tongues. Whatsomever you may happen to see don't you be led
away into indulgin' in any onpleasant remarks upon it; nor don't you go
for to try and talk over any of the lads into `returning to their duty,'
or any rot of that sort; for so sure as either of you attempts anything
like that, so surely will you get your brains blowed out. The ship's
took--what's done is done--and neither you nor nobody else can make or
mend the job; the men is in a mighty ticklish humour, I can tell 'e, and
if you wants to save your precious carcasses you'll have to walk mighty
carcumspect. And that's the advice and opinion of a friend, all free,
gratis, and for nothink. Now, come along, my hearties; show a leg!"

We followed our well-meaning guide up the ladder to the quarter-deck,
where we found Farmer apparently awaiting our appearance. He was
standing or rather leaning in a wearied attitude against a gun on the
starboard side of the deck; his cheeks were flushed and his eyes gleamed
feverishly; he looked a good twenty years older than he had appeared to
be on the previous day; and, like a good many of the other mutineers, he
appeared to have been indulging somewhat freely in liquor. He roused
himself at our approach, and, seating himself in a negligent, careless
attitude on the breech of the gun, said:

"Good morning, young gentlemen. I am glad to see you both safe and
sound. Sykes has of course informed you of what has taken place--he had
my instructions to do so, as also to see that you were kept out of
harm's way last night. Now, what I have to say to you is this. You two
lads having invariably manifested kindness and sympathy for the men,
they were especially anxious that whenever the rising might take place
your lives should be spared. This has been done. You are alive and
unharmed this morning, whilst others have gone to render an account of
their manifold misdeeds--their countless acts of oppression and
cruelty--before that Judge in whose sight their lives are not one whit
more valuable than the lives of those whom they have goaded and driven
to death--ay, and to _worse_ than death--to such frantic desperation as
can only be allayed by the shedding of blood like water. Now, mark me
well, both of you; you have had neither part nor lot in this matter--
those who wished you well have so managed that, whether or no, you
should be kept strictly neutral throughout the affair; all those to whom
you owed obedience are either