The poor fellow was haled to the main rigging and his hands made fast to the sheer-pole, his feet just clearing the deck. Then every man of the complaining crowd took a few whacks at his bare back with a stiff piece of ratline stuff. He made no outcry, but fell fainting to the deck when cut down. When he came around again I saw the white of his eye and noticed the peculiar gleam, which boded no good for some one. Two days later we passed the Argentine steamer, from Buenos Ayres to Liverpool. She was one of those new screw vessels, and the absence of the big side paddle-boxes made her look very shipshape. She was going along about ten knots and her decks were crowded with passengers. Now and then a white dress fluttered in the breeze. As we drew near Benson came to me. “How fast do we go, Mr. Gore?” said he. The _Arrow_ was heeling down and tearing along steadily now under everything we could put on her, for the trade was steady and held perfectly fair at east-southeast. “I believe we are going a bit faster than the steamer,” I ventured. An ugly gleam lit up his dark eyes. I saw what he meant before he spoke, for he was most ignorant of seamanship and all things concerning a vessel. “If you can catch her, lay us up alongside,” he said, “for we have particular business aboard her.” And he called to Johnson and some others who were standing aft. I tried to explain that although we were going much faster than the steamer it would be absolutely impossible to board her, but he could not or would not see it. “We can only go one way,” I said, “and to try to catch him would simply make us absurd. He would only have to head up into the wind and we would come aback all standing, stopping dead. Then he would only have to get a mile or so to windward and come down upon us. We could not possibly get out of his way in time and he could run us down easily.” As it was certain the steamer would not stop for us, the affair would only have a bad ending, perhaps complicating matters still more. For that reason I was not overkeen to do anything foolish. The steamer drew up so quickly on our weather beam that Benson was forced to give up any idea of trying his villainy upon her. It showed plainly, however, that he would stop any sailing ship he might see, and there was much to be hoped from this. My evident desire not to board a ship would be of good stead to me when the right time came. I could use it to advantage. There would be vessels in sight soon now, for we were nearing the latitude of the river at a ten-knot rate. It was while the men were all engrossed watching the liner that the cook took the opportunity for revenge. He had managed to get below and procure enough rat-poison to kill a dozen ship’s companies. This he mixed with the dinner for all hands, sparing none.