"It may come to a fight though, after all, and a prick will keep some of
them at a distance," I says to myself, and getting my legs well round
the sheet, I got hold of my knife, and opened it with my teeth, before
making use of the chance that had shown itself.
Perhaps it isn't every one who knows what a wind-sail is, so I'll tell
you; it's a contrivance like a great canvas stocking, six or seven feet
round, and twenty or thirty long and by letting one end of this hang
down through the cabin-hatch or skylight, and having the other bowsed up
in the rigging, you have like a great open pipe bringing you down a
reg'lar stream of cool air in the hot weather.
Now it was just against the top end of this that I had brushed; and as
it seemed to me all I had to do was to slip in, check myself all I
could, and then go down with a run amongst friends, where, if not safe,
I should certainly share their fate, whatever it might be, besides,
perhaps, being of some use.
Fortunately, I had the rope, and hauling myself up a bit, after two or
three tries, I got my legs in, lowered away quickly, and came down
pretty smartly, not, as I meant, in the chief cabin, but upon the deck,
where I was now struggling to get loose, like a monkey in a biscuit-bag,
for they had done what I had not reckoned upon, dragged up the end of
the wind-sail, and shut down the cabin skylight, most likely when I
heard the shots and breaking glass.
It was lucky for me that it was dark, for though the noise I made
brought them round me, I had time first to slit the canvas and slip out,
panting, and not knowing which way to turn. I knew they dare not fire,
for fear of hitting one another, and starting off, I ran them once right
round the deck, keeping as much as I could under the bulwarks. The
second time round I came right against one fellow, and sent him down
head over heels; but I knew it couldn't last, and that in spite of
doubling they must have me. I could hear panting and voices all round,
and on leaving off running, and creeping cautiously about, more than
once I felt some one pass close by me--regularly felt them, they were so
close. Once I thought of getting into the chains, but I knew if I did
they would see me as soon as it was daybreak. Then I thought I might
just as well jump overboard, and make an end of it, as be pitched over;
directly after, I fancied I could crawl under the spare sail that
covered the long-boat, and lie there. Last of all, I made for the poop,
meaning to try and climb down to one of the cabin windows, but I stopped
half-way, on account of the binnacle-light, and crept back towards the
fore-part, to see if I could get down to the fore-cabin passengers. But
it was of no use, and the only wonder was that I did not run right into
some one's arms; but the chances, perhaps, were not, after all, so very
much against me, and I kept clear till they grew savage, and I could
hear that they were cutting about at me with either knives or cutlasses;
and in spite of my trouble then, I could not help wondering how they had
come by their arms, for, of course, I could not know then how Van had
stolen them from the cabin while the skipper was asleep.
"I may as well knock under," I said to myself, and I was about to give
up, meaning first to give 'em one more round, when I stumbled. Twice
over I had felt my bare feet, slip upon the deck, in what seemed blood,
and had shuddered as I thought of how I should leave my footmarks all
over the clean white boards; but this time I stumbled over what seemed
to be a body, and should have fallen, if I had not gathered up my
strength for a jump, and thrown myself forward, when, as if in one and
the same moment, there was a crash as of breaking glass, a heavy fall,
and then a foot was upon my throat, and a pistol held to my head.
------------------------------------------------------------------------