“max,” said nick, after a pause, during which he had been watching the maneuvers of the harkaway as she came to her buoy on the anchorage, “i have not asked the question before, because i thought there was no need; but have you ever heard the suggestion that there was a pirate in this part of the world, before you met with your own experience?”

“never.”

“it is a pretty sure thing, isn’t it, that if somebody else had run afoul of him as you did, you would have heard of it?”

“i think it is; unless some other fellow has been boarded who felt about as cheap as i do about it, and has resolved to keep it to himself until somebody else speaks. that is why i had made up my mind to let out the whole thing at the club meeting to-night.”

“but, even in that case, the information would have been likely to leak out, don’t you suppose?”

“i certainly do.”

“i imagine there is a beginning to the career of a pirate, the same as there would be the beginning of a career in other professions, don’t you?”

“naturally.”

“and has it occurred to you that the fellow was sort of getting his hand in on you?”

[57]

“eh? what is that?”

“that he was practising on you?”

“maybe he was. you can search me.”

“you see, if there had been other robberies, we would have heard of it. if that pirate had been doing this sort of thing for an indefinite time, somebody would have talked about it before this, so i think it is safe to suppose that you have the honor of being captain sparkle’s first victim.”

“i have had that idea myself, nick. hello! what’s the matter with burton?”

“he seems to be wigwagging you,” remarked nick, turning his head so he could observe the owner of the harkaway.

“well, i wish he would have himself put aboard here, and do his talking like a christian. i never could get that wigwagging business into my head,” growled kane.

“i’ll read it for you,” said nick.

“i wish to goodness you would.”

after a moment of attentive observation, nick rose from his chair and went to the rail, from which place he also went through with a series of pantomimic gestures, and for several moments this was kept up between him and burton, aboard the other yacht. then he turned again to his host.

“your friend burton wigwags that he has met the pirate,” he said quietly.

“the devil he does!” replied kane.

“i have suggested to him that he say as little about[58] it as possible for the present, and that he order his men to keep silent, also; and i have taken the liberty to ask him to come aboard here at once and tell us all about it.”

“i’m mighty glad you did that.”

“here he comes now. he will be here in a moment.”

“i’m jolly glad we have got the goalong to ourselves,” said kane.

he rose then, and went to the side, where he awaited the arrival of his friend.

“glad to make your acquaintance, mr. burton,” said the detective, when they were introduced. “i hope you appreciated the logic of my suggestions while we were wigwagging each other.”

“entirely so. like you, i think it is well to keep quiet about it for awhile. at least, until we all get together at the meeting to-night.”

“and even then, also,” said nick. “mr. kane was boarded and robbed by the pirate last night, while the goalong was lying at this very buoy. he went to the city after me this morning, and we think that we already have some ideas about the new rover of the seas—or shall we call him ‘the pirate of the sound’?”

“that seems to be as good a title as any. so you were robbed, eh, kane?”

“yes; last night. just as carter says.”

“have you ever heard that anybody else has met the fellow?”

“no; i have not.”

[59]

“nor i. we must be the first ones on his list.”

“that is what carter and i were just saying.”

“he tackled you right here at the anchorage, eh?”

“yes.”

“and now, if you don’t mind, i would like to put in a word,” said nick.

“all right, mr. carter,” replied burton. “please consider that i am at your orders.”

“where did you meet with the pirate?”

“right out in the middle of the sound, about off hempstead bay.”

“when?”

“just at the break of day.”

“how did he approach you? how did he come aboard?”

“as for the manner in which he approached me, i have only the account of my men to rely upon, for i was asleep in my berth at the time.”

“tell me, then, what was told you about it.”

“simmons—he’s my captain—tells me that it was just coming daylight when he noticed a strange-looking craft lying directly across our bows, half a dozen cable-lengths ahead of us. we were going under half-speed at the time, and simmons had just taken in his lights.

“he whistled to pass to starboard, and put his helm over for that purpose, when, much to his surprise, the stranger backed swiftly, so that he kept directly across our course.

“simmons didn’t know what to make of that, so he whistled to pass to port, and changed his course to do[60] that, thinking that perhaps the stranger’s engines were disabled, or something of that kind.”

“well?”

“the strange-looking craft, instead of replying to simmons’ signal, shot ahead, and again laid across our course, and by this time simmons had approached so closely that he was compelled to reverse his engines in order to avoid a collision.

“he only escaped one by a hair’s breadth, too. when we came to a stop, there wasn’t more than two or three fathoms between us and the other craft.”

“a narrow shave, eh?”

“yes. by this time i had been roused by the blowing of our whistle, and i went on deck, half-dressed. there are no ladies on board the harkaway. and i made my appearance just in time to see the amidships turret of the stranger thrown open and half a dozen men appear on her deck.”

“your captain’s first idea was anger at the stranger, i suppose?”

“naturally; and he told them what he thought of their carelessness in the choicest sort of phrase, but they paid no more attention to him than you would to a honey-bee; and the next thing we knew was that we had drifted alongside, and the stranger had made fast to us.

“you see, mr. carter, it was all done so quickly and so deftly, and was so totally unexpected, that we had no time to prevent it, even if we had been on our guard[61] after the first discovery of the pirate; and we had no sooner touched and they had their lines fast, than half a dozen of their men leaped aboard of us.”

“were they masked?” asked kane.

“yes, masked, and armed, too, with rifles. they covered the whole lot of us in a jiffy; and more than that, their captain, who now appeared on the deck of the pirate, sang out to us, and at the same time pointed at his amidships turret—the one i mentioned a moment ago.

“say, kane, i’ll give you my word that i thought then that the whole thing was a huge joke of some sort that somebody was attempting to play on me. it looked like a scene out of a melodrama, or an opera. it’s a wonder i didn’t laugh; only i was too angry to do that, you know.”

“tell me about it,” said nick.

“well, there were the six masked men on our own deck, with six ugly-looking rifles aimed at us. and there was the captain of the pirate vessel, standing at ease on his own deck, dressed like a revival of hamlet who had been dipped in crimson dye, for he was as red as a poppy; and there, in the amidships turret, was the prettiest-looking brass-mouthed, rapid-fire gun you ever saw, frowning upon us.”

“gee! that is more than he treated me to!” said kane.

“well, it was there, all right. there was another pirate standing at the breech, too, ready to set the thing going if he was ordered to do so.

[62]

“the pirate chief was pointing at it when he sang out to us, and what he said was this:

“‘my men have orders to fire if you make the slightest show of resistance; and, you see, that with this machine-gun, i could mow you down without mercy. take my advice and keep quiet, and i promise you that no one shall be injured.’

“‘who the devil are you?’ i demanded.

“he made no reply to that, but swung himself aboard the yacht and walked directly up to me.

“‘you are mr. philip burton, are you not?’ he asked; and i——”

“wait a minute, burton,” interrupted kane. “did you notice anything familiar about his voice—eh?”

“not just at that moment; but later—before he went away—i say, you know, it’s a devilish mean thing for me to say, kane.”

“say it all the same. did he remind you of me, perhaps?”

“no; but he did remind me of that chap you brought aboard the harkaway the other evening at newport.”

“do you mean count cadillac?”

“yes, kane, i mean the count. i suppose he is here with you, is he not?”

“yes. he has gone ashore with the ladies just at present. but never mind all that. go ahead with your affair.”

“i hope you will pardon me for——”

“oh, bosh! we’ve been through all that. the count knows all about it, too. he—the pirate, i mean—reminded[63] us of the count, too. the count saw it himself. that was why i asked you the question. he won’t be offended. go on with your yarn.”

“well, as i was saying, he asked me if i was burton, and i replied that i was. then he made me a bow that would have made harry lehr green with envy, and replied:

“‘permit me to introduce myself. i am captain sparkle, of the pirate cruiser shadow. i will have to trouble you to the extent of collecting such valuables and cash as you may happen to have aboard, and i trust you will understand that this is no joke; in fact, that i am very much in earnest.’

“‘you at least have that appearance—all save your costume,’ i said to him; but he paid no attention to that remark.

“‘my men will now make the collection,’ he continued; ‘and i wish to assure you that nobody will be molested unless resistance is offered, in which case i shall not hesitate to shed blood if necessary.’

“‘well,’ i said, ‘since you seem to have the drop on me, go ahead.’

“he ordered my men aft, under the awning, after asking me if there were others below anywhere, and being assured that i was alone, save for my crew. then two of his men stood guard over us while the others did the looting. and say, they did it to the queen’s taste, too. i haven’t got a thing left aboard which would pawn for a twenty-dollar note, so help me!

“they carted the things to the deck in sacks, and[64] sheets, and pillow-cases, and any old thing they could discover to put them in, and they took all the silver i had, all my prize cups, half a dozen cases of that old port which i consider priceless, and, in fact, everything they could lay their hands on. then, before they went away, one of the men lifted my watch, my pin, about seven hundred in cash which i happened to have about me, and even my links. now, what do you think of that?”

“what next?”

“what next! what do you want next? isn’t that enough? there wasn’t any ‘next,’ save that captain sparkle went aboard of his own craft, following his men, disappeared below, pulled down the turret covers after him, and sped away like a shot out of a gun. say, kane, that shadow is the fastest thing i ever saw. she could go around me twice in ten miles, and i’m not taking any dust off the ocean from anybody around here, as you know. well, that’s my story. i thought i’d take a flier over here and tell the boys about it. just fancy! a pirate! in long island sound! in the year of our lord nineteen hundred and six! who would believe it? eh?”