“You are right; it is the sail of a vessel—of one of those peroquas which skim over these seas; how she rises on the swell! She is full of men apparently.”
The peroqua rapidly approached, and was soon close to the beach; the sail was lowered, and she was backed in through the surf.
“Resistance is useless should they prove enemies,” observed Philip. “We shall soon know our fate.”
The people in the peroqua took no notice of them until the craft had been hauled up and secured; three of them then advanced towards Philip and Krantz, with spears in their hands, but evidently with no hostile intentions. One addressed them in Portuguese asking them who they were.
“We are Hollanders,” replied Philip.
“A part of the crew of the vessel which was wrecked?” inquired he.
“Yes!”
“You have nothing to fear—you are enemies to the Portuguese, and so are we. We belong to the island of Ternate—our king is at war with the Portuguese, who are villains. Where are your companions? on which island?”
“They are all dead,” replied Philip. “May I ask you whether you have fallen in with a woman, who was adrift on a part of the raft by herself: or have you heard of her?”
“We have heard that a woman was picked up on the beach to the southward, and carried away by the Tidore people to the Portuguese settlement, on the supposition that she was a Portuguese.”