“Lieutenant’s compliments, sir, and he says the dispatch boat is coming on, and will you please come on deck as soon as you can,” a man’s voice replied.
“Ay, ay, our compliments to the lieutenant, and tell him we’ll be with him in two shakes of a lamb’s tail,” and with these words Amos was on his feet.
CHAPTER XIII.
HEADED FOR THE GALLIPOLI SHORE.
Amos was now glad that Jack had been so positive about making all their arrangements beforehand. The dispatch boat would be in somewhat of a hurry, as the commander doubtless had a regular schedule to be carried out; and any unexpected delay was apt to disarrange this.
“I’m ready!” sang out Amos, almost before the marine who had aroused them according to orders from the lieutenant, whose duty kept him on deck at this hour, could have made his report.
“Same here,” came a voice from the darkness, “and the sooner we make out to reach the deck the better. They may object to losing even a minute of their precious time for a couple of Yankee boys.”
They knew their way perfectly, whether it were broad daylight or in the inky darkness of night. Jack had looked out for that. It was a habit born of his woodcraft education that when in strange quarters the first thing to be done must be to impress every little thing on his mind—and a very good idea for any boy to take as his motto.
So they came on deck without colliding with anything. The first thing Jack did—and this also sprang from his two years’ experience out on the plains—was to cast an eye aloft.
The stars shone brightly, even though the world below lay shrouded in darkness. Those stars meant much more to Jack Maxfield than they might to the ordinary careless, happy-go-lucky lad. He was so well acquainted with the positions of the various planets that stood for the signs of the zodiac that all he needed at any time was one good look around, and he could tell pretty closely what the hour was.