outside
Cardiff. The rugged ex-boatswain had a machine for trying strength,
and asked him to have a go. Captain Leigh recognized his old shipmate
by a defect in his speech, and made himself known. Shorty was filled
with delight, and would have given him the whole show. He rushed off,
called out to a lady who was attending to the machine, and brought her
to be introduced.

"This is my bit o' cracklen, Jim. She's a good 'un, she is. Now, don't
ye be a-fallin' in love with her, James, as you used to with the other
girls out in Chili, ancetera, ancetera. Don't ye reckonize her? Don't
ye remember that fine hotel we landed in, and the wardrobe and one or
two other incidents?"

"I do," said Captain James Leigh; "but surely this is not?"

"Yes, it is," said the proud husband. "It's she, isn't it, chubby?"

The lady merely nodded her head and smiled.

"Then what have you been doing, Shorty, all these years?"

"This," said he, pointing to the show. "I never got over the 'orror of
that night, so I made my mind up not to go a rovin' agen; and this
'ere girl, that I thought so badly of, 'as helped me to make a livin'
ever since I came across her. Very queer, you was right; she was sort
o' confined to the 'ouse, but had nothin' to do with the corpse. She
didn't know of it until I told her."

"My God! don't talk of it, Shorts. I cannot bear to think of it even
now. But how did you pick her up?"

"At the docks," said John Shorts. "She came to look for us, and I took
on with her and got married."

"You must have had a strong belief in her."

"Yes; and so would you if you knew her as I do. I'd trust my money,
and my life, and everything with her. D'ye see that waggon of mats and
baskets? That's her department; started on her own 'ook. My word,
she's a daisy."

"Well, Shorty, I'm delighted to see you. And now I must be going. You
seem quite happy."

"Happy," said the boatswain, "that's not a name for it. It's 'eaven on
earth this 'ere thing," looking and pointing at his wife. Breaking off
quickly, he said, "'Ave ye ever heard from Chili, Jim?"

"Oh yes," said he; "I had a letter only the other day from Dutchy. The
old owner died, and left all his money to his two daughters and
Dutchy, who married the eldest."

"That's a bit thick, isn't it, Jim--for that fat Dutchman to go
wandering about the Spanish Main doin' all sorts of things, and then
fall on his feet like this?"

"Well," said Jim, "you have fallen on your feet,