d. Spicer was brought up before the council
for this offence, and would have been discharged had he not declared
that he had done it only by way of a joke to frighten the man; and, as
no one else was present, it could not be proved to the contrary. For
some reason or another, which I could not comprehend, Spicer appeared to
have taken a liking to me; he would call me to him, and tell me stories
about the West Indies and the Spanish Main, which I listened to very
eagerly, for they were to me very interesting. But he seldom, if ever,
spoke to me inside of the hospital; it was always when I was at the
steps minding my vocation, where he would come down and lean over the
rail at the top of the wharf. He made and gave me a boat-hook, which I
found very convenient. He had a great deal of information, and as the
ships came up the river he would point out the flags of the different
nations, tell me where they traded from, and what their cargoes probably
consisted of. If they had no ensign he would tell by their build and
the cut of their sails what nation they belonged to, pointing out to me
the differences, which I soon began to perceive. He had been in every
part of the world, and scarcely a day passed in which I did not gain
from him some amusing or useful information. Indeed, I became so fond
of his company, that Peter Anderson spoke to me on the subject, and
asked me what Spicer talked about. I told him, and he replied:--

"Well, Jack, I daresay that he is a very pleasant companion to one who,
like you, is so anxious for information, and I have nothing to say
against him, for we have no right to listen to foolish reports which may
probably have been raised from his savage appearance. Still, I confess
I do not like the man, as he is decidedly of a violent temper. As long
as he talks to you about what you say he does, there is no harm done;
but when once he says anything which you think is wrong, promise me to
let me know: and even now, if you will take my advice, you will not be
so intimate with him."

A little while afterwards my father and Ben the Whaler both spoke to me
on the same subject, but with much less reservation.

My father said, "Jack, I don't like to see you always in company with
that old pirate, no good can come of it; so haul off a little farther
for the future."

And Ben told me, "That a man who couldn't sleep o' nights without
talking of killing people must have a bad conscience, and somethi