and as Barradas is no better I shall rely on
you, as I did on Tracey."

"Certainly, sir."

After a few minutes' more conversation, in which Rawlings outlined his
plans for the trading and pearling operations, and showed Barry a large
scale chart of Arrecifos Lagoon in the Caroline Islands, which was the
brig's destination, the two men parted for the night.

Immediately after breakfast on the following morning the brig was laid
to, the crew ranged upon the deck, and the body of her former chief
officer was carried up from the cabin by two native seamen and
committed to the deep.

CHAPTER IV.

MR. BILLY WARNER, OF PONAPE.

Ten days after leaving Sydney the _Mahina_ had rounded the
south-eastern end of New Caledonia, and was steering a northerly course
between the New Hebrides Group and the great archipelago of the Solomon
Islands for Arrecifos Lagoon. During these ten days Barry had had time
to study Captain Rawlings and the rest of the ship's company, and had
come to the conclusion that there was some mystery attached to both
ship and crew. The latter, with the exception of the boatswain, who
was a dark-faced, ear-ringed Greek, and the four new hands brought on
board by the captain, were all natives of various islands of the
Equatorial Pacific. Seven of the twelve, with two of the white men,
were in Barry's watch; Barradas had the rest. Among Barry's men was a
stalwart young native, much lighter in colour than the others, very
quiet in his demeanour, but willing and cheerful. His name, so he told
Barry, was Velo, and he was a native of Manono, in the Samoan Group.
For the past four or five years he had been wandering to and fro among
the islands of the Pacific, his last voyage being made in a luckless
Hobart Town whaleship, which he had left at Sydney in disgust and
without a penny in his pocket. Like Barry, he had been attracted to
the _Mahina_ by the fact of her being engaged in the island trade, and
indeed had only joined her two days before Barry himself. His
cheerful, ingenuous manner, combined with his smart seamanship, made
the chief officer take a great liking to him, and even Barradas, gruff
and surly and ever ready to deal out a blow, admitted that Velo was,
next to the boatswain, the best sailorman of all the crew.

On the second day out the strong westerly had failed, and was succeeded
by light and variable airs, much to Rawlings' anger. Walking the poop
one day with Barry, he gave ven