king out any unused cartridges at the end of the
day's shoot.

Well, this special night, I had forgotten his warnings. Neglecting
everything a man should do to his gun when he is finished with it for
the day, I had left two cartridges in it, left the trigger on the
hair-brink of eternity, and other enormities for which Charlie
presently, and quite rightly, abashed me with profanity; in short, my
big toe tripped over the beast as it stood carelessly against the wall
of my cabin, and, as it fell, I received the contents in the fleshy part
of my shoulder.

The explosion brought the whole crew out of their shanty, in a state of
gesticulating nature, and, as Charlie, growling like a bear, was helping
to bring first aid, suddenly our young friend Jack--whose romantic youth
preferred sleeping outside in a hammock slung between two palm
trees--put him aside.

"I know better how to do this than you, Sir Francis," he said, laughing.

"Same as the sharks, eh?" said Charlie.

"Just the same ... but, let's have a look at your medicine chest, and
give me the lint quick."

So Jack took charge, and acted with such confidence and skill,--finally
binding up my wound, which was but a slight one--that Charlie stood by
dumbfounded and with a curious soft look in his face which I didn't
understand till later. The tears came into my eyes at the wonderful
tenderness of the lad, as he bent over me.

"Do I hurt you?" he kept saying. "You and I are pals, you know."

"You don't hurt me a bit, dear Jack," I answered; "what a clever lad you
are!"

Then Jack looked up for a moment, and caught Charlie's wondering look;
and, it seemed to me that he changed colour, and looked frightened.

"Sir Francis is jealous," he said; "but I've finished now. I guess
you'll sleep all right after that dose I gave you. Good night...." And
he slipped away.

Jack had proved himself a practised surgeon, and, as he predicted, I
slept well--so well and so far into next morning that Charlie at last
had to waken me.

"What do you think?" were his first words.

"Why, what?" I asked, sitting up, and wincing from my wounded shoulder.

"Our young friend has skipped in the night!"

"'Skipped?'" I exclaimed, with a curious ache at my heart.

"Sure enough! Gone off on that little nigger sloop that dropped in here
yesterday afternoon, I guess."

"You don't mean it?"

"No doubt of it--I wonder whether you've had the same thought as I
had."

"What do you mean