huge wave
that was crowded between the two hulls crowned itself with frothing
white and slapped a good, generous ton of green water over the smaller
steamer's superstructure.

Captain Wass grabbed down his megaphone; he wanted to submit a few
remarks which seemed to fit the incident.

But the captain of the Triton was beforehand with a celerity which
matched the up-to-date speed of his craft. He was bellowing through the
huge funnel which a quartermaster was holding for him. His language
was terrific. He cursed freighters in most able style. He asked why the
_Nequasset_ was loafing there in the seaway without steering headway on
her! That amazing query took away Captain Wass's breath and all power
to retort. Asking that of a man who had obeyed the law to the letter! A
fellow who was banging through the fog at eighteen knots' speed blaming
a conscientious skipper because the latter had stopped so as to get out
of the way!

And, above all, going so fast when he asked the question that he was out
of ear-shot before suitable answer could be returned!

Captain Wass revolved those whirling thoughts in a brain which flamed
and showed its fires through the skipper's wide-propped eyes.

Then he banged his megaphone across the pilot-house. It rebounded
against him, and he kicked it into a corner. He began to whack his fist
against a broad placard which was tacked up under his license as master.
The cardboard was freshly white, and its tacks were bright, showing that
it had been recently added as a feature of the pilot-house. Big letters
in red ink at the top counseled, "Safety First." Other big letters
at the bottom warned, "Take No Chances." The center lettering advised
shipmasters that in case of accident the guilty parties would feel all
the weight of Uncle Sam's heavy palm; it was the latest output from
the Department of Commerce and Labor, and bore the signature of the
honorable secretary of the bureau.

Mayo noted that his chief was wholly absorbed in this speechless
activity; therefore he pulled the bells which stopped the backward
churning and sent the freighter on her way. They passed the fisherman in
the Hampton boat; he was bailing his craft.

"That was a rather close call, sir! I am glad that I have been trained
by you to be a careful man. You took no chances!"

"And where have I got to by obeying the United States rules and never
taking chances, Mr. Mayo? At sixty-five I'm master of a freight-scow,
sassed