in, rather gruffly; "though I
don't see where the innocence comes in. But, setting aside taking
revenge, I suppose you won't mind helping to defend the vessel if some
of these fellows should come off in their canoes to attack us?"

"Why, of course not," said Brace warmly. "You know I would do my best."

"To be sure I do, squire," said the captain, smiling. "Well, then,
suppose you go and help Dellow and Lynton, and I daresay Mr Briscoe
will join you as well."

"Certainly, captain," said the American: "a few shots now may give the
Indians a lesson, and save us from having to fire hundreds later on.
Perhaps it will be the means of preventing them from molesting us
again."

"But is anyone to remain with my brother?" said Brace.

"He wants no watching, my lad. He's best left alone. You can come down
now and again to have a look at him."

CHAPTER THIRTEEN.

A SIGHT OF THE ENEMY.

Brace hesitated for a few moments before making any move to go on deck.
Then, seeing Briscoe go to the arms rack and return with rifle and
ammunition, he followed his example and went on deck, to find the brig
swinging gently by its cable and the crew all lying about on the deck to
shelter themselves from the sun as well as from the Indians, two of
whose arrows were just as they had fallen, sticking upright in the white
boards, between the seams of which the pitch was beginning to ooze out,
looking bright and sticky in the sun.

"Lie down, sir, lie down!" shouted Dan, and Briscoe dropped flat upon
the deck at once, his rifle clattering against the boards; but before
Brace was down, a couple of arrows came _ping, ping_, to stick in the
deck, while a third pierced and hung in one of the sails, a fourth
dropping with a hiss a little short of the brig and into the water.

"This is nice, Mr Brace," cried Lynton, laughing. "It's as the circus
clown said, too dangerous to be safe."

"Yes," said Dellow, who was crawling towards the starboard bulwark on
hands and knees, dragging two rifles after him. "Come and lay hold of
one, Jem. Mind you don't shoot yourself. It's the wooden end of the
rifle that you have to put up against your shoulder, and the hole in the
iron barrel which you are supposed to point at the enemy."

"Is it now?" said the second mate sarcastically. "I'm much obliged and
thankye for telling me. You put the bullet in at that end of the gun
too, don't you, and push it through with the ramrod like a popgun, eh?"