'A Madcap Cruise' is an adventure novel written by Oric Bates. The story begins by introducing us to two young men, Jerrold Taberman and John Castleport, who are standing on a jetty in East Penobscot Bay in the early twilight of May. They are both in their early twenties and that is all they share in common, for everything else about them is as different as it could be. Taberman is short, thickset, and has fair hair, while Castleport is tall and dark with a striking face and keen brown eyes.