“Yes, we’ve done it this time, Master Nic; and we only want a veal-pie, a cold zalmon, a couple o’ loaves, and a stone bottle o’ zyder, to be ’bout as happy as any one could be.”
“But do you think we can reach the mouth of the river without being stopped?”
“Don’t zee who’s to stop uz, zir,” said Pete coolly. “What we’ve got to do is to row a steady stroke till we come to a place where we can get zome’at to eat; and then we’ll row right out to zea, and get ourselves picked up by the first ship we can board. But we zeem to want that there veal-pie, cold zalmon, two loaves, and the stone bottle.”
“Yes, we want provisions, Pete. Are you keeping a good, sharp lookout?”
“I just am, Master Nic. I’m afraid it’s taking zome of the bark off when I look among the trees. But we needn’t; nobody can’t overtake uz unless we tie the boat up to a tree on the bank and lie down to go to zleep.”
“And that we shall not even think of doing, Pete.”
“That’s zo, Master Nic. But by-and-by, when the zun gets hot and you’re a bit tired, we’ll get ashore zomewhere to break off a few good leafy boughs and make a bit of a shelter in the stern of the boat, zo as you can lie down and have a zleep.”
“Or you, Pete.”
“When it’s my turn, Master Nic. We’ll take watch and watch, as the zailors call it, zo as to keep the boat going till we get aboard a ship. I zay, how far do you make it to the landing-place where we come aboard the boat?”
“I can’t say, Pete,” replied Nic. “I was in such a confused state that I have lost all count.”