men, Master "Downy," the ex-gravedigger, although he had
been scraped into something of a sailor in appearance in the time he had
been afloat, now nearly five years, in which period, by the way, he had
accumulated enough prize-money to more than discharge the debts he had
left behind on quitting his country, could never be taught to be smart
in his movements, always going about the deck as if he were engaged at a
funeral.

One day, a wag on the forecastle, as we heard through the marine sentry,
took a good rise out of this slow-going individual.

"Hi, Downy!" said he, seeing him creeping forward, with his eyes bent
down, counting the planks, apparently. "Chips, the carpenter's mate,
wants to see you, sonny."

"See me?" repeated the other, wonderingly. "What does he want to see me
for?"

"Why," said the other, "he wants to measure you for your coffin. He
says you're more'n half dead already, cos you crawls about like a
cripple. Only you're so bloomin' lazy, you'd die out and out at once
and be chucked overboard comfortable like!"

Downy did not make any reply to this, which was an acknowledgment of his
having the worst of it, as he was generally credited with possessing the
gift of the gab and not easily silenced.

Another queer old stick came to the sick bay complaining of being ill,
notwithstanding that he looked hale and hearty.

"What's the matter with you?" asked Dr Nettleby, in his sharp, incisive
manner, which had not grown any milder from his sojourn in the China Sea
and an attack of liver complaint. "You seem all right, my man."

"I've got overhand knots in my gaffs, sir."

"What on earth do you mean?" cried the doctor, puzzled by the name of
this new disease.

"Overhand knots in your gaffs--why, you must be drunk!"

"No, sir, I ain't," replied the old sailor, soberly enough, holding out
his hands, which were twisted about, the fingers resembling the strands
of a rope overlaying each other, and the knuckles distorted out of
shape. "My spars, sir, refuses duty."

He had very aptly described his complaint, although it might not be
similarly designated in any medical dictionary.

The poor fellow was suffering from rheumatism!

CHAPTER THIRTY FIVE.

"PAID OFF!"

But it is time to bring this long yarn of mine to a close.

It was a fine, bright day, in the early part of October, that we hove
the ship to for soundings, our observations then showing us that we were
near Scilly and closin