there plied me with liquor till all my
scruples vanished, and I became once more his slave.

"What occurred on board that vessel I cannot now tell; but you will
probably know ere long. But the favour I have to ask of you is, that if
I die, as I hope to do before our trial, you will find out my parents,
and tell them, not all the truth, but how you encountered me on the
point of death, and that I died repentant."

I promised the unhappy young man that I would do as he desired, and, at
his request, I took down the name and address of his parents.

I have often since thought, as I recollected this story, that if parents
did but consider the misery they were storing up for themselves and
their children by neglecting the precepts of the wise King of Israel,
they would, oftener than they do, search that book for counsel and
advice, and would teach their children also to seek instruction from its
copious pages.

Oh! my young friends, remember that you cannot live well without some
rule of conduct, any more than you can steer a ship across the ocean
without a compass or knowledge of the stars. Then, let me urge you to
take the best rule you can find; and where, let me ask, does there exist
one comparable, in any way, to that found in the Proverbs of Solomon?
If you would be truly wise, learn them by heart, and remember them
always.

We were very thankful when, at length, we reached Malta harbour. Of
course we were put into quarantine, but we were relieved from the charge
of our prisoners. To his own surprise, as well as mine, Charles Adams--
so he called himself--the young man whose short history I have just
narrated, still survived, and there appeared every probability that he
would be able to undergo his trial. Our first inquiry was to ascertain
if any news had been received of the _Ariadne_; but nothing had been
heard of her, and poor Mr Vernon was doomed still longer to endure the
tortures of suspense.

At last our quarantine was concluded, the pirates were carried off to
prison, and we returned on board our ship, which had come in from a
cruise just in time to receive us. For several days we did nothing but
talk about our adventures with our own messmates, as well as with
various people who came off to see us. I got great credit for the way
in which I had saved the brig from being blown up; though, as I was as
much interested as any one else in the success of the performance, I
cannot say that I thought I ha