p's steward has not yet issued a single utensil out of which we can
dine; such a slight annoyance is not likely to inconvenience men who, in
most things, are as primitive in their mode of living as were our
progenitors in the garden of story. Bear in mind, the object we have in
view is to clear those tables of their frugal burdens--hunks of boiled
beef, absolutely nothing else. What, then, though there be no elaborate
dinner service, so long as the end is attained, and that it is, and in
the most satisfactory and expeditious manner, with scrupulous neatness
and perfect finish, our friends from the shore must bear witness.

A few words, ere we fall to, descriptive of the lower deck, which serves
us for "kitchen, parlour, and all." What an altitude between the decks!
Can it be that those concerns up there are meant for the stowage of
boxes and hats? And see, too, this systematic arrangement of bars,
transverse and upright, is it possible they are anything naval? Their
office, though, becomes apparent when we reflect that there are no
hooks, as in wooden ships, for the hammocks. In this iron age we have
advanced a step, and even sailors can now boast of having posts to their
beds. For the rest, the tables are large and at a comfortable distance
apart; the ports admit a cheerful amount of light and a wholesome supply
of air; and--but there goes the pipe "to dinner," so I will pipe down.

A telegram had been received during the forenoon, announcing that the
captain would join us further on in the day; and accordingly, at about 4
p.m., he arrived. A tall, rather slight made man is our future chief,
upright as an arrow, and with an eye such as one sees in men born to
command men. His reputation comes with him in that vague semi-mysterious
manner--such news does travel--and we hear he is a strict "service"
officer, and an excellent seaman--good qualities both, and such as the
generality of man-of-war's men raise no objection to. Withal we are
told he is "smart," meaning, of course, that there must be no shirking
of duty, no infringement of the regulations with him. His reputation, I
say, came with him, it stuck to him, and left with him. With the
captain's arrival our first day on board came to an end.

On the 6th the commander joined. In appearance he is the direct
antithesis of the captain, being stout, well knit, and of medium
height--the ideal Englishman of the country gentleman type--bluff and
hearty, and with a face as c