id Arthur, turning to
Browne, who had a deep powerful voice; "tell them not to let the
long-boat board them."

Browne put his hands to his mouth, and in tones that could have been
distinctly heard twice the distance, shouted--"Look-out for the
long-boat--don't let them board you--the men have killed the first
officer, and want to take the ship!" From the stir and confusion that
followed, it was clear that the warning was understood.

But the mutineers were now scarcely twenty yards from the vessel,
towards which they were ploughing their way with unabated speed. The
next moment they were under her bows; just as their oars flew into the
air, we could hear a deep voice from the deck, sternly ordering them to
"keep off," and I thought that I could distinguish Captain Erskine
standing near the bowsprit.

The mutineers gave no heed to the order; several of them sprang into the
chains, and Luerson among the rest. A fierce, though unequal struggle,
at once commenced. The captain, armed with a weapon which he wielded
with both hands, and which I took to be a capstan-bar, struck right and
left among the boarders as they attempted to gain the deck, and one, at
least of them, fell back with a heavy plunge into the water. But the
captain seemed to be almost unsupported; and the mutineers had nearly
all reached the deck, and were pressing upon him.

"Oh, but this is a cruel sight!" said Browne, turning away with a
shudder. "Comrades, can we do nothing more?"

Morton, who had been groping beneath the sail in the bottom of the boat
now dragged forth the cutlasses which Spot had insisted on placing there
when we went ashore.

"Here are arms!" he exclaimed, "we are not such boys, but that we can
take a part in what is going on--let us pull to the ship!"

"What say you!" cried Arthur, glancing inquiringly from one to another;
"we can't, perhaps, do much, but shall we sit here and see Mr Erskine
murdered, without _trying_ to help him!"

"Friends, let us to the ship!" cried Browne, with deep emotion, "I am
ready."

"And I!" gasped Max, pale with excitement, "we can but be killed."

Can we hope to turn the scale of this unequal strife? shall we do more
than arrive at the scene of conflict in time to experience the vengeance
of the victorious mutineers?--such were the thoughts that flew hurriedly
through my mind. I was entirely unaccustomed to scenes of violence and
bloodshed, and my head swam, and my heart sickened, as I