Episode 5 - The fountain of youth.

"Captain!  Captain, come here, quick.  Taste this!"

"HhhhMmmm!  I see what you mean.  That's the best water I've ever tasted.  What a beautiful pool!  Tell the men not to bathe in this pool but to use the waterfall and pool over there.  In the meantime, get George over here to analyze it.  I want to know what's in it.  Tastes kinda' sweet."

"Yes, Sir."

At dinner that night the men were in good spirits.  Having been ashore now for a full day and having recovered their land legs, they were ready to do some hearty partying.  But instead, the captain laid before them, pitchers of water.  "Water!" grumbled the men, We want rum!"  For some reason yet unknown, this seemed to startle the captain.  "There will be plenty, but first, I want you to taste this."  The men all sampled and to a man, they said how good it was. 

From there on, they drank the water from the good-tasting pool and bathed in the other pool with the waterfall - except for the captain - he chose to bathe in the good-tasting pool. 

A few days later, the captain began to notice that he was getting stiff and sore in the mornings.  His hair had suddenly turned grey and he wasn't able to tolerate the barbeque anymore.  But at the same time, his lieutenents were still coming in fresh and chipper - er every day!  The captain was confounded. 

It didn't take long for him to go downhill in a hurry, and he called for George, the chemist and asked, "Well George?  Did we find it?  Did we find the fountain of youth?"  And George said, "Yes, Sir.  But it seems not to be the one we expected."  The captain looked puzzled, "What do you mean?"  "Well, Sir, it seems that the fountain of youth is the other pool the men have been batheing in and ..."  "Yes?  Continue."  "Well, Sir.  You know how nature has to balance itself out."  "Go on."  "Well, Sir, it seems that the water *you've* been batheing in is the  ...  the fountain of geriatrics!"