Part 28 (1/2)

Brace had suddenly gripped his companion's arm whilst he was speaking, and in response to Briscoe's question he thrust his right hand over the side of the brig and pointed up the river.

Briscoe shaded his eyes and gazed in the indicated direction for some moments.

”I see nothing,” he whispered at last.

”Look again, a little way out from the point.”

There was another pause in the darkness, and then the American spoke.

”Your eyes are better than mine. Yes, I see it now. What do you make of it?”

”Three canoes following one another and coming slowly with the stream.”

”Full of men?” said Briscoe.

”It is too dark to see.”

”Pst! Captain!” whispered Briscoe, and that gentleman crossed to where they stood.

”See anything?”

For answer Brace pointed up stream, and after a sharp glance the captain sent one of the men below, and the whole party were upon the _qui vive_, with hardly a word being uttered, for every man was prepared for the alarm. That which had been fully expected had occurred, and, rifles in hand, officers, pa.s.sengers, and crew took the places to which they had been appointed.

Brace's heart beat fast as he stood gazing at the long low shadowy objects gliding slowly nearer and nearer to the brig, thinking the while that if he were captain he would give the order at once for fire to be opened with buckshot, so that it might scatter and wound as many of the Indians as possible without causing death.

But he was not in command, and he started with surprise, for the captain's voice suddenly rang out with an order, though not the one he antic.i.p.ated.

”Stand by, a couple of you,” he said, ”and be handy there, Mr Dellow, to let go the port anchor. I expect they'll foul the cable and send us adrift.”

There was a pattering of feet upon the deck, and the next moment Captain Banes's hand was upon Brace's shoulder.

”Your eyes are a little out of focus, squire,” he said quietly. ”They magnify too much, and see more than there is.”

”Why--what--surely--” stammered Brace.

”It's all right, my lad,” said the captain quietly. ”Better than seeing nothing when there's real danger coming on board.”

”They deceived me, captain,” said Briscoe.

”So they did me, sir, at the first squint. I thought we were in for a scrimmage, and that before long I should be cutting up sticking-plaster and putting it on. Two fine old sticks of timber those, squire, and they must have come down some fierce falls to be stripped of their boughs like that. Now, then, are they going to foul our cable and send us adrift or will they slip quietly by?”

Brace felt so annoyed and disgusted that he could find no words for the moment, and he stood there watching the two old tree-trunks coming closer and closer, till the foremost just missed the cable, and directly after touched the brig's bows with a slow, dull, heavy impact which made her jar from end to end.

”Bah!” e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed the lad, in his disgust, and, turning away, he left the deck, glad of the excuse of going down into the cabin to see after his brother.

But the second mate was waiting for him when he came up, ready with a bantering laugh.

”I say, sir,” he whispered, ”aren't you a bit too eager for a fight?”