n, and shook his
fist in Tom's face. "I guess theft's jest the ticket, ye thunderin'
liar! Ye've been shamming Abraham in yer watch, an' sneaked down thaar
to hev a pipe on the sly, when ye should hev bin mindin' yer dooty,
thet's what's the matter, sirree; but, I'll make ye pay for it, ye
skulkin' rascallion. I'll stop ye a month's wages fur the damage done
to the ship--if not by the fire, by the water we've hove in to put it
out, an' ye ken tote it up, if ye like, yerself!"

Captain Snaggs then ordered the second-mate to go down and see if all
danger were really over, and nothing left smouldering, not trusting to
Tom's assurance to that effect; and, presently, when Jan Steenbock came
up again with a satisfactory report, the skipper, who was now shivering
with the wet and exposure in such a light and airy costume, returned
back to his cabin to finish his sleep in peace--not, however, without
giving a rating to Mr Flinders, for his behaviour, which he said was as
bad as that of the carpenter.

The starboard watch were then told that they might go below, though it
was getting on for midnight, when they would have to turn out again, and
keep the deck till the morning.

I don't know how it was, but, from that night, everything went wrong
with the ship.

The very next afternoon, a tremendous thunderstorm broke over us, and a
nasty blue, zigzagging streak of lightning struck our mizzen-royal mast,
splintering the spar and sending the tye-block down on the poop, nearly
killing the second-mate.

If it had been Mr Flinders it wouldn't have mattered so much, but Jan
Steenbock was a decent fellow and a good seaman, being much liked by all
hands, barring the skipper, who, of course, disliked him because he took
the men's part and let them have easy times of it in his watch.

This was the beginning of a fourteen days' spell we had of rolling about
in the sweltering calms of the Doldrums; and then, when we at last
managed to drift cross the Line, we had another fortnight's stagnation
before we met the south-east trades, only a couple of degrees or so
below the Equator.

By this time, every man on board was heartily sick of the ship and tired
of his company, for the captain was continually grumbling with the mates
and hazing the crew, and the hands as constantly falling out among
themselves. Only my two friends, Tom Bullover and Hiram, the Yankee
sailor, really remained chummy or contented out of the whole lot. The
rest