be true, they have been chased," said he, "and have
come into harbour to hide. Did anyone look over the sea?" he continued.
No, we had all been too much engaged.

_Captain._--"Then the first thing I shall do on the dawn will be to scan
the sea. Something unusual must have occurred to put the pirates to all
this pother."

With the first streak of day came the pirate captain with his flag of
truce, and again made his offers of peace, friendship, and civility, and
again met with a vehement negative, though most forlorn were now our
hopes and fortunes. To our surprise we now only saw La Luna. There was
not a vestige of the pirate ship.

The pirate king had now recourse to threats, which we heard in
disdainful silence. After spending half an hour in oaths and threats, he
waved his hand, and, stamping with anger, pointed to La Luna. "I give
you one hour," he cried, "if by that time you do not come down
voluntarily, I intend sweeping the top of your rock with those two
guns." We looked towards the vessel; she had been brought within gun
shot, and her brass cannons were placed directly before us. "I know,"
continued the pirate, "who you all are, and I have no wish to harm you,
but rather to gain the rewards offered for your recovery. Be persuaded
and be reasonable."

_Mother._--"Captain, what do you think, what shall we do, he speaks
fair?"

_Captain._--"Madam, we must not trust him. I feel sure they have some
reason for this bustle and activity all night, and I feel persuaded they
have scuttled their ship and sunk her. Look round, and you will see that
when they retire into the caverns, there is not a trace of human beings
about save our own vessel, and that looks weather-beaten and old enough
to have been riding at anchor there for ages. No doubt they have
concealed all traces of themselves in her. If they get us down they will
use us as hostages for their own safety, or they may murder us at once,
and thus leave no one to tell the tale of the caverns. As long as we are
alive that secret cannot be kept, and, having made a settlement here, I
think there is every probability that they will commit any crime sooner
than suffer such a convenient and suitable stronghold for them to be
discovered. I trust them not, let us trust in God."

_Mother._--"And you, Schillie, tell me what do you advise?"

Schillie rose up, and drawing me to the highest part of the rock, turned
her broad white forehead to the ship, while her clear ey