e mate made no answer, and Warner, with
a snort of contempt at him, went below. In a minute or two he
reappeared with his pipe and a large plug of tobacco in his hand.

"Here, Tagaro, you rabbit-faced swine," he called, "come aft here and
cut me up a pipe of tobacco."

Tagaro, the huge savage with a hare-lip, jumped up from the main-hatch
where he was squatting and came aft, his hideous red lips twisting and
squirming like the tentacles of an octopus as he masticated a mouthful
of betel-nut. Taking the pipe and tobacco from his master he sat down
cross-legged beside the companion. Barry eyed him for an instant with
anger and disgust. He returned the look with an impertinent grin, and
then coolly spat out a stream of the acrid scarlet juice half-way
across the clean, white deck.

This was too much for the officer. His face whitened with rage, and
striding up to Warner he pointed to the befouled whiteness of the deck.
"Tell that nigger of yours to get a swab and clean up that mess in
double quick time," he said, trying to steady his voice.

"Swab it up yourself," was the insulting reply; "reckon it's about all
you're fit for."

A second later Mr. Billy Warner went down on his back with a crash as
Barry caught him a terrific blow on the chin, and then spinning round
on his heel he dealt the hare-lipped nigger a kick in the side that
cracked two of his ribs like pipe-stems and doubled him up in agony.

In less than half a minute pandemonium seemed to have broken loose, for
Warner's natives made a rush aft crying out that Barry had killed their
white man and Tagaro. They were met by the officer, two of the white
seamen, men named "Joe" and "Sam Button," and several of the Gilbert
Islanders, who beat them back with belaying-pins. Joe, who was an
immensely powerful man, knocked three of them senseless with successive
blows on their woolly pates, and his comrades did equally as well.
Then Rawlings darted on deck, followed by Barradas, and threatening the
Solomon Islanders with their revolvers, succeeded in relieving Barry
and his men, and driving their assailants up for'ard, where they were
met by the watch below, who at once attacked them, and again the two
parties began another struggle, using their knives freely.

Then it was that Barry's influence over the native crew was made
manifest to the captain. Followed by Velo and big Joe he sprang into
the midst of the half-maddened crew, and by blows, threats, and