A Queer Race: The Story of a Strange People — page 74: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

A QUEER RACE. — 71 i merely asked why on earth he expected to find the treasure-ship in that particular spot, especially as we did not know within a thousand miles where we were. | ‘“We are in the doldrums,” he answered, doggedly; ‘there can be no doubt about that; and I have always said as if the Santa Anna was not cast away—and I don’t think she was cast away—lI have always said she was somewhere in the doldrums; and I am sure I am right.” this was conclusive, and I could only say that I hoped we should sight the Santa Annu soon, and find her treas- ure aboard. “Qh, we shall find the treasure, sure enough! What would be the use of sighting her if we didn’t?” CHAPTER XII. BEFOGGED. As may be supposed, life on the becalmed vessel was not particularly amusing. We had not much to talk about, and out of his own line old Tom was as ignorant as an infant. ‘There were, fortunately, plenty of books on board—at least a hundred of them being fiction—-and I spent much of my time in reading, and studying, as well as I could with the means at my disposal, the theory of navigation. Then I wrote up the log-book, or rather, made an entry in it every day, for there was very little to set down. Had I not done so I should have lost count of time, so like was one day to another. Now and then I went into the engine room, and by getting up steam, starting and stopping the engine, I familiarized myself with its working. After awhile, I became a fairly expert engineer, and had our coal bunkers not been so nearly empty, I should have shipped the screw and steamed in the direction whither I thought lay the nearest land. Bolsover pottered about the ship, mended sails, spiiced ropes, washed the decks, smoked, and slept; yet he got very weary, and one day proposed that, by way of diver- sion, we should make war on the rats. I asked how he would do it, seeing that we had neither cats, traps, dogs, nor ferrets. ‘«7 will make the beggars drown themselves,” he said. And then he disclosed his plan. Rats, he explained, (E(0) mm C ,00 <S (Elo)