"
I gave my promise willingly, and I can honestly say that, on, my part,
I bore no grudge against Van Luck, nor against any man of the ship's
company, though I could see that Van Luck would never forgive me for
having bested him, nor could I disguise from myself the fact that there
were some among the crew who sided with him.
CHAPTER VII
THE SPIRIT OF DISCORD
The days which followed my fight with Van Luck were full of anxiety for
those who were responsible for the safety of the ship. It was evident
that a spirit of discord had begun to show itself among the crew, which
threatened a mutiny. Janstins, the pilot, whom we knew to be
trustworthy, did not attempt to hide the peril that was brewing in the
forecastle.
"Those lubbers for'ard," he said when Hartog, he, and I sat together
one evening in the cabin, "will make trouble if they can. They are a
pig-headed lot, and a dozen apiece at the gratings would do them no
harm. But while they outnumber us, as they do, three to one, we must
avoid a quarrel. Besides, if we got the upper hand, and drove the scum
into the sea, we'd be undermanned for the voyage, and unable to weather
the first storm that came upon us.
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