“You’ll think so when you look aloft. We’re dressed out in fine-weather style, with every rag tuggin’ at the spars fit to jump ’em clean out of the old hooker, even if they was the best timber ever cut. If the America holds all her sticks till mornin’, I’ll be willin’ to say that I didn’t hear any ghost’s voice last night, nor see a bit of white in the fore-hatchway.”
“Is it a ship we’re chasing?” I asked, with a view of preventing Stubbs from dwelling on that very disagreeable happening.
“Ay, lad, an’ a clipper. I counted that the America could outsail anything that ever floated; but she’s come mighty nigh to meetin’ her match this time. I’ll venture to say there isn’t the difference of half a cable’s-length betwixt us and her, from what there was when she first hove in sight. She brought down a fog bank with her, an’ was showin’ topgallantsails when we sighted. It ain’t any two to one but that she carries as much metal as we, an’ even if we overhaul her, there won’t be any child’s play to follow.”
“If the Britisher is well armed, why should she run away?” Simon asked, now grown so interested in the chase that the fears which had assailed him were almost forgotten.
“Most likely she can’t make up her mind how heavy we are, or she may have no stomach for a fight jest now; but it’s certain that we won’t put a prize-crew on board, if it so be we overhaul her, which I misdoubt, without payin’ a good price for the privilege.”
It can well be imagined that the prisoners were listening eagerly to all Stubbs was saying.
We three had remained near the foot of the ladder, within four or five yards of the door of the brig, and the sailor spoke in a tone so loud that they could not fail to catch every word.
As I came suddenly to realise this once more, my thoughts went back to the fact that one of the men had succeeded in getting out of the prison, and straightway the desire to give such information to the captain or Mr. Fernald grew strong within me.
For an instant I made up my mind to explain the situation to Stubbs, but checked myself as I came to understand that it was my duty to first make the captain acquainted with what we had learned.
“Is there any good reason why you can’t hold on here for a spell?” I asked, abruptly, interrupting the sailor as he was about to tell us more regarding the chase.