rejoined her consorts.

"I can't tell you all the things we did in the West Indies. At last we
went home, and were paid off; and I remained on shore with my widowed
mother till I heard that Captain Nelson had commissioned the `Boreas.'
I went and joined him. He received me heartily, and away we sailed for
the West Indies.

"Young as was our captain, he found himself senior officer on the
station--that is to say, second in command under the admiral; for in
those days we had old heads on young shoulders; so we should now, if
boys would try to imitate the example of wise and noble men, not to ape
the folly of foolish ones. We were chiefly among the Leeward Islands.

"While visiting the island of Nevis, the captain fell in love with a
lady, a Mrs Nisbet, and they married: a very good, kind young lady she
was, that I remember; but after we returned home I saw no more of her.
The `Boreas' was paid off in 1787. Thus I have told you most of what I
remember about Nelson's early days. He was soon to be known to the
world as the greatest naval captain of his time."

VOLUME ONE, CHAPTER TWO.

"You have heard speak of the `Agamemnon' of 64 guns. I was one of the
old Agamemnons, as we called ourselves. We, all her crew, were proud of
her, and good reason we had to be so. Captain Nelson commissioned her
on the 26th of January, 1793, and it wasn't many days after this that I
joined her. You see I kept my eye on him. When a man has found a good
captain, if he's wise he will follow him whenever he can.

"I can't now remember all the places we went to. First, we were one of
the Channel fleet. Then we were sent out to the Mediterranean, where
our captain astonished the admirals, and made the soldier-generals
almost tear their eyes out by the way he did things. He took care that
the weeds should not grow to the bottom of the ship he commanded. First
we had to conquer the island of Corsica. [See Note.] We drove the
French out of every place but the strong fort of Bastia, so we landed,
and hauled our guns up the heights, and kept up such a hot fire on the
place that it gave up, and then the soldiers marched in and gained the
glory. Then we took a place called Calvi. Here it was that a shot,
striking the ground, threw up some sand in the captain's eye, and though
we thought but little of it at the time, he never saw again with that
eye. It was very hard work, and the country was unhealthy, and many of
us grew sick,