rough the telescope which I
had handed to her. "I see the guns you mention, and I can catch through
the portholes glimpses of a number of men moving about the deck. As you
say, there appears to be a good many of them; but do you really regard
that as a sinister sign? Would not any vessel trading in these waters
carry a good strong crew, and guns for self-defence?"

"No doubt she would," I agreed; "and we can only hope that yonder junk
is such a craft. We shall know for certain in about two hours from now;
in any case I am quite ready for her."

Mrs Vansittart looked round at my preparations and smiled.

"Yes," she assented, "your preparations certainly appear to be
reasonably complete. You have done what you could, Walter, haven't you?
Well, I am going below, for the sun is terribly hot, and I must not get
a headache just now, if I can possibly avoid it. Of course we shall all
come and help you, if there is any fighting to be done."

"Indeed," I exclaimed, "I beg that none of you will dream of doing
anything of the kind! You would only be a source of anxiety and
embarrassment to me. I would rather not have even Julius; for I could
not trust him. He is not amenable to discipline, and it is quite on the
cards that at a critical moment he might take it into his head to do the
wrong thing, with disastrous consequences to us all."

"Very well, we shall see," was the smiling reply as my lady skipper
disappeared down the companion way.

Again I took up the telescope to resume my study of the junk, which I
continued to do for the next half-hour or more. Then Master Julius made
his appearance on deck. He came straight up to me, and as I looked at
him, expecting some fresh unpleasantness, I detected a new expression in
his eyes and on his features. The look of sullenness and discontent had
disappeared, and he actually smiled as, looking me square in the eye, he
held out his hand and exclaimed:

"Say, Mr Leigh, let's be friends, shall we?"

"Sure, old chap!" I replied, adopting an Americanism with which I had
become quite familiar, as I grasped his outstretched hand; "the very
best of friends, if you like. Why shouldn't we be? I am perfectly
willing, if you are."

"Then it's a deal," he answered, seating himself at my side on the poop
rail. "Say!" he continued, "do you think we're going to have to fight
that junk?"

"It is impossible to say, as yet," I replied. "I hope not; but if it
should be necessar