Two of the men near me burst into a laugh, which they tried to hide as the first lieutenant looked sharply round. But there, sure enough, were the tops of the junk's masts dead astern, for the course of the river proved to be just there almost exactly like that piece of twisted flat wire which ladies fasten on the backs of their dresses, and call an eye; the great stream forming first a small circle, and then going right away to form the large loop of the eye, while the junks were lying at the far side of the loop, so that to reach them where they lay, right across an open plain about two miles in width, we had to sail for some distance right away, apparently leaving them right behind. A little use of the telescope soon showed that we were going quite right, though, and we went steadily on with the boats ahead sounding, and the men waiting to be called to quarters. "I don't believe it's going to be a fight, Gnat!" cried Smith. "Why not?" "Can't smell anything like prize-money in it. They're only a couple of big trading junks." "Then why did they run away from us as they did?" "Same reason as the one did last time. Thought we meant mischief. How stupid it is taking all this trouble to crawl up a muddy river." "What's he talking about?" said Barkins, stepping over to our side for a moment before every one would have to be in his place, and unable to stir. "Says they're trading junks." "Then it's all up. He knows. Either his wound or the doctoring has made him go better. He's awfully sharp now. I'll go and tell the skipper to turn back." "That's right; chaff away," cried Smith. "Look at the place we're in! There isn't a sign of a town. What would bring pirates up here?" "Pirates don't want towns, do they, stupid?" cried Barkins; "they want a place to lay up their ships in, and here it is. I'll bet anything those are pirates, but we shan't catch 'em." "Why?" I asked. "Think they'll go up higher where we can't follow?" "Could follow 'em in the boats, couldn't we, clever? Hi! look! they're on the move! They're pirates, and are going up higher because they see us. But we shan't catch 'em. If they are getting the worst of it, they'll run themselves aground, and get ashore to make a dash for it." Barkins was right; they were on the move, as we could distinctly see now, and my messmate said again-- "Yes, it's all over; they'll follow this river right away to the other side, and come out in the Black Sea, or somewhere else. We draw too much water to follow them farther." But we did follow them a great deal farther, and found that on the whole, in spite of our careful progress, we gained upon the junks, getting so near them once from their position across a bend of the river that a discussion took place as to whether it would not be advisable to open fire at long range.