What d'
you say?"
'Frisco Kid shook his head, and, gazing up at the starlit heavens,
wandered off into dreams of the life he would like to lead but from
which he seemed inexorably shut out. The seriousness of life was
striking deeper than ever into Joe's heart, and he lay silent,
thinking hard. A mumble of heavy voices came to them from the
_Reindeer_; and from the land the solemn notes of a church bell
floated across the water, while the summer night wrapped them
slowly in its warm darkness.
CHAPTER XIV
AMONG THE OYSTER-BEDS
Time and the world slipped away, and both boys were aroused by the harsh
voice of French Pete from the sleep into which they had fallen.
"Get under way!" he was bawling. "Here, you Sho! Cast off ze gaskets!
Queeck! Lively! You Kid, ze jib!"
Joe was clumsy in the darkness, not knowing the names of things and the
places where they were to be found; but he made fair progress, and when
he had tossed the gaskets into the cockpit was ordered forward to help
hoist the mainsail. After that the anchor was hove in and the jib set.
Then they coiled down the halyards and put everything in order before
they returned aft.
"Vaire good, vaire good," the Frenchman praised, as Joe dropped in over
the rail. "Splendeed! You make ze good sailorman, I know for sure."
'Frisco Kid lifted the cover of one of the cockpit lockers and glanced
questioningly at French Pete.
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