“I think you will, my beauty,” added the boatswain, as he collared the rebel, and dragged him to his room.
Without any ceremony, he shoved him into the apartment, and locked the door upon him. Clinch had not the pluck to make a forcible resistance; and he went to his room without the assistance of Shakings.
“I don’t see that I can do any thing else with Gregory and Clinch,” said O’Hara, when the boatswain had secured his prisoners.
“I think you are using them very gently,” replied Shakings. “Mr. Fluxion will keep them in the brig a month for this, and send them out of the cabin with the lowest numbers in the ship.”
“I only wish to keep them from leading any of the other officers or seamen away from their duty,” added O’Hara.
“There is not the least danger of that: every man from the Josephine will stand by you to the end.”
As intimated in the newspaper the vice-principal had read at Funchal, Mr. Frisbone was negotiating with the owners of the Castle William for the settlement of the salvage; but little progress was made till the discharge of the Prince from the quarantine, which was done at the end of a week. The vessel and cargo were acknowledged to be worth ten thousand pounds; and the Prince accepted one-half of this sum. The owners of the Ville d’Angers were more exacting, and declined to settle the claim. Proceedings had been instituted as soon as the vessel arrived; and, a few days later, the court decreed that one-half of her value should be paid by the owners to the salvors. The vessel was to be sold at public vendue to determine her value; and the shrewd agent of the owners was satisfied that a French craft, sold in an English port, would bring but a mere song.
The Prince was discharged from quarantine in season to attend the auction. The agent expected no competition in the bidding. His first bid was four thousand pounds; then the Prince added another thousand, and continued to increase upon the agent till the sum of thirteen thousand pounds was reached; and then the first bidder had a cold sweat, for his instructions allowed him to bid no more. The steamer was struck off to the Prince for “a thousand better.”
The agent was confounded, and the Prince was in excellent humor. He had to pay only a half of the purchase-money, for the other half belonged to the salvors. But the agent had new instructions when it was too late; and he offered the Prince another thousand, and then two and three, for his bargain, but the buyer declined to sell.
“What do you want of that steamer?” asked Mrs. Frisbone, when he told her what he had done.