“I fancied, when I met the captain at the dinner-table, that he looked rather ashamed; for I had related the whole affair to the other passengers, and he could perceive, by their indifference towards him, that they despised him for his cowardice.  He tried to be jocular, but could not succeed in exciting our risibility:  we did not even encourage his jokes by the shadow of a smile, and he seemed uneasy during the remainder of the time we sat at table.

“I now felt more than ever interested in the fate of Frederic Hamilton and was not sorry I had said so much in the morning.  Prudence might have dictated milder language certainly; but my indignation was aroused; and when I found that my remonstrance had the desired effect, I did not repent of my impetuosity.

“About a week after this unhappy occurrence, as I was leaning over the rail on the quarter-deck, watching the shoals of porpoises (for we were then in a warm latitude) playing in the bright blue sea at the vessel’s side, the boatswain, who was a fine specimen of a sea-faring man, came up and, seating himself on a fowl-coop near me, commenced sorting rope-yarns for the men to spin.  Presently Frederic walked up the ladder with a bucket of water to pour into the troughs for the thirsty poultry, who were stretching their necks through the bars and opening their bills, longing for the refreshing draught:  the heat was overpowering, and the poor things were closely packed in their miserable coops.

“I remarked to Williams how pale the boy looked, and how thin, and said, I feared he was not only badly treated, but had not proper nourishment.

“‘Why, ma’am,’ said he, ’to say the truth, the lad’s not been used to this kind of living, and it was the worst thing as ever happened to him to be brought on board the “Neptune,” with our skipper for a master.  You see, madam,’ he continued, ’his father was a parson; but he is dead, and the mother tried hard to persuade the lad (for, poor thing, he is her only boy,) to turn parson too, when his father died.  But no.  The boy had set his mind on going to sea; and as he had no friends who could help him to go to school or college, and his godfather, Captain Hartly, offered to pay the apprenticeship fees if his mother would let him learn navigation, she at last, though much against her will, consented that he should be bound apprentice to our skipper here.  But it pretty nigh broke her heart to part with the child; and she begged the captain to use him gently and bear with him a little, for he was not so hardy as many boys of his age; and, moreover, had been accustomed to kindness and delicate treatment.  The lad is a fine noble-hearted lad, but he is not strong; and it is my opinion that the master wants to get rid of him to have the fee for nothing, and he’s trying what hard living, hard work, and hard usage will do towards making him go the faster.  But he had better mind what he is about.  There’s many a man on board that can speak a good word for Frederic