‘Oh, bother marriage!’ cried Alice. ‘Who was thinking of such rubbish? Not I. All I meant was, that I should be afraid to trust myself to Bob Reynolds without you. Do you know that one day last year, when you were in Calcutta, he took me out in a boat, and toppled me into the water, and if it had not been for old Jerry Sparks, the waterman, pulling off in his punt, I might have been drowned.’ ‘He’s an awkward landlubber,’ said Jack, as he passed one of her curls through his fingers. ‘That’s a cool way of taking it, Jack. But it’s true, I can tell you. He “cracked on” till the gunwale was under water, and we all had to sit up to windward, and then played pranks with the sail until he overturned the boat. And you wouldn’t like to see me drowned, would you, Jack?’ she continued insinuatingly. ‘No! That would not be nice at all,’ replied her lover; ‘besides, it would spoil that pretty dress.’ ‘Well, then, will you go and take care of me?’ ‘I suppose I shall have to in the end; that is, if you are determined to have your own way. Like the blessed Saint Anthony, I have resisted all the other temptations, but the last one always proves too much for me. Do you know that I have a chance of going out with you to New Zealand, Alice, as second officer in the _Pandora_?’ ‘Have you really? Oh, that will be great fun. But I hope they won’t let you do what you like with the ship, or you may run us on a rock, or something horrid.’ ‘Thank you for the compliment. But I think you may feel perfectly safe--not with me, but in the _Pandora_.’ ‘Is she such a good ship then?’ ‘She is an iron clipper, registered A1 at Lloyd’s.’ ‘Now I am as wise as before.’ ‘You will soon find out all about her when you get aboard. And I hope sincerely I may be there too. You can guess the reason I am so anxious to visit New Zealand, Alice.’ ‘I can’t. What is it?’ demanded Alice, with open eyes. ‘Because I want to make the personal acquaintance of your father, and get him to fix some definite time for our marriage. I think it is time we were married, Alice.’ ‘_I_ don’t!’ cried the girl, shrugging her shoulders. ‘Oh, yes, you do. That is only a little bit of mock modesty, put on for the occasion. At any rate, that is my intention, in applying for a berth in the _Pandora_. Your mother is all kindness to me, but I think she is just a little afraid of what your father may say to our engagement.’ ‘You see,’ said Alice, kicking the stones with her feet, ‘father is very well off, and there are only two of us, and mother thinks perhaps--’ ‘That he will not consider me a good enough match for his eldest daughter. Well, with regard to money, that is true enough, although my birth is second to none.’ ‘But _I_ love you Jack, remember,’ said Alice, ‘and I mean to marry you, whatever any one may say against it.’