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 http://www.archive.org/details/kingsownpirate001marr 
 
THE NOVELS 
 
 OF 
 
 CAPTAIN MARRYAT 
 
 EDITED BY 
 
 R. BRIMLEY JOHNSON 
 
This Edition of Captain Marry af s No'velSj 
 
 made exclust<vely for members of the 
 
 NEW YORK TACHT CLUB 
 
 is strictly limited to one hundred copies. 
 
 '-€:^^u^^€>.*^L-ri^a, 
 
 Copy No. / 5 
 PRINTED FOR 
 H, A. VAN LIEJV, Esq. 
 
 A&- 
 
NEW YORK YACHT CLUB EDITION 
 
 AND 
 
 THE PIRATE 
 
 BY 
 CAPTAIN MARRYAT 
 
 VOLUME I 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 CROSCUP AND COMPANY 
 
 MDCCCXCVI 
 
 PK 
 
 THE KING'S OWN >' ( 
 
o-^^/ 
 
 ^m^^^ 
 ^<}^ 
 
C ontents 
 
 
 Volume I 
 
 
 
 THE KING'S OWN 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Chapter i . . . . . .1 
 
 Chapter ii 
 
 
 
 8 
 
 Chapter hi 
 
 
 
 16 
 
 Chapter iv 
 
 
 
 23 
 
 Chapter v 
 
 
 
 29 
 
 Chapter vi 
 
 
 
 35 
 
 Chapter vii 
 
 
 
 . 38 
 
 Chapter viii 
 
 
 
 . 46 
 
 Chapter ix 
 
 
 
 . 56 
 
 Chapter x 
 
 
 
 . 64 
 
 Chapter xi 
 
 
 
 71 
 
 Chapter xii 
 
 
 
 . 76 
 
 Chapter xiii 
 
 
 
 83 
 
 Chapter xiv . 
 
 
 
 92 
 
 Chapter xv 
 
 
 
 . 103 
 
 Chapter xvi 
 
 
 
 III 
 
 Chapter xvii . 
 
 
 
 119 
 
 Chapter xviii . 
 
 
 
 . 124 
 
 Chapter xix 
 
 
 
 ' 131 
 
VI 
 
 Contents 
 
 Chapter xx « • 
 
 
 
 141 
 
 Chapter xxi e 
 
 
 149 
 
 Chapter xxii . . » . . 
 
 
 155 
 
 Chapter xxiii . » « . 
 
 
 
 163 
 
 Chapter xxiv . 
 
 
 
 . 170 
 
 Chapter xxv . 
 
 
 
 . 178 
 
 Chapter xxvi . 
 
 
 
 . 184 
 
 Chapter xxvii . . . < 
 
 
 
 . 194 
 
 Chapter xxviii . 
 
 
 
 200 
 
 Chapter xxix . 
 
 
 
 . 204 
 
 Chapter xxx . 
 
 
 
 209 
 
 Chapter xxxi . 
 
 
 
 . 215 
 
 Chapter xxxii . 
 
 
 
 . 223 
 
 Chapter xxxiii . 
 
 
 
 ' 234 
 
 Chapter xxxiv . 
 
 
 
 . 242 
 
 Chapter xxxv . 
 
 
 
 252 
 
 Chapter xxxvi . 
 
 
 
 . 259 
 
 Chapter xxxvu • • 
 
 
 
 . 266 
 
 Chapter xxxvin , ^ 
 
 
 
 . 274 
 
 Chapter xxxix 
 
 
 
 . 281 
 
 Chapter xl 
 
 
 
 . 287 
 
List of Etchings 
 
 Volume I 
 THE KING'S OWN 
 
 A BROAD-HEADED ARROW, OR THE KiNG's MARK, WAS . = » 
 INDELIBLY ENGRAVED UPON THE LEFT SHOULDER OF 
 
 LITTLE Willy .... Frontispiece 
 
 PAGE 
 
 '* Here he is, captain, all a'tantOy but not very neat " 59 
 
 "Monsieur Moustache," said M*Elvina . . » "7V vous 
 
 demande mille excuses " . . . .80 
 
 His pistol went off without taking effect . » 117 
 
 He crept in softly behind her chair . . =165 
 
 Jerry levelled his musket . « ^ * 239 
 
 Draivn by D. Downing. 
 Etched by W. Wright-NooTH. 
 
Prefatory Note 
 
 The hero of this novel is partially drawn from Marryat's 
 second and favourite son, William, who died at the age 
 of seven. The description of his appearance in Chapter ii» 
 is said to be very exact. Marryat studied his little 
 son's character and manners during a homeward voyage 
 in the Tess, 1 82 5, of which he related the following 
 anecdote : — 
 
 " I had on board ship a very large Cape baboon, who was a pet of mine, 
 and also a little boy, who was a son of mine. When the baboon sat down 
 on his hams, he was about as tall as the boy when he walked. The boy 
 having a tolerable appetite, received about noon a considerable slice of 
 bread-and-butter, to keep him quiet till dinner-time. I was on one of the 
 carronades, busy with the sun's lower limb, bringing it in contact with the 
 horizon, when the boy's lower limbs brought him in contact with the 
 baboon, who having, as well as the boy, a strong predilection for bread- 
 and-butter, and a stronger arm to take it withal, thought proper to help 
 himself to that to which the boy had already been helped. In short, he 
 snatched the bread-and-butter, and made short work of it, for it was in his 
 pouch in a moment. Upon which the boy set up a yell, which attracted 
 my notice to this violation of the articles of war, to which the baboon was 
 equally amenable as any other person in the ship, for it is expressly stated 
 in the preamble, ' all who are in, or belonging to.' Whereupon I jumped off 
 the carronade, and by way of assisting his digestion, I served out to the 
 baboon monkey's allowance, which is more kicks than half-pence. The 
 master reported that the heavens intimated that it was twelve o'clock, and 
 with all the humility of a captain of a man-of-war, I ordered him to 
 ' make it so ; ' whereupon it was made, and so passed that day. I do not 
 remember how many days it was afterwards that I was on the carronade as 
 usual, about the same time, and all parties were precisely in the same 
 situations — the master by my side, the baboon under the booms, and the 
 boy walking out of the cabin with his bread-and-butter. As before, he 
 again passed the baboon, who again snatched the bread-and-butter from the 
 boy, who again set up a squall, which again attracted my attention. I 
 looked round, and the baboon caught my eye, which told him plainly that 
 he'd soon catch what was not ' at all my eye ; ' and he proved that he thought 
 so, for he actually put the bread-and-butter back into the boy's hands. It 
 was the only instance of which I ever knew or heard of a monkey being 
 K. I. ix 
 
X Prefatory Note 
 
 capable of self-denial when his stomach was concerned, and I record it 
 accordingly. (Par farenthese) it is well known that monkeys will take 
 the smallpox, measles, and (I believe) the scarlet fever ; but this poor 
 fellow, when the ship's company were dying of cholera, took that disease, 
 went through all its gradations, and died apparently in great agony." 
 
 It seems probable that The King^s Own, though not 
 actually published till a year after The Naval Officer, was 
 Marryat's earliest work of fiction ; and we are told that it 
 was written in nine months. Further details concerning the 
 manner of its composition are at hand. In Chapter xxii. 
 the author delays the narrative by a graphic description of 
 his own circumstances : — " I am seated in the after-cabin 
 of a vessel endowed with as liberal a share of motion as 
 any in his Majesty's service : whilst I write I am holding 
 on by the table, my legs entwined in the lashings under- 
 neath, and I can barely manage to keep my position before 
 my manuscript. The sea is high, the gale fresh, the sky 
 dirty, and threatening a continuance of what our trans- 
 atlantic descendants would term a pretty-considerable- 
 tarnation-strong blast of wind. . . . The main-deck is 
 afloat : and, from the careless fitting of the half-ports at 
 the dock-yard, and neglect of caulking in the cants, my 
 fore-cabin is in the same predicament. ... I have just 
 been summoned from my task, in consequence of one of 
 the battens which secured my little library having given 
 way to the immoderate weight of learning that pressed upon 
 It : and as my books have been washed to and fro, I have 
 
 snatched them from their first attempts at natation 
 
 My bones are sore with rocking. Horace says, that he 
 had a soul of brass who first ventured to sea ; I think a 
 body of iron very necessary to the outfit. My cot is 
 swinging and jerking up to the beams, as if the lively 
 scoundrel was some metamorphosed imp mocking at me." 
 He touches, in more serious mood, on the same subject, at 
 the close of Chapter xxix. " Reader, let us look at home. 
 Shall I, now thoughtlessly riding upon the agitated billow, 
 with but one thin plank between me and death, and yet so 
 busy with this futile work, be permitted to bring it to a 
 
Prefatory Note xi 
 
 close ? The hand which guides the flowing pen may 
 to-morrow be stiff, the head now teeming with its subject 
 may be past all thought ere to-morrow's sun is set — ay 
 sooner ! and you, reader, who so far have had the courage 
 to proceed in the volumes without throwing them away, 
 shall you be permitted to finish your more trifling task ? — 
 or, before its close, be hurried from this transitory scene, 
 where fiction ends, and the spirit, re-endowed, will be 
 enabled to raise its eyes upon the lightning beam of 
 unveiled truth." In Chapter xxxvii. he declares that he 
 has quite ** sprained his imagination — for you must know 
 that this is ?i\\fictiony every word of it," and he proceeds 
 to indite an entirely irrelevant chapter about the ants in 
 his cabin, his grandmother, and a ** wether sheep " who 
 learnt to " chew tobacco and drink grog " ; all of which 
 has " nothing to do with the novel," but ** a great deal to 
 do with making a hook — for I have completed a whole 
 chapter out of nothing." 
 
 In the first chapter of Newton Forster it is written : — 
 
 "I remember when the 'King's Own' was finished, I was as happy as 
 a pedestrian who had accomplished his thousand miles in a thousand hours. 
 My voluntary slavery was over, and I was emancipated. Where was I then ? 
 I recollect ; within two days' sail of the Lizard, returning home, after a six 
 weeks' cruise to discover a rock in the Atlantic, which never existed except 
 in the terrified or intoxicated noddle of some master of a merchant vessel. 
 It was about half-past five in the evening, and I was alone in my after-cabin, 
 quite alone, as the captain of a man-of-war must be, even when in presence 
 of his ship's company. . . . 
 
 " I could not send for any one to whom I could impart the intelligence — 
 there was no one whom I could expect to sympathise with me, or to whom 
 I could pour out the abundance of my joy ; for that the service prohibited. 
 What could I do ? Why, I could dance ; so I sprang from my chair, and 
 singing the tune, commenced a quadrille movement, — Tal de rai la, tal de 
 ral la, lity, lity, lity, liddle-um, tal de ral la, tal 
 
 " « Three bells, sir,' cried the first lieutenant, who had opened my door 
 unperceived by me, and showed evident surprise at my motions ; ' shall we 
 beat to quarters ? ' 
 
 " « Certainly, Mr B ,' replied I, and he disappeared. But this in- 
 terruption only produced a temporary cessation: I was in the height of 
 « Cavalier seul,' when his head popped into the cabin — 
 
 " 'All present, and sober, sir,' reported he, with a demure smile. 
 
 " ' Except the captain, I presume you are thinking.' replied I. 
 
 ^' 'Oh 1 no, indeed, sir ; I observed you were very merry.' 
 
xii Prefatory Note 
 
 " * I am, Mr B , but not with wine ; mine is a sort of intellectual 
 
 intoxication not provided for in the Articles of War.' 
 
 « ' A what I sir ? ' 
 
 ««'OhI something that you'll never get drunk upon, as you never look 
 into a book — beat a retreat.' 
 
 " « Ay, ay, sir,' replied the first lieutenant ; and he disappeared. 
 
 " And I also beat a retreat to my sofa ; and as I threw myself upon it, 
 mentally vowed that, for a month at least, I never would take up my pen."* 
 
 The book is full of digressions ; on the profession of 
 authorship and the conduct of reviews — chap, xxviii., on 
 courage, on Sunday at sea, on smuggling, on theology 
 and natural history. There is also an interesting auto- 
 biographical note, which may perhaps be partially credited, 
 concerning Marry at's reasons for going to sea. " It was 
 not," he declares, " to escape the drudgery and confine- 
 ment of a school, or the admonitions received at home." 
 But, after the battle of Trafalgar, "when I returned home, 
 I witnessed the funeral profession of Lord Nelson; and, 
 as the triumphal car, upon which his earthly remains were 
 borne, disappeared from my aching eye, I felt that death 
 could have no terrors if followed by such a funeral ; and 
 I determined that I would be buried in the same manner." 
 
 Yet the Kin^s Own has a more consecutive plot than 
 most of Marryat's novels, and moves with a fair degree of 
 precision along its appointed lines. Its main interest, 
 however, centres around its vivid pictures of sea life, and 
 no one can resist justifying the author's prophecy by 
 " finding out who the characters are meant for, notwith- 
 standing his assertion" that they are purely fictitious- 
 Captain M., like Captain Savage in Peter Simple , is certainly 
 drawn from Cochrane, and the most famous passage in 
 the book, the fight and shipwreck described in chapters 
 li.-liv., is worked up from historical material, viz. : — the 
 furious combat during a heavy gale between The Inde- 
 fatigable, under Edward Pellew, Viscount Exmouth, The 
 Amazon, and a French 74-gun ship Droits de PHomme, 
 which took place the 13 th of January 1797. The Amazon 
 and her French opponent both struck on the rocks on the 
 morning of the 14th. Captain Capperbar was probably. 
 
Prefatory Note xiii 
 
 as Mr Hannay suggests, a reminiscence of an ofEcer who 
 roused the wrath of Cochrane in Corfu, by granting passes 
 to neutral and hostile vessels for trading with the island. 
 
 The novel stands among Marryat's greatest perform- 
 ances, though it will never be so popular as Peter Simple 
 or Midshipman Easy, and does not quite deserve the honour. 
 It has none of the disagreeable characteristics of Frank 
 Mildmay, and is on the whole superior to that work, 
 whether or no it was written before it. One is not 
 surprised to find that its surpassing freshness and vigour 
 were at once recognised by the reviews. 
 
 The King^s Own is here reprinted from the first edition 
 in 3 volumes, Henry Colburn and Richard Bentley, 1830; 
 several mistakes about names and other details being 
 corrected. 
 
 The Pirate is reprinted from the sumptuous first edition, 
 A. Fullarton and Co., mdcccxIv., with illustrations by 
 Clarkson Stanfield, Esq., R.A. ; when it was bound in 
 one volume with The Three Cutters, 
 
 R. B. J. 
 
The King's Own 
 
 Chapter I 
 
 However boldly their warm blood was spilt, 
 Their life was shame, their epitaph was guilt ; 
 And this they knew and felt, at least the one, 
 The leader of the band he had undone, — 
 Who, born for better things, had madly set 
 His life upon a cast, which lingered yet. 
 
 Byron. 
 
 There is perhaps no event in the annals of our history 
 which excited more alarm at the time of its occurrence, or 
 has since been the subject of more general interest, than 
 the Mutiny at the Nore, in the year 1797. Forty thousand 
 men, to whom the nation looked for defence from its sur- 
 rounding enemies, and in stedfast reliance upon whose 
 bravery it lay down every night in tranquillity, — men who 
 had dared everything for their king and country, and in 
 whose breasts patriotism, although suppressed for the 
 time, could never be extinguished, — irritated by ungrate- 
 ful neglect on the one hand, and by seditious advisers on 
 the other, turned the guns which they had so often manned 
 in defence of the English flag against their own country- 
 men and their own home, and, with all the acrimony of 
 feeling ever attending family quarrels, seemed determined 
 to sacrifice the nation and themselves, rather than listen to 
 the dictates of reason and of conscience. 
 
 Doubtless there is a point at which endurance of 
 oppression ceases to be a virtue, and rebellion can no 
 longer be considered as a crime : but it is a dangerous 
 and intricate problem, the solution of which had better not 
 
 K. I. A 
 
2 The King's Own 
 
 be attempted. It must, however, be acknowledged, that 
 the seamen, on the occasion of the first mutiny, had just 
 grounds of complaint, and that they did not proceed to 
 acts of violence until repeated and humble remonstrance 
 had been made in vain. 
 
 Whether we act in a body or individually, such is the 
 infirmity and selfishness of human nature, that we often 
 surrender to importunity that which we refuse to the 
 dictates of gratitude, — yielding, for our own comfort, to 
 the demands of turbulence, while quiet, unpretending 
 merit is overlooked and oppressed, until, roused by 
 neglect, it demands, as a right, what policy alone should 
 have granted as a favour. 
 
 Such was the behaviour, on the part of governmeilt, 
 which produced the mutiny at the Nore. 
 
 What mechanism is more complex than the mind of 
 man ? And as, in all machinery, there are wheels and 
 springs of action not apparent without close examination of 
 the interior, so pride, ambition, avarice, love, play alter- 
 nately or conjointly upon the human mind, which, under 
 their influences, is whirled round like the weathercock in 
 the hurricane, only pointing for a short time in one direc- 
 tion, but for that time stedfastly. How difficult, then, to 
 analyse the motives and inducements which actuated the 
 several ringleaders in this dreadful crisis ! 
 
 Let us, therefore, confine ourselves to what we do really 
 know to have been the origin of discontent in one of these 
 men, whose unfortunate career is intimately connected 
 with this history. 
 
 Edward Peters v/as a man of talent and education. He 
 
 had entered on board the in a fit of desperation, to 
 
 obtain the bounty for a present support, and his pay as a 
 future provision, for his wife, and an only child, the fruit 
 of a hasty and unfortunate marriage. He was soon distin- 
 guished as a person of superior attainments ; and instead 
 of being employed, as a landsman usually is, in the after- 
 guard, or waist, of the ship, he was placed under the 
 orders of the purser and captain's clerk as an amanuensis. 
 
The King's Own 3 
 
 In this capacity he remained two or three years, approved 
 of and treated with unusual respect by the officers, for his 
 gentlemanhke appearance and behaviour : but unfortunately 
 a theft had been committed, — a watch, of trifling value, 
 had been purloined from the purser's cabin ; and, as he 
 was the only person, with the exception of the servant, 
 who had free ingress and egress, suspicion fell upon him — 
 the more so as, after every search that could be made had 
 proved ineffectual, it was supposed that the purloined 
 property had been sent on shore to be disposed of by his 
 wife, who, with his child, had frequently been permitted 
 to visit him on board. 
 
 Summoned on the quarter-deck — cross-examined, and 
 harshly interrogated — called a scoundrel by the captain 
 before conviction — the proud blood mantled in the cheeks 
 of one who, at that period, was incapable of crime. The 
 blush of virtuous indignation was construed into presump- 
 tive evidence of guilt. The captain — a superficial, pre- 
 suming, pompous, yet cowardly creature, whose conduct 
 assisted in no small degree to excite the mutiny on board 
 of his own ship — declared himself quite convinced of 
 Peters' guilt, because he blushed at the bare idea of being 
 suspected ; and punishment ensued, with all the degrada- 
 tion allotted to an offence which is never forgiven on board 
 of a man-of-war. 
 
 There is, perhaps, no crime that is attended with such 
 serious consequences on board a ship as theft. A succes- 
 sion of thefts undiscovered will disintegrate a ship's 
 company, break up the messes, destroy all confidence 
 and harmony, and occasion those who have been the 
 dearest friends to become the greatest enemies : for whom 
 can a person suspect, when he has lost his property, in 
 so confined a space, but those who were acquainted with 
 its being in his possession, and with the place in which 
 it was deposited ? — and who are these but his own mess- 
 mates, or those in whom he most confided ? After positive 
 conviction, no punishment can be too severe for a crime 
 that produces such mischief; but to degrade a man by 
 
4 The King's Own 
 
 corporal punishment, to ruin his character, and render him 
 an object of abhorrence and contempt in the absence of 
 even bare presumptive evidence, was an act of cruelty 
 and injustice, which could excite but one feeling ; and, 
 from that day, the man who would have gloried in dying 
 for his country, became a discontented, gloomy, and 
 dangerous subject. 
 
 The above effect would have been produced in any 
 man ; but to Peters, whose previous history we have yet 
 to narrate, death itself would have been preferable. His 
 heart did not break, but it swelled with contending 
 passions, till it was burst and riven with wounds never 
 to be cicatrised. Suffering under the most painful burthen 
 that can oppress a man who values reputation, writhing 
 with the injustice of accusation when innocent, of con- 
 viction without proof, and of punishment unmerited, it 
 is not to be wondered at that Peters took the earliest 
 opportunity of deserting from the ship. 
 
 There is a particular feeling pervading animal nature, 
 from which man himself is not exempt. Indeed, with 
 all his boasted reason, man still inherits too many of the 
 propensities of the brute creation. I refer to that dis- 
 position which not only inclines us to feel satisfaction at 
 finding we have companions in misfortune, but too often 
 stimulates us to increase the number by our own exertions. 
 From the stupendous elephant, down to the smallest of 
 the feathered tribe, all will act as a decoy to their own 
 species, when in captivity themselves ; and, in all com- 
 pulsory service, which may be considered a species of 
 captivity, man proves that he is embued with the same 
 propensity. Seamen that have been pressed themselves 
 into the navy, are invariably the most active in pressing 
 others ; and both soldiers and saiJors have a secret pleasure 
 in recapturing a deserter, even at the very time when 
 they are watching an opportunity to desert themselves. 
 
 The bonds of friendship seem destroyed when this 
 powerful and brutal feeling is called into action ; and, as 
 has frequently occurred in the service, before and since. 
 
The King's Own 5 
 
 the man who was selected by Peters as his most intimate 
 friend, the man with whom he had consulted, and to 
 whom he had confided his plans for desertion, gave 
 information of the retreat of his wife and child, from 
 which place Peters was not likely to be very distant j and 
 thus, with the assistance of this, his dearest friend, the 
 master-at-arms and party in quest of him succeeded in 
 his capture. 
 
 It so happened, that on the very day on which Peters 
 was brought on board and put into irons, the purser's 
 servant was discovered to have in his possession the watch 
 that had been lost. Thus far the character of Peters was 
 reinstated ; and as he had declared at the time of his 
 capture, that the unjust punishment which he had received 
 had been the motive of his disertion, the captain was 
 strongly urged by the officers to overlook an offence 
 which had everything to be offered in extenuation. But 
 
 Captain A was fond of courts-martial ; he imagined 
 
 that they added to his consequence, which certainly 
 required to be upheld by adventitious aid. Moreover, 
 the feeling, too often pervading little minds, that of a 
 dislike taken to a person because you have injured him, 
 and the preferring to accumulate injustice rather than to 
 acknowledge error, had more than due weight with this 
 weak man. A court-martial was held, and Peters was 
 sentenced to death ; but, in consideration of circumstances, 
 the sentence was mitigated to that of being " flogged 
 round the fleet." 
 
 Mitigated ! Strange vanity in men, that they should 
 imagine their own feelings to be more sensible and acute 
 than those of others : that they should consider that a 
 mitigation in favour of the prisoner, which, had they been 
 placed in his situation, they would have declared an ac- 
 cumulation of the punishment. Not a captain who sat upon 
 that court-martial but would have considered, as Peters did, 
 that death was by far the more lenient sentence of the 
 two. Yet they meant well — they felt kindly towards 
 him, and acknowledged his provocations j but they fell 
 
6 The King's Own 
 
 into the too common error of supposing that the finer 
 feelings, which induce a man to prefer death to dishonour, 
 are only to be recognised among the higher classes ; and 
 that, because circumstances may have placed a man before 
 the mast, he will undergo punishment, however severe, 
 however degrading, — in short, every " ill that flesh is 
 heir to," — in preference to death. 
 
 As the reader may not perhaps be acquainted with the 
 nature of the punishment to which Peters was sentenced, 
 and the ceremonies by which it is attended, I shall 
 enter into a short description of it. 
 
 A man sentenced to be flogged round the fleet receives 
 an equal part of the whole number of lashes awarded 
 alongside each ship composing that fleet. For instance if 
 sentenced to three hundred lashes, in a fleet composed 
 of ten sail, he will receive thirty alongside of each ship. 
 
 A launch is fitted up with a platform and shears. It is 
 occupied by the unfortunate individual, the provost- 
 marshal, the boatswain, and his mates, with their imple- 
 ments of office, and armed marines stationed at the bow 
 and stern. When the signal is made for punishment, all 
 the ships in the fleet send one or two boats each, with 
 crews cleanly dressed, the officers in full uniform, and 
 marines under arms. These boats collect at the side of 
 the ship where the launch is lying, the hands are turned 
 up, and the ship's company are ordered to mount the 
 rigging, to witness that portion of the whole punishment 
 which, after the sentence has been read, is inflicted upon 
 the prisoner. When he has received the allotted number 
 of lashes, he is, for the time, released, and permitted to 
 sit down, with a blanket over his shoulders, while the 
 boats, which attend the execution of the sentence, make 
 fast to the launch, and tow it to the next ship in the fleet, 
 where the same number of lashes are inflicted with 
 corresponding ceremonies ; — and thus he is towed from 
 one ship to the other until he has received the whole of 
 his punishment. 
 
 The severity of this punishment consists not only in 
 
The King's Own 7 
 
 the number of lashes, but in the peculiar manner in which 
 they are inflicted ; as, after the unfortunate wretch has 
 received the first part of his sentence alongside of one 
 ship, the blood is allowed to congeal, and the wounds 
 partially to close, during the interval which takes place 
 previously to his arrival alongside of the next, when the 
 cat again subjects him to renewed and increased torture. 
 During the latter part of the punishment, the suffering 
 is dreadful ; and a man who has undergone this sentence 
 is generally broken down in constitution, if not in spirits, 
 for the remainder of his life. 
 
 Such was the punishment inflicted upon the unfortunate 
 Peters ; and it would be difficult to decide, at the moment 
 when it was completed, and the blanket thrown over 
 his shoulders, whether the heart or the back of the 
 fainting man were the more lacerated of the two. 
 
 Time can heal the wounds of the body, over which it 
 holds its empire j but those of the soul, like the soul 
 itself, spurn his transitory sway. 
 
 Peters, from that moment, was a desperate man. A 
 short time after he had undergone his sentence, the news 
 of the mutiny at Spithead was communicated ; and the 
 vacillation and apprehensions of the Admiralty, and of 
 the nation at large, were not to be concealed. This 
 mutiny was apparently quelled by conciliation ; but con- 
 ciliation is but a half-measure, and ineffectual when offered 
 from superiors to inferiors. 
 
 In this world, I know not why, there seems to be but 
 one seal binding in all contracts of magnitude — and that 
 seal is blood. Without referring to the Jewish types, 
 proclaiming that " all things were purified by blood, and 
 without shedding of blood there was no remission," — 
 without referring to that sublime mystery by which these 
 types have been fulfilled, — it appears as if, in all ages 
 and all countries, blood had been the only seal of 
 security. 
 
 Examine the records of history, the revolution of 
 opinion, the public tumults, the warfare for religious 
 
8 The King's Own 
 
 ascendancy — it will be found that without this seal, these 
 were only lulled for the moment, and invariably recom- 
 menced until Mood had made its appearance as witness to 
 " the act and deed." 
 
 Chapter II 
 
 This is a long description, but applies 
 To scarce five minutes past before the eyes ; 
 But yet ivhai minutes I Moments like to these 
 Rend men's lives into immortalities. 
 
 Byron. 
 
 The mutiny at Spithead was soon followed up by that at 
 the Nore ; and the ringleader, Parker, like a meteor 
 darting through the firmament, sprung from nothing, 
 coruscated, dazzled, and disappeared. The Texel fleet 
 joined, except a few ships, which the courage and conduct 
 of the gallant old Admiral Duncan preserved from the 
 contagion. Let me here digress a little, to introduce to 
 my readers the speech made by this officer to his ship's 
 company on the first symptoms of disaffection. It is 
 supposed that sailors are not eloquent. I assert that, 
 with the exception of the North American Indians, who 
 have to perfection the art of saying much in few words, 
 there are few people more eloquent than sailors. The 
 general object looked for in this world is to obtain the 
 greatest possible effect with the smallest power , if so, 
 the more simple the language, the more matter is 
 condensed, the nearer we approach to perfection. 
 Flourishes and flowers of rhetoric may be compared to 
 extra wheels applied to a carriage, increasing the rattling 
 and complexity of the machine, without adding to 
 either the strength of its fabric or the rapidity of its 
 course. 
 
 It was on the 6th of June that the fleet at the Nore 
 was joined by the Agamemnon, Leopard, Ardent, and 
 other ships, which had separated from Admiral Duncan's 
 
The King's Own 9 
 
 fleet. When the admiral found himself deserted by part 
 of his own fleet, he called his own ship's crew together, 
 and addressed them in the following speech : — 
 
 " My lads ! I once more call you together with a 
 sorrowful heart, owing to what I have lately seen, the 
 disaffection of the fleets; I call it disaffection, for the 
 crews have no grievances. To be deserted by my fleet, 
 in the face of the enemy, is a disgrace which, I believe, 
 never before happened to a British admiral ; nor could 
 I have supposed it possible. My greatest comfort under 
 God is, that I have been supported by the officers, seamen, 
 and marines of this ship, for which, with a heart over- 
 flowing with gratitude, I request you to accept my sincere 
 thanks. I flatter myself much good may result from your 
 example, by bringing those deluded people to a sense of 
 the duty which they owe, not only to their king and 
 country, but to themselves. 
 
 " The British navy has ever been the support of that 
 liberty which has been handed down to us by our ancestors, 
 and which I trust we shall maintain to the latest posterity 
 — and that can only be done by unanimity and obedience. 
 This ship's company, and others, who have distinguished 
 themselves by loyalty and good order, deserve to be, and 
 doubtless will be, the favourites of a grateful nation. They 
 will also have, from their inward feeling, a comfort which 
 will be lasting, and not like the floating and false confid- 
 ence of those who have swerved from their duty. 
 
 " It has often been my pride with you to look into the 
 Texel, and see a foe which dreaded coming out to meet 
 us. My pride is now humbled indeed ! our cup has over- 
 flown, and made us wanton — the AUwise Providence has 
 given us this check as a warning, and I hope we shall 
 improve by it. On Him then let us trust where our only 
 security is to be found. I find there are many good men 
 among us ; for my own part, I have had full confidence 
 of all in this ship -, and once more I beg to express my 
 approbation of your conduct. 
 
 *'May God, who has thus far conducted you, continue 
 
lo The King's Own 
 
 to do so ; and may the British navy, the glory and support 
 of our country, be restored to its wonted splendour, and be 
 not only the bulwark of Britain, but the terror of the world. 
 
 " But this can only be effected by a strict adherence to 
 our duty and obedience ; and let us pray that the Almighty 
 God may keep us in the right way of thinking. 
 
 " God bless you all." 
 
 At an address so unassuming, and so calculated, from 
 its simplicity and truth, to touch the human heart, the 
 whole ship's crew were melted into tears, and declared 
 their resolution to adhere to their admiral in life or death. 
 Had all the ships in the fleet been commanded by such 
 men as Admiral Duncan, the mutiny at Spithead would 
 not have been succeeded by that at the Nore ; but the sea- 
 men had no confidence, either in their officers, or in those 
 who presided at the Board of Admiralty ; and distrust of 
 their promises, which were considered to be given merely 
 to gain time, was the occasion of the second and more 
 alarming rebellion of the two. 
 
 The irritated mind of Peters was stimulated to join the 
 disaffected parties. His pride, his superior education, and 
 the acknowledgment among his shipmates that he was an 
 injured man, all conspired to place him in the dangerous 
 situation of ringleader on board of his own ship, the crew 
 of which, although it had not actually joined in the mutiny, 
 now showed open signs of discontent. 
 
 But the mine was soon exploded by the behaviour of 
 the captain. Alarmed at the mutinous condition of the 
 other ships which were anchored near to him, and the 
 symptoms of dissatisfaction in his own, he proceeded to 
 an act of unjustifiable severity, evidently impelled by fear 
 and not by resolution. He ordered several of the petty 
 officers and leading men of the ship to be thrown into 
 irons, because they were seen to be earnestly talking to- 
 gether on the forecastle, — and recollecting that his conduct 
 towards Peters had been such as to warrant disaffection, 
 he added him to the number. The effect of this injudicious 
 step was immediate. The men came aft in a body on the 
 
The King's Own ii 
 
 quarter-deck, and requested to know the grounds upon 
 which Peters and the other men had been placed in con- 
 finement ; and perceiving alarm in the countenance of the 
 captain, notwithstanding the resolute bearing of the officers, 
 they insisted upon the immediate release of their shipmates. 
 Thus the first overt act of mutiny was brought on by the 
 misconduct of the captain. 
 
 The officers expostulated and threatened in vain. Three 
 cheers were called for by a voice in the crowd, and three 
 cheers were immediately given. The marines, who still 
 remained true to their allegiance, had been ordered under 
 arms ; the first lieutenant of the ship — for the captain, 
 trembling and confused, stood a mere cypher — gave the 
 order for the ship's company to go below, threatening 
 to fire upon them if the order was not instantaneously 
 obeyed. The captain of marines brought his men to the 
 " make ready," and they were about to present, when the 
 first lieutenant waved his hand to stop the decided measure, 
 until he had first ascertained how far the mutiny was 
 general. He stepped a few paces forward, and requested 
 that every " blue jacket " who was inclined to remain 
 faithful to his king and country, would walk over from 
 that side of the quarter-deck upon which the ship's com- 
 pany were assembled, to the one which was occupied by 
 the officers and marines. 
 
 A pause and silence ensued — when, after some pushing 
 and elbowing through the crowd, William Adams, an 
 elderly quartermaster, made his appearance in the front, 
 and passed over to the side where the officers stood, while 
 the hisses of the rest of the ship's company expressed their 
 disapprobation of his conduct. The old man just reached 
 the other side of the deck, when turning round like a lion 
 at bay, with one foot on the comings of the hatchway, and 
 his arm raised in the air to command attention, he addressed 
 them in these few words : — 
 
 **My lads, I have fought for my king five-and-thirty 
 years, and have been too long in his service to turn a rebel 
 in my old age." 
 
12 The King's Own 
 
 Would it be credited that, after the mutiny had been 
 quelled, no representation of this conduct was made to 
 government by his captain ? Yet such was the case, and 
 such was the gratitude of Captain A . 
 
 The example shown by Adams was not followed : — the 
 ship's crew again cheered, and ran down the hatchways, 
 leaving the officers and marines on deck. They first dis- 
 armed the sentry under the half-deck, and released the 
 prisoners, and then went forward to consult upon further 
 operations. 
 
 They were not long in deciding. A boatswain's mate, 
 who was one of the ringleaders, piped, "Stand by 
 hammocks ! " The men ran on deck, each seizing a 
 hammock, and jumping with it down below on the main 
 deck. The object of this manoeuvre not being compre- 
 hended, they were suffered to execute it without interrup- 
 tion. In a few minutes they sent up the marine, whom 
 they had disarmed when sentry over the prisoners, to state 
 that they wished to speak with the captain and officers, 
 who, after some discussion, agreed that they would 
 descend and hear the proposals which the ship's company 
 should make. Indeed, even with the aid of the marines, 
 many of whom were wavering, resistance would now have 
 been useless, and could only have cost them their lives ; 
 for they were surrounded by other ships who had hoisted 
 the flag of insubordination, and whose guns were trained 
 ready to pour in a destructive fire on the least sign of an 
 attempt to purchase their anchor. To the main-deck they 
 consequently repaired. 
 
 The scene which here presented itself was as striking 
 as it was novel. The after-part of the main-deck was 
 occupied by the captain and officers, who had come down 
 with the few marines who still continued stedfast to their 
 duty, and one sailor only, Adams, who had so nobly stated 
 his determination on the quarter-deck. The foremost part 
 of the deck was tenanted by a noisy and tumultuous 
 throng of seamen, whose heads only appeared above a 
 barricade of hammocks, which they had formed across the 
 
The King's Own 13 
 
 deck, and out of which at two embrasures, admirably con- 
 structed, two long twenty-four pounders, loaded up to the 
 muzzle with grape and canister shot, were pointed aft in 
 the direction where the officers and marines were standing 
 — a man at the breech of each gun, with a match in his 
 hand (which he occasionally blew, that the priming powder 
 might be more rapidly ignited), stood ready for the signal 
 to fire. 
 
 The captain, aghast at the sight, would have retreated, 
 but the officers, formed of sterner materials, persuaded 
 him to stay, although he showed such evident signs of 
 fear and perturbation, as seriously to injure a cause, in 
 which resolution and presence of mind alone could avail. 
 The mutineers, at the suggestion of Peters, had already 
 sent aft their preliminary proposals, which were, that the 
 officers and marines should surrender up their arms, and 
 consider themselves under an arrest — intimating, at the 
 same time, that the first step in advance made by any one 
 of their party would be the signal for applying the match 
 to the touch-holes of the guns. 
 
 There was a pause and dead silence, as if it were a 
 calm, although every passion was roused and on the alert ; 
 every bosom heaved tumultuously, and every pulse was 
 trebled in its action. The same feeling which so power- 
 fully affects the truant schoolboy — who, aware of his 
 offence, and dreading the punishment in perspective, can 
 scarce enjoy the rapture of momentary emancipation — acted 
 upon the mutineers, in an increased ratio, proportioned to 
 the magnitude of their stake. Some hearts beat with 
 remembrance of injuries and hopes of vengeance and 
 retaliation ; others with ambition, long dormant, bursting 
 from its concealed recess ; and many were actuated by 
 that restlessness which induced them to consider any 
 change to be preferable to the monotony of existence in 
 compulsory servitude. 
 
 Among the officers, some were oppressed with anxious 
 forebodings of evil — those peculiar sensations which, when 
 death approaches nearly to the outward senses, alarm the 
 
14 The King's Own 
 
 heart ; others experienced no feeling but that of manly- 
 fortitude and determination to die, if necessary, like men -, 
 in others, alas ! — in which party, small as it was, the 
 captain was pre-eminent — fear and trepidation amounted 
 almost to the loss of reason. 
 
 Such was the state of the main-deck of the ship, at the 
 moment in which we are now describing it to the reader. 
 
 And yet, in the very centre of all this tumult, there 
 was one who, although not indifferent to the scene around 
 him, felt interested without being anxious ; astonished 
 without being alarmed. Between the contending and 
 divided parties, stood a little boy, about six years old. 
 He was the perfection of childish beauty ; chestnut hair 
 waved in curls on his forehead, health glowed on his rosy 
 cheeks, dimples sported over his face as he altered the 
 expression of his countenance, and his large dark eyes 
 flashed with intelligence and animation. He was dressed 
 in mimic imitation of a man-of-war's man — loose trousers, 
 tightened at the hips, to preclude the necessity of 
 suspenders — and a white duck frock, with long sleeves 
 and blue collar — while a knife, attached to a lanyard, 
 was suspended round his neck : a light and narrow- 
 brimmed straw hat on his head completed his attire. 
 At times he looked aft at the officers and marines j at 
 others he turned his eyes forward to the hammocks, 
 behind which the ship's company were assembled. The 
 sight was new to him, but he was already accustomed to 
 reflect much, and to ask few questions. Go to the officers 
 he did not, for the presence of the captain restrained him. 
 Go to the ship's company he could not, for the barricade 
 of hammocks prevented him. There he stood, in wonder- 
 ment, but not in fear. 
 
 There was something beautiful and affecting in the 
 situation of the boy ; calm, when all around him was 
 anxious tumult ; thoughtless, when the brains of others 
 were oppressed with the accumulation of ideas ; contented, 
 where all was discontent ; peaceful, where each party that 
 he stood between was thirsting for each other's blood : — 
 
The King's Own 15 
 
 there he stood, the only happy, the only innocent one, 
 amongst hundreds swayed by jarring interests and con- 
 tending passions. 
 
 And yet he was in keeping, although in such strong 
 contrast, with the rest of the picture ; for where is the 
 instance of the human mind being so thoroughly depraved 
 as not to have one good feeling left ? Nothing exists so 
 base and vile as not to have one redeeming quality. There 
 is no poison without some antidote — no precipice, however 
 barren, without some trace of verdure — no desert, however 
 vast, without some spring to refresh the parched traveller, 
 some oasis, some green spot, which, from its situation, 
 in comparison with surrounding objects, appears almost 
 heavenly ; and thus did the boy look almost angelic, 
 standing as he did between the angry exasperated parties 
 on the main-deck of the disorganised ship. 
 
 After some little time, he walked forward, and leaned 
 against one of the twenty-four pounders that was pointed 
 out of the embrasure, the muzzle of which was on a level 
 with, and intercepted by, his little head. 
 
 Adams, the quarter-master, observing the dangerous 
 situation of the child, stepped forward. This was against 
 the stipulations laid down by the mutineers, and Peters 
 cried out to him — *^ Heave-to, Adams, or we fire!" 
 Adams waved his hand in expostulation, and continued to 
 
 advance. " Keep back," again cried Peters, " or by , 
 
 we fire ! " 
 
 "Not upon one old man, Peters, and he unarmed," 
 replied Adams ; " I'm not worth so much powder and 
 shot." The man at the gun blew his match. " For God's 
 sake, for your own sake, as you value your happiness and 
 peace of mind, do not fire, Peters ! " cried Adams, with 
 energy, " or you'll never forgive yourself." 
 
 "Hold fast the match," said Peters; "we need not fear 
 one man ; " and as he said this, Adams had come up to the 
 muzzle of the gun, and seized the boy, whom he snatched 
 up in his arms. 
 
 " I only came forward, Peters, to save your own boy, 
 
1 6 The King's Own 
 
 whose head would have been blown to atoms if you had 
 chanced to have fired the gun," said Adams, turning short 
 round, and walking aft with the boy in his arms. 
 
 ** God in heaven bless you, Adams ! " cried Peters, with 
 a faltering voice, and casting a look of fond affection at the 
 child. The heart of the mutineer was at that moment 
 softened by parental feelings, and he blew the priming off 
 the touch-hole of the gun, lest an accidental spark should 
 risk the life of his child, who was now aft with the officers 
 and their party. 
 
 Reader, this little boy will be the hero of our tale. 
 
 Chapter III 
 
 Roused discipline alone proclaims their cause, 
 And injured navies urge their broken laws. 
 Pursue we in his track the mutineer. 
 
 Btron. 
 
 Man, like all other animals of a gregarious nature, is more 
 inclined to follow than to lead. There are few who are 
 endued with that impetus of soul which prompts them to 
 stand foremost as leaders in the storming of the breach, 
 whether it be of a fortress of stone, or the more dangerous 
 one of public opinion, when failure in the one case may 
 precipitate them on the sword, and in the other consign 
 them to the scaffold. 
 
 In this mutiny there were but few of the rare class 
 referred to above : — in the ship whose movements we have 
 been describing, not one, perhaps, except Peters. There 
 were many boisterous, many threatening, but no one, 
 except him, who was equal to the command, or to whom 
 the command could have been confided. He was, on 
 board of his own ship, the very life and soul of the mutiny. 
 At the moment described at the end of the last chapter, all 
 the better feelings of his still virtuous heart were in action; 
 and, by a captain possessing resolution and a knowledge ot 
 
The King's Own 17 
 
 human nature, the mutiny might have been suppressed; 
 
 but Captain A , who perceived the anxiety of Peters, 
 
 thought the child a prize of no small value, and, as Adams 
 brought him aft, snatched the boy from his arms, and 
 desired two of the party of marines to turn their loaded 
 muskets at his young heart — thus intimating to the 
 mutineers that he would shoot the child at the first sign 
 of hostility on their part. 
 
 The two marines who had received this order looked at 
 each other in silence, and did not obey. It was repeated 
 by the captain, who considered that he had hit upon a 
 masterpiece of diplomacy. The officers expostulated ; the 
 officer commanding the party of marines turned away in 
 disgust ; but in vain : the brutal order was reiterated with 
 threats. The whole party of marines now murmured, and 
 consulted together in a low tone. 
 
 Willy Peters was the idol and plaything of the whole 
 crew. He had always been accustomed to remain on board 
 with his father, and there was not a man in the ship who 
 would not have risked his life to have saved that of the 
 child. The effect of this impolitic and cruel order was 
 decisive. The marines, with the sergeant at their head, 
 and little Willy placed in security in the centre, their 
 bayonets directed on the defensive towards the captain and 
 officers, retreated to the mutineers, whom they joined with 
 three cheers, as the child was lifted over the barricade of 
 hammocks, and received into his father's arms. 
 
 " We must not submit to their terms, sir," said the 
 first lieutenant. 
 
 ** Any terms, any terms," answered the terrified captain : 
 " tell them so, for God's sake, or they will fire. Adams, 
 go forward, and tell them we submit." 
 
 This order was, however, unnecessary ; for the mutineers, 
 aware of the Impossibility of any further resistance, had 
 thrown down the barricade of hammocks, and, with Peters 
 at their head, were coming aft. 
 
 " You consent, gentlemen, to consider yourselves 
 under an arrest ? " inquired Peters of the first lleu- 
 
 K. I. B 
 
i8 The King's Own 
 
 tenant and officers, without paying any attention to the 
 captain. 
 
 " We do, we do," cried Captain A . " I hope you will 
 
 not stain your hands with blood. Mr Peters, I meant the 
 child no harm." 
 
 " If you had murdered him. Captain A , you could not 
 
 have injured him so much as you have injured his father," 
 retorted Peters ; " but fear not for your life, sir ; that is 
 safe ; and you will meet all the respect and attention to 
 your wants that circumstances will permit. We war not 
 with individuals." 
 
 It was a proud moment for Peters to see this man 
 cringing before him, and receiving with thanks the promise 
 of his life from one whom he had so cruelly treated. There 
 was a glorious revenge in it, the full force of which could 
 only be felt by the granting, not the receiving party : for 
 it could only be appreciated by one who possessed those 
 fine and honourable feelings, of which Captain A — — was 
 wholly destitute. 
 
 If the reader will consult the various records of the 
 times which we are now describing, he will find that every 
 respect was personally paid to the officers, although they 
 were deprived of their arms. Some of the most obnoxious 
 were sent on shore, and the intemperate conduct of others 
 produced effects for which they had only to thank them- 
 selves ; but, on the whole, the remark made by Peters was 
 strictly correct : "They warred not with individuals" — they 
 demanded justice from an ungrateful country. 
 
 It is true that the demands in this mutiny were not so 
 reasonable as in the preceding ; but where is the man who 
 can confine himself to the exact balance of justice when 
 his own feelings are unwittingly thrown into the 
 scale ? 
 
 As I before stated, it is not my intention to follow up 
 the details of this national disgrace, but merely to confine 
 myself to that part which is connected with the present 
 history. Peters, as delegate from his ship, met the others, 
 who were daily assembled, by Parker's directions, on board 
 
The King's Own 19 
 
 of the Queen Charlotte, and took a leading and decided part 
 in the arrangements of the disaffected fleet. 
 
 But Parker, the ringleader, although a man of talent, 
 was not equal to the task he had undertaken. He lost 
 sight of several important features necessary to insure 
 success in all civil commotions ; such as rapidity and 
 decision of action, constant employment being found, and 
 continual excitement being kept up, amongst his followers,^ 
 to afford no time for reflection. Those who serve under an 
 established government know exactly their present weight 
 in the scale of worldly rank, and the extent of their future 
 expectations ; they have accustomed themselves to bound 
 their ambition accordingly ; and feeling conscious that 
 passive obedience is the surest road to advancement, are led 
 quietly, here or there, to be slaughtered at the will and 
 caprice of their superiors. But the leader of the disaffected 
 against an established government has a difficult task. He 
 has nothing to offer to his followers but promises. There 
 is nothing on hand — all is expectation. If allowed time 
 for reflection, they soon perceive that they are acting an 
 humble part in a dangerous game ; and that even though it 
 be attended with success, in all probability they will receive 
 no share of the advantages, although certain of incurring a 
 large proportion of the risk. The leader of a connected 
 force of the above description rises to a dangerous height 
 when borne up by the excitement of the time ; but let it 
 once be permitted to subside, and, like the aeronaut in his 
 balloon, from which the gas escapes while it is soaring in 
 the clouds, he is precipitated from his lofty station, and 
 gravitates to his own destruction. 
 
 He must be a wonderful man who can collect all the 
 resources of a popular commotion, and bring it to a 
 successful issue. The reason is obvious — everything 
 depends upon the leader alone. His followers are but as 
 the stones composing the arch of the bridge by which the 
 gulf is to be crossed between them and their nominal 
 superiors ; he is the keystone, upon which the whole 
 depends — if completely fitted, rendering the arch durable 
 
20 The King's Own 
 
 and capable of bearing any pressure ; but if too small in 
 dimensions, or imperfect in conformation, rendering the 
 whole labour futile, and occasioning all the fabric previously 
 raised to be precipitated by its own weight, and dispersed 
 in ruin and confusion. 
 
 This latter was the fate of the mutiny at the Nore. 
 The insurrection was quelled, and the ringleaders were 
 doomed to undergo the utmost penalty of martial law* 
 Among the rest, Peters was sentenced to death. 
 
 In the foremost part of the main-deck of a line-of-battle 
 ship, in a square room, strongly bulkheaded, and receiving 
 light from one of the ports, as firmly secured with an iron 
 grating — with no other furniture than a long wooden form 
 — his legs in shackles, that ran upon a heavy iron bar lying 
 on the deck — sat the unfortunate prisoner, in company 
 with three other individuals — his wife, his child, and old 
 Adams, the quarter-master. Peters was seated on the 
 deck, supporting himself by leaning against the bulkhead. 
 His wife was lying beside him, with her face hidden in his 
 lap. Adams occupied the form, and the child stood 
 between his knees. All were silent, and the eyes of the 
 three were directed towards one of the sad company, who 
 appeared more wretched and disconsolate than the rest. 
 
 " My dear, dear Ellen ! " said Peters mournfully, as a 
 fresh burst of grief convulsed her attenuated frame. 
 
 "Why, then, refuse my solicitations, Edward ? If not 
 for yourself, listen to me for the sake of your wife and 
 child. Irritated as your father still may be, his dormant 
 affection will be awakened, when he is acquainted with the 
 dreadful situation of his only son ; nay, his family pride will 
 never permit that you should perish by so ignominious a 
 death ; and your assumed name will enable him, without 
 blushing, to exert his interest, and obtain your reprieve." 
 
 " Do not put me to the pain of again refusing you, 
 my dearest Ellen. I desire to die, and my fate must be a 
 warning to others. When I reflect what dreadful conse- 
 quences might have ensued to the country from our 
 rebellious proceedings, I am thankful, truly thankful, to 
 
The King's Own 21 
 
 God, that we did not succeed. I know what you would 
 urge — my wrongs, my undeserved stripes. I, too, would 
 urge them ; and when my conscience has pressed me hard, 
 have urged them in palliation j but I feel that it is only in 
 palliation, not in justification, that they can be brought 
 forward. They are no more in comparison with my crime 
 than the happiness of one individual is to that of the nation 
 which I assisted to endanger, because one constituting a 
 part of it had, unauthorised, oppressed me. No, no, Ellen, 
 I should not be happy if I were not to atone for my faults j 
 and this wretched life is the only atonement I can offer. 
 But for you, and that poor child, my dearest and kindest, I 
 should go to the scaffold rejoicing ; but the thoughts — O 
 God, strengthen and support me ! " cried the unhappy 
 man, hiding his face in his hands. 
 
 ** Fear not for me, Edward. I feel here," said Ellen, 
 laying her hand on her heart, " a conviction that we shall 
 soon meet again. I will urge you no more, love. But the 
 boy — the boy — Oh, Edward, what will become of that 
 dear boy, when we are both gone ? " 
 
 " Please God to spare my life, he'll never want a 
 father," said old Adams, as the tears found a devious 
 passage down the furrows of his weather-beaten face. 
 
 " What will become of him ? " cried Peters with energy. 
 ** Why, he shall retrieve his father's fault — wash out the 
 stains in his father's character. He shall prove as liege a 
 subject as I have been a rebellious one. He shall as faith- 
 fully serve his country as I have shamefully deserted it. 
 He shall be as honest as I have been false ; and oh, may he 
 be as prosperous as I have been unfortunate — as happy as 
 I have been miserable. Come hither, boy. By the fond 
 hopes I entertain of pardon and peace above — by the 
 Almighty, in whose presence I must shortly tremble, I here 
 devote thee to thy country — serve her bravely and faith- 
 fully. Tell me, Willy, do you understand me, and will 
 you promise me this ? " 
 
 The boy laid his head upon his father's shoulder, and 
 answered in a low tone — ** I will ; " and then after a short 
 
22 The King's Own 
 
 pause, added, ** but what are they going to do with you, 
 father ? " 
 
 " I am going to die for my country's good, my child. 
 If God wills it, may you do the same, but in a more 
 honourable manner." 
 
 The boy seemed lost in thought, and, after a short time, 
 quitted his father's side, and sat down on the deck by his 
 mother, without speaking. 
 
 Adams rose, and taking him up, said, "Mayhap you 
 have that to talk of which wants no listeners. I will take 
 Willy with me, and give him a little air before I put him 
 in his hammock. It's but a close hole this. Good-night 
 to you both, though I'm afeard that's but a wish." 
 
 But a wish indeed ! — and it was the last that was ever 
 to close upon the unhappy Peters. The next morning was 
 appointed for his execution. There are scenes of such 
 consummate misery, that they cannot be portrayed without 
 harrowing up the feelings of the reader, — and of these the 
 climax may be found in a fond wife, lying at the feet of 
 her husband during the last twelve hours of his mortal 
 career. We must draw the curtain. 
 
 And now, reader, the title of this work, which may 
 have puzzled you, will be explained ; for, intelligible as it 
 may be to our profession, it may be a mystery to those 
 who are not in his Majesty's service. The broad-headed 
 arrow was a mark assumed at the time of the Edwards 
 (when it was considered the mosi: powerful weapon of 
 attack), as distinguishing the property of the King ; and 
 this mark has been continued down to the present day. 
 Every article supplied to his Majesty's service from the 
 arsenals and dockyards is thickly studded with this mark ; 
 and to be found in possession of any property so marked is 
 a capital offence, as it designates that property to be the 
 King^s own. 
 
 When Adams left the condemned cell with Willy, he 
 thought upon what had passed, and as Peters had devoted 
 the boy to his King and country, he felt an irresistible 
 desire to mark him. The practice of tattooing is very 
 
The King's Own 23 
 
 common in the navy ; and you will see a sailor's arm 
 covered with emblems from the shoulder to the wrist ; his 
 own initials, that of his sweetheart, the crucifix, Neptune, 
 and mermaids being huddled together, as if mythology 
 and scripture were one and the same thing. Adams was 
 not long in deciding, and telling our little hero that his 
 father wished it — he easily persuaded him to undergo the 
 pain of the operation, which was performed on the fore- 
 castle, by pricking the shape of the figure required with 
 the points of needles, and rubbing the bleeding parts with 
 wet gunpowder and ink. By these simple means the form 
 of a broad-headed arrow, or the King's mark, was, in the 
 course of an hour, indelibly engraved upon the left 
 shoulder of little Willy, who was then consigned to his 
 hammock. 
 
 Chapter IV 
 
 The strife was o'er, the vanquished had their doom ; 
 The mutineers were crush'd, dispersed, or ta'en, 
 Or lived to deem the happiest were the slain. 
 
 By-ron. 
 
 The day broke serenely but brightly, and poured in a 
 stream of light through the iron grating of the cell where 
 Peters and his wife lay clasped in each other's arms, not 
 asleep, but torpid, and worn out with extreme suffering. 
 Peters was the first to break the silence, and gently moved 
 Ellen, as he called her by her name. She had not for 
 some time lifted up her head, which was buried in his 
 bosom ; and she was not aware that the darkness had been 
 dispelled. She raised her head at his summons, and as the 
 dazzling light burst upon her sunken eyes, so did the 
 recollection that this was the fatal morning flash upon her 
 memory. 
 
 With a shriek, she again buried her face in the bosom 
 of her husband. "Ellen, as you love me," said Peters, 
 ** do not distress me in my last hour. I have yet much to 
 
24 The King's Own 
 
 do before I die, and require your assistance and support. 
 Rise, my love, and let me write to my father ; I must not 
 neglect the interest of our child." 
 
 She rose tremblingly, and, turning back from her face 
 her beautiful hair, which had been for so many days 
 neglected, and was now moistened with her tears, reached 
 the materials required by her husband, who, drawing 
 towards him the wooden form to serve him as a table, 
 wrote the following letter, while his wife sat by him with 
 a countenance of idiotic apathy and despair : — 
 
 "Dear Father, — Yes, still dear father, — Before you 
 cast your eyes upon these characters, you will be childless. 
 — Your eldest boy perished nobly in the field of honour : 
 your youngest and last will this morning meet an igno- 
 minious, but deserved death on the scaffold. Thus will 
 you be childless ; but if your son does meet the fate of a 
 traitor, still the secret is confined to you alone, and none 
 will imagine that the unhappy Peters, ringleader of a 
 mutinous ship, was the scion of a race who have so long 
 preserved an unblemished name. Fain would I have 
 spared you this shock to your feelings, and have allowed 
 you to remain in ignorance of my disgrace ; but I have an 
 act of duty to perform to you and to my child — towards 
 you, that your estates may not be claimed, and pass away 
 to distant and collateral branches ; — towards my child, that 
 he may eventually reclaim his rights. Father, I forgive 
 you, I might say— but no — let all now be buried in 
 oblivion ; and as you peruse these lines, and think on my 
 unhappy fate, shed a tear in memory of the once happy 
 child you fondled on your knee, and say to your heart, * I 
 forgive him.' 
 
 " I have dedicated my boy to his king and country. 
 If you forgive me, and mean to protect your grandchild, 
 do not change the career in life marked out for him : — 
 it is a solemn compact between my God and me; and 
 you must fulfil this last earnest request of a dying man, 
 as you hope for future pardon and bliss. 
 
The King's Own 25 
 
 ** His distracted mother sits by me ; I would entreat 
 you to extend your kindness towards her, but I fear she 
 will soon require no earthly aid. Still, soothe her last 
 moments with a promise to protect the orphan, and may 
 God bless you for your kindness. 
 
 " Your affectionate son, 
 "Edward." 
 
 Peters had scarcely finished this letter when Adams, 
 with the boy in his arms, was admitted. "I come for 
 final orders, Peters, and to tell you what I did last night 
 to this boy. He is real stuff, — never winced. You said 
 he was to be the King's, and I thought you would like 
 that he should be marked as such. There is no mistaking 
 this mark, Peters," continued Adams, baring the boy's 
 shoulder, and showing the impression of the broad-headed 
 arrow, which now appeared angry and inflamed, as it 
 always is for some days after the operation. *'I did not 
 mention that I was going to do it, because Ellen then 
 might not have liked it : but I hope you do." 
 
 " Many, many thanks," answered Peters ; and opening 
 his letter, which was folded, but not sealed, he added a 
 postscript, pointing out the mark by which the boy would 
 be identified. " You could not have done me a greater 
 favour, Adams ; and now you must promise me once more, 
 which is to look after my poor Ellen, when " 
 
 " I understand, my good fellow, and I will," replied 
 Adams. " There is the chaplain outside, who is all ready 
 for service if you would like to see him," continued the 
 old man, passing his hands over his humid eyes. 
 
 " Ask him to come in, Adams ; he is a good man, and 
 an honour to his profession. I shall be glad to see him." 
 
 Adams went to the door, and soon returned with the 
 chaplain. He saluted Peters, who respectfully bowed to 
 him, and said : " I have long made my peace with God 
 and man, sir, and am as well prepared to die as sinful 
 mortal can be — in faith and charity with all men. Many 
 thanks to you, sir, for your kindness ; but, sir, you may 
 
26 The King's Own 
 
 be of use here yet. Can you " — and his voice faltered, — 
 ** can you, sir, help that poor young woman ? Cannot 
 you reason her into some kind of tranquillity, some degree 
 of submission to God's will ? Oh, do that, sir, and you 
 will confer a favour on me indeed." 
 
 The chaplain approached Ellen, who lay on the deck 
 in a state of mental stupefaction, and, addressing her in 
 mild accents, persuaded her to rise and take a seat on the 
 form ; he kindly contrived to bring it forward to the iron- 
 grated port, so that she could not witness the motions of 
 Peters, and, with a low, yet energetic and persuasive 
 voice, attempted to reason her into patience and resigna- 
 tion. His efforts were in vain. She occasionally looked 
 upon him with a vacant stare, but her thoughts were 
 elsewhere. During the period, Peters had time to shave 
 himself, and dress in clean attire, preparatory to being 
 summoned to his fate. 
 
 The time was approaching fast ; one bell after eight 
 o'clock, designating the half-hour, had struck ; at two 
 bells (nine o'clock) he was to be summoned to his doom. 
 The clergyman rose from his useless endeavours — "Let 
 us pray," said he, and sank upon his knees, — Peters, 
 Adams, and the child, followed his example ; and last 
 of all, poor Ellen, who seemed to recover her recollection, 
 sank on her knees, but, unable to keep her position, fell 
 towards the clergyman, who, as he supported her in his 
 arms, poured forth a fervent and eloquent appeal in behalf 
 of the one who was about to appear in the presence of 
 his Maker, and of those who were left in tribulation 
 behind. It was scarcely over when the door opened, and 
 the provost-marshal claimed his prisoner. 
 
 The prayer of the chaplain seemed to ring in Ellen's 
 ears, and she remained supported by the worthy man, 
 muttering parts of it at intervals, during which time the 
 limbs of her husband were freed from the shackles. All 
 was ready ; and Peters, straining the child to his bosom 
 in silence, and casting one look at his dear Ellen, who 
 still remained in a state of stupefaction, denied himself 
 
The King's Own 27 
 
 a last embrace (though the effort wrung his heart) rather 
 than awaken her to her misery. He quitted the cell, and 
 the chaplain, quietly placing Ellen in the arms of Adams, 
 followed, that he might attend and support Peters in his 
 last moments. 
 
 The prisoner was conducted on the quarter-deck 
 previously to being sent forward to execution. His 
 
 sentence was read by Captain A ; and the remark 
 
 may perhaps be considered uncharitable, but there cer- 
 tainly appeared to be an ill-concealed satisfaction in his 
 countenance as he came to that part where it stated that 
 the prisoner was to ** suffer death." Peters heard it read 
 with firmness, and asked permission to address the ship's 
 company. This was at first refused by the captain ; but, 
 at the request of the officers, and the assurance of the 
 chaplain that he would vouch for the language of Peters 
 being such as would have a proper tendency to future 
 subordination on the part of the ship's company, it was 
 assented to. Bowing first to the captain and officers, 
 Peters turned to the ship's company, who had assembled 
 on the booms and gangway, and addressed them as 
 follows : — 
 
 " Shipmates, the time may come when our country shall 
 be at peace, and your services no longer be required. 
 Then, when you narrate to your children the events of this 
 unhappy mutiny, do not forget to add instruction to amuse- 
 ment, by pointing out to them that it ended in the disgrace 
 and death of the ringleaders. Tell them that, in your 
 presence, one of them acknowledged on the quarter-deck 
 the justice of his sentence, and returned thanks to his 
 Majesty for his kindness in pardoning others who had been 
 led into the same error. Tell them to do their duty, to 
 fight nobly for their Kling and country, and warn them by 
 our example " 
 
 At this moment "Willy, who had eluded the vigilance of 
 old Adams, who was occupied in supporting the inanimate 
 Ellen, pushed his way between the Jegs of the marines, who 
 were drawn up in ranks on the quarter-deck, and, running 
 
28 The King's Own 
 
 to his father, laid hold of the loose sailor's trousers in which 
 he was attired, and looked anxiously and inquisitively in his 
 face. Peters's voice faltered ; he attempted to continue his 
 address to the men, but could not j and waving his hand, 
 and pointing to the child, in mute explanation of the cause, 
 after struggling in vain against the overflowings of a father's 
 heart, he bent over the boy and burst into tears. 
 
 The effect was electrical. The shock was communicated 
 to all ; not an eye but was dimmed ; sobs were heard in 
 the crowd ; the oldest officers turned away to conceal their 
 emotions ; the younger, and more fresh in heart, covered 
 their faces, and leant against the bulwarks ; the marines 
 forgot their discipHne, and raised their hands from their 
 sides to wipe their eyes. Many a source, long supposed to 
 be hermetically sealed, was re-opened, — many a spring long 
 dry reflowed rapidly ; even Captain A was moved. 
 
 By a singular coincidence, the grouping of the parties at 
 this moment was nearly the same as when we first intro- 
 duced our little hero to the reader — the officers and marines 
 on the after part of the deck, the ship's company forward, 
 and little Willy standing between the two. Again he 
 appears in the same position ; — but what a change of feel- 
 ing had taken place ! As if he had been a little spirit of 
 good, waving his fairy talisman, evil passions, which in the 
 former scene were let loose, had retired to their darkest 
 recesses, and all the better feelings of humanity were called 
 forth, and displayed in one universal, spontaneous, and 
 unfeigned tribute to the melancholy and affecting scene. 
 
 The silence was first broken by Willy — " Where are you 
 going, father ; and why do you wear that night-cap ? " 
 
 " I am going to sleep, child, — to an eternal sleep ! God 
 bless and protect you," said Peters, taking him up and kiss- 
 ing him. " And now, sir, I am ready," continued Peters, 
 
 who had recovered his self-possession j " Captain A , 
 
 I forgive you, as I trust to be forgiven myself. Mr ," 
 
 said he, addressing the first lieutenant, " take this child by 
 the hand, and do not permit him to come forward — 
 remember he is the ' King's Own.' " Then, bowing to the 
 
The King's Own 29 
 
 chaplain, who had scarcely recovered from the effects that 
 the scene had produced upon him, and looking significantly 
 at the provost-marshal, Peters bent his steps forward by 
 the gangway — the noose was fastened — the gun fired, and, 
 in a moment, all was over. 
 
 Loud as was the report of the gun, those who were 
 appointed to the unpleasant duty of running aft with the 
 rope on the main-deck, which swung Peters to the yard- 
 arm, heard a shriek that even that deafening noise could 
 not overpower. It was the soul of Ellen joining that of her 
 husband — and, before the day closed, their bodies were 
 consigned to the same grave — 
 
 " Where the wicked cease from troubling, and the weary are at rest.' 
 
 Chapter V 
 
 Lord of himself, that heritage of woe. 
 
 Byron. 
 
 Our novel may, to a certain degree, be compared to one of 
 the pantomimes which rival theatres annually bring forth for 
 the amusement of the holiday children. We open with 
 dark and solemn scenes, introducing occasionally a bright 
 image, which appears with the greater lustre from the con- 
 trast around it ; and thus we proceed, until Harlequin is 
 fairly provided with his wand, and despatched to seek his 
 adventures by land and by sea. To complete the parallel, 
 the whole should wind up with a blaze of light and beauty, 
 till our dazzled eyes are relieved, and the illusion disappears, 
 at the fall of the green curtain, which, like the "Finis" 
 at the end of the third volume, tells us that all is over. 
 
 We must, however, be allowed to recapitulate a little 
 in this chapter, previously to launching our hero upon the 
 uncertain and boisterous sea of human life. It will be 
 necessary, for the correct development of the piece, that 
 the attention of the reader should be called to the history 
 of the grandfather of our hero. 
 
30 The King's Own 
 
 Admiral De Courcy was the lineal descendant of an 
 ancient and wealthy family, of high aristocratic connection. 
 He had the misfortune, at an early age, to lose his father, 
 to be an only child, and to have a very weak and doting 
 mother. Add to all these, that he was the heir to a large 
 entailed property, and the reader will acknowledge that 
 €ven the best disposed child stood a fair chance of being 
 spoiled. 
 
 But young De Courcy was not a well-disposed child : he 
 was of a violent, headstrong, and selfish disposition, and 
 was not easily to be checked by the firmest hand. He 
 advanced to man's estate, the cruel tyrant of a fond and 
 foolish mother, and the dislike of all around him. His 
 restless disposition, backed by the persuasions of his mother 
 to the contrary, induced him to enter into the naval service. 
 At the time we are now describing, the name of the boy 
 often appeared on the books of a man-of-war, when the 
 boy himself was at school or at home with his friends -, if 
 there were any regulations to the contrary, they were 
 easily surmounted by interest. The consequence was, 
 that, — without any knowledge of his profession, without 
 having commenced his career by learning to obey before he 
 was permitted to command, — at the early age of eight- 
 een years, young De Courcy was appointed captain of 
 a fine frigate ; and, as the power of a captain of a man-of- 
 war was at that time almost without limit, and his conduct 
 without scrutiny, he had but too favourable an opportunity 
 of indulging his tyrannical propensities. His caprice and 
 violence were unbounded, his cruelty odious, and his ship 
 was designated by the sobriquet of " The Hell Afloat." 
 
 There are, however, limits to the longest tether ; and 
 as no officer would remain in the ship, and the desertion 
 of the men became so extensive, that a fine frigate lay 
 useless and unmanned, the government at last perceived 
 the absolute necessity of depriving of command one who 
 could not command himself. The ship was paid off, and 
 even the interest of Captain De Courcy, powerful as it was, 
 could not obtain further employment for him. Having 
 
The King's Own 31 
 
 for some time been in possession of his large property, 
 Captain De Courcy retired to the hall of his ancestors, 
 with feelings of anger against the government, which his 
 vindictive temper prompted him to indulge by the annoy- 
 ance of all round him : and, instead of diffusing joy and 
 comfort by the expenditure of his wealth, he rendered 
 himself odious by avarice, — a vice the more contemptible, 
 as it was unexpected at so early an age. 
 
 But, much as he was an object of abhorrence, he was 
 more an object of pity. With a handsome exterior, and 
 with fascinating manners, of high birth and connections, 
 with a splendid fortune, — in short, with every supposed 
 advantage that the world could give, he was, through the 
 injudicious conduct of a fond mother, whose heart he had 
 broken, the most miserable of beings. He was without 
 society, for he was shunned by the resident gentlemen in 
 the neighbourhood. Even match-making mothers, with 
 hearts indurated by interest, and with a string of tall 
 daughters to provide for, thought the sacrifice too great, 
 and shuddered at an alliance with Captain De Courcy. 
 Avoided by the tenants of his large estates, whose 
 misfortunes met with no compassion, and whose inability 
 to answer the demands of the rent-day were followed up 
 with immediate distress and seizure, — abhorred by his own 
 household, who, if their services were not required, 
 vanished at his approach, or, if summoned, entered the 
 door of his room trembling, — he was an isolated and 
 unhappy being, a torment to himself and to others. Wise, 
 indeed, was Solomon, when he wrote, that " he who 
 spared the rod spoiled the child." 
 
 The monotony of a life whose sole negative enjoyment 
 consisted in the persecution of others, induced Captain De 
 Courcy to make occasional excursions to the different 
 watering-places ; and whether that, to a certain degree, he 
 was schooled by banishment from society at home, or that 
 he had no opportunity of displaying his diabolical temper, 
 his prepossessing appearance and well-known riches made 
 him a great favourite in these marts for beauty. An 
 
32 The King's Own 
 
 amiable girl was unfortunate enough to fix his attention ; 
 and a hasty proposal was as hastily accepted by her friends, 
 and quietly acquiesced in by herself. She married, and 
 was miserable, until released from her heedless engage- 
 ment by death. 
 
 There are those who excuse a violent temper in a man, 
 and consider it no obstacle to happiness in the marriage 
 life. Alas, may they never discover the fatal error in 
 their own union ! Even with the best hearted and most 
 fondly attached, with those who will lavish every endear- 
 ment, acknowledge their fault and make every subsequent 
 effort to compensate for the irritation of the moment, 
 violence of temper must prove the bane of marriage bliss. 
 Bitter and insulting expressions have escaped, unheeded at 
 the time, and forgotten by the offending party 5 but, 
 although forgiven, never to be forgotten by the other. 
 Like barbed arrows, they have entered into the heart of 
 her whom he had promised before God to love and to 
 cherish ; and remain there they must, for they cannot be 
 extracted. Affection may pour balm into the wounds, and 
 soothe them for the time ; and, while love fans them with 
 his soft wings, the heat and pain may be unperceived ; but 
 passion again asserts his empire, and upon his rude attack 
 these ministering angels are forced from their office of 
 charity, and woman, kind, devoted woman, looks inwardly 
 with despair upon her wounded and festering heart. 
 
 Hurried as she was to an early tomb, the unfortunate 
 wife of Captain De Courcy had still time to present him 
 with two fine boys, whose infantine endearments soothed 
 his violence ; and, as long as they showed no spirit of 
 resistance, they were alternately fondled and frightened. 
 But children are not blind ; and the scenes which con- 
 tinually occurred between their parents, — the tears of their 
 mother, and the remarks made in their presence by the 
 domestics, — soon taught them to view their father with 
 dread. Captain De Courcy perceived that he was shunned 
 by his children, the only beings whom he had endeavoured 
 (as far as his temper would permit) to attach to him. 
 
The King's Own 33 
 
 They were dismissed to school at a very early age, and 
 were soon treated by their father in the same harsh 
 manner as all those who had the misfortune to be under 
 his baneful protection. They returned home at holiday 
 time with regret ; and the recommencement of their 
 scholastic duties was a source of delight. The mother 
 died, and all at home was desolate. The violence of their 
 father seemed to increase from indulgence -, and the youths, 
 who were verging into manhood, proved that no small 
 portion of the parent's fiery disposition had been trans- 
 mitted to them, and showed a spirit of resistance which 
 ended in their ruin. 
 
 William, the eldest of the boys, was, as it were, by 
 birthright, the first to fall a victim to his father's temper. 
 Struck senseless and bleeding to the ground for some 
 trifling indiscretion, as he lay confined to his bed for many 
 subsequent days, he formed the resolution of seeking his 
 own fortune, rather than submit to hourly degradation. 
 At the period at which this occurred, many years pre- 
 viously to the one of which we are now writing, the East 
 India Company had but a short time received its charter, 
 and its directors were not the proud rulers which they 
 have since become. It never was calculated that a 
 company, originally consisting of a few enterprising 
 merchants, could ever have established themselves (even 
 by the most successful of mischievous arts) the controllers 
 of an immense empire, independent of, and anomalous to, 
 the constitution of England ; or that privileges, granted to 
 stimulate the enterprise of individuals, would have been 
 the ground of a monopoly, which, like an enormous 
 incubus, should oppress the nation from the throne to the 
 cottage. They gladly accepted the offers of all adven- 
 turers ; and at that period, there was as much eagerness 
 on their part to secure the services of individuals, as there 
 now is on the part of applicants to be enrolled on the 
 books of the Company. 
 
 William, without acquainting his father, entered into an 
 engagement with the Company, signed it, and was shipped 
 
 K. I. c 
 
34 The King's Own 
 
 off, with many others, who, less fortunate, had been 
 nefariously kidnapped for the same destination. He 
 arrived in India, rose to the rank of captain, and fell in 
 one of the actions that were fought at this time. The 
 letter which William left on the table, directed to his 
 father, informing him of the step he had been induced to 
 take, was torn to atoms, and stamped upon with rage ; 
 and the bitter malediction of the parent was launched with 
 dreadful vehemence upon the truant son, in the presence 
 of the one who remained. 
 
 And yet there was one man, before whom this haughty 
 and vindictive spirit quailed, and who had the power to 
 soften, although not wholly to curb, his impetuosity, — 
 one, who dared to tell him the truth, expose to him the 
 folly and wickedness of his conduct, and meet the angry 
 flash of his eye with composure, — one whose character and 
 office secured him from insult, and who was neither to be 
 frightened nor diverted from his purpose of doing good. 
 It was the vicar of the parish, who, much as he disliked 
 the admiral (for Captain De Courcy had latterly obtained 
 the rank by seniority on the list), continued his visits to 
 the hall, that he might appeal for the unfortunate. The 
 admiral would willingly have shaken him off, but his 
 attempts were in vain. The vicar was firm at his post, 
 and often successfully pleaded the cause of his parishioners, 
 who were most of them tenants of the admiral. He was 
 unassisted in his parochial duties by the curate, a worthy, 
 but infirm and elderly man, fast sinking into his grave, and 
 whom, out of Christian charity, he would not remove from 
 his situation, as it would have deprived him of the means 
 of support. 
 
 Edward, the younger brother, naturally sought that 
 happiness abroad which was denied him at home. The 
 house of the curate was one of his most favourite resorts, 
 for the old man had a beautiful and only daughter, — poor 
 Ellen, whose fate we have just recorded. It is sufficient 
 for the present narrative to state, that these two young 
 people loved, and plighted their troth ; that for two years 
 
The King's Own ^5 
 
 they met with joy, and parted with regret, until the 
 approaching dissolution of the old curate opened their eyes 
 to the dangerous position in which they were placed. He 
 died ; and Edward, who beheld her whom he loved thrown 
 unprotected and penniless on the world, mustered up the 
 courage of desperation, to state to his father the wishes of 
 his heart. 
 
 A peremptory order to leave the house, or abandon 
 Ellen, was the immediate result ; and the indignant young 
 man quitted the roof, and persuaded the unhappy and fond 
 girl to unite herself to him by indissoluble ties, in a 
 neighbouring parish, before the vicar had possession of the 
 facts, or the opportunity to dissuade him from so imprudent 
 a step. He immediately proceeded to the hall, with a 
 faint hope of appeasing the irritated parent ; but his 
 endeavours were fruitless, and the admiral poured forth 
 his anathema against his only child. 
 
 Edward now took his wife to a village some miles 
 distant, where, by their mutual exertions, they con- 
 trived for some time to live upon their earnings ; but the 
 birth of their first child, the hero of this tale, and the 
 expenses attending her sickness, forced him at last (when 
 all appeals to his father proved in vain) to accept the high 
 bounty that was offered for men to enter into his Majesty's 
 service, — which he did under the assumed name of Edward 
 Peters. 
 
 Chapter VI 
 
 disclaim all my paternal care, 
 
 Propinquity and property of blood. 
 
 The barbarous Scythian, 
 
 Or he that makes his generation messes 
 
 To gorge his appetite, shall to my bosom 
 
 Be as well neighbour'd, pitied, and relieved, 
 
 As him. 
 
 Shakespeare. 
 
 In a lofty room, the wainscotting of which was of dark 
 oak, with a high mantel-piece, elaborately carved in the 
 
^6 The King's Own 
 
 same wood, with groups of dead game and flowers, and a 
 few choice pictures let into the panels, — upon an easy chair, 
 that once had been splendid with morocco and gold — sat a 
 man of about fifty years of age ; but his hair was grey, 
 and his face was indented with deep lines and furrows* 
 He was listening with impatience to the expostulations of 
 one who stood before him, and shifted his position from 
 time to time, when more than usually annoyed with the 
 subject. It was Admiral De Courcy, and the vicar of the 
 parish, who was persuading him to be merciful. 
 
 The subject of this discourse was, however, dismissed 
 by the entrance of a servant, who presented to the admiral, 
 upon a large and massive salver, a letter, brought, as he 
 stated, by a seafaring man. The admiral lifted up his 
 glasses to examine the superscription. — " From my worth- 
 less vagabond of a son ! " exclaimed he, and he jerked the 
 letter into the fire without breaking the seal. 
 
 *' Surely, sir," rejoined the vicar, " it would be but 
 justice to hear what he has to offer in extenuation of a 
 fault, too severely punished already. He is your only son, 
 sir, and why not forgive one rash act ? Recollect, sir, 
 that he is the heir to this property, which, being entailed, 
 must of necessity devolve upon him." 
 
 ** Curses on the bare thought," answered the admiral with 
 vehemence. " I hope to starve him first." 
 
 " May the Almighty show more mercy to you, sir, when 
 you are called to your account, than you have shown to an 
 imprudent and hasty child. We are told that we are to 
 forgive, if we hope to be forgiven. Admiral De Courcy, 
 it is my duty to ask you, do you expect (and if so, upon 
 what grounds) to be forgiven yourself ? " 
 
 The admiral looked towards the window, and made no 
 reply. 
 
 The letter, which had been thrown into the grate, was 
 not yet consumed. It had lit upon a mass of not yet ignited 
 coal, and lay there blackening in the smoke. The vicar 
 perceived it, and, walking to the fire-place, recovered the 
 letter from its perilous situation. 
 
The King's Own ^ 
 
 " If you do not choose to read it yourself, admiral — if you 
 refuse to listen to the solicitations of an only child, have you 
 any objection that I should open the letter, and be acquainted 
 with the present condition of a young man, who, as you 
 know, was always dear to me ? " 
 
 " None, none," replied the admiral, sarcastically. " You 
 may read it, and keep it too, if you please." 
 
 The vicar, without any answer to this remark, opened the 
 letter, which, as the reader may probably imagine, was the 
 one written by Edward Peters on the morning of his 
 execution. 
 
 ** Merciful Heaven ! " exclaimed the man of religion, as 
 he sat down to recover from the shock he had received — 
 " Unfortunate boy ! " 
 
 The admiral turned round, astonished at the demeanour 
 of the clergyman, and (it would appear) as if his conscience 
 had pressed him hard, and that he was fearful that his 
 cruel wish, expressed but a few minutes before, had been 
 realised. He turned pale, but asked no questions. After 
 a short time, the vicar rose, and, with a countenance of 
 more indignation than the admiral or others had ever seen, 
 thus addressed him : — 
 
 " The time may come, sir, — nay, I prophesy that it ivill 
 come, when the contents of this letter will cause you bitterly 
 to repent your cruel and unnatural conduct to your son. 
 The letter itself, sir, I cannot entrust you with. In justice 
 to others, it must not be put into your hands ; and after 
 your attempt to commit it to the flames, and your observa- 
 tion that I might read and hep it too, I feel justified in re- 
 taining it. A copy of it, if you please, I will send you, 
 sir." 
 
 " I want neither copy nor original, nor shall I read them 
 if you send them, good sir," answered the admiral, pale 
 with anger. 
 
 ** Fare you well, then, sir. May God turn your heart!" 
 
 So saying, the vicar left the room with a determination 
 not to enter it again. His first inquiry was for the person 
 who had brought the letter, and he was informed that he 
 
^8 The King's Own 
 
 still waited in the hall. It was old Adams, who had 
 obtained leave of absence for a few days, that he might 
 fulfil the last request of Peters. The clergyman here 
 received a second shock, from the news of the death of 
 poor Ellen, and listened with the deepest interest to 
 Adams's straightforward account of the whole catastrophe. 
 The first plan that occurred to the vicar was to send for 
 the child, and take charge of him himself ; but this was 
 negatived, not only by Peters's letter, but also by old 
 Adams, who stated his determination to retain the child 
 until claimed by legal authority. After mature delibera- 
 tion, he considered that the child would be as much under 
 an All-seeing Eye on the water as on the land, and that, 
 at so early an age, he v/as probably as well under the 
 charge of a trustworthy old man like Adams, as he would be 
 elsewhere. He therefore requested Adams to let him 
 have constant accounts of the boy's welfare, and to apply 
 to him for any funds that he might require for his main- 
 tenance ; and, wishing the old man farewell, he set off for 
 the vicarage, communing with himself as to the propriety 
 of keeping the circumstance of the boy's birth a secret, or 
 divulging it to his grandfather, in the hopes of eventually 
 inducing him to acknowledge and to protect him. 
 
 Chapter VII 
 
 To the seas presentlye went our lord admiral, 
 
 With knights couragious, and captains full good ; 
 
 The brave Earl of Essex, a prosperous general, 
 With him prepared to pass the salt flood. 
 
 At Plymouth speedilye took they ship valiantlye, 
 
 Braver ships never were seen under sayle, 
 With their fair colours spread, and streamers o'er their head 
 
 Now, bragging foemen, take heed of your tayle. 
 
 Old Ballad, 1596. 
 
 Many and various were the questions that were put by our 
 little hero to Adams and others, relative to the fate of his 
 
The King's Own 39 
 
 parents. That they were both dead was all the informa- 
 tion that he could obtain ; for, to the honour of human 
 nature, there was not one man in a ship's company com- 
 posed of several hundred, who had the cruelty to tell the 
 child that his father had been hanged. It may, at first, 
 appear strange to the reader, that the child himself was not 
 aware of the fact, from what he had witnessed on the 
 morning of execution ; but it must be recollected that he 
 had never seen an execution before, and had therefore 
 nothing from which to draw such an inference. All he 
 knew was, that his father was on the quarter-deck, with a 
 night-cap on, and that he told him that he was going to sleep. 
 The death of his mother, whose body he was not permitted 
 to see, was quite as unintelhgible, and the mystery which 
 enveloped the whole transaction added no little to the 
 bereavement of the child, who, as I have before stated, 
 from his natural talent and peculiar education, was far 
 more reflective and advanced than children usually are. 
 
 Adams returned to his little charge with pleasure : he 
 had now a right to adopt the child, and consider him as 
 his own. In the ship, the boy was such an object of 
 general sympathy, that not only many of the men, but 
 some of the officers, would gladly have taken him, and 
 have brought him up. The name of his father was, by 
 general consent, never mentioned, especially as Adams 
 informed the officers and men that Peters had been a 
 ^^ purser's name,^^ adopted by the child's father, and that, 
 although the clergyman had stated this, he had not en- 
 trusted him with the real name that the child was entitled 
 to bear. As, therefore, our little hero was not only with- 
 out parents, but without name, he was rechristened by 
 Adams by the cognomen of the ** King's Own," and by 
 that title, or his christian name, Willy, was ever after- 
 wards addressed, both by officers and men. 
 
 There is an elasticity supplied to the human mind by 
 unerring Wisdom, that enables us, however broken down 
 by the pressure of misfortune, to recover our cheerfulness 
 after a while, and resign ourselves to the decrees of 
 
40 The King's Own 
 
 Heaven. It consoles the widow — it supports the bereaved 
 lover, who had long dwelt upon anticipated bliss — it 
 almost reconciles to her lot the fond and forsaken girl, 
 whose heart is breaking. 
 
 Unusually oppressed as Willy was, with the loss of 
 those to whom he had so fondly clung from his birth, in 
 a few months he recovered his wonted spirits, and his 
 cheeks again played with dimples, as his flashing eye 
 beamed from under his long eyelashes. He attached him- 
 self to the old quarter-master, and seldom quitted him — 
 he slept in his hammock, he stood by his side when he 
 was on deck, at his duty, steering the ship, and he listened 
 to the stories of the good old man, who soon taught him 
 to read and write. For three years thus passed his life, at the 
 end of which period he had arrived at the age of nine years. 
 
 After a long monotony of blockade service, the ship was 
 ordered to hoist the flag of a commodore, who was ap- 
 pointed to the command of an expedition against the 
 western coast of France, to create a diversion in favour of 
 
 the Vendean chiefs. Captain A , whether it was that 
 
 he did not like to receive a superior officer on board of his 
 ship, or that he did not admire the service upon which she 
 was to be employed, obtained permission to leave his ship 
 for a few months, for the restoration of his health, to the 
 great joy of the officers and crew ; and an acting captain, 
 of well-known merit, was appointed in his stead. 
 
 The squadron of men-of-war and transports was 
 collected, the commodore's flag hoisted, and the expedi- 
 tion sailed with most secret orders, which, as usual, were as 
 well known to the enemy, and everybody in England, as 
 they were to those by whom they were given. It is the 
 characteristic of our nation, that we scorn to take any 
 unfair advantage, or reap any benefit, by keeping our in- 
 tentions a secret. "We imitate the conduct of that English 
 tar, who, having entered a fort, and meeting a Spanish 
 officer without his sword, being providently supplied with 
 two cutlasses himself, immediately offered him one, that 
 they might engage on fair terms. 
 
The King's Own 41 
 
 The idea is generous, but not wise. But I rather 
 imagine that this want of secrecy arises from all matters 
 of importance being arranged by cabinet councils. In the 
 multitude of councillors there may be wisdom, but there 
 certainly is not secrecy. Twenty men have probably 
 twenty wives, and it is therefore twenty to one but the 
 secret transpires through that channel. Further, twenty 
 men have twenty tongues ; and, much as we complain of 
 women not keeping secrets, I suspect that men deserve the 
 odium of the charge quite as much, if not more, than 
 women do. On the whole, it is forty to one against 
 secrecy, which, it must be acknowledged, are long odds. 
 
 On the arrival of the squadron at the point of attack, 
 a few more days were thrown away, — probably upon the 
 same generous principle of allowing the enemy sufficient 
 time for preparation. Troops had been embarked, with the 
 intention of landing them, to make a simultaneous attack 
 with the shipping. Combined expeditions are invariably 
 attended with delay, if not with disagreement. An officer 
 commanding troops, who, if once landed, would be as 
 decided in his movements as Lord Wellington himself, 
 does not display the same decision when out of his 
 own element. From his peculiar situation on board, — his 
 officers and men distributed in different ships, — the 
 apparent difficulties of debarkation, easily remedied, and 
 despised by sailors, but magnified by landsmen, — from the 
 great responsibility naturally felt in a situation where he 
 must trust to the resources of others, and where his own, 
 however great, cannot be called into action, — he will not 
 decide without much demur upon the steps to be taken ; 
 although it generally happens, that the advice originally 
 offered by the naval commandant has been acceded to. 
 Unless the military force required is very large, marines 
 should invariably be employed, and placed under the 
 direction of the naval commander. 
 
 After three or four days of pros and cons^ the enemy had 
 completed his last battery, and as there was then no 
 rational excuse left for longer delay, the debarkation took 
 
42 The King's Own 
 
 place, without any serious loss on our side, except that 
 
 of one launch, full of the regiment, which was cut in 
 
 halves by the enemy's shot. The soldiers, as they sank in 
 the water, obeyed the orders of the sergeant, and held up 
 their cartouch-boxes, that they might not be wetted two 
 seconds sooner than necessary, — held fast their muskets, 
 — and, without stirring from the gunnels of the boat, 
 round which they had been stationed, went down in as 
 good order as could be expected, each man at his post, 
 with his bayonet fixed. The sailors, not being either so 
 heavily caparisoned or so well drilled, were guilty of a 
 sauve qui pent, and were picked up by other boats. The 
 officer of the regiment stuck to his men, and it is to be 
 hoped that he marched the whole of his brave detachment 
 to heaven, as he often had before to church. But we must 
 leave the troops to form on the beach as well as they can, 
 and the enemy's shot will permit, and retire on board. 
 
 The Commodore's arrangement had been punctually 
 complied with. The ships that were directed to cover 
 the landing of the troops, knocked down many of the 
 enemy, and not a great many more of our own men. The 
 stations of the other ships were taken with a precision 
 deserving of the highest encomiums ; and there is no 
 doubt, that, had not the enemy had the advantage of 
 stone walls, they must have had the worst of it, and 
 would have been well beaten. 
 
 The commodore himself, of course, took the post of 
 honour. Anchored with springs on his cables, he 
 alternately engaged a heavy battery on his starboard 
 bows, a much heavier, backed by a citadel throwing shells, 
 on his beam, and a masked battery on his quarter, which 
 he had not reckoned upon. The latter was rather annoy- 
 ing, and the citadel threw shells with most disagreeable 
 precision. He had almost as much to do as Lord Exmouth 
 at Algiers, although the result was not so fortunate. 
 
 A ship engaging at anchor, with very little wind, and 
 that wind lulled by the percussion of the air from the 
 report of the guns, as it always is, has the disadvantage 
 
The King's Own 43 
 
 of not being able to disengage herself of the smoke, which 
 rapidly accumulates and stagnates as it were between the 
 decks. Under these circumstances you repeatedly hear 
 the order passed upon the main and lower deck of a line- 
 of-battle ship, to point the guns two points abaft the beam, 
 point-blank, and so on. In fact, they are as much in the 
 dark as to the external objects, as if they were blind- 
 folded ; and the only comfort to be derived from this 
 serious inconvenience, is, that every man is so isolated 
 from his neighbour that he is not put in mind of his own 
 danger by witnessing the death of those around him, for 
 they may fall three or four feet from him without his 
 perceiving it : — so they continue to fire as directed, until 
 they are either sent down to the cock-pit themselves, or 
 have a momentary respite from their exertions, when, 
 choked with smoke and gunpowder, they go aft to the 
 scuttle-butt, to remove their parching thirst. So much 
 for the lower and main-deck. We will now ascend to the 
 quarter-deck, where we shall find old Adams at the conn, 
 and little Willy standing behind him. 
 
 The smoke is not so thick here, but that you may perceive 
 the commodore on the poop, walking a step or two to star- 
 board, and then turning short round to port. He is looking 
 anxiously through his glass at the position of the troops, 
 who are ashore to storm the batteries, hoping to see a 
 diversion in our favour made by them, as the affair becomes 
 serious. By a singular coincidence, the commandant of the 
 troops on shore is, with his telescope, looking anxiously at 
 the shipping, hoping the same thing from the exertions of 
 the navy. The captain of marines lies dead upon the poop ; 
 both his legs have been shot off by a spent shot — he is left 
 there, as no surgeon can help him ; and there are two 
 signal-men lying dead alongside him. 
 
 On the hammock-nettings of the quarter-deck stands the 
 acting captain of the ship, erect, and proud in bearing, with 
 an eye of defiance and scorn as he turns towards the enemy. 
 His advice was disregarded ; but he does his duty proudly 
 and cheerfully. He is as cool and unconcerned as if he 
 
44 The King's Own 
 
 were watching the flying-fish as they rise from the bows 
 of the ship, when running down the tropics, instead of the 
 enemy's shot, as they splash in the water alongside, or tear 
 open the timbers of the vessel, and the bodies of his crew. 
 The men still ply their half-manned guns •, but they are 
 exhausted with fatigue, and the bloody deck proves that 
 many have been dismissed from their duty. The first 
 lieutenant is missing ; you will find him in the cock-pit — 
 they have just finished taking up the arteries of his right 
 arm, which has been amputated ; and the Scotch surgeon's 
 assistant, who for many months bewailed the want of 
 practice, and who, for having openly expressed his wishes 
 on that subject, had received a sound thrashing from the 
 exasperated midshipmen, is now complimenting the fainting 
 man upon the excellent stump that they have made for him : 
 while fifty others, dying or wounded, with as much variety 
 as Homer's heroes, whose blood, trickling from them in 
 several rivulets, pours into one general lake at the lowest 
 level of the deck, are anxiously waiting their turn, and 
 distract the purser's steward by their loud calls, in every 
 direction at the same time, for the tin-pot of water, with 
 which he is relieving their agonising thirst. 
 
 A large shark is under the counter ; he is so gorged with 
 human flesh, that he can scarcely move his tail in the tinged 
 water ; and he now hears the sullen plunges of the bodies, 
 as they are launched through the lower-deck port, with 
 perfect indifference. ** Oh ! what a glorious thing's a 
 battle ! " 
 
 But to return to our particular narrative. As we men- 
 tioned before, the citadel threw shells with remarkable 
 precision, and every man who had been killed on the 
 quarter-deck of the commodore's ship, towards which the 
 attention of the enemy was particularly directed, had been 
 laid low by these horrible engines of modern warfare. 
 The action still continued, although the fire on both sides 
 had evidently slackened, and the commodore's glass had at 
 several intervals been fruitlessly directed towards the 
 troops on shore, when accident brought about a change in 
 
The King's Own 45 
 
 favour of our countrymen. Through some unknown cause^ 
 the magazine of the enemy's largest battery exploded, and 
 buried the fabric with its tenants in one mass of ruin. The 
 enemy were panic-struck with their misfortune — our troops 
 and sailors inspired with fresh courage — and the fire was 
 recommenced with three cheers and redoubled vigour. 
 The troops pushed on, and succeeded in taking possession 
 of the masked battery, which had so long and so effectually 
 raked the commodore. 
 
 A few minutes after this had occurred, the citadel recom- 
 menced its fire, and a shell, descending with that terrific 
 hissing peculiar to itself alone, struck the main-bitts on the 
 quarter-deck, and, rolling aft, exploded. Its fragments 
 scattered death around, and one piece took the hat off the 
 head of little Willy, who was standing before Adams, and 
 then buried itself in the old man's side. He staggered 
 forward, and fell on the coils of rope, near the companion- 
 hatch, and when the men came to assist him below, the 
 pain of moving was so intense, that he requested to be left 
 where he was, that he might quietly breathe his last. 
 
 Willy sat down beside his old friend, holding his hand. 
 — " A little water, boy — quick, quick ! " It was soon pro- 
 cured by the active and affectionate child ; who, indifferent 
 to the scene around him, thought only of administering to 
 the wants, and alleviating the misfortune, of his dearest 
 friend. Adams, after he had drunk, turned his head 
 round, apparently revived, and said, in a low and catching 
 voice, as if his powers were fast escaping, " Willy, your 
 father's name was not Peters — I do not know what it was ^ 
 but there is a person who does, and who takes an interest 
 in your welfare — he lives in " 
 
 At this moment another shell bounded through the 
 rigging, and fell within a few feet of the spot where 
 Willy and old Adams were speaking. Willy, who was 
 seated on a coil of rope, supporting the head of his 
 benefactor, no sooner perceived the shell as it rolled 
 towards the side, with its fuse pouring out a volume 
 of smoke, than, recollecting the effects of the former 
 
46 The King's Own 
 
 explosion, rather than the danger of the attempt, he ran 
 towards it, and not being able to lift it, sank down on 
 his knees, and, with astonishing agility, succeeded in 
 rolling it overboard, out of the larboard entering-port, 
 to which it was near. The shell plunged in the water, 
 and, before it had descended many feet, exploded with 
 a concussion that was communicated to the ship fore and 
 aft. Our hero then resumed his station by the side of 
 Adams, who had witnessed what had taken place. 
 
 " You have begun well, my boy," said the old man, 
 faintly. "There's ne'er a man in the ship would have 
 done it. Kiss me, boy." 
 
 The child leaned over the old man, and kissed his 
 cheek, clammy with the dews of death. Adams turned 
 a little on one side, uttered a low groan, and expired. 
 
 Chapter VIII 
 
 Now dash'd upon the billow, 
 Our opening timbers creak, 
 Each fears a watery pillow. 
 
 To cling to slippery shrouds 
 Each breathless seaman crowds, 
 
 As she lay 
 
 Till the day 
 In the Bay of Biscay O. 
 
 Sea Song. 
 
 As it will only detain the narrative, without being at all 
 necessary for its development, I shall not dwell upon 
 the results of the engagement, which was soon after 
 decided, with very indifferent success on our side. The 
 soldiers were re-embarked, the ships hauled out of reach 
 of the enemy's guns, and a council of war summoned — 
 on which it was agreed, nem. con,, that no more was to 
 be done. The despatches were sent home — they certainly 
 differed a little, but that was of no consequence. The 
 sum total of killed and wounded was excessively gratifying 
 
The King's Own 47 
 
 to the nation, as it proved that there had been hard fighting. 
 By-the-bye, John Bull is rather annoying in this respect : 
 he imagines that no action can be well fought unless there 
 is a considerable loss. Having no other method of judging 
 of the merits of an action, he appreciates it according to 
 the list of killed and wounded. A merchant in toto, he 
 computes the value of an object by what it has cost him, 
 and imagines that what is easily and cheaply obtained 
 cannot be of much value. The knowledge of this peculiar 
 mode of reasoning on his part, has very often induced 
 officers to put down very trifling contusions, such as a 
 prize-fighter would despise, to swell up the sum total 
 of the loss to the aggregate of the honest man's expecta- 
 tions. 
 
 To proceed. As usual in cases of defeat, a small 
 degree of accusation and recrimination took place. The 
 army thought that the navy might have beaten down stone 
 ramparts, ten feet thick ; and the navy wondered why 
 the army had not walked up the same ramparts, which 
 were thirty feet perpendicular. Some of the ships accused 
 others of not having had a sufficient number of men killed 
 and wounded ; and the boats' crews, whenever they met 
 on shore, fought each other desperately, as if it were 
 absolutely necessary, for the honour of the country, that 
 more blood should be spilt. But this only lasted three 
 weeks, when a more successful attempt made them all 
 shake hands, and wonder what they had been squabbling 
 about. 
 
 There was, however, one circumstance, which occurred 
 during the action, that had not been forgotten. It had 
 been witnessed by the acting captain of the ship, and 
 had been the theme of much comment and admiration 
 among the officers and men. This was the daring feat 
 of our little hero, in rolling the shell over the side. 
 
 Captain M (the new commander) as soon as his more 
 
 important avocations would permit, made inquiries among 
 the officers (being himself a stranger in the ship), relative 
 to Willy. His short but melancholy history was soon 
 
48 The King's Own 
 
 told ; and the disconsolate boy was summoned from under 
 the half-deck, where he sat by the body of Adams, which, 
 with many more, lay sewed up in its hammock, and covered 
 over with the union-jack, waiting for the evening, to 
 receive the rites of Christian burial, before being committed 
 to the deep. 
 
 Knowing that Adams had been his only protector, a 
 feeling of compassion for the bereaved and orphan boy, 
 and admiration of his early tokens of bravery, induced 
 
 Captain M , who never formed a resolution in haste, 
 
 or abandoned it if once formed, to take the boy under 
 his own protection, and to place him as an officer on that 
 quarter-deck upon which he had so distinguished himself. 
 Willy, in obedience to orders received, stood by the 
 captain, with his hat in his hand. 
 
 " What is your name, my boy ? " said the captain, 
 passing a scrutinising glance over his upright and well- 
 proportioned figure. 
 
 ''Willy, sir." 
 
 ** And what's your other name ? " 
 
 " Kjng's Own, sir." 
 
 This part of the boy's history was now explained by the 
 second lieutenant, who was in command, in consequence 
 of the first lieutenant being wounded. 
 
 " He must have a name," replied the captain. " William 
 King's Own will not do. Is he on the books ? " 
 
 " No, sir, he is not ; shall I put him down as William 
 Jones, or William Smith ? " 
 
 " No, no, those are too common. The boy has neither 
 father, mother, nor name, that we know of: as we may, 
 therefore, have a choice of the latter for him, let it be a 
 good one. I have known a good name make a man's 
 fortune with a novel-reading girl. There is a romance in 
 the boy's history j let him have a name somewhat romantic 
 also." 
 
 " Ay, ay, sir," replied the lieutenant — " here, marine, 
 tell my boy to bring up one of the volumes of the novel 
 in my cabin." 
 
The King's Own 49 
 
 The book made its appearance on the quarter-deck. 
 '^ Perhaps, sir, we may find one here," said the lieutenant, 
 presenting the book to the captain. 
 
 The captain smiled as he took the book. *' Let us see," 
 said he, turning over the leaves — " ' Deiamere ! ' that's too 
 puppyish. * Fortescue ! ' don't like that. * Seymour ! ' 
 Yes, that will do. It's not too fine, yet aristocratic and 
 pretty. Desire Mr Hinchen, the clerk, to enter him on 
 the books as Mr William Seymour, midshipman. And 
 now, youngster, I will pay for your outfit, and first year's 
 mess : after which I hope your pay and prize-money will 
 be sufficient to enable you to support yourself. Be that 
 as it may, as long as you do credit to my patronage, I shall 
 not forget you." 
 
 Willy, with his straw hat in one hand, and a superero- 
 gatory touch of his curly hair with the other, made a 
 scrape with his left leg, after the manner and custom of 
 seafaring people — in short, he made the best bow that he 
 could, observing the receipt that had been given him by 
 his departed friend Adams. D'Egville might have turned 
 
 up his nose at it ; but Captain was perfectly satisfied : 
 
 for, if not an elegant, it certainly was a grateful bow. 
 
 Our young officer was not sent down to mess in the 
 berth of the midshipmen. His kind and considerate captain 
 was aware, that a lad who creeps in at the hawse-holes, 
 i.e., is promoted from before the mast, was not likely to 
 be favourably received in the midshipmen's mess, especially 
 by that part of the community who, from their obscure 
 parentage, would have had least reason to complain. He 
 was therefore consigned to the charge of the gunner. 
 
 Sincere as were the congratulations of the officers and 
 men, Willy was so much affected with the loss of his fond 
 guardian, that he received them with apathy, and listened 
 to the applause bestowed upon his courage with tears that 
 flowed from the remembrance of the cause which had 
 stimulated him to the deed. At the close of the day, he 
 saw the body of his old friend committed to the deep, with 
 quivering lips and aching brow, — and, as it plunged into 
 
 K I. D 
 
50 The King's Own 
 
 the clear wave, felt as if he was left alone in the world, 
 and had no one to love and to cling to. 
 
 We do not give children credit for the feelings which 
 they possess, because they have not, at their early age, 
 acquired the power of language to express them correctly. 
 Treat a child as you would an equal, and, in a few months, 
 you will find that the reason of his having until then 
 remained childish, was because he had heretofore been 
 treated as a being of inferior capacity and feelings. True 
 it is, that at an early age the feelings of children are called 
 forth by what we consider as trifles ; but we must recollect, 
 in humility, that our own pursuits are as vain, as trifling, 
 and as selfish — " "We are but children of a larger growth." 
 
 The squadron continued to hover on the French coast, 
 with a view of alarming the enemy, and of making a more 
 fortunate attempt, if opportunity occurred. Early in the 
 morning of the fourth day after Willy had been promoted 
 to the quarter-deck, a large convoy of chasse-marees (small 
 coasting vessels, lugger-rigged) were discovered rounding 
 a low point, not three miles from the squadron. A general 
 signal to chase was immediately thrown out, and in half- 
 an-hour the English men-of-war were in the midst of them 
 pouring broadside after broadside upon the devoted vessels, 
 whose sails were lowered in every direction, in token of 
 submission. The English men-of-war reminded you of so 
 many hawks, pouncing upon a flight of small birds ; and the 
 vessels, with their lowered sails just flapping with the 
 breeze, seemed like so many victims of their rapacity, who 
 lay fluttering on the ground, disabled, or paralysed with 
 terror. Many escaped into shoal water, others ran ashore, 
 some were sunk, and about twenty taken possession of by 
 the ships of the squadron. They proved to be part of a 
 convoy, laden with wine, and bound to the Garonne. 
 
 One of the chasse-marees , being a larger vessel than the 
 rest, and laden with wine of a better quality, was directed 
 by the commodore to be sent to England ; the casks of 
 wine on board of the others were hoisted into the different 
 ships, and distributed occasionally to the crews. Captain 
 
The King's Own 51 
 
 M thought that the departure of the prize to England 
 
 would be a favourable opportunity to send our hero to 
 receive his outfit, as he could not well appear on the 
 quarter-deck as an officer without his uniform. He 
 therefore directed the master's mate, to whose charge the 
 prize was about to be confided, to take William with him, 
 and wrote to his friends at Portsmouth, whither the vessel 
 was directed to proceed, to fit him out with the requisite 
 articles, and send him back by the first ship that was 
 directed to join the squadron. The prize was victualled, 
 the officer received his written orders, was put on board 
 with our hero and three men, and parted company with 
 the squadron. 
 
 The master's mate, who was directed to take the vessel 
 to Portsmouth, was the spurious progeny of the first 
 lieutenant of a line-of-battle ship, and a young woman 
 who attended the bumboat, which supplied the ship's 
 company with necessaries, and luxuries, if they could 
 afford to pay for them. The class of people who obtain 
 their livelihood by these means, and who are entirely 
 dependent upon the navy for their subsistence, are 
 naturally anxious to secure the good-will of the command- 
 ing officers of the ships, and usually contrive to have on 
 their establishment a pretty-looking girl, who, although 
 very reserved to the junior officers of the ship, is all 
 smiles to the first lieutenant, and will not stand upon 
 trifles for the benefit of her employer. Beauty for men — 
 gold for women ! Such are the glittering baits employed, 
 in this world, to entice either sex from the paths of duty 
 or discretion. 
 
 The service was indebted to this species of bribery for 
 the officer in question. The interest of his supposed 
 father was sufficient to put him on the quarter-deck ; and 
 the profits of his mother, who, having duly served her 
 apprenticeship, had arrived to the dignity of bumboat 
 woman herself, and was a fat, comely matron, of about 
 forty years of age, were more than sufficient to support 
 him in his inferior rank. His education and natural 
 
52 The King's Own 
 
 abilities were not, however, of that class to procure him 
 either friends or advancement; and he remained in the 
 capacity of master's mate, and was likely long to continue 
 so, unless some such event as a general action should 
 include him in a promotion which would be regulated by 
 seniority. He was a mean-looking, vulgar little man, 
 with a sharp face and nose — the latter very red, from the 
 constant potations of not only his own allowance, but 
 of that of every youngster in the ship whom he could 
 bully or cajole. 
 
 His greatest pride and his constant study was " slang," 
 in which he was no mean proficient. He always carried 
 in his pocket a colt (i.e. a foot and a half of rope, knotted 
 at one end, and whipped at the other,) for the benefit of 
 the youngsters, to whom he was a most inordinate tyrant. 
 He could fudge a day's work, which he sent in with the 
 rest of the midshipmen, and which proofs of theoretical 
 knowledge of their profession were in those days little 
 attended to ; but he was very ignorant, and quite unfit to 
 
 take charge of any vessel. Captain M , who, as we 
 
 before stated, had joined the ship as acting captain, and 
 had not had time to ascertain the merits or demerits of 
 the officers, had given the prize to his charge because he 
 was the senior mate of the ship. 
 
 The prize had scarcely trimmed her sails and shaped 
 her course, when Mr Bullock, the master's mate, called 
 our hero to him, and addressed him in the following 
 elegant phraseology : — 
 
 "Now, you rebellious spawn — touch your hat, you 
 young whelp" — (knocking off poor Willy's only hat, 
 which flew to leeward, and went overboard) — "mind 
 what I say, for I mean to be as good as a father to you. 
 You're not an officer yet — and if you were, it would be all 
 the same — so no capers, no airs. You see I've only three 
 men in the vessel besides myself; they are in three watches ; 
 so your duty will be to attend to me in the cabin. You'll 
 mull my claret — I always drinks a noggin every half hour 
 to keep the wind out, and if it an't ready and an't good, 
 
The King's Own ^^ 
 
 — do you see this ? " — (taking the colt out of his pocket). 
 — ** Stop, you'd better feel it at once, and then, when 
 you knows what the taste of it is, you'll take care how 
 you're slack in stays." So saying, he administered three 
 or four hearty cuts on the back and shoulders of our hero, 
 who had been sufficiently drilled into the manners and 
 customs of a man-of-war, to know the value of the proverb, 
 " The least said, the soonest mended." 
 
 A spigot had been already inserted into one of the casks 
 of claret which were lashed on deck ; and, as the small 
 vessel was very uneasy in the heavy swell of the Bay of 
 Biscay, our hero had sufficient employment in watching the 
 pot of claret, and preventing it from being upset by the 
 motion of the vessel, as it was constantly heating on the 
 stove in the cabin. This potation was regularly presented 
 by Willy every half hour, as directed, to his commanding 
 officer, who, if it was too sweet, or not sweet enough, 
 or if he could not drink the whole, invariably, and much 
 to the annoyance of our hero, threw the remainder into 
 his face, telling him that was his share of it. 
 
 This arrangement continued in full force for three days 
 and three nights — for Willy was roused up five or six 
 times every night to administer the doses of mulled claret 
 which Mr Bullock had prescribed for himself, who seemed, 
 thin and meagre as he was, to be somewhat like a bamboo 
 in his structure {i.e, hollow from top to bottom), as if to 
 enable him to carry the quantity of fluid that he poured 
 down his throat during the twenty-four hours. As for 
 intoxicating him, that appeared to be impossible; from 
 long habit, he seemed to be like a stiff ship that careened 
 to her bearings, and would sooner part company with her 
 masts than heel any farther. 
 
 On the fourth day, a strong gale sprang up from the 
 northwest, and the sea ran very high. The chasse-inaree, 
 never intended to encounter the huge waves of the Bay 
 of Biscay, but to crawl along the coast and seek protection 
 from them on the first indication of their fury, — labouring 
 with a heavy cargo, not only stowed below, but on the 
 
54 The King's Own 
 
 decks, — was not sufficiently buoyant to rise on the summits 
 of the waves, which made a clean breach over her, and 
 the men became exhausted with the wet and the in- 
 clemency of the season. On the third day of the gale, 
 and seventh since they had parted company with the 
 fleet, a squall brought the mainmast by the board; the 
 foresail was lowered to close-reef, when a heavy sea 
 struck the vessel, and pouring a torrent over her decks, 
 swept overboard the three men who were forward reefing 
 the sail. Mr Bullock, the master's mate, was at the 
 helm — ^Willy, as usual, down below, attending the mulled 
 claret, which had been more than ever in request since 
 the bad weather had come on. 
 
 The mate quitted the helm, and ran forward to throw 
 a rope to the seamen who were struggling in the water 
 with the wreck to leeward. He threw one, which was 
 seized by two of them (the other had sunk) ; and as soon 
 as they had hold of it, and it became taut from their 
 holding on, he perceived to his dismay that he had stood 
 in the remaining part of the coil, and that it had encircled 
 itself several times round his body, so that the men 
 were hauling him overboard. "Let go, let go, or I'm 
 overboard ! " was a useless exclamation to drov/ning men; 
 they held on, and the mate too held on by the rigging 
 for his life, — the efforts of the drowning men dragging 
 him at last from off his legs, and keeping his body in 
 a horizontal position, as they hauled at his feet, and he 
 clung in desperation to the lee-shrouds. " Willy, Willy, 
 a knife — quick, quick ! " roared the mate in his agony. 
 Willy, who, hearing his name called, and followed up 
 by the " quick, quick," had no idea that anything but 
 the mulled claret could demand such unusual haste, stopped 
 a few seconds to throw in the sugar and stir it round 
 before he answered the summons. He then started up 
 the hatchway with the pot in his hand. 
 
 But these few seconds had decided the fate of Mr 
 Bullock, and as Willy's head appeared up the hatchway, 
 so did that of Mr Bullock disappear as he sank into 
 
The King's Own 55 
 
 a grave so dissonant to his habits. He had been unable 
 to resist any longer the united force of the drowning 
 men, and Willy was just in time to witness his submersion, 
 and find himself more destitute than ever. Holding on 
 by the shroud with one hand, with the pot of mulled 
 claret in the other, Willy long fixed his eyes on the 
 spot where his tyrannical shipmate had disappeared from 
 his sight, and, forgetting his persecution, felt nothing 
 but sorrow for his loss. Another sea, which poured over 
 the decks of the unguided vessel, roused him from his 
 melancholy reverie, and he let go the pot, to cling with 
 both hands to the rigging as the water washed over his 
 knees, — then, seizing a favourable opportunity, he suc- 
 ceeded in regaining the cabin of the vessel, where he 
 sat down and wept bitterly — bitterly for the loss of 
 the master's mate and men, for he had an affectionate 
 and kind heart — bitterly for his own forlorn and destitute 
 situation. Old Adams had not forgotten to teach him 
 to say his prayers, and Willy had been accustomed to 
 read the Bible, which the old man explained to the best 
 of his ability. The vessel laboured and groaned as she 
 was buffeted by the waves — the wind howled, and the 
 sea struck her trembling sides and poured over her decks. 
 In the midst of this wild discord of the elements, the 
 small voice of the kneeling child, isolated from the rest 
 of the world, and threatened soon to be removed from 
 it, was not unheard or unheeded by an omniscient and 
 omnipotent God, who has said that not a sparrow should 
 fall to the ground without his knowledge, and has 
 pointed out of how much more value are we than many 
 sparrows. 
 
 Willy ended his devotions and his tears ; and, feeling 
 wet and cold, recollected that what would warm his 
 departed friend the mate, would probably have the same 
 effect upon him. He crawled up the companion-hatch 
 with another tin-pot, and having succeeded in obtaining 
 some wine from the cask, returned to the cabin. Having 
 warmed it over the fire, and sugared it according to the 
 
^6 The King's Own 
 
 well-practised receipt of Mr Bullock, he drank more of 
 it than, perhaps, in any other situation, he would have 
 done, and lying down in the standing bed-place at the 
 side of the cabin, soon fell into a sound sleep. 
 
 Chapter IX 
 
 And there he went ashore without delay, 
 Having no custom-house nor quarantine 
 
 To ask him awkward questions on the way, 
 About the time and place where he had been : 
 
 He left his ship to be hove down next day. 
 
 Don Juan, 
 
 The prize vessel, at the time when she carried away her 
 masts, had gained considerably to the northward of Ushant, 
 although the master's mate, from his ignorance of his pro- 
 fession, was not aware of the fact. The wind, which now 
 blew strongly from the N.W., drove the shattered bark up 
 the Channel, at the same time gradually nearing her to the 
 French coast. After twenty-four hours' driving before the 
 storm, during which Willy never once awoke from his 
 torpor, the vessel was not many leagues from the port of 
 Cherbourg. It was broad daylight when our hero awoke ; 
 and, after some little time necessary to chase away the 
 vivid effects of a dream, in which he fancied himself to be 
 on shore, walking in the fields with his dear mother, he 
 recollected where he was, and how he was situated. He 
 ascended the companion-ladder, and looked around him. 
 The wind had nearly spent its fury, and was subsiding 
 fast •, but the prospect was cheerless — a dark wintry sky 
 and rolling sea, and nothing living in view except the sea- 
 bird that screamed as it skimmed over the white tops of 
 the waves. The mizen of the vessel was still hoisted up, 
 but the sheet had disengaged itself from the belaying-pin, 
 and the sail had been rent from the bolt-rope by the storm. 
 Part of it was blown away, and the rest, jagged and 
 tattered at its extremities, from constant buffeting, flapped 
 ** mournfully to and fro" with the heavy rolling of the 
 vessel. 
 
The King's Own ^y 
 
 Willy, holding on by the companion-hatch, scanned the 
 horizon in every point of the compass, in hopes of succour, 
 but for a long while in vain. At last his keen eye 
 detected a small vessel, under a single close-reefed sail, 
 now rising on the tops of the waves, now disappearing in 
 the deep trough of the sea. She was sloop-rigged, and 
 running down towards him. 
 
 In a quarter of an hour she had neared to within a mile, 
 and Willy perceived, with delight, that the people were 
 on deck, and occasionally pointing towards him. Hs ran 
 down below, and opening the chest of Mr Bullock, which 
 was not locked, took a liberty which he would never have 
 dared to contemplate during that worthy officer's lifetime, 
 viz., that of pulling forth one of his two best white shirts, 
 reserved for special occasions. This he took on deck, 
 made it fast to a boat-hook staff, and hoisted as a signal of 
 distress. He did also mechanically lift his hand to his 
 head with the intention of waving his hat, but he was 
 reminded, by not finding it there, that it had been the first 
 votive offering which had been made to appease the im- 
 placable deities presiding over the winds and waves. The 
 vessel closed with him, hove-to to windward, and, after 
 some demur, a small boat, capable of holding three persons, 
 was hoisted over the gunnel, and two hands, jumping into 
 her, rowed under the stern of the wreck. 
 
 ** You must jump, my lad — there's no going alongside a 
 craft, without any sail to steady her, in such a sea as this. 
 Don't be afraid. We'll pick you up." 
 
 Willy, who had little fear in his composition, although 
 he could not swim, leaped from the taffrail of the vessel 
 into the boiling surge, and immediately that he rose to the 
 surface was rescued by the men, who, seizing him by the 
 waistband of the trousers, hauled him into the boat, and 
 threw him down in the bottom under the thwarts. Then, 
 without speaking, they resumed their oars, and pulled to 
 the other vessel, on board of which they succeeded in estab- 
 lishing our hero and themselves, although the boat was 
 stove in the attempt, and cast adrift as useless. 
 
SS The King's Own 
 
 Willy's teeth chattered, and his whole frame trembled 
 with the cold, as he went aft to the captain of the sloop, 
 who was sitting on deck wrapped up in a rough white 
 great-coat, with his pipe in his mouth. The captain was a 
 middle-sized, slightly made young man, apparently not 
 more than twenty-five years old. His face was oval, with 
 a remarkably pleasing expression ; his eye small and 
 brilliant ; and, notwithstanding the roughness of his out- 
 ward attire, there was a degree of precision in the arrange- 
 ment of his hair and whiskers, which proved that with him 
 neatness was habitual. He had a worsted mitten on his 
 left hand ; the right, which held his pipe, was bare, and 
 remarkably white and small. Perceiving the situation of 
 the boy, he called to one of the men — " Here, Phillips, 
 take this poor devil down, and put something dry on him, 
 and give him a glass of brandy ; when he's all right 
 again, we'll find out from him how he happened to be 
 adrift all by himself, like a bear in a washing-tub. There, 
 go along with Phillips, boy." 
 
 " He's of the right sort," said one of the men who had 
 brought him on board, casting his eyes in the direction of 
 our hero, who was descending the companion; — "I 
 thought so when I see'd him have his wits about him to 
 hoist the signal. He made no more of jumping overboard 
 than a Newfoundland dog — never stopped two seconds to 
 think on't." 
 
 " "We shall soon see what he is made of," replied the 
 captain, relighting his pipe, which had been allowed to go 
 out during the time that they were rescuing Willy and the 
 men from the boat when she returned. 
 
 Willy was soon provided with more comfortable clothing ; 
 and, whether it was or was not from a whim of Phillips's, 
 who had been commissioned to rig him out, he appeared on 
 deck the very picture of the animal which he had been 
 compared to by the sailor. Thick woollen stockings, 
 which were longer than both his legs and thighs, a pair of 
 fisherman's well-greased boots, a dark Guernsey frock that 
 reached below his knees, and a rough pea-jacket that de- 
 
The King's Own 59 
 
 scended to his heels, made him appear much broader than 
 he was high. A red woollen night-cap completed his attire, 
 which, although anything but elegant, was admirably 
 calculated to assist the brandy in restoring the circulation. 
 
 "Here he is, captain, all a-tantOy but not very neat," 
 said Phillips, shoving "Willy up the hatchway, for he was 
 so encumbered with the weight of his new apparel that he 
 never could have ascended without assistance — " I have 
 stowed away some spirits in his hold, and he no longer 
 beats the devil's tattoo with his grinders." 
 
 " Now, my lad," said the captain, taking his pipe out of 
 his mouth, *' tell me what's your name, what you are, and 
 how you came to be adrift in that barky ? Tell me the 
 truth — be honest, always be honest, it's the best policy." 
 
 Now, it rather unfortunately happened for Willy, that 
 these first two questions were rather difficult for him to 
 answer. He told his story with considerable hesitation, — 
 believed his name was Seymour — believed he was a midship- 
 man. He was listened to without interruption by the 
 captain and crew of the vessel, who had gathered round to 
 hear him " spin his yarn." When he had finished, the 
 captain, looking Willy very hard in the face, thus addressed 
 him: — **My little friend, excuse me, but I have some 
 slight knowledge of the world, and I therefore wish that 
 you had not forgotten the little advice I gave you, as 
 a caution, before you commenced your narrative. Did not 
 I say, be honest ? You believe you are an officer, believe your 
 name to be Seymour. I tell you, my lad, in return, that I 
 don't believe a word that you say ; but, however, that's of 
 no consequence. It requires reflection to tell a lie, and I 
 have no objection to a little invention, or a little caution 
 with strangers. All that about the battle was very clever 
 — but still, depend upon it, honesty's the best policy. 
 When we are better acquainted, I suppose we shall have 
 the truth from you. I see the land on the lee-bow — we 
 shall be into Cherbourg in an hour, when I expect we 
 shall come to a better understanding." 
 
 The Sainte Fierge, for such was the name of the vessel, 
 
6o The King's Own 
 
 which smelt most insufferably of gin, and, as our readers 
 may probably have anticipated, was a smuggler, running 
 between Cherbourg and the English coast, soon entered 
 the port, and, having been boarded by the officers of the 
 douane (who made a very proper distinction between 
 smuggling from and to their own territories), came to an 
 anchor close to the mole. As soon as the vessel was 
 secured, the captain went below, and in a few minutes re- 
 appearing, dressed in much better taste than one-half of the 
 saunterers in Bond Street, went on shore to the cabaret 
 where he usually took up his quarters, taking with him 
 our hero, whose strange attire, so peculiarly contrasted 
 with that of the captain's, was a source of great amusement 
 to the sailors and other people, who were assembled on 
 the quay. 
 
 ^^ Ah, mon capitaine, char me de vous revoir, Buvons un 
 coup, n^est-ce pas?" said the proprietor of the cabaret, 
 presenting a bottle of prime French brandy, and a liquor 
 glass, to the captain, as he entered. 
 
 *' Heureux voyage, tiest'-ce pas. Monsieur?" 
 
 '^ Ca va hien" replied the captain, throwing the glass of 
 liquor down his throat. " My apartments, if you please, 
 and a bed for this lad. Tell Mr Beaujou, the slopseller, 
 to come here directly with some clothes for him. Is 
 Captain Debriseau here ? " 
 
 " He is, sir, — lost all his last cargo — obliged to throw 
 over in deep water." 
 
 ** Never mind : he ran the two before — he can afford it." 
 
 " Ah, but Captain Debriseau is in a very bad humour, 
 nevertheless. He called me an old cheat this morning — 
 £est incroyable," 
 
 " Well, present my compliments to him, and say that I 
 request the honour of his company, if he is not otherwise 
 engaged. Come, youngster." 
 
 The landlord of the cabaret ushered the captain of the 
 sloop and our hero, with many profound bows, into a low 
 dark room, with only one window, the light from which 
 was intercepted by a high wall, not four feet distant. The 
 
The King's Own 61 
 
 floor was paved with tiles, the table was deal, not very 
 clean, and the white-washed walls were hung around with 
 stiff drawings of several smuggling vessels, whose superior 
 sailing and consequent good fortune had rendered them 
 celebrated in the port of Cherbourg. The straw had been 
 lighted under some logs of wood on the hearth, which as 
 yet emitted more smoke than flame ; a few chairs, an old 
 battered sofa, and an upright press, completed the 
 furniture. 
 
 " I knew your beautiful sloop long before she came in — 
 there's no mistaking her ; and I ordered the apartment de 
 Monsieur to be prepared. C^est unjoli appartement , riest-ce 
 pas. Monsieur ? so retired ! " With some forbearance, but 
 with great judgment, the beauty of the prospect was not 
 expatiated upon by the obsequious landlord. 
 
 ** It will do to smoke and eat in, Mons. Picardon, and 
 that is all that I require. Now bring pipes and tobacco, 
 and take my message to Captain Debriseau." 
 
 The latter gentleman and the pipes were ushered in at 
 the same moment. 
 
 ** M*Elvina, my dear fellow, I am glad to see that you have 
 had better luck than I have had this last trip. Curses on 
 the cutter, Sacristie,''^ continued Captain Debriseau, who 
 was a native of Guernsey, " the wind favoured her three 
 points after we were about, or I should have doubled him 
 — ay, and have doubled the weight of the leathern bag too. 
 Sacre nom de Dieu,^^ continued he, grinding his teeth, and 
 pulling a handful of hair out of his rough head, which could 
 have spared as much as Absalom used to pull — " Que ga me 
 fait hisquerP 
 
 " Bah I laissez alter, mon ami — sit down and take a pipe," 
 rejoined our captain. " This is but pettifogging work at 
 the best 5 it won't pay for the means of resistance. My 
 lugger will be ready in May, and then I'll see what a 
 revenue cutter is made of. I was at Ostend last Christmas, 
 and saw her. By Jove, she's a beauty ! She was planked 
 above the watermark then, and must be nearly ready for 
 launching by this time. I'll pass through the Race but 
 
62 The King's Own 
 
 once more 5 then adieu to dark nights and south-west gales 
 — and huzza for a row of teeth, with the will, as well as 
 the power, to bite. Sixteen long nines, my boy ! " 
 
 " Quick returns though, quick returns, messmate," 
 answered Debriseau, referring to the Cherbourg system of 
 smuggling, which, being his own means of livelihood, he 
 did not like to hear disparaged. 
 
 For the benefit of those who have no objection to unite 
 a little information with amusement, I shall here enter into 
 a few remarks relative to the smuggling carried on between 
 the port of Cherbourg and our own coast, — premising that 
 my readers have my entire approbation to skip over a page 
 or two, if they are not anxious to know anything about these 
 nefarious transactions. 
 
 The port of Cherbourg, from its central situation, is 
 better adapted than any other in France, for carrying on 
 this trade with the southern coast of England. The nearest 
 port to it, and at which, therefore, the smuggling is 
 principally carried on, is the Bill of Portland, near to the 
 fashionable watering-place of Weymouth. 
 
 The vessels employed in this contraband trade, of which 
 gin is the staple commodity, are generally small luggers or 
 sloops, from forty to sixty tons burthen. In fine summer 
 weather, row-boats are occasionally employed ; but as the 
 run is only of twenty-four hours' duration, the dark nights 
 and south-west gales are what are chiefly depended upon. 
 
 These vessels are not armed with an intention to resist ; 
 if they are perceived by the cruisers or revenue vessels 
 before they arrive on the EngHsh coast, and are pursued, 
 they are obliged (if not able to escape, from superior sailing) 
 to throw over their cargo in " deep water," and it is lost. 
 The cargo is thrown overboard, to avoid the penalty and 
 imprisonment to which it would subject the crew, as well 
 as the confiscation of the vessel and cargo. If they reach 
 the English coast, and are chased by the revenue vessels, 
 or have notice, by signals from their agents on shore, that 
 they are discovered, and cannot land their cargoes, they 
 take the exact bearings and distances of several points of 
 
The King's Own 63 
 
 land, and with heavy stones sink their tubs of spirits, 
 which are always strung upon a hawser like a row of beads. 
 There the cargo is left, until they have an opportunity of 
 going off in boats to creep for it, which is by dragging large 
 hooks at the bottom until they catch the hawsers, and regain 
 possession of their tubs. Such is the precision with which 
 their marks are taken, and their dexterity from continual 
 practice, that they seldom fail to recover their cargo. The 
 profits of this contraband trade are so great, that if two 
 cargoes are lost a third safely landed will indemnify the 
 owners. 
 
 I must now observe, much to the discredit of the parties 
 who are concerned, that this contraband trade is not carried 
 on by individuals, but by a company ; one hundred pound 
 shares are taken of " ^ speculation^'' the profits of which are 
 divided yearly : and many individuals residing on the coast, 
 who would be thought incapable of lending themselves to 
 such transactions, are known to be deeply interested. 
 
 The smuggling from Havre and Ostend, etc., is confined 
 to the coast of Ireland and the northern shores of England ; 
 the cargoes are assorted and of great value ; and as the 
 voyage and risk are greater, they are generally fast-sailing 
 vessels, well manned and armed, to enable them to offer 
 resistance, when the disparity of force is not too great on 
 their side. 
 
 Captain M^Elvina had taken up the smuggling trade 
 between Cherbourg and Portland to keep himself employed 
 until a fine lugger of sixteen guns, the command of which 
 had been promised to him, and which was intended to run 
 between Havre and the coast of Ireland, should be ready ; 
 whereas Captain Debriseau had been all his life employed in 
 the Cherbourg trade, and had no intention of quitting it. 
 
 ** But what have you got there, Mac ? " said Debriseau, 
 pointing with his pipe to our hero, who sat on the leathern 
 sofa, rolled up in his uncouth attire ; " is it a bear, or a 
 boy ? " 
 
 '* A boy, that I picked up from a wreck. I am thinking 
 what I shall do with him — he is a smart bold lad." 
 
64 The King's Own 
 
 **By Jupiter," rejoined Debriseau, "I'll make him my 
 Ganymede, till he grows older." 
 
 Had Willy been as learned in mythology as Captain 
 Debriseau, he might have informed him, that he had served 
 in that capacity in his last situation under Mr Bullock ; 
 but although the names, as appertaining to a ship, were 
 not unknown to him, yet the attributes of the respective 
 parties were a part of his education that old Adams had 
 omitted. 
 
 " He will be fit for anything," rejoined our captain, " if 
 he will only be honest." 
 
 ** M*Elvina," said Debriseau, "you always have these 
 words in your mouth, * be honest.' Now, as, between 
 ourselves, I do not think that either you or I are leading 
 very honest lives, allow me to ask you why you continually 
 harp upon honesty when we are alone ? I can easily under- 
 stand the propriety of shamming a little before the world." 
 
 "Debriseau, had any other man said half as much, I 
 would have started my grog in his face. It's no humbug 
 on my part. I mean it sincerely ; and, to prove it, I will 
 now give you a short sketch of my life; and after you 
 have heard it, I have no doubt but that you will acknow- 
 ledge, with me, the truth of the old adage, that * Honesty 
 is the best policy.' " 
 
 But Captain M'Elvina must have a chapter to himself. 
 
 Chapter X 
 
 He hath as fine a hand at picking a pocket as a woman, and is as nimble- 
 fingered as a juggler. If an unlucky session does not cut the rope of his 
 life, I pronounce he will be a great man in history. 
 
 Beggar's Opera, 
 
 "It is an old proverb that *one half the world do not 
 know honv the other half live.' Add to it, nor luhere they 
 live, and it will be as true. There is a class of people, of 
 whose existence the public are too well aware; but of 
 
The King's Own 6^ 
 
 whose resorts, and manners, and customs, among their 
 own fraternity, they are quite as ignorant now as they 
 were one hundred years back. Like the Chinese and the 
 castes of the East, they never change their profession, but 
 bequeath it from father to son, as an entailed estate from 
 which they are to derive their subsistence. The class to 
 which I refer consists of those members of the community 
 at large, who gain their livelihood by inserting their hands 
 into the pockets of other people, — not but that all the 
 world are doing the same thing, and have, since the 
 creation ; but then it is only as amateurs ; — the class I refer 
 to, do it professionally, which, you must observe, makes a 
 wide difference. From this class I am lineally descended ; 
 and, at an early age, was duly initiated into all the mysteries 
 of my profession. I could filch a handkerchief as soon as 
 I was high enough to reach a pocket, and was declared to 
 be a most promising child. 
 
 "I must do my father and mother the justice to acknow- 
 ledge, that while they initiated me in the mysteries of my 
 future profession, they did not attempt to conceal that 
 there were certain disagreeable penalties attached to 
 ' greatness ; ' but, when prepared from our earliest years, 
 we look forward to our fate with resignation : and, as I 
 was invariably told, after my return from some daring feat, 
 that my life would be a short and a merry one, I was not 
 dismayed at the words of my prophetic mother, who 
 observed, ' Patrick, my boy, if you don't wish to bring my 
 grey hairs with sorrow to the grave, promise me to confine 
 yourself to picking pockets ; you will then only be trans- 
 ported : but if you try your hand at higher work, you'll 
 be hung before you're twenty.' My father, when I re- 
 turned with a full assorted cargo, and emptied my pockets 
 into his hands, with as much rapidity as I had transferred 
 the contents of others into my own, used to look at me 
 with a smile of pride and satisfaction, and, shaking his 
 head, would exclaim — ' Pat, you'll certainly be hung.' 
 
 " Accustomed, therefore, from my infancy, to consider 
 twenty summers, instead of threescore years and ten, as 
 
 K. I. E 
 
66 The King's Own 
 
 the allotted space of my existence, I looked forward to my 
 exit from this world, by the new drop, with the same 
 placidity as the nobleman awaits the time appointed for the 
 entrance of his body into the vault containing the dust of 
 his ancestors. At the age of eleven years, I considered 
 myself a full-grown man, dared all that man could do, and 
 was a constant, but unwilling, attendant upon the police 
 office, where my youth, and the promises of my mother 
 that I should be reformed, assisted by showers of tears on 
 her part, and by apparent ingenuousness on mine, frequently 
 pleaded in my favour with the prosecutors. 
 
 " I often lamented, when at that early age, that my 
 want of education prevented me from attempting the 
 higher walks of our profession , but this object of my 
 ambition was gained at last, I had taken a pocket-book 
 from a worthy Quaker, and, unfortunately, was perceived 
 by a man at a shop window, who came out, collared, and 
 delivered me into the hands of the prim gentleman. 
 Having first secured his property, he then walked with me 
 and a police officer to Bow Street. My innocent face, and 
 my tears, induced the old gentleman, who was a member 
 of the Philanthropic Society, not only not to prefer the 
 charge against me, but to send me to the institution at 
 Blackfriars Road. 
 
 **I made rapid progress under their tuition, and after 
 three years' close application on my part, and continual 
 inculcation, on the part of my instructors, of the distinction 
 between meu7n and tuuruj I was considered not only a very 
 clever boy, but a reformed character. The Quaker 
 gentleman, who had placed me in the institution, and who 
 was delighted with the successful results of his own pene- 
 tration, selected me as his servant, and took me home." 
 
 "Well, I'm glad you were so soon reformed," said 
 Debriseau. ** Where the devil's my handkerchief?" 
 
 "Oh, I've not got it," answered M*Elvina, laughing. 
 " But you are as much mistaken now as the Quaker was at 
 that time. A wild beast may be tamed, and will remain so, 
 provided he be not permitted again to taste blood. Then 
 
The King's Own 67 
 
 all his ferocious propensities will reappear, and prove that 
 his education has been thrown away. So it was with me. 
 At first, I felt no desire to return to my old employment ; 
 and had not my master trusted me too much, I might have 
 remained honest. You often hear masters exclaiming 
 against the dishonesty of servants. I know it to be a fact, 
 that most of them have been made dishonest by the care- 
 lessness of their employers, in having allowed temptations 
 to lie in their way, which were too strong to be resisted. 
 My master used to send me up to his bureau, for small 
 sums which he required, out of a yellow canvas bag, full 
 of gold and silver. I am convinced that he frequently used 
 to give me the key, when in company with his friends, in 
 order that, after I had left the room, he might tell my 
 history, and prove the beneficial effects of the Society. 
 One day the yellow bag and I both disappeared. 
 
 "I threw off the modest grey coat in which I was 
 equipped, and soon procured more fashionable attire. I 
 looked in the glass, and scarcely knew myself; I had, 
 therefore, no fear of being recognised by my former 
 master. Not wishing to be idle, I hired myself out as 
 tiger and valet to a young nobleman, who was spending 
 ten thousand pounds a year upon an allowance of seven 
 hundred. He was a complete roue^ and I must gratefully 
 own, that I learnt a great deal from him, independently of 
 the secret of tying my neck-cloth correctly ; — but we 
 soon parted." 
 
 "How was that.?" said Debriseau, knocking the ashes 
 out of his pipe. 
 
 " Why, he had several diamond rings, and as he only 
 wore two or three at a time, I sported the others at our 
 parties. A malicious fellow, who was envious of the dash 
 I cut, observed, in my hearing, that it was impossible to 
 tell real stones from good paste. I took the hint, and 
 one by one, the diamonds vanished, and paste usurped their 
 places. Shortly after, the creditors, not being able to 
 touch my master's money or his person, seized his effects, 
 and the diamond rings were almost the only articles which 
 
68 The King's Own 
 
 escaped. My master, who always looked out for a rainy 
 day, had collected these rings as a sort of stand-by, to * raise 
 the wind ' when required. By ill luck, he took them to 
 the same jeweller who had been employed by me to sub- 
 stitute the paste, and to whom I had sold the real stones. 
 He came home in a great rage, accused me of dishonesty, 
 and sent for a constable. I told him that I did not consider 
 his conduct to be that of a gentleman, and wished him good 
 morning. I had indeed intended to quit him, as he was 
 done up, and only waited his return to tell him so. I had 
 moved my trunks, accordingly, before he was out of bed, 
 I believe a few of his suits, and some of his linen, were 
 put in with mine, in my extreme haste ; but then he owed 
 me wages. 
 
 "When I wished his lordship good morning, I certainly 
 imagined that I had little more to learn ; but I must 
 acknowledge that I was mistaken. I knew that there was 
 a club established for servants out of place, and had been a 
 subscriber for two years, — as there were many advantages 
 arising from it, independently of economy. I was now a 
 member by right, which, as long as I was in place, I was 
 not. To this club I repaired, and I soon found that I, who 
 fancied myself perfect, was but a tyro in the profession. It 
 was a grand school certainly, and well organised. We had 
 our president, vice-president, auditors of accounts, corre- 
 sponding members, and our secretary. Our seal was a 
 bunch of green poplar rods, with * Service is no inheritance ^ 
 as a motto. 
 
 " But not to weary you with a life of adventures which 
 would fill volumes, I shall merely state, that I was in place, 
 out of place, following up my profession in every way, 
 with great credit among our fraternity, until, one day, I 
 found myself, after a tedious confinement in Newgate, 
 decorated with a yellow jacket, and pair of fetters, on 
 board of a vessel of three hundred tons burthen, bound to 
 New South Wales. We sailed for Sidney, where I had 
 been recommended, by the gentleman in a large wig, to 
 remain seven years for change of air. The same night 
 
The King's Own 69 
 
 that the vessel came into the cove, having more liberty than 
 the rest of my shipmates (from my good behaviour during 
 the passage), I evaded the sentry, and slipping down by the 
 cable into the water, swam to a ship lying near, which, I 
 had been informed, was to sail on the ensuing day for India. 
 
 " The captain being very short of hands, headed me up 
 in a cask ; and, although the vessel was not permitted to 
 sail until very strict search had been made for me, I was 
 not discovered, and it was supposed that I had been 
 drowned in making the attempt. Aware that it would 
 not be good for my health to return previously to the 
 expiration of the seven years, I determined to learn a 
 new profession — that of a sailor, for which I always had 
 a predilection; besides, it quieted my conscience as to 
 the impropriety of not submitting to the just punishment 
 of the law, as you will acknowledge that seven years at 
 sea, and seven years' transportation, are one and the same 
 thing. From Batavia I went to Calcutta, and worked 
 before the mast in the country vessels to Bombay and 
 the Persian Gulf, for four years, when I thought myself 
 capable of taking higher rank in the service, if I could 
 get it ; especially as I had picked up sufficient navigation 
 to be able to work the ship's reckoning. 
 
 " At Calcutta, I obtained a situation as second mate of 
 a fast-sailing schooner employed in the smuggling of 
 opium into China, and after three voyages, rose to the 
 office of chief mate. Had I remained another voyage 
 I should have been captain of the vessel ; but my seven 
 years were out, and I was anxious to return to England, 
 and look the Robin Red Breasts boldly in the face. I 
 had saved enough money to pay my passage, and was 
 determined to go home like a gentleman, if I had not 
 exactly gone out in that character. What little cash 
 remained after my passage was paid, I lost at play to an 
 army officer, who was returning in the same ship. 
 
 "When I landed at Portsmouth, I retained a suit of 
 *long togs,' as we call them, and, disposing of all the 
 rest of my stock to the Jews, I started for London. On 
 
JO The King's Own 
 
 my arrival I found that my father and mother were both 
 dead, and I was meditating upon my future course of 
 life, when an accident determined me. I picked up a 
 pocket-book " — (here Captain Debriseau eyed him hard) — 
 "I know what you mean," continued M^Elvina; "but 
 it ivas on the pavement, and not in a pocket, as you would 
 imply by your looks. It was full of slips and scraps of 
 paper of all sorts, which I did not take the trouble to 
 read. The only available articles it contained, were three 
 one-pound notes. The owner's name and address were 
 written on the first blank leaf. I cannot tell what 
 possessed me, but I had an irresistible desire to be honest 
 once in my life, and the temptation to be otherwise not 
 being very great, I took the pocket-book to the address, 
 and arrived at the house just as the old gentleman to 
 whom it belonged was giving directions to have it adver- 
 tised. He was in evident perturbation at his loss — and 
 I came just at the fortunate moment. He seized his book 
 with rapture, examined all the papers, and counted over 
 the bills and notes. 
 
 " * Honesty is a scarce commodity, young man,' said 
 he, as he passed the leathern tongue of the book through 
 the strap. * You have brought me my book, without 
 waiting till a reward was offered. I desired my clerk 
 to offer twenty guineas in the advertisement — I will now 
 give you a larger sum.' He sat down, opened a cheque- 
 book, and wrote me a draft on his banker. It was for 
 one hundred pounds ! I was profuse in my acknowledg- 
 ments, while he replaced his book in his inside pocket, 
 and buttoned up his coat. * Honesty is a scarce commodity, 
 young man,' repeated he; 'call here to-morrow at one 
 o'clock, and I will see if I can be of any further service 
 to you.' 
 
 " I returned to my lodgings in a very thoughtful mood. 
 I was astonished at the old man's generosity, and still 
 more at my having honestly obtained so large a sum. 
 I went to bed, and reflected on what had passed. The 
 words of the old gentleman still rang in my ears — 
 
The King's Own 71 
 
 'Honesty is a scarce commodity.' I communed with 
 myself. Here have I been, nearly all my life, exercising 
 all my talents, exerting all my energies in dishonest 
 practices, and when did I, even at the most successful 
 hit, obtain as much money as I have by an honest act ? 
 I recalled the many days of anxious waiting that I had 
 found necessary to accomplish a scheme of fraud — the 
 doubtful success — the necessity of satisfying my associates 
 — the inability of turning into ready money the articles 
 purloined until the hue and cry was over — the trifling 
 sum which I was obliged to take from the purchasers of 
 stolen articles, who knew that I was at their mercy — 
 the destitute condition I occasionally was in — and the life 
 of constant anxiety that I had led. These reflections 
 forced the truth upon my mind, that there was more, 
 in the end, to be gained by honesty than by roguery. 
 
 ** Once convinced, I determined to lead a new life, and 
 from that moment I assumed as my motto, 'Honesty is 
 the best policy.' Do you hear, youngster ? — * always be 
 honest.' " 
 
 Chapter XI 
 
 Through tattered clothes small vices do appear ; 
 Robes and furred gowns hide all. 
 
 Lear, 
 
 Willy, who was tired out with the extreme mental and 
 bodily exertion that he had undergone, gave no answer 
 to M'Elvina's injunction, except a loud snore, which 
 satisfied the captain that his caution in this instance was 
 not heard. 
 
 **Well," said Debriseau, after a short pause, "How 
 long did this honest fit last } " 
 
 " What do you mean ? — How long did it last .? Why, 
 it has lasted, — Captain Debriseau, — it has lasted until now ; 
 and shall last, too, as long as this frame of mine shall hold 
 
72 The King's Own 
 
 together. But to proceed. The next morning I called 
 upon the old gentleman according to his request. He 
 again told me, * honesty was a scarce commodity.' I could 
 have informed him that it had always been so with me, 
 but I kept my own counsel. He then asked me what 
 were my profession and pursuits ? Now, as I had two 
 professions to choose between, and as my last was con- 
 sidered to be just as abundant in the commodity he prized 
 so much, as my former one was known to be deficient, I 
 replied that I was a sea-faring man. * Then I may find 
 some employment for you,' replied the old gentleman ; 
 and having put several questions to me as to the nature of 
 the service I had seen, he desired me to take a walk till 
 three o'clock, when he would be happy to see me at 
 dinner ; — ' We'll then be able to have a little conversa- 
 tion together, without being overheard.' 
 
 "I was exact to my appointment, and my old friend, 
 who was punctuality itself, did not allow me to remain in 
 the parlour two minutes before dinner was on the table. 
 As soon as it was over, he dismissed the servant girl who 
 attended, and turned the key in the door. After sounding 
 me on many points, during a rapid discussion of the first 
 bottle of port, he proceeded to inform me, that 2i friend of 
 his wanted a smart fellow as captain of a vessel, if I would 
 like the employment. This suited me; and he then 
 observed, that I must have some notion of how officers 
 were managed, as I had been in the China trade, and that 
 he thought that the vessel was to be employed in the con- 
 traband trade on the English coast. 
 
 ** This startled me a little, for I was afraid that the old 
 gentleman was laying a trap for my newly-acquired com- 
 modity ; and I was about to refuse with some slight show 
 of indignation, when I perceived a change in his counten- 
 ance, indicative of disappointment — so I only demurred 
 until he had sufficient time to prove that there was no 
 dishonesty in the transaction, when, being convinced that 
 he was in earnest, I consented. Before the second bottle 
 was finished, I found out that it was not for 2i friend, but 
 
The King's Own T^i 
 
 for himself, and for one of his own vessels, that he was 
 anxious to procure a smart captain ; and that he had a 
 large capital embarked in the concern, which was very 
 profitable. The pocket-book which I had returned was 
 of no little importance ; had it fallen into other hands, it 
 might have told tales. 
 
 " I have now been three years in the old gentleman's 
 employ, and a generous good master he has been ; and 
 his daughter is a sweet pretty girl. I lost my last vessel, 
 but not until she had cleared him;^Io,ooo; and now the 
 old gentleman is building me another at Havre. Not to 
 be quite idle, I have in the meantime taken command of 
 one of their sloops : for the old gentleman has a good 
 many shares in the speculation, and his recommendations 
 are always attended to." 
 
 " Void Monsieur Beaujou, avec les habit s,^^ said the maitre 
 d'auberge, opening the door, and ushering in the marchand 
 des modes maritimes, with a huge bundle. 
 
 " Now, then, boy, rouse out," said M*Elvina, shaking 
 our hero for a long while, without any symptoms of re- 
 covering him from his lethargy. 
 
 *' Try him on the other tack," said the captain, lifting 
 him off the sofa, and placing him upright on his legs. 
 
 " There's no sugar in it yet," said Willy, who was 
 dreaming that he was supplying the mulled claret to the 
 old master's-mate. 
 
 " Ah," said Debriseau, laughing, "he thinks his mamma 
 is giving him his tea." 
 
 "The lying little rascal told me this morning he had 
 no mother. Come, Mr William Seymour, / believe'^'' — 
 (mimicking) "officer, / believe — Oh, you're a nice honest 
 boy. Have you a mother, or do you tell fibs in your 
 sleep as well as awake } * Be honest.' " 
 
 The last words, that Willy had heard repeated so often 
 during the day, not only unsealed his eyes, but recalled to 
 his recollection where he was. 
 
 " Now, my youngster, let us rig you out ; you recollect 
 you stated that you were going home for your outfit, and 
 
74 The King's Own 
 
 now I'll give you one, that you may have one fib less on 
 your conscience." 
 
 By the generosity of M*Elvina, Willy was soon fitted 
 with two suits of clothes, requiring little alteration, and 
 Mr Beaujou, having received a further order for a supply 
 of shirts, and other articles necessary to complete, made 
 his bow and disappeared. 
 
 The two captains resumed their chairs, and our hero 
 again coiled himself on the sofa, and in one minute was as 
 sound asleep as before. 
 
 " And now, M'Elvina," resumed Debriseau, " I should 
 like to know by what arguments your employer contrived 
 to reconcile your present vocation with your punctilious 
 regard for honesty ? For I must confess, for my own 
 part, that although I have followed smuggling as a liveli- 
 hood, I have never defended it as an honest calling, and 
 have looked forward with occasional impatience to the 
 time when I should be able to leave it off." 
 
 " Defend it ! Why I'll just repeat to you the argu- 
 ments used by the old gentleman. They convinced me. 
 As I said before, I am always open to conviction. Captain 
 Debriseau, you will acknowledge, I trust, that laws are 
 made for the benefit of all parties, high and low, rich and 
 poor?" 
 
 " Granted." 
 
 ** You'll allow also, that law-makers should not be 
 law-breakers ; and that if they are so, they cannot expect 
 that others will regard what they disregard them- 
 selves." 
 
 " Granted also." 
 
 " Once more — by the laws of our country, the receiver 
 is as bad as the thief, and they who instigate others to 
 commit an offence, are equally guilty with the offending 
 party." 
 
 "It cannot be denied," replied Debriseau. 
 
 "Then you have acceded to all the propositions that 
 I wish, and we shall come to an undeniable and mathe- 
 matical conclusion. Observe, law-makers should not be 
 
The King's Own 75 
 
 law-breakers. Who enacted these laws ? — the aristocracy 
 of the nation, seated in their respective houses, the Lords 
 and the Commons. Go, any night you please, to the 
 Opera, or any other place of public resort, in which you 
 can have a view of their wives and daughters. I'll stake 
 my existence that every female there shall be dizened out 
 in some contraband article of dress — not one but shall 
 prove to be a receiver of smuggled goods, and therefore, 
 as bad as those whom they have instigated to infringe the 
 laws of their country. If there were no demand there 
 would be no supply." 
 
 '* Surely they don't all drink gin ? " replied Debriseau. 
 
 "Drink gin! You're thinking of your d — d Cherbourg 
 trade — your ideas are confined. Is there nothing 
 smuggled besides gin ? Now, if the husbands and fathers 
 of these ladies, — those who have themselves enacted the 
 laws, — wink at their infringement^ why should not others 
 do so .? The only distinction between the equally offend- 
 ing parties is, that those who are in power, — who possess 
 all the comforts and luxuries which this world can afford, 
 — ^who offend the laws from vanity and caprice, and 
 entice the needy to administer to their love of display, 
 are protected and unpunished; while the adventurous 
 seaman, whose means of supporting his family depend 
 upon his administering to their wishes, or the poor devil 
 who is unfortunately detected with a gallon of spirits, is 
 thrown into gaol as if he were a felon. There cannot 
 be one law for the rich and another for the poor, Debriseau. 
 When I hear that the wives of the aristocracy have been 
 seized by the revenue officers, and the contraband articles 
 which they wear have been taken oiF their backs, and 
 that they have been sentenced to twelve months' imprison- 
 ment, by a committal from the magistrate, then — and 
 not till then — will I acknowledge our profession to be 
 dishotiestP 
 
 ** Very true," said Debriseau ; "it shows the folly of 
 men attempting to make laws for their masters^ 
 
 **Is it not shocking," continued M*Elvina, "to reflect 
 
^6 The King's Own 
 
 upon the conduct of the magistrate, who has just sentenced 
 perhaps four or five unhappy wretches to a dungeon for 
 an offence against these laws ? He leaves the seat of 
 Justice, and returns to the bosom of his family. Hear 
 his wife," — (mimicking) — "*Well, my dear, you're come 
 at last — dinner has been put back this half hour. I 
 thought you would never have finished with those odious 
 smugglers.' * Why, my love, it was a very difficult case 
 to prove ; but we managed it at last, and I have signed 
 the warrant for their committal to the county gaol. 
 They're sad troublesome fellows, these smugglers.' — 
 Now look at the lady : * "What dress is that you put on to 
 greet your husband ? ' ' Gros de Naples de Lyon.' — 
 * The lace it is trimmed with ? ' * Valenciennes.' — * Your 
 gloves, madam ? ' * Fabrique de Paris.' — ' Your ribands, 
 your shoes, your handkerchief ? ' All, all contraband. — 
 Worthy magistrate, if you would hold the scales of 
 Justice with an even hand, make out one more mittimus 
 before you sit down to table. Send your wife to languish 
 a twelvemonth in company with the poor smugglers, and 
 then * to dinner with what appetite you may.' And now, 
 Debriseau, have I convinced you that I may follow my 
 present calling, and still say — * he honest ? ' " 
 
 "Why, yes, I think we both mayj but would not this 
 evil be removed by free trade ? " 
 
 " Heaven forbid ! " replied M'Elvina, laughing ; " then 
 there would be no smuggling,'^ 
 
 Chapter XII 
 
 Love me, love my dog. 
 
 Proverb. 
 
 It is the misfortune of those who have been in constant 
 habits of deceit, that they always imagine others are 
 attempting the same dishonest practices. For some time, 
 M'Elvina felt convinced that our little hero had swerved 
 
The King's Own "jj 
 
 from truth in the account which he gave of himself; and 
 it was not until after repeated catechisings, in which he 
 found that, strange and improbable as the narrative 
 appeared, Willy never altered from or contradicted his 
 original statement, that he believed the boy to be as 
 honest and ingenuous as might have been inferred from 
 his prepossessing countenance. 
 
 To this conviction, however, did he arrive at last ; and 
 our hero — who seemed no sooner to have lost one protector 
 than to have the good fortune to find another — became 
 the favourite and companion of his new captain, instead of 
 his domestic, as had been originally contemplated. A lad 
 of Willy's age, who is treated with kindness and con- 
 sideration, is soon attached, and becomes reconciled to any 
 change of circumstances. It was a matter of indifference 
 to our hero, whether he was on the quarter-deck of a 
 man-of-war, or in the cabin of a smuggling sloop. Con- 
 tented with his present lot, — with the happy thoughtless- 
 ness of youth, he never permitted the future to disturb his 
 repose, or affect his digestion. 
 
 Willy had been nearly a month at Cherbourg when 
 M'Elvina's sloop took in another cargo. "Willy," said 
 M^Elvina, one evening as they sat together in the apart- 
 ment at the cabaret, " to-morrow I shall, in all probability, 
 sail for the English coast. I have been thinking what I 
 shall do with you. I do not much like parting with you ; 
 but, on reflection, I think it will be better that I should 
 leave you behind. You can be of no use, and may be in 
 the way if we should be obliged to take to our boat." 
 
 Willy pleaded hard against this arrangement. *^I never 
 have a friend but I lose him directly," said the boy, and 
 the tears started into his eyes. 
 
 " I trust you will not lose me, my dear fellow," replied 
 M^Elvina, moved at this proof of affection ; " but I must 
 explain to you why I leave you. In the first place," added 
 he, laughing, " with that mark on your shoulder, it would 
 be felony without benefit of clergy for you to be found in 
 my possession ; but of that I would run the risk. My 
 
yS The King's Own 
 
 serious reasons are as follow : — If this trip proves fortunate, 
 I shall not return to Cherbourg. I have business of 
 importance in London, which may require my presence for 
 some weeks in that metropolis and its vicinity. I told you 
 before, that I am about to take the command of a very 
 different vessel from this paltry sloop, and upon a more 
 dangerous service. In four or five months she will be 
 ready to sail, and during that time I shall be constantly on 
 the move, and shall hardly know what to do with you. 
 Now, Willy, you are not aware of the advantages of 
 education — I am : and as mine was given to me by 
 strangers, so will I in return bestow as much upon you 
 as I can afford. You must, therefore, go to school 
 until my return. You will at least acquire the French 
 language, and you will find that of no little use to you 
 hereafter." 
 
 Willy, accustomed to discipline and to breathe the air of 
 passive obedience, submitted without raising any more 
 objections. Debriseau joined, and they all three sallied 
 forth to make arrangements for placing our hero "^« 
 pension" where they had been recommended. Having 
 effected this, they agreed to lounge on the Place d ^Armes 
 till sunset, when they took possession of one of the 
 benches. M^Elvina and Debriseau lighted their cigars, 
 and puffed away in silence, while Willy amused himself 
 with watching the promenaders as they passed in review 
 before him. 
 
 They had not remained there many minutes when a 
 poodle-dog, hien tondu, and white as a sheep from the 
 river before the day of shearing, walked up to them with 
 an air of sagacious curiosity, and looked M'Elvina stedfastly 
 in the face. M'Elvina, taking his cigar from his mouth, 
 held it to the dog, who ran up to it, as if to smell it ; the 
 lighted end coming in contact with his cold nose, induced 
 the animal to set up a loud yell, and retreat to his master 
 much faster than he came, passing first one fore-paw and 
 then the other over his nose, to wipe away the pain, in 
 such a ridiculous manner as to excite loud merriment, not 
 
The King's Own 79 
 
 only from our party on the bench, but also from others 
 who had witnessed the scene. 
 
 " So much for curiosity," said M*Elvina, continuing his 
 mirth. The proprietor of the dog, a young Frenchman, 
 dressed very much ^^ en caUcoty'' did not, however, seem 
 quite so much amused with this practical joke ; he cocked 
 his hat fiercely on one side, raised his figure to the utmost 
 of his height, and walking up, en grand militalre, addressed 
 M*Elvina, with ** Comment ^ monsieur, vous avez fait une 
 grande betise la — vous niinsultez — " 
 
 *' I think I had better not understand French," said 
 M^Elvina, aside to Debriseau ; then turning to the French- 
 man, with a grave face, and air of incomprehension, — 
 " What did you say. Sir ? " 
 
 " Ah ! you are Inglishman. You not speak French ? " 
 — M'Elvina shook his head, and began to puff away his 
 cigar. 
 
 " Den, sare, if you not speak de French language, I 
 speak de Inglis like von natif, and I tell you, sare, que vous 
 niave% insult e. Got for dam ! — you burnt my dog nose •, 
 vat you mean, sare ? " 
 
 " The dog burnt his own nose," answered M'Elvina, 
 mildly. 
 
 ** Vat you mean ? de dog burn his own nose ! How is 
 a dog cap-able to burn his own nose ? Sare, you put de 
 cigar to my dog nose. I must have de satisfaction or de 
 apology tout de suited"* 
 
 *' But, sir, I have not insulted you.^"* 
 
 " Sare, you insult my dog — he is von and de same ting 
 — mon chien est un chien de sentiment. He feel de affront all 
 de same vid me — I feel de affront all de same vid him. 
 Vous riavex qu'a choisir, monsieur,^ 
 
 " Between you and your dog," answered M'Elvina — 
 " Well, then, I'd rather fight the dog." 
 
 *' Bah ! fight de dog — de dog cannot fight, sare : 
 mais je suis son maitre et son ami, and I vill fight for 
 him." 
 
 "Well then, monsieur, I did insult your dog, I must 
 
8o The King's Own 
 
 acknowledge, and I will give him the satirfaction which you 
 require." 
 
 " And how vill you give de satisfaction to de dog ? " 
 
 " "Why, sir, you said just now that he was un chien de 
 beaucoup de sentiment: — if he is so, he will accept and 
 properly appreciate my apology." 
 
 " Ah, sare," replied the Frenchman, relaxing the stern 
 wrinkles of his brow, "rW hien dit\ you will make de 
 apology to de dog. ^ans doute, he is de principal, I am 
 only de second. Oest une affaire arrange e. Moustache^ 
 viens ici, Moustache" (the dog came up to his mister.) 
 " Monsieur est tres-fache de t^ avoir hrule le ne-zP 
 
 " Monsieur Moustache," said M^Elvina, taking off his 
 hat with mock gravity to the dog, who seemed deter- 
 mined to keep at a respectful distance, "yV vous demande 
 mille excuses^"* 
 
 " Ah I que c^est charmantl " cried some of the fair sex, 
 who, as well as the men, had been attracted by, and were 
 listening to the dispute. " Que monsieur V Anglais est drolel 
 et voyez Moustache, comme il a Pair content ! — vraiment c^est 
 un chien d^ esprit," " Allez, Moustache" said his master, who 
 was now all smiles, *^ donnez la patte a monsieur — donnez done. 
 Ah, sare, he forgive you, I am very sure — il ria pas de 
 malice ; but he is afraid of de cigar. De burnt shild dred 
 de vater, as your great Shakespeare say." 
 
 " Oest un chien de talent : il a beaucoup de sentiment, Je suis 
 hien f ache de V avoir blesse, monsieur," 
 
 " Et monsieur park fran^ais ? " 
 
 " I should esteem myself fortunate, if I spoke your 
 language as well as you do mine," replied M*Elvina, in 
 French. 
 
 This compliment, before so many bystanders, com- 
 pletely won the heart of the vain and choleric French- 
 man. 
 
 "Ah, sare, you are too complaisant. I hope I shall have 
 de pleasure to make your acquaintance. Je m^appelle 
 monsieur Auguste de Poivre, Tai Vhonneur de vous presenter 
 une carte d^adresse, I live on de top of my mother's, — sur 
 
The King's Own 8i 
 
 P entresol. My mother live on de ground — rez-de-chaussee. 
 Madame ma mere will be delighted to receive a monsieur of 
 so much vit and adresse." So saying, away went monsieur 
 Auguste de Poivre, followed by Moustache, who was " all 
 von and de same tingr 
 
 " Well, we live and learn," said M'Elvina, laughing, as 
 soon as the Frenchman was at a little distance ; " I never 
 thought that I should have made an apology to a dog." 
 
 ** Oh, but," replied Debriseau, " you forget that he was 
 un chien de sentiment^'' 
 
 ** You may imagine, from my behaviour, that I consider 
 him a wiser puppy than his master, for he ran away from 
 fire, whereas his master tried all he could to get into it. 
 Some of our countrymen would have humoured him, and 
 turned a comedy into a tragedy — I set a proper value on my 
 life, and do not choose to risk it about trifles." 
 
 " There has been more than one valuable life thrown 
 away about a dog, in my remembrance," said Debriseau. 
 " I think you behaved in a sensible manner to get rid of the 
 affair as you did ; but you would have done better not to 
 have burnt the dog's nose." 
 
 " Granted," replied M'Elvina ; " the more so, as I have 
 often remarked, that there is no object in the world, except 
 your children or your own self, in which the meum is so 
 powerful, and the tuum so weak. You caress your own 
 dog, and kick a strange one ; you are pleased with the 
 clamorous barking of your own cur, and you curse the 
 same noise from another. The feeling is as powerful, 
 almost, as that of a mother, who thinks her own ugly cub 
 a cherub compared to others, and its squallings the music 
 of the spheres. It is because there is no being that 
 administers so much to the self-love of his master. He 
 submits, with humility, to the blow inflicted in the moment 
 of irritation, and licks the hand that corrects. He bears no 
 revengeful feelings, and is ready to fondle and caress you 
 the moment that your good-humour returns. He is, what 
 man looks in vain for among his kind, a faithful friend, with- 
 out contradiction — the very perfection of a slave. The abject 
 K. I. F 
 
 V 
 
82 The King's Own 
 
 submission on his part, which would induce you to despise 
 him, becomes a merit, when you consider his courage, his 
 fidelity, and his gratitude. I cannot think what Mahomet 
 was about when he pronounced his fiat against them, as 
 unclean^ 
 
 " Well," said Debriseau, ** I agree with Mahomet that 
 they are not clean, especially puppies. There's that little 
 beast at Monsieur Picardon's, I declare ^" 
 
 " Pooh," interrupted M*Elvina, laughing. " I don't mean 
 it in that sense — I mean that, in a despotic country, the 
 conduct of a dog towards his master should be held up as 
 an example for imitation ; and I think that the banner of 
 the Moslem should have borne the dog, instead of the 
 crescent, as an emblem of blind fideUty and tacit sub- 
 mission." 
 
 " That's very true," said Debriseau ; " but, nevertheless, 
 I wish mademoiselle's puppy were either taught manners or 
 thrown over the quay." 
 
 " Ce n^est pas un chien de sentiment^'* replied M*Elvina, 
 laughing. " But it is nearly dark. Allans au cabaret^ 
 
 They returned to the inn ; and the wind, on the ensuing 
 morning, blowing strong from a favourable quarter, Willy 
 and Debriseau accompanied M'Elvina down to the mole, 
 from whence he embarked on board of the sloop, which 
 was already under way, and in the course of an hour was 
 out of sight. 
 
 On the following day, Captain Debriseau accompanied 
 Willy to the pension, where our hero remained nearly five 
 months, occasionally visited by the Guernsey captain, 
 when he returned from his smuggling trips, and more 
 rarely receiving a letter from M'Elvina, who had safely 
 landed his cargo, and was latterly at Havre, super- 
 intending the fitting out of his new vessel. Our hero 
 made good progress during the few months that he 
 remained at the pension, and when M'Elvina returned 
 to take him away, not only could speak the French 
 language with fluency, but had also made considerable 
 progress in what Sir W. C. used to designate in his toast. 
 
The King's Own 83 
 
 as " the tree R's," — viz., " Reading, 'Riting, and 
 'Rithmetic." 
 
 The lugger which had been built for M'Elvina 
 by his employer was now ready, and, bidding farewell 
 to Debriseau, who continued in the Cherbourg trade, 
 our hero and his protector journeyed en diligence to 
 Havre. 
 
 Chapter XIII 
 
 Through the haze of the night a bright flash now appearing, 
 " Oh, ho I " cried Will Watch, " the Philistines bear down ; 
 
 Bear a hand, my tight lads, ere we think about sheering. 
 One broadside pour in, should we swim, boys, or drown." 
 
 Sea Song, 
 
 " Now, Willy, what do you think of La Belle Suzanne ? " 
 said M'Elvina, as they stood on the pier about a stone's 
 throw from the vessel, which lay with her broadside 
 towards them. Not that M^Elvina had any opinion of 
 "Willy's judgment, but, from the affectionate feeling 
 which every sailor imbibes for his own ship, he expected 
 gratification even in the admiration of a child. The lugger 
 was certainly as beautiful a model of that description of 
 vessel as had ever been launched from a slip. At the 
 distance of a mile, with the sea running, it was but 
 occasionally that you could perceive her long black hull, 
 — so low was she in the water, and so completely were 
 her bulwarks pared down ; yet her breadth of beam was 
 very great, and her tonnage considerable, as may be in- 
 ferred when it is stated that she mounted sixteen long 
 brass nine-pounders, and was manned with one hundred 
 and thirty men. But now that she was lying at anchor 
 in smooth water, you had an opportunity of examining, 
 with the severest scrutiny, the beautiful run of the vessel, 
 as she sat graceful as a diver, and appeared, like that 
 aquatic bird, ready to plunge in a moment, and disappear 
 
84 The King's Own 
 
 under the wave cleft by her sharp forefoot, and rippling 
 under her bows. 
 
 ** When shall we sail ? " inquired Willy, after bestow- 
 ing more judicious encomiums upon the vessel than might 
 be expected. 
 
 ** To-morrow night, if the wind holds to the southward. 
 We took in our powder this morning. Where were you 
 stationed at quarters on board the ? " 
 
 " Nowhere. I was not on the ship's books until a day 
 or two before I left her." 
 
 " Then you must be a powder-monkey with me ; you 
 can hand powder up, if you can do nothing else." 
 
 ** I can do more," replied Willy, proudly , " I can roll 
 shells overboard." 
 
 " Ay, ay, so you can ; I forgot that. I suppose I must 
 put you on the quarter-deck, and make an officer of you, 
 as Captain M intended to do." 
 
 '* I mean to stand by you when we fight," said Willy, 
 taking M^Elvina's hand. 
 
 ** Thank you — that may not be so lucky. I'm rather 
 superstitious ; and, if I recollect right, your old friend 
 Adams had that honour when he was killed." 
 
 The name of old Adams being mentioned, made Willy 
 silent and unhappy. M'Elvina perceived it; the conversa- 
 tion was dropped 5 and they returned home. 
 
 A few days afterwards. La Belle Suzanne sailed, amidst 
 the shouts and vivas of the multitude collected on the 
 pier, and a thousand wishes for ^^ succes" and '^bon 
 voyage'*'' — the builder clapping his hands, and skipping 
 with all the simial ecstasy of a Frenchman, at the en- 
 comiums lavished upon his vessel, as she cleaved through 
 the water with the undeviating rapidity of a barracouta. 
 But the vivas, and the shouts, and the builder, and the 
 pier that he capered on, were soon out of sight; and 
 our hero was once more confiding in the trackless and 
 treacherous ocean. 
 
 " Well, she does walk," said Phillips, who had followed 
 the fortunes of his captain, and was now looking over 
 
The King's Own 85 
 
 the quarter of the vessel. "She must be a clipper as 
 catches us with the tacks on board ! Right in the wind's 
 eye too ; clean full. By the powers, I believe if you 
 were to lift her, she would lay a point on the other 
 side of the wind." 
 
 " Get another pull of the fore-halyards, my lads," cried 
 M*Elvina. " These few ropes stretch most confoundedly. 
 There, belay all that ; take a severe turn, and don't come 
 up an inch." 
 
 The breeze freshened, and the lugger flew through the 
 water, dashing the white spray from her bows into the 
 air, where it formed little rainbows, as it was pierced 
 by the beams of the setting sun. 
 
 ** We shall have a fine night, and light weather towards 
 the morning, I think," said the first mate, addressing 
 M'Elvina. 
 
 " I think so too. Turn the hands up to muster by the 
 quarter-bill. We'll load the guns as soon as the lights are 
 out ; let the gunner fill forty rounds, and desire the 
 carpenter to nail up the hatchway-screens. Let them be 
 rolled up and stopped. We'll keep them up for a full due, 
 till we return to Havre." 
 
 The crew of the lugger were now summoned on deck 
 by the call of the boatswain, and having been addressed by 
 Captain M*Elvina upon the absolute necessity of activity 
 and preparation, in a service of such peculiar risk, they 
 loaded the guns, and secured them for the night. 
 
 The crew consisted of about eighty or ninety English- 
 men, out of the full complement of one hundred and thirty 
 men j the remainder was composed of Frenchmen, and 
 other continental adventurers. Although the respective 
 countries were at variance, the subjects of each had shaken 
 hands, that they might assist each other in violating the 
 laws. The quiet and subordination of a king's ship were 
 not to be expected here : — loud and obstreperous mirth, 
 occasional quarrelling, as one party, by accident or inten- 
 tion, wounded the national pride of the other ; French, 
 English, and Irish spoken alternately, or at the same 
 
86 The King's Own 
 
 moment — created a degree of confusion, which proved that 
 the reins of government were held lightly by the captain 
 in matters of small importance ; but although there was 
 a general freedom of manner, and independence of address, 
 still his authority was acknowledged, and his orders 
 implicitly obeyed. It was a ship's company which pulled 
 every way, as the saying is, when there was nothing to 
 demand union j but let difficulty or danger appear, and all 
 their squabbling was forgotten, or reserved for a more 
 seasonable opportunity : then they all pulled together, those 
 of each nation vying in taking the lead and setting an 
 example to the other. 
 
 Such was the crew of the lugger which M'Elvina com- 
 manded, all of whom were picked men, remarkable for 
 their strength and activity. 
 
 As the first mate had predicted, the wind fell light 
 after midnight, and at dawn of day the lugger was gliding 
 through the smooth water, at the rate of three or four 
 miles an hour, shrouded in a thick fog. The sun rose, 
 and had gained about twenty degrees of altitude, when 
 M*Elvina beat to quarters, that he might accustom his men 
 to the exercise of the guns. The rays of the sun had not 
 power to pierce through the fog ; and, shorn of his beams, 
 he had more the appearance of an overgrown moon, or 
 was, as Phillips quaintly observed, ** like a man disguised 
 in woman's attire." 
 
 The exercise of the guns had not long continued, when 
 the breeze freshened up, and the fog began partially to 
 disperse. Willy, who was perched on the round-house 
 abaft, observed a dark mass looming through the mist 
 on the weather beam. " Is that a vessel ? " said Willy, 
 pointing it out to the first mate, who was standing near 
 M'Elvina. 
 
 ** Indeed it is, my boy," replied the mate ; " you've a 
 sharp eye of your own." 
 
 M*Elvina's glass was already on the object. " A cutter, 
 right before the wind, coming down to us ; a government 
 vessel, of some sort or another, I'll swear. I trust she's a 
 
The King's Own 87 
 
 revenue cruiser — I have an account to settle with those 
 gentlemen. Stay at your quarters, my lads — hand up 
 shot, and open the magazine ! " 
 
 The powerful rays of the sun, assisted by the increasing 
 wind, now rolled away the fog from around the vessels, 
 which had a perfect view of each other. They were 
 distant about two miles, and the blue water was strongly 
 rippled by the breeze which had sprung up. The lugger 
 continued her course on a wind, while the cutter bore 
 down towards her, with all the sail that she could throw 
 out. The fog continued to clear away, until there was an 
 open space of about three or four miles in diameter. But 
 it still remained folded up in deep masses, forming a wall 
 on every side, which obscured the horizon from their 
 sight. It appeared as if nature had gratuitously cleared 
 away a sufficient portion of the mist, and had thus arranged 
 a little amphitheatre for the approaching combat between 
 the two vessels. 
 
 " His colours are up, sir. Revenue stripes, by the 
 Lord ! " cried Phillips. 
 
 " Then all's right," replied M'Elvina. 
 
 The cutter had now run down within half a mile of the 
 lugger, who had continued her course with the most 
 perfect nonchalance — when she rounded-to. The com- 
 mander of the vessel, aware, at the first discovery of the 
 lugger, that she could be no other than an enemy, who 
 would most probably give him some trouble, had made 
 every preparation for the engagement. 
 
 " Shall we hoist any colours, sir ? " said the first mate 
 to M'Elvina. 
 
 « No — if we hoist English, he will not commence action 
 until he has made the private signal, and all manner of 
 parleying, which is quite unnecessary. He knows what 
 we are well enough." 
 
 " Shall we hoist a French ensign, sir ? " 
 
 " No ; I'll fight under no other colours than those of old 
 England, even when I resist her authority." 
 
 A long column of white smoke now rolled along the 
 
88 The King's Own 
 
 surface of the water, as the cutter, who had waited in vain 
 for the colours being hoisted, fired the first gun at her 
 antagonist. The shot whizzed between the masts of the 
 lugger, and plunged into the water a quarter of a mile to 
 leeward. 
 
 " A vousy monsieur ! " roared out a French quarter-master 
 on board of the lugger, in imitation of the compliments 
 which take place previously to an assaut d^armes, at the 
 same time taking off his hat, and bowing to the 
 cutter. 
 
 " Too high, too high, good Mr Searcher," said M*Elvina, 
 laughing ; " depress your guns to her water-line, my lads, 
 and do not fire until I order you." 
 
 The remainder of the cutter's broadside was now 
 discharged at the lugger, but the elevation being too great, 
 the shot whizzed over, without any injury to her crew j 
 the main-halyards were, however, shot away, and the yard 
 and sail fell thundering down on the deck. 
 
 " Be smart, my lads, and bend on again ; it's quite long 
 enough. Up with the sail, and we'll return the compli- 
 ment." 
 
 In less than a minute, the tie of the halyards, which had 
 been divided close to the yard, was hitched round it, and 
 the sail again expanded to the breeze, " Now, my lads, 
 remember, don't throw a shot away — fire when you're 
 ready." 
 
 The broadside of the lugger was poured into the cutter, 
 with what effect upon the crew could not be ascertained ; 
 but the main-boom was cut in half, and the outer part of 
 it fell over the cutter's quarter, and was dragged astern by 
 the clew of the sail. 
 
 *' It's all over with her already," said the first mate to 
 M'Elvina ; and, as the cutter payed off before the wind 
 another broadside from her well-manned antagonist raked 
 her fore and aft. The cutter hauled down her jib, eased 
 off her fore-sheet, and succeeded in again bringing her 
 broadside to bear. The action was now maintained with 
 spirit, but much to the disadvantage of the cutter, who was 
 
The King's Own 89 
 
 not only inferior in force, but completely disabled, from the 
 loss of her main-boom. 
 
 After an exchange of a dozen broadsides, M'Elvina 
 shot the lugger ahead, and, tacking under his adversary's 
 bows, raked him a second time. The commander of the 
 revenue vessel, to avoid a repetition of a similar disaster, 
 payed his vessel off before the wind, and returned the fire 
 as they came abreast of each other; but in these 
 manoeuvres, the lugger obtained the weather-gage. It 
 was, however, a point of little consequence as matters then 
 stood. In a few more broadsides the cutter was a 
 complete wreck, and unable to return the fire of her 
 opponent. Her fore-stay and halyards had been cut away, 
 her fore-sail was down on deck, and her jib lying over- 
 board, under her bows. 
 
 " I think that will do," said M^Elvina to the first mate. 
 "We had better be off now, for our guns will be sure to 
 bring down some of the cruisers ; and if she surrendered, 
 I could not take possession of her. Let's give her a parting 
 broadside and three cheers." 
 
 M*Elvina's orders were obeyed ; but not one gun was 
 returned by the cutter — " Starboard a little ; keep her 
 away now, and we'll close and stand ahead of her, that she 
 may read our name on the stern. It's a pity they should 
 not know to whom they are indebted. They'll not forget 
 La Belle Suzanne.''^ 
 
 The cutter had not been left a mile astern before the 
 breeze freshened, and the fog began rapidly to disperse ; 
 and Phillips, who continued at the conn, perceived, through 
 the haze, a large vessel bearing down towards them. 
 
 " High time that we were off, indeed, captain : for 
 there's a cruiser if I mistake not. A gun here is the same 
 to the cruiser, as a splash in the water is to the ground 
 sharks at Antigua ; — up they all come to see what's to be 
 had. We shall have a dozen of them above the horizon 
 before two hours are above our heads." 
 
 M*Elvina, who had his glass fixed upon the vessel, soon 
 made her out to be a frigate, coming down under a press 
 
90 The King's Own 
 
 of sail, attracted, as Phillips had remarked, by the reports 
 of the guns. What made the affair more serious was, that 
 she was evidently bringing down a strong breeze, which 
 the lugger, although steering large, had not yet obtained. 
 Moreover, the fog had dispersed in all directions, and the 
 frigate neared them fast. 
 
 "B 1 the cutter!" said the first mate; ** we shall 
 
 pay dearly for our * lark.' " 
 
 " This is confoundedly unlucky," replied M'Elvina ; 
 " she brings the wind down with her, and won't part with 
 a breath of it. However, * faint heart never won fair 
 lady.' Keep her away two points more. Clap everything 
 on her. "We'll weather her yet." 
 
 The breeze that ran along the water in advance of the 
 frigate, now began to be felt by the lugger, who again 
 dashed the foaming water from her bows, as she darted 
 through the wave ; but it was a point of sailing at which 
 a frigate has always an advantage over a small vessel ; and 
 M'Elvina having gradually edged away so as to bring the 
 three masts of his pursuer apparently into one, perceived 
 that the frigate was rapidly closing with him. 
 
 The crew of the lugger, who had been all merriment at 
 the successful termination of the late combat (for not one 
 man had been killed or severely wounded), now paced the 
 deck, or looked over the bulwark with serious and fore- 
 boding aspects ; the foreigners particularly began to curse 
 their fate, and considered their voyage and anticipated 
 profits at an end. M'Elvina, perceiving their discontent, 
 ordered the men aft, and addressed them : — 
 
 ** My lads, I have often been in a worse scrape, and 
 have weathered it ; nor do I know, but what we may yet 
 manage to get out of this, if you will pay strict attention 
 to my orders, and behave in that cool and brave manner 
 which I have reason to expect from you. Much, if not all, 
 depends upon whether the captain of that frigate is a * new 
 hand ' or not : — if he is an old Channel groper, we shall 
 have some difficulty ; but, however, we will try for it, and 
 if we do not succeed, at least we shall have the satisfaction 
 
The King's Own 91 
 
 of knowing that we did our best both for ourselves and 
 our employers." 
 
 M'Elvina then proceeded to explain to his crew the 
 manceuvre that he intended to practise, to obtain the 
 weather-gage of the frigate, upon which their only chance 
 of escape would depend, and the men returned to their 
 stations, if not contented, at least with increased confidence 
 m their captain, and strong hopes of success. 
 
 As the day closed, the frigate was within a mile of the 
 lugger, and coming up with him hand over hand. The 
 breeze was strong, and the water was no longer in ripples, 
 but curled over in short waves to the influence of the blast. 
 The frigate yawed a little — the smoke from her bow-chaser 
 was followed by an instantaneous report, and the shot 
 dashed into the water close under the stern of the lugger. 
 " Sit down under the bulwarks ; sit down, my lads, and 
 keep all fast," said M'Elvina. " He'll soon be tired of 
 that; he has lost more than a cable's length already." 
 M*Elvina was correct in his supposition ; the commander 
 of the frigate perceived that he had lost too much ground 
 by deviating from his course, and the evening was closing 
 in. He fired no more. Both vessels continued their 
 course, — the smuggler particularly attentive in keeping 
 the three masts of her pursuer in one, to prevent her from 
 firing into her, or to oblige her to drop astern if she did. 
 
 Half an hour more, and as the sun's lower limb touched 
 the horizon, the frigate was within musket-shot of the 
 lugger, and the marines, who had been ordered forward, 
 commenced a heavy fire upon her, to induce her to lower 
 her sails and surrender ; — but in vain ; by the directions of 
 their captain, the men sheltered themselves under the 
 bulwarks, and the vessel continued her course, with all her 
 sails expanded to the breeze. 
 
 A few minutes more and she was right under the bows 
 of the frigate, who now prepared to round-to, and pour a 
 broadside into her for her temerity. M*Elvina watched 
 their motions attentively, and as the frigate yawed to with 
 all her sails set, he gave the order to lower away ; and the 
 
92 The King's Own 
 
 sails of the lugger were in an instant down on the deck, in 
 token of submission. 
 
 " Helm hard a lee, now — keep a little bit of the mizen 
 up, Phillips — they won't observe it." 
 
 ** Marines, cease firing, — hands, shorten sail, and clear 
 away the first cutter," were the orders given on board the 
 frigate, and distinctly heard by the smugglers ; but the 
 heavy press of sail that the frigate was obliged to carry 
 to come up with the chase, was not so soon to be reduced 
 as that of a small vessel — and, as she rounded-to with 
 studding-sails below and aloft, she shot past the lugger, 
 and left her on her quarter. 
 
 "Now*s your time, my men. Hoist away the jib-sheet 
 to windward." — The lugger payed off as the wind caught 
 the sail. — " All's right. Up with the lugs." 
 
 The order was obeyed as an order generally is by men 
 working for their escape from what they most dreaded, 
 poverty and imprisonment ; and, before the frigate could 
 reduce her sails, which were more than she could carry on 
 a wind, the lugger had shot away on her weather quarter, 
 and was a quarter of a mile in advance. The frigate tacked 
 after her, firing gun after gun, but without success. 
 Fortune favoured M*Elvina ; and the shades of night soon 
 hid the lugger from the sight of her irritated and dis- 
 appointed pursuers. A long career was before La Belle 
 Suzanne : she was not to be taken that time. 
 
 Chapter XIV 
 
 A fisherman he had been in his youth ; 
 But other speculations were, in sooth, 
 Added to his connexion with the sea, 
 Perhaps not so respectable, in truth, 
 
 He had an only daughter. 
 
 Don Juan. 
 
 Not possessing a prompter's whistle, we must use, as a 
 
The King's Own 93 
 
 substitute, the boatswain's call, and, at his shrill pipe, 
 we change the scene to a back parlour in one of the most 
 confined streets at the east end of England's proud and 
 wealthy metropolis. The dramatis persona are an elderly 
 and corpulent personage, with as little of fashion in his 
 appearance as in his residence ; and a young female of 
 about twenty years of age, with expressive and beautiful 
 features, but wantiii|; " the damask on the cheek," the true 
 value of which the fair sex so well appreciate, that, if not 
 indebted for it to nature, they are too apt to resort to art 
 for an unworthy imitation. 
 
 The first mentioned of these two personages was busy 
 examining, through his spectacles, some papers which 
 lay on the table before him, — occasionally diverted from 
 his task by the pertinacity of some flies, which seemed 
 to have taken a particular fancy to his bald forehead and 
 scalp, which, in spite of his constant brushing off, they 
 thought proper to consider as a pleasant and smooth sort 
 of coursing-plain, placed there (probably in their ideas) 
 solely for their amusement. Part of a decanter of wine, 
 and the remains of a dessert, crowded the small table 
 at which he sat, and added to the general air of confine- 
 ment which pervaded the whole. 
 
 **It's very hot, my dear. Open the window, and let 
 us have a little air." 
 
 " Oh, father," replied the young woman, who rose to 
 throw up the sash, " you don't know how I pine for fresh 
 air. How long do you intend to continue this life of 
 constant toil and privation ? " 
 
 " How long, my dear ? Why, I presume you do not 
 wish to starve — you would not be very well pleased if, 
 when you applied for money, as you do every week at 
 least, I were to tell you that the bag was empty." 
 
 "Oh, nonsense, I know better, father — don't think 
 so poorly of me as to attempt to deceive me in that way." 
 
 ** And pray, Miss Susan, what do you know ? " said 
 the old gentleman, looking up at her through his spectacles, 
 as she stood by the side of his chair. 
 
94 The King's Own 
 
 **I know what you have taught me, sir. Do you 
 recollect explaining to me the nature of the funds — what 
 was the meaning of the national debt — all the varieties 
 of stock, and what interest they all bore ? " 
 
 " Well, and what then ? " 
 
 "Why, then, father, I have often seen the amount of 
 the dividends which you have received every half-year, 
 and have heard your orders to Wilmott, to re-invest in 
 the funds. Now your last half-year's dividend in the 
 three per cents was — let me see — oh, £S^I, 14s. 6d. 
 which, you know, doubled, makes itself an income of — — " 
 
 ** And pray. Miss Susan, what business have you with 
 all this ? " retorted her father, half pleased, half angry. 
 
 "Why, father, you taught me yourself, and thought 
 me very stupid because I did not comprehend it as soon 
 as you expected," answered Susan, leaning over and 
 kissing him ; ** and now you ask me what business I 
 have to know it." 
 
 "Well, well, girl, it's very true," said the old man, 
 smiling ; " but allowing that you are correct, what then ? " 
 
 "Why then, father, don't be angry if I say that it 
 appears to me that you have more money now than you 
 can spend while you live, or know to whom to leave 
 when you die. What, then, is the use of confining 
 yourself in a dirty narrow street, and toiling all day 
 for no earthly advantage ? " 
 
 "But how do you know that I have nobody to leave 
 my money to, Susan ? " 
 
 "Have you not repeatedly said that you have no 
 relations or kin, that you are aware of, except me; that 
 you were once a sailor before the mast — an orphan, 
 bound apprentice by the parish? Whom, then, have 
 you except me? — and if you continue here much longer, 
 father, I feel convinced that you will not have me — you 
 will have no one. If you knew how tired I am of looking 
 out at this horrid brick wall — how I long for the country, 
 to be running among the violets and primroses — how I 
 pine for relief from this little dungeon. Oh ! what would 
 
The King's Own 95 
 
 I give to be flying before the breeze in the lugger with 
 M^Elvina." 
 
 "Indeed, miss ! " replied old Hornblow, whom the reader 
 may recognise as the patron of our smuggling captain. 
 
 " "Well, father, there's no harm in saying so. I want 
 freedom. I feel as if I could not be too free — I should 
 like to be blown about in a balloon. Oh, why don't you 
 give up business, go down to the seaside, take a pretty 
 little cottage, and make yourself and me happy ; I fancy 
 the sea-breeze is blowing in my face, and all my ringlets 
 out of curl. I shall die if I stay here much longer — I 
 shall indeed, father." 
 
 Repeated attacks of this nature had already sapped the 
 foundation ; and a lovely and only daughter had the 
 influence over her father's heart, to which she was entitled. 
 
 " Well, well, Susan — let M*Elvina wind up the accounts 
 of this vessel, and then I will do as you wish ; but I 
 cannot turn him adrift, you know." 
 
 " Turn Captain M'Elvina adrift ! No — if you did, 
 father " 
 
 " I presume that you would be very much inclined to 
 take him in tow — Eh, miss ? " 
 
 " I shall never act without attending to your advice, 
 and consulting your wishes, my dear father," answered 
 Susan, the suffusion of her unusually pale cheeks proving 
 that she required but colour to be perfectly beautiful. 
 
 And here the conversation dropped. Old Hornblow 
 had long perceived the growing attachment between his 
 daughter and M'Elvina; and the faithful and valuable 
 services of the latter, added to the high opinion which 
 the old man had of his honesty, — which, to do M'Elvina 
 justice, had been most scrupulous, — had determined him 
 to let things take their own course. Indeed, there was 
 no one with whom old Hornblow was acquainted, to 
 whom he would have entrusted his daughter's happiness 
 with so much confidence as to our reformed captain. 
 
 A sharp double tap at the street door announced the 
 post, and in a few minutes after this conversation, the 
 
g6 The King s Own 
 
 clerk appeared with a letter for old Hornblow, who, 
 pursuant to the prudent custom of those days, had his 
 counting-house on the ground-floor of his own residence, 
 which enabled him to go to his dinner, and return to his 
 business in the evening. Now-a-days we are all above 
 our business, and live above our means (which is in itself 
 sufficient to account for the general distress that is com- 
 plained of) ; and the counting-house is deserted before 
 dusk, that we may arrive at our residences in Russel 
 Square, or the Regent's Park, in time to dress for a turtle 
 dinner at six o'clock, instead of a mutton chop, or single 
 joint enfamille, at two. 
 
 But to return. Old Hornblow put on his spectacles 
 (which were on the table since they had been removed 
 from his nose by Susan when she kissed him), and 
 examined the post-mark, seal, and superscription, as if he 
 wished to tax his ingenuity with a guess previously to 
 opening the letter, which would have saved him all that 
 trouble, and have decided the point of scrutiny, viz., from 
 whom it came. 
 
 " M^Elvina, I rather think," said he, musing ; ** but the 
 post-mark is Plymouth. How the deuce ! — " The two 
 first lines of the letter were read, and the old man's 
 countenance fell. Susan, who had been all alive at the 
 mention of M^Elvina's name, perceived the alteration in 
 her father's looks. 
 
 ** No bad news, I hope, my dear father ? " 
 
 " Bad enough," replied the old man, with a deep sigh ; 
 *' the lugger is taken by a frigate, and sent into 
 Plymouth." 
 
 " And Captain M'Elvina — he's not hurt, I hope ? " 
 
 ** No, I presume not, as he has written the letter, and 
 says nothing about it." 
 
 Satisfied upon this point, Susan, who recollected her 
 father's premise, was undutiful enough, we are sorry to 
 say, to allow her heart to bound with joy at the circum- 
 stance. All her fond hopes were about to be realised, and 
 she could hardly refrain from carolling the words of Ariel, 
 
The King's Own 97 
 
 ** Where the bee sucks, there lurk I," but fortunately she 
 remembered that other parties might not exactly participate 
 in her delight. Out of respect for her father's feelings, 
 she therefore put on a grave countenance, in sad contrast 
 with her eyes, which joy had brilliantly lighted up. 
 
 ** Well, it's a bad business," continued old Hornblow. 
 " Wilmott ! " (The clerk heard his master's voice, and 
 came in.) " Bring me the ledger. Let me see — Belle 
 Suzamie — I wonder why the fool called her by that name, 
 as if I had not one already to take money out of my 
 pocket. Oh! here it is — folio 59 continued, folio 100, 
 129, 147, — not balanced since April last year. Be quick, 
 and strike me out a rough balance-sheet of the lugger." 
 
 " But what does Captain M'Elvina say, father ? " 
 
 " What does he say ? Why, that he is taken. Haven't 
 I told you so already, girl ? " replied old Hornblow, in 
 evident ill humour. 
 
 *« Yes, but the particulars, my dear father ? " 
 
 ** Oh, there's only the fact, without particulars — says 
 he will write more fully in a day or two." 
 
 " I'll answer for him, that it was not his fault, father — 
 he has always done you justice." 
 
 " I did not say that he had not ; I'm only afraid that 
 success has made him careless — it's always the case." 
 
 " Yes," replied Susan, taking up the right cue ; " as 
 you say, father, he has been very successful." 
 
 " He has," replied the old man, recovering his serenity 
 a little, " very successful indeed. I dare say it was not his 
 fault." 
 
 The clerk soon made his appearance with the rough 
 balance-sheet required. It did more to restore the good 
 humour of the old man, than even the soothing of his 
 daughter. 
 
 " Oh ! here we are — La Belle Suzanne — Dr. to , 
 
 Total, ^^14,864, 14s. 3d. Contra— Cr. ^^27,986, ids. 8d. 
 Balance to profit and loss, ^T 13, 1 2 2, 2s. 5d. Well, that's 
 not so very bad in less than three years. I think I may 
 afford to lose her." 
 
98 The King's Own 
 
 " Why, father," replied Susan, leaning over his shoulder, 
 and looking archly at him, " 'tis a fortune in itself, to a 
 contented person." 
 
 But as, independently of M^Elvina's letter not being 
 sufficiently explicit, there are other circumstances con- 
 nected with his capture, that are important to our history, 
 we shall ourselves narrate the particulars. 
 
 For more than two years, M'Elvina, by his dexterity 
 and courage, and the fast sailing of his vessel, had escaped 
 all his pursuers, and regularly landed his cargoes. During 
 this time, Willy had made rapid progress under his in- 
 struction, not only in his general education, but also in that 
 of his profession. One morning the lugger was off Cape 
 Clear, on the cor,st of Ireland, when she discovered a 
 frigate to windward, — the wind, weather, and relative 
 situations of the two vessels being much the same as on 
 the former occasion, when M*Elvina, by his daring and 
 judicious manoeuvre, had effected his escape. The frigate 
 chased, and soon closed to within a quarter-of-a-mile of 
 the lugger, when she rounded-to, and poured in a broad- 
 side of grape, which brought her fore-yard down on deck. 
 From that moment such an incessant fire of musketry 
 was poured in from the frigate, that every man on board 
 of M*Elvina's vessel, who endeavoured to repair the 
 mischief, was immediately struck down. Any attempt at 
 escape was now hopeless. When within two cables' 
 lengths, the frigate hove-to the wind, keeping the lugger 
 under her lee, and continued a fire of grape and musketry 
 into her, until the rest of her sails were lowered down. 
 
 The crew of the smuggler, perceiving all chance in their 
 favour to be over, ran down below to avoid the fire, and 
 secure their own effects. The boats of the frigate were 
 soon on board of the lugger, and despatched back to her 
 with M*Elvina and the chief officers. Willy jumped into 
 the boat, and was taken on board with his patron. 
 
 The captain of the frigate was on the quarter-deck ; and 
 as he turned round, it occurred to Willy, that he had seen 
 his face before, but when or where he could not exactly 
 
The King's Own 99 
 
 call to mind ; and he continued to scrutinise him, as he 
 paced up and down the quarter-deck, revolving in his 
 mind where it was that he had encountered that peculiar 
 countenance. 
 
 His eye, so fixed upon the captain that it followed him 
 up and down as he moved, at last was met by that of the 
 latter, who, surprised at finding so small a lad among the 
 prisoners, walked over to the lee-side of the quarter-deck, 
 and addressed him with — " You're but a young smuggler, 
 my lad ; are you the captain's son ? '* 
 
 The voice immediately recalled to "Willy's recollection 
 every circumstance attending their last meeting, and who 
 the captain was. He answered in the negative, with a 
 smile. 
 
 " You've a light heart, youngster. Pray, what's your 
 name ? " 
 
 " Tou said that my name was to be Seymour, sir," 
 replied Willy, touching his hat. 
 
 " Said his name was to be Seymour ! What does the 
 boy mean ? — Good Heavens ! I recollect," observed Cap- 
 tain M , for it was he. ** Are you the boy that I sent 
 
 home in the chasse-maree, to be fitted out for the quarter- 
 deck ? " 
 
 " Yes, sir." 
 
 ** And how long have you been on this praiseworthy 
 service ? " 
 
 " Ever since, sir," replied our hero, who had little idea 
 of its impropriety. 
 
 La Belle Suzanne was as renowned for her fast sailing, 
 and repeated escapes from the cruisers, as Captain 
 M'Elvina and his crew were for their courage and success. 
 The capture of the vessel had long been a desideratum of 
 
 the English government ; and Captain M , although 
 
 gratified at her falling into his hands, was not very well 
 pleased to find that a lad, whom he had intended to bring 
 forward in the service, should, as he supposed, have 
 voluntarily joined a party, who had so long bid defiance to 
 the laws and naval force of the country. His countenance 
 
loo The King's Own 
 
 assumed an air of displeasure, and he was about to turn 
 away, without any further remarks, when M'Elvina, who 
 perceived how matters stood, and felt aware that Willy's 
 future prospects were at stake, stepped forward, and 
 respectfully addressing the captain, narrated in few words 
 the rescue of "Willy from the wreck, and added, that the 
 boy had been detained by him, and had had no opportunity 
 of leaving the vessel, which had never anchored but in the 
 French port of Havre. He also stated, what was indeed 
 true, that he had always evaded explaining to the boy the 
 real nature of the service upon which the lugger was 
 employed : from which it may be inferred that, notwith- 
 standing M'Elvina's defence of smuggling in our former 
 chapters, he was not quite so well convinced, in his own 
 mind, of its propriety as he would have induced Debriseau 
 to suppose. 
 
 The assertions of M'Elvina turned the scale again in 
 Willy's favour ; and, after he had answered the interro- 
 gatories of the captain, relative to the fate of Mr Bullock 
 
 and the rest of the men in the prize. Captain M , who, 
 
 although severe, was not only just, but kind-hearted, 
 determined that his former good intentions relative to 
 our hero should still remain in force. 
 
 **Well, Mr Seymour, you have seen a little service, 
 and your captain gives you a high character, as an active 
 and clever lad. As you have been detained against your 
 will, I think we may recover your time and pay. I trust, 
 however, that you will, in future, be employed in a more 
 honourable manner. We shall, in all probability, be soon 
 in port, and till then you must remain as you are, for I 
 cannot trust you again in a prize." 
 
 As our hero was in a new ship, the officers and ship's 
 company of which were not acquainted with his history, 
 except that he had been promoted, for an act of gallantry, 
 
 by Captain M , he was favourably received by his 
 
 messmates. The crew of the lugger were detained as 
 prisoners on board of the frigate, and the vessel, in charge 
 of one of the officers, was ordered to keep company. 
 
The King's Own loi 
 
 Captain M having determined to return into port, and 
 
 not wishing to lose sight of his valuable prize. 
 
 ** You have a very fine ship's company, Captain 
 
 M*Elvina," observed Captain M . **How many of 
 
 them are English ? " 
 
 " About eighty ; and as good seamen as ever walked 
 a plank." 
 
 Captain M ordered the crew of the lugger aft on 
 
 the quarter-deck, and put the question to them whether 
 they would not prefer entering into his Majesty's service 
 to the confinement of a prison ; but, at the moment, they 
 felt too indignant at having been captured by the frigate 
 to listen to the proposal, and refused to a man. Captain 
 
 M turned away disappointed, surveying the fine body 
 
 of men with a covetous eye, as they were ranged in a 
 line on his quarter-deck. He felt what a prize they 
 would be to him, if he could have added them to his 
 own ship's company ; for at that time it was almost im- 
 possible to man the number of ships which were em- 
 ployed, in an effective manner. 
 
 "Will you allow me to try what I can do for you, 
 sir ? " said M'Elvina, as the men disappeared from the 
 quarter-deck, to their former station as prisoners. Having 
 
 received the nod of assent on the part of Captain M , 
 
 M*Elvina went down to the men, who gathered round 
 him. He forcibly pointed out to them the advantages 
 of the proposal, and the good chance they had of enrich- 
 ing themselves, by the prize-money they would make in 
 a frigate which could capture such a fast-sailing vessel 
 as the lugger. He also dwelt upon the misery of the 
 prison which awaited them : but what decided them was 
 the observation that, in all probability, they would not 
 be permitted (now that seamen were in such request) to 
 remain in prison, but would be drafted into several ships, 
 and be separated ; whereas, by now entering for Captain 
 M , they would all remain shipmates as before. 
 
 Having obtained their unanimous consent, M'Elvina, 
 with a pleased countenance, came aft, followed by his 
 
I02 The King's Own 
 
 men, and informed Captain M that they had agreed 
 
 to enter for his ship. " Allow me to congratulate you, 
 sir, on your good fortune, as you will yourself acknowledge 
 it to be, when you find out what an addition they will 
 be to your ship's company." 
 
 ** I am indebted to you for your interference, sir," 
 
 replied Captain M , " and shall not prove ungrateful. 
 
 Your conduct in this affair makes me inclined to ask 
 another favour. I believe you can give me some valuable 
 information, if you choose. Whether you are inclined to 
 do so, I am not yet sure ; but I now think that you 
 will." 
 
 " You will find me an Englishman, body and soul, 
 sir ; and although I have, in defence of my profession, 
 been occasionally necessitated to choose between capture 
 and resistance, I can most conscientiously say, that every 
 shot I have fired against my own countrymen has smitten 
 me to the heart ; " (and this assertion was true, although 
 we have no time to analyse M'Elvina's feelings at present). 
 "I am not bound by honour, nor have I the least in- 
 clination, to conceal any information I may have obtained, 
 when in the French ports. I went there to serve my 
 purposes, and they allowed me to do so to serve their 
 own. I never would (although repeatedly offered bribes) 
 bring them any information relative to the proceedings 
 of our own country, and I shall most cheerfully answer 
 your questions ; indeed, I have information which I would 
 have given you before now, had I not felt that it might 
 be supposed I was actuated more by a view of serving 
 
 myself than my country. I only wish. Captain M , 
 
 that you may fall in with a French frigate before I leave 
 your ship, that I may prove to you that I can fight as 
 well for old England as I have done in defence of 
 property entrusted to my charge." 
 
 " Then do me the favour to step down into the cabin," 
 said Captain M . 
 
 Captain M and M'Elvina were shut up in the after- 
 cabin for some time; and the information received by 
 
The King's Own 103 
 
 Captain M was so important, that he determined not 
 
 to anchor. He put all the French prisoners on board 
 of the lugger at the entrance of the Sound, and, sending 
 in a boat to take out the major part of the men who had 
 charge of her, he retained M'Elvina on board of the 
 frigate, and made all sail for the French coast. 
 
 Chapter XV 
 
 That which should accompany old age, 
 
 As honour, love, obedience, troops of friends 
 
 I must not look to have ! 
 
 Shakespeare. 
 
 But we must return on shore, that we may not lose 
 sight of the grandfather of our hero, who had no idea 
 that there was a being in existence who was so nearly- 
 connected with him. 
 
 The time had come when that information was to be 
 given ; for, about six weeks previously to the action we 
 have described, in which Adams the quarter-master was 
 killed. Admiral De Courcy was attacked by a painful and 
 mortal disease. As long as he was able to move about, his 
 irritability of temper, increased by suffering, rendered him 
 more insupportable than ever ; but he was soon confined to 
 his room, and the progress of the disease became so rapid, 
 that the medical attendants considered it their duty to 
 apprise him that all hopes of recovery must now be 
 abandoned, and that he must prepare himself for the worst. 
 
 The admiral received the intelligence with apparent 
 composure, and bowed his head to the physicians as they 
 quitted his room. He was alone, and left to his own 
 reflections, which were not of the most enviable nature. 
 He was seated, propped up in an easy chair, opposite the 
 large French window, which commanded a view of the 
 park. The sun was setting, and the long extended 
 shadows of the magnificent trees which adorned his ex- 
 tensive domain were in beautiful contrast with the gleams 
 
I04 The King's Own 
 
 of radiant light, darting in long streaks between them on 
 the luxuriant herbage. The cattle, quietly standing in the 
 lake, were refreshing themselves after the heat of the day, 
 and the deer lay in groups under the shade, or crouched 
 in their lairs, partly concealed by the underwood and fern. 
 All was in repose and beauty, and the dying man watched 
 the sun, as it fast descended to the horizon, as em- 
 blematical of his race, so shortly to be sped. He surveyed 
 the groups before him — he envied even the beasts of the 
 field, and the reclaimed tenants of the forest, for they at least 
 had of their kind, with whom they could associate ; but he, 
 their lord and master, was alone — alone in the world, without 
 one who loved or cared for him, without one to sympathise 
 in his suiferings and administer to his wants, except from 
 interested motives — without one to soothe his anguish, and 
 soften the pillow of affliction and disease — without one to 
 close his eyes, or shed a tear, now that he was dying. 
 
 His thoughts naturally reverted to his wife and children. 
 He knew that two of these individuals, out of three, were 
 in the cold grave — and where was the other? The certain 
 approach of death had already humanised and softened his 
 flinty heart. The veil, that had been drawn by passion 
 between his conscience and his guilt, was torn away. 
 The past rushed upon his memory with dreadful rapidity 
 and truth, and horrible conviction flashed upon his soul, 
 as he unwillingly acknowledged himself to be the murderer 
 of his wife and child. Remorse, as usual, followed, 
 treading upon the heels of conviction — such remorse, that, 
 in a short space, the agony became insupportable. 
 
 After an ineflectual struggle of pride, he seized the 
 line which was attached to the bell-rope, and, when his 
 summons was obeyed, desired that the vicar might be 
 immediately requested to come to him. 
 
 Acquainted with the admiral's situation, the vicar had 
 anxiously waited the summons which he was but too well 
 aware would come, for he knew the human heart, and the 
 cry for aid which the sinner in his fear sends forth. He 
 was soon in the presence of the admiral, for the first time 
 
The King's Own 105 
 
 since the day that he quitted the house with the letter of 
 the unfortunate Peters in his possession. The conversa- 
 tion which ensued, between the agitated man, who had 
 existed only for this world, and the placid teacher, who 
 had considered it (as he inculcated) as only a preparation 
 for a better, was too long to be here inserted. It will be 
 sufficient to say, that the humbled and terrified wretch, 
 the sufferer from disease, and greater sufferer from remorse, 
 never could have been identified with the once proud and 
 overbearing mortal, who had so long spurned at the 
 precepts of religion, and turned a deaf ear to the mild 
 persuasions of its apostle. 
 
 "But that letter ! " continued the admiral in a faltering 
 voice — " what was it ? I have yet one child alive — Oh, 
 send immediately for him, and let me implore his forgive- 
 ness for my cruelty." 
 
 " That letter, sir, was written but one hour previously 
 to his death." 
 
 " His death ! " cried the admiral, turning his eyes up to 
 the ceiling. " God have mercy on me ! then I have 
 murdered him also. And how did he die ? Did he 
 starve, as I expressed in my horrid — horrid wish ? " 
 
 " No, sir ; his life was forfeited to the offended laws of 
 his country." 
 
 " Good God, sir ! " hastily replied the admiral, whose 
 ruling passion, pride, returned for the moment; "you do 
 not mean to say that he was hanged ? " 
 
 " Even so ; but here is the letter which he wrote — read 
 it." 
 
 The admiral seized the letter in his tremulous hand, and 
 devoured every word as he perused it. He let it fall on 
 his knees, and said, in a subdued voice — "My God — my 
 God ! — and he asked forgiveness, and forgives me ! " 
 Then, with frantic exclamation, he continued, "Wretch 
 that I am, — would that I had died for thee, my son — my 
 son ! " and clasping his hands over his head, he fell back 
 in a state of insensibility. 
 
 The vicar, much affected with the scene, rang the bell 
 
io6 The King's Own 
 
 for assistance, which was obtained ; but the wretched man 
 had received a shock which hastened his dissolution. He 
 was too much exhausted to sit upright, and they were 
 obliged to carry him to the bed, from which he never rose 
 again. As soon as he was sufficiently recovered to be able 
 to converse, he waved the servants from the room, and 
 resumed, in a faltering voice— 
 
 ** But, sir, he mentions his child — my grandchild. Where 
 is he ? Can I see him ? " 
 
 " I am afraid not, sir," replied the vicar, who then entered 
 into a recital of the arrangements which had taken place, and 
 the name of the ship on board of which our hero had been 
 permitted to remain, under the charge of Adams, the 
 quarter-master. 
 
 The admiral listened to the recital of the vicar without 
 interruption ; and, as soon as it was finished, to the great 
 joy of the worthy pastor, expressed the most anxious wish 
 to make every reparation in his power. Aware that diffi- 
 culties might arise from the circumstance of our hero's 
 existence not being suspected by his collateral heirs, who 
 had for some time considered as certain their ultimate 
 possession of his large entailed property, he directed a will 
 to be immediately drawn up, acknowledging his grandchild, 
 and leaving to him all his personal property, which was 
 very considerable ; and praying the vicar to take upon 
 himself the office of guardian to the boy, — a request 
 which was cheerfully complied with. The admiral would 
 not listen to the repeated requests of the vicar, to take the 
 repose which his excited and sinking frame required, until 
 the necessary document had been drawn out, signed, and 
 duly witnessed. When all was complete, he fell back on 
 the pillow, in such a state of exhaustion as threatened 
 immediately to terminate his career. It was late when the 
 vicar took his leave, after having administered some little 
 consolation to the repentant and dying man, and promised 
 to call upon him early on the ensuing morning. 
 
 But the vicar had other duties to perform, which induced 
 him to defer his visit until the following noon. Others 
 
The King's Own 107 
 
 were sick, others were dying, and needed spiritual 
 consolation ; and he made no distinction between the rich 
 and the poor. The physicians had expressed their opinion 
 that the admiral might linger for many days, and the 
 vicar thought that advantage might be derived from his 
 being left for a short time to his own reflections, and to 
 recover from the state of exhaustion arising from the com- 
 munications of the preceding evening. When he arrived 
 at the hall, the windows were closed — Admiral De Courcy 
 was no more. 
 
 Reader, you shall hear how he died. It was about two 
 o'clock in the morning that he awoke from an uneasy 
 slumber, and felt his end approaching. The old crone who 
 had been hired as a nurse to watch at night, was fast 
 asleep in her chair. The rushlight had burned low down 
 in the socket, and, through the interstices of its pierced 
 shade, threw a feeble and alternate light and shadow over 
 the room. The mouth of the dying man was glued 
 together from internal heat, and he suffered from agonising 
 thirst. He murmured for relief, but no one answered. 
 Again and again he attempted to make his careless attend- 
 ant acquainted with his wants, but in vain. He stretched 
 out his arm and moved the curtains of the bed, that the 
 noise of the curtain-rings upon the iron rods might have 
 the effect, and then fell back with exhaustion, arising from 
 the effort which he had made. 
 
 The old beldam, who, for money, was willing to 
 undertake the most revolting offices, and who, without 
 remuneration, was so hardened, by her constant familiarity 
 with disease and death, that she was callous and insensible 
 to the most earnest supplication, woke up at the noise 
 which the curtain-rings had made, and opened the curtain 
 to ascertain what was required. Long experience told her 
 at once that all would soon be over, and she was convinced 
 that her charge would never rise or speak again. 
 
 This was true J but the suffering man (his arm lying 
 outside of the bed-clothes, and his elbow bent upwards) 
 still pointed with his finger to his parched mouth, with a 
 
io8 The King's Own 
 
 look of entreaty from his sinking eyes. The old fiend 
 shut the curtains, and the admiral waited with impatience 
 for them to reopen with a drop of water " to cool his 
 parched tongue " — but in vain. Leaving him to his fate, 
 she hobbled about the room to secure a golden harvest, 
 before others should make their appearance, and share it 
 with her. His purse was on the table : she removed the 
 gold which it contained, and left the silver ; she chose that 
 which she imagined to be the most valuable of the three 
 rings on the dressing table ; she detached one seal from the 
 chain of his watch. She then repaired to the wardrobe, 
 and examined its contents. One of her capacious pockets 
 were soon filled with the finest cambric handkerchiefs, all 
 of which she first took the precaution to open, and hold up 
 to the light rejecting those which were not of the finest 
 texture. The silk stockings were the next articles that 
 were coveted; they were unfolded one by one, and her 
 skinny arm passed up, that the feet might be extended by 
 her shrivelled hands, to ascertain whether they were 
 darned or not — if so, they were rejected. 
 
 The wardrobe was on the opposite side of the bed ; and 
 on that side the curtains had not been closed. The dying 
 man had still enough sight left to perceive the employment 
 of his attendant. What must have been his feelings ! He 
 uttered a deep groan, which startled the old hag, and she 
 repaired to the bed-side, to examine the state of her charge. 
 
 Again he pointed with his finger to his mouth — and again 
 she returned to her employment, without having rendered 
 the assistance which he required. His eyes followed — and 
 his finger still pointed. Having ransacked every drawer, 
 and secured all that she dared take, or that her pockets 
 could contain, she rang the bell for the servants of the 
 house ; then pulling out her handkerchief, ready to put to 
 her eyes in token of sympathy, she sat down on her easy 
 chair, to await their coming. 
 
 In the meanwhile, the eyes of the unfortunate man 
 gradually turned upward ; his vision was gone, but his 
 agonising thirst continued to the last ; and when the 
 
The King's Own 109 
 
 retainers of the family came in, he was found dead, with 
 his finger still pointing in the same direction. 
 
 With ordinary minds, there is something so terrible in 
 death, something so awful in the dissolution of the elements 
 of our frame, something so horrible in the leap into the 
 dark abyss, that it requires all the powers of a fortified 
 spirit, all the encouragement of a good conscience, and all 
 the consolations of religion and of faith, to enable us to 
 muster any degree of resolution for the awful change. But 
 if aught can smooth the pillow, — can chase away from the 
 terrified spirit the doubt and depression by which it is 
 overwhelmed, it is the being surrounded and attended by 
 those who are devoted and endeared to us. When love, 
 and duty, and charity, and sympathy hover round the 
 couch of the departing, fainting hope is supported by their 
 presence, and the fleeting spirit, directed by them, looks 
 upward to the realms from which these heaven-born 
 passions have been permitted to descend on earth, to cheer 
 us through our weary pilgrimage. 
 
 What then had Admiral De Courcy to support him in 
 his last moments ? — A good conscience ? — faith ? — hope ? 
 — love ? — duty ? — or even sympathy ? — Wanting all, he 
 breathed his last. But, let us 
 
 " Forbear to judge, for we are sinners all ; 
 Close up his eyes, and draw the curtains close, 
 And let us all to meditation." 
 
 The vicar affixed seals upon the drawers, to secure the 
 remainder of the property (for the example of the old 
 nurse had been followed by many others), and, having 
 given directions for the funeral, returned to his own home. 
 
 The second day after the admiral's death, a carriage and 
 four drove furiously up the avenue, and stopped at the 
 entrance door. The occupants descended, and rang the 
 bell with an air of authority ; the summons was answered 
 by several of the male domestics, who were anxiously 
 looking out for the new proprietor of the domain. A tall 
 man, of very gentlemanlike appearance, followed by a mean- 
 
no The King's Own 
 
 looking personage in black, walked in, the latter, as he 
 followed, proclaiming the other to the servants as the 
 heir-at-law, and present owner of the property. By this 
 time the whole household were assembled, lining the hall 
 for the visitors to pass, and bowing and curtseying to the 
 ground. The vicar, who had expected the appearance of 
 these parties, had left directions that he might be im- 
 mediately acquainted with their arrival. On receipt of the 
 information, he proceeded to the hall, and was ushered into 
 the library, where he found them anxiously awaiting his 
 arrival, that the seals might be withdrawn which had been 
 placed upon the drawers. 
 
 " Whom have I the honour of addressing, sir ? " said the 
 vicar to the taller of the two, whom he presumed, by his 
 appearance, to be the superior. 
 
 " Sir," replied the little man, in a pompous manner, 
 "you are speaking to Mr Rainscourt, the heir-at-law of 
 this entailed property." 
 
 " I am sorry, truly sorry, sir," replied the vicar, " that 
 from not having been well informed, you should be sub- 
 jected to such severe disappointment. I am afraid, sir, that 
 the grandchild of Admiral De Courcy will have a prior claim." 
 
 The two parties started from their chairs, and looked at 
 each other in amazement. 
 
 " The grandchild ! " replied the little man — " never even 
 heard that there was such a person." 
 
 "Very probably, sir; but I have long known it, and so 
 did Admiral De Courcy, as you will perceive when you 
 read his will, which is in my possession, as guardian to the 
 child — and upon the strength of which office I have put 
 seals upon the property." 
 
 The parties looked aghast. 
 
 ** We must inquire into this," replied the legal adviser, 
 for such he was. 
 
 "I am ready to give you any information you may 
 require," replied the vicar. "I have here copies of the 
 marriage certificate of the parents, and the register of bap- 
 tism of the child, the originals of which you will find in the 
 
The King's Own iii 
 
 parish church of , not five miles distant ; and I can most 
 
 satisfactorily prove his identity, should that be necessary." 
 
 ** And where is the grandchild ? " 
 
 "At sea, on board a man-of-war, at the dying request 
 of his father, who determined that he should be brought 
 up for the service. Would you like to see the late 
 admiral's will ? " 
 
 The tall gentleman bowed assent, and it was read. 
 Having been carefully examined by the lawyer, as well as 
 the other documents in the vicar's possession, all appeared 
 so clear and conclusive, that he unwillingly acknowledged 
 to his employor, in a whisper, that there was no chance of 
 setting the will aside. Pallid with the revulsion of feelings 
 from hope to despair, the pretender to the estates ordered 
 the horses to be brought out, and, on their being announced, 
 with a slight bow to the vicar, retired from the library. 
 
 But outside, the state of affairs was altered, by the 
 servants having overheard the conversation. No one was 
 attentive enough to open the door to let out those whom 
 they had so obsequiously admitted : and one of the posti- 
 lions was obliged to dismount, to shut up the chaise after 
 they had entered it. Such is the deference shown respec- 
 tively to those who are, or are not, the real heirs-at-law. 
 
 Chapter XVI 
 
 On deck five hundred men did dance, 
 The stoutest they could find in France. 
 We with two hundred did advance, 
 
 On board of the Arethusa. 
 Our captain hailed the Frenchman « ho 1 " 
 The Frenchman then cried out "hallo I " 
 
 " Bear down, d'ye see, 
 
 To our Admiral's lee ; " 
 " No, no," said the Frenchman, " that can't be ;" 
 " Then I must lug you along with me," 
 
 Says the saucy Arethusa. 
 
 Sea Song, 
 
 The information received from M'Elvina, which induced 
 Captain M not to anchor, was relative to a French 
 
1 1 2 The King's Own 
 
 frigate of the largest class, that he had great hopes of 
 falling in with. She was lying in the harbour of Brest, 
 waiting for a detachment of troops which had been ordered 
 to embark, when she was to sail for Rochefort, to join 
 a squadron intended to make a descent upon some of our 
 colonies. Previously to M'Elvina's sailing from the port 
 of Havre, the prefect of that arrondissement had issued 
 directions for certain detachments to march on a stated 
 day to complete the number of troops ordered on board. 
 
 M'Elvina had sure data from which to calculate as to 
 the exact period of embarkation, and was also aware that 
 the frigate had orders to sail to the port of rendezvous 
 the first favourable wind after the embarkation had taken 
 place. In two days the Aspasia, for that was the name 
 
 of the frigate commanded by Captain M , was off* 
 
 Ushant, and the captain, taking the precaution to keep 
 well off the land during the day time, only running in 
 to make the lights after dark, retained his position off 
 that island until the wind shifted to the northward : he 
 then shaped a course so as to fall in with the Frencli 
 coast about thirty miles to the southward of the harbour 
 
 of Brest. It was still dark, when Captain M , having 
 
 run his distance, shortened sail, and hove-to in the cruising 
 ground which M^Elvina had recommended , and so correct 
 was the calculation, as well as the information of the 
 captain of the smugglers, that at daybreak, as the frigate 
 lay with her head inshore, with the wind at N.N.W., 
 a large vessel was descried under the land, a little on 
 her weatherbow. After severely scrutinising the stranger 
 for some minutes with his glass, which he now handed 
 to M'Elvina — 
 
 " That's she, indeed, I believe," said Captain M . 
 
 <*A large frigate, with studding-sails set, standing 
 across our bows," cried out the first lieutenant, from the 
 mast-head. 
 
 " She'll try for the Passage du Raz ; we must cut her 
 off, if we can. Hands, make sail." 
 
 The hands were summoned up by the shrill pipe of the 
 
The King's Own 1 1 3 
 
 boatswain and his mates ; but it was quite unnecessary, 
 as the men had already crowded on deck upon the first 
 report which had been communicated below, and were 
 in clusters on the forecastle and gangways. 
 
 "Topmen, aloft! loose top-gallant sails and royals — 
 clear away the flying-jib," were orders that were hardly 
 out of the mouth of the first lieutenant, breathless with 
 his rapid descent from aloft, when the gaskets were off, 
 and the sails hung fluttering from the yards. In another 
 minute the sheets were home, the sails hoisted and trimmed, 
 and the Aspasia darted through the yielding waves, as 
 if the eagerness of pursuit which quickened the pulses 
 of her crew had been communicated from them like an 
 electric shock to her own frame, and she were conscious 
 that her country demanded her best exertions. 
 
 *'Pipe the hammocks up, Mr Hardy," said Captain 
 
 M • to the first lieutenant ; " when they are stowed 
 
 we will beat to quarters." 
 
 " Ay, ay, sir. Shall we order the fire out in the 
 galley ? " 
 
 **When the cocoa is ready, not before — there will be 
 plenty of time for the people to get their breakfast. 
 How does the land bear, Mr Pearce } " 
 
 " Saint Island about S.E. by S. eight or nine miles, 
 sir," replied the master. 
 
 "If so, I think we shall cut him off, and then * fight 
 he must.' " 
 
 Both frigates had hoisted their colours in defiance, and 
 as they were steering for the same point, they neared 
 each other fast. The French vessel, with his starboard 
 studding-sails, running for the entrance of the narrow 
 passage, which he hoped to gain, and the Aspasia close- 
 hauled to intercept him, and at the same time to avoid 
 the dangerous rocks to leeward, far extending from Saint 
 Island, whose name they bore. 
 
 " Have the men had their breakfasts, Mr Hardy ? " said 
 the captain. 
 
 ** The cocoa was in the tub, sir," answered the first 
 
 K. I. H 
 
1 1 4 The King's Own 
 
 lieutenant, "ready for serving out; but they started it 
 all in the lee-scuppers. They wanted the tub to fill it 
 with shot." 
 
 Captain M smiled at the enthusiasm of his crew ; 
 
 but the smile was suddenly checked, as he reflected that 
 probably many of the fine fellows would never breakfast 
 again. 
 
 " If not contrary to your regulations, Captain M ," 
 
 said M*Elvina, " as the crew of the Suzanne have not yet 
 been incorporated with your ship's company, may I request 
 that they may be stationed together, and that I may be 
 permitted to be with them ? " 
 
 " Your suggestion is good," replied the captain, " and I 
 am obliged to you for the offer. They shall assist to 
 work the quarter-deck carronades, and act as boarders and 
 sail trimmers. Mr Hardy, let the new men be provided 
 with cutlasses, and fill up any vacancies in the main-deck 
 quarters, from some of our own men who are at present 
 stationed at the quarter-deck guns." 
 
 The frigates were now within gunshot of each other, 
 and it was impossible to say which vessel would first 
 attain the desired goal. The foremost guns of the 
 respective ships which had been trained forward were 
 reported to bear upon the enemy, and both commanders 
 were aware that " knocking away a stick," i,e.y the shots 
 striking the masts or yards of her opponent, so as to 
 occasion them to fall, would decide the point. At the very 
 
 time that captain M was giving directions to fire the 
 
 main-deck guns as they would bear, the first shot from his 
 antagonist whizzed over his head, and the action com- 
 menced, each party attempting to cripple his opponent by 
 firing high at his masts and rigging. The frigates 
 continued to engage, until they had closed-to within half a 
 mile of each other, when the main-top-mast of the French- 
 man fell over the side. 
 
 This decided the point as to his escape through the 
 passage, which he had made his utmost exertions to effect, 
 in pursuance of the peremptory orders which he had 
 
The King's Own 115 
 
 received. He now hauled his wind on the same tack as 
 the Aspasia pouring in his starboard broadside as he 
 rounded-to. The manoeuvre was good, as he thereby 
 retained his weather-gage — and the wreck of his top-mast 
 having fallen over his larboard side, he had his starboard 
 broadside, which was all clear, and directed towards his 
 opponent ; moreover, he forced the Aspasia to follow him 
 into the bay formed between the Bee du Raz and the Bee 
 du Chevre, where she would in all probability receive 
 considerable damage from the batteries which lined the 
 coast. 
 
 Captain M was aware of all this \ but his only fear 
 
 was that his enemy should run on shore, and prevent his 
 carrying him into port. The Aspasia was soon abreast of 
 her opponent, and their broadsides were exchanged, when 
 
 Captain M , who wished to bring the action to a speedy 
 
 conclusion, shot his vessel ahead, which he was enabled to 
 do, from his superiority of sailing, after the main-top-mast 
 of the French frigate had been shot away. It was his 
 intention not to have tacked until he could have fetched 
 his antagonist, but the galling fire of the batteries, which 
 now hulled him every time, induced him to go about, and, 
 as he was in stays, a raking shot entered the cabin windows, 
 and, in its passage along the main-deck, added ten men to 
 his list of killed and wounded. 
 
 Again the frigates, on opposite tacks, poured in their 
 broadsides — the fore-yard of the Frenchman was divided 
 in the slings, and fell, hanging by the topsail-sheets and 
 lifts, and tearing the sails, which fell over the forecastle 
 guns, and caught fire, as they were discharged at the same 
 moment. Nor did the Aspasia suffer less, for her mizen- 
 top-mast was shot through, and her starboard anchor, cut 
 from her bows, fell under her bottom and tore away the 
 
 cable (a short range of which Captain M had had the 
 
 precaution to have on deck, as they fought so close in- 
 shore). This threw the men at the guns into confusion, 
 and brought the ship up in the wind. The cable was at 
 last separated, and flew out of the hawse-hole after the 
 
ii6 The King's Own 
 
 anchor, which plunged to the bottom ; but this was not 
 effected, until, like an enormous serpent, it had enfolded 
 in its embraces three or four hapless men, who were carried 
 with dreadful velocity to the hawse-hole, where their 
 crushed bodies for a time stopped it from running out, 
 and gave their shipmates an opportunity of dividing it with 
 their axes. 
 
 Order was eventually restored, and the Aspasia, who 
 had been raked by her active opponent during the time 
 that she was thrown up in the wind, continued her course, 
 and as she passed stern of the French frigate, luffed up 
 and returned the compliment. The latter, anxious in his 
 crippled state for the support of the batteries, which had 
 already seriously injured his opponent, continued to forge 
 in-shore. 
 
 " We shall weather her now ; — 'bout ship, Mr Pearce. 
 
 Recollect, my lads," said Captain M , when the ship 
 
 was about, "you'll reserve your fire till we touch her 
 sides ; then all hands to board." 
 
 The Aspasia ranged up on the weather quarter of her 
 antagonist — Pearce, the master, conning her by the captain's 
 directions, so that the fore-chains of the French vessel 
 should be hooked by the spare anchor of the Aspasia, The 
 enemy, who, in his disabled state, was not in a situation to 
 choose whether he would be boarded or not, poured in a 
 double-shotted and destructive broadside, and it was well 
 
 for Captain M that his ship's company had received 
 
 the reinforcement which they had from the Suzanne, for the 
 French frigate was crowded with men, and being now 
 within pistol-shot, the troops, who ware so thick on deck 
 as to impede the motions of each other, kept up an 
 incessant fire of musketry, cutting the Aspasia s running 
 rigging, riddling her sails, and disabling her men. 
 
 *' Hard-a-port now ! " cried Pearce, and the vessels 
 came in collision, the spare anchor in the Aspasia s fore- 
 chains catching and tearing away the backstays and lanyards 
 of the enemy's fore-rigging, and, with a violent jerk, 
 bringing down the fore top-mast to windward. At this 
 
The King's Own 117 
 
 moment the reserved broadside of the Aspasta was dis- 
 charged, and the two frigates heeled over opposite ways, 
 from the violent concussion of the air in the confined space 
 between them. While yet enveloped in the smoke, the 
 men flew up on deck, as they had been previously directed 
 
 by Captain M , who leaped upon the quarter-deck 
 
 hammocks of his own frigate, and, holding with one hand 
 by the mizen top-mast backstay, with his sword in the 
 other, waving to encourage his men, waited a second or 
 two for the closing of the after-parts of the vessels, before 
 he led on his boarders. 
 
 The smoke rolled away through the masts of the French 
 frigate, and discovered her captain, with equal disregard 
 to his safety, in nearly a similar position on the hammock 
 rails of his own vessel. The rival commanders were not 
 six feet apart, when the main-chains of the two vessels 
 crashed as they came in collision. The French captain 
 drew a pistol from his belt and levelled it at Captain 
 
 M , whose fate appeared to be certain 5 when, at the 
 
 critical moment, a hat, thrown from the quarter-deck of 
 the Aspasia, right into the face of the Frenchman, blinded 
 him for a moment, and his pistol went off without taking 
 effect. 
 
 "Capital shot, that, Willy!" cried M'Elvina, as he 
 sprang from the hammocks with his sword, " giving 
 point " in advance, and, while still darting through the air 
 with the impetus of his spring, passing it through the body 
 of the French captain, who fell back on his own quarter- 
 deck, while M'Elvina, fortunately for himself, dropped 
 into the chains, for, had he a hundred lives, they would 
 have fallen a sacrifice to the exasperated Frenchmen : but 
 
 the smugglers had followed M'Elvina, and Captain M , 
 
 with the rest of his ship's company, were thronging, like 
 bees, in the rigging, hammocks, and chains of their 
 opponent. From the destructive fire of the French troops, 
 many an English seaman fell dead, or severely wounded, 
 was reserved for a worse fate — that of falling overboard 
 between the ships, and, at the heave of the sea, being 
 
ii8 The King's Own 
 
 crushed between their sides. Many a gallant spirit was 
 separated from its body by this horrid death as the strife 
 continued. 
 
 Possession was at length gained of the quarter-deck ; 
 but the carnage was not to cease. The French troops 
 stationed in the boats of the booms, formed a sort of 
 pyramid, vomiting incessant fire ; and the commandant had 
 had the sagacity to draw up three lines of his men, with 
 their bayonets fixed, from one side of the vessel to the 
 other, abreast of the gangways, forming a barrier, behind 
 which the crew of the French frigate had retreated, and 
 which was impenetrable to the gallant crew of the Aspasia, 
 who were only provided with short cutlasses. 
 
 Captain M , as he saw his men falHng on every side, 
 
 and every attempt to force a passage unsuccessful, although 
 accompanied with heavy loss of lives, found himself, as it 
 were, in a trap. To force his way through appeared im- 
 possible — to retreat was against his nature. M'Elvina, 
 who had been fighting by his side, perceived the awkward 
 and dangerous predicament they were in, and his ready 
 talent suggested a remedy. Calling out loudly, ^' Suzannes I 
 away there ! — follow me ! " an order instantly obeyed by 
 his men, he disappeared with them over the hammocks, 
 leaping back upon the quarter-deck of the Aspasia. 
 
 " Curses on the smuggler, he has run for it. At them 
 again, my Britons, never mind," cried the first lieutenant, 
 leading on the men against the phalanx of bayonets. — But 
 it was not as the first-lieutenant had supposed ; for before 
 the cutlasses of the seaman had time again to strike fire 
 upon the steel points which opposed their passage, 
 M'Elvina re-appeared in the fore-rigging of the French 
 vessel, followed by his smugglers, who attacked the 
 French troops in the rear, with a loud yell, and an 
 impetuosity that was irresistible. The diversion was 
 
 announced by a cheer from Captain M and his party 
 
 abaft, who, rushing upon the bayonets of the Frenchmen, 
 already in confusion from the attack of M'Elvina, forced 
 them down on the main-deck, and in a few minutes the 
 
The King's Own 119 
 
 hatches were secured over the remainder of the crew, and 
 the tricolored ensign disappeared from the gaff, and an- 
 nounced to the spectators in the batteries on shore, that 
 ** Britannia ruled the waves. ^^ 
 
 Chapter XVII 
 
 Brave hearts ! to Britain's pride 
 Once so faithful and so true, 
 
 On the deck of fame that died 
 With the gallant, good Riou, — 
 
 Soft sigh the winds of Heaven o'er their grave, 
 While the billow mournful rolls, 
 And the mermaid's song condoles, 
 Singing glory to the souls 
 
 Of the brave ! 
 
 Campbell. 
 
 Hasty congratulations between the survivors of the 
 victorious party were exchanged as they proceeded to obey 
 
 the orders which were issued by Captain M , who 
 
 directed their attention to the relief of the wounded, lying 
 in heaps upon the deck, in many instances nearly smothered 
 with the dead bodies which had fallen upon them, and 
 which their own exhausted powers would not permit them 
 to remove. The task of separation of those who were 
 past all mortal aid from those who might still derive 
 benefit from surgical assistance, was as tedious as it was 
 aiflicting. No distinction was made between the rival' 
 sufferers, but, as they came to hand, English or French, 
 they were carefully conveyed to the half-decks of the 
 respective ships, the surgeons of which were in readiness 
 to receive them, their shirt-sleeves turned up to the 
 elbows, and hands and arms stained with blood, proving 
 that they had already been actively employed in the duties 
 of their profession. 
 
 On the foremost part of the larboard side of the French 
 
 frigate's quarter-deck, where Captain M and his crew 
 
 had boarded, the dead and dying lay in a heap, the summit 
 
I20 The King's Own 
 
 of which was level with the tops of the carronades that 
 they were between ; and an occasional low groan from 
 under the mass, intimated that some were there who were 
 dying more from the pressure of the other bodies, than 
 from the extent of their own wounds. 
 
 Captain M , although he had lost much blood, and 
 
 was still bleeding profusely, would not leave the deck 
 until he had collected a party to separate the pile ; and 
 many were relieved, who, in a few minutes more, would 
 have been suffocated. 
 
 At the bottom of the heap was the body of the gallant 
 
 French captain ; and Captain M was giving directions 
 
 to the first lieutenant to have it carried below, when 
 Willy, who was earnestly looking about the deck, brushed 
 up against the latter, who said to him — 
 
 " Come, youngster, out of the way, you're no use 
 here." 
 
 " Has any one seen my hat ? " interrogated the boy, as 
 he obeyed the order, and removed to a short distance. 
 
 " Here it is, my bantam," said one of the boatswain's 
 mates, who had discovered it as they removed the body of 
 the French captain, under which it had lain, jammed as flat 
 as a pancake. 
 
 " Then it was to you that I was indebted for that well- 
 timed assistance," said Captain M , taking the hat from 
 
 the boatswain's mate, and restoring it as well as he could 
 to its former shape before he put it on Willy's head. 
 
 Willy looked up in the captain's face, and smiled assent 
 as he walked away. 
 
 " A good turn is never lost," observed Captain M ; 
 
 " and the old fable of the mouse and the lion is constantly 
 recurring to make us humble. If I had not put that boy 
 on the quarter-deck, I should in all probability have made 
 a vacancy. It was remarkable presence of mind on his 
 part." 
 
 We have not broken in upon our narrative to state, that, 
 during the scene we have described, Mr Pearce, the master, 
 had succeeded in putting both vessels before the wind, 
 
The King's Own 121 
 
 although they still were hugged in each other's embraces, 
 as if they had always been the best friends in the world, 
 and they were now out of the reach of the enemy's 
 batteries, which (as soon as they perceived the unfavour- 
 able result of the action) had commenced firing with red- 
 hot balls, emblematical of their wrath. 
 
 When the wounded had been carried below, and placed 
 in comparative comfort on board of their respective ships, 
 the dead bodies were next examined. Those of the French 
 (with the exception of that of the captain) were launched 
 overboard ; while those of the English were carried to 
 their own frigate, the only instance in which any difference 
 was shown between the rival sufferers. The hatches were 
 then removed, and the French officers, having delivered up 
 their swords, were permitted to remain on deck upon 
 parole, while the men were secured down below in the 
 fore and main holds of the Aspasia, the hatchways being 
 covered over with a strong splinter-netting, that they might 
 not be deprived of fresh air in their crowded situation. 
 The charge of the prize having been confided to the first 
 lieutenant and fifty men, the two ships were separated, 
 and laid to, to repair the damages sustained in the 
 conflict. 
 
 Captain M , whose wounds were not serious, had 
 
 descended for a short time to have them washed and 
 dressed. His anxiety to put his ship in an efficient state, 
 and get clear of the bay, previously to bad weather coming 
 on, had induced him to return on deck as soon as he had 
 taken a little refreshment. 
 
 M*Elvina had also cleansed himself from the gore with 
 which he had been begrimed, and, having applied to the 
 surgeon to assuage the pain of a severe cut which he had 
 received on his shoulder, came upon the quarter-deck with 
 his arm in a sling, dressed with his usual precision and 
 
 neatness. He touched his hat to Captain M , with 
 
 whom he had not communicated since he had quitted him 
 on the quarter-deck of the French frigate, to create the 
 fortunate diversion in favour of the boarders. 
 
122 The King's Own 
 
 " Captain M'Elvina," said Captain M , taking his 
 
 hand and shaking it warmly, " I can hardly express how- 
 much I am obliged to you for your conduct this day. You 
 may be assured that, upon my return, I shall not fail to 
 make a proper representation of it to government. I only 
 wish that there was any situation in my ship that could 
 induce you to remain." 
 
 "Thank you. Captain M ," replied M'Elvina, 
 
 smiling ; " but, although on a smaller scale, I have long 
 been accustomed to command ; and I should be very 
 sorry that a vacancy should occur in the only situation 
 that I would accept." 
 
 ** I expected an answer to that effect," replied Captain 
 
 M . " However, you have this day nobly redeemed 
 
 your character, and silenced any imputations of hostility 
 to your country that might be thrown upon you in con- 
 sequence of your kte employment ; and I sincerely con- 
 gratulate you." 
 
 " Captain M , as you are kind enough to express 
 
 friendly feelings towards me, may I request they may 
 be shown by the interest you take in young Seymour ? 
 I cannot but approve his following the honourable career 
 marked out for him, and my regret at parting with one 
 who has so entwined himself round my heart, will be 
 considerably lessened by the assurance that you will be 
 his friend and protector. Any expenses " 
 
 **Not one word upon that score," replied Captain 
 
 M : " the boy saved my life this day by his unusual 
 
 presence of mind, and I shall watch over him as if he 
 were my own child." 
 
 " His education ? " 
 
 " Shall be attended to. I pledge you my honour to 
 do him every justice." 
 
 M*Elvina bowed, and walked away to the other side 
 of the quarter-deck ; the idea of parting with Willy was 
 always painful to him, and, weak with the loss of blood, 
 he was afraid that the emotion would be perceived, 
 which he now felt less able to control. 
 
The King's Own 12 
 
 o 
 
 Thus it is with proud man. He struggles to conceal 
 efFects arising from feelings which do honour to his 
 nature ; but feels no shame when he disgraces himself 
 by allowing his passions to get the better of his reason 
 ■ — and all because he would not be thought wotnanish ! 
 Fm particularly fond of crying myself. 
 
 The list of killed and wounded was brought up by 
 the second lieutenant (the duty of the first, who was in 
 charge of the prize, having devolved upon him) — the 
 former having been ascertained by mustering the ship's 
 company, the latter from the report of the surgeon. 
 
 A deep sigh escaped from the breast of the captain 
 as he looked down at the total. " Forty-four killed — 
 sixty-seven wounded ! This is heavy indeed. Poor 
 Stevenson, I thought he was only wounded " 
 
 ** Since dead, sir," replied the second lieutenant ; " we 
 have lost a pleasant messmate." 
 
 ** And his Majesty a valuable officer," replied the 
 captain. ** I am afraid his mother will feel it in more 
 ways than one — he supported her, I think." 
 
 " He did, sir : will you not give an acting order to 
 one of the young gentlemen ? " (It was the third lieu- 
 tenant over whom they were lamenting.) 
 
 *' Yes, make it out for Mr Robertson." 
 
 " He's in the list, sir." 
 
 " What ! killed ! So he is, poor fellow ! Well then, 
 — Mr Wheatly, — let it be made out for him." 
 
 ** Ay, ay, sir." 
 
 It was not until the ensuing day that the loss of the 
 enemy could be ascertained. Crowded as were her decks 
 with troops, it was enormous. Not only the first and 
 second captains, second lieutenant, and seven junior 
 officers of the frigate had fallen, but eleven officers of 
 the detachment of soldiers sent on board of her. The 
 total loss appeared to be one hundred and forty-seven 
 killed, and one hundred and eighty-four wounded, out of 
 an aggregate of nearly nine hundred men. 
 
 In a few days the Aspasia and her prize arrived at 
 
124 The King's Own 
 
 Plymouth, the English colours proudly waving over the 
 tricolored flag of her late opponent, and both vessels ran 
 into Hamoaze, amidst the cheers of thousands of 
 spectators, assembled upon Mount Wise and Mount 
 Edgecomb to greet their gallant and successful defenders. 
 
 Captain M immediately proceeded to London, where 
 
 the representation which he made of M'Elvina's conduct 
 was followed by an order for his immediate release, and 
 M^Elvina, taking an affectionate leave of Willy, with a 
 parting injunction to ^^ be honest^"^ set off to report to 
 old Hornblow, and his daughter Susan, all the circum- 
 stances attending the capture of his lugger, and the 
 events which had subsequently ensued. 
 
 Chapter XVIII 
 
 So : poverty at home, and debts abroad ; 
 
 My present fortune had ; my hopes yet worse I 
 
 What will become of me ? 
 
 Southeron's Isabella, 
 
 The gentleman who had supposed himself the next heir 
 to the entailed property, vacant by the demise of Admiral 
 
 De Courcy, and whose hasty visit and departure from 
 
 Hall we have mentioned in a previous chapter, was a 
 third cousin of the deceased. His history is short. He 
 had squandered away the personal property left him by 
 his father; and his family estate, which was of greater 
 extent than value, was mortgaged for even more than 
 it was worth. He had latterly subsisted by borrowing 
 large sums of money at exorbitant interest, upon the 
 expectancy of succeeding to the property of Admiral De 
 Courcy. The result of his visit to the Hall was, there- 
 fore, unsatisfactory in more ways than one ; and before 
 he had arrived at his own residence, his obsequious little 
 friend in black had reminded him of certain bonds which 
 were in his possession, and assumed a tone and demeanour 
 towards his client very different from that in which he 
 
The King's Own 125 
 
 had addressed the supposed inheritor of the large property 
 
 of D •, intimating, in very plain terms, that some 
 
 speedy arrangements must be made. 
 
 Rainscourt, who had nothing left except the old castle 
 on his property in Gal way, his manorial rights, and the 
 unbounded attachment and devotion of the wild tenants, 
 who looked upon him as their feudal chieftain, felt convinced 
 that he had no resource but to escape from his numerous 
 creditors, who would not hesitate to put him in durance, 
 and whose impatience had been with diificulty restrained 
 until the death of the admiral. The speedy arrangement upon 
 which he determined was, to set off immediately for 
 Ireland, and, by regaining his castle, defy legal authority, 
 — if there could be found any that would be rash enough 
 to attempt his person, when encircled by his lawless 
 retainers. 
 
 As he descended from the chaise, at the handsomely 
 furnished lodgings, in the west end of the metropolis, 
 which he had engaged, his companion informed him, with 
 a haughty air, that he would have the honour of paying his 
 respects on the ensuing noon ; while Rainscourt, with his 
 usual indifference to money, dismissed the post-boys with 
 a handsome gratuity, although there were not many 
 guineas left in his purse ; and then proceeded up to 
 the drawing-room, on the first floor, where his wife and 
 only daughter were anxiously awaiting his arrival. 
 
 Mrs Rainscourt, still a fine and elegant woman, had, in 
 her youth, been remarkable for her great personal attrac- 
 tions •, and, for two seasons, had been considered as the 
 belle of the Irish metropolis. She was, at that period, a 
 high-spirited and generous-minded girl, easily provoked, 
 and as easily appeased, — proud of her beauty and her 
 accomplishments, which her worldly-minded parents were 
 in hopes would be bartered for a coronet. Rainscourt 
 was also, at that time, one of the handsomest, if not the 
 handsomest man in Ireland, with the advantage of polished 
 manners, talent, and ancient birth. Received and courted 
 in every society, he was as indefatigable in squandering 
 
126 The King's Own 
 
 away his property, as the parents of Mrs Rainscourt were 
 in trying to obtain an advantageous establishment for their 
 daughter. Rainscourt was proud and overbearing in dis- 
 position : vain, to excess, of his personal advantages, he 
 considered himself to be irresistible with the other sex. 
 He had seen and admired his future spouse ; but still, as 
 he required an alliance which would enable him to indulge 
 in his extravagance, and as her parents were aware that 
 Rainscourt was, or would soon be, a ruined man, in all 
 probability they would never have come in contact, but 
 have rolled in different orbits, more consonant to their views 
 and their happiness, had it not occurred that, at a large and 
 convivial party, Rainscourt's vanity had been piqued by his 
 companions, who told him that he never could obtain the 
 hand of Miss , whose parents aspired to a higher con- 
 nection. Piqued at this remark, and flushed with the wine 
 that had been freely circulated, he offered to stake a 
 considerable sum that he would succeed before a certain 
 allotted time. The wager was accepted. Rainscourt 
 courted without affection ; and, by his assiduities and 
 feigned attachment, ultimately succeeded in persuading 
 the fond girl to destroy all the golden visions of her 
 parents, and resign herself to his arms, where he assured 
 her that competence and love would be found more than 
 commensurate to a coronet and neglect. 
 
 They eloped ; — all Dublin was in an uproar for three 
 days. Rainscourt received the amount of his bet, and the 
 congratulations of his friends, and for a short time he and 
 his wife lived together without any serious fracas. The 
 first that occurred proceeded from an anonymous letter, 
 evidently written by some envious and disappointed female, 
 acquainting Mrs Rainscourt with all the circumstances 
 attending the bet, to which she had been sacrificed. This 
 mortifying news was received with showers of tears, and 
 some upbraiding : for Mrs Rainscourt really loved her 
 husband ; and although patched up by Rainscourt's pro- 
 testations, as to the falsehood of the accusation, it sunk deep 
 into her heart, and was but the forerunner of future misery. 
 
The King's Own 127 
 
 Rainscourt soon became tired of a woman whom he had 
 never loved ; cursed his own vanity, that had induced him 
 to saddle himself with such an encumbrance «is a wife ; and, 
 by alternate violence and moroseness, irritated her feelings, 
 and roused her spirit. Neglect on his part produced 
 indifference on her side ; and as the means of gaiety and 
 expense melted away, so did all respect and esteem for each 
 other. 
 
 An extravagant man seldom makes a good husband : he 
 becomes embarrassed, and his circumstances prey upon his 
 mind, and sour his temper. A woman who has, before 
 marriage, been the admiration of the metropolis, is not very 
 likely to prove a good wife. She still sighs for the 
 adulation that she received, and which, from habit, has 
 become necessary to her, and would exact from the man for 
 whom she has given up the world, all the attention that she 
 has lost by the sacrifice. 
 
 Mr and Mrs Rainscourt were joined — but they were 
 not one. Like many others in this world of error, their 
 marriage might be typified by a vial, of which one half has 
 been filled with oil, and the other with water, having a 
 cork in its mouth, which confined them, and forced them to 
 remain in contact, although they refused to unite. The 
 fruit of this marriage was one daughter, now about six 
 years old. 
 
 " Well, Mr Rainscourt, all is well, I hope ; and may I 
 not kiss my daughter, and congratulate her upon being one 
 of the largest heiresses in the kingdom .'' " 
 
 " You may, if you please, madam." 
 
 " May, if I please ? Why, is it not so, Mr Rainscourt?" 
 replied the lady, startled at the moody brow of her husband, 
 as he threw himself on the sofa. 
 
 Now Rainscourt would not have so immediately answered 
 the question, but he was determined that his spouse should 
 participate in those pangs of disappointment which swelled 
 his own breast ; as a partner of all his joys, she was, of 
 course, fully entitled to an equal proportion of his cares. 
 
 " No, madam — it is not so." 
 
128 The King's Own 
 
 " Surely you are trifling with me, Mr Rainscourt ; is not 
 the admiral dead ? " 
 
 ** Yes, madam ; and his grandchild is alive." 
 
 " His grandchild ! " cried the lady, in alto, pallid with 
 vexation and disappointment. " Well, Mr Rainscourt, 
 this is another specimen of your usual prudence and fore- 
 sight. What man in his senses would not have ascertained 
 such a fact, previous to squandering away his whole 
 property, and leaving his daughter a beggar ! " 
 
 " I think, madam, if the property has been squandered, 
 as you term it, that you have assisted me in so doing ; at 
 all events, the property was my own ; for I cannot exactly 
 recollect that you increased it one shilling when I married 
 you." 
 
 " Certainly, not much, Mr Rainscourt, except, indeed, 
 the amount of the bet. I consider that as my marriage 
 portion," replied the lady, with a sneer. 
 
 " Never made a worse bet in my life," replied the gentle- 
 man, throwing his legs upon the sofa. 
 
 "Perhaps not," replied his wife with offended serious- 
 ness ; " but recollect, Mr Rainscourt, that you have no one 
 to blame but yourself — you were not deceived. I might 
 have been happy — might have met with sincerity and 
 reciprocal affection. Your conduct towards me was an act 
 of cruelty, which would have called forth some compunction 
 in the breast of my bitterest enemy ; and yet, unoffending, 
 I was heartlessly sacrified to your vanity." 
 
 " Say, rather, to your own, which blinded you, or you 
 would have been able to discriminate better." 
 
 Mrs Rainscourt burst into tears. Before her emotion 
 could be controlled, her husband, who was hardened to 
 these scenes of alternate anger and grief, either was, or 
 pretended to be, in a sound sleep. 
 
 The little girl had nestled close to her mother at the 
 ebullition of her feelings, and waited in silence until it was 
 exhausted. 
 
 "Why, mamma, I thought you said we should be so 
 happy now.'' 
 
The King's Own 129 
 
 *• Did I, my dear ? " replied Mrs Rainscourt, mourn- 
 fully. 
 
 " Yes, you did, and told me that we should have a fine 
 house in London, and that we should not go back to the 
 old castle again. I was sorry for that, though. Where 
 shall we go now, mamma ? '* 
 
 ** God knows, my child ; you must ask your father." 
 
 ** Papa's asleep, and I must not wake him. I do hope 
 we shall go back to the castle." 
 
 "Then you'll have your wish, my love," replied Mr 
 Rainscourt, rousing up, ** for I start this very evening." 
 
 " Are we to go with you, Mr Rainscourt ? " asked Mrs 
 Rainscourt, calmly, " or are we to be left here ?" 
 
 " As you please ; but I must be off, for that little 
 
 scoundrel, T , threatened me with a visit to-morrow 
 
 morning as I got out of the chaise, and I am aware that he 
 will not come without a companion or two." 
 
 *'T ! What! T ? your friend T ! that 
 
 you brought from Dublin with you, and who professes so 
 much admiration and esteem — your own factotum ? " 
 
 " Yes, my own factotum — snivelling little scoundrel. 
 But, however, there's no time to be lost. You have some 
 jewels, my dear, and other articles of value ; you had better 
 pack them up, and consign them to me as soon as possible. 
 You may then take your choice, — go with me now, or 
 follow me in a day or two. They cannot arrest youP 
 
 "I am aware of that, Mr Rainscourt," replied the 
 lady ; " but as I may not have the means of following, my 
 daughter and I will, if you please, become a part of your 
 travelling incumbrance, as well as the jewels and other 
 articles of value." 
 
 "Be it so," replied the gentleman, who perfectly under- 
 stood her sarcastic meaning, but did not think it advisable 
 to retort at the moment ; " one post-chaise will carry 
 us all ; but we must leave town at twelve o'clock this 
 night. If I recollect right, we are asked to a rout at Lady 
 G- 's ? " 
 
 ** We are j but pray, Mr Rainscourt, how am I to get 
 
 K. I. I 
 
130 The King's Own 
 
 ready so soon ? The servants must be paid — all the bills 
 must be called in." 
 
 " If you wait until I can pay all the bills, you must wait 
 till eternity, perhaps. Pack up everything of value that 
 is portable, without the knowledge of the servants ; your 
 jewels you can have upon your own person, or in a pocket, 
 if you ever wear one. Order the carriage — dress, and we 
 will both go to the rout. I shall leave word with Roberts 
 to bring me any letters which may be sent, telling him 
 that the admiral is not dead yet, although hourly expected 
 — nothing has transpired to the contrary. I can slip away 
 from the rout, and write the letter myself, which I will 
 send by a porter. When I go home, and the chaise which 
 I shall order is at the door, I will put Emily in it, and 
 
 call for you at Lady G 's. The servants may suspect 
 
 something, but it will then be too late." 
 
 Danger will unite those who are at variance. Mrs R. 
 entered readily into the proposed arrangements, which 
 necessity imposed upon them, and in a few hours, father, 
 mother, and daughter were on their way to Ireland, leaving 
 the house rent, butchers, bakers, chandlers, and all other 
 bills, of no trifling sum total, to be paid at some more 
 favourable opportunity. The servants indemnified them- 
 selves as well as they could, by seizing what was left, 
 and cursing the elopers -, and the obsequious little gentle- 
 man in black vowed vengeance as he quitted the deserted 
 mansion, to which he had paid his promised visit in the 
 morning, with a particular friend or two, to enforce his 
 arguments with Mr Rainscourt. 
 
The King's Own 131 
 
 Chapter XIX 
 
 Fal. Have you provided me here half a dozen sufficient men ? 
 
 Shal. Marry have we, sir. 
 
 Fal, Let me see them, I beseech you. 
 
 Shal. Where's the roll 1 where's the roll ! 
 
 Let them appear as I call. 
 
 Shakespeare. 
 
 As the reader will have a more intimate acquaintance with 
 them hereafter, I must now enter into some description 
 of the characters of the captain and officers with whom 
 our hero was fated to be a shipmate. To begin with 
 the captain, who has already made his appearance in the 
 course of these pages : — 
 
 Captain M was the son of a north-country gentle- 
 man — one of the numerous class still existing in this world, 
 who have inherited large ideas and small fortunes. As 
 usual, the latter were got rid of much sooner than the 
 former. The consequence was, that although young 
 
 M was an only son, it was considered advisable that 
 
 he should be brought up to some profession. The naval 
 service was selected by himself, and approved of by his 
 father, who, although he had no money, had some 
 interest, — that is to say, he had powerful and wealthy 
 connections, who, for their own sakes, rather than have 
 to support their young relation, would exert themselves 
 to make him independent. 
 
 M rose to the rank of post-captain as fast as his 
 
 friends could wish, and did credit to their patronage. 
 Having once obtained for him the highest rank that the 
 profession could offer, until he became an admiral from 
 seniority, they thought that they had done enough ; and 
 
 had it not been that Captain M , by his zeal and 
 
 abilities, had secured a personal interest at the Board, 
 he might have languished on half pay; but his services 
 were appreciated, and he was too good an officer not to 
 be employed. His father was dead, and the payment 
 
132 The King's Own 
 
 of debts which he had contracted, and the purchase of 
 an annuity for his mother, had swallowed up almost all 
 
 the prize-money which Captain M , who had been 
 
 very successful, had realised; but he was single from 
 choice, and frugal from habit. His pay, and the interest 
 of the small remains of prize-money in the funds, were 
 more than adequate to his wants. He was enthusiastic 
 in his profession, and had the bad taste to prefer a fine 
 ship to a fine lady. 
 
 Having entered the service at a later period than was 
 usual, he had the advantage of an excellent education, 
 which, being naturally of a serious disposition, and fond 
 of reading, he had very much improved by study. As an 
 officer he was a perfect master of his profession, both 
 in theory and practice, and was what is termed afloat, 
 " all for the service." Indeed this feeling was so powerful 
 in him, that, Hke Aaron's rod, it swallowed up all the 
 rest. If there was any blemish in his character, it was 
 in this point. Correct himself, he made no allowance 
 for indiscretion; inflexibly severe, but always just, he 
 in no instance ever spared himself, nor would he ever 
 be persuaded to spare others. The rules and regulations 
 of the service, as laid down by the Board of Admiralty, 
 and the articles of war, were as rigidly observed by him, 
 and exacted from others, as if they had been added to 
 the Decalogue ; and any deviation or neglect was sure 
 to bring down reprimand or punishment upon the offender, 
 whether it happened to be the senior lieutenant, or the 
 smallest boy in the ship's company. 
 
 But, with all his severity, so determined was Captain 
 
 M to be just, that he never would exercise the power 
 
 without due reflection. On one occasion, in which the 
 conduct of a sailor had been very oflTensive, the first 
 lieutenant observed that summary punishment would have 
 a very beneficial effect upon the ship's company in general. 
 
 "Perhaps it might, Mr H ," replied he; "but it is 
 
 against a rule which I have laid down, and from which I 
 never deviate. Irritated as I am at this moment with the 
 
The King's Own 133 
 
 man's conduct, I may perhaps consider it in a more heinous 
 light than it deserves, and be guilty of too great severity. 
 I am liable to error, — subject, as others, to be led away by 
 the feelings of the moment — and have therefore made a 
 compact with myself never to punish until twenty-four 
 hours after the offence has been committed ; and so 
 repeatedly, when at the time I have settled in my mind 
 the quantum of punishment that the offender should 
 receive, have I found, upon reflection, which delay has 
 given time for, reasons to mitigate the severity, that I 
 wish, for the benefit of the service, that the Admiralty 
 would give a standing order to that effect." 
 
 Such was the character of Captain M . It hardly 
 
 need be added, after the events already narrated of this 
 history, that he was a man of undaunted bravery. In his 
 person, he was tall, and rather slight in figure. His 
 features were regular ; but there was a sternness in his 
 countenance, and lines of deep thought on his brow, which 
 rendered the expression unpleasing. It was only when he 
 smiled that you would have pronounced him hand- 
 some : then he was more than handsome, — he was 
 fascinating. 
 
 Mr Bully, the first lieutenant (who was the second 
 lieutenant in the ship in the action with the French 
 frigate), was an officer who well understood his duty. 
 He had the merit of implicitly obeying all orders ; and, 
 considering the well-known fact, that a first lieutenant has 
 always sufficient cause to be put out of temper at least 
 twenty times during the twelve hours, he was as good- 
 tempered as a first lieutenant could possibly be. He had 
 entered the service when very young, and, being of humble 
 extraction, had not had any advantage of education. In 
 person, he was short and thick-set, and having suffered 
 severely from the smallpox during his infancy, was by no 
 means prepossessing in his outward appearance. 
 
 The second lieutenant, whose name was Price, was a 
 good-looking young man, who kept his watch and read 
 Shakespeare. He was constantly attempting to quote his 
 
134 The King's Own 
 
 favourite author ; but, fortunately for those who were not 
 fond of quotations, his memory was very defective. 
 
 Mr Courtenay, the third lieutenant, was a little bilious- 
 looking personage, who, to use the master's phraseology, 
 was never quite happy unless he was d — d miserable. He 
 was full of misfortunes and grievances, and always com- 
 plaining or laughing, at his real or imaginary disasters ; 
 but his complaint would often end in a laugh, or his mirth 
 terminate in a whine. You never could exactly say, 
 whether he was in joke or in earnest. There was such a 
 serio-comic humour about him, that one side of his coun- 
 tenance would express pleasure, while the other indicated 
 vexation. There seemed to be perpetual war, in his com- 
 position, of good-humour versus bile, both of which were 
 most unaccountably blended in the same temperament. 
 
 According to seniority, Mr Pearce, the master, is the 
 next to be introduced to the reader ; in external appear- 
 ance, a rough, hard-headed north-countryman ; but, with 
 an unpromising exterior, he was a man of sense and feeling. 
 He had every requisite for his situation : his nerves were 
 like a chain-cable ; he was correct and zealous in his duty ; 
 and a great favourite of the captain's, who was his country- 
 man. He was about fifty years of age, a married man 
 with a large family. 
 
 The surgeon, whose name was Macallan, was also most 
 
 deservedly a great favourite with Captain M j indeed 
 
 there was a friendship between them, grown out of long 
 acquaintance with each other's worth, inconsistent with, 
 and unusual in, a service where the almost despotic power 
 of the superior renders the intimacy of the inferior similar 
 to the smoothing with your hand the paw of a lion, whose 
 fangs, in a moment of caprice, may be darted into your 
 flesh. He was a slight-made, spare man, of about thirty- 
 five years of age, and had graduated and received his 
 diploma at Edinburgh, — an unusual circumstance at that 
 period, although the education in the service was so defec- 
 tive, that the medical officers were generally the best 
 informed in the ship. But he was more than the above ; 
 
The King's Own 135 
 
 he was a naturalist, a man of profound research, and well 
 informed upon most points — of an amiable and gentle 
 disposition, and a sincere Christian. 
 
 It would naturally be inferred, that those whose pro- 
 fession it is to investigate the human frame, and constantly 
 have before their eyes the truth that we are fearfully and 
 wonderfully made, would be more inclined than others to 
 acknowledge the infinite wisdom and power. But this is 
 too often found not to be the case, and it would appear as 
 if the old scholium, that " too much familiarity breeds 
 contempt," may be found to act upon the human mind 
 even when in communion with the Deity. With what awe 
 does the first acquaintance with death impress us ! "What 
 a thrill passes through the living, as it bends over the 
 inanimate body, from which the spirit has departed ! The 
 clay that returns to the dust from which it sprung, — the 
 tenement that was lately endued with volition and life, — 
 the frame, that exhibited a perfection of mechanism, derid- 
 ing all human power, and confounding all human imagina- 
 tion, now an inanimate mass, rapidly decomposing, and 
 soon to become a heap of corruption. 
 
 Strong as the feeling is, how evanescent it becomes, 
 when once familiarised ! It has no longer power over the 
 senses, and the soldier and sailor pillow themselves on the 
 corpse, with perfect indifference, if not with a jest. So it 
 is with those who are accustomed to post-mortem arrange- 
 ments, who wash, and lay out the body previous to inter- 
 ment. 
 
 Yet, although we acknowledge that habit will remove 
 the first impressions of awe, how is it that the minute 
 investigation upon which conviction ought to be founded, 
 should too often have the contrary effect from that which 
 it should produce ? Is it because mystery, the parent of 
 awe, is in a certain degree removed ? 
 
 Faith, says the apostle, is the evidence of things not seen. 
 There would be no merit in believing what is perfectly 
 evident to the senses. Yet some would argue, that the 
 evidence ought to be more clear and palpable. If so. 
 
136 The King's Own 
 
 would not the awe be also removed, and would religion 
 gain by it ? "We have enough imparted to convince us that 
 all is right ; and is not that which is hidden or secret pur- 
 posely intended to produce that awe, without which the 
 proud mind of man would spurn at infinite wisdom ? 
 
 The above digression had nearly caused 'me to omit, that 
 Macallan had one peculiar failing. His language, from 
 long study, had been borrowed from books, more than from 
 men ; and when he entered upon his favourite science of 
 natural history, his enthusiasm made him more pedantic in 
 his style and pompous in his phraseology than ever. But 
 who is perfect ? 
 
 The purser, O'Keefe, was an elderly man, very careful 
 of the pounds, shillings, and pence. He was affected with 
 an incurable deafness, which he never thought proper to 
 acknowledge — but catching at a word or two in the 
 sentence, would frame his answer accordingly, occasioning 
 frequent mirth to his messmates, who he imagined were 
 laughing with, and not at him. For the present, I shall 
 pass over the rest of the officers, with the exception of the 
 boatswain, whose character was of a very peculiar nature. 
 
 He was a man who had long been considered as one of 
 the best boatswains in the service, and had been applied for 
 
 by Captain M . He used his cane with severity, but 
 
 had always some jest at hand to soften down the smart of 
 the blow, and was very active in his own person, setting an 
 example to the men. It had, however, happened, that 
 about a year before he joined, Mr Hardsett had been 
 induced by his wife to go with her to a conventicle, which 
 the rising sect of methodists had established at the port 
 where she resided ; and whether it was that his former life 
 smote his conscience, or that the preacher was unusually 
 powerful, he soon became one of the most zealous of his 
 converts. He read nothing but his Bible, which employed 
 all his leisure hours, and he was continually quoting it in 
 his conversation. But he was not exactly a methodist, 
 taking the cognomen in the worst or the best interpreta- 
 tion ; he was an enthusiast and a fanatic — notwithstanding 
 
The King's Own 137 
 
 which, he contrived that his duty towards his Maker 
 should not interfere with that of boatswain of the ship. 
 
 Captain M regretted the man's bigotry j but as he 
 
 never tried to make any converts, and did his duty in his 
 situation, the captain did not attempt to interfere with his 
 religious opinion, — the more so, as he was convinced that 
 Hardsett was sincere. 
 
 The Aspasta was but a short time in harbour, for the 
 captain was anxious to add to the laurels which he had 
 already won ; and having reported the ship ready for sea, 
 received an order to proceed to the West India station. 
 The frigate was unmoored, the blue-peter hoisted, and 
 the fore-topsail loosened as the signal for departure ; and 
 after lying a short time with her anchor " shot stay apeak," 
 
 Captain M came on board, — the anchor was run up to 
 
 the bows, and once more the frigate started, like an armed 
 knight in search of battle and adventure. 
 
 It was two o'clock in the afternoon, and the tenants of 
 the gun-room had assembled to their repast. " Now all 
 my misery is about to commence," cried Courtenay, as he 
 took his seat at the gun-room table, on which the dinner 
 was smoking in all the variety of pea-soup, Irish stew, and 
 boiled mutton with caper sauce. 
 
 ** Indeed ! " said the master. " Pray, then, what is it 
 that you have been grumbling about, ever since you have 
 joined the ship ? " 
 
 " Pshaw, they were only petty vexations, but now we are 
 at sea. I shall be sea-sick. I am always obliged to throw 
 off the accumulation of bile whenever I go out of harbour." 
 
 ** I say, doctor," replied Pearce, " can you stop up the 
 leak in that little gentleman's liver ? He's not content to 
 keep a hand-pump going to get rid of his bile when in 
 harbour, but it seems that he requires the chain-pumps to 
 be manned when he goes to sea." 
 
 ** Chain-pumps ! " exclaimed Courtenay shuddering, and 
 drawing back his head with a grimace at the idea of such a 
 forcible discharge, and then looking round at his mess- 
 mates with one of his serio-comic faces. 
 
138 The King's Own 
 
 "Pumps ! ay," said Price ; " you remember Shakespeare, 
 in the ' Tempest ' — he says — dear me, — I " 
 
 " Come, Price," said Courtenay, " don't make me sick 
 before my time, — it's unkind. You don't know what an 
 analogy there is between spouting and sea-sickness. In 
 both cases you throw up what is nauseous, because your 
 head or your stomach is too weak to retain it. Spare me, 
 then, a quotation, my dear fellow, till you see me in the 
 agony of Nature aback,' and then one will be of service 
 in assisting her efforts to * box off.' I say, Billy Pitt, did 
 you stow away the two jars of pickled cabbage in my 
 cabin?" 
 
 "We must here break off the conversation to introduce 
 this personage to the reader. He was a black, who ran 
 away, when quite a lad, from his master at Barbadoes, and 
 entered on board of a man-of-war. Macallan, the surgeon, 
 had taken a fancy to him, and he had been his servant for 
 some years, following him into different ships. He was a 
 very intelligent and singular character. Macallan had 
 taught him to read and write, and he was not a little proud 
 of his acquirements. He was excessively good-humoured, 
 and a general favourite of the officers and ship's company, 
 who used to amuse themselves with his peculiarities, and 
 allow him a greater freedom than usual. But Billy's grand 
 forte^ in his own opinion, was as a lexicographer. He had 
 a small Entick's dictionary, which he always carried in his 
 jacket pocket, and nothing gave him so much pleasure as 
 any one referring to him for the meaning of a hard word, 
 which, although he could not always explain correctly, he 
 certainly did most readily. Moreover, he was, as may be 
 supposed, very fond of interlarding his conversation with 
 high-sounding phraseology, without much regard as to the 
 context. 
 
 Although Billy Pitt was the doctor's servant, Courtenay, 
 who had taken a great fancy to him, used to employ him 
 as his own, to which, as the doctor was not a man who 
 required much attendance himself, and was very good- 
 natured, no objection had been raised. 
 
The King's Own 139 
 
 We must repeat the question — 
 
 "I say, Billy Pitt, did you stow away the two jars of 
 pickled cabbage in my cabin ? " 
 
 " No, sar, I no hab 'em to stow. Woman say, that Mr 
 Kartney not pay for the pickled onun — say quite incongrous 
 send any more." 
 
 " Not pay for the onions ! No, to be sure I didn't, but I 
 gave her a fresh order, which is the same thing." (Pearce 
 laid down the potato which he was in the act of peeling, 
 and stared at Courtenay with astonishment.) '* Well, to a 
 London tradesman, it is, I can assure you." 
 
 " It may be, but I cannot conceive how. If you owe me 
 ten shillings, I can't consider borrowing ten more the same 
 thing as paying the first." 
 
 ** Pooh, you do not understand these things." 
 
 " I do not, most certainly," replied the master, resuming 
 his potato. 
 
 " And so you haven't got them ? " resumed Courtenay 
 to the servant. 
 
 ** No, sar. She say Massa Kartney owe nine shillings 
 for onuns, and say I owe farteen for 'baccy, and not trust 
 us any more. I tell just as she say, sir. Gentlemen never 
 
 pay for anything. She call me d d nigger, and say, like 
 
 massa like man. I tell her not give any more rhoromantade, 
 and walk out of shop." 
 
 " Well how cursed annoying ! Now I never set my mind 
 upon anything but I'm disappointed. One might as well 
 be Sancho in the Isle of Barataria. I think I'll go up to 
 the captain, and ask him to heave-to, while I send for them. 
 Do you think he would, master, eh ? " said Courtenay, in 
 affected simplicity of interrogation. 
 
 " You had better try him," replied Pearce, laughing. 
 
 " Well, it would be very considerate of him, and 
 pickled cabbage is the only thing that cures my sea- 
 sickness." — (Perceiving Price about to speak) — "Stop 
 now — it's no use — there's not a word about pickled cabbage 
 in Shakespeare." 
 
 ** I did not say that there was," retorted Price ; " but 
 
I40 The King's Own 
 
 there's * beef without mustard,' and that will be your case 
 now." 
 
 " And there's * Write me down an ass,' " replied 
 Courtenay, who was not a little vexed at the loss of his 
 favourite condiment. 
 
 " Did you hear what Courtenay said of you, O'Keefe ? " 
 continued Price, turning to the purser — 
 
 ** Yes — yes — I know — hand him over a glass ; but this 
 is not a clane one. Steward, will you bring a clane wine- 
 glass?" 
 
 The rest laughed, while Courtenay proceeded. 
 
 " Why, O'Keefe, you hear better than ever. I say, 
 doctor, you must put me in the sick-list — I'm not fit to 
 take charge of a watch." 
 
 "If you'll prove that to me," replied Macallan, "I 
 certainly will report you." 
 
 " Well, I'll prove it to you in five seconds. I'm just in 
 that state, that if everything in the ship was to go over- 
 board to the devil, I shouldn't care. Now, with such a 
 feehng of indifference, a person is not fit to be trusted 
 with the charge of a watch." 
 
 ** That you're not fit to be trusted with the charge of a 
 watch, as you state it yourself, I shall not deny," replied 
 Macallan ; " but I consider that to be a complaint for 
 which you ought rather to be put off the list than on 
 it." 
 
 " Ha ! ha ! ha ! I say, Courtenay, you know what 
 Shakespeare says, * 'tis the curse of service,' that — that — " 
 
 " All hands, 'bout ship ! " now resounded through the 
 ship as it was repeated in the variety of basses of the 
 boatswain and his mates, at either hatchway — one of the 
 youngsters of the watch running down at the same time to 
 acquaint the officers, in his shrill falsetto, with that which 
 had been roared out loud enough to startle even the deaf 
 purser. The first lieutenant, followed by the master, 
 brushed by him, and was up the ladder before his super- 
 erogatory communication could be delivered. 
 
 " How cursed annoying ! " cried Courtenay. " I was 
 
The King's Own 141 
 
 just feeling a little better, and now I shall be worse than 
 ever." 
 
 "You recollect in the 'Tempest,'" said Price, "where 
 Shakespeare says " 
 
 " Forecastle there ! " roared out Captain M , from 
 
 the quarter-deck, in a voice that was distinctly heard 
 below. 
 
 '* By Jove youM better skip for it, or you'll have what 
 
 Captain M says. He's hailing your station," said 
 
 Courtenay, laughing — a piece of advice immediately acted 
 upon by Price, who was up the ladder and on the forecastle 
 in a few seconds. — " And I must go up too. How cursed 
 annoying to be stationed in the waist ! Nothing to do, 
 except to stop my ears against the infernal stamp-and-go of 
 the marines and after-guards, over my head ; sweet music 
 to a first lieutenant, but to me discord most horrible. I 
 could stamp with vexation." 
 
 ** Had you not better go first and stamp afterwards ? " 
 observed the surgeon, drily. 
 
 ** I think I had, indeed," replied Courtenay, as he bolted 
 out of the gun-room door. — " Cursed annoying ! but the 
 captain's such a bilious subject." 
 
 Chapter XX 
 
 This chair shall be my state, this dagger my sceptre, and this cushion my 
 
 crown. 
 
 Henry IV. Part I, 
 
 We must now descend to the steerage, where our hero is 
 seated in the berth, in company with a dozen more (as they 
 designated themselves, from the extreme heat of their 
 domicile) perspiring young heroes, who were amusing 
 themselves with crunching hard biscuits, and at the same 
 time a due proportion of those little animals of the scaribee 
 tribe, denominated weevils, who had located themselves in 
 the unleavened bread, and which the midshipmen declared to 
 
142 The King's Own 
 
 be the only fresh meat which they had tasted for some 
 time. 
 
 Captain M 's character stood so high at the 
 
 Admiralty, that the major part of the young aspirants who 
 had been committed to his charge were of good family and 
 connections. At that time few of the aristocracy or gentry 
 ventured to send their sons into the navy ; whereas, at 
 present, none but those classes can obtain admission. 
 
 A better school for training young officers could not have 
 been selected ; and the midshipmen's berth of the Aspasia 
 
 was as superior to those in other ships, as Captain M 
 
 was himself to the generality of his contemporary captains 
 in the service. But I cannot pay these young men the 
 compliment to introduce them one by one, as I did the gun- 
 room officers. It would be an anomaly unheard of^ I 
 shall, therefore, with every respect for them, describe them 
 just as I want them. It was one bell after eight o'clock — 
 a bottle of ship's rum, a black jack of putrid water, and a 
 tin bread-basket, are on the table, which is lighted with a 
 tallow candle of about thirteen to the pound. 
 
 "I say, Mr Jerry Sneak, what are you after there — 
 what are you foraging for in that locker } " said one of the 
 oldsters of the berth to a half-starved, weak-looking object 
 of a youngster, whose friends had sent him to sea with the 
 hopes of improving his stamina. 
 
 " What for ? — why, for my supper if you must know. 
 D'ye think I lool too fat ? I stowed it away before I went 
 on deck, that it might not fall into your ravenous maw." 
 
 " Mind your stops, my Jack of the Bonehouse, or I shall 
 shy a biscuit at your head." 
 
 " Do, and prove your bravery ; it will be so very 
 courageous. I suppose you'll expect to be gazetted for it." 
 
 The youngster who had been dignified with the above 
 sobriquet, and who made these replies, was certainly a 
 most miserable-looking object, and looked as if a top- 
 gallant breeze would have blown him to atoms. But if 
 his body was weak, his tongue was most powerful. He 
 resorted to no other weapon, and used that skilfully. He 
 
The King's Own 143 
 
 was a species of Thersites, and no dread of punishment 
 could control his railing. He offered no resistance, but 
 bent down like the reed, and resumed his former position 
 as soon as the storm was over. His keen and sarcastic 
 remarks, although they occasionally subjected him to 
 chastisement, to a certain degree served him as a defence, 
 for he could always raise a laugh at the expense of the 
 individual whom he attacked, with the formidable weapon 
 which he had inherited direct from his mother. 
 
 The oldster before mentioned put his hand into the 
 bread-basket, and seized a handful of the biscuit. " Now 
 ril bet you a glass of grog that you don't throw a biscuit 
 at my head," cried Jerry, with a sneer. 
 
 ** Done," replied the oldster, throwing the contents of 
 his hand at Jerry with all his force. 
 
 ** I'll just trouble you for that glass of grog, for you've 
 lost," said the youngster, taking it up from the table 
 where it stood before the oldster ; " you've only thrown 
 some pieces, and not a biscuit;" and following up his 
 words with deeds, he swallowed down the whole contents 
 of the tumbler, which he replaced very coolly before his 
 opponent. 
 
 " Fair bet, and fairly lost," cried the rest of the berth, 
 laughing. 
 
 " You scarecrow ! you're not worth thrashing," said 
 the oldster, angrily. 
 
 "Why, that's exactly what I have been trying to 
 impress upon your memory ever since I have joined the 
 ship. There's no credit to be gained by licking a half- 
 starved wretch like I am ; but there's Bruce, now " 
 (pointing to one of the oldsters, between whom and his 
 opponent a jealousy subsisted), ** why don't you lick him ? 
 There would be some credit in that. But you know 
 better than to try it." 
 
 **Do I.?" retorted the oldster, forgetting himself in 
 the heat of the moment. 
 
 " Yes, you do," replied Bruce, jumping up in defiance; 
 and there was every appearance of a disturbance, much 
 
144 The King's Own 
 
 to the delight of Jerry, who, provided that they fought, 
 was quite indifferent which party was the victor. But 
 a fortunate interruption took place, by the appearance of 
 the master-at-arms. 
 
 "Nine o'clock, gentlemen, if you please — the lights 
 must be put out." 
 
 " Very well, master-at-arms," replied one of the 
 oldsters. 
 
 The master-at-arms took his seat on a chest close to 
 the door of the berth, aware that a second summons, 
 if not a third, would be requisite, before his object was 
 obtained. In a few minutes he again put his head into 
 the berth. "Nine o'clock, gentlemen, if you please. 
 I must report you to the first lieutenant." 
 
 " Very well. By field — it shall be out in a minute." 
 
 The master-at-arms resumed his station on the chest 
 outside. 
 
 "Why, it's Saturday night," cried Bruce. "Sweet- 
 hearts and wives, my boys, though I believe none of us 
 are troubled with the latter. Forster, pass the rum." 
 
 " I'll pass the bottle, and you may make a bull of it, 
 if you choose." 
 
 " Confound it, no more grog — and Saturday night. 
 I must drink Auld lang syne, by Heavens." 
 
 The master-at-arms again made his appearance. " Gentle- 
 men, you must put the light out." 
 
 "Stop one minute, Byfield. Let us see whether we 
 can get any more rum." 
 
 The excuse appeared reasonable to the jack in office, 
 and he disappeared. 
 
 " Boy, tell Billy Pitt I want him." 
 
 Billy Pitt had turned in, but was soon roused out of 
 his hammock, and made his appearance at the berth door, 
 with only his shirt on that he was sleeping in. 
 
 " You want me, Massa Bruce ? " 
 
 "Billy, my beau, you know everything. We sent for 
 you to tell us what's the meaning of a repartee ? " 
 
 " Repartee, sir — repartee ! — stop a bit — Eh — I tell you, 
 
The King's Own 145 
 
 sir. Suppose you call me dam nigger — then I call you 
 
 one dam dirty white-livered son of a b ; dat a 
 
 repartee, sir." 
 
 "Capital, Billy — you shall be a bishop. But, Billy, 
 has your master got any rum in his cabin ? " 
 
 *' Which massa, sir ? Massa Courtenay, or Massa 
 Doctor ? " 
 
 "Oh ! Courtenay, to be sure. The surgeon never has any." 
 
 " Yes, sar, I tink he have a little." 
 
 ** Be quick, Billy, and fetch it. I will give it you back 
 at the tub to-morrow." 
 
 ** Suppose you forget, sir, you put me in very fine 
 predical-ament. Massa Courtenay look dam blue — no, he 
 not look blue, but he look dam yellow," replied Billy, 
 showing his white teeth as he grinned. 
 
 " But I won't forget, Billy, upon my honour." 
 
 "Well, honour quite enough between two gentlemen. 
 I go fetch the bottle." 
 
 Billy soon reappeared with a quart bottle of rum, just 
 as three bells were struck. " By gad, I rattle the bottle 
 as I take him out — wake Mr Courtenay — he say, dam 
 black fellow he make everything adrift — cursed annoying, 
 he say, and go to sleep again." 
 
 " Really, gentlemen, I cannot wait any longer," resumed 
 the master-at-arms ; " the lights must be reported, or I 
 shall be in disgrace." 
 
 "Very true, Byfield; you are only doing your duty. 
 Will you take a glass of grog ? " 
 
 " If you please," replied Mr Byfield, taking ofF his hat. 
 " Your health, gentlemen." 
 
 " Thank you," replied the midshipmen. 
 
 "Tank you, sir," replied also Billy Pitt. 
 
 "Well, Billy. What's the last word you read in your 
 dictionary ? " 
 
 " Last word ? Let me see — Oh ! commission, sar. 
 You know dat word ? " 
 
 " Commission ! We all know what that is, Billy, and 
 shall be glad to get it too, by-and-bye." 
 
 K. I. K 
 
146 The King's Own 
 
 " Yes, sar ; but there are two kind of commission. One 
 you want, obliged to wait for ; one I want, always have at 
 once, — commission as agent, sar." 
 
 ** Oh, I understand," replied Bruce ; " five per cent, on 
 the bottle, eh ? " 
 
 ** Five per cent, not make a tiff glass of grog, Massa 
 Bruce." 
 
 " Well, then, Billy, you shall have ten per cent.," 
 replied the midshipman, pouring him out a north-wester. 
 «* Will that do?" 
 
 The black had the politeness to drink the health of all 
 the gentlemen of the berth separately, before he poured 
 the liquor down his throat. ** Massa Bruce, I tink doctor 
 got a little rum in his cabin." 
 
 ** Go and fetch it, Billy j you shall have it back to- 
 morrow." 
 
 " Honour, Mr Bruce." 
 
 " Honour, Mr Pitt." 
 
 '* Ten per cent., Massa Bruce," continued Billy, grinning. 
 
 " Ten per cent, is the bargain." 
 
 " I go see." 
 
 Another quart bottle made its appearance; and the 
 agent having received his commission, made his bow, and 
 returned to his hammock. 
 
 **I do — really — think — upon — my word — that that — 
 black — scoundrel — would — sell — his — own — mother — for 
 — a — stiff — glass — of — grog," observed a youngster, of 
 the name of Prose, a cockney, who drawled out his words, 
 which, " like a wounded snake, dragged their slow length 
 along." 
 
 " The lights, gentlemen, if you please," resumed the 
 master-at-arms, putting his head again into the door. 
 
 " Another commission," said Jerry : ** a tax upon light. 
 Billy Pitt has the best right to it." 
 
 A second glass of grog was poured out, and the bribe 
 disappeared down Mr Byfield's gullet. 
 
 " Now we'll put the light out," said one of the oldsters, 
 covering the candlestick with a hat. 
 
The King's Own 147 
 
 "If you will put your candle into my lanthorn," ob- 
 served the obsequious master-at-arms, " I can then report 
 the lights out. Of course you will allow it to remain 
 there ? " 
 
 The suggestion was adopted ; and the light was reported 
 out to the first lieutenant, at the very moment that it was 
 taken out of the lanthorn again, and replaced in the candle- 
 stick. The duplicate supply began to have its effect upon 
 our incipient heroes, who commenced talking of their friends. 
 Bruce, a fine, manly, honourable Scotchman, had the 
 peculiarity of always allying himself, when half drunk, to 
 the royal house who formerly sat upon the throne of 
 England : but, when quite intoxicated, he was so treason- 
 able as to declare himself the lawful King of Great 
 Britain. Glass after glass increased his propinquity to the 
 throne, till at last he seated himself on it, and the uproar 
 of the whole party rose to that height, that the first 
 lieutenant sent out, desiring the midshipmen immediately 
 to retire to their hammocks. 
 
 " Send me to bed ! * Proud man, dressed in a little 
 brief authority.' If the Lord's anointed had been respected, 
 he, with millions, would be now bending the knee to me. 
 Well, if I can't be King of all England, at least I'll be king 
 in this berth. Tell me," cried Bruce, seizing the unfor- 
 tunate Prose by the collar, " am I not king ? " 
 
 " Why — according— to — the— best — of — my — belief," 
 said Prose, "I — should — rather — be — inclined — to — think 
 — that — you — are — not — the — king." 
 
 ** Am not, base slave ! " cried Bruce, throwing him on 
 the deck, and putting his foot on his chest. 
 
 " No — if — I die for it — I don't care — but if you are — 
 not king — I must own — that — you are one of — my thirty 
 tyrants," drawled out Prose, half suffocated with the 
 pressure. 
 
 " I — do — declare," cried Jerry, imitating Prose's drawl, 
 
 that — he — has squeezed — a pun — out — of you." 
 
 Am not I king ? " resumed Bruce, seizing Jerry, who 
 had advanced within reach, to laugh at Prose. 
 
 (C 
 
148 The King's Own 
 
 " I feel that you ought to be," replied Jerry : *< and I 
 don't doubt your lineal descent : for you have all the 
 dispositions of the race from which you claim descent. A 
 boon, your gracious majesty," continued Jerry, bending on 
 one knee. 
 
 "Thou shalt have it, my loyal subject," replied Bruce, 
 who was delighted with the homage, ** even (as Ahasuerus 
 said to Esther) to the half of my kingdom." 
 
 " God forbid that I should deprive your majesty of that," 
 replied Jerry, smiling at the idea of halving nothing, " It 
 is only to request that I may not keep the middle watch to- 
 night." 
 
 " Rise, Jerry, you shall not keep a night-watch for a 
 fortnight." 
 
 " I humbly thank your most gracious majesty," replied 
 the astute boy, who was a youngster of the watch of 
 which Bruce was mate. 
 
 As the reader may be amused with the result of this 
 promise, he must know, that Bruce, who did not recollect 
 what had passed, when he perceived Jerry not to be on 
 deck, sent down for him. The youngster, on his appear- 
 ance, claimed his promise ; and his claim was allowed by 
 Bruce, rather than he would acknowledge himself to have 
 been intoxicated. Jerry, upon the strength of the agree- 
 ment, continued, for more than the prescribed time, to 
 sleep in every night-watch, until, aware that he was no 
 longer safe, he thought of an expedient which would 
 probably ensure him one night longer, and prevent a 
 disagreeable interruption of his dreams. Prose, whose 
 hammock was hung up next the hatchway, had a bad cold, 
 and Jerry thought it prudent to shift his berth, that he 
 might not be found. 
 
 " It's the draught from the hatchway that makes your 
 cold so bad. Prose 5 you'll never get well while you 
 sleep there. I will give you my inside berth until it is 
 better — it is really quite distressing to hear you cough." 
 
 " Well, now, Jerry, that's what I call very good-natured 
 of you. I have not had such a friendly act done towards 
 
The King's Own 149 
 
 me since I joined the ship, and I do assure you, Jerry, 
 that I shall not be ungrateful — I shall not forget it." 
 
 It happened that, on the very night that Prose ex- 
 changed berths with Jerry, Bruce made his calculation 
 that the fortnight had elapsed three days back: and 
 although he felt himself bound in honour to keep his 
 promise, yet feeling rather sore at being over-reached, 
 he now ordered the quarter-master to cut Jerry's hammock 
 down by the head. This was supposed to be done, and 
 poor Prose, who had just fallen asleep after keeping the 
 previous watch, awoke with a stunning sensation, and 
 found his feet up at the beams and his head on the 
 deck ; while Jerry, who had been awakened by the 
 noise, was obliged to cram the sheets into his mouth, 
 that his laughter might be unperceived. 
 
 " Well now, I do declare, this is too bad — I most 
 certainly will complain to the captain, to-morrow morning 
 — as sure as my name is Prose. Sentry, bring me a 
 light, and assist me to get my hammock up again — I will 
 not put up with this treatment — I do declare ; " and so 
 saying. Prose once more resumed his position in his pre- 
 carious dormitory. 
 
 But, during our digression, the berth has become empty 
 — some walking, and others, particularly his majesty, 
 reeling to bed. So we shall close this chapter, from 
 which the reader may perceive, that, even in the best 
 regulated ships, there is more going on in a midshipmen's 
 berth than a captain is acquainted with, or that comes 
 between Heaven and his philosophy. 
 
 Chapter XXI 
 
 With leave, Bassanio, I am half yourself, and I must freely have the half of 
 anything that this same paper brings you. 
 
 Shakespeare. 
 
 The castle which had been built by the ancestors of Mr 
 Rainscourt, and which, in feudal times, had been one of 
 
150 The King's Own 
 
 strength and importance, was about two miles from the 
 
 town of , in the county of Galway, on the west 
 
 coast of Ireland ; and, as Mr Rainscourt had correctly 
 surmised, when he returned to it, no officer could be 
 found who was bold enough to venture his life by an 
 attempt at caption, surrounded as he was by a savage 
 and devoted peasantry, who had no scruples at blood- 
 shed. Immured within its walls, with little to interest, 
 and no temptation to expend money, Mr and Mrs Rains- 
 court lived for nearly two years indulging their spleen 
 and discontent in mutual upbraidings, — their feelings 
 towards each other, from incessant irritation, being now 
 rather those of hatred than any other term that could be 
 applied. The jewels of Mrs Rainscourt, and every other 
 article that could be dispensed with, had been sold, and 
 the purse was empty. The good-will of the tenants of 
 the mortgaged property had for some time supplied the 
 ill-assorted couple with the necessaries of life ; every day 
 added to their wants, to their hatred, and their despair. 
 
 They were seated at the table, having finished a dinner 
 off some game which Mr Rainscourt had procured with 
 his gun, and which had been their fare, with little variety, 
 ever since the shooting season had commenced : when the 
 old nurse, the only domestic they retained, — probably 
 the only one who would remain with them without re- 
 ceiving wages, — made her appearance. "And sure there's 
 a letter for the master : Barney, the post-boy, is just 
 bringing it." 
 
 " Well, where is it ? " replied Rainscourt. 
 
 " He says that it's two thirteens that must be paid for it, 
 and the dirty spalpeen of a post-master tould him not to 
 give you the letter without the money for it in his fist." 
 
 " Tell Barney to step in here — have you two shillings, 
 Mrs Rainscourt ? " 
 
 " Not one, Mr Rainscourt," replied the lady, gloomily. 
 
 The nurse reappeared with Barney. 
 
 "Well, Barney, where's the letter?" said Mr Rains- 
 court 1 "let me look at it." 
 
The King's Own 151 
 
 *' Sure, your honour, it's not me that's refusing it ye. 
 But the muster tould me — * Barney,' says he, * if you 
 give his honour the letter without the two thirteens in 
 your fist, it's a good bating that I'll give ye when you 
 come back.' " 
 
 ** Well, but, Barney, let me look at, and see by the post- 
 mark where it's from. I shall know, directly, whether I 
 will take it up or not." 
 
 ** And suppose that your honour should wish to open 
 the letter ! It's not for gentlemen like ye to be standing 
 against the temptation ; — and then, the two thirteens, your 
 honour." 
 
 " Well, Barney, since you won't trust me, and I have no 
 money, you must take the letter back. It might bring me 
 good news — I have had nothing but bad of late." 
 
 "And sure enough it might bring you good news. 
 Then, your honour shall take the letter and I'll take the 
 bating ;^^ and the good-natured lad pulled out the letter 
 from his pocket, and gave it to Rainscourt. 
 
 Rainscourt, who first wished to ascertain whether it was 
 one of his usual dunning correspondents, examined the 
 post-mark and handwriting of the superscription, that he 
 might return it unopened, and save poor Barney from the 
 beating which he had volunteered to receive for his sake ; 
 but the hand was unknown to him, and the post-mark was 
 so faint and illegible that he could not decipher it. He 
 looked into the sides of the letter, and the few words which 
 he could read whetted his curiosity. 
 
 " I'm afraid, Barney, that I must open it." 
 
 " Good luck to your honour, then, and may it prove so." 
 
 The letter was opened, and the contents threw a gleam 
 of pleasure, which had been rarely seen of late on the brow 
 of the reader. His wife had watched his countenance. 
 ** Barney," cried Rainscourt, with delight, ** call to-morrow, 
 and I'll give you a guinea." 
 
 "Sure your honour's in luck, and me too," replied Barney, 
 grinning, and backing out of the room. " I'll go take my 
 bating at once." 
 
152 The King's Own 
 
 But, to explain the contents of this letter, we must 
 narrate events of which we have lost sight in following up 
 the naval career of our hero. 
 
 About three weeks after the death of Admiral De Courcy, 
 the line-of-battle ship in which old Adams had sailed with 
 our hero under his protection, returned into port. The 
 vicar, who anxiously awaited her arrival, immediately pro- 
 ceeded there, that he might claim Willy in the capacity of 
 his guardian. Having obtained the address of Captain 
 M , he called upon him, and opened his case by re- 
 questing that the boy might be permitted to come on shore. 
 He was proceeding to narrate the change which had taken 
 place in his ward's prospects, when he was interrupted by 
 
 Captain M , who, first detailing the death of old Adams, 
 
 and the conduct of Willy, stated that he had sent the boy 
 home in the prize for an outfit. It was with great feeling 
 
 that Captain M was forced to add the apparent 
 
 certainty, that the vessel, which had never been heard of, 
 had foundered at sea. 
 
 Shocked at the intelligence, which was communicated at 
 a moment when his heart was expanded at the idea of 
 having been instrumental in repairing the injustice and 
 neglect which had been shown towards his protege y the 
 vicar, not caring to mention to a stranger the family 
 particulars upon which his request had been grounded, 
 withdrew, without even giving his name or address. 
 Three years afterwards, when, as we have narrated, our 
 
 hero again made his appearance. Captain M had no 
 
 clue to guide him, by which he might communicate the 
 intelligence of his recovery, to one whom he naturally con- 
 cluded did not make such inquiries without having some 
 interest in our hero's welfare. 
 
 The vicar, in the meantime, although he had every 
 reason to believe that Willy was no more, resorted to every 
 means that his prudence could suggest to ascertain the 
 positive fact. For many months the most strict inquiries 
 were set afloat by his agents, whether a captured vessel 
 had been wrecked on the French coast. The prisoners at 
 
The King's Own 153 
 
 Verdun and other depots were examined, rewards were 
 offered, by emissaries in France, for the discovery of the 
 boy, but without success. Having waited two years, all 
 hope became extinct, and the letter now received by Mr 
 Rainscourt was from the vicar, acquainting him with the 
 circumstances, and surrendering up the property to him as 
 next of kin. 
 
 "Pray, Mr Rainscourt, may I ask the contents of a 
 letter, the perusal of which not only makes you so 
 generous, but implies that you expect to have the means of 
 being so ? " 
 
 When happy ourselves, especially when unexpectedly so, 
 we feel kindly disposed towards others. For a moment 
 Rainscourt seemed to have forgotten all his differences 
 with his wife ; and he as readily imparted to her his good 
 fortune as he had, on a previous occasion, his disappoint- 
 ment. 
 
 " My dear Clara, the grandchild is dead, and we have 
 possession of the property." 
 
 " My dear Clara ! ! " Such an epithet had never been 
 used since the first week of their marriage. Overcome by 
 the joyful intelligence, but more overcome by the kind 
 expression of her husband, which recalled the days when 
 she fondly loved, Mrs Rainscourt burst into tears, and 
 throwing herself down with her face on his knees, poured 
 out, in sobs, her gratitude to Heaven, and her revived 
 affection for her husband. 
 
 Their daughter Emily, now ten years old, astonished at 
 so unusual a scene, ran up, impelled as it were, by instinct, 
 and completed the family group, by clinging to her father. 
 Rainscourt, who was affected, kissed the brow of the child, 
 and congratulated her on becoming an heiress. 
 
 ** I never knew before that money would do so much 
 good," observed the child, referring to the apparent 
 reconciliation of her parents. 
 
 Mrs Rainscourt rose from her position, and sat down at 
 the table, leaning her face upon her hands. " I am afraid 
 that it has come too late," said she, mournfully, as she 
 
154 The King's Own 
 
 recalled the years of indifference and hostility which had 
 preceded. 
 
 Mrs Rainscourt was correct in her supposition. Respect 
 and esteem had long departed, and without their aid, 
 truant love was not to be reclaimed. The feeling of 
 renewed attachment was as transient as it was sudden. 
 
 " I must be off to England immediately," observed the 
 husband. ** I presume that I shall have no difficulty in 
 obtaining money from the bank when I show this letter. 
 
 Old will be ready enough to thrust his notes into 
 
 my hands now." 
 
 " Shall we not go with you, Mr Rainscourt ? " 
 
 " No ; you had better remain here till I have arranged 
 matters a little. I must settle with three cursed money- 
 lenders, and take up the bonds from T . Little 
 
 scoundrel ! he'll be civil enough." 
 
 " Well, Mr Rainscourt, it must, I suppose, be as you 
 decide ; but neither Emily nor I are very well equipped in 
 our wardrobes, and you will not be exactly competent to 
 execute our commissions." 
 
 " And therefore shall execute none." 
 
 "Do you, then, mean to leave us here in rags and 
 beggary, while you are amusing yourself in London ? " 
 replied Mrs Rainscourt, with asperity. "With your 
 altered circumstances, you will have no want of society, 
 either male ox female^'' continued the lady, with an emphasis 
 upon the last word — "and a luife will probably be an 
 encumbrance." 
 
 " Certainly not such a kind and affectionate one as you 
 have proved, my dear," replied the gentleman, sarcastically ; 
 " nevertheless I must decline the pleasure of your company 
 till I have time to look about me a little." 
 
 " Perhaps, Mr Rainscourt, now that you will be able to 
 afford it, you will prefer a separate establishment ? If so, I 
 am willing to accede to any proposition you may be 
 inclined to make." 
 
 " That's a very sensible remark of yours, my dear, and 
 shall receive due consideration." 
 
The King's Own 155 
 
 "The sooner the better, sir," replied the piqued lady, 
 as Mr Rainscourt quitted the room. 
 
 " My dear child," said Mrs Rainscourt to her daughter, 
 ** you see how cruelly your father treats me. He is a bad 
 man, and you must never pay attention to what he says." 
 
 "Papa told me just the same of you, mamma," replied 
 the girl, " yesterday morning, when you were walking in 
 the garden." 
 
 " Did he ! The wretch, to set my own child against 
 me ! " cried Mrs Rainscourt, who had just been guilty of 
 the very same offence which had raised her choler against 
 her husband. 
 
 Chapter XXII 
 
 The Queen of night, whose vast command 
 Rules all the sea, and half the land ; 
 And over moist and crazy brains, 
 In high spring-tides at midnight reigns. 
 
 Hudibras, 
 
 Among the millions who, on the allowed and appointed 
 day, lay aside their worldly occupations to bow the knee to 
 the Giver of all good, directing their orisons and their 
 thoughts to one mercy-beaming power, like so many rays 
 of light concentrated into one focus, I know no class of 
 people in whose breasts the feeling of religion is more 
 deeply implanted than the occupants of that glorious 
 specimen of daring ingenuity — a man-of-war. It is 
 through His works that the Almighty is most sincerely 
 reverenced, through them that His infinite power is with 
 deepest humility acknowledged. The most forcible argu- 
 ments, the most pathetic eloquence from the pulpit, will 
 not affect so powerfully the mind of man, as the investiga- 
 tion of a blade of grass, or the mechanism of the almost 
 imperceptible insect. If, then, such is the effect upon man- 
 kind in general, how strong must be the impressions of 
 those who occupy their business in the great waters ! 
 These men " see the works of the Lord, and His wonders 
 
156 The King's Own 
 
 in the deep." They behold Him in all His magnificence, in 
 all His beauty, in all His wrath, in all His vastness, in all His 
 variety. Unassisted by theory, they practically feel that 
 God is great, and their worship, although dumb, is sincere. 
 
 I am aware that it is the idea of many that sailors have 
 little or no religion : and their dissolute conduct, when 
 thrown on shore, is certainly a strong argument in support 
 of this opinion j but they must not be so partially judged. 
 Those who are constantly mixed with the world, and 
 exposed to its allurements, are subject to a continual 
 struggle against their passions, which they are more 
 enabled to restrain, as temptation so rapidly succeeds 
 temptation that one destroys the other, — effacing it from 
 their recollection before they have had time to mature 
 their embryo guilt. But in our floating monasteries, where 
 rigid discipline and active duties allow only the thoughts 
 to ramble to that society which never has been intended to 
 be abandoned, the passions are naturally impelled towards 
 that world, whose temptations are so much increased by 
 long and unnatural seclusion. 
 
 In the mountain lake, whose waters are daily increasing, 
 all is unruffled till their own weight has forced its 
 boundaries, and the roaring cataract sweeps everything 
 before it. Such is the licentious and impetuous behaviour 
 of the sailor on shore. 
 
 But on board he is a different being, and appears as if 
 he were without sin and without guile. Let those, then, 
 who turn away at his occasional intemperance, be careful 
 how they judge. They may " thank God that they are 
 not as that publican," and yet be less justified, when 
 weighed in that balance, where, although Justice eyes 
 the beam, Mercy is permitted to stand by, and throw 
 into the scale her thousand little grains to counterpoise 
 the mass of guilt. 
 
 Religion in a sailor (I mean by the term, a common 
 seaman) is more of an active than a passive feeling. It 
 does not consist in reflexion or self-examination. It is 
 in externals that his respect to the Deity is manifest. 
 
The King's Own 157 
 
 Witness the Sunday on board of a man-of-war. The 
 care with which the decks are washed, the hauling 
 taut, and neat coiling down of the ropes, the studied 
 cleanliness of person, most of which duties are performed 
 on other days, but on this day are executed with an 
 extra precision and attention on the part of the seamen, 
 because it is Sunday, Then the quiet decorum voluntarily 
 observed; the attention to divine service, which would 
 be a pattern to a congregation on shore ; the little knots 
 of men collected, in the afternoon, between the guns, 
 listening to one who reads some serious book; or the 
 solitary quarter-master, poring over his thumbed Testa- 
 ment, as he communes with himself, — all prove that 
 sailors have a deep-rooted feeling of religion. I once 
 knew a first lieutenant receive a severe rebuke from a 
 ship's company. This officer, observing the men scattered 
 listlessly about the forecastle and waist of the frigate, 
 on a fine Sunday evening, ordered the fiddler up, that 
 they might dance. The ship's company thanked him for 
 his kindness, but stated that they had not been accustomed 
 to dance on that day, and requested that the music might 
 be sent below. 
 
 The Sunday on board of a man-of-war has another 
 advantage over the Sabbath on shore : it is hallowed 
 throughout. It commences with respect and reverence, 
 and it ends with the same. There is no alehouse to 
 resort to, where the men may become intoxicated; no 
 allurements of the senses to disturb the calm repose of 
 the mind, the practical veneration of the day, which 
 bestows upon it a moral beauty. 
 
 It was on the evening of such a day of serenity, after 
 the hammocks had been piped down and the watch 
 mustered, that Captain M was standing on the gang- 
 way of the Aspasia, in conversation with Macallan, the 
 surgeon. It was almost a calm ; the sails were not asleep 
 with the light airs that occasionally distended them, but 
 flapped against the lofty masts with the motion communi- 
 cated to the vessel by the undulating wave. The moon, 
 
158 The King's Own 
 
 nearly at her full, was high in the heavens, steering for 
 the zenith in all her beauty, without one envious cloud to 
 obscure the refulgence of her beams, which were reflected 
 upon the water in broad and wavering lines of silver. 
 
 The blue wave was of a deeper blue — so clear and so 
 transparent that you fancied you could pierce through a 
 fathomless perspective, and so refreshing, so void of all 
 impurity, that it invited you to glide into its bosom. 
 
 " How clear the moon shines to-night ! to-morrow, 
 I think, will be full moon." 
 
 "It would be well," observed the surgeon in reply to 
 the remark of the captain, " to request the officer of the 
 watch not to permit the men to sleep on the upper-deck. 
 "We shall have many of them moon-blind." 
 
 " I have often heard that effect of the moon in the 
 tropics mentioned, but have never seen it. In what 
 manner does it affect the eyes ? " 
 
 "The moon can act but in one way, sir," replied 
 Macallan — " by attraction. The men who are affected, 
 see perfectly well in broad daylight; but as soon as it 
 is dusk, their powers of vision are gone altogether. At 
 the usual time at which the hammocks are piped down, 
 they will not be able to distinguish the numbers. I have 
 had sixty men in one ship in the situation I have described." 
 
 "We ridicule the opinion of the ancients, relative to 
 the powers of this planet," observed the captain ; " but, 
 at the same time, I have often heard more ascribed to 
 her influence than the world in general are inclined to 
 credit. That she regulates the tides is, I believe, the 
 only point upon which there is now no scepticism." 
 
 " There has been scepticism even upon that, sir. Did 
 you ever read a work entitled * Theory of the Tides ' ? 
 I can, however, state some other points, from observation, 
 in which the moon has power." 
 
 " Over lunatics, I presume ? " 
 
 " Most certainly ; and why not, therefore, over those 
 who are rational .? We observe the effect more clearly in 
 the lunatic, because his mind is in a state of feverish excite- 
 
The King's Own 159 
 
 ment ; but if the moon can act upon the diseased brain, it 
 must also have power, although less perceptible, over the 
 mind which is in health. I believe that there is an ebb and 
 flow of power in our mechanism, corresponding to the 
 phases of the moon. I mean, that the blood flows more 
 rapidly, and the powers of nature are more stimulated, at 
 the flood and full, than at the ebb and neap, when a reaction 
 takes place in proportion to the previous acceleration. Dr 
 Mead has observed, that of those who are at the point of 
 death, nine out of ten quit this world at the ebb of the tide. 
 Does not this observation suggest the idea, that nature has 
 relaxed her efforts during that period, after having been 
 stimulated during the flood ? Shakespeare, who was a crue 
 observer of nature, has not omitted this circumstance ; 
 speaking of the death of Falstaff*, Mrs Quickly observes, 
 * It was just at the turn of the tide.' " 
 
 " Well, but, Mr Macallan, laying aside hypothesis, what 
 have you ascertained, from actual observation, besides that 
 which we term moon-blindness ? " 
 
 " The effect of the moon upon fish, and other animal 
 matter, hung up in its rays at night. If under the half- 
 deck, they would remain perfectly sweet and eatable ; but 
 if exposed to the moon's rays, in the tropics, they will, in 
 the course of one night, become putrid and unwholesome. 
 They emit no smell ; but when eaten will produce diarrhoea, 
 almost as violent as if you had taken poison." 
 
 "I have heard that stated, also, by seamen," said the 
 captain ; " but have never witnessed it." 
 
 " A remarkable and corroborative instance occurred, 
 when I was in the Bay of Annapolis," resumed the surgeon. 
 " I was becalmed in a small vessel, and amused myself with 
 fishing. I pulled up several herrings ; but, to my astonish- 
 ment, they were putrid and sodden an hour or two after 
 they were dead. I observed the circumstance to one of 
 the fishermen, who informed me that several hundred 
 barrels, taken at a fishery a few miles off", had all been 
 spoiled in the same manner. I asked the reason, and the 
 answer was, * that they had been spawned at the full of 
 
i6o The King's Own 
 
 the moon.' How far the man was correct, I know not ; 
 but he stated that the circumstance had occurred before, 
 and was well known to the older fishermen." 
 
 " Very singular," replied Captain M . ** We are too 
 
 apt to reject the whole, because we have found a part to 
 be erroneous. That the moon is not the Hecate formerly 
 supposed, I believe ; but she seems to have more power than 
 is usually ascribed to her. Is that seven bells striking ? " 
 
 ** It is, sir ; the time has slipped rapidly away. I shall 
 wish you good-night." 
 
 " Good-night," replied Captain M , who for some 
 
 time after the departure of the surgeon, continued leaning 
 over the rail of the entering-port, in silent contemplation 
 of the glassy wave, until the working of his mind was 
 expressed in the following apostrophe : — 
 
 " Yes — placid and beautiful as thou art, there is foul 
 treachery in thy smile. Who knows but that, one day, 
 thou mayest, in thy fury, demand as thy victim the form 
 which thou so peaceably reflectest ? Ever-craving epicure ! 
 thou must be fed with the healthy and the brave. The 
 gluttonous earth preys indiscriminately upon the diseased 
 carcasses of age, infancy, and manhood ; but thou must be 
 more daintily supplied. Health and vigour — prime of life, 
 and joyous heart — high beating pulse, and energy of soul 
 — active bodies, and more active minds — such is the food 
 in which thou delightest : and with such dainty fare wilt 
 thou ever be supplied, until the Power that created thee, 
 with the other elements, shall order thee to pass away." 
 
 The bell struck eight, and its sharp peals, followed by 
 the hoarse summoning of the watch below, by the boat- 
 swain's mates, disturbed his reverie, and Captain M 
 
 descended to his cabin. 
 
 And now, reader, I shall finish this chapter. You may, 
 perhaps, imagine that I have the scene before me, and am 
 describing from nature : if so, you are in error. I am 
 seated in the after-cabin of a vessel, endowed with as 
 liberal a share of motion as any in his Majesty's service : 
 whilst I write I am holding on by the table, my legs 
 
The King's Own i6i 
 
 entwined in the lashings underneath, and I can barely 
 manage to keep my position before my manuscript. The 
 sea is high, the gale fresh, the sky dirty, and threatening 
 a continuance of what our transatlantic descendants would 
 term a pretty-considerable-tarnation-strong blast of wind. 
 The top-gallant-yards are on deck, the masts are struck, 
 the guns double-breeched, and the bulwarks creaking and 
 grinding in most detestable regularity of dissonance as the 
 vessel scuds and lurches through a cross and heavy sea. 
 The main-deck is afloat : and, from the careless fitting of 
 the half-ports at the dock-yard, and neglect of caulking in 
 the cants, my fore-cabin is in the same predicament. A 
 bubbling brook changing its course, ebbing and flowing as 
 it were with the rolling of the ship, is dashing with mimic 
 fury against the trunks secured on each side of the cabin. 
 
 I have just been summoned from my task, in consequence 
 of one of the battens which secured my little library having 
 given way to the immoderate weight of learning that 
 pressed upon it : and as my books have been washed to 
 and fro, I have snatched them from their first attempts at 
 natation. Smith's Wealth of Nations I picked up first, not 
 worth a jig; Don Juan I have just rescued from a second 
 shipwreck, with no other Hey-day (Haidee) to console him^ 
 than the melancholy one extracted from me with a deep 
 sigh, as I received his shattered frame. Here's Burton's 
 Anatomy of Melancholy, in a very melancholy plight 
 indeed, and (what a fashionable watering-place my cabin 
 has turned to !) here's Burke's Peerage, with all the royal 
 family and aristocracy of the kingdom, taking a dip, and a 
 captain of a man-of-war, like another Sally Gunn, pulling 
 them out. 
 
 So, you perceive, my description has been been all 
 moonshine. 
 
 " My wishes have been fathers to my thoughts.'* 
 
 My bones are sore with rocking. Horace says, that he 
 had a soul of brass who first ventured to sea ; I think a 
 body of iron very necessary to the outfit. My cot is 
 
 K. I. L 
 
1 62 The King's Own 
 
 swinging and jerking up to the beams, as if the lively 
 scoundrel was some metamorphosed imp mocking at me. 
 ** Sarve you right — what did you list for ? '* — Very true— - 
 Why did I ? — Well, anxious as I am to close this chapter, 
 and to close my eyes, I will tell you, reader, what it was 
 that induced me to go to sea. It was not to escape the 
 drudgery and confinement of a school, or the admonitions 
 received at home. The battle of Trafalgar had been 
 fought — I recollect the news being brought down by the 
 dancing-master when I was at school ; but although I 
 knew that eighteen or twenty sail of the line had been 
 captured, yet never having seen a vessel larger than a 
 merchant ship at London Bridge, I had very imperfect 
 ideas on the subject — except that it must have been a very 
 glorious affair, as we had a whole holiday in consequence. 
 But when I returned home, I witnessed the funeral pro- 
 cession of Lord Nelson; and, as the triumphal car upon 
 which his earthly remains were borne disappeared from my 
 aching eye, I felt that death could have no terrors, if 
 followed by such a funeral ; and I determined that I would 
 be buried in the same manner. This is the fac ; but I am 
 not now exactly of the same opinion. I had no idea at 
 that time, that it was such a terrible roundabout way to St 
 Paul's. Here I have been tossed about in every quarter of 
 the globe, for between twenty and five-and-twenty years, 
 and the dome is almost as distant as ever. 
 
 I mean to put up with the family vault ; but I should 
 like very much to have engraved on my coffin — * Many 
 years Commissioner,' or * Lord of the Admiralty,' or 
 * Governor of Greenwich Hospital,' * Ambassador,' * Privy 
 Councillor,' or, in fact, anything but Captain : for, though 
 acknowledged to be a good travelling name, it is a very 
 insignificant title at the end of our journey. Moreover, as the 
 author of Pelham says, "I wish somebody would adopt me." 
 
 Now that I have stated my wishes, I have only to add, 
 that all communications on the subject, directed, post-paidy 
 to X.Y.Z.,at Messrs Colburn and Bentley's,New Burlington 
 Street, will meet with due consideration. 
 
The King's Own 163 
 
 Chapter XXIII 
 
 When his pockets were lined, why his life should be mended, 
 The laws he had broken he'd never break more. 
 
 Sea Song, 
 
 On his return to London, M*Elvina immediately repaired 
 to the residence of his patron, that he might enter into the 
 necessary explanations relative to the capture of the vessel, 
 and the circumstances which had produced his release from 
 the penalties and imprisonment to which he had been 
 subjected by his lawless career. Previous, however, to 
 narrating the events which occurred upon his arrival, it 
 will be advisable to offer some remarks relative to 
 M'Elvina, which, when they have been suggested to the 
 reader, will serve to remove much of the apparent incon- 
 sistency of his character. That a person who, from his 
 earliest childhood, had been brought up to fraud and 
 deceit, should, of his own accord, and so suddenly, return 
 to honesty, may at first appear problematical. But let it 
 be remembered, that M'Elvina was not in the situation of 
 those who, having their choice of good and evil, had pre- 
 ferred the latter. From infancy he had been brought up 
 to, and had heard every encomium upon dishonesty, without 
 having one friend to point out to him the advantages of 
 pursuing another course. The same spirit of emulation 
 which would have made him strenuous in the right path, 
 urged him forward in his career of error. If, after his 
 discharge from the Philanthropic School, he had had time 
 to observe the advantages, in practice, of those maxims 
 which had only been incalculated in theory, it is not im- 
 probable that he might have reformed; this, however, was 
 prevented, by the injudicious conduct of his master. 
 
 But although the principles which had been instilled 
 were not sufficiently powerful, unassisted by reflection, to 
 resist the force of habit, the germ, smothered as it was for 
 the time, was not destroyed ; and after M'Elvina's seven 
 
164 The King*s Own 
 
 years' servitude in a profession remarkable for candour 
 and sincerity, and in which he had neither temptation nor 
 opportunity to return to his evil courses, habit had been 
 counteracted by habit. The tares and wheat were of 
 equal growth. This is substantiated by the single fact of 
 his inclination to be honest when he found the pocket-book. 
 A confirmed rogue would never have thought of returning 
 it, even if it had not been worth five shillings. It is true, 
 if it had contained hundreds, that, in his distressed circum- 
 stances, the temptation might have been too strong ; but 
 this remark by no means disproves the assertion, that he 
 had the inclination to be honest. " There is a tide in the 
 affairs of men," and it was on this decision between 
 retaining or returning the pocket-book that depended the 
 future misery or welfare of M^Elvina. Fortunately, the 
 sum was not sufficient to turn the nicely-balanced scale, 
 and the generosity of old Hornblow confirmed the victory 
 on the side of virtue. 
 
 I do not mean to assert that, for some time subsequent 
 to this transaction, M*Elvina was influenced by a religious, 
 or even a moral feeling. It was rather by interested 
 motives that he was convinced ; but convinced he was ;. 
 and whether he was proud of his return to comparative 
 virtue, or found it necessary to refresh his memory, his 
 constant injunctions to others to be honest (upon the 
 same principle that a man who tells a story repeatedly 
 eventually believes it to be true) assisted to keep him 
 stedfast in his good resolutions. 
 
 Upon the other points of his character it will be un- 
 necessary to dilate. For his gentlemanly appearance and 
 address he was indebted to nature, who does not always 
 choose to acknowledge the claims which aristocracy thinks 
 proper to assert, and occasionally mocks the idea, by 
 bestowing graces on a cottager which might be envied 
 by the inhabitants of a palace. Of M*Elvina it may with 
 justice be asserted, that his faults were those of education 
 — his courage, generosity, and many good qualities, were 
 his own. 
 
The King's Own 165 
 
 M'Elvina, who knew exactly at what hour of the day 
 his patron would be abroad, took the precaution of not 
 going to the house until the time at which he would 
 be certain to find Susan, as usual, in the little parlour, 
 alone, and occupied with her needle or her book. The 
 street-door had just been opened by the maid to receive 
 some articles of domestic use, which a tradesman had 
 sent home ; and M'Elvina, putting his finger to his lips 
 to ensure the silence of the girl, who would have run 
 to communicate the welcome intelligence of his arrival, 
 stepped past her into the passage, and found the door 
 of the little parlour. Gently admitting himself, he dis- 
 covered Susan, whom he had not disturbed, sitting opposite 
 to the window, with her back towards him. He crept 
 in softly behind her chair. She was in deep thought ; 
 one hand rested on her cheek, and the other held the 
 pen with which she had been arranging the accounts of 
 the former week, to submit them, as usual, to her father 
 on the Monday evening. Of whom and what she was 
 thinking was, however, soon manifested to M'Elvina j for 
 she commenced scribbling and drawing with her pen on 
 the blotting-paper before her, until she at last wrote 
 several times, as if she were practising to see how it 
 would look as a signature : 
 
 " Susan M^Elvina." 
 '' Susan M'Elvina." 
 '' Susan M'Elvina." 
 
 Although delighted at this proof that he was occupy- 
 ing her thoughts, M'Elvina had the delicacy to retire 
 unperceived, and Susan, as if recollecting herself, slightly 
 coloured, as she twisted up the paper and threw it under 
 the grate ; in doing which, she perceived M'Elvina, who 
 still remained at the door. A cry of surprise, a deep 
 blush of pleasure over her pale face, and a hand frankly 
 extended, which M*Elvina could with difficulty resist 
 the impulse to raise to his lips, were followed up by 
 the hasty interrogation of — " Why, your arm is in a 
 
1 66 The King's Own 
 
 sling ? You did not say that you were hurt when you 
 wrote from Plymouth ? " 
 
 "It was not worth mentioning, Susan — it's almost 
 well ; but, tell me, how did your father bear the loss 
 of the vessel ? " 
 
 " Oh ! pretty well ! But, Captain M'Elvina, you could 
 not have done me a greater favour, or my father a greater 
 kindness. He has now wound up his affairs, and intends 
 to retire from all speculation. He has purchased a house 
 in the country, and I hope, when we go there, that I 
 shall be more happy, and have better health, than I have 
 had of late." 
 
 ** And what is to become of me ? " observed M'Elvina, 
 gravely. 
 
 ** Oh, I don't know — you are the best judge of that." 
 
 *' Well, then, I will confess to you, Susan, that I am 
 just as well pleased that all this has taken place as you 
 are ; for I am not sorry to give up a profession respecting 
 which, between ourselves, I have lately had many scruples 
 of conscience. I have not saved much, it is true ; but I 
 have enough to live upon, as long as I have no one to 
 take care of except myself." 
 
 " You raise yourself in my opinion by saying so," 
 replied Susan ; " although it is painful to me to condemn 
 a practice which impeaches my father. Your courage 
 and talents may be better applied. Thank God, that it 
 is all over." 
 
 " But, Susan, 5^ou said that you hoped to have better 
 health. Have you not been well ? " 
 
 " Not very ill," replied Susan ; " but I have had a 
 good deal of anxiety. The loss of the vessel, — your 
 capture, — has affected my father, and, of course, has 
 worried me." 
 
 The discourse was now interruped by old Hornblow, 
 who had returned home to his dinner. He received 
 M'Elvina in the most friendly manner, and they sat down 
 to table. 
 
 After dinner, M'Elvina entered into a minute detail of 
 
The King's Own 167 
 
 all that had occurred, — and, as far as he was concerned, 
 with a modesty which enhanced his meritorious conduct. 
 
 Susan listened to the narrative with intense interest : and 
 as soon as it was over, retired to her room, leaving old 
 Hornblow and M^Elvina over their bottle. 
 
 " Well, M*Elvina, what do you mean to do with your- 
 self ?" said the old man. "You know that Susan has at 
 last persuaded me into retiring from business. I have just 
 concluded the purchase of a little property near the seaside, 
 
 about seven miles from the village of , in Norfolk — it 
 
 adjoins the great Rainscourt estate. You know that part of 
 the coast." 
 
 " Very well, sir ; there is a famous landing-place there, 
 on the Rainscourt estate. It was formerly the property of 
 Admiral De Courcy." , 
 
 " Ah ! we don't mean to smuggle any more — so that's 
 no use. I should not have known that it was near the 
 Rainscourt property, only they inserted it in the particulars 
 of sale, as an advantage ; though I confess I do not see any 
 particular advantage in a poor man living too near a rich 
 one. But answer my question — What are you going to do 
 with yourself? If I can assist you, M'Elvina, I will." 
 
 ** I do not intend to go to sea any more." 
 
 ** No ! what then ? I suppose you would like to marry, 
 and settle on shore ? Well, if I can assist you, M'Elvina, 
 I will." 
 
 " You could, indeed, assist me there, sir." 
 
 " Oh ! Susan, I suppose. Nay, don't colour up ; I've 
 seen it long enough, and if I had not meant that it should 
 be so, I should have put an end to it before. You are an 
 honest man, M'Elvina, and I know nobody to whom I 
 would give my girl sooner than to you." 
 
 " You have, indeed, removed a weight from my mind, 
 sir, and I hardly know how to express my thanks to you 
 for your good wishes; but I have yet to obtain your 
 daughter's consent." 
 
 ** I know you have ; you cannot expect that she will 
 anticipate your wishes as I have done. But as I wish this 
 
1 68 The King's Own 
 
 business to be decided at once, I shall send her down to you, 
 and I'll take a walk in the meantime. All I can say is, 
 that if she says she has no mind to you, don't you believe 
 her, for I know better." 
 
 " Susan ! " said old Hornblow, going to the door. 
 
 *' Yes, father." 
 
 " Come down, my dear, and stay with Captain M*Elvina. 
 I am obliged to go out." 
 
 Old Hornblow reached down his hat, put on his 
 spencer, and departed ; while Susan, whose heart told her 
 that so unusual a movement on her father's part was not 
 without some good reason, descended to the parlour with 
 a quickened pulse. 
 
 " Susan ! " said M'Elvina, who had risen from his chair 
 to receive her, as soon as he heard her footsteps, *' I have 
 much to say to you, and I must be as brief as I can, for my 
 mind is in too agitated a state to bear with much temporis- 
 ing. Do me the favour to take a chair, and listen while I 
 make you acquainted with what you do not know." 
 
 Susan trembled ; and the colour flew from her cheeks, 
 as she sat down on the chair which M'Elvina handed to 
 her. 
 
 " Your father, Susan, took me by the hand, at the time 
 that I was in great distress, in consequence of my having 
 pleased him by an act of common honesty. You know 
 how kind and considerate a patron he has been to me since, 
 and I have now been in his employ some years. This 
 evening he has overpowered me with a weight of gratitude, 
 by allowing me to aspire to that which I most covet on 
 earth, and has consented to my robbing him, if I can, of 
 his greatest treasure. You cannot mistake what I mean. 
 But, previous to my requesting an answer on a point in 
 which my future happiness is involved, I have an act of 
 justice to perform towards you, and of conscience towards 
 myself, which must be fulfilled. It is to be candid, and 
 not allow you to be entrapped into an alliance with a person 
 of whose life you, at present, know but the fair side. 
 
 " First, let me state to you, Susan, that my parentage is 
 
The King's Own 169 
 
 as obscure as it well can be ; and, secondly, that the early 
 part of my life was as vicious. I may, indeed, extenuate it 
 when I enter into an explanation, and with great justice : 
 but I have now only stated the facts generally. If you 
 wish me to enter into particulars, much as I shall blush at 
 the exposure, and painful as the task assigned will be, I 
 shall not refuse, even at the risk of losing all I covet by the 
 confession : for, much as my happiness is at stake, I have 
 too sincere a regard for you to allow you to contract any 
 engagement with me, without making this candid avowal. 
 Now, Susan, answer me frankly — whether, in the first 
 place, you wish me to discover the particulars of my early 
 life ; in the next place (if you decline hearing them), 
 whether, after this general avowal, you will listen to any 
 solicitations, on my part, to induce you to unite your future 
 destiny with mine ? " 
 
 " Captain M^Elvina, I thank you for your candour," 
 replied Susan, " and will imitate you in my answer. 
 Your obscure parentage cannot be a matter of consideration 
 to one who has no descent to boast of. That you have not 
 always been leading a creditable life, I am sorry for ; more 
 sorry because I am sure it must be a source of repentance 
 and mortification to you ; but I have not an idle curiosity 
 to wish you to impart that which would not tend to my 
 happiness to divulge. I did once hear an old gentlewoman, 
 who had been conversant with the world, declare, that if 
 every man was obliged to confess the secrets of his life 
 before marriage, few young women would be persuaded 
 to go up to the altar. I hope it is not true ; but whether 
 it is or not, it does not exactly bear upon the subject in 
 agitation. I again thank you for your candour, and disclaim 
 all wish to know any further. I believe I have now 
 answered your question." 
 
 "Not yet, Susan, — you have not yet answered the 
 latter part of it." 
 
 " What was it ? — I don't recollect." 
 
 " It was," said M'Elvina, picking up the piece of twisted 
 paper which Susan had thrown under the grate, — "whether 
 
lyo The King*s Own 
 
 you would listen to my entreaties to sign your name in 
 future as on this paper ? " 
 
 " Oh, M'Elvina," cried Susan, — " how unfair — how 
 ungenerous. Now I detest you ! " 
 
 " I'll not believe that. I have your own hand- writing 
 to the contrary, and I'll appeal to your father." 
 
 " Nay, rather than that — you have set me an example 
 of candour, and shall profit by it. Promise me, M'Elvina, 
 always to treat me as you have this day, — and here is 
 my hand." 
 
 "Who would not be honest, to be so rewarded?" 
 replied M'Elvina, as he embraced the blushing girl. 
 
 " Ah, — all's right, I perceive," cried old Hornblow, 
 who had opened the door unperceived. " Come, my 
 children, take my blessing — long may you live happy 
 and united." 
 
 Chapter XXIV 
 
 He was a shrewd philosopher, 
 And had read ev'ry text and gloss over. 
 Whatever sceptic could inquire for, 
 For every luhy he had a ivherefore : 
 He could reduce all things to acts. 
 And knew their nature by abstracts. 
 
 Hudihras, 
 
 Captain M was not unmindful of the promise which 
 
 he had made to M*Elvina relative to our hero ; and when 
 he returned to the ship, he sent for Macallan the surgeon, 
 and requested as a personal favour that he would super- 
 intend Willy's education, and direct his studies. 
 
 Macallan was too partial to Captain M to refuse, 
 
 and fortunately had imbibed a strong regard for Willy, 
 whose romantic history, early courage, and amiability of 
 disposition, had made him a general favourite. Macallan, 
 therefore, willingly undertook the tuition of a boy who 
 combined energy of mind with docility of disposition and 
 
The King's Own 171 
 
 sweetness of temper. There could not have been selected 
 a person better qualified than the surgeon for imparting 
 that general knowledge so valuable in after-life; and, 
 under his guidance, Willy soon proved that strong in- 
 tellectual powers were among the other advantages which 
 he had received from nature. 
 
 The Aspasia flew before the trade winds, and in a few 
 
 weeks arrived at Barbadoes ; where Captain M found 
 
 orders left by the admiral of the station, directing him 
 to survey a dangerous reef of rocks to the northward of 
 Porto Rico, and to continue to cruise for some weeks in 
 that quarter, after the service had been performed. In 
 three days the frigate was revictualled and watered ; and 
 the officers had barely time to have their sea arrangements 
 completed, before the frigate again expanded her canvas 
 to a favourable breeze. In a few hours the island was 
 left as far astern as to appear like the blue mist which 
 so often deceives the expectant scanner of the horizon. 
 
 ** You Billy Pitt ! is all my linen come on board ? " 
 
 " Yes, sar," replied Billy, who was in Courtenay's 
 cabin ; "I make bill out; just now cast up multerpication 
 of whole." 
 
 " I'm afraid you very often use multiplication in your 
 addition, Mr Billy." 
 
 "True bill, sar," replied Billy, coming out of the cabin, 
 and handing a paper to Courtenay. 
 
 "What's this ? — nineteen tarts ! Why, you black thief, 
 I never had any tarts." 
 
 "Please let me see, sar," said Billy, peering over his 
 shoulder. " Yes, sar, all right — I count 'em. Tell 
 washerwoman put plenty of tarch in collar." 
 
 " Shirts, you nigger ! — why don't you learn to spell 
 with that dictionary of yours ? " 
 
 "Know how to spell very well, sar," replied Billy, 
 haughtily ; " that my way spell ' tarts^ " 
 
 " * Fourteen tockin, seventeen touL' — You do know 
 how to spell to a T." 
 
 "Massa Courtenay, doctor not write same way you write." 
 
172 The King's Own 
 
 " Well, Mr Billy." 
 
 " You not write same way me — ebery gentleman write 
 different hand. Now, if ebery gentleman write his own 
 way, why not ebery gentleman spell his own way ? Dat 
 my way to spell, sar," continued Billy, very much affronted. 
 
 " I can't argue with you now, Mr Billy — there's one 
 bell after four striking, and I have hardly had a glass of 
 wine, from your bothering me. Upon my soul it's 
 excessively annoying." 
 
 " One bell, Mr Courtenay ! " cried Jerry, at the gun- 
 room door ; " Mr Price will thank you to relieve him." 
 
 *' I say, Mr Prose," continued Jerry, as he passed 
 through the steerage to return on deck, " I'll just trouble 
 you to hand your carcass up as soon as convenient." 
 
 " Directly, Jerry, — I — will — but my tea — is so hot." 
 
 "Well, then leave it, and I'll drink it for you," replied 
 Jerry, ascending the ladder. 
 
 "Well, Mr J , did you tell Mr Courtenay?" 
 
 inquired Price. 
 
 " Yes, sir," replied Jerry. 
 
 " What did he say ? " 
 
 " He said, * pass the bottle,' sir," replied Jerry, touching 
 his hat and not changing a muscle of his countenance, 
 although delighted with the vexation that appeared in that 
 of the tired lieutenant as he walked away forward. 
 
 For two or three days the frigate sailed between the 
 islands, which reared their lofty crests abruptly from the 
 ocean, like the embattlements of some vast castle which 
 had been submerged to the water's edge. Her progress 
 was slow, as she was only indebted to the land or sea 
 breezes as they alternately blew, and was becalmed at the 
 close of the day, during the pause between their relieving 
 each other from their never-ceasing duty. Such was the 
 situation of the Aspasia on the evening of the third day. 
 The scene was one of those splendid panoramas which are 
 only to be gazed upon in tropical climes. The sun was 
 near setting ; and as he passed through the horizontal 
 streaks of vapour, fringed their narrow edges with a blaze 
 
The King's Own 173 
 
 of glory, strongly in contrast with the deep blue of the 
 zenith, reflected by the still wave in every quarter, except 
 where the descending orb poured down his volume of rays, 
 which changed the sea into an element of molten gold. 
 The frigate was lying motionless in the narrow channel 
 between two of the islands, the high mountains of which, 
 in deep and solemn shade, were reflected in lengthened 
 shadows, extending to the vessel's sides, and, looking 
 downwards, you beheld the " mountains bowed." Many 
 of the officers were standing abaft admiring the beauty of 
 the scene ; but not giving vent to their feelings, from an 
 inward consciousness of inability to do justice to it in their 
 expressions. 
 
 Macallan first broke the silence. ** Who would imagine, 
 Courtenay, that, ere yonder sun shall rise again, a hurricane 
 may exhaust its rage upon a spot so calm, so beautiful, as 
 this, where all now seems to whisper peace ? " 
 
 The remark was followed by a noise like that proceeding 
 from a distant gun. "Is it pace you mane, doctor ? " said 
 one of the midshipmen, from the sister kingdom. " By 
 the powers, there's * war to the knife,' already. Look," 
 continued he, pointing with his finger, in a direction 
 uiider the land, "there's a battle between the whale and 
 the thrasher." 
 
 The remark of the midshipman was correct, and the 
 whole party congregated on the tafFrail to witness the 
 struggle which had already commenced. The blows of 
 the thrasher, a large fish, of the same species as the whale, 
 given with incredible force and noise on the back of the 
 whale, were now answered by his more unwieldy 
 antagonist, who lashed the sea with fury in his attempts 
 to retaliate upon his more active assailant j and while 
 the contention lasted, the water was in a foam. 
 
 In a few minutes, the whale plunged, and disappeared. 
 
 ** He has had enough of it," observed the master ; " but 
 the thrasher will not let him off so easily. He must come 
 up to breathe directly, and you'll find the thrasher yard- 
 arm and yard-arm with him again." 
 
1^4 The King's Own 
 
 As the master observed, the whale soon re-appeared, 
 and the thrasher, who had closely pursued him, as if 
 determined to make up for lost time, threw himself out of 
 the water, and came down upon the whale, striking him 
 with tremendous force upon the shoulder. The whale 
 plunged so perpendicularly, that his broad tail was many 
 feet upraised in the air, and the persecuted animal was 
 seen no more. 
 
 ** That last broadside settled him," said Courtenay. 
 
 " Sunk him too, I think," cried Jerry. 
 
 " Strange," observed Courtenay, addressing Macallan, 
 " that there should be such an antipathy between the 
 animals. The West Indians assert, that at the same time 
 the thrasher attacks him above, the sword-fish pierces him 
 underneath — if so, it must be very annoying." 
 
 " I have heard the same story, but have never myself 
 seen the sword-fish," replied Macallan ; "it is, however, 
 very possible, as there is no animal in the creation that has 
 so many enemies as the whale." 
 
 " A tax on greatness," observed Jerry ; " I'm glad it 
 goes by bulk. Mr Macallan," continued he, " you're a 
 philosopher and I have heard you argue that whatever is, 
 is right — will you explain to my consummate ignorance, 
 upon what just grounds the thrasher attacks that un- 
 offending mass of blubber ? " 
 
 *' I'll explain it to you," said Courtenay, laughing. " The 
 whale, who has just come from the northward, finds him- 
 self in very comfortable quarters here, and has no wish to 
 heave up his anchor, and proceed on his voyage round Cape 
 Horn. The thrasher is the port-admiral of the station, and 
 his blows are so many guns to enforce his orders to sail 
 forthwith." 
 
 " Thank you, sir," answered Jerry, sarcastically, " for 
 your very ingenious explanation, but I do not see why his 
 guns should be shotted. Perhaps Mr Macallan will now 
 oblige me by his ideas on the subject." 
 
 " How far these islands may be the Capua to the whale, 
 which Mr Courtenay presumes, I cannot say," answered 
 
The King's Own 175 
 
 the surgeon, pompously ; " but I have observed that all the 
 cetaceous tribe are very much annoyed by vermin, which 
 adhere to their skins. You often see the porpoises, and 
 smaller fish of this class, throw themselves into the air, and 
 fall flat on the water, to detach the barnacles and other 
 parasitical insects, which distress them. May it not be, that 
 the whale, being so enormous an animal, and not able to 
 employ the same means of relief, receives it from the blows 
 of the thrasher." 
 
 " Bravo, doctor ! Why, then, the thrasher may be con- 
 sidered as a medical attendant to the whale ; and, from the 
 specimen we have witnessed of his humanity, a naval 
 practitioner, I have no doubt," added Jerry. 
 
 " Very well, Mr Jerry ; if ever you come under my 
 hands, you shall smart for that." 
 
 ** Very little chance, doctor ; Fm such a miserable 
 object, that even disease passes by me with contempt. 
 If I ever am in your list, I presume it will be for 
 a case of plethora," replied Jerry, spanning his thin 
 waist. 
 
 " Young gentlemen, get down directly. What are you 
 all doing there on the tafFrail ? " bawled out the first lieu- 
 tenant, who had just come up the ladder. 
 
 "We've been looking at a sea-bully," said Jerry, in 
 a tone of voice sufficiently loud to excite the merriment 
 of those about him, without being heard by the first 
 lieutenant. 
 
 ** What's the joke ? " observed Mr Bully, coming aft, as 
 the midshipmen were dispersing. 
 
 ** Some of Mr J 's nonsense," replied the surgeon. 
 
 This answer not being satisfactory, the first lieutenant 
 took it for granted, as people usually do, that the laugh 
 was against himself, and his choler was raised against the 
 offending party. 
 
 " Mr J ! Ay, that young man thinks of anything 
 
 but his duty. There he is, playing with the captain's dog ; 
 and his watch, I'll answer for it, or he would not be on deck. 
 Mr J ," continued the first lieutenant to Jerry, who 
 
176 The King's Own 
 
 was walking up and down to leeward, followed by a large 
 Newfoundland dog, '* is it your watch ? " 
 
 " Yes, sir," replied Jerry, touching his hat. 
 
 " Then why are you skylarking with that dog ? " 
 
 " I am not skylarking with the dog, sir. He follows me 
 up and down. I believe he takes me for a ^«^." 
 
 " I am not surprised at it," replied the first lieutenant, 
 laughing. 
 
 The surgeon, who remained abaft, was now accosted by 
 Willy, who had been amusing himself, leaning over the 
 side of a boat, which had been lowered down by the first 
 lieutenant to examine the staying of the masts, and catching 
 in a tin-pot the various minute objects of natural history 
 which passed by, as the frigate glided slowly along. 
 
 ** What shell is this, Mr Macallan, which I have nicked 
 up ^ It floated on the surface of the water by means of 
 these air-bladders, which are attached to it." 
 
 ** That shell, Willy," replied Macallan, who, mounting 
 his favourite hobby, immediately spouted his pompous 
 truths, " is called by naturalists the lanthina fragilis, 
 perhaps the weakest and most delicate in its texture which 
 exists, and yet the only one * which ventures to contend with 
 the stormy ocean. The varieties of the nautili have the 
 same property of floating on the surface of the water, but 
 they seldom are found many miles from land. They are 
 only coasters in comparison with this adventurous little 
 navigator, which alone braves the Atlantic, and floats about 
 in the same fathomless deep which is ranged by the 
 devouring shark, and lashed by the stupendous whale. I 
 have picked up these little sailors nearly one thousand miles 
 from the land. Yet observe, it is his security — his tene- 
 ment, of such thin texture to enable him to float with 
 greater ease, would not be able to encounter the rippling 
 of the wave upon the smoothest beach." 
 
 " What use are they of? " 
 
 "Of no direct use that I know of, William ; but if it 
 
 * I am aware that there are two or three other pelagic shells, but, at the 
 time of this narrative, they were not known. 
 
The King's Own 177 
 
 has no other use than to induce you to reflect a Httle, it has 
 not been made in vain. All created things are not 
 applicable to the wants or the enjoyment of man ; but 
 their examination will always tend to his improvement. 
 When you analyse this little creature in its domicile, and see 
 how wonderfully it is provided with all means necessary for 
 its existence, — when you compare it with the thousand 
 varieties upon the beach, in all of which you will perceive 
 the same Master-hand visible, the same attention in provid- 
 ing for their wants, the same minute and endless beauty of 
 colour and of form, — you cannot but acknowledge the 
 vastness and the magnificence of the Maker. In the same 
 manner, the flowers and shrubs, which embellish, as they 
 cover the earth, are not all so much for use, as they are 
 for ornament. What human ingenuity can approach to 
 the perfection of the meanest effort of the Almighty hand ? 
 Has it not been pointed out in the Scriptures * Consider the 
 lilies of the field, how they grow ; they toil not, neither do 
 they spin : And yet I say unto you. That even Solomon, 
 in all his glory, was not arrayed like one of these.' Never 
 debate in your mind, Willy, of what use are these things 
 which God has made — for of what use^ then, is man, the 
 most endowed and the most perverse of all creation, except 
 to show the goodness and the forbearance of the Almighty ! 
 You may, hereafter, be inclined to debate why noxious 
 reptiles and ferocious beasts, that not only are useless to 
 man, but a source of dread and of danger, have been 
 created. They have their inheritance upon earth, as well 
 as man, and combine with the rest of animated nature to 
 show the power, and the wisdom, and the endless variety 
 of the Creator. It is true that all animals were made for 
 our use ; but recollect, that when man fell from his perfect 
 state, it was declared, ^ In the sweat of thy brow thou 
 shalt eat bread.' Are trackless forests, and yet unexplored 
 regions to remain without living creatures to enjoy them, 
 until they shall be required by man ? And is man, in his 
 fallen state, to possess all the earth and its advantages, 
 without labour, — without fulfilling his destiny ? No. 
 
 K. I. M 
 
178 The King's Own 
 
 Ferocious and noxious animals disappear only before 
 cultivation. It is part of the labour to which he has been 
 sentenced, that he should rend them out as the * thistle and 
 the thorn ; ' or drive them to those regions, which are not 
 yet required by him, and of which they may continue to 
 have possession undisturbed." 
 
 Such was the language of Macallan to our hero, whose 
 thirst for knowledge constantly made fresh demands upon 
 the surgeon's fund of information; and, pedantic as his 
 language may appear, it contained important truths, which 
 were treasured up by the retentive memory of his pupil. 
 
 Chapter XXV 
 
 How frail, how cowardly is woman's mind I 
 Yet when strong jealousy inflames the soul, 
 The weak will roar, and calms to tempests roll. 
 
 Lee's Rival Queen. 
 
 But we must now follow up the motions of Mr Rains- 
 court, who quitted the castle, and travelling with great 
 diligence, once more trod the pavement of the metropolis, 
 which he had quitted in equal haste, but under very 
 different circumstances. The news of his good fortune 
 had preceded him, and he received all that homage which 
 is invariably shown to a man who has many creditors, and 
 the means of satisfying all their demands. As he had 
 prophesied, the little gentleman in black was as obsequious 
 as could be desired, and threw out many indirect hints of 
 the pleasure he should have in superintending Mr Rains- 
 court's future arrangements ; and, by way of reinstating 
 himself in his good graces, acquainted him with a plan for 
 reducing the amount of the demands that were made upon 
 him. Rainscourt, who never forgave, so far acceded to 
 the lawyer's wishes, as to permit him to take that part of 
 
 the arrangements into his hands ; and, after Mr T had 
 
 succeeded in bringing the usurers to reasonable terms — 
 
The King's Own 179 
 
 when all had been duly signed and sealed, not only were 
 his services declined for the future, but the servants were 
 desired to show him the street door. 
 
 As his wife had remarked, Rainscourt found no difficulty 
 in makings friends of all sorts, and of both sexes — and he 
 had launched into a routine of gaiety and dissipation, in 
 which he continued for several months, without allowing 
 his wife and daughter to interrupt his amusements, or to 
 enter his thoughts. 
 
 He had enclosed an order upon the banker at , soon 
 
 after his arrival in London, and he considered that he had 
 done all that was requisite. Such was not, however, the 
 opinion of his wife — to be immured in a lonely castle in 
 Ireland, was neither her intention nor her taste. Finding 
 that repeated letters were unanswered, in which she 
 requested permission to join him, and pointed out the 
 necessity that Emily, who was now nearly twelve years 
 old, should have the advantages of tuition which his 
 fortune could command, she packed up a slender wardrobe, 
 and in a week arrived in London with Emily, and drove up 
 to the door of the hotel, to which Rainscourt had directed 
 that his letters should be addressed. 
 
 Rainscourt was not at home when she arrived ; announc- 
 ing herself as his wife, she was shown upstairs into his 
 apartments, a minute survey of which, with their contents, 
 was immediately made ; and the notes and letters, which 
 were carelessly strewed upon the tables, and all of which 
 she took the liberty to peruse, had the effect of throwing 
 Mrs Rainscourt into a transport of jealousy and indignation. 
 The minutes appeared hours, and the hours months, until 
 he made his appearance, which he at last did, accompanied 
 by two fashionable roues with whom he associated. 
 
 The waiters, who happened not to be in the way as he 
 ascended the stairs, had not announced to him the arrival 
 of his wife, who was sitting on the sofa in her bonnet 
 and shawl, one hand full of notes and letters, the super- 
 scriptions of which were evidently in a female hand — and 
 the other holding her handkerchief, as if prepared for a 
 
i8o The King's Own 
 
 scene. One leg was crossed over the other, and the foot 
 of the one that was above worked in the air, up and down, 
 with the force of a piston of a steam-engine, indicative of 
 the propelling power within, — when Rainscourt, whose 
 voice was heard all the way upstairs, arrived at the landing- 
 place, and, in answer to a question of one of his companions, 
 replied — 
 
 " Go and see her ! Not I— I'm quite tired of her — By- 
 Jove, Fd as soon see my wife ; " and as he finished the 
 sentence, entered the apartment, where the unexpected 
 appearance of Mrs Rainscourt made him involuntarily 
 exclaim, " Talk of the devil " 
 
 " And she appears, sir," replied the lady, rising, and 
 making a profound courtesy. 
 
 **Pooh, my dear," replied Rainscourt, embarrassed, and 
 unwilling that a scene should take place before his 
 companions — "I was only joking." 
 
 " Good morning, Rainscourt," said one of his friends — 
 " Tm afraid that I shall be de tropP 
 
 " And I'm off too, my dear fellow, for there's no saying 
 how the joke may be taken," added the other, following 
 his companion out of the room. 
 
 Emily ran up to her father, and took his hand ; and 
 Rainscourt, who was as much attached to his daughter 
 as his selfish character would permit, kissed her forehead. 
 
 Both parties were for a short time silent. Both pre- 
 ferred to await the attack, rather than commence it ; but 
 in a trial of forbearance of this description, it may easily 
 be supposed that the gentleman gained the victory, Mrs 
 Rainscourt waited until she found that she must either 
 give vent to her feelings by words, or that her whole 
 frame would explode ; and the action commenced on her 
 side with a shower of tears, which ended in violent 
 hysterics. 
 
 The first were unheeded by her husband, who always 
 considered them as a kind of scaling her guns previous 
 to an engagement; but the hysterics rather baified him. 
 In his own house, he would have rung for the servants 
 
The King's Own i8i 
 
 and left them to repair damages ; but at an hotel, an 
 eclat was to be avoided, if possible. 
 
 ** Emily, my dear, go to your mother — you know how 
 to help her." 
 
 *'No, I do not, papa," said the child, crying 5 "but 
 Norah used to open her hands." 
 
 Rainscourt's eyes were naturally directed to the fingers 
 of his wife, in which he perceived a collection of notes 
 and letters. He thought it might be advisable to open 
 her hand, if it were only to recover these out of her 
 possession. What affection would not have induced him 
 to do, interest accomplished. He advanced to the sofa, 
 and attempted to open her clenched hands ^ but whether 
 Mrs Rainscourt's hysterics were only feigned, or of such 
 violence as to defy the strength of her husband, all his 
 efforts to extract the letters proved ineffectual, and, after 
 several unavailing attempts, he desisted from his exertions. 
 
 "What else is good for her, Emily ?" 
 
 "Water, papa, thrown in her face — shall I ring for 
 some ? " 
 
 "No, my dear — is there nothing else we can do?" 
 
 " Oh, yes, papa, unlace her stays." 
 
 Rainscourt, who was not very expert as a lady's-maid, 
 had some difficulty in arriving at the stays through the 
 folds of the gown et cetera, the more so as Mrs Rainscourt 
 was very violent in her movements, and he was not a 
 little irritated by sundry pricks which he received from 
 those indispensable articles of dress, which the fair sex 
 are necessitated to use, pointing out to us that there are 
 no roses without thorns. When he did arrive at the 
 desired encasement, he was just as much puzzled to find 
 an end to what appeared, like the Gordian knot, to have 
 neither beginning nor end. Giving way to the natural 
 impatience of his temper, he seized a penknife from the 
 table, to divide it a V Alexander, Unfortunately, in his 
 hurry, instead of inserting the knife on the inside of the 
 lace, so as to cut to him, he cut down upon it, and not 
 meeting with the resistance which he expected, the point 
 
1 82 The King's Own 
 
 of the knife entered with no trifling force into the back 
 of Mrs Rainscourt, who to his astonishment, immediately- 
 started on her legs, crying out, " Would you murder me, 
 Mr Rainscourt ?— help, help ! " 
 
 "It was quite accidental, my dear," said Rainscourt, 
 in a soothing tone, for he was afraid of her bringing the 
 whole house about her ears. " I really am quite shocked 
 at my own awkwardness." 
 
 "It quite recovered you though, mamma," observed 
 Emily, with great simplicity, and for which remark, to 
 her astonishment, she was saluted with a smart box on 
 the ear. 
 
 "Why should you be shocked, Mr Rainscourt?" said 
 the lady, who, as her daughter had remarked, seemed 
 wonderfully recovered from the phle-^^^^-omy which had 
 been administered, — " why should you be shocked at 
 stabbing me in the back ? Have I not wherewithal in my 
 hand to stab me a thousand times in the heart ? Look at 
 these letters, all of which I have read ! You had, indeed, 
 reason to leave me in Galway ; but I will submit to it no 
 longer. Mr Rainscourt, I insist upon an immediate separa- 
 tion." 
 
 "Why should we quarrel, then, my dear, when we are 
 both of one mind ? Now do me the favour to sit down, 
 and talk the matter over quietly. What is it that you 
 require ? " 
 
 " First, then, Mr Rainscourt, an acknowledgment on 
 your part, that I am a most injured, and most ill-treated 
 woman." 
 
 " Granted, my dear, if that will add to your happiness. 
 I certainly have never known your value." 
 
 " Don't sneer, sir, if you please. Secondly, a handsome 
 allowance, commensurate with your fortune." 
 
 " Granted, with pleasure, Mrs Rainscourt." 
 
 " Thirdly, Mr Rainscourt, an extra allowance for the 
 education and expenses of my daughter, who will remain 
 under my care." 
 
 " Granted also." 
 
The King's Own 183 
 
 " Further, Mr Rainscourt, to keep up appearances, I 
 wish one of the mansions on your different estates in 
 England to be appropriated for our use. Your daughter 
 ought to be known, and reside on the property of which 
 she is the future heiress." 
 
 " A reasonable demand, which I accede to. Is there 
 anything further ? " 
 
 " Nothing of moment ; but, for Emily's sake, I should 
 wish that you should pay us an occasional visit, and, 
 generally speaking, keep up appearances before the world." 
 
 " That I shall be most happy to do, my dear, and shall 
 always speak of you, as I feel, with respect and esteem. 
 Is there anything more, Mrs Rainscourt ? " 
 
 " There is not ; but I believe that if I had been ten 
 times more exorbitant in my demands," replied the lady, 
 with pique, " that you would have granted them — for the 
 pleasure of getting rid of me." 
 
 " I would, indeed, my dear," replied Rainscourt ; " you 
 may command me in anything, except my own person." 
 
 "I require no other partition, sir, than that of your 
 fortune." 
 
 " And of that, my dear, you shall, as I have declared, 
 have a liberal share. So now, Mrs Rainscourt, I think we 
 can have no further occasion for disagreement. The 
 property in Norfolk, where Admiral De Courcy resided, is 
 a beautiful spot, and I request you will consider it as your 
 head-quarters. Of course you will be your own mistress 
 when you feel inclined to change the scene. And now, as 
 all may be considered as settled, let us shake hands, and 
 henceforward be — good friends." 
 
 Mrs Rainscourt gave her hand, and sealed the new 
 contract ; but, ill-treated as she had been, — at variance 
 with her husband for years, — and now convinced that she 
 had been outraged in the tenderest point, still her heart 
 leaned towards the father of her child. The hand that 
 now was extended in earnest of future separation, re- 
 minded her of the day when she had offered it in pledge 
 of future fidelity and love, and had listened with rapture 
 
184 The King's Own 
 
 to his reciprocal obligation. She covered her face with 
 her handkerchief, which was soon moistened with her 
 tears. 
 
 Such is woman ! To the last moment she cherishes her 
 love, pure as an emanation from the Deity. In the happy- 
 days of confidence and truth, it sheds a halo round her 
 existence ; — in those of sorrow and desertion, memory, 
 guided by its resistless power, like the gnomon of the dial, 
 marks but those hours which were sunny and serene. 
 
 However, Mrs Rainscourt soon found out that an un- 
 limited credit upon the banker was no bad substitute for 
 a worthless husband ; and assisted by her pride, she 
 enjoyed more real happiness and peace of mind than she 
 had done for many years. During her stay in London, 
 Rainscourt occasionally paid his respects, behaved with 
 great kindness and propriety, and appeared not a little 
 proud of the expanding beauty of his daughter. Mrs 
 Rainscourt not only recovered her spirits, but her personal 
 attractions ; and their numerous acquaintance wondered 
 what could possess Mr Rainscourt to be indifferent to so 
 lively and so charming a woman. In a few weeks the 
 mansion was ready to receive them, and Mrs Rainscourt, 
 with Emily, and a numerous establishment, quitted the 
 metropolis, to take up their abode in it for the ensuing 
 summer. 
 
 Chapter XXVI 
 
 Pericles. — That's your superstition. 
 
 Sailor. — Pardon us, sir. With us at sea it still hath been observed, and 
 we are strong in earnest. 
 
 Shakespeare. 
 
 The weather was fine, and the water smooth, on the 
 morning when the Aspasia arrived at the reef, which, 
 although well known to exist, had been very incorrectly 
 
 laid down; and Captain M thought it advisable to 
 
 drop his anchor, in preference to laying off and on so near 
 
The King's Own 185 
 
 to dangers which might extend much farther than he 
 was aware. The frigate was, therefore, brought up in 
 eighteen fathoms, about two miles from that part of the 
 reef which discovered itself above water. 
 
 The captain and master undertook the survey ; but any 
 officers, who volunteered their assistance, or midshipmen, 
 who wished to profit by the opportunity of gaining a 
 practical knowledge of maritime surveying, were permitted 
 to join the party, another boat having been lowered down 
 for their accommodation. Hector, the captain's Newfound- 
 land dog, was flying about the decks, mad with delight, as 
 he always was when a boat was lowered down, as he anti- 
 cipated the pleasure of a swim. Captain M , who had 
 
 breakfasted, and whose boat was manned alongside, came 
 on deck ; when the dog fawning on him, he desired that 
 his broad leather collar, with the ship's name in large brass 
 letters riveted round it, should be taken off, that it might 
 not be injured by the salt water. Jerry, who was on deck, 
 and received the order, asked the captain for the key of the 
 
 padlock which secured it, and Captain M handed him 
 
 his bunch of keys, to which it had been affixed, and desir- 
 ing him to take the collar off, and return the keys to him, 
 descended again to his cabin. 
 
 Jerry soon dispossessed the dog of his collar, and, ripe 
 for mischief, went down to the midshipmen's berth, where 
 he found Prose alone, the rest being all on deck, or 
 scattered about the ship. Prose was the person that he 
 wanted, being the only one upon whom he could venture a 
 practical joke, without incurring more risk than was agree- 
 able. Jerry commenced by fixing the collar round his own 
 neck, and said "I wish I could get promotion. Now if the 
 situation of captain's dog was only vacant, I should like the 
 rating amazingly. I should soon get fat then, and I think 
 I should look well up in this collar." 
 
 ** Why, Jerry, that collar certainly does look as if it 
 was made for you j it's rather ornamental, I do 
 declare." 
 
 *' I wish I had a glass, to see how it looks. I would 
 
1 86 The King's Own 
 
 try it on you, Prose, but you've such a bull neck, that it 
 wouldn't go half round it." 
 
 "Bull neck, Jerry — why, I'll lay you sixpence that my 
 neck's almost as small as yours ; and I'll lay you a shilling 
 that the collar will go round my neck." 
 
 " Done ; now let's see — recollect the staple must go into 
 the hole, or you lose," said Jerry, fixing the collar round 
 Prose's neck, and pretending that the staple was not into 
 the hole of the collar until he had inserted the padlock, 
 turned and taken out the key. 
 
 " Well I do declare I've lost. Prose. I must go and get 
 you the shilling," continued Jerry, making his escape out 
 of the berth, and leaving Prose with the collar so tight 
 under his chin, that he could scarcely open his mouth. 
 Jerry arrived on the quarter-deck just as the captain was 
 stepping into the boat, and he went up to him, and touch- 
 ing his hat, presented him with the bunch of keys. 
 
 " Oh, thank you, Mr Jerry ; I had forgotten them," 
 
 said Captain M , descending the side, and shoving 
 
 off. 
 
 " Whose clothes are these hanging on the davit-guys ? " 
 said Mr Bully, who had given order that no clothes were 
 to be drying there after eight o'clock in the morning. 
 
 " I believe that they are Mr Prose's, sir, though I am not 
 sure," answered Jerry, who knew very well that they were 
 not, but wished that Prose should be sent for. 
 
 " Quarter-master, tell Mr Prose to come up to me 
 directly." 
 
 Jerry immediately ran down to the berth. 
 
 " Well, now, Jerry, this is too bad, I do declare. 
 Come, take it off again, that's a good fellow." 
 
 " Mr Prose," said the quarter-master, " the first lieuten- 
 ant wants you on deck directly." 
 
 " There, now, Jerry, what a mess I might have been in. 
 Where's the key?" 
 
 " I have not got it," replied Jerry ; " the captain saw 
 me on the quarter-deck, and took the bunch of keys away 
 with him.' 
 
The King's Own 187 
 
 ""What ! is the captain gone away ? I do declare now, 
 this is too bad," cried Prose, in a rage. 
 
 " Too bad ! — why, man, don't be angry — it*s a distinction. 
 Between me and the first lieutenant, you are created a 
 knight of the Grand Cross. I gave you the collar, and he 
 has given you the order, which I recommend you to 
 comply with, without you wish further elevation to the 
 mast-head." 
 
 " Mr Prose, the first lieutenant wants you immediately," 
 said the quarter-master, who had been despatched to him 
 again. 
 
 ** Why, how can I go up with a dog's collar round my 
 neck?" 
 
 ** I'm sorry, very sorry indeed. Prose. Never mind — 
 say it was me." 
 
 " Say it was you ! Why so it was you. I'd better say 
 that I'm sick." 
 
 " Yes, that will do. What shall your complaint be ? — 
 a lockjaw ? I'll go up and tell Mr Bully— shall I ? " 
 
 <« Do — tell him I'm not well." 
 
 Jerry went up accordingly. " Mr Prose is not well, sir 
 — he has a sort of lock-jaw." 
 
 "I wish to God you had the same complaint, sir," 
 replied the first lieutenant, who owed him one. " Macallan, 
 is Mr Prose ill?" 
 
 **Not that I know of; he has not applied to me. I'll 
 go down and see him before I go on shore." 
 
 Macallan came up laughing, but he recovered his 
 seriousness before Bully perceived it. 
 
 "Well, doctor." 
 
 " Mr Prose is certainly not very fit to come on deck in 
 his present state," said Macallan, who then descended the 
 side, and the boat, which had been waiting for him, 
 shoved off. But, this time, Jerry was caught in his own 
 trap. 
 
 " Mr J , where is the dog's collar ? — it must be 
 
 oiled and cleaned," said the first lieutenant. 
 
 " Shall I give it to the armourer, sir ? " replied Jerry. 
 
1 88 The King's Own 
 
 " No, bring it up to me." 
 
 Jerry went down, and returned in a few minutes. " I 
 cannot find it, sir ; I left it in the berth when I came on 
 deck." 
 
 "That's just like your usual carelessness, Mr J . 
 
 Now go up to the mast-head, and stay there till I call 
 you down." 
 
 Jerry, who did not like the turn which the joke had 
 taken, moved up with a very reluctant step — at the rate of 
 about one rattling in ten seconds. 
 
 " Come, sir, what are you about ? — start-up.^^ 
 
 " I'm no upstart, sir," replied Jerry to the first 
 lieutenant — a sarcasm which hit so hard, that Jerry was 
 not called down till dark j and long after Prose had, by 
 making interest with the captain's steward, obtained the 
 keys, and released his neck from its enthralment. 
 
 The party in the second boat were landed on the reef, 
 and while the rest were attending to the survey, Macallan 
 was employed in examining the crevices of the rocks, and 
 collecting the different objects of natural history which 
 presented themselves. 
 
 The boat was sent on board, as it was not required 
 until the afternoon, when the gun-room officers were to 
 return to dinner. 
 
 The captain's gig remained on shore, and the coxswain 
 was employed by Macallan in receiving from him the 
 different shells, and varieties of coral, with which the rocks 
 were covered. 
 
 " Take particular care of this specimen," said the 
 surgeon, as he delivered a bunch of corallines into the 
 hands of Marshall, the coxswain. 
 
 ** I ax your pardon, Mr Macallan, — but what's the good 
 of picking up all this rubbish ? " 
 
 " Rubbish ?" replied the surgeon, laughing — *' why you 
 don't know what it is. What do you think those are 
 which I just gave you ? " 
 
 *'Why, weeds are rubbish, and these be only pieces 
 of sea-weed." 
 
The King's Own 189 
 
 ** They happen to be animals.''^ 
 
 " Hanimals I " cried the coxswain, with an incredulous 
 smile; "well, sir, I always took 'em to be iveggittables. 
 We live and larn, sure enough. Are cabbage and hingions 
 hanimals too ? " 
 
 "No," replied the surgeon, much amused, "they are 
 not, Marshall ; but these are. Now take them to the boat, 
 and put them in a safe place, and then come back." 
 
 " I say. Bill, look ye here," said the coxswain to one of 
 the sailors, who was lying down on the thwarts of the boat, 
 holding up the coral to him in a contemptuous manner — 
 " what the hell d'ye think this is } Why, it's a hanimal ! " 
 
 " A what ? " 
 
 " I'll be blowed if the doctor don't say it's a hanimal ! " 
 
 "No more a hanimal than I am," replied the sailor, 
 laying his head down again on the thwarts, and shutting 
 his eyes. 
 
 In a few minutes Marshall returned to the surgeon, 
 who, tired with clambering over the rocks, was sitting 
 down to rest himself a little. "Well, Marshall, I hope 
 you have not hurt what I gave into your charge." 
 
 " Hurt 'em ! — why, sir, a'ter what you told me, I'd as 
 soon have hurt a cat." 
 
 " What, you are superstitious on that point, as seamen 
 generally are." 
 
 " Super — what, Mr Macallan ? I only knows, that they 
 who ill-treats a cat, comes worst oiF. I've proof positive 
 of that since I have been in the service. I could spin you 
 a yarn." 
 
 "Well, now, Marshall, pray do. Come, sit down here 
 — I am fond of proof positive. Now, let me hear what 
 you have to say, and I'll listen without interrupting you. 
 
 The coxswain took his seat as Macallan desired, and, 
 taking the quid of tobacco out of his cheek, and laying 
 it down on the rock beside him, commenced as follows : — 
 
 "Well now, d'ye see, Mr Macallan, I'll just exactly 
 tell you how it was, and then I leaves you to judge 
 whether a cat's to be sarved in that way. It was when 
 
190 The King's Own 
 
 I belonged to the Survellanty frigate, that we were laying 
 in Cawsand Bay, awaiting for sailing orders. We hadn't 
 dropped the anchor more than a week, and there was no 
 liberty ashore. Well, sir, the purser found out that his 
 steward was a bit of a rascal, and turns him adrift. The 
 ship's company knew that long afore ; for it was not a few 
 that he had cheated, and we were all glad to see him and 
 his traps handed down the side. Now, sir, this here 
 fellow had a black cat — but it warn't at all like other cats. 
 When it was a kitten, they had cut off his tail close to its 
 starn, and his ears had been shaved oiFjust as close to his 
 figure-head, and the hanimal used to set up on his hind 
 legs and fight like a rabbit. It had quite lost its natur, 
 as it were, and looked, for all the world, like a little imp 
 of darkness. It always lived in the purser's steward's 
 room, and we never seed him but when we went down 
 for the biscuit and flour as was sarving out. 
 
 *' Well, sir, when this rascal of a steward leaves the 
 ship, he had no natural affection for his cat, and he leaves 
 him on board, belonging to nobody ; and the steward 
 as comes in his place turns him out of the steward's 
 room ; so the poor jury rigged little devil had to take 
 care of itself. 
 
 *' We all tried to coax it into one berth or the other, 
 but the poor brute wouldn't take to nobody. You know, 
 sir, a cat doesn't like to change, so he wandered about 
 the ship, mewing all day, and thieving all night. At 
 last, he takes to the master's cabin, and makes a dirt 
 there, and the master gets very savage, and swears that 
 he'll kill him, if ever he comes athwart him. 
 
 *' Now, sir, you knows it's the natur of cats always to 
 make a dirt in the same place, — reason why, God only 
 knows 5 and so this poor black devil always returns to 
 the master's cabin, and makes it, as it were, his head- 
 quarters. At last the master, who was as even-tempered 
 an officer as ever I sailed with, finds one day that his 
 sextant case is all of a smudge : so being touched in a 
 sore place, he gets into a great rage, and orders all the 
 
The King's Own 191 
 
 boys of the ship to catch the cat ; and after much ado, 
 the poor cat was catched, and brought aft into the gun- 
 room. * Now, then, P ,' said the master to the first 
 
 lieutenant, * will you help kill the dirty beast ? ' — and the 
 first lieutenant, who cared more about his lower deck 
 being clean than fifty human beings' lives, said he would ; 
 so they called the sargent o' marines, and orders him to 
 bring up two ship's muskets and some ball cartridge, and 
 they goes on deck with the cat in their arms. 
 
 " Well, sir, when the men saw the cat brought up on 
 deck, and hears that he was to be hove overboard, they 
 all congregates together upon the lee gangway, and gives 
 their opinions on the subject, — and one says, * Let's go 
 and speak to the first lieutenant ; ' and another says, * He'll 
 put you on the black list ; ' and so they don't do nothing 
 — all except Jenkins, the boatswain's mate, who calls to 
 a waterman out of the main-deck port, and says, * Water- 
 man,' says he, * when they heaves that cat overboard, do 
 you pick him up, and I'll give you a shilling ; ' and the 
 waterman says as how he would, for you see, sir, the 
 men didn't know that the muskets had been ordered up 
 to shoot the poor beast. 
 
 ** Well, sir, the waterman laid off on his oars, and the 
 men, knowing what Jenkins had done, were content. 
 But when the sargent o' marines comes up, and loads the 
 muskets with ball cartridges, then the men begins to 
 grumble ; howsomever, the master throws the cat over- 
 board off the lee-quarter, and the waterman, as soon as 
 he sees her splash in the water, backs astarn to take her 
 into the boat, but the first lieutenant tells him to get 
 out of the way, if he doesn't want a bullet through his 
 boat — so he pulls ahead again. The master fires first, 
 and hits the cat a clip on the neck, which turns her half 
 over, and the first lieutenant fires his musket, and cuts 
 the poor hanimal right in half by the backbone, and she 
 sprawls a bit, and then goes down to the bottom. * Capital 
 shots both,' says the first lieutenant : * he'll never take an 
 observation of your sextant again, master ; ' and they both 
 
192 The King's Own 
 
 laughs heartily, and goes down the ladder to get their 
 dinner. 
 
 " Well, sir, I never seed a ship's company in such a 
 farmant, or such a nitty kicked up 'tween decks, in my 
 life : it was almost as bad as a mutiny ; but they piped 
 to grog soon a'ter, and the men goes to their berths and 
 talks the matter over more coolly, and they all agrees 
 that no good would come to the ship a'ter that, and very 
 melancholy they were, and couldn't forget it. 
 
 " Well, sir, our sailing orders comes down the next 
 day, and the first cutter is sent on shore for the captain, 
 and six men out of ten leaves the boat, and I'm sure that 
 it warn't for desartion, but all along of that cat being hove 
 overboard and butchered in that way — for three on 'em 
 were messmates of mine — for you know, sir, we talks 
 them matters over, and if they had had a mind to quit 
 the sarvice, I should have know'd it. The captain was 
 as savage as a bear with a sore head, and did nothing 
 but growl for three days afterwards, and it was well to 
 keep clear on him, for he snapped right and left, like a 
 mad dog. I never seed him in such a humour afore, 
 except once when he had a fortnight's foul wind. 
 
 " Well, sir, we had been out a week, when we falls 
 in with a large frigate, and beats to quarters. We ex- 
 pected her to be a Frenchman ; but as soon as she comes 
 within gunshot, she hoists the private signal, and proves 
 to be the Semiramus, and our senior officer. The next 
 morning, cruising together, we sees a vessel inshore, and 
 the Semiramus stands in on the larboard tack, and orders 
 us by signal to keep away, and prevent his running along 
 the coast. The vessel, finding that she couldn't go no 
 way, comes to anchor under a battery of two guns — and 
 then the commodore makes the signal for boats manned 
 and armed, to cut her out. 
 
 ** Well, sir, our first lieutenant was in his cot, on his 
 beam-ends, with the rheumatiz, and couldn't go on 
 sarvice ; so the second and third lieutenants, and master, 
 and one of the midshipmen, had command of our four 
 
The King's Own 193 
 
 boats, and the commodore sent seven of his'n. The 
 boats pulled in, and carried the vessel in good style, and 
 there never was a man hurt. As many boats as could 
 clap on her took her in tow, and out she came at the 
 rate of four knots an hour. I was coxswain of the 
 pinnace, which was under the charge of the master, and 
 we were pulling on board, as all the boats weren't wanted 
 to tow — and we were about three cables' length ahead 
 of the vessel, when I sees her aground upon a rock, 
 that nobody knows nothing about, on the starboard side 
 of the entrance of the harbour ; and I said that she were 
 grounded to the master, who orders us to pull back to 
 the vessel to assist 'em in getting her off again. 
 
 ** Well, sir, we gets alongside of her, and finds that she 
 was off again, having only grazed the rock, and the boats 
 towed her out again with a rally. Now the Frenchmen 
 were firing at us with muskets, for we had shut in the 
 battery, and as we were almost out of the musket-shot, 
 the balls only pitted in the water, without doing any harm 
 — and I was a-standing with the master on the starn-sheets, 
 my body being just between him and the beach where they 
 were a-firing from. It seemed mortally impossible to hit 
 him, except through me. Howsomever, a bullet passes 
 between my arm — just here, and my side, and striked him 
 dead upon the spot. There warn't another man hit out of 
 nine boat's crews, and I'll leave you to guess whether the 
 sailors didn't declare that he got his death all along of 
 murdering the cat. 
 
 "Well, sir, the men thought, as he \\2A fired first , that 
 now all was over ; only Jenkins, the boatswain's mate, said, 
 * That he warn't quite sure of that.' We parts company 
 with the commodore the next day, and the day a'ter, as it 
 turned out, we falls in with a French frigate. She had the 
 heels of us, and kept us at long balls, but we hoped to cut 
 her off from running into Brest, if a slant o' wind favoured 
 us — and obligating her to fight, whether or no. Tom 
 Collins, the first lieutenant, was still laid up in his cot with 
 the rheumatiks, but when he hears of a French frigate, 
 
 K. I. N 
 
194 The King's Own 
 
 he gets up, and goes on deck ; but when he gets there he 
 tips us a faint, and falls down on the carronade slide, and 
 his hat rolled off his head into the waist. He tried, but 
 he was so weak that he couldn't get up on his sticks 
 again. 
 
 "Well, sir, the captain goes up to him, and says some- 
 thing about zeal and all that, and tells him he must go down 
 below again because he's quite incapable, and orders the 
 men at the foremost carronades to take him to his cot. 
 Now, sir, just as we were handing him down the ladder, 
 for I was captain of the gun, a shot comes in at the second 
 port and takes off his skull as he lays in our arms, and 
 never hurts another man. He was dead in no time ; and 
 what was more cur'ous, it was the only shot that hit the 
 frigate. The Frenchman got into Brest — so it was no action 
 after all. 
 
 " So, you see, Mr Macallan, in two scrummages only two 
 men were killed out of hundreds, and they were the two 
 who had killed the cat ! Now, that's what I calls proof 
 positive, for I seed it all with my own eyes ; and I should 
 like to know whether you could do the same, with regard 
 to that thing being a hanimall " 
 
 " I will, Marshall 5 to-morrow you shall see that with 
 your own eyes." 
 
 "To-morrow come never!"* muttered the coxswain, 
 replacing the quid of tobacco in his cheek. 
 
 Chapter XXVII 
 
 And, lo ! while he was expounding, in set terms, the most abstruse of his 
 pious doctrines, the head of the tub whereon the good man stood gave way, 
 and the preacher was lost from before the eyes of the whole congregation. 
 
 Life of the Rev. Mr Smith, S.S. 
 
 Seymour, who was always the companion of Captain 
 M , whenever either instruction or amusement was to 
 
 * The phraseology of sailors has been so caricatured of late, that I am 
 afraid my story will be considered as translated into English. Seamen, how- 
 ever, must decide which is correct. 
 
The King's Own 195 
 
 be gained, now quitted the surveying party to join Macallan, 
 who still continued seated on the rocks, reflecting upon the 
 remarkable coincidence which the coxswain had narrated, 
 sufficient in itself to confirm the superstitious ideas of the 
 sailors for another century. His thoughts naturally reverted 
 to the other point, in which sea-faring men are equally 
 bigoted, the disastrous consequences of ** sailing on a 
 Friday •, " the origin of which superstition can easily be 
 traced to early Catholicism, when out of respect for the day 
 of universal redemption, they were directed by their pastors 
 to await the " morrow's sun." " Thus," mentally exclaimed 
 Macallan, '* has religion degenerated into superstition ; and 
 that which, from the purity of its origin, would have 
 commanded our respect, is now only deserving of our 
 contempt. It is by the motives that have produced them, 
 that our actions must be weighed. That which once was 
 an offering of religious veneration and love, is now a 
 tribute to superstition and to fear. " Well, Seymour," said 
 he, addressing his companion, ** how do you like sur- 
 veying ?" 
 
 " Not much 5 the sun is hot, and the glare so powerful 
 that I am almost blind. What a pity it is that we had not 
 some trees here, to shade us from the heat. I should like 
 to plant some for the benefit of those who may come after 
 us." 
 
 ** A correct feeling on your part, my boy ; but no trees 
 would grow here at present — there is no soil." 
 
 " There is plenty of some sort or other, in the part 
 where we have been surveying." 
 
 " Yes, the sand thrown up by the sea, and the particles 
 of shells and rock, which have been triturated by the wave, 
 or decomposed by the alternate action of the elements ; but 
 there is no vegetable matter, without which there can be no 
 vegetable produce. Observe, Willy — the skeleton of this 
 earth is framed of rocks and mountains, which have been 
 proudly rearing their heads into the clouds, or lying in dark 
 majesty beneath the seas, since the creation of the world, 
 when they were fixed by the Almighty architect, to remaia 
 
196 The King's Own 
 
 till time shall be no more. Over them, we find the wrecks 
 of a former world — once as beautiful, as thickly peopled 
 but more thoughtless and more wicked than the present — 
 which was hurled into one general chaos, and its com- 
 ponent, but incongruous parts, amalgamated in awful 
 mockery by the deluge — that tremendous evidence of the 
 wrath of Heaven. But it has long passed away ; and o'er 
 the relics of former creation, o'er the kneaded mass of man 
 in his pride, of woman in her beauty, of arts in their splen- 
 dour, of vice in her zenith, and of virtue in her tomb, we 
 are standing upon another, teeming with life, and yielding 
 forth her fruits in due^ season as before. But, Willy, the 
 supports of life are not to be found in primeval rocks or 
 antediluvial remains. It is from the superficial covering, 
 the thin crust with which the earth is covered, composed 
 of the remains of former existence, of the brescia of 
 exhausted nature, that animal creation derives its support j 
 and it is the grand axiom of the universe, that animal life 
 can only be supported by animal remains. From the meanest 
 insect that crawls upon the ground, to man in his perfection, 
 life is supported and continued by animal and vegetable 
 food; and it is only the decayed matter returned to the 
 earth, which enables the lofty cedar to extend its boughs, 
 or the lowly violet to exhale its perfume. This is a world 
 of eternal reproduction and decay — one endless cycle of the 
 living preying on the dead — a phoenix, yearly, daily, and 
 hourly springing from its ashes, in renewed strength and 
 beauty. The blade of grass, which shoots from the soil, 
 flowers, casts its seed, and dies, to make room for its off- 
 spring, nourished by the relics of its parent, is a type of 
 the never-changing law, controlling all nature, even to 
 man himself, who must pass away to make room for the 
 generation which is to come." 
 
 The boat, which, returning from the ship, appeared like 
 a black speck on the water, indicated that the dinner hour 
 was at hand ; and Price and the purser, who had come on 
 shore with Macallan, now joined him and Willy, who were 
 sitting down on the rocks at the water's edge. 
 
The King's Own 197 
 
 " Well, Macallan," said Price, " it's a fine thing to be a 
 philosopher. What is that which Milton says ? Let me 
 see ! — sweet — something — divine philosophy — I forget the 
 exact words. Well, what have you caught ? " 
 
 " If you've caught nothing, doctor, you're better off than 
 I am," said the purser, wiping his brow, ** for I've caught 
 a head-ache." 
 
 " I have been very well amused," replied Macallan. 
 
 " Ay, I suppose, like what's-his-name in the forest — you 
 recollect ? " 
 
 "No, indeed I do not." 
 
 ** Don't you? Bless my soul — you know, sermons in 
 stones, and good in everything. I forget how the lines 
 run. Don't you recollect, O'Keefe ? " continued Price, 
 speaking loud in the purser's ear. 
 
 ** No, I never collect. I don't understand these things," 
 replied the purser, taking his seat by Macallan, and address- 
 ing him — " I cannot think what pleasure there can be in 
 poking about the rocks as you do." 
 
 *' It serves to amuse me, O'Keefe." 
 
 " Abuse you, my dear fellow ! Indeed I never meant it 
 = — I beg your pardon — you mistook me." 
 
 " It was my fault. I did not speak sufficiently loud. 
 Make no apology." 
 
 "Too proud to make an apology ! — ^No, indeed — I only 
 asked what amusement you could find ? — that's all." 
 
 " What amusement ?" replied Macallan, rising from his 
 seat, annoyed at these repeated attacks from all quarters 
 upon his favourite study. " Listen to me, and I will 
 explain to you how investigation is the parent of both amuse- 
 ment and instruction. What is this rock that I am standing 
 on ? Has it remained here for ages to be dashed by the 
 furious ocean ? — or has it lately sprung from the depths, 
 from the silent labour of the indefatigable zoophites ? 
 Look at its sides, behold the variety of marine vegetation 
 with which it is loaded. Are they of the class of the ulvse, 
 confervae, or fuci ? — to be welcomed as old acquaintance, 
 or, hitherto unnoticed, to be added to the catalogue of 
 
198 The King's Own 
 
 Nature's endless stores ? And what are those corals, that, 
 like mimic tenants of the forest, extend their graceful 
 boughs ? Look at the variety of shells which are adhering 
 to its sides. Observe the patellse — with what tenacity they 
 cling to save themselves from being washed into the deep 
 water, and being devoured by the fishes that are playing in 
 its chasms ! What a source of endless amusement, what a 
 field for deep reflection, is there in the investigation of this 
 one little rock ! When you contemplate the instinct of the 
 different species, the powers given to them, so adapted to 
 their wants and their privations — is not the eye delighted, 
 is not the mind enlarged, and are not the feelings har- 
 monised ? Study the works of the creation, and you turn 
 a desert into a peopled city — a barren rock into a source of 
 admiration and delight. Nay, search into Nature for a few 
 minutes, and you rise a better man. Dive into " 
 
 What the conclusion of the doctor's rhapsody may have 
 been, is not known ; for, stamping too energetically upon 
 the sea-weed on the edge of the rock, his foot slipped, 
 and he disappeared, with the perpendicular descent and 
 velocity of a deep sea lead, into the water alongside of it. 
 
 Marshall, the coxswain, who had been astonished at 
 his speech, to which he had listened with mouth open for 
 want of comprehension, quite forgot the respect due to 
 an officer, at his unexpected finale. 
 
 " Watch there, watch ! " cried the man, and then threw 
 himself down, and rolled in convulsions of laughter. 
 Price and Willy, whose mirth was almost as excessive, 
 did however run to his assistance, and caught him by the 
 collar as he rose again to the surface, for it was consider- 
 ably out of his depth ; while the deaf purser, whose eyes 
 had been fixed on the ground, in deep attention to catch 
 the doctor's word, and whose ears were not sufficiently 
 acute to hear the splash, looked up as they were going 
 to his assistance, and asked, with surprise, " Where's the 
 doctor ? " 
 
 The sides of the rock were so slippery, that the united 
 efforts of Price and Seymour (whose powers were much 
 
The King's Own 199 
 
 enfeebled from extreme mirth) were not sufficient to haul 
 Macallan upon terra firma. ** Marshall, come here directly, 
 sir, and help us," cried Willy, — an order which the cox- 
 swain, who was sufficiently recovered, immediately obeyed. 
 
 " Give me your hand, Mr Macallan," said the man, as 
 the surgeon was clinging to the sea-weed; *'it's no use 
 holding on by them slippery hanimals. Now then, Mr 
 Price — all together." 
 
 " Ay, and as soon as you please," called out the malicious 
 boat-keeper of the gig — **I seed a large shark but a 
 minute ago." 
 
 " Quick — quick ! " roared the surgeon, who already 
 imagined his leg encircled by the teeth of the ravenous 
 animal. 
 
 By their united efforts, Macallan was at last safely 
 landed — and, after much sputtering, blowing, and puffing, 
 was about to address the coxswain in no very amicable 
 manner, when the purser interrupted him. 
 
 ** By the powers, doctor, but you took the right way 
 to have a close examination of all those fine things which 
 you were giving us a catalogue of; but now give us the 
 remainder of your speech — you gave us a practical illustra- 
 tion of diving." 
 
 " What sort of sensation was it, doctor ? " said Price. 
 " You recollect Shakespeare — and * O, methinks what 
 pain it was to drown ' — Let me see — something " 
 
 "Pray don't tax your memory. Price; it's something 
 like our country, — past all further taxation." 
 
 "That's the severest thing you've said since we've 
 sailed together. You're out of humour, doctor. Well, 
 you know what Shakespeare says : * There never yet was 
 found a philosopher' — something about the toothache. 
 I forget the words." 
 
 These attacks did not at all tend to restore the equanimity 
 of the doctor's temper, which, it must be acknowledged, 
 had some excuse for being disturbed by the events of the 
 morning ; but he proved himself a wise man, for he made 
 no further reply. The boat pulled in, and the party 
 
200 The King's Own 
 
 returned on board ; and when Macallan had divested him- 
 self of his uncomfortable attire, and joined his messmates 
 at the dinner table, he had recovered his usual serenity 
 of disposition, and joined himself in the laugh which had 
 been created at his expense. 
 
 Chapter XXVIII 
 
 A man must serve his time to every trade 
 Save censure, — critics all are ready made. 
 Take hacknied jokes from Miller, got by rote, 
 With just enough of learning to misquote ; 
 A mind well skill'd to find or forge a fault, 
 A turn for punning — call it Attic salt : 
 Fear not to lie, 'tw^ill seem a lucky hit, 
 Shrink not from blasphemy, 'twill pass for wit ; 
 Care not for feeling, — pass your proper jest, 
 And stand a critic ! hated, yet caress'd. 
 
 Byron. 
 
 The survey was continued. One morning, after a fatiguing 
 walk from point to point, occasionally crossing from one 
 islet to the others in the boats, the party collected under 
 a projecting rock, which screened them from the rays of 
 the vertical sun, and the repast, which had been brought 
 from the ship in the morning, was spread before them. 
 
 The party consisted of Captain M ; Pearce, the 
 
 master ; the surgeon, who had accompanied them to 
 explore the natural productions of the reef; and the 
 
 confidential clerk of Captain M , a man of the name 
 
 of Collier, who had been many years in his service, and 
 who was now employed in noting down the angles taken 
 with the theodolite. 
 
 Tired with the labours of the morning. Captain M 
 
 did not rise immediately after their meal had been de- 
 spatched, but entered into conversation with the surgeon, 
 who was looking over the memoranda which he had made 
 relative to the natural history of the reef. 
 
The King's Own 201 
 
 " Do you intend to write a book, Mr Macallan, that 
 you have collected so many remarks ? " 
 
 " Indeed I do not, sir. I have no ambition to be an 
 author." 
 
 The clerk, who was very taciturn in general, and seldom 
 spoke unless on points connected with his duty, joined the 
 conversation by addressing the surgeon. 
 
 ** It's a service of danger, sir, and you must be prepared 
 to meet the attacks both of authors and reviewers." 
 
 " Of reviewers I can imagine," replied Macallan ; " but 
 why of authors ? " 
 
 " That depends very much whether you tread over 
 beaten ground, or strike into a new path. In the latter 
 case you will be pretty safe from both, as the authors will 
 be indifferent, and the reviewers, in all probability, m- 
 capable,^^ 
 
 " And why, if I enter upon a beaten track, which, I 
 presume, infers a style of writing in which others have 
 preceded me ? " 
 
 " Because, sir, when a new author makes his appearance, 
 he is much in the same situation as a strange dog entering 
 a kennel pre-occupied by many others. He is immediately 
 attacked and worried by the rest, until, either by boldly 
 defending himself, or pertinaciously refusing to quit, he 
 eventually obtains a domiciliation, and becomes an acknow- 
 ledged member of the fraternity." 
 
 " Why, Mr Collier," observed the captain, " you seem 
 to be quite aufait as to literary arrangements." 
 
 ** I ought to be, sir," replied the clerk, " for in the 
 course of my life, I have attempted to become an author, 
 and practised as a reviewer." 
 
 " Indeed ! And did you fail in your attempt at author- 
 ship ? " 
 
 " My work was never printed, sir, for no bookseller 
 would undertake to publish it. I tried the whole town 5 
 no man would give himself the trouble to look over the 
 MS. It was said that the public taste was not that way, 
 and that it would not do. At last I received a letter of 
 
202 The King's Own 
 
 introduction from an old acquaintance to his nncle, who 
 was a literary character. He certainly did read some parts 
 of my performance." 
 
 " And what then .? " 
 
 "Why, sir, he shook his head — told me with a sneer 
 that, as an author, I should never succeed ; but, he added, 
 with a sort of encouraging smile, that, from some parts of 
 the MS. which he had perused, he thought that he could 
 find employment for me in the reviewing line, if I chose 
 to undertake it. 
 
 ** My pride was hurt, and I answered that I could not 
 agree with him, as I considered that it required the ability 
 to write a book yourself, to enable you to decide upon the 
 merits of others." 
 
 " Well, I must say that I agree with you," replied the 
 captain. ** Proceed in your story, for I am interested." 
 
 " My friend answered, — * By no means, my dear sir -, a 
 
 d d bad author generally makes a very gcod revieiver. 
 
 Indeed, sir, to be candid with you, I never allow any 
 gentleman to review for me, unless he has met with a mis- 
 fortune similar to yours. It is one of the necessary 
 qualifications of a good reviewer that he should have failed 
 as an author ; for without the exacerbated feelings arising 
 from disappointment, he would not possess gall sufficient 
 for his task, and his conscience would stand in his way 
 when he was writing against it, if he were not spurred on 
 by the keen probes of envy.' " 
 
 ** And he convinced you ? " 
 
 " My poverty did, sir, if he did not. I worked many 
 months for him -, but I had better have earned my bread 
 as a common labourer." 
 
 " Reviews ought to pay well, too," observed Macallan ; 
 " they are periodicals in great demand." 
 
 ** They are so," replied Captain M ; ** and the 
 
 reasons are obvious. Few people take the trouble to think 
 for themselves ; but, on the contrary, are very glad to find 
 others who will think for them. Some cannot find time to 
 read — others will not find it. A review removes all these 
 
The King's Own 203 
 
 difficulties — gives the busy world an insight into what is 
 going on in the literary world — and enables the lounger 
 not to appear wholly ignorant of a work, the merits of 
 which may happen to be discussed. But what is the con- 
 sequence ? That seven-eighths of the town are led by the 
 nose by this or that periodical work, having wholly lost 
 sight of the fact, that reviews are far from being gospel. 
 Indeed, I do not know any set of men so likely to err as 
 reviewers. In the first place, there is no class of people 
 so irascible, so full of party feeling, so disgraced by envy, 
 as authors : hatred, malice, and all uncharitableness seem 
 to preside over science. Their political opinions step in, 
 and increase the undue preponderance ; and, to crown all, 
 they are more influenced by money, being proverbially 
 more in want of it than others. How, then, is it to be 
 expected that reviews can be impartial ? I seldom read 
 them myself, as I consider that it is better to know nothing 
 than to be misled." 
 
 " And, if it is a fair question, Mr Collier," continued 
 Captain M , " in what manner were you employed ?" 
 
 " I am almost ashamed to tell you, sir — I was a mere 
 automaton, a machine, in the hands of others. A new 
 publication was sent to me, with a private mark from my 
 employer, directing the quantum of praise or censure which 
 it was to incur. If the former were allotted to it, the best 
 passages were selected ; if condemned to the latter, all the 
 worst. The connecting parts of review were made up 
 from a common-place book, in which, by turning to any 
 subject, you found the general heads and extracts from the 
 work of others, which you were directed to alter, so as to 
 retain the ideas, but disguise the style, that it might appear 
 original." 
 
 ** Are you aware of the grounds of praise or abuse? — 
 for it appears that those who directed the censure did not 
 read the publications." 
 
 " The grounds were various. Books printed by a book- 
 seller, to whom my master had a dislike, were sure to be 
 run down ; on the contrary, those published by his 
 
204 The King's Own 
 
 connections or friends were as much applauded. Moreover, 
 the influence of authors, who were afraid of a successful 
 rival in their own line, often d d a work." 
 
 " But you do not mean to say that all reviews are con- 
 ducted with such want of principle ? " 
 
 *'By no means. There are many very impartial and 
 clever critiques. The misfortune is, that unless you read 
 the work that is reviewed, you cannot distinguish one from 
 the other." 
 
 " And pray what induced you to abandon this creditable 
 employment ?" 
 
 "A quarrel, sir. I had reviewed a work, with the 
 private mark of approval, when it was found out to be a 
 mistake, and I was desired to review it with censure. I 
 expected to be paid for the second review as well as for 
 the first. My employer thought proper to consider it all 
 as one job, and refused — so we parted." 
 
 " Pretty tricks in trade, indeed! " replied Captain M . 
 
 " Why, Mr Collier, you appear to have belonged to a gang 
 of literary bravos, whose pens, like stilettoes, were always 
 ready to stab, in the dark, the unfortunate individuals who 
 might be pointed out to them by interest or revenge." 
 
 " I acknowledge the justice of your remark, sir ; all that 
 I can offer in my defence is, the excuse of the libeller to 
 Cardinal Richelieu — * Ilfaut vivre^ monsieur » " 
 
 " And I answer you, with the cardinal — * Je ne vols pas la 
 
 necessite^ " replied Captain M , with a smile, as he rose 
 
 to resume his labours. 
 
 Chapter XXIX 
 
 He fell, and, deadly pale, 
 Groan'd out his soul. 
 
 Milton. 
 
 *** Do, mamma, come here," said Emily, as she was looking 
 out of the window of an inn on the road, where they had 
 stopped to take some refreshment — ** do come, and see 
 
The King's Own 205 
 
 what a pretty lady is in the chariot which has stopped at 
 the door." 
 
 Mrs Rainscourt complied with her daughter's request, 
 and acknowledged the justice of the remark when she saw 
 the expressive countenance of Susan (now Mrs M^Elvina), 
 who was listening to the proposal of her husband that they 
 should alight and partake of some refreshment. Susan 
 consented, and was followed by old Hornblow, who, pull- 
 ing out his watch from his white ca.ssimereJefnora/iaf which 
 he had continued to wear ever since the day of the wedding, 
 declared that they must stop to dine. 
 
 ** This country air makes one confoundedly hungry," 
 said the old man *, " I declare I never had such an appetite 
 in Cateaton Street. Susan, my dear, order something that 
 won't take long in cooking — a beef-steak, if they have 
 nothing down at the fire." 
 
 Mrs Rainscourt, who was as much prepossessed with 
 the appearance of M*Elvina as with that of his wife, gave 
 vent to her thoughts with " I wonder who they are ! " 
 Her maid, who was in the room, took this as a hint to 
 obtain the gratification of her mistress's curiosity as well as 
 her own, and proceeded accordingly on her voyage of dis- 
 covery. In a few minutes she returned, having boarded 
 the Abigail of Mrs M* Elvina just as she was coming to an 
 anchor inside the bar ; and, having made an interchange of 
 intelligence, with a rapidity incredible to those who are 
 not aware of the velocity of communication between this 
 description of people, re-entered the parlour, to make a 
 report to her commanding officer, precisely at the same 
 moment that Susan's maid was delivering her cargo of 
 intelligence to her own mistress. 
 
 " They are a new married couple, ma'am, and their name 
 is M'Elvina," said the one. 
 
 " The lady is a Mrs Rainscourt, and the young lady is 
 her daughter, and a great heiress," whispered the 
 other. 
 
 "They have purchased the hunting box close to the 
 Hall, and are going there now," said the first. 
 
2o6 The King's Own 
 
 ** They live at the great park, close to where you are 
 going, ma'am," said the second. 
 
 " The old gentleman's name is Hornblow. He is the 
 lady's father, and as rich as a Jew, they say," continued 
 Mrs Rainscourt's maid. 
 
 " Mrs Rainscourt don't live with her husband, ma'am 5 
 by all accounts he's a bad 'un," continued the Abigail of 
 Susan. 
 
 The publicity of the staircase of an hotel is very con- 
 venient for making an acquaintance ; and it happened that, 
 just after these communications had been made, Emily was 
 ascending the stairs as Mrs M*Elvina was going down to 
 join her husband and father at the dinner table. The 
 smiling face and beaming eyes of Emily, who evidently 
 lingered to be spoken to, were so engaging that she soon 
 found her way into the room which the M*Elvinas were 
 occupying. 
 
 Mrs Rainscourt was not sorry to find that she was to 
 have for neighbours a couple whose appearance had so 
 prepossessed her in their favour. As she expected that 
 her society would be rather confined, she did not suffer to 
 escape the favourable opportunity which presented itself of 
 making their acquaintance. As they were returning to 
 their vehicles, Emily ran to Mrs M^Elvina to wish her 
 good-bye, and Mrs Rainscourt expressed her thanks for 
 the notice they had taken of her daughter. A few minutes' 
 conversation ended in "hoping to have the pleasure of 
 making their acquaintance as soon as they were settled." 
 
 The carriages drove off, and we shall follow that of the 
 M'Elvinas, which arrived at its destination late in the 
 evening, without any accident. 
 
 The cottage-orne (as all middle-sized houses with 
 verandas and French windows are now designated), which 
 Hornblow had purchased, was, for a wonder, quite as 
 complete as described in the particulars of sale. It had 
 the sloping lawn in front ; the three acres (more or less) 
 of plantation and pleasure ground, tastefully laid out, and 
 planted with thriving young trees ; the capital walled 
 
The King's Own 207 
 
 gardens, stocked with the choicest fruit trees, In full bear- 
 ing ; abundant springs of the finest water ; stabling for 
 six horses ; cow-house, cart-house, farm-yard, and complete 
 piggery. The dimensions of the conservatory, and rooms 
 in the interior of the house were quite correct ; and the 
 land attached to it was according to the ** accompanying 
 plan," and divided into parcels, designated by the rural 
 terms of " Homestead," ** Lob's-pound," " Eight-acre 
 meadow," "Little-orchard field," etc. etc. 
 
 In short, it was a very eligible purchase, and a very 
 pretty and retired domicile ; and when our party arrived, 
 the flowers seemed to yield a more grateful perfume, the 
 trees appeared more umbrageous, and the verdure of the 
 meadows of a more refreshing green, from the contrast 
 with so many hours' travelling upon a dusty road, during 
 a sultry day. 
 
 " Oh, how beautiful these roses are ! Do look, my dear 
 father." 
 
 " They are indeed," replied old Hornblow, delighted at 
 the happy face of his daughter ; — " but I should like some 
 tea, Susan — I am not used to so much jumbling. I feel 
 tired, and shall go to bed earjy." 
 
 Tea was accordingly prepared; soon after which, the 
 old gentleman rose to retire. 
 
 "Well," said he, as he lighted his chamber candle, "I 
 suppose I am settled here for life j but I hardly know what 
 to do with myself. I must make acquaintance with all the 
 flowers and all the trees : the budding of the spring will 
 make me think of grandchildren ; the tree, clothed in its 
 beauty, of you , and the fall of the leaf, of myself. I must 
 count the poultry, and look after the pigs, and see the cows 
 milked. I was fond of the little parlour in Cateaton Street, 
 because I had sat in it so long ; and I suppose that I shall 
 get fond of this place too, if I find enough to employ and 
 amuse me. But you must be quick and give me a grand- 
 child, Susan, and then I shall nurse him all day 
 long. Good-night — God bless you, my dear, good- 
 night." 
 
2o8 The King's Own 
 
 ** Good-night, my dear sir," replied Susan, who had 
 coloured deeply at the request which he had made. 
 
 " Good-night, M*Elvina, my boy ; this is the first night 
 we pass under this roof; may we live many happy years in 
 it ; " and old Hornblow left the room, and ascended the 
 stairs. 
 
 M*Elvina had encircled Susan's waist with his arm, and 
 was probably about to utter some wish in unison with that 
 of her father's, when the noise of a heavy fall sounded in 
 their ears. 
 
 ** Good Heaven ! " cried Susan, " it is my father who has 
 fallen down stairs." 
 
 M*Elvina rushed out ; it was but too true. The stair- 
 carpet had not yet been laid down, and his foot had slipped 
 at the uppermost step. He was taken up senseless, and 
 when medical advice was procured, his head and his spine 
 were found to be seriously injured. In a few days, during 
 which he never spoke, old Hornblow was no more. 
 
 Thus the old man, like the prophet of old, after all his 
 toiling, was but permitted to see the promised land ; and 
 thus are our days cut short at the very moment of realising 
 our most sanguine expectations. 
 
 Reader, let us look at home. Shall I, now thoughtlessly 
 riding upon the agitated billow, with but one thin plank 
 between me and death, and yet so busy with this futile 
 work, be permitted to bring it to a close ? The hand 
 which guides the flowing pen may to-morrow be stiff, the 
 head now teeming with its subject may be past all thought 
 ere to-morrow's sun is set — ay, sooner ! And you, reader, 
 who may so far have had the courage to proceed in the 
 volumes without throwing them away, shall you be per- 
 mitted to finish your more trifling task ? — or, before its 
 close, be hurried from this transitory scene, where fiction 
 ends, and the spirit, re-endowed, will be enabled to raise 
 its eyes upon the lightning beams of unveiled truth ? 
 
The King's Own 209 
 
 Chapter XXX 
 
 And if you chance his shipp to horde, 
 This counsel I must give withall. 
 
 Ballad of Sir Andreiv Barton^ ''^S%'^' 
 Discretion 
 And hardy valour are the twins of honour, 
 And, nursed together, make a conqueror ; 
 Divided, but a talker. 
 
 Beaumont and Fletcher. 
 
 The survey having been completed, Captain M , in 
 
 pursuance of the orders which he had received, weighed 
 his anchor, and proceeded to cruise until the want of 
 provisions and water should compel him to return into 
 port. For many days the look-out men at the mast-heads 
 were disappointed in their hopes of reporting a strange 
 sail, the chase or capture of which would relieve the 
 monotony of constant sky and water, until, one Sunday 
 
 forenoon, as Captain M was performing divine service, 
 
 the man at the mast-head hailed the deck with " A strange 
 sail on the weather-bow ! " 
 
 The puritan may be shocked to hear that the service 
 was speedily, although decorously closed; but Captain 
 
 M was aware, from the fidgetting of the ship's 
 
 company upon the capstan bars, on which they were 
 seated, that it would be impossible to regain their attention 
 to the service, even if he had felt inclined to proceed , and 
 he well knew, that any worship of God in which the mind 
 and heart were not engaged, was but an idle ceremony, 
 if not a solemn mockery. The hands were turned up — 
 all sail was made — and in an hour, the stranger was to 
 be seen with the naked eye from the fore-yard. 
 
 ** "What do you make of her, Mr Stewart ? " said the 
 first lieutenant to him, as he sat aloft with his glass 
 directed tov/ards the vessel. 
 
 ** A merchant ship, sir, in ballast." 
 
 ** What did he say, Jerry ? " inquired Prose, who stood 
 by him on the gangway. 
 
 K. I. O 
 
2IO The King's Own 
 
 " A French vessel, deeply laden, Prose." 
 
 "Bravo, Jerry ! " said Prose, rubbing his hands. "We 
 shall get some prize-money, I do declare." 
 
 " To be sure we shall. It will give us twenty pounds 
 at least for a midshipman's share, for her cargo must be 
 sugar and coffee. Only, confound it, one has to wait so 
 long for it. I'll sell mine, dog-cheap, if anyone will buy 
 it. Will you. Prose?" 
 
 " Why, Jerry, I don't much like speculation ; but, now, 
 what would you really sell your chance for ? " 
 
 " I'll take ten pounds for it. We're certain to come up 
 with her." 
 
 " Ten pounds ! No, Jerry, that is too much. I'll tell 
 you what, I'll give you five pounds." 
 
 "Done," replied Jerry, who was aware that a vessel in 
 ballast would not give him thirty shillings, if Captain 
 
 M sent her in, which was very unlikely. " Where's 
 
 the money ? " 
 
 " Oh, you must trust to my honour ; the first port we 
 go into, I pledge you my word that you shall have it." 
 
 " I don't doubt your word, or your honour, the least. 
 Prose ; but still I should like to have the money in my 
 hand. Could you not borrow it ? Never mind — it's a 
 bargain." 
 
 In two hours the frigate had neared the stranger so as 
 to distinguish her water-line from the deck, and, on 
 hoisting her ensign and pendant, the vessel bore down 
 to her. 
 
 " She has hoisted English colours, sir," reported Stewart 
 to the captain. 
 
 "What, Stewart! did you say that she had hoisted 
 English colours ? " inquired Prose, with an anxious face. 
 
 " Yes, you booby, I did." 
 
 "Well, now, I do declare," cried Prose, with dismay, 
 " If I haven't lost five pounds." 
 
 The vessel ran under the stern of the frigate, and 
 requested a boat to be sent on board, as she had intelligence 
 to communicate. The boat returned, and acquainted 
 
The King's Own 211 
 
 Captain M that the vessel had been boarded and 
 
 plundered by a French privateer schooner, which had 
 committed great depredation in that quarter, and that 
 it was not above eight hours that she had left her, and 
 made sail towards Porto Rico, taking out two merchants, 
 who were passengers. 
 
 The boat was immediately hoisted up, and all sail made, 
 in the direction of the island, which was not above fifteen 
 leagues distant. As the day closed in, their eyes were 
 gratified by the sight of the schooner, becalmed close in 
 under the land. Perceiving the frigate in pursuit of her, 
 and unable to escape, she came to an anchor in a small 
 and shallow bay, within a cable's length of the beach. 
 
 Captain M , having run his ship as close in as the 
 
 depth of water would permit, which was between two 
 or three miles of her, so as to render her escape im- 
 possible, came to an anchor, signifying to his officers his 
 determination to cut her out with his boats on the ensuing 
 day. 
 
 The officers who were to be entrusted with the command 
 of the boats, and the crews which were to be employed 
 on the service, were selected, and mustered on the quarter- 
 deck, previous to the hammocks being piped down, that 
 the former might hold themselves in readiness, and that 
 the latter might remain in their hammocks during the 
 night. All was anxiety for the sun to rise again upon 
 those who were about to venture in the lottery, where the 
 prizes would be honour, and the blanks — death. 
 
 There were but few whose souls were of that decided 
 brute composition that they could sleep through the whole 
 of the tedious night. They woke and " swore a prayer 
 or two, then slept again." The sun had not yet made his 
 appearance above the horizon, although the eastern blush 
 announced that the spinning earth would shortly whirl the 
 Aspasia into his presence, when the pipes of the boatswain 
 and his mates, with the summons of " All hands ahoy — up 
 all hammocks ! " were obeyed with the alacrity so 
 characteristic of English seamen, anticipating danger. 
 
212 The King's Own 
 
 The hammocks were soon stowed, and the hands turned 
 up. " Out boats ! " The yard tackles and stays were 
 hooked, and the larger boats from the booms descended 
 with a heavy splash into the water, which they threw out 
 on each side of them as they displaced it with their weight ; 
 while the cutters from the quarter-davits were already 
 lowered down, and were being manned under the chains. 
 
 Broad daylight discovered the privateer, who, aware of 
 their intentions, had employed the night in taking every 
 precaution that skill could suggest to repel the expected 
 attack. Secured with cables and hawsers, extending from 
 each bow and quarter — her starboard broadside directed 
 to seaward — her boarding netting triced up to the lower 
 rigging — and booms, connected together, rigged out from 
 the sides, to prevent them from laying her on board. 
 There was no wind ; the sea was smooth as glass ; and the 
 French colours, hoisted in defiance at each mast-head, 
 hung listlessly down the spars, as if fainting for the beeeze 
 which would expand them in their vigour. She was 
 pierced for eight ports on a side ; and the guns, which 
 pointed through them, with the tompions out, ready 
 to shower destruction upon her assailants, showed like the 
 teeth of the snarling wolf, who stands at bay, awaiting the 
 attack of his undaunted pursuers. 
 
 The boats had received their guns, which were fixed on 
 slides, so as to enable them to be fired over the bows, 
 without impeding the use of the oars ; the ammunition 
 and arm-chests had been placed in security abaft. 
 
 The sailors, with their cutlasses belted round their 
 waists, and a pistol stuck in their girdles, or in a becket 
 at the side of the boat, ready to their hands — the marines, 
 in proportion to the number which each boat could carry, 
 sitting in the stern-sheets, with their muskets between 
 their legs, and their well pipeclayed belts for bayonet and 
 cartouch box crossed over their old jackets, half dirt, 
 half finery — all was ready for shoving off, when Captain 
 
 M desired the officers whom he had appointed to the 
 
 expedition to step down into his cabin. Bully, the first 
 
The King's Own 213 
 
 lieutenant, was unwell, with an intermittent fever, and 
 
 Captain M , at the request of Macallan, would not 
 
 accede to his anxiety to take the command. Price, 
 Courtenay, Stewart, and three other midshipmen, were 
 those who had been selected for the dangerous service. 
 
 *' Gentlemen," said Captain M , as they stood round 
 
 the table in the fore cabin, waiting for his communication, 
 ** I must call your attention to a few points, which it is my 
 wish that you should bear in remembrance, now that you 
 are about to proceed upon what will, in all likelihood, 
 prove to be an arduous service. This vessel has already 
 done so much mischief, that I conceive it my duty to 
 capture her if possible : and although there is no service in 
 which, generally speaking, there is so great a sacrifice of 
 life, in proportion to the object to be obtained, as that 
 which is generally termed * cutting out,' yet, rather than 
 she should escape, to the further injury of our trade, 
 I have determined to have recourse to the measure. 
 
 " But, gentlemen (and to you, Mr Price, as commanding 
 the expedition, I particularly address myself), recollect 
 that, even in this extreme case, without proper arrange- 
 ment, we may not only purchase our victory too dear, but 
 may even sacrifice a number of lives without succeeding 
 in our attempt. Of your courage I have not the least 
 doubt ; but let it be remembered, that it is something 
 more than mere animal courage which 1 expect in the 
 behaviour of my officers. If nothing more were required, 
 the command of these boats might be as safely entrusted 
 to any of the foremast men, who, like the bulldogs of our 
 country, will thrust their heads into the lion's jaw with 
 perfect indifference. 
 
 " What I require, and expect, and will have, from every 
 officer who looks for promotion from my recommendation, 
 is what I term — conduct : by which I would imply, that 
 coolness and presence of mind which enable him to 
 calculate chances in the midst of danger — to take advantage 
 of a favourable opportunity in the heat of an engagement 
 —and to restrain the impetuosity of those who have fallen 
 
214 The King's Own 
 
 into the dangerous error of despising their enemy. Of 
 such conduct the most favourable construction that can be 
 put upon it is, that it is only preferable to indecision. 
 
 ** In a service of this description, even with the greatest 
 courage and prudence united, some loss must necessarily 
 be expected to take place, and there is no providing 
 against unforeseen accidents ; but if I find that, by rash 
 and injudicious behaviour, a greater sacrifice is made than 
 there is a necessity for, depend upon it that I shall not 
 fail to let that officer know the high value at which I 
 estimate the life of a British sailor. With this caution 
 I shall now give you my ideas as to what appears the 
 most eligible plan of insuring success. I have made a 
 rough sketch on this paper, which will assist my ex- 
 planation." 
 
 Captain M then entered into the plan of attack, 
 
 pointing out the precautions which should be taken, etc. ; 
 and concluded by observing, that they were by no means 
 to consider themselves as fettered by what he had proposed, 
 but merely to regard them as hints to guide their conduct, 
 if found preferable to any others which might be sug- 
 gested by the peculiarity of the service, and the measures 
 adopted by the enemy. The officers returned on deck, 
 and descended into their respective boats, where they 
 found many of the younger midshipmen, who, although 
 not selected for the service, had smuggled themselves 
 into the boats, that they might be participators in the 
 
 conflict. Captain M , although he did not send them 
 
 on the service, had no objection to their going, and 
 therefore pretended not to see them when he looked over 
 the side, and desired the boats to shove off. Directly 
 the order was given, the remainder of the ship's company 
 mounted the rigging, and saluted them with three cheers. 
 
 The boats' crews tossed their oars while the cheers 
 were given, and returned the same number. The oars 
 again descended into the water, and the armament pulled 
 in for the shore. 
 
The King's Own 215 
 
 Chapter XXXI 
 
 Conquest pursues, where courage leads the way. 
 
 Garth. 
 
 The glasses of Captain M , and of the officers who 
 
 remained on board of the frigate, were anxiously pointed 
 towards the boats, which in less than half an hour had 
 arrived within gun-shot of the privateer. " There is a 
 gun from her," cried several of the men at the same 
 moment, as the smoke boomed along the smooth water. 
 
 The shot dashed up the spray under the bows of the 
 boats, and ricochetting over them, disappeared in the wave, 
 about half a mile astern. 
 
 The boats, which, previously, had been pulHng in all 
 together, and without any particular order, now separated, 
 and formed a line abreast, so that there was less chance 
 of the shot taking effect, than where they were before, 
 en masse. 
 
 ** Very good, Mr Price," observed the captain, who 
 had his eye fixed on them, through his glass. 
 
 The boats continued their advance towards the enemy, 
 who fired her two long guns, both of which she had 
 brought over to her starboard side, but, though well 
 directed, the shot did not strike any of her assailants. 
 
 " There's grape, sir," said the master, as the sea was 
 torn and ploughed up with it close to the launch, which, 
 with the other boats, was now within a hundred yards 
 of the privateer. 
 
 " The launch returns her fire," observed Captain 
 M . 
 
 " And there's blaze away from the pinnace and the 
 barge," cried one of the men, who stood on the rattlings 
 of the main rigging. " Hurrah, my lads ! keep it up," 
 continued the man, in his feeling of excitement, which, 
 pervading Captain M , as well as the rest of the crew. 
 
2i6 The King's Own 
 
 received no check, though not exactly in accordance with 
 the strict routine of the service. 
 
 The combat now became warm ; gun after gun from 
 the privateer was rapidly fired at the boats, who were 
 taking their stations, previous to a simultaneous rush to 
 board. 
 
 The pinnace had pulled away towards the bow of the 
 privateer; the barge had taken up a position on the 
 quarter; the launch remained on her beam, firing round 
 and grape from her eighteen-pounder carronade, with a 
 rapidity that almost enabled her to return gun for gun 
 to her superiorly-armed antagonist. 
 
 Both the cutters were under her stern, keeping up an 
 incessant fire of musketry, with which they were now 
 close enough to annoy the enemy. 
 
 " A gun from the rock close to the barge, sir ! " reported 
 the signal man. 
 
 " I expected as much," observed Captain M to the 
 
 officers standing near him. 
 
 " One of the cutters has winded, sir ; she's stretching 
 out for the shore," cried the master. 
 
 " Bravo ! — that's decided — and without waiting for 
 orders. Who commands that boat ? " inquired Captain 
 M . 
 
 " It's the first cutter — Mr Bruce, sir." 
 
 The cutter was on shore before the gun could be 
 reloaded, and fired a second time. The crew, with the 
 officer at their head, were seen to clamber up the rock ! 
 In a minute they returned, and jumping into the boat, 
 pulled off to give their aid to the capture of the vessel. 
 
 " He has spiked the gun, I am certain," observed Captain 
 M 
 
 Before the cutter could regain her station, the other 
 boats were summoned by the bugle in the launch, and, 
 with, loud cheering, pulled up together to the attack. The 
 booms, which had been rigged out to prevent them from 
 coming alongside, already shot through by the grape from 
 the launch, offered but little resistance to the impetus with 
 
The King's Own 217 
 
 which the boats were forced against them ; they either 
 broke in two, or sank under water. 
 
 ** There's hoard \ — Hurrah!" cried all the men who 
 remained in the Aspasia, cheering those who heard them 
 not. 
 
 But I must transport the reader to the scene of slaughter ; 
 for if he remains on board of the Aspasia, he will distinguish 
 nothing but fire and smoke. Don't be afraid, ladies, if I 
 take you on board of the schooner — " these our actors are 
 all air, thin air," raised by the magic pen for your amuse- 
 ment. Come, then, fearlessly, with me, and view the scene 
 of mortal strife ! The launch has boarded on the starboard 
 gangway, and it is against her that the crew of the privateer 
 have directed their main efforts. 
 
 The boarding nettings cannot be divided, and the men 
 are thrown back wounded or dead, into the boat. The 
 crew of the pinnace are attempting the bows with in- 
 different success. Some have already fallen a sacrifice to 
 their valour — none have yet succeeded in gaining a 
 footing on the deck, while the marines are resisting, with 
 their bayonets, the thrusts of the boarding pikes which are 
 protruded through the ports. Courtenay has not yet 
 boarded in the barge, for, on pulling up on the quarter, he 
 perceived that, on the larboard side of the vessel, the 
 boarding nettings had either been neglected to be properly 
 triced up, or had been cut away by the fire from the 
 boats. He has pushed alongside, to take advantage of the 
 opening, and the two cutters have followed him. They 
 board with little resistance — the enemy are too busy re- 
 pelling the attacks on the other side — and as his men pour 
 upon the privateer's deck, the crews of the launch and 
 pinnace, tired with their vain endeavours to divide the 
 nettings, and rendered desperate by their loss, have run up 
 the fore and main rigging above the nettings, and thrown 
 themselves down, cutlass in hand, into the melee below, 
 careless of the points of the weapons which may meet them 
 in their descent. Now is the struggle for life or death. 
 
 Courtenay, who was daring as man could be, but not 
 
2i8 The King's Own 
 
 of a very athletic frame, re-climbed from the main chains of 
 the vessel, into which he had already once fallen, from one 
 of his own seamen having inadvertently made use of his 
 shoulder as a step to assist his own ascent. He was over- 
 taken by Robinson, the coxswain of the cutter, who sprang 
 up with all the ardour and activity of an English sailor who 
 " meant mischief," and, pleased with the energy of his 
 officer (forgetting, at the moment, the respect due to his 
 rank), called out to him, by the sobriquet with which he had 
 been christened by the men, — " Brave, Little Bilious I that's 
 your sort ! " 
 
 " What's that, sir ? " cried Courtenay, making a spring, 
 so as to stand on the plane sheer of the vessel at the same 
 moment with the coxswain, and seizing him by the collar, 
 — "I say, Robinson, what do you mean by calling me 
 * Little Bilious ' ? " continued the lieutenant, wholly regard- 
 less of the situation they were placed in. The coxswain 
 looked at him with surprise, and at the same moment parried 
 off with his cutlass a thrust of a pike at Courtenay, which, 
 in all probability, would otherwise have prevented his 
 asking any more questions ; then, without making any 
 answer, sprang down into the midst of the affray. 
 
 " You, Robinson, come back," cried Courtenay, after 
 him — " D — d annoying — Little Bilious, indeed ! " continued 
 he, as, following the example of the coxswain, he pro- 
 ceeded to vent his bile, for the present, on the heads of 
 the Frenchmen. 
 
 In most instances of boarding, but more especially in 
 boarding small vessels, there is not much opportunity for 
 what is termed hand to hand fighting. It is a rush for 
 the deck ; breast to breast, thigh to thigh, foot to foot, 
 man wedged against man, so pressed on by those behind, 
 that there is little possibility of using your cutlass, except 
 by driving your antagonist's teeth down his throat with the 
 hilt. Gun-shot wounds, of course, take place throughout 
 the whole of the combat, but those from the sabre and the 
 cutlass are generally given and received before the close, 
 or after the resistance of one party has yielded to the pertina- 
 
The King's Own 219 
 
 city and courage of the other. The crews of the barge and 
 cutters having gained possession of the deck in the rear of 
 the enemy, the affair was decided much sooner than it other- 
 wise would have been, for the French fought with 
 desperation, and were commanded by a most gallant and 
 enterprising captain. In three minutes, the crew of the 
 privateer were either beaten below, or forced overboard, 
 and the colours hauled down from the mast-heads, 
 
 announced to Captain M and the rest of the Aspasic^s 
 
 crew the welcome intelligence that the privateer was in the 
 possession of their gallant shipmates. 
 
 The hatches were secured, and the panting Englishmen, 
 for a few minutes, desisted from their exertions, that they 
 might recover their breath ; after which Price gave direc- 
 tions for the cables and hawsers to be cut, and the boats 
 to go a-head, and tow the vessel out. 
 
 " They are firing musketry from the shore j they've 
 just hit one of our men," said the coxswain of the pinnace. 
 
 " Then cast off, and bring your gun to bear astern. If 
 you do not hit them, at least they will not be so steady in 
 their aim. As soon as we are out of musket-shot, pull out 
 to us." 
 
 The order was executed, whilst the other boats towed 
 the privateer towards the frigate. In a few minutes they 
 were out of musket-shot ; the pinnace returned, and they 
 had leisure to examine into the loss which they had 
 sustained in the conflict. The launch had suffered most 5 
 nine of her crew were either killed or wounded. Three 
 seamen and four marines had suffered in the other boats. 
 Twenty-seven of the privateer's men were stretched on the 
 decks, either dead or unable to rise. Those who had not 
 been severely hurt had escaped below with the rest of the 
 crew. 
 
 Price was standing at the wheel, his sabre not yet 
 sheathed, with Courtenay at his side, when his inveterate 
 habit returned, and he commenced — 
 
 " * I do remember, when the fight was done,' " 
 
 " So do I, and devilish glad that it's over," cried Jerry, 
 
220 The King's Own 
 
 coming forward from the tafFrail with a cutlass in hand, 
 which, although he could wield, he could certainly not 
 have done much execution with. 
 
 "Why, how came you here, Mr Jerry?" inquired 
 Courtenay. 
 
 " Oh ! Stewart brought me in his boat, with the hopes 
 of getting rid of me ; but I shall live to plague him yet." 
 
 " You are not hurt, Seymour, I hope ? " said Price to our 
 hero, who now joined the party, and whose clothes were 
 stained with blood. 
 
 " No," replied Seymour, smiling. " It's not my blood — 
 it's Stewart's. I have been binding up his head ; he has 
 a very deep cut on the forehead, and a musket ball in his 
 neck; but I think neither of the wounds is of much 
 consequence." 
 
 "Where is he?" 
 
 " In the cutter. I desired them to put the wounded 
 man in her, out of the launch, and to pull on board at once. 
 Was not I right ? " 
 
 " Yes, most assuredly. I should have thought of it 
 myself." 
 
 " Well, Jerry," said Seymour, laughing, ** how many 
 did you " 
 
 " I did not count them ; but if you meet with any chaps 
 with deeper wounds than usual, put them down to me. Do 
 you know, Mr Price, you are more indebted to me than 
 you may imagine for the success of this affair ? " 
 
 " How, Mr Jerry ? I should hke to know, that I may 
 prove my gratitude ; * eleven out of the thirteen ' you paid, 
 I've no doubt." 
 
 "It was not altogether that — I frightened them more 
 than I hurt them : for when they would have returned the 
 blows from this stalwart arm," said Jerry, holding out the 
 member in question, which was about the thickness of a 
 large carrot, " I immediately turned edgeways to them, and 
 was invisible. They thought that they had to deal with 
 either a ghost or a magician, and, depend upon it, it 
 unnerved them " 
 
The King's Own 221 
 
 " * Approach thou like/ — what is it ? " resumed Price, 
 " something — * Hence, horrible shadow, unreal mockery, 
 hence ! ' " 
 
 "Pretty names to be called in reward of my services," 
 cried Jerry. "I presume this is a specimen of the gratitude 
 you were talking about. Well, after all, to take a leaf out 
 of your book, Mr Price, I consider that the better part of 
 valour is discretion. Now, that fellow, Stewart, he 
 actually gave them his head to play with, and I am not 
 sorry that he has had it broken — for I calculate that I shall 
 be saved at least a dozen thrashings by some of his hot 
 blood being let out — ' the King's poor cousin ! ' " 
 
 " By-the-bye, I quite forgot — where's Robinson, the 
 coxswain of the cutter ? " demanded Courtenay. 
 
 ** Between the guns forward — seriously hurt, poor 
 fellow, I am afraid," answered Seymour. 
 
 " I'm very sorry for that — I'll go and see him — I wish to 
 speak with him," replied Courtenay, walking forward. 
 
 Robinson was lying near the long brass gun, which was 
 pointed out of the foremost port, his head pillowed upon 
 the body of the French captain, who had fallen by his hand, 
 just before he had received his mortal wound. A musket 
 ball had entered his groin, and divided the iliac artery j he 
 was bleeding to death — nothing could save him. The cold 
 perspiration on his forehead, and the glassy appearance of 
 his eye, too plainly indicated that he had but a few minutes 
 to live. Courtenay, shocked at the condition of the poor 
 fellow, who was not only the most humorous, but one of 
 the ablest seamen in the ship, knelt down on one knee 
 beside him, and took his hand — 
 
 *' How do you feel, Robinson ? are you in much pain ? " 
 
 " None at all, sir, thank ye," replied the man faintly ; 
 ** but the purser may chalk me down dd. as soon as he 
 pleases. I suppose he'll cheat government out of our day's 
 grub though," continued the man with a smile. 
 
 Courtenay, aware of the truth of the first observation, 
 thought it no kindness to attempt to deceive a dying man 
 with hopes of recovery in his last moments 5 he therefore 
 
222 The King's Own 
 
 continued — ** Can I be of any service to you, Robinson ? 
 Is there anything I can do when you are gone ? " 
 
 " Nothing at all, sir. I've neither chick nor child, nor 
 relation, that I know of. Yes, there is one thing, sir, but 
 it's on the bloody side ; the key of the mess chest is in my 
 trousers' pocket — I wish you'd recollect to have it taken 
 out and given to John Williams ; you must wait till I'm 
 dead, for I can't turn myself just now." 
 
 *'It shall be attended to," replied Courtenay. 
 
 " And, Mr Courtenay, remember me to the captain." 
 
 " Is there anything else ? " continued Courtenay, who 
 perceived that the man was sinking rapidly. 
 
 " Nothing — nothing, sir," replied Robinson, very faintly. 
 " Good-bye, God bless you, sir, I'm going fast now." 
 
 " But, Robinson," said Courtenay, in a low soothing 
 voice, bending nearer to him, " tell me, my good fellow — I 
 am not the least angry — tell me, why did you call me 
 Little Bilious V 
 
 The man turned his eyes up to him, and a smile played 
 upon his features, as if he was pleased with the idea of 
 disappointing the curiosity of his officer. He made no 
 answer — his head fell back, and in a few seconds he had 
 breathed his last. 
 
 **Poor fellow-^ — he is gone!" said Courtenay, with a 
 deep sigh, as he rose up from the body — ** Never answered 
 my question too — Well," continued he, as he walked slowly 
 aft, *' now that's what I consider to be most excessively 
 annoying." 
 
 By this time, the privateer had been towed under the 
 stern of the frigate, and a hawser was sent on board to 
 secure her astern. Price and the other officers returned on 
 
 board, where they were well received by Captain M , 
 
 who thanked them for their exertions. The wounded had 
 been some time under the hands of Macallan, and fresh 
 crews having been ordered into the boats, they returned 
 to the privateer. The hatches were taken off, and the 
 prisoners removed to the frigate. 
 
 The name of the prize was the Estelle, of two hundred 
 
The King's Own 223 
 
 tons burthen, mounting fourteen guns, and having on 
 board, at the commencement of the attack, her full comple- 
 ment of one hundred and twenty-five men. 
 
 Chapter XXXH 
 
 Many with trust, with doubt few are undone. 
 
 Lord Brook. 
 Doubt wisely : in strange way 
 To stand inquiring right, is not to stray ; 
 To run wrong, is, 
 
 Donne. 
 
 When the hatches were taken off on board of the 
 privateer, the prisoners, as they came up, were handed 
 into the boats. Jerry stood at the hatchway, with his cut- 
 lass in his hand, making his sarcastic remarks upon them as 
 they appeared. A short interval had elapsed, after it was 
 supposed that everybody had come from below, when a 
 tall, thin personage, in the dress of a landsman, crawled up 
 the hatchway. 
 
 " Halloo ! " cried Jerry ; " Mr Longtogs, who have we 
 here ? Why he must be the padre. I say, mounseer, je 
 very much suspecte, que vous etes what they call a Father 
 Confessor, n'est-ce pas ? Devilish good idea. A privateer 
 with a parson ! What's your pay, mounseer ^ — a tenth, of 
 course. Little enough too for looking after the souls of 
 
 such a set of d d rascals. Well, mounseer, vous etes 
 
 prisonnier, without benefit of clergy ; so hop into that 
 boat. Why, confound it, here's another ! " continued 
 Jerry, as a second made his appearance. " He's the clerk, 
 of course, as he follows the parson. Come, Mont'Arrivo 
 Jack ! What a cock-eye the rascal has ! " 
 
 During this elegant harangue, which was certainly meant 
 for his own amusement more than for their edification, 
 as Jerry had no idea but that they were belonging to the 
 privateer, and of course could not comprehend him, both 
 the parties looked at him, and at each other, with astonish- 
 
224 The King's Own 
 
 ment, until the first who had appeared addressed the latter 
 with, " I say, Paul, did you ever see such a thing before ? 
 D — n it, why he's like a sixpenny fife, — more noise than 
 substance." 
 
 Jerry at once perceived his mistake, and recollected, that 
 the master of the vessel which they had boarded had 
 mentioned that two English merchants had been taken out 
 of her by the privateer, with the hopes of ransom ; but, 
 nettled with the remark which had been made, he retorted 
 with — 
 
 " Well, I'd recommend you not to attempt to play upon 
 me, that's all." 
 
 ** No, I don't mean, for I should only make you squeak." 
 
 ** You are the two gentlemen who were detained by the 
 privateer, I presume," said Pearce, the master, who had 
 come on board to superintend the necessary arrangements 
 previous to her being sent in. 
 
 " We are, sir, and must introduce ourselves. My name 
 is Mr Peter Capon — that of my friend, designated by that 
 young gentleman as Cock-eye, is Mr Paul Contract. Will 
 you oblige us with a boat to go on board of the frigate, 
 that we may speak to the captain ? " 
 
 ** Most certainly. Jump into the first cutter there. I 
 am sorry you have been so unpleasantly situated, gentlemen. 
 Why did not you come on deck before ? " 
 
 Peter did not state the real ground, which was to secure 
 their property, which was below, from being plundered by 
 the privateer's crew ; but, wishing to pay off Jerry for his 
 impertinence, replied — 
 
 " Why, we did look up the hatchway several times, but 
 there was something so awful, and, I may say, so un- 
 English-like, in the appearance of that officer with his 
 drawn sword, that we were afraid ; we could not imagine 
 into whose hands the vessel had fallen — we thought it had 
 been captured by the Yahoos." 
 
 " Houyhnhnms, more likely. You'll find I'm a bit of a 
 horse," replied Jerry in a passion. 
 
 " By Jove, then, you're only fit for the hounds," observed 
 
The King's Own 225 
 
 the gentleman with oblique vision ; ** I should order 
 you " 
 
 "Would you? Well now Fll order you, sir," replied 
 the youngster, whose anger made him quite forget the 
 presence of his commanding officer — ** Have the goodness 
 to step into that boat." 
 
 ** And I shall order you, Mr J ," observed the 
 
 master with asperity — " I order you to go into that boat, 
 and take these gentlemen on board, and to hold your 
 tongue." 
 
 " Ay, ay, sir. This way, sir," said Jerry to Mr Peter, 
 making him a polite bow, and pointing to the boat at the 
 gangway — " In that direction, sir, if you please," continued 
 Jerry, bowing to Mr Paul, and pointing to the quarter of 
 the vessel. 
 
 "And why in that direction, sir?" observed Paul, "I 
 am going on board of the frigate." 
 
 " I know it, sir ; it was considerate on my part : I was 
 allowing for the angle of obliquity in your vision. You 
 would have exactly fetched the boat." 
 
 The indignation of Mr Paul was now at its height ; and 
 Pearce, the master, who was much annoyed at Jerry's 
 
 excessive impertinence, which he knew Captain M 
 
 would never have overlooked, detained the boat for a 
 minute, while he wrote a few lines to Price, requesting 
 him to send the bearer of it to the mast-head, upon 
 
 delivery, for his impertinent conduct. " Mr J , take 
 
 this on board, and deliver it from me to the commanding 
 officer." 
 
 " Ay, ay, sir," replied Jerry. " Shove off there, 
 forward." 
 
 Mr Peter looked Jerry earnestly in his face for some 
 time, as they were pulling on board. 
 
 " Well now, d — n it, I like you, if it's only for your 
 excessive impudence." 
 
 " A negative sort of commendation, but I believe it is 
 the only one that he has," replied the other, in a surly tone, 
 
 "Highly flattered, sir," replied Jerry to Mr Peter, 
 
 K. I. P 
 
226 The King's Own 
 
 " that you should perceive anything to induce you to like 
 me : but I am sorry I cannot return the compliment, for 
 I really cannot perceive anything to like you for. As for 
 your friend there, I can only say, that I detest all crooked 
 ways. — In bow forward ! — way enough. Now, gentlemen, 
 with your permission, I'll show you the road," said the 
 youngster, climbing up the side. 
 
 Jerry, who had some suspicion that the note was not in 
 his favour, took the liberty, as it was neither sealed nor 
 wafered, of reading it under the half-deck, while Price 
 was showing the two gentlemen into the cabin. Not to 
 deliver a note on service was an offence for which Captain 
 
 M would have dismissed him from the ship ; but to 
 
 be perched up, like a monkey, at the mast-head, in the 
 afternoon, after having fought like a man in the morning, 
 was very much against the grain. At any other time he 
 would have cared little about it. He went upon deck 
 again, where he found Prose on the gangway — " Well, 
 Prose, my boy, how are you ? " 
 
 " "Why, upon my soul, Jerry, I am tired to death. 
 Seven times have I been backward and forward to that 
 abominable privateer, and now my tea is ready, and I am 
 ordered to go again for these gentlemen's things." 
 
 "Well, that is hard. I will go for you, Prose, shall I? 
 Where's the boat ? " 
 
 " All ready, alongside. Well now, it's very kind of 
 you, Jerry, I do declare." 
 
 Jerry laid hold of the man-ropes, and began to descend 
 the side — and then, as if recollecting himself of a sudden, 
 said, " Oh, by-the-bye, I had nearly forgot. Here's a note 
 from the master to Mr Price. Give it him, Prose." 
 
 ** Yes, Jerry, I will," replied Prose, walking over to the 
 side of the quarter-deck where Price was carrying on the 
 duty, while Jerry made all the haste he could, and shoved 
 off in the boat. 
 
 ** A not/e, sir, from Mr Pearce, the master." 
 
 " Hum," said Price, running it over. *' Mr Prose, go 
 up to the mast-head, and stay there till I call you down," 
 
The King's Own 227 
 
 ** Sir ! " replied Prose, aghast. 
 
 "No reply, sir — up immediately." 
 
 "Why, sir, it was " 
 
 " Another word, sir, and I'll keep you there all night," 
 cried Price, walking forward, in furtherance of the duty he 
 was carrying on. 
 
 "Well, now, I do declare ! What have I done ?" said 
 Prose, with a whimpering voice, as he reluctantly ascended 
 the main-rigging, not unperceived by Jerry, who was 
 watching the result as he pulled on board of the 
 privateer. 
 
 "Come on board for these gentlemen's clothes, sir," 
 said Jerry, reporting himself to Mr Pearce, who, not a little 
 surprised to see him, inquired— 
 
 " Did Mr Price receive my note ? " 
 
 *' Yes, sir, he did." 
 
 " Why, I requested him to mast-head you ! " 
 
 " Many thanks, sir, for your kindness," replied the 
 youngster, touching his hat. 
 
 Pearce, who was annoyed that his request should not 
 have been complied with, stated his feelings on the subject 
 to Price, when he returned to the ship in the evening. 
 
 Price declared that he had sent Prose to the mast-head, 
 and had not called him down until eight o'clock. The 
 affair was thus explained, and Jerry was pardoned for the 
 ingenuity of his ruse de guerre, while all the comfort that 
 was received by the unfortunate Prose was being informed, 
 on the ensuing morning, that it was all a mistake. 
 
 The prize being now ready. Captain M desired 
 
 Courtenay to take charge of it, and select two of the mid- 
 shipmen to accompany him. His choice fell upon Seymour 
 and Jerry : the latter being selected rather for his own 
 amusement, than for his qualities as an officer. The 
 distance to Jamaica, to which island he was directed to 
 proceed, and from thence with his crew to obtain a passage 
 
 to Barbadoes, was not great, and Captain M did not 
 
 like to have the frigate short-manned ; he was therefore 
 not allowed to take more than ten seamen with him, five 
 
228 The King's Own 
 
 prisoners being sent on board, to assist in navigating the 
 vessel. 
 
 Mr Capon and Mr Contract, at their own request, went 
 as passengers. 
 
 In the afternoon, as soon as the provisions were on board, 
 Courtenay received his written orders, and in a few hours 
 the frigate was out of sight. They had barely time to 
 stow away everything in its place, and make the necessary 
 arrangements, when a heavy N.E. swell, and louring 
 horizon, predicted a continuance of the fair wind, and 
 plenty of it. So it proved ; the wind increased rapidly, 
 and the men found it difficult to reduce the canvas in 
 sufficient time. Before dark, the wind blew with con- 
 siderable force, not steadily, but in fitful gusts : and the 
 sun, as he descended in the wave, warned them, by his 
 red and fiery aspect, to prepare for an increase of the gale. 
 The schooner flew before it, under her diminished sail, 
 rolling gunwale-to in the deep trough, or lurching heavily 
 as her weather quarter was borne up aloft by the culminat- 
 ing swell. All was secured for the night ; the watch was 
 set, and Seymour walked the deck, while Courtenay and 
 the rest went below, and at an early hour retired to their 
 beds. 
 
 Among other reasons for selecting our hero as one of 
 his assistants, Courtenay was influenced by his perfect 
 knowledge of the French language, which might prove 
 useful in communicating with the French prisoners, who 
 were sent on board to assist in working the vessel. Jerry 
 had also boasted of his talent in that way, as he wished to 
 go in the prize ; and, although the reader, from the speci- 
 men which he has had, may not exactly give credit to his 
 assertions, yet Courtenay, who had never heard him, 
 believed that he was pretty well acquainted with the 
 language. 
 
 But, soon after they had parted with the frigate, when 
 Courtenay desired the French prisoners to lay hold of the 
 ropes and assist in shortening sail, they all refused. 
 Seymour was not on deck at the time ; he had been desired 
 
The King's Own 229 
 
 to superintend the arrangements below : and although he 
 had been informed of their conduct, he had not yet spoken 
 to the prisoners. Two of them were sitting aft under the 
 lee of the weather-bulwark, as Seymour was walking the 
 deck to and fro. They were in earnest conversation, when 
 Seymour stopped near to them, carelessly leaning over the 
 weather-quarter, watching the long following seas, when 
 he overhead one say to the other — ^^ Taisez-vous, peut-etre 
 qu'il nous entendP " Nous verrons^"^ replied the other — who 
 immediately rose, and addressed Seymour in French, relative 
 to the weather. What he had previously heard induced 
 our hero to shake his head, and continue to look over the 
 weather-quarter, and as Seymour only answered in the 
 English negative to a further interrogation, the prisoners 
 did not think it worth while to remove out of his hearing, 
 but, satisfied with his not being able to comprehend them, 
 sat down again, and resumed their conversation. The 
 lurching of the vessel was a sufficient reason for not walk- 
 ing the deck ; but Seymour, to remove all suspicion, took 
 another turn or two, and then again held on by the ropes 
 close by the Frenchmen. The wind blew too fresh to 
 permit him to catch more than an occasional sentence or 
 two of their conversation : but what he heard made him 
 more anxious to collect more. 
 
 " Us ne sont que seize, avec ce petit misere,^^ observed one, 
 " et nous sommes — " Here the rest of the sentence was 
 lost. Seymour reckoned up the English on board, and 
 found that with Billy Pitts, whom Macallan had allowed 
 Courtenay to take with him as his steward, they exactly 
 amounted to that number. The latter epithet he con- 
 sidered, justly enough, to be bestowed upon his friend 
 Jerry. A few minutes afterwards, he intercepted — 
 ''They'll throw us overboard, if we do not succeed — 
 we'll throw them overboard, if we do." '* Courage, mon 
 ami, il n^y aura pas de difficult e ; nous sommes trop forts,^^ 
 replied the other, as, terminating their conversation, they 
 rose and walked forward. 
 
 It was evident to our hero that something was in 
 
230 The King's Own 
 
 agitation ; but at the same time it appeared perfectly 
 incomprehensible, that six prisoners should have even 
 formed the idea of attempting the recapture of a vessel 
 manned with sixteen Englishmen, and that they should 
 consider themselves so strong as to ensure success. Deter- 
 mined to report what he had heard to Courtenay, Seymour 
 walked the remainder of his watch, was relieved, and went 
 below to his hammock. 
 
 The wind had increased during the night ; but as it was 
 fair, and the sky clear, and the sun shone bright, the 
 breeze was rather a matter of congratulation when they 
 met at breakfast in the morning, although Peter and Paul 
 complained of the violent motion of the vessel having taken 
 away their appetite. Seymour reported to Courtenay the 
 fragments of the conversation which he had overheard ; 
 and insane as appeared to be the idea of recapture, the 
 latter agreed with him that it demanded caution on their 
 parts : but as it would appear very opposite to the English 
 character to take open measures against six prisoners, 
 when they were so numerous, he contented himself with 
 desiring all the arms and ammunition to be stowed in the 
 cabin, and gave orders that the prisoners, as they refused 
 to work, should not be allowed to come on deck after 
 dusk, — and then gave the affair no further thought. 
 Seymour was aware that, although it was his duty to 
 report the circumstance, he had no right to press the 
 matter upon Courtenay, who was to be supposed the best 
 judge ; still he was not satisfied. He had an unaccountable 
 foreboding that all was not right. He turned the subject 
 in his mind until dinner was announced by Billy Pitts, 
 which put an end to his reverie. 
 
 The violent jerking motion of the vessel made it no easy 
 task to retain a position at the table, which was securely 
 lashed. As for placing on it the whole of the dinner at 
 once, decanters, etc., that would have been certain 
 destruction ; a plate and spoon for their soup was all 
 which Billy Pitts, who was major-domo, would trust them 
 with. Paul, who was not the best sailor in the world. 
 
The King's Own 231 
 
 had secured to himself the seat to windward, and it conse- 
 quently fell to his lot to help the pea-soup, which was 
 placed at the weather-side of the table. To save time and 
 breakage, — two important things in a sea-mess, — they all 
 held their own plates, which they thrust in towards the 
 tureen from the different quarters of the table to receive 
 their supply. Paul having helped those nearest to him, 
 rose from his chair that he might see to fill the plates on 
 the other side of the tureen. He was leaning over, his 
 centre of gravity being considerably beyond the perpen- 
 dicular, when a heavy sea struck the vessel, and threw her 
 nearly on her beam ends, pitching Paul right over the 
 table to leeward. With the tureen, which he did not 
 forget to take with him, he flew into Jerry's arms, and 
 they rolled together on the floor. The contents of the 
 tureen were rapidly deposited in the open bosom of Jerry, 
 who disengaged himself from the embraces of his enemy 
 as fast as he could, amidst the laughter of his companions. 
 
 "Well, you asked for soup," observed Courtenay. 
 
 ** Yes, and my friend has helped me very liberally," 
 replied Jerry, who was not at all out of humour, except 
 when he was foiled with his own weapons. In the mean- 
 time, Paul, who was a little stunned with the blow he had 
 received on his head, had continued on the floor rolling in 
 the pea-soup, and was just attempting to get on his legs. 
 
 " You've got it all to yourself there, Mr Paul. As you 
 seem to like it, perhaps you would prefer a spoon," said 
 Jerry, offering him one at the same time. 
 
 " I say, Paul, what a capital harlequin you would make," 
 observed Peter. 
 
 Paul, who had recovered his legs, and now clung on by 
 the table, looked an answer horribly asquint, as if he did 
 not admire the joke ; but he resumed his seat at the table. 
 
 The remainder of the dinner was brought down without 
 further accident occurring ; and by the time it was over, 
 as the bottle had to be passed round, and everybody was 
 obliged to drink off immediately, and put his wine-glass 
 inside his waistcoat to save it from perdition, they all were 
 
232 The King's Own 
 
 very merry and happy before the repast had been con- 
 cluded. "There," said Jerry, stroking himself down 
 when he had finished his cheese, as if he were a FalstafF, 
 " a kitten might play with me now." 
 
 " More than one dare do with me," rejoined Peter, 
 " for Fm cursedly inclined to shoot the cat^ 
 
 But as the second evening closed in, the sky was loaded 
 with heavy clouds, — the scud flew wildly past them, — 
 the sea increased to mountains high, — and the gale roared 
 through the rigging of the schooner, which was now 
 impelled before it under bare poles. They were really 
 in danger. The hatches were battened down fore and 
 aft — the ports were knocked out to allow the escape of 
 the water, which poured over in such volumes as would 
 otherwise have swamped the vessel — and Courtenay and 
 his crew remained on deck until dawn of day, when the 
 violence of the gale seemed to have abated. 
 
 Courtenay desired Seymour and Jerry to turn in, and 
 relieve him at eight o'clock. Our hero and Jerry went 
 down into the cabin, where they found the two passengers, 
 who, although they had not come on deck during the 
 night, had not retired to bed. Peter was sitting up to 
 windward on the locker, looking very pale and very sea- 
 sick. Paul was on the cabin floor, with one hand holding 
 on by the leg of the table, and a bottle of brandy in the 
 other. His prayer-book he had abandoned during a 
 fright, and it was washing about in the lee-scuppers. 
 Jerry was delighted, but put on a rueful face. 
 
 '^Well," observed Paul, who was nearly frightened 
 out of his wits, " how is it now ? " 
 
 " Worse and worse," replied Jerry ; " there's nine 
 inches water in the well." 
 
 " Oh, my God ! " cried Paul, who was not very au fait 
 at nautical technicalities, — raising one eye up to heaven, 
 while the other appeared to rest upon the bottle of 
 brandy. 
 
 " But why don't you turn in ? " said Jerry ; " we can go 
 to the bottom just as comfortably in bed as anywhere else." 
 
The King's Own 2^^ 
 
 ** I agree with you," replied Peter, who had often been 
 at sea, and knew very well that all was right, by the two 
 midshipmen coming off deck. " My mother prophesied 
 that I never should die in my bed ; but Fm determined 
 that I will." 
 
 " You had better turn in, Mr Paul," said Seymour, 
 kindly ; *' I'll ring for the steward." 
 
 Billy Pitts made his appearance. " By gad, gentlemen, 
 the d d schooner under water." 
 
 *' Under water ! " cried Paul, with dismay. The bottle 
 was applied to his mouth, as if he was determined to 
 leave as little room as possible for the element which 
 he expected instantaneously to be struggling in. 
 
 With the assistance of Billy, Paul was placed in one 
 of the standing bed-places at the side of the cabin. Jerry 
 put his brandy bottle at the side of his pillow, — kindly 
 informing him that he would have an opportunity of 
 taking a few more swigs before he went down, for the 
 water was only up to her bends at present. Peter was 
 already in the cot next to him, and Seymour and Jerry 
 turned in, without taking off their clothes, in Courtenay's 
 bed on the other side of the cabin. Before they had 
 fallen asleep, they heard Paul cry out, "Peter ! Peter ! " 
 
 " Well, what do you want ? " 
 
 ** Do you think there are any hopes ? " 
 
 Peter, who wished to frighten his companion, replied, 
 gravely — " I am afraid not ; — but, Paul, I've just been 
 reflecting upon the subject. Here we are, two men 
 considerably on the wrong side of forty. We have 
 enjoyed our youth, which is the happiest period of our 
 life. We are now fast descending the hill, to old age, 
 decrepitude, and disease — what avails a few more years, 
 allowing that we are spared this time ? Don't you per- 
 ceive the comfort of my observations ? " 
 
 Paul groaned, and made no answer ; but even the creak- 
 ing of the timbers could not disguise the repeated cleck- 
 cleck-cleck, as the brandy from the bottle gurgled down 
 his throat. 
 
234 The King's Own 
 
 Chapter XXXIII 
 
 Two striplings, lads more like to run 
 Than to commit such slaughter. 
 
 Cymbeline, 
 
 The gales of wind in the tropical climates are violent 
 while they last, but are seldom of long duration. Such 
 was the case in the present instance: for it subsided in 
 a few hours after daylight ; and the schooner, that had 
 been propelled before it, was now sheltered under the 
 lee of the island of St Domingo, and, with all her canvas 
 spread, was gHding through a tranquil sea. Again they 
 were collected round the dinner-table, to a more quiet 
 repast than they had hitherto enjoyed since they had 
 come on board. Paul had not quite recovered his spirits, 
 although, when he went on deck, just before the dinner 
 was announced, he was delighted at the sudden change 
 which had taken place ; but the mirth of his companions 
 at his expense was not received in very good part. 
 
 After dinner, finding himself in a better humour, he 
 turned to Peter, and addressed him, — " I say, Peter, I 
 made no answer to your remarks last night, when we 
 expected to go down ; but I have since had time deliber- 
 ately to weigh your arguments, and I should like you 
 to explain to me where the comfort was that you so 
 strenuously pointed out, for hang me if I can discover 
 it." 
 
 Seymour again had charge of the first watch ; and, 
 notwithstanding that the orders for the prisoners to remain 
 below after dark had been communicated to them, he 
 observed that, on one pretence or other, they occasionally 
 came on deck, and repeatedly put their heads above the 
 hatchway. This conduct reminded him of the conversation 
 which he had overheard, and again it was the subject of his 
 
 thoughts. Captain M had one day observed to him, 
 
 that if there was no duty going on, he could not employ 
 
The King's Own 235 
 
 himself in a more useful manner, when he was walking the 
 deck, than by placing himself, or the ship, in difficult 
 situations, and reflecting upon the most eligible means of 
 
 relief. *' Depend upon it," observed Captain M , 
 
 ** the time will come, when you will find it of use to you ; 
 and it will create for you a presence of mind, in a sudden 
 dilemma, which may be the salvation of yourself and the 
 ship you are in." 
 
 Seymour, remembering this injunction, reflected upon 
 what would be the most advisable steps to take, in case of 
 the French prisoners attempting a recapture during his 
 watch on deck. That there were but six, it was very true ; 
 but, at the same time, during the night-watches there were 
 but five English seamen, and the officer of the watch, on 
 deck. Should the Frenchmen have the boldness to attempt 
 to regain possession of the vessel, there was no doubt that, 
 if the watch could be surprised, the hatches would be 
 secured over those below. What should be the steps, in 
 such a case, that he ought to take ? 
 
 Such were the cogitations of Seymour, when midnight 
 was reported, and Jerry was summoned to relieve the deck 
 — which he did not do, relying upon our hero's good-nature, 
 until past one bell. Up he came, with his ready apology 
 — " I really beg your pardon, my dear fellow, but I had 
 not a wink of sleep last night." 
 
 *' Never mind, Jerry, I am not at all sleepy. I had been 
 thinking about these French prisoners — I cannot get their 
 conversation out of my head." 
 
 " Why, I did not like it myself, when I heard of it," 
 replied Jerry. " I hope they won't attempt it in my 
 watch ; it would not give them much trouble to launch me 
 over the quarter — I should skim away, ' flying light,' like 
 a lady's bonnet." 
 
 " What would you do, Jerry, if you perceived them 
 rushing aft to retake the vessel ? " inquired Seymour, who 
 was aware of his ready invention. 
 
 " Skim up the rigging like a lamp-lighter, to be sure. 
 Not that it would be of much use, if they gained 
 
2^6 The King's Own 
 
 the day — except to say a few prayers before I went 
 astern." 
 
 " Well, that was my idea ; but I thought that if one had 
 a musket and ammunition up there, a diversion might be 
 created in favour of those below — for the prisoners have no 
 firearms." 
 
 " Very true," replied Jerry ; *' we might puzzle them 
 not a little." 
 
 " Now, Jerry, suppose we were to take that precaution, 
 for I do not like their manoeuvres during my watch. It 
 will do no harm, if it does no good. Suppose you fetch 
 two muskets and cartouch-boxes from the cabin — I'll take 
 one, and secure it in the fore-cross-trees, and you do the 
 same at the main : for Courtenay is too proud to keep an 
 armed watch." 
 
 Jerry agreed to the proposal, and brought up the muskets 
 and ammunition. Seymour gave him a stout fox to lash 
 the musket ; and taking another himself, they both 
 ascended the rigging at the same time, and were busy 
 securing the muskets up and down at the head of the lower 
 masts, when they heard a sudden rush upon deck, beneath 
 them. 
 
 It was dark, though not so dark but they could distin- 
 guish what was going on, and they perceived that their 
 thoughts had but anticipated the reality. " The French 
 are up ! " roared the man at the wheel, to rouse those below, 
 as well as the watch, who were lying about the decks ; but, 
 to the astonishment of the youngsters aloft, as well as of the 
 men on deck, not six but about twenty Frenchmen, armed 
 with cutlasses, made their appearance. The hatches were 
 over and secured in a minute ; and the unarmed English 
 on deck were then attacked by the superior force. It was 
 with agonised feelings that Seymour and Jerry heard the 
 scuffle which took place ; it was short ; and plunge after 
 plunge into the water, alongside, announced the death of 
 each separate victim. The man at the wheel struggled 
 long — he was of an athletic frame — but, overpowered by 
 numbers, he was launched over the tafFrail. 
 
The King's Own ^7)1 
 
 The French, supposing that the remainder of the crew 
 were below, placed sentries over the hatches, that they 
 might not be forced, and then collected together abaft, 
 altering the course of the vessel for St Domingo. 
 
 It will be necessary to explain the sudden appearance of 
 so many Frenchmen. When the captain of the privateer 
 was occupied, during the night previous to the attack, with 
 several plans of defence, he also arranged one for the re- 
 capture of the vessel, in case of their being overpowered. 
 With this in view, he had constructed a platform in the 
 hold, on which a tier of casks was stowed, and under which 
 there was sufficient space for fifteen or twenty men to lie 
 concealed. When the privateer's men had been driven 
 below, and the hatches secured over them, fifteen, armed 
 with cutlasses, concealed themselves in this place, with the 
 hopes of recapturing the vessel from the prize-master, after 
 she should have parted company with the frigate. The 
 prisoners, who had been sent on board to assist in navigating 
 the schooner to Jamaica, had communicated with them, un- 
 perceived, after dark. As all the English were fatigued, 
 from having been on deck during the previous night, the 
 middle watch was proposed for the attempt, which had thus 
 far been attended with success. 
 
 Seymour and Jerry remained quiet at the mast-heads ; 
 for although they did not attempt to communicate with 
 each other, for fear of discovery, they both rightly judged 
 that it would be best to remain till daylight; by which 
 time, some plans would have been formed by the party 
 below, which their situation would enable them materially 
 to assist. Nearly four hours elapsed previous to the 
 dawning of the day, during which interval Jerry had 
 ample time to say some of those prayers which he spoke 
 of, and which it was to be supposed that they both did not 
 fail to offer up in their perilous situation. 
 
 As soon as the day began to break, Jerry, who had not 
 yet loaded his musket, lest he might be heard, thought 
 it time to prepare for action. He primed, and put in his 
 cartridge, in the ramming down of which a slight ringing 
 
238 The King's Own 
 
 of the ramrod against the muzzle attracted the notice of 
 one of the Frenchmen, who, looking up, after a short time, 
 exclaimed : — 
 
 " Diable ! c'est inonsieur miser e qui est la I " 
 
 Jerry levelled with a steady aim, and the bullet passed 
 through the broad chest of the Frenchman, who rolled 
 upon the deck. 
 
 "Now, they may chant your miserere^'* cried the 
 youngster. 
 
 A second shot from the fore-cross-trees laid another 
 Frenchman alongside of his companion. 
 
 ^^ Comment I diable I nous serons ahzmes par ces enfans-la ; 
 ilfaut iTwnter^"* 
 
 The muskets were again loaded, and again each boy 
 brought down his bird, before the Frenchmen could decide 
 upon their operations. It was a case of necessity that the 
 youngsters should be attacked ; but it was a service of no 
 little danger, and of certain destruction to one, who must 
 fall a sacrifice, that the other might be able to secure the 
 youngster before he had time to reload his musket. Two 
 of the most daring flew to the main rigging, one ascending 
 to windward, and the other to leeward. Seymour, who 
 perceived their intentions, reserved his fire until he saw 
 the one in the weather rigging fall by Jerry's musket ; he 
 then levelled at the one to leeward, who dropped into the 
 lee-chains, and from thence into the sea. Thus had six 
 Frenchmen already fallen by the coolness and determination 
 of two boys, one but fourteen, and the other not sixteen 
 years old. 
 
 A short consultation ended in the Frenchmen resorting 
 to the only measures likely to be attended with success. 
 Leaving three to guard the hatchways, the remaining 
 twelve, divided into four parties, began to mount both 
 fore and main-rigging, to windward and to leeward, at the 
 same time. The fate of Jerry and Seymour now appeared 
 to be decided. They might each kill one man more, and 
 then would have been hurled into the sea. But during the 
 consultation, Seymour, who anticipated this movement, and 
 
The King's Own 239 
 
 liad a knife in his pocket, divided the lanyards of the lee 
 top-mast-rigging, and running up the weather side with 
 his musket and ammunition, as soon as he had gained the 
 top-mast cross-trees, hauled up the lee rigging after him ; 
 thus gaining a position that would admit but one person 
 mounting up to him at a time. He called to Jerry, 
 pointing out what he had done, that he might do the same ; 
 but unfortunately Jerry had not a knife, and could not. 
 He contented himself with climbing up to the top-mast 
 cross-trees, to which he was followed by two of the 
 Frenchmen. Jerry levelled his musket, and passed his 
 bullet through the skull of one of his pursuers, whose 
 heavy fall on the deck shook the schooner fore and aft : 
 and then, aware that nothing more could be done, pitched 
 his musket overboard, that they might not gain possession 
 of it, and climbing, with a nimbleness suited to the 
 occasion, up to the mast-head, descended by the top- 
 gallant-stay to the fore-topmast cross-trees, and joined 
 Seymour, in the presence of the exasperated Frenchmen, 
 who now, unable to reach either of them, were at a 
 nonplus. *' I say, monsieur, no catchee, no habbee," cried 
 Jerry, laughing, and putting his hand to his side from loss 
 of breath. 
 
 But we must now acquaint the reader with what is going 
 on below. The surprise of Courtenay, when he found the 
 hatches down, and the deck in possession of the French, 
 was removed, when the men who had been secured with 
 him stated that, as they lay in their hammocks, they had 
 been awakened by a large body of men running up the 
 hatchway. He now perceived that there must have been 
 men concealed in the hold of the vessel. The struggle on 
 deck, the splashing in the water, all had been plainly heard 
 below; they were aware of the fate of their shipmates, 
 and did not expect to see daylight again, until they were 
 handed up as prisoners in a French port. 
 
 The feelings of Courtenay were not enviable. He 
 upbraided himself for having, by his want of prudence, 
 lost the vessel, and sacrificed the lives of the two midship- 
 
240 The King's Own 
 
 men and five seamen who had the watch on deck. The 
 party below consisted of Courtenay, Peter and Paul, 
 Billy Pitts, and five seamen ; and a consultation was held 
 as to their proceedings. To regain the vessel and avenge 
 the death of their shipmates, or to perish in the attempt, 
 was the determination of the lieutenant. 
 
 He was aware that the French had no firearms ; and, 
 amply supplied as they were, he would have cared little 
 for their numbers if once on deck ; but how to get on deck 
 was the problem. To set fire to the vessel, and rush up in 
 the flames, — to scuttle her, — or to blow her up, and all go 
 down together, were each proposed and agitated. 
 
 Peter's plan was considered as the most feasible. He 
 suggested, that one half of the cabin table, which was 
 divided in two, should be placed upon the other, so as to 
 raise it up to the combings of the skylight-hatch ; on the 
 upper table, to place a pound or two of powder, which, 
 from the ascending principle of explosion, would blow off 
 the skylight and grating without injuring the vessel below. 
 Then, with their muskets loaded and bayonets fixed, to 
 jump on the table, and from thence, if possible, gain the 
 deck. 
 
 This was agreed to, and the preparations were well 
 forward, when the report of Jerry's musket was heard — 
 another succeeded, and they were perplexed. Had the 
 Frenchmen firearms ? — and if so, what could they be firing 
 at ? The falling of the bodies on deck, and the indistinct 
 curses of the Frenchmen, puzzled them even more. 
 " "What can it be ? " observed Courtenay. 
 
 " I recollect now," said Paul, " as I lay awake, I saw a 
 young devilskin pass my bed with a musket — I wondered 
 what it was for." 
 
 " Then, probably, he has gained the rigging with it, and 
 is safe," cried Courtenay, intuitively. "Be quick! 
 Where's the powder ? Take that candle further off." 
 
 The train was laid as the muskets continued to be dis- 
 charged ; they removed from the cabin ; — it was fired, and 
 the skylight was blown up, killing the Frenchman who 
 
The King's Own 241 
 
 guarded the hatchway, at the very moment that the 
 Frenchmen were in the rigging, puzzled with the 
 manoeuvres of Seymour and the escape of Jerry. 
 
 Courtenay and his party rushed into the cabin, mounted 
 the table, and were on deck before the smoke had cleared 
 away; and the Frenchmen, who had not had time to 
 descend the rigging, were at their mercy. 
 
 Mercy they were not entitled to. They had shown none 
 to the unarmed English, whom they had wantonly thrown 
 into the sea when they had overpowered them, and were 
 now thirsting for the blood of the two boys. No mercy 
 was shown to them. As they dropped one by one from 
 the rigging wounded or dead, they were tossed into the 
 wave, as an expiatory sacrifice to the manes of the murdered 
 Englishmen. In a few minutes the carnage was over. 
 Seymour and Jerry descended from their little forta/ice aloft, 
 and were warmly greeted by their friends as they reached 
 the deck. 
 
 ** Really, Mr Paul," said Jerry, shaking his proffered 
 hand, " this is quite an unexpected pleasure." 
 
 " Well, I never thought that I could possibly like you,'* 
 answered the other. 
 
 "Well," observed Jerry, "it has quite stopped my 
 growth." 
 
 "But not your tongue, I hope," replied Peter; "that 
 would be a pity. Now explain to us how it all happened." 
 
 Jerry entered into the detail with his accustomed 
 humour, while Courtenay walked aft with Seymour, to 
 have a more sober narrative of the transactions which we 
 have described, and which afforded ample matter for con- 
 versation, until the prize was brought to an anchor in Port 
 Royal harbour, where Courtenay and his crew were 
 ordered a passage to Barbadoes, in a frigate that had orders 
 to proceed there in a few days ; and Mr Peter Capon and 
 Mr Paul Contract went on shore, declaring that until a 
 mail coach ran between there and England, they should 
 never leave the island and again subject themselves to the 
 charming vicissitudes of a seafaring existence. 
 K. I. Q 
 
242 The King's Own 
 
 Chapter XXXIV 
 
 For the execution of all form, observance, ceremony, subordination, and the 
 like, even though, while he compels obedience, he may get himself 
 privately laughed at, commend me to our governor, Don Fabricio. 
 
 Humours of Madrid. 
 
 In a few days, Courtenay, with the prize crew of the 
 Aspasia, sailed for Barbadoes, in the frigate which had been 
 ordered to receive them for a passage. 
 
 The frigate was commanded by one of the most singular 
 characters in the service. He was a clever man, a thorough 
 sailor, and well acquainted with the details and techni- 
 calities of the profession — a spirited and enterprising 
 officer, but of the most arbitrary disposition. So well was 
 he acquainted with the regulations of the service, that he 
 could hedge himself in so as to ensure a compliance with 
 the most preposterous orders, or draw the officer who 
 resisted into a premunire which would risk his commission. 
 
 In a profession where one man is embarked with many, 
 isolated from the power whence he derives his own — 
 where his fiat must be received without a murmur by 
 hundreds who can reason as well as himself, it is abso- 
 lutely requisite that he should be invested with an authority 
 amounting to despotism. True it is that he is held 
 responsible to his superiors for any undue exercise of this 
 authority ; but amongst so many to whom it is confided, 
 there must be some who, from disposition, or the bad 
 example of those under whom they have served, will not 
 adhere to the limits which have been prescribed. This, 
 however, is no reason for reducing that authority, which, 
 as you govern wholly by opinion, is necessary for the 
 discipline which upholds the service ; but it is a strong 
 reason for not delegating it to those who are not fit to be 
 entrusted. 
 
 Captain Bradshaw had many redeeming qualities. 
 Oppressor as he was, he admired a spirit of resistance in 
 
The King's Own 243 
 
 an officer, when it was shown in a just cause, and, upon 
 reflection, was invariably his friend, for he felt that his own 
 natural temperament was increased by abject obedience. 
 Raynal, I think it is, has said that " the pride of men in 
 office arises as much from the servility of their inferiors or 
 expectants, as from any other cause." In our service, they 
 are all inferiors, and all expectants. Can it then be 
 surprising that a captain occasionally becomes tyrannical ? 
 But Captain Bradshaw was not naturally tyrannical : he 
 had become so, because, promoted at an early age, he had 
 never been afterwards opposed ; no one contradicted him ; 
 every one applauded his jokes, and magnified his mirth 
 into wit. He would try by a court-martial an officer who 
 had committed a slight error, and on the same day would 
 open his purse and extend his patronage to another whom 
 he knew not, but had been informed that he was deserving, 
 and had no friends. To his seamen he was as lavish with 
 his money as he was with the cat. He would give a man 
 a new jacket one day, and cut it to pieces on his back with 
 a rope's end on the next. Yet it was not exactly incon- 
 sistency — it was an eccentricity of character — not natural, 
 but created by the service. The graft was of a worse 
 quality than the parent stock, and the fruit was a 
 compound of the two. The sailors, who are of the most 
 forgiving temper in the world, and will pardon a hundred 
 faults for one redeeming quality, declared that " he warn't 
 a bad captain after all." 
 
 His violent and tyrannical disposition made him constantly 
 at variance with his officers, and continual changes took 
 place in his ship ; but it was observed, that those who had 
 left him from a spirited resistance, were kindly received, 
 and benefited by his patronage, while those who submitted 
 were neglected. Like a pretty but clever woman, who is 
 aware that flattery is to be despised, and yet, from habit, 
 cannot exist without it, so Captain Bradshaw exacted the 
 servility which he had been accustomed to, yet rewarded 
 not those by whom it was administered. All the midship- 
 men promoted on the station had to pass through the 
 
244 The King's Own 
 
 ordeal of sailing with Captain Bradshaw, who generally 
 had a vacancy; and it certainly had a good effect upon 
 those young men who were inclined to presume upon their 
 newly acquired rank ; for they were well-schooled before 
 they quitted his ship. 
 
 When Courtenay and his party went on board of the 
 frigate, the first lieutenant, master, and surgeon, indignant 
 at language which had been used to them by the captain, 
 refused to dine in the cabin, when they were invited by 
 the steward, who reported to Captain Bradshaw, that the 
 officers would not accept his invitation. 
 
 " Won't they, by G — d ! Til see that. Send my clerk 
 here." 
 
 The clerk made his appearance, with an abject bow. 
 
 " Mr Powell, sit down, and write as I dictate," said 
 Captain Bradshaw, who, walking up and down the fore- 
 cabin, composed a memorandum, in which, after a long 
 preamble, the first lieutenant, master, and surgeon, were 
 directed to dine with him every day, until further orders. 
 Captain Bradshaw, having signed it, sent for the first 
 lieutenant, and delivered it himself into his hands. 
 
 " Ferguson ! — Bradly ! " cried the first lieutenant, en- 
 tering the gun-room, with the paper in his hand, " here's 
 something for all three of us, — a positive order to dine 
 with the skipper every day, until — he gets tired of our 
 company." 
 
 " I'll be hanged if I do," replied the surgeon. ** I'll put 
 myself in the sick list." 
 
 " And if I am obliged to go, I'll not touch anything," 
 rejoined the master. " There's an old proverb, * you may 
 lead a horse to the pond, but you can't make him drink.' " 
 
 " Whatever we do," replied Roberts, the first lieutenant, 
 ** we must act in concert ; but I have been long enough in 
 the service to know that we must obey first, and remon- 
 strate afterwards. That this is an unusual order, I grant, 
 nor do I know by what regulations of the service it can be 
 enforced ; but at the same time I consider that we run a 
 great risk in refusing to obey it. Only observe, in the 
 
The King's Own 245 
 
 preamble, how artfully he inserts * appearance of a 
 conspiracy, tending to bring him into contempt;' and 
 again, ' for the better discipline of his Majesty's service, 
 which must invariably suffer when there is an appearance 
 of want of cordiality between those to whom the men 
 must look for an example.' Upon my soul he's devilish 
 clever. I do believe he'd find out a reason for drawing 
 out all our double teeth, if he was inclined, and prove it 
 was all for the benefit of his Majesty's service. Well now, 
 what's to be done ? " 
 
 *' Why, what's your opinion, Roberts ? " 
 
 " Oh, mine is to go ; and if you will act with me, he 
 won't allow us to dine with him a second time." 
 
 "Well, then, I agree," replied the surgeon. 
 
 " And so must I, then, I presume ; but, by heavens, it's 
 downright tyranny and oppression." 
 
 " Never mind, listen to me. Let's all go, and all behave 
 as ill as we can — be as unmannerly as bears — abuse every- 
 thing — be as familiar as possible, and laugh in his face. 
 He cannot touch us for it, if we do not go too far — and 
 he'll not trouble us to come a second time." 
 
 Their plans were arranged ; and at three o'clock they 
 were ushered into the cabin, with one of the midshipmen 
 of the ship, and Jerry, who, as a stranger, had been 
 honoured with an invitation. 
 
 Captain Bradshaw, whose property was equal to his 
 liberality, piqued himself upon keeping a good table ; 
 his cook was an artiste, and his wines were of the 
 very best quality. After all, there was no great hard- 
 ship in dining with him — but, ** upon compulsion ! " 
 —No. 
 
 The officers bowed. The captain, satisfied with their 
 obedience, intended, although he had brought them there 
 by force, to do the honours of his table with the greatest 
 urbanity. 
 
 " Roberts," said he, ** do me the favour to take the foot 
 of the table. — Doctor, here's a chair for you. — Mr Bradly, 
 come round on this side. Now, then, steward, oiF covers, 
 
246 The King's Own 
 
 and let us see what you have for us. Why, youngster, 
 does your captain starve you ? " 
 
 "No, sir," replied Jerry, who knew what was going on-, 
 ** but he don't give me a dinner every day." 
 
 " Humph ! " muttered the captain, who thought Mr 
 Jerry very free upon so short an acquaintance. 
 
 The soup was handed round; the first spoonful that 
 Roberts took in his mouth, he threw out on the snow- 
 white deck, crying out, as soon as his mouth was empty, 
 " O Lord ! " 
 
 "Why, what's the matter?" inquired the captain. 
 
 "So cursed hot, I've burnt my tongue." 
 
 " Oh, that's all ! steward, wipe up that mess," said the 
 captain, who was rather nice in his eating. 
 
 "Do you know Jemmy Cavan, sir, at Barbadoes?" 
 inquired the doctor. 
 
 "No, sir, I know no Jemmies," replied Captain Brad- 
 shaw, surprised at his familiar address. 
 
 " He's a devilish good fellow, sir, I can tell you. When 
 he gets you on shore, he'll make you dine with him every 
 day, whether or not. He'll take no denial." 
 
 " Now that's what I call a d — d good fellow : you don't 
 often meet a chap like him," observed the master. 
 
 Captain Bradshaw felt that he was indirectly called a 
 chap, which did not please him. 
 
 " Mr Bradly, will you take some mutton ? " 
 
 " If you please," said the master. 
 
 " Roberts, I'll trouble you to carve the saddle of 
 mutton." 
 
 The first lieutenant cut out a slice, and taking it on 
 the fork, looked at it suspiciously, and then held his nose 
 over it. 
 
 " Why, what's the matter ? " 
 
 " Rather high, sir, I'm afraid." 
 
 "Oh, I smell it here," said Jerry, who entered into the 
 joke. 
 
 " Indeed ! steward, remove that dish ; fortunately it is 
 not all our dinner. What will you take, Mr Bradly ? " 
 
The King's Own 247 
 
 ** Why, really, I seldom touch anything but the joint. 
 I hate your kickshaws, there's so much pawing about them. 
 I'll wait, if you please ; in the meantime, I'll drink a glass 
 of wine with you, Captain Bradshaw." 
 
 ** The devil you will ! " was nearly out of the captain's 
 mouth, at this reversal of the order of things ; but he 
 swallowed it down, and answered, in a surly tone, ** With 
 great pleasure, sir." 
 
 " Come, doctor, let you and I hob and nob," said the 
 first lieutenant. They did so, and clicked their glasses 
 together with such force as to break them both, and spill 
 the wine upon the fine damask table-cloth. Jerry could 
 contain himself no longer, but burst out into a roar of 
 laughter, to the astonishment of Captain Bradshaw, who 
 never had seen a midshipman thus conduct himself at his 
 table before : but Jerry could not restrain his inclination 
 for joining with the party, although he had no excuse for 
 his behaviour. 
 
 " Bring some wine-glasses, steward ; and you'll excuse 
 me, gentlemen, but I will thank you not to try the strength 
 of them again," said Captain Bradshaw, with a very 
 majestic air. 
 
 "Now, Mr Ferguson, I shall be happy to take a glass 
 of wine with you. What will you have ? There's sherry 
 and moselle." 
 
 **I prefer champagne, if you please," answered the 
 surgeon, who knew that Captain Bradshaw did not produce 
 it, except when strangers were at the table. 
 
 Captain Bradshaw restrained his indignation, and ordered 
 champagne to be brought. 
 
 " I'll join you," cried the first lieutenant, shoving in his 
 glass. 
 
 "Come, younker, let you and I have a glass cosy 
 together," said Jerry to the midshipman, who, frightened 
 at what was going on, moved his chair a little further from 
 Jerry, and then looked, first at him and then at the captain. 
 
 " Oh, pray take a glass with the young gentleman," 
 said Captain Bradshaw, with mock politeness. 
 
248 The King's Own 
 
 "Come, steward, none of your half allowance, if you 
 please," continued the impertinent Jerry. "Now, 
 then, my cock, here's towards you, and 'better luck 
 still.'" 
 
 Captain Bradshaw was astonished. " I say, youngster, 
 did Captain M ever flog you ? " 
 
 " No, sir," replied Jerry, demurely, perceiving that he 
 had gone too far; "he always treats his officers like 
 gentlemen." 
 
 " Then, I presume, sir, when they are on board of his 
 ship, that they conduct themselves as gentlemen." 
 
 This hint made Jerry dumb for some time ; the officers, 
 however, continued as before. The surgeon dropped his 
 plate, full of damascene tart, on the deck. The first 
 lieutenant spilt his snufF on the table-cloth, and laid his 
 snuff-box on the table, which he knew to be the captain's 
 aversion ; and the master requested a glass of grog, as 
 the rotgut French wines had given him a pain in the 
 bowels. Captain Bradshaw could hardly retain his seat 
 upon the chair, upon which he fidgetted right and left. 
 He perceived that his officers were behaving in a very 
 unusual manner, and that it was with a view to his 
 annoyance : yet it was impossible for him to take notice 
 of breaking glasses, and finding fault with the cookery, 
 which they took care to do, sending their plates away 
 before they had eaten a mouthful, with apparent disgust ; 
 neither could he demand a court-martial for awkwardness 
 or want of good manners at his own table. He began to 
 think that he had better have left out the ^^ every day until 
 further orders^'' in the memorandum, as rescinding it im- 
 mediately would have been an acknowledgment of their 
 having gained the victory; and as to their going on in 
 this way, to put up with it was impossible. 
 
 The dinner was over, and the dessert placed on the 
 table. Captain Bradshaw passed the bottles round, helping 
 himself to Madeira. Roberts took claret, and as soon as 
 he had tasted it, "I beg your pardon. Captain Bradshaw," 
 said he, " but this wine is corked." 
 
The King's Own 249 
 
 " Indeed ! — take it away, steward, and bring another 
 bottle." 
 
 Another was put on the table. 
 
 " I hope you'll find that better, Mr Roberts," said the 
 captain, who really thought that what he stated had been 
 the case. 
 
 ** Yes," replied the first lieutenant ; "for the description 
 of wine, it's well enough." 
 
 " What do you mean, sir ? Why, it's Chateau Margot, 
 of the first growth." 
 
 " Excuse me, sir," replied the officer, with an incredulous 
 smile ; " they must have imposed upon you." 
 
 Captain Bradshaw, who was an excellent judge of wine, 
 called for a glass, and pouring out the claret, tasted it. 
 " I must differ from you, sir ; and, moreover, I have no 
 better." 
 
 ** Then I'll trouble you to pass the port, doctor, for I 
 really cannot drink that stuff." 
 
 " Do you drink port, Mr Bradly ? " said the captain, 
 with a countenance as black as a thunder-cloud. 
 
 " No, not to-day ; I am not well in my inside : but I'll 
 punish the port to-morrow." 
 
 " So will I," said the surgeon. 
 
 " And as I am not among the privileged y^ added Jerry, 
 who had already forgotten the hint, " I'll take my whack 
 to-day." 
 
 "Perhaps you may," observed the captain, drily. 
 
 The officers now began to be very noisy, arguing among 
 themselves upon points of service, and taking no notice 
 whatever of the captain. The master, in explanation, 
 drew a chart, with wine, upon the polished table, while 
 the first lieutenant defended his opinion with pieces of 
 biscuit, laid at different positions — during which two more 
 glasses were demolished. 
 
 The captain rang, and ordered coffee in an angry tone. 
 When the officers had taken it, he bowed stiffiy, and 
 wished them good evening. 
 
 There was one dish which was an object of abhorrence 
 
250 The King's Own 
 
 to Captain Bradshaw. The first lieutenant, aware of it, 
 as they rose to depart, said, "Captain Bradshaw, if it's 
 not too great a liberty, we should like to have some tripe, 
 to-morrow. We are all three very partial to it." 
 
 ** So am I," rejoined Jerry. 
 
 Captain Bradshaw could hold out no longer. " Leave 
 the cabin immediately, gentlemen. By heavens, you shall 
 never put your legs under my table again." 
 
 " Are we not to dine here to-morrow, sir ? " replied the 
 first lieutenant, with affected surprise ; ** the order says, 
 
 * every day.' " 
 
 "Till further orders," roared the captain; "and now 
 
 you have them, for I'll be d d if ever you dine with 
 
 me again." 
 
 The officers took their departure, restraining their mirth 
 until they gained the gun-room; and Jerry was about 
 to follow, when Captain Bradshaw caught him by the 
 arm. 
 
 " Stop, my young gentleman, you've not had your 
 
 * whack ' yet." 
 
 " I've had quite sufficient, sir, I thank you," replied 
 Jerry ; "an excellent dinner — many thanks to your 
 hospitality." 
 
 " Yes, but I must now give you your dessert." 
 
 " I've had my dessert and coffee too, sir," said Jerry, 
 trying to escape. 
 
 " But you have not had your chasse-cafe, and I cannot 
 permit you to leave the cabin without it. Steward, desire 
 a boatswain's mate to bring his cat, and a quarter-master to 
 come here with seizings." 
 
 Jerry was now in a stew — the inflexible countenance of 
 Captain Bradshaw showed that he was in earnest. How- 
 ever, he held his tongue until the operators appeared, 
 hoping that the captain would think better of it, 
 
 " Seize this young gentleman up to the breach of the 
 gun, quarter-master ! " 
 
 " Will you oblige me, sir, by letting me know my 
 offence ? " 
 
The King^s Own 251 
 
 « No, sir." 
 
 ** I do not belong to your ship," continued Jerry. ** If 
 
 I have done wrong, Captain M is well known to be a 
 
 strict officer, and will pay every attention to your com- 
 plaint." 
 
 " I will save him the trouble, sir." 
 
 Jerry was now seized up, and every arrangement made 
 preparatory to punishment. " Well, sir," resumed Jerry, 
 ** it must be as you please ; but I know what Captain 
 M will say." 
 
 "What, sir?" 
 
 " That you were angry with your officers, whom you 
 could not punish, and revenged yourself upon a poor boy." 
 
 *• Would he ? — Boatswain's mate, where's your cat ? " 
 
 ** Here, sir ; — how many tails am I to use ? " 
 
 ** Oh, give him the whole nine." 
 
 "Why, your honour," replied the man, in a com- 
 passionate tone, " there's hardly room for them there." 
 
 Jerry, who, when his indignation was roused, carea 
 little what he said, and defied consequences, now addressed 
 the captain. 
 
 "Captain Bradshaw, before you commence, will you allow 
 me to tell you what I will call you after the first lash ? " 
 
 " What, sir .? " 
 
 " What ! " cried Jerry with scorn, — " Why, if you cut 
 me to pieces, and turn me out of the service afterwards, I 
 will call you a paltry coward, and your own conscience, 
 when you are able to reflect, will tell you the same." 
 
 Captain Bradshaw started back with astonishment at 
 such unheard-of language from a midshipman ; but he was 
 pleased with the undaunted spirit of the boy — perhaps he 
 felt the truth of the observation. At all events, it saved 
 Jerry. After a short pause, the captain said — 
 
 " Cast him loose ; but observe, sir, never let me see 
 your face again while you are in the ship ! " 
 
 " No, nor any other part of me, if I can help it," replied 
 Jerry, buttoning up his clothes, and making a precipitate 
 escape by the cabin-door. 
 
2J2 The King's Own 
 
 Chapter XXXV 
 
 } 
 
 The air no more was vital now, 
 But did a mortal poison grow. 
 The lungs, which used to fan the heart, 
 Served only now to fire each part ; 
 What should refresh, increased the smart. 
 And now their very breath, 
 The chiefest sign of life, became the cause of death I " 
 
 Sprat, Bishop of Rochester, 
 
 The Aspasia did not drop her anchor In Carlisle Bay. until 
 three weeks after the arrival of the frigate which brought 
 up Courtenay and the prize crew ; but she had not been 
 idle, having three valuable prizes, which she had captured 
 in company. Courtenay immediately repaired on board of 
 
 his ship, to report to Captain M the circumstances 
 
 which had occurred connected with the loss of his five men. 
 
 He was too honourable to attempt to disguise or palliate 
 the facts : on the contrary, he laid all the blame upon 
 himself, and enhanced the merits of the two midshipmen. 
 
 Captain M , who admired his ingenuous confession, 
 
 contented himself with observing, that he trusted it would 
 be a caution to him during his future career in the service. 
 To Seymour and Jerry he said nothing, as he was afraid that 
 the latter would presume upon commendation; but he 
 treasured up their conduct in his memory, and determined 
 to lose no opportunity that might offer to reward them. 
 
 Courtenay descended to the gun-room, where he was 
 warmly greeted by his messmates, who crowded round 
 him to listen to his detail of the attempt to re-capture. 
 
 " Well," observed Price, " it appears we have had a 
 narrow chance of losing a messmate." 
 
 " Narrow chance lose two, sar," replied Billy Pitts ; 
 " you forgit, sar, I on board schooner ! " 
 
 " Oh, Billy, are you there ? How does the dictionary 
 come on 1 " 
 
 '* Come on well, sar ; I made a corundum on Massa 
 Doctor, when on board schooner." 
 
The King's Own 253 
 
 " Made a what ? — a corundum ! What can that be ? " 
 
 "It ought to be something devilish hard," observed 
 Courtenay. 
 
 " Yes, sar, debblish hard find out. Now, sar, — Why 
 Massa Macallan like a general ? " 
 
 " I'm sure I can't tell. We give it up, Billy." 
 
 "Then, sar, I tell you. Because \iQfeelossiferP 
 
 " Bravo, Billy ! — Why you'll write a book soon. By- 
 the-bye, Macallan, I must not forget to thank you for 
 the loan of that gentleman : he has made himself very 
 useful, and behaved very well." 
 
 "Really, Massa Courtenay, I tought I not give you 
 satisfaction." 
 
 "Why so, Billy?" 
 
 "Because, sar, you nebber give me present — not one 
 dollar." 
 
 " He has you there," said Price ; " you must fork out." 
 
 " Not a rap — the nigger had perquisites. I saw the 
 English merchants give him a handful of dollars, before 
 they left the vessel." 
 
 " Ah ! they real gentlemen, Massa Capon and Massa 
 ^lam 'um name — I forgot." 
 
 " And what am I, then, you black thief?" 
 
 " Oh ! you, sar, you very fine officer," replied Billy, 
 quitting the gun-room. 
 
 Courtenay did not exactly like the answer — but there 
 was nothing to lay hold of. As usual, when displeased, 
 he referred to his snufF-box, muttering something, in 
 which the word " annoying " could only be distinguished. 
 
 The breeze from the windsail blew some of the snuff 
 out of the box into the eyes of Macallan. 
 
 " I wish to Heaven you would be more careful, 
 Courtenay," cried the surgeon, in an angry tone, and 
 stamping with the pain. 
 
 " I really beg your pardon," replied Courtenay, " snuff- 
 ing's a vile habit, — I wish I could leave it off." 
 
 "So do your messmates," replied the surgeon; "I 
 cannot imagine what pleasure there can be in a practice 
 
254 '^^^ King's Own 
 
 in itself so nasty, independent of the destruction of the 
 olfactory powers." 
 
 "It's exactly for that reason that I take snufF; I am 
 convinced that I am a gainer by the loss of the power 
 of smell." 
 
 " I consider it ungrateful, if not wicked, to say so," 
 replied the surgeon, gravely. " The senses were given 
 to us as a source of enjoyment." 
 
 "True, doctor," answered Courtenay, mimicking the 
 language of Macallan ; " and if I were a savage in the 
 woods, there could not be a sense more valuable, or 
 affording so much gratification, as the one in question. 
 I should rise with the sun, and inhale the fragance of the 
 shrubs and flowers, offered up in grateful incense to 
 their Creator, and I should stretch myself under the 
 branches of the forest tree, as evening closed, and enjoy 
 the faint perfume with which they wooed the descending 
 moisture after exhaustion from the solar heat. But in 
 civilised society, where men and things are packed too 
 closely together, the case is widely different : for one 
 pleasant, you encounter twenty offensive smells ; and of 
 all the localities for villanous compounds, a ship is in- 
 dubitably the worst. I therefore patronise * baccy,' which, 
 I presume, was intended for our use, or it would not 
 have been created." 
 
 " But not for our abuse." 
 
 " Ah ! there's the rock that we all split upon — and I, 
 with others, must plead guilty. The greatest difficulty 
 in this world is, to know when and where to stop. Even 
 a philosopher like yourself cannot do it. You allow your 
 hypothesis to whirl in your brain, until it forms a vortex 
 which swallows up everything that comes within its influ- 
 ence. A modern philosopher, with his hypothesis, is 
 like the man possessed with a devil in times of yore ; and 
 it is not to be cast out by any means that I know of." 
 
 " As you please," replied Macallan, laughing ; " I only 
 deprecated a bad habit." 
 
 " An hypothesis is only a habit, — a habit of looking 
 
The King's Own 255 
 
 through a glass of one peculiar colour, which imparts its 
 hue to all around it. We are but creatures of habit. 
 Luxury is nothing more than contracting fresh habits, 
 and having the means of administering to them — ergOy 
 doctor, the more habits you have to gratify, the more 
 luxuries you possess. You luxuriate in the contempla- 
 tion of nature — Price in quoting, or trying to quote, 
 Shakespeare — Billy Pitts in his dictionary — I in my snuff- 
 box ; and surely we may all continue to enjoy our harmless 
 propensities, without interfering with each other : although 
 I must say, that those still-born quotations of our mess- 
 mate Price are most tryingly annoying." 
 
 " And so is a pinch of snuff in the eye, I can assure 
 you," replied Macallan. 
 
 ** Granted ; but we must ' give and take,' doctor." 
 
 " In the present case, I don't care how much you take, 
 provided you don't give," rejoined Macallan, recovering 
 his good humour. 
 
 A messenger from Captain M , who desired to 
 
 speak with Macallan, put an end to the conversation. 
 
 ** Mr Macallan," said Captain M , when the surgeon 
 
 came into the cabin to receive his commands, "I am 
 sorry to find, from letters which I have received, that 
 the yellow fever is raging in the other islands in a most 
 alarming manner, and that it has been communicated to 
 the squadron on the station. I am sorry to add, that I 
 have received a letter from the governor here, informing 
 me that it has made its appearance at the barracks. I 
 am afraid that we have little chance of escaping so general 
 a visitation. As it is impossible to put to sea, even if 
 my orders were not decisive to the contrary, are there 
 not some precautions which ought to be taken ? " 
 
 ** Certainly, sir. It will be prudent to fumigate the 
 lower deck , it has already been so well ventilated and 
 whitewashed, that nothing else can be done ; we must 
 hope for the best." 
 
 **I do so," replied Captain M ; "but my hope is 
 
 mingled with anxious apprehensions, which I cannot 
 
256 The King's Own 
 
 control. We must do all we can, and leave the rest to 
 Providence." 
 
 The fears of Captain M were but too well grounded. 
 
 For some days, no symptoms of infection appeared on 
 board of the Aspasia; but the ravages on shore, among 
 the troops, were to such an extent, that the hospitals were 
 filled, and those who were carried in might truly be said 
 to have left hope behind. Rapid as was the mortality, it 
 was still not rapid enough for the admittance of those who 
 were attacked with the fatal disease ; and as the bodies of 
 fifteen or twenty were, each succeeding evening, borne 
 unto the grave, the continual decrease of the military 
 cortege which attended the last obsequies, told the sad 
 tale, that those who, but a day or two before, had 
 followed the corpses of others, were now carried on their 
 own biers. 
 
 Other vessels on the station, which had put to sea from 
 the different isles, with the disappointed expectation 
 of avoiding the contagion, now came to an anchor in the 
 bay, their crews so weakened by disease and death that 
 they could with difficulty send up sufficient men to furl 
 their sails. Boat after boat was sent on shore to the naval 
 hospital, loaded with sufferers, until it became so crowded 
 that no more could be received. Still the Aspasia, from 
 the precautions which had been taken, in fumigating, and 
 avoiding all unnecessary contact with the shipping and the 
 shore, had for nearly a fortnight escaped the infection ; 
 but the miasma was at last wafted to the frigate, and in 
 the course of one night, fifteen men, who were in health 
 the preceding evening, before eight o'clock on the 
 following morning were lying in their hammocks under 
 the half-deck. Before the close of that day, the number 
 of patients had increased to upwards of forty. The 
 
 hospitals were so crowded that Captain M agreed 
 
 with Macallan that it would be better that the men should 
 remain on board. 
 
 The frigate was anchored with springs on her cable, so 
 as always to be able to warp her stern to the breeze ; the 
 
The King's Own 257 
 
 cabin bulk-heads on the main-deck, and the thwart-ship 
 bulk-heads below, were removed, and the stern windows 
 and ports thrown open, to admit a freer circulation of air 
 than could have been obtained by riding with her head 
 to the sullen breeze, which hardly deigned to fan the 
 scorching cheeks of the numerous and exhausted patients. 
 The numbers on the list daily increased, until every part 
 of the ship was occupied with their hammocks, and the 
 surgeon and his assistants had scarcely time to relieve one 
 by excessive bleeding, and consign him to his hammock, 
 before another, staggering and fainting under the rapid 
 disease, presented himself with his arm bared, ready for 
 the lancet. More blood was thrown into the stagnant 
 water of the bay than would have sufficed to render ever 
 verdant the laurels of many a well-fought action (for our 
 laurels flourish not from the dew of Heaven, but must be 
 watered with a sanguine stream) — and, alas, too soon, 
 more bodies were consigned to the deep than would 
 have been demanded from the frigate in the warmest 
 proof of courage and perseverance in her country's cause. 
 
 It is a scene like this which appals the sailor's heart. 
 It is not the range of hammocks on the main-deck, 
 tenanted by pale forms, with their bandages steeped 
 in gore ; for such is the chance of war, and the blood has 
 flowed from hearts boiling with ardour and devotion. If 
 not past cure, the smiles and congratulations of their ship- 
 mates alleviate the anguish and fever of the wound : if 
 past all medical relief, still the passage from this transitory 
 world is soothed by the affectionate sympathy of their 
 messmates, by the promise to execute their last wishes, by 
 the knowledge that it was in their country's defence they 
 nobly fell. 'Tis not the chance of wreck, or of being 
 consigned, unshrouded, to the dark wave, by the 
 treacherous leak, or overwhelming fury of the storm. 
 'Tis not the " thought-executing fire." Every and all of 
 these they are prepared and are resigned to meet, as ills to 
 which their devious track is heir. But when disease, in its 
 most loathsome form and implacable nature, makes its 
 
 K. I. R 
 
258 The King's Own 
 
 appearance — when we contemplate, in perspective, our 
 own fate in the unfortunate who is selected, like the 
 struggling sheep, dragged from the hurdled crowd, to 
 be pierced by the knife of the butcher — when the horror 
 of infection becomes so strong that we hold aloof from 
 administering the kind offices of relief to our dearest 
 friends ; and, eventually prostrated ourselves, find the 
 same regard for self pervades the rest, and that there is no 
 voluntary attendance — then the sight of the expiring 
 wretch, in his last effort, turning his head over the side of 
 his hammock, and throwing off the dreadful black vomit, 
 harbinger of his doom — 'tis horrible ! too horrible ! 
 
 And the anxiety which we would in vain suppress — the 
 reckless laugh of some, raised but to conceal their fear 
 from human penetration — the intoxicating draught, poured 
 down by others to dull the excited senses — the follies of 
 years reviewed in one short minute — our life, how spent, 
 — how much to answer for ! — a world how overvalued — a 
 God how much neglected ! — the feeling that we ought to 
 pray, the inclination that propels us to do so, checked by 
 the mistaken yet indomitable pride which puts the question 
 to our manhood, " Will ye pray in fear, when ye neglected 
 it in fancied security ? " Down, stubborn knees ! Pride 
 is but folly towards men — insanity towards God ! 
 
 But why dwell upon such a scene ? Let it suffice to 
 state, that seventy of the Aspasia^s men fell victims to the 
 baneful climate, and that many more, who did recover, 
 were left in such a state of exhaustion, as to require their 
 immediate return to their native shores. Except O'Keefe, 
 the purser, all the officers whom I have introduced to the 
 reader escaped. Three, from the midshipmen's berth, 
 who had served their time, and who for many months 
 had been drinking the toast of " A bloody war and sickly 
 season," fell a sacrifice to their own thoughtless and 
 selfish desire ; and the clerk, who anticipated promotion 
 when he heard that the purser was attacked, died before 
 him. 
 
 When all was over, Jerry observed to Prose, ** Well, 
 
The King's Own 259 
 
 Prose, * it's an ill wind that blows nobody any good.' We 
 have had not one single thrashing during the sickness ; 
 but I suppose, now that their courage is returned, we 
 must prepare for both principal and interest." 
 
 " Well now, Jerry, I do declare that's very likely, but 
 I never thought of it before." 
 
 The large convoys of merchantmen that came out, 
 supplied the men that were required to man the disabled 
 ships ; and transports brought out cargoes from the depots 
 to fill up the skeleton ranks of the different companies. 
 Among the various blessings left us in this life of suffering, 
 is forgetfulness of past evils ; and the yellow fever was 
 in a short time no longer the theme of dread, or even of 
 conversation. 
 
 " Well, Tom, what sort of a place is this here West 
 Hinges ? " inquired a soldier, who had been just landed 
 from a transport, to an old acquaintance in the regiment, 
 whom he encountered. 
 
 ** Capital place, Bill," returned the other to his inter- 
 rogation 5 " plenty to drink, and always a-dry." 
 
 But as I do not wish to swell my narrative, and have 
 no doubt but the reader will be glad to leave this 
 pestilential climate, I shall inform him, that for three years 
 the Aspasia continued on the station, daily encountering 
 the usual risks of battle, fire, and wreck ; and that at the 
 
 end of that period the health of Captain M was so 
 
 much injured, by the climate and his own exertions, that 
 he requested permission to quit the station. 
 
 Chapter XXXVI 
 
 Sir Bash, This idol of my heart is — my own wife ! 
 
 Love. Your own wife ? 
 
 Sir Bash, Yes, my own wife. 'Tis all over with me : I am undone. 
 
 The Way to keep Him. 
 
 ** Show us something new." Such was the cry of men 
 at the time of the Prophet, and such it will continue until 
 
26o The King's Own 
 
 all prophecies are accomplished, all revelations confirmed. 
 Man is constant in nought but inconsistency. He is 
 directed to take pattern from the industrious bee, and 
 lay up the sweet treasures which have been prepared 
 for his use ; but he prefers the giddy flight of the butter- 
 fly, pursuing his idle career from flower to flower, until, 
 fatigued with the rapidity of his motions, he reposes for 
 a time, and revolves in his mind where he shall bend his 
 devious way in search of ** something new." 
 
 This is the fatal propensity by which our first parents 
 fell, and which, inherited by us, is the occasion of our 
 follies and our crimes. " "Were man but constant, he 
 were perfect ; " but that he cannot be. He is aware of 
 the dangers, the hardships of travel — of the difference 
 between offices performed by an interested and heartless 
 world, and the sweet ministering of duty and affection. 
 He feels that home, sweet home, is the heaven of such 
 imperfect bliss as this world can bestow ; yet, wander he 
 must, that he may appreciate its value : and although he 
 hails it with rapture, soon after his return it palls upon 
 him, and he quits it again in search of variety. Thus 
 is man convinced of the beauty of Virtue, and acknow- 
 ledges the peace that is to be found in her abode; yet, 
 propelled by the restless legacy of our first parents, he 
 wanders into the entangled labyrinths of vice — until, 
 satisfied that all is vexation, he retraces his steps in 
 repentance and disgust. Thus he passes his existence in 
 sinning, repenting, and sinning again, in search of " some- 
 thing new." 
 
 When Mr Rainscourt was first separated from his wife, 
 he felt himself released from a heavy burthen, which had 
 oppressed him for years ; or as if fetters, which had 
 been long riveted, had been knocked off; and he 
 congratulated himself upon his regained liberty. Plunging 
 at once into the depths of vice and dissipation, he sought 
 pleasure after pleasure, variety upon variety, — all that 
 life could offer, or money purchase : and for a time 
 thought himself happy. But there are drawbacks which 
 
The King's Own 261 
 
 cannot be surmounted ; and he who wholly associates 
 with the vicious, must, more than any other, be exposed 
 to the effects of depravity. He found man more 
 than ever treacherous and ungrateful — woman more than 
 ever deceiving — indulgence, cloying — debauchery, 
 enervating — and his constitution and his spirits exhausted 
 by excess. Satiated with everything, disgusted with 
 everybody, he sought for " something new." 
 
 For more than two years he had not seen, and had 
 hardly bestowed a thought upon, his wife and daughter, 
 
 who still continued to reside at the mansion at . Not 
 
 knowing what to do with himself, it occurred to him that 
 the country air might recruit his health; and he felt a 
 degree of interest, if not for his wife, at least for his 
 daughter. He determined, therefore, to pay them a visit. 
 The horses were ordered: and, to the astonishment of 
 Mrs Rainscourt, to whom he had given no intimation of 
 his whim, and who looked upon a visit from her husband, 
 in her retirement, as a visionary idea, Rainscourt made his 
 appearance, just as she was about to sit down to dinner, 
 in company with the M'Elvinas, and the vicar, who had 
 become one of her most intimate associates. 
 
 If Rainscourt was pleased with the improvement of 
 Emily, who was now more than fourteen years old, how 
 much more was he astonished at the appearance of his 
 wife, who, to his eyes, seemed even handsomer, if possible, 
 than on the day when he had led her to the altar. For 
 more than two years, content, if not perfect happiness, 
 had been Mrs Rainscourt's lot. She had recovered her 
 health, her bloom, and her spirits, and not having had 
 any source of irritation, her serenity of temper had been 
 regained ; and Mrs Rainscourt, to whose extreme beauty, 
 from assuetude, he had before been blind, now appeared 
 to him, after so long an absence, quite a different person 
 from the one whom he had quitted with such indifference ; 
 and as he surveyed her, he seemed to feel that freshness 
 of delight unknown to vitiated minds, except when suc- 
 cessful in their search after " something new." 
 
i62 The King's Own 
 
 But Rainscourt was not altogether wrong in his idea 
 that his wife was quite a different personage from the 
 one which he had quitted. The vicar, who was acquainted 
 with her situation, had not failed in his constant exertions 
 for the improvement of mankind; he had, by frequent 
 conversation, and inculcation of our Christian duties, 
 gradually softened her into a charitable and forgiving 
 temper ; and, now that she had no opportunity of exercis- 
 ing them, she had been made acquainted with the passive 
 forbearance and humility constituting a part of the duties 
 of a wife. 
 
 She met her husband with kindness and respect — while 
 his daughter, who flew into his arms, proved that she 
 had not been prepossessed against him, as he anticipated. 
 
 Pleased with his reception, and with the company that 
 he happened to meet, Rainscourt experienced sensations 
 which had long been dormant ; and it occurred to him, 
 that an establishment, with such an elegant woman as 
 Mrs Rainscourt at the head, and his daughter's beauty 
 to grace it, would not only be more gratifying, but more 
 reputable, than the course of life which he had lately 
 pursued. He made himself excessively agreeable — was 
 pleased with the benevolent demeanour of the vicar — 
 thought Susan a lovely young woman, and M'Elvina a 
 delightful companion ; and, when he retired to the 
 chamber prepared for his reception, wondered that he 
 had never thought of paying them a visit before. 
 
 It had been the intention of Rainscourt to have trespassed 
 upon his wife's hospitality for one night only, and then 
 have taken his departure for some fashionable watering- 
 place ; but there seemed to be such an appearance of 
 renewed friendship between him and Mrs Rainscourt, 
 that an invitation was given by the vicar, for the whole 
 party, on the ensuing day, to meet at the vicarage ; and 
 this was followed up by another from M'Elvina, for the 
 day afterwards, at his cottage. This decided Mr Rains- 
 court to remain there a day or two longer. 
 
 But when the time of his departure arrived, Rainscourt 
 
The King's Own 26^ 
 
 was so pleased "with his new acquaintance, so delighted 
 with his daughter, and, to his astonishment, so charmed 
 by his wife, that he could not tear himself away. 
 
 Women are proverbially sharp-sighted in all where the 
 heart is concerned, and Mrs Rainscourt soon perceived 
 that the admiration of her husband was not feigned. 
 Gratified to find that she had not yet lost her attractions, 
 and, either from a pardonable feeling of revenge at his 
 desertion, or to prove to him that he was not aware of 
 what he had rejected, she exerted all her powers to please ; 
 she was not only amiable, but fascinating ; and after a 
 sojourn of three weeks, which appeared but as many days, 
 Rainscourt was reluctantly compelled to acknowledge to 
 himself, that he was violently enamoured of his discarded 
 wife. 
 
 He now felt that he should assume a higher station in 
 society by being at the head of his own establishment, 
 and that his consequence would be increased, by the 
 heiress of so large a property residing under his protec- 
 tion ; and he thought that, if he could persuade Mrs 
 Rainscourt to live with him again, he could be happy, 
 and exercise with pleasure the duties of a father and a 
 husband. Neither the vicar nor M'Elvina were ignorant 
 of his feelings ; and the former, who recollected that 
 those whom God has joined, no man should put asunder, 
 had made up his mind to bring the affair, if possible, to 
 a happy issue y and Rainscourt, who perceived the influence 
 which the vicar possessed over his wife, determined to 
 request that he would act as a mediator. 
 
 The vicar was delighted when Rainscourt called upon 
 him one morning, and unfolded his wishes. To reconcile 
 those who had been at variance, to restore a husband to 
 his wife, a father to a daughter, was the earnest desire 
 of the good man's heart. He accepted the office with 
 pleasure ; and in the course of the afternoon, while 
 Rainscourt called upon the M'Elvinas, that he might be 
 out of the way, proceeded upon his mission of peace and 
 good-will. 
 
264 The King's Own 
 
 Mrs Rainscourt, who was not surprised at the intelli- 
 gence, listened to the vicar attentively, as he pointed out 
 the necessity of forgiveness, if she hoped to be forgiven — 
 of the conviction, in his own mind, that her husband was 
 reformed — of the unpleasant remarks to which a woman 
 who is separated from her husband must always be 
 subjected — of the probability that the faults were not 
 all on his side, and of the advantage her daughter would 
 derive from their reunion : to which he entreated her to 
 consent. 
 
 Mrs Rainscourt was moved to tears. The conflict 
 between her former love and her outraged feelings — the 
 remembrance of his long neglect, opposed to his present 
 assiduities — the stormy life she had passed in his company, 
 and her repose of mind since their separation — weighed 
 and balanced against each other so exactly, that the scale 
 would turn on neither side. 
 
 She refused to give any decided answer, but requested 
 a day or two for reflection ; and the vicar, who recollected 
 the adage, that, in an affair of the heart, " the woman who 
 deliberates is lost," left her with a happy presage that his 
 endeavours would be crowned with success. But Mrs 
 Rainscourt would not permit her own heart to decide. It 
 was a case in which she did not consider that a woman 
 was likely to be a correct judge; and she had so long 
 been on intimate terms with M*Elvina, that she resolved 
 to lay the case before him, and be guided by his opinion. 
 
 The next day, Mrs Rainscourt went to the cottage 
 alone, and having requested Susan to exclude all visitors, 
 entered into a full detail of all the circumstances which 
 had occurred previous to her separation from her husband, 
 and the decision that she was now called upon to make, 
 from his importunity. 
 
 Susan, who felt that she was unable to advise, in a case 
 of such importance to Mrs Rainscourt's future happiness, 
 immediately referred the matter to M'Elvina. 
 
 His answer was decided. 
 
 " I should be sorry, Mrs Rainscourt, to give an opinion 
 
The King's Own 265 
 
 in opposition to that of the worthy vicar, did I not 
 conceive that his slight knowledge of the world would, 
 in this instance, tend to mislead both himself and you. 
 Before Mr Rainscourt had remained here a week, I 
 prophesied, as Susan will corroborate, that this proposal 
 would be made. Aware of his general character, and of 
 the grounds of your separation, I took some pains to 
 ingratiate myself, that I might ascertain his real sentiments ; 
 and, with regret I express my conviction, that his pre- 
 possession in your favour, strong as it really is at present, 
 will but prove transitory, and that possession would only 
 subject you to future insults. He is tiot reformed; but, 
 satiated with other enjoyments, and fascinated with your 
 attractions, his feelings towards you are those of renewed 
 inclination, and not arising from conviction, or remorse at 
 his unprincipled career. You are happy at present — your 
 refusal may, by stimulating his attentions, increase your 
 happiness : but if you yield, it will only be a source of 
 misery to you both. Such is my opinion. Do not let him 
 know that I have influenced you, or it will interrupt 
 an intimacy, which I shall follow up, I trust, to your 
 advantage ; therefore, give no answer at present, nor 
 while he remains here : for I perceive that he is a violent 
 man when thwarted in his wishes. Demand a fortnight's 
 consideration after he is gone, and then you will be able to 
 decide from reflection, without being biassed against your 
 own judgment, by his working upon feelings which, 
 to the honour of women, when the heart is concerned, 
 spurn at the cold reasonings of prudence and worldly 
 wisdom." 
 
 The advice of the man of the world prevailed over that 
 of the man of God ; and Rainscourt, after waiting in 
 town, with impatience, for the answer, received a decided 
 but kind refusal. He tore the letter into fragments, with 
 indignation, and set off for Cheltenham, more violently 
 in love with his wife than he was before her rejection 
 of him. 
 
266 The King's Own 
 
 Chapter XXXVII 
 
 Great Negative ! how vainly would the wise 
 
 Inquire, define, distinguish, teach, devise. 
 
 Didst thou not stand to point their dull philosophies. 
 
 Rochester's Ode to " Nothing^ 
 
 Should you feel half as tired with reading as I am with 
 writing, I forgive you, with all my heart, if you throw 
 down the book, and read no more. I have written too 
 fast — I have quite sprained my imagination — for you must 
 know that this is all fiction^ every word of it. Yet I do 
 not doubt but there are many who will find out who the 
 characters are meant for, notwithstanding my assertion to 
 the contrary. Well, be it so. It's a very awkward 
 position to have to write a chapter of sixteen pages, 
 without materials for more than two ; at least I find it so. 
 Some people have the power of spinning out a trifle of 
 matter, covering a large surface with a grain of ore — like 
 the goldbeater, who, out of a single guinea, will compose 
 a score of books. I wish I could. 
 
 Is there nothing to give me an idea ? I've racked my 
 sensorium internally to no purpose. Let me look round 
 the cabin for some external object to act as a fillip to an 
 exhausted imagination. A little thing will do. — Well, 
 here's an ant. That's quite enough. Commenfons. 
 
 " Home-keeping youths have ever homely wits," they 
 say J but much as travel by land may enlarge the mind, it 
 never can be expanded to the utmost of its capabilities, 
 until it has also peregrinated by water. I believe that not 
 only the human intellect, but the instinct of brutes, is 
 enlarged by going to sea. 
 
 The ant which attracted my attention is one of a nest in 
 my cabin, whose labours I often superintend : and I defy 
 any ants, in any part of the four continents, or wherever 
 land may be, to show an equal knowledge of mechanical 
 power. I do not mean to assert that there is originally 
 
The King's Own iG^j 
 
 a disproportion of intellect between one animal and another 
 of the same species ; but I consider that the instinct of 
 animals is capable of expansion, as well as the reason of 
 man. That ants on shore would, if it were required, be 
 equally assisted by their instinct, I believe ; but not being 
 required, it is not brought into play : and, therefore, as I 
 before observed, they have not the resources of which my 
 little colony at present are in possession. 
 
 Now I will kill a cockroach for them ; there is no 
 difficulty in finding one, unfortunately for me, for they 
 gnaw everything that I have. There never was a class 
 of animals so indifferent to their fare, whether it be 
 paper, or snuff, or soap, or cloth. Like Time, they 
 devour everything. The scoundrels have nearly de- 
 molished two dozen antibilious pills. I hope they will 
 remember Dr Vance as long as they live. 
 
 Well, here's one — a fine one. I throw his crushed 
 carcass on the deck, and observe the ants have made their 
 nest in the beams over my head, from which I infer, that 
 the said beams are not quite so sound as they should be. 
 An ant has passed by the carcass, and is off on a gallop to 
 give notice. He meets two or three — stops a second — and 
 passes on. Now the tide flows ; it's not above a minute 
 since I threw the cockroach down, and now it is sur- 
 rounded by hundreds. What a bustle ! — what running 
 to and fro ! They must be giving orders. See, there are 
 fifty at least, who lay hold of each separate leg of the 
 monster, who in bulk is equal to eight thousand of them. 
 The body moves along with rapidity, and they have gained 
 the side of the cabin. Now for the ascent. See how 
 those who hold the lower legs have quitted them, and pass 
 over to assist the others at the upper. As there is not 
 room for all to lay hold of the creature's legs, those who 
 cannot, fix their forceps round the bodies of the others, 
 double-banking them, as we call it. Away they go, up the 
 side of the ship — a steady pull, and all together. But now 
 the work becomes more perilous, for they have to convey 
 the body to their nest over my head, which is three feet 
 
268 The King's Own 
 
 from the side of the ship. How can they possibly carry 
 that immense weight, walking with their heads down- 
 wards, and clinging with their feet to the beams ? 
 Observe how carefully they turn the corner — what bustle 
 and confusion in making their arrangements ! Now they 
 start. They have brought the body head-and-stern with 
 the ship, so that all the legs are exactly opposed to each 
 other in the direction which they wish to proceed. One 
 of the legs on the fore side is advanced to its full stretch, 
 while all the others remain stationary. That leg stops, 
 and the ants attached to it hold on with the rest, while 
 another of the foremost legs is advanced. Thus they 
 continue, until all the foremost are out, and the body 
 of the animal is suspended by its legs at its full stretch. 
 Now one of the hindmost legs closes in to the body, while 
 all the others hold on — now another, and another, each in 
 their turn ; and by this skilful manoeuvre they have con- 
 trived to advance the body nearly an inch along the ceiling. 
 One of the foremost legs advances again, and they proceed 
 as before. 
 
 Could your shore-going ants have managed this ? I have 
 often watched them, when a boy, because my grandmother 
 used to make me do so ; in later days, because I delighted 
 in their industry and perseverance ; but, alas ! in neither 
 case did I profit by their example. 
 
 "Now, Freddy," the old lady would say, giving her 
 spectacles a preparatory wipe, as she basked in a summer 
 evening's sun, after a five o'clock tea, " fetch a piece of 
 bread and butter, and we will see the ants work. Lord 
 bless the boy, if he hasn't thrown down a whole slice. 
 "Why do you waste good victuals in that way ? Who do 
 you think's to eat it, after it has been on the gravel ? 
 There, pinch a bit off and throw it down. Put the rest 
 back upon the plate — it will do for the cat." 
 
 But these ants were no more to be compared to mine, 
 than a common labourer is to the engineer who directs the 
 mechanical powers which raise mountains from their 
 foundation. My old grandmother would never let me 
 
The King's Own 269 
 
 escape until the bread and butter was in the hole, and, 
 what was worse, I had then to listen to the moral inference 
 which was drawn, and which took up more time than the 
 ants did to draw the bread and butter — all about industry, 
 and what not ; a long story, partly her own, partly 
 borrowed from Solomon ; but it was labour in vain. I 
 could not understand why, because ants like bread and 
 butter, I must like my book. She was an excellent old 
 woman ; but nevertheless, many a time did I have a fellow- 
 feeling with the boy in the caricature print, who is sitting 
 with his old grandmother and the cat, and says, " I wish 
 one of us three were dead. It an't I — and it an't you, 
 pussy." 
 
 "Well, she died at last, full of years and honour ; and I 
 was summoned from school to attend her funeral. My 
 uncle was much affected, for she had been an excellent 
 mother. She might have been so ; but I, graceless boy, 
 could not perceive her merits as a grandmother, and showed 
 a great deal of fortitude upon the occasion. I recollect a 
 circumstance attendant upon her funeral which, connected 
 as it was with a subsequent one, has since been the occasion 
 of serious reflection upon the trifling causes which will 
 affect the human mind, when prostrate under aflliction. 
 My grandmother's remains were consigned to an old family 
 vault, not far from the river. When the last ceremonies 
 had been paid, and the cofHn was being lowered into the 
 deep receptacle of generations which had passed away, I 
 looked down, and it was full of water, nearly up to the 
 arch of the vault. Observing my surprise, and perceiving 
 the cause, my uncle was much annoyed at the circumstance j 
 but it was too late — the cords had been removed, and my 
 grandmother had sunk to the bottom. My uncle inter- 
 rogated the sexton after the funeral service was over. 
 
 "Why, sir, it's because it's high water now in the 
 river 5 she will be all dry before the evening." 
 
 This made the matter worse. If she was all adry in the 
 evening, she would be all afloat again in the morning. It 
 was no longer a place of rest, and my uncle's grief was 
 
270 The King's Own 
 
 much increased by the idea. For a long while afterwards, 
 he appeared uncommonly thoughtful at spring tides. 
 
 But although his grief yielded to time, the impression 
 was not to be effaced. Many years afterwards, a fair 
 cousin was summoned from the world, before she had time 
 to enter upon the duties imposed upon the sex, or be con- 
 vinced, from painful experience, that to die is gain. It 
 was then I perceived that my uncle had contracted a sort 
 of post-mortem hydrophobia. He fixed upon a church, on 
 the top of a hill, and ordered a vault to be dug, at a great 
 expense, out of the solid chalk, under the chancel of the 
 church. There it would not only be dry below, but even 
 defended from the rain above. It was finished — and (the 
 last moisture to which she was ever to be subjected) the 
 tears of affection were shed over her remains, by those 
 who lost and loved her. When the ceremony was over, 
 my uncle appeared to look down into the vault with a 
 degree of satisfaction. " There," said he, " she will lie as 
 dry as possible, till the end of time." And I really believe 
 that this conviction on his part went further to console him 
 than even the aid of religion, or the ministering of affection. 
 He often commented upon it, and as often as he did so, I 
 thought of my old grandmother and the spring tides. 
 
 I had an odd dream the other night, about my own burial 
 and subsequent state — which was so diametrically opposite 
 to my uncle's ideas of comfort, that I will relate it here. 
 
 I was dead; but, either from politeness or affection, I 
 knew not which, the spirit still lingered with the body, 
 and had not yet taken its flight, although the tie between 
 them had been dissolved. I had been killed in action : and 
 the first lieutenant of the ship, with mingled feelings of 
 sorrow and delight — sorrow at my death, which was a 
 tribute that I did not expect from him, and delight at his 
 assumed promotion, for the combat had been brought to a 
 successful issue — read the funeral service which consigned 
 me and some twenty others, sewed up in hammocks, to 
 the deep, into which we descended with one simultaneous 
 rush. 
 
The King's Own 271 
 
 I thought that we soon parted company from each other, 
 and, all alone, I continued to sink, sink, sink, until at last 
 I could sink no deeper. I was suspended, as it were ; I had 
 taken my exact position in the scale of gravity, and I lay 
 floating upon the condensed and buoyant fluid, many 
 hundred fathoms below the surface. I thought to myself, 
 " Here then am I to lie in pickle, until I am awakened." 
 It was quite dark, but by the spirit I saw as plain as if it 
 were noonday ; and I perceived objects in the water, which 
 gradually increased in size. They were sharks, in search 
 of prey. They attacked me furiously ; and as they 
 endeavoured to drag me out of my canvas cerements, I 
 whirled round and round as their flat noses struck against 
 my sides. At last they succeeded. In a moment, I was 
 dismembered without the least pain, for pain had been left 
 behind me in the world from which I had been released. 
 One separated a leg, with his sharp teeth, and darted away 
 north ; another an arm, and steered south ; each took his 
 portion, and appeared to steer away in a different direction, 
 as if he did not wish to be interrupted in his digestion. 
 
 ** Help yourselves, gentlemen, help yourselves," mentally 
 exclaimed I ; " but if Mr Young is correct in his * Night 
 Thoughts,' where am I to fumble for my bones, when they 
 are to be forthcoming ? " Nothing was left but my head, 
 and that, from superior gravity, continued to sink, gyrating 
 in its descent, so as to make me feel quite giddy : but it 
 had not gone far, before one, who had not received his 
 portion, darted down upon it perpendicularly, and as the 
 last fragment of me rolled down his enormous gullet, the 
 spirit fled, and all was darkness and oblivion. 
 
 But I have disgressed sadly from the concatenation of 
 ideas. The ant made me think of my grandmother, — my 
 grandmother of my uncle, — my uncle of my cousin, — and 
 her death of my dream, for " We are such stuff as dreams 
 are made of, and our little lives are rounded with a sleep." 
 But I had not finished all I had to say relative to the 
 inferior animals. When on board of a man-of-war, not 
 only is their instinct expanded, but they almost change 
 
272 The King's Own 
 
 their nature from their immediate contact with human 
 beings, and become tame in an incredibly short space of 
 time. Man had dominion given unto him over the beasts 
 of the field ; the fiercest of the feline race will not attack, 
 but avoid him, unless goaded on by the most imperious 
 demands of hunger 5 and it is a well-known fact, that 
 there is a power in the eye of man, to which all other 
 animals quail. What then must it be to an animal who is 
 brought on board, and is in immediate collision with 
 hundreds, whose fearless eyes meet his in every direction 
 in which he turns, and whose behaviour towards him 
 corresponds with their undaunted looks ? The animal is 
 subdued at once. I remember a leopard which was 
 permitted to run loose after he had been three days on 
 board, although it was thought necessary to bring him in 
 an iron cage. He had not been in the ship more than a 
 fortnight, when I observed the captain of the after-guard 
 rubbing the nose of the animal against the deck, for some 
 offence which he had committed. 
 
 " Why, you have pretty well brought that gentleman 
 to his bearings," observed I ; " he's as tame as a puppy." 
 
 " Tame ! why, sir, he knows better than to be other- 
 wise. I wish the Hemp^rer of Maroccy would send us on 
 board a cock rhinoceros — we'd tame him in a week." 
 
 And I believe the man was correct in his assertion. 
 
 The most remarkable change of habit that I ever 
 witnessed, was in a wether sheep, on board of a frigate, 
 during the last war. He was one of a stock which the 
 captain had taken on board for a long cruise, and being 
 the only survivor, during the time that the ship was 
 refitting he had been allowed to run about the decks, and 
 had become such a favourite with the ship's company, that 
 the idea of his being killed, even when short of fresh 
 provisions, never even entered into the head of the captain. 
 Jack, for such was his cognomen, lived entirely with the 
 men, being fed with biscuit from the different messes. 
 He knew the meaning of the different pipes of the boat- 
 swain's mates, and always went below when they piped to 
 
The King's Own 273 
 
 breakfast, dinner, or supper. But amongst other particu- 
 larities, he would chew tobacco, and drink grog. Is it to 
 be wondered, therefore, that he was a favourite with the 
 sailors ? That he at first did this from obedience is 
 possible ; but, eventually, he was as fond of grog as any 
 of the men ; and when the pipe gave notice for serving it 
 out, he would run aft to the tub, and wait his turn — for 
 an extra half pint of water was, by general consent, thrown 
 into the tub when the grog was mixed, that Jack might 
 have his regular allowance. From habit, the animal knew 
 exactly when his turn came. There were eighteen messes 
 in the ship ; and as they were called, by the purser's 
 steward, or sergeant of marines, in rotation — first mess, 
 second mess, etc., — after the last mess was called Jack 
 presented himself at the tub, and received his allowance. 
 
 Now, it sometimes occurred that a mess, when called, 
 would miss its turn, by the man deputed to receive the 
 liquor not being present : upon which occasion, the other 
 messes were served in rotation, and the one who had not 
 appeared to the call was obliged to wait till after all the 
 rest ; but a circumstance of this kind always created a 
 great deal of mirth ; for the sheep, who knew that it was 
 his turn after the eighteenth, or last mess, would butt 
 away any one who attempted to interfere ; and if the party 
 persevered in being served before Jack, he would become 
 quite outrageous, flying at the offender, and butting him 
 forward into the galley, and sometimes down the hatch- 
 way, before his anger could be appeased — from which it 
 would appear that the animal was passionately fond of 
 spirits. This I consider as great a change in the nature of 
 a ruminating animal, as can well be imagined. 
 
 I could mention many instances of this kind, but I shall 
 reserve them till I have grown older j then I will be as 
 garrulous as Montaigne. As it is, I think I hear the reader 
 say—" All this may be very true, but what has it to do 
 with the novel ? " Nothing, I grant ; but it has a great 
 deal to do with making a book — for I have completed a 
 whole chapter out of nothing. 
 K. I. S 
 
274 T^^ King's Own 
 
 Chapter XXXVIII 
 
 And with a flowing sail 
 
 Went bounding for the island of the free, 
 Towards which the impatient wind blew half a gale ; 
 High dash'd the spray, the bows dipp'd in the sea. 
 
 ByRON. 
 
 After a run of six weeks, the Aspasia entered the 
 Channel. The weather, which had been clear during the 
 passage home, now altered its appearance ; and a dark sky, 
 thick fog, and mizzling cold rain, intimated their approach 
 to the English shore. But, relaxed as they had been by 
 three years' endurance of a tropical sun, it was nevertheless 
 a source of congratulation, rather than complaint ; for it was 
 " regular November Channel weather," and was associated 
 with their propinquity to those homes and firesides, which 
 would be enhanced in value from the ordeal to be passed 
 before they could be enjoyed. 
 
 **Hah!" exclaimed an old quarter-master, who had 
 served the earlier part of his life in a coaster, as he 
 buttoned his pea-jacket up to the throat ; " this is what 
 
 I calls something like 5 none of your d d blue skies 
 
 here." 
 
 Such is the power of affection, whether of person or 
 of things, that even faults become a source of endearment. 
 
 As the short day closed, the Aspasia, which was running 
 before the wind and slanting rain, which seemed to assist 
 her speed with its gravity, hove-to, and tried for soundings. 
 
 " Well, Stewart, what's the news ? " said one of the 
 midshipmen, as he entered the berth ; the drops of rain, 
 which hung upon the rough exterior of his great-coat, 
 glittering like small diamonds, from the reflection of the 
 solitary candle, which made darkness but just visible. 
 
 "News," replied Stewart, taking off his hat with a 
 jerk, so as to besprinkle the face of Prose with the water 
 that had accumulated on the top of it, and laughing at 
 
The King's Own 275 
 
 his sudden start from the unexpected shower ; " why, 
 as the fellows roar out with the second edition of an 
 evening paper ' great news, glorious news ! ' — and all 
 comprised in a short sentence : — Soundings in seventy-four 
 fathoms ; grey sand and shells." 
 
 ** Huzza ! " answered the old master's mate. 
 " Now for three cheers — and then for the song." 
 The three cheers having been given with due emphasis, 
 if not discretion, they all stood up round the table. 
 "Now, my boys, keep time. Mr Prose, if you attempt 
 to chime in with your confounded nasal twang, Til give 
 you a squeeze." 
 
 " For England, when, with favouring gale, 
 Our gallant ship up Channel steer'd. 
 And, scudding under easy sail. 
 
 The high blue western land appear'd, 
 To heave the lead the seaman sprung, 
 And to the watchful pilot sung, 
 By the deep nw?." 
 
 The song, roared out in grand chorus by the midship- 
 men, was caught up, after the first verse, by the marines 
 in their berth, close to them ; and from them passed along 
 the lower deck as it continued, so that the last stanzas 
 were sung by nearly two hundred voices, sending forth 
 a volume of sound, that penetrated every recess of the 
 vessel, and entered into the responsive bosoms of all on 
 board, not excepting the captain himself, who smiled, 
 as he bent over the break of the gangway, at what he 
 would have considered a breach of subordination in the 
 ship's company, had not he felt that it arose from that 
 warm attachment to their country which had created our 
 naval pre-eminence. 
 
 The song ended with tumultuous cheering fore and 
 aft, and not until then did the captain send down to request 
 that the noise might be discontinued. As soon as it was 
 over, the grog was loudly called for in the midshipmen's 
 berth, and made its appearance. 
 
 " Here's to the white cliffs of England," cried one. 
 
276 The King's Own 
 
 drinking ofF his full tumbler, and turning it upside down 
 on the table. 
 
 " Here's to the land of Beauty." 
 
 " Here's to the Emerald Isle." 
 
 " And here's to the land of Cakes," cried Stewart, 
 drinking off his tumbler, and throwing it over his shoulder. 
 
 " Six for one for skylarking," cried Prose. 
 
 " A hundred for one, you d d cockney, for all I 
 
 care." 
 
 " No — no — no," cried all the berth ; '* not one for one^ 
 
 " You shall have a song for it, my boys," cried Stewart, 
 who immediately commenced, with great taste and execu- 
 tion, the beautiful air — 
 
 « Should auld acquaintance be forgot, 
 And days o' lang syne ? " 
 
 " Well, I've not had my toast yet," said Jerry, when 
 the applause at the end of the song had discontinued : — 
 " Here's to the shady side of Pall-mall." 
 
 " And I suppose," said Stewart, giving Prose a slap on 
 the back, which took his breath away, " that you are 
 thinking of Wapping, blow you." 
 
 " I think I have had enough of wapping since I've been 
 in this ship," answered Prose. 
 
 *' Why, Prose, you're quite brilliant, I do declare," 
 observed Jerry. **Like a flint, you only require a blow 
 from Stewart's iron fist to emit sparks. Try him again, 
 Stewart. He's like one of the dancing dervishes, in the 
 Arabian Nights ; you must thrash him, to get a few 
 farthings of wit out of him." 
 
 " I do wish that you would keep your advice to your- 
 self, Jerry." 
 
 " My dear Prose, it's all for the honour of Middlesex 
 that I wish you to shine. I'm convinced that there's a 
 great deal of wit in that head of yours : but it's confined, 
 like the kernel in a nut ; there's no obtaining it without 
 breaking the shell. Try him again, Stewart." 
 
 ** Come, Prose, I'll take your part, and try his own 
 
The King's Own i^"] 
 
 receipt upon himself, I'll thrash him till he says something 
 witty." 
 
 ** I do like that, amazingly," replied Jerry. " Why, if I 
 do say a good thing, you'll never find it out. I shall be 
 thrashed to all eternity. Besides, I'm at too great a distance 
 from you." 
 
 " What do you mean } " 
 
 '* Why, I'm like some cows ; I don't give down my milk 
 without the calf is alongside of me. Now, if you were on 
 this side of the table " 
 
 " Which I am," replied Stewart, as he sprang over it, 
 and seizing Jerry by the neck — " Now, Mr Jerry, say a 
 good thing directly." 
 
 " Well, promise me to understand it. We are just in the 
 reverse situation of England and Scotland, after the battle 
 of Culloden." 
 
 " What do you mean by that, you wretch ? " cried 
 Stewart, whose wrath was kindled by the reference. 
 
 " Why, I'm in your clutches, just like Scotland was — a 
 conquered country." 
 
 " You lie, you little blackguard," cried Stewart, pinching 
 Jerry's neck till he forced his mouth open : ** Scotland was 
 never conquered." 
 
 '*Well, then," continued Jerry, whose bile was up, as 
 soon as Stewart relaxed his hold ; " I'm like King Charles 
 in the hands of the Scotch. How much was it that you sold 
 him for ? " 
 
 Jerry's shrivelled carcase sounded like a drum, from the 
 blow which he received for this second insult to Stewart's 
 idolised native land. As soon as he could recover his 
 speech, " Well, haven't I been very witty ? Are you con- 
 tent, or will you have some more ? or will you try Prose, 
 and see whether you can draw blood out of a turnip ? " 
 
 Stewart, who seemed disinclined to have any more 
 elegant extracts from Jerry, resumed his former seat by 
 Prose, who appeared to be in deep reflection. 
 
 *' Well, Prose, are you thinking of your friends in 
 Cheapside ? " 
 
278 The King's Own 
 
 **And suppose I am, Stewart? "We have the same 
 feehngs in the city that you have in the heather : and 
 ahhough I do not, hke you, pretend to be allied to former 
 kings, yet one may love one's father and mother, brothers 
 and sisters, without being able to trace back to one's 
 great great grandfather. I never disputed your high 
 pretensions ; why, then, interfere with my humble claims 
 to the common feelings of humanity ? " 
 
 ** I am rebuked, Prose," replied Stewart; "you shall 
 have my glass of grog for that speech, for you never made 
 a better. Give me your hand, my good fellow." 
 
 **I am glad that you, at last, show some symptoms of 
 reason," observed the still indignant Jerry, standing close 
 to the door. " I have some hopes of your majesty yet, 
 after such an extraordinary concession on your part. You 
 must have great reason to be proud that you are able to 
 trace your pedigree up to a border chieftain, who sallied 
 forth on the foray, when the spurs were dished up for his 
 dinner ; or, in plain words, went a cattle-stealing, and 
 robbing those who could not resist. It might then be con- 
 sidered a mark of prowess ; but times are altered now : and 
 if your celebrated ancestor lived in the present time, why," 
 (continued Jerry, pointing his finger under his left ear) 
 " he would receive what he well deserved, that's all." 
 
 " By Him that made me, get out of my reach, if you do 
 not wish me to murder you ! " cried Stewart, pale with 
 rage. 
 
 " I took care of that," replied Jerry, *' before I ventured 
 to give my opinion ; and now that I'm ready for a start, 
 I'll give you a piece of advice. Trace your ancestors as far 
 back as you can, as long as they have continued to be 
 honest men, — if you don't stop there, you are 2ifool " — and 
 Jerry very prudently made his escape at the conclusion of 
 his sentence. 
 
 " The hour of retribution will come," cried Stewart after 
 Jerry, as the latter sprang up the ladder ; but it did not, 
 for when they met next morning, it was to feast their eyes 
 upon the chalky cliffs of the Isle of Wight, as the Aspasia 
 
The King's Own 279 
 
 steered for the Needles. There are two events on board 
 of a man-of-war, after which, injuries are forgotten, 
 apologies are offered and received, intended duels are 
 suppressed, hands are exchanged in friendship, and good- 
 will drives away long-cherished animosity. One is, after 
 an action — another, upon the sight of native land, after a 
 protracted absence. 
 
 Jerry fearlessly ranged up alongside of Stewart, as he 
 looked over the gangway. 
 
 " We shall be at anchor by twelve o'clock." 
 
 " You may bless your stars for it," replied Stewart, with 
 a significant smile. 
 
 The Aspasta now ran through the Needles, and having 
 successively passed by Hurst Castle, Cowes, and the 
 entrance to Southampton Water, brought up at Spithead in 
 seven fathoms. The sails were furled, the ship was moored, 
 
 the boat was manned and Captain M went on shore 
 
 to report himself to the port-admiral, and deHver his 
 despatches. When the boat returned, it brought off letters 
 which had been awaiting the arrival of the ship. One in- 
 formed Jerry of the death of his father, and of his being 
 in possession of a fortune which enabled him to retire from 
 the service. Another, from the Admiralty, announced the 
 promotion of Stewart to the rank of lieutenant ; and one 
 from M*Elvina to our hero, inviting him to take up his 
 quarters at his house, as long as the service would permit, 
 
 stating that Captain M had been written to, to request 
 
 that he might be allowed leave of absence. 
 
 As soon as Captain M had received an answer from 
 
 the Admiralty, he returned on board, and acquainted his 
 officers that he had obtained leave to remain on shore for 
 some time, for the re-establishment of his health, and that 
 another captain would be appointed to the ship. He 
 turned the hands up, and addressed the ship's company, 
 thanking them for their good behaviour while under his 
 command, and expressing his hopes, that upon his re- 
 appointment he should find them all alive and well. The 
 first lieutenant, to his great surprise and delight, was pre- 
 
iSo The King's Own 
 
 sented with his rank as commander, which Captain M 
 
 had sohcited from the Admiralty. The men were dismissed, 
 
 and Captain M , bidding farewell to his officers, 
 
 descended the side and shoved off. As soon as the boat 
 was clear of the frigate, the men, without orders, ran up, 
 and manning the shrouds, saluted him with three farewell 
 
 cheers. Captain M took off his hat to the compliment, 
 
 and,' muffling up his face with his boat cloak to conceal his 
 emotion, the boat pulled for the shore. 
 
 Seymour, who was in the boat, followed his captain to 
 the inn ; who informed him, that he had obtained his dis- 
 charge into a guardship, that his time might go on, and 
 leave of absence for two months, which he might spend 
 
 with his friend M'Elvina. Captain M then dismissed 
 
 him with a friendly shake of the hand, desiring him to 
 write frequently, and to draw upon his agent if he required 
 any pecuniary assistance. 
 
 Seymour's heart was full, and he could not answer his 
 kind protector. He returned, on board, and bidding fare- 
 well to his messmates, the next" evening he had arrived at 
 the cottage of M'Elvina. 
 
 That his reception was cordial, it is hardly necessary to 
 state. M'Elvina, whose marriage had not been blessed 
 with a family, felt towards our hero as if he was his own 
 child; and Susan was delighted with the handsome 
 exterior arid winning manners of the lad, whose boyish 
 days had often been the theme of her husband's conversa- 
 tion. 
 
 If the reader will take the trouble to reckon with his 
 fingers, he will find that William Seymour is now sixteen 
 years old. If he will not, he must take my word for it ; 
 and it may also be as well to inform him, that Miss 
 Rainscourt is more than fourteen. I am the more par- 
 ticular in mentioning these chronological facts, because in 
 the next chapter I intend to introduce the parties to each 
 other. 
 
The King's Own 281 
 
 Chapter XXXIX 
 
 A strong bull stands, threat'ning furious war ; 
 
 He flourishes his horns, looks sourly round, 
 And, hoarsely bellowing, traverses his ground. 
 
 Blackmore. 
 
 It was on the second day after the arrival of Seymour, that 
 Emily, who was not aware of the addition to the party 
 at the cottage, proceeded on foot through the park and 
 fields adjacent, to pay Susan a visit. She was attended 
 by a man-servant, in livery, who carried some books, 
 which Mrs M*Elvina had expressed a desire to read. 
 When Emily had arrived at the last field, which was 
 rented by a farmer hard by, she was surprised to perceive 
 that it was occupied by an unpleasant tenant, to wit, a 
 large bull ; who, on their approach, commenced pawing 
 the ground, and showing every symptom of hostility. She 
 quickened her pace, and as the animal approached, found 
 that she had gained much nearer to the stile before her 
 than to the one which she had just passed over, and, 
 frightened as she was, she determined to proceed. The 
 servant who accompanied her manifested more fear than 
 she did. As the bull approached, Emily, who had heard 
 what precautions should be taken in 'a similar exigence, 
 turned her face towards the animal, and walked backwards 
 to the stile. The domestic seemed determined to preserve 
 the exact station which his duty and respect required, and 
 kept himself behind his young mistress. As, however, 
 the bull advanced, and seemed inclined to charge upon 
 them, his fears would not permit him to remain in that 
 situation, and throwing down the books, he took to his 
 heels, and ran for a gap in the hedge. By this manoeuvre 
 Emily was left to make any arrangement she pleased with 
 the infuriated animal. 
 
 But the bull had no quarrel with a lady, dressed in a 
 white muslin frock ; he had taken offence at the red plush 
 inexpressibles, which were a part of the family livery, and 
 
282 The King's Own 
 
 immediately ran at the servant, passing Emily without 
 notice. The terrified man threw himself in an agony of 
 fright into the gap, but was so paralysed with fear that he 
 had not strength to force his passage through. With his 
 head and shoulders on the other side of the hedge, there 
 he stuck on his hands and knees, offering a fair target to 
 the bull, who flew at it with such violence, that he forced 
 him several yards into the opposite field. Senseless and 
 exhausted, he lay there more from fear than injury, while 
 the roaring bull paced up and down the hedge, with his 
 tail in the air, attempting in vain to force a passage in 
 pursuit of the object of his detestation. 
 
 The mind of woman is often more powerful than her 
 frame -, and the one will bear up against circumstances in 
 which the other will succumb. Thus it was with Emily, 
 who reached the stile, clambered over it with difficulty, 
 and obtaining the house of M'Elvina, which was but a few 
 yards distant, felt that her powers failed her as soon as 
 exertion was no longer required. With difficulty she per- 
 ceived with her swimming eyes that there was a gentleman in 
 the parlour ; and faintly exclaiming, " Oh ! Mr M'Elvina ! " 
 fell senseless into the arms of William Seymour. 
 
 Mr and Mrs M'Elvina were not at home : they had 
 walked to the vicarage ; and Seymour, who was very busy 
 finishing a sketch of the Aspasia for his hostess, had 
 declined accompanying them in their visit. His surprise at 
 finding a young lady in his arms, may easily be imagined ; 
 but, great as was his surprise, his distress was greater, from 
 the extreme novelty of the situation. It was not that he 
 was unaccustomed to female society : on the contrary, his 
 captain had introduced him everywhere in the different 
 ports of the colonies in which they had anchored ; and 
 perhaps there is no better society, although limited, than is 
 to be met with at the table of a colonial governor : but 
 here it was quite different. He had been habituated to 
 follow in the wake, as the lady governess made sail for the 
 dining-room, the whole fleet forming two lines abreast in 
 close order, and then coming to an anchor, in beautiful pre- 
 
The King's Own 283 
 
 cision, to attack the dinner, which surrendered at discretion. 
 He had been habituated to the ball-room, where the ladies 
 glided over the chalked floor, like so many beautiful yachts 
 plying in Southampton Water on a fine day ; he had tried 
 his rate of sailing down the middle of a country dance with 
 some fair partner ; and tacked and wore as required to the 
 mazes of poussette and right and left. This was all plain 
 sailing ; but the case was now quite different. Here was 
 a strange sail, who had not even shown her number, taken 
 aback in stays, and on her beam-ends in a squall. 
 
 Seymour knew nothing about fainting. Sometimes a 
 man had fits on board a ship (although invariably dis- 
 charged when it was known) ; but the only remedy, in a 
 man-of-war, in such cases, was to lay the patient down 
 between the guns, and let him come-to at his own leisure. 
 It was impossible to act so in this case ; and Seymour, as 
 he bent over the beautiful pale countenance of Emily, felt 
 that he never could be tired of holding her in his arms. 
 However, as it was necessary that something should be 
 done, he laid her down on the sofa, and seizing the bell- 
 rope, pulled it violently for assistance. The wire had been 
 previously slackened, and the force which Seymour used 
 brought down the rope without ringing the bell. There 
 was but one in the room : and, not choosing to leave 
 Emily, he was again compelled to rely on his own resources. 
 What was good for her ? Water ? There was none in 
 the room, except what he had been painting with, and that 
 was desperately discoloured with the Indian ink. Never- 
 theless, he snatched up his large brush which he used for 
 washing-in his skies, and commenced painting her face and 
 temples with the discoloured water ; but without producing 
 the desired effect of re-animation. 
 
 What next ? — Oh, salts and burnt feathers ; he had read 
 of them in a novel. Salts he had none — burnt feathers were 
 to be procured. There were two live birds, called 
 cardinals, belonging to Mrs M*Elvina, in a cage near the 
 window, and there was also a stuffed green parrot in a 
 glass case. Seymour showed his usual presence of mind 
 
284 The King's Own 
 
 in his decision. The tails of the live birds would in all 
 probability grow again; that of the stuffed parrot never 
 could. He put his hand into the cage, and, seizing the 
 fluttering proprietors, pulled out both their long tails, and 
 having secured the door of the cage, thrust the ends of the 
 feathers into the fire, and applied them, frizzing and 
 spluttering, to the nostrils of Emily. But they were 
 replaced in the fire again and again, until they would emit 
 no more smoke, and Emily still continued in a state of 
 insensibility. There was no help for it — the parrot, which 
 he knew Mrs M^Elvina was partial to, must be sacrificed. 
 A blow with the poker demolished the glass, and the 
 animal was wrenched off its perch, and the tail inserted 
 between the bars of the grate. But burnt feathers were of 
 no use ; and Seymour, when he had burnt down the parrot's 
 tail to the stump, laid it upon the table in despair. 
 
 He now began to be seriously alarmed, and the beauty 
 of the object heightened his pity and commiseration. His 
 anxiety increased to that degree that, losing his presence 
 of mind, and giving way to his feelings, he apostrophised 
 the inanimate form, and, hanging over it with the tender- 
 ness of a mother over her lifeless child, as a last resource, 
 kissed its lips again and again with almost frantic anxiety. 
 At the time of his most eager application of this last remedy, 
 M'Elvina and Susan entered the room, without his being 
 aware of their approach. 
 
 The parrot on the table, with his tail still burning like a 
 slow match, first caught their eyes : and as they advanced 
 further in, there was Seymour, to their astonishment, kiss- 
 ing a young lady to whom he had never been introduced, and 
 who appeared to be quite passive to his endearments. 
 
 *' Seymour ! " cried M'Elvina, — " what is all this ?" 
 
 " I'm glad you've come ; I cannot bring her to. I've 
 tried everything." 
 
 "So it appears. Why, you've smothered her — she's 
 black in the face," replied M'Elvina, observing the marks 
 of the Indian ink upon Emily's cheek. 
 
 Susan, who immediately perceived the condition of 
 
The King's Own 285 
 
 Emily, applied her salts, and desired M'Elvina to call the 
 women. In a few minutes, whether it was that the 
 remedies were more effectual, or nature had resumed her 
 powers, Emily opened her eyes, and was carried upstairs 
 into Mrs M'Elvina's room. 
 
 We must return to the servant, who, with no other 
 injury than a severe contusion of the os coccygis, from 
 the frontal bones of the bull, recovered his senses and 
 his legs at the same moment, and never ceased exerting 
 
 the latter, until he arrived at Hall, where he stated, 
 
 what indeed he really believed to be the case, that Miss 
 Emily had been gored to death by the bull; asserting, 
 at the same time, what was equally incorrect, that he 
 had nearly been killed himself in attempting her rescue. 
 The tidings were communicated to Mrs Rainscourt, who, 
 frantic at the intelligence, without bonnet or shawl, flew 
 down the park towards the fields, followed by all the 
 servants of the establishment, armed with guns, pitchforks, 
 and any other weapons that they could obtain, at the 
 moment of hurry and trepidation. They arrived at the 
 field — the bull was there, waiting for them at the stile, 
 for he had observed them at a distance, and as he was 
 now opposed to half-a-dozen pair of inexpressibles, instead 
 of one, his wrath was proportionally increased. He pawed 
 the ground, bellowed and made divers attempts to leap 
 the stile, which, had he effected, it is probable that more 
 serious mischief would have occurred. The whole party 
 stood aghast, while Mrs Rainscourt screamed, and called 
 for her child — her child; and attempted to recover her 
 liberty, from the arms of those who held her, and rush 
 into the field to her own destruction. 
 
 The farmer to whom the animal belonged had heard 
 his bellowing on the first assault, and had come out to 
 ascertain the cause. He was just in time to behold the 
 footman pushed through the hedge, and to witness the 
 escape of Emily into the house of M'Elvina. Intending 
 to remove the animal, he returned to his dinner, when 
 his resumed bellowing summoned him again, and per- 
 
286 The King's Own 
 
 ceiving the cause, he joined the party, and, addressing 
 Mrs Rainscourt, " The young lady is all safe, ma'am, in 
 the gentleman's house yonder. The brute's quiet enough ; 
 it's all along of them red breeches that angers him. A 
 bull can't abide 'em, ma'am." 
 
 ** Safe, do you say ? Thank God. Oh ! take me to 
 her." 
 
 "This way, ma'am, then," said the farmer, leading her 
 round the hedge to the cottage of M*Elvina, by a more 
 circuitous way. 
 
 Susan had just called up M^Elvina, and Seymour was 
 again left to himself in the parlour, when Mrs Rainscourt, 
 bursting from those who conducted her, tottered in, and 
 sunk exhausted on the sofa. Seymour, to whom the 
 whole affair was a mystery, and who had been ruminating 
 upon it, and upon the sweet lips which he had pressed, 
 in utter astonishment cried out, " What ! another ? " Not 
 choosing, in this instance, to trust to his own resources, 
 he contented himself with again shoving the parrot's tail 
 between the bars, and as he held it to his patient's nose, 
 loudly called out for M*Elvina, who, summoned by his 
 appeals, with many others, entered the room, and relieved 
 him of his charge, who soon recovered, and joined her 
 daughter in the room upstairs. 
 
 The carriage had been sent for to convey Mrs Rains- 
 court and her daughter home. When they came down 
 into the parlour, previous to their departure, Seymour 
 was formally introduced, and received the thanks of Mrs 
 Rainscourt for the attention which he had paid to her 
 daughter, and a general invitation to the Hall. 
 
 Emily, to whom Susan had communicated the panacea 
 to which Seymour had ultimately resorted, blushed deeply 
 as she smiled her adieus ; and our hero, as the carriage 
 whirled away, felt a sensation as new to him as that of 
 Cymon, when ignited by the rays of beauty which flashed 
 from the sleeping Iphigenia. 
 
The King's Own 287 
 
 Chapter XL 
 
 Idiots only will be cozened twice. 
 
 Dryden. 
 
 Seymour did not fail to profit by the invitation extended 
 by Mrs Rainscourt, and soon became the inseparable 
 companion of Emily. His attentions to her were a source 
 of amusement to the M'Elvinas and her mother, who 
 thought little of a flirtation between a midshipman of 
 sixteen and a girl that was two years his junior. The 
 two months' leave of absence having expired, Seymour 
 was obliged to return to the guard-ship, on the books 
 of which his name had been enrolled. It was with a 
 heavy heart that he bade farewell to the M'Elvinas. He 
 had kissed away the tears of separation from the cheeks 
 of Emily, and their young love, unalloyed as that between 
 a brother and sister, created an uneasy sensation in either 
 heart which absence could not remove. 
 
 When our hero reported himself to the commanding 
 officer of the guard-ship, he was astonished at his ex- 
 pressing a total ignorance of his belonging to her, and 
 sent down for the clerk, to know if his name was on 
 the books. 
 
 The clerk, a spare, middle-sized personage, remarkably 
 spruce and neat in his attire, and apparently about forty 
 years of age, made his appearance, with the open list 
 under his arm, and, with a humble bow to the first 
 lieutenant, laid it upon the capstern-head, and running 
 over several pages, from the top to the bottom, with his 
 finger, at last discovered our hero's name. 
 
 **It's all right, young gentleman," said the first 
 lieutenant. **Take him down to the berth, Mr Skrimmage, 
 and introduce him. You've brought your hammock, of 
 course, and it is to be hoped that your chest has a good 
 lock upon it ; if not, I can tell you you'll not find all your 
 clothes tally with your division list by to-morrow morning. 
 
288 The King's Own 
 
 But we cannot help these things here. We are but a 
 sort of a * thoroughfare,' and every man must take care of 
 himself." 
 
 Seymour thanked the first lieutenant for his caution, 
 and descended with the clerk, who requested him to step 
 into his private cabin, previous to being ushered into the 
 gun-room, where the midshipmen's mess was held — and 
 of which Mr Skrimmage filled the important post of 
 caterer. " Mrs Skrimmage, my dear," said Seymour's 
 conductor, " allow me to introduce to you Mr Seymour." 
 The lady curtsied with great affectation, and an air of 
 condescension, and requested our hero to take a chair — 
 soon after which Mr Skrimmage commenced — " It is the 
 custom, my dear sir, in this ship, for every gentleman 
 who joins the midshipmen's berth to put down one guinea 
 as entrance money, after which the subscription is 
 restricted to the sum of five shillings per week, which 
 is always paid in advance. You will therefore oblige me 
 by the trifling sum of six-and-twenty shillings, previous 
 to my introducing you to your new messmates. You 
 will excuse my requesting the money to be paid now, 
 which, I assure you, does not arise from any doubt of your 
 honour ; but the fact is, being the only member of the 
 mess who can be considered as stationary, the unpleasant 
 duty of caterer has devolved upon me, and I have lost 
 so much money by young gentlemen leaving the ship 
 in a hurry, and forgetting to settle their accounts, 
 that it has now become a rule, which is never broken 
 through." 
 
 As soon as Mr Skrimmage had finished his oration, 
 which he delivered in the softest and most persuasive 
 manner, Seymour laid down the sum required, and having 
 waited, at the clerk's request, to see his name, and sum 
 paid, entered in the mess-book by Mrs Skrimmage, he 
 was shown into the gun-room, which he found crowded 
 with between thirty and forty midshipmen, whose 
 vociferations and laughter created such a din as to drown 
 the voice of his conductor, who cried out, *' Mr Seymour, 
 
The King's Own 289 
 
 gentlemen, to join the mess," and then quitted the 
 noisy abode, which gave our hero the idea of bedlam 
 broke loose. 
 
 On one side of the gun-room a party of fifteen or 
 twenty were seated cross-legged on the deck in a circle, 
 stripped to their shirts, with their handkerchiefs laid up 
 like ropes in their hands. A great-coat and a sleeve- 
 board, which they had borrowed from the marine tailor, 
 who was working on the main-deck, lay in the centre, 
 and they pretended to be at work with their needles on 
 the coat. It was the game of goose, the whole amuse- 
 ment of which consisted in giving and receiving blows. 
 Every person in the circle had a name to which he was 
 obliged to answer immediately when it was called, in 
 default of which he was severely punished by all the 
 rest. The names were distinguished by colours, as 
 Black Cap, Red Cap ; and the elegant conversation, 
 commenced by the master tailor, ran as follows ; observ- 
 ing that it was carried on with the greatest rapidity of 
 utterance. 
 
 " That's a false stitch — whose was it ? " 
 
 '' Black Cap." 
 
 *'No, sir, not me, sir. 
 
 '' Who, then, sir .? " 
 
 " Red Cap." 
 
 " You lie, sir." 
 
 '* Who then, sir?" 
 
 "Blue Cap, Blue Cap." 
 
 "You lie, sir." 
 
 "Who then, sir?" 
 
 "Yellow Cap, Yellow Cap." 
 
 Yellow Cap unfortunately did not give the lie in time, 
 for which he was severely punished, and the game then 
 continued. 
 
 But the part of the game which created the most mirth 
 was providing a goose for the tailors, which was accom- 
 plished by some of their confederates throwing into the 
 circle any bystander who was not on his guard, and who, 
 
 K. I. T 
 
290 The King's Own 
 
 immediately that he was thrown in, was thrashed and 
 kicked by the whole circle until he could make his escape. 
 An attempt of this kind was soon made upon Seymour, 
 who, being well acquainted with the game, and perceiving 
 the party rushing on him to push him in, dropped on his 
 hands and knees, so that the other was caught in his 
 own trap, by tumbling over Seymour into the circle 
 himself, from which he at last escaped, as much mortified 
 by the laugh raised against him as with the blows which 
 he had received. 
 
 Seymour, who was ready to join in any fun, applied 
 for work, and was admitted among the journeymen. 
 
 " What's your name ? " 
 
 " Dandy Grey Russet Cap," replied Seymour, selecting 
 a colour which would give him ample time for answering 
 to his call. 
 
 " Oh ! I'll be d d but you're an old hand," observed 
 
 one of the party, and the game continued with as much 
 noise as ever. 
 
 But we must leave it, and return to Mr Skrimmage, 
 who was a singular, if not solitary instance of a person 
 in one of the lowest grades of the service having amassed 
 a large fortune. He had served his time under an attorney, 
 and from that situation, why or wherefore the deponent 
 sayeth not, shipped on board a man-of-war in the capacity 
 of a ship's clerk. The vessel which first received him on 
 board was an old fifty-gun ship of two decks, a few of 
 which remained in the service at that time, although they 
 have long been dismissed and broken up. Being a dull 
 sailer, and fit for nothing else, she was constantly em- 
 ployed in protecting large convoys of merchant vessels to 
 America and the West Indies. Although other men-of- 
 war occasionally assisted her in her employ, the captain 
 of the fifty-gun ship, from long-standing, was invariably 
 the senior ofiicer, and the masters of the merchant vessels 
 were obliged to go on board his ship to receive their 
 convoy instructions, and a distinguishing pennant, which 
 is always given without any fee. 
 
The King's Own 291 
 
 But Skrimmage, who had never been accustomed to 
 deliver up any paper without a fee when he was in his 
 former profession, did not feel inclined to do so in his 
 present. Make a direct charge he dare not — he, therefore, 
 hit upon a ruse de guerre which effected his purpose. He 
 borrowed from different parties seven or eight guineas, 
 and when the masters of merchant vessels came on board 
 for their instructions, he desired them to be shown down 
 into his cabin, where he received them with great formality 
 and very nicely dressed. The guineas were spread upon 
 the desk, so that they might be easily reckoned. 
 
 **Sit down, captain; if you please, favour me with 
 your name, and that of your ship." As he took these 
 down, he carelessly observed, "I have delivered but 
 seven copies of the instructions to-day as yet." 
 
 The captain, having nothing to do in the meantime, 
 naturally cast his eyes round the cabin and was attracted 
 by the guineas, the number of which exactly tallied with 
 the number of instructions delivered. It naturally occurred 
 to him that they were the clerk's perquisites of office. 
 
 " What is the fee, sir ? " 
 
 "Whatever you please — some give a guinea, some 
 two." 
 
 A guinea was deposited ; and thus with his nest-eggs, 
 Mr Skrimmage, without making a direct charge, contrived 
 to pocket a hundred guineas, or more, for every convoy 
 that was put under his captain's charge. After four years, 
 during which he had saved a considerable sum, the ship 
 was declared unserviceable, and broken up, and Mr 
 Skrimmage was sent on board of the guard-ship, where 
 his ready wit immediately pointed out to him the advant- 
 ages which might be reaped by permanently belonging to 
 her, as clerk of the ship, and caterer of the midshipmen's 
 berth. After serving in her for eight years, he was offered 
 his rank as purser, which he refused, upon the plea of 
 being a married man, and preferring poverty with Mrs 
 
 S to rank and money without her. At this the reader 
 
 will not be astonished when he is acquainted, that the 
 
292 The King's Own 
 
 situation which he held was, by his dexterous plans, 
 rendered so lucrative, that in the course of twelve years, 
 with principal and accumulating interest, he had amassed 
 the sum of ^15,000. 
 
 A guard-ship is a receiving-ship for officers and men, 
 until they are enabled to join, or are drafted to their 
 respective ships. The consequence is, that an incessant 
 change is taking place, — a midshipman sometimes not 
 remaining on board of her for more than three days before 
 an opportunity offers of joining his ship. In fact, when 
 we state that, during the war, upwards of one thousand 
 midshipmen were received and sent away from a guard- 
 ship, in the course of twelve months, we are considerably 
 within the mark. Now, as Mr Skrimmage always received 
 one guinea as entrance to the mess, and a week's subscrip- 
 tion in advance, and, moreover, never spent even the latter, 
 or had his accounts examined, it is easy to conceive what 
 a profitable situation he had created for himself. Mrs 
 Skrimmage, also, was a useful helpmate: she lived on 
 board, at little expense, and, by her attentions to the 
 dear little middies and their wearing apparel, who were 
 sent on board to join some ship for the first time, added 
 very considerably to his profits. 
 
 Her history was as follows. It had three eras : — she 
 had been a lady's maid, in town ; and, in this situation, 
 acquiring a few of the practices of "high life," she had 
 become something else on the town j and, finally, Mrs 
 Skrimmage. With the view of awing his unruly associates 
 into respect, Mr Skrimmage (as well as his wife) was 
 particularly nice in his dress and his conversation, and 
 affected the gentleman, as she did the lady : this generally 
 answered pretty well ; but sometimes unpleasant circum- 
 stances would occur, to which his interest compelled Mr 
 Skrimmage to submit. It may be as well here to add, 
 that, at the end of the war, Mr Skrimmage applied for 
 his promotion for long service, and, obtaining it, added 
 his purser's half-pay to the interest of his accumulated 
 capital, and retired from active service. 
 
The King's Own 293 
 
 The steward and his boy entering the gun-room with 
 two enormous black tea-kettles, put an end to the 
 boisterous amusement. It was the signal for tea. 
 
 ** Hurra for Scaldchops ! " cried the master tailor, rising 
 from the game, which was now abandoned. A regiment 
 of cups and saucers lined the two sides of the long table, 
 and a general scramble ensued for seats. 
 
 " I say, Mr Crihhage^'' cried an old master's mate, to the 
 caterer, who had entered shortly after the tea-kettles, and 
 assumed his place at the end of the table, " what sort of 
 stuff do you call this ? " 
 
 " What do you mean to imply, sir ? " replied Mr 
 Skrimmage, with a pompous air. 
 
 "Mean to ply? — why I mean to ply, that there's 
 
 d d little tea in this here water ; why, I've seen gin as 
 
 dark a colour as this." 
 
 " Steward," said Mr Skrimmage, turning his head over 
 his shoulder towards him, " have you not put the 
 established allowance into the tea-pot } " 
 
 " Yes, sir," replied the steward ; " a tea-spoonful for 
 every gentleman, and one for coming up." 
 
 " You hear, gentlemen," said Mr Skrimmage. 
 
 ** Hear ? — yes, but we don't taste. I should like to see 
 it sarved out," continued the master's mate. 
 
 " Sir," replied Mr Skrimmage, " I must take the liberty 
 to observe to you, that that is a responsibility never 
 entrusted to the steward. The established allowance 
 is always portioned out by Mrs Skrimmage herself." 
 
 " D — n Mrs Skrimmage," said a voice from the other 
 end of the table. 
 
 " "What ! " cried the indignant husband ; " what did I 
 hear ? Who was that ? " 
 
 ** 'Twas this young gentleman, Mr Caterer," said 
 a malicious lad, pointing to one opposite. 
 
 " Me, sir ! " replied the youngster, recollecting the 
 game they had just been playing ; " you lie, sir ? " 
 
 *' Who then, sir ? " 
 
 " Black Cap — Black Cap," pointing to another. 
 
294 '^^^ King's Own 
 
 " I d — n Mrs Skrimmage ! You lie, sir." 
 
 <* Who then, sir?" 
 
 ** Red Cap— Red Cap." 
 
 " I d — n Mrs Skrimmage ! You lie, sir." 
 
 And thus was the accusation bandied about the table, 
 to the great amusement of the whole party, except the 
 caterer, who regretted having taken any notice of what 
 had been said. 
 
 " Really, gentlemen, this behaviour is such as cannot 
 be tolerated," observed Mr Skrimmage, who invariably 
 preferred the suaviter in modo, " As caterer of this 
 berth " 
 
 "It is your duty to give us something to eat," added 
 one of the midshipmen. 
 
 ** Gentlemen, you see what there is on the table ; there 
 are rules and regulations laid down, which cannot be 
 deviated from, and " 
 
 ** And those are, to starve us. I've paid six-and-twenty 
 shillings, and have not had six-and-twenty mouthfuls 
 in the three days that I have been here. I should like to 
 see your accounts, Mr Caterer." 
 
 " Bravo ! let's have his accounts," roared out several 
 of the party. 
 
 " Gentlemen, my accounts are ready for inspection, 
 and will bear, I will venture to assert, the most minute 
 investigation ; but it must be from those who have a 
 right to demand it, and I cannot consider that a person 
 who has only been in the ship for three days has any 
 pretence to examine them." 
 
 " But I have been in the ship three weeks," said 
 another, " and have paid you one pound sixteen shillings. 
 I have a right, and now I demand them — so let us have 
 the accounts on the table, since we can get nothing else." 
 
 " The accounts — the accounts," were now vociferated 
 for by such a threatening multitude of angry voices, 
 that Mr Skrimmage turned pale with alarm, and thought 
 it advisable to bend to the threatening storm. 
 
 " Steward, present the gentlemen's respects to Mrs 
 
The King's Own 295 
 
 Skrimmage, and request that she will oblige them by 
 sending in the mess account-book. You understand — the 
 gentlemen's respects to Mrs Skrimmage." 
 
 "D — n Mrs Skrimmage," again cried out one of the 
 midshipmen, and the game of goose was renewed with 
 the phrase, until the steward returned with the book. 
 
 ** Mrs Skrimmage's compliments to the gentlemen 
 of the gun-room mess, and she has great pleasure in 
 complying with their request; but, in consequence of 
 her late indisposition, the accounts are not made up further 
 than to the end of last month." 
 
 This was the plan upon which the wily clerk invariably 
 acted, as it put an end to all inquiry -, but the indignation 
 of the midshipmen was not to be controlled, and as they 
 could not give it vent in one way, they did in another. 
 
 " Gentlemen," said one of the oldest of the fraternity, 
 imitating Mr Skrimmage's style, " I must request that 
 
 you will be pleased not to kick up such a d d 
 
 row, because I wish to make a speech : and I request that 
 two of you will be pleased to stand sentries at the door, 
 permitting neither ingress nor egress, that I may ' spin my 
 yarn ' without interruption. 
 
 ** Gentlemen, we have paid our mess money, and we 
 have nothing to eat. We have asked for the accounts, 
 and we are put off with ' indisposition.' Now, gentlemen, 
 as there can be no doubt of the caterer's honour, I propose 
 that we give him a receipt in full." 
 
 " And here's a pen to write it with," cried out another, 
 holding up the sleeve-board, with which they had been 
 playing the game. 
 
 " Then, gentlemen, are you all agreed — to cobb the 
 caterer ? " 
 
 The shouts of assent frightened Mr Skrimmage, who 
 attempted to make his escape by the gun-room door, but 
 was prevented by the two sentries, who had been placed 
 there on purpose. He then requested to be heard— to 
 be allowed to explain ; but it was useless. He was 
 dragged to the table, amidst an uproar of laughter and 
 
296 The King's Own 
 
 shouting. '* Extreme bad headaches " — " Mrs Skrimmage" 
 — " nervous " — " ample satisfaction " — " conduct like 
 gentlemen" — "complain to first lieutenant" — were the 
 unconnected parts of his expostulation, which could be 
 distinguished. He was extended across the table, face 
 downwards ; the lappels of his coat thrown up, and two 
 dozen blows, with the sleeve-board, were administered 
 with such force, that his shrieks were even louder than 
 the laughter and vociferation of his assailants. 
 
 During the infliction, the noise within was so great, 
 that they did not pay attention to that which was outside, 
 but as soon as Mr Skrimmage had been put on his legs 
 again, and the tumult had partially subsided, the voice 
 of the master-at-arms requesting admittance, and the 
 screaming of Mrs Skrimmage, were heard at the door, 
 which continued locked and guarded. The door was 
 opened, and in flew the lady. 
 
 " My Skrimmage ! my Skrimmage ! — what have the 
 brutes been doing to you ? Oh, the wretches ! " continued 
 the lady, panting for breath, and, turning to the midship- 
 men, who had retreated from her ; — " you shall all be 
 turned out of the service — you shall — that you shall. 
 We'll see — we'll write for a court-martial — ay, you may 
 laugh, but we will. Contempt to a superior officer — 
 clerk and caterer, indeed ! The service has come to a 
 pretty pass — you villains ! You may grin — I'll tear the 
 eyes out of some of you, that I will. Come, Mr Skrimmage, 
 let us go on the quarter-deck, and see if the service is to 
 be trifled with. Dirty scum, indeed — " and the lady 
 stopped for want of breath occasioned by the rapidity of 
 her utterance. 
 
 " Gentlemen," said the master-at-arms, as soon as he 
 could obtain hearing, — " the first lieutenant wishes to 
 know the reason why you are making such a noise ? " 
 
 "Our compliments to Mr Phillips, and we have been 
 settling the mess account, and taking the change out of 
 the caterer." 
 
 ** Yes," continued Mrs Skrimmage, " you villains, you 
 
The King's Own 297 
 
 have, you paltry cheats — you blackguards — you warmin — 
 you scum of the earth — you grinning monkeys — you ! — 
 don't put your tongue into your cheek at me, you — you 
 beast — you ill-looking imp, or I'll write the ten command- 
 ments on your face — I will — ay, that I will — cowardly 
 set of beggars — " (No more breath). 
 
 "I'll tell you what, marm," rejoined the old master's 
 mate, " if you don't clap a stopper on that jaw of yours^ 
 by George, we'll cobb you." 
 
 " Cobb me ! — you will, will you ? — I should like to see 
 you. I dare you to cobb me, you wretches ! " 
 
 '* Cobb her, cobb her ! " roared out all the midshipmen, 
 who were irritated at her language ; and in a moment 
 she was seized by a dozen of them, who dragged her 
 to the table. Mrs Skrimmage struggled in vain, and 
 there appeared every chance of the threat being put in 
 force. 
 
 " Oh, — is this the way to treat a lady ? — Skrimmage ! 
 help, help ! " 
 
 Skrimmage, who had been battered almost to stupe- 
 faction, roused by the call of his frightened wife, darted 
 to her, and throwing his arm round her waist, — "Spare 
 her, gentlemen, spare her, for mercy's sake, spare her, — 
 or," continued he, in a faltering voice, "if you will cobb 
 her, let it be over allP 
 
 The appeal in favour of modesty and humanity had its 
 due weight ; and Mr and Mrs Skrimmage were permitted 
 to leave the gun-room without further molestation. The 
 lady, however, as soon as she had obtained the outside 
 of the gun-room door, forgetting her assumed gentility, 
 turned back, and shaking her fist at her persecutors, 
 made use of language, with a repetition of which we will 
 not offend our readers, — and then, arm-in-arm with her 
 husband, quitted the gun-room. 
 
 " Mrs Skrimmage's compliments to the gentlemen of 
 the gun-room mess," cried one of the midshipmen, 
 mimicking, which was followed by a roar of laughter, 
 when the quarter-master again made his appearance. 
 K. I. u 
 
298 The King's Own 
 
 " Gentlemen, the first lieutenant says, that all those 
 who are waiting for a passage round to Plymouth are to 
 be on deck with their traps immediately. There's a 
 frigate ordered round — she has the blue-peter up, and 
 her top-sails are sheeted home." 
 
 This put an end to further mischief, as there were at 
 least twenty of them whose respective ships were on that 
 station. In the meantime, while they were getting ready, 
 Mr Skrimmage, having restored the precision of his 
 apparel, proceeded to the quarter-deck and made his 
 complaint to the first lieutenant : but these complaints 
 had been repeatedly made before, and Mr Phillips was 
 tired of hearing them, and was aware that he deserved 
 his fate. Mr Skrimmage was therefore silenced with 
 the usual remark — " How can I punish these young men, 
 if they are in the wrong, who slip through my fingers 
 immediately ? — the parties you complain of are now going 
 down the side. Why don't you give up the caterer ship f " 
 
 But this, for the reasons before stated, did not suit Mr 
 Skrimmage, who returned below. For a day or two the 
 mess was better supplied, from fear of a repetition of the 
 dose ; after that, it went on again as before. 
 
 END OF VOL. I. 
 
 TURNBULL AND SPEARS, PRINTERS, EDINBURGH. 
 
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