HUNTING THE SEA OTTER. 85 



.and you know Baker cannot leave the schooner, and then 

 the cruise will end in disappointment and failure. While as 

 to compensation, that is hard enough to obtain from an 

 individual, but from a government the very essence of red 

 tape, and an eastern one, too, the idea is preposterous. Of 

 course it might be obtained, and very probably it would be, 

 but only at the expense of an amount of patience I, for one, 

 .am not at all ambitious to practise. There is nothing like 

 determination in a case like this, tell them you do not 

 mean to be taken away, and trust the rest to fortune, and, 

 if you have to go, we shall be conscious of having done 

 our best." 



Snow thereupon turned to the interpreter, telling him 

 they had no right to take him prisoner, for it amounted to 

 that, under any consideration ; more especially for anything 

 that he might or might not have done a year ago ; and, 

 in short, that he did not mean to go, and dared them to do 

 their worst. 



This bold speech, when interpreted, seemed to stagger 

 .all but the Governor, who made an insulting remark, the 

 last straw that broke the camel's back ; for Snow, whose 

 wrath had been gathering for some time, and who, rightly 

 -or wrongly, attributed the annoyance to the Governor's 

 greed, turned upon him and, bursting out into a torrent of 

 reproaches, shook his fist in his face and gave him " such a 

 talking to " as the poor man, unless married, had never 

 received before. All his broken promises, written and 

 verbal, were alluded to in no measured terms, while his 

 motives were canvassed in decidedly uncomplimentary 

 terms. There was no need of an interpreter here, as every- 

 thing was uttered in Japanese, which we all spoke well. I 

 had been watching my opportunity, took advantage of the 

 consternation created, and whispering to the skipper 

 to keep his eye on the swords piled in a corner 

 behind him and to follow as soon as we gained the deck, 

 took hold of Snow's arm, saying: "Now is the time to 

 clear out," shoved him towards the door. Snow took the 



