He arranges with
+two schoolmates to make a tour of the Great Lakes on a steam launch. The
+three boys visit many points of interest on the lakes. Afterwards the lads
+rescue an elderly gentleman and a lady from a sinking yacht. Later on the
+boys narrowly escape with their lives. The hero is a manly, self-reliant
+boy, whose adventures will be followed with interest.
+
+The Slate Picker: The Story of a Boy's Life in the Coal Mines. By Harry
+Prentice. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+This is a story of a boy's life in the coal mines of Pennsylvania. Ben
+Burton, the hero, had a hard road to travel, but by grit and energy he
+advanced step by step until he found himself called upon to fill the
+position of chief engineer of the Kohinoor Coal Company. This is a book of
+extreme interest to every boy reader.
+
+The Boy Cruisers; or, Paddling in Florida. By St. George Rathborne. 12mo,
+cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+Andrew George and Rowland Carter start on a canoe trip along the Gulf
+coast, from Key West to Tampa, Florida. Their first adventure is with a
+pair of rascals who steal their boats. Next they run into a gale in the
+Gulf. After that they have a lively time with alligators and Andrew gets
+into trouble with a band of Seminole Indians. Mr. Rathborne knows just how
+to interest the boys, and lads who are in search of a rare treat will do
+well to read this entertaining story.
+
+Captured by Zulus: A Story of Trapping in Africa. By Harry Prentice. 12mo,
+cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+This story details the adventures of two lads, Dick Elsworth and Bob
+Harvey, in the wilds of South Africa. By stratagem the Zulus capture Dick
+and Bob and take them to their principal kraal or village. The lads escape
+death by digging their way out of the prison hut by night. They are
+pursued, but the Zulus finally give up pursuit. Mr. Prentice tells exactly
+how wild-beast collectors secure specimens on their native stamping
+grounds, and these descriptions make very entertaining reading.
+
+Tom the Ready; or, Up from the Lowest. By Randolph Hill. 12mo, cloth,
+illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+This is a dramatic narrative of the unaided rise of a fearless, ambitious
+boy from the lowest round of fortune's ladder to wealth and the
+governorship of his native State. Tom Seacomb begins life with a purpose,
+and eventually overcomes those who oppose him. How he manages to win the
+battle is told by Mr. Hill in a masterful way that thrills the reader and
+holds his attention and sympathy to the end.
+
+Captain Kidd's Gold: The True Story of an Adventurous Sailor Boy. By James
+Franklin Fitts. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+There is something fascinating to the average youth in the very idea of
+buried treasure. A vision arises before his eyes of swarthy Portuguese and
+Spanish rascals, with black beards and gleaming eyes. There were many
+famous sea rovers, but none more celebrated than Capt. Kidd. Paul Jones
+Garry inherits a document which locates a considerable treasure buried by
+two of Kidd's crew. The hero of this book is an ambitious, persevering
+lad, of salt-water New England ancestry, and his efforts to reach the
+island and secure the money form one of the most absorbing tales for our
+youth that has come from the press.
+
+
+
+
+BOOKS FOR BOYS
+
+The Boy Explorers: The Adventures of Two Boys in Alaska. By Harry
+Prentice. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+Two boys, Raymond and Spencer Manning, travel to Alaska to join their
+father in search of their uncle. On their arrival at Sitka the boys with
+an Indian guide set off across the mountains. The trip is fraught with
+perils that test the lads' courage to the utmost. All through their
+exciting adventures the lads demonstrate what can be accomplished by pluck
+and resolution, and their experience makes one of the most interesting
+tales ever written.
+
+The Island Treasure; or, Harry Darrel's Fortune. By Frank H. Converse.
+12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+Harry Darrel, having received a nautical training on a school-ship, is
+bent on going to sea. A runaway horse changes his prospects. Harry saves
+Dr. Gregg from drowning and afterward becomes sailing-master of a sloop
+yacht. Mr. Converse's stories possess a charm of their own which is
+appreciated by lads who delight in good healthy tales that smack of salt
+water.
+
+Guy Harris: The Runaway. By Harry Castlemon. 12mo, cloth, illustrated,
+price $1.00.
+
+Guy Harris lived in a small city on the shore of one of the Great Lakes.
+He is persuaded to go to sea, and gets a glimpse of the rough side of life
+in a sailor's boarding house. He ships on a vessel and for five months
+leads a hard life. The book will interest boys generally on account of its
+graphic style. This is one of Castlemon's most attractive stories.
+
+Julian Mortimer: A Brave Boy's Struggle for Home and Fortune. By Harry
+Castlemon. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+The scene of the story lies west of the Mississippi River, in the days
+when emigrants made their perilous way across the great plains to the land
+of gold. There is an attack upon the wagon train by a large party of
+Indians. Our hero is a lad of uncommon nerve and pluck. Befriended by a
+stalwart trapper, a real rough diamond, our hero achieves the most happy
+results.
+
+By Pike and Dyke: A Tale of the Rise of the Dutch Republic. By G. A.
+Henty. With illustrations by Maynard Brown. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges,
+price $1.00.
+
+"Boys with a turn for historical research will be enchanted with the
+book, while the rest who only care for adventure will be students in spite
+of themselves."--St. James's Gazette.
+
+St. George for England: A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers. By G. A. Henty.
+With illustrations by Gordon Browne. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges, price
+$1.00.
+
+"A story of very great interest for boys. In his own forcible style the
+author has endeavored to show that determination and enthusiasm can
+accomplish marvellous results; and that courage is generally accompanied
+by magnanimity and gentleness."--Pall Mall Gazette.
+
+Captain Bayley's Heir: A Tale of the Gold Fields of California. By G. A.
+Henty. With illustrations by H. M. Paget. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges,
+price $1.00.
+
+"Mr. Henty is careful to mingle instruction with entertainment; and the
+humorous touches, especially in the sketch of John Holl, the Westminster
+dustman, Dickens himself could hardly have excelled."--Christian Leader.
+
+
+
+
+BOOKS FOR BOYS
+
+Budd Boyd's Triumph; or, The Boy Firm of Fox Island. By William P.
+Chipman. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+The scene of this story is laid on the upper part of Narragansett Bay, and
+the leading incidents have a strong salt-water flavor. The two boys, Budd
+Boyd and Judd Floyd, being ambitious and clear sighted, form a partnership
+to catch and sell fish. Budd's pluck and good sense carry him through many
+troubles. In following the career of the boy firm of Boyd & Floyd, the
+youthful reader will find a useful lesson--that industry and perseverance
+are bound to lead to ultimate success.
+
+Lost in the Canyon: Sam Willett's Adventures on the Great Colorado. By
+Alfred R. Calhoun. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+This story hinges on a fortune left to Sam Willett, the hero, and the fact
+that it will pass to a disreputable relative if the lad dies before he
+shall have reached his majority. The story of his father's peril and of
+Sam's desperate trip down the great canyon on a raft, and how the party
+finally escape from their perils is described in a graphic style that
+stamps Mr. Calhoun as a master of his art.
+
+Captured by Apes: The Wonderful Adventures of a Young Animal Trainer. By
+Harry Prentice. 12mo, cloth, illustrated, price $1.00.
+
+Philip Garland, a young animal collector and trainer, sets sail for
+Eastern seas in quest of a new stock of living curiosities. The vessel is
+wrecked off the coast of Borneo, and young Garland is cast ashore on a
+small island, and captured by the apes that overrun the place. Very novel
+indeed is the way by which the young man escapes death. Mr. Prentice is a
+writer of undoubted skill.
+
+Under Drake's Flag: A Tale of the Spanish Main. By G. A. Henty. With
+illustrations by Gordon Browne. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges, price $1.00.
+
+"There is not a dull chapter, nor, indeed, a dull page in the book; but
+the author has so carefully worked up his subject that the exciting deeds
+of his heroes are never incongruous nor absurd."--Observer.
+
+By Sheer Pluck: A Tale of the Ashanti War. By G. A. Henty. With
+illustrations by Gordon Browne. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges, price $1.00.
+
+The author has woven, in a tale of thrilling interest, all the details of
+the Ashanti campaign, of which he was himself a witness.
+
+"Mr. Henty keeps up his reputation as a writer of boys' stories. 'By
+Sheer Pluck' will be eagerly read."--Athenæum.
+
+With Lee in Virginia: A Story of the American Civil War. By G. A. Henty.
+With illustrations by Gordon Browne. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges, price
+$1.00.
+
+"One of the best stories for lads which Mr. Henty has yet written. The
+picture is full of life and color, and the stirring and romantic incidents
+are skillfully blended with the personal interest and charm of the
+story."--Standard.
+
+By England's Aid; or, The Freeing of the Netherlands (1585-1604). By G. A.
+Henty. With illustrations by Alfred Pearse. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges,
+price $1.00.
+
+"It is an admirable book for youngsters. It overflows with stirring
+incident and exciting adventure, and the color of the era and of the scene
+are finely reproduced. The illustrations add to its
+attractiveness."--Boston Gazette.
+
+
+
+
+BOOKS FOR BOYS
+
+By Right of Conquest; or, With Cortez in Mexico. By G. A. Henty. With
+illustrations by W. S. Stacey. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges, price $1.50.
+
+"The conquest of Mexico by a small band of resolute men under the
+magnificent leadership of Cortez is always rightfully ranked among the
+most romantic and daring exploits in history. 'By Right of Conquest' is
+the nearest approach to a perfectly successful historical tale that Mr.
+Henty has yet published."--Academy.
+
+For Name and Fame; or, Through Afghan Passes. By G. A. Henty. With
+illustrations by Gordon Browne. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges, price $1.00.
+
+"Not only a rousing story, replete with all the varied forms of
+excitement of a campaign, but, what is still more useful, an account of a
+territory and its inhabitants which must for a long time possess a supreme
+interest for Englishmen, as being the key to our Indian Empire."--Glasgow
+Herald.
+
+The Bravest of the Brave; or, With Peterborough in Spain. By G. A. Henty.
+With illustrations by H. M. Paget. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges, price
+$1.00.
+
+"Mr. Henty never loses sight of the moral purpose of his work--to enforce
+the doctrine of courage and truth, mercy and loving kindness, as
+indispensable to the making of a gentleman. Boys will read 'The Bravest of
+the Brave' with pleasure and profit; of that we are quite sure."--Daily
+Telegraph.
+
+The Cat of Bubastes: A Story of Ancient Egypt. By G. A. Henty. With
+illustrations. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges, price $1.00.
+
+"The story, from the critical moment of the killing of the sacred cat to
+the perilous exodus into Asia with which it closes, is very skillfully
+constructed and full of exciting adventures. It is admirably
+illustrated."--Saturday Review.
+
+Bonnie Prince Charlie: A Tale of Fontenoy and Culloden. By G. A. Henty.
+With illustrations by Gordon Browne. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges, price
+$1.00.
+
+"Ronald, the hero, is very like the hero of 'Quentin Durward.' The lad's
+journey across France, and his hairbreadth escapes, makes up as good a
+narrative of the kind as we have ever read. For freshness of treatment and
+variety of incident Mr. Henty has surpassed himself."--Spectator.
+
+With Clive in India; or, The Beginnings of an Empire. By G. A. Henty. With
+illustrations by Gordon Browne. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges, price $1.00.
+
+"He has taken a period of Indian history of the most vital importance,
+and he has embroidered on the historical facts a story which of itself is
+deeply interesting. Young people assuredly will be delighted with the
+volume."--Scotsman.
+
+In the Reign of Terror: The Adventures of a Westminster Boy. By G. A.
+Henty. With illustrations by J. Schönberg. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges,
+price $1.00.
+
+"Harry Sandwith, the Westminster boy, may fairly be said to beat Mr.
+Henty's record. His adventures will delight boys by the audacity and peril
+they depict. The story is one of Mr. Henty's best."--Saturday Review.
+
+For sale by all booksellers, or sent postpaid on receipt of price by the
+publisher, A. L. BURT, 52-58 Duane Street, New York.
+
+
+
+
+BOOKS FOR BOYS
+
+The Lion of the North: A Tale of Gustavus Adolphus and the Wars of
+Religion. By G. A. Henty. With illustrations by John Schönberg. 12mo,
+cloth, olivine edges, price $1.00.
+
+"A praiseworthy attempt to interest British youth in the great deeds of
+the Scotch Brigade in the wars of Gustavus Adolphus. Mackey, Hepburn, and
+Munro live again in Mr. Henty's pages, as those deserve to live whose
+disciplined bands formed really the germ of the modern British
+army."--Athenæum.
+
+The Dragon and the Raven; or, The Days of King Alfred. By G. A. Henty.
+With illustrations by C. J. Staniland. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges, price
+$1.00.
+
+"In this story the author gives an account of the fierce struggle between
+Saxon and Dane for supremacy in England, and presents a vivid picture of
+the misery and ruin to which the country was reduced by the ravages of the
+sea-wolves. The story is treated in a manner most attractive to the boyish
+reader."--Athenæum.
+
+The Young Carthaginian. A Story of the Times of Hannibal. By G. A. Henty.
+With illustrations by C. J. Staniland. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges, price
+$1.00.
+
+"Well constructed and vividly told. From first to last nothing stays the
+interest of the narrative. It bears us along as on a stream whose current
+varies in direction, but never loses its force."--Saturday Review.
+
+In Freedom's Cause: A Story of Wallace and Bruce. By G. A. Henty. With
+illustrations by Gordon Browne. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges, price $1.00.
+
+"It is written in the author's best style. Full of the wildest and most
+remarkable achievements, it is a tale of great interest, which a boy, once
+he has begun it, will not willingly put one side."--The Schoolmaster.
+
+With Wolfe in Canada; or, The Winning of a Continent. By G. A. Henty. With
+illustrations by Gordon Browne. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges, price $1.00.
+
+"A model of what a boys' story-book should be. Mr. Henty has a great
+power of infusing into the dead facts of history new life, and as no pains
+are spared by him to ensure accuracy in historic details, his books supply
+useful aids to study as well as amusement."--School Guardian.
+
+True to the Old Flag: A Tale of the American War of Independence. By G. A.
+Henty. With illustrations by Gordon Browne. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges,
+price $1.00.
+
+"Does justice to the pluck and determination of the British soldiers
+during the unfortunate struggle against American emancipation. The son of
+an American loyalist, who remains true to our flag, falls among the
+hostile red-skins in that very Huron country which has been endeared to us
+by the exploits of Hawkeye and Chingachgook."--The Times.
+
+A Final Reckoning: A Tale of Bush Life in Australia. By G. A. Henty. With
+illustrations by W. B. Wollen. 12mo, cloth, olivine edges, price $1.00.
+
+"All boys will read this story with eager and unflagging interest. The
+episodes are in Mr. Henty's very best vein--graphic, exciting, realistic;
+and, as in all Mr. Henty's books, the tendency is to the formation of an
+honorable, manly, and even heroic character."--Birmingham Post.
+
+For sale by all booksellers, or sent postpaid on receipt of price by the
+publisher, A. L. BURT, 52-58 Duane Street, New York.
+
+
+
+
+
+End of Project Gutenberg's Adrift on the Pacific, by Edward S. Ellis
+
+*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ADRIFT ON THE PACIFIC ***
+
+***** This file should be named 29667-8.txt or 29667-8.zip *****
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