greed, although I, for one, felt little
inclination to do so; but as all the rest said so, I raised no
objections. The captain then told us that, as we were all of one
opinion, the next point was to decide as to who should have the command;
he said, that if it had been on ship-board, he of course would have
taken it himself, but now we were on shore, he thought that Mr Henniker
was a much more competent person than he was, and he therefore proposed
that the command should be given to him, and he, for one, would
willingly be under his orders. To this proposal, the carpenter and mate
immediately agreed, and at last two of the seamen. I was left alone,
but I resisted, saying, that I was not going to be ordered about by a
landsman, and that if I were to obey orders, it must be from a
thorough-bred seaman. The other two sailors were of my way of thinking,
I was sure, although they had given their consent, and I hoped that they
would join me, which they appeared very much inclined to do. Your
father spoke very coolly, modestly, and prudently. He pointed out that
he had no wish to take the command, and that he would cheerfully serve
under the captain of the vessel, if it would be more satisfactory to all
parties that such should be the case. But the captain and the others
were positive, saying that they would not have their choice disputed by
such a drunken vagabond as I was, and that if I did not like to remain
with them, I might go to any part of the island that I chose. This
conference ended by my getting in a passion, and saying that I would not
be under your father's orders; and I was seizing one of the axes to go
off with it, when the captain caught my arm and wrested it from me,
stating that the axe was his property, and then telling me that I was
welcome to go where I pleased.

"I left them, therefore, and went away by myself to where the birds were
hatching, as I wished to secure a supply of eggs. When the night closed
in, I lay down upon the guano, and felt no cold; for the gale was now
over, and the weather was very mild.

"The next morning, when I awoke, I found that the sun had been up some
time. I looked for the rest of my companions whom I had quitted, and
perceived that they were all busily at work. The sea was quite calm;
and, when the vessel went down after we left, many articles had floated,
and had been washed to the island. Some of the men were busy collecting
spars and planks, which were near