s."

"Nay, nay, nay, my lad: duty first, pleasure after. I've got to put out
anchors and see to the provisioning of that boat."

"Let Mr Dellow do it. He'll be able to see to that all right."

"No," said the captain shortly. "You go and try. Another time I should
like to go with you and be a boy again."

"Well, you know your own business best; so we must put off the pleasure
of having you with us till another day," said Brace.

"Yes," the captain replied; "but I warn you to take care, my lad. No
going overboard. I wouldn't give much for your chance of getting out of
the water again."

"But there are not likely to be any alligators or crocodiles there."

"I dunno," said the captain. "I shouldn't like to risk it. There's
likely to be plenty of all kinds of dangerous fish or reptiles up
yonder, and size don't count. A thousand of the little tiny
sticklebacks of fish in these rivers are more dangerous than one big
fellow ten foot long."

A quarter of an hour after the meal was finished, Lynton, Dan, and four
of the sailors, with their faces full of sunshine, had taken their seats
in a boat which had been lowered, while the men left on board looked
down at them as if through clouds.

"I hope you will be careful, my lad," said Sir Humphrey.

"You may trust me, Free; I shall not do anything rash," said Brace,
laughing.

"I shall look forward to a pleasant evening over your specimens,
Briscoe," said Sir Humphrey, speaking more warmly to the American than
had been his custom.

"I hope I shan't disappoint you, sir," was the reply.

"Got all your guns and ammunition, squire?" cried the captain.

"Yes, quite right."

"And fishing-tackle and bait and everything else you will need?"

"Yes; I believe we have taken everything aboard," was the reply.

"I'll tell the cook to have a good fire made up in the galley for
roasting the ducks you are going to shoot and the frying-pan ready for
the fish you are going to catch."

"All right," cried Brace merrily. "Ready, Mr Lynton?"

"Ay, ay, sir."

"Then push off."

The man holding on with the boat-hook gave a good thrust, and the boat
glided away from the brig's side with the swift stream, which rolled
over the sandbank, caught the boat, and whirled her away. But the
little mast was already up forward and the rudder hooked on, so that
when the lug-sail had been hoisted and had bellied out, the boat,
answering quickly to a touch of the tiller, glided through