“What is your cargo?”
“Mixed,” replied Uncle Naboth, non-commitally.
The Major reflected a moment.
“We shall soon find out all we wish to know,” he said. “We have both your boats, and we can examine the ship for ourselves.”
“I s’pose you know this is a hangin’ matter?” suggested my uncle.
“It may be,” was the calm reply. “At any rate, it is illegal, and I regret that circumstances force us to act illegally with you. As a matter of fact, I wish that I might have treated you with more courtesy. But you had no business to come to this island, and having come here, and surprised our great secret by penetrating into the center of the land, you must take the consequences of your folly. We did not want you here, and we kept out of your way as long as you would let us. When you invaded our private domain we were forced to protect ourselves.”
“I don’t understand,” said my uncle, much puzzled by this speech. “We’re no robbers, ner pirates. We’re peaceful citizens of the United States.”
“So are we,” retorted the Major. “But we’re also the creatures of fate, and our condition here forces us to wage warfare upon any who intrude into our privacy.”
“We put in here for repairs, an’ it was natural we should want to explore the island,” returned my uncle, doggedly.
The Major appeared lost in thought. For several minutes he sat staring at the ground with a great frown wrinkling his brow. For our part, we watched him curiously, wondering the while what would be the outcome of the queer condition in which we found ourselves. Finally the man spoke: