Round the Cape to India. 



my batman out of a capacious pannikin. It would have 

 rejoiced the heart of a Blue Ribbon Army man, had one 

 been present, to have seen the exhilarating effect that 

 water had on the culprit, who used to take his fifty with 

 the utmost fortitude for the honour of his corps, and 

 with evident satisfaction at the prospect of finishing the 

 remainder of the contents of the friendly can, which, 

 strange to say, smelt strongly of Old Tom on one occa- 

 sion when I found it in my cabin after having been used 

 for the sufferer's benefit. 



Despite these occasional outbreaks of insubordination, 

 we were a fairly contented party on board, and, as most 

 of us were young, we were happy on the slightest pro- 

 vocation. We had immense resources in whist, ccartc, 

 ship's quoits, shooting at bottles, angling for Cape 

 pigeons, trying to catch sharks, or boarding some 

 vessel near at hand when becalmed, boxing, playing 

 high cockalorum, and follow my leader up the rigging, 

 getting up private theatricals, and writing for our 

 manuscript newspaper ; while we had always the serious 

 business of eating and drinking before our eyes. Life 

 on board ship is a sadly tedious affair for passengers 

 who have no congenial spirits, nor any all-sufficing 

 pursuit of their own. I remember once coming from 



