"Now don't get grumpy over the little trick we played," the man said, in a wheedling tone.
"Do you call it nothin' but a trick to steal a vessel an' leave five of us on a disabled tug, after we'd done what we could to keep you from starvin'?" Bob shouted fiercely.
"We knew there was plenty of grub aboard; you couldn't 'a' handled both crafts, so what we did was only dividin' things up. The Bonita is stranded now, an' will go to pieces in the first gale if you can't fix the tug to tow her off. We'll——"
"The steamer couldn't be repaired in a month; but if she was in workin' order we wouldn't raise a hand toward savin' the brig while you were on board!"
As Bob ceased speaking Joe came on deck with four lengths of iron pipe, each about three feet long, and the old sailor seized one of these with a look of exultation as he said to his companions:
"I reckon they won't get over the rail while we can swing sich a handy club as this!"
"They may have fire-arms," Joe suggested.
"That ain't very likely, or they'd 'a' set us ashore ten minutes after we took 'em off the key."
During this short conversation the two men were whispering together, and as the old sailor ceased speaking, he with the red nose cried, in a threatening tone:
"You sea-lawyers want to be mighty careful with your tongues, or there'll be trouble. I've come here to make a fair trade, an' you'd better listen to it. We'll help repair the tug, an' give up an equal share of the brig if you'll turn to with us an' get her off the shoal."