In as few words as possible Charlie told him what had happened.
'You've been dreaming,' the skipper declared, with a laugh. 'I've been at the wheel for the last three-quarters of an hour, and you are the first person I have seen come out of the saloon. No one could come out without me seeing him. Get down below again, and don't lie on your back; you are sure to dream if you do.'
'Dreams do not cut a man's fingers,' Charlie observed, sharply.
'Well, I'll make inquiries, but it is not likely that the man who did rob you—if you were robbed—will confess. Now get below, or you'll catch cold.'
Charlie and Ping Wang returned to the saloon, very dissatisfied with this conversation.
'I believe,' Ping Wang said, 'that it was the skipper himself who robbed you.'
'So do I,' Charlie replied; 'but how can I prove it? And if I could prove it, what good would it be while we are on his ship? All we can do is to take extra precautions against being robbed.'
After talking for about half an hour, they fell asleep, and were not again disturbed.
When they went on deck, shortly after breakfast, the skipper summoned all hands on deck, and questioned each man as to whether he had been into the saloon during the night. Each one denied having done so, and Charlie believed them.
'It is my opinion,' the skipper said to Charlie an hour or two later, 'that it was that Chinaman who robbed you.'