Part 19 (2/2)

”They sez below, sir,” explained he, still holding out the spud-net straight in front of him, ”as how I wer to tell yer, sir, as I wur a noo hand, an' yer would give I a second 'lowance.”

”Oh, you're a new hand are you?”

”Ay,” replied Joblins, in a very satisfied tone, thinking the matter was now satisfactorily settled. ”That I be, sir.”

”I thought so,” said the s.h.i.+p's steward drily. ”What are you going to put the grog in if I gave it to you?”

Joblins did not reply in words, but held out the net.

”Well,” exclaimed the steward, with a grin on his face that was reflected in that of every one standing by, ”I've heard of green hands and greenhorns before; but of all the raw johnnies I ever saw on board s.h.i.+p you take the cake!”

Strange to say, such was his denseness, that even then, the yokel could not see the point of the joke and the steward had to order him away.

”Now, clear out of this,” he cried, getting a bit angry when his laugh was out. ”Don't you see, you fool, if you can see anything at all, that the rum would run out of the net like water out of a sieve? Be off with you!”

Then at last the poor chap recognised the fact that Harris had been 'taking him in,' and darted down the ladder with the obvious intention of 'taking it out' of his tormentor; but the shout of merriment with which he was received when he got forward amongst the men again, stopped his saying anything, and the watch being just then called, his anger had time to evaporate before he had any further chance of calling his tormentor to account.

The weather continuing on the mend, the commodore gave orders to the officer of the watch, soon after dinner, to shape a course for Madeira, that being the appointed rendezvous of the squadron in the event of their parting company at any time in this first part of our cruise; for we had seen nothing of any of them since the beginning of the gale, the little _Ruby_ being the last we had sighted shortly before our being forced to lie-to.

During the afternoon, however, the horizon clearing to the nor'ard and a gleam of suns.h.i.+ne lighting up the sea, a distant sail was seen hull down on our lee quarter.

”Signalman,” hailed the officer of the watch, ”what do you make her out to be?”

”Can't say yet, sir,” replied the man, with the gla.s.s screwed to his eye, squinting to leeward. ”She's too fur off, sir.”

After a short pause the officer repeated his question.

”Make her out yet, Jones?”

”No, sir,” replied the signalman; ”but she's rising now, sir, an' I thinks she's closing us.”

”Ay.”

Another short interval elapsed; and then, being down in the waist, right under the break of the p.o.o.p, the quarter-master having set me to work flemis.h.i.+ng down the slack ends of some of the sheets that he did not think were tidily arranged, I heard the signalman mumble some exclamation or other which he could not get out properly from his excitement.

”What is it, you say?” said the officer of the watch, who had gone to the binnacle to look at the compa.s.s and did not quite catch what the man said. ”Speak distinctly, my man. I can't hear you!”

”It's the _Ruby_, sir!” shouted out the signalman, in a voice that could be heard, I believe, at the distance by which our consort was separated from us, making the officer of the watch, Lieutenant Robinson, jump off the deck, he having come up quite close in the meantime. ”I knows her by the clew on her tops'l.”

”All right, my man,” blurted out the lieutenant, who was a crusty, ill- tempered, sour sort of chap, one always speaking to the men as if he had a bad liver and who couldn't look a chap square in the eye if he stood up before him, having underhung brows and a nasty way of looking from under them. ”You needn't roar at me like a grampus, Jones. I've a great mind to put you in the list for disrespectful conduct to your superior officer! What did you say?”

”The _Ruby_, sir,” repeated the signalman, as tenderly now as a sucking dove. ”It's the gallant little _Ruby_ sure enough, sir.”

The irate lieutenant did not appear, though, to share the enthusiasm of Jones; and I afterwards heard that he had some grudge against the 'boss'

of the _Ruby_, as indeed he had against most people with whom he came in contact; and I don't think many were sorry when he left the service subsequently to our cruise, starting in some line of civil life where his uncivil demeanour has probably gained him as many friends as he got afloat!

”I don't want any of your opinions, my man,” said he; ”and, if you talk of gallantry, I don't think she has stuck to us as she might have done in the gale. Probably, though, she couldn't help this; for she's a wretched tub and has the misfortune of having a nincomp.o.o.p for a commander besides!”

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