'We shall be off the mouth of the Columbia by noon to-morrow with any luck, and if the breeze holds,' said Ticehurst to himself. 'And in the morning, I'll have a talk to the men. If I could only knock a little sense into a sailor, I'd try to do it. As one can't, I'll try talk.'
He leant his back against the weather-rail, and took a broad view of Oregon.
'"Different ship, different fash," as the Dutchman said when he went aft to haul down the jib,' thought the captain, 'and it's the same with countries. I know I'm in for trouble with my friend Healy. He'll move heaven and earth and the other place to get the men out of my ship. I'll fight him to a finish this time; and rather than pay him for men, I'll take her to sea by myself and drift her home.'
He rubbed his smoothly-shaven chin and took a thoughtful pull at his port whiskers, as if he were checking in the weather braces.
'After all, the men would be crazy to quit; there's hardly one of them with less than fifteen pounds to take. I think I see how to manage it. I'll try anyhow.'
That night he had a long talk with the mate. He astonished Mr. Williams considerably. For Williams by nature belonged to the school which considers a sailor in the light of a punching-bag. It had required one or two private interviews with his skipper to induce him to relinquish practices to which he was wedded.
'Well, sir, this is a revolution,' he declared rather glumly.
'I'm a radical,' said Ticehurst, 'and believe in revolutions when required. I'll speak to the men to-morrow when they've had their breakfast. I'm no believer in coddling men, Mr. Williams, but if I have to ask you and Mr. Gregg to carry them hot shaving-water every morning while we are in Portland River, in order to do this Healy, I shall expect you to carry it.'
'Oh, very well, sir,' said Williams, and he retired to his cabin in some dudgeon.
'It's the principle I'm thinkin' of,' he declared, as he turned in.