, who was a quiet lad, had prepared the
dinner for Easy and his now only companion. The evening closed, and all
was noise and revelry on shore; and as they danced, and sung, and tossed
off the cans of wine by the light of the fire, as they hallooed and
screamed, and became more and more intoxicated, Mesty turned to Jack
with his bitter smile, and only said:

"Stop a little."

At last the noise grew fainter, the fire died away, and gradually all
was silent. Jack was still hanging over the gangway when Mesty came up
to him. The new moon had just risen, and Jack's eyes were fixed upon
it.

"Now, Massa Easy, please you come aft and lower down little boat; take
your pistols and then we go on shore and bring off the cutter; they all
asleep now."

"But why should we leave them without a boat, Mesty?" for Jack thought
of the sharks, and the probability of the men attempting to swim off.

"I tell you, sar, this night they get drunk, to morrow they get drunk
again, but drunken men never keep quiet--suppose one man say to others,
`Let's go aboard and kill officer, and then we do as we please,' they
all say yes, and they all come and do it. No, sar--must have boat--if
not for your sake, I must hab it, save my own life anyhow, for they hate
me and kill me first;--by de powers, stop a little."

Jack felt the truth of Mesty's observation; he went aft with him,
lowered down the small boat, and they hauled it alongside. Jack went
down with Mesty into the cabin and fetched his pistols--"And the
Spaniard, Mesty, can we leave him on board alone?"

"Yes, sar, he no got arms, and he see dat we have--but suppose he find
arms he never dare do any thing--I know de man."

Our hero and Mesty went down into the boat and shoved off, pulling
gently on shore; the men were in a state of intoxication, so as not to
be able to move, much less hear. They cast off the cutter, towed her on
board, and made her fast with the other boat astern.

"Now, sar, we may go to bed; to-morrow morning you will see."

"They have everything they require on shore," replied Easy; "all they
could want with the cutter would be to molest us."

"Stop a little," replied Mesty.

Jack and Mesty went to bed, and as a precaution against the Spaniard,
which was hardly necessary, Mesty locked the cabin door--but Mesty never
forgot anything.

Jack slept little that night--had melancholy forebodings which he could
not shake off; indeed, Jack had reflected so much s