"Are they going to evacuate the place?"
"I ain't 'eard nothing. We've been landing a good many of the soldiers round from Suvla—a good show—down there, sir. I ain't 'eard nothing about nobody going off."
Bubbles, looking in through the doors and seeing no one inside, asked him where the Sub was.
"Don't see much of him, sir. I works down at No. 1 Pier—mostly. Well, we'll stick your gear 'ere. Some of the officers will be a-coming up soon."
"'Kaiser Bill' has come along—for luck," the Orphan said; and Plunky Bill stepped into the lamp-light from the half-open door to have a look at him in his box.
"'E will bring luck all right, sir. I wish we'd 'ad 'im at that there Ajano place."
Then they were left alone, went inside through the door—evidently the folding-doors from the saloon of one of the sunken steamers—into a pantry sort of place, through it into a long room some 9 feet high, 20 feet long, and 12 feet broad, with a wooden floor and a wooden ceiling, from which an oil-lamp hung—the lamp which had glowed through the doorway—over a long wooden table littered with newspapers, and with a wooden bench on either side of it. At the far end was a fire-place—alight and burning cosily—some deck chairs round it, a packing-case full of coal in the corner, and a very dilapidated card-table.
"Look how they make cupboards!" said Bubbles excitedly, and pointed to two shell-boxes let into the clay walls. "Isn't that 'cute'?"
Then from outside came a loud voice. "My jumping Jimmy! D'you think I'm going to land a hundred tons of hay a night like this? Not if I know it. It would all get soaked. Tell him to wait till the morning; the sea will have gone down by then."
The Sub came in, calling out: "Outside! Outside! Pantry! Pantry! Bring me a bottle of beer!" And seeing the two midshipmen, burst out with: "Yoicks, my merry kippers! My bubbling Bubbles! My perishing Orphan! Pantry! Pantry! Bring three bottles!"