ieve it now?"

"No, my lad, I don't believe it now," said Eben, "and I'm glad on it,
because it would be a pity for a smart young chap like you to be in for
it."

"In for what?" said Aleck.

"For what? Ah, you'd soon know if you did blow upon us, my lad. But,
there, I don't believe it a bit now, and I got some'at else to do but
stand talking to you, so I'm off. Only, you know, my lad, as it's the
best thing for a chap like you as wants to live peaceable like with his
neighbours to keep his mouth shut--_mum--plop_."

The two last words were sounds made by slapping the mouth closely shut
and half open with the open hand, after doing which Eben Megg stepped
down the narrow turning and mysteriously disappeared.

"Bother him and his bullyings and threats," cried Aleck. "Such
insolence! But, there, I must see about my paper and get back."

CHAPTER TWELVE.

Left alone in the boat, Tom Bodger sat down on one of the thwarts with
his wooden pegs stuck straight out before him. Then he brought them
close together with a sharp rap and began to rub one over the other
gently; but these movements had nothing to do with the thinking, though
he more than once told himself that he thought better when he was
rubbing his legs together.

As he sat there he naturally enough began to watch the man-o'-war boat
with her smart young officer and neat, trim-looking crew, while,
continuing his inspection, he ran his eyes over the boat and admired its
beautiful lines.

This brought up memories of the time when career and body had both been
cut short by that unlucky cannon ball, leaving him a cripple and a
pensioner.

"But I dunno," he said to himself, in a way he had of making the best of
things, "if I hadn't been hit I might ha' lived on and been drowned, and
then there'd ha' been no pension to enj'y as I enj'ys mine; and I don't
never have to buy no boots nor shoes, so there arn't much to grumble
about, arter all."

So Tom sat rubbing his wooden legs together, watching the sailors in the
boat, thinking of how he'd been coxswain of just such a boat as that,
and then beginning to feel an intense longing to compare notes with the
men left with the middy in charge; but the young officer kept his men in
order, and twice over had them busily at work stowing away the
vegetables, fresh meat, bacon, and butter that were brought down from
time to time and packed well out of the way fore and aft.

Consequently there was no opportunit