hat he be put down in
the "brig" out of harm's way, for Jack is apt to speak his mind in
vigorous English, and his mind and stomach have generally formed a close
alliance.

The twenty minutes allowed for meals are well spent, and the clatter of
knives and forks attests the zest with which Uncle Sam's
man-o'-war's-man tackles his not always too nice or delicate fare. The
nine dollars a month allowed by the navy for rations is expended by the
paymaster of the vessel, not by the men, so, if the paymaster concludes
that the men shall have "salt-horse," rice, and hard-tack, Jack gets
"salt-horse," rice, and hard-tack, and that is all he does get unless
his mess cook and caterer are unusually prudent and save something from
the previous day's rations, or the mess has put up some extra money and
has "private stores."

As the man with the biggest appetite or the fellow who eats slowly are
putting away the last morsel of cracker hash or the last swallow of
coffee, "Jimmy Legs" (the master-at-arms) comes around, shouting as he
goes, "Shake a leg there, we want to get this deck cleared for
quarters." He is often followed by the boatswain's mate of the watch,
who echoes his call, and between them they clear the deck. Then begins
the real work of the day.

CHAPTER IV.

WE GET ORDERS TO GO SOUTH.

Shortly after breakfast the "Yankee" came to anchor outside of
Provincetown, Mass. An hour later a large man-of-war was discovered
steaming toward us. Rumors were rife at once, and the excitement
increased when the vessel, which proved to be the gallant cruiser
"Columbia," passed close alongside, and the captain was observed to lean
over the bridge railing with a megaphone in his hands.

"'Yankee' ahoy!" came across the water.

"Hello, 'Columbia!'" replied Captain Brownson.

"I have orders for you."

"Whoop! we are going to Cuba," cried young Potter. "It's dead sure this
time. They can't do without us down--"

"Silence!" called out the executive officer, sternly. "Corporal of the
guard, see to that man."

Poor Potter is sent below in disgrace amid the chuckles and jeers of
his unsympathetic shipmates. The little episode nearly earned him many
hours of extra duty.

In the meantime the "Columbia's" captain had communicated the welcome
intelligence that we were to cruise to the southward at once to look for
several suspicious vessels that had been sighted in the vicinity of
Barnegat. This promised action so strongly that a c