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Updated: May 2, 2025
The captain found enough of employment in directing and planning generally for the whole party. Cutting firewood, gathering nuts and wild fruit, fell to the lot of Bob Corkey; and Simon O'Rook slid naturally into the office of cook. The remainder of the men were employed at various jobs, according to circumstances. Watty Wilkins was a passionate fisher.
When she had explained that delay in the train had caused her want of punctuality, she shook hands with O'Rook, with whom she had renewed acquaintance at the time of his being appointed first mate to her father's ship. Then she was bid stand up in a corner to be "overhauled." The captain retired to an opposite corner, and gazed at his daughter critically, as though she had been a fine portrait.
Simon O'Rook, in particular, who, as we have said, did not send home any of his gold, had made such a huge "pile" that several strong boxes were required to hold all his wealth. The packing of these treasure-chests occupied but a short time. Each man cut his name on the lid of his box inside, and printed it outside, and nailed and roped it tight, and took every means to make it secure.
"He's all right if O'Rook is with him," said the captain to Polly, in confidence, when they went into the bower together; "but he's not to be trusted away by himself. I never saw a man more unfit to look after himself." "And yet he is a good, kind man, father," said Polly. "True, quite true, Poll," replied the captain, musingly.
To all of them I give you a short text as a good course to steer by: `Ask, and ye shall receive. Ask light and ask wisdom. "Now, cook," continued the captain, turning to O'Rook, "go to work and get your dinner under weigh, for talking makes one hungry.
"Maybe," suggested O'Rook, "if you open some more o' the pages you'll find a name somewheres." Jack searched as well as the condition of the book would admit of and found at last the name of David Ban , the latter part of the surname being illegible. He also discovered a lump in one place, which, on being cut into, proved to be a lock of golden hair, in perfect preservation.
Hereupon O'Rook told the widow all he knew about the strange passenger of that name with whom he had sailed to the Southern Seas and worked at the gold fields. The conclusion which they came to was that the gold-digging passenger was the absconded cashier. Having settled this, O'Rook renewed the siege on the widow's heart but without success, though she did not cast him off altogether.
Another instant and he was in the sea, regardless of sharks, and striking out for the floating wreckage, closely followed by O'Rook, Corkey, Burr, and Watty Wilkins. Strange to say, eight other men of the crew could not swim, although they had managed somehow to scramble on the reef.
No wonder that several of the men leaped into her, crying, "Every man for himself," and endeavoured to cast off. "Have you got Polly?" cried Jack, as he dimly saw a figure staggering through the turmoil of wind and whirling spray. "All safe!" gasped Captain Samson. Jack instantly jumped into the boat and found O'Rook struggling to prevent one of the men from cutting the hawser.
It is not necessary, nor would it be pleasant to describe minutely the effect of the "bad news" on the other members of our gold-digging party. Captain Samson and Watty Wilkins took it well, but Polly and Simon O'Rook could not easily reconcile themselves to their fate. The former, it is true, sorrowed not for herself, but for her father.
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