t, the mate and I. We triced a sperm whale for
the beach-combers, and when they thought they had everything out of him
we found a lump of ambergris in him that will weigh close to two hundred
pounds. Now look here, Charlie. The beach-combers have got the stuff.
It's mine--I'm going to have it back. Here's the lay. Your men can
fight--you can fight yourself. We'll make it a business proposition.
Help me to get that ambergris, and if we get it I'll give each one of
the men $1,000, and I'll give you $1,500. You can take that up and be
independent rich the rest of your life. You can chuck it and rot on this
beach, for it's fight or lose the schooner; you know that as well as I
do. If you've got to fight anyhow, why not fight where it's going to pay
the most?"

Charlie hesitated, pursing his lips.

"How about this, Moran?" Wilbur broke forth now, unheard by Charlie.
"I've just been thinking; have we got a right to this ambergris, after
all? The beach-combers found the whale. It was theirs. How have we the
right to take the ambergris away from them any more than the sperm and
the oil and the bone? It's theirs, if you come to that. I don't know as
we've the right to it."

"Darn you!" shouted Moran in a blaze of fury, "right to it, right to
it! If I haven't, who has? Who found it? Those dirty monkeys might have
stood some show to a claim if they'd held to the one-third bargain, and
offered to divvy with us when they got me where I couldn't help myself.
I don't say I'd give in now if they had--give in to let 'em walk off
with a hundred thousand dollars that I've got as good a claim to as they
have! But they've saved me the trouble of arguing the question. They've
taken it all, all! And there's no bargain in the game at all now. Now
the stuff belongs to the strongest of us, and I'm glad of it. They
thought they were the strongest and now they're going to find out. We're
dumped down here on this God-forsaken sand, and there's no law and no
policemen. The strongest of us are going to live and the weakest are
going to die. I'm going to live and I'm going to have my loot, too, and
I'm not going to split fine hairs with these robbers at this time of
day. I'm going to have it all, and that's the law you're under in this
case, my righteous friend!"

She turned her back upon him, spinning around upon her heel, and Wilbur
felt ashamed of himself and proud of her.

"I go talkee-talk to China boy," said Charlie, coming up.

For about