pulse, "you are looking rather more like a living being than you were
twenty-four hours ago. Mammy's medicines are simply marvellous, I will
say that for them, although the old witch will not tell me of what they
are composed. Um! yes; eyes bright--almost too bright--pulse strong but
decidedly too quick. You have been talking too much. That will not do.
The senorita"--she had slipped out of the room by this time--"must
either stay away, or not talk to you. Now, let me look at your wound."
And he proceeded very carefully to remove the dressings.

This, it appeared, was progressing very satisfactorily, so he re-dressed
it--my broken pate had healed itself, and needed no further looking
after,--administered a sleeping draught, and then retired, after
informing me that I could have Mammy's broth later, but that, in the
meantime, sleep was of more value and importance to me than food. He
had not been gone ten minutes before I was fast asleep.

Several days elapsed, and I never saw Ricardo, although I was told by
Lotta and Mammy that he had frequently looked in upon me while I slept.
Thanks to good nursing, I was making very satisfactory progress,
although still far too weak and ill to be able to rise from my bed.
Meanwhile I was able to see, by simply looking out of my bedroom window,
that the _Barracouta_ was being rapidly refitted--so rapidly, indeed,
that I conjectured Ricardo must have made a point of always keeping an
entire spare set of masts, spars, rigging, and sails on hand, in
readiness for any such emergency as that which had arisen in connection
with his fight with the _Francesca_.

At length, when I had been ashore nearly a fortnight, I noticed that the
brig was once more all ataunto and apparently ready for sea. That same
night Ricardo entered my room, and, having made exhaustive enquiries as
to the state of my health, took a seat by my bedside, with the air of a
man who purposed to indulge in a long chat.

"This last fortnight has done wonders for you," he said. "Thanks to the
unremitting care of Lotta and Mammy, I think you will now be able to
pull round without any further attention from Fonseca. And that reminds
me to tell you that we go to sea at dawn to-morrow, and of course
Fonseca goes with us. But he assures me that you now need nothing but
good nursing and good feeding to restore you completely, and those Lotta
and Mammy will be able to give you. You will not mind my leaving you in
their