eep--all,
that is to say, except Dale, who, quite unaccustomed to bodily labour,
felt thoroughly exhausted with his day's work, and was therefore readily
excused. He volunteered, however, to remain up on watch until all the
lights in the pirates' quarter were extinguished, and then to take a
good look round the settlement, and call the others when all was quiet;
a raid upon the capstan-house being the first thing necessary to enable
them to carry out their plans successfully.

The pirates, working hard all day in the open air, were, as a rule,
tolerably early birds; and by eleven o'clock that night the place was
wrapped in darkness and repose. Having thoroughly satisfied himself
that this was the case, and that the coast was quite clear for his
comrades, Dale roused the latter and then tumbled into his own berth
with the comforting reflection that he had at last taken the right
course, and done something to regain that respect from his companions
which he was beginning to be acutely conscious of having forfeited.

Five minutes later four forms might have been seen--had anyone been on
the look-out--stealing quietly across the open space between Staunton
Cottage and the capstan-house. Fortunately no one was on the look-out,
and they reached the building undiscovered, ascended the ladder, and
found themselves standing in the thick darkness which enshrouded the
long loft-like apartment.

Here Lance promptly produced his box of matches, and, on striking a
light, they were fortunate enough to discover hanging to a nail near the
door a lantern ready trimmed. This they at once lighted, and, carefully
masking it, proceeded to rummage the place for such things as would be
likely to prove useful to them. The place was almost like a museum in
the variety of its contents; and they were not long in confiscating a
dozen fathoms of three-inch rope, the remains of a coil of ratline, a
small ball of spun-yarn for seizings, a sledge-hammer, an axe apiece, a
marline-spike, a few long spike-nails, which Lance decided would be
capital tools for the ladies to use in picking out the nuggets, and a
few other trifling matters. Then, hanging the lantern upon its nail
once more, they extinguished it, and made the best of their way down the
ladder again.

A pause of a minute or so to look round and assure themselves that no
midnight prowler was in their vicinity, and they set off at a brisk pace
up the valley, lighted on their way by the