you boys. There's nothin' of the
fresh, gabby kid about any of you. I'll do it fer you, Skipper." And
the bargain was sealed with a warm grip between the two friends.

"There's one thing I ought to speak about though," said Jim, "and that
is in regard to old Bill Broom, the pirate, who had the _Sea Eagle_
before we took her. He is a revengeful old beggar and may make you
trouble if he gets a chance."

"I never really met Broom, though I came near it once," remarked the
old captain grimly, "but if he is wise, he won't come bothering around
me or the _Sea Eagle_ either."

"I expect old Pete will stay aboard and the boy," said Jim, "so you
won't be without some company."

"I've always got 'Lyssus' here," grinned the captain, picking up the
big tortoise shell that was purring around his legs. "I don't want any
better company than him."

"He is a good old fellow," said Jim, playfully nipping the cat's ears
with his fingers, "and a mighty good sailor, too." Just then Jim
chanced to look up, scanning the expanse of sea ahead, not with the
expectation of seeing anything, but just force of habit. Immediately
he straightened up and his gray eyes narrowed with interest.

"What is it, Skipper?" questioned the old captain, getting to his
feet.

"It looks like smoke," exclaimed Jim, "about three points on our
starboard bow."

"Maybe it's a steamer," said the captain. "We ought to be running
across them now once in a while."

"Possibly it's a volcano," suggested Jim.

By this time the captain had got the glass from his cabin, and had it
focused on the slender blue-gray column of smoke that was rising close
to the southeastern horizon.

"It's a ship, almost burned out," exclaimed the captain.

"By jove!" cried Jim. "We will see exactly what it is," and he gave
the order to Pete, who was at the wheel, to change the _Sea Eagle's_
course accordingly.

"I reckon nobody is alive aboard," remarked the captain. "She looks
pretty well burned out."

No sooner had the ship's course been changed, than every member of the
crew was out on deck to see what was up, and all were intensely
interested watching the column of smoke that now could be seen rising
from a dark hull close to the water, marking one of those oft-repeated
tragedies of the sea. Rapidly the gallant little _Sea Eagle_ plowed
the blue surface of the ocean in a straight course towards the burning
ship.

Many were the conjectures as to how the destroyed ship came