“If you’re afraid, take in the oars and lie down between the chests; you’ll run very little risk of being hit there; but for my part, I’ll stand at the helm till the boat gets up with us,” said Bill.
Jack would not do this, but pulled away as stoutly as at first.
Presently another shot struck one of the oars, and so splintered it that the next pull Jack gave it broke short off. He was now compelled to take in the other.
“The next time the Frenchmen fire they may aim better,” he said. “Come, Bill, I’m ready to stand by you, but there’s no use being killed if we can help it.”
“The boat isn’t up with us yet,” answered Bill. “Till she gets alongside I’ll hold on, and maybe at the very last the Frenchmen will give up.”
“I don’t see any hope of that,” said Jack. “In ten minutes we shall be prisoners. By-the-bye, I turned all my gold into this chest. If the Frenchmen find it they’ll keep it, so I’ll fill my pockets again, and they may not think of looking into them, but they’re sure to rummage the chest.”
Saying this, Jack opened the chest, and soon found his treasure, which he restored to his pockets. He asked Bill to take some, but Bill declined on the same ground that he had before refused to appropriate it.
Bill again advised Jack to lie down, and, to induce him to do so, he himself knelt on the raft, as he could in that position steer as well as when standing up.
Thus they presented the smallest possible mark to the Frenchmen.
Shot after shot was fired at them. Their chances of escape were indeed rapidly diminishing.