Ned glanced at his watch. It was close on midnight. He wondered if now that the schooner had been emptied of her secret cargo3, his hour of release had come.
But apparently4 it was no part of Captain Briggs's plan to set his prisoner at liberty just then. At any rate, nobody came near Ned.
He felt strangely lonely now that the tumult5 had died out, to be succeeded by a death-like stillness. But after a time, during which he sought in vain for a lamp to light up the cabin, Ned was able to distinguish some sounds that broke the silence.
[Pg 247]
The sounds were nasal and were in three keys. In fact, it did not take Ned long to distinguish in his own mind the loud snoring of Captain Briggs from the gruntings and snortings of his crew.
The night was warm and they were plainly enough taking their rest on deck after the arduous6 labors7 of the night. Inasmuch as the schooner lay in a lonely cove8 out of the path of navigation, it was also evident that Captain Briggs had not bothered to set a bright watch.
"Now is my chance," thought Ned, "if only I could figure on some way of getting out of this coop."
He sat on the transom a while, buried in thought. He was revolving9 in his mind the strange events of the last twenty-four hours and the possible effect they would have upon his future.
Well did Ned know that his absence from his ship must have been noticed by this time. He[Pg 248] wondered what Commander Dunham was thinking. He speculated, and the thought was not a pleasant one, on the chances of his being deemed derelict to his duty, and being supplanted10 by someone else.
The Dreadnought Boy knew the iron rules of the navy, laws as inflexible11 as those of the Medes and Persians. He might be deprived of his temporary commission without even a chance to explain all that had happened. One thought cheered him. Come what might, he at least had safe within his pocket the book of plans by which Kenworth and Saki set such store.
He hoped that if the worst came to the worst, the signal service he had rendered his country in redeeming12 these from the desperate hands of the spy and the renegade would at least plead some extenuation13 for him.
"Confound that old shell-back of a Briggs," growled15 Ned to himself; "if it hadn't been for[Pg 249] him I might have been back with my ship by this time. As it is——"
Captain Briggs' stentorian16 snore filled in the pause eloquently17. "At any rate," muttered Ned, "he's safe off in the land of Nod; so, to judge by the sounds, are his crew. What's the matter with—Jove! I'll try it."
He ascended18 the cabin stairway and began cautiously to fumble19 with the fastenings of the companionway scuttle20. He did not dare make much noise, as, although he was fairly sure that Captain Briggs was beyond an easy awakening21, yet the risk of rousing him was an imminent22 one.
Like everything else about Captain Briggs' schooner, the scuttle, now that Ned came to prove it, did not appear to be over and above secure.
"I believe that with good luck I can force it clean off its hinges," murmured Ned as he investigated.
Indeed it seemed so. The door worked about on its hinges so freely, it showed that those attachments[Pg 250] were not securely fastened or else, as was more likely, the wood had rotted about the screws.
Ned possessed23 a good stock of patience and he took plenty of time, working the door about till it moved easily. Then he placed his shoulder to it and gave a gentle but strong heave. The screws drew out of the rotten wood as if they had been fastened into cheese.
Five minutes after he had first applied24 his strength, Ned, feeling like a modern Samson, lifted off the door of his place of captivity25 and was ready to step out on deck.
But first he took a cautious look about him. There was a bright moon. By its beams Ned saw that, as he had suspected, Captain Briggs and his crew, worn out by their night's work, were sleeping the sleep of the just. They had turned in "all standing26" and lay sprawled27 on the deck in any but picturesque28 attitudes.
"So far, so good," murmured Ned to himself,[Pg 251] "and the dinghy's out astern, too. Better and better. I believe that this is going to go through without a hitch29."
He cautiously replaced the hatchway and stepped boldly out on the deck. Captain Briggs stirred in his slumbers30 and growled out some orders that came to him in his dreams.
"Stand by to go about! Mind sheets and braces31!" he muttered.
"My! but he's going to be a surprised man when he wakes up!" grinned Ned to himself. "I'm sorry for his crew; he'll take it out on them, for I verily believe that the old shell-back thought I was some boy millionaire and worth at least a thousand in reward money to him."
But as chance would have it, it was Ned who was destined32 to be surprised first.
Hardly had he stepped on deck, when from forward a squat33 shape came bounding across the moonlit decks. Simultaneously34 a low, angry growl14 greeted the Dreadnought Boy's ears.
[Pg 252]
"Great guns! The skipper's dog! I'd clean forgotten him," exclaimed Ned in dismay.
The dog hesitated a minute, sniffed35 and then, with an angry snarl36, came bounding on again.
"If I can't silence him, he'll have them all awake in a minute, and then I'll have a fine hornet's nest about my ears," muttered Ned.
Ur-r-r-r-r-r-r-r! The dog sprang straight for Ned's throat. Luckily, the creature was not one of the barking kind. He plainly preferred action to noise.
Ned saw him coming. Saw the white flash of his teeth in the moonlight. Swift as thought he stooped and picked up a barrel stave which happened to be lying near his feet.
As the dog was in mid-spring, Ned let fly with his improvised37 weapon. Crack! It struck the dog right across the nose and sent him hurtling back in a coiled-up ball.
"Jove! I hated to do that, old fellow," cried[Pg 253] Ned in a low tone; "but it had to be, and you'll soon get over it."
The dog lay crouched38 in a whimpering heap not far from Captain Briggs' side. Ned dared not delay longer. With swift, silent strides he made for the stern, dropped overboard and landed deftly39 in the dinghy.
The oars40 were in it, and to cast off was the work of an instant only. Then with strong, noiseless strokes, he pulled toward the shore. There was not a sound of pursuit from the schooner and Ned's heart leaped exultingly41 as he threw his strength into the oars.
Ten minutes later the dinghy's nose scraped the beach. At precisely42 the same instant the bow of Ned's craft was grasped by a pair of strong hands, and a gruff voice demanded to know his business.
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1
uproar
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| n.骚动，喧嚣，鼎沸 | |
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2
schooner
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| n.纵帆船 | |
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3
cargo
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| n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物 | |
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4
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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5
tumult
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| n.喧哗；激动，混乱；吵闹 | |
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6
arduous
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| adj.艰苦的，费力的，陡峭的 | |
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7
labors
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| v.努力争取(for)( labor的第三人称单数 )；苦干；详细分析；（指引擎）缓慢而困难地运转 | |
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8
cove
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| n.小海湾，小峡谷 | |
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9
revolving
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| adj.旋转的，轮转式的；循环的v.（使）旋转( revolve的现在分词 )；细想 | |
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10
supplanted
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| 把…排挤掉，取代( supplant的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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11
inflexible
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| adj.不可改变的，不受影响的，不屈服的 | |
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redeeming
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| 补偿的，弥补的 | |
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13
extenuation
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| n.减轻罪孽的借口；酌情减轻；细 | |
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14
growl
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| v.（狗等）嗥叫，（炮等）轰鸣；n.嗥叫，轰鸣 | |
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15
growled
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| v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 )；低声咆哮着说 | |
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16
stentorian
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| adj.大声的，响亮的 | |
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eloquently
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| adv. 雄辩地(有口才地, 富于表情地) | |
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18
ascended
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| v.上升，攀登( ascend的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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19
fumble
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| vi.笨拙地用手摸、弄、接等，摸索 | |
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scuttle
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| v.急赶，疾走，逃避；n.天窗；舷窗 | |
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21
awakening
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| n.觉醒，醒悟 adj.觉醒中的；唤醒的 | |
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imminent
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| adj.即将发生的，临近的，逼近的 | |
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23
possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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24
applied
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| adj.应用的；v.应用，适用 | |
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25
captivity
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| n.囚禁；被俘；束缚 | |
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26
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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27
sprawled
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| v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的过去式和过去分词)；蔓延；杂乱无序地拓展；四肢伸展坐着（或躺着） | |
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28
picturesque
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| adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的 | |
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29
hitch
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| v.免费搭(车旅行)；系住；急提；n.故障；急拉 | |
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30
slumbers
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| 睡眠，安眠( slumber的名词复数 ) | |
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31
braces
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| n.吊带，背带；托架( brace的名词复数 )；箍子；括弧；（儿童）牙箍v.支住( brace的第三人称单数 )；撑牢；使自己站稳；振作起来 | |
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32
destined
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| adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的 | |
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33
squat
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| v.蹲坐，蹲下；n.蹲下；adj.矮胖的，粗矮的 | |
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34
simultaneously
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| adv.同时发生地，同时进行地 | |
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35
sniffed
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| v.以鼻吸气，嗅，闻( sniff的过去式和过去分词 )；抽鼻子（尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气）；抱怨，不以为然地说 | |
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36
snarl
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| v.吼叫，怒骂，纠缠，混乱；n.混乱，缠结，咆哮 | |
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37
improvised
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| a.即席而作的,即兴的 | |
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38
crouched
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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39
deftly
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| adv.灵巧地，熟练地，敏捷地 | |
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40
oars
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| n.桨，橹( oar的名词复数 )；划手v.划（行）( oar的第三人称单数 ) | |
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41
exultingly
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| 兴高采烈地，得意地 | |
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42
precisely
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| adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地 | |
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