risk.

Every day saw a little further progress made, an additional spar raised
into position and secured, a little more added to the complicated maze
of rigging; and meanwhile George, accompanied by Robert Dyer, who had
been hunted up the moment that his services could be made useful, went
hither and thither all over Plymouth and its neighbourhood, day after
day, hunting up desirable recruits, including many of the
_Bonaventure's_ former crew, until in process of time they contrived,
between them, to get together no less than one hundred men, all of them
of the true Devon breed, ready to go anywhere and do anything. Under
ordinary conditions so large a crew would have found themselves cramped
for room in a ship of the _Nonsuch's_ tonnage. But the _Nonsuch_ was
not designed for cargo carrying. She was essentially a fighting ship,
her cargo-space being only about half the capacity of other ships of her
size, the remainder of the hold being fitted to serve as a spacious
'tween-decks, affording accommodation for an even larger crew than
George and her owner had decided was necessary. And, in addition to the
'tween-decks, there were of course the cabins, plainly but comfortably
fitted up, which included the captain's state cabin in the stern of the
ship, the main cabin, in which the officers would take their meals and
which would be used by them at other times as a council chamber and
general living-room, and cabins for the pilot or sailing master, the
captain of the soldiers, the chaplain, the surgeon, and the purser.

By the time that this formidable crew had been collected together the
_Nonsuch_ was practically complete, so far as rigging and equipment were
concerned, and a week later found her with provisions, water, powder,
and stores of every description on board, as well as her crew, and only
waiting for a fair wind to enable her to go to sea. It was April, and
after a long spell of bitter north-easters the weather had changed, a
south-westerly wind had set in, with mild, rainy weather, and although
George declared himself ready to go to sea and attempt to beat down-
channel, old Radlett strenuously opposed the idea, upon the plea that it
would be merely a waste of time and a needless risking of the ship. But
a day or two later a hint was brought to him to the effect that the
attention of the authorities had at last been directed to the _Nonsuch_
and the question of her being taken over by the Government was bei