The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1893-05-14
CHAPTER XXXV.
SHE LISTENS TO THE CoNvIcrs DEBAT-


ions and water in them. | went into the
shadow of the awning TO get out of the
sun and to remove myself from Tom that
We might not be seen together constantly.
Some of the ringleaders. as l must term
The fellows whom the conyicts undoabt-
eddy regarded as heads or chiefs under
Tom and Aaron. joined my sweetheart
and the prize6gnter and the air speedily
hummed with the eager, animated talk Of
the crowd. VIII joined me and we
watched the longboat. She had gone
about mile and they had hoisted the
sail for the shelter Of its shadow. 1t hung
like a sheet of silver from its yard without
a stir, so smooth was the sea, so still the
air. The soldiers continued to sweep the
boat along; the oars glanced like hairs of
silver as they rose and fell.
VIII went to the pinnacle to judge of the
course the boat was making; the scoundrel
seaman who grasped the wheel Growled
out with a low. coarse laugh and in curs-
Ing voice some remark did not catch.
You wouldn't havs said thatyesterday."
exclaimed VIII. and came back to me with
out taking further notice OF the mis- reant.
"They are heading due west" said he. 81
don't suppose they will make up their
minds till he other boats join them"
(which is the nearest lRnd?"
THE Brazilian coast But the nearest is
long away off. There's but a small
chsncs for them outside of being picked up.
AnC yet what lump Of a boat she is COM
pared To the gls When Is she to be pro-
visioned? Aud when are we to get away I?
And when we've got away. what's going 10
happen? Good angels, l wish we we're both
at Stepney.
Leave everything to Tom," says l, land
do as lie tells you"
He looked at me with a mutinous eve.
went 10 the rail and stared over the side
Tom and the council of cOnvicts had left
the poop. l peered through the sky!fght:
Tho cUddy was empty, the table covered
with fragments and remains of the food
the people hal rummaged out with broken
china and broken bottles and glasses, and
the deck sc irce fit to walk on for the brok-
en-, woundng stuff that strewed it. l
went to the break OF the poop to see what
they were about on the main deck both
quarter-boats vera alongside and a gang
of cOuvicts were slowing them. The decks
were filed with the people who. since the
departure of the lOngb0at had grown
orderly; the mass of them converted in
knots; groups hung about the galleys:
thew had discovered pipes ana tobacco
tobacco there would be in plenty for the
guard and the crew, and possibly a stock
of pipes; a number of the convicts had
pipes in their mouths, and their profound
perhaps years OF penitentia abstinence
undoubtedly helped TO keep them quiet
The sun stood something to the left of
the north and the tall, motionless spaces
of canvas on high cast shadows over the
decks, and betwiXt the rails high noon was
endurable. A thick, sickly smell of roasted
paint rose from the ships side. If you
put your hand upon the exposed wood OF
any pisce of metal, you were burnt as
though you touched hot iron. l thought
a.
should run short Of water IF this calm
should hold them mOtioniess here for DAYS
and perhaps for weeks. For Gains
often serve ships so in these parts as |
had heard my father and his sea friends
tell. l sought TO compute the number on
board. and allowing for those who were
presently to leave the shir, l calculated we
should muster hard upon 80 souls. When
Tom left them what would the miserable
creatures do? But, then, what was that
TO me? All l cared for was that Tom
should come Oft with his lie and be a
free man. no longer a degraded criminal,
canking in irons, to be mangod by the
cat, perhaps, at the viii of any ferocious
Tasmanian ruftian who might take dis.
like to hin. The conyicts had seized the
ship; one had but to look toward the nov
distant l0ngboat TO appreciate the felons'
estimate OF human life. | could not pity
them when | thought of how they would
have kept the women and children and of
the havoc they had wrought below, and
when | looked at their faces, reca He'd their
songs and oaths in drink their bestal
speech and saw the plunder on their vile
backs.
Tom and Aaron and little crowd of men
stood near the gangWay; my sweei heart
looked on; he gave no orders; poor Mr..
Bates did all the work of superintendence
and watched the convcts as they sung the
provisions and water for the seamen into
the quarteE-b0ats. When this work was
ended some cries were raised; the thr0ngs
of people gathered about the main hatch
and filed the quarteTdeck the armed
malefactors formed lane as before, but
this time the fiddler did not make his ap-
peaTance.
A hoarse voice al the main hatch sum.
m0ned the fellows below to come up and
one after another of tho crew arrived.
headed by Mr.. Balls, who was followed by
the carpenter, the ssilmaker the cook,
Mr.. Stiles, Frank, the bOatswan's mate
and others, as though the procession had
been formed with some regard to grades
Most of the men had been forced TO
change clothes with the cOnvcts This |
had before gathered by observing the num-
Der of the people who were dressed In the
seamen's apparel. The huge one-eared
boatswaln, with his staring. CLASSY eyes
scowled round him with daring defiant
looks. Aaron stood in the gqngway. and
he halted every ma1 ere passing him over
the side to say: You cad stop with us
If you like. We're short of working ads,
and we, y treat you as wud OF US. Whatll
You do 2"
Mr.. Balls made no answer He passed
sullenly on; so did the saimaker ard car
penter Mr.. Stiles, with bew1ldered look
at the conTicts and then through the gang
way at the white CLEAN OF sea visible
there, wiped his face on the sleeve of his
convict jacket and said: Where might
you be bound to, sir?"
Some one cried out: THAT bloke was
the ships steward. He's Of no USE"
"Over you CO." said Aaron, giving Mr..
Stiles dab with his immense hand be-
tween the shoulder blades, and the stew
ard went with run TO the gangway and
disappeared down the ladder.
Two Of the sailors agreed to remain.
VIII. who had come to rn7 side, told me
that they were the poorest, most skulking
and worthless of the forecastle hands. The
eonVicts, however, cheered when these fel-
lows said they would stay, and the armed
men opened to let them pass into the
crowd. WHY'S fellow apprentices looked
up at him as they went to the boat and one
made face as though to express his dis
gust AT what he took TO be my Cousins DIS
loyalty or cowardice. marked the effect
OF this upon VIII and grasped him Ivy the
arm, whispering passi onately, Not a
wOTdP' and knew by the working of his
face that was just in time TO arrest some
angry protesting sen ence that might have
endangered hlm and me too.
While the seameB filed through the
gangway l CHANGED TO look down upon
crowd of convicts on the quarterback and
sped fellow pick another mans pocket.
he did it with admirable nimbleness and
dexterlty. Both men. the thief and the
victim. were dressed in Lieutenant CHM
mos clothes. The man that was robbed
was the rogue who had held up Captain
Sutherand's gold watch ana chain as
though he meant TO play at bub-cherrv.
and 1t was This watch and chain which the
other sneaked with inimItable adroitness
supposed no one but myself saw this:
many stosd about close to and the fellow
stole the watch with the moi foolish. star
ing, innocent face you could imagine. look
ing al the seamen going through the gang
way as though be could think of nothing
else. But scarcely had lie snugged the
watch and chain 10 his side pocket, when
another convict next him whipped it out
with incredible skill and swiftness; indeed.
should not have remarked the motions Of
the r0gue's hands but for the CLEAN of the
min iafa ha fire. III,