In Search of an Unknown Race — page 27: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

VAN. 19 ‘‘How?” sullenly echoed Smith; ‘‘ you know well enough ‘thout askin’. Direc’ly I found out about the schooner, and that she was wantin’ a crew, didn’t I hunt you and the other three up, jest fer the reason we was together in t’other affair and I knowed there wasnt one of us as would stick at anything where there was a chance of makin’ a big divvy ‘ | ‘* That’s enough—from you/”’ interrupted Bates ; and Smith, who evidently held his younger companion in wholesome awe, shrank back before the latter’s fierce look. ‘¢What you've done is well enough as far as it goes,” continued Bates, with an entire change of manner; ‘*but you forget -——” ‘You've woke up the mate,” sourly interrupted the dwarfed sailor, who, looking suddenly up, had seen Van’s face looking out between the berth curtains. ‘‘Why, so I have,” said Bates in a tone of easy as- surance, turning without the slightest show of embar- rassment toward Van. The latter instantly slipped from the berth. ‘‘What does this all mean?” he demanded, calling up all his self-command to meet what he instinctively knew to bea terrific emergency. ‘‘ Where is Captain Peterson, and what right have you two in the cabin here?” ‘‘T am sorry to say,” coolly replied Bates, in a mock- ing tone, ‘‘that Captain Peterson accidentally fell over the rail and instantly sank, in the middle watch. So thinking that you, Mr. Briscoe, are rather too young for such a responsibility, I’ve decided to take charge my- self, with the full concurrence of my four shipmates.” EOmMiIGcdoOoO ‘S (E(0)