“‘It’s all right, my puir feller,’ ses the second mate; ’ye’re in good hands—­ye’re saved.’

“‘Damme!’ ses the man; ’what’s your little game?  Where’s my boat—­eh?  Where’s my boat?’

“He wriggled a bit, and got his head up, and, when he saw it bowling along two or three hundred yards away, his temper got the better of him, and he swore that if Mr. McMillan didn’t row after it he’d knife him.

“‘We can’t bother about the boat,’ ses the mate; ’we’ve had enough bother to rescue you.’

“‘Who the devil wanted you to rescue me?’ bellowed the man.  ’I’ll make you pay for this, you miserable swabs.  If there’s any law in Amurrica, you shall have it!’

“By this time we had got to the ship, which had shortened sail, and the cap’n was standing by the side, looking down upon the stranger with a big, kind smile which nearly sent him crazy.

“‘Welcome aboard, my pore feller,’ ses he, holding out his hand as the chap got up the side.

“‘Are you the author of this outrage?’ ses the man fiercely. “’I don’t understand you,’ ses the cap’n, very dignified, and drawing himself up.

“‘Did you send your chaps to sneak me out o’ my boat while I was having forty winks?’ roars the other.  ‘Damme! that’s English, ain’t it?’

“‘Surely,’ ses the cap’n, ’surely you didn’t wish to be left to perish in that little craft.  I had a supernatural warning to steer this course on purpose to pick you up, and this is your gratitude.’

“‘Look here!’ ses the other.  ’My name’s Cap’n Naskett, and I’m doing a record trip from New York to Liverpool in the smallest boat that has ever crossed the Atlantic, an’ you go an’ bust everything with your cussed officiousness.  If you think I’m going to be kidnapped just to fulfil your beastly warnings, you’ve made a mistake.  I’ll have the law on you, that’s what I’ll do.  Kidnapping’s a punishable offence.’

“‘What did you come here for, then?’ ses the cap’n.

“‘Come!’ howls Cap’n Naskett.  ‘Come!  A feller sneaks up alongside o’ me with a boat-load of street-sweepings dressed as sailors, and snaps me up while I’m asleep, and you ask me what I come for.  Look here.  You clap on all sail and catch that boat o’ mine, and put me back, and I’ll call it quits.  If you don’t, I’ll bring a law-suit agin you, and make you the laughing-stock of two continents into the bargain.’

“Well, to make the best of a bad bargain, the cap’n sailed after the cussed little boat, and Mr. Salmon, who thought more than enough time had been lost already, fell foul o’ Cap’n Naskett.  They was both pretty talkers, and the way they went on was a education for every sailorman afloat.  Every man aboard got as near as they durst to listen to them; but I must say Cap’n Naskett had the best of it.  He was a sarkastik man, and pretended to think the ship was fitted out just to pick up shipwrecked people, an’ he also pretended to think we was