Year: 1877

CHAPTER


The Captain is still in the prime of
life" the widow remarked to me. "He
has given up his ship; he possesses a
sufficient income, and has nobody to
live with him. Ishould like to know
why he doesn'tmarry."


"The Captain was excessively rude to
me-" the widows younger sister added,
on her side. when we took leave of
him in London, asked if there was any
likelihood of his joining us at Brighton
this season. He turned his back on me
as if 1 had mortally offended him, and
he made me this extraordinary answer;
Miss, hate the sight of the seal" The
man has been a sailor all his life. What
does he mean by saying that he hates
the sight of the sea-"


Twas entirely at the mercy of the wild
ow and the widows sister. The other
members of our little society at the
boarding house had all gone to a concert.
l was known to be the Captains Oldest
friend, and to be well acquainted with
all the events of the Captains life. No
polite alternative was left but to answer
the questions that had been put to me.


lean satisfy your curiosity said to
the two ladies, without violating any
confidence reposed in me-if you only
have patience enough to listen to very
strange story"


1t is needles to report the answer that
/ received. We sent away the tea things
and we trimmed the lamp;and then told
the ladies why the Captain would never
marry, and why (sailor as he was) he
hated the sight of the sea.


CHAPTER II.


The British merchantmen Fortuna
ION the last occasion when our friend
the Captain took command of the ship
sailed from the port of Liverpool with
the morning tide. She was bound to
certain islands in the Pacific Ocean, in
search of cargo of sandal wood-a COM
modify which, in those days, found a
ready and profitable market in the Chi
nese Empire.


A large discretion was reposed in
the Captain by the owners, who knew
him to be not only thoroughly trustwor,
thy, but a man of rare abilities, carefully
cultivated during the leisure hours Of a
seafaring life Devoted heart and soul
to his professional duties, he was hard
reader and and an excellent linguist as
well. Having had considerable exper-
fence among the inhabitants of the Pa
cific Islands. he had attentively studied
their characters, and had mastered their
language in more than one ofits dialects
Thanks to the valuable information
thus obtained, the Captain was never al
loss TO conciliate the Islanders and he
had more than once succeeded in find.
ing a cargo, under circumstances in
which other captains had failed. Poss-
essing these merits, he had had his fail
share of human defects. For instance
he was little too conscious of his own
good looks-of his bright chesnut hair
and whiskers, of his beautiful blue eyes
of his fair white skin, which many a
woman had looked at with the admira.
ton that is akin to envy. His shapely
hands were protected by gloves; a broad
brimmed hat sheltered his complexion
in fine weather from the sun. He was
nice in his choice of perfumes; he never
drank spirits, and the smell of tobacco
was abhorrent to him. New men
among his officers and his crew, seeing
him studying in his cabin, peferctly
dressed, washed and brushed, until he
was an object speckless to look upon
soft of voice, and careful in his choice o
words, we're apt to conclude that they
had trusted themselves at sea under &
commander who was anomalous mix
ture ofa schoolmaster and dandy. Bu
if the slightest infraction of discipline
took place, or if the storm rose and The
vessel was in peril, it was soon discover
ed that the gioved hands held rod o
iron, that the soft voice could made it
self heard through wind and sea from
one end of the deck to the other anC
that 1t issued orders which the creates
fool on board knew to be orders tha
saved the ship. Throughout his profes
sional life, the general impression tha
this variously-gifted man produced Oh
the little world was always the same
Some few Liked him; everybody respect
ed him; nobody understood him Tht
Captain accepted those results, and wen
on reading his books and protecting hi
complexion; and his owners shool
hands with him and put up with hi
gloves.


The Fortuna touched at Rio for water
and for suprlies of food which NIGH