TEEN.

MR FLINDERS IN A FIX.

Before relating what next occurred, however, I must break off at this
point and make a slight bend in my yarn here, in order to mention
something that happened immediately before, and which, although I did
not come to hear of it until afterwards, had to do with bringing the
skipper so suddenly down upon us. Something, indeed, that tended to
infuriate him all the more, with Tom Bullover and Sam; for, from his
hearing, by their own confession, that they had planned and kept up the
delusion about the cook's ghost on purpose to deceive him, he was led to
believe that these two had got the better of him in another matter, even
more important still in his estimation.

And so, as I am only a youngster and a poor hand at telling a story,
though I find somehow or other I'm getting to the end of my yarn sooner
than I expected when I first set to work writing it, I think I had best
pat down everything that happened in its proper place and order, `in
regular shipshape Bristol fashion,' so that no hitch may occur by-and-by
that might `bring me up with a round turn,' when, perhaps, I could sail
on with a free sheet and a fair wind to what you landfolk and
longshoremen would call my `denouement'--a sad one, though, it be, as
you'll learn later on, all in good time, as I spin my yarn in my free
and easy way!

Well, to go back a bit now, you must know that ever since the thrashing
he got from our second-mate, Mr Flinders had kept himself very quiet;
not interfering in any way with the work of dismantling and unloading
the ship, but leaving the charge of all this in the hands of Jan
Steenbock and Tom Bullover--under, of course, the immediate supervision
of Captain Snaggs, who, was here, there, and everywhere, pretending to
do an awful lot, although really only occupying his time when he wasn't
drinking in bullying those of the men, who being tame-spirited, put up
with his bad language.

It must be said, though, for the skipper, that he generally left the old
hands alone, for they returned his choicest epithets in kind, always
giving him quite as good in the rude vernacular as he gave--discipline
being rather slack now the vessel was ashore, as in the merchant service
a wreck is supposed by the crew to dissolve all contracts and annul
whatever articles may have been signed. Such, at least, is my
experience of the sea.

During this interregnum of duty, the first-mate hardly ever left his
bunk on boar