The officer looked at him for a moment as one boy looks at another, who, after bragging a lot, runs away as soon as he’s faced. Then he went a step forward and said, “Now then, men, the cap’n is going ashore to see if he can find some way out of this tangle without gaoling you. He says you’re a good lot of men, and he don’t want to punish you for a mistake. But you must keep quiet, and go about your work until he comes back, anyhow.”
There was a ripple of laughter from the men, and then their spokesman replied, “That’s all right about turning to and keeping quiet, but what about our liberty and money? Are we going to get it or not?”
Turning to the captain, the officer said, “Shall I tell ’em you’ll be back this afternoon with a definite yes or no? It’s no use bluffing any longer, you can’t keep it up, you know. And I don’t propose to stand here shilly-shallying any longer.”
“All right,” said the skipper, “tell them that if they’ll turn to and keep quiet, I’ll be back this afternoon and let ’em know definitely.”
Upon the officer conveying this to the men, they sulkily muttered “All right,” and retreated to their den to get off their shore rigs, while the skipper went below to get ready for the shore.
Then the officer, approaching the mate, began cheerfully, “Well, Mr. Mate, there doesn’t seem much danger after all, does there?”
The mate was almost too disgusted to reply, but managed to say, “No, officer, and there never has been except for folly. But I can’t talk about it, if you’ll excuse me. I hope, however, that you don’t think that either Mr. Cope here or myself has had anything to do with this miserable business. We can handle this crowd all right, but—” and he stopped dead.
“Yes, I guess that’s so, and there’s no explanation necessary. Where are you bound from here; ’Frisco, I s’pose?”
“I really don’t know for certain,” replied the mate, “but I should think so.”
“Ah well,” drawled the officer, “you’ll have no more trouble with the crowd if you’re going there. You can’t keep ’em whether you want or not. It’s a bad place, is the city of San Francisco, for the guileless sailorman. He doesn’t get any show at all. Well, so-long; here’s the old man comin’.”