ere in safety.

When Morton interrogated him as to where he had last come from, he
declared that he had been, with his crew, put on board at sea, from a
country craft, and the captors of the ship had taken all the passengers
out and carried them he knew not where.

Ronald would not believe this statement; but the man persisted in it,
and seemed obstinately determined to make no other Captain Calder
directed Morton to take command of the recaptured "Osterley," and Glover
went as his lieutenant, with a couple of midshipmen, Job Truefitt, Bob
Doull, and about thirty other hands. They not being sufficient to work
the Indiaman, some twenty of the prisoners were retained on board her.
It now became a question what course to steer. At length, as the wind
was favourable, Captain Calder resolved to return to Calcutta, and
should he not hear of the missing prisoners, to get the admiral to send
some other ship in search of them. This determination of the captain
was the only consolation Morton could obtain. Still the fact of their
having fallen in with the Indiaman was of itself considerable
encouragement.

Two or three days passed by; the wind was light, and not much way was
made. It would be difficult to describe the varied feelings with which
Morton visited the cabins which had been occupied by the Armytage
family.

To calm the agitation of his mind, he went on deck and paced up and down
by himself. At length, as he turned to walk forward, he saw Bob Doull
coming aft, hat in hand, to the quarter-deck. The young seaman gave the
usual hitch to his waistband, with a scrape of his foot, while he swung
back his hat, and then waited till his superior looked as if he was
ready to listen to him.

"What is it, Doull?" asked Morton.

"Please, sir, I've found among these outlandish chaps forward, we took
aboard the prize, an old man who says as how he knows something about
me, sir," said Bob, twisting his hat round and round.

"About you, my man; who can he be?" inquired the lieutenant.

"Why, sir, he says as how he's my daddy," answered Doull, bluntly. "He
may be, cause as how my daddy went away to foreign parts many years gone
by, and never came back; but if he is, he's a rum sort of one. I can't
say as how I takes much to the old gentleman as yet."

"Let me see the man, and hear his story," said Morton. "I had no idea
that we had an Englishman among the prisoners."

"Bring him aft at once; let him speak to no one;