of voluntary imprisonment in crimps' houses for the sole purpose of
escaping impressment into the navy, and now, when their voyage had
actually begun, here was a man-o'-war's boat alongside, to force them
into the service they regarded with so great an abhorrence. No wonder
that they looked and felt disgusted.

The men were drawn up in line along the deck, in single file, and the
lieutenant sauntered leisurely along the line, critically examining each
man as he came to him, but without, as George had anticipated, ordering
any of them into the boat alongside. At length he reached the last
individual in the line, one of the lads, and Leicester was beginning to
breathe freely once more, hoping that he was, after all, not to be
robbed of any of his crew, when the officer returned to the head of the
line, and, touching the second mate lightly on the chest with his
finger, said--

"You were evidently born to become a man-o'-war's man, my fine fellow;
get your traps together and pass them and yourself into the boat
alongside as soon as you have received your wages."

"Excuse me," said George, "I really must ask you not to take that man;
he is my second mate."

"Your second mate!" exclaimed the officer with well-feigned
astonishment. "You surely do not mean to say you carry a second mate on
board such a cock-boat as this?"

"Certainly I do," retorted George somewhat tartly; "why not, pray?"

"Simply, my good man, because such an individual is wholly unnecessary.
You can take charge of one watch, yourself, you know, and your mate will
of course command the other, so that you can have no possible use for a
second mate. Why, a smart, active young fellow like you ought to be
ashamed of such an act of laziness as the carrying of a second mate.
Pay the man his wages, if you please, and let him pass into the boat."

"I owe him no wages," answered George; "on the contrary, he--and every
other man of the crew, for that matter--has drawn a month's advance, and
owes me three weeks' service yet before we shall be square. Who is to
reimburse me for that loss?"

"I am sorry to say I am quite unable to answer that question," was the
reply; "but, giving it--mind you, strictly as my private opinion--I am
afraid you will have to suffer the loss. For my part I have never been
able to understand why you masters of merchantmen _will_ persist in so
risky a policy as the payment of a month's wages in advance, when you
can never tell wh