tir them up and put some more oilers to work in the screw well, to
lubricate the shaft so as to prevent the bearings from overheating."

"That's your sort, my hearty," said Stoddart. "So you can return on
deck, Haldane, and tell the skipper and Mr Stokes that everything shall
be done down here by us to overhaul your `ghost-ship.'"

He laughed as he uttered this little piece of chaff at my expense, the
story being now the common property of everybody on board, and I
laughed, too, as I ran up the hatchway with my clothes nearly dry again,
even drying in the short space of time I had been in the hot atmosphere
below, although, goodness knows, they had been wet enough when I had
gone down, having had no time or opportunity to shift them after my dip
overboard when taking the line to the drifting boat.

On reaching the main deck I met Spokeshave.

He was coming out from the saloon, and from his puffy face and corpulent
appearance generally, he looked as if he had been making a haul on the
steward's pantry, although he had not long had his dinner and it was a
good way off tea time.

"Hullo!" he cried out on seeing me. "I say, that chap O'Neil is having
a fine go of it playing at doctoring. He has got a lot of ugly long
knives and saws laid out on the cuddy table and I think he's going to
cut off the chap's leg!"

"Which chap do you mean?" I asked; "not the colonel?"

"Aye," said he. "The chap with the moustache and long hair, like
Hamlet, you know!"

"My good chap," said I, "you seem to know a good deal about other chaps,
or think you do, but I never heard before of Hamlet having a moustache
like a life-guardsman! Irving doesn't wear one when he takes the part,
if I recollect right, my joker. You think yourself mighty knowing!"

"Quite so," replied Master Spokeshave, using his favourite phrase as
usual. "But you don't call Irving Shakespeare, Haldane, do ye?"

"I don't know anything of the matter, old boy. I am not so well
informed as you are concerning the dramatic world, Spokeshave. I know
you're a regular authority or `toffer,' if you like, on the subject.
Don't you think, however, you're a bit hard on poor Irving, who, I've no
doubt, would take a word of advice from you if you spoke kindly to him
and without that cruel sarcasm which you're apt to use?"

The little beggar actually sniggered over this, being of the opinion
that I was paying a just tribute to his histrionic acumen and judgement
in thing