Page:Guy Boothby--A Bid for Fortune.djvu/115

Rh luxury of a canvas-backed deck chair, the initials on the back of which were not those of its present owner. At first the conversation was circumscribed, and embraced Plimsoll, the attractions of London, and the decline in the price of freight; but, as the contents of the second bottle waned, speech became more unfettered, and the talk drifted into channels and latitudes widely different. Circumstances connected with bygone days were recalled; the faces of friends long hidden in the mists of time were brought again to mind; anecdotes illustrative of native character succeeded each other in brisk succession, till Maclean, without warning, finding his voice, burst into incongruous melody. One song suggested another; a banjo was produced, and tuned to the noise of clinking glasses; and every moment the atmosphere grew thicker, and the din waxed greater.

How long this concert would have lasted I cannot say, but I remember, after the third repetition of the chorus of a sea-chanty that might have been heard a mile away, glancing at my watch and discovering to my astonishment that it was after ten o'clock. Then rising to my feet I resisted all temptations to stay the night and reminded my friend Percival of his promise to put me ashore again. He was true to his word, and five minutes later we were shoving off from the ship's side amid the valedictions of my hosts. I have a recollection to this day of the face of the chief engineer gazing down upon me from above the bulwarks, and of his quavering voice asserting the fact, in dolorous tones, that