第 9 页

of the house, you may be sure I shan't close an eye till I have got

to the bottom of the matter. I am responsible for the cargo below,

and if I had kept as sharp an eye on the stores as I ought to have

done, this would not have happened. Only let me catch them trying to

board, and I will give them such a reception that I warrant me they

will sheer off with a bullet or two in them. I have got that pair of

boarding pistols, and a cutlass, hung up over my bed."

"You must not do that, John," the Captain said. "It isn't a matter of

beating off the pirates by pouring a broadside into them. Maybe you

might cripple them, more likely they would make off, and we want to

capture them. Therefore, I say, let us watch, and find out how they

do it. When we once know that, we can lay our plans for capturing

them the next time they come. I will take watch and watch with you."

"Well, if it goes on long, Captain, I won't say no to that; but for

to-night anyhow I will sit up alone."

"Very well, let it be so, John. But mind, whatever you see, you keep

as still as a mouse. Just steal to my room in your stockinged feet

directly you see anything moving. Open the door and say, 'Strange

sail in sight!' and I will be over at your window in no time. And

now, Cyril, you and I may as well turn in."

The night passed quietly.

"You saw nothing, I suppose, John?" the Captain said next morning,

after the apprentices had gone down from breakfast.

"Not a thing, Captain."

"Now we will go and have a look in the yard. Will you come, Cyril?"

"I should like to come," Cyril replied, "but, as I have never been

out there before, had you not better make some pretext for me to do

so. You might say, in the hearing of the apprentices, 'We may as well

take the measurements for that new shed we were talking about, and

see how much boarding it will require.' Then you can call to me out

from the office to come and help you to measure."

"Then you still think the apprentices are in it?" John Wilkes asked

sharply.

"I don't say I think so, John. I have nothing against them. I don't

believe they could come down at night without being heard; I feel

sure they could not get into the shop without that stiff bolt making

a noise. Still, as it is possible they may be concerned in the

matter, I think that, now we have it in good train for getting to the

bottom of it, it would be well to keep the matter altogether to

ourselves."

"Quite right," Captain Dave said approvingly. "When you suspect

treachery, don't let a soul think that you have got such a matter in

your mind, until you are in a position to take the traitor by the

collar and put a pistol to his ear. That idea of yours is a very good

one; I will say something about the shed to John this morning, and

then when you go down to the counting-house after dinner I will call

to you to come out to the yard with us."

After dinner, Captain Dave went with Cyril into the counting-house.

"We had an order in this morning for a set of ship's anchors, and

John and I have been in the yard looking them out; we looked over the

place pretty sharply, as you may be sure, but as far as we could see

the place is as solid as when it was built, fifty years ago, by my

father."

The Captain went out into the store, and ten minutes afterwards

re-entered the shop and shouted,--

"Come out here, Cyril, and lend a hand. We are going to take those

measurements. Bring out your ink-horn, and a bit of paper to put them

down as we take them."

The yard was some sixty feet long by twenty-five broad, exclusive of

the space occupied by the warehouse. This, as Cyril had observed from

the window above, did not extend as far as the back wall; but on

walking round there with the two men, he found that the distance was

greater than he had expected, and that there was a space of some

twenty feet clear.

"This is where we are thinking of putting the shed," the Captain said

in a loud voice.

"But I see that you have a crane and door into the loft over the

warehouse there," Cyril said, looking up.

"We never use that now. When my father first began business, he used

to buy up old junk and such-like stores, and store them up there, but

it didn't pay for the trouble; and, besides, as you see, he wanted

every foot of the yard room, and of course at that time they had to

leave a space clear for the carts to come up from the gate round

here, so it was given up, and the loft is empty now."

Cyril looked up at the crane. It was swung round so as to lie flat

against the wooden shutters. The rope was still through the block,

and passed into the loft through a hole cut at the junction of the

shutters.

They now measured the space between the warehouse and the wall, the

Captain repeating the figures, still in a loud voice; then they

discussed the height of the walls, and after some argument between

the Captain and John Wilkes agreed that this should be the same as

the rest of the building. Still talking on the subject, they returned

through the warehouse, Cyril on the way taking a look at the massive

gate that opened into the lane. In addition to a heavy bar it had a

strong hasp, fastened by a great padlock. The apprentices were busy

at work coiling up some rope when they passed by.

"When we have knocked a door through the end there, John," Captain

Dave said, "it will give you a deal more room, and you will be able

to get rid of all these cables and heavy dunnage, and to have matters

more ship-shape here."

While they had been taking the measurements, all three had carefully

examined the wall of the warehouse.

"There is nothing wrong there, Cyril," his employer said, as, leaving

John Wilkes in the warehouse, they went through the shop into the

little office.

"Certainly nothing that I could see, Captain Dave. I did not before

know the loft had any opening to the outside. Of course I have seen

the ladder going up from the warehouse to that trap-door; but as it

was closed I thought no more of it."

"I don't suppose anyone has been up there for years, lad. What, are

you thinking that someone might get in through those shutters? Why,

they are twenty feet from the ground, so that you would want a long

ladder, and when you got up there you would find that you could not

open the shutters. I said nobody had been up there, but I did go up

myself to have a look round when I first settled down here, and there

is a big bar with a padlock."

Cyril thought no more about it, and after supper it was arranged that

he and Captain Dave should keep watch by turns at the window of the

room that had been now given to John Wilkes, and that the latter

should have a night in his berth, as the Captain expressed it. John

Wilkes had made some opposition, saying that he would be quite

willing to take his watch.

"You will just obey orders, John," the Captain said. "You have had

thirty-six hours off the reel on duty, and you have got to be at work

all day to-morrow again. You shall take the middle watch to-morrow

night if you like, but one can see with half an eye that you are not

fit to be on the lookout to-night. I doubt if any of us could see as

far as the length of the bowsprit. It is pretty nearly pitch dark;

there is not a star to be seen, and it looked to me, when I turned

out before supper, as if we were going to have a storm."

CHAPTER IV

CAPTURED

It was settled that Cyril was to take the first watch, and that the

Captain should relieve him at one o'clock. At nine, the family went

to bed. A quarter of an hour later, Cyril stole noiselessly from his

attic down to John Wilkes's room. The door had been left ajar, and

the candle was still burning.

"I put a chair by the window," the sailor said, from his bed, "and

left the light, for you might run foul of something or other in the

dark, though I have left a pretty clear gangway for you."

Cyril blew out the candle, and seated himself at the window. For a

time he could see nothing, and told himself that the whole contents

of the warehouse might be carried off without his being any the

wiser.

"I shall certainly see nothing," he said to himself; "but, at least,

I may hear something."

So saying, he turned the fastening of the casement and opened it

about half an inch. As his eyes became accustomed to the darkness, he

was able to make out the line of the roof of the warehouse, which was

some three or four feet below the level of his eyes, and some twenty

feet away on his left. The time passed slowly. He kept himself awake

by thinking over the old days in France, the lessons he had learnt

with his friend, Harry Parton, and the teaching of the old clergyman.

He heard the bell of St. Paul's strike ten and eleven. The last

stroke had scarcely ceased to vibrate when he rose to his feet

suddenly. He heard, on his left, a scraping noise. A moment later it

ceased, and then was renewed again. It lasted but a few seconds; then

he heard an irregular, shuffling noise, that seemed to him upon the

roof of the warehouse. Pressing his face to the casement, he suddenly

became aware that the straight line of the ridge was broken by

something moving along it, and a moment later he made out a second

object, just behind the first. Moving with the greatest care, he made

his way out of the room, half closed the door behind him, crossed the

passage, and pushed at a door opposite.

"Captain Dave," he said, in a low voice, "get up at once, and please

don't make a noise."

"Ay, ay, lad."

There was a movement from the bed, and a moment later the Captain

stood beside him.

"What is it, lad?" he whispered.

"There are two figures moving along on the ridge of the roof of the

warehouse. I think it is the apprentices. I heard a slight noise, as

if they were letting themselves down from their window by a rope. It

is just over that roof, you know."

There was a rustling sound as the Captain slipped his doublet on.

"That is so. The young scoundrels! What can they be doing on the

roof?"

They went to the window behind. Just as they reached it there was a

vivid flash of lightning. It sufficed to show them a figure lying at

full length at the farther end of the roof; then all was dark again,

and a second or two later came a sharp, crashing roar of thunder.

"We had better stand well back from the window," Cyril whispered.

"Another flash might show us to anyone looking this way."

"What does it mean, lad? What on earth is that boy doing there? I

could not see which it was."

"I think it is Ashford," Cyril said. "The figure in front seemed the

smaller of the two."

"But where on earth can Tom have got to?"

"I should fancy, sir, that Robert has lowered him so that he can get

his feet on the crane and swing it outwards; then he might sit down

on it and swing himself by the rope into the loft if the doors are

not fastened inside. Robert, being taller, would have no difficulty

in lowering himself--There!" he broke off, as another flash of

lightning lit up the sky. "He has gone, now; there is no one on the

roof."

John Wilkes was by this time standing beside them, having started up

at the first flash of lightning.

"Do you go up, John, into their room," the Captain said. "I think

there can be no doubt that these fellows on the roof are Ashford and

Frost, but it is as well to be able to swear to it."

The foreman returned in a minute or two.

"The room is empty, Captain; the window is open, and there is a rope

hanging down from it. Shall I cast it adrift?"

"Certainly not, John. We do not mean to take them tonight, and they

must be allowed to go back to their beds without a suspicion that

they have been watched. I hope and trust that it is not so bad as it

looks, and that the boys have only broken out from devilry. You know,

boys will do things of that sort just because it is forbidden."

"There must be more than that," John Wilkes said. "If it had been

just after they went to their rooms, it might be that they went to

some tavern or other low resort, but the town is all asleep now."

They again went close to the window, pushed the casement a little

more open, and stood listening there. In two or three minutes there

was a very slight sound heard.

"They are unbolting the door into the yard," John Wilkes whispered.

"I would give a month's pay to be behind them with a rope's end."

Half a minute later there was a sudden gleam of light below, and they

could see the door open. The light disappeared again, but they heard

footsteps; then they saw the light thrown on the fastening to the

outer gate, and could make out that two figures below were applying a

key to the padlock. This was taken off and laid down; then the heavy

wooden bar was lifted, and also laid on the ground. The gate opened

as if pushed from the other side. The two figures went out; the sound

of a low murmur of conversation could be heard; then they returned,

the gate was closed and fastened again, they entered the warehouse,

the light disappeared, and the door was closed.

"That's how the things went, John."

"Ay, ay, sir," the foreman growled.

"As they were undoing the gate, the light fell on a coil of rope they

had set down there, and a bag which I guess had copper of some kind

in it. They have done us cleverly, the young villains! There was not

noise enough to wake a cat. They must have had every bolt and hinge

well oiled."

"We had better close the casement now, sir, for as they come back

along the ridge they will be facing it, and if a flash of lightning

came they would see that it was half open, and even if they did not