Great, eh?"

I hope I made it convincin'; but, as a matter of fact, I had to force
the enthusiasm a bit.

Not that I was scared, exactly: but now and then, when the _Agnes_
sidled downhill and buried the whole front end of her in a wave that
looked like a side elevation of the Flatiron Building, I'd have a
panicky thought as to whether some time she wouldn't forget to come up
again.

She never did, though. No matter how hard she was soused under, she'd
shake it off with a shiver and go on climbin' up again patient. There
was several vacant chairs at the dinner-table, and when I finally
crawled into my bunk about 9:30 I had to brace myself to keep from
bein' slopped out on the floor.

I was wonderin' whether I'd be too sick to answer the shipwreck call
when it came, and I tried to figure out how I'd feel bouncin' around on
them skyscraper waves draped in thin pajamas and a life belt, until I
must have dropped off to sleep.

And, take it from me, when I woke up and saw the good old sunshine
streamin' in through the porthole, and discovered that I was still
alive and had an appetite for breakfast, I was as thankful a private
sec. as ever tore open a pay envelope.

By the time I got dressed and found that the Agnes was doin' only the
gentle wallow act, with the wop and wiggle left out, I begun to get
chesty. I decides that I'm some grand little sailor myself, and I
looks around for a willin' ear that I can whisper the news into.

The only person on deck, though, is Captain Rupert Killam, who's pacin'
up and down, lookin' mysterious, as usual.

"Well, Cap," says I. "Looked like it was goin' to be a little rough
for a spell there last night, eh?"

"Rough?" says he. "Oh, we did have a little bobble off Hatteras--just
a bobble."

"Huh!" says I. "I don't expect you'd admit anything's happenin' until
a boat begins to turn flip-flops. Do you know, Rupert, there's times
when you make me sad in the spine. Honest, now, you didn't invent the
ocean, did you?"

But Rupert just stares haughty and walks off.

I've been afraid all along he didn't appreciate me; in fact, ever since
he first showed up at the Corrugated, and I kidded him about his buried
treasure tale, he's looked on me with a cold and suspicious eye.

Course, that's his specialty, workin' up suspicions. He's been at it
right along, ever since the _Agnes_ was tied loose from her pier, and
outside of Auntie and Mr. Ellins, who are backin' this treas