her cook. I knew she'd got a temper, but I didn't know it was like
this. She's the last woman that sets foot on my ship--that's all she's
done for her sex."

In happy ignorance of her impending doom Mrs. Blossom went blithely
about her duties, assisted by a crew whose admiration for her increased
by leaps and bounds; and the only thing which ventured to interfere with
her was a stiff Atlantic roll, which they encountered upon rounding the
Land's End.

The first intimation Mrs. Blossom had of it was the falling of small
utensils in the galley. After she had picked them up and replaced them
several times, she went out to investigate, and discovered that the
schooner was dipping her bows to big green waves, and rolling, with much
straining and creaking, from side to side. A fine spray, which broke
over the bows and flew over the vessel, drove her back into the galley,
which had suddenly developed an unaccountable stuffiness; but, though
the crew to a man advised her to lie down and have a cup of tea, she
repelled them with scorn, and with pale face and compressed lips stuck
to her post.

Two days later they made fast to the quay at Llanelly, and half-an-hour
later the skipper called the mate down to the cabin, and, handing him
some money, told him to pay the cook off and ship another. The mate
declined.

"You obey orders," said the skipper fiercely, "else you an' me'll
quarrel."

"I've got a wife an' family," urged the mate.

"Pooh!" said the skipper. "Rubbish!"

"And uncles," added the mate rebelliously.

"Very good," said the skipper, glaring. "We'll ship the other cook first
and let him settle it. After all, I don't see why we should fight his
battles for him."

The mate, being agreeable, went off at once; and when Mrs. Blossom,
after a little shopping ashore, returned to the Gannet she found the
galley in the possession of one of the fattest cooks that ever broke
ship's biscuit.

"Hullo!" said she, realising the situation at a glance, "what are you
doing here?"

"Cooking," said the other gruffly. Then, catching sight of his
questioner, he smiled amorously and winked at her.

"Don't you wink at me," said Mrs. Blossom wrathfully. "Come out of that
galley."

"There's room for both," said the new cook persuasively. "Come in an'
put your 'ed on my shoulder."

Utterly unprepared for this mode of attack, Mrs. Blossom lost her nerve,
and, instead of storming the galley, as she had fully intended, drew
back