"THE SLOOP WAS ON HER WAY"
The sloop was on her way, by that time, out to the channel and down to the bay. She was rather fast, for such a small vessel, for the pilot who had the fastest boat had the best chance; and she had a good deal of sail for a boat of her size. But she couldn't sail as fast as the Industry. She met the Industry about five miles out in the bay, and John Wilson saw that Captain Sol had put a flag in the rigging, to show that he wanted a pilot.
Captain Sol had the sails fixed so that the Industry wouldn't go ahead very fast, and the sloop came alongside and John Wilson scrambled aboard. The sloop wasn't tied to the ship at all, and she didn't stay alongside as long as a minute; then she was sailing off again, towards Boston. For Joe had to take John Wilson home again after he had got a vessel piloted safely in to the wharf that she was going to.
Captain Sol met John Wilson when he came on board and shook hands with him.
"Hello, John," he said. "I hoped we should get you."
"Hello, Sol," said John Wilson. "You haven't been reported at Manila, yet, and you have no business to be here."
"So?" asked Captain Sol. "Three ships sailed from Manila for Boston ahead of me. They'll be along in the course of time." He smiled to himself at the thought of his having passed those ships. But Captain Sol didn't generally say much, and John Wilson didn't ask him anything more about those ships. But he made up his mind that he would keep a sharp lookout for them. "Get us in as soon as you can, John," continued Captain Sol. "I have some business that I want to get done before dark."
"All right," said John Wilson; and he began to give his orders.
The sails were fixed so that the ship would go ahead again as fast as she was going before. They passed the pilot boat, with Joe sailing it all alone, and then John Wilson told the sailors to begin to take in sail. They had so much sail spread that it would take the sailors all the time, until they got to the wharf, to take it in, for they had reached the beginning of the channel between the islands.