ly the rebels with one hundred thousand
rifles, with the necessary ammunition, at a price which, if the venture
is successful, will make it possible for me to give up the sea
altogether and live ashore at my ease.'

"`Yes, yes,' I interrupted, rather impatiently; `this is interesting
enough in its way, Captain, but I fail to see where it concerns me.'

"`I was just coming to that,' returned Drake, `when you interrupted me.
I was unfortunate enough to lose my chief officer overboard in a
hurricane in the Indian Ocean on the way home--a circumstance which
upset me and my plans very considerably, for he was a fine seaman, had
been with me many years, and knew all my little ways. In order to bring
off this venture successfully, I must replace him, for there will be
difficult and dangerous work ahead; and I need a man as much like my old
chief as possible, a man who is willing to go anywhere and do anything;
a man who has the brains to organise, and the muscle and courage to keep
his own end up in a fight.

"`I have often heard of you, Mr Frobisher, as being just that kind of
man; and I followed the whole account of your misfortune and the
proceedings of the court martial in the newspapers. When I learned that
they had dismissed you from the Service, I considered it a most shocking
error of judgment, and told myself that, had you been in my employ, you
would not have been so harshly treated. I would have liked at the time
to make a try to secure your services, but I had my own chief officer
with me then, and consequently had nothing to offer you. But now things
are different. You need employment; I need your services, and am
prepared to pay you well for them and give you a share of the profits.
One of the conditions attaching to my contract is that I deliver the
rifles and ammunition into the hands of the rebel officers at--at a
small town a considerable distance inland from the coast; and as I
cannot leave my ship, the duty of conveying the cargo inland would
devolve upon you. This is where the dangerous part of the business
comes in, and I shall make allowance therefore in the rate of pay I
propose to offer you.

"`If you will join me--to get down to hard facts--I will give you forty
pounds a month, from the day you sign on with me until you leave the
ship on her return to England, or until you leave her out in the East,
if you care to do that. There are plenty of chances for such a man as
yourself out there. A