“Well, they were duly apprenticed when the ship arrived at Weymouth, and then off they went.  The other men on board were, as usual, very much afraid of being pressed, and every plan was hit upon for stowing away when they were boarded by a man-of-war.  Well, time passed, and after many voyages they had both nearly served their time.  They were tall, stout young men, and looked older than they really were.  At last, one day, when off the Western Isles, they were boarded by a frigate, and the officer who came in the boat asked Archy what he was, and he replied he was an apprentice.

“‘You an apprentice!’ cried he; ‘that won’t do.’

“‘But here are the indentures.’

“‘All forged,’ cried the officer; ‘just get into the boat, my lad.’ (You see that’s a very common trick of officers; if a boy’s grown up and fit for service, they don’t care about indentures.) Well, Archy found it was of no use, so he gets his kit and steps into the boat, shaking hands with Andrew, who was shedding tears at the thoughts of parting with his brother.

[Illustration:  A SURPRISE.—­Marryat, Vol.  X., p. 297.]

“‘It’s no use crying, Andrew,’ says he; ’I might have been second mate in three months, as the captain promised me when my time was up, and then I should have been protected, and might have risen from mate to captain; but now it’s all over with me.  May you have better luck, and I hope the captain will give you the berth instead of me.’  Well, away went Archy on board of the man-of-war, looking very gloomy, as you may suppose.  When he went aft on the quarter-deck the captain asked him his name and where he came from.

“‘Ah,’ said the captain, ’and who are your friends?  So Archy told him that he had only his mother left.  The captain asked him a good many more questions as to whether he had been educated or not, and what he knew, and then rated him A.B., and put him into the maintop.  Well, Archie remained there for about six months, and found that a man-of-war was not so bad a place after all; and he was well treated by the captain and officers, the more so as he was a good scholar.  After the cruise was over the frigate ran into the Channel, and anchored in Portland Roads, where there were a great many vessels wind-bound.  As usual, they sent round to press the men.  Now Archy was one of those sent in the boats, and by this time, being a man-of-war’s man all over, he was just as eager to get the men as the others were.  They boarded several vessels, and got some men; about dark they boarded one which laid well in the offing.  The captain was not on board, and the men were turned up, but they were very few, and all protected.  Now Archy, who was up to the hiding-places on board a merchant vessel, goes down with his cutlass, and crawls about in the dark, until at last he gets hold of a man by the heels.  ‘Come out, you thief,’ cries he, ’come out directly, or I’ll give you an inch of my cutlass;’ so the man, finding that he could not help himself, backs out, stern foremost.  Archy collars him and takes him on deck, when who should it prove to be but his own brother Andrew!