y; but night closed down on the tenth day of their
labor without sign of the treasure, and now Mr. Todd, who had noticed a
shade of testiness in the queries of the officers as to the exact
location of the gold and diamonds, expressed a desire to climb the
rigging next afternoon, a feat he had often wished to perform, which he
did clumsily, going through the lubber's hole, and seated in the
maintop with Mr. Duncan's Bible, he remained in quiet meditation and
apparent reading and prayer until the tropic day changed to sudden
twilight and darkness, and the hysterical crew returned. Then he came
down to dinner.

In the morning the work was resumed, and more boxes sprinkled the bay.
They drifted up with the flood, and came back with the ebb-tide; but
among them now were about forty others, unobserved by Captain Bunce,
pacing his quarter-deck, but noted keenly by Mr. Todd. These forty
drifted slowly to the offshore side of the brig and stopped, bobbing up
and down on the crisp waves, even though the wind blew briskly with the
tide, and they should have gone on with the others. It was then that
Captain Bunce stepped below for a cigar, and it was then that Mr. Todd
became strangely excited, hopping along the port-rail and throwing
overboard every rope's end within reach, to the wonder and scandal of
an open-eyed steward in the cabin door, who immediately apprised the
captain.

Captain Bunce, smoking a freshly lit cigar, emerged to witness a
shocking sight--the good and godly Mr. Todd, with an intense expression
on his somber countenance, holding a match to a black pipe and puffing
vigorously, while through the ports and over the rail red-shirted men,
dripping wet and scowling, were boarding his brig. Each man carried a
cutlass and twelve-inch knife, and Captain Bunce needed no special
intelligence to know that he was tricked.

One hail only he gave, and Mr. Todd, his pipe glowing like a hot coal,
was upon him. The captain endeavored to draw his sword, but sinewy arms
encircled him; his cigar was removed from his lips and inserted in the
mouth of Mr. Todd alongside the pipe; then he was lifted, spluttering
with astonishment and rage, borne to the rail and dropped overboard,
his sword clanking against the side as he descended. When he came to
the surface and looked up, he saw through a cloud of smoke on the rail
the lantern-jaws of Mr. Todd working convulsively on pipe and cigar,
and heard the angry utterance: "Yes, d--n ye, I