A man who had formed one of the long line of passengers, leaning over the rail, watching the tug since it had come into sight, now turned away and walked briskly to the steps leading to the bridge.

As it happened, the captain himself was in the act of descending.

The passenger accosted him, and held out what seemed to be a letter.
"Captain Goodfellow," he said, "I should be glad if you would glance at the contents of that note." The captain, who had just finished a long discussion with the pilot and was not in the best of humor, looked a little surprised.
"What, now ?" he asked.
"If you please," was the quiet answer.

"The matter is urgent." "Who are you ?" the captain asked.
"My name is Hamilton Fynes," the other answered.

"I am a saloon passenger on board your ship, although my name does not appear in the list.