ne of the men.

"Come, that's right, Dick, give us a yarn," said the others.

"Yes," replied Dick, "and it's a true yarn, too, and all about a ghost."

"Well, stop a moment," said one of the men, "and let us top this glim a
bit before you begin, for it seemed to get dimmer the moment you talked
about a ghost."

Dick waited till a little more light was obtained, and then commenced.
"I had shipped on board of a vessel bound to Smyrna, now about seven
years ago. We had gone down to Portsmouth, where we waited for one of
the partners of the house by which we had been freighted, and who was
going out as passenger. We were a man short, and the captain went on
shore to get one from the crimps, whom he knew very well, and the
fellows promised to send one on board the next morning. Well, sure
enough a wherry came off with him just before break of day, and he and
his traps were taken on board; but it was not perceived at the time what
he had in his arms under his grego, and what do you think it proved to
be at daylight? Why, a large black tom cat."

"What, a black one?"

"Yes, as black as the enemy himself. The fellow came down forward with
it, and so says I, 'Why, messmate, you're not going to take that animal
to sea with us?'

"'Yes, I am,' said he, very surlily; 'it's an old friend of mine, and I
never parts with him.'

"'Well,' says I, 'you'll find the difference when the captain hears on
it, I can tell you, and, for the matter of that, I won't promise you
that it will be very safe if it comes near me when I've a handspike in
my hand.'

"'I tell you what,' says he, 'it ain't the taking of a cat on board what
brings mischief, but it's turning one out of a ship what occasions ill
luck. No cat ever sunk a ship till the animal was hove overboard and
sunk first itself, and then it does drag the ship down after it.'

"Well, one of the boys who did not care about such things, for he was
young and ignorant, put his hand to the cat's head to stroke it, and the
cat bit him right through the fingers, at which the boy gave a loud cry.

"'Now, that will teach you to leave my cat alone,' said the man. 'He
won't come near nobody but me, and he bites everybody else, so I give
you fair warning.'

[Illustration: THE FORE-PEAK YARN.--Marryat, Vol. X., p. 211.]

"And sure enough the brute, which was about as big as two common cats,
was just as savage as a tiger. When the first mate called the man on
deck, the fellow left his cat