At last the hour to return aboard came.

We marched down to the beach, and I felt relief for the first time when my feet rested on the schooner's deck.
In the course of the evening I overheard part of a conversation between the captain and the first mate, which startled me not a little.

They were down in the cabin, and conversed in an under-tone, but the sky-light being off, I overheard every word that was said.
"I don't half like it," said the mate.

"It seems to me that we'll only have hard fightin' and no pay." "No pay!" repeated the captain, in a voice of suppressed anger.

"Do you call a good cargo all for nothing no pay ?" "Very true," returned the mate; "but we've got the cargo aboard.