"Good. But we shall have to bide our time. A false step and it would be the end of all of us. This Commander Bernstorff, I should say, is a bad man to fool with. But once we can get him in our power and silence the others, we can make something of ourselves."
"Yah!" muttered one of the sailors. "What is this war to us anyhow? You are English and we are German; but what of it? Why should we take orders from such men as Herr Commander Bernstorff and others of his kind?"
"Why, indeed?" echoed another.
"You are right," said Davis. "Now, when we take possession of this vessel we will be our own masters. No one to tell us what to do. We won't have to risk our lives for some one else's gain. And what booty we can get shall be evenly divided among us. There is rich prey upon the sea."
"But first," said one of the sailors, "to come into possession of this vessel, we shall have to dispose of Commander Bernstorff, his lieutenants, and others of the crew."
"How," exclaimed one of the others suddenly, "how if some of the others would join us? I have no doubt they would if approached in the right way."
"We don't want too many," protested the third. "The fewer of us, the fewer to share in the spoils."
"True enough," said Davis, "but we must have men enough for a crew. I, of course, shall command. You three will be my officers. We must have a crew."
"How about the English sailors?" asked one of the Germans. "They must be dissatisfied. Here they are prisoners and will be kept under guard until the end of the war. Certainly they should be willing to join us. It will mean freedom and a share in the rich spoils."
"With which to retire when the war is over," put in another. "Why, we can go to America and live at ease for years to come."