ship's cook—and then you were treated handsome—or Cap'n Silver, a common mutineer and pirate, and then you can go hang!"
"Well, well, cap'n," returned the sea-cook, sitting down as he was bidden on the sand, "you'll have to give mie a hand up again, that's all. A sweet, pretty place you have of it here. Ah, there's Jim! The top of the morning to you, Jim. Doctor, here's my service. Why, there you all are together like a happy family, in a manner of speaking."
"If you have anything to say, my man, better say it," said the captain.
"Right you are, Cap'n Smollett," replied Silver.
"Dooty is dooty, to be sure. Well, now, you look here, that was a good lay of yours last night. I don't deny it was a good lay. Some of you are pretty handy with a handspike-end. And I'll not deny neither but what some of my people was shook—may be all was shook; may be I was shook myself; may be that's why I'm here for terms. But you mark me, cap'n, it won't do twice, by thunder! We'll have to do sentry go, and ease off a point or so on the rum. May be you think we were all a sheet in the wind's eye. But I'll tell you I was sober; I was on'y dog tired; and if I'd awoke a second sooner, I'd a caught you at the act, I would. He wasn't dead when I got round to him, not he."
"Well?" says Captain Smollett, as cool as can be.
All that Silver said was a riddle to him, but you would never have guessed it from his tone. As for me, I began to have an inkling. Ben Gunn's last words
