sense of genuine humour than this man
possessed, and yet one could never appear to slight _his_
peculiar superstitions without producing a paroxysm of fury
in him. He would watch for the appearance of a new moon with
touching anxiety, and although his finances were very
frequently in a precarious condition, he never allowed
himself to be without the proverbial penny to turn over
under the new moon as a panacea against hidden pecuniary
ills! If, in sailor parlance, a star "dogged the moon," that
was to him a disturbing omen, and great caution had to be
observed that no violation of nautical ethics took place
during the transit. It was never regarded as a transit, but
as a "sign" from which evil _might_ be evolved.

Amidst all this singular piety in externals (for it was
really a species of piety), this typical sailor never gave
up his belief in the efficacy of strong language, which,
among the worst of his class, was frequently indescribable;
and the more eloquent he was in the utterance of oaths the
larger became his conviction that he possessed a gift not to
be acquired by mere tuition. Many years ago, when I was a
very small apprentice boy aboard a brig we had a steward
who was also a sailor of no common ability. His career had
been a long one of varied villainy, he impersonating
alternately a parson and a rich shipowner. In the latter
_role_ he succeeded in getting large advances of money from
unsuspecting store, sail, and rope dealers--taking advantage
of a trade-custom which prevails in every port, in return
for which he gave orders, which caused the favoured firms to
be looked upon with envy. They were requested to have these
supplies put aboard four days after the order was given; and
the penalty for not being able to do so was to be the loss
of a very valuable connection. There was much condescension
on the part of the bounteous customer, who "would call again
in two days," and much thanking and bowing and shaking of
hands on the part of the recipients when the time came to
say "Good-day." The stores were duly sent to the docks where
the vessels were lying, but the real owners did not
recognise the person who had given the order as having any
connection with them, whereupon an unhappy dawn broke over
the minds of the unsuspecting victims. Many months elapsed
before the gentleman in question was apprehended and
confronted by the tradesmen to whom he owed a period of
blissful dissipation. Needless to say th