will
do."

Directly after I had Ching supplied from the purser's stores with plenty
of fine oakum and a couple of bottles of ink. This latter he made
boiling hot and poured over the oakum, hanging it to dry by the cook's
fire; and while he was doing this I arranged with the cook to have a
bucket of tallow and whiting mixed ready for use when required, so that
then all necessary would be to warm it up.

I was just going aft again when "Herrick" was shouted, and I turned, to
see Barkins and Smith coming after me. But Mr Reardon heard the hail,
and came striding after us.

"You leave Mr Herrick to the business he is on, young gentlemen, and
attend to your own," he cried. "Go on, Mr Herrick. This is no time
for gossiping."

I hurried off, and began my next task, that of selecting twenty men
without beards; and there was no difficulty, for I soon picked sixteen
and four big lads, upon whose heads the ship's barber was set to work to
cut the hair pretty short, the men submitting with an excellent grace,
Jack being ready enough to engage in anything fresh, and such as would
relieve the monotony of shipboard life.

They were ready enough to ask questions, but I had nothing to tell; and
the preparations went merrily on, but not without my having learned that
we were steaming right away out of sight of land.

But long before we had reached this pitch, I found that orders had been
given, and the men were busy up aloft, lowering down the main-topgallant
mast, and then laying the maintop mast all askew, as if it were snapped
off at the top. After which the yards were altered from their perfect
symmetry to hang anyhow, as if the ship were commanded by a careless
captain. The engine was set to work to squirt water thickened with
cutch, and the beautiful white sails were stained in patches, and then
roughly furled.

Towards evening, when the sea appeared to be without a sail in sight, we
lay-to; platforms were got over the side, and men hung over with their
paint-pots and brushes, working with all their might to paint out the
streak, while others smeared over the gilding and name at the stern, but
with a thin water-colour which would easily wash off.

Then came the turn of the great funnel, which was painted of a dirty
black. The bright brass rails were dulled, ropes hung loosely, and in
every way possible the trim gunboat was disfigured and altered, so that
at a short distance even it would have been impossible to rec