er nor
I can."

"Yes, go on," cried Murray; and the second boat-keeper took up the
narrative.

"Well, sir, we just didn't."

"Just did not what?" asked Murray.

"Pull ashore, sir. They warn't our people, and him as hailed us warn't
our officer. 'Sides, we didn't like the looks of 'em."

"Well done, my lads," said the middy; "that was right. But what did you
do then?"

"I hystes up the grapnel, sir, and Harry Lang there gets an oar over the
side."

"Well?"

"Well, sir, then a Yankee sort of a chap as seemed to be the head on 'em
leans hisself up again' a bush and rests his gun upon a bough of one of
the trees on the bank, and he says to me, he says, as he looks along the
barrel, `Now, you sir,' he says, `just you run that boat's nose into
this here bank, and tidy quick too, 'fore I draws this here trigger.'

"`All right, sir,' I says, and I shoves another oar over the side; and
as soon as he sees me do that, quite easy like, he lowers down his gun--
rifle, I think it was--and turns his head to say something to the chaps
who was with him.

"`Easy, messmate,' I says then; `get her head straight first,' making
believe as Harry warn't doing right. The 'Merican chap was just turning
round then, but I sees my chance, and I whispers to Harry, `Up stream,
lad, for all you're worth.' `Right you are,' he says, and my word! sir,
we did take hold of the water and put our backs into it, 'gainst stream
as it was; and as I pulled I was all the time wishing as hard as I could
that you'd got hold of the rudder lines so as to steer, sir, and leave
us nothing to do but pull while you kept the boat's head right in the
middle of the river. `Here, hi, there! What are you doing? Pull
ashore, or--' He steps to the same tree again and rests his gun on the
bough and takes aim, while I thinks to myself what a pity it was that we
hadn't turned the boat's head down stream."

"You said arterwards, messmate, as that would ha' been like leaving the
first luff and the lads in the lurch," said the other boat-keeper.

"So I did, messmate; and so it would," said the narrator.

"But he didn't fire at you?" cried Murray eagerly.

"Didn't fire at us, sir?" said the man. "But he just did, while we
pulled with all our might."

"And missed you?"

"He missed me, sir, but he hit the boat. Sent his bullet slap through
the bow planks just between wind and water, and the brown juice come
trickling in quite fast, but we couldn't stop to