come abo'd and Ah knowed right away dat we was gwine ter
hab hard luck dis cruise."

"You know who the Jonah is, then, do you?" inquired Grant, somewhat
amused by the black man's superstitions.

"Ah done tol' you all Ah seen him come abo'd," said Sam.

"Who is he?"

"Dat Finn."

"What Finn?" demanded Fred. "What is his name?"

"Ah doan' know his name, but he am de Jonah all right."

"What does he look like?" asked Fred.

"Like all de Finns," said Sam. "Big, wid light hair."

"You don't mean Mr. Johnson, the mate, do you?" said Grant.

"Suttinly not. Mr. Johnson am a Swede."

"Who can it be, do you suppose?" asked Grant of Fred and String and Pop.
The four friends were much interested in what Sam had to say.

"Dey calls him Pete," said Sam.

"Not Petersen?" exclaimed Fred. "The man who went up the mast with me?"

"Dat's de one," said Sam with great conviction. "He am a Jonah. Jus' so
long as he is on dis boat we is boun' to hab hard luck. He was de one
who was responsible fo' you all doin' dat dive."

"How silly," laughed Fred. "You don't think he pushed me, do you?"

"Ah ain't sayin' as how he done actually pushed you," said Sam
mysteriously. "All de same he was 'sponsible."

"Why do you suspect him, Sam?" asked String curiously.

"Because he am a Finn," said Sam.

"Is that the only reason?"

"Ain't dat enuff?" exclaimed Sam. "He's a Finn, ain't he? Well, doan'
you all know dat Finns is hard luck?"

"I never knew it," said Fred.

"Well it's de truth jus' de same," said Sam.

"Why is that?" asked Fred.

"Ah doan' know nothin' about why it is," said Sam. "All Ah knows is dat
Finns is hard luck on boats an' always has been."

"What can they do?"

"Dey say," whispered Sam in a low voice and leaning forward after a
glance around the cabin, "dat dey can make de wind blow or dey can make
it stop blowin'. Dey can make de storms come and if dey tries real hard
dey can wreck de whole ship."

"By doing what?" asked Grant.

"By doin' nothin'," replied Sam confidently. "Dey jus' sits in de cabin
and thinks and thinks and wha'soever dey thinks about is boun' to
happen."

"It wouldn't do to get one of them mad at you then, would it?" remarked
Pop.

"Ah should say not," exclaimed Sam with great conviction.

"Haven't you ever sailed with Finns before?" asked Grant.

"Once, an' dat time we had nothin' but head winds an' calms all de
blessed time. Dat proves what Ah say about dem Finns, doan' it?