earest mother, had so nicely packed up for me, were
seized with greediness, and devoured before my face. One of them thrust
his filthy paw into a pot of black currant jelly, which you gave me for
a sore throat, and held a handful of it to my mouth, knowing at the same
time that I was ready to be sea-sick in his hand."

"I shall never bear the sight of jelly again," said my sister.

"The nasty brutes!" said my aunt.

"Well," I resumed, "all my nice things went; and, sick as I was, I
wished them gone; but when they laughed and spoke disrespectfully of
you, my dear mother, I was ready to fly up and tear their eyes out."

"Never mind, my dear boy," said my mother, "we will make all right
again."

"So I suppose we must," said my father; "but no more jelly and
gingerbread, if you please, my dear. Proceed with your story, Frank."

"Well, sir, in half an hour my chest was ready for me again; but while
they were about it, they might have taken off another foot, for I found
ample space to stow what the plunderers had left. The preserve jars,
being all empty, were given, of course, to the marines; and some other
heavy articles being handed away, I was no longer puzzled how to stow
them. After this, you know, sir, we had the action, and then chest and
bedding and all went to the devil."

"Do they throw all the chests and bedding overboard on these occasions?"
said my father, with a cool and steady gaze in my face, which I had some
trouble in facing back again.

"Yes; always everything that is in the way, and my chest was in the way,
and away it went. You know, sir, I could not knock down the first
lieutenant: they would have hanged me at the yard-arm."

"Thank Heaven, you did not, my love," said my mother; "what _has_
happened can be repaired, but _that_ could never have been got over.
And your books, what is become of them?"

"All went in the lump. They are somewhere near the entrance of the Gut
of Gibraltar--all lost except my Bible: I saved that, as I happened to
be reading it in my berth the night before the action."

"Excellent boy!" exclaimed my mother and aunt both together; "I am sure
he speaks the truth."

"I hope he does," said my father, drily; "though it must be owned that
these sea-fights, however glorious for Old England, are very expensive
amusements to the parents of young midshipmen, unless the boys happen to
be knocked on the head."

Whether my father began to smell a rat, or whether he was af