CHAPTER THIRTEENTH
THE DIVERS AT WORK
It was arranged that Jacob Rank should have charge of the divers and superintend their work, as he knew more about it than any of the others. Accordingly the men were mustered on the "Heron" and he inspected them. When he came to Kylis and Miah, the two blacks from Shark's Bay, he looked keenly at them, but they bore the scrutiny well, although they knew Jacob, and had seen him at the Bay.
"What do you think of them?" asked Jack. "Will they do?"
"We shall have to make the best of them," said Jacob. "I prefer Malays, but I have no doubt we can get along with these fellows. Where did you pick the two big men up, they seem in a different class to the others?"
"When we put into Shark's Bay, there seemed some likelihood of trouble arising with the fishermen there, and Phil Danks tried to square matters with Amos Hooker."
"Amos Hooker!" exclaimed Rank, "he is a bad lot."
"That is probable, anyway he pacified the men and we tried the bay, but Phil said it was no good our stopping there, as it was about worked out."
"So it is, he's quite right."
"We asked Hooker if he could get us any good divers, and he said it was possible, and he would do his best. As we decided to leave earlier than was expected, he said he could only provide us with two, and they are the men you alluded to," said Jack.