“This correspondence I shall keep in my safe,” the admiral said, a twinkle in his eyes, “in case I have trouble in explaining our young friend’s crime. It may also serve us in the future with this foreign Judas Iscariot. “And now, young man,” he added, his kind face beaming with good nature, “I think after a few months I shall have to deprive your captain of your services. I am going to put in commission a number of small gunboats for duty against the Philippine insurgents, and I have decided to give Mr. Perry command of one of them with Mr. Monroe as his executive officer, and I suppose,” he suggested with a smile, “that you will want O’Neil as the chief boatswain’s mate.” Phil could hardly believe his ears. Instead of censure, here was the admiral offering him a ship of his own. As one in a dream he thanked the admiral and accompanied by Sydney, withdrew from the cabin. By order of Peking Hang-Ki was made viceroy and he at once took steps to safeguard all foreigners throughout the provinces. The allied gunboats within the hour anchored off Ku-Ling, and before the day was over the foreign concession had taken up the thread of business where it had been so rudely interrupted. Commander Hughes detailed a force of mechanics from the American war-ships to repair the damaged launches of the faithful Emmons, and before a week had passed the launch trade was flourishing as of old. The concession to build the railroad to Peking was made more secure to the American company, and before the “Phœnix” sailed for Shanghai the lads saw the material, which had long waited for permission to be landed, safely stored in go-downs and the work on the road started. Ta-Ling made good his escape, and it was believed that he had gone to the mountains, there to remain in hiding until another opportunity might present itself to avenge himself on the despised foreigner. O’Neil’s wound was found by the doctors to be not dangerous and, with his arm in a sling for several days, he was gazed at admiringly by his less fortunate shipmates. Langdon received the personal thanks of the admiral, and Commander Hughes stoutly declares that he is as good a pilot ashore as he is on the river. FOOTNOTES: [1] Mexican dollars. [2] There is a prescribed rule for hailing a boat at night. A ship, seeing a boat approaching, hails, “Boat ahoy!” If enlisted men are in the boat the proper answer is “Hello!” If midshipmen are in the boat the answer is “No! No!” if commissioned officers, “Aye! Aye!” If a captain is in the boat the answer is the name of his ship, and an admiral’s proper answer is “Flag”--meaning that the boat carries an admiral’s flag. [3] Twelve rifles. TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES: Italicized text is surrounded by underscores: _italics_. Obvious typographical errors have been corrected. Inconsistencies in hyphenation have been standardized. Archaic or alternate spelling has been retained from the original.