"Exactly, and that shall be done if all other methods fail." "What other methods, sir?" said Mr Denning. "You gentlemen may have some plans, for my part I have but one." "We have no plans," they all said eagerly. "Then you have one?" "Yes," said Mr Frewen. "I have one--a wild and desperate one, whose aim is to separate Jarette from his followers, living, and to make him prisoner. It may fail, for it is, as I say, a wild and desperate plan." "In Heaven's name then, doctor, what is it?" said the captain, feebly. "Speak out, sir; you know how bad I am, and that this business is killing me." "Then I will speak out, captain," said Mr Frewen, warmly. "I did mean to ask you all to wait, and have confidence in me sufficient to let me have forty-eight hours for my trial without divulging what I intended to do." "The times are too desperate, Mr Frewen," said the mate. "Don't ask that of us." "No; I say I will speak, but I ask you not to look upon the attempt as childish or absurd until it has been tried." He paused, and seeing how faint and hot the captain looked, bade me step back, and push the saloon-light farther open. I did so, and returned nervous and excited, in dread lest I should miss a word. But Mr Frewen had not spoken, but stood looking straight before him. Then he said quickly--"I am going to do rather a risky thing, an act which may imperil men's lives; but I shall be as guarded as possible." "Yes," said Mr Denning, eagerly. "Before long," continued Mr Frewen, in a low, firm voice, "a fresh supply of food and water must be given to those men. They cannot be starved to death." "No, of course not," said Mr Brymer, excitedly. "Then you grasp of course what I propose doing. I shall drug that food with one of the powerful extracts which I have in my medicine-chest. It will be passed down to the men, who will be almost voracious, and then we shall have to wait until it has taken effect, open the hatch, secure Jarette, and separate the others into, say, three parties--one in the cable-tier, the other in the forecastle, the last in the hold or one of the cabins. The rest, I think, will be easy." There was a dead silence. "Do you think my plan too wild?" "No," said Mr Denning, quickly. "God bless you, doctor!" and he held out both his hands. "Yes, that plan will do," said Captain Berriman, "I feel assured." "Yes, yes," was murmured in a tone full of emotion; and at that moment there was a sharp crack which seemed to have come from somewhere in the saloon. CHAPTER TWENTY NINE. We all ran out, but no one was there, and Walters' cabin door was fast. I was quickest, and ran out of the saloon, but there was no one nearer than the forecastle-hatch in one direction, and on the other as I ran up the ladder there was the man at the wheel, one of the men we had secured, while the other was seated on the bulwark talking to him and smoking.