No Moss; Or, The Career of a Rolling Stone

by Harry Castlemon

To say that Tom Newcombe was delighted to find himself once more out of the cove and safely across the shoals, would but feebly express his feelings. He had never expected to see the bay again except as a prisoner. While he was in the cove and besieged by the students, he would willingly have disposed of his interest in the Crusoe band, and freely surrendered his share of the passage money, if he could have wiped out the record of that night. He had not seen a single hour's peace since he joined Sam Barton's society. He had constantly been in some trouble or other. It would have been well enough with him, he thought, if the governor had not turned up again—Tom had a great habit of laying the responsibility of his misdeeds upon other shoulders than his own—and he had more than once wished that the spar which had brought Sam into the harbor had drifted the other way, and carried him out to sea, and that he had been picked up by some vessel and taken to China or some other remote quarter of the globe. In short, when the captain of the Crusoe band found that his voyage was in danger of being brought to a speedy termination, he had been very hard on the governor, and had felt disposed to look on the dark side of things; but now that he was once more bounding over the waves of the bay before a fine breeze, and with not a tug or sailing vessel in sight, his spirits rose again. He was once more ready to believe that the expedition might prove successful. After bringing himself safely out of all the difficulties he had been in that night, it would be singular indeed if he could not find some way to overcome the obstacles yet before him. There was no immediate danger to be apprehended from the students. Harry Green had been outwitted, and with proper precautions their other pursuers might also be avoided. He sent Xury to relieve the governor at the wheel, and ordered him to hold the schooner directly across the bay toward the main land. His plan was to run as close to the shore as the depth of the water would permit. It was dark in the shadow of the bluffs, and if there were any tugs between him and the entrance to the bay, he hoped to run by them unnoticed.

Now that the danger attending the crossing of the shoals was passed, the Crusoe men could think about other matters. Tom and the governor, after exulting over their escape, pondered upon the failure of their plan for obtaining possession of the valise, and Atkins nursed his wrath against the officers of the band. The mutineer no longer desired the success of the expedition. All he cared for was to insure his own safety, and to be revenged upon the governor, Tom, and Xury.

"We'll never see Crusoe's island nohow," said he, to himself. "Tommy aint sailor enough to take us through a bay twenty-five miles long, with tugs runnin' up an' down it all the time lookin' fur us. We're bound to be ketched sooner or later. But just s'pose we do find our island! What fun will I see livin' there? It'll be Atkins, Atkins, all the whole time. Atkins will have to do every thing, and them lazy officers will sit around in the shade an' see me work. I aint a going to be a servant fur nobody, an' the best thing I can do is to leave the band. Jack Spaniard, come here."

The governor was well enough acquainted with Atkins to know that, after what had transpired at the bridge, it was best to keep a close watch over him. When he saw him standing sullen and alone on the forecastle, he knew that he was brooding over his wrongs, and, when Jack Spaniard joined him, Sam was sure there was mischief brewing. He saw them engage in a whispered consultation, and, when he could stand it no longer, he walked up to them, and laid a hand upon the shoulder of each.

"See here, my hearties," said he, "what's goin' on? It looks mighty suspicious to see your two heads so close together. Be you studyin' up another mutiny? If you are, you can bear two things in mind: One is, that you will come out at the little end of the horn, just as you did before. The other, that you won't get off so easy, by no means."

"We aint quite so foolish," replied Atkins. "What could me an' Jack do

ag'in you four fellers? We were talkin' about that money, an' we've thought up a way to get it. Mebbe it won't work, but there's no harm in tryin' it, you know."

The governor listened attentively while Atkins unfolded his plan, and said it contained some suggestions that were well worth listening to. The discontented member did not, however, tell all that he and his companion had been talking about. He kept back some things which, had he repeated them to the chief, would have brought him into trouble immediately.

Sam went aft to consult with Tom, and presently the schooner's bow veered around until it pointed toward one of the numerous islands that lay near the middle of the bay. In reply to a question from Sanders, Tom said:

"We're going to land. It isn't safe to continue our cruise at present, for it is nearly daylight. There is a creek on Deer Island, and we think it best to conceal ourselves there until night."