so?"

"Certainly you may, Will. I think I have loved you ever since I was a
little girl, and acknowledge that my principal reason for inducing father
to come to live in England was that I believed I should have more chance
of meeting you again here than in Jamaica."

"I am heartily glad, too, that it is all settled," Mr. Palethorpe said. "I
have seen it coming on ever since you met us the first time in London, and
I may say that I have seen it with pleasure, for there is no one to whom I
would sooner trust her happiness than you. Now I will leave you to
yourselves."

It need hardly be said that Alice was as anxious as Sir Ralph Gilmore that
Will should quit the navy, and he consequently yielded to their
entreaties. He wrote to his grandfather to tell him of his engagement, and
the baronet wrote back by return of post to Mr. Palethorpe, begging him to
come down with his daughter and Will for a time.

"I only half know him at present," he said, "and as I understand that just
at present he will not want to leave the young lady of his choice, you
will gladden an old man if you will all three come down to stay with me."

Three months later the marriage took place from the house at Dulwich. Sir
Ralph Gilmore came up for the ceremony, and the change that the three
months had effected in him was extraordinary. He was the gayest of the
party.

Among those present at the ceremony were also Will's two devoted friends,
Dimchurch and Tom Stevens. The baronet was greatly pleased with their
affection and pride in Will, and offered both good posts on the estate. So
none of the comrades went to sea again.

The baronet gave into Will's hands the entire management of the estate and
house, so his death, seven years later, made practically no difference to
Will's position. Will took to country pursuits, and became one of the most
popular landlords in Somersetshire, while his wife was quite one of the
most popular ladies in the county. Her father, up to the time of his
death, spent most of his time down there, and they used the house at
Dulwich as their abode when they stayed in London during the season. Mrs.
Archer came more than once to stay with them, as their most honoured
guest. Stevens and Dimchurch both married. The former became
head-gamekeeper on the estate, a post in which he showed great talent. The
latter took a small cottage with a bit of land just outside the park
gates, for he was able to live very comfortably on the i