d the
situation, slunk to the entrance of the inner cave.

"An' wad'n you to blaame, too?" he said, turning to me. "Never be rash,
young man, an' remember that a soft answer turneth away wrath."

I must confess that I was at a loss to understand this mild-spoken man,
and had not Sam called him "Cap'n," I should have thought him one of
those foolish people converted by the Methodists.

"Are you Cap'n Jack Truscott?" I asked.

"Well, and what if I be, sonny? Law, I bean't pertikler, ye knaw.
Spoase some people do call me Cap'n Jack Truscott, or spoase others do
call me Jack Fraddam, what do I care? I'm a man as es friends weth
everybody, my deear--tha's what I be. An' you, you be Jasper Pennington,
who've been robbed of yer rights, my deear."

"How do you know?"

"How do I knaw? Oa, I pick up things goin' about. I do--lots ov things.
I knawed 'ee as soon as I zee'd 'ee tackle they two chaps. Why, 'twud
'a' gone to my 'art for Sam to 'ave knifed 'ee, my deear. You was born
to live a good ould age, and die in bed at Pennington, in the best room,
my deear, with yer cheldern and grancheldern cal around 'ee, ould an'
well stricken in eres. Tha's your lot, Maaster Jasper. Besides, I'm a
man of paice, I be: I love paice 'n' quietness; I like love an'
brotherly 'fection, I do!"

I looked at him again in amazement, for I had heard of deeds which
Captain Jack Truscott had done that were terrible enough to make one's
blood run cold. It was reported that he had a house in a gully which
runs up from Kynance Cove, which was the meeting-place for the wildest
outlaws of the county. Folks said, moreover, that he owned a vessel
which hoisted a black flag.

"Ah, I zee, my deear," said Captain Jack, pathetically; "people 'ave bin
'busin' me. I allays 'ave bin 'bused, my deear, but I do comfort myself,
I do, for what do the Scripters say?--'Blessed are they that are
abused.' I ain't a-got the words zackly, but the mainin', my deear, the
mainin' es right, and that's the chief thing, ed'n et, then?"

In spite of myself the man fascinated me. There was a mixture of mockery
and sincerity in his voice, as though he half believed in his pious
sayings; moreover, he was very cool and collected. His white eyes
wandered all over the cave, and exchanged meaning glances with the two
men with whom I had been struggling, but I knew that he was watching me
all the time. He must have known that he was in danger of being taken by
the Preventive men