impertinent as to inquire into them but might i ask what sort of man is he whom they call removed his hand from his face and revealed an expression of great relief oh answered he gaily yes he is a strange fellow and i do not wonder that he has excited your curiosity moreover it is only right it should be satisfied since it is likely he will be more or less mixed up with our own fortunes well he was the son of a gentleman on a neighbouring estate to that of my father and who like the bad boys of the story books ran away at an early age to sea he led a very queer life i fancy � what is called a � which is mostly black you know though i don t believe there was ever much real harm in him when he returned home after a quarter of a century lie matters worse than he had left them his by the m m j i fl v h it s master such as only occur in ireland then he got mixed up in the troubles and had to flee the country and skin poor fellow � like myself nay sir not so for it seems to me that he had nothing to lose and all to gain whereas you had an estate at stake i had at one time � yes returned thoughtfully there is something in what you say perhaps though we have no right to selfish motives you do not like mr it seems i don t dislike him sir personally but i confess that � of late � he has seemed to me to be a dangerous man dangerous why dangerous inquired quickly well sir i can t exactly say but this man has great influence among our people and if he choose to use it ill there might be great danger i am certain at all events that that is the captain s opinion you have been ill and confined to your cabin so that you may not have observed it but i notice that both he and the other officers of the ship go about armed armed how long has that been the case p inquired with excitement a deep flush his pale face since the day you came on deck in your real character that is strange muttered very strange is this a matter of general remark do the boys know it i think not sir they do not take much but there is one man that knows it the island myself unless i am much mistaken and that is himself ah then he should have told me i mean added hastily he should have confessed that he had been guilty of a foolish there is no harm in him nor in my people but there should be no ground for supposing harm keep your eyes open robert for the future and above all things your mouth shut to talk of danger before some people is like putting a match to a fire grate that is already laid and now tell poor dick that i am ready to see him to morrow or the next day at i shall be well and about again good day lad good day chapter xii the island the interview was over and clearly as it seemed to robert hurried to a close by the tidings which he had just communicated it was evident that mr had been of the effect produced by his own appearance among his people and yet when informed of it he had not expressed that which might have been expected of him he must have known more of also than he had to reveal and in that as in still s master half trusted on the other hand his appointment if it could be called such of second in command to his patron was at least a proof of extreme favour while to the fact that it was genuine s own behaviour abundantly neither on the next day nor for many days afterwards did robert again see mr that gentleman was once more reported ill and remained in his berth visited only by and it would have doubtless been within the scope of s newly conferred authority to insist on being admitted to the sick man s cabin but he took no advantage of this the same wild cries for help the same half sounds were repeated as he had heard on the previous occasion and something hinted to him that whatever might be the nature of his patron s the presence of an witness like himself would not be welcome to him the ship s surgeon had attended the patient in the first instance but of late he had not done so since as he explained to robert the two men in question thoroughly understood the case and were competent to deal with it the ship was by this time advanced far across the indian ocean and was within a few hundred miles of the western coast of and the no longer influenced by whom s illness seemed to have greatly and who was much engaged about the sick man s person and excited by the prospect of a termination to their tedious voyage passed much of their time on deck looking out for the first glimpse of land thus robert made a more in acquaintance than he had hitherto done not only those under bis own charge tut vn l the island liis fellow passengers and was much struck with the difference between them the boys with their wives and families gave but little thought to their appearing to leave that with great in the hands of their patron while the others were never tired of like children upon the new world they were so rapidly approaching where potatoes grew without planting and all were masters and none servants but just when they seemed to be 