her; and now
may I ask you what's your name, for I haven't had the pleasure of
hearing it."

"Thomas Pim," he answered.

"Come, that's short enough, anyhow," I observed.

"Yes; but when I first came aboard, the mess declared it was too long,
so they cut off the `h' and the `as' and `m' and called me Tom Pi; but
even then they were not content, for they further docked it of its fair
proportions, and decided that I was to be named Topi, though generally
I'm called simply Pi."

"Do you mind it?" I asked.

"Not a bit," he answered. "It suits my size, I confess; for, to tell
you the truth, I'm older than I look, and have been three years at sea."

"I thought you had only just joined," I remarked, for my companion was,
as I have just said, a very little fellow, scarcely reaching up to my
shoulder. On examining his countenance more minutely, I observed that
it had a somewhat old look.

"Though I'm little I'm good, and not ashamed of my size or my name
either," he said. "When bigger men are knocked over, I've a chance of
escaping. I can stow myself away where others can't get in their legs;
and when I go aloft or take a run on shore, I've less weight to carry,--
so has the steed I ride. When I go with others to hire horses, I
generally manage to get the best from the stable-keeper."

"Yes, I see that you have many advantages over bigger fellows," I said.

"I'm perfectly contented with myself now I've found that out, but I
confess that at first I didn't like being laughed at and having remarks
made about my name and my size. I have grown slightly since then, and
no one observes now that I'm an especially little fellow."

Tom spoke for some time on the same subject.

"I say, Paddy Finn, I hope you and I will be friends," he continued.
"I've heard that you Irishmen are frequently quarrelsome, but I hope you
won't quarrel with me, or, for your own sake, with any of the rest of
the mess. You'll gain nothing by it, as they would all turn against you
to put you down."

"No fear of that," I replied, "always provided that they say nothing
insulting of Ireland, or of my family or friends, or of the opinions I
may hold, or take liberties which I don't like, or do anything which I
consider unbecoming gentlemen."

"You leave a pretty wide door open," remarked Tom; "but, as I said
before, if you don't keep the peace it will be the worse for you."

We were all this time proceeding at a rapid rate up the stream, betwee