office, to see if there was
anything that needed to be done. He had temporarily forgotten about
the mate's threat to have him discharged.

As Nat drew near the place, he heard voices in dispute, and, when he
entered, he was surprised to see the first mate, Mr. Bumstead,
standing at the purser's desk, shaking his fist in the air.

"I tell you those boxes are not aboard!" exclaimed the mate.

"And I say they are," replied the purser firmly. "They are down on my
list as being taken on this morning, and--er--what's his name--that
new boy--Nat--Nat Morton checked them off. You can see for yourself."

"Oh, he checked 'em off, did he?" asked the mate, in altered tones.
"Now I begin to see where the trouble is. We'll ask him----?"

"Here he is now," interrupted Mr. Dunn, as Nat entered. "Did you check
up these boxes?" he asked, and he handed a part of the cargo list to
Nat.

"Yes, sir. They were the last things that came aboard this morning."

"I told you so!" exclaimed Mr. Dunn, turning to the mate.

"Wait a minute," went on that officer. "He says he checked 'em off,
but I don't believe he did. If he did, where are they? They can't have
fallen overboard, and I didn't eat 'em, I'm sure of that."

"I checked those boxes off as you called them to me, Mr. Bumstead,"
replied Nat. "You stood near the forward cargo hold, and the boxes
were stowed away there. I was careful in putting them down on my
list."

"Yes! Too careful, I guess!" exclaimed the mate angrily. "You've got
down ten more boxes than came aboard. That's a nice mess to make of
it! But I knew how it would be if the captain took a greenhorn aboard!
Why didn't he get some one who knew how to check a cargo?"

"I know how to check a cargo," replied Nat quietly.

"I say you don't! There are ten boxes missing, and you've got to find
them, that's all there is about it!"

"Everything down on my list came aboard," insisted Nat.

"Well, those ten boxes didn't, and I know it. You made a mistake,
that's what you did, or else you let the boxes fall overboard, and
you're afraid to admit it."

"No boxes fell overboard when I was checking up, Mr. Bumstead."

"Well, where are those ten missing ones then?"

"I don't know."

"Of course you don't. And no one else does. You made a mistake, that's
all, and it's going to be a bad one. It puts me to a lot of work. I'll
have to check over all my lists to make up for your blunder."

"I made no blunder."

"I say you did,