nel?" said Captain Applegarth
in an inquiring tone, "that you had a death aboard, eh?"

"Si, senor. Oh yes, of course," repeated the colonel, correcting
himself almost as soon as he spoke for his lapse again into the Spanish
tongue. "There were half a dozen dead Haytians there, whom, by the way,
Captain Alphonse and I presently pitched over the side! But, beyond
that, sir, I believe all sailors regard a flag hoisted in that way,
`half-mast high,' as it is termed, to be a signal of distress!

"Without doubt, sir," answered the skipper. "I was only testing your
nautical experience, that's all!"

"I am glad then, I did not make a blunder about it, as I thought I had
done from your question," returned Colonel Vereker, quite seriously, not
noticing that the skipper was only poking fun at him in his way and did
not mean anything beyond a bit of chaff. "Well, sir, after hoisting the
flag the French sailor and I seized the opportunity to lash the helm
amidships so as to keep the _Saint Pierre_ on her course, for we could
not spare him to do the steering, and Captain Alphonse and Don Miguel,
with the plucky little Englishman and myself, had all our work to do
watching the mutineers with our revolvers!

"After a time, as the rascals kept pretty quiet in their part of the
ship, and as my poor little daughter Elsie had been a long time now shut
up below, I thought she might come up on the poop to get a breath of
fresh air while it was still light; there being no fear of the blacks
assailing us again so long as they knew we could see to shoot straight
and had our weapons handy!

"So I sent Cato down to fetch her on deck, and she came up the next
moment, all full of curiosity and alarm, as you may imagine, the little
one wanting to know what had occurred; for the reports of my revolver
and the subsequent stillness had occasioned her great fright, Madame
Boisson and her husband, the `brave Hercules,' being but poor
comforters.

"All at once, while I was explaining to her about the flag, telling her
that we had hoisted it in order to summon any passing ship to our
assistance, she suddenly went to the side and looked over the bulwarks
towards the north.

"The next moment she gave vent to a cry of joy.

"`Oh, my father,' she suddenly exclaimed. `You have only just hoisted
the flag in time. There's a big steamer! Look, look! there it is, and
coming up to help us!'

"`Where? where? Where is it? I cannot see it. Nonsen