's good; I hope she'll like Salisbury," I replied, bundling
shirts, collars, and coats into my trunk with indiscriminate vigour.

"Yes, but you don't wait to hear the end," he continued, with a great
roar of laughter; "she isn't at Salisbury at all; she's at Plymouth, on
board the _Celsis_. She went straight down there, and devil a bit as
much as sent her aunt a telegram!"

I rose up at his word, and looked him in the face.

"Well," he said, "what do you think?--you don't seemed pleased."

"I'm not pleased," I said, going on with my packing. "I don't think she
ought to be there."

"I know that; we've talked it all over, but when I think of it, I don't
see where the harm comes in; we can't meet mischief crossing the
Atlantic, and when the danger does begin in New York I'll see she's
well on the lee-side of it."

I did not answer him, for I knew that which he did not know. Perhaps he
began to think that he did not do well to treat the matter so lightly,
for he was mute when we entered the cab, and he did not open his lips
until we were seated in the night mail for Plymouth. The compartment we
rode in was reserved for us as he had wished; and, truth to tell, we
neither of us had much liking for talk as the train rolled smoothly
westward. We had entered upon this undertaking, so vast, so shadowy, so
momentous, with such haste, and moved by such powerful motives, that I
know not if some thought of sorrow did not then touch us both. Who
could say if we should live to tell the tale, if our fate would not be
the fate of Martin Hall, if we should ever so much as see the nameless
ship, if chance would ever bring us face to face with Captain Black?
And whither did we go? When should we set foot again in that England we
loved? God alone could tell; and, with one great hope in a guiding and
all-seeing Providence, I covered myself up in my rug, and slept until
dawn came, and the fresh breezes from the Channel waves brought new
strength and men's hearts to us again.

It was full day when we went on board the yacht, and I did not fail to
cast a quick glance of admiration on her beautiful lines and perfect
shape as I clambered up the ladder, at the top of which stood Captain
York.

"Welcome aboard," he said, giving us hearty hand-shakes; and without
further inspection at that hour we followed him to the cabin, where
steaming coffee brought the blood to our hands and feet, and put us in
better mood.

"So my sister's here," sai