ves when morning
dawned and I heard a voice in my own language. Going to the spot I
found a man with a sprained ankle fighting away a thief. I seized a
rock and he ran. I aided the injured man to a place of safety, where
we remained for several days until a conveyance took us back to town.

The man whom I had helped was John L. Thorndike, an American, well
known in Peru and all over South America, as having built the highest
standard-gauge railway in the world, and a man who at once became my
warmest friend.

But to return to my ship. When the Aven of Aberdeen reached
Valparaiso, the mate and a number of sailors immediately deserted the
vessel in a boat. The Captain saw them leaving but was powerless to
stop them. That night John Mitchell and I stood watch alone. There
being no boat it did not occur to them that we would attempt to
escape, but about midnight Mitchell said to me, "Spriggings, I dare
you to run away."

"I'll take the dare," I said, "but how will we get ashore?"

"We'll launch one of the hatches," he replied.

It was no sooner said than we tied a rope around one of the heavy
hatches, and bearing it to the side of the ship, we lowered it
noiselessly into the water, then let ourselves down the rope and by
holding to the hatch, one on either side, we safely swam ashore.

We avoided the business streets of Valparaiso and made our way to the
country, where we hid in a grove until night. We were without money,
our clothes were such as we wore at sea, night was coming on, we were
hungry and with no place to sleep. Our only thought had been to escape
from the Aven, for we had imbibed the superstition of sailors, and
nothing could induce us to remain aboard that vessel since the phantom
ship had crossed our bow.

I saw a light in a farmhouse in the distance and on our approach the
inmates were aroused by the barking of their dog. The man was a
typical Chilean, short and stout. He looked curiously at us and by
signs Mitchell made him understand that we were hungry. He entered the
house and returned with his wife and two children. Mitchell repeated
his signs and the woman went inside and returned with a cup of milk,
which we drank greedily. The man then beckoned us inside where we had
a supper of meat, bread and coffee. They collected a number of sheep
skins, gave us two mats for covering, and we slept soundly.

The next morning we helped the man in his garden, drew water for the
cattle and made ourselves u