“Provisions! These rascally Spaniards have treated us well. Here’s a flask of Spanish wine that I love as well as I hate the men who made it, and plenty of rye [[191]]bread and salted herring, with oil to grease them. They’ll slide down beautifully. This is a lucky jump off.”
“Yes, and here’s a better,” cries Guy.
“What could be better than grub?” asks the Hollander.
“Arms!”
In the locker in the other side of the boat Chester has found four Spanish arquebuses with ammunition, a sword and a battle axe. So the two go to congratulating each other, for now they feel equipped for their adventure.
A quarter of an hour afterwards they near the place where the Diemer Lake joins the pretty little river Amstel, which comes flowing from the south. A guard-house stands at the point of junction, the flag of Spain floating over it. A couple of Spanish soldiers are lounging in front of it; but the day is balmy and sleepy, the boat under its sail makes no noise, and before Alva’s veterans exactly wake up the little shallop ranges within fifty feet of them.
“Now,” whispers Guy, “in memory of Oliver!”
With this come two reports, and the soldiers lie doubled up with arquebus balls between their ribs, as the little skiff enters the Amstel river. But there are five comrades of the two Spanish gentlemen who lie moaning out their lives in front of the guard-house. These hastily run to a boat, and with wild cries of rage and revenge are soon in pursuit of the murderers of their comrades.
“That was a good stroke,” mutters the Hollander. “I had expected to meet three or four guard boats here, but all the surrounding patrols have been weakened for the attack on the Diemerdyk. Push on, they are coming after us.” The two take to their oars, but it is hard work rowing against the current, and four men are pulling the Spanish boat, which commences to overhaul them.
“Row on, Haring, while I load the arquebuses. I’m a little quicker at it than you,” says Chester. A moment after he adds: “Let them come now, we’ve got four loaded guns, two for each of us.”