could bail. The boys had poured about six inches of water into
the boat. If the plug had been less tightly hammered in, they
would no doubt have sunk her at her painter by pulling it out.
Then should have been indeed in difficulty. It took me about
twenty minutes to bail the boat clear. As I bailed her, I thought
that Londoners must be the most unpleasant people in the world,
since, already, in two days, I had met so many knaves. It did not
occur to me at the time that I was a young knave, too, to be out
in a stolen boat, against orders. I never once thought how well I
had been served for my disobedience.

I had an uncomfortable journey upstream, for I was very wet from
my sousing. I loitered at the Tower to watch the garrison
drilling with the big guns. Then I loitered about among the
ships, reading their names, or even climbing their gangways to
look at their decks. I lingered a long time at the schooner La
Reina, partly because she was much the prettiest ship in the
Pool, but partly because I was beginning to dread Ephraim. I
wondered whether Mr. Jermyn was on board of her. I was half
tempted to climb aboard to find out. I clambered partly up her
gangway, so that I could peer over the rail. To my surprise, I
found that her hatches were battened down as in ships ready for
the sea. Her cargo of oranges, that had smelt so sweetly, must
have been a blind, for no ship, discharging cargo the day before,
could be loaded, ready for sea, within twenty-four hours. Indeed,
she was in excellent trim. She was not too light to put to sea.
No doubt, I said to myself, she has taken in ballast to equal the
weight of oranges sent ashore. But I knew just enough of ships to
know that there was some mystery in the business. The schooner
could not be the plain fruit-trader for which men took her. As I