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Now, as he looked around the still sea, the white or yellow sails

of the fishing fleet showed on all sides in a vast circle. Not

five miles away was the Rosan, and to the southward of her the

Herring Bone with mean old Jed Martin aboard. Bijonah Tanner had

tried his best to shake Martin, but the hard-fisted old skipper,

knowing and recognizing Tanner's "nose" for fish, had clung like

a leech and profited by the other's sagacity.

Nor was this all the Grande Mignon fleet.

There were Gloucestermen among it, the champion fishers of the

world, who spent their spare time in drifting past the English

boats and hurling salty wit--at which pastime they often came off

second best.