coast, the
skipper told Fritz he hoped to be at Tristan on the morrow. This was
when he and the captain were having their usual quarter-deck walk in the
first watch, the evening of the same day on which they passed the school
of whales.

"Yes, sirree," he said, "we've run down to 36 degrees South latitude, I
guess, an' wer 'bout 13 degrees West when I took the sun at noon; so I
kalkerlate, if the wind don't fail an' the shep keeps on goin' as she
is, which is bootiful, I reckon, why we'll fetch Tristan nigh on
breakfus-time to-morrow,--yes, sir!"

"Indeed!" exclaimed Fritz. He did not think they were anywhere near the
place yet; for, although it was more than two months since they had left
Narraganset Bay, the ship appeared to sail so sluggishly and the voyage
to be so tedious, that he would not have been surprised to hear some day
from the captain that they would not reach their destination until
somewhere about Christmas time!

"Ya-as, really, I guess so, mister. No doubt you're a bit flustered at
gettin' thaar so soon; but the _Pilot's Bride's_ sich a powerful clipper
thet we've kinder raced here, an' arrove afore we wer due, I reckon!"

The skipper innocently took Fritz's expression of surprise to be a
compliment to the ship's sailing powers; and so Fritz would not
undeceive him by telling him his real opinion about the vessel. It
would have been cruel to try and weaken his belief in the lubberly old
whaler, every piece of timber in whose hull he loved with a fatherly
affection almost equal to that with which he regarded his daughter
Celia.

Fritz therefore limited himself to an expression of delight at the
speedy termination of their voyage, without hazarding any comment on the
_Pilot's Bride's_ progress; by which means he avoided either hurting the
old skipper's feelings or telling an untruth, which he would otherwise
have had to do.

He was undoubtedly glad to have advanced so far in their undertaking;
for, once arrived at Tristan d'Acunha, a few more days would see them
landed on Inaccessible Island, when, he and Eric would really begin
their crusoe life of seal-catching and "making the best" of it, in
solitary state.

Wasn't he up on deck early next morning, turning out of his bunk as soon
as he heard the first mate calling the captain at four bells--although,
when he got there, he found Eric had preceded him, he having charge of
the morning watch and having been up two hours before himself!

How