believe it would be possible for him to know exactly where his
vessel was; but he accepted the situation, and objected to none
of the methods of the scientific navigators.

"It's a mighty simple way of sailin'," he said to Sammy. "As
long as there's water to sail in, you have just got to git on a
line of longitude--it doesn't matter what line, so long as
there's water ahead of you--and keep there; and so long as you
steer due north, always takin' care not to switch off to the
magnetic pole, of course you will keep there; and as all lines of
longitude come to the same point at last, and as that's the point
you are sailin' for, of course, if you can keep on that line of
longitude as long as it lasts, it follows that you are bound to
git there. If you come to any place on this line of longitude
where there's not enough water to sail her, you have got to stop
her; and then, if you can't see any way of goin' ahead on another
line of longitude, you can put her about and go out of this on
the same line of longitude that you came up into it on, and so
you may expect to find a way clear. It's mighty simple sailin'
--regular spellin' book navigation--but it isn't the right thing."

"It seems that way, Cap'n Jim," said Sammy, "and I expect there's
a long stretch of underwater business ahead of us yet, but still
we can't tell. How do we know that we will not get up some
mornin' soon and look out of the upper skylight and see nothin'
but water over us and daylight beyond that?"

"When we do that, Sammy," said Captain Jim, "then I'll truly
believe I'm on a v'yage!"