take care, Simpson," said the boatswain; "the doctor's
a clever man, and he'll make you take this puffin for a grouse."

The fact is that the doctor was quite right about his fowl; he took
off all the fat, which all lies under the skin, principally on the
thighs, and with it disappeared the rancidity and taste of fish which
is so disagreeable in a sea bird. Thus prepared the puffin was declared
excellent, and Simpson acknowledged it the first.

During the late storm Richard Shandon had been able to judge of the
qualities of his crew; he had watched each man narrowly, and knew
how much each was to be depended upon.

James Wall was devoted to Richard, understood quickly and executed
well, but he might fail in initiative; he placed him in the third
rank. Johnson was used to struggle with the sea; he was an old stager
in the Arctic Ocean, and had nothing to learn either in audacity or
_sang-froid_. The harpooner, Simpson, and the carpenter, Bell, were
sure men, faithful to duty and discipline. The ice-master, Foker,
was an experienced sailor, and, like Johnson, was capable of rendering
important service. Of the other sailors Garry and Bolton seemed to
be the best; Bolton was a gay and talkative fellow; Garry was
thirty-five, with an energetic face, but rather pale and sad-looking.
The three sailors, Clifton, Gripper, and Pen, seemed less ardent and
resolute; they easily grumbled. Gripper wanted to break his
engagement even before the departure of the _Forward_; a sort of shame
kept him on board. If things went on all right, if there were not
too many risks to run, no dangers to encounter, these three men might
be depended upon; but they must be well fed, for it might be said
that they were led by their stomachs. Although warned beforehand,
they grumbled at having to be teetotallers; at their meals they
regretted the brandy and gin; it did not, however, make them spare
the tea and coffee, which was prodigally given out on board. As to
the two engineers, Brunton and Plover, and the stoker, Warren, there
had been nothing for them to do as yet, and Shandon could not tell
anything about their capabilities.

On the 14th of April the _Forward_ got into the grand current of the
Gulf Stream, which, after ascending the eastern coast of America to
Newfoundland, inclines to the north-east along the coast of Norway.
They were then in 57 degrees 37 minutes latitude by 22 degrees 58
minutes longitude, at two hundred miles from the po