ok hands heartily. A look from the first assured the other
that he need not have the slightest fear of the consequences of his
mistake.

"What ship do you belong to, youngster?" asked the Admiral.

"The _Racer_, sir," said Terence; "she's a fine frigate--there's not
another like her in the service." The Admiral looked approvingly when
he heard the remark.

"Why, she's my ship," exclaimed Jack, "though I haven't joined yet."

"Yours, Jack! how capital!" cried Terence in a tone of delight; "well,
that is fortunate." The Admiral seemed much amused at the meeting of
the two friends. Terence had come on shore to see his relative Lord
Derrynane, whom Admiral Triton knew; and they all dined together, and
the next day the Admiral accompanied the two lads on board their ship,
which had just gone out to Spithead. She was a thirty-six gun frigate,
and worthy of all the encomiums Terence had lavishly bestowed on her at
dinner. The Admiral stumped all over her, and examined all the new
inventions, and went into the midshipmen's berth, which was a very natty
one; and he sat down and talked of old times during the war, and told a
good story or two, and made himself perfectly at home, and introduced
Jack "as a fellow who would speak for himself by and by;" and when he
went away he was voted a regular trump, and no small share of his lustre
fell on Jack. The Admiral and Jack went on deck. The former was in no
hurry to leave the ship. He took a great interest in all that was going
forward. They walked the deck for some time. The Admiral stopped, and
said with more seriousness than was his wont: "Jack, I have given you
several pieces of advice which you have taken well from an old sailor
who has lost his leg in the service of his country, and has been pretty
well riddled and knocked about besides. I must give you another, the
most important of all--never forget that you are a Christian, and never
be ashamed of confessing it. Your Bible tells you what that means.
You've got one in your chest. Read it often, and learn from it. Nail
your colours to the mast, and fight under them. You'll thus keep your
spiritual enemies at bay, as I hope you will those of your country."
Jack grasped the Admiral's hand to show that he understood him, but for
the life of him he could not have found words to express what he wanted
to say. They had stopped, and were looking over the ship's side. Jack
espied a boat pulling up under the frigate