He nodded to the present narrator, who took up the tale. “Here is what I propose, men,” said I: “I put up one hundred and fifty dollars. If any man can lay hands on the stuff right away, and off his own club, he shall have the hundred and fifty down. If any one can put us on the scent of where to look, he shall have a hundred and twenty-five, and the balance shall be for the lucky one who actually picks it up. We'll call it the Pinkerton Stakes, captain,” I added, with a smile. “Call it the Grand Combination Sweep, then,” cries he. “For I go you better.--Look here, men, I make up this jack-pot to two hundred and fifty dollars, American gold coin.” “Thank you, Captain Nares,” said I; “that was handsomely done.” “It was kindly meant,” he returned. The offer was not made in vain; the hands had scarce yet realised the magnitude of the reward, they had scarce begun to buzz aloud in the extremity of hope and wonder, ere the Chinese cook stepped forward with gracious gestures and explanatory smiles. “Captain,” he began, “I serv-um two year Melican navy; serv-um six year mail-boat steward. Savvy plenty.” “Oho!” cried Nares, “you savvy plenty, do you? (Beggar's seen this trick in the mail-boats, I guess.) Well, why you no savvy a little sooner, sonny?” “I think bimeby make-um reward,” replied the cook, with smiling dignity. “Well, you can't say fairer than that,” the captain admitted, “and now the reward's offered, you'll talk? Speak up, then. Suppose you speak true, you get reward. See?” “I think long time,” replied the Chinaman. “See plenty litty mat lice; too-muchy plenty litty mat lice; sixty ton, litty mat lice. I think all-e-time: perhaps plenty opium plenty litty mat lice.” “Well, Mr. Dodd, how does that strike you?” asked the captain. “He may be right, he may be wrong. He's likely to be right: for if he isn't, where can the stuff be? On the other hand, if he's wrong, we destroy a hundred and fifty tons of good rice for nothing. It's a point to be considered.” “I don't hesitate,” said I. “Let's get to the bottom of the thing. The rice is nothing; the rice will neither make nor break us.” “That's how I expected you to see it,” returned Nares. And we called the boat away and set forth on our new quest.