some of the straight-laced professors stood aghast.  His responses at church-service resounded like the growl of a bear, and when reprimanding the assembled midshipmen, drawn up in battalion, for some grave breach of discipline, he would stride up and down the line with the tread of an elephant, and expound the Articles of War in stentorian tones that equaled the roar of a bull!  But if, perchance, in the awesome precincts of his office, he afterwards got hold of a piece of doggerel some witty midshipman had written descriptive of such a scene, none would enjoy it more than he!

After an enjoyment of a three months’ leave of absence at home.  Midshipman Perkins was ordered to join the sloop-of-war Cyane, Captain Robb.  That ship was one of the home squadron, and in November, 1856, sailed for Aspinwall, to give protection to our citizens, mails, and freight, in the transit across the Isthmus of Panama to California, back and forth.  At that period safe and rapid transit in that region of riots and revolution was much more important than now,—­the Pacific Railroad existing only in the brains of a few sagacious men,—­and the maintenance of the thoroughfare across the pestilential isthmus was a national necessity.  For years our naval force on either side had had frequent occasion to land expeditions to protect the life and property of our citizens, and a frightful massacre of passengers had but lately occurred at the hands of a mongrel mob at Panama.  The situation was critical, and for a time it looked as though the United States would be obliged to seize and hold that part of Colombian territory.  But time wore on without outbreak on the part of the fiery freemen of that so-called republic, the continued presence of ships, both at Panama and Aspinwall, doubtless convincing them of the folly of further attempts to molest the hated Yankees.

Meanwhile the notorious Walker had been making a filibustering raid in Central America, which ended in failure, and the Cyane went over to Greytown to bring the sick and wounded of his deluded followers to Aspinwall for passage to New York.  Some hundred and twenty officers and men found in the hands of the Costa Ricans were taken on board, most of them in a deplorable condition.  Some died before weighing anchor for Aspinwall, and as midshipmen have no definable duties except to obey orders, whatever they may be, Midshipman Perkins was sent in a boat one day to take a chaplain’s part in the burial of one of the victims.  “When we got out to sea,” he wrote, “I read some prayers over him, and then he was thrown over the side, the sailors saying ‘God bless you!’ as the body sunk.”  This sad duty made him feel solemn and reflective, but more than likely as not he was called upon immediately on arrival on board, as “master’s mate of the spirit-room,” to attend the serving out of grog to the ship’s company!  Extremes meet on board a man-of-war, and the times for moralizing are short and scant.