her unseaworthy, and he had been obliged to hire a boat until
such time as the Mary Ann could be properly repaired. Then he went over
to Whitby, and brought an experienced man back with him, and he
overhauled her thoroughly, and gave it as his opinion that it would be a
waste of money to try to patch her up.

When Duncan came in that night I saw that the poor fellow was terribly
downcast. 'The Mary Ann's days are numbered, sir; she'll never be able
to rough it again,' he said. 'She's been a good old boat to me and my
father before me, and it will be like parting from an old friend to give
her up. Yon man, he says she might be cobbled together a bit; but you
would never make a good job of her; she'd do maybe well enough for fine
weather, but you couldn't trust to her in a storm.'

I saw Polly turn pale as he said this. 'Duncan,' she said, going up to
him, and laying her hand on his arm, 'you'll never go in her again;
promise me that. Think of me and little John, Duncan.'

'Ay, my lass,' he said; 'ay, Polly, I do think of thee and little John;
but the worst of it is there's bread must be earnt for thee and little
John. I can't let thee starve, wife.'

'What about the bank-book, Duncan?' I said.

He went to the old oak-chest, and brought it out. I was much touched by
his handing it to me, and bidding me see how it stood. He was perfectly
open with me, and spoke to me as freely as if I had been an old and
tried friend. I added up the amount and read it out to him.

'Well, sir,'he said, 'it's getting on; but it's a good ten pound short
yet. We shall have to hire Brown's boat a bit and do as well as we can,
though it isn't a very paying business when one takes to hiring: it will
be hard enough to make two ends meet, you see, sir, let alone saving up
for the new boat. But I can't see nothing else for it, sir; that is, if
Polly won't let me risk it in the Mary Ann.'

'Duncan,' she said solemnly, 'if thee went to sea in the Mary Ann, and
she went to the bottom, I could _never_ say, "The will of the Lord
be done," for I don't believe it _would_ be God's will for thee to
go in that rotten old thing.'

'Polly is right, Duncan,' I said; 'you must never go in the Mary Ann
again.'

'Well, sir,' he said, 'I see what you mean, you and Polly too, and the
Lord will show us what's to be done.'

Nothing more was said about the Mary Ann at that time, but I had already
made my own plan about the new boat. My aunt had just left me h