Page:Daring deeds of famous pirates; true stories of the stirring adventures, bravery and resource of pirates, filibusters & buccaneers (1917).djvu/219

 Dawes was terrified beyond expression at these two incidents, so that he scarcely knew what to do. The confederates then ordered him to call a man named James Talbot who had declined to take part in the plot. Talbot was in the forecastle saying his prayers. He came up, and the confederates did not instantly put him to death, as he had quite expected, but, on the contrary, gave him some grog. The captain and mate being now out of the way, the confederates then got up a keg containing dollars. They then divided the captain's clothes, the sum of eight pounds, which he possessed, and a gold watch. Dawes was ordered to go back to the helm and to steer for Long Island, while Talbot was likewise compelled to do as he was told. The next day several more kegs of specie, amounting to £1000 each, were divided and the specie placed into bags and sewn up. After this the money was divided up without counting it.

Gibbs had been acting as captain ever since the two murders, and when they arrived about fifteen miles south-south-*east of Southampton Light the ship's boats were ordered out, half the money was placed in each, and the survivors got in. Before doing so, however, the ship was scuttled and set fire to in the cabin, so that before long she would founder and so not exist as possible evidence against the assassins. But after the boats had rowed away towards the shore, soon after daylight, they stuck on the bar. One of them was saved by throwing overboard about £1000 in dollars, but the other was seen to fill and founder as the men in her vainly sought to cling to the masts of the craft. Those in the other craft, however, were more fortunate and landed on Barron Island, buried the money in the sand and soon afterwards fell in with a man who took them to the only house on the island.