"Just so," said the doctor. The doctor, as henceforward we shall call him, appeared willing to converse: "Captain, have you an English sextant?"
"No."
"Without an English sextant you cannot take an altitude at all."
"The Basques," replied the captain, "took altitudes before there were any English."
"Be careful you are not taken aback."
"I keep her away when necessary."
"Have you tried how many knots she is running?"
"Yes."
"When?"
"Just now."
"How?"
"By the log."
"Did you take the trouble to look at the triangle?"
"Yes."
"Did the sand run through the glass in exactly thirty seconds?"
"Yes."
"Are you sure that the sand has not worn the hole between the globes?"
"Yes."
"Have you proved the sand-glass by the oscillations of a bullet?"
"Suspended by a rope-yarn drawn out from the top of a coil of soaked hemp? Undoubtedly."
"Have you waxed the yarn lest it should stretch?"
"Yes."
"Have you tested the log?"
"I tested the sand-glass by the bullet, and checked the log by a round shot."
"Of what size was the shot?"
"One foot in diameter."
