CHAPTER IX
GETTING DOWN TO "BRASS TACKS"
In a moment the chart was taken down from its hook and spread out onTyke's big desk. With shaking fingers the old man found the line oflongitude indicated on the pirate's map, and followed it down till hecame to the thirteenth degree of latitude.
"Thirteen-ten; sixty-seven-three," he muttered. "Thirteen degrees, tenminutes latitude; sixty-seven degrees, three minutes longitude. Thereit is!" and he made a mark with his pencil on the chart. "Right downthere in the Caribbean, west of Martinique. Glory Hallelujah!"
The old man was as frisky as a colt, and under the stimulus ofexcitement the years seemed to drop away from him.
Captain Hamilton was quite as delighted, though he did not give so freea rein to his emotions.
"Splendid!" he beamed. "When we can actually get down to figures, itbegins to look like business. Of course, there are innumerable smallislands down that way. But it won't take much cruising around to trythem all."
Once more he studied the shape and the size of the island, and hisbrows knitted almost to a scowl, so close was his concentration.
"That elevation in the middle looks something like a whale's hump,"remarked Drew.
Captain Hamilton jumped as though he had been shot.
"That's it!" he cried. "By Jove! I know that island! I rememberthinking that very thing about it one day some years ago when I wascoming up from Maracaibo. My mate was standing by me at the time. Itwas just as sunset, and the island stood out plain against the sky. Iremember saying to him that it looked to me just like the hump of awhale. Now we've located it sure. I'll recognize it the minute myeyes fall on it whether it's charted or not. My boy, you're a wonder.You've helped us out at every turn in this business."
"That he has," declared Tyke enthusiastically. "Neither the paper northe map would have been any good without Allen to translate 'em. I'mproud of you, Allen."
The young man flushed with pleasure and murmured deprecatingly that itwas just a bit of luck that he happened to know Spanish.
"Luck! 'Tisn't luck that makes a man dig out a foreign lingo," saidTyke. "An', anyway, you've been smart at every point with yoursuggestions, an' helped us out as we went along. You started thingswith your eagerness to look into Manuel's box an' you put the cap sheafon when you jest now gave Cap'n Rufe that last pointer.
"An' now," Tyke went on, when they had sobered down a little, "let'sget down to brass tacks. There's jest one thing that remains to bedone, but it's a mighty big thing. We feel pretty sure that there is atreasure, an' we think we know where that treasure is. Now thequestion is, how are we going to git it?"
Drew experienced a feeling of dismay. He had been so engrossed withthe preliminary work that he had hardly given a thought to thepractical problem involved. He had taken it for granted that it wouldbe easy enough to get a ship to go after the pirate's hoard.
Now with Tyke's bald statement confronting him, a host of perplexitiessprang up to torment him. Where were they to get the right kind ofship? How could they escape telling the captain of that ship justwhere they were going and what they were going for?
But if the matter puzzled Tyke and his chief clerk, it bothered CaptainHamilton not at all. He lighted a fresh cigar, crossed his legs andsmiled broadly.
"That's an easy one," he remarked. "Give me something hard."
Tyke looked at him in some surprise and Drew's face reflected hisbewilderment.
"Seems to me it's hard enough," grumbled Tyke.
"What do you mean?" asked Drew quickly.
"I mean," said the captain complacently, "that we'll make this voyagein my schooner."
The two others jumped to their feet.
"Splendid!" cried Drew.
"Glory be!" ejaculated Tyke.
"The plan seems to suit you," smiled the captain.
"Suit us!" shouted Tyke. "Why, it's jest made to order. But how'reyou going to git the owner's permission? How do you know he'll bewilling to have the ship chartered for such a cruise? An' how are wegoing to keep the secret from him?"
"As I happen to be the chief owner, as well as the captain, I guess wewon't have any trouble on that score."
"Owner!" exclaimed Tyke, in astonishment. "I hadn't any idee that youhad any int'rest in her outside of your berth as captain. You've beenpretty forehanded to have got so far ahead as to own a craft like that."
"I haven't done so badly in the last few years," said the captainmodestly; "and as fast as I saved money I kept buying more stock in theold girl. Mr. Parmalee encouraged that idea in his captains. He knewhuman nature, and knew that when a man's own money was invested in thedeck under him he was going to be mighty careful of the ship's safetyand would have a personal interest in seeing that she was a moneymaker. The old man's dead now, but his son has inherited a thirdinterest in the _Bertha Hamilton_, while I hold the other two-thirds.I renamed her when I got control of the bonny craft. I hope some dayto buy out Parmalee's share and become the sole owner."
"You're a lucky man," congratulated Tyke warmly. "It must be greatwhen you tread the plank to feel that you're not only boss for the timebeing, but that you actually own her. What is she like? How big isshe? And how much of a crew do you ship?"
"She's three stick, schooner rigged," replied the captain. "A hundredand fifty feet over all and carries a crew of about thirty. Oh! she'sa sailing craft, Tyke. She's not afoul with steam winches and thelike. And she's a beauty," he added, his eyes kindling with pride."There are mighty few ships on this coast that she can't show a pair ofheels to, and she's a sweet sailer in any weather. She stands right upinto the wind's eye as steady as a church and when it comes to reachingor running free, I'd back her against anything that carries sails."
"But how about your other engagements?" suggested Grimshaw. "Is shechartered for a voyage anywhere soon?"
"That's another rare bit of luck," returned the captain. "I had anengagement to-day with Hollings & Company, who were thinking of havingme take a cargo for Galveston. If I hadn't run plump into thistreasure business as I did, there isn't any doubt but I would haveclosed with them to-day. But now it's all off. I'll see them thisafternoon and tell them they'll have to get somebody else."
Tyke sat down heavily in his chair and wagged his grizzled headsolemnly.
"It's beyond me," he said. "It must be meant. Here we might be weeksor months before we could git a ship that suited us, if we got it atall; but along comes Cap'n Rufe here with the very thing we want. If Iwas superstitious,"--before his stony stare they sat unwinking--"I'dthink for sure there was something in this more'n natural. It can'tbe, after all this, that we're going on a wild goose chase."
"Well," replied Captain Hamilton cautiously, "it may be that after all.Things certainly have worked to a charm so far, but that doesn't proveanything. 'There's many a slip 'twixt the cup and the lip,' and thismay be one of them. When all is said and done, it's a gamble. For allwe know, the doubloons may have been taken away a hundred years ago,and all we'll find after we get there may be an empty hole in theground. But 'nothing venture, nothing have'; and with all the evidencewe have, I'm willing to take a chance."
"So am I!" cried Tyke heartily. "Of course, we stand to lose a tidylittle sum if it should turn out to be a fluke. There's the outfittingto be done, the crew's wages to be paid, an' a lot of other expensesthat'll mount up into money. But it's worth a chance, and if we loseI'm willing to stand the gaff without whining."
It goes without saying that Drew heartily echoed these sentiments inhis mind, but he felt some delicacy about expressing them. After all,it was Captain Hamilton and his employer who would have to provide thefunds for the expedition and stand the loss if there were any. Hehimself would be called on to risk nothing.
And with this thought came another with the suddenness of a stab. Onwhat was he building his hopes for a share in the profits of theadventure? After all, he was only Tyke's employee. The very time hewas
spending in unraveling this mystery belonged to Tyke and was paidfor by him. He felt again the weight of his chains, and the air castlehe had built for Ruth's occupancy suddenly took on the iridescentcolors of a bubble.
"Well, now that we've got down to brass tacks as you say, Tyke, let'sget along to the next point," said the captain briskly. "I don'tsuppose you could come along with me?"
"You don't!" snorted Tyke. "Well then, you're due for another guess.You bet your binoculars I'm coming along. I'd like to see anythingthat would stop me!"
Drew's heart sank. If Tyke were going, that would mean that he wouldhave to stay behind to look after the interests of the chandlery shop.
"But your business?" objected the captain.
"Business be hanged!" roared Tyke. "It can go to Davy Jones, for all Icare. Anyway, I can leave it in good hands. But I'm going to have onemore sight of blue water before I turn up my toes for good, no matterwhat happens. An' I'm going to take Allen along with me!"
Drew was struck dumb for the moment and could only stare at the excitedold man.
"Yes!" repeated Tyke, "he's going to have his fling along with the restof us. We ought to be back in a couple of months, if we have any kindof luck. Winters is a bright boy, and he can keep things going for awhile."
"That'll be fine," said the captain with enthusiasm. "I'd like nothingbetter than to have the two of you for messmates."
"But say!" broke in Tyke, as a thought suddenly occurred to him, "whatabout that feller--Parmalee--who has a third int'rest in your craft?Of course, he'll want to know, an' he'll have a right to know, why youdon't take this Galveston cargo an' why you're going on this cruise ofours. How are you going to git around that?"
"That is something of a problem," the captain replied slowly, "andespecially as he thought of going with me to Galveston for the sake ofhis health. He's lame and delicate, and the doctor told him that a seavoyage was just what he needed to build him up.
"Of course," he went on, "I'm the principal owner of the ship, and whatI say, goes. I could do this against his will, if I wished, althoughof course in that case I'd be bound to see that he got as much profitas he would have done if I'd taken the Galveston job."
"What kind of feller is this Parmalee?" asked Grimshaw cautiously.
"As fine a lad as you'd care to meet," answered the captain heartily."Friendly and good-hearted and white all through. He's sickly in body,but his head's all right. And just because he is that kind, I don'twant to do anything that would hurt or offend him.
"But that's a matter that can wait," he continued. "In any event itwon't affect our plans. Either I'll fix the matter up with himsatisfactorily in a money way, or, if you think best, we'll let himinto the secret and take him along."
"Would that be safe?" inquired Tyke dubiously.
"Absolutely," affirmed the captain. "He's a man of honor, and if hepromised to keep our secret, wild horses couldn't drag it from him.I'd trust him as I would myself. Maybe he'd like to come along withus. He's too rich to care anything about the doubloons, but he'sromantic, and he might like the fun of hunting for it."
"Well," said Tyke, "we'll have to leave that matter to you to settle asyou think best. Any one you vouch for will be good enough for me."
"And now," said Captain Hamilton, "there's one thing more that wehaven't touched on yet. I suppose we understand, Tyke, that you and Iput up the expenses of this expedition, fifty-fifty?"
"Sure thing," agreed Tyke.
"And if nothing comes of it, we simply charge it up to profit andloss----'
"An' let it go at that," finished Tyke. "We'll have had a run for ourmoney, anyhow."
"On the other hand," the captain continued, "if we find the treasure,and it proves to be of any size, we'll first deduct the cost of thetrip, lay aside enough for Parmalee to make things right with him--hemay not want it, but we'll make him take it--and then divide what'sleft into three equal shares?"
"Three!" Drew uttered the ejaculation, and the blood drummed in histemples.
"That's right," assented Tyke placidly. "One for you, one for me, andthe third for Allen."