They might sink us with all hands."
"Rats!" said Mr. Gibney, as he leaped into the hold. "Bear a
light here until I can root out the wheels of these guns. Here
they are, labelled 'cream separator.' Stand by with that sling
to----"
"But, Gib, my _dear_ boy," protested Captain Scraggs, "this is
_insanity_!"
"I know it," said Mr. Gibney calmly. "Scraggsy, you're perfectly
right. But I'd sooner die fightin' than let them stand me up agin
a wall in Ensenada. We're filibusters, Scraggsy, and we're caught
with the goods. I, for one, am goin' down with the steamer
_Maggie_, but I'm goin' down fightin' like a bear."
"Maybe--maybe we can outrun her, Gib," half sobbed Captain
Scraggs.
"No hope," replied Mr. Gibney. "Fight and die is the last resort.
She's eight miles astern and gainin' every minute, and when she's
within two miles she'll open fire. Of course we won't be hit
unless they've got a Yankee gunner aboard."
"Let's run up the Stars and Stripes and dare 'em to fire on us,"
said Captain Scraggs.
"No," said Mr. Gibney firmly, "my old man died for the flag an'
I've sailed under it too long to hide behind it when I'm in
Dutch. We'll fight.
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