Posted by Adam Quinan on November 03, 2009 at 15:56:47 user Adam.
In Reply to: Re: literary allusions posted by Peter Ceresole on November 03, 2009 at 13:13:23:
As I acted in HMS Pinafore when I was at school, I am sure that it isn't from that "infernal nonsense", there isn't a ship's surgeon or doctor in the production.
I do wonder whether it was a book, play or pantomime or something that Ransome had seen and recalled but is too obscure to be scanned in yet by the all mighty Google Books.