“I wish to complain to you, Captain Sudlip, of the food furnished to our party.”
“What’s the matter with it?”
“Everything is the matter with it. In the first place it is very poor in itself and in the second place it is miserably cooked. To-day’s dinner is the poorest which has been served to our party since we left the United States, and that is several months ago.”
“Humph! I heard you trying to raise a row at the table. According to my way of thinking the food is all right, and so is the cooking. Is that all you want to see me about?”
“That is all, and it is quite enough. I do not propose to stand it. I paid for first-class accommodations for myself and for those with me, and I shall expect such accommodations in the future. If they are not forthcoming as soon as we get to Kingston I shall lodge a complaint against you and sue to recover, even if I have to hold myself and your ship there to do it.”
At this announcement Captain Sudlip’s eyes almost bulged out of his head with rage.
“Ha! do you threaten me?” he roared. “That’s the way of all Yankees—think they can ride right over everybody that comes along. You can’t ride over me!”
“I won’t argue the point,” returned Professor Strong, calmly. “You heard what I said, and I am a man who always keeps his word. I once met a fellow of your stripe at Nassau—Captain Renfaw, of the Queen Mary—perhaps you know him. He tried the same game of poor food and it cost the owners of the ship about sixty pounds in court—and the money came out of Captain Renfaw’s salary. Unless there is a better service I shall treat you exactly as I did Renfaw.”
With this remark Amos Strong swung around on his heel and sauntered off. Captain Sudlip stood for a second glaring at him, and seemed on the point of talking back. Then he drew his lips tightly together and walked to his private cabin.
The professor said nothing to the boys about what had taken place, but they all knew that he had “laid down the law” by the way the captain acted whenever he came near them. They saw nothing of January Jones until the day following.