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 bend them on—three or four of them—and you'd think it would take longer. They weren't hoisting any when I was on the signal-bridge, so I couldn't see how they do it."

"Were you on a destroyer?" Joan asked.

"No; not a destroyer, but a real battleship. It was last year, before we were in the war. Captain Fraser asked us out—he knows Fogger—and he sent in a launch for us. It was awfully exciting. We went all over her, and Captain Fraser showed Fogger and Mudder everything. But I had a nice ensign all for myself, and he carried me down into the stoke-hold. It's not nearly as black as you'd think, and not very hot. And we went up into a gun-turret. That was fun! We sort of wriggled along under it until we came to the little hole where you climb up, and then we went up an iron ladder. I couldn't possibly have done it, if the ensign hadn't been carrying me all the time, but it must have been rather hard for him."

"I should love to go on board a warship," said Joan. "What was it like in the turret?"

"It was very small," said Garth, "and pretty hot. The gun-officer showed me the inside of the gun—oh, it was so shiny and wonderful!—and how they turn it around and slide