“His Majesty’s service!” answered Heideck, and, as the boat lay to, he threw off his cloak, so as to spring on deck more easily. Three men, in the dark, woollen smock and tarpaulined hat of coast fishermen, approached him and, in answer to his inquiry for the master, told him, in an unintelligible mixture of Dutch and German, that he had gone ashore.
“His name?”
“Maaning Brandelaar.”
“What is the name of this vessel?”
“Bressay.”
The answers were given with hesitation and sullenly, and the three men showed such evident signs of irritation that Heideck felt they would have gladly thrown him overboard had it not been for the respect inspired by his uniform.
“Where from?” he asked.
“From Lerwick.”
“Where to?”
“We are going to sell our herrings. We are respectable people, Herr major.”