akness and exhaustion, and his
recovery was anything but rapid. Humphrey, the porter, had brought us
this intelligence; as now there was no one to transact the business of
the house, and the poor fellow did not know what to do, I desired him to
apply to Miss Trevannion for directions, and told him that, although I
would not enter the house, I would, if she wished it, see to the more
important concerns which could not be neglected. She was then attending
her father, and sent me a message, requesting, as a favour to her, that
I would assist all I could in the dilemma. I consequently sent for the
books, and gave orders, and made the necessary arrangements, as I had
done before I had been dismissed by Mr Trevannion.

It was nearly five weeks before Mr Trevannion had sufficiently
recovered to mention anything about business to him, and then it was
that he learnt from his daughter that I had carried it on for him during
his illness, and that everything had gone on as well as if he had acted
for himself. Although Miss Trevannion had not expressed a wish 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 after that Philip
called every day, and was the bearer of messages to me. As her father
recovered, she told Philip that he had expressed himself very strongly
as to his conduct towards me, and had acknowledged that I was right in
my scruples, and that he was astonished that he had not viewed
privateering in the same light that I did. That he felt very grateful
for my considerate and kind conduct in conducting the business during
his illness, and that as soon as he was well enough he would call upon
me, to beg my pardon for his conduct towards me. Miss Trevannion also
told him that her father had said that he considered his illness a
judgment upon him, and a warning to open his eyes to his sacrifice of
principle to the desire of gain, and that he received it accordingly
with humility and thankfulness; that it was his intention to offer the
privateer vessels to government, and if they did not hire them, he
should dispose of them in some other way. This was very agreeable
intelligence, and was the source of much conversation between Captain
Levee and me.

About a fortnight afterwards, Mr Trevannion, who was still weak, sent
me a billet, in which he said that he was afraid that his anxiety to see
me and his being still confined to his room, rathe