e, and then gave out the course, south and a half
west. It was Morris's watch, and he insisted on remaining on the
forecastle, as he had obtained a portion of his sleep the night before.
The ship soon followed her consort; and as soon as the commander had
given out the course he hastened to the boudoir, where the party were
awaiting his appearance.

"It is hardly necessary for me to give the nautical points involved in
'The Battle of Khrysoko,'" said Captain Ringgold, as he laid the diagram
of the captain of the Maud on the table.

"I beg your pardon, Captain--involved in what?" interrupted Mr.
Woolridge, who seemed to be bothered by the proper name.

"'The Battle of Khrysoko,'" repeated the commander with a smile. "That
is the name the boys gave to the affair, calling it after the bay in
which it occurred, though it is rather a high-sounding designation for
it."

"Are we to understand that a battle has been fought here, Captain
Ringgold?" inquired the magnate of the Fifth Avenue, as Louis had called
him.

"It did not rise to the dignity of a regular naval engagement, though it
took place on the waters of the bay," replied the captain. "Perhaps if
we call it a contest for superiority, it would cover the idea better.
But this party are not prepared to understand what has taken place in
Khrysoko Bay; and I must admit that I have concealed from you for the
last three months certain features of our voyage, a knowledge of which
would have rendered some of you very nervous and unhappy.

"I did not consult Dr. Hawkes in relation to the effect upon one of his
patients, but I am confident he would have advised me to do as I have
done. I am equally confident that another of your number would very soon
have become one of his patients if I had been imprudent enough to put
her in possession of all the facts in the situation. If I had done so at
Athens, Zante, or Alexandria, I am almost certain that the
Guardian-Mother would have been speeding her way across the Atlantic to
New York; for some of the party would have insisted upon abandoning the
voyage as projected.

"My only confidants in the inside history of this voyage for the last
six months, or since we visited Mogadore, were the four young men who
have just left you. Now I will relate this inside history, and give all
the facts without any reservation whatever. I must begin back at
Mogadore; and as I mention the incidents of our cruise so far, you will
remember all of