us efforts made to teach Sammy to call
the old captain grand-uncle.

"Where have you stowed away my hair-brush, you rascal?" cried the voice
of thunder.

"It's under my bunk, grunkle; I was bracking yous boots with it."

The thunder subsided in tempestuous mutterings, and Sammy, feeling that
he had begun the day well, struggled out of his father's arms and went
careering round the deck into every possible position of danger. He
kept them all lively until Stumps caught him and extinguished him, for a
time, with breakfast.

"Uncle Rik," said Sam, while that meal was being discussed in the
snuggest little cabin that could be imagined, "did you hear of the
extraordinary manner in which a whale was caught by a telegraph cable
lately?"

"No, I didn't, Sam, an' what's more, I wouldn't believe it if I did."

"It is true, nevertheless," said Sam, breaking his fifth egg--sea
breezes being appetising.

"How did it happen, Sam?" asked Madge.

"In a very curious manner Madge. It will amuse Letta, for I know she
takes a deep interest in cables."

"Indeed it will," said Letta, who was the soul of earnest simplicity; "I
delight in electric cables."

Robin looked at Letta, and wished that he were an electric cable!

"It happened to the Persian Gulf cable, quite recently," continued Sam,
addressing himself to Letta. "The cable between Kurrachee and Gwadur, a
distance of 300 miles, suddenly failed one evening. Now, you must know
that electrical science has advanced with such rapid strides of late,
that we have the power to discover pretty nearly the exact position of a
fault in a cable. Of course I cannot expect a young lady to understand
the technical details of the mode, in which this is done, but you will
understand that by tests taken at either end the damage appeared to be
about 118 miles from Kurrachee, and a telegraph steamer was sent with an
electrical and engineering staff to repair it. The steamer reached the
supposed locality early on the morning of the second day out, and
proceeded at once to grapple for the cable, though a thick fog prevailed
at the time, and a heavy sea was running.

"The soundings at the place were very irregular, implying a rugged
bottom of submarine mountain-tops and valleys. On winding in the cable
unusual resistance was experienced, as if it were foul of rocks, and
when, after great difficulty, they drew it up they found that this was
caused by the body of an immense whale, with tw