der. That smoke."

"What, on that little island? No, Jem; it's steam."

"Well, don't you know what that means?"

"No."

"Then I've got something at last as you arn't got first!" cried Jem
excitedly, as he sheltered his eyes from the glare of the sun. "Yes;
that's it's, sure. Cooking!"

"Cooking? What's cooking?"

"That place where the steam is, Mas' Don. I say, you know what they do
here? That's the place where they do it."

"Do what?"

"Cook people. That's the spot, safe."

"Nonsense!" said Don laughing.

"Ah! You may call it nonsense, Mas' Don; but if them sort o' things is
done here, I think we'd better stop on board."

Just at that moment the captain, who was busy with his spyglass
examining the place and looking for a snug anchorage, suddenly gave an
order, which was passed on, and with the rapidity customary on board a
man-of-war, the stout boarding nettings, ready for use on an emergency,
were triced up to the lower rigging, so that before long the vessel,
from its bulwarks high up toward the lower yards, presented the
appearance of a cage.

While this was going on, others of the men stood to their arms, guns
were cast loose and loaded, and every precaution taken against a
surprise.

The reason for all this was that quite a fleet of long canoes, propelled
by paddles, suddenly began to glide out from behind one of the islands,
each canoe seeming to contain from eighty to a hundred men.

The effect was beautiful, for the long, dark vessels, with their
grotesque, quaintly carved prows and sterns, seemed to be like some
strange living creatures working along paths of silver, so regularly
went the paddles, turning the sea into lines of dazzling light.

The men were armed with spears and tomahawks, and as they came nearer,
some could be seen wearing black feathers tipped with white stuck in
their hair, while their dark, nearly naked bodies glistened in the sun
like bronze.

"Are they coming to attack us, Jem?" said Don, who began to feel a
strange thrill of excitement.

"Dessay they'd like to, Mas' Don; but it strikes me they'd think twice
about it. Why, we could sail right over those long thin boats of
theirs, and send 'em all to the bottom."

Just then there was an order from the deck, and more sail was taken in,
till the ship hardly moved, as the canoes came dashing up, the men of
the foremost singing a mournful kind of chorus as they paddled on.

"Ship ahoy!" suddenly came from t