I've had my eye on the midshipmen.

I've never trusted them.

They're a hard lot; but if the rest of the ship is with me, I'll deal with them promptly.

They're not clever or bold enough to do their job skilfully.

They've got some old hands down there--hammock-men, old stagers of the sea that act as servants to them.
What line do they take ?" Michael laughed softly.
"What I know I've got from two of them, and it is this--the young gentlemen'll try to get control of the ship." The cynicism deepened in Dyck's face.
"Get control of the ship, eh?
Well, it'll be a new situation on a king's ship if midshipmen succeed where the rest dare not try.