surgery--on your part would set all right."

"There _you_ go again, sir!" cried Steve querulously. "One minute you
want to give me pills and a draught, the next you want to begin cutting
me to pieces."

The doctor burst out laughing.

"That's right," cried Steve, "laugh at me; I deserve it;" and at that
moment he wished that he was a little child again, so that he could go
and hide himself away, and relieve his feelings by crying fit to break
his heart. But he did not say to himself "cry"; he put it as "blubber
like a great girl."

"Be quiet, my lad; and, believe me, I can feel for you and want to help
you. I'm a doctor, and I talked metaphorically, as, of course, you
know. By moral surgery I meant one brave bit of mastery over self, and
cutting the trouble right out. There's no hiding the fact; you, as a
gentleman's son, ought not to have been found fighting with the ship's
boy, and under such ludicrous circumstances; now, ought you?"

"No, I suppose not," replied Steve; "but--"

"Never mind the `buts,' my lad. You own that you are in the wrong?"

"Yes."

"Then go and wash your face and brush all that fluff off your jacket.
Then pluck up, and like a man go in to the captain; keep cool--you'll be
cooler by that time--and tell him exactly how it all was; say you are
sorry, and--Don't keep on shaking your head like that, sir; you'll be
doing some injury to your spinal column."

"But I can't go and tell him that, after the way in which he looked and
spoke to me."

"Yes, you can, sir."

"No."

"There you go, shaking your head again. Tell him you were in the
wrong."

"That I'll be a good boy, and won't do so any more."

"Well, is there anything to be ashamed of in that, sir?"

"I couldn't do it--I wouldn't do it."

"Then you're a coward."

"No, I'm not," retorted Steve angrily.

"You are--a miserable moral coward; and I thought you had more pluck in
you--more of the honest, manly pluck of an English boy who is brave
enough to own to a fault."

"I'm not a coward," muttered Steve. "I'd show you if there was any
occasion," and he stood frowning.

"Bah! Any big, strong, stupid fellow, with no brains to boast about,
can jump overboard to save any one or do anything of that kind. I want
to see you act like a brave fellow who is ready to make a bit of
sacrifice of his own feelings, and behave in a manly way. Come, I'm
giving you good advice. We shall have bad weather enough to deal with
out