“Your plan wouldn’t have worked at all, if the fleet had been in the harbor. Don’t you see that Fluxion would have been alongside the steamer as soon as the health officer would let him do so? He would miss me at once, for I am one of his officers, and would ask for me. That would bring out the captain’s story, and I should be looked up at once. We are in luck as it is; and I am in favor of attending to the business at this very moment, and before the captain gets back.” “All right! and to oblige you, Dave, I will give up the idea of making a longer cruise in the Ville d’Angers,” replied Sir Philip. “I will go on deck, and hail a boat.” He had hardly gone before Clinch joined Gregory. They had a conference in regard to Clinch’s prospect of getting off if his companion succeeded; and Gregory assured him he was almost sure that the plan relating to his friend would work even better than the one for his own escape. Clinch was satisfied with this answer, and was confident that his companion would stand by him. On deck Sir Philip found only Speers, the second officer, and four seamen. Capt. O’Hara had taken Raymond with him for the reason that the latter could speak the Portuguese language. The engineers were all busy with the machinery. Speers was studying his lessons in the pilot-house, as he did every moment of the time when he was not on duty. O’Hara, as has been stated before, had spoken of a new method of making the promotions, which had come to his knowledge. The captain and the other officers of the steamer were intensely interested in this information, and they wished to be prepared for it, whatever it proved to be; for they had no knowledge of the nature of the new method. O’Hara and Speers had been studying with all their might, in order to be ready for any thing. What the new method was, the students had the privilege of guessing; and they could not well help using it. The captain thought it must be a new system of marking the value of the students’ work; but the second officer felt very confident that the promotions were to be made by the results of a monthly examination. Each argued for his own view, and each continued to struggle to put himself in condition for any thing. Sir Philip and Lord Fillgrove ventured to interrupt the studies of the officer of the deck long enough to say good-by to him. Tom shook hands with them, responding to their expressions of good-will, and then resumed his study; for he was in the middle of a difficult problem in navigation, and he did not wish to lose the run of it.