miable qualities of Mr. Stetson, the chief
mate; but that Allen, who had been the victim of his vindictiveness
during the whole passage from Boston, dreading the horrors of
impressment more than the barbarity of the mate, and having a good
American protection, had determined to remain by the ship!

He told me, further, he was by no means satisfied with the character
of Stetson, and feared that when again on the ocean he would prove a
Tartar; and that I had no great reasons to regret an accident which
would prevent my proceeding on the voyage.

I subsequently learned that Stetson showed his true colors after the
ship left Liverpool, and owing to his evil deportment and tyrannical
conduct, there was little peace or comfort for the crew during the three
years' voyage.

On the third day of my residence in the Infirmary, the unfortunate boy
who occupied the bed nearest mine appeared to be sinking rapidly. It was
sad to witness his sufferings. His mother, a woman in the lowest rank of
life, was with him through the day. She eagerly watched every symptom of
his illness, nursed him with care and tenderness, sought to prepare him
for the great change which was about to take place; and, a true woman
and a mother, endeavored to hide her own anguish while she ministered to
the bodily and spiritual wants of her only child, who nobly risked his
life to save that of his companion. I watched the proceedings with deep
interest through the day, and when night came I felt no inclination to
sleep. The groans of the unfortunate boy became fainter and fainter, and
it was evident he would soon be released from his sufferings by the hand
of death.

At length I became weary with watching, and about eleven o'clock fell
asleep, in spite of the dying moans of the boy and the half-stifled sobs
of his mother. I slept soundly, undisturbed by the mournful scenes which
were enacted around me. When I awoke the room was lighted only by the
rays of an expiring lamp in the chimney corner. No one was moving; not
a sound was heard except the loud breathing of the inmates, who, their
wonted rest having been interrupted by this melancholy interlude, had
buried their pains and anxieties in sleep.

I looked towards the bed where the sufferer lay whose sad fate had so
attracted my attention and elicited my sympathies a few hours before.
His mother was no longer present. His moans were no longer heard. His
form seemed extended motionless on the bed, and his h