on board the
steam-ship _Atalanta_.

He was just beginning to complain, when we heard men coming on board.
This amused us for a bit, but we were stowed so that we could not see
them, and we dared not look out. Neither dared we speak, except when
we heard them go a good way off, and then we whispered. So second
after second, and minute after minute, and hour after hour went by,
and Fred became very restless.

"She's to sail in the morning," I whispered.

"But where are we to get dinner and tea and supper?" asked Fred
indignantly. I was tired, and felt cross on my own account.

"You said yourself we might have to weigh out our food with a bullet
like Admiral Bligh, next week."

"He must have had something, or he couldn't have weighed it," retorted
Fred; "and how do we know if they'll ever give us anything to eat on
board this ship?"

"I dare say we can buy food at first, till they find us something to
do for our meals," said I.

"How much money is there left?" asked Fred.

I put my hand into my pocket for the canvas bag--but it was gone!

There could be little doubt that the bad boy had picked my pocket at
the gate, but I had a sense of guiltiness about it, for most of the
money was Fred's. This catastrophe completely overwhelmed him, and he
cried and grumbled till I was nearly at my wits' end. I could not stop
him, though heavy steps were coming quite close to us.

"Sh! sh!" muttered I, "if you go on like that they'll certainly find
us, and then we shall have managed all this for nothing, and might as
well have gone back with old Rowe."

"Which wind and weather permitting, young gentlemen, you will," said
a voice just above us, though we did not hear it.

"I wish we could," sobbed Fred, "only there's no money now. But I'm
going to get out of this beastly hole any way."

"You're a nice fellow to tell me about your grandfather," said I, in
desperate exasperation; "I don't believe you've the pluck for a common
sailor, let alone a Great Discoverer."

"You've hit the right nail on the head there, Master Charles," said
the voice.

"Fiddlesticks about my grandfather!" said Fred.

In the practical experiences of the last three days my faith in Fred's
tales had more than once been rather rudely shaken; but the
contemptuous tone in which he disposed of our model, the Great Sea
Captain, startled me so severely that I do not think I felt any
additional shock of astonishment when strong hands lifted the
tarpauli