"Quite true, my lad," he said, smiling good-humouredly; "and I sail by a
vessel which starts the day after to-morrow. What did those rascals
want twenty-five and then twenty dollars a-piece for your passage money?
Humph! Well, I think I can do better for you than that."
"If you would give us the name of the agent," I said.
"I'll do better--I'll take you to him, and say you are friends of mine,
if you are not ashamed of such a disreputable-looking character."
"I was not ashamed to take your help just now," I said.
"No," he replied drily; "but you had no time then to examine my
appearance. Where are you staying, my lads?"
I told him, and he uttered a long low whistle. "Of course I don't know
what your friends are, but doesn't the money run away very fast?"
"Fast?" cried Esau; "why, I could live ten times as long on the same
money in London."
"I dare say you could live twenty times as long, boy; I could. Look
here; these people are decent, clean, and honest,--do as you like,--
hadn't you better come here? They'll board you for half the money I'm
paying--that is, they would you. I don't know about him--he's such a
wolfish-looking fellow."
"Why, I don't eat any more than he does!" cried Esau.
"Don't think you do, boy, you should say. Well, what do you think of
it?"
"Dunno," said Esau, rather surlily. "Seems to me as if everybody here
wants to rob you. How do I know you don't?"
"Ah, to be sure, boy, how do you know? Perhaps I do. Going to plan to
get you somewhere all by yourselves, and then shoot you both. I am
pretty good with a revolver."
"Didn't seem like it just now."
"No, it didn't," said Gunson, coolly. "Ah, how like a boy that sounds.
Do you know what shooting a man means?"
"Killing him if you fire straight," said Esau.
"Right; and hurting him, eh?"
"Of course."
"Well, look here, my lad; the man who shoots another hurts himself far
more than he hurts his victim. You don't understand that. Wait till
you are as old as I am, and you will. I did not want to kill either of
those ruffians. It was not a question of aiming, I had only to hold the
pistol down, and it would have hit one of them. Well," he continued,
"shall I take you to the captain? and will you bring your things here?
or will you go your own way?"
I looked at him fixedly, for everything in the man's appearance seemed
to say, "Don't trust him," till his one eye lit up, and a smile began to
curl his lip. Then my hand went out to him.
"Yes," I said, "you are an Englishman, and I'll trust you."
He gripped my hand hard, and then turned to Esau.
"Well," he said, "what do you say? Think I shall do you a mischief?"
"Yah! Not you," said Esau. "I'm not afraid of you. Here, let's get
our things from that other place."
"Let's have the landlady in first," said Gunson, smiling; and he went to
the door and called.
A pleasant-looking German woman came, and in the most broken up English
I ever heard, said we could come at once, but got into a muddle over
terms till Gunson joined in, and spoke to her in German, when the
difficulty was at an end.
"Nice bright-looking place, and plenty of sunshine," said Gunson, as he
led us down to a wharf where a schooner was being laden with barrels,
while a red-nosed, copper-complexioned man looked on smoking a cigar.
"Here, skipper, two more passengers for you--friends of mine; will you
have them?"
The captain looked us both over, and then nodded.
"How much?"
The captain looked at us again, and then said a certain number of
dollars for the two--a price which astonished us.
"I'll say right for them," said Gunson. "They'll send their chests on
board."
"There!" said our new friend, as we walked back. "That matter was soon
settled. Now go and pay your bills, get your traps, and come on to me."