CHAPTER XIV HISTORY REPEATS
For a moment after Sackett made his startling statement the two boyscould only stand and stare at him. At last Jim spoke up.
"You are taking us to Mexico?" he cried.
"Exactly!" mocked the outlaw. "We can't afford to have you two boyshanging around while we are looking for that treasure. So we are goingto put you in cold storage for a time!"
"Mexico isn't exactly cold storage," murmured Terry. "Bum joker, thisSackett man!"
"You'll find out it ain't a joke," said Sackett, as the sails were runinto place. "It'll be a long time before you boys get home again."
"You'll run into a lot of trouble over this," Jim warned.
"Trouble is something I'm used to," Sackett grinned. He turned to thevillainous-looking captain of the schooner. "Captain Jake Ryan, keepyour eyes on these boys and put them ashore where I tell you. I'm goingashore at Peso myself, so I make you responsible for them."
"You needn't be afraid they'll get away from me," the captain growled,looking them over keenly. "They're nothing but kids!"
"Yes, but they're pretty slippery ones," warned Sackett. "Come down inthe cabin with me."
The two men, followed by Abel, left the boys and walked off. Jim lookedat Terry and the latter shrugged his shoulders.
"Looks like we're in for it now," the red-headed boy remarked.
"I'm afraid we are," Jim replied, in a low voice. "But we must get away.If we are carried to Mexico there is no telling when we will ever gethome again."
"True enough, but I don't recommend starting anything with this crew,"said Terry.
The crew was indeed a rough looking outfit, apparently picked up in manyports and composed of rascals of every sort. They wore no uniforms andwere seemingly expert in their trade, by which sign the boys took itthat they had spent most of their life on board sailing vessels. Theyrepresented different nationalities and were a hardy and bold set ofmen, who would not stop at any kind of trade so long as it promised themgain of some sort.
"I'll bet the police of many a town would like to see these fellows,"was Jim's estimate of them.
The ship was rapidly leaving that portion of the coast where Jim andTerry had come aboard and was heading south. That meant that theyintended to round off the tip of Lower California and run up the shoreof Mexico, probably in one of the wildest portions of the tropicalcountry. The boys looked once or twice over the side, but they knew itwould be foolish to jump over, since they would be shot or overtaken bya boat before reaching the shore. There was nothing left for them to do,therefore, but to make the best of the situation.
They wandered over the deck of the schooner, forgetting in theirinterest that they were captives. Jim and Terry had done enough sailingto know something about sailing ships, and this ancient schoonerinterested them greatly. It had evidently been in active service foryears, for it was battered and beaten by many storms and its decks wereworn deeply in spots. The vast expanse of sails overhead, close hauledin the wind, drew their eyes in admiration, even though the sails weredirty and patched. The crew worked busily around the rigging, coilingropes and stowing loose equipment, paying no attention to the boys, muchas though taking prisoners was an every-day affair with them. The boysnoted that two of the men worked apart from the main crew and looked tobe men of a better stamp than the rank and file.
After a short run down the coast a tiny village appeared on the coastand once opposite it Sackett and the mate appeared on deck. The town wasthat of Peso and the captain of the _Galloway_ ordered the boat over theside. Sackett and Abel entered the boat and then looked up to where Jimand Terry leaned over the rail.
"Goodbye, boys," mocked the bay pirate. "If we run across the othermembers of your party we'll give them your regards, shall we?"
Jim only glowered, but Terry raised his slouched camping hat. "Why Mr.Sackett!" he exclaimed sweetly. "How very lovely of you! If I were onlynearer to you I would kiss your sweet face for that kind thought!"
The crew of the _Galloway_ broke into broad grins and the captainchuckled. Sackett's face grew red and he half rose from his seat in thelong boat. But Abel pulled him down again.
"Quit fooling with those kids and let's go," he said, and Sackett satdown, after saying something fiery through his set teeth. The sailorspulled on their oars and the long boat shot through the water to theshore. When the two men had been set on shore the boat returned, and theschooner continued on its way.
Up to that time the air had been clear and the water untroubled, but achange gradually developed.
A slight haze sprang up over the water and the air became thicker.Little choppy waves began to form, and before long the schooner wasbeginning to rock with increasing force.
In the bow there was a commotion. A lookout in the crow's nest hadcalled something down, and the captain came hurrying on deck. The boyssoon discovered a large black schooner to the west of them, some fourmiles off, and the sight of it appeared to alarm the crew. Acting underorders from the captain they crowded on more sail and began to runbefore the wind. It was a move that was not particularly wise under theincreasing strength of the rising wind, and the two boys were puzzled.
"Terry," said Jim, as he stood in the stern watching the schooner in thedistance. "These fellows are running away from that ship!"
Terry looked with increasing interest and found that Jim was right. Theschooner behind them was also crowding on sail, heeling over in the windbut running toward them in a direct line. The crew of the _Galloway_ wasnow fully on the alert and obeying the shouted orders of the skipper.The two men who had attracted the attention of the boys by theirdifference in looks compared to the rest of the motley crew, lookedeagerly toward the oncoming schooner until they were literally driven towork by Captain Ryan.
As may be imagined the boys watched the chase with an interest that waspainful. The outcome of it meant everything to them. They had no ideawho could be on the pursuing schooner, but whoever it was would be sureto release them if they overhauled the _Galloway_. When the crew of theschooner ran out a small cannon Terry whistled in surprise.
"This is no comedy," he remarked. "These fellows mean business."
The sky to the south had turned an ominous black and the wind was nowshrieking through the shrouds of the schooner. Cursing aloud Ryanordered sail taken in, and the crew sprang aloft, running along theropes in a way that took away the breath of the watching boys. Theoncoming schooner was also forced to take in canvas but it did not giveup the chase. The waves, an hour ago, so calm and peaceful, were nowmountain high, raging and boiling along the sides of the laboring ship.
"History repeats itself!" exclaimed Jim, suddenly.
"What do you mean?" blinked Terry.
"Why, it's just like the story of the galleon! We are being pursued byan enemy and a storm is surely going to close over us! See the point?"
"Yes, I do. Confound this storm, anyway! If it wasn't for it I believethose fellows in back would overtake us!" cried Terry.
"I never saw a storm come up so rapidly," said Jim.
In that part of the Pacific storms rise with incredible swiftness and itwas such a storm, half cyclonic, as now burst over the pursued and thepursuer. In a twinkling of an eye the ship to the rear vanished fromsight as the _Galloway_ staggered into a yawning trough. The boys hadall they could do to hang on as the deck slanted under their feet, andthey were soaked to the waist by the wash that flooded the deck. Asingle slashing flash of lightening flared in the sky.
"Do you think we had better go below, so as not to be washed overboard?"shouted Terry above the whine of the wind.
"Nothing doing!" roared Jim, his voice sounding like a whisper above thecrash of the waves. "I wouldn't miss this for anything!"
So they hung on to the rear mast and the ropes, keenly alive to thepicture of action which was going on before them. They could see the menbusy at the sails, pulling ropes, furling, lashing fast and jumping asthe ski
pper signalled his commands. They had been forgotten in theexcitement of the storm, and so were free to watch what was going on.They knew that the pursuing schooner would never haul down on them now.
The captain was at the wheel helping the helmsman, and between the twoof them they could scarcely control the wild plunging of the schooner.The boys watched with fascination as wave after wave reared up beforethe schooner, to curl and break over the bow and come thundering overthe deck in a mad swirl. At such times they were wet to the waist butthey did not mind that, so interested were they in the events of themoment. Their hands ached from holding onto ropes but they stuck totheir perilous post.
"They are running in too close to the shore!" shouted Terry in Jim'sear.
"They should know the coast well enough to do it," Jim returned.
He had scarcely spoken when there was a slight scraping and grindingsound and the men at the wheel spun the helm rapidly. The _Galloway_swung further away from the shore, listing dangerously as it did so. Oneof the crew ran down the companionway and reappeared soon afterward,making his way to the captain.
"She scraped a ledge that time," called Jim and Terry nodded.
It was now so black that the boys could scarcely see before them. Thecaptain spoke rapidly with the man, who was the mate, and the officerquickly singled one or two men from the crew and then made his way overthe bounding lurching deck to the boys. Placing his wet mouth near theirears he shouted: "Get on the pumps! We're leaking!"
Without loss of time the boys followed him across the deck to where thepumps were located. Two men had already seized the handle of one pumpand were bending their backs to the task, pumping up and down with alltheir strength. At a signal from the mate the two boys took hold of thehandle of a second pump and fell to the urgent task.
A thick stream of water shot out of the end of the pump and they knewthat the lower part of the schooner was filling rapidly with water. Itseemed to them that there was no use in pumping, but they realized thatit was their only chance. No life-boat could live in those seas and itwas a case of keep the ship from going down under their feet under theadded weight of the water that was pouring into the hold, where a seamhad been opened up by the ledge over which they had scraped. So theyworked with a will, moving the handle up and down, until their backs,totally unused to the work, ached with the tiring strain of it. Acontinual stream of water rushed from the mouth of the pump with everystroke.
They were soon gasping for breath and both of them longed for the momentwhen two other men would relieve them. The two on the other pump kept atit grimly, somewhat more used to the work, moving automatically,unmindful of the stinging waves that slapped them from each side. Theschooner pitched and rolled and bucked, now on top of a wave and nowsinking deep into a trough.
To their unspeakable relief they saw two more men approach with the mateto take over their task. The captain had realized that they would notlast long at the cruel task, and had sent relief. The men were comingtoward them, were almost to them.
There was a sharp grinding sound and the schooner crashed hard aground.Every man who was standing went over like a stick of wood. Down came therigging in a tumbled, confused mass, the forward mast snapped off sharp,the bow seemed to crumple like paper. Terry and Jim were torn from thepump handle and hurled through the air, to land like playthings in asmother of foam and swirling water. All became black in an instant,there was a sucking sound and the schooner settled down in the waterwith a shudder.