"You're as like as two peas," persisted the mate. "I made sure you were
sisters when I saw you first."

"You ain't the first that's thought that," said the other, laughing
softly; "not by a lot."

"I like to see ladies about," said the mate, who was trying desperately
for a return invitation. "I wish you could always sit there. You quite
brighten the cabin up."

"You're a flatterer," said his visitor, as he replenished her glass, and
showed so little signs of making a move that the mate, making a pretext
of seeing the engineer, hurried up on deck to singe his wings once more.

"Still reading?" he said softly, as he came abreast of the girl. "All
about love, I s'pose."

"Have you left my mother down there all by herself?" inquired the girl
abruptly.

"Just a minute," said the mate, somewhat crestfallen. "I just came up to
see the engineer."

"Well, he isn't here," was the discouraging reply.

The mate waited a minute or two, the girl still reading quietly, and
then walked back to the cabin. The sound of gentle regular breathing
reached his ears, and, stepping softly, he saw to his joy that his
visitor slept.

"She's asleep," said he, going back, "and she looks so comfortable I
don't think I'll wake her."

"I shouldn't advise you to," said the girl; "she always wakes up cross."

"How strange we should run up against each other like this," said the
mate sentimentally; "it looks like Providence, doesn't it?"

"Looks like carelessness," said the girl.

"I don't care," replied the mate. "I'm glad I did let that line go
overboard. Best day's work I ever did. I shouldn't have seen you if I
hadn't."

"And I don't suppose you'll ever see me again," said the girl
comfortably, "so I don't see what good you've done yourself."

"I shall run down to Limehouse every time we're in port, anyway," said
the mate; "it'll be odd if I don't see you sometimes. I daresay our
craft'll pass each other sometimes. Perhaps in the night," he added
gloomily.

"I shall sit up all night watching for you," declared Miss Jansell
untruthfully.

In this cheerful fashion the conversation proceeded, the girl, who was
by no means insensible to his bright eager face and well-knit figure,
dividing her time in the ratio of three parts to her book and one to
him. Time passed all too soon for the mate, when they were interrupted
by a series of hoarse unintelligible roars proceeding from the
schooner's cabin.

"That's father," said Miss Jans