us carrying another person on
our backs."

"Done," cried Doctor McCan; "it shall come off at once. I'll take Adair
as my jockey; you can take whom you like." Adair was the lightest
midshipman on board, and the doctor thought that by getting him he had
stolen a march on his military competitor.

"Agreed," answered Lieutenant Stokes, cocking his squinting eye in the
most ludicrous way. "I'll take Rogers. He's a bit heavier than Adair,
but I don't mind that. As you had the first choice of a rider, I must
choose the ground. From the extreme end of that spit of land to the
palm-trees near the neck is, I guess, about a mile." This was said
while the frigate and her prize were brought up on their voyage to
Sierra Leone. Doctor McCan looked at the white spit of sand, and
thought what heavy work it would be running over it; but he felt that he
was in honour bound to keep to the proposed terms. A party was soon
made up to go on shore, and all hands looked forward to the fun they
expected to enjoy from the exhibition. They had first to pull alongside
the prize to call for Rogers and Adair. Hemming gave them leave to go,
and they of course were nothing loath to accept the invitation. What
Captain Lascelles would have thought of the matter I don't know. He
might have considered that the exhibition of an officer of marines
racing with a midshipman on his back was somewhat subversive of
discipline. There was no surf on the shore, and the boats landed
without difficulty. The ground was measured by the umpires. It was
from the end of the point round the palm-trees and back again about a
quarter of the distance to make up the mile. The doctor felt the sand
with his feet. It was very fine and soft, and he began to repent of his
proposal.

"Now, gentlemen, take up your burdens and be ready at the
starting-post," said the master, who was chief umpire. They went to the
ground, tossing up the midshipmen to make them sit comfortably on their
backs.

"Now--one, two, three, and away you go!" cried the master.

Off they went, the marine officer prancing away with Jack in the pride
of his strength, while the doctor ploughed his way steadily on through
the sand, finding, even with Adair, that he had rather more flesh and
blood to carry than was pleasant. Still Mr Stokes did not gain upon
him. He too found that Rogers was no slight weight, though he was only
a midshipman--as Jack said of himself, "All that is of me is goo