,
you come and try."

The boatswain and the little sailor both lay down in different places on
the cases and bales and listened, but only to rise up and declare that
the sound came from quite a different direction.

"Hang it all!" cried the first-mate; "it isn't a question of amount of
cargo to unstow, but of time before we get at the miserable wretch.
Now, what right has a man to come and hide down here, and upset the
whole cargo and crew!"

"My dear Gregory," cried the second-mate, "do let's begin somewhere."

"Yes, but where, my lad--where? Listen again. There, it's further in--
ever so much."

"Sounds like it," assented the second-mate. "Here, stop your noise!"

This last was consequent upon a dismal howl uttered by Bruff, who felt
himself aggrieved at being left alone.

"Here, here!" cried Mark excitedly, and, raising his hands, he took the
dog as he was passed down by the sailors. "Stop a minute, Mr Gregory,
my dog will smell him out."

"Bravo, boy!" cried the first-mate, as Bruff was set down, no
light-weight, on the stowed-in cargo. "Good dog, then!"

"Hush!" cried Mark, whose heart was beating painfully.

"Silence there!" cried Mr Small.

"Now, Bruff, old boy, listen."

There was utter silence for quite a minute, and then, as the chill of
dread deepened, and it seemed as if the hidden man had fainted, the
moaning arose once more, but certainly more feebly.

Mark was kneeling and holding Bruff with a hand on each side of the
collar, and as the piteous moan arose the dog uttered a sharp bark.

"Good dog, then! Find him, boy!" cried Mark; and as the moaning
continued, the dog went scuffling and scratching over the cargo,
snuffing here and there, and uttering a bark from time to time.

"No, no, not there," cried the second-mate.

"Let the dog be," said the first; and the result was that Bruff suddenly
stopped a dozen yards away from them toward the forecastle, and began
scratching and barking loudly.

"It can't be there," said Small, creeping over the packages till he was
beside the dog, and then quieting him as he listened. "Yes; it is!" he
cried. "You can hear him as plain as plain."

The first-mate came to his side, and confirmed the assertion; the
second-mate endorsed his brother officer's opinion; and now began the
terrible task of dragging out the closely fitted-in lading of the ship,
so as to work right down to where the poor wretch had concealed himself.
It seemed to Mark's un