"Do you see that winder up there?" asked Xury. "Well, give me one man an' we will go in there, an' come down the stairs. If Harding pitches into us, you can open the door an' come in; an' if he stands by to defend the door, me an' my man will soon fix him."
"That's a good idea," said the chief. "Friday, you go with Xury. Jack Spaniard, run down to the skiff an' bring up the oars. Harding has got an iron poker, you know, an' you will need something to make you even with him. But mebbe the winder is fastened, Xury."
"I know it is, 'cause I've looked at it a hundred times before to-night. It is fastened with a stick; but the glass is broke, an' I can soon throw the stick down."
The two Crusoe men mounted the ladder, and by the time the window was raised Jack Spaniard returned with the oars, which Sam passed up to the mate, saying:
"Don't be no ways backward about usin' 'em if you get a chance. Punch him hard, fur he is a spunky feller."
Xury and his companion disappeared, and the governor waited impatiently for them to begin the attack. All these movements had been accomplished so quietly that Johnny, wholly intent upon watching the door, had no suspicions of what was going on until he heard the Crusoe men coming down the stairs behind him. Before he could think of flight they rushed upon him, and, although he resisted manfully, he was speedily brought to terms by a savage thrust in the ribs from Friday's oar, which made him double up like a jackknife; and, at the same moment, the governor and the rest of his men entered through the side door. In less time than it takes to tell it, Tom and Johnny changed places, and the former, boiling over with rage, would have been mean enough to revenge himself upon the helpless clerk if he had not been restrained by the chief.
"Hold on, cap'n," cried Sam, catching Tom's hand as it was about to descend, with savage force, upon the prisoner's face; "it aint fair to strike a man when he's down, an' we haint got no time to waste in nonsense, neither. Now, Harding, I reckon you'll stay there fur awhile. Come on, fellers."
The Crusoe men hurried back to their skiff, and in a few minutes more were pulling up the harbor as if nothing had happened. Friday sat in the bow with his boat-hook; Will Atkins and Jack Spaniard handled the oars; Sam managed the helm; and Tom thought over the events of the night, and enjoyed his anticipated triumph over the students. None of the band had any thing to say about his adventure with Johnny Harding; in fact, they soon forgot it, and thought only of the dangers attending the work they had yet to perform. The governor glanced at Tom's face a good many times while they were moving up the harbor, and was surprised that he did not discover some signs of fear. But that sentiment had no place in Tom's mind just then. He grew bolder and more reckless the nearer they approached to the Storm King. He did not even tremble; his nerves were as firm as a rock, and his determination to attempt the destruction of the yacht was stronger than it had ever been before.
"Didn't I tell Harry Green, when he had me locked up in that state-room, that if he did not release me at once I would square yards with him some day?" said Tom to himself. "I suppose he thinks I have forgotten all about it, but I'll show him that I never forget. The sight of that yacht in flames will amply repay me for all the misery she has caused me."
In ten minutes after leaving the pier the Crusoe men had arrived within sight of the Storm King. The governor raised his hand, and Atkins and Jack Spaniard became more cautious in their movements. They handled the oars so carefully, and sent the skiff along so quietly, that not a ripple was heard in the water. Nearer and nearer the pirate crew approached the devoted vessel, holding themselves in readiness to seek safety in instant flight, should occasion require it, and presently Friday fastened into the fore-chains with his boat-hook, and Tom drew himself up and looked over the rail. He heard a few words of the story