consciousness of superiority
in birth and education. He had with supreme satisfaction ordered him
off the plantation that memorable night. Weak as the man had been in
body, there had been no indication of weakness in spirit.

Occultly Warrington read the desire in the other's eyes. "I shouldn't
do it, Mallow," he said. "I shouldn't. Nothing would please me better
than to have a good excuse to chuck you over the rail. Upon a time you
had the best of me. I was a sick man then. I'm in tolerable good
health at present."

"You crow, I could break you like a pipe-stem."

Mallow rammed his hands into his coat pockets, scowling contemptuously.
He weighed fully twenty pounds more than Warrington.

Crow! Warrington shrugged. In the East crow is a rough synonym for
thief. "You're at liberty to return to your diggings forward with that
impression," he replied coolly. "When we get to Singapore," rising
slowly to his height until his eyes were level with Mallow's, "when we
get to Singapore, I'm going to ask you for that fifty pounds, earned in
honest labor."

"And if I decline to pay?" truculently.

"We'll talk that over when we reach port. Now," roughly, "get out.
There won't be any baiting done to-day, thank you."

The chief engineer's assistant, a stocky, muscular young Scot, stepped
forward. He knew Mallow. "If there is, Mr. Warrington, I'm willing to
have a try at losing my job."

"Cockalorem!" jeered Mallow. Craig touched his sleeve, but he threw
off the hand roughly. He was one of the best rough and tumble fighters
in the Straits Settlements. "You thieving beach-comber, I don't want
to mess up the deck with you, but I'll cut your comb for you when we
get to port."

Warrington laughed insolently and picked up the parrot-cage. "I'll
bring the comb. In fact, I always carry it." Not a word to Craig, not
a glance in his direction. Warrington stepped to the companionway and
went below.

The chief engineer's assistant, whistling _Bide Awee_, sauntered
forward.

Craig could not resist grinning at Mallow's discomfiture. "Wouldn't
break, eh?"

"Shut your mouth! The sneaking dock-walloper, I'll take the starch out
of him when we land! Always had that high and mighty air. Wants folks
to think he's a gentleman."

"He was once," said Craig. "No use giving you advice; but he's not a
healthy individual to bait. I'm no kitten when it comes to scrapping;
but I haven't any desire to mix things with h