aid Brace. "It does not seem any the worse for
coming on board without you."

"But I can't make it out," whispered the man, in a strange way. "I hung
it up in the American gent's room--the one you had, sir--and the last I
remember is seeing him sitting opposite to me across the table; and now
look there. See him?"

"No," said Brace; "I can see no him. What do you mean?"

"The American," whispered Lynton, catching the young man by the arm.
"There, can't you see him sitting in the dark yonder?"

"No," said Brace quietly. "I say, Mr Lynton, you'll be better when
you've had a good night's rest. You talk as if you could see a ghost."

"That's it, sir; that's it," whispered the man wildly. "Come away--come
away."

"Nonsense, man. There's nothing over yonder, only--"

Brace stopped short in blank astonishment, for the nearest lanthorn
turned round a little as the brig heeled over, and there, faintly seen,
and looking strangely transparent, the seated figure of the inquisitive
American seemed to loom out of the shadow.

But the startled fancy that it might be anything supernatural passed
away in an instant, and he felt ready to laugh at the superstitious
sailor, as he saw a glowing spot of light about on a level with the
figure's lips, and directly after smelt the peculiar odour of tobacco as
it was wafted to him by the warm night air.

"Come away," whispered the mate, gripping Brace's arm with painful
force.

"Nonsense," said Brace firmly. "That's how your hat came on board."

"Ugh!" ejaculated the mate, and he sent the straw hat he held whirring
away from him with all his might.

He meant to have sent it overboard, but straw hats have boomerang-like
ways of behaving peculiar to themselves, as most wearers know to their
cost; and the one in question, instead of rising and skimming like a
swallow over the bulwark and dropping into the sea, performed a peculiar
evolution, turned in the direction of the group under the awning, dived
down, rose again, just touching Sir Humphrey's ear, missing the first
mate, and striking the captain with its saw-like revolving edge just
below the chin.

"Here, hullo!" roared the latter gentleman; "what are you about?"

"Guess it warn't a bad throw, though, in the dark," said a familiar
voice, which made the captain spring to his feet with a cry of
astonishment; and the next moment the group from beneath the awning were
gathered about the imperturbable smoker seated in the