me--save me!"

Shortly afterwards the corporal made his appearance with a light, and
inquired if Mr Vanslyperken had called. He found him reeking with
perspiration, and half dead with fear. In broken words he stated how he
had been visited, and how the same intimation that no mortal man could
hurt Smallbones had been rung into his ears.

"It was only one dream, Mynheer Vanslyperken," observed the corporal.

"No--it was no dream," replied Vanslyperken. "Stay in the cabin, good
corporal."

"Yes, mynheer," replied the corporal, drawing the curtains of the bed;
and then quietly picking up the various articles on the floor, the table
and chairs which had been overturned.

Alas! fear is the mate of guilt. All this horrible visitation was
simply that Mr Vanslyperken had heard the corporal's tremendous
snoring, as he slept in the chair, and which his imagination had turned
into the words, "Mortal man." The first exclamation of Mr Vanslyperken
had awoke the corporal, who, aware of the impropriety of his situation,
had attempted to retreat; in so doing he had overturned the table and
chairs, with the bottles and glasses upon them.

Fearful of discovery upon this unexpected noise, he had hastened out of
the cabin, slammed the door, and waked up Snarleyyow; but he knew, from
the exclamations of Vanslyperken, that the lieutenant was frightened out
of his wits: so he very boldly returned with a candle to ascertain the
result of the disturbance, and was delighted to find that the lieutenant
was still under the delusion.

So soon as he had replaced everything, the corporal took a chair, and
finding that he had fortunately put the cork into the stone bottle
before he fell asleep, and that there was still one or two glasses in
it, he drank them off, and waited patiently for daylight. By this time
Vanslyperken was again asleep and snoring; so the corporal took away all
the broken fragments, put the things in order, and left the cabin.

When Vanslyperken awoke and rang his bell, Smallbones entered.
Vanslyperken got up, and finding the cabin as it was left the night
before, was more than ever persuaded that he had been supernaturally
visited. Fear made him quite civil to the lad, whose life he now
considered, as the ship's company did that of the dog's, it was quite
useless for him, at least, to attempt, and thus ends this chapter of
horrors.

CHAPTER THIRTY THREE.

IN WHICH THERE IS NOTHING VERY PARTICULAR OR VERY IN