came one sail after another.

As this was done the warship swung around and then those on the schooner
saw that she flew the flag of Russia.

"A Russian warship!" ejaculated half a dozen.

"This looks to me as if the jig was up," murmured Tom Grandon.

As quickly as it could be done, Captain Ponsberry assembled his men on
deck.

"Men," he said, briefly, "the officers on board of that warship wish to
find out what they can about us. If you are asked questions say nothing
more than that you shipped for the voyage to Nagasaki and San Francisco,
and that you know nothing about the cargo. Do you understand?"

"Aye, aye, sir," came from those who were listening.

"I must depend upon you to help save the ship. If the _Columbia_ is
suspected of being in the employ of the Japanese Government, or of
carrying a cargo for that nation, she will be taken as a prize of war
and we'll go to a Russian prison most likely."

"I don't want to go to no Russian prison!" cried out Wilbur, his face
turning pale. "I ain't done nothing wrong!"

"Then keep your tongue from wagging too much, Wilbur," answered the
master of the schooner, grimly.

"There ain't no use o' fighting, is there?" asked Groot.

"Fighting?" came from Tom Grandon. "What could the old _Columbia_ do
against a man-o'-war? Why, they'd blow us sky high in no time!"

"No, there is absolutely no use of attempting to fight," answered
Captain Ponsberry. "Our only hope lays in convincing them that they have
no right to stop us."

The hands were dismissed and sent forward, and Captain Ponsberry hurried
below, to burn certain papers and secrete others. This was in accordance
with the orders received from the agents of the Richmond Importing
Company at Manila.

In the meantime the Russian warship had come to a stop in mid-ocean and
now a small boat was lowered, containing a small crew, a coxswain, and a
Russian naval officer. At the same time a signal was hoisted which meant
that the officer was coming on board of the schooner.

"Unless I miss my guess, this looks rather black for us," said Larry, to
Tom Grandon.

"I agree with you, Larry," responded the first mate. "But we've got to
take our medicine, no matter how bitter it is."

"If only that mist had held on to-day! We might have slipped by that
warship nicely."

"I only hope the old man fixes up his papers so that he can show a clean
bill of health," went on Grandon. "You see, if they can't actually prove
some