Settling Day

oling drinks for himself, and mixtures of qu

rew, and the passengers-the last-named lot he considered of little account-he had b

he filled a bottle from his regular tap. 'If it does no good, there

sidered himself a poet, a truly dramatic poet, and he was sore with the world because his efforts had not been appreciated. He had cas

The worthy medico had, after much toil and brain work, compose

and what not, and in the midst of this poetic chaos was a good ship, commanded by a worthy skipper with a fiery beard. That was where Dr Tom blu

first few stanzas with pride, but arriving at the fiery beard period

this ... d--d i

hurt. He had expended many hours on the composition of that poem, and

ffort that has cost

untold wealth!' yelled the frantic skipper with the fiery beard, an

oothed it out, and caressed it as

the shipping reporter of the Mornin

mn manner, handing the rejected of

and looked uneasy. He had read Dr Tom's poems befor

on their voyages from far countries dearly loved a drop of the real stingo, which money c

m was d

id the scribe. This opinion was dipl

t jingle of glasses, and a soothing odour

m, 'I knew you wou

a glass was balm to the shippin

t's a drop o

letters, sipped it with

f, doctor, spl

me many hours' deep

is an elegan

ish it,' mildly suggested the doctor. 'He

ad sort. He might cram it into

looked cr

wfully. 'Surely it is worth

t they are in the office. They're death on poems. It

and there was something in

u a couple of real good startling pars abou

ot tell the o

eathe a word to

isk it. Now

ents that had occurred during the voyage from Lon

Tom succeeded in his object, and when his skipper read the poem in the Morning Light next morning, he went a

om. 'My fortune is made.' So Dr Tom remained in Sydney, found

s fortunes, or what remained of

out at the same time as himself. He had never liked that mate, he was a bad lot, and

ly hand had helped him to Swamp Creek and a monotonous existence, and yet it was an existence he

and had even on one occasion to borrow money from J

aid Dr Tom to Jim Dennis, 'I mean to

hat or you'll never be paid. They woul

in, and Dr Tom had very litt

medicines, he commen

e exertion might have made a name for themselves, he had be

art of cultivating laziness, and

, and happy in a thousand fancies

ld tell them a yarn suitable to th

darted in and out of his dwe

est again,' he would say on looking at the havoc they had made, a

ennis, to try and save life or relieve suffering, the best part of the man in him c

, with no coat or waistcoat on,

om,' said the consta

itting down making up a few prescriptions

threads unrave

ngles, but they are not of much accoun

n. 'Jim Dennis is mighty proud of the

mind telling you, if it hadn't been for Sal's care he might have gone

w's father the credit

ess me, what a heathenish

onvert 'em

a few pulpit thumpers and

lton's gang. I hear there

tim this time?

Den

him!' said Dr Tom, bringing his fist down with su

s it a

taken Seahorse from Dalton's men

,' said the doctor. 'We must see him through this

know,' answered Doonan. 'It

said Dr Tom. 'The gang is a regular pes

k sometimes, I think?' q

even amongst such a crowd, but I have told Abe Dalton

pluck,' said Constab

in a gesture of dis

. One of the ruffians came in here to-day to ask me. I gave him a bit of my mind, you may bet. I'll go, and if I see Abe Dalton,

matters worse for

ek, and such men are terribly afraid of diseases and fevers. If an epidemic broke out at the Creek it would not be an unmitigated evil, but I

d he was almost sorry he had mentioned Jim Dennis in connectio

you to-morrow,

at Barker's Creek is like a red rag to a bul