HER--THOUGH NEITHER AS RICH AS A JEW, OR AS LARGE AS A CAMEL, I PASS
THROUGH MY EXAMINATION, WHICH MY BROTHER CANDIDATES THINK PASSING
STRANGE.

The day after Captain Kearney's decease, his acting successor made his
appearance on board. The character of Captain Horton was well-known to
us from the complaints made by the officers belonging to his ship, of
his apathy and indolence; indeed, he went by the _sobriquet_ of "the
Sloth." It certainly was very annoying to his officers to witness so
many opportunities of prize-money and distinction thrown away through
the indolence of his disposition. Captain Horton was a young man of
family who had advanced rapidly in the service from interest, and from
occasionally distinguishing himself. In the several cutting out
expeditions, on which he had not volunteered but had been ordered, he
had shown, not only courage, but a remarkable degree of coolness in
danger and difficulty, which had gained him much approbation; but it was
said, that this coolness arose from his very fault--an unaccountable
laziness. He would walk away, as it were, from the enemy's fire, when
others would hasten, merely because he was so apathetic that he would
not exert himself to run. In one cutting-out expedition in which he
distinguished himself, it is said, that having to board a very high
vessel, and that in a shower of grape and musketry, when the boat dashed
alongside, and the men were springing up, he looked up at the height of
the vessel's sides, and exclaimed with a look of despair, "My God! must
we really climb up that vessel's decks?" When he had gained the deck,
and became excited, he then proved how little fear had to do with the
remark, the captain of the ship falling by his hand, as he fought in
advance of his own men. But this peculiarity, which in a junior officer
was of little consequence, and a subject of mirth, in a captain became
of a very serious nature. The admiral was aware how often he had
neglected to annoy or capture the enemy when he might have done it; and
by such neglect, Captain Horton infringed one of the articles of war,
the punishment awarded to which infringement is _death_. His
appointment, therefore, to the _Sanglier_ was as annoying to us, as his
quitting his former ship was agreeable to those on board of her.

As it happened, it proved of little consequence: the admiral had
instructions from home to advance Captain Horton to the first vacancy,
which of course h