nd. But the effect of
the shock was too much for his mind; he fell down in a swoon, and when
he recovered, his senses had left him, and I heard that he never
recovered them, but was sent home to be confined as a maniac. I thought,
and the result proved, that it was carried too far. It is not the
custom, when a man is reprieved, to tell him so, until after he is on
the scaffold, with the intention that his awful situation at the time
may make a lasting impression upon him during the remainder of his life;
but, as a foreigner, he was not aware of our customs, and the hour of
intense feeling which he underwent was too much for his reason. I must
say, that this circumstance was always a source of deep regret in the
whole fleet, and that his being a Frenchman, instead of an Englishman,
increased the feeling of commiseration.

[Footnote 1: This is fact.--AUTHOR.]

Chapter XVII

Mr Chucks's opinion on proper names--He finishes his Spanish tale--March
of intellect among the Warrant Officers.

We were all delighted when our signal was hoisted to "part company," as
we anticipated plenty of prize-money under such an enterprising captain.
We steered for the French coast, near to its junction with Spain, the
captain having orders to intercept any convoys sent to supply the French
army with stores and provisions.

The day after we parted company with the fleet, Mr Chucks finished his
story.

"Where was I, Mr Simple, when I left off?" said he, as we took a seat
upon the long eighteen.

"You had just left the house after having told them that you were a
corregidor, and had kissed the lady's hand."

"Very true. Well, Mr Simple, I did not call there for two or three days
afterwards; I did not like to go too soon, especially as I saw the young
lady every day in the Plaza. She would not speak to me, but, to make use
of their expression, 'she gave me her eyes,' and sometimes a sweet
smile. I recollect I was so busy looking at her one day, that I tripped
over my sword, and nearly fell on my nose, at which she burst out a
laughing."

"Your sword, Mr Chucks? I thought boatswains never wore swords."

"Mr Simple, a boatswain is an officer, and is entitled to a sword as
well as the captain, although we have been laughed out of it by a set of
midshipman monkeys. I always wore my sword at that time; but now-a-days,
a boatswain is counted as nobody, unless there is hard work to do, and
then it's Mr Chucks this, and Mr Chucks tha