sailors who were standing on the shore;
there was a boat drawn up on the sand, and near at hand there lay at
anchor a small ship, that seemed to be of a foreign gear, and larger
than he was wont to see. He came somewhat suddenly upon the group, and
they seemed, as it were, to be amazed to see a man there. He went
smilingly towards them, but as he did so there came into his heart a
feeling of danger, he knew not what; and he thought that it would be
better to retire up the rocks to his cave, and wait till the men had
withdrawn--for it was not likely that they would visit him there, or
that even if they saw the way thither, they would adventure it, as it
was steep and dangerous. But he put the thought away and came up to
them. They seemed to be conferring together in low voices, and the
nearer that he drew, the less he liked their look. He spoke to them,
but they seemed not to understand, and answered him back very roughly
in a tongue he did not understand. But presently they put one forward,
an old man, who had some words of English, who asked him what he did
there. He tried to explain that he lived on the island, but the old
man shook his head, evidently not believing that there could be one
living in so bare a place. Then the men conferred again together, and
presently the old man asked him, in his broken speech, whether he
would take service on the ship with them. David said, smiling, that he
would not, for he had other work to do; and the old man seemed to try
and persuade him, saying that it was a good service; that they lived a
free life, wandering where they would; but that they had lost men
lately, and were hardly enough to sail the ship.

Then it came into David's mind that he had fallen in with pirates.
They were not often seen in these parts, for there was little enough
that they could get, the folk being all poor, and small traffic
passing that way. And then, for he saw the group beginning to gather
round him, he made a prayer in his heart that he should be delivered
from the evil, and made proffer to the men of the little stores that
he had. The old man shook his head, and spoke with the others, who now
seemed to be growing angry and impatient; and then he said to David
that they had need of him to help to sail the ship, and that he must
come whether he would or no. David cast a glance round to see if he
could escape up the rocks; but the men were all about him, and seeing
in his eye that he thought of fligh