hing could be done to help stop the leak in case Captain
Sackett still insisted staying aboard. Johnson, the little sailor with
the thin legs set wide apart, showing daylight between clear to his
waist, Hans, the heavy-shouldered Swede, and Phillippi, a squat Dago,
made up the rest of the boat's crew. Trunnell had come on deck while we
were eating from the mess-kids, and met the skipper on the poop, where he
stopped to talk over some important matter. This importance appeared to
increase in a moment, for the skipper swore harshly and pointed forward
just as my men were coming aft to go over the side.

"Rolling," he cried, "hold on with that boat a minute, and lay aft here,"
I came to the edge of the poop.

"Get that ruffian Andrews ready and put him aboard the _Sovereign_. The
men here are tired of his ways, and fair exchange is no robbery. We'll
take their men, they'll take one of ours, hey? Do you rise to that?"

I understood. The men had made it apparent they did not wish to have the
fellow aboard since he persisted in his murderous ways. The skipper had
been importuned by Jim to turn back and put him ashore. This he would not
think of doing, but to propitiate them he had struck upon this new method
of getting rid of his charge.

I called Jim, the young landsman, to lend a hand getting the fellow
ready. Andrews cursed us all around and demanded to know what we were
going to do with him. No attention was paid to him, however, and he was
bundled into the boat, handcuffed, with his legs free.

"Tell Captain Sackett I say he's welcome to him," drawled out Thompson,
over the poop rail. "Good luck to you, Andrews," he continued; "you'll
have a pleasant voyage with no enemies to rip and cut. So long!"

This drew forth a volley of oaths from Andrews, but the skipper smiled,
and we were soon out of earshot.

"What do you make of the weather, sir?" asked Jim, who pulled stroke oar.
I looked over the smooth, heaving surface of the quiet ocean, and there
was not the first sign of a breeze anywhere. The sun was partly obscured
in a thick haze which seemed to come from everywhere and fill the entire
atmosphere. The first boat was almost aboard the wreck, and we could see
her looking like a black speck in the distance.

"It looks as though it might come on thick," I answered Jim, "but
there's no danger of our parting company with the _Pirate_ yet. There
isn't enough wind to move her a knot an hour."

It was a long, hard pu