head. Wanted to see what the poor feller died of.'

"'I call it unwholesome,' ses the second mate very savage.' He offered
me a pill at breakfast the size of a small marble; quite put me off my
feed, it did.'

"Of course, the skipper's fad soon got known for'ard. But I didn't think
much about it, till one day I seed old Dan'l Dennis sitting on a locker
reading. Every now and then he'd shut the book, an' look up, closing 'is
eyes, an' moving his lips like a hen drinking, an' then look down at the
book again.

"'Why, Dan,' I ses, 'what's up? you ain't larning lessons at your time
o' life?'

"'Yes, I am,' ses Dan very soft. 'You might hear me say it, it's this
one about heart disease.'

"He hands over the book, which was stuck full o' all kinds o' diseases,
and winks at me 'ard.

"'Picked it up on a book-stall,' he ses; then he shut 'is eyes an' said
his piece wonderful. It made me quite queer to listen to 'im. 'That's
how I feel,' ses he, when he'd finished. 'Just strength enough to get to
bed. Lend a hand, Bill, an' go an' fetch the doctor.'

"Then I see his little game, but I wasn't going to run any risks, so I
just mentioned, permiscous like, to the cook as old Dan seemed rather
queer, an' went back an' tried to borrer the book, being always fond of
reading. Old Dan pretended he was too ill to hear what I was saying,
an' afore I could take it away from him, the skipper comes hurrying down
with a bag in his 'and.

"'What's the matter, my man?' ses he, 'what's the matter?'

"'I'm all right, sir,' ses old Dan, 'cept that I've been swoonding away
a little.'

"'Tell me exactly how you feel,' ses the skipper, feeling his pulse.

"Then old Dan said his piece over to him, an' the skipper shook his head
an' looked very solemn.

"'How long have you been like this?' he ses.

"'Four or five years, sir,' ses Dan. 'It ain't nothing serious, sir, is
it?'

"'You lie quite still,' ses the skipper, putting a little trumpet thing
to his chest an' then listening. 'Um! there's serious mischief here I'm
afraid, the prognotice is very bad.'

"'Prog what, sir?' ses Dan, staring.

"'Prognotice,' ses the skipper, at least I think that's the word he
said. 'You keep perfectly still, an' I'll go an' mix you up a draught,
and tell the cook to get some strong beef-tea on.'

"Well, the skipper 'ad no sooner gone, than Cornish Harry, a great big
lumbering chap o' six feet two, goes up to old Dan, an' he ses, 'Gimme
that book.'