Page:1880. A Tramp Abroad.djvu/137

 peculiarly. I can understand German as well as the maniac that invented it, but I talk it best through an interpreter.

The captain hitched up his trowsers, then shifted his quid thoughtfully. Presently he said just what I was expecting he would say,—that he had no license to carry passengers,



and therefore was afraid the law would be after him in case the matter got noised about or any accident happened. So I chartered the raft and the crew and took all the responsibilities on myself.