Beck has done in conducting the expedition even since Hannibal and I have been on board. The ship is in frightful condition, all the lines are practically rotten (seven of them have given away since I have been on board), she has to be pumped every twenty minutes at sea, and every five minutes in a rough sea, he cannot make up his mind half a second about anything, the ship is a continual mad house nobody ever having the slightest idea what is gonna happen, or where we are going next, the captain is never allowed to decide anything, and yesterday he told Beck that in the condition she was in she would be condemned by the port authorities at any place there was an inspector, and would never be allowed to leave the port. The thing that I personally find to be the most objectionable is the presence of Mrs. Beck on board the ship. Beck treats her as one would treat a leper, fails to introduce her when he goes ashore,(as, indeed, he fails to fulfill the common decencies and civ- ilities with the few people we meet, always attended at second thought by Dr. Drowne), throws food around the table at her, and has so generally conducted himself to- ward her that the atmosphere is highly indelicate at all times. Still worse, it is so apparent that anybody can see it and it is one of the things that has contributed to build up the rotten reputation that the boat has in the Solomons at the present time. I assure you it takes a lot out of a person to write a letter like this. I hate this sort of thing and would much rather let things go on the way they