Part 38 (2/2)

continued Mr. Chalk, shaking his head. ”I thought at the time you were rather rash, Tredgold.”

Mr. Tredgold choked and, meeting the fault-finding eye of Mr. Stobell, began to protest.

”The thing Brisket couldn't understand,” said Chalk, gaining confidence as he proceeded, ”was Stobell's behaviour. He said that he couldn't believe that a man who grumbled at the sea so much as he did could be sailing for pleasure.”

Mr. Stobell glowered fiercely. ”Why didn't you tell us before?” he demanded.

”I didn't attach any importance to it,” said Mr. Chalk, truthfully. ”I thought that it was just curiosity on Brisket's part. It surprised me that he had been observing you and Tredgold so closely; that was all.”

”Pity you didn't tell us,” exclaimed Tredgold, harshly. ”We might have been prepared, then.”

”You ought to have told us at once,” said Stobell.

Mr. Chalk agreed. ”I ought to have done so, perhaps,” he said, slowly; ”only I was afraid of hurting your feelings. As it is, we must make the best of it. It is no good grumbling at each other.

”If I had had the map instead of Tredgold, perhaps this wouldn't have happened.”

”It was a crazy idea to keep it in your coat-pocket,” said Stobell, scowling at Tredgold. ”No doubt Brisket saw you put it back there the other night, guessed what it was, and laid his plans according.”

”If it hadn't been for your grumbling it wouldn't have happened,”

retorted Tredgold, hotly. ”That's what roused his suspicions in the first instance.”

Mr. Chalk interposed. ”It is no good you two quarrelling about it,” he said, with kindly severity. ”The mischief is done. Bear a hand with these stores, and then help me to fix the tent up again.”

The others hesitated, and then without a word Mr. Stobell worked one of the casks out of the boat and began to roll it up the beach. The tent still lay where it had fallen, but the case of spades had disappeared.

They raised the tent again and carried in the stores, after which Mr.

Chalk, with the air of an old campaigner, made a small fire and prepared breakfast.

Day by day they scanned the sea for any signs of a sail, but in vain.

Cocoa-nuts and a few birds shot by Mr. Stobell-who had been an expert at pigeon-shooting in his youth-together with a species of fish which Mr.

Chalk p.r.o.nounced to be edible a few hours after the others had partaken of it, furnished them with a welcome change of diet. In the smooth water inside the reef they pulled about in the boat, and, becoming bolder and more expert in the management of it, sometimes ventured outside. Mr.

Stobell p.r.o.nounced the life to be more monotonous than that on board s.h.i.+p, and once, in a moment of severe depression, induced by five days'

heavy rain, spoke affectionately of Mrs. Stobell. To Mr. Chalk's reminder that the rain had enabled them to replenish their water supply he made a churlish rejoinder.

He pa.s.sed his time in devising plans for the capture and punishment of Captain Brisket, and caused a serious misunderstanding by expressing his regret that that unscrupulous mariner had not rendered himself liable to the extreme penalty of the law by knocking Mr. Chalk on the head on the night of the attack. His belated explanation that he wished Mr. Chalk no harm was p.r.o.nounced by that gentleman to be childish.

”We can do nothing to Brisket even if we escape from this place,” said Tredgold, peremptorily.

”Do nothing?” roared Stobell. ”Why not?”

”In the first place we sha'n't find him,” said Tredgold. ”After they have got the treasure they will get rid of the s.h.i.+p and disperse all over the world.”

Mr. Stobell, with heavy sarcasm, said that once, many years before, he had heard of people called detectives.

”In the second place,” continued Tredgold, ”we can't explain. It wasn't our map, and, strictly speaking, we had no business with it. Even if we caught Brisket, we should have no legal claim to the treasure. And if you want to blurt out to all Binchester how we were tricked and frightened out of our lives by imitation savages, I don't.”

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