smoke-stack. "Those murderous pirates are shooting to kill, I
guess."

Another shot rang out across the dancing water and a bullet flattened
itself against a pipe stanchion. "Guess you'd better put a shot into
each of those ports," said Steve. "Maybe they'll keep away from them.
Sorry to damage your boat, Harry."

"Bother the damage!" said Harry. "Plug her full of lead if you like!"

Wink's revolver spoke, and: "Bull's-eye," he announced calmly. Another
shot followed. "Got that one, too," he muttered. "Can't see the other
port from here, Steve. Smokestack's in the way. You try it."

Steve tried and missed, the bullet knocking a long splinter from the
edge of the cabin roof, and at the same moment a pistol aboard the
_Follow Me_ barked and Perry, sitting crouched on one of the seats,
uttered an exclamation. Phil, beside him, turned anxiously. Perry's face
expressed blank amazement as he pushed his right sleeve up and gazed at
a wound from which the blood was spurting.

"Gosh," he said awedly, "I'm shot!"

CHAPTER XIV

A RUSE THAT FAILED

"I should think so!" cried Phil. "Come on down and let me fix it."

"What is it?" asked Steve anxiously.

"Perry's hit in the arm. They must have shot along the side, and the
bullet glanced from something. Come on, Perry."

"All you fellows get out of here," commanded Steve. "It might happen
again, and you're not doing any good here, anyway. The chest's in the
bottom locker in our cabin, Phil. Is it bad?"

"Don't think so," was the reply from the companion way. "Only a flesh
wound, I guess. I'll look after it."

Steve had forgotten to try a second shot at the port, but Wink again let
go at where the glint of a revolver muzzle showed and a cry of pain came
across the water.

"Got him!" said Wink.

"You must have," agreed Steve. "I hope you didn't hurt him much."

"Suffering snakes!" ejaculated Wink. "Why shouldn't I hurt him? They
potted Perry, didn't they? What are we supposed to do! Lie around here
and let them shoot us full of lead and just smile? Why, you pig-headed,
solid concrete--"

But Wink's flow of eloquence was interrupted by two shots from the
_Follow Me_. There was a tinkling of glass as one of them smashed
through the upper frame of the window on Steve's side. The other
ploughed into the chart-box. Wink instantly fired back twice, aiming at
the two ports he commanded. "Harry's boat will look like a sieve," he
chuckled as he broke his revolver a