, however, had he put his foot outside his door when he heard
his boys' voices, and in another moment he saw them running or rather
staggering along the path together with a crowd of natives, who were all
wildly excited, and shouting at the top of their voices.

"Father, father," and the eldest boy ran to him, and scarcely able to
stand, so exhausted was he, he flung himself down on the verandah steps,
"father, Jack and Tom, and the two Anaa men... been stolen by a strange
ship... we must... we must save them."

Hastening inside, Flemming returned with a carafe of cold water, and
commanding the boys not to try to speak any more just then, he poured
some over their wrists, and then gave them a little in a glass to drink.
When they were sufficiently "winded," they told him their story, which
was, briefly, this.

In company with two canoes, they had put out to sea and began fishing.
Then they parted company--the boat pulling round to the other side of
Anaa, where they fished with fair success till daylight. Suddenly a
small white-painted barque appeared, coming round the north end of
the island. She was under very easy canvas, and when she saw the boat,
backed her main-yard, and ran up her ensign.

"They want us to come aboard," said Bob, hauling in his line. "Up lines
everybody."

His companions at once pulled up their lines, and took to the oars, and
in a few minutes they were alongside the ship, and an officer leant over
the side of the poop, and asked them to come aboard.

The boys ascended first, the four natives following; the former were at
once conducted into the barque's cabin, where the captain, an old
man with a white moustache, asked them their names, and then began to
question them as to the number of natives on the island, &c., when they
started to their feet with alarmed faces as they heard a sudden rush of
feet on deck, followed by oaths and cries, and Walter the younger of the
two, fancied, he heard his brother's name called by Jack Waterwitch.

"Sit down, boys, sit down," said the captain, dropping his suave
manner, and speaking angrily, "you can go on deck and be off on shore
presently." As he spoke a man came below, and made a sign to him.

"All right, sir."

The captain nodded, and then told the boys to go on deck and get into
their boat. They at once obeyed, but the moment they reached the deck
they were surrounded by five or six of the crew, who hustled them to
the gangway, and forced them