gold, for of course it'll all be lost."

"Not unless she goes to pieces!" Jim replied in a decidedly shaky voice; and then, as if this subject was an unpleasant one, he changed it by asking, without any idea the question would be answered:

"What's Bob doin' aft so long? He can't expect to pick up that hawser ag'in, an' it's more dangerous there than here!"

"He's coming now," Walter replied as he crept to the corner of the house; and at the same instant that a huge wave rolled inboard, sweeping the decks with almost irresistible violence, the old sailor and Joe appeared, literally working their way hand over hand by means of the life-line.

Arriving under the lee of the pilot-house they halted, and waited in silence for the shock which should tell that the Sea Bird had been forced into shoal water.

This unpleasant information was not long delayed. The little steamer pitched and plunged more violently than before, but without the sickening motion of being dragged under, which was apparent when the bow anchor held, and after ten minutes of this wild tossing she lurched forward suddenly as if the screw had been set in motion.

"Hold on for your lives!" Bob shouted, and a moment later the tug struck heavily, with such force that but for the timely warning more than one of the crew would have been hurled forward.

All hands waited with bated breath for the succeeding shocks which would tell that she was pounding herself to pieces on the sand; but much to their surprise nothing of the kind was felt.

"The stern anchor is holding her down!" Bob shouted to Joe, and the words were hardly spoken when the water dashed forward, flooding the decks even with the rail.

"We'll be drowned here in short order!" Joe cried as he struggled toward the boys. "Get into the pilot-house, if you can, for the danger is less there while the decks are being swept!"

Fortunately for all hands the door opened at the top of a short flight of stairs above the level of the rail, and this the engineer succeeded in opening by watching his opportunity between the heavy waves. Harry and Walter gained this shelter before the sea rushed forward again, and at the next interval of comparative quiet the remainder of the party joined them.

It was now possible to converse without actually shouting, and Joe was eager to understand why the tug remained immovable when in the ordinary course of events she should be beating herself to pieces on the shoal.

"The anchor slipped enough to let her drive ahead a bit," Bob said, in explanation, "an' then brought up just as she struck. You'll most likely find the hawser taut as an iron bar; and that, together with the hold the sand has got on her nose, keeps everything firm."

"And if the anchor should give way once more she'd break up?"

"There's no doubt about that; but I've got an idee the wind hasn't got as much force as it had half an hour ago. If the timbers will stand that poundin' astern there's a chance of our gettin' outer this sc.r.a.pe after all, even though things do look so tough."

It was but natural that all hands should devote their entire attention to ascertaining if the gale really was abating, since this was their only hope, and when another half-hour had elapsed the question was decided. The seas still beat against the stranded steamer with the same violence, but the rain had nearly ceased, and the wind no longer howled around the doomed craft with its former fury.

When this became an a.s.sured fact, it was, as nearly as Bob could judge, about midnight; and the weary boys thought with dismay of the many hours which must elapse before they could gain a place of absolute safety.

"Lie down and go to sleep, if you can," the old sailor said, much as if he knew of what they were thinking. "I reckon the worst is over, an'

since it's only a question of waitin' you'd best get all the rest possible."

The boys followed this suggestion by curling themselves up on the cushioned locker; and, strange as it may seem, they fell asleep in a very short time despite the howling wind and raging waters. Weariness of body was greater than fear, and even in the midst of deadly dangers they crossed the borders of dreamland.

Bob and Joe kept watch, and as the hours wore on the couriers of the coming dawn dispersed the storm-clouds until the heavens were smiling blue once more, and the waves no longer uplifted their crests in anger.

"There's as big a danger pa.s.sed as ever sailormen stood face to face with!" Bob said, giving vent to a long-drawn sigh of relief. "The little craft is hard and fast aground, of course; but six hours ago it didn't seem as if anything could save her from goin' to pieces, an' this same crowd here have got a mighty big reason for bein' thankful!"

The decks were yet awash, and would probably continue so for several hours, or until the waters of the tiny harbor had subsided into their former quietude; but it was possible to make one's way fore and aft without danger, as Joe proved when the day had dawned.

All the doors and hatches were securely closed when the gale first sprung up; therefore everything below was in much the same condition as before the storm. There had not water enough entered the seams or crevices to injure the stores, and the hull was comparatively free, as Bob learned on trying the hand-pump.

"I don't reckon we can count on leavin' this key in the Sea Bird," he said as he dropped the lead over the bow. "She has stuck her nose mighty deep in the sand, an' though that cable is strainin' hard astern, there's little chance it will work her off."

"And according to your ideas, those who stole the Bonita are ash.o.r.e somewhere; so as long as we're obliged to stay here it's safe to say there's a chance of trouble from them?"

"That's about the size of it, my hearty; but they may take a notion to put to sea, for it's likely their boat was cared for after comin'

ash.o.r.e. Howsomever, we won't look trouble in the face before it comes.

Let's rouse up the boys an' get breakfast under way, for I'm growin'

sharkish."

It is needless to make any attempt at depicting the joy of those in the pilot-house, when they opened their eyes, to see the bright sun smiling and the raging winds subsiding into the gentlest zephyrs that were ever wafted over a coral reef. This decided change was so pleasing that, despite all the trouble which surrounded them, they were very cheerful.

Jim bustled about in the galley as if cooking was the one delight of his life, and while Bob and Joe raised once more the awning to shelter them from the burning rays of the sun, Harry and Walter did their best toward spreading the breakfast-table in such a manner that it would at least look inviting.

The only immediate trouble which might be apprehended was from those who had probably taken refuge on the key, and with this they were confronted much sooner than the most timid expected.

Harry had just come on deck to announce that breakfast was ready, when a shout from the sh.o.r.e caused all hands to glance in that direction, where could be seen the red-nosed man and his companions emerging from the thicket.

"Halloo!" he shouted in a friendly tone, and without replying Bob held up his hand in token that the hail had been heard.

"The brig has gone to pieces, an' we're here with no chance of leavin'

the key," the man continued, much as if giving valuable information.

"Where's the boat? You came ash.o.r.e in one, I reckon."

"Yes: but she went adrift during the gale."

"If you couldn't take better care of her there's no reason why you shouldn't stay there till the schooner from Na.s.sau puts in here again!"

Joe shouted angrily. "We're aground, and likely to remain so; but that's no reason why there should be any communication between us!"

"Will you send us some grub ash.o.r.e?" the red-nosed man asked after a short pause, during which he stood as if trying to control his anger.

"Not so much as a biscuit if you were hungry; but that can't be, for it isn't likely you put off from the brig without provisions."

"All right!" the man cried with a threatening gesture. "You can do as you please an' we've got the same privilege, so it's a question as to who has the best end of the trade!"

"They thought we might be fools enough to take some grub ash.o.r.e, when, all three of 'em were ready to seize the boat," Bob said, as the men disappeared in the thicket. "It's a case of standin' by with our weather-eyes liftin', for if their yawl has gone adrift they'll try hard to steal ours. I'll go on watch while the rest of you get breakfast, for the water around the bow ain't so deep but that they can wade out here;"

and the old sailor seated himself on the starboard rail as Joe and the boys went into the forward cabin.

CHAPTER XXV.

A SERIOUS LOSS.

Joe stood guard in turn while Bob ate his breakfast, the boys setting things to rights in the cabin and galley, and when the old sailor came on deck again the question of what should be done was discussed.

"There ain't much chance we can do anything toward floating the steamer until after the machinery has been repaired," the engineer said, by way of beginning the conversation; "and before that can be done she will have settled so deep in the sand that the screw won't have any effect."

"That's jes' about the way I figger it out," Bob replied, as a troubled look came over his face. "The cable will stop her from workin' ahead; but she'll keep on settlin' jes' the same."

"And if we can't float her there's but one other course to pursue, which is to take to the yawl and run our risk of reaching Na.s.sau."