over
her. We got scared, sir, at the way things was going since Ned England
left us and Tom Burke turned captain; for he ain't the man England was,
and that's the truth. All we ask now, sir, is to start fair and square
again; and so be if we don't hang for this, I wish I may be struck dead,
sir, if I, for one, go back to the bloody trade again. So all I want is
to have a fair trial, and I begs of you, sir, that you won't say the
word that would hang us all up to the yard-arms as quick as a wink." I
am mightily afraid that I did not hear the last of the fellow's
discourse, for one part of the speech that he had dropped went through
me like a shot. "How is that?" I cried. "Was not Captain England with
you when you deserted the ship?"

"Why, no, sir," says he. "You see, sir, when we sailed away from Juanna,
Tom Burke began to move heaven and earth against England, and back of
him he had all of the worst of the crew aboard. First of all he began
setting matters by the ears because England and Ward had been wheedled
into giving you--asking your pardon, sir--a good sound vessel and all
them bales of cloth stuff. I tell you plain, sir, Burke would never have
let you had 'em if he hadn't wanted to use the matter against England.
Well, sir, one night Ward fell overboard--nobody knowed how--and there
was an end of him. After that they weren't long in getting rid of
England, I can tell you."

"Yes, yes," I cried, impatiently, "but how
did you get rid of him?"

"Why, sir," says he, "they marooned him on a little island off the
Mauritius, and six others with him; they was--"

"Never mind them," I cried; "but tell me, do you know what became of
him?"

"Why, yes, sir," says he; "leastways we knew of him by hearsay; and this
was how: About eight weeks ago we ran into a cove on the south shore of
Mauritius to clean both ships, which had grown mightily foul. While we
lay there on the careen a parcel of the crew who had been off hunting
for game fetched back one of the self-same fellows we had marooned two
months and more before. He told us that England and his shipmates had
made a little craft out of bits of boards and barrel-staves, and had
crossed over to the Mauritius in a spell of fair weather, though it was
five leagues and more away."

To all this I listened with the greatest intentness. "And is that all
you know of him?" said I. "And can you not tell whether he is yet on the
island?"

The fellow looked at me for a momen