“Of course it will, and if you’ll kindly bring it here, it’ll be a great help.  I reckon if I keep her head about—­”

“Nor’ by west.”

“Ay, ay, sir, that’s it, I have no doubt.  If I keep her head nor’ by west, I dare say we shall fetch Callao as soon as you was a-saying just now.  But Bill and me should have the compass before us when we’re steering; and to-morrow we’ll try to rig up a bit of a binnacle.  You, perhaps, would not mind fetching it now, sir?—­Bring that patent lantern of yours, Bill.”

I fetched the compass and Yawl the lantern, made of a glass bottle and a piece of copper sheeting (like the rest of our equipments, the spoil of the sea).

Kidd was quite delighted with the compass, the card of which was properly marked and framed in a block of wood, and said it could easily be suspended on gimbals and fixed on a binnacle.

After a while, Angela, who felt tired, went below, and I with her, but only to fetch my cobija and a pillow, for, as I told Kidd, I intended to remain on deck all night, the cabin being too close and stuffy for two persons.  This was true, yet not the whole truth.  I had another reason; I saw that nothing would be easier than for Kidd or Yawl to slip on the cabin-hatch while I was below, and so have us at their mercy, for Ramon, though a stalwart youth enough, could not contend with the two sailors single-handed.

“Just as you like, sir; it’s all the same to me,” answered Kidd, rather shortly, and then relapsed into thoughtful silence.

I felt sure that he was scheming something which boded us no good, though, as yet, I had no idea what it could be.  His motive for desiring to take the sloop to Islay or Arica, rather than to Callao, was pretty obvious, but why he should change his mind on the subject simply because of the compass, passed my comprehension.  We could make Callao merely by running up the coast, with which, despite his disclaimer, I had not the least doubt he was quite familiar; and even if he were not, there was nothing in a compass to enlighten him.

But whatever his scheme might be I did not think he would attempt to use force—­unless he could take us at a disadvantage.  Man for man, Ramon and I were quite equal to Kidd and Yawl.  We were, moreover, better armed, as so far as I knew, they had no weapons, save their sailors’ knives.  In a personal struggle, they might come off second best; were, in any case, likely to get badly hurt, and unless I was much mistaken, they wanted to get hold of my diamonds with a minimum of risk to themselves.  Wherefore, so long as we kept a sharp lookout, we had little to fear from open violence.  As for the scheme which was seething in Kidd’s brain, I must needs wait for further developments before taking measures to counteract it.

When I had come to this conclusion I told Ramon, in Quipai, to lie down, and that when I wanted to sleep I would waken him.