During the afternoon Ned made a little journey up into the Minories, to
the studio of a clever marine artist to whom he had given a commission
to paint the portrait of the ship; and when he reached the place he was
much gratified to find that not only was the picture finished, but also
that it was a capital representation of the _Flying Cloud_ as she would
appear at sea under all plain sail upon a taut bowline. Her ensign was
shown flying from the peak; the house-flag--a large square white flag,
with blue border, blue Saint Andrew's cross, and a large letter B in red
in the centre--floated from the main-skysail-mast-head, and her number
from the mizen, in response to a signal from another ship seen in the
distance. It was a very spirited picture, and as Ned paid down its
price, and gave instructions for its immediate despatch to his father's
address, he felt that the money had been well laid out.

The hatches were put on, and, with the exception of the after-hatch,
battened down that evening; and, whilst this was being done, Captain
Blyth made his appearance on board, accompanied by a friend, a certain
Captain Spence, who had been invited to take a farewell glass of wine in
the _Flying Cloud's_ saloon. Captain Spence was in command of a very
fine ship, named the _Southern Cross_, some two hundred tons larger than
the _Flying Cloud_. She also was in the Australian trade; and though
the two ships belonged to rival lines, and there was intense emulation
between the skippers of the "Bruce" and the "Constellation" clippers,
Captains Blyth and Spence were old and sincere friends, and the rivalry
between them was all in good part. They had long been secretly anxious
to have a fair race together; but hitherto circumstances had been
against them. Now, however, their opportunity had come, for the
_Southern Cross_ had also been loading in the London docks for
Melbourne, the port to which the _Flying Cloud_ was bound, and, like the
latter, was to haul out of dock with the morrow's tide; and the two
skippers had each made a bet of a new hat that his own ship would make
the passage from Gravesend to Port Phillip Heads in a less number of
hours than the other, which bet was now to be ratified over their
parting glass of wine. The _Southern Cross_, however, would get the
start by about one day, as the _Flying Cloud_ was to call at Tilbury
Fort to take on board a quantity of ammunition for the guns and rifles
which she was car