rter-deck and gave an order to the man at
the wheel. The anchor had already been weighed. Slowly and gracefully
the Sea Eagle turned, and there stood Captain Broom, as big as life upon
the bridge. Why did not Jim fire? Because he had come to a certain wise
conclusion.

CHAPTER XV

JIM AND THE SEA EAGLE

As Jim had raised his revolver to fire, a sudden idea came to him. In
the first place he rebelled instinctively from shooting a man down in
cold blood from ambush, even if he was as desperate and crime-stained a
character as Captain Bill Broom, besides it would not save Tom and
Juarez and only make their captivity harder to endure, if any injury was
done the Captain.

Another thing, Jim was sure that if he began the attack that his two
comrades would be used as shields to protect the man at the wheel, so
that the Sea Eagle could be navigated safely out of the cove. He saw
with interest the narrow place between two lines of foam above hidden
ledges where the boat must pass in order to reach the open sea. He
marvelled at the temerity of Captain Broom in daring to bring his ship
through such a place.

Then a brilliant thought came to him, a sudden stroke that might turn
defeat into victory. The Sea Eagle was now making straight for the
narrow channel. Jim slipped back for a short distance an ran as rapidly
as he could to a point a little to the west of where he had first
hidden. He did not have long to wait. The Sea Eagle was almost directly
opposite his place of ambush, and was just sticking her nose into the
narrow passage.

Jim raised his revolver and took careful aim and fired. The man at the
wheel gave a yell and clapped his hand to the shoulder, letting go the
wheel and the nose of the little steamer swung toward the rock. A swell
lifted her bow clear by a few inches, and the Captain caught the steamer
by the wheel and brought her to a course.

"Bring those boys up on deck and shoot them if that black-haired devil,"
(meaning Jim) "fires another shot," he called to the mate.

That worthy was not slow to obey the order, he had them on deck in full
sight in a jiffy and held a pistol at Tom's head. Jim had raised his arm
to fire at the Captain when he heard his order and it was as if he had
been paralyzed. He knew that Tom and Juarez would have been killed to a
certainty if he fired another shot.

Luck had broken against him again, for that was all that had kept the
Sea Eagle from going on the reef, wh