doing he choked
himself, and continued in convulsions for the next five minutes, to the
immense delight of the captain, who vowed he had never before seen such
a blue face in the whole course of his life.

While this scene was enacting, and ere Jo Bumpus had effectually wiped
away the tears from his eyes, and cleared the bacon out of his windpipe,
the door opened, and the commander of H.M.S. Talisman entered.

Edmund Montague was a young man to hold such a responsible position in
the navy; but he was a bold, vigorous little Englishman,--a sort of
gentlemanly and well-educated John Bull terrier; a frank address,
agreeable manners, and an utterly reckless temperament, which was
qualified and curbed, however, by good sense and hard-earned experience.

"Good-day to you, Mrs. Stuart; I trust you will forgive my abrupt
intrusion, but urgent business must be my excuse. I have called to have
a little further conversation with your son respecting that rascally
pirate who has given me so much trouble. If he will have the good ness
to take a short walk with me, I shall be much indebted."

"By all means," said Henry, rising and putting on his cap.

"Perhaps," said Gascoyne, as they were about to leave the room, "if the
commander of the Talisman would condescend to take a little information
from a stranger, he might learn something to the purpose regarding the
pirate Durward; for he it is, I presume, of whom you are in search."

"I shall be happy to gain information from any source," replied
Montague, eying the captain narrowly, "Are you a resident in this
island?"

"No, I am not; my home is on the sea, and has been since I was a lad."

"Ah! you have fallen in with this pirate, then, on your native ocean, I
fancy, and have disagreeable cause to remember him, perchance," said
Montague, smiling. "Has he given you much trouble?"

"Aye, that he has," replied Gascoyne, with a sudden scowl of ferocity.
"No one in these seas has received so much annoyance from him as I have.
Any one who could rid them of his presence would do good service to the
cause of humanity. But," he added, while a grim smile overspread his
handsome face, "it is said that few vessels can cope with his schooner
in speed, and I can answer for it that he is a bold man, fond of
fighting, with plenty of reckless cut-throats to back him, and more
likely to give chase to a sloop-of-war than to show her his heels. I
trust you are well manned and armed, Captain Mont