“Let’s try to wake Growler and Prowler up,” Ann begged.  “They can’t be sound asleep yet.”

The two mates were not only sound asleep but snoring loudly.  Ann and Peter tried shaking them, spanking them, even drenching them with the cold remains of the catnip tea, but it was all no use, they could not get them to stir.  Meanwhile the Merry Mouser was drifting dangerously near land, in spite of all Rudolf could do to prevent her.  He did several things and he ordered Peter and Ann to do a good many others, but all of them felt glad the False Hare was not there to compliment them on their seamanship.  At last there came a dull shock and a jar, and the Merry Mouser ran her nose into a sand-bar, quivered all over, and then stood still.

“The thing to do now” said Rudolf easily, just as if he had planned it all, “is for us to get into the little boat we are towing and row ourselves ashore.  Of course we must wake up the mates and the crew and take them with us.”

It was simply astonishing the things those children had to do to Growler and Prowler before they could get either of them so much as to open an eye!  When they were at last able to understand what had happened, they merely turned over and growled out:  “Oh, is that all?  Aground, are we?  Ye needn’t have waked us up for that!  Be off as soon as ye like and give us some rest—­do!” They had hardly left off speaking before they were sound asleep again.  As for Toddles and Towser they refused to wake at all.

The children left them where they lay and climbed Over the side of the Merry Mouser into the little rowboat which Rudolf had brought alongside.  When all were safely aboard, he cut loose the tow-rope, took the oars, and pulled away from the pirate ship.  After a short and pleasant row they reached a gently shelving beach where it was not difficult to make a landing.

[Illustration]

[Illustration]

CHAPTER IX

CAPTAIN JINKS

Ann stood and stared at the line of low hills that fringed the edge of the water.  “What funny, funny country!” she exclaimed.  “It’s like a checker-board going up-hill.”

“No, it isn’t either,” said Rudolf, who loved to disagree, “because the squares are not square, they’re all different shapes and sizes and they’re not just red and black but ever and ever so many different colors.”

“It’s something like the countries in the geography maps, anyway,” said Ann.

“It’s like patchwork,” said Peter, and he came nearest the truth.

As it did not seem likely they would need the little boat again, the children left it to float away if it liked, and crossed the strip of gray sand to where they saw a little pink and white striped path winding up the side of a crimson hill.  This path they began to follow, and it took them by so many twists and turns that they hardly noticed the climb.  When the last loop brought them to the top of the slope they stood still and looked about them, surprised and delighted at the beauty of the bare bright hills that sloped away in front of them.