llow, with red hair and a freckled face, could well be.

One day, as I was going along the lower-deck, with a message to old
Perigal, who was attending to some duty forward, I came suddenly on Toby
Bluff, whose ear Spellman had seized, while with his heel he was
bestowing sundry hard blows on the corpus of my sturdy follower, who
already knew enough of naval discipline not to venture on retaliation.
Toby, though short, was as strong as a lion, and could have hurled him
to the deck if he had dared. This made Miss Susan's attack all the more
cowardly. What Toby had done to give offence I did not stop to inquire.
My anger was up in a moment.

"Let go the boy, Spellman!" I exclaimed; "you shall not strike him
again."

Toby gained little by this, for Miss Susan only kicked him the harder;
whereon, up I rushed and hit my tall messmate a blow between the eyes,
which made lightning flash from them, I suspect. Spellman instantly let
go Toby and sprang at me. I stood prepared for the onslaught. Blinded
by my first blow, my antagonist hit out at random, and though double my
weight, was far from getting the best of it. While we were thus
pleasantly occupied, Mr Lukyn, with the sergeant-at-arms, was going his
rounds. We were so earnestly engaged in endeavouring to the utmost of
our power to hurt each other, that we did not perceive their approach.
Toby knew too well the laws of British pugilism to interfere, though had
my opponent been an enemy of a different nation, and had we been engaged
in mortal combat, I have no doubt that I should have found my young
follower an able supporter. An exclamation from Toby threw Spellman off
his guard, when a full blow, which I had planted on his breast, sent him
reeling back into the not very tender clutches of old Krause, the
master-at-arms.

"What is this about, young gentlemen?" exclaimed Mr Lukyn, in a severe
tone. "Fighting is against the articles of war."

"He hit me, sir;" "He kicked the boy Bluff," we both exclaimed in the
same breath.

"I must have you both up before the captain, and ascertain who is the
culprit," said Mr Lukyn. "Master-at-arms, take these young gentlemen
into custody."

I, on this, represented that I had been sent on a message to Mr
Perigal, and was allowed to go and deliver it. While I was absent,
Spellman took care to put his case in the best light, and mine in the
worst. In about an hour we were both taken before the captain, and Toby
was summo