s stupid head; and besides, it
seems so blackguardly, as a doctor's son, to be fighting a chap like
that."

"Oh, I don't know," said Mike thoughtfully: "I shall be a Sir some day,
I suppose."

"What a game!" chuckled Vince--"Sir Michael Ladelle!"

"I don't see anything to laugh at," said Mike; "but, as I was saying, if
we don't lick him every now and then there'll be no bearing it. He'll
get worse and worse."

So it was to show their contempt for the young lout that they invented
names for him--weakly, perhaps, but very boylike--and for a time he was
James the Second, but the lad seemed rather to approve of that; and it
was soon changed for Barnacle, which had the opposite effect, and two
fights down in a sandy cave resulted, at intervals of a week, one with
each of his enemies, after which the Barnacle lay down as usual, and
cried into the sand, which acted, Vince said, like blotting paper.

Tar-pot, suggested by a begrimed appearance, lasted for months, and was
succeeded by Doughy, and this again by Puffy, consequent upon the lad's
head having so peculiar a tendency to what home-made bread makers call
"rise," and as there was no baker on Cormorant Crag the term was
familiar enough.

A whole string of forgotten names followed, but none of them stuck, for
they did not irritate Carnach junior; but the right one in the boys'
eyes was found at last, upon a very hot day, following one upon which
Vince and Mike had been prawning with stick and net among the rock pools
under the cliffs,--and prawning under difficulties. For as they climbed
along over, or waded amongst the fallen rocks detached from the towering
heights above, Carnach junior, who had watched them descend, furnished
himself with a creel full of heavy pebbles, and, making his way to the
top of the cliffs, kept abreast and carefully out of sight, so as to
annoy his natural enemies from time to time by dropping a stone into, or
as near as he could manage to the little pool they were about to fish.

Words, addressed apparently to space, though really to the invisible
foe, were vain, and the boys fished on; but they did not take home many
prawns for Mrs Burnet to have cooked for their tea.

The very next day, though, they had their revenge, for they came upon
the lad toiling homeward, shouldering a couple of heavy oars, a boat
mast and yard, and the lug-sail rolled round them, and lashed so as to
form a big bundle, as much as he could carry; and, conseque