You must enter his name in the list of the crew, Mr Marline," added the captain, turning to the first mate; "and see, too, about messing him in the fo'c's'le.

I daresay we'll make something out of him during the voyage." During this little interlude, the _Josephine_ had been making away from Grenada with the land breeze, aided by a current setting to the westward at the rate of a couple of knots an hour; so that, by the time it got dark, we had sunk the island to windward, Captain Miles having caused the royals to be hoisted, in order to take every advantage of the light air, for we had to make the best of a north-east course on the starboard tack.
Towards nine o'clock, however, the wind freshened, and as the navigation was rather ticklish, we being not yet in the open sea, the lighter canvas had to be taken in, the vessel proceeding during the remainder of the night under double-reefed topsails, courses, topgallant-sails, and her jib and spanker--for, these could be easily handed in case of any sudden shift of wind, which frequently veers round without warning under the lee of the land.
I, of course, only learnt all this afterwards, picking up my nautical knowledge by degrees from my old friend Moggridge, who took me under his tuition, promising to make a sailor of me ere the voyage was over, for I was told to turn in by Captain Miles at nine o'clock, when the lights were put out in the cabin.
In the morning, when I came on deck again, we were off Saint Vincent; but, as the current and wind were both against us, although our port was well in sight we had to beat up to make the harbour, not dropping our anchor until late in the afternoon.
It was a beautiful spot, for we lay as it were in a circle of mountains, the tall Souffriere with its volcano peak overtopping them all.
Although we arrived late, Captain Miles did not lose any time in shipping his cargo of rum, going on shore immediately in his gig, which was still hanging to the davits astern, not having been taken on board with the other boats before leaving "my island," as I always call Grenada.

Soon afterwards, a couple of heavy launches manned by negroes and each stored with several big puncheons came off to us, the rum being at once hoisted in and lowered away into the hold--the operation being achieved in less time nearly than I can describe it, for it was necessary for us to be off again by nightfall to take advantage of the land breeze; or else we might be detained at Saint Vincent another day.
Besides the puncheons of rum another piece of cargo was brought on board.

This subsequently caused quite a little commotion as well as giving us all a good deal of entertainment.
Our new freight was a cow.
Captain Miles, you must know, was a bit of a gourmand, liking to have good eating and drinking when he could get them; and, as he was particularly fond of coffee with plenty of milk in it, he always carried a cow with him in his different voyages.
During his last trip from home, however, his old milk purveyor had died; and, as such animals are rather scarce in the West Indies, he was not able to procure one either for love or money at Grenada, and was at a complete nonplus till we got to Saint Vincent.
Here, fortunately, or unfortunately as it happened eventually for the poor cow, the captain heard at the last moment of a fine Alderney which a planter was anxious to dispose of, and had brought down to the town to send off to Barbadoes, hoping to find a market there for her.

Captain Miles, therefore, at once closed with the planter, and the last of the launches conveying the rum puncheons to the _Josephine_ brought off in addition this cow.
But, taking an animal of this sort away from the shore, and out to a ship lying some distance from the land is one thing, and getting it on board is another! This the captain found presently, when, having completed all his business ashore and cleared the last of his cargo, he was rowed out in his gig to regain the vessel.