"Not I," he cried, in English, and was delighted to be answered in the
same tongue by the skipper.

George's account of his escape, translated by the captain, set the fat
Dutchmen a-rolling. And, after the lad had had the good square meal
the skipper ordered for him, he spent the evening in going over his
adventures again. The jolly-hearted English lad became an immediate
favourite with the sailors and the soldiers, for, as he soon learnt,
the ship was a Dutch transport carrying troops and stores for the war
in Spain.

"Where are we, sir?" George inquired of the skipper next morning when
he came on deck, to find a clear sky, and land faintly seen on the
starboard bow.

"Off the Isle of Wight, my lad," replied the Dutchman.

"Can't you put me ashore, captain?" he pleaded.

The master smiled and shook his head.

"Impossible, boy; you must go with us to Spain. And here comes a
gentleman to speak with you."

An officer in military uniform approached, and the boy touched his
cap. With the skipper as interpreter the major made George an offer of
service under him.

"We want fellows of your sort," he said. "And there will be brave
doings in Spain, and plenty of good pay, and glory to be won. Besides,