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Updated: June 28, 2025
You're making an easy half-million out of this. You will sail under my directions, and when we're well to sea and on our way I'll tell you and not before." Grief shrugged his shoulders, dismissing the subject. "When I've given you another drink I'll send the boat ashore with you," he said. Pankburn was taken aback.
When we get to Papeete my manager is going to charter a schooner and away we'll sail. But they don't dream. They think it's the booze. I know. I only know. Good night, sir. I'm going to bed unless er you'll join me in a night cap. One last drink, you know." In the week that followed at Papeete Grief caught numerous and bizarre glimpses of Aloysius Pankburn.
"When the revolutionists were marching on Guayaquil," Pankburn took it up, "the federal officers, believing a defence of the city hopeless, salted down the government treasure chest, something like a million dollars gold, but all in English coinage, and put it on board the American schooner Flirt. They were going to run at daylight. The American captain skinned out in the middle of the night.
Pankburn looked at him, and gushed tears of profound self-pity. "It's hard," he sobbed. "Hard. Hard. That man's my business manager. I employ him. I pay him a good screw. And that's how he earns it." "In that case, why don't you put a stop to it?" Grief advised. "I can't. She'd shut off my whiskey. She's my trained nurse." "Fire her, then, and drink your head off." "I can't. He's got all my money.
"I quit. Francis Island can go to hell for all of me. I'm done with your slave-driving. Kindly put me ashore at once. I'm a white man. You can't treat me this way." "Mr. Carlsen, you will see that Mr. Pankburn remains on board." "I'll have you broken for this!" Aloysius screamed. "You can't stop me." "I can give you another licking," Grief answered.
At any rate, the Ecuadoran cruiser went home without the treasure. Johnny Black brought the three spikes to Peenoo-Peenee, and left them at German Oscar's, but how and where he found them he never told." Pankburn looked hard at the whiskey bottle. "Just two fingers," he whimpered. Grief considered, and poured a meagre drink. Pankburn's eyes sparkled, and he took new lease of life.
"I take my hat off to you," Grief said to Pankburn that night at dinner. "The situation is patent. You've reversed the scale of value. They'll figure the pennies as priceless possessions and the sovereigns as beneath price. Result: they'll hang on to the pennies and force us to trade for sovereigns. Pankburn, I drink your health! Boy! another cup of tea for Mr. Pankburn." Followed a golden week.
Return in three months, and the salt-water crowd will have traded back for it; also they will be out of tobacco by that time." "It would be a sin to buy pennies," Albright grinned. "It goes against the thrifty grain of my trader's soul." "There's a whiff of land-breeze stirring," Grief said, looking at Pankburn. "What do you say?" Pankburn nodded. "Very well."
His ears were hung with silver half-crowns, and from the cartilage separating his nostrils depended a big English penny, tarnished and green, but unmistakable. "Hold on, Grief," Pankburn said, with perfectly assumed carelessness. "You say they know only beads and tobacco. Very well. You follow my lead. They've found the treasure, and we've got to trade them out of it.
Shoals points anchorages ah, Redscar, Owen Bay, Likikili Bay, that's more like it; deep indentation, mangrove swamps, good holding in nine fathoms when white scar in bluff bears west-southwest." Grief looked up. "That's your beach, Pankburn, I'll swear." "Will you go?" the other demanded eagerly. Grief nodded. "It sounds good to me.
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