at it was not pleasant to be taunted for nothing.

At last Mr Simon, standing one day on his taffrail, speaking-trumpet in
hand, hailed and asked Mr Randolph if he could not manage to make his
ship walk along somewhat faster, for at this rate they would never get
to England.

"Greater haste, worst speed, Simon," answered Mr Randolph. "I've been
doing my best to make the _Mouche_ move faster, but she's a slow fly,
and I cannot do it. Besides, she is very leaky, and we have had hard
work to keep her afloat."

"Let her sink, then," answered Mr Simon; "I do not see why she should
be delaying us, and giving us a double chance of being retaken by the
enemy."

"While I live and have a man who will stick by me, I'll stick by the
ship put under my charge," replied Mr Randolph; "still I must beg you
to remain by us. My own people and I will do our best to keep he
afloat. When we find we can do so no longer, we will claim your
assistance, and get you to take us on board."

"Oh, is that what you calculate on? We'll see about it," was Mr
Simon's very unsatisfactory reply.

"We'll trust to you not deserting us," sung out Mr Randolph. "If a
gale were to spring up, we should have hard work to keep her afloat;
remember that."

"What's that you say? I can't hear," answered Mr Simon, as his ship
shot ahead of ours.

"He heard well enough, but does not intend to heed, I fear," said Mr
Randolph, turning round and walking hurriedly up and down the deck. "We
must trust to our own energies, and my lads will stick by me, I know
that."

Our cargo consisted of sugar, coffee, and rice, and other valuable but
bulky articles produced in the East, so that we could not move them to
get at the leaks. A very steady man, Thomas Andrews, a quarter-master,
was acting as first mate, and he having spoken well of me to Mr
Randolph, I was appointed to do duty as second mate, or, I might say
more justly, to take charge of a watch. Mr Randolph seemed to put a
good deal of confidence in me, and he now summoned Andrews and me, and
consulted us what it might be best to do towards stopping the leaks.

"It is bad enough now," he observed, "but it will be much worse should a
gale spring up and cause the ship to labour heavily."

Andrews and I offered to hunt about to try and find out where the worst
leaks existed. We accordingly worked our way down into the bows of the
ship in every direction, at no little risk of being suffocated, and at
len