ain Eli made a step forward, his face very much flushed.

"Your brother, Mrs. Trimmer--did you really say it was your brother?"

"Of course it is," said she. "Who else could it be?" Then she paused
for a moment and looked steadfastly at the captain.

"You don't mean to say, Captain Eli," she asked, "that you thought it
was--"

"Yes, I did," said Captain Eli, promptly.

Mrs. Trimmer looked straight in the captain's eyes, then she looked on
the ground. Then she changed color and changed back again.

"I don't understand," she said hesitatingly, "why--I mean what
difference it made."

"Difference!" exclaimed Captain Eli. "It was all the difference
between a man on deck and a man overboard--that's the difference it was
to me. I didn't expect to be talkin' to you so early this Christmas
mornin', but things has been sprung on me, and I can't help it I just
want to ask you one thing: Did you think I was gettin' up this
Christmas tree and the Christmas dinner and the whole business fer the
good of the little gal, and fer the good of you, and fer the good of
Captain Cephas?"

Mrs. Trimmer had now recovered a very fair possession of herself. "Of
course I did," she answered, looking up at him as she spoke. "Who else
could it have been for!"

"Well," said he, "you were mistaken. It wasn't fer any one of you. It
was all fer me--fer my own self."

"You yourself?" said she. "I don't see how."

"But I see how," he answered. "It's been a long time since I wanted to
speak my mind to you, Mrs. Trimmer, but I didn't ever have no chance.
And all these Christmas doin's was got up to give me the chance not
only of speakin' to you, but of showin' my colors better than I could
show them in any other way. Everything went on a-skimmin' till this
mornin', when that stranger that we brought in from the shoal piped up
and asked fer you. Then I went overboard--at least, I thought I
did--and sunk down, down, clean out of soundin's."

"That was too bad, captain," said she, speaking very gently, "after all
your trouble and kindness."

"But I don't know now," he continued, "whether I went overboard or
whether I am on deck. Can you tell me, Mrs. Trimmer?"

She looked up at him. Her eyes were very soft, and her lips trembled
just a little. "It seems to me, captain," she said, "that you are on
deck--if you want to be."

The captain stepped closer to her. "Mrs. Trimmer," said he, "is that
brother of yours comin' back?"