Tom, whose head hung over the end of his chest, with a kid which had been brought him under his nose, was past speaking. Adair ordered their hammocks to be slung, and being assisted in, they lay helpless till the gale was over. Let no one despise the two midshipmen, although their messmates might have laughed at them. Their experiences were those of many other brave officers, Nelson included; and they had not a few companions in their misery among those unaccustomed to the tumblifications of the ocean. At length, the wind going down, the sea became tolerably smooth, and turning out, they went on deck by Adair's advice to enjoy a few mouthfuls of fresh air. The effect on their appetites was such as to astonish even old Higson by the way in which they devoured the pea-soup and boiled beef and potatoes, a junk of fat pork even not coming amiss, washed down by stiff glasses of grog, which, in consideration of their recent sufferings, he allowed them to take. "Well, youngsters, you are filling up your lockers with a vengeance," he remarked. "Faith, it's no wonder when they were cleaned out three days ago, and not a scrap the size of a sixpenny-piece stowed away in them since," answered Gerald, who with Tom was eyeing lovingly a huge suet dumpling just placed smoking hot on the table. "Any duff, Rogers?" asked Higson; "I doubt if you've room for much." "I think I could just manage a slice to begin with, and then I'll try what more I can do," answered Tom. A huge slice was handed to him, and another to Gerald. "You shall have your next helping from the left side, youngsters," said the caterer, with a wink at the rest, who all thereon begged for plenty. Tom and Gerald applied themselves to the duff, which they found rather appetising than otherwise; but when they looked up expecting to get their second slices, an empty dish with Higson's face grinning beyond it, alone met their view. However, they agreed that they had dined very well considering, and from that moment, though others occasionally knocked up, they were never off duty from sea-sickness. CHAPTER THREE. MADEIRA SIGHTED--MISFORTUNES OF COMMANDER BABBICOME--A RIDE ON SHORE-- NAVAL CAVALRY CHARGE DOWN A HILL AND OVERTURN SOME DIGNITARIES OF CHURCH AND STATE--A PLEASANT VISIT OF APOLOGY--SUDDENLY ORDERED TO SEA--AN EXPEDITION TO BRING OFF "WASH CLOTHES."