This silenced our pursuers for a few minutes, during which we continued our progress, snail-like at the best, for the boat in front looked like a slug.

"I'd give the order to them to draw aside and let us pa.s.s, Herrick,"

whispered the lieutenant, who now, in this time of peril, grew very warm and friendly; "but--ah, that's getting dangerous."

For another volley from very near at hand rattled over us, and was answered by our men.

"What was I going to say?" continued the lieutenant coolly, "Oh, I remember! If we tried to get by them they might take the ground with all that load, and be stuck."

"And it would be a pity to have to leave that load, sir," I said.

"Velly best load--allee best silk!" cried Ching excitedly, "Good, velly good plize-money!"

There was a roar of laughter at this, and Mr Reardon cried--

"Silence!"

Then, sharply, "Fire, my lads, if you see any one following."

"Ay, ay, sir."

"Yes, it would be a pity," said the lieutenant thoughtfully; "but it's tempting. If we could get in front, Herrick, we could tow the load, and it would shelter us all from the firing."

"Unless they got to be level with us, sir," I said.

"And--quick! right and left, my lads. Fire!" cried the lieutenant; for there was the breaking of undergrowth close at hand on either side, and a savage yelling commenced as our pursuers forced their way through.

The men, who had been like hounds held back by the leash, were only too glad to get their orders; and in an instant there was quite a blaze of fire from both sides of the boat, the bullets cutting and whistling through the thick trees and undergrowth; and the movement on the banks, with the cracking and rustling of the bushes and tufts of bamboo, stopped as if by magic.

"Cease firing!" cried Mr Reardon; and then, as if to himself, "Every shot is wasted."

I did not think so, for it had checked the enemy, who allowed us to go on slowly another hundred yards or so.

"Allee velly dleadful," whispered Ching to me, as he crouched in the bottom of the boat. "You tinkee hit Ching?"

"I hope not," I said. "Oh no; we shall get out into the river directly."

"No," he said; "velly long way yet."

"But who are these?" I said--"some village people?"

"Pilate," he cried. "Allee come home not kill, and findee plize-money gone. Makee velly angly. Wantee chop off sailor head."

"Like to catch 'em at it," growled Tom Jecks, who had been very silent for some time.

"Silence there!" cried Mr Reardon sternly. Then to me, "We seem to have checked them, Herrick."

At that moment there was a sudden stoppage in front, and our c.o.xswain growled--

"Starn all!"

"What is it?" cried Mr Reardon, rising.

There was a rattle of matchlocks from our right, and Mr Reardon fell sidewise on to me.

"Hurt, sir?" I cried in agony.

"Yes, badly--no--I don't know," he cried, struggling up with his hand to his head. "Here! why has that boat stopped?"

His voice was drowned by the reports of our men's rifles, as they fired in the direction from which the shots had come; and just then a voice from the laden boat came through the semi-darkness--

"Ahoy!"

"Yes; what is it?" I said, as I saw that a man had crawled over the stack-like load.

"There's a gang in front, sir; and we're aground."

"And the tide falling," muttered Mr Reardon. "Herrick, I'm a bit hurt; get our boat close up; half the men are to come astern here, and check the enemy; the other half to help unload and get enough into our boat to lighten the other."

"Yes, sir," I said; and I gave the orders as quickly and decisively as I could.

The men responded with a cheer; and, with scarcely any confusion, our boat's head was made fast to the other's stern, and the men swarmed on to the top of the load, and began to pa.s.s down the bales rapidly from hand to hand.

Crash came a ragged volley from right ahead now; but this was answered by three rifles in the stern of the laden boat, and repeated again and again, while the strong party in the stern of ours kept up a fierce fire for a few minutes.

It was a perilous time, for we knew that if the enemy pushed forward boldly we should be at their mercy. They could come right to the edge of the bank unseen, so dense was the cover; and, working as our men were at such a disadvantage in the gloom, which was rapidly growing deeper, there was no knowing how long it would be before the first boat was sufficiently lightened to float again; it even seemed to be possible that we might not keep pace with the fall of the tide, and then perhaps we should also be aground.

"Hurt much, sir?" I said to Mr Reardon, who was now seated resting his head upon his hand.

"Don't take any notice of me, my lad," he said, pressing my hand. "Hit by a bullet. Not very bad; but I'm half stunned and confused. The men and boats, Herrick; save them."

"If I can," I thought, as I hurried forward again, and gave orders to the men to pa.s.s the silk bales that were nearest to the bows.

"Ay, ay, sir," they shouted, as readily as if I had been the captain.

From here I went back to the stern, where I found that Mr Reardon was seated now in the bottom of the boat, supported by Ching, while the men were keeping up a steady fire at every spot from which a shot or yell came.

"We're hard at it, sir," said Tom Jecks, who was handling his rifle as coolly as if it had been a capstan bar; "but I don't think we're hitting any of 'em. How's the first luff seem?"

"I don't know," I said excitedly.

"Well, sir, we're all right," said the man, "and are doing our best.

You needn't stop if you can hurry the boys on forward."

It was a fact; I could do no good at all, so I hurried forward again.

But even here I could do nothing; the men had their task to do of lightening the first boat, and they were working as hard as if they had been lying down in the shade all day, and just as coolly, though every now and then the rough slugs the pirates fired from their clumsy matchlocks went spattering through the trees overhead and sent down fresh showers of leaves and twigs.

But I was obliged to say something, and I shouted first one order and then another.