‘There’s too buch talk,’ said Barney Abram. ‘Is every bad to be baster? Butler’s the agreed captid. He chooses Bates to help hib. Bates he shall have, ad to prove that we trust hib he shall give directions for getting the boat over and sedding the prisoders adrift. Cub along, sir, and give us the pleasure of hearing you sig out.’ He passed his giant arm through the poor mate’s and walked off with him in the direction of the main-deck. The convicts followed to a man, talking eagerly and tumultuously as they pressed forward in the wake of the two. I said softly, that the fellow at the wheel might not hear me: ‘They seem afraid of you, Tom.’ ‘I am one of them,’ he answered, bitterly. ‘They are not afraid of me. But the thoughtful amongst them know they are helpless without me, and the other wretches are influenced by the few who can think.’ END OF THE SECOND VOLUME PRINTED BY SPOTTISWOODE AND CO., NEW-STREET SQUARE LONDON [Illustration] TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES: Italicized text is surrounded by underscores: _italics_. Obvious typographical errors have been corrected. Inconsistencies in hyphenation have been standardized.