“Wake him up,” said one of the party.
The captain’s mate did arouse Ike, who rose and rubbed his eyes so naturally that every one decided at once that no matter whether it were trick or reality the lad knew nothing about it; and yet it was the most remarkable occurrence that any of them had ever encountered in all their lives.
The captain said:
“It’s that boy.” He made the declaration despite the fact that Ike had been aroused, and awoke so naturally, and the captain repeated:
“It’s that boy or the devil, or it’s the devil or that boy.”
“What do you mean?”
The captain was glaring wildly as he said:
“That boy is the devil. We had no right to take him on board. Throw him over. He won’t drown.”
There came a voice saying:
“Throw him over and you will have the hurricane of your life, and none of you will ever reach shore.”