SLIM GOES ON STRIKE 185 



" Get busy there," he roared. " Slew that 

 cask around." 



The yells broke off. We went to work again. 

 For a half hour, there was silence in the cabin. 

 We wondered what had happened. Slim might 

 have been murdered for all we knew. Finally 

 Slim emerged and went silently forward. We 

 noticed a large shaved spot on the top of his 

 head where two long strips of court-plaster 

 formed a black cross. 



The first thing Slim did after getting back to 

 the forecastle was to take one of his blue flannel 

 shirts and, while none of the officers was look- 

 ing, shin up the ratlines and hang it on the fore- 

 lift. This is an old-time sailor sign of distress 

 and means trouble aboard. The mate soon 

 spied the shirt swinging in the breeze. 



"Well, I'll be darned," he said. "Jump up 

 there one of you and take that shirt down." 



No one stirred. The mate called the cabin 

 boy and the young Kanaka brought down the 

 shirt. Slim told us at dinner time all about his 

 adventure in the cabin. 



" I goes down in the cabin," said Slim, " and 



