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Updated: May 24, 2025
"I'll tell you, Mr Hawkesley," he replied. "You see that craft there? Well, I could almost stake my soul that she and the pirate-brig were built on the same stocks. The two craft are the same size to a ton, I'll swear that; and they are the same model and the same rig to a nicety.
I had been hoping that the general resemblance of the brig in sight to the Albatross was purely accidental; but she was now within less than three miles of us; and, even without the aid of the telescope, certain features, if I may so term them, were recognisable, which identified her beyond all question as the pirate-brig. "What shall we do about answering his signal, Bob?" said I.
"Look here, Mr Richards," said I; "if you really are as positive upon this matter as you say, I wish you would speak to Captain Vernon about it; it might and no doubt would help us very materially in effecting the capture of the pirate-brig.
"N-n-no, I can't say I do, Hawkesley, under her present disguise." "Disguise, my dear sir; she is not disguised at all. That is the pirate-brig which destroyed poor Richards' vessel the Juliet. And yes there can scarcely be a doubt about it she must be the notorious Black Venus of which the Yankee skipper told us." Smellie looked at me in great surprise and perplexity for a moment.
I here had an opportunity of acquainting the proper authorities with all the circumstances connected with the destruction of the pirate-brig, and of the crew being imprisoned on the island, and I afterwards learned that a cruiser had been despatched to the spot, and that the entire band were captured, tried, condemned upon a mass of evidence, which was soon collected against them, and hanged.
She crossed our stern, shutting out the pirate-brig for a moment, and we fully expected that when that craft next appeared we should see her hauled up in chase; but nothing of the kind; on she came, still heading direct for us, and I began to hope that our plan of luring her on to follow us was about to prove; successful. But the whaling skipper was not the man to give up without a struggle.
At the same time there was of course a possibility of our being mistaken as to the craft in sight being the pirate-brig, it being by no means an unusual thing for vessels as small as she was, or even smaller, to venture round the Cape. "Well," said I, "perhaps it will be safest, Bob, to assume for the present that this brig is the Albatross. What, under such circumstances, is your advice?"
"Not much need for the last, boy, I hope and believe," answered he, "but it's best perhaps as you should know at once so, without any further palaver, the Albatross, the pirate-brig, is inside the reef, and is lying at anchor at this very moment in the bay where you was so near losing the number of your mess." "The Albatross!" exclaimed I; "nonsense, Bob; surely you must be mistaken!
Here we gently grounded the canoe, laid our paddles cautiously and noiselessly in, lifted the craft far enough up on the beach to prevent her floating away, and then, keeping as much within the shadow of the trees as we could, made the best of our way along the beach to the low point already mentioned as forming the northern extremity of the bay which had witnessed the fight with the savages, and in which the pirate-brig now lay at anchor.
We maintained this ceaseless watch for the pirate-brig for four days, when, judging from the experience we had already obtained of our sailing powers in fine weather as compared with those of other vessels that we had fallen in with, we came to the conclusion that all immediate danger of a rencontre with her was past; and we accordingly relaxed our vigilance, and allowed ourselves some rest, which, by this time, we greatly needed.
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