y'--otherwise we would have been all out of our
reckoning with the almanac."

"How funny!" I repeated. "I never heard that before."

"Probably not, nor many other things you'll learn at sea, my boy, before
you're much older," answered Mr Mackay, as he turned to the log slate
on which Captain Gillespie had been putting down his calculation about
the ship's position after taking the sun and working out his reckoning.
"Let us see, now, if your watch is a good chronometer for telling our
longitude. Ha, by Jove, 13 degrees 10 minutes west, or, nearly what we
made out just now. Not so bad, Graham, for a turnip!"

"Turnip, sir!" cried I indignantly. "Father told me it was one of
Dent's best make, and to be careful of it."

"I'm sure I beg both your father's and Dent's pardon," said Mr Mackay,
laughing at my firing up so quickly. "I was only joking; for your watch
is a very good one, and nicely finished too. But I must not stop any
more now. I hope you won't forget your first lesson in navigation and
the knowledge you've gained of the difference between `mean time' and
what is called `apparent time' on board a ship, and how this will tell
her correct longitude--eh?"

"Oh, no, sir," I answered as he went off down the companion way below,
to wind up the chronometers in the captain's cabin, a task which he
always performed every day at the same hour, having these valuable
instruments under his especial charge; "I won't forget what you've told
me, sir."

Nor did I.

Shortly afterwards Mr Mackay showed me how to use the sextant and take
the sun's altitude, on his learning that I was acquainted with
trigonometry and rather a dab at mathematics, the only portion indeed of
my studies, I'm sorry to confess, in which I ever took any interest at
school. I was thus soon able under his instruction to work out the
ship's reckoning and calculate her position, just like the captain, who
sniffed and snorted a bit and crinkled his nose a good deal on seeing me
engaged on the task; although he gave me some friendly commendation all
the same, when he found that I had succeeded in actually arriving at a
similar result to himself!

Wasn't I proud, that's all.

But, before advancing so far in my knowledge of navigation, I had to be
initiated into my regular duties on board, and learn the more practical
parts of seamanship; however, having willing tutors in Mr Mackay and
the boatswain, and being only too anxious myself to know all