water as a burning-glass. Altogether, I feel sure
that your boy will make an excellent officer as he goes on, and I am glad
that he will now have the opportunity of seeing some active service under
Cochrane.

"I agree with what you said in your letter, that the berth is by no means
likely to be a permanent one. As soon as Cochrane has relieved them from
the state in which they now are, they are sure to be jealous of him, and
he is the last man in the world to put up with slights, or to hold on to
an appointment when he sees that he is no longer wanted. Still, it will do
the lad a great deal of good and make a man of him, and his experience
will put him outside the general category of mercantile sailors. I have
got his chests here; they were sent up yesterday. I shall, of course, try
and find out who was the captain of that ship whose chronometers he
bought. Captain Pinder has told me all about it, and Stephen is absolutely
entitled to the money he got. At the same time his offer to divide it was
a generous one, but Captain Pinder and the mates are all dead against
accepting it, and I agree with them. The money would be a mere trifle all
round, but it will be a comfortable little sum for him. And it will, I am
sure, be a satisfaction to him to be able to purchase his outfit now
without trenching on your purse, especially as, going out as Cochrane's
own midshipman, he must take a much larger outfit than usual, as he will,
of course, have to accompany the admiral on all public occasions. Now, I
suppose he will like to go down to the dock and say good-bye to them
there. The _Tiger_ began unloading yesterday, and a good many of the hands
will be paid off to-morrow."

Captain Pinder and the first and third officers expressed their sincere
regret that Stephen was not going to sail with them on the next voyage,
and Joyce was greatly cut up about it.

"I wanted you to go down with me to stay with my father and mother near
Oxford," he said. "I wrote to them from Gravesend and I had a letter this
morning, in which they told me to make you promise to come down before we
sailed again."

"I may be back again in a year," Stephen replied, "and if I am I think Mr.
Hewson will appoint me to the _Tiger_ again."

The captain undertook to dispose of Stephen's collection of curios and
bird skins for him, and also, if no news was obtained as to the lost ship,
he would, when he sailed again, hand the chronometers and quadrants over
to Mr