The Stowaway Girl

  CHAPTER X

  ON THE HIGH SEAS

  Again did that awe-inspiring wand of light describe a great arc in thesky. But it was plain to be seen that it sprang from an altered base.The warship was in motion. She was about to steam around the group ofislands.

  Boat and catamaran raced at once for the launch; a Babel of strangeoaths jarred the brooding silence; alarm, almost panic, stirred men'shearts and bubbled forth in wild speech. Under pressure of this newperil the instinct of self-preservation burst the bonds of discipline.The first law of nature may be disregarded by heroes, but the_Andromeda's_ crew were just common sailormen, who did not know whenthey were heroic and did not care if they were deemed bestial. It maybe urged that they had suffered much. Out of a ship's company oftwenty-two exactly one half had survived the day's rigors. Domingo waslying in the cabin, too seriously injured to be concerned whether helived or died. With him were two wounded soldiers, happily saved fromthe ruthless ferocity of the fight alongside the wharf, when everyBrazilian in uniform found on deck was flung off to sink or swim as hewas best able. Indeed, it was during this phase of the struggle thatHozier managed to scramble on shore unnoticed. He landed at the samemoment as enemies who were blind to every other consideration excepttheir own dangerous plight.

  Small wonder, then, if authority was cast to the winds now that captureseemed to be unavoidable. Coke tried to still the tumult by thunderinga command to Norrie, second engineer, to throw open the throttle valve.He took the wheel in person, meaning to shape a course due east, andthus endeavor to avoid the cruiser's baleful glance. But some of themen realized instantly that this expedient would fail. They were in nomood for half measures. Norrie felt a bayonet under his leftshoulder-blade. Coke was roared down, and a hoarse voice growled:

  "Me for the tall timbers, maties. It's each one for hisself now."

  "Aye, aye!" came the chorus . . . "Shove her ashore! . . . Give us achanst there. . . We've none at sea."

  Dom Corria, being something of a fatalist, did not interfere. On thiscockleshell of a craft, among these rude spirits of alien races, he waspowerless. On land a diplomat and strategist of high order, here hewas a cipher. Moreover, he was beaten to his knees, and he knew it.The arrival of the warship had upset his calculations. After manymonths' planning of flight, he had been forced, by the events of a fewhours, into an aggressive campaign. His little cohort had donewonders, it is true, but of what avail were these ill-equippedstalwarts against a fast-moving fort, armed with heavy guns andpropelled by thousands of steam horses? None, absolutely none. DomCorria drew San Benavides aside.

  "All is ended!" he said quietly. "We shall never see Brazil again,Salvador _meu_! Carmela must find another lover, it seems."

  Salvador did not appear to be specially troubled by the new questimposed on Carmela, but he was much perturbed by an uproar betokeningdisunion among the men who had already saved his life twice. He wasbeginning to believe in them. It was night, and they possessed avessel under steam. Why did they not hurry into the obscurity of thesmooth dark plain that looked so inviting?

  It was left to Hozier to solve a problem that threatened to developinto a disastrous brawl. Danger sharpens a brave man's wits, but lovemakes him fey. To succor Iris was now his sole concern. He swung acouple of the excited sailors out of his way and managed to stem thetorrent of Coke's futile curses.

  "Give in to them!" he cried eagerly. "Tell them they are going ashorein the creek. That will stop the racket. If they listen to me, I canstill find a means of escape."

  "Avast yelpin', you swabs!" bellowed Coke. "D'ye want to let everybally sojer on the island know where you are? We're makin' for thecreek. Will _that_ please you? Now, Mr. Norrie, let her rip!"

  The head of the launch swung toward the protecting shadows. The menknew the bearings of Cotton-Tree Bay, so the angry voices yielded toselfish thought. If it was to be _sauve qui peut_ when the vesselgrounded, there was ample room for thought, seeing that each man'sprobable fate would be that of a mad dog.

  Hozier seized the precious respite. He spoke loudly enough that allshould hear, and he began with a rebuke.

  "I am sorry that those of us who are left should have disgraced thefine record set up by the _Andromeda's_ crew since the ship struck," hesaid. "Your messmates who fell fighting would hardly believe St. Peterhimself if he told them that we were on the verge of open mutiny. I amashamed of you. Let us have no more of that sort of thing. Sink orswim, we must pull together."

  There was some discordant muttering, but he gained one outspokenadherent.

  "Bully for you!" said the man who had suggested tree-climbing as anexpedient.

  "Shut up!" was the wrathful answer. "You've made plenty of rowalready. I only hope you have not attracted attention on the island.You may not have been heard, owing to the disturbance on the otherside, but no thanks to any of you for that. Our skipper's first notionwas to put to sea. Wasn't it natural? Do you want to be hunted overFernando Noronha at daybreak? But he would have seen the uselessnessof trying to slip the cruiser before the launch had gone a cable'slength. Now, here is a scheme that strikes me as workable. At anyrate, it offers a forlorn hope. There is a sharp bend in the creekjust where the tidal water ends. I fancy the launch will float alittle higher up, but we must risk it. We will take her in, unship themast, tie a few boughs and vines on the funnel, and not twentysearch-lights will find us."

  A rumble of approving murmurs showed that he had scotched the dragon.It was even ready to become subservient again. He continued rapidly:

  "No vessel of deep draught can come close in shore from the east. Thecruiser will have the Grand-pere rock abeam within an hour, but, tomake sure, two of you will climb the ridge and watch her movements.The rest will load up every available inch of space with wood and waterand food. How can we win clear of Fernando Noronha without fuel? Itis a hundred to one that the launch would not steam twenty miles on herpresent coal supply. Such as it is, we must keep it for an emergency,even if we are compelled to tear up the deck and dismantle the cabin."

  "Talks like a book!" snorted Coke, and some of the men grinnedsheepishly.

  Hozier was coolly reminding them of those vital things which frenzy hadfailed wholly to take into account. Confidence was reborn in them.They wanted to cheer this fearless young officer who seemed to forgetnothing, but the island promontories were so close at hand thatperforce they were dumb.

  The simplicity of the project was its best recommendation. Sailorsthemselves, the mind of the cruiser's commander was laid bare to them.He would soon be convinced that the launch had passed him in the darkere the search-light looked out over the sea. Long before the circuitof Fernando Noronha was completed he would be itching to rush at topspeed along the straight line to Pernambuco. It was a bold thing, too,to land on the island and stock their vessel for a voyage, the end ofwhich no man could foresee. The dare-devil notion fascinated them. Inthat instant, the _Andromeda's_ crew returned to their allegiance,which was as well, since it was fated to be stiffly tested many timesere they were reported inside 1 degree West again.

  Unfortunately, Coke was in a raging temper. Never before had hissupremacy been challenged. Having lost control over his men, he owedits restoration to Hozier. Such a fact was gall and wormwood to a manof his character, and he was mean-souled enough to be vindictive.Promising himself the future joy of pounding to a jelly the features ofevery mother's son among the forecastle hands, he began to snarl hisorders.

  "Watts, you must leg it to the sky-line, an' pipe the cruiser. Olsen,you go, too, an' see that Mr. Watts doesn't find a brewery. Hozier,p'raps you'd like to rig the mistletoe. Miss Yorke 'll 'elp, I'm sure.It's up to you, mister, an' his nibs with the sword, to parly-voo tothe other convicts about the grub. Is there a nigger's wood-pilehandy? If not, we must collar the hut. I'll take care of the stowage."

  He meant each jibe to hurt, and probably succeeded, but Watts was toodespondent, and Hozier and
De Sylva too self-controlled, to say aughtthat would add to their difficulties. Nevertheless, he was answered,from a quarter whence retort was least expected.

  "You must modify your instructions, Captain Coke," said Iris with quietscorn. "It would be a shameful act to destroy the house of those whobefriended us. They gave freely of their stores, as you will see bythe supplies lashed to the catamaran, and will assist us further ifSenhor De Sylva appeals to them----"

  "You can safely leave that to me," broke in Dom Corria.

  But Iris was not to be placated thus easily.

  "I know that," she said. "I only wished Captain Coke to understandthat if he cannot make clear his meaning he should obey rather thancommand."

  "The lady 'as 'ad the last word. Now let's get busy," sneered Coke.

  Hozier, who had not quitted his side since the incipient outbreak wasquelled, gripped his shoulder.

  "There is a pile of wood near the cottage," he said in Coke's ear. "Isaw it there. It must be paid for. Have you any money?"

  "A loose quid or two--no more."

  "A sovereign will be ample. Miss Yorke has already given the ownerstwo pounds."

  "Wot for?"

  "For their kindness. You are all there when it comes to a scrap,skipper, but at most other times you ought to be muzzled. No, don'ttalk now. We will discuss the point on some more suitable occasion,when we can deal with it fully, and Miss Yorke is not present."

  Philip spoke in a whisper, but the low pitch of his voice did notconceal its menace. He was longing to twine his fingers round Coke'sthick neck, and some hint of his desire was communicated by the clutchof his hand. Coke shook himself free. He feared no man born, but itwould be folly to attack Hozier then, and he was not a fool.

  "Let go, you blank ijjit," he growled. "I've no grudge ag'in you. Ifwe pull out of this mess you'll 'ave to square matters wi' David Verityan' that other ole ninny, Dickey Bulmer. She's promised to 'im, youknow. Told me so 'erself, so there's no mistake. I got me rag out, Iadmit, an' 'oo wouldn't after bein' 'owled down by those swine forrard.My godfather! Watch me put it over 'em w'en I get the chanst. Stop'er, Norrie! There's plenty of way on 'er to round that bend."

  Hozier reflected that he had chosen an odd moment to quarrel with hiscaptain, whose mordant humor in the matter of the mistletoe was onlyaccentuated by his reference to Iris's reported engagement. Thepungent smell of the mangrove swamp was wafted now to his nostrils. Itbrought a species of warning that the disagreeable conditions of lifein Fernando Noronha were yet active. It was not pleasant to be thussuddenly reminded of pitfalls that might exist in England; meanwhile,here was the launch thrusting her nose into the mud and shingle of thismalevolent island.

  To his further annoyance, San Benavides, who depended on his compatriotfor a summary of the latest scheme, asked Iris to accompany De Sylvaand himself to the hut.

  "They are stupid creatures, these peasants," he said. "When they seeyou they will not be frightened."

  There was so much reason in the statement that Iris was a readyvolunteer. Soon all hands were at work, and it was due to the girl'sforethought that strips of linen were procured from Luisa Gomez, andhealing herbs applied to the cuts and bruises of the injured men.Sylva was all for leaving the two soldiers on the island, but Coke'ssailor-like acumen prevented the commission of that blunder.

  "No, that will never do," he said, with irritating offhandness. "Thesejokers will be found at daylight, an' they'll be able to say exactlywot time we quit. The wimmin can make out they was scared stiff an'darsent stir. It 'ud be different with the sojers. An' we ain't goin'to have such a 'eart-breakin' start, even if the cruiser clears awaysoon after two o'clock."

  "Where do you propose to make for?"

  "Where d'ye think, mister? Nor'-east by nor', to be sure, until wesight some homeward-bound ship."

  There was a pause. The pair could talk unheard, since they werestanding on the bank, and the men were either loading firewood andfruit and cassava, or stripping trees and vines to hide thesuperstructure of the launch.

  "You mean to abandon everything, then?" said De Sylva. He seemed to bewatching the onward sweep of the search-light as the warship went tothe north. But Coke was shrewd. He felt that there was somethingbehind the words, and he suspected the ex-President's motives.

  "I don't see any 'elp for it," he answered. "Gord's trewth, wot isthere to abandon? I've lost me ship, an' me money, an' me papers, an''arf me men. Unless one was lookin' for trouble, this ain't notreasure island, mister."

  "Yet it might be made one."

  "As how?"

  "Do you not realize how greatly the members of the present Governmentfear my return to Brazil? Here, I am their prisoner, practicallyfriendless, almost alone. They dare not kill me by process of law, yetthey are moving heaven and earth to prevent my escape, or shoot me downin the act. Why? Because they know that the people are longing tohail me as President again. Suppose you and your men took me toPernambuco----"

  "S'pose hell!" snapped Coke.

  "Please listen. You can but refuse when you look at the facts fairly.If, as I say, I were put ashore at Pernambuco, or at any other of halfa dozen ports I can name, I should be among my own followers. You,Captain Coke, and every officer and man of your ship, and her owners,and the relatives of those who have lost their lives, would not only bepaid all just claims by the new Government, but adequately rewarded.In your own case, the recompense would be princely. But, assuming thatwe board a vessel bound for Europe, what certainty have you that youwill ever receive a penny?"

  "Oh, reely, that's comin' it a bit thick, mister," growled Coke.

  "You believe I am exaggerating the difficulties of your position? Prayconsider. Your vessel is broken up. She was fired on while at anchoron the wrong side of the island, on the very day selected for myescape. You and your men manage to dodge the bullets, and, under myleadership, assisted by Captain San Benavides, you overrun the place bynight, kill several soldiers, seize a launch, despoil peasants of theircrops and stores, and make off with a good deal of property belongingto the Brazilian Government, not to mention the presence in your midstof such a significant personage as myself. Speaking candidly, SenhorCaptain, what chance have you of convincing any international court ofyour innocence? Who will believe that you were not a true filibuster?That is what Brazil will say you are. How will you disprove it? Inany event, who will enforce your claims against my country? Englishpublic opinion would never compel your Government to take action insuch an exceedingly doubtful case, now would it?"

  "If we was to try and land you in Brazil, we'd bust up our claim forgood an' all," muttered Coke. Though this was a powerful argumentagainst De Sylva's theory, it revealed certain qualms of perplexity.The other man's brilliant eyes gleamed for an instant, but he guardedhis voice. He was in his element now. When words were weapons hecould vanquish a thousand such adversaries.

  "I think otherwise," he said slowly. "A judge might well hold that ina small vessel like the launch you were entitled to make for thenearest land. But I grant you that point; it is really immaterial. IfI fail, you lose everything. Accept my offer, and you have areasonable chance of winning a fortune."

  "Wot exactly is your offer?"

  "Ample compensation officially. Five thousand pounds to you in person."

  "Five thousand!" Coke cleared a throat husky with doubt. He scratchedhis head under the absurd-looking kepi which he was still wearing; fora moment, his lips set in grim calculation. "That 'ud make thingspretty easy for the missus an' the girls," he muttered. "An' there'sno new ship for me w'en Dickey Bulmer cocks 'is eye at Hozier. It's amoral there'll be a holy row between 'im an' David. . . . D'ye meanit, mister?"

  "Even if I fail, and my life is spared, I will pay you the money out ofmy own private funds," was the vehement reply.

  "Well, well, leave the job to me. You sawr 'ow them tinkers jibbedjust now. I must 'umor 'em a bit, d--n 'em. But wait till the nexttime s
ome of 'em ships under me. Lord luv' a duck, won't I skin 'em?Not 'arf!"

  De Sylva, with all his admirable command of English, could not followthe Coke variety in its careless freedom. But he knew his man. Thoughbewildered by strange names and stranger words, he was alive to thesignificance of things being made easy "for the missus and the girls."So, even this gnarled sea-dog had a soft spot in his heart! On thevery brink of the precipice his mind turned to his women-kind, just asDe Sylva himself had whispered a last memory of his daughter to SanBenavides when their common doom was seemingly unavoidable.

  He would urge no more, since Coke was willing to fall in with hisdesigns, but he could not forbear from clinching matters.

  "I promise on my honor----" he began.

  But the nearer surface of the sea flashed into a dazzling distinctness,and Coke dragged him down to the launch. The cruiser had rounded RatIsland, and was devoting one sweeping glance eastward ere she soughther prey in creek or tortuous channel. The men were summoned hastily.Watts and Olsen had been warned to crouch behind the rocks on thecrest, while those who remained near the launch were told to hide amongthe trees or crowd into the small cabin. Movement of any kind wasforbidden. There was no knowing who might be astir on the hills, and asharp eye might note the presence of foreigners in Cotton-Tree Bay.Hozier had not forgotten the risk of detection from the shore, and thevessel was plentifully decorated with greenery. The long, large-leafedvines and vigorous castor-oil plants were peculiarly useful at thiscrisis. Trailing over the low freeboard into the water, they screenedthe launch so completely that Watts and the Norwegian, perched highabove the creek at a distance of three hundred yards, could only guessher whereabouts when the search-light made the Gomez plantation lightas day.

  The cruiser evidently discovered traces of the _Andromeda_ onGrand-pere. She stopped an appreciable time, and created a flutter inmany anxious hearts by a loud hoot of her siren. It did not occur toanyone at the moment that she was signaling to the troops bivouacked onSouth Point. De Sylva was the first to read this riddle aright. Hewhispered his belief, and it soon won credence, since the warshipcontinued her scrutiny of the coast-line.

  At last, after a wearying delay, she vanished. Five minutes later,Watts and Olsen brought the welcome news that she was returning to theroadstead.

  It was then half-past two o'clock, and the sun would rise soon afterfive. Now or never the launch must make her effort. Ready hands toreaway her disguise, she was tilted by crowding in the poop nearly everyman on board, the engines throbbed, and she was afloat.

  At daybreak the thousand-foot peak of Fernando Noronha was a dark bluron the western horizon. No sail or smudge of smoke broke the remainderof the far-flung circle. The fugitives could breathe freely once more.They were not pursued.

  Iris fell asleep when assured that the dreaded warship was not insight. Hozier, too, utterly exhausted by all that he had gone through,slept as if he were dead. Coke, whose iron constitution defiedfatigue, though it was with the utmost difficulty that he had walkedacross the narrow breadth of Fernando Noronha, took the first watch inperson. He chatted with the men, surprised them by his candor on thequestion of compensation, and announced his resolve to make for thethree-hundred-mile channel between Fernando Noronha and the mainland.

  "You see, it's this way, me lads," he explained affably. "We're shorto' vittles an' bunker, an' if we kep' cruisin' east in this latitoodwe'd soon be drawrin' lots to see 'oo'd cut up juiciest. So we mustrun for the tramp's track, which is two hundred miles to the west.We'll bear north, an' that rotten cruiser will look south for sartin,seein' as 'ow they know we 'ave the next President aboard."

  Coke paused to take breath.

  "Wot a pity we can't give 'im a leg up," he added confidentially. "It'ud be worth a pension to every man jack of us. 'Ere 'e is, specialfreight, so to speak. W'y _'e'd sign anythink_."

  Once the train was laid, it was a simple matter to fire the mine. WhenHozier awoke, to find the launch heading west, he was vastly astonishedby Coke's programme. It was all cut and dried, and there was reallynothing to cavil at. If they met a steamship, and she stopped inresponse to their signals, her captain would be asked to take care, notonly of Miss Yorke, but of any other person who shirked furtheradventure. As for Coke, and Watts, and the majority of the men, theywere pledged to De Sylva. Even Norrie, the engineer, a hard-headedScot, meant to stick to the launch until the President that was andwould be again was safely landed among his expectant people.

  Watts let the cat out of the bag later.

  "Those of us 'oo don't leave Dom Wot's-'is-name in the lurch are to getten years' full pay, extry an' over an' above wot the court allows," hesaid. "Just think of it! Don't it make your mouth water? Reminds meof a chap I wonst read about in a trac'. It tole 'ow 'e took to booze.One 'ot Sunday, bein' out for a walk, 'e swiped 'arf a pint of gingerbeer, the next 'e tried shandy-gaff, the third 'e went the whole hog,an' then 'e never stopped for ten years. My godfather! Ten years' payan' a ten years' drunk! It's enough to make a sinner of any man."

  Hozier laughed. Two days ago he would have asked no better luck thanthe helping of Dom Corria to regain his Presidentship. Now, there wasIris to protect. He would not be content to leave her in charge of thefirst grimy collier they encountered, nor was he by any means sure thatshe would agree to be thus disposed of. He was puzzled by the singularunanimity of purpose displayed by his shipmates. But that was theiraffair. His was to insure Iris's safety; the future he must leave toProvidence.

  And, indeed, Providence contrived things very differently.

  By nightfall the launch was a hundred miles west of the island. Norriegot eight knots out of her, but it needed no special calculation todiscover that she would barely make the coast of Brazil if she consumedevery ounce of coal and wood on board. The engines were strong and ingood condition, but she had no bunker space for a long voyage. Were itnot for Hozier's foresight she would have been drifting with the GulfStream four hours after leaving the island. As it was, unless theyreceived a fresh supply of fuel from another ship, they mustunquestionably take the straightest line to the mainland.

  During the day they had sighted three vessels, but at such distancesthat signaling was useless, each being hull down on their limitedhorizon. Moreover, they had to be cautious. The cruiser, trusting toher speed, might try a long cast north and south of the launch'ssupposed path. She alone, among passing ships, would be scouring thesea with incessant vigilance, and it behooved them, now as ever, not toattract her attention. They were burning wood, so there was no smoke,and the mast was unstepped. Yet the hours of daylight were tortured byconstant fear. Even Iris was glad when the darkness came and they werehidden.

  At midnight a curious misfortune befell them. The compass had beensmashed during the fight, and not a sailor among them owned one of thetiny compasses that are often worn as a charm on the watchchain. Thisdrawback, of little consequence when sun or stars could be seen,assumed the most serious importance when a heavy fog spread over theface of the waters. The set of the current was a guide of a sort, but,as events proved, it misled them. Man is ever prone to over-estimate,and such a slight thing as the lap of water across the bows of a smallcraft was sure to be miscalculated; they contrived to steer west, it istrue, but with a southerly inclination.

  At four o'clock, by general reckoning, they were mid-way between islandand continent. They were all wide awake, too weary and miserable tosleep. Suddenly a fog-horn smote the oppressive gloom. It drew near.A huge blotch crossed their bows. They could feel it rather than seeit. They heard some order given in a foreign language, and De Sylvawhispered:

  "The _Sao Geronimo_!"

  "The wot-ah?" demanded Coke, who was standing beside him.

  "The cruiser!"

  Coke listened. He could distinguish the half-speed beating of twinscrews. He knew at once that the ex-President must have recognized thewarship as she passed the creek, but, by some accident, had failed tomen
tion her name during the long hours that had sped in the meantime.The sinister specter passed and the launch crept on. Everyone on boardwas breathless with suspense. Faces were shrouded by night and thefog, but some gasped and others mumbled prayers. One of the woundedsoldiers shouted in delirium, and a coat was thrust over his head withbrutal force. The fog-horn blared again, two cables' lengths distant.They were saved, for the moment!

  In a little while, perhaps twenty minutes, they heard another siren.It sounded a different note, a quaintly harsh blend of discords.Whatsoever ship this might be, it was not the _Sao Geronimo_. And inthat thrilling instant there was a coldness on one side of their facesthat was not on the other. Moist skin is a weather-vane in its way. Abreeze was springing up. Soon the fog would be rolled from off the seaand the sun would peer at them in mockery.

  Coke's gruff voice reached every ear:

  "This time we're nabbed for keeps unless you all do as I bid you," hesaid. "When the fog lifts, the cruiser will see us. There's only onething for it. Somewhere, close in, is a steamer. She's a tramp, bythe wheeze of 'er horn. We've got to board 'er an' sink the launch.If she's British, or American, O.K., as 'er people will stand by us.If she's a Dago, we've got to collar 'er, run every whelp into theforehold, an' answer the cruiser's signals ourselves. That's thesittiwation, accordin' to my reckonin'. Now, 'oo's for it?"

  "Butt right in, skipper," said a gentleman who claimed Providence,Rhode Island, as the place of his nativity.

  Hozier, who had contrived to draw near Iris while Coke was speaking,breathed softly, so that none other could hear:

  "This is rank piracy. But what else can we do?"

  "Is it wrong?" she asked.

  "Well--no, provided we kill no one. We are justified in saving our ownlives, and the average German or Italian shipmaster would hand us overto the Brazilians without scruple."

  Iris was far from Bootle and its moralities.

  "I don't care what happens so long as you are not hurt," she whispered.

  "Mr. Hozier," said Coke thickly.

  "Yes, sir."

  "You've got good eyes an' quick ears. Lay out as far forrard as youcan, an' pass the word for steerin'."

  Hozier obeyed. The discordant bleat of a foghorn came again,apparently right ahead. In a few seconds he caught the flapping of apropeller, and silenced the launch's engines.

  "We are close in now," he said to Coke, after a brief and noiselessdrift. "Why not try a hail!"

  "Ship ahoy!" shouted Coke, with all the force of brazen lungs.

  The screw of the unseen ship stopped. The sigh of escaping steamreached them.

  "_Holla_! _Wer rufe_?" was the gruff answer.

  "Sink me if it ain't a German!" growled Coke, _sotto-voce_, "Norrie,you must stick here till I sing out to you. Then open your exhaust an'unscrew a sea-cock. . . . Wot ship is that?" he vociferated aloud.

  Some answer was forthcoming--what, it mattered not. The launch bumpedinto the rusty ribs of a twelve-hundred ton tramp. A rope ladder waslowered. A round-faced Teuton mate--fat and placid--was vastlysurprised to find a horde of nondescripts pouring up the ship's side inthe wake of a short, thick, bovine-looking person who neitherunderstood nor tried to understand a word he was saying.

  These extraordinary visitors from the deep brought with them a girl andthree wounded men. By this time the captain was aroused; he spoke someEnglish.

  "Vas iss diss?" he asked, surveying the newcomers with amazement, andtheir bizarre costumes with growing nervousness. "Vere haf you coomedvrom?"

  Coke pushed him playfully into the cook's galley.

  "This is too easy," he chortled. "Set about 'em, you swabs. Don'thurt anybody unless they ax for it. Round every son of a gun into thefo'c'sle till I come. Mr. Watts, the bridge for you. Olsen, take thewheel. Mr. Hozier, see wot you can find in their flag locker. _Now_,Mr. Norrie! Sharp for it. You're wanted in the engine-room."

  And that is how ex-President Dom Corria Antonio De Sylva acquired thenucleus of his fleet, though, unhappily, an accident to a sea-cockforthwith deprived him of a most useful and seaworthy steam launch.