tunity; and, as regularly as
the skipper would disappear in the distance over the lava field fronting
the beach, saying, as he always did, that he was going up the cliff on
our port hand `to see if he could sight any passing vessel'--although
the sharpest eyes amongst our lookouts had never yet seen the captain's
lean and angular form on top of the said cliff--so, regularly, did the
first-mate stealthily descend the side ladder that led from the poop of
the ship down to the beach.

Once arrived here, his delight was to overlook the men as they lazily
dug out the concrete-like sand and shingle at the bottom of the trench,
filling baskets with the debris below which their fellows above hoisted
up none the more energetically; and the first-mate could not help
noticing that while Jan Steenbock purred them on now and then for a
brief spell, he let them, as a rule, take things easily; at this heated
period of the day, for Jan was wise enough to see that by not
overworking them then he got more labour out of his gang when the
temperature grew cooler, and the men could dig with greater "go."

For a while, Mr Flinders did not interfere with Jan's method of
procedure, seeing, as any sensible man would, that the second-mate's
plan answered its purpose of getting the most out of the hands without
making them grumble unduly at their unwonted task; but, soon his love of
carping at others asserted itself, and this feeling, coupled with the
desire to assert such petty authority as he still had, overcame his
sense of prudence, as well as all recollection of the sharp lesson he
had received from Jan not so very long before.

The difference between the skipper and Mr Flinders was, that, although
the former was essentially cruel and a bully of the first water, he was
yet physically brave and a cute, cautious man, who, when sober, knew how
far he might venture in his harsh treatment of those under him; while
the first-mate, on the contrary, was an utter coward at heart, and of as
malicious and spiteful a disposition as he was fond of tyrannising over
such as he thought he could ill-treat with impunity.

It never takes long for sailors to `reckon up' their officers; so, it
need hardly be said to which of the two the hands paid the most
attention when he gave an order. As to liking either, that was out of
the case; but where the men feared Captain Snaggs, the only feeling they
had for Mr Flinders was one of contempt--paying back all his s