“We shall not remain long,--two or three days, or perhaps a week,” said he; and after a pause he added, “but I will let you know in time.”
He inquired our names, and where we wanted to go; praised the breakfast unstintedly; bent furtive glances of coarse admiration on Alice from time to time; and conducted himself all through with the utmost assurance.
When we rose from the table and went out on the beach, he drew some long, plantation Cuban cigars from his pocket, offered us each one, which we did not refuse, and we began to smoke together.
Presently he spied on the beach one of the cages of gourds such as we had used in raising the galleon,--an extra one, not used. He walked up to this object and contemplated it for several moments, turning it over with his foot.
Finally he said, “Mr. Millward, I am a good deal puzzled over this thing. I suppose it was cast up here by the sea. Can you tell me what it is for?”
“Well, it is very surprising indeed. In our sloop in the open sea a hundred miles west of here we came across thousands of these things floating in the water--literally thousands of them, all just like this one, four gourds in a willow cage, with a wooden hook at the end of a line. If it is some sort of fishing-apparatus I don’t understand how it could be used. And where did they all come from?”
Though this made me feel decidedly uncomfortable, I could hardly forbear laughing, as the thought of the sea full of gourds, and the puzzle which they would present to a chance navigator, came thus forcibly to mind.
He looked at the thing a moment longer, gave it a vicious kick as though to punish it for daring to puzzle him, and then turned away.
Mr. Millward then took him to our flourishing garden, and said the visitors would be welcome to a supply of fresh vegetables if they desired it. A huge bunch of plantains caught the captain’s eye, as it hung in the porch of the house, and he said, “Do you find plantains on the island?”
“Yes,” answered Mr. Millward, “and bananas as well. If you like we can supply your party with both.”
“If we expected to remain long it would be an object. But we shall be going so soon now that it is scarcely worth the trouble.”
We then returned to the house at the visitor’s suggestion, and he with the most formal courtesy, as though parting with a hostess, took Alice Millward’s hand and thanked her for his breakfast and said adieu to her and us.