I knew that I should have
sufficient time to snatch a mouthful of food before the moment for
action should arrive, and I descended to the dining-room with an easy
mind.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN.

WE ARE ATTACKED BY CHINESE PIRATE WRECKERS.

We had finished luncheon, and were all on deck watching the junk, when,
about half-past two o'clock--she having by that time arrived within
about a mile of the lagoon entrance--we saw her heave to; and a minute
or two later it became evident that she was preparing to launch a boat,
or boats. She was now close enough in for us to see, with the aid of
the telescope, pretty nearly everything that was happening aboard her,
and I was far from reassured when I noticed that the man upon the poop--
probably the junk's captain--who was directing operations, wore a
formidable-looking broad-bladed Chinese yatagan girded to his side,
while, when he faced in our direction once or twice, pointing, I felt
almost certain that I could detect one, if not a brace of pistols in his
belt.

Presently we saw a boat of very respectable dimensions rise above the
junk's bulwarks and slowly disappear over her lee rail; and this was
followed by a second, and a third of at least equal size.

"Three boats!" I exclaimed. "That settles it. If she were here upon a
friendly mission she would not send in three boats to take off half a
dozen people. She is a wrecker, and only too probably a pirate as well.
Her people know that there are survivors on this wreck--our flare
during the night and our ensign to-day will have told them that much--
but they do not know how many of us there are; so her skipper is sending
in enough men to make quite sure of us, as he believes. And guns, too,
by George!" I continued, as I saw an old-fashioned smooth-bore cannon
in slings top the rail. "The rascals mean business, that is quite
evident; but so do I. I am going below to bring up half a dozen more
shells; it is just possible that we may need them. Meanwhile, madam,
will you kindly keep an eye on the junk while I am gone, and report to
me what you have _seen_ when I return?"

Thrusting the glass into Mrs Vansittart's hands, I hurried away to the
magazine and brought out six additional shells, with the necessary
cartridges, and, conveying them up on deck, placed them conveniently
near the guns of the port battery, which I now saw were the only
main-deck pieces that were at all likely to be of use to us.

Having at leng