"Well, I really am awfully glad you're going to be nice," said Miss O'Neill as she handed back her teacup with a sigh of relief, "and steam off up to the creeks to Mokki when you've finished working the cargo here." Captain Image stood with the empty teacup in his hand, revolving in his mind many things, and some of his muttered comments were profane. He carried throughout all the seaboard of West Africa a reputation for a hard obstinacy of which in his way he was not a little proud, as men can be of assets whose value is more than doubtful; and he arrived at the idea that this pretty young woman in the crisp grass green muslin was twisting him round to carry out her own peculiar wishes with ridiculous ease. "It's enough to make any man swear," declared Captain Image, as a final summing up of his sentiments. "I agree with you cordially," said Miss O'Neill, "and as I am sure that you must have done tremendous violence to your feelings in letting me have so much of my own way, I'll just let you swear as a reward." "No, I'm damned if I do, Miss Kate," said Image politely. "I shouldn't dream of forgetting what is due to a lady. But don't you be too sure of having your whim gratified even now. I don't see any way of getting the _M'poso_ to Mokki up those bits of creeks unless we put wheels under her and pull her there through the bush." "Have you ever seen a steamer called the _Frau Pobst_?" "I have. She's a funny old brig-rigged relic, with sawn-off smoke stacks and no boats." "No boats?" "Oh, she started with some in the year one when she was built, but as they always got washed overboard when she found herself in a sea-way, I guess they grew tired of replacing them. I believe she does carry some patent folding concertinas tied up somewhere near her davits, but they're to pass the Dutch Board of Trade. They aren't for use. Yes, I know the old _Frau Pobst_. She generally wants two crews each voyage." "How's that?" asked Kate, with a twinkle. "Goes so slow, the first lot die of old age." Captain Image smacked his lips over the pleasantry. "What a labor it must have been to get an old tub like that up to Mokki." "It would take her as many days as it would take me hours in the _M'poso_," said Image, and could have bitten out his tongue when the words escaped. But Kate O'Neill had got up from the settee and was shaking his hand. "I believe in reality, Captain, you're just as keen a business man as I am a business woman. Only you're shockingly shy about showing it. No, don't get up. I'm just going to run back ashore again to finish things up here. I'll be back by the time you've got steam. Please don't get up." "By Crumbs, Miss Kate, but don't you try to dictate to me about that. I'm going to see you off from the front doorsteps myself. By Crumbs, there isn't another lady in Africa I admire half as much." CHAPTER IX NAVIGATION OF DOG'S-LEG CREEK