Hunting the Skipper Part 30

"But what poison?"

"Old Reston's: the two blue pills. Then I shall pitch the bottle of horrible draught overboard. I don't care what becomes of that so long as it sinks to the bottom."

"Oh, I see plainly enough now," said Murray.

"And pretty well time, my boy! Wasn't it a capital idea?"

"No," said Murray bluntly. "Stupid, I say."

"Not it, old chap. Don't you see that it is liver medicine?"

"I suppose so."

"Well, sharks have livers. They fish for them in the Mediterranean, take out the livers, and boil them down to sell for cod liver oil."

"Then that's a lie," said Murray. "Perhaps it's being a lie made you think of it."

"Why?"

"Because you'll have to tell the doctor a lie when he asks you if you took the medicine."

"But he won't ask."

"He will, for certain."

"How do you know? Did he ever ask you?"

"Well, no," said Murray thoughtfully; "I can't say that he did. He never gave me any, only touched me up a bit when I was hurt."

"Then don't you be so jolly knowing, my fine fellow," cried Roberts.

"You can't tell if he hasn't doctored you, and I'm quite sure about it, for I know well from nasty experience of his ways that he will not bother one with questions as you think. He gives the fellows physic to take, and just asks them next day how they feel."

"Well, that's what I say," cried Murray triumphantly. "Isn't that just the same?"

"No, not a bit of it. He just asks them how they feel next day; that's all. He takes it for granted that they have swallowed his boluses and draughts. He'll ask me to-morrow how I feel, and I shall tell him I am all right."

"You'll tell him a lie then. Very honourable, upon my word!"

"Here's a pretty how-de-do, Mr Ultra-particular, with your bully bounce about telling a lie! I shan't do anything of the kind. I shall tell him I'm all right because I am quite well, thank you. Bother him and his horrible old stuff! I know I should be pretty mouldy and out of sorts if I took it. Let him ask the shark how he feels, if he gets the chance, for here it goes. Pudding first, which means pills--there!"

A faint splash followed a movement on the part of the midshipman, and Murray saw the calm sea agitated, and faint flashes of phosph.o.r.escent light appear, while directly after it was as if something made a rush; the depths grew ablaze with pale lambent cold fire, and Roberts gave vent to an e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.i.o.n expressive of his delight.

"A shark for a shilling," he cried, "and a big one too. You see if he doesn't hang about the sloop and show himself in the morning, turning up his eyes on the lookout for whoever it was that tried to poison him."

"Turning up his eyes!" said Murray. "Nonsense! If it was as you say the shark would be turning up its white underparts and floating wrong way up."

"Maybe; but hold hard a minute; it's rather soon to exhibit the other dose, as old Reston calls it. I'm not going to make an exhibition of myself, though, this time, so here goes. You see if Jack Shark doesn't go for the bottle as soon as I throw it overboard. Here goes!"

_Splash_!

"How stupid!" said Roberts. "I ought to have drawn the cork."

"Oh no," said Murray, laughing. "I don't suppose the directions said, to be taken in water."

"Um--no. But what's to be done? Look; he's got it."

For as the descent of the bottle Roberts had thrown in could be traced by the way in which the tiny phosph.o.r.escent creatures were disturbed, lower and lower through the deep water, there was another vivid flash made by some big fish as it gave a tremendous flourish with its tail, and the midshipman rubbed his hands with delight.

"He's got it, I'm sure," he cried. "But what's to be done? No use to pitch in a corkscrew."

"Not a bit, d.i.c.k," replied Murray cheerily.

"What a pity! I ought to have known better. He's got it, but the gla.s.s will stop the draught from having the proper effect."

"Oh no; perhaps not," said Murray, laughing. "I've read that sharks have wonderful digestions."

"Well, let's hope this one has. I shall like to look out for him to-morrow watching for the doctor, as he squints up from the wake of the sloop."

"More likely to be looking up for you, old fellow. The doctor didn't throw the bottle in."

"Oh, well, never mind that. I don't suppose the horrible beast knows the difference. I've got rid of the stuff, anyhow; that's all I care about; and n.o.body knows but you."

"Beg pardon, gentlemen," said a voice out of the darkness; "was you a-chucking anything overboard?"

There was a short time of silence, for Murray waited so as to give his messmate a chance to answer the question; but as the latter made no reply he took the duty upon himself.

"That you, Tom May?" he asked.

"Ay, ay, sir. Somebody chucked somethin' overboard twiced, and I was wondering whether it was you gents."

"Why?" said Roberts shortly. "Couldn't it have been one of the watch?"

"No, sir; they're aft, or t'other side of the ship."

"Well, it was, Tom."

"Oh, all right, sir. You'll 'scuse me asking? I only did 'cause the skipper's very partickler since one of the lads got making away with some of the ship's stores, and there's no knowing what mischief the boys might be up to. Then, o' course, sir, there's nothing for me to report to the officer of the watch?"

"No: nothing at all, Tom. Haven't got anything more to throw in, have you, Murray?"

"Not so much as a single pill," said Murray drily.

"Eh? No, of course not. The water's so still and clear, Tom,"

continued the middy hurriedly, "you can see the fish dash after anything, making the sea flash quite deep down."

"Oh yes, sir, I've seen that. It's the sharks, sir; there's often one hanging about right below the keel on the lookout for anything that may be chucked overboard. I believe, sir, as they've got sense enough to know that they may have a bit o' luck and have a chance at an onlucky chap as slips overboard or gets tempted into having a bathe. Wonderful cunning critters, sir, is sharks. I'm always glad when there's a hook with a bit o' pork trailed overboard and one's hauled aboard and cut up to see what he's got inside."

"What!" said Roberts excitedly. "Ripped up to see what's inside?"

"Yes, sir. Don't you remember that one we caught 'bout a month ago? Oh no, of course not. You was ash.o.r.e with the skipper's gig at Seery Leony. That there was a whopper, sir, and he did lay about with his tail, till the cook had it off with a lucky chop of his meat axe. That quieted the beggar a bit, and give him a chance to open Mr Jack Shark up and see what he'd had for dinner lately."