“We may hide them away, certainly,” answered my uncle; “but the pirates are pretty sure to ferret them out, thinking that some treasure is within; and though they may not carry them away, they will break open the cases, and then the contents will very soon be destroyed.”
“Still we must give them a chance of safety,” said Mr Hooker; “and after we have made the arrangements for our flight, we must see what can be done with them.”
The poor Frau was in a state of great agitation and alarm, but Emily and Grace were very far from frightened.
“We will help you to fight the pirates, if they come,” said Emily; “and with so many brave men, I am sure we shall beat them off.”
“And you must teach me to load a musket,” said Grace. “I think I know how to do it, but I am not quite certain. I hope, however, they will run away before we have to fire at them. I don’t like the thought of your having to kill people. It is very dreadful!”
Before we sat down to supper all arrangements were made. The girls were excessively busy. Each had made up a large package of various articles which they thought it would be necessary to carry—provisions and other things. It was arranged that two men should go down to the beach at a time to watch. Tanda and Dick Tarbox agreed to go first, and Potto Jumbo and Roger Trew were to take the second part of the night.
“I think, however, you need not trouble yourselves, my friends,” said Mr Sedgwick, “for they will scarcely attempt to approach this coast in the dark. There are but few places that I have visited in the neighbourhood where boats could come ashore without risk, and they would scarcely find them out, unless with daylight.”
This remark somewhat comforted the Frau, and we had supper before Tanda and Tarbox started. Mr Hooker and the mate had much recovered. The former was in much better spirits than he had been since he landed. Altogether we had a very pleasant meal, and no one would have supposed, seeing us seated round the table, that a piratical fleet was in the neighbourhood, likely to attack us.
After Tarbox and Tanda had set off, however, the spirits of the party began to flag. No one cared to go to bed, as we did not know at what moment we might be roused up. As the night drew on we became more and more anxious. It was indeed a trying time, for even should they not land at night, it was too probable that they would be down upon us before daybreak. Still we could not help anxiously waiting for that time. The hours appeared very long. Now and then I fell off to sleep, and was awoke either by the noises of the animals in my uncle’s menagerie, or by some strange sounds from the neighbouring forests—the voices of night-birds or beasts of prey. At last the two men who had taken the first watch came back, reporting that they had seen nothing; then Potto Jumbo, who had been lying down snoring loudly, started up, and with Roger Trew went down to the shore. The second part of the night appeared even longer than the first. Still I knew that it would have an end. At length the streaks of early dawn appeared in the eastern sky. The usual sounds of returning day came up from the forest. The birds began to sing their cheerful notes, and ere long the sunbeams lighted up the topmost branches of the lofty trees above our abode. Just then the black and Roger Trew returned. “Hurrah, hurrah!” sung out the black, “dey all sail away, and no come here!” Roger corroborated his companion’s statement; and Oliver and I, running down to the shore, caught a glimpse of the pirates’ sails, if pirates they were, just sinking below the horizon. It was some time, however, before Frau Ursula’s mind could be tranquillised. She insisted that if they were in the neighbourhood they would very likely return.
“Why do you think they will come here, good Frau?” said Mr Hooker. “They are not likely to be aware that anybody is on this island, and their object is to attack well-laden traders or towns, where booty can be obtained. Even if they knew of our existence, we have little here to tempt them.”