ed me off my donkey. I
was taken on board, and put under an arrest for my misconduct."

"Sail on the starboard-bow!" cried the look-out man.

"Very well," replied the master; "Mr O'Brien,--where's Mr O'Brien?"

"Is it me you mane, sir?" said O'Brien, walking up to the master, for he
had sat down so long in the topsail-halyard rack, that he was wedged in,
and could not get out immediately.

"Yes, sir; go forward, and see what that vessel is."

"Ay, ay, sir," said O'Brien. "And, Mr Simple," continued the master,
"go down and bring me up my night-glass."

"Yes, sir," replied I. I had no idea of a night-glass; and as I
observed that about this time his servant brought him up a glass of
grog, I thought it very lucky that I knew what he meant.

"Take care that you don't break it, Mr Simple."

"O then, I'm all right," thought I; "he means the tumbler:" so down I
went, called up the gunroom steward, and desired him to give me a glass
of grog for Mr Doball. The steward tumbled out in his shirt, mixed the
grog, and gave it to me, and I carried it up very carefully to the
quarter-deck.

During my absence, the master had called the captain, and in pursuance
of his orders, O'Brien had called the first lieutenant, and when I came
up the ladder, they were both on deck. As I was ascending I heard the
master say, "I have sent young Simple down for my night-glass, but he is
so long, that I suppose he has made some mistake. He's but half a
fool."

"That I deny," replied Mr Falcon, the first lieutenant, just as I put
my foot on the quarter-deck; "he's no fool."

"Perhaps not," replied the master. "O, here he is. What made you so
long, Mr Simple--where is my night-glass?"

"Here it is, sir," replied I, handing him the tumbler of grog; "I told
the steward to make it stiff." The captain and the first lieutenant
burst out into a laugh--for Mr Doball was known to be very fond of
grog; the former walked aft to conceal his mirth; but the latter
remained. Mr Doball was in a great rage. "Did I not say that the boy
was half a fool?" cried he to the first lieutenant. "At all events,
I'll not allow that he has proved himself so in this instance," replied
Mr Falcon, "for he has hit the right nail on the head." Then the first
lieutenant joined the captain, and they both went off laughing. "Put it
on the capstan, sir," said Mr Doball to me, in an angry voice. "I'll
punish you by-and-by." I was very much astonished; I hardly