No Moss Part 21

"See here, fellows," exclaimed Jed, who seemed greatly annoyed by the close proximity of the muskets, "just turn them stickers the other way, will you?"

None of the young tars, however, paid the least attention to his words, and, indeed, he might as well have spoken to the wind; but Richardson heard the appeal, and, turning to Johnny, inquired:

"Are you sure these men are all right?"

"Certainly I am," was the reply.

"Fall back!" commanded the midshipman. The wall of bayonets was removed, and Jed was immensely relieved. The prisoner was quickly released, and in a few words told the story of his adventures. Bill and Josh were compelled to believe him now, and they apologized so freely that Johnny readily forgave them.

"I suppose it's all right," said the midshipman, "but, to tell the truth, I am disappointed. When I saw you a prisoner, Harding, I was sure that these men were the ones we were looking for. If they had been, we could have captured them easily enough, couldn't we? Now, what's to be done? I have ten good fellows with me, and if we can get Tom Newcombe and his band in as tight a place as we had you a minute ago, they won't stand much chance of escape."

A council of war was held on the spot, and, after Johnny had repeated the conversation he had had with Tom Newcombe in the store, Richardson was satisfied that he knew what had become of the Sweepstakes. He decided to go into the cove at once, and Jed volunteered to act as guide. They would approach as close to the pirates as they could without giving the alarm, and then they would charge upon them and overpower them. The sailors would attack the robbers, and leave the Crusoe men to the care of Johnny and his three friends, all except Tom Newcombe, whom the midshipman regarded as his own especial property. When all the details of their plan had been discussed, Richardson gave the signal to Jed, who led the way down the path.

CHAPTER XVII.

THE BATTLE AT THE BRIDGE.

The governor and his band were certainly in a predicament. A half dozen tugs were, by this time cruising about the bay in all directions; the Storm King lay at the upper end of the shoals under the bluffs, her crew kept constantly at quarters, in readiness to board the Sweepstakes if she came out; and a strong force, under command of the midshipman, was preparing to a.s.sault the pirates in their hiding-place. Harry thought he had them surrounded; and there were few, indeed, among the Crusoe men who did not believe that their voyage was at an end. It is true they had a way of escape from the cove that the students knew nothing about--by the channel that ran across the lower end of the shoals--but who among them could promise that they would not meet a tug there when they went out? Even Tom, who was generally expert at finding his way out of difficulties, believed it was all over with the Crusoe band. He leaned against the rail and looked down into the water; the governor thoughtfully paced the deck, and the rest of the band stood in a group in the waist, watching the movements of their officers, and waiting impatiently for them to make known their plans.

"Come, skipper," said Sam, at length, "why don't you wake up and talk to us?"

"O now, what shall I say?" drawled Tom. "I am the unluckiest boy in the whole world!"

"We've heard that a thousand times," said the governor, impatiently.

"We're all of us unlucky, for the matter of that. But what shall we do?

Are we goin' to give up?"

"No, we are not. We have had a good many adventures to-night. I don't believe that any other boys of our age ever came safely out of as many sc.r.a.pes as we have been into, and now we are not going to allow ourselves to be cornered, like rats in an oat-bin. We must leave here at once."

"I say, governor," suddenly exclaimed one of the robbers, who had made the circuit of the cove without finding any way of egress, "how do you get out of this hole?"

"We don't go out at all," replied the chief. "We stay in."

"We do not intend to remain here any longer. We have wasted time enough with you, and now we are going off on our own hook."

"Well, then, why don't you go?" drawled the skipper

"Because we can't find any way out of the cove."

"We don't want nothing more to do with you two fellers, whatsomever,"

said Sam. "Go off about your business."

"Now see here, boys, this thing has gone about far enough. We've had more than we want of this nonsense, and we'll teach you to give a civil answer to a civil question. We are going out, and one of you must show us the way," said the burglar; and, as he spoke, he came on board the schooner, and, striding up to Sam, seized him by the collar.

"Let me be!" roared the chief.

"Will you guide us to the top of the cliff?"

"Will you pay us the thousand dollars you promised us for taking you out to sea?" whined Tom. "If you go back from your word, you need not ask favors of us."

"You have not taken us to sea yet."

"That's because you haven't given us a chance. We can do it, and we will, too, if you will stay with us."

"Let go my collar, I say!" shouted Sam.

"Answer my question first," replied the robber.

"I don't know nothing about a way to the top of the cliff. Stand by, here, fellers. Hit him with a handspike, somebody."

The Crusoe men began to bustle about in a state of intense excitement, and the other burglar leaped over the rail to a.s.sist his companion.

There was a lively prospect for a fight, and, no doubt, if Tom Newcombe had not interposed, the deck of the pirate vessel would have been the scene of a desperate conflict. The governor and his men were very much enraged at their pa.s.sengers, and were fully determined that they should not leave the cove until they had kept their promise, in regard to the thousand dollars. Sam was a very stubborn fellow, and the robber would have found it a much more difficult task than he had bargained for to force the secret of the path from him. "It's no use, mister," said he, doggedly. "You may shake me as much as you please, but I just ain't a goin' to tell you what you want to know till I see the color of that money. You promised to give it to us, an' we're bound to have it. Punch him in the ribs with your boat-hook, Friday."

"O now, look here!" drawled the skipper. "I won't have any quarreling and fighting on a vessel I command. Stand back, Friday. Put away that handspike, Xury. If you are determined to leave us, I'll send a man to show you the way up the cliff."

"No you won't, neither!" shouted Sam, indignant at the proposition.

"But if I do," continued Tom, without noticing the interruption, "you won't gain any thing by it. On the contrary, you will find yourselves in ten times the danger you are in now; for the prisoner we had confined in that cabin has escaped, and of course he has alarmed every body on the island. We are going to sea again, immediately, and, if you will remain with us, and behave yourselves, we will take you to a place of safety.

You ought to remember that we don't want to be captured any more than you do."

"But you have got the whole village after you," said the burglar.

"Look here, mister, be you goin' to let go my collar?" asked Sam.

"It is by no means certain that every man in Newport is after _us_,"

said Tom. "Don't you suppose there are some in pursuit of _you_? Your best plan would be to remain with us; and, if we succeed in getting out of the bay, we will land you on some island, out of reach of the police officers and the telegraph. If we find our escape cut off, we will run our vessel ash.o.r.e and take to the woods."

The burglar seemed to be impressed with Tom's arguments, for he released the governor, and turned to consult with his companion; while Sam, who was utterly amazed at Tom, led him off on one side and inquired:

"Hain't you made a nice mess of it now? Do you intend to show them fellers the way up the cliff?"

"Of course I do."

"Well now, skipper," said the governor, doubling his fist, and shaking it in the air, "of all the mean things I ever knew you to do, this yere is the beat. Have you forgot that we want to pay them for tryin' to cheat us?"

"No, indeed," replied Tom, emphatically. "I am bound to carry out my new idea, and you have seen enough of me to-night to know that I mean what I say. We will guide them up the path as far as the chasm, and leave them.

We'll tell them that we had a bridge across there, but it is gone; and that they'll have to get over the best way they can. In the meantime I will turn the schooner around, and, when I am ready to sail, I'll send you word; and I'll wager my share of the thousand dollars that the robbers, rather than be left alone in the cove, will come with us."

"Humph!" grunted the chief. "You're trustin' a good deal to luck, 'pears to me. Mebbe that plan will work, an' mebbe it won't. If we lose our pa.s.sage-money, we can thank you for it."

"What else can we do?" asked Tom. "It's the only way I know of to avoid a fight."

"Well, captain," said the burglar, who had thus far done the most of the talking, and who answered to the name of Sanders, "we've concluded that we had better go. You can send a man to show us up the path."

"All right," replied Tom. "You have acted very meanly toward us, and you may have the satisfaction of knowing that you take with you our best wishes for your speedy capture. Governor, you and Atkins guide them up the path, and the rest of us stand by to get the vessel under-way."