Volume I Part 21 (1/2)
”How so? What do you mean? Open your mouth, or--”
”That time we did not have any branded men on board,” said the sailor, firmly
”No brandedas we have these unhappy es, and neither God nor the devil can save us Look over there; there he lies on the floor, and, Jesus, Mary and Joseph!--another such a crash and we shall be food for the sharks!”
Unconsciously the captain looked in the direction indicated A man, whose face could not be seen, lay flat on the vessel, his are enveloped in a piece of sail-cloth Now and then a trehtened
”What's the ruffly
”When he came on board at St Tropez he was covered with blood, and--”
”Well, what then?”
”Well, his hair is shaved clean to the skin, as if he just canio”
”One would think,” exclaimed the captain, loudly, ”you are all saints
Do you remember, Pietro, what you had done before I shi+pped you?”
”Bah! I killed a Custom House officer, that is no crime”
”So, and as the matter with you, Rosario?”
”Captain,” answered Rosario, proudly, ”you ought to knohat a vendetta is”
”Didn't I say so? You are all as innocent as newborn babes You ought to be ashamed of yourselves”
In spite of his apparent indifference, the captain felt inwardly uneasy, and the sailors' statements appeared to him to be well founded
About four days before, as the frigate lay at anchor at St Tropez, a man had approached the captain and offered hi and land him on the Italian coast Gennaro, the captain and owner of a s Three thousand francs was a large suer paid cash he overlooked certain things which he ht otherwise have noticed The closely shaved head pointed to a foralley slave, but as he conducted himself well on board and kept out of every one's way, the captain no longer thought about it
The sailors, however, thought differently With that superstition peculiar to Italians, they blaer for all the mishaps which had befallen the vessel since the ”Shaven Redhead,” as they called hiht a sudden storm carried away the rudder, on the second day one of the planks near the hel such a height that even Gennaro, the veteran sailor, could not remember to have ever seen one like it
The boatswain now approached Gennaro
”Well, Mello,” said the captain, trying to appear indifferent, ”do you also think the frigate is lost because the branded man is on board?”
”Yes,” replied Mello, briefly, ”if God does not perform a miracle”
At this moment a terrific crash was heard, and with loud cries the sailors rushed on deck
”A waterspout; we are sinking!” they exclaimed, terror-stricken ”Help, captain, help!”
Immense waves of water poured over the deck and tore away part of the stern, ate, which rapidly filled ater