k into the trade-room, and help
themselves. I said that they would do so at their own peril--the first
man that stepped through the doorway would get hurt. They retired,
cursing me as a "mean hound". The skipper said nothing. He, I am glad to
say, was not an Englishman, though he claimed to be. He was a Dane.

Arriving at a village on the coast of San Cristoval, where I had to
land stores for a trader, we found a rather heavy surf on, and the crew
refused to man a boat and take me on shore, on the plea that it was too
dangerous; a native boat's crew would have smiled at the idea of danger,
and so also would any white sailor-man who was used to surf work.

Two days later, through their incapacity, they capsized a boat by
letting her broach-to in crossing a reef, and a hundred pounds' worth of
trade goods were lost.

When we met the cruiser for whom the coals were destined, the second
mate and I told the commander in the presence of our own skipper that we
considered the latter unfit to have command of the steamer.

"Then put the mate in charge, if you consider your captain is
incapable," said the naval officer.

"The mate is no better," I said, "he is as incapable as the captain."

"Then the second mate is the man."

"I cannot navigate, sir," said the second mate.

The naval commander drew me aside, and we took "sweet counsel" together.
Then he called our ruffianly scallywags of a crew on to the main deck,
eyed them up and down, and ignoring our captain, asked me how many pairs
of handcuffs were on board.

"Two only," I replied.

"Then I'll send you half a dozen more. Clap 'em on to some of these
fellows for a week, until they come to their senses."

In half an hour the second mate and I had the satisfaction of seeing
four firemen and four A.B.'s in irons, which they wore for a week,
living on biscuit and water.

A few weeks later I engaged, on my own responsibility, ten good native
seamen, and for the rest of the voyage matters went fairly well, for the
captain plucked up courage, and became valorous when I told him that my
natives would make short work of their white shipmates, if the latter
again became mutinous.

Against this experience I have had many pleasant ones. In one dear old
brig, in which I sailed as supercargo for two years, we carried a double
crew--white men and natives of Rotumah Island, and a happier ship never
spread her canvas to the winds of the Pacific. This was purely because
the of