Old Gold Part 8

"Exactly. We'll go back ash.o.r.e, and you can look at them, and then I suppose we may leave it to you."

"Yes, gentlemen; I'll give orders to my first mate, and he'll have 'em brought aboard and stored in a compartment below that I've got part.i.tioned off with bulkheads. There's a hatch in the deck, and a way in as well from the cabins, so that you can get to the stores when you like."

"What about the ammunition?"

"There's a place below communicating with the compartment by a trap, sir. Come and see."

The captain led the way into the dark store-like place, which proved to be eminently satisfactory, cut off as it was from the brig's hold. Soon afterwards the brothers went ash.o.r.e, congratulating themselves upon how capitally matters had turned out; and the first face they saw upon landing was that of the American, who was seated under a tree smoking an enormously long cigar and making the fumes of the tobacco hang round beneath the wide brim of his white Panama hat.

"Keeps the flies off," he said, nodding to Brace. "Try one?"

"Thanks, no," said Brace, as he had a whiff of the strong, rank tobacco.

"I'd rather have the flies."

"So would I, Brace," said Sir Humphrey angrily, as they went into the hotel; "and the smoke too, rather than that man's company. Bah! how he does annoy me with his inquisitive ways!"

CHAPTER FIVE.

LUGGAGE ABOARD.

Inquisitive ways indeed, for as the evening drew near there was the American still smoking as he sat in a deck chair watching the crew of the "Jason" busily getting the packages belonging to the brothers on board.

Brace had made up his mind to see the luggage and stores placed on board the brig, which had now been warped alongside one of the wharves; but, on going out from the hotel and catching sight of the American, he went back and joined his brother, who was having a long final chat with Captain Banes.

Consequently, so to speak, the American had a clear course, and he sat in the deck chair he had borrowed, smoking cigar after cigar, as if, like a steamer, he could not get on with the simplest thing without sending up vapour into the hot air.

But he did not sit in silence, for his tongue ran on, and he found something to say to the second mate, who was superintending the getting on board of what he called the pa.s.sengers' "traps," and something else to every man of the busy crew, who, in consequence of a hint given by Captain Banes to his first officer, carefully took everything on board themselves, without invoking any of the black or coolie labour to be obtained upon the wharf.

"He's a rum one, my lads," said the second mate to the men. "Let him talk: it pleases him, and it don't do you any harm."

"All right, sir," said one of the sailors: "I don't mind. He's pretty free with the terbacker."

"What?" said the mate, putting his hand in his pocket and fingering one of half a dozen cigars lying loose therein: "has he given you some?"

"Yes, sir, a lot: says it's real Virginny."

"Humph!" e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed the mate. "Must be pretty well off.--Mind those chests, my lad. Those are ammunition."

The men went on unloading a rough truck piled up with chests, portmanteaux, and cases of various kinds, before attacking a second truck-load, while the American sat lolling back in his chair, smoking away, his eyes twinkling as he scanned each package in turn and watched for every opportunity to have a word with the busy mate, never letting a chance go by.

"Why, lufftenant," he said, "why don't you smoke and make your miserable life happy?"

"Because I'm at work," said the mate bluffly.

"My skipper don't stand smoking when we're busy."

"Don't he now? Bit of a tyrant, I suppose," said the American.

"Humph!" e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed the mate gruffly.

"I like him, though," said the American: "seems to know the ropes."

"Oh, yes, he knows the ropes," said the mate. "Easy there with that chest."

"Easy it is, sir."

"Now, I wonder what's in that case," said the American. "It's marked with two X's and a cross and SpG and OG. Now, what would that be, lufftenant?"

"Dunno," replied the mate. "Rareohs for meddlers, I should say, sir."

"Should you now?" said the American drily. "I shouldn't. Yes, I like your skipper, and I should have liked to have a voyage with him."

"Pity you didn't, sir," said the mate.

"Yes, that's jest how I feel; but I was too late. They're taking a deal of luggage with 'em, ain't they?"

"Yes," said the mate, as the men had the empty truck wheeled out of the way and attacked the next. "A pretty tidy lot, and it's heavy too."

"Seems to be," said the American. "Fine lot o' gun tackle, ammunition, and suchlike. Wish I'd been going too."

"Wish you had, sir," said the mate, fingering the presentation cigars, and then to himself: "What a whopping fib! I wouldn't sail in the same craft with such a nuisance."

"I'd tell my men not to let that case of cartridges down if I was you, lufftenant," said the American, as the men raised a heavy chest.

"What case of cartridges?" said the mate, turning sharply. "Humph I didn't know that was ammunition."

"Looks like it," said the would-be pa.s.senger drily.

"'Tarn't branded," said the mate. "Oh, yes, it is. But what fool marked it there at the bottom instead of the top?"

"I reckon that is the top," said the American, taking his cigar from his lips to send forth a great puff of smoke.

The loading and unloading went on, the heavy packages being swung on board by means of a crane, the lighter being carried over a gangway on the sailors' backs; and as fast as they reached the brig's decks they were lowered through an open hatch.

As the packages were taken off the truck, the American's eyes twinkled, and he had something to say about each.

"Strange deal of baggage," he said, when nearly all was on board. "Must say it's a big lot for two pa.s.sengers."

"More than you've got, sir?" said the mate.

"Twice as much, lufftenant. But hullo, what have you got there--barrel o' brandy?"

"No," said the mate roughly; "it isn't juicy: it's dry."

"That's queer, lufftenant, but so it is: there's holes in the top. What do they mean?"

"I haven't been inside, sir," said the mate roughly.