a patent crane, which stood upon the dock.

A number of negroes were at work lowering it down, when suddenly
something cracked and the most of them let go the winch.

The great timber must have come down on the deck with damaging effect if
Lee, who had often seen such cranes used before, had not jumped to the
safety-break, at the risk of being killed by the whirling winch-handles,
and brought the beam to a stand before it could do any damage.

"Well done, my lad!" shouted a stout, bronzed man, from the vessel. "You
just stay there and work those other three timbers down on deck, and
I'll pay you for it. I'm short handed. But, stop; maybe you belong to
some of these other vessels? No? Well, I'll be as good as my word. My
mate's sick with this confounded North Carolina fever, and the
second-mate's got some kind of 'fantods,' too, and is laid up, and I
want to get away to-day."

"Send me out a drink of water and a piece of hard tack, sir, and I'll
stop here till the timbers are on board."

"Steward," called the captain, "there's a boy out there on the dock; I
want you to take him something to eat and drink. He's the one at the
break. Now, bear a hand and sling another one."

While they were slinging it Lee managed to eat something, and in an hour
the whole were safely on deck and securely chocked. Then the captain saw
Lee still on the dock and beckoned him on board.

"Now, here's a half-dollar for you, my lad. Do you belong about these
parts? Don't look as if you did. But, no matter; I s'pose you've run
away from some vessel. Now, I'm bound to Havana with this load of
lumber, and I'll ship you, if you like."

"I would rather ship in some vessel going north, sir."

"Well, maybe you can and maybe you can't. I'm going to haul out, right
away. Go, or not go? What do you say?"

"Are you going home from Havana, captain?"

"I can't say. I will, if I get a charter. But, being short handed, I'd
like to have a good, active, stout lad, like you, and will give you
ordinary seamen's wages. Haven't been much to sea, have you?"

"No, sir; but I'm not a bad schooner sailor, and can reef and steer."

"Well, I don't want any shilly-shally! Say yes or no. I have my
clearance, and here comes the tug to take me down the Sound."

"Well, yes, then."

And so it came about that Lee found himself, within half an hour, bound
down for Hatteras Inlet and thence for Havana, when he had only started
from home to go halibut fishing!