dicine suit you, Dan?'

"'Beautiful, sir,' says Dan. 'It's wonderful soothing. I slep' like a
new-born babe arter it.'

"'I'll send you to get some more,' ses the skipper. 'You're not to get
up, mind, either of you.'

"'All right, sir,' ses the two in very faint voices, an' the skipper
went away arter telling us to be careful not to make a noise.

"We all thought it a fine joke at first, but the airs them two chaps
give themselves was something sickening. Being in bed all day, they
was naturally wakeful of a night, and they used to call across the
foc'sle inquiring arter each other's healths, an' waking us other chaps
up. An' they 'ud swop beef-tea an' jellies with each other, an' Dan
'ud try an' coax a little port wine out o' Harry, which he 'ad to make
blood with, but Harry 'ud say he hadn't made enough that day, an' he'd
drink to the better health of old Dan's prognotice, an' smack his lips
until it drove us a'most crazy to 'ear him.

"After these chaps had been ill two days, the other fellers began to
put their heads together, being maddened by the smell o' beef-tea an'
the like, an' said they was going to be ill too, and both the invalids
got into a fearful state of excitement.

"'You'll only spoil it for all of us,' ses Harry, 'and you don't know
what to have without the book.'

"'It's all very well doing your work as well as our own,' ses one of
the men. 'It's our turn now. It's time you two got well.'

"'Well?' ses Harry, 'well? Why, you silly iggernerant chaps, we shan't
never get well; people with our complaints never do. You ought to know
that.'

"'Well, I shall split,' ses one of them.

"'You do!' ses Harry, 'you do, an' I'll put a 'ed on you that all the
port wine and jellies in the world wouldn't cure. 'Sides, don't you
think the skipper knows what's the matter with us?'

"'Afore the other chaps could reply, the skipper hisself comes down,
accompanied by the fust mate, with a look on his face which made Harry
give the deepest and hollowest cough he'd ever done.

"'What they reely want,' ses the skipper, turning to the mate, 'is
keerful nussing.'

"'I wish you'd let me nuss 'em,' ses the fust mate, 'only ten
minutes--I'd put 'em both on their legs, an' running for their lives
into the bargain, in ten minutes.'

"'Hold your tongue, sir,' ses the skipper; 'what you say is unfeeling,
besides being an insult to me. Do you think I studied medicine all
these years without knowing when