Chapter 1: Section 2: Page 17: Line 113-115 (218-220)

 "Say, it's cubebs. Medicinal use only. No tobacco allowed on board, as you might recall from your Chums of Chance Membership Oath."

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"cubebs"
These are the type of cigarettes young people will begin to smoke if you purchase a pool table for your small town. I suppose Darby smokes cubeb cigarettes because they're not allowed tobacco and we all know the loopholes for smoking things with medicinal qualities! Although I can't seem to find any evidence that cubeb has any kind of narcotic effect on the user other than Edgar Rice Burroughs claiming that Tarzan would never have been written if he hadn't smoked so many cubeb cigarettes. And I guess the fact that cubeb cigarettes are a part of the trouble that starts with "T" which rhymes with "P" and that stands for pool.

"Chums of Chance Membership Oath"
I hope we get to hear this oath at some point and I hope it's a parody of Green Lantern's oath.

In Brightest day! In Darkest night!
No evil shall escape my sight!
If I may and if I might!
Have my wish: Green Lantern's light!

That's the real oath (or close enough without looking it up! So what if I forgot a line or two?!). Here's the Chums' parody oath:

Against the Day! It's always night!
Thelonius Monk was totally right!
Up in the air, we shine our light!
Like a city on a hill for the world or something.
I don't know. We're just kids! Anyway, don't smoke on the ship.

I imagine the "No Smoking!" rule is enforced due to the hydrogen-generating machine. But then it doesn't make sense that cubeb cigarettes can be smoked just because they're medicinal. I bet Lindsay hasn't authorized this rebellious loophole at all!

Chapter 1: Section 2: Page 17: Line 112 (217)

 "My Great-Aunt Petunia!" exclaimed Chick, "what is that smell?"

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I'm a little bit disgusted with the pairing of "My Great-Aunt Petunia" and "What is that smell?" Anyway, I don't know if Chick actually has a Great-Aunt Petunia or if that was some kind of cool exclamation all the kids were using back in 1893.

The smell is Darby's cigarette, indicating it is not the standard tobacco (which was previously suggested in the prior sentence. Sometimes a writer likes to build up the clues so readers can think they're smart when they guess what's about to happen. In this case, Darby and Chick are about to get fuckin' ripped).

Chapter 1: Section 2: Page 17: Line 110-111 (215-216)

 "Sounds more like it was all that Chinese foofooraw you mentioned," said Darby, "nothing you caused. Here, do you smoke these?" lighting up a species of cigarette and offering one to Chick.

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"Dude, your dad sucks. Take a hit of this."

"Chinese foofooraw"
A brouhaha or a commotion, in this case a Chinese one. Because Chick's dad was trying to sell Mississippi to a mysterious Chinese consortium out of Tijuana, Mexico. Does Chick have his own book series except maybe based on Trixie Belden books? Chick Counterfly and the Mexican Chinese Real Estate Mystery.

"a species of cigarette"
Well, it ain't tobacco! "Ain't" is preferred to "isn't" in drug discourse.

Chapter 1: Section 2: Page 17: Line 107-109 (212-214)

 "Well, but it seemed like Pop was starting to slow down some. Wondered if it was me somehow. You know, the extra trouble or something."

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And now we get to the part where Chick blames himself. If I could give Chick some advice, I'd point out that a father who truly loved you would sacrifice himself for you, not the other way around.

Although maybe my advice on how to deal with a father who abandoned you isn't the best advice to take being that I'm the guy who, during Field of Dreams when the father stepped out of the corn to play catch with Costner, screamed, "Fuck that guy!"

Chapter 1: Section 2: Page 17: Line 106 (211)

 "Good exercise, I bet."

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This is Darby's awkward response to Chick unloading his father issues onto him around the watch-fire. Does he mean running from the judges was good exercise? Or does he mean Chick reciting the proofs of his father's love a good exercise to strengthen Chick's belief?

Chapter 1: Section 2: Page 17: Line 98-105 (203-210)

 After a moment, "Thing is, I believe he would have hung on. If he could have. We were partners, see? Always had something going. Some swell little moneymaker. Not always to the sheriff's liking, but enough to keep beans in the pot. Didn't mind all the midnight relocations, but those small-town courtrooms, I never could get used to them. Judge'd take one look at us, up went that hammer, whiz! we were usually out the door and on the main road before it came back down again."

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The use of all these short sentences said quickly without giving Darby a chance to interject suggests a kid trying to convince himself of some lie he's concocted in his mind. It's the catechism of the abandoned child. "Would Pop have hung on? Yes, if he could have. What were we, Pop and I? Partners. What did we have going? Swell little moneymakers. Who was our enemy? The sheriff and the small town judges. Did we stay fed? Yes, with beans. Who loved me? Pop."

Chapter 1: Section 2: Page 17: Line 97 (202)

 Chick gazed dolefully into the fire.

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"dolefully"
This means to express sorrow or to act mournfully. That means Chick is being vulnerable in the presence of another boy, something the reader might not have expected from his previous uncivil outbursts. Or maybe it's exactly what the reader expected since bullies are usually bullies for emotional reasons they don't want to examine too closely! Of course Chick is hurting from his father's abandonment; why else would he pick on Miles Blundell so harshly?! I've seen my share of CBS Afternoon Specials. I know what's up!

Chapter 1: Section 2: Page 17: Line 95-96 (200-201)

 "I guess that must be awful tough for you, Chick. I don't think I even remember mine."

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I suppose Darby has vague early memories of some blob shaped thing floating at the edge of his vision as his mother hugged him and that's why he's unsure if he remembers his dad or not. It could have been his dad. Or it could have been a curtain blowing at the window. But at least Darby misses his dad as much as he misses that curtain. The best part about having your dad leave before you can make memories is you wind up never knowing a difference.

Although this makes me wonder: what happened to their mothers? And how did Darby wind up aboard Inconvenience?

Those questions only matter if Darby and Chick aren't the ghosts of dead kids. If they're actually dead kids recruited by the fallen angel Randolph St. Cosmo, just forget the questions. Their mothers are probably crying their eyes out somewhere about their poor dead babies.