on, he could like you a lot better
than ever he hated you."

The two men sat and looked out to sea in silence. At last Baldwin, with
a heavy sigh? stood up, and, reaching into a locker, brought forth a
bottle and two glasses. "I s'pose we oughter try to forget it for
awhile. This stuff here, it's against regulations havin' it aboard, but
lots of things against regulations never hurt anybody. It was against
regulations our takin' out the _Whist_ last night. And when the
commandant's back from leave I reckon I'll get mine. For you"--he laid a
forefinger against the big rating badge on his coat sleeve--"that I've
been shipmates with for fifteen years--off and on--I reckon will be
detached. But I've been disrated before and we'll let that pass. But you
an' me and Bud, we ain't been the best of friends we used to be
since--well, you know when, but you're goin' to drink for him now the
toast he wouldn't drink last night, but the toast that if he was here I
know he'd drink now, for it's a sure thing that when he went into the
breakers he didn't go out of hate. So you drink for Bud, and I'll drink
for myself. Here's to you and yours, Bowen, your wife and the baby
that's comin'--"

"And that baby--if it's a boy, Baldwin, I'll name after him."

"Will you? God, but he'll like that--Bud'll sure like that. And now,
here you go--

"May the wind be always fair for you
Whatever the course you sail!

"An' you an' me and all of us we'll be like we used to be, an' Bud'll
like it, I know. An' now one to Bud himself. I know 'twill please him to
see us doin' it. Here's to Buddie, Bowen. Is it a go?"

"Let her run!"

"Run it is, and a gale behind her--Christmas to Bud!"

Captain Blaise

Two years now since Mr. Villard had come home, and not a soul on the
plantation but believed that at last the new master had given up his
mysterious voyages and was home to stay. But one day I had business in
Savannah, and while there, hearing that the bark _Nereid_ was in from
the West African coast, I strolled down to the river front; and
presently I was approached and addressed by the master of the _Nereid_,
a seaman-like and rather shrewd-looking man who had a message for Mr.
Villard, he said--from the West Coast.

"I am charged to ask him to pass the word to Captain Blaise," said the
_Nereid's_ master, "that an old friend of his lies low of fever into
Momba. Captain Blaise would know who. We were putting out of Momba
lagoon and I