Phil arose, throwing a swift glance at the lights of the gunboats, growing ever brighter as the launch sped swiftly onward. Then he returned to his seat on the deck house and told the pilot of the discovery.
“Why did you never tell me of this meeting with Ignacio in the bank?” Langdon asked, in a hurt voice. “I might have put two and two together and saved us a great deal of trouble.”
“Oh! pipe down, Joe Langdon!” Phil exclaimed, in good humor. “You wouldn’t have found it out any sooner than we did. It’s all plain enough now after you know.”
“I can’t help worrying about our four sailors,” Sydney said sadly, and immediately the mirth died on Phil’s face. “After Ta-Ling is released, he will be mad enough to have them summarily executed.”
His companions made no reply. Each felt that the chances for the four captive Americans were small.
While the launch was approaching the line of anchored ships, Phil left his two companions and stood close beside O’Neil, while the sailor steered for the lights which had been pointed out to him as being on board the “Phœnix.”
The lads were delighted to have this fine American sailor-man again with them. Phil recounted again all the exciting adventures through which they had just passed and O’Neil in his turn told of the monotonous life on board a monitor in Manila Bay.
“It’s worse than going to sea in a submarine, Mr. Perry,” the sailor exclaimed. “She’s so low in the water and rolls so quickly that we was awash all the way up the China coast. We couldn’t use them big guns at sea; one second they are pointing in the water and the next they are looking at the moon; but here in the river it’s different. We can cut our name on those forts if they’ll give us a chance.
“That captain of yours, Mr. Perry, is a fire-eater. There ain’t nothing he is afraid of. I am glad,” he added, lowering his voice, although there was no one but a Chinese crew man within ear-shot, “to hear you tell me that our skipper ain’t going to lead this expedition. He’s all right when he gets good and mad, like he did when the fort fired at him to-night, but he ain’t got the initiative. Now, ‘Bucko’ Hughes, that’s his name on the foc’s’le, is different; he always likes to hit first.” Then he continued in a moralizing tone while he spun his wheel to steer the course to bring the ship’s lights on a proper bearing:
“The longer I live, Mr. Perry, the more I believe that’s the best tactics for a fighting man. If you hit first and hit hard enough maybe the other fellow’ll drop his fists and say he’s had enough.”