There were six rowers in her, and I observed
that they pulled with oars in oar-locks, after the manner of trained
seamen, and so I knew they belonged to a civilized race; but their
opinion of me must have been anything but flattering when they mistook
my purpose with the gun and pulled away with all their might. I made
them understand by signs, but not without difficulty, that I did not
intend to shoot, that I was simply putting the piece in the cabin, and
that I wished them to return. When they understood my meaning they
came back and were soon on board.
One of the party, whom the rest called "king," spoke English; the
others spoke Spanish. They had all heard of the voyage of the _Spray_
through the papers of Valparaiso, and were hungry for news concerning
it. They told me of a war between Chile and the Argentine, which I had
not heard of when I was there. I had just visited both countries, and
I told them that according to the latest reports, while I was in
Chile, their own island was sunk. (This same report that Juan
Fernandez had sunk was current in Australia when I arrived there three
months later.)
I had already prepared a pot of coffee and a plate of doughnuts,
which, after some words of civility, the islanders stood up to and
discussed with a will, after which they took the _Spray_ in tow of
their boat and made toward the island with her at the rate of a good
three knots. The man they called king took the helm, and with whirling
it up and down he so rattled the _Spray_ that I thought she would
never carry herself straight again.
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