“How did you come to this island?� asked Carson at length.
Jack explained and added:
“You see, your rescuers are almost as badly off as you are. The rascal Terrill——â€�
“Hold on,� cried Carson, “that name again!�
“Terrill—Rufus Terrill of Terrill & Co.,â€� said Jack. “Do you know him?â€�
“Know him?� repeated Carson bitterly. “He was the cause of all my misfortunes. He made me what I am, an outlaw and a seal poacher. He is the biggest rascal unhung.�
“Tell us about it,� urged Jack.
Carson breathed hard as if laboring under some strong emotion.
“So Rufus Terrill is here, here on this island, is he?� he muttered. “Strange that fate should bring us face to face in this place. I was an honest man when I met Terrill. I had been a sea captain in the West India trade. I owned my own ship and had a happy home and a pretty young wife. Terrill wanted me to do some dishonest work for him by wrecking a ship that was heavily insured. I refused. Then came a time when misfortune overwhelmed me. I lost my ship in a tropical hurricane. I returned home to find my wife had died of a fever. I was desperate and Terrill found me an easy tool, for I was half out of my mind.
“Then came discovery of the insurance plot by the underwriters. Terrill got clever lawyers and they fixed the blame on me. In the meantime Terrill had given me money to keep out of the country. When I learned the trick he had played on me I didn’t care what became of me. I invested what money I had in a seal poaching venture with a bad character known as Olaf Larsen. Larsen was killed by a chance shot when a British cruiser chased us. I was captured but escaped, and then fitted out the Polly Ann. I have sailed her ever since, till—till for my sins she was lost. Oh! if only I could begin over again, but it is too late, too late.â€�