a few days he was so much at home, that the men treated him
as one of themselves, while the officers soon took his presence as a
matter of course, and had a nod or a smile for the active little fellow
who had become the pet of the ship.

"Why, you've quite put the tabby Tom cat's nose out of joint," said Jack
one day, with a grin. "Has he scratted you yet?"

"No, of course not," cried Phil. "He follows me wherever I go."

"Humph!" grunted Jack. "Everybody and everything seems to like you, old
chap."

Phil said nothing, but he thought a good deal, knowing only too well as
he did that his friend Jack was not right. For there were several other
boys on board who, seeing the favour in which the little new-comer
stood, were not long in trying to make his young life a burden. All far
bigger and stronger, they soon began to persecute him when they found a
chance, one of their favourite plans being to, as they called it,
"chivvy him" and hunt him about the vessel.

Soon after dawn one morning Phil had crept on deck to stand looking over
the bulwark through the soft grey light at the scattered vessels sailing
slowly along, when all at once a faint _whish_ caught his ear, and
turning sharply he saw one of his persecutors creeping cautiously
towards him, followed by half-a-dozen more, while a couple had crossed
the deck and were ready to cut him off if he attempted to retreat in
that direction.

Phil glanced towards the forecastle hatch, but there was a boy rising
from the square opening, and he turned to look aft, but only to see that
other lads were waiting there. For the enemy had taken steps to cut him
off in every direction, and the little fellow looked wildly round for a
way of escape, and then made a rush to pass through his tormentors, who
cut him off at once and with a cry of delight dashed in.

It was all very quickly done; first one and then another of the lads
nearly had him, but active as a monkey that has no dealings with powder,
Phil dodged, feinted, and dodged again, brushing by the foremost of his
pursuers, making for the starboard bulwark, and reaching the foremast
shrouds before the first boy could recover himself.

The last was after him, though, directly, but too late; for with a bound
Phil had sprung up, caught at the nearest rope, swung himself on to the
rail, and then begun swarming up the rigging, a mere morsel of a fellow,
as he dragged himself up from ratline to ratline, mounting higher an