ing no great
restraint of principle or anything else to check them, seem to hold
that his Majesty's service is merely a convenience for their especial
use, and his Majesty's ships a sort of packet-boats to carry their
elegant persons from port to port, in search of fresh conquests, and,
as they suppose, fresh laurels to their country.

Few men do anything well which they do not like; for the same reason,
if an officer be capable of performing services really valuable, his
success must arise from turning his chief attention to those branches
of the profession which he feels are the most congenial to his
peculiar tastes, and which experience has shown lie within the range
of his capacity. Some officers deliberately act upon this, while the
greater number, as may be supposed, adopt their line unconsciously.
Still, it is the bounden duty of every well-wisher to the service to
use the influence he possesses to lead the young persons about him to
follow the true bent of their genius, and to select as a principal
object of study the particular branch of the profession in which they
are most likely to benefit themselves permanently.

I well remember, in my own case, the day, and almost the very hour,
when these convictions flashed upon my mind. I then saw, for the first
time, that unless I speedily roused myself, and "took my line"
vigorously, the proper occasion might swiftly pass away. I was quite
astonished how, up to that moment, I had seen so little of what now
appeared so very palpable; every other consideration was instantly
dismissed, and all minor vanities being shaken off like dew-drops to
the air, I set resolutely about the attainment of my promotion, the
grand object of every officer's ambition. But before describing how
this important affair was put in train, I shall attempt a sketch of
the kind of life I was leading about this period. In looking back to
those days, and glancing the mind's eye along the intermediate years,
I sometimes ask myself whether or not I should act very differently if
permitted to make the voyage over again, under the guidance of
experience bought by the practice of life. The retrospect, of course,
offers some unavailing regrets; but still I can hardly believe that
the result would, on the whole, have proved materially happier for
myself.

Such being the case, I trust there is no unpardonable egotism in
mentioning, in a work intended for young people, that one of my chief
motives for br