The Press., 1910-08-24
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 An old salt told me this story while I was waiting on the dock for an i1- coming ship. He was queer looking old chap with rings i'll his ears:
 eve was a-drawin' nigh New Zea- land. A year afore we'd h'isted an- chor at Wellington Wellington's a town in New Zealand, boss-and arter Roin' clear round this 'ere globe a-ship- pin, cargoes in heather lands and a-seIlin' lem in Christian lands we was a-gittin' back to where we'd started from to settle up with the owners.
 sOur cap'n knowed well enough how to trade, but he wasn't nowhere at navigation. He'd been one year afOre the mast when his brother, in the soap boiIin' line, up and died and left him S1O.OOO. He put the lump in with the owners of the Polly Milford and got the command. He warn't fit to com mand a yawl, boss, and all the men knowed it.
 1They made plan to seize the wes-  Withers, In command. Now, Mark Withers didn't have nothin' to do with the mutiny, fer he didn't know nothin' at all about It. He was the best man you ever sailed under. boss-kind and considerin to the men and with a head like a sperit level with the bub- ble always in the middle. That was fist the kind of man the cap'n ud almost hate, and he hated MT. Withers like piZen.
 "Well, jist afore the mine was ready to spring some of the men weakened and give away the hull thing. Now, if the cap'n had managed the sailin' of the ship as well as he managed Wot he was a-goin' to do he wouldn't "a had no trouble. He put MT. With CTS in irons and made a court out of the men wot give the plot away, and they understood well enough that if they didn't find Mark Withers guilty every mothers son of 'em ud have to stand trial when we made port.
 ''They tried him, and they convicted him. He was sentenced to be hanged to the yardarm at noon on Friday, the SOth day of June, till he was dead, and God have mercy on that poor soul of hiA'n.
 ''Now, of all the men aboard that ship there wasn't none wot thunk more of Mr. Withers than this mis'a'- ble hulk wOt stands afore you.
 ''WeIl, didn't sleep none that night. I jist laid awake and thunk-thunk wot could do to stop the hangin'. You see, there wasn't no reason for 1t. We would reach port in a day or two, and there'd be fair trial. But the cap'n knowed that we could prove his ignorance of navigation and that ud weaken his case. What he wanted was to git squar' with the man he hated afore it was too late.
 '@That night goes on a-thinkin'. 1 thunk and thunk till l reckoned the top of my head ud split off. MT. With CTS was to hang the next day but one at noon. What was a-drivin' at was to delay the execution till we could make port. But there wasn't no way opened my knowledge chist hun dred times and shet 1t ag'in without gittin' nothin' out.
 "Jist afore mornin' I fell asleep, and dreamed-dreamed a sure enough dream this time. ain't a-goin' to tell you wot dreamed, boss, but that dream give an idee. didn't think 1t was much of an idee at the time, but it was better'n nothin', and saw that there was one small chance for MT. Withers. I stayed in my ham, mock long enough to think out plan to give the prisoner that one chance, and when turned out I knowed what was a-goin' for to do.
 "When four bells in the mornin' was a-strikin' I started aft at the head of seven men. They was the best men on the ship, and they was the only best men. All the rest was worst. We marched aft to the quarterback, where the cap'n was a-standin', and we all drawed up in line afore him.
 "'Well,' he said, a-snif1n' sometEin' in the wind.
 "'Cap'n,' says I, here's eight of us come to reccymend a pint of law
 "'Wot do you know about law, you lubbers? Git back forrardy
 'Cap'n,' says I, you have given MT. Withers fair trial' You see, concluded to start in favorable and shift round arterward. 'Cap'n,' says I, 'seein' as you've given Mir. Withers a fair trial, don't you think you'd orter give him fair hangin'Y
 'Wot do you meanp says he, chang in his talk by shiftin' to the left leg instead of the right.
 I mean says I, that if you hang Mir. Withers tomorrer you'n do it agin marrytime law
 'Marrytime law! Wot do such fish as you know about marrytime IawY
 'T reckoned it was about time to shift the wiIsd few points, so I says, kind of bracin' myself, AS cap'n of this 'ere vessel If you permits an lIle- gal execution youM be liable to be tried fer murder jist as soon as we make port
 ''He changed his tack ag'in and give his Quid grind. I knowed the matter didn't rest easy on his mind noway, for saw him whiten. Howsumever, he squared around and lit out on us:
 "'If this is plan on the part of mufineers to hold on to Mir. Withers Co make him master of this ere ship want you to understand that there ain't a-goin' to be no interference with justice. If necessary I'll hang eight more men And he turned his eye on us as If he was a-measurin' how much of the ships rope would be required for the job.
 There ain't no sich intention, cap'n. There's valid reason why Mr. With ers' hangin' tomorrer I'll be contrary wise to good law"
 sWot is itY he yelled. He was a. gittin' mad fast.
 "'Mr. Withers has been sentenced by the court to hang at noon on Fri day, the 3Oth of June. There won't be