to have made her a tender to the _Shark_--
in which capacity she would no doubt have proved, as you say,
exceedingly useful; and I may further tell you that, subject to Captain
Bentinck's approval, I intended to have put you in command of her. But
certain news which has reached me this morning has altered all my plans
concerning her, at all events for the present, and instead of making her
a tender to the _Shark_ I now propose to send her across to the West
Indies with dispatches of the utmost importance. You will therefore be
so good as to proceed on board forthwith and take the command, give all
her stores a thorough overhaul, and report to me what deficiencies, if
any, require to be made good in order to fit her for the voyage across
the Atlantic. I have issued instructions for your former crew to be
turned over to her from the depot ship, and it will be as well, perhaps,
for you to take over half a dozen extra hands from the late prize crew
of the brig. I should like to be able to give you Mr Freeman as
master, but I can't spare him; so you will have to be your own
navigator. By the way, what sort of a navigator is Keene?"

"Oh," I said, laughingly, "he can fudge a day's work as well as most
people, sir!"

"Ah," said the old gentleman, "I wonder whether you boys will ever be
brought to understand that `fudging' is no good, except to bamboozle the
master! How would any of you manage if by chance it fell to you to take
a ship into port, and you could only `fudge' a day's work? Well, you
shall take him with you; but hark ye, my lad, for his own sake you must
make him stick to his work and do it properly, so that he may be ready
for any emergency that may happen to come along. Come and dine with me
to-night, and bring the young monkey with you. I'll talk to him like a
Dutch uncle, and see if I can't stir him up to a sense of his
responsibilities. One word more, my lad. An opportunity to pass may
occur while you are over yonder; and if it does, I very strongly advise
you to seize it."

"Be assured that I will, sir," exclaimed I. "And--oh, sir, I really
don't know how to express my gratitude to you for giving me such a
splendid--"

"There, there, never mind about that, boy," interrupted the old fellow
hurriedly. "I know all that you would say, so there is no need for you
to repeat it. As to gratitude, you can best show that by proving
yourself worthy of the trust that I am putting in you, as I have no
d