“Isn’t she,” returned the captain with enthusiasm. “There was never a better come out of a shipyard. Look at her lines. Why she sets on the water like a duck. And roomy, too. She ain’t one of the slim waisted kind where you don’t have room to turn around. Why, Lord love you, lads, ye could be no more comfortable if you put up at the Palace Hotel.”
“You’re right there, captain,” agreed Berwick, “I never saw a prettier boat. I can see you carry quite an armament.”
“Oh, that was for use in the South Seas. She was engaged in trade down there, and we used to have a brush occasionally with the pirates. Not of late, however, for they learned to leave her alone.”
“Do you own her?” asked Jim.
“Haven’t such good luck. Wish I did. No, she belongs to a professor with a long name, though I’m blessed if I know what he’s going to do with her. Just bought her a couple of months ago, and fixed her all up. Overhauled the hull and rigging, put in new tackle and fixed up the engines as good as new.”
“Do you think he would sell her?” asked Jim.
“Not him,” responded the captain. “He has just got her fixed to suit him. She’s fit for a queen now. Just come below and take a look around.”
Accepting the invitation, Jim and Berwick went below and inspected the staterooms and found that they fully justified the captain’s praise.
“Ye gods and little fishes!” exclaimed Berwick, “it looks more like a lady’s boudoir than a ship’s cabin.”