h!" Lieutenant Somerville said when he had finished.
"Now I feel that I can, in any emergency, depend upon you to second me,
which I can assure you is by no means commonly the case, for promotion
goes so much by influence, and such incapable men are pushed up in the
service that it is a comfort indeed to have an officer who knows his work
thoroughly. I hope to goodness we shall have the captain so fine a ship
deserves."

"I hope so indeed, sir. I have hitherto been extremely fortunate in having
good captains, as good as one could wish for."

"You are fortunate indeed, then. I have been under two or three men who,
either from ignorance or ill-temper or sheer indifference, have been
enough to take the heart entirely out of their officers."

On the day when the _Jason_ was ready for commission the captain came down
to Portsmouth and put up at the George, and Mr. Somerville and Will called
upon him there. He was a young man, some years younger than the first
lieutenant.

"Gentlemen," he began, "I have pleasure in making your acquaintance. I saw
the admiral this morning, and he assured me that I could not wish for
better officers. I hope we shall get on pleasantly together, and can
assure you that if we do not it will not be my fault. We have as fine a
ship as men could wish to sail in, and I will guarantee that you will not
find me slack in using her. As you may guess by my age, I owe my present
position partly to family interest, but my object will be to prove that
that interest has not been altogether misplaced. I have already had
command of a frigate, and we had our full share of hard service. I am
afraid that with a seventy-four we shall not have quite so many
opportunities of distinguishing ourselves, but shall generally have to
work with the fleet and fight when other people bid us, and not merely
when we see a good chance. There is, however, as much credit, if not as
much prize-money, to be gained in a pitched battle as in isolated actions.
I was kindly permitted by the admiral to read both your records of
service, and I cannot say how gratified I was to find that I had two such
able and active officers to second me."

"I am sure we are much obliged to you, sir," Lieutenant Somerville
replied, "for speaking to us as you have done. I can answer for it that we
will second you to the very best of our power, and I am glad indeed to
find that we have a commander whose sentiments so entirely accord with our
own."

"