"No matter what Captain Stopfoot says!" Christy interposed. "Tell me where the steamer is, if there is any steamer in the bay. We will stop the foot and the mouth of Captain Stopfoot when we come to him."
"Well, sar, if you don't want to har dis nigger's yarn, he'll shet up all to onct," replied Quimp, standing on his dignity.
"Go on, then; but make it short," added Christy, finding it would take less time to get what he wanted out of the negro by letting him have his own way. "Wind fresh from the north-west for three days."
"Yes, sar; and dat pile up de water so de tide rise six or eight inches higher," continued Quimp, picking up the clew given him. "High tide in one hour from now, and de Reindeer was gwine out den for shore. Dat's de whole story, massa, and not bery long."
"All right, Quimp. Now where is the Reindeer?"
"Ober de oder side ob long key, massa. Dar's more'n four fadoms ob water under dis boat now, and twelve feet 'tween de two keys," added the boatman, whose tongue was fully unlocked by this time.
The crew of the cutter were directed to give way, and the negro pointed out the channel which led inside the keys.
[CHAPTER XXVIII]
THE SURRENDER OF THE REINDEER
Christy looked over the side of the boat, and saw that the water was quite clear. The channel, which lay in the middle of the bay, had four and a quarter fathoms of water at mean low tide, according to the chart the officer had with him. He had brought several copies of the large chart with him from New York, and he had cut them up into convenient squares, so that they could be easily handled when he was on boat service. But his authority gave no depth of water on the shoal sands.