"We're going to sea."
"Are you? Have you got a vessel?"
"Sartinly, we have. How could we go to sea without a vessel?"
"That's lucky. Now I'll tell you what we'll do. We'll give you a thousand dollars, if you will take us with you."
The governor caught his breath as if some one had suddenly dashed a bucket of ice-water over him. A thousand dollars! Wasn't he in luck for once in his life? What a multitude of comforts and luxuries that would buy for the Crusoe band! They could stop at some town during their cruise, and purchase every thing they needed to complete their outfit. "But, perhaps, you don't want to go where we are going," said Sam.
"We don't care where you are bound. So long as you are going to sea, that's enough for us. We want to get as far away from this place as possible. What do you say? We're in a hurry."
"I say it is a bargain," replied the governor.
"All right. We'll go in now and get our money, and you can help yourselves to the provisions. Where are your partners? Let's have a look at them."
Sam, almost beside himself with joy at this unexpected freak of fortune, hurried off to find his companions. In a few excited words he explained to them what had happened, and so astonished and bewildered were the Crusoe men, that for a moment they had nothing to say. They had never heard of such a thing before, and some of them were afraid to trust the robbers.
"Mebbe they're just foolin' us," said Jack Spaniard; "an' when they get us into the store, they'll arrest the whole kit an' bilin' of us."