The Spaniards on board seemed to have changed their minds as to myself, for, instead of the sentinel with his gun, a sailor with a rope stood waiting at the gunwale to receive us. I think, had we gone down where we were, he would hardly have troubled himself to come after us. But since we held up, and drifted within reach of his line, he honoured us by casting it our way; and so, with some hauling, we got aboard. Ludar had partly recovered from his fatigue when he stepped once more on the deck and took the letter from my neck, "You have done me a good turn," said he, with a glow in his face which I prized as much as all the gold pieces in the hold of the _Rata_; "you have made it possible for me to keep my parole with the Don. Thank you, Humphrey." Then bidding me follow, he led the way to the quarter-deck, and without a word handed his missive to the Don. "Senor has returned by a strange way," said the commander. "I have returned the only way open to me. His Majesty your King has lost a cock-boat." "He has found what will compensate him--a gallant servant." "Your pardon," said Ludar, shortly, "I am no servant of the King of Spain. I was his debtor, as was my friend. We are quits up to now. What more we accept from him, we shall be bound to repay,--no more." The Don frowned, and then smiled, and then with a quiet gesture raised his hand to his helmet. Accepting this salute as a dismissal, Ludar took my arm and walked away. No more was said about me just then; but I think, after what passed, the Don, however much he disliked me, deemed it not worth his while to separate me from my comrade. Ludar told me, what he never told the Don, that he had been captured as he returned in the cock-boat by a boat of the enemy's, belonging to the ship _Revenge_. The men of the boat, perceiving him to be of their speech, and suspecting he carried news (though he had hidden his letter in his shoe), resolved to carry him to their Captain Drake, to which he seemed to submit. But waiting till he came somewhere near where he suspected the _Rata_ to lie, he had slipped overboard, and hanging quietly under the stern-sheets till they were tired of looking for him, had got off; and after beating about an hour and more, had sighted us in the dawn, and (as he confessed), but for my sight of him, might not have been there to tell the story.