ept for their breathing, they might have been
so many corpses, so utterly helpless were they.

"You've brought me a pretty lot," said Owen; "they're not likely to come
to till I get to sea, and then it's more than probable, to my mind, that
they'll not be worth their salt. You should have brought off sober men,
that I might have judged of them."

"Ah, cappen, you berry hard on me. How could I keep the men sober? And
berry likely if I did dey not come 'tall," answered Mr Jobson, with
wonderful effrontery. "You werry 'tickler; oder cappens take any dey
can get--drunkee or no drunkee, dese men prime hands when dey come to
demself."

Still Owen was firm in refusing to take the drunken men, even though Tar
and Noddin muttered that if their mates did not join, neither would
they; whereat Mr Jobson began to fear that he should have his labour
for nothing, and calling for a bucket, filled it alongside and dashed it
over the inanimate forms placed on deck. At first the shower-bath
produced not the slightest effect, but after several buckets had been
thrown over the men, one of them began to move and to stretch out his
arms as if swimming; then another grunted, and desired with sundry
unsavoury epithets to be left alone; while a third actually sat upright,
and looked stupidly about him. The fourth, however, remained motionless
as at first, when Mr Jobson threw another bucket of water over him. At
last one of the mates lifted the man's arm; the moment he let go it fell
to the deck. He then felt the hand.

"Why, Mr Jobson, you've brought us off a dead man!" he exclaimed. "He
is as cold as ice already."

Mr Jobson stooping down, having convinced himself of the fact, coolly
observed, "Why, he alive yesterday when he come to my house."

"Yes, and you allowed him to drink himself to death," said Owen.
"You'll take him on shore with you, for he couldn't have died on board
this vessel."

Mr Jobson demurred. "Why for dat?" he exclaimed. "You take him to sea
and throw him oberboard; it save much trouble, and I no charge you for
him."

"I should think not," observed Owen. "As for the other three, if Tar
and Noddin are ready to answer for them, I will keep them, for they, at
all events, are alive and likely to come to in a short time."

To Mr Jobson's disgust the corpse was lowered into the boat, when,
having received the sum agreed on, he pulled on shore to give the best
account of the matter he could. Owen knew that