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“Well, they do say you can’t do much without it," said Tony, as an open-minded man of the world, “but I can’t afford school, anyhow.”

“Oh, dear!” Agatha thought a moment. “If you left your ship and came to the Mission I could teach you for a time, at least. Let me do that, Tony.”

“But I have no money—not to count. Only a few francs.”

“That doesn’t matter.”

“Yes, it does,” said he between his teeth. “I won’t come on charity.”

“Then—then—Can you speak French?”

“Of course I can—better than English. More words.”

“Then you can teach the children French—lots of them want to learn; and you’ll live with us.”

“But what about the Deux-Frères? I don’t know if they’ll let me go, and if I run away that’s a thing they put you in prison for.”

“Oh, you mustn’t think of doing that. If you told your master just how it was—how you wanted to learn things and would have a home here, would he let you go? Is he a kind man?”

“Master? Oh, the patron. Yes, he might. He could easily get another mousse here, and he always said, ‘Ambition, p’tit gars—ambition, mon rat!’ as if it was a good thing to make a move. . . . He’s bon enfant, he might let me go. The other brother Chambasse, Hector, doesn’t go to sea—he’s cross like a bear. But I’ll try the patron, and if he doesn’t—would you wait till the voyage is over and take me then?”

“Of course, but———”

“That’s all right,” said Tony briefly, getting down from his rock and holding out his hand to Agatha, seated on another ledge of it. She took the hard little hand, wondering; she did not realise at the moment that this was the