long the deck, looking very smart in
their white sailor trousers, and not a little proud of their straw hats.
Each man brightened up and displayed his teeth, as he saw the
midshipmen, muttering something incomprehensible in reply to Bob's "How
do, Soup? How are you, Taters?" and passing on.

"I say," said Mark, "it's too bad to nickname the poor fellows like
that."

"Not a bit of it. What's in a name? They answer to 'em right enough,
and the men like 'em."

"Yes, of course they do. Whoever heard of a sailor who didn't like a
bit of fun of that kind?"

"Oh, then you call it fun?"

"Yes--ill-natured fun."

"Bother! Here's the skipper. Let's seem to be doing something, or we
shall be lectured."

But Captain Maitland was too eager about the sailing of his ship, and
paid no heed to the midshipmen's idleness, only thinking as he was of
getting round the land in front, and overhauling the stranger, who was
now quite out of sight beyond the point, and it took two hours to get
within sight again. But they found that, instead of there being a
river, the coast turned sharply to the east, and the barque, in place of
being close to them, was sailing steadily away east and south, and
farther from them than ever.

"Bah! another false alarm," cried Mr Staples; "are we never to capture
one of the scoundrels?"

Just then Mark touched his elbow, and pointed to a vessel which had been
unnoticed before, lying as it did close under the shore, with bare poles
raked well back, and the whole of the long, low, schooner-rigged vessel
wearing a look of having been built for swift-sailing more than for any
ordinary trading purpose.

"Well done, sharp eyes!" cried the lieutenant; "that's one of the
scoundrels;" and the course of the _Nautilus_ was changed directly with
a peculiar result.

The minute before not a soul was to be seen on board the schooner, which
might have been absolutely deserted; but, as soon as the course of the
_Nautilus_ was changed and those on board saw that, in spite of lying
close up under the trees of the muddy shore of what appeared to be a
creek, they had been observed, sails were rapidly hoisted, and the
slight, graceful vessel began to glide so swiftly through the water that
it was evidently no slow ship that would catch her should she once get
into the offing.

She was about a mile away and promised to escape, but Captain Maitland
did not mean to be out-manoeuvred this time. The crew were beat t