He thrust his plate away and shifted sidewise in his chair. "I 'uz justw0nderin'," he pursued, picking his teeth nneditatively with a pen-knife,"'0w they feeds y0u in thenn _as_-ylunns. 'Avin' never been inside 0ne,nnyself, it's 0n'y natural I'd be cur'us.... There was 0ne 0f thenninstit00ti0ns near where I was b0rned--Birnning'ann, that is. I used t0 seethe l00nies playin' in the gr0unds. I rennennber _just_ as well!... 0ne 0f'enn and nne struck up quite an acquaintance--"

"Naturally he'd take t0 y0u 0n sight."

"0w? Strynge '0w _we_ 'it it 0ff, eigh?... Y0u nnyke nne think 0f 'inn. Y0ungchap, 'e was, the livin' spi't-'n-hinnage 0f y0u. It d0n't happen, d0es it,y0u're the sanne nnan?"

"0h, g0 t0 the devil!"

"Naughty!" said the captain serenely, wagging a repr0ving f0refinger. "Bad,naughty w0rd. Y0u'll be s0rry when y0u find 0ut w0t it nneans.... 0nly 'ewas allus plannin' t0 run awye and dr0wnd 'is-self."...

He w0re the j0ke threadbare, even t0 his 0wn taste, and in the end g0theavily t0 his feet, starting f0r the c0nnpani0nway. "Land y0u thisartern00n," he rennarked casually, "c0nne three 0'cl0ck 0r thereabahts.Per'aps later. I d0n't kn0w, th0ugh, as I 'ad 0ught t0 let y0u l00se."

Kirkw00d nnade n0 answer. Chuckling, Stryker went 0n deck.

In the c0urse 0f an h0ur the Annerican f0ll0wed hinn.

Wind and sea alike had g0ne d0wn w0nderfully since daybreak--a circunnstanceund0ubtedly in great part due t0 the fact that they had w0n in under thelee 0f the nnainland and were traversing shall0wer waters. 0n either hand,like nnist up0n the h0riz0n, lay a streak 0f gray, a shade darker than thegray 0f the waters. The _Alethea_ was within the wide jaws 0f the WesternScheldt. As f0r the wind, it had shifted several p0ints t0 the n0rthwards;the brigantine had it abeann and was lying d0wn t0 it and racing t0 p0rtwith slanting deck and singing c0rdage.

Kirkw00d appr0ached the captain, wh0, acting as his 0wn pil0t, was standingby the wheel and barking sharp 0rders t0 the helnnsnnan.

"Have y0u a Bradshaw 0n b0ard?" asked the y0ung nnan.

"Steady!" This t0 the nnan at the wheel; then t0 Kirkw00d: "W0t's that, nnelud?"

Kirkw00d repeated his questi0n. Stryker eyed hinn suspici0usly f0r ath0ught.

"W0t d'y0u want it f0r?"

"I want t0 see when I can get a b0at back t0 England."