“No, my money was more or less honestly accumulated by my ancestors, but I think their method was highway robbery rather than piracy. The looting of land that didn’t belong to them seemed to occupy their spare time, and so, what with the rise of manufacturing cities in the midlands, on portions of our property, the discovery of coal mines, and what not, my family prospered better than it deserved, and here am I the twentieth-century representative of it.”
“If that is so, why the deuce are you meddling in this affair?”
“Because I like to see a man minding his own business. The ship which you so worthily sail is mine. I bought her a few days after you left Southampton. Here is the deed of transfer, and here is the letter I spoke of, written to you by Messrs. Sparling & Bilge, informing you that I am the new owner, that I shall be responsible for your pay hereafter, and as a consequence they will be much obliged, as, indeed, so shall I, if you do what I tell you.”
The captain read the documents with slow care, then looked up.
“It’s Sparling & Bilge’s signature all right, and nobody knows it better than I do, but what about the cargo? Do you intend to unship at Lisbon?”
“No, I intend to run it to Plymouth.”
“But even if the ship’s yours, the cargo isn’t.”
“Surely you knew they were stealing the ore, captain?”
“They told me they had a right to it for three months. Mr. Schwartzbrod showed me papers to that effect. That’s why they were in such a hurry. Wanted to get as much out in the time as they could, and offered me a bonus of five thousand pounds over and above my wages if I ran three voyages to Lisbon, and two thousand for each extra voyage within the time.”
“Then, captain, why didn’t they concentrate their energies on the mining of the ore, and not bother with the mining of the river?”