old by those who have seen it--of little
children with the skin drawn like parchment over their bodies. And boys,
when you think that among these poor victim's of Spain's pacification
policy are the wives and children, sisters and sweethearts of the
struggling insurgents in the field, is it any wonder that the spirit of
independence will not down in the Pearl of the Antilles?"

That the captain was a man of feeling and education there could be no
further doubt in the minds of the captive boys. That he should have
taken the trouble to thus enlighten them on the subject of Cuba's wrongs
was a compliment to their understanding which was not lost.

CHAPTER V

SENDING THE MESSAGE

The captain no longer interfered in any way with the actions of his
young guests. They were entirely free to do as they pleased on the ship,
and apparently were under no surveillance. As they came on deck on the
fourth morning at sea, the day was beautifully bright and clear. The sky
was taking on that peculiar blue that is seen only in the lower
latitudes. The atmosphere seemed to have thinned, and the horizon to
have moved away a mile or two. The sea was as smooth as glass and the
steamer was ploughing her way along at the rate of fifteen knots (miles)
an hour. As usual, the decks were deserted, with the exception of the
man at the wheel and the two lookouts who were always on post, day and
night, no matter how clear the day, or how unnecessary the double watch
might seem.

It was the custom of the boys in the morning to distribute themselves
around the deck so that they could take in all the points of the
compass, and for a time each would study the horizon with careful
scrutiny, in the hope of sighting some vessel to which they might
signal. Everything had been carefully arranged so that as soon as a
ship of any sort was seen, word was to be passed quietly from one to
another without attracting the attention of anyone on deck, and then
each knew his duty.

Hamilton was the custodian of the flags. On him rested the
responsibility of displaying the signal so that the passing ship might
read the message.

The boys had studied the compass and the maps that were each day
displayed in the captain's cabin, and they knew that they were headed
south. Although that gave them little or no clew to their ultimate
destination, they felt some comfort in the knowledge that the shore of
America lay to the starboard, and away off somewhere bey