30 THE ARCTURUS ADVENTURE 



puppy — a canine of mysterious pedigree and un- 

 known breed. 



Descending into the forward hold for a fresh 

 supply of vials, I delved among cases in the swaying 

 shadows; here in the lowest depths of this wooden 

 ship new noises drowned out everything that 

 was happening above. The huge curving timbers 

 of the framework miglit have been those of an 

 old galleon, and the gobbets of red paint that 

 showed where the bolts were placed were shudder- 

 ingly reminiscent of those dreadful significant 

 splashes with which, in fiction at least, all pirate 

 ships are plentifully besprinkled. From the sounds 

 it was easy to imagine that the vessel was on the 

 point of disintegration; such creaks and groans 

 must herald disaster, and when a large swell came, 

 the grind of straining planks, and the volley of 

 crackling, which might have come from a machine- 

 gun nest, were deafening. 



The first net was in; the winch stopped while it 

 was detached and brought over the side and its 

 contents gingerly emptied into glass dishes and 

 bowls; four such nets were safely recovered, but 

 something had gone wrong with the fifth, that 

 which had been down to five hundred fathoms ; the 

 light ropes at its mouth had twisted, evidently on 

 the way down, for it was wound up in such a way 

 that nothing had been able to enter it. A certain 

 percentage of such accidents is to be expected, but 

 as the voyage went on, mishaps of this kind were 

 rare. 



The arrival of the big trawl was the signal for 



