“What’s the matter?” asked captain Rich, appearing at the head of the companion way with his boots in his hand. “Any thing wrong?”
Harry Green, who acted as spokesman for the malcontents, stated the cause of the trouble, and ended by informing Rich that it was the opinion of the majority of the boys in the port watch that the safety of the sloop, and all on board, demanded that there should be a change of commanders. The boys in the starboard watch were greatly excited and alarmed by the intelligence that they had already passed Nantucket, and were steering toward the West Indies; and some of them declared that Rich ought to have known better than to accept so responsible a situation, when he knew that he was not able to fill it. This was instantly resisted by Rich’s friends, who affirmed, that if their favorite could not be trusted, there was not a boy on board who could be depended upon.
“It’s easy enough to find fault, fellows,” said Rich; “but if you know so much more than I do, why don’t you take this business off my hands?”
“That’s just what we are going to do,” replied Harry, bluntly. “We intend to appoint another captain. Boys, I propose that Johnny Harding be—”
“Hold on,” interrupted Johnny. “I move that Rich be allowed to retain his office, on condition that he puts the Swallow about, and takes us back to Nantucket.”
“We’re going there now,” said the captain, decidedly. “And I won’t put the sloop about. As long as I am master of the Swallow, I shall do as I please; and, whenever you get tired of me, you can appoint another captain very easily. But I tell you beforehand, that you won’t make any thing by it. You ought to try and keep on good terms with every one on board.”
While this conversation was going on, Miller and two or three of his friends had been busy with the crew, urging them to make Tom captain; and, when Rich ceased speaking, one of them proposed the name of the first mate, which was received with such long cries of—“Hurrah for Newcombe! he’s the man!” that it made Johnny’s friends look rather blank. But when Harry Green requested all the boys who voted for Tom to walk over to the port side of the sloop, it was found that there were but six of them.
“Now,” exclaimed Harry, “all who are in favor of Johnny Harding being captain of this vessel, step over to the starboard side.”
Nine boys obeyed the order, and Tom was beaten.