lent his aid, hoping to keep the broken-down engine up to its work), Mr. Weevel simply added, "to—to congratulate you."
The captain went below, if going below it could be called, where half his body was exposed above the deck, and was heard muttering as to the utter impossibility of getting the engine to work in its present state. "And so," he said, stepping upon the deck, "as there's no wind, there's nothin for it but treeing her up."
"Goodness me!" said poor Weevel, who appeared to have made up his mind that some dreadful catastrophe was about to happen, and that "treeing her up" was only another term for "blowing her up."
The skipper explained that his process was of a far less expeditious nature; and proceeded to put it in execution. A rope was got out forward and fastened at its extreme length to a convenient tree, when the skipper, aided by his passengers, hauled away upon it until his craft was drawn up to the tree, then the rope was again taken on, and the same thing repeated.
"Slow work this," said Slinger to Weevel, as the "Leviathan" got entangled among some branches which had fallen into the Yarra; but poor Weevel's attention was engaged on another subject.
"I feel very curious," he said,—"very curious indeed:—I hope the vessel is clean: but my face itches in a most extraordinary manner:—it must be the gnats," said Weevel,—"what numbers of them there are!" and he made repeated dabs at his persecutors as they pitched upon his face and forehead.
"Gnats," said the skipper—"them aint gnats; them's musqueeters, and you'll find 'em uncommon interestin little creeters, I tell you;—they are allers partial to new chums too." But Mr. Weevel was not the only victim; for each passen-
