p and down!" cried Matthews on the forecastle, taking poor Saunders'
place here, for he was now doing duty as second mate, although he had
not yet passed the Trinity House examination for the post. "Anchor's up
and down, sir!"

"Then heave and paul!" answered Mr Mackay from the poop, calling out at
the same time to the men standing by the halliards: "Sheet home and
hoist away!"

In another minute, the topsails were dropped and the yards hoisted, the
jib run up and the spanker set; when, as our anchor cleared the ground,
soon peeping over our bows and being catted and fished in the old
fashion, the Silver Queen's canvas filled and she bade adieu to China
with a graceful curtsy, making her way down the Yang-tse-kiang at a rate
that showed she was as glad as those on board her to lose sight of its
yellow waters at last!

It was the 14th September when we sailed; and, although it was rather
early in the year for it, the nor'-east monsoon had already begun to
blow, fine and dry and cold, bowling us down through the Formosa Channel
and into the China Sea beyond, "as if ould Nick war arter us," as Tim
Rooney said.

In our progress past the same latitudes in which we had previously
encountered such perils, we now met with nothing of interest; steering
south by the Strait of Gaspar--to the other side of the island of Banca,
instead of by our former route when coming up--we navigated Sunda the
same day, getting out into the Indian Ocean at the beginning of October.

Shaping a course from here to pass about a hundred miles to the
southward of Madagascar, our nor'-east wind changing to a nor'-westward
in 15 degrees south latitude, which was all the more favourable for us,
we were able to fetch the Cape of Good Hope in forty-three days from our
start. Our passage round the stormy headland was now comparatively
easy, being aided by the strong current that comes down the African
coast through the Mozambique, and so did not cost us any bother at all,
as we had fine weather all the time until we turned into the Atlantic.

From the Cape to the Channel we made a splendid passage, sighting the
Lizard on the 20th December and getting into dock on the afternoon of
the 22nd of the month. Strange to say, too, we were towed up from the
Downs by our old friend the Arrow, just as we were towed down the river
at starting on our eventful voyage.

Captain Gillespie gave me leave to go home the next day, telling me he
would write when the