Various quiet warnings were conveyed to him to keep a wary eye upon Pepe, who would be certain to do him a shrewd turn at the earliest opportunity, but he only laughed cheerily and said—
“I’m not losing any sleep over this matter. If he kills me I am ready to die, and shall not be worse off, but better. If he attacks me openly, he will, I think, get some more sore bones. And that’s all I care about it.”
And then he would change the subject, for he was gradually becoming able to talk about the pure and noble life of his island home to the captain and officers and sometimes to the men, who listened fascinated: as they would, for although most of them had at one time or another heard the Gospel preached in some fashion, they had always looked upon the preacher as one who was paid to say certain things which he did not believe, but which were designed to keep the poor man quiet while the rich man preyed upon him.
Some of them had dim recollections of holy lives lived by their parents, of prayers repeated in lisping tones at a mother’s knee and recalled occasionally in moments of solitude, but none of them had ever met before a man in the spring of life, strong, eager, and able to do all that might become a man, who spoke of God and Christ and love that rules the whole creation as if they were matters of intimate knowledge and infinite importance to him. And while they wondered they admired, and speculated among themselves in blind fashion as to what this portent could mean.
Then suddenly an incident occurred that raised C. B. in the estimation of all hands more than anything else could have done. It was when the ship was on the southern edge of the off-shore ground and slowly working north. The weather was what we call dirty; low ragged clouds shedding rain at frequent intervals, with strong winds and irregular lumpy sea. C. B. and one of the Portuguese harponeers were working together, when C. B. accidentally dropped a serving mallet upon the other man’s bare foot. With a horrible exclamation in his own language Louis spat in C. B.’s face, and at the same time struck him a violent blow in the jaw. Not content with that the maddened man drew his knife and was in the act of driving it into C. B.’s chest when the latter seized the upraised wrist in his left hand, caught at the broad leather belt worn by the Portuguese with his right, and with a movement deft as that of an acrobat twirled him into the air and out over the side into the tormented sea. All hands who witnessed the slight scuffle stood aghast, helpless for the moment, as C. B., calmly springing on to the rail, gave a searching glance at the spot where the harponeer was struggling in the foam, and then shouting “Lower away a boat,” sprang after his late enemy.
A few vigorous fish-like strokes brought him to the side of the Portuguese, who was evidently in great pain and only feebly endeavouring to keep himself afloat, although these men are all splendid swimmers. Throwing himself upon his back, C. B. seized the man by the collar of his strong serge shirt and held him easily head to sea, rising and falling on the waves like a piece of drift-wood. There was no delay in picking the pair up; indeed, in ten minutes from the time that Louis went flying overboard they were on board again, and C. B. sprang lightly on deck and assisted his aggressor down.
“What does this mean, Christmas?” sternly demanded the captain, who had seen the whole affair. In brief, unimpassioned words C. B. told what had happened, and then turning to Louis the skipper demanded his version. Foolishly but naturally the Portuguese lied, making C. B. out the aggressor, at which the skipper smiled sardonically, saying—
“Ah, I thought so. You Portagees are as bad as they make ’em. But what’s wrong with yer hand?” seeing that he held it tenderly and was evidently in pain.
“I doan know, sir, feels all broke.” An examination proved that the wrist was dislocated, and the skipper’s rough-and-ready surgery was immediately put in force, after which the groaning and completely discomfited man retired below, too miserable to curse his bad luck as he called it.