“I’ll tell you when we’ve examined your craft,” answered Green.
“You’d better not go into the forecastle, where we have five of our men suffering from the smallpox,” said the skipper.
“And how many have you in the hold?” asked Green, who knew Spanish sufficiently to carry on a conversation.
“We have no one there, but you had better not go into it, for some have died there of smallpox, and you may carry the disease on board your own ship,” answered the skipper.
“We will run the risk,” said Green; “take off the hatches, and I’ll go below.”
As no one seemed inclined to obey him, he ordered his own men to lift off the hatches. He and Tom, with two of the men, went below, while Archie, with the rest, remained on deck, keeping an eye upon the Peruvian crew, who, as Tim Nolan observed, “looked as if they were after mischief.” The hold was empty, but it was evidently fitted for passengers, or rather for slaves.
“What are all those dark marks?” asked Tom.
“Bloodstains,” answered Green, examining them; “and see, here are bullets sticking in the deck and timbers. The wood has been splintered in all directions; depend on it there has been some desperate work going on. I believe that the account of the smallpox was false, and was merely given to try and prevent us from examining the craft.”
“You found no one, as I told you,” said the skipper, when Green returned on deck.
“No, but we have found enough to convince us that you have murdered the unhappy wretches you induced to come on board,” answered Green.