Up the rocks came the hard-drunken sailors, accompanied by Lesher, and with Dan Baxter in their rear.

“Back! back!  All of you, stand back!” cried Captain Blossom.  “Come a step nearer at your peril.  We are all armed and ready to fire!”

At these words the sailors halted for a moment.

“Say, cap’n, why did you set the ship afire?” asked an unsteady voice.

“We had nothing to do with that,” answered Captain Blossom.  “We were all over on this island when the blaze started.”

“It’s a lie!” came in the voice of Lesher.

“Of course it’s a lie,” added Dan Baxter.  “They did their best to burn every one of us up.

“It is the truth,” cried Dick.  “Now stand back, or we shall fire on you.”

“Come on!” yelled Lesher, and fired a pistol at those near the mouth of the cave.

“If ever I get the chance to have you tried, every one of you shall be hung for mutiny and murder!” cried Captain Blossom, and then fired in return.

The bullet hit Dan Baxter in the arm, and he fell back with a shriek of pain.

“I am killed!  I am killed!” he moaned, and ran down toward the beach.

Then came a volley from the mutineers, followed by one from those in the cave.

“Oh, what a close ’shave!” muttered Tom.  A bullet had grazed his ear, cutting away one of his curly locks.

Lesher was wounded in the shoulder, and in a moment more of the mutineers ran off, feeling that they were at a disadvantage.

“They can see us out in the open, while we can’t see them for the rocks and bushes,” said one sailor.  “Let us wait till morning “; and so it was decided.

Inside of the cave a council of war was held, and it was decided to block up the entrance fronting the bay with large rocks, leaving only two loopholes open, for watching and for possible shooting.

All of the wounded ones were cared for, and then a watch was set.  In the meantime Bostwick was put at ease, and he told the particulars of what happened on the burning wreck, and how Lesher and Baxter had urged the mutineers to attack those at the house.

The remainder of the night wore away slowly.  Nothing more was seen of the mutineers, who had retired to the jungle, drank more liquor, and gone to sleep, Baxter with them, moaning and groaning over his wound.

“I am going to take a look around,” said Tom, early in the morning.

“A look around where?” asked Dick.

“From where we have the signal of distress.  I don’t believe any of the mutineers are in that vicinity.”

“I’ll go with you,” put in Sam, and so it was decided.

It was an easy matter for the two boys to make their way to the gully entrance, and with great caution they climbed out of the opening and walked to where the flag of distress floated in the breeze.  Not a sight of the mutineers or Dan Baxter was to be had in any direction.