mounted his horse to return to the Juno. "But
what of my cargo? I fancy there will be more diffi-
culty in that quarter."



XV

The Chamberlain was in a towering bad humor.
As he made his appearance at least two hours earlier
than he was expected, he found the decks of the
Juno covered with the skins of sea-dogs, foxes, and
birds. He had heard Langsdorff go to his cabin
later than usual the night before, and that his pet
aversion was the cause of a fresh grievance, but
hastened the eruption of his smouldering resentment
toward life in general.

"What does this mean?" he roared to the sailor
on watch. "Clear them off--overboard, every one
of them. What are you staring at?"

The sailor, who was a "Bostonian," an inheri-
tance with the ship, opened his mouth in favor of
the unfortunate professor, but like his mates, he
stood in much awe of a master whose indulgence
demanded implicit obedience in return. Without
further ado, he flung the skins into the sea.

Rezanov, to do him justice, would not have acted