“H’m! I suppose after this you’ll get your promotion. You deserve it. How about your temporary appointment to Sandgrub?”
“She’s well up the Yang-tse by this time, isn’t she, sir?”
The Bloke shook his head and smiled.
“She’s not, it happens. She’s detained at Shanghai through engine defects. Still keen?”
“Rather, sir.”
“Yes; but it was a midshipman they wanted, not a sub-lieutenant. The admiral emphasized that fact.”
Raxworthy thought for a while. There was something about that trip up the Yang-tse in Sandgrub that appealed to him. Another chance of gaining distinction, he felt sure. He was bound to be promoted to sub-lieutenant sooner or later, but there mightn’t be a second chance of serving in a river gunboat.
“Couldn’t I have my promotion deferred a bit, sir?” he asked earnestly.
The commander smiled again.
“Don’t see why not,” he replied. “I can appreciate your motives. Why not ask the admiral when you’re dining with him?”