"A bomb?" he questioned himself. "How am I going to find out? Perhaps it's some infernal machine loaded with phosphorus. Then those villains intended to burn the Swallow. Certainly this means some black mischief."
Dave roamed about till he found a stout long reed. Then he began to poke at the object he had brought from the ship. He finally managed to remove its oilskin covering.
"It's a jar, a stone jar," he said, "queer and foreign-looking, like we get snuff or preserved ginger in. Labeled, too, and seals across the top. It don't look very dangerous, for all the sinister way it came aboard."
Dave did not belie his name. He dallied with the situation no longer and now took up the jar fearlessly.
Its label resembled the covering used on a package of firecrackers. The seal was of tin-foil stamped with similar characters in red.
"Chinese, that's sure," thought Dave. "Shall I risk it?" he questioned himself, his fingers surrounding the jar cover.
Dave snapped the seal and removed the cover. A layer of tissue paper showed. He pulled this out. A dense stench was emitted by the jar. He poked his finger down into the contents. They were solid and sticky.
"Why," said Dave, a good deal puzzled, sniffing vigorously, "it's opium."
CHAPTER VIII
OUTWITTING AN ENEMY