shark’s tooth; over the quarter-deck double awnings gave ample clearance to the swing of the main boom — the outer of dazzling white canvas, the inner of richest, striped silk-and-cotton mixture. The open doors of the deckhouse companion revealed an interior of ivory paneling touched with gold, and hung with heavy velvet punkahs. The walls were embellished with exactly the right number of art gems to establish the artistic perception of the owner and to whet the expectation for more yet unseen. But, with all this, the Feu Follette housed a discontented master and discontented guests.

“Oh, for a breeze!” grumbled Pearse, breaking in on the frowning silence. “How much longer are we to drift around these stagnant seas, Venner?”

“The very next slant of wind shall wing us homeward,”