curious, put her head up the hatchway to look at him. She put
it down again very quick, as I thought, and made some excuse to go
forward in the eyes of her, where she remained some time, and then, when
she came aft, told Sam that she would go on shore. Now, as it had been
agreed that she should remain on board till we were clear of the river,
Sam couldn't think what the matter was; but she was positive, and go
away she did, very much to Sam's astonishment and anger. In the
evening, Sam went on shore and found her out, and what d'ye think the
little Jezebel told him?--why, that one of the men had been rude to her
when she went forward, and that's why she wouldn't stay on board. Sam
was in a devil of a passion at this, and wanted to know which was the
man; but she fondled him, and wouldn't tell him, because she was afraid
that he'd be hurt. At last she bamboozled him, and sent him on board
again quite content. Well, we remained three days longer, and then
dropped down the river to Greenwich, where the captain was to come on
board, and we were to sail as soon as the wind was fair. Now, this fine
tall fellow was with us when we dropped down the river, and as Sam was
sitting down on his chest eating a basin o' soup, the other man takes
out a 'baccy pouch of seal-skin;--it was a very curious one, made out of
the white and spotted part of a young seal's belly. `I say, shipmate,'
cries Sam, `hand me over my 'baccy pouch. Where did you pick it up?'

"`Your pouch!' says he to him; `I killed the seal, and my fancy girl
made the pouch for me.'

"`Well, if that ain't cool! you'd swear a man out of his life, mate.
Tom,' says he to me, `ain't that my pouch which my wife gave me when I
came back last trip?'

"I looked at it, and knew it again, and said it was. The tall fellow
denied it, and there was a devil of a bobbery. Sam called him a thief,
and he pitched Sam right down the main hatchway among the casks. After
that there was a regular set-to, and Sam was knocked all to shivers, and
obliged to give in. When the fight was over, I took up Sam's shirt for
him to put on. `That's my shirt,' cried the tall fellow.

"`That's Sam's shirt,' replied I; `I know it's his.'

"`I tell you it's mine,' replied the man; `my lass gave it to me to put
on when I got up this morning. The other is his shirt.'

"We looked at the other, and they both were Sam's shirts. Now when Sam
heard this, he put two and two together, and became