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So the Doctor asked him. And the boy showed them a gold ring which he wore on a piece of string around his neck because it was too big for his finger. He said his uncle gave it to him when they saw the pirates coming.

Jip smelt the ring and said,

"That's no good. Ask him if he has anything else that belonged to his uncle."

Then the boy took from his pocket a great, big red handkerchief and said, "This was my uncle's too."

As soon as the boy pulled it out, Jip shouted,

"Snuff, by Jingo!-Black Rappee snuff. Don't you smell it? His uncle took snuff- Ask him, Doctor."

The Doctor questioned the boy again; and he said, "Yes. My uncle took a lot of snuff."

"Fine!" said Jip. "The man's as good as found. 'Twill be as easy as stealing milk from a kitten. Tell the boy I'll find his uncle for him in less than a week. Let us go upstairs and see which way the wind is blowing."

"But it is dark now," said the Doctor. "You can't find him in the dark!"

"I don't need any light to look for a man who smells of Black Rappee snuff," said Jip as he climbed the stairs. "If the man had a hard smell, like string, now-or hot water, it would be different. But snuff!-Tut, tut!"

"Does hot water have a smell?" asked the Doctor.

"Certainly it has," said Jip.

"Hot water smells quite different from cold water.

It is warm water-or ice-that has the really difficult smell.

Why, I once followed a man for ten miles on a dark night by the smell of the hot water he had used to shave with-for the poor fellow had no soap.

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Now then, let us see which way the wind is blowing.

Wind is very important in long-distance smelling.

It mustn't be too fierce a wind-and of course it must blow the right way.

A nice, steady, damp breeze is the best of all.

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