"but, if you want to know, in my distant way." He paused I've to call on my landlady, Mrs Bosenna.' "No relation at all; though I don't see as it matters." Mr Philp was cheerful but obdurate. "A bargain's a bargain, as I take it." "That fact is--" "And a man's word ought to be good as his bond. Leastways that's how I look at it." "Here, take the darned thing!" exclaimed Captain Cai. His action, however, was less impulsive than his speech: he removed the hat carefully, lowering his head and clutching the brim between both hands. A small parcel lay inside. "What's that?" asked Mr Philp. "It's it's a cuff," Captain Cai admitted. "Belongs to the Widow Bosenna, I shouldn't wonder," Mr Philp hazarded with massive gravity. "It's the sort o' thing a woman wears now-adays when she 've lost her husband. I follows the fashions and corrected himself carefully “Them sort." "I thought-it occurred to me-as it might be the handiest way of returnin' the thing." "It seems early days to be carryin' that sort of article around in the crown o' your hat. Dangerous, too, if you use hair-oil. But you don't. I took notice that you said 'no' yesterday when Toy offered to rub something into your hair. Now that's always a temptation with me, there bein' no extra charge. . . . Did she give it to you?" "Who? . . . Mrs Bosenna? No, she left it behind here." "When?" "Yesterday evening." "What was she doin' here, yesterday evenin', to want to take off her cuffs?" "If you must know, she was planting roses." "What? In April?... You mustn't think I'm curious." "Not at all," Captain Cai agreed grimly. "Nice little place you've pitched on here, I must say. Mr Philp changed his tone to one of extreme affability. "There's not a prettier little nest in all Troy than these two cottages. And which of the pair might be your choice?" "It's not quite decided." "Well, you can't do wrong with either. But"-Mr Philp glanced back across the roadway and lowered his voice"I'd like to warn you o' one thing. I don't know no unhandier houses for gettin' out a corpse. There's a turn at the foot o'the stairs; most awk'ard." to me, "I reckon," said Captain Cai cheerfully, "Bias an' "Bias an' me 'l leave that to them as it concerns. But, man! what a turn you've a-got for funerals!" "They be the breath o' life Mr Philp confessed, and paused for a moment's thought. ""Tell 'ee what we'll do: you shall come with me down to Fore Street an' buy yourself a new hat at Shake Benny's 'tis on your way to Rilla Farm. There in the shop you can hand me over the one you're wearin', and Shake can send mine home in a bandbox." He twinkled cunningly. "I shall be wantin' a bandbox, an' that gets me one cost-free." The man was inexorable. Captain Cai gave up resistance, and the pair descended the hill together towards Mr Benny's shop. Young Mr Benny, "S. Benny, Gents' Outfitter," had suffered the misfortune to be christened Shakespeare without inheriting from his father any of the literary aspirations to which that name bore witness. It was, in any event, a difficult name to live up to, and so incongruous with this youth in particular that as he grew up his acquaintances abbreviated it by consent to Shake; and, again, when, after serving an apprenticeship with a pushing firm in Exeter, he returned to open a haberdashery shop in his native town, it had been reduced for business purposes to a bare initial. But it is hard to escape heredity. Albeit to young Mr Benny pure literature made no appeal, and had even been summarised by him as "footle," in the business of advertising he developed a curious literary twist. He could not exhibit a new line of goods without inventing an arresting set of labels for it; and upon these labels (executed with his own hands in water - colour upon cardboard) he let play a fancy almost Asiatic. Not content with mere description, such as "Neck - wear in Up-to-date Helios or "Braces, Indispensable," he assailed the coy purchaser with appeals frankly personal, such as "You passed us Yesterday, but We Hit you this Time," or "What! You don't Tell us You Go to Bed like your Grandfather," or (of a collar) If you Admire Lord Rosebery, Now is Your Time." Captain Cai wanted a hat. "I be just returned from foreign," he explained; "and this here head-gear o' mine Young Mr Benny smiled with a smile that deprecated his being drawn into criticism. "We keep ahead of the Germans yet, sir, in some spects. Is it Captain Hocken I have the pleasure of addressin'?" re Now, how did he know that?" Captain Cai murmured. "Why, by your hat," answered Mr Philp with readiness. "You'll be wanting something more nautical, Captain? Something yachty, if I may suggest. . . . I've a neat thing here in yachting caps." Mr Benny selected and displayed one, turning it briskly in his hands. "The Commodore. "It don't seem altogether too happy wi' the rest of the togs," he hazarded, and consulted Mr Philp. "What do you think?" There's a something about that cap, sir,—a what shall I say? -a distinction. Or, if you prefer a straight up-and-down peak, what about the Squadron here? A little fuller in the crown, you'll observe; but that" -with a flattering glance"would suit you. You'd carry it off." "Better have it full in the crown," suggested Mr Philp; by reason it's handier to carry things." "None of your seafarin' gear, I'll thank you," said Captain Cai hastily. "I've hauled ashore." "And mean to settle among us, I hope, sir? . . . Well, then, with the summer already upon us-so to speak-what do we say to a real Panama straw? The Boulter's Lock here, f'r instance,-extra brim-at five and sixpence? How these foreigners do it for the money is a mystery to me." "I see they puts Smith Brothers, Birmingham,' in the lining," said Captain Cai. "I ain't makin' no bid for your tail-coat, if that's what you mean," answered Mr Philp with sudden moroseness, pulling out his watch. "I got one." Our leading townsmen, sir," said young Mr Benny, "favour an alpaca lounge coat with this particular line. We stock them in all sizes. Alpacas are seldom made to measure, 'free-and-easy' being their motto, if I may so express it." "It's mine, anyway.” "And useful for gardening, too. In an alpaca you can Young Mr Benny, without finishing the sentence, indued one and went through brisk motions indicative of digging, hoeing, taking cuttings and transplanting them. The end of it was that Captain Cai purchased an alpaca coat as well as a Panama hat, and having bidden 'so long" to Mr Philp, and pocketed his three-and-sixpence, steered up the street in the direction of Rilla Farm, nervously stealing glimpses of himself in the shop windows as he went. As he hove in sight of the Custom House, however, this bashfulness gave way of a sudden to bewilderment. For there, at the foot of the steps leading up to its oldfashioned doorway lounged his mate, Mr Tregaskis, sucking at a pipe. "Hullo! What are you doin' here?" asked Captain Cai. "What the devil's that to you?" retorted Mr Tregaskis. But a moment later he gasped and all but dropped the pipe from his mouth. "Good Lord!" "Took me for a stranger, hey?" The mate stared, slowly passing a hand across his chin as though to make sure of his own beard. "What indooced 'ee?" "When you're in Rome," said Captain Cai, with a somewhat forced nonchalance, "you do as the Romans do.” "Do they?" asked Mr Tregaskis vaguely. "Besides, we ain't," he objected after a moment. "Crew all right?" "Upstairs," this with a jerk of the thumb. "Hey? . . . But why? We don't pay off till Saturday, as you ought to know, for I told 'ee plain enough, an' also that the men could have any money advanced, in reason." "Come along and see," said the mate mysteriously. "I've been waitin' here on the look-out for 'ee." He led the way up the steps, along a twisting corridor and into the Collector's office, where, sure enough, the crew of the Hannah Hoo were gathered. "Here's the Cap'n, boys!" he announced. "An' don't call me a liar, but take your time." The men-they were standing uneasily, with doffed hats, around a table in the centre of the room-gazed and drew a long breath. They continued to breathe hard while the Col lector bustled forward from his desk and congratulated Captain Cai on a prosperous passage. "There's one thing about it," said Ben Price the bald-headed, at length breaking through the mortuary silence that reigned around the table; "it do make partin' easier." "But what's here?" demanded Captain Cai, as gaze fell upon a curious object that occupied the centre of the table. It was oblong: it was covered with a large red handkerchief: and, with the men grouped respectfully around, it suggested a miniature coffin draped and ready for committal to the deep. "Well, sir," answered Nat Berry, who was generally reckoned the wag of the ship, "it might pass, by its look, for a concealment o' birth. But it ain't. It's a testimonial." "A what?" But here the mate-who had been standing for some moments on one leg-suddenly cleared his throat. "Cap'n Hocken," said he in a strained unnatural voice, we the undersigned, bein' mate an' crew of the Hannah Hoo barquentine--" "Be this an affidavit ?" "No it isn': 'tis a Musical Box. . . . As I was sayin', We the undersigned, bein' mate an' crew of the Hannah Hoo barquentine, which we hear that you're givin' up command of the same, Do hereby beg leave to express our mingled feelin's at the same in the shape of this here accompanyin' Musical Box. And our united hope as you may have live long to enjoy the noise it kicks up, which" - here Mr Tregaskis dropped to a confidential tone "it plays 'Home, Sweet Home,' with other fashionable tunes, an' can be turned off at any time by means of a backhanded switch marked 'Stop in plain letters. IT IS therefore -" here the speaker resumed his oratorical manner "our united wish, sir, as you will accept the forthcoming Musical Box from the above-mentioned undersigned as a mark of respect in all weathers, and that you may live to marry an' pass it down to your offspring-" - "Hear, hear!" interjected Mr Nat Berry, and was told to shut his head. "to your offspring, or, in other words, progenitors," perorated Mr Tregaskis. "And if you don't like it, the man at the shop'll change it for something of equal value." Here with a sweep of the hand he withdrew the handkerchief and disclosed the gift. "I forget the chap's name for the moment, but he's a watchmaker, and lives off the Town Quay as you turn up west-an'-by-north to the Post Office. The round mark on the lid-as p'r'aps I ought to mention-was caused by a Challenge Cup of some sort standin' upon it all last summer in the eye of the sun, which don't affect the music, an' might be covered over with a "It don't want no acknowledgment: but take your time,' said the mate handsomely, conscious, for his part, of having performed with credit. At this suggestion Captain Cai with a vague gesture pulled out his watch, and amid the whirl of his brain was aware of the hour-10.45. "I've—I've an appointment, friends, as it happens," he stammered. "And I thank you kindly, but On a sudden happy inspiration he fixed an eye upon the mate. "All sails unbent aboard?" he asked sternly. "There's the mizzen, sir" "I thought so. We'll have discipline, lads, to the end-if you please. We'll meet here on Saturday: and when you've done your unbendin' maybe I'll start doin' mine." He took up the musical box, tucked it under his arm, and marched out. 1 CHAPTER VI.-RILLA FARM. The way was long, the sun was hot, the minstrel (as surely he may be called who carries a musical box) was more than once in two minds about turning back. He perspired |