e appeared.

"What can they be about?" I asked of Grey. Then we heard some groans.

"What shall we do?" said Grey.

"I'll tell you, sir, I'll go below and find out," exclaimed Ned
Bambrick.

It was the only way of solving the difficulty. We put on the
companion-hatch, and lifted off the main hatch. We were nearly knocked
down with the abominable odour which arose as we did so.
Notwithstanding this, Ned sprang down into the hold. He groped about
for half a minute, when he sang out, "Send a whip down and get these
fellows on deck, or they'll be dead altogether."

We lowered the end of a rope, and ran up the men one after another, as
he made them fast to it. They were in a very exhausted condition; but
the fresh air, though it was still very hot, and the water we poured
down their throats, soon revived them, and we had to lash their arms
behind them, as we had the others. During this time Billy Wise
volunteered to go down and assist Ned. We had hoisted up ten or a dozen
when they both declared that they could find no more, so we took all the
hatches off to ventilate the vessel, not forgetting to throw overboard
the corpse of the poor fellow whose head Billy's cutlass had cut off.
Billy wanted to keep the head as a trophy, but we did not approve of
that, and made him pitch it after the body.

"Well, now I hope you'll find each other," observed Billy, with perfect
gravity, as he did so.

It had certainly a very odd appearance to see our forty prisoners
arranged round the vessel, with the colonel at the mainmast and the man
we supposed to be the master at the foremast. We had, however, to wait
on them, and to carry them water and food. Grey and I agreed that,
though it was a very honourable thing to command a ship, we should be
very glad to be relieved of the honour. Since we captured the vessel we
had not had a moment to take any food. Hunger made us rather inclined
to despond. We, however, found out what was the matter with us, and
sent Billy Wise down into the cabin to forage. He soon returned with
some biscuit and white cheese, and dried plums and raisins, and a few
bottles of claret, but there was no honest cold beef or rum.

"It's no wonder we licked the Johnny Crapeaus when that's the stuff they
feeds on," observed Ned Bambrick, turning over the food with a look of
contempt.

However, he and the rest stowed away no small amount of the comestibles,
notwithstanding his contempt for them. When, h