cal enough to be the invention of his fertile genius.

The bottles were brought up, and with the aid of the tunnel, a dozen
and a half of them were filled--just enough for the Howe party, for
they did not intend to look out for the comfort of those who would not
fully join them in their plans. The water rushed from the tanks, and
flowed away into the ballast underneath. The faucets were large, and in
a short time the tanks were empty. As the ship rolled each way, almost
the last drop in them was poured out.

"Now let us get out of here before we are fastened in," said Little,
after he had adjusted the faucets.

"There will be a sweet row when they find out the tanks are empty,"
added Howe, fully believing that the party had now done something to
make themselves felt.

"It will please me to hear them howl," continued Wilton.

"Keep your bottles out of sight," said Howe. "Don't let those fellows
see them, or they will smell a mice."

"Don't you suppose they know what we have been doing?" inquired Monroe.

"How should they? The swashing of the sea made so much noise they
couldn't hear the water running out," answered Little.

"Don't let on."

The party concealed their bottles under their clothing, and moved
towards the ladder by which they had descended.

"What were you doing with all those bottles?" asked Raymond.

"What bottles?" demanded Little.

"We saw you take a lot of bottles from the ballast there," replied
Raymond, whose party had been discussing the probable use to which they
were to be applied, though they reached no satisfactory conclusion.

"Well, I'll tell you what they were for," answered Little. "We were
going to have some fun, pelting them with stones, just as we used to
play duck on shore, you know; but we concluded not to do so, lest the
stewards in the kitchen should hear the noise, and make a row about
it--that's all."

"Where are you going now?" inquired Lindsley, who was not quite
satisfied with this lucid explanation--as though fellows engaged in a
mutiny would care to amuse themselves pelting bottles!

"We have just made up our minds that it is not quite safe to stay down
here any longer."

"Why not?"

"Suppose they should fasten us in?"

"Suppose they should? I thought you intended to stay down here," said
Raymond, who concluded that the runaways were very fickle in their
purposes.

"We did intend to do so; but we hadn't looked over all the ground. It
has just occurred to