Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-12-18
No." | admitted, mot very. "


Il can't tell for certain | replied, ''un-
| til / get another shot at the sun.
should think the latitude about right.
| but as TO the longitude"
And you can't get no shot at the sun
until noon. can YOU" unceremoniousiy
| put in Glibby. casting long look to the
| eastward where the sky was thick and
cloudy already.
| Il can't even get an observation then
unless we have clear weather. | an
| swered
''There'n be no clear weather today. |
take it," said an old seaman. standing
with the other two.
Il don't much think it, | assented
We'll. what do YOU advise, then?
asked Pimball.
That We stand on slowly during the
/ day and heave to at night. and if we
can't get a shot at the sun, stay here
| aboutS until the sky is clear and the sun
| visible then we will know just exactly
| what course to take and just what's best
| to be done.
The advice was SO self-evidently good.
| in fact, the only practicable advice, that
! there was no hesitation in accepting it.
! Pimball. Glibby and the older sailors con-
| ferred together for a few minutes and
| decided that what | mad said was sensi-
| bile. The boatswain stepped up To the
! horseback. grabbed the trumpet and
| shouted his orders. Presently the ship
| was hove to with the island well under
! her lee. distant. perhaps. "A league and
| half or. maybe. two leagues. Person
| ally | should not have heaved to d ship
| on a lee shore | should not have add
vised it, and. indeed. would have pro-
| tested against it had | not suddenly de-
| veloped a plaza plan desperate as
ever came into mans head: but, then the
| situation required desperate remedies
| And for the accomplishment of the plan
| the ship WAS now in the very best posi-
| ton | could have put her.
! There We're thirty able-hodied men on
| that ship, not of whom could have
matched me individually. but collectively
| | was nothing compared tn them. If that
| were the island for which we had been
| headed | did not want 10 leave il without
| AN inspection. Privately | had no doubt
| hut that it WAS. because as near
could calculate from our last obserVa-
| ton il was exactly in the spot where ii
| ought to be had the parchment told the
| truth. AS | said before. | prided myself
on my navigation. and l do still Ii was
| no light thing to sail ship from Eng
| land across the whole length Of the At
| lantic. round Cape Horn and take her up
into the tropics, and put her Just where
she ought to be, and l had right TO be
proud.
Well. if that were the island l was
| minded to desert the ship with my lady,
| get ashore and trust ourselves to the
| tender mercieS of whatever natives there
We're rather than stay with the vessel.
| The savages, if any there were. couldn [
| do any more than murder us, and unless
| | could shoot her first the men would
| eventually treat her, and me. too "A deal
worse than that. | took no stock in
their promises and agreements. Once
they got the treasure il would follow that
they would kill and take her. SO |
made up my mind to desert the ship with
my mistress just as soon as | could get
llnr nd I
Rather the natural savage than the civil
liZed one for us both.
When we got the Rose OF Devon safely
hove To the men all knocked off work at
once leaving the decks in "A state of con-
fusion. Indeed, save to clear up the gear.
there was nothing to do but wait. Two
three men were stationed on watch
and the rest were given the freedom of
the ship ! was in doubt as to what to
say about the cabin. but strangely enough
nobody made any effort to take advan-
tage of the mastery of the crew TO quar-
ter himself there. Indeed, their quarters
forward We're almost as good as ours and
they evidently preferred to be together.
The ship was generously provisioned and
| the fare of the men had been unusually
good. They did. however. break into the
| lazarette and help themselves to what
| ever they liked out of the cabin stores,
| including "A case of bottled spirits.
1 looked at that action with very con-
siderable alarm at first wondering
| whether it would not be wise or better
| for me to interfere lest | should be I'M
| able to control them at all when drunk
| decided in the end not to interpose any
| objections. In fact L went further i'm
| pursuance of my plan, and | fiatter my
| self that my design was d brilliant one
brought out other liquor and let them
have as much as they wanted. | even
piled them with it, playing the host with
much profession of generosity and hearty
hospitality. \ little liquor would make
,erI, if,fro ..ta 10 I
lot would make them drunk and enough
would render them completely helpless.
even Joined them in their carousal 1t
was easy enough to spill my liquor and