"I thought of that; but I am not inclined to bother with them. Captain Ringgold will know how to settle the case better than we do." Captain Velazquez had kept up his yelling as long as he could see any one at the stern of the steamer; and as soon as Louis and Felix showed themselves, he resumed his cries. "The skipper of that hooker is in a tight place, and he knows it," said Felix. "What's that he says?" "He says he will cut the tow-line if we don't go down the bay," replied Louis, translating his frantic cry. Louis answered the yell by firing his revolver in the air, directing Felix to do the same. [Illustration: "LOUIS ANSWERED THE YELL BY FIRING HIS REVOLVER IN THE AIR."] CHAPTER XI THE RETURN OF THE VICTORIOUS KNIGHT-ERRANT Felix was in the habit of doing what Louis asked him to do, and he discharged one barrel of his revolver in the air; but he thought that doing so was a piece of nonsense on the part of his friend which he could not understand. "What in the world is that for?" he asked. "Fire it again, and in due time you will see what it is for," replied Louis, as he discharged the second barrel of his weapon. "I'll do that same as long as I have a ball in a barrel, if you say so, my darling; but it looks like a waste of powder and lead," added Felix. "Do you see the captain of the Golondrina just now, Felix?" asked Louis. "I don't see him; but he was there on the bow not five minutes ago, yelling as though he had a live lobster in his throat. He isn't doing any yelling now." "He is not, for I saw him go aft about the time we began to fire." "I suppose he got tired of yelling." "Not precisely that, but he got tired of our firing. I suppose he was afraid a stray bullet might hit him in a soft place, either by accident or design. I was going to hail him, and invite him to go aft; but he has saved me the trouble by going without any invitation," Louis explained. "Then the shooting was not a waste of powder," added Felix. "It was not. I doubt if we could have hit the captain if we had fired at him for two hours, for the distance is too great for revolvers of the calibre of ours, and the noise was just as good as bullets. I don't want him to cut the tow-line if we can help it, though I would rather he would chop it off than be compelled to shoot him." "It would not be pleasant to go back to the Guardian-Mother with a dead man standing on the forecastle." "Or even lying on the deck. It might make trouble for us, though I don't know why it should. But we are getting close to the New Mole light, and I must go forward," added Louis. "You may remain here, Flix, and if you see the captain of the Golondrina coming forward again, fire out the rest of your barrels, and then load up again." "I'll do that same. I'll take the fore mast for a mark, and fire at a target." "I am afraid you will hit him if you do that," suggested Louis.