w, I can tell ye."

"Ah! well," Frank laughed, "I suppose I shall do as well as the rest."

The voice of the mate was now heard calling to all hands to prepare to
cast off. The men had hurried through their dinner, for they knew that
the time allowed them would be short, and began casting off hawsers,
coiling down ropes, and preparing for a start. The bell was ringing, and
the friends of the passengers were saying good-bye. The capstan was
manned, and the vessel moved slowly away from the quay.

Five minutes later she was at the dock gates; these swung open, and the
vessel slowly made her way through them, and was soon in the river.

As the men ran aloft to loosen the sails, Frank placed himself next to
the sailor who had spoken to him at dinner, and followed him up the
shrouds, and, imitating his actions, he was soon out on the yard hauling
away with the others. When the sails were all set he returned below.

"Wall done, youngster," the mate said; "I reckon you are about as spry
for a green hand as any I have come across; I had my eye on you, and
you'll do. You go on like that, and you will make a first-rate hand
afore long."

There was plenty of work to do as they went down the river. The sails
had to be braced round as the wind took them on different sides in the
winding reaches; the decks were sluiced down, to get rid of the first
coat of dirt which they had acquired in the docks; ropes had to be
coiled and tidied up, and the many articles lying loosely about the deck
to be put in their places and lashed in readiness for sea work. The tide
met them just as it was getting dark, and as the wind dropped, and was
not sufficiently strong to carry the ship against it, the anchor was
dropped a few miles below Gravesend.

The men were divided into two watches, but all were told that, with the
exception of two stationed as an anchor watch, they could turn in till
tide turned. Frank threw himself at once into the bunk which had been
allotted to him. He had not closed an eye the night before, and was worn
out by emotion and fatigue, and scarcely had he lain down than he was
sound asleep. He had been placed in the starboard watch, and slept till
he was roughly shaken at four o'clock in the morning.

"Get up, mate, your watch is called."

Frank leapt out and made his way on deck. The vessel had been now three
hours under weigh. She had passed the Nore, whose light shone brightly
over the stern.

"The wind is freshenin