reater
stress at hand, she had no more time to spare in argument with Pearse.
She waved him back, and with fire in her eyes commanded Stumpy to take
his men to one side.

"Stand there! Thy rascals will not dare to flout me!"

"We don't want to, lady," growled Stumpy, sullenly. He motioned his men
to follow, and took up a position at the right of the altar. But he
glared fearlessly at Dolores as he went, and added: "Ye have none more
faithful than Stumpy, if thy heart is still with us and for us. But
things begin to look plaguey rough, Dolores, since ye spared the white
schooner and her owner."

Swiftly Dolores stepped down and glided to Stumpy's side, his men
drawing back involuntarily, not in sufficient numbers to be able to
cast off their old awe of her.

"Thy ear, good Stumpy," she whispered. "Art for thy fellow pirates, or
for me? Speak quickly."

"I'm for you, lady," he replied, shifting awkwardly on his mutilated
foot. "For you, but not if what we heard is true."

"I tell thee it was false. Now art for me?" She bent upon him a smile of
dazzling beauty, soft-eyed and almost tender, and the pirate's face grew
ashamed; he knelt at her feet in humble obeisance, and the girl laid her
hand on his head, and bade him rise.

"Then remain faithful, Stumpy, and thou and thy men shall share in my
fortunes. Look well to the stranger there. Keep him with thee. I hear
the vultures coming."

She returned to the altar, took her place behind the swirling smoke, and
stood motionless, awaiting the arrival of the crowd whose noisy progress
could be traced step by step. And presently they broke into the grove,
unawed and uproarious, Caliban leading. Still the parties kept apart.
Hanglip and Spotted Dog ranged themselves on either side of Caliban's
gang, and every eye glared redly at the statuesque figure at the altar.

"Answer! Give us yer answer!" cried Caliban.

"Hear, my people!" Dolores cried, raising her arms for silence. "My
answer is this. Among ye is a traitor. That traitor has spread lies
among ye. Ye are my people, and none other. Did I not save the white
ship for ye? What if I preserved her people. They are here, and here
they shall remain. Had I thought to desert ye, could I not have gone in
the night? Who should say no? Am I not queen of ye all? Then why this
childish talk of leaving ye?"

Dolores was carefully fighting for time; she wished to dissect the
feeling of the crowd before her, and while she spoke h