I had imagined, for we had not been under way
five minutes, when the gig, in which I led the way, grounded upon the
sand. And as she did so, I became aware of a weird, gaunt-looking
figure, clad in rags, standing at the water's edge, close to the boat's
stem.

"All right, Cap'n, it's me--Hoard--sir," explained this figure, in a
low, hoarse whisper, as I sprang ashore and gripped the fellow by the
throat. "There was nothing to keep me," he continued, as I relaxed my
grip upon him; "so I came right on here, thinkin' that, mayhap, you'd be
a little bit afore your time, and wouldn't want to be kept waitin'.
Everything is just as right, sir, as if you'd planned the whole thing
yourself; the gold is all shipped; the _Senora_ has been hauled out to
the Manzanilla anchorage, ready to sail as soon as the sojers is shipped
to-morrow morning; and the commandant is givin' a farewell _festa_, as
they calls it, to all the officers to-night; so that the chances are not
one of 'em will think of goin' aboard until daylight."

"Good heavens!" I exclaimed; "what carelessness! what folly! I should
have thought they would have been afraid to leave so vast an amount of
treasure unguarded."

"Why so, sir?" demanded Hoard. "They believe that the whole thing has
been kept as secret as the grave--and so it would have been, too, but
for the wreck of the _Magdalena_--so they don't expect any such attack
as you're preparin' for 'em. And as to anybody ashore attemptin' to
meddle with the ship--why, they'd sooner jump overboard and drownd
theirselves. So that it ain't so very wonderful, a'ter all, to my mind,
that they believes their gold to be perfectly safe. Besides, there's
the San Fernando battery: who'd ever dream of that bein' attacked and
took?"

"Well," said I, "it all seems fairly reasonable as you put it, Hoard;
still I cannot understand such an extraordinary lack of precaution.
But, of course, it is so much the better for us. What about her crew?"

"Oh! they're all aboard, sir; but they'll be turned in and sound asleep
by this time,--anchor watch and all, as likely as not," was the reply.

"Do you happen to know how many they muster?" asked I.

"Panza told me that he'd heard it said that her full complement was two
hundred and twenty-six men, countin' officers and all. But if we can
only manage to surprise 'em, and get aboard afore the alarm's given, I
don't reckon that they'll give us so very much trouble," answered Hoar