“Well, never mind that now,” cried Murray angrily. “What about you two? Your orders were to stay by the boat where we landed.”
“Yes, sir,” said the first boat-keeper, “but they wouldn’t let us, sir.”
“They!” cried Murray. “Whom do you mean by they?”
“Oh, I dunno, sir, who they was, only that it was a big party o’ rough uns with guns and rifles as come up all to wunst as we sat hanging on by the grapnel and line, out in the middle o’ the river, and one on ’em hails us and tells us to pull ashore.”
“Well,” said Murray, “and did you?”
“You go on, messmate,” said the man. “You can spin the yarn better nor I can.”
“Yes, go on,” cried Murray; and the second boat-keeper took up the narrative.
“Well, sir, we just didn’t.”
“Just did not what?” asked Murray.
“Pull ashore, sir. They warn’t our people, and him as hailed us warn’t our officer. ’Sides, we didn’t like the looks of ’em.”