r it.
Mungo was appointed steward, for I had taken a great fancy to him;
and my friend Talbot having brought all his things on board, and the
admiral having given my final orders, I sailed from Simon's Bay for
England.

There is usually but little of incident in a run home of this sort.
I was not directed to stop at St Helena, and had no inclination to
loiter on my way. I carried sail night and day to the very utmost.
Talbot and myself became inseparable friends, and our cabin mess was
one of perfect harmony. We avoided all national reflections, and
abstained as much as possible from politics. I made a confidant of
Talbot in my love affair with Emily. Of poor Eugenia, I had long
before told him a great deal.

One day at dinner we happened to talk of swimming. "I think," said
Talbot, "that my friend Frank is as good a hand at that as any of us.
Do you remember when you swam away from the frigate at Spithead, to
pay a visit to your friend, Mrs Melpomene, at Point?"

"I do," said I, "and also how generously you showered the musket-balls
about my ears for the same."

"Your escape from either drowning or shooting on that occasion, among
many others," said the commander, "makes me augur something more
serious of your future destiny."

"That may be," said I; "but I dispute the legality of your act, in
trying to kill me before you knew who I was, or what I was about. I
might have been mad, for what you knew; or I might have belonged to
some other ship; but, in any event, had you killed me, and had my body
been found, a coroner's inquest would have gone very hard with you,
and a jury still worse."

"I should have laughed at them," said Talbot.

"You might have found it no laughing matter," said I.

"How?" replied Talbot, "what are sentinels placed for, and loaded with
ball?"

"To defend the ship," said I; "to give warning of approaching danger;
to prevent men going out of the ship without leave; but never to take
away the life of a man unless in defence of their own, or when the
safety of the king's ship demands it."

"I deny your conclusion," said Talbot; "the articles of war denounce
death to all deserters."

"True," said I, "they do, and also to many other crimes; but those
crimes must first of all be proved before a court-martial. Now you
cannot prove that I was deserting, and if you could, you had not the
power to inflict death on me unless I was going towards the enemy.
I own I was disobeying your orders, b