est squib to bring 'em to their senses."

"Out of their senses, man!" cried Mr Frewen, impatiently. "It means
death, I tell you--wholesale murder. The men, I repeat, are not rats."

"Well, sir, they're behaving like 'em, and there's no gammon about it
now. They're desprit; Jarette's worked 'em up; and they've got the
judge to face if we take 'em into port. Strikes me it's our lives or
theirn; but you knows best. I was thinking about the young lady."

Just then the chopping began again, and Mr Brymer raised his pistol and
fired.

The chopping ceased, and there was a burst of loud talking. Then all
was still for hours, while a careful watch was kept until morning.

CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT.

The discovery of the cook made a great difference in the state of
affairs. It was found that he had been forced by Jarette's threats to
work for the mutineers, and if they had gained the upper hand he would
no doubt have sided with them again; but now he seemed to return gladly
to his regular duties, and he was as energetic as possible in preparing
breakfast, waiting on Miss Denning and her brother, and when he was not
cooking, making himself generally useful, as the advertisements say,
about the cabins, especially that of the captain, to whom, unasked, he
began to act as nurse.

That morning, by Mr Brymer's orders, he filled a number of bottles with
fresh water, and got ready a quantity of biscuits, which he was told to
bear to the mutineers.

"But I dursen't, sir," he said. "That Jarette would swear I was a
traitor as soon as he heard my voice, and shoot me same as he did poor
Phipps."

"What! the steward?" cried Mr Frewen.

"Yes, sir, dead, on the night they rose."

"You rose," said Mr Brymer.

"No, sir, I didn't; I'm only a cook, and not a fighting man. One does
lots of things when a pistol's held to your head as you wouldn't do
other times."

"Bring the biscuit and water," said Mr Frewen, "and I'll speak to the
men. They will not use pistols when they know food is going to be given
to them."

The cook shook his head.

"You don't know Jarette, sir," he said.

"I'll go with you and help you," I cried, for I fully believed Mr
Frewen's words, which proved quite correct, till we had passed down all
that we had taken, the men eagerly thrusting up their hands and seizing
bottle and biscuit.

Then as the last bottle of water was handed through the opening Bob
Hampton had left when he nailed the boards ove