Here occurred a curious little comedy. So soon as Kidd came up the side, the Armenians rushed toward him and with loud cries and prayers besought him to return them their ship. They thrust at him the respectable ransom of twenty thousand rupees. Kidd waved their offer away, remarking that it was a very small parcel of money. He then called his men and instructed them to go off on the forecastle and hold a mimic conference together, wherein they were to pretend to vote upon the fate of the captured craft. With solemn stupid faces they grouped off by themselves, the while the plaints of the distracted Armenians assailed their hairy ears. Then owlishly they returned to the quarterdeck where, with great seriousness, they informed their commander that they had voted to retain the _Quedagh Merchant_. Thereupon Kidd turned to the Armenians with a shrug of the shoulder as much as to say, what would you; what can you do with a crowd like that? Kidd was still playing his strange double game. He was acting the part of an English officer taking in a suspect enemy ship. The farce of the crew’s conference was a by-play to divert the Armenians’ clamor from one to many heads, and perhaps to show the incorruptibility of these patriotic British seamen. That done, they appraised their garnerings and shouted with joy when it was discovered that they had found nearly ten thousand pounds’ worth of valuables. In our money it is difficult to estimate just what the amount would be now, but certainly an extraordinary fortune. Not only that but here was a good seaworthy, commodious ship of very great value herself. All hands were called from the old _Adventure_; pitch barrels were staved in and kicked about her decks, and she went up to the coppery Indian sky in great festoons of smoke. The _Quedagh Merchant_ swung around, her decks now congested with the whole crew of the destroyed _Adventure_ and into her compass box peering the firm hard face of William Kidd, mariner, of London, trusty and well-beloved. [Illustration: She went up to the coppery Indian sky in great festoons of smoke.] VI Now, the big question before the house was to dispose of the cargo of the _Quedagh Merchant_ to the best profit. To get the officers of the ship and the clamant Armenians out of the way Kidd put them ashore, supposing that that was the last he would see of them. In this he was mistaken. He stood away in the general direction of Madagascar. But on the way there he touched at one port and another where he entered into vigorous bargaining. He had in view the turning of the _Quedagh Merchant’s_ cargo into coin, and seems to have managed this quite adroitly. There being no telegraphs or cables the outraged charterers could not, of course, catch up with him. Probably he was suspected but nobody cared very much; there the goods were and sellers who were sharp but not too close.