"We'll fire some rockets," said Captain Jerry.
This was done, and a little later they saw that the steamer was heading in their direction. By this time the Old Glory showed unmistakable signs of being on the point of foundering, and the girls were told to come on deck. Everybody was given a life preserver, which had been kept close at hand since the beginning of the trouble.
"We are seen!" cried Sam joyously, as a signal came from the steamer.
Gradually the strange vessel drew closer, and they saw that she was a rather clumsy affair of the "tramp" pattern, used to carry all sorts of cargoes from one port to another.
"They are lowering a small boat," said Sam, a little later.
"I wish they would hurry," returned Tom, in a low voice. "I believe this yacht is going to go down very soon."
At last the small boat was close enough to be hailed, and preparations were made for transferring the girls first.
It was no easy matter to make the change, and it took a good quarter of an hour to land the girls on the steamer's deck.
By this time the Old Glory was completely water-logged.
"We have got to jump for it, lads!" cried Captain Jerry, "unless you want to go down with her!"
And jump they did, into the mighty waves, and none too soon, for a minute later the yacht went down, out of their sight forever.
The small boat was not far away, and soon Sam and Tom were picked up. To get Dick and Captain Jerry was not so easy, but the task was finally accomplished, and soon all of our friends stood on the deck of the tramp steamer, safe and sound once more.
CHAPTER VII
DISMAYING NEWS
"Thank fortune we got away from the yacht just in time!" exclaimed
Tom, as he shook the water from his clothes.
"I'm sorry to see the Old Glory go," said Captain Jerry sadly. "I thought a heap o' that craft, I did. It will be sorry news to take back to Master Bob."
"Never mind, we'll help pay for the loss," put in Dick.
"Where are you folks from?" questioned the captain of the steamer, as he came up to, the crowd.
"We came from Santa Barbara. The storm took our mast, and blew us out to sea," answered Dick. "We owe you something for, picking us up."
"You're welcome for what I've done," answered Captain, Fairleigh. "Come with me, and I'll try to get you some dry clothing. I can trick out the men folks, and the young ladies will have to see my wife, who happens to be with me on this trip."
"What steamer is this?" asked Tom.
"The Tacoma, lad."
"Are you bound for San Francisco?" questioned Sam.
"No, we are bound for Honolulu, on the Hawaiian Islands."
"Honolulu!" burst out the others.
"Do you mean to say that the first port you will make will be Honolulu?" demanded Dick.
"That's my orders, lad. I must get there just as quick as I can, too, for a cargo of sugar."
"But we don't want to go to the Hawaiian Islands!" put in Dora.
"Mercy! It's two thousand miles away!"
At this Captain Fairleigh shrugged his broad shoulders.
"I am sorry for you, but I can't put back, miss. Perhaps we'll meet some vessel bound for some port in the United States. If so, I can ask the captain to take you back."
"And if you don't meet any vessel?" came from Grace.
"Oh, I think we'll pass some vessel," returned the captain.
He took the girls and introduced them to, his wife, and then turned the boys and old Jerry over to the first mate, who obtained for them some dry clothing. After this all were provided with a hot supper, which did much toward making them comfortable, at least physically speaking.
But not one of them was comfortable mentally. To be carried to the
Hawaiian Islands, two thousand miles away, was no pleasant thought.
Besides, what would their folks think of their prolonged absence?
"Mother will think that we have all been drowned," said Dora.
"And that is what our folks will think, too," said Nellie. "Oh, it is terrible, simply terrible!" And she wrung her little hands.
By making inquiries Dick learned that the steamer was expected to reach Honolulu inside of two weeks, if the weather was not too, bad. From Honolulu they could get passage to San Francisco on the mail steamer, the trip lasting exactly seven days.
"We'll have to get some money first," said Tom. "And we can't cable for it, either," he went on, for the cable to the Hawaiian Islands from the United States had not yet been laid.
"Let us hope that we will see some ship that will take us back," said
Sam.
Day after day they watched eagerly for a passing sail. But though they sighted four vessels and hailed them, not one was bound for the United States, outside of a whaler, and that craft intended to stay out at least three months longer before making for port.
"We are booked for this trip, and no mistake," sighed Tom. "Well, since that is so, let us make the best of it."
The Tacoma was heavily laden, and though the storm cleared away and the Pacific Ocean became moderately calm, she made but slow progress.
"Our boilers are not in the best of condition," said Captain Fairleigh.
"I trust there is no danger of their blowing up," returned Dick.
"Not if we don't force them too much."
It had been arranged that the boys and girls should pay a fair price for the trip to Honolulu, the money to, be sent to the captain of the Tacoma later on. As for old Jerry, he signed articles to work his passage to the Hawaiian Islands and back again. As Captain Fairleigh was rather short of hands he was glad to have the old sailor join his crew.
The days slipped by, and, having recovered from the effects of the storm, the Rover boys became as light hearted as ever. Tom was particularly full of pranks.
"No use of crying over spilt milk," he declared. "Let us be thankful the pitcher wasn't broken, or, in other words, that we are not at this moment at the bottom of the Pacific."
"Right you are," replied Sam.
There was an old piano on board, and the boys and girls often amused themselves at this, singing and playing. As there were no other passengers, they had the freedom of the ship.
"This would be real jolly," said Tom, "if it wasn't that the folks at home must be worried," and then he began to sing, for he really could not be sad:
"A life on the ocean wave,
A home on the rolling deep,
A house in a watery cave—
Where I might rest in sleep!"
"Did you ever hear such a song?" cried Nellie, and Tom went on:
"The boy stood on the burning deck,
Munching apples by the peck;
The captain yelled, he stood stock-still,
For of those apples he wanted his fill!"
"Tom Rover!" burst out Dora. "I believe you would sing at your own funeral!" And Tom continued gayly:
"Sailing, sailing, over the bounding main,
For many a stormy wind shall blow,
Ere the Rovers get home again!"
"Tom lives on songs," said Sam slyly. "He'd rather sing than eat a pie."
"Pie!" thundered Tom tragically. "Who said pie? I haven't seen a home-made pie since—since—"
"The time you went down in the pantry at midnight and ate two," finished Dick, and then there was a burst of laughter.
"Never mind, Tom, I'll make you half a dozen pies—when we get home," came from Nellie.
"Will you really?" said Tom, and then he began once more, as gayly as ever:
"You can give me pudding
And give me cake,
And anything else
You care to bake;
But if you wish
To charm my eye,
Just hand me over
Some home-made pie!"
"That's all right," said Dick. "But in place of eye you should have said stomach."
"Stomach doesn't rhyme with pie," snorted 'Tom. "I'm a true poet and
I know what I am doing."
"Talking about pie makes me think of pie-plates," said Sam. "Let us play spinning the plate on deck. It will be lots of fun trying to catch the plate while it is spinning and the steamer is rolling."
"Good!" cried Grace, and ran to get a plate from the cook's galley. Soon they were playing merrily, and the game served to make an hour pass pleasantly. When the forfeits had to be redeemed, the girls made the boys do several ridiculous things. Tom had to hop from one end of the deck to the other on one foot, Sam had to stand on his head, and recite "Mary had a Little Lamb," and Dick had to go to three of the sailors and ask each if they would tie the ship to a post during the night.
"I'll wager you are a merry crowd on land," .said Captain Fairleigh, as he paused to watch the fun. "Takes me back to the time when I was a boy," and he laughed heartily. Even the captain's wife was amused. She was particularly fond of music, and loved to listen to the playing and singing.
The days slipped by one after the other, until Captain Fairleigh announced that forty-eight hours more ought to bring them in sight of Diamond Head, a high hill at the entrance to Honolulu harbor.
But another storm was at hand, and that night the wind blew more fiercely than ever. The Tacoma tossed and pitched to such a degree that standing on the deck was next to impossible, and all of the boys and the girls gathered in the cabin and held fast to the posts and the stationary seats.
"It feels as if the steamer would roll clear over," said Sam. "Here we go again!"
There was thunder and lightning, and soon a deluge of rain, fully as heavy as that experienced while on board of the ill-fated Old Glory. This continued all of the night, and in the morning the storm seemed to grow worse instead of better.
"We are in a run of bad luck," said Dick. "I really believe we will have all sorts of trouble before we get back to the United States."
Toward noon a mist came up, and it grew dark. Lanterns were lit, and the Tacoma felt her way along carefully, for Captain Fairleigh knew that they were now in the track of considerable shipping.
By nightfall the steamer lay almost at a stand-still, for the mist was thicker than ever. For safety the whistle was sounded at short intervals.
The girls were the first to retire, and the boys followed half an hour later. The staterooms of all were close together.
Dick Rover was the last to go to sleep. How long he slept he did not know.
He awoke with a start. A shock had thrown him to the floor of the stateroom, and down came Sam on top of him. There were hoarse cries from the deck, a shrill steam whistle, and the sound of a fog horn, and then a grinding thud and a bump that told the Tacoma had either run into some other ship or into the rocks.
CHAPTER VIII
FROM ONE SHIP TO ANOTHER
"We struck something!"
"What is the matter?"
"Are we going down?"
These and a score of other cries rang out on board the steamer. The thumping and bumping continued, followed by a crashing that could mean but one thing—that the ship was being splintered, and that her seams were being laid wide open.
As soon as possible the Rover boys slipped into some clothing and went on deck. They were quickly followed by the three girls, who clung tight to them in terror.
"Oh, Dick, this is the worst yet!" came from Dora. "What will be the end?"
"The Tacoma is sinking!" was the cry from out of the darkness.
"Are we really sinking?" gasped Nellie as she clutched Tom.
"Yes, we are," came from Sam. "Can't you feel the deck settling?"
They could, only too plainly, and in a minute more the water seemed to be running all around them. The cries continued, but it was so black they could see next to nothing.
What happened in the next few minutes the Rover boys could scarcely tell, afterward. An effort was made to get out a life-boat, and it disappeared almost as soon as it left the side, carrying some sailors with it. Then some red-fire blazed up, lighting up the tragic scene, and revealing a schooner standing close by the steamer. The sailing vessel had her bowsprit broken and part of her forward rail torn away.
"If we must die, let us die together!" said Dick, and they kept together as well as they could. Old Jerry was with them, and said he would do all he could for them. He had already passed around life-preservers, and these they put on with all possible speed.
Then followed a sudden plunge of the steamer and all found themselves in the waves of the ocean. They went down together, each holding the hand of somebody else. When they came up, Tom was close to a life-line thrown from the sailing vessel and this he clutched madly.
"Haul us in!" he yelled. "Haul us in!" And the line was pulled in with care, and after ten minutes of extreme peril the boys and the girls and Captain Jerry found themselves on board of the sailing vessel, which proved to be a large three-masted schooner.
All of our friends were so exhausted that they had to be carried to the cabin and here Dora and Grace fainted away completely, while Nellie was little better off. Tom had had his left arm bruised and Dick was suffering from an ugly scratch on the forehead. It was fully an hour before any of them felt like moving around.
In the meantime the two vessels had separated, and though red fire was burned twice, after that, and rockets sent up, nothing more was seen or heard of the Tacoma or those left on board.
"But I don't think she went down," said Captain Jerry. "She was too well built for that." And he was right, as events proved. Much crippled the steamer two days later entered Honolulu harbor, where she was laid up for repairs.
Worn out completely by what they had passed through, the boys slept heavily for the rest of the night, not caring what ship they were on or where they were going. Everybody was busy with the wreckage, so they were left almost entirely to themselves.
Tom was the first to get up, and going on deck found that the storm had cleared away and that the sun was shining brightly. Without delay he halted a sailor who happened to be passing.
"What ship is this?" he questioned.
"Dis ship da Golden Wave," replied the sailor, who was a Norwegian.
"And where are you bound?"
"Da ship sail for Australia."
"Great Scott! Australia!" gasped Tom. "This is the worst yet."
"What's up, Tom?" asked Sam, who had followed his brother.
"This sailor tells me this ship is bound for Australia."
"Why, that is thousands of miles away!"
"I know it."
"If we go to Australia, we'll never get back."
"Not quite as bad as that, Sam. But we certainly don't want to go to
Australia."
"Who is the captain?"
"Captain Blossom," replied the sailor. "Where is he?"
The sailor said he would take them to the captain and did so. He proved to be a burly fellow with rather a sober-looking face.
"Got around at last, eh?" he said, eying Tom and Sam shrewdly.
"We have, and we must thank you for rescuing us," replied Tom.
"That's all right."
"One of your sailors tells me you are bound for Australia," put in Sam.
"He told you the truth."
"Won't you stop at some port in the Hawaiian Islands?"
"No."
"But you might put us off."
"Can't spare the time. As it is, this storm blew me away out of my course," answered Captain Blossom.
He had a twofold reason for not putting them ashore at or near Honolulu. It would not only take time, but it might also lead to questioning concerning the fate of the steamer, and he was afraid he would be hauled into some marine court for running into the Tacoma, for that was what he had done.
"Do you know anything about the steamer?" asked Sam.
"No, she got away from us in the darkness, after we hauled seven of you aboard."
"The steamer lost some of her crew," said Tom, shuddering. "Did you lose any men?"
"One sailor, and one of my passengers got hurt in the leg by the collision."
By this time Dick joined the party, followed by old Jerry and the three girls.
"Will the captain carry us away to Australia?" asked Dora, when the situation was explained.
"I suppose so," said Dick soberly. "If I had some money I might buy him off, but I haven't a dollar. What little I did have I left on board of the Tacoma."
The others were equally destitute, and when Captain Blossom heard of this his face grew dark. He was a close man, and his first mate, Jack Lesher, was no better.
"If you haven't any money, you'll have to work your passage," he growled. "I can't afford to carry you to Australia for nothing."
"Then let us off at some port in the Hawaiian Islands," said Tom.
"Can't do it, I told you," retorted Captain Blossom angrily. "And you'll either work while you are on board or starve."
"My, what a Tarter!" whispered Sam.
"Well, we'll work," said Dick. "But you must not force the young ladies to do anything."
"I'm a sailor and will do my full share," said old Jerry. But he did not like the situation any better than did the Rovers.
The matter was talked over, and seeing that they were willing to work, Captain Blossom became a little milder in his manner. He said he would give the three girls one of the staterooms, but the boys and old Jerry would have to join the crew in the forecastle.
Fortunately the sailors on board the Golden Wave were a fairly clean lot, so the forecastle was not so dirty a place as it might otherwise have been. The boys did not like to be separated from the girls, however, and Dick called the girls aside to talk the matter over.
"I want to know if anything goes wrong," said he. "If there is the least thing out of the way, let us know at once," and the girls promised to keep their eyes open.
Once in the forecastle the boys were given three rough suits of clothes to wear while working. Then they were called out to work without delay, for the storm had left much to do on board the Golden Wave.
"We have only one passenger," said one of the sailors, in reply to a question from Tom.. "He is a young fellow named Robert Brown. He was hurt during the storm, but I reckon he's all right now."
Tom was set to coiling some rope and Sam and Dick had to scrub down the deck. This was by no means an agreeable task, but nobody complained.
"We must take what comes," said Dick cheerfully. "So long as we get enough to eat and are not abused I shan't say a word."
The boys had been to work about an hour when Sam saw a young fellow limping around the other end of the deck. There was something strangely familiar about the party, and the youngest Rover drew closer to get a better look at him.
"Dan Baxter!" he cried in astonishment. "Dan Baxter!"
At this cry the person turned and his lower jaw dropped in equal astonishment.
"Who—er—where did you come from?" he stammered.
"So this is the vessel you shipped on?" went on Sam. And then he called out: "Dick! Tom! Come here."
For a brief instant Dan Baxter's face was a study. Then a crafty look came into his eyes and he drew himself up.
"Excuse me, but you have made a mistake in your man," he said coldly.
"What's that?" came from Sam in bewilderment.
"I am not the party you just named. My name is Robert Brown."
"It is?" came from the youngest Rover. "If that is so, you look exactly like somebody I know well."
By this time Dick and Tom came hurrying to the spot, followed by
Dora, who happened to be on deck.
"Dan Baxter!" came from Tom and Dick simultaneously.
"He says he isn't Dan Baxter," said Sam.
"Isn't Dan Baxter? Why, Baxter, you fraud, what new wrinkle is this?" said Dick, catching him by the arm.
"Let go of me!" came fiercely from Baxter. "Let go, I say, or it will be the worse for you. You have made a mistake."
"No mistake about it," put in Tom. "He is Dan Baxter beyond a doubt."
CHAPTER IX
IN WHICH THE ENEMY IS CORNERED
The loud talking had attracted the attention of Captain Blossom, and now the master of the Golden Wave strode up to the crowd.
"What's going on here?" he demanded of the Rover boys. "Why are you not at work, as I ordered?"
"I have made an important discovery," answered Dick. "Is this your passenger, Captain Blossom?"
"He is. What of him?"
"He is a thief and ran away from San Francisco to escape the police."
"It's a falsehood!" roared Dan Baxter. "They have made a mistake. I am a respectable man just out of college, and my father, Doctor L. Z. Brown, is a well-known physician of Los Angeles. I am traveling to Australia for my health."
"His real name is Daniel Baxter and his father is now in prison," said Tom. "He robbed us of our money and some diamonds while we were stopping at a hotel in San Francisco. The detectives followed him up, but he slipped them by taking passage on your ship."
"I tell you my name is Brown—Robert Brown!" stormed Baxter. "This is some plot hatched up against me. Who are these fellows, anyway?" he went on, turning to the captain.
"They came from the steamer we ran into," answered Captain Blossom.
"I never saw them before."
At this moment Dora touched the captain on the shoulder.
"Please, captain," she said, "I knew Dan Baxter quite well and I am sure this young man is the same person."
"It aint so. I tell you, captain, it is a plot."
"What kind of a plot could it be?" asked Captain Blossom. He scarcely knew what to say.
"I don't know. Perhaps they want to get hold of my money," went on
Baxter, struck by a sudden idea.
"That's right, we do want to get hold of the money!" cried Sam. "For it belongs to us—at least two hundred and seventy-five dollars of it—not counting what he may have got on the diamonds and the cuff buttons."
"You shan't touch my money!" screamed Baxter.
"Captain, he ought to be placed under arrest," said Dick.
Dora had gone back to the cabin and now she returned in great haste with Nellie and Grace.
"To be sure, that is Dan Baxter," said Nellie.
"There can be no mistake," put in Grace, "We all know him only too well."
"You see, Captain Blossom, that we are six to one," said Tom. "And you will surely believe the ladies."
"How is you all happen to know him so well?" demanded the captain curiously.
"We know him because we all went to school together," answered Dick. "These young ladies lived in the vicinity of the school. We had trouble with Baxter at school and later on out West, and ever since that time he has been trying to injure us. We met him in San Francisco in the hotel lobby and at night he went to our room, cut open a traveling bag and unlocked our trunks and robbed us of two hundred and seventy-five dollars in cash, some diamond studs, a pair of cuff buttons, and some clothing."
"I've got an idea!" almost shouted Sam. "Maybe he has some of the stolen stuff in his stateroom."
"Yes, yes, let us search the stateroom: by all means!" exclaimed Tom.
"You shall not touch my room!" howled Baxter, turning pale. "I have nothing there but my own private property."
"If that is so, you shouldn't object to having the stateroom searched," observed Captain Blossom.
"If we get back our money we may be able to pay you something, captain, for our passage," said Dick.
This was a forceful argument and set Captain Blossom to thinking. He was a man who loved money dearly.
"I will go along and we will look around the stateroom," he said, after a pause.
"This is an outrage!" cried Dan Baxter. "I will have the law on you for it."
"Shut up! I am master on my own ship," retorted Captain Blossom, and led the way to the stateroom Dan Baxter occupied. The door was locked and Baxter refused to give up the key. But the captain had a duplicate, and soon he and the Rover boys were inside the room. Baxter followed them, still expostulating, but in vain.
"Here is a pocketbook full of bills!" cried Tom, bringing the article to light.
"Here is my light overcoat!" came from Dick. "See, it has my initials embroidered in the hanger. Aunt Martha did that for me."
"Here are my gold cuff buttons!" exclaimed Sam. "They were a present from my father and they have my monogram engraved on each." And he showed the articles to the captain.
"I reckon it's a pretty clear case against you," said Captain Blossom, turning to Dan Baxter.
"Here are half a dozen letters," said Tom, holding them up. "You can see they are all addressed to Daniel Baxter. That's his name, and he'd be a fool to deny it any longer."
"Well, I won't deny it," cried the big bully. "What would be the use—you are all against me—even the captain."
"I am not against you," retorted Captain Blossom. "But if you are a thief I want to know it. Why did you give me your name as Robert Brown?"
"That's my business." Baxter paused for a moment. "Now you have found me out, what are you going to do about it?" he went on brazenly. "You can't arrest me on shipboard."
"No, but we can have you arrested when we land," said Dick. "And in the meantime we will take charge of what is our own."
"Here are some pawn tickets for the diamonds," said Sam, who was continuing the search. "They show he got seventy-five dollars on them."
"We will keep the tickets—and the seventy-five dollars, too—if we can find the money," said Tom.
But the money could not be found, for the greater part had been turned over to Captain Blossom for Baxter's passage to Australia and the rest spent before leaving shore. The pocketbook contained only two hundred and thirty dollars.
"What did he pay you for the passage?" questioned Dick of the captain.
"One hundred dollars."
"Then you ought to turn that amount over to our credit."
"Why, what do you mean?"
"I mean that Dan Baxter has no right to a free passage on your ship, since he bought that passage with our money. Let him work his way and place that passage money to our credit."
"That's the way to talk," put in Tom. "Make him work by all means."
"He deserves good, hard labor," came from Sam.
"I don't think you can make me work!" burst out Dan Baxter. "I am a passenger and I demand that I be treated as such."
"You are an impostor!" returned Captain Blossom bluntly. "The fact that you used an assumed name proves it. If I wanted to do so, I could clap you in the ship's brig until we reach port and chain you into the bargain. I want no thieves on board my ship."
"Here is more of our clothing," came from Tom.
"Pick out all the things that are yours," said the captain. "And take the other things that are yours, too."
This was done, nobody paying any attention to Baxter's protests. When the Rovers had what there was of their things the captain turned to the bully.
"I've made up my mind about you," he said, speaking with great deliberation. "I am master here, and a judge and jury into the bargain. You can take your choice: Either sign articles as a foremast hand for the balance of the trip, or be locked up as a prisoner, on prison rations."
"Do you mean th—that?" gasped Baxter, turning pale.
"I do."
"But the passage money Goes to the credit of these young fellows."
"It's an outrage!"
"No, it's simply justice, to my way of thinking. I'll give you until to-morrow to make up your mind what you will do."
This ended the talk with Dan Baxter. The captain said he wanted to see the Rover boys in the cabin, and they followed him to that place.
"Captain, I feel I must thank you for your fair way of managing this affair," said Dick, feeling that a few good words at this point would not go amiss. "I hope you treat Baxter as he deserves."
"I will try to do right," was Captain Blossom's answer. "But what I want to know now is, What do you intend to do with that money? It seems to me I should be paid something for keeping you on board."
"I have a proposition to make, captain. We will give you two hundred dollars if you will allow us to consider ourselves passengers. And by 'us' I mean the young ladies as well as ourselves."
"It's not very much."
"If we pay you that amount it will leave us but thirty dollars, hardly enough with which to cable home for more. Of course, when we get our money in Australia we will pay you whatever balance is due you,—and something besides for saving us."
This pleased Captain Blossom and he said he would accept the offer. The matter was discussed for half an hour, and it was decided that the boys should have two staterooms, the one occupied by Baxter and another next to that given over to the girls.
When Dora, Nellie, and Grace heard of the new arrangement that had been made they were highly pleased.
"I didn't want to see you do the work of a common sailor," said Dora to Dick.
"Oh, it wouldn't kill me," he returned lightly. "Even as it is, I'll give a hand if it is necessary."
"It's a wonder Captain Blossom took to your offer so quickly."
"He loves money, that's why, Dora. He would rather have that two hundred dollars than our services," and with this remark Dick hit the nail squarely on the head.
CHAPTER X
A BLOW IN THE DARKNESS
It would be hard to describe Dan Baxter's feelings after Captain Blossom and the Rover boys left him alone in his stateroom. At one instant he was fairly shaking with rage, and at the next quaking with fear over what the future might hold in store for him.
"They have got the best of me again!" he muttered, clenching his fists. "And after I felt sure I had escaped them. It must have been Fate that made Captain Blossom pick them up. Now I've either got to work as a common sailor or submit to being locked up in some dark, foul-smelling hole on the ship. And when we get to Australia, unless I watch my chance to skip out, they'll turn me over to the police."
He could not sleep that night for thinking over the situation and was up and dressed before daylight. Strolling on deck, he came face to face with Sam, who had come up to get the morning air.
"I suppose you think you have got the best of me," growled Baxter.
"It looks like it, doesn't it?" returned Sam briefly.
"The game isn't ended yet."
"No, but it will be when you land in prison, Baxter."
"I'll get square."
"You have promised to get square times without number—and you have failed every time."
"I won't fail the next time."
"Yes, you will. Wrong never yet triumphed over right."
"Oh, don't preach, Sam Rover."
"I am not preaching, I am simply trying to show you how foolish it is to do wrong. Why don't you turn over a new leaf?"
"Oh, such talk makes me sick!" growled the bully, and turned away.
A little while later Captain Blossom appeared and hunted up Dan
Baxter, who sat in his state-room, packing up his few belongings.
"Well, have you decided on your course, young man?" demanded the master of the Golden Wave.
"Do you mean to lock me up if I refuse to become a sailor?" asked
Dan Baxter,
"I do, and I won't argue with you, either. Is it yes or no?"
"I don't want to be locked up in some dark hole on your ship."
"Then you are willing to become a sailor?"
"I—er—I suppose so."
"Very well, you can remove your things to the forecastle. Jack Lesher, the first mate, will give you your bunk."
This was "adding insult to injury," as it is termed, so far as Baxter was concerned, for it will be remembered that it was Jack Lesher who had obtained the passage on the Golden Wave for the bully.
But Dan Baxter was given no chance to demur. Taking his traps he went on deck, where Jack Lesher met him, grinning in sickly fashion.
"So you are going to make a change, eh?" said the mate.
"You needn't laugh at me, if I am," growled Baxter.
"I shan't laugh, my boy. It's hard luck," said Lesher. "Come along."
He led the way to the forecastle and gave Baxter a bunk next to that occupied by old Jerry. Then he brought out an old suit of sailor's clothing and tossed it over.
"You've run in hard luck, boy," he said in a low voice, after he had made certain that nobody else was within hearing. "I am sorry for you."
"Really?" queried Dan Baxter, giving the mate a sharp look.
"Yes, I am, and if I can do anything to make it easy for you, count on me," went on Jack Lesher.
"Thank you."
"I suppose taking that money and the other things was more of boy's sport than anything, eh?"
"That's the truth. I wanted to get square with those Rover boys. They are my bitter enemies. I didn't want the money."
Just then old Jerry came in and the conversation came to an end. But Baxter felt that he had a friend on board and this eased him a little. He did not know that the reason Jack Lesher liked him was because the first mate was a criminal himself and had once served a term in a Michigan jail for knocking down a passenger on a boat and robbing him of his pocketbook. As the old saying goes, "Birds of a feather flock together."
When the girls came on deck they found Baxter doing some of the work which Dick and Tom had been doing the morning before. At first they were inclined to laugh, but Dora stopped herself and her cousins.
"Don't let us laugh at him," she whispered. "It is hard enough for the poor fellow as it is."
"I am not going to notice him after this," said Nellie. "To me he shall be an entire stranger." And the others agreed to treat Dan Baxter in the same manner.
But the boys were not so considerate, and Tom laughed outright when he caught sight of Baxter swabbing up some dirt on the rear deck. This made the bully's passion arise on the instant and he caught up his bucket as if to throw it at Tom's head.
"Don't you dare, Baxter!" cried Tom. "If you do we'll have a red-hot war."
"I can lick you, Tom Rover!"
"Perhaps you can and perhaps you can't."
Baxter put up his fists, but on the approach of Dick and Sam he promptly retreated. But before he went he hissed in Tom's ear:
"You wait, and see what I do!"
"He had better keep his distance," said Dick. "If he doesn't, somebody will get hurt."
"I suppose it galls him to work," said Sam. "He always was rather lazy."
The day proved a nice one, and the Rover boys spent most of the time with the three girls, who were glad of their company once more.
All speculated on the question of what had become of the Tacoma, and of what the folks at home would think concerning their prolonged absence.
"I'd give a good deal to send a message home," said Dick.
"We must cable as soon as we reach shore," added Dora.
They saw but little of Dan Baxter during the day and nothing whatever of him the day following.
"He is trying to avoid us," said Sam. "Well, I am just as well satisfied."
Through old Jerry they learned that Baxter hated the work given to him and that he was being favored a little by the first mate.
"Tell ye what, I hate that mate," said Jerry. "He's got a wicked eye, and he drinks like a fish."
"I know he drinks," answered Tom. "I smelt the liquor in his breath."
They were now getting down into warmer latitudes and the next night proved unusually hot. It was dark with no stars shining, and the air was close, as if another storm was at hand.
"I can't sleep," said Tom, after rolling around in his berth for half an hour. "I'm going on deck." And he dressed himself and went up for some air. He walked forward and leaned over the rail, watching the waves as they slipped behind the noble ship.
Tom's coming on deck had been noticed by Dan Baxter, who sat on the side of the fore-castle, meditating on his troubles. As the bully saw the youth leaning over the rail, his face took on a look of bitter hatred.
"I'll teach him to laugh at me!" he muttered.
Gazing around he saw that nobody was within sight and then he arose to his feet. With a cat-like tread he came up behind Tom, who still looked at the waves, totally unconscious of danger.
Baxter's heart beat so loudly that he was afraid Tom would hear it. Again he looked around. Not a soul was near, and the gloom of the night was growing thicker.
"He'll laugh another way soon!" he muttered, and stepped closer.
His fist was raised to deliver a blow when Tom happened to straighten up and look around. He saw the form behind him and the upraised arm and leaped aside.
The blow missed its mark and Tom caught Baxter by the shoulder.
"What do you mean, Dan Baxter, by this attack?" he began, when the bully aimed another blow at him. This struck Tom full in the temple and partly dazed him. Then the two clenched awl fell heavily against the rail.
"I'll fix you!" panted Baxter, striking another blow as best he could, and then, as Tom struck him in return, he forced Tom's head against the rail with a thump. The blow made Tom see stars and he was more dazed than ever.
"Le—let up!" he gasped, but Baxter continued to crowd him against the rail, which at this point was very weak because of the collision with the steamer. Suddenly there was a snap and a crack and the rail gave way. Baxter leaped back in time to save himself from falling, but Tom could not help himself, and, with a wild cry, he went overboard!
CHAPTER XI
A CALL FROM THE STERN
For the instant after Tom slipped over the side of the Golden Wave, Dan Baxter was too dazed to do more than stare at the spot where he had last seen the boy with whom he had been struggling.
"Gone!" he muttered presently. "Gone!" he repeated and crouched back in the darkness.
The great beads of perspiration came to his brow as he heard rapid footsteps approaching. Would he be accused of sending Tom Rover to his death?
"What's the trouble?" came in the voice of Captain Blossom.
Instead of answering, Dan Baxter crept still further back. Then, watching his chance, he darted into the forecastle.
"Hullo, the rail is broken!" he heard the captain exclaim. "Bring a lantern here, quick!"
A sailor came running with a lantern, which lit up the narrow circle of the deck near the rail and part of the sea beyond.
"Somebody gave a cry," said the captain, to those who began to gather.
"Looks to me as if the rail gave way and let somebody overboard."
"Tom Rover was on deck," came from old Jerry. "Do you reckon as how it was him?"
"I don't know. It was somebody, that's certain. Call all hands at once."
This was done, and Dan Baxter had to come out with the rest. He was pale and trembled so he could scarcely stand.
"All here," said Captain Blossom. "Must have been one of the Rover boys or one of the young ladies."
Word was passed along and soon Sam and Dick came rushing on deck.
"Tom is missing!" cried Sam.
"If that is so, I'm afraid, boys, you have seen the last of your brother," said Captain Blossom. He turned to his crew. "Do any of you know anything of this affair?"
There was a dead silence. Then he questioned the man at the wheel.
"Don't know a thing, cap'n," was the answer.
"It's queer. He must have pressed on the rail very hard.. Here are half a dozen nails torn from the wood."
While this talk was going on Dick and Sam had passed along the rail from the place of the accident to the stern.
"Perhaps he caught hold somewhere," said Sam, who was unwilling to believe that his brother had really perished.
They had just gained the stern and were looking over when a call came from out of the darkness.
"He—help! Help!"
"It's Tom!" screamed Dick in delight. "Tom, is that you?"
"Yes! Help!"
"Where are you?"
"Holding on to a rope. Help me quick. I—I can't hold on mu—much longer!"
"We'll help you," answered Dick.
Captain Blossom was called and more lanterns were lit, and then a Bengal light, and Tom was seen to be holding fast to a rope which had in some manner fallen overboard and become entangled in the rudder chain.
By the aid of the boat-hook the rope was hauled up and to the side of the Golden Wave. At the same time the sails were lowered, and then a rope ladder was thrown down. Dick descended to the edge of the waves, and, watching his chance, caught Tom by the collar of his coat. Then the brothers came slowly to the deck.
A cheer went up when it was found that Tom was safe once more, and Nellie Laning could not resist rushing forward and catching the wet youth in her arms. Tom was so exhausted he dropped on the nearest seat, and it was several minutes before he had recovered strength enough to speak.
"I would have been drowned had it not been for that rope," he said when questioned. "As I slid along the side of the ship the rope hit me in the face. I clutched it and clung fast for dear life. Then when I came up and swept astern I called as loudly as I could, but it seemed an age before anybody heard me."
"It was a narrow escape," said Dick. "You can thank a kind Providence that your life was spared."
"You must have leaned on the rail awfully hard," put in Nellie.
"Leaned on the rail?" repeated Tom. "It wasn't my fault that I went overboard. It was Dan Baxter's."
"Dan Baxter!" came from several.
"Exactly. He tackled me in the dark, and we had it hot and heavy for a minute. Then he crowded me on the rail, and it gave way. He jumped back and let me go overboard."
"The rascal! I'll settle with him!" cried Dick. "I'll teach him to keep his distance after this!"
He knew Baxter was still forward, and ran in that direction. The bully saw him coming and tried to hide in the forecastle, but Dick was too quick for him and hauled him back on the deck.
"Take that for shoving my brother overboard, you scoundrel!" he exclaimed, and hit Baxter a staggering blow straight between the eyes.
"Stop!" roared the bully, and struck out in return. But Dick dodged the blow, and then hit Baxter in the chin and on the nose. The elder Rover boy was excited, and hit with all of his force, and the bully measured his length on the deck.
"Good fer you!" cried old Jerry, who stood looking on. "That's the way to serve him, the sarpint!"
Slowly Baxter arose to his knees, and then his feet, where he stood glaring at Dick.
"Don't you hit me again!" he muttered.
"But I will," retorted Dick, and struck out once more. This time his fist landed on the bully's left eye, and once again Baxter went down, this time with a thud.
The sailors were collecting, and soon Jack Lesher rushed up. He stepped between Dick and the bully.
"Stop it!" he ordered harshly. "We don't allow fighting on board of this craft."
"I wasn't fighting," answered Dick coolly. "I was just teaching a rascal a lesson."
"It amounts to the same thing. If you have any fault to find tell the captain, or tell me."
"Well, I'll go to the captain, not you," retorted Dick.
"All right," growled the first mate. "But just remember you can't boss things when I'm around."
When Captain Blossom understood the situation he was thoroughly angry.
"Baxter certainly ought to be in prison," he said. "I'll clap him in the brig and feed him on bread and water for three days and see how he likes that."
"He ought not to be left at large," said Dora, with a shudder. "He may try to murder somebody next."
"We'll watch him after this," said the captain.
He kept his word about putting Baxter in the ship's jail. But through Lesher the bully, got much better fare than bread and water. Strange as it may seem, a warm friendship sprang up between the bully and the first mate.
"I aint got nothing against you, Baxter," said Jack Lesher. "When we get to Australia perhaps we can work together, eh?" and he closed one eye suggestively. Baxter had told him of his rich relative, and the mate thought there might be a chance to get money from Baxter. "He'd rather give me money than have me tell his relation what sort of a duck he is," said Lesher to himself.
After this incident the time passed pleasantly enough for over a week. When Baxter came from the brig he went to work without a word. Whenever he passed the Rovers or the girls he acted as if he did not know they were there, and they ignored him just as thoroughly. But the boys watched every move the bully made.
As mentioned before, Jack Lesher was a drinking man, and as the weather grew warmer the mate increased his potions until there was scarcely a day when he was thoroughly sober. Captain Blossom remonstrated with him, but this did little good.
"I'm attending to my duties," said Lesher. "And if I do that you can't expect more from me."
"I thought I hired a man that was sober," said Captain Blossom. "I won't place my vessel in charge of a man who gets drunk."
Yet he was not willing to do the mate's work, or put that work onto others, so Jack Lesher had to take his turn on deck, no matter in what condition.
"I must say I don't like that first mate at all," said Tom to Sam.
"He is very friendly with Baxter."
"I have noticed that," replied the youngest Rover. "Such a friendship doesn't count in the mate's favor."
"Last night he was thoroughly drunk, and wasn't fit to command."
"Well, that is Captain Blossom's lookout. The captain can't be on deck all of the time."
Two nights after this talk Jack Lesher was again in command of the ship, Captain Blossom having retired after an unusually hard day.
It was hot and dark, and the air betokened a storm. The man at the wheel was following a course set by the captain, and the sailors whose watch was on deck lay around taking it as easy as they could.
The mate had been drinking but little in the afternoon, but before coming on deck he took several draughts of rum. He was in a partiallarly bad humor and ready to find fault with anybody or anything.
Some of the sails had been reefed, and these he ordered shaken out, although there was a stiff breeze blowing. Then he approached the man at the wheel and asked for the course.
"Southwest by south," was the answer.
"That aint right," growled the mate. "It should be south by west."
"The captain gave it to me southwest by south," answered the man.
"Don't talk back to me!" roared Jack Lesher. "I know the course as well as the captain. Make it south by west, or I'll flog you for disobeying orders."
"Aye, aye, sir," answered the man at the wheel, and the course was changed, for the sailor stood greatly in fear of the mate. Then the mate sent below for another drink of rum.
CHAPTER XII
ANOTHER ACCIDENT AT SEA
It was four hours later, and Captain Blossom was just preparing to come on deck, when there, came a fearful shock which threw the Golden Wave back and over on her side.
"We have struck! We are on the rocks!" came a shrill cry from the deck, and immediately there was an uproar.
The Rover boys were thrown to the floor from their berths, and it was several seconds before they could realize what had happened.
"We have struck something, that is sure!" gasped Sam.
As quickly as they could they donned their clothing and made their way to the large state-room occupied by the girls.
"Oh, what a shock!" came from Nellie.
"Are you safe?" asked Tom.
"I am, but poor Grace struck her head on the wall, and is unconscious."
Without ceremony Tom picked up the unconscious girl, wrapped her in a blanket, and, aided by Sam, carried her to the deck, the others following. A minute later Grace revived.
On deck they found all in confusion. The bowsprit of the Golden Wave was gone, and also the main topmast, while a mass of the rigging littered the forecastle. It was also announced that the rudder was broken and the vessel was pounding helplessly on the rocks, with a big hole in the bow directly below the waterline.
"Who changed the course?" demanded Captain Blossom. "We should be fifty miles away from these rocks."
"The first mate made me change the course," said the man who had been at the wheel. "I told him you had said southwest by south, and he made it south by west."
"He don't know what he's talking about!" howled Jack Lesher. The shock had partly sobered him. "He was steering due south, and I told him to make it southwest by south."
But little more could be said on the point, for it was feared that the schooner would go down at any moment.
"We must man the boats," said the captain. "Bring up the provisions and the kegs of water, and be quick about it."
"Are we near land?" asked Dick.
"There should be some islands four or five miles south of this spot," answered Captain Blossom.
Now that there was danger of going down some of the sailors seemed to grow crazy. Half a dozen tumbled into one of the boats and began to lower it of their own accord.
"Stand back there!" shouted the captain. "The girls must go first."
"Not much!" shouted one of the sailors. "It's everybody for himself now!" And in a moment more the small boat had left the ship's side and disappeared in the darkness.
There were three other boats and the remaining sailors, along with the first mate and Dan Baxter, wanted to crowd into these. But Captain Blossom said he would shoot the first man who tried to row away without his orders. Then some provisions were put into the boats, and the captain divided the whole company among the three boats.
"Let us stay together, captain," pleaded Dick. "We can row."
"And what of the girls, Rover?"
"Let us go with the Rover boys," pleaded Dora, and Nellie and Grace said the same. Old Jerry also stood by his friends.
While this talk was going on there was a rush for two of the boats, and before Captain Blossom could do anything his men were off, taking Jack Lesher and Dan Baxter with them.
"You can go down with the ship!" cried Dan Baxter mockingly. An instant later the darkness hid the speaker from view.
"They have left us," cried Captain Blossom. "But, thank fortune, the best and largest boat is also left."
Some provisions had been tumbled into this boat, and a cask of water followed. Then the girls were placed on board, the Rover boys followed, and the captain and old Jerry came behind, to cut away. Down went the small boat into the mighty waves, and each of the boys caught up an oar.
"Pull!" roared Captain Blossom. "Pull for your lives!" And they did pull, two boys on one side, and Sam and old Jerry on the other. The girls huddled in the stern, expecting every moment to see the little craft turn bottom side up. They scraped along the side of the doomed ship, and then along some rocks. Captain Blossom was in the bow, peering ahead.
"To the left!" he yelled. "Quick!" And then came a shock, and the captain disappeared beneath the waves.
"The captain is gone!" screamed Dora, but she was hardly heard, for the ship was pounding on the rocks, and the spray was flying in all directions. The boys and old Jerry continued to pull, knowing not what else to do, and at last the spot was left behind and they found themselves on the bosom of the mighty Pacific, in the black darkness, out of sight of everything, with only the sounds of the wind and the waves filling their ears.
"Do you think we will ever get out of this alive?" asked Grace of Dora.
"Let us pray that we may all be spared," answered Dora, and they did pray, more earnestly than they had ever before prayed in their whole lives. It was a moment that put their faith to a supreme test.
The boys did not dare to stop rowing, and they kept on until their backs ached and their arms seemed ready to drop from their sockets.
"We had better take turns," said Dick, at last. "We can't keep this up all night.." And his suggestion was followed out, two, rowing at a time, for a space of fifteen or twenty minutes.
They thought they might see something of the other boats, but nothing came to view, and when they set up a shout at the top of their lungs, no answer came back.
"They have either gone down or else got out of this neighborhood," said Tom.
"It was too bad to lose Captain Blossom," said Sam. "He was not such a bad sort, after all."
It was not long after this that a mass of wreckage drifted past them. There was a bit of broken spar and some other woodwork, but no human being, and they let the wreckage go.
By looking at his watch Dick saw that it was three o'clock in the morning.
"It will be light in another couple of hours," he said. "If we can keep on top of the waves until then perhaps we can sight the islands the captain mentioned."
"I wish it was daylight now," sighed Nellie.
Fortunately a bundle of clothing had been brought along, and as the water was warm, nobody suffered much from the wetting received. Care was taken to keep the provisions as dry as possible, for there was no telling how long it would be before they would be able to get more.
Slowly the night dragged by, and, with the coming of morning, the wind went down, the storm passing to the northward.
"It is growing lighter," announced Dora. "The sunlight is beginning to, show over the rim of the sea."
Half an hour later the sun came up, like a great ball of fire from a bath in the ocean, capping the high waves with gold. As the light spread around them, Dick stood up on a seat and gazed eagerly in all directions.
"What do you see?" demanded the others.
"Nothing," he answered, with a sinking heart; "nothing but water on all sides of us."
"The islands—they must be somewhere!" cried Tom, and he, too, took a look, followed by the others. The last to look was old Jerry.
"Can't see much," said the old sailor slowly. "But I kind of reckon there's a dark spot directly southward."
"It must be one of the islands the captain mentioned!" exclaimed Dora.
"We might as well row in that direction," said Dick. "There is nothing else to do."
"It's queer what became of the other boats," said Sam.
Some of the provisions were brought forth and they ate sparingly, and drank a little of the water. Then the boys and old Jerry took up the oars once more and began to pull as nearly southward as they could make it, steering by the sun.
When the sun grew higher it became very warm, so that the rowers were glad enough to lay aside their jackets. By noon they reckoned that they had covered six or eight miles. One after another stood up on the seats to take a look around.
"Nothing in sight yet," said Dick, with a sorry shake of his head.
"We must have been mistaken in that dark spot."
"What will you do now?" asked Grace. "The hot sun is beginning to make my head ache."
Sam's head also ached, but he said nothing. Nobody knew what to suggest.
"One thing is certain; we can't remain out on the bosom of the ocean," said Dick.
"Better continue to pull southward," came from old Jerry. "There are lots of islands down that way. The map is full of 'em."
"Yes, the map is full of them," answered Dick. "But a quarter of an inch on the map means a hundred miles or two in reality."
Yet it was decided to row on, trusting to luck to strike some island, either large or small. It was now fiercely hot, and all hands perspired freely.
By the end of the afternoon the boys were worn out, and had to give up rowing. The girls were dozing in the stern, having covered their heads with a thin shawl, stretched from one gunwale to another. Tom and Sam were dizzy from the glare of the sun on the water.
"Another day like this will set me crazy," said the youngest Rover.
"I'd give ten dollars for a pair of blue goggles."
Old Jerry had been looking intently to the westward. Now he pointed in that direction.
"See that trail of smoke," he said. "Unless I am mistaken a steamship is sailing toward us!"
"A steamship!" cried Tom, and the words awoke the girls. "We must hail the vessel by all means."
"If she comes close enough," said Captain Jerry pointedly. "Don't be too hopeful, my lads. She may pass us by."