The Privateer's-Man, One hundred Years Ago

by Frederick Marryat

  CHAPTER XIV.

  A Conspiracy, which ends satisfactorily to all Parties--Privateering is abandoned, and Captain Levee and Philip serve the King.

  The night passed away in attempts at analyzing the real feelings ofMiss Trevannion, and also my own towards her; and now that I was to beseparated from her, I discovered what I really had not beforeimagined, that my future happiness was seriously endangered by mysentiments towards her: in short, dear Madam, that I was mostseriously in love.

  "And now," thought I, "of what avail is it to have made this discoverynow, except it were to convince me, as Miss Trevannion had said, thatit were better that I were gone."

  I did not fail to call to mind her observation about my unknownparentage and family, and this I reflected upon with pleasure, as itwas the chief objection raised by her, and, at the same time, one thatI could proudly remove, from my birth being really more distinguishedthan her own. Should I make it known? How could I?--we should,probably, never meet again. All this, and much more, was canvassed inmy mind during the night, and also another question of more realimportance, which was, what I was to do, and where I was to go? Onthis last point I could not make up my mind, but I determined that Iwould not leave Liverpool for a day or two, but would take up myquarters at my old lodgings, where I had lived with Captain Levee.

  As the day dawned, I rose from the bed, and, taking my valise on myshoulder, I went softly down-stairs, opened the street door, andshutting it again carefully, I hastened down the street as fast as Icould. I met nobody; for it was still early, and arrived at thelodging-house, where I had some trouble to obtain admittance; the oldlady at last opening the door in great dishabille.

  "Captain Elrington! is it possible," exclaimed she, "why, what's thematter?"

  "Nothing, Madam," replied I, "but that I have come to take possessionof your lodgings for a few days."

  "And welcome, Sir," replied she; "will you walk up-stairs while I makemyself more fit to be seen. I was in bed and fast asleep when youknocked; I do believe I was dreaming of my good friend, CaptainLevee."

  I went up-stairs and threw myself on the old settee which was sofamiliar to me, and somehow or another, in a few minute's I was in asound sleep. How long I might have slept on I cannot tell, but in lessthan an hour I was waked up by loud talking and laughter, and a fewseconds afterwards found myself embraced by my brother Philip andCaptain Levee. The Arrow had anchored at break of day, and they hadjust come on shore. I was delighted to see them, as every one is whenhe meets with friends when he is in distress. I briefly stated how itwas that they found me there, and when breakfast was on the table, Ientered into full details of what had passed, with the exception ofMiss Trevannion having entered my room--that I considered too sacredto repeat to any one.

  "You know, my dear Elrington," said Captain Levee, "that I have notthe scruples which you have relative to privateering, but still Irespect the conscientious scruples of others. There is no excuse forMr. Trevannion's conduct, and I cannot think but there is somethingelse at the bottom of all this. You haven't been making love to hisdaughter, or, what would amount to the same thing, she has not beenmaking advances to you?"

  "I have not dared the first, Levee, and you do not know her, tosuppose her capable of the latter."

  "Well, if she had done so, there would have been no harm done,"replied he; "but I will say no more as you look so grave. Philip and Iwill now call upon Mr. Trevannion, and while I engage the oldgentleman, Philip shall run alongside of the young maiden, and betweenthe two we shall get our bearings and distance, and know how the landlies--and I will tell you more, Elrington, although I have noobjection to be captain of a privateer, I certainly consider thecommand of a king's ship more reputable; and if I could manage to getthe Arrow hired into the king's service (I still remaining in commandof her), I should prefer it being so. At all events, I'll side withyou, and that will drive the old gentleman on a dead lee-shore. Comealong, Philip--we shall be with you in two hours, Elrington." Withthese words Captain Levee left the room, followed by my brother.

  It was nearly three hours before they returned, and then I receivedthe following narratives: Captain Levee, as he sat down, said, "Now,Philip, we'll hear your account first."

  "Well, mine is soon told," replied Philip; "I had made up my mind howto act, and did not tell Captain Levee what I intended to do. When Mr.Trevannion met us in the room behind the counting-house, he appearedvery much flurried: he shook hands with Captain Levee, and offered mehis hand, which I refused, saying, 'Mr. Trevannion, I have just seenmy brother, and I hardly need say that nothing will induce me toremain in your employ. I will, therefore, thank you for my wages atyour convenience.'

  "'Hey-day, young man,' cried he, 'you give yourself strange airs.Well, Sir, you shall have your discharge; I can do without suchsnip-jacks as you are.'

  "'Snip-jacks! Mr. Trevannion,' replied I; 'if I must say it, we arebetter born and better bred than you or any of your connections, andyou were honoured by our service.'"

  "You said that, Philip?--then you were wrong."

  "I told the truth."

  "Still, you should not have said it; we took his service, andtherefore--"

  "We are not snip-jacks," interrupted Philip, "and his calling namesbrought on the reply."

  "You must admit the provocation, Elrington," said Captain Levee.

  "Well, go on, Philip."

  "'Indeed,' said Mr. Trevannion, in a great passion; 'well, then, Iwill soon rid myself of the obligation. Call this afternoon, MasterPhilip, and you shall receive your wages. You may now quit the room.'

  "I did so, and put my hat a-cock to annoy him."

  "So far his narrative is quite correct," said Captain Levee;--"now goon."

  "Well," said Philip, "instead of turning out of the house, I turnedinto it, and went to the young lady's sitting-room. I opened the doorsoftly, and found her with her hand up to her head, looking verysedate and sorrowful. 'Master Philip,' said she, 'you startled me; Iam glad to see you--when did you arrive?'

  "'This morning, Miss Trevannion.'

  "'Well, sit down, and bear me company for a time. Have you seen yourbrother?'

  "'I have, Miss Trevannion,' replied I, still remaining on my feet,'and I have just seen your father. I come now to bid you farewell. Ihave left the privateer, and shall never join her again; perhaps I maynever see you again either, which, believe me, I am truly sorry for.'

  "She covered her eyes with her hand, as she leant on the table, and Isaw a tear fall as she said--

  "'It is a sad business altogether, and has distressed me very much. Ihope your brother does not think that I blame him; tell him that I donot in the least, and that he must forget my behaviour to him when weparted. I did him injustice, and I beg his pardon. Tell him so,Philip.'"

  "Did she say those words, Philip?"

  "Yes, word for word, and looked like an angel when she said so. Ireplied that I would certainly deliver her message, but that I mustnot remain, for fear of Mr. Trevannion finding me with her, as heordered me to quit the house.

  "'Indeed,' said she; 'what can be the matter with my poor father?'

  "'Why, Miss Trevannion,' said I, 'he was very angry, and he hadreason, for I was very saucy, and that's the truth.'

  "'Why, Philip, what did you say to him?'

  "'Oh, I hardly know,' replied I, 'but I know that I said more than Iought; for I was very angry at my brother's dismissal. Good-bye, MissTrevannion.'

  "Miss Trevannion was taking a ring off her finger as I said good-bye,and I thought she was going to give it me as a keep-sake; but, after alittle hesitation, she put it on again, and then held out her hand,saying, 'Good-bye, Master Philip, let us not part in anger, at allevents.' I took her hand, bowed, and turned away to quit the room;when I was at the door I looked round, and she was sitting with herface in her hands, and I think she was weeping. I went out into thestreet, and waited for Captain Levee, and there's an end of my story."

  "Well, now I'll give you my porti
on, Elrington:--As soon as Philipwent out of the room, Mr. Trevannion said, 'That's a most impudentboy, and I am glad that he is gone. You are of course aware that hisbrother has left me, and the cause of our disagreement.'

  "'Yes, Sir,' replied I, drily, 'I have heard the whole particulars.'

  "'Did you ever hear of such ridiculous scruples?' said he.

  "'Yes, Sir, I heard them before, and so did you, when he gave up thecommand of the privateer, and I respected them, because I knew thatMr. Elrington was sincere. Indeed, his observations on that head areundeniably true, and have had great weight with me; so much so, that Iintend to enter into the king's service as soon as I possibly can.'

  "I wish you had seen the look of Mr. Trevannion when I said this--hewas stupified. That I, Captain Levee, who had commanded his vessels solong--I, the very _beau ideal_ of a privateer's-man, a reckless,extravagant dare-devil, should also presume to have scruples, was toomuch for him. 'Et tu, Brute,' he might have exclaimed, but he did not;but he stared at me without speaking for some time; at last he said,'Is the golden age arrived, or is this a conspiracy?'

  "'Neither one nor the other, Sir,' I replied; 'I follow privateering,because I can do no better; but as soon as I can do better, I shallleave it off.'

  "'Perhaps,' said Mr. Trevannion, 'you would wish to resign the commandat once. If so, I beg you will not make any ceremony.'

  "'I have not wished to put you to any inconvenience, Mr. Trevannion,'replied I, 'but as you kindly beg me to use no ceremony, I will takeadvantage of your offer, and resign the command of the Arrow thisday.'"

  "Surely, Levee, you have not done so?"

  "Yes, I have," replied Captain Levee, "and I have done so, in thefirst place, out of friendship to you, and, in the second, because Iwish to be employed in the king's service, and my only chance ofobtaining that wish is doing what I have done."

  "How will that effect your purpose?"

  "Because the men have sailed so long with me, that they will not sailunder any other person, if I tell them not. Mr. Trevannion will findhimself in an awkward position, and I think we can force him to hirehis vessel to government, who will gladly accept such a one as theArrow."

  "That I believe, if from her reputation alone," replied I. "Well,Levee, I thank you very much for this proof of sincere friendship. Theplot thickens, and a few days will decide the question."

  "Very true, and now let me finish my story. 'I am afraid,' said Mr.Trevannion, in a very sarcastic tone, 'that I shall not be able tofind any one to replace you in this moral age, Captain Levee; but Iwill try.'

  "'Sir,' I replied, 'I will now answer your sarcasm. There is someexcuse for ignorant seamen before the mast, who enter on board ofprivateers: they are indifferent to blood and carnage, and theirfeelings are blunted--there is some excuse even for decayed gentlemenlike me, Mr. Trevannion (for I am a gentleman born), who, to obtain amaintenance without labour, risk their lives and shed their blood; butthere is no excuse for those who, having already as much wealth andmore than they can require, still furnish the means and equip vesselsof this description to commit the destruction which they do, for thesake of gain. There is a sermon, Sir, for you from a captain of aprivateer, and I now wish you good morning.' I then got up, and,making a profound bow, I quitted the room before Mr. Trevannion madeany reply, and here I am. Now all we have to do is to wait quietly,and see what takes place; but first, I shall go on board the Arrow,and let them know that I have quarrelled with the owner. The men arenot very well pleased as it is with their want of success these twolast voyages, and it will require but little to blow up the discontentinto a mutiny. Come, Philip, I shall want you to assist me. We shallbe back to dinner, Elrington."

  When I was again alone, I had time to consider what had passed. What Ichiefly dwelt upon was the interview between Philip and MissTrevannion--her message to me--her hesitation--and keeping the ring. Icould not help surmising that our feelings towards each other werereciprocal, and this idea gave me infinite delight, and repaid me forall that had passed. Then my brother's hasty declaration to herfather, that we were better born and bred than he was, would certainlybe repeated by him to his daughter, and must make an impression. Andwhat would Mr. Trevannion do? Would he give way to the unanimousopinion against him? I feared not, at least without another struggle.All these questions occupied my thoughts till the return of CaptainLevee and Philip from the privateer. They had well managed theirbusiness. The crew of the Arrow had come to an unanimous resolutionthat they would not sail with any other captain but Captain Levee; andthat if he did resign the command of the vessel, as soon as theirwages were paid, and they received their share of prize-money, theywould leave, and enter into the king's service.

  That afternoon Mr. Trevannion sent for the officer next in command, togive him the command of the vessel; but as he went over the side, themen expecting that he was sent for, for that purpose, told him thatthey would serve under no one but Captain Levee, and that he mightacquaint the owner with their determination. This put the finishingblow to Mr. Trevannion. As soon as this was communicated to him, hewas wild with rage in being thus thwarted in every way. As Iafterwards was informed, he went even to his daughter, acquainted herwith all that had passed, and gave vent to his indignation, accusingher of being a party in the conspiracy. But this was to be his lasteffort: the excitement had been too great, and after dinner he felt sounwell that he went to bed. The next morning he was in a raging fever,and at times delirious. The fever was so violent that the doctors hadmuch to do to reduce it, and for ten days Mr. Trevannion was in greatdanger. At last it was got under, leaving him in a state of greatweakness and exhaustion, and his recovery was any thing but rapid.Humphrey, the porter, had brought us this intelligence; as now therewas no one to transact the business of the house, and the poor fellowdid not know what to do, I desired him to apply to Miss Trevannion fordirections, and told him that, although I would not enter the house, Iwould, if she wished it, see to the more important concerns whichcould not be neglected. She was then attending her father, and sent mea message, requesting, as a favour to her, that I would assist all Icould in the dilemma. I consequently sent for the books, and gaveorders, and made the necessary arrangements as I had done before I hadbeen dismissed by Mr. Trevannion.

  It was nearly five weeks before Mr. Trevannion had sufficientlyrecovered to mention any thing about business to him, and then it wasthat he learnt from his daughter that I had carried it on for himduring his illness, and that every thing had gone on as well as if hehad acted for himself. Although Miss Trevannion had not expressed awish that I should call, she had sent Humphrey for my brother Philip,to let us know the dangerous state in which her father was, and afterthat Philip called every day, and was the bearer of messages to me. Asher father recovered, she told Philip that he had expressed himselfvery strongly as to his conduct towards me, and had acknowledged thatI was right in my scruples, and that he was astonished that he had notviewed privateering in the same light that I did. That he felt verygrateful for my considerate and kind conduct in conducting thebusiness during his illness, and that as soon as he was well enough hewould call upon me, to beg my pardon for his conduct towards me. MissTrevannion also told him that her father had said that he consideredhis illness a judgment upon him, and a warning to open his eyes to hissacrifice of principle to the desire of gain, and that he received itaccordingly with humility and thankfulness; that it was his intentionto offer the privateer vessels to government, and if they did not hirethem, he should dispose of them in some other way. This was veryagreeable intelligence, and was the source of much conversationbetween Captain Levee and me.

  About a fortnight afterwards, Mr. Trevannion, who was still weak, sentme a billet, in which he said that he was afraid that his anxiety tosee me and his being still confined to his room, rather retarded hisrecovery, and begged as a favour that I would accept hisacknowledgment in writing, and come to see him. That I consented todo, and repaired to his house accordingly. I found him in his room,sitting in his
dressing-gown, and he had evidently suffered much.

  "Mr. Elrington," said he, "I trust to your excellent nature to acceptmy apologies for the very unjust treatment you have received at myhands. I am ashamed of myself, and I can say no more."

  "I beg, Mr. Trevannion, that you will say no more; I accept the returnof your friendship with pleasure," replied I; "I am sorry that youhave been so ill."

  "I am not," replied he; "it is good for us to be chastised at times.My sickness has opened my eyes, and made me, I trust, a better man.May I ask a favour of you?"

  "Most certainly, Sir," replied I.

  "It is that you will execute a commission for me, which is to go toLondon on my account, see the government people who control the navalaffairs, and offer the Arrow as a hired vessel. You know all herqualities so well, and have kept her accounts so long, that you willbe able to furnish them with all necessary information. I should wishCaptain Levee to go with you, and, if you possibly can, make it acondition that he is taken into the king's service, and appointed thecaptain of her."

  "I will do so with pleasure," replied I.

  "One more favour I have to beg, Mr. Elrington. When I so foolishlyquarrelled with you, you left a bag of money, to which you were fullyentitled from your good services, upon the table in the inner room. Itrust now that you will not mortify me by refusing it, or I shallthink that you have not really forgiven me."

  I bowed assent.

  "I thank you, Mr. Elrington--thank you very much. Now I shall soon getwell. To-morrow, perhaps, you will have the kindness to come and seeme again. I feel rather overcome at present. Remember me kindly toPhilip. Good-bye for to-day," said Mr. Trevannion, holding out hisemaciated hand. "God bless you."

  I took his hand and quitted the room, shutting the door softly. Mr.Trevannion was quite alone when I was with him. Humphrey, the porter,had shown me up-stairs to the room.

  Anxious as I was to see Miss Trevannion, I did not venture into thesitting-room, but passed the door and went down-stairs; when I wasgoing out of the street door, Humphrey followed me, and said MissTrevannion wished to see me. I went back again with a beating heart, asensation I had not felt before, when about to go into her presence.She was standing by the table.

  "Mr. Elrington," said she, as I bowed upon entering, "I did not thinkthat you could carry your resentment against me so far as to leave thehouse without asking to see me; but if you do not wish to see me, 'tisa duty I owe to myself to wish to see you, if only for a moment, thatI may beg your pardon for my conduct towards you when we last parted.I have suffered much since that, Mr. Elrington; do not make me suffermore by continuing your resentment. Recollect I am but a weak woman,and must not be judged so severely as one of your own sex."

  "I have nothing to pardon that I am aware of, Miss Trevannion,"replied I; "I did not intrude upon you just now, because being nolonger an inmate of the house, and not having parted with you incomplete amity, I thought it would be presumptuous in me so to do."

  "You are very generous, Mr. Elrington," replied she; "now take myhand, and I promise never to be so hasty again."

  I took the proffered hand, and raised it respectfully to my lips. Ihad never done so before; but Miss Trevannion showed no signs ofdispleasure, or attempt to withdraw it.

  "Do you think my father looks very ill, Mr. Elrington?" said she.

  "From his appearance, I think that he must have suffered much."

  "I am most thankful that you have come to see him, Mr. Elrington. Youhave no idea how his mind was troubled, and how he longed to bereconciled to you. I trust he has made his peace."

  "I have always had too much respect for your father, and gratitude forhis kindness to me, to have made that a work of difficulty."

  "You rejoice me much--make me very happy, Mr. Elrington," replied MissTrevannion, as the tears dropped fast from her eyes. "You must excuseme," said she; "I have become very weak and nervous during my father'sillness--and sitting up with him so much,--but it is over now."

  "You have had much anxiety, I see, Miss Trevannion; you are pale andthin to what you were."

  "Did my father--? but I have no right to ask such questions."

  "You would inquire, Miss Trevannion, whether any thing was said as tofuture arrangements?"

  Miss Trevannion made a sign of assent.

  "I have promised to execute a commission for him, and am going toLondon, accompanied by Captain Levee."

  "To get rid of those wretched privateers, is it not?"

  "Yes, it is, and I am to come to-morrow to arrange further; but Ithink you want to return to your father's room, so I will now take myleave."

  "You are considerate, Mr. Elrington; I did want to go up-stairs; butbefore I go I have some property of yours to place in your hands."

  I bowed, thinking that she referred to the ring, which I perceived onher finger, and was annoyed that she was in such haste to return it.But, on the contrary, she went to the buffet and brought out the bagof gold jacobuses, which she laid on the table.

  "You are very proud, Mr. Elrington, not to take what was fairly yourdue," said Miss Trevannion, smiling.

  "It is much more than I have ever earned," replied I; "but your fathermade me promise not to refuse it a second time, and of course I shallnow take it."

  My heart was much lightened when I found that it was the gold, and notthe ring.

  "Then good-bye, Mr. Elrington; to-morrow I shall see you, of course."

  Miss Trevannion then left the room and hastened up-stairs to herfather, and I went home to my lodgings. I narrated the substance ofwhat had passed between Mr. Trevannion and me to Captain Levee andPhilip, and also that I had been kindly received by Miss Trevannion.

  "Well, I like the reconciliation and arrangement very much," saidCaptain Levee; "and as you have such a bag of gold, and I have notfifty guineas in the world, you shall stand treat in London,Elrington."

  "That I will, with pleasure; it will only be discharging an old debt,Levee. Philip shall go with us."

  "But," said Captain Levee, "do you not think they will recognize theirstate prisoner, and be cautious of a Jacobite?"

  "They may remember the name," said I, "but my person was seen but byfew. I do, however, think it would be advisable, as I shall have tosign papers, to take another."

  "I think so, too," replied Captain Levee; "what shall we call you?"

  "Let me see; I'll have a good name. I had a relative of the name ofMusgrave; I think I will borrow his name. What say you, Philip. Willyou be for the future Philip Musgrave?"

  "Yes, brother, with all my heart. The name appears to fit me betterthan that of Elrington."

  Thus, Madam, did I resume my real name without any suspicion on thepart of Captain Levee; but I could not well sign government paperswith an assumed one.

  On the following day I called upon Mr. Trevannion, who received mewith great affection, and it was arranged that I should set off inthree days, which time would be required for preparation, and to makethe necessary purchases. To supply funds for the journey, Mr.Trevannion gave me another bag of jacobuses, of the same amount as theformer, saying that he wished us to appear bravely when we arrived inLondon, and that he should require no account of the expenditure, onlythat if the contents of the bag were not sufficient, he would supplymore. This was nothing more but an excuse on his part to be generous;for one quarter of the money would have been sufficient for allneedful expenses. I told him that I had taken the name of Musgrave, asthat of Elrington might be remembered to the injury of the proposal,and he said that it was well thought of by me. Miss Trevannion hadentered the room when I mentioned that to her father, and afterwardshad quitted it. After I had taken leave of Mr. Trevannion, I went downto the sitting-room, where I found his daughter waiting for me. We hadmuch friendly discourse, and at one time she said, "I heard you saythat you had taken the name of Musgrave for your intended journey. Doyou intend to retain that name when you return?"

  "Why should I?" replied I.

  "Because," replied she, "
perhaps it is your real name. Excuse a lady'scuriosity, but is not that the fact?"

  "Miss Trevannion," replied I, "my real name must at present remain asecret."

  "That is to say, it will no longer be a secret if intrusted to me? Ithank you, Sir, for the compliment."

  "I do not intend to imply that, Miss Trevannion; I fully believe thatyou can keep a secret."

  "If you fully believe so, you might, then, reply to my question; themore so, as I now pledge myself to keep your secret most faithfully."

  "Then, Miss Trevannion, my real name is Musgrave," replied I.

  "I thank you for your confidence, Mr. Musgrave, which shall not bemisplaced. I might now follow up my inquiries as to why you changedyour name, with many other queries; but I am too discreet forthat--the time may come when I shall know all; but I am content withyour proof of confidence, and thank you for it."

  Miss Trevannion never was so lively and communicative with me before,as she was this morning; there was a friendliness without any of herusual reserve, and I left her more full of admiration and devotionthan ever.

  In three days more our preparations were made, and taking leave ofMiss Trevannion and her father, who was recovering, and had admittedcompany to his room, we set off on horseback, as we had done before,and attended by the same two men of Captain Levee's who had served uson a former journey to London. We had no adventure whatever on thisjourney which could be worth narrating, and I shall therefore say thatwe arrived in good health and spirits, and took up our abode at onceat our former lodging-house, instead of going to the inn. We werewelcomed by the hostess, who had her house almost empty. The followingday I made inquiries, and, in consequence, went to the Navy Office,and requesting to see one of the head clerks, informed him of theoccasion of my coming up to London. He was very civil, and repliedthat the government were in want of vessels, and he had no doubt butthey would have the Arrow, as she was well known as a strongprivateer. I then inquired whether they thought it likely that CaptainLevee might be taken into the service, stating what an excellent crewthe Arrow had, and that they would not remain in her, unless they werecommanded, by him, in whom they had great confidence.

  The clerk replied that it might be done certainly,--"but," addedhe--"Sir, you cannot expect people to do such kind offices withoutthey are rewarded."

  I perfectly understood him, and replied, that, of course, I did notexpect it; but I was so ignorant as to what ought to be done, that Ibegged that he would give me his advice, for which I should be mostgrateful.

  "Well, well, you understand me, Mr. Musgrave, and that is sufficient.I will be plain with you. It will cost 100 guineas to obtain what youwant for Captain Levee, and of that money I shall not receive a doit."

  "I shall be most happy to give that sum and half as much more, toobtain my wish, Sir, and shall feel much obliged to you in thebargain; and while I am negotiating, I may as well state that I have abrother who sails with Captain Levee, who is most anxious to be withhim, and sail as his lieutenant."

  "That will cost another fifty guineas, Mr. Musgrave."

  "I am most willing," replied I.

  "Well, we must first get the vessel hired into the service. You haveyour tonnage and equipment all on paper?"

  "Every thing that is requisite; and, moreover, every cruise she hasmade, the actions she has fought, and the prizes she has taken underthe command of Captain Levee, and with the crew now on board."

  "Furnish all these documents, Mr. Musgrave, and leave it to me. I amto understand that you perfectly agree to the terms I have proposed?"

  "Perfectly, Sir; and, if you please, I will sign a memorandum to thateffect."

  "No, no," replied he, "we never put such things down on paper. It isan affair of honour and good faith. You say your money is all ready."

  "At a minute's warning."

  "That is sufficient, Mr. Musgrave. I will now wish you good morning.Send me the documents."

  "I have them in my pocket, Sir."

  "Better still; then the affair may be arranged this afternoon, and youmay call to-morrow at about two in the afternoon; and you may as wellbring the money with you, as you can but take it away again if everything is not to your satisfaction."

  I returned to the lodgings quite delighted with the prospect of such afortunate issue to my mission, and was in good time for dinner. I didnot tell Captain Levee or Philip of what had passed, but merely that Iconsidered that there was a good chance of success, and that I was tocall on the following day. That night we went to the theatre, and sawa play performed written by Shakspeare, in the time of QueenElizabeth, and called the "Merry Wives of Windsor." We were muchpleased with the character _Falstaff_, a fat knight, full of humour.The next day, at the time appointed, I called upon the head clerk, whotold me that every thing was arranged according to my wishes; that thehiring of the vessel was according to her tonnage; and he consideredthat the price offered by the government was fair and liberal; so didI, and immediately accepted it. He then drew from his desk thearticles of agreement between the government and the owner of thevessel, and at the same time, the warrants for Captain Levee andPhilip, to act as commander and lieutenant.

  "Now, Mr. Musgrave, all you have to do is to sign the first paper, andfulfil the other portion of our agreement."

  I immediately pulled out the bag of money which I had brought with me,and after counting it over, the clerk gave me his pen to sign thedocument, and handed to me the warrants for Philip and Captain Levee.

  "You have behaved liberally in this affair, Mr. Musgrave," said thegentleman, as he locked up the bag of money in his desk; "if at anytime I can be of use to you, you may command me."

  "I thank you, Sir," replied I, "I may by-and-by have to ask you toexert your influence in behalf of my brother, that he may obtain thecommand of one of the king's ships, and if you can help me, I shall bemost grateful."

  "Depend upon it I will," replied he, "and I beg you will use noceremony on making the application."

  He then shook hands with me, and I went home. Dinner was over when Icame back, but the hostess had put away some victuals for me, andwhile I was eating them, I gave them an account of my success, handingtheir warrants to Captain Levee and Philip. They could hardly creditme, even when the documents were in their hands, but pledging them tosecrecy, I told them by what means I had been so successful. Whereuponthey thanked me, and we then went out to procure the uniforms suitableto their respective ranks, and this occupied us till the evening, whenwe agreed to go to the cockpit and see the fights between the variousanimals, with which Philip particularly was much delighted. As we hadnothing to detain us in London, and it was necessary that the Arrowshould immediately run round to the Nore, we determined, as theuniforms were to be ready on the following day, that the day afterthat we would return to Liverpool.