n like herself."

Margaret's touch was on his arm, and he could not choose but look round
now. Next moment her hand moved imploringly to his breast, and she was
on her knees before him,--supporting the mother, who was also kneeling.

"What's the matter?" said the captain. "What's the matter?

Silas Jorgan
Played the--

Their looks and tears were too much for him, and he could not finish the
song, short as it was.

"Mistress Margaret, you have borne ill fortune well. Could you bear good
fortune equally well, if it was to come?"

"I hope so. I thankfully and humbly and earnestly hope so!"

"Wa'al, my dear," said the captain, "p'rhaps it has come. He's--don't be
frightened--shall I say the word--"

"Alive?"

"Yes!"

The thanks they fervently addressed to Heaven were again too much for the
captain, who openly took out his handkerchief and dried his eyes.

"He's no further off," resumed the captain, "than my country. Indeed,
he's no further off than his own native country. To tell you the truth,
he's no further off than Falmouth. Indeed, I doubt if he's quite so fur.
Indeed, if you was sure you could bear it nicely, and I was to do no more
than whistle for him--"

The captain's trust was discharged. A rush came, and they were all
together again.

This was a fine opportunity for Tom Pettifer to appear with a tumbler of
cold water, and he presently appeared with it, and administered it to the
ladies; at the same time soothing them, and composing their dresses,
exactly as if they had been passengers crossing the Channel. The extent
to which the captain slapped his legs, when Mr. Pettifer acquitted
himself of this act of stewardship, could have been thoroughly
appreciated by no one but himself; inasmuch as he must have slapped them
black and blue, and they must have smarted tremendously.

He couldn't stay for the wedding, having a few appointments to keep at
the irreconcilable distance of about four thousand miles. So next
morning all the village cheered him up to the level ground above, and
there he shook hands with a complete Census of its population, and
invited the whole, without exception, to come and stay several months
with him at Salem, Mass., U.S. And there as he stood on the spot where
he had seen that little golden picture of love and parting, and from
which he could that morning contemplate another golden picture with a
vista of golden years in it, little Kitty put her arms around