t off, as I daresay he'd like!" said poor Mr Stokes, with a
feeble attempt at a joke. "Yes, I'd better go to my cabin, for I see
I'm not wanted here; and, to tell the truth, I've an aching all over me,
and feel rather tired and faint."

"Then off you go to the doctor at once," cried Mr Fosset, catching hold
of him by his uninjured arm and leading him towards the hatchway again,
the ship being pretty steady for the moment.

"You and I, too, Haldane, ought to be on deck helping the skipper and
the rest, instead of stopping here, hindering these smart fellows at
their work. Come along with me, my lad!"

Leaving Mr Stokes at the door of the saloon in charge of Weston, the
steward, the first mate and I proceeded along the waist to the bridge,
where we found Captain Applegarth pacing up and down in his customary
jerky, impatient way, like the Polar bear in the Zoological Gardens, as
I always thought.

"Well," he said to Mr Fosset, bringing himself up short in front of the
rail on our approach, "how are matters getting on below--badly, I'm
afraid?"

The first mate explained. Spokeshave, who was at the other end of the
bridge, coming up to listen, as usual, to the conversation.

"That's good news, indeed!" said the skipper on hearing how Stoddart had
set to work to repair the damage. "I thought the engines were
completely broken-down. If it weren't for poor Jackson, who, O'Neil
told me just now, was in a bad way, I think we'd got out of the scrape
pretty well, for the old barquey is comfortable enough now, and, though
there's a heavy sea running and it is still blowing stiff from the
north'ard and the west'ard, the sky is clearer than it was, and I fancy
we've seen the worst of the gale, eh?"

"I'm sure I hope so, sir," replied Mr Fosset, not committing himself to
any definite expression of opinion in the matter. "It has given us a
rare good doing all round while it was about it, at an rate!"

"Aye, it has that," said the skipper. "The old barquey, though, has
come through it better than any one would have supposed, with all that
deadweight amidships, considering that she broached-to awhile ago and
got caught in the trough of the sea the very moment the machinery below
gave out. By George, Fosset, we had a narrow squeak then, I can tell
you!"

"I can quite believe that, sir," said the other, looking round about and
aloft, sailor-like, as he spoke. "For my part I feared the worst, I'm
sure. However, all's we