some dry clothes! And now all of you go and attend to what
you've got to do. Don't bother about that steamer--she'll go down in
half an hour! She's got a big hole stove in her bow!"

With a cry of surprise Burke turned and looked out at the _Dunkery
Beacon_. Even now she had keeled over to starboard so much that her deck
was visible, and her head was already lower than her stern. "She'll
sink," he cried, "with all that gold on board!"

"Yes," said Shirley, turning with a weak smile as he made his way to the
cabin, accompanied by Mr. Hodgson, "she'll go down with every bar of
it!"

There was great commotion now on the _Dunkery Beacon_. It was plain that
the people on board of her had discovered that it was of no use to try
to save the vessel, and they were lowering her boats. Burke and his
companions stood and watched for some minutes. "What shall we do!"
exclaimed Mr. Arbuckle, approaching Burke. "Can we offer those
unfortunate wretches any assistance?"

"All we can do," said Burke, "is to keep out of their way. I wouldn't
trust one of them within pistol shot." Now Shirley reappeared on
deck--he had had his dram, and had changed his clothes. "You're right,"
said he, "they're a set of pirates--every man of them! If we should take
them on board, they'd cut all our throats. They've got boats enough, and
the other pirates can pick them up. Keep her off, Burke; that's what I
say!"

There was no time now for explanations or for any story to be told, and
Burke gave orders that the yacht should be kept away from the sinking
steamer and her boats. Suddenly Burdette, from the pilot house, sung out
that there was a steamer astern, and the eyes which had been so
steadfastly fixed upon the _Dunkery Beacon_ now turned in that
direction. There they saw, less than a mile away, a large steamer coming
down from the north.

Burke's impulse was to give orders to go ahead at full speed, but he
hesitated, and raised his glass to his eye. Then in a few moments he put
down his glass, turned around, and shouted, "That's the _Monterey_! The
_Monterey_! and Captain Horn!"

CHAPTER XXXIII

11 deg. 30' 19" N. LAT. BY 56 deg. 10' 49" W. LONG.

The announcement of the approach of Captain Horn created a sensation
upon the _Summer Shelter_ almost equal to that occasioned by any of the
extraordinary incidents which had occurred upon that vessel. Burke and
Shirley were wild with delight at the idea of meeting their old friend
and comm