"Come, come, Mr Herrick, there is no need for all this tremor. Sit down, my lad." "Thank you, sir; I would rather stand, please. I think I could talk better." "Very well, then," he said, smiling; "stand. You have some notion in your head, then?" "Yes, sir," I said eagerly, for the nervousness all passed away in the excitement I felt. "I thought that if I could do as I liked, I'd take the _Teaser_ up some creek where she couldn't be watched, and then I'd close all the ports, send the men over the side to paint out the streak, and I'd paint the funnel another colour, and get yards all anyhow, and hide all the guns. I'd make her look like one of the tea-screws, and get a lot of Chinamen on board for sailors." I saw that he kept on bowing his head, and I was so excited that I went on. "No, I know. If you tried to get some Chinese sailors on board, it would be talked about, and perhaps the pirates would get to know, for they must have friends in some of the ports." "Then down go some of your baits, my lad." "No, sir. I know. You could make Ching--" "That Chinese interpreter?" "Yes, sir. Make him do up some of our lads with pigtails made of blackened oakum, and in duck-frocks they'd do at a distance." "Heads not shaven?" "No, sir; but they could have their hair cut very short, and then painted white--I mean yellow, so that the pirates wouldn't know at a distance." "Humph! anything else?" said the captain drily, but I did not notice it; I was too much taken up by my ideas. "Yes, sir. Ching could be going about very busily in all directions, showing himself a great deal, and there's no mistake about him." "No," said the captain, "there is no mistake about him." "And it wouldn't be a bad plan to be at anchor near the place where you thought they were, sir, with some of the spars down as if you were repairing damages. That would make them feel sure that they were safe of a prize, and they'd come off in their boats to attack." "And then you would let them board us and find out their mistake?" "That I wouldn't, sir!" I cried eagerly; and, oddly enough, my side began to ache where I had had that blow. "I wouldn't risk any of our poor fellows being hurt. I'd sink them before they got alongside." "Humph! Well, you're pretty bloodthirsty for your time of life, young gentleman," said the captain quietly. "No, sir," I replied in confusion; "but I was with Mr Barkins and Mr Smith, and nearly killed by these people, and yesterday I saw what they had done aboard that barque." "There? So you did, my lad. Well," he said, "what more have you got to suggest?" "I think that's all, sir," I said, beginning to grow confused again, for my enthusiasm was dying out before his cool, matter-of-fact way of taking matters. "Then we will bring this meeting to an end, Mr Herrick." "Yes, sir," I said dolefully, for I was wishing intensely that I had not said a word. "Shall I go now?" "If you please, Mr Herrick." "Good-night, sir."