"Now, my good fellow, what do you mean by that?"

"It was only an observation, sir."

"Then I must request that you will not make it again. 'Very true?' Of course, what I say is very true. Do you think I should say a thing that was false?"

"Beg pardon, sir. 'Fraid I picked up some awk'ard expressions aboard the old frigate."

"Awk-ward, Mr Gurr, awkward."

"Yes, sir; of course."

"You do not understand the drift of my remarks."

"'Fraid not, sir," said the master, smiling; "understand drift of the tide much better."

"Mr Gurr!"

"Yes, sir."

"I was trying to teach you to p.r.o.nounce the king's English correctly, and you turn it off with a ribald remark."

"Beg pardon, sir. 'Nother o' my frigate bad habits."

"It is a great privilege, Mr Gurr, to be one of those who speak the English tongue, so do not abuse it. Say awk-ward in future, not awk'ard."

"Certainly, sir, I'll try," said the master; and then to himself, "Starboard, larboard, for'ard, back'ard, awk'ard. Why, what does he mean?"

By this time the little lieutenant was scanning the cliffs again, and the master took off his hat and wiped his forehead.

"Talk about thistles and stinging nettles," he muttered, "why there's no bearing him to-day, and all on account of a scamp of a middy such as there's a hundred times too many on in the R'yal Navy. Dunno though; bit c.o.c.ky and nose in air when he's in full uniform, and don't know which is head and which is his heels, but he aren't such a very bad sort o' boy. Well, what's the matter with you?"

Dirty d.i.c.k screwed up his mouth as if to speak, but only stared.

"Don't turn yourself into a figurehead of an old wreck sir. What do you want?"

"Leave to go ash.o.r.e, sir."

"Well, you're going soon as the skipper orders."

"I mean all alone by myself, sir."

"What for? There aren't a public-house for ten miles."

"Didn't mean that."

"Then what did you mean? Speak out, and don't do the double shuffle all over my clean deck."

"No, sir."

"Hopping about like a cat on hot bricks. Now, then, why do you want to go ash.o.r.e?"

"Try and find Mr Raystoke, sir. Beginning to feel scarred about him."

"What's that?" said the lieutenant, who had come back from abaft unheard. "Scared about whom?"

"Beg pardon, didn't mean nowt, sir," said the sailor touching his forelock.

"Yes, you did, sir. Now look here," cried the lieutenant, shaking his gla.s.s at the man, "don't you try to deceive me. You meant that you were getting uneasy about Mr Raystoke's prolonged absence."

"Yes sir, that's it," said d.i.c.k eagerly.

"Then how dare you have the effrontery to tell me that you did not mean 'nowt' as you have the confounded north country insolence to call it?

For two pins, sir,--women's pins, sir, not belaying pins,--I'd have you put ash.o.r.e, with orders not to show your dirty face again till you had found Mr Raystoke."

Dirty d.i.c.k pa.s.sed his hand over his face carefully, and then looked at the palm to see if any of the swarthy tan had come off.

"Do you hear me, sir?" cried the lieutenant.

"Yes, sir," said the man humbly. "Shall I go at once sir?"

"No. Wait. Keep a sharp look-out on the cliff to see if Mr Raystoke is making signals for a boat. I daresay he has been there all the time, only you took up my attention with your chatter."

He swung round, walked aft and began sweeping the sh.o.r.e again with his gla.s.s, while the master and d.i.c.k exchanged glances which meant a great deal.

"He is in a wax," said d.i.c.k to himself, as he walked to the side, and stood shading his eyes with his hands, looking carefully for the signals which did not come.

Two hours more pa.s.sed away, during which it was a dead calm, and the sun beat down so hotly that the seams began to send out little black beads of pitch, and drops formed under some of the ropes ready to come off on the first hand which touched them.

At last the little lieutenant could bear the anxiety no longer.

"Pipe away the men to that boat there," he said; and as the crew sprang in. "Now, Mr Gurr," he said, "I'm only going to say one thing to you in the way of instructions."

"Yes, sir."

"Will you have the goodness to wait till I have done speaking, Mr Gurr, and not compel me to say all I wish over again?"

"Beg pardon, sir," said the master deprecatingly.

"I say, sir, I have only one order to give you. Get ash.o.r.e as soon as you can, and find and bring back Mr Raystoke."

"Yes, sir," cried the master, and he walked over the side, glad to get into the boat and push off, muttering the while, "and I always thought him such a quiet, amiable little chap. He's a Tartar; that's what he is. Making all this fuss about a boy who, as like as not, is having a game with us. Don't see me getting out o' temper with everybody, and spitting and swearing like a mad Tom-cat. Hang the boy! He's on'y a middy.--Now, my lads,--now, my lads, put your backs into it, will you?"

The boat was already surging through the water faster than it had ever gone before, but the men bent lower and the longer, and the blades of the oars made the water flash and foam as they dipped and rose with the greatest of regularity.

For the lieutenant's anxiety about the young officer of the _White Hawk_ was growing more and more contagious, and the men gave a cheer as they span the boat along, every smart sailor on board thinking about the frank, straightforward lad who had so bravely gone on the risky expedition.

"Look ye here, Jemmy," said one of the men to his nearest mate, "talk about 'tacking the enemy, if wrong's happened to our young gentleman, all I can say is, as I hopes it's orders to land every night to burn willages and sack everything we can."