is little body with a blue Guernsey shirt, and his small legs with
white duck trousers of approved sailor cut.

"Now, among other things," resumed Morley, "I want you to learn some
lessons."

Billy shook his head with much decision.

"That won't go down, Mister Jones. I don't mean for to larn no more
lessons. I've 'ad more than enough o' that. Fact is I consider myself
edicated raither 'igher than usual. Can't I read and write, and do a
bit o' cypherin'? Moreover, I knows that the world goes round the sun,
w'ich is contrairy to the notions o' the haincients, wot wos rediklous
enough to suppose that the sun went round the world. And don't I know
that the earth is like a orange, flattened at the poles? though I don't
b'lieve there _is_ no poles, an' don't care a button if there was.
That's enough o' jogrify for my money; w'en I wants more I'll ax for
it."

"But it ain't that sort o' lesson I mean, Billy," said Mr Jones, who
was somewhat amused at the indignant tone in which all this was said.
"The lesson I want you to learn is this: I want you to git off by heart
what you and I are doin', an' going to do, so that if you should ever
come to be questioned about it at different times by different people,
you might always give 'em the same intelligent answer,--d'ye
understand?"

"Whew!" whistled the boy, opening his eyes and showing his teeth; "beaks
an' maginstrates, eh?"

"Just so. And remember, my boy, that you and I have been doin' one or
two things together of late that makes it best for both of us to be very
affectionate to, and careful about, each other. D'ye understand that?"

Billy Towler pursed his little red lips as he nodded his small head and
winked one of his large blue eyes. A slight deepening of the red on his
cheeks told eloquently enough that he _did_ understand that.

The tempter had gone a long way in his course by that time. So many of
the folds of the thin net had been thrown over the little thoughtless
victim, that, light-hearted and defiant though he was by nature, he had
begun to experience a sense of restraint which was quite new to him.

"Now, Billy," continued Jones, "let me tell you that our prospects are
pretty bright just now. I have effected an insurance on my sloop and
cargo for 300 pounds, which means that I've been to a certain great city
that you and I know of, and paid into a company--we shall call it the
Submarine Insurance Company--a small sum for a bit of paper, whi