noon
I have settled that matter , I hope , to your satisfaction , Mr Spry , '' observed the captain , with a freezing manner , which somewhat damped the dignity of the lieutenant . Up the rigging went the three midshipmen , each of them obtaining possession of a handful of biscuit and a piece of beef to stay their hunger , as they had a prospect of losing their dinners unless the captain relented sooner than could be expected . There they all sat on their lofty perches , occasionally making telegraphic signals to each other , and not particularly unhappy with their punishment . The captain and gun-room officers were taking their for noon quarter-deck walk , and nearly everybody on board was on deck , when a loud chattering was heard , and who should be seen mounting the mizen rigging but Quirk , still habited in his red coat , with his hat fixed firmly on his head , intent , most clearly , on mischief . No sooner did he get alongside Adair , than , pulling out his handkerchief , he flourished it vehemently in his face ; and then , as if satisfied with the performance of his lesson , he slid down the mizen topmast stay , and in an instant after was up again close to Jack , before whom he performed the same ceremony . Paddy and Jack almost fell from their perches with laughter , especially when Quirk sprang forward along another stay , and paid a similar visit to Murray . Everybody on deck was looking on , and all abaft were amused , with the exception of Lieutenant Spry , who was in a towering rage , vowing that he would demand a court-martial , and get the midshipmen , or the monkey , or himself -- nobody knew exactly which -- dismissed the ship .