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The other nodded.

"Now, you keep your eyes open," said the skipper; and, going to his state-room, he returned with three bottles of rum and a corkscrew, all of which, with an air of great mystery, he placed on the table, and thensmiled at the mate. The mate smiled too.

"What’s this?" inquired the skipper, drawing the cork, and holding abottle under the other’s nose.

"It smells like rum," said the mate, glancing round, possibly for a glass.

"It’s for the men," said the skipper, "but you may take a drop. "

The mate, taking down a glass, helped himself liberally, and, havingmade sure of it, sympathetically, but politely, expressed his firmopinion that the men would not touch it under any conditions whatever.

"You don’t quite understand how firm they are," said he; you think it’sjust a new fad with ’em, but it ain’t. "

"They’ll drink it," said the skipper, taking up two of the bottles. "Bring the other on deck for me. "

The mate complied, wonderingly, and, laden with prime old Jamaica, ascended the steps.

"What’s this?" inquired the skipper, crossing over to Dick, and holdingout a bottle.

"Pison, sir," said Dick promptly.

"Have a drop," said the skipper jovially.

"Not for twenty pounds," said the old man, with a look of horror.

"Not for two million pounds," said Sam, with financial precision.

"Will anybody have a drop?" asked the owner, waving the bottle to andfro.

As he spoke a grimy paw shot out from behind him, and, before he quiterealised the situation, the cook had accepted the invitation, and washurriedly making the most of it.

"Not you," growled the skipper, snatching the bottle from him; "I didn’tmean you. Well, my lads, if you won’t have it neat you shall have itwatered. "

Before anybody could guess his intention he walked to the water-cask,and, removing the cover, poured in the rum. In the midst of a profoundsilence he emptied the three bottles, and then, with a triumphant smile,turned and confronted his astonished crew.

"What’s in that cask, Dick?" he asked quietly.

"Rum and water," groaned Dick; "but that ain’t fair play, sir. We’vekep’ to our part o’ the agreement, sir, an’ you ought to ha’ kep’ toyours. "

"So I have," was the quick reply; "so I have, an’ I still keep to it. Don’t you see this, my lads; when you start playing antics with me you’re playing a fool’s game, an’ you’re bound to come a cropper. Some men would ha’ waited longer afore they spiled their game, but I think you’ve suffered enough. Now there’s a lump of beef and some taters on, an’ you’d better go and make a good square meal, an’ next time you wantto alter the religion of people as knows better than you do, thinktwice. "

"We don’t want no beef, sir; biskit’ll do for us," said Dick firmly.

"All right, please yourselves," said the skipper; "but mind, no hanky-panky, no coming for drink when my back’s turned; this cask’ll bewatched; but if you do alter your mind about the beef you can tell thecook to get it for you any time you like. "

He threw the bottles overboard, and, ignoring the groaning and head-shaking of the men, walked away, listening with avidity to the respectful tributes to his genius tendered by the mate and cook— flattery so delicate and so genuine withal that he opened another bottle.

"There’s just one thing," said the mate presently; "won’t the rum affectthe cooking a
good deal?"

"I never thought o’ that," admitted the skipper; "still, we musn’t expect to have everything our own way. "

"No, no," said the mate blankly, admiring the other’s choice of pronouns.