Captain Staggles interviewed the two delinquents separately. The skipper was one of those men who are apt to bluster and browbeat whenever occasion offered. It was his idea of imparting discipline. Popularity he scoffed at. He was, in short, one of a fortunately rare type of officer of the old school, who at the outbreak of the war had been once more employed on the active list. To his disappointment Captain Staggles had not received a shore appointment, owing to a lack of sufficient influence; and after filling various stopgap billets he had been given the armed merchant-cruiser Portchester Castle, whose complement consisted entirely of Royal Naval Reserve and Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve officers and men.
Unfortunately Captain Staggles did not possess sufficient sagacity to realize that there must be a difference between a crew, trained for years in proper Navy fashion, and a body of men drawn from the merchant service. In both cases good material was present, but one had been developed to meet certain requirements, the other had not.
"The point is," thundered Captain Staggles to Jack Osborne; "the point is, sir, you had to be on duty on board. You were not. You, instead, try to bamboozle me with some cock-and-bull yarn about a spy. Now, what have you got to say?"
"I take it, sir, that you insinuate I'm not speaking the truth," said Osborne quietly, controlling his indignation with a strong effort. "And that without giving me an opportunity of proving my statement."
"I take it, sir," mimicked the skipper, "that you don't realize that you've overstayed your leave?"
"Unfortunately, no, sir," replied Osborne. "It was my fault entirely that Mr. Webb was in the same predicament."
"Very well," exclaimed Captain Staggles, raising his voice to a regular roar. "Now, don't do it again. Clear out, sir."
"But concerning the spy, sir?" began the Lieutenant.
"Don't want to hear any more about it," bellowed the skipper. "Thank your lucky stars you've got off so lightly. Leave my cabin, sir."
Osborne saluted and withdrew. On the half-deck he encountered Webb, who was awaiting his turn "on the carpet".