"Thank you, my lad," he answered; "I'll take care that an eye is kept
upon them."
Soon afterwards, while looking over the side, I saw a dark, triangular
object gliding by at no great distance from the ship. It went about
when it got under the stern, and appeared again on the other side. Mr
Saunders saw it also.
"Lads," he said, "do you know what that is? You may have heard of Port
Royal Jack. That's him. He's especially fond of seamen's legs, and if
any of you were to go overboard, he'd snap you up in a minute."
The word was passed along the deck. Half the crew were now in the
rigging, taking a look at their enemy, and among them were Dan Hoolan
and his companions. I observed a flesh-coloured mass floating a short
distance off. Presently the black fin sank; a white object appeared for
a moment close to the surface, and a huge mouth gulped down the mass,
and disappeared with it beneath the water. It was a lesson to any one
who might have attempted taking a swim to the shore.