me," said
Maurice. "Yes, sir, and if she's up to what I think she ought to be, I
wouldn't be afraid to bet my share of what we make out South that
she'll hold her own with anything out of Gloucester--give her a few
weeks to loosen up, of course."

That was a good deal to say, for it was a great fleet of vessels
sailing out of Gloucester; but even so, even allowing for a young
skipper's pride in his first crack vessel, it meant a whole lot coming
like that from Maurice Blake.

And on top of all that Maurice and Withrow had to quarrel, though what
about I never found out. I only know that I was ready to believe that
Withrow was to blame, for I liked Maurice and did not like Withrow,
even though Withrow was the man from whom I drew my pay every week.
And yet I could not understand it, for Maurice Blake had been far and
away the most successful skipper sailing for Withrow, and Withrow
always had a good eye for the dollar.

No more came of it until this particular morning, some days after
Maurice and Withrow had quarrelled. Wesley Marrs and Tommie Clancy,
two men that I never tired of listening to, were on the dock and
sizing up the new vessel. Wesley Marrs was himself a great fisherman,
and master at this time of the wonderful Lucy Foster.

When she swings the main boom over
And she feels the wind abaft,

The way she'll walk to Gloucester'll
Make a steamer look a raft.

For she's the Lucy Foster,
She's a seiner out of Gloucester,--

was the way the fishermen of the port used to sing about the Lucy;
while Tommie Clancy was Maurice Blake's closest friend.

With ballast stored, masts stepped, rigging set up, and sails bent,
setting as sweet as could be to her lines and the lumpers beginning to
get her ready for the mackerel season, the Fred Withrow was certainly
a picture.

After a couple of extra long pulls, blowing the smoke into the air,
and another look above and below, "That one--she'll sail some or I
don't know," said Wesley.

"She sure will," said Tommie; "and it's a jeesly shame Maurice isn't
to have her." Then turning to me, "What in the devil's name ails that
man you work for, Joey?"

I said I didn't know.

"No, nor nobody else knows. I'd like to work in that store for him for
about ten minutes. I think I'd make him say something in that ten
minutes that would give me a good excuse for heaving him out the
window. He had an argument with Maurice, Wesley, and Maurice don't