at is it? Don't you like to have me kiss you?" she said,
amazed.

"It is n't that, Miss Wilton. I 'd rather kiss you than--than
anything; but you call me a boy, and treat me like a child, and--and I
can't stand it. I--I 've challenged all the men in the steerage about
you already," alluding to the other little fellows of like rank; "they
call me a baby there, too, because I 'm so little and so young. But I
'll grow. And--I love you," he went on abruptly and determinedly,
choking down his sobs and swallowing his tears, while fingering the
handle of his dirk, and furtively rubbing his eyes with his other hand.
"Oh, madam, if you would only wait until I got a frigate! Won't you?
But no! You don't treat me like a man," he exclaimed bitterly,
stamping his foot and turning away.

"Well, I never!" cried the astonished and abashed Katharine, completely
overawed for the moment by this novel declaration. "What next?"

Truly, they made men out of boys early in those days. The next moment
the hoarse cries of the boatswain and his mates, and the beating drums,
called all hands to clear the ship for action and startled everybody
into activity at once. The Honorable Giles, the manly if lachrymose
midshipman, sprang forward to his station as rapidly as his small but
sturdy legs could carry him.

CHAPTER XXXIV

_Captain Vincent Mystified_

While the big ship was rapidly and methodically being stripped for the
possible emergency, the captain was engaged in busy conversation with
the colonel. They had steadily drawn near the reported sail until the
lookouts could plainly make out a small fleet of small ships. Never
dreaming that they could be American ships, Captain Vincent had his
ship prepared for action, more through the habitual wariness of an
experienced sailor than from any premonition of an impending battle.
But as the two forces drew near, the actions of the opposing fleet
became suddenly suspicious; all but one of them tacked ship, and stood
off to the northeast, in a compact group in close order, under all
possible sail, though one, the smallest and a brig, it was noticed,
lagged behind the rest of the group in a way which bespoke either very
slow sailing qualities or deliberate purpose of delay. The remaining
ship, the largest of them all, stood boldly on its original course.
This latter, it was plain to see, was a small frigate, possibly a
twenty-eight or a thirty-two. Taking into account the respect