“Is it rough?” said Mark. “Shall we take in a reef?” said Bevis. “No,” said Mark. “Let’s capsize.” “Right,” said Bevis. “It doesn’t matter.” “Not a bit. Isn’t she slipping along?” “Gurgling and guggling.” “Bubbling and smacking. That was spray.” “There’s a puff. How many knots are we going?” “Ten.” “Pooh! twenty. No chance of a pirate catching us.” “In these unknown seas,” said Mark, “you can’t tell what proas are waiting behind the islands, nor how many Malays with creeses.” “They’re crooked the wrong way,” said Bevis. “The most curious knives I ever saw.” “Or junks,” went on Mark. “Are these the Chinese Seas?” “Jingalls,” said Bevis, “they shoot big bullets, almost cannon-balls, as big as walnuts. I wish we had one in the forecastle.” “We ought to have a cannon.” “Of course we did.” “As if we couldn’t manage a cannon!” “As if!” “Or a double-barrel gun.” “Or anything.” “Anything.” “People _are_ stupid.” “Idiotic.” “We must have a gun.” “We must.” They listened again to the gurgling and “guggling,” the bubbles, and kiss, kiss of the wavelets. “We’re a long way now,” said Mark presently. “Can we see land?” “See land! We lost sight of land months ago. I should think not. Look up there.” Bevis was watching the top of the mast, tracing its line along the sky, where white filmy clouds were floating slowly. Mark opened his drowsy eyes and looked up too. “No land in sight,” said he. “Nothing but sky and clouds,” said Bevis. “How far are we from shore?” “Six thousand miles.” “It’s the first time anybody has ever sailed out of sight of land in our time,” said Mark. “It’s very wonderful, and we shall be made a great deal of when we get home.” “Yes, and put in prison afterwards. That’s the proper way.” “We shall bring home sandal-wood, and diamonds as big as--as apples--” “And see unknown creatures in the sea, and butterflies as huge as umbrellas--” “Catch fevers and get well again--” “We must make notes of the language, and coax the people to give us some of their ancient books.” “O! I say,” said Mark, “when you were on the Unknown Island did you see the magician with long white robes, and the serpent a hundred feet long he keeps in a cave under the bushes?” “No,” said Bevis, “I forgot him.” So he had. His imagination ran so rapidly, one thing took the place of the other as the particles of water take each other’s place in a running brook. “We shall find him, I dare say.” “Let’s land and see.” “So we will.” “Are you sure you’re steering right?” “O! yes; it’s nothing to do, you only have to keep the wind in the sails.” “I wonder what bird that is?” said Mark, as a dove flew over. He knew a dove well enough on land. “It’s a sort of parrot, no doubt.” “I wonder how deep it is here.” “About a million fathoms.” “No use trying to anchor.” “Not the least.” “It’s very warm.” “In these places ships get burnt by the sun sometimes.”