Yase, yase, dere he is! I see him! I see him! Carajo! Cozenheiro maldito!" This news came upon us like a thunderbolt, but none of us would believe it until we had been absolutely convinced of the truth of what the steward had stated by seeing for ourselves.

Yet, there was no mistake; for sure enough we could presently see with our own eyes, Ching Wang on the friendliest terms, apparently, with a lot of the yellow pirate rascals, who were of his own celestial nationality, away forward, the cook showing them all that was to be seen and grinning and gesticulating away finely! Still, even then we could hardly believe in his treachery.
Somehow or other, too, whether through Ching Wang's offices or not, of course, we could not say, the pirates did not bother us much during the day, only coming up to the skylight occasionally and firing down on us as well as they could with their clumsy muskets and pistols--a fire which we just as promptly returned, aiming wherever we saw a flash.
They once pitched in one of their terrible fire balls or "stink-pots" of fulminating stuff to asphyxiate us with its beastly smell; but Tim Rooney, taking hold of it and plunging the obnoxious thing in a bucket of water, rid us at once of the poisonous fumes.
In the evening, when it was growing dark, a tapping was heard at one of the ports in the captain's cabin; and both Tim and I were just on the point of firing, when, to our great surprise Ching Wang's well-known voice was heard.
"Chin, chin lilly pijjin! Comee one chop quick, me wantee talkee talkee.

Lis'en me, an' you lickee kyfong number one go!" "I thought he'd never turn traitor," cried Captain Gillespie emphatically; Tim Rooney adding with equal warmth, "Nor I, sorr.

I've allers found the Chinee chap a good Oirishman ivery day he's bin' aboord!" The upshot of Ching Wang's communication was, that the pirates were anxious to get all they could out of the ship and clear off; and, believing that he had joined them, they had sent him to negotiate terms with the captain, the pirate chief saying that he would spare all our lives if we would let him have what dollars there was on board and a ransom for the ship, on account, of course, of their not being able to get at the cargo.
Before Captain Gillespie could indignantly refuse making any terms with the rascals, Ching Wang proceeded to say that he had overheard the pirates saying that the reason for their violent hurry was that an English gunboat had been seen in the distance cruising off the mouth of the Canton river.
"Me gottee sampan," continued Ching Wang, declaring now his real motive.
"Lilly pijjin squeezee one port, me go along findee gunboat an' catchee kyfong chop chop!" "First rate," cried Mr Mackay, who acted as general interpreter, knowing the Chinaman's lingo well, explaining that the reason why Ching Wang had not gone off by himself in the sampan was that he did not know the right course to steer for the Canton river in the first place; and, secondly, he was afraid that the officers of the gunboat might not believe his story about the Silver Queen being assailed by pirates unless some European belonging to her accompanied him.

"Nothing could have been more sensible, you see, cap'en; and Ching Wang's got his head screwed on straight." "And where is this boat ye're going in ?" "Sampan, go long now," returned Ching Wang, motioning with his hand to the water below the stern.