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Updated: June 1, 2025


On the following morning I resumed work upon the cutter; and I thought that Van Ryn and Svorenssen looked somewhat disconcerted when, in accordance with my arrangement with Bowata, a party of ten sturdy natives arrived at the shipyard about 8 a.m. in the Chinese boat I had given them, to lend us a hand as and when required.

"Them two chaps, Svorenssen and Van Ryn, seemed to have quite made up their minds to have things all their own way; but me and Chips soon brought 'em up with a round turn by tellin' all hands what you'd said. Says I: `Now look here, you chaps. We've got the navigator we wants, and if this here treasure place is to be found you may all bet your boots he'll find it.

"If you mean about our skinned hands and faces, and our singed hair and clothes, there was no imagination about that," asserted Svorenssen. "But about the other well, when we came to talk about it in broad daylight we were unable to decide whether we had actually heard the sounds, or whether we had dreamed them.

In either of the above hypothetical cases the boy would be absolutely in the power and at the mercy of the two men; and I shuddered to think of what would happen to him, with me out of the way. Svorenssen and Van Ryn were both big powerful men, and, should they resort to violence, what could a boy do by way of resisting them?

"I said dot it vas no dream; for shoost vot happened to Svorenssen, the same thing happened to me," answered Van Ryn, speaking for himself. "Well, of course, that was very remarkable," I agreed. "Still, it could have been only a dream, since you found yourselves, I understand, in the cave and on your own beds in the morning." "Yah, dot vas so," assented Van Ryn.

Svorenssen, who was at the wheel, says that the pair of 'em walked fore and aft in the waist for a goodish bit, talkin' together; and then suddenly they got to high words; then, all in a minute, they started fightin' or strugglin' together, and before Svorenssen could sing out or do anything they was at the rail, and the pair of 'em went overboard, locked in one another's arms." "Went overboard!"

Of course it was impossible for me to observe the pair when they were alone together after the day's work was done, but although Svorenssen maintained his usual surly demeanour I attached little importance to that, for I believed it to be natural to him, while there was no doubt that both men were working steadily and well.

We haven't ate nothin' since yesterday a'ternoon, and we're feelin' pretty sharp set, I can tell ye." "Breakfast!" I reiterated. "Why, of course. It will be ready in about an hour's time. But you cannot come up to the house as you are, you know by the way, were you by any chance prowling about in the neighbourhood of the house last night?" "Ay, we was," answered Svorenssen.

Go on with your yarn, Svorenssen." "We saw you three or four times after that," resumed Svorenssen, "and once you passed so close that we easily recognised both of you. Unfortunately, we were both up a tree at the time, and were unable to descend, for the reason that there was a savage brute of a wild pig that had driven us up aloft and was waiting below for us to come down again.

"Now, see here, Svorenssen," said I. "I can make allowance and do for your very natural fear of the leopard; but, as I have already told you, the animal will not hurt either of you men if you keep clear of him. And don't let me hear any more of such talk as you have been indulging in during the last few minutes.

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