the poop, stepped on board,
and approaching the skipper asked if the crew had all been shipped.
They had not, as it happened; so, after a short conversation, which
seemed to give complete satisfaction to both parties concerned, the man
was instructed to present himself at noon that day at the shipping
office to sign articles.

"Rather a smart fellow, that," observed the skipper to the chief-mate,
as the man swung himself lightly on to the rail and stepped thence
ashore. "I'm very glad to have fallen in with him; he is an A.B., and
has been twice round the Horn, so he ought to know his business. And he
tells me that there are five other men, former shipmates of his, and
good, smart, active, willing men, staying at the same boarding-house
with himself, who, he believes, will be willing to ship with us for the
voyage; so I hope we shall have a good crew."

Mr Bryce assented, and dutifully echoed the skipper's wish; but it was
with a tone and manner which seemed to indicate that he did not feel
very greatly interested in the matter; and Captain Blyth, when he went
ashore shortly afterwards, felt more than ever sorry that his former
mates were not to be with him on the forthcoming voyage. For, it must
be explained, the late chief-mate of the _Bride of Abydos_ had been
promoted to the post of master of that ship--or _captain_, as the
masters of merchant ships like to be called--and the second-mate had met
with an accident, and was lying disabled in an hospital. However, it
could not be helped, and Captain Blyth was obliged to content himself
with the hope that Mr Bryce--who had come to him with a very good
recommendation--would turn out to be a better chief-mate than, at the
moment, seemed likely.

The _Flying Cloud's_ crew were shipped that day, and they comprised a
second-mate, a steward, a cook, a carpenter, a sailmaker, a boatswain
and boatswain's-mate, eight A.B.'s (or able seamen), including the
swarthy man--whose name, by the way, was entered upon the articles as
Joshua Williams--and his five shipmates, and ten ordinary seamen.
These, with the captain, chief-mate, and four midshipmen-apprentices,
made up a crew of thirty-one, all told; which, exclusive of the captain,
cook, steward, carpenter, and sailmaker, neither of whom kept watch,
made up a crew of thirteen hands in a watch, none too many for a full-
rigged ship of the size of the _Flying Cloud_, with such a spread of
canvas as she could show to the breeze.