ke the case of the
_Rosana_,' he went on, 'and allow me to put the facts of the case before
you. The _Rosana_ was a ship that used to do good a bit of trading on
the coast, and there was a man on board of her whom I used to know, and
who had been once a little too well known in Argentine. Well, this ship
foundered with all hands on board, and was never heard of again, although
two of her life-belts were picked up, and one or two pieces of her
deck-gear.'

'Any ship might founder at sea,' said Peter, 'and not be heard of again.
Go on with your story, Dunbar.'

The electric lights on deck went out suddenly overhead, leaving only one
burning; the breeze blew soft and cool, and six bells sounded sharply and
emphatically in the quiet of the night.

'I wouldn't,' said Dunbar, 'give you the benefit of my speculations on
the subject of the _Rosana_ were it not that E. W. Smith was on board.
E. W. Smith couldn't die; he wasn't fit for it. But it's a long story.
I 'll not bother you with it.'

Dunbar looked doubtfully at his tobacco pouch, pinched it, and then
contemplated his pipe. Peter handed him a cigar-case, and Dunbar
accepted a cigar, and slipping it into an old envelope, he deposited it
in his pocket. 'I don't believe I should have time to smoke it through
now,' he said, and he continued filling his pipe.

'I suppose you come across a good many queer tales, travelling about as
much as you do,' said Toffy.

Dunbar nodded without speaking. 'You'd wonder,' he said at last. He
finished his pipe, knocked out its ashes, and put it into a little case
lined with red velvet, and stowed it in his pocket; he looked at his
watch and announced that there was still another half-hour before he
intended turning in.

'We might have the end of your story,' said Peter.

'A story is as good a way as any other of wiling away the evening, and
you are welcome to hear the rest of this one,' admitted Dunbar. He was a
grand talker, according to his compatriots, and he chiefly loved the
engineers' mess-room, where he could sit by a table covered in oil-cloth,
and sip a little weak whisky and water, and revert to his broadest Doric
in company with some engineers from the Clyde. 'The _Rosana_,' continued
Dunbar, clearing his throat, 'only carried one boat on her last journey.
I happen to know that for a fact, but the Lord only knows the reason for
it! Now, this boat was found, half-burnt, lying on a lonely bit of coast
a few week