CHAPTER XI.
THE STRANGERS.
The new-comers were by no means pre-possessing in appearance, and wouldhardly have inspired confidence even had their manners been moreagreeable.
He who acted as spokesman for the party was a stout man with a very longbody and short, bowed legs, that caused him to roll to and fro like aship in a gale when he walked. It was his nose which attracted the mostattention, for it was not only the most prominent feature of a notremarkably pleasing-looking countenance, but so enlarged and red at theend that one could well fancy he had fastened a boiled beet to his faceas a partial disguise.
The other American was exactly the reverse in form and feature. He wastall and thin, with a sickly yellow complexion and a little snub nosewhich looked as if made of putty for a much smaller face--one that mighthave been bought at auction because it was cheap, if noses could ever besold.
The Mexican would answer for a type of that class known as "greasers,"save for the fact that he had discarded his national costume in favor ofa dirty pair of duck trousers and a blue flannel shirt.
In the boys' eyes, at least, the three appeared more like hardenedvillains than honest sailors; and this opinion was strengthened ratherthan lessened when they were better known.
Although Bob doubted the story they told, he had no proof that it wasfalse; therefore he treated them as if believing every word, and as thefirst move toward ministering to their alleged necessities had orderedJim to prepare breakfast.
As a matter of fact, the account which these men gave of themselves wassuch as could not well be questioned in the absence of evidence to thecontrary.
They were a portion of the crew of a turtling-schooner hailing fromNassau; so the red-nosed man had said during the short pull from thebeach to the brig. Five days previous their craft put into this cove,and they, with two others, came ashore to search for turtles. At thiswork they followed around the shore of the key until so far away thatnight came on before the return journey could be made.
The other two men had traveled in an opposite direction, consequentlythey were alone, but not at all disquieted at being forced to remainover night on the island, because in their business such incidents wereof frequent occurrence. With never a thought of trouble they madethemselves comfortable in the thicket, returning to the cove as soon aspossible after sunrise.
To their great surprise the schooner was no longer there, nor could theother members of the crew be found. They had been deserted; but why,neither of the party could even so much as guess. The Bonita and the tugwere the first crafts the men had seen, and, quite naturally, they lostno time in hailing the crew.
Jim was not an expert cook; therefore the work in the galley was donevery slowly. It would have been nearly noon before the second meal couldbe served had not Harry and Walter assisted to the extent of making thetable ready, and afterward carrying the food below.
Bob and Joe had gone about their task of ascertaining the exactcondition of the brig in order to form plans for floating her, and Jimwas forced to announce breakfast when his culinary labors were ended.
"You've been about it long enough to cook dinner for the President!" theman with the red nose said, in a surly tone. "If I was the skipper ofthis 'ere brig I'll find a way to make you more lively!"
"Well, so long as you ain't the skipper, but only a sailor what sayshe's starvin' to death, s'posin' you buckle down to the grub that'scooked, so's I can get the cabin cleaned up!" Jim replied saucily; andbefore the words were hardly out of his mouth he received a blow on theside of his head which sent him reeling against the rail.
Then, as if the uncalled-for punishment had been a kindly reward forservices performed, the red-nosed man led the way below, followed by hiscompanions, who seemed to think that gentleman's method of treatingtheir hosts was something very comical.
Jim was too much surprised to make any outcry. After looking around tolearn if Bob had been a witness of the injury he retreated to thegalley, soothing his anger by shaking his fist in the direction of thecabin.
"You jes' wait," he muttered, seating himself on an empty mess-kid wherehe could nurse his sore face. "You jes' wait an' see if I don't fix thewhole crowd! Talk about bein' sailors an' then cuffin' the cook whenyou're goin' to eat aft! I'll bet not one of them villains knows how toreef a jib, an' before they leave this vessel I'll show what I can do."
It is not probable that Jim had any very clear idea as to what kind ofpunishment he would mete out to this man who had struck him withoutprovocation; but he believed an opportunity of avenging his wrongs wouldpresent itself in the near future, and this thought had a wonderfullysoothing effect.
Harry and Walter, as attendants upon the guests, were treated with nomore consideration than that shown Jim. When the men seated themselvesat the table, both boys went toward the companion-way as if to go ondeck; but the thin man cried gruffly:
"Stay here, you young cubs! We may need somethin' more, an' in that caseyou're to bring it!"
Just for an instant Harry glanced at Walter, as if questioning whetherthey should obey, and then, evidently concluding discretion was thebetter part of valor, he retreated to one corner of the cabin, where hewould be ready to obey the commands of these strange guests.
During the next ten minutes the men ate voraciously--not as if they hadbeen on the verge of starvation, but like pigs; and at the end of thattime he with the red nose asked, as he rested both elbows on the tableand picked his teeth with a fork:
"Where does this brig hail from?"
"I don't know," Walter replied, after waiting in vain for Harry tospeak.
"Don't know? Haven't you got sense enough to tell where you come from?"
"_We_ belong in New York. While we were at the Isle of Shoals, Jim andHarry and I rowed out to the brig, and found her abandoned. Then thewind sprung up and she ran away with us."
"Where did the old sailor come aboard?" the man asked, after exchangingglances with his companions.
Walter told him in the fewest possible words how Bob had become a memberof the party, and also in what condition the Sea Bird was when Joelinked his fortunes with theirs.
"How happened it that you run ashore here?" the Mexican asked, and thisquestion Harry answered.
"Then you've got no more right aboard this craft than we have," thefirst speaker said, "an' I reckon we'll stick by the ship. Do you knowwhere there's any tobacco?"
"No, I haven't seen a piece except that which Bob has."
"Then hunt for some. In a well-found craft like this there's sure to beplenty."
"We don't know anything about it, and do not intend to look!" Harrysaid decidedly, as he retreated toward the companion-way, taking up hisstand directly in front of Walter.
"I'll have to give you a lesson, the same's I did the other fellow!" thered-nosed man cried in an angry tone. "Are you goin' to obey orders?"
"I'm willing to do any necessary work, but I don't intend to wait uponyou!" and Harry tried very hard to prevent his voice from trembling.
"That's jes' what you will do!" the man cried, as if beside himself withpassion, and seizing a plate from the table he hurled it with betterintent than aim directly at the boys, grasping another the instant thefirst had left his hands.
The second he did not throw, however. As the crockery was shivered intofragments against the companion-ladder, passing within an inch ofHarry's head, Bob appeared at the hatchway.
"What's goin' on in here?" he asked sternly.
"Them boys were givin' us some of their impudence, an' I was showin' 'emthe proper place aboard ship, that's all," the red-nosed man replied ina mild, friendly tone, as if he had simply been doing his host a favor.
"Look here, my friend," and it could be plainly seen that Bob was tryinghard to control his temper. "It won't be well for you to show any oneon this craft what his place is. We took you aboard believin' you weresailors an' starvin'; but we'll set the whole lot adrift mighty quick ifI see any more of this kind of work." Then turning to the
boys, headded, "Go on deck or stay here, as you choose; but don't play servantto a single person on the brig."
"I allow you're lookin' at this matter wrong," the thin man said in aconciliatory tone, as Harry and Walter ascended the companion-ladder."We haven't said or done anything out of the way. How was we to know butthey was the reg'lar cabin-boys, an' when they insulted us jes' 'causewe'd lost our vessel an' luck was agin us, we only did what you would."
As a matter of course, Bob was not absolutely certain but that theremight be some truth in the man's statement, although from what he knewof Harry and Walter it did not seem probable; therefore he said, withless show of anger:
"We'll let the matter drop; but you must understand that the boys are tobe treated as I am. The one who acts as cook has been to sea a little,and can stand harder work than the others, who were never on board avessel before. Neither of 'em are to be bossed or scolded, for all dowhat they can willingly, an' I'm standin' right by 'em. Now that you'vehad somethin' to eat, an' ain't sufferin', what do you propose doin'?"
"You're short-handed, even if you had only the brig to look after; sowhat's to hinder our workin' a passage to sich port as you calculate onmakin'?" and the red-nosed man spoke very humbly.
"We reckon on leavin' the tug here," Bob replied gravely. "She'saground, an' what's worse, bunged up so bad that three weeks wouldn't beany too long for repairs. 'Cordin' to my figgerin' the brig can befloated reasonably easy; an' with Joe Taylor aboard I can run her to themainland pretty nigh as quick as if we had more of a crew."
"Do you mean that you don't care about takin' us along?" the slim manasked.
Bob hesitated an instant, hardly caring to say plainly that he had nodesire for their company, and then he replied:
"It ain't wholly as I say. Considerin' what has been done, an' that theSea Bird was disabled through the carelessness of one of my party, Joehas got as much interest here as I, an' he'd have to agree."
"Does he make any objection to helping us out of this hole if we'rewilling to do our full share of work?" the Mexican asked.
"I don't say he does, 'cause, you see, we haven't made any talk aboutsich a plan."
"Then find out jes' what he's willin' to do;" and the thin man spokevery earnestly. "We'll agree to obey orders like as if we'd signedarticles, an' before the brig reaches the coast you'll be mighty glad ofour help."
"Do you know what island this is?" Bob asked as if desiring to changethe conversation.
"It's one of the Double-Breasted Keys," the thin man replied.
"On the Bahama Bank?"
"Yes; pretty nigh the northern point of the shoal."
"Then we're not more than three days' sail from Nassau?"
"About that; but you can't get in without a pilot, an' it ain't muchfurther to some port in the United States."
To this Bob made no reply, but turned as if to leave the cabin when theMexican stopped him by asking:
"Will you say whether we are to be given a passage, or must we go ashoreto starve?"
"I'll talk the matter over with Joe. If he's agreed I won't say a wordag'in it, though I'd much rather take the brig in alone." And then Bobhurried up the companion-ladder, as if eager to escape from his guests.
When the three men were alone their entire bearing changed, and the onewith a red nose said in a whisper, as he shook his fist threateningly inthe direction Bob had vanished:
"We'll whine 'round only till the brig's afloat, an' then if we can'tget away in her, leavin' that crowd behind, we deserve to stay!"
"And when we do have a craft of our own we'll pay off some old scores tothat meddlin' fool who broke up our little game in Nassau!" the thin manadded.
"It will be well if we do not show our hand too quickly," the Mexicansaid. "Without even so much as a revolver, we cannot hold possession incase they should decide to set us ashore."
"What a coward you are!" And he with the red nose spoke in a tone ofcontempt. "There are only two of them, for the boys don't count, an'marlin'-spikes or belayin'-pins comes as cheap to us as any one else. Ifwe wanted to drive that crowd over the rail it wouldn't be very hardwork, unless we two was the same chicken-hearted lubbers you are!"
The Mexican turned upon his heel as if the conversation was decidedlytoo personal; but he made no attempt to resent the insult, and the thinman said, in a soothing tone:
"You're talkin' sense now, pardner; but we need them fellers worse'nthey do us. The brig must be afloat before anything is done."
"Of course she must. You don't think I'm sich a fool as not to think ofthem tricks. Leave me to boss the job, an' it won't be many hours tillwe have everything our own way."
Then the three men went on deck apparently the most honest sailors to befound on the sea; and from his place of refuge in the galley Jim watchedthem distrustfully.