uildford to turn out at sunrise, that is if he went to
bed at all; for his unkind step-father often locked him out of a night
when in an especially angry mood. "Law, mum, whatever be I a-doing of
a-lying here in broad daylight! I humbly asks yer parding, mum."

"Oh, never mind that, you're not so very late, my poor boy, considering
all you went through yesterday and last night," said Mrs Gilmour
smiling. "But, come now, you mustn't keep the Captain waiting, or we'll
have him trotting upstairs after you himself. Dress as quickly as you
can; I have had your things dried at the kitchen fire, and here they are
in this chair near the door."

So saying, Mrs Gilmour left the room, and Dick hopped out of bed
immediately afterwards, proceeding to put on his clothes; thinking, poor
fellow, as he did so, how shabby and ragged they were, and that they and
he were altogether sadly out of place in an apartment which, to his
rustic eyes, used only to the surroundings of his village home, appeared
a palace.

As soon as he was dressed and opened the door of the room, he found,
waiting on the landing, a maidservant, who, first taking him downstairs
to the kitchen, where she gave him a good breakfast, afterwards showed
him the way to the parlour.

Here Mrs Gilmour and the Captain, with Bob and Nellie, were all
assembled, apparently ready to go out, the ladies having their walking
things on.

"A pretty time of day for a youngster like you to be getting up," cried
the old sailor jocularly as he entered. "I wonder the bright sun hasn't
scorched your eyes out long before this, sir!"

Dick was commencing an abject apology, but Mrs Gilmour stopped him.

"Oh, never mind the Captain," she said laughing at the poor lad's look
of contrition. "He's only `taking a rise' out of you, as he would call
it."

"Humph! is he?" growled the Captain, blinking away and pretending to be
very serious. "But, come now, we must be off. I want you to go along
with me into Portsmouth; so, get your cap and we'll start at once."

"Mayn't we come too?" shouted Bob and Nellie in one breath together.
"Do say yes, Captain Dresser!"

"Well, I don't know about you, Miss Nellie, for I may have to go into
places where little girls may be in the way; besides which, I don't
think you would like to leave your aunt all alone, eh?"

"Of course not, dear Captain, I forgot that," said Nellie, accepting
this quiet suggestion of the old sailor as a final settlement