me congratulate you on the short work you made with that gang to
the north, the other day. I am sorry to hear that the principal rascal
of the lot, Captain Touan, gave you the slip."

The Doctor had been pondering, and had made up his mind to a certain
course; he bent over the table, and said,--

"I think, on the whole, that it is better to let you all know the
worst. That man whom we saw on the cliff last night I met afterwards,
alone, down on the shore, and that man is no other than the one you
speak of, Captain Touan."

Any one watching Desborough's face as the Doctor spoke would have seen
his eyebrows contract heavily, and a fierce scowl settle on his face.
The name the Doctor mentioned was a very unwelcome one. He had been
taunted and laughed at, at Government-house, for having allowed Hawker
to outwit him. His hot Irish blood couldn't stand that, and he had
vowed to have the fellow somehow. Here he had missed him again, and by
so little, too! He renewed his vow to himself, and in an instant the
cloud was gone, and the merry Irishman was there again.

"My dear Doctor," he said, "I am aware that you never speak at random,
or I should ask you, were you sure of the man? Are you not mistaken?"

"Mistaken in HIM,--eh?" said the Doctor. "No, I was not mistaken."

"You seem to know too much of a very suspicious character, Doctor!"
said Desborough. "I shall have to keep my eye on you, I see!"

* * * * *

Meanwhile, at the other end of the table, more agreeable subjects were
being talked of. There sat our young coterie, laughing loudly, grouping
themselves round some exceedingly minute object, which apparently was
between Sam and Alice, and which, on close examination, turned out to
be little Tacks, who was evidently making himself agreeable in a way
hardly to be expected in one of his tender years. And this is the way
he got there:--

When Captain Blockstrop came in, Alice was duly impressed by the
appearance of that warrior. But when she saw little Tacks slip in
behind him, and sit meekly down by the door; and when she saw how his
character was appreciated by the cattle-dogs, one of whom had his head
in the lad's lap, while the other was licking his face--when she saw, I
say, the little blue and gold apparition, her heart grew pitiful, and,
turning to Halbert, she said,--

"Why, good gracious me! You don't mean to tell me that they take such a
child as that to sea; do you?"

"Oh dear, yes!" said Halbert,