"`Fairly favourably' hardly describes his manner
to me. I should have spoken of it as `very favourably'."

"Well, I am right glad to hear it, and I congratulate you most heartily.
You say that the old boy is coming to see me. Now, understand, boy, if
I can put in a good word for you without shoving it in, bows first, and
knocking the old gentleman's eye out with the flying-jib-boom, I will."

The worthy fellow was now quite a different man from what he had been
when I entered the room a few minutes earlier; I therefore thought this
a favourable opportunity to top my boom and haul off; so, thanking him
very sincerely for his kind intentions in my favour, I shook hands and
bade him good day, promising to look in again upon him on the morrow.

Keene and I duly dined with the commodore that evening; and when the
cloth had been removed, and the servants had retired, the old gentleman
said:

"Well, Mr Grenvile, I called upon your friend Fawcett this afternoon,
and had a fairly long chat with him, in spite of the doctors. The poor
fellow will never be of any further use afloat, I am afraid; but he may
yet do good service ashore if those fellows can patch him up
sufficiently to enable him to go home. And I think they will; yes, I
think they will. He was very much better when I left than when I
arrived;" and the old boy's eyes twinkled good-humouredly. "It is
wonderful," he continued, "what a little promotion will do for a man in
his condition. Talking of promotion, I mentioned to him that I had
given you an acting order, at which he seemed greatly pleased; and he
said several things about you, young gentleman, which I shall not
repeat, but which I was very pleased to hear, since they all go to
confirm the good opinion of you that I have already formed. But he
reminded me that before your acting order can be confirmed you must pass
your examination. Now, do you feel yourself to be in trim to face the
examiners at any moment?"

"Yes, sir," said I, "provided, of course, that they don't try to bother
me with `catch questions' of a kind that have no real bearing upon one's
practical capabilities. I have worked fairly hard from the moment when
I first entered the service; my character will bear investigation; I am
a pretty good seaman, I believe; and Mr Teasdale, our master aboard the
_Shark_, was good enough to report to the sk-- to Captain Bentinck, only
the other day, that I am a trustworthy navigator."

"Good eno