it took a much longer time for a thorough recovery. That
he was deeply grateful to us he showed us in many quiet ways; and before
he had been with us a week, both the captain and myself, and, indeed,
every one else on board the _Fray Bentos_ had grown to like the man
immensely, though at times he would become unaccountably moody and
silent, and keep to himself, only speaking in answer to a direct
question. But, even then, he never attempted to directly avoid us, and
was always civil, even to any of our native crew who might speak to him.

"Guess he thinks a lot about those poor men of his," said Guest to me
one day.

That first evening we had a very pleasant supper. Yorke was with us, and
during the meal he gave us a detailed account of his voyage, and of the
massacre of his little vessel's company.

Chapter II

He had, he told us, bought the _Francesco_ at Sourabaya about three
years before, and after making several trading voyages between Manila
and the Ladrone Islands--voyages which did not pay as well as he had
anticipated--he fell in with the master of a Hobart Town whaler,
who strongly advised him to go farther eastwards and southwards,
particularly about the Admiralty Group and their vicinity, where a
few colonial vessels were doing very well, trading for coconut oil,
beche-de-mer, sandalwood, tortoise-shell and pearl-shell. Yorke took his
advice and made a very successful voyage to the Admiralties, taking a
cargo of pearl-shell to Singapore. This he sold very profitably, and
was soon at sea again. On reaching the Admiralty Group, however, he was
prevented from trading by the hostility of the natives, though on his
previous visit they had been very friendly; and so, fearing that they
might cut off the vessel, he decided to leave. He had with him a native
of Yap, one of the Caroline Islands--a man who had wandered about the
North and South Pacific from his boyhood. His name was Rul, and he was
not only a good seaman and an expert diver, but spoke fluently nearly a
score of Melanesian and Micronesian dialects.

On the evening of the day that the cutter left Callie Harbour, on
Admiralty Island, Yorke called his six men together, and told them that
he was very undecided what to do. (I found out afterwards that he had a
way of taking his crew into his confidence--"It pleases them," he said,
"and has proved very useful on a number of occasions when their goodwill
meant much to me ").

After telling them th