SHORT-HANDED. 243

all the hours of darkness, and such portion of the daytime
as would be unfit for Miss Dunham to remain in charge,
for she was now to be installed chief mate of the brig.

When the young captain came on deck again one of the
mutineers was at the wheel, and the other three men had
concluded the work of cleaning the ship.

The day was as fair as it well could be.

There was no necessity a rope should be started in
order to keep the little craft on her course, although Ben
decided all the light sails must be furled before night; and
the three men forward were enjoying themselves in true
sailorly fashion, as if no such thing as mutiny or murder
had ever been: known on board the Progressive Age.

Standing on the break of the quarter-deck Ben could
hear Bob explaining to Sam, as he smoked his pipe, why
the voyage thus far had been a disastrous one.

«You see, matey, it was jest like this,” the old sailor
said, emphasising the words with the stem of his pipe.
«When this ’ere bloomin’ hooker left port there was on
board, countin’ the young miss, jest thirteen. Now it
kinder struck me at the time that we was goin’ clean agin
luck to sail with that number; but how was a forecastle
hand to make any change in the captain’s plans? He was
jest bound to go ahead ’cordin’ to orders, an’ what was
the result? That you all know, I reckon, so there’s no
need of figgerin’ it up. It was all along of that ’ere thir-
teen what brought the trouble on us.”

“Well, then, ’cordin’ to your idees,’’ Sam said, “we
oughter slip right along without any bother, seein’s how