land us, for some little time, at Loando, but he
begged to assure us that we were heartily welcome on board. Several of
the officers sang very well, and after dinner guitars were produced, and
they sang numbers of their national songs: somewhat die-away sort of
melodies I thought them, but Kate said they were very pretty, and
expressed a wish to learn the guitar. Directly one of the officers
undertook to instruct her, and presented her with a handsome instrument,
which he said he hoped she would keep in remembrance of her visit to the
_Andorinha_. The time thus passed very pleasantly on board. Still
having some doubts from what Timbo had said about the vessel, I asked
Jack, whom I met the next morning, what he thought of her.

"Well, sir," he answered, "the people seem a free-and-easy set, rather
fond of gambling--but that's the way with these foreigners; and most of
them wear long ugly knives stuck in their belts, which is not the
fashion with English seamen; but these Portuguese are odd fellows, and
that is how I accounts for it."

With Timbo I had no opportunity for some time of speaking. Next morning
I saw that the Portuguese flag was flying from the schooner's peak,
while a pennant waved from her mast-head. Certainly the officers did
their best to amuse their fair guests and us. Next day, after dinner,
some of the men were called aft to dance their national dances, but I
can't say much for them. I saw that one or two of the men were always
aloft on the look-out, and while the crew were engaged as I have before
described, one of the look-outs gave a shout from aloft, and presently
two of the officers went up the rigging with glasses at their backs. I
saw them looking eagerly to the southward. Presently they returned on
deck and reported their observations to the captain. The breeze, which
had before been fresh, had by degrees been falling, and now failing us
altogether, the schooner lay becalmed with her sails flapping against
the masts. From this I concluded that a sail had been sighted--a slaver
possibly. The officers continued talking together, while one of them,
who had gone aloft, remained there, his eye constantly fixed in the
direction in which I supposed he had seen the stranger. I was about to
go aloft with my spy-glass, when Senhor Silva came on deck.

"The captain says that passengers going up the rigging will interfere
with the duty of the ship," he observed; "you must remain on deck."