Part 26 (1/2)
The rest of the crew laughed in chorus, till the boatswain sternly bade them give way.
”I doubt it,” he said in a low voice to me. ”I should say that the captain will do a little more to make her less s.h.i.+p-shape, ready for the next lot.”
”But you don't think there are any more pirates, do you?”
”More!” he said, looking at me in surprise. ”Why, my lad, the coast swarms with them. We never hear a hundredth part of the attacks they make. It is not only European vessels they seize, but anything that comes in their way. It strikes me, Mr Herrick, that we have only just begun what may turn out a very successful cruise.”
Ten minutes later we were nearing the _Teaser_, and I saw the reason why we could not see either of the other boats. They were swinging to the davits, and we were therefore the last.
Just then Mr Reardon hailed us.
”How many men hurt?” he shouted between his hands.
”Only one, sir; Barr--c.o.xswain.”
”Badly?”
”Oh no, sir,” shouted the sufferer. ”Bit of a scrat on the back.”
”How many prisoners?”
”Four, sir.”
Then we were alongside, the boat was run up, and, after our wounded man had been lifted out, I stepped on board, eager to know the result of the action on the part of the other boats, and to learn this I went below, and found Barkins alone.
”Well,” I cried, ”how many prisoners?”
”Round dozen,” he cried.
”Any one hurt?”
”Round dozen.”
”I know, twelve prisoners,” I said impatiently. ”I asked you how many were hurt.”
”And I told you, stupid,” he replied, ”a round dozen.”
”What! a man wounded for every prisoner?”
”That's it; and we shouldn't have taken any, the beggars were game for fighting to the last, if Mr Brooke hadn't given the word for them to be knocked on the head first with the thick end of the oars.”
”To stun them?”
”Yes; and our lads got so savage after seeing their mates stabbed when trying to save the brutes' lives, that they hit as hard as they could.
They killed two of 'em, or we should have had fourteen.”
”How horrid!”
”Horrid? Why, I enjoyed it,” said my messmate. ”When I saw poor old Blacksmith--”