w
& Benton Company, Limited, of the location of the berth he was to
discharge, ordered a tug for that afternoon, went to the cable office,
registered his cable address, sent a cablegram to the owners and
returned to the ship.

"Well, Mike," he announced to the second mate, "I guess I'm the skipper;
following the same line of deduction, I guess you're the chief mate, so
I'll move my dunnage into the old man's cabin and you move into mine.
I'll pick up a second mate in Cape Town before we leave."

Mr. Murphy eyed his youthful superior with mild curiosity, not
untempered with amusement. "Thank you for the promotion, Captain Matt,"
he replied. "However, if you'll excuse my apparent impudence on the
grounds that I'm about fifteen years older than you and have been longer
in the Blue Star employ, I'd like to make a suggestion."

"Fire away, Mike."

Mr. Murphy hitched his belt, walked to the rail, spat tobacco juice from
between his fingers and came back. "You're the youngest chief mate I've
ever seen, and this is your first berth in that capacity," he began.
"Suppose you hang on to it and don't be so infernally generous."

"But you have a first mate's license, haven't you?"

"Certainly. But--"

"No ifs or buts, Mike. The skipper's dead; I was first mate;
consequently I take command of the ship, and by virtue of my authority
I appoint you first mate. That goes. You'll do one of two things, Mike.
You'll be first mate or get out of the ship."

Michael J. Murphy grinned. "You mean that?"

"Naturally."

"If you stick by that determination you'll find yourself on the beach
in Cape Town, unless you conclude to take my recently vacated berth as
second mate. And I'd hate like the devil to have you do that. There's
neither sense nor profit for you in swapping jobs with me."

"But I tell you I'm going to be skipper."

"I know--until old Cappy Ricks sends down a relief captain. If you
promote me now, the relief captain may conclude to retain me as first
mate and then you'd have to take my job or quit the ship; and of course
I wouldn't care to have that happen. I'd have to quit the ship, too. I
wouldn't care to do that. I've made up my mind to sail under the Blue
Star flag for the rest of my natural life and I'd hate to have to change
my mind."

"I've made up my mind to the same thing, Mike, and I know I'm not going
to change my mind."

"Well, then, Matt, you stick in your first mate's berth and I'll be
satisfied with m