They had now reached the forward deck. Two men belonging to the crew were sitting on a pile of rope; above, patrolling the small upper platform, was the officer in charge; they could not see him, but they could hear his step. To get to the bow, they walked as it were up hill; they reached the sharp point, and looked down over the high, smooth sides which were cutting the deep water so quietly. Eve's glance turned to the splendid aurora quivering and shining above. "This _T. P. Mayhew_ is an excellent boat," remarked Paul, who was still looking over the sides. "But, as to that, all the N. T. boats are good." "N. T.?" "Northern Transportation." He gave a slight yawn. "Tell me about your iron," said Eve, quickly. ("Oh, he will go in! he is going in!" was her thought.) "It isn't mine--I wish it was; I'm only manager." "I don't mean the mine here; I mean your Clay County iron." "What do you know about that?" said Paul, surprised. "Mr. Hollis told me; he said you had declined an excellent offer, and he was greatly concerned about it; he told me the reasons why he did not agree with you." "It must have been interesting! But that all happened some time ago; didn't you know that he had come round to my view of it, after all?" "No." "Yes, round he came; it took him eight days. He has got such a look-on-all-sides head that, when he starts out to investigate, he tramps all over the sky; if he intends to go north, he goes east, west, and south first, so as to make sure that these are not the right directions. However, on the eighth day in he came, squeezing himself through a crack, as usual, and explained to me at length the reasons why it was better, on the whole, to decline that offer. He had thought the matter out to its remotest contingencies--some of them went over into the next century! It was remarkably clear and well argued; and of course very satisfactory to me." "But in the meantime you had already declined, hadn't you?" "Yes. But it was a splendid piece of following up. I declare, I always feel my inferiority when I am with people who can really talk--talk like that!" "Oh!" said Eve, in accents of remonstrance. Her tone was so eloquent that Paul laughed. He laughed to himself, but she heard it, or rather she felt it; she drew her hand quickly from his arm. "Don't be vexed. I was only laughing to see how--" "How what?" "How invariably you women flatter." "_I_ don't." She spoke hurriedly, confusedly. "You had better learn, then," Paul went on, still laughing; "I'm afraid that when we're well stuffed with it we're more good-natured. Shall I take you back to the stern? I'm getting frightfully sleepy; aren't you?" On the way back she did not speak. When they reached the stern-deck, "Good-night," he said, promptly opening the door into the lighted saloon.