ith such perfect stoicism and cheerfulness that they
rather increased than diminished the reputation of the concern; the
latter were the more crushing, and also the more difficult to bear.

Lines of fine vessels from Liverpool and from Hamburg were running to
the West Coast of Africa, and competition had cut down freightage to the
lowest possible point. Where the Girdlestones had once held almost a
monopoly there were now many in the field. Again, the negroes of the
coast were becoming educated and had a keen eye to business, so that the
old profits were no longer obtainable. The days had gone by when
flint-lock guns and Manchester prints could be weighed in the balance
against ivory and gold dust.

While these general causes were at work a special misfortune had
befallen the house of Girdlestone. Finding that their fleet of old
sailing vessels was too slow and clumsy to compete with more modern
ships, they had bought in two first-rate steamers. One was the
_Providence_, a fine screw vessel of twelve hundred tons, and the other
was the _Evening Star_, somewhat smaller in size, but both classed A1 at
Lloyd's. The former cost twenty-two thousand pounds, and the latter
seventeen thousand. Now, Mr. Girdlestone had always had a weakness for
petty savings, and in this instance he determined not to insure his new
vessels. If the crazy old tubs, for which he had paid fancy premiums
for so many years with an eye to an ultimate profit, met with no
disaster, surely those new powerful clippers were safe. With their
tonnage and horse-power they appeared to him to be superior to all the
dangers of the deep. It chanced, however, by that strange luck which
would almost make one believe that matters nautical were at the mercy of
some particularly malignant demon, that as the _Evening Star_ was
steaming up Channel in a dense fog on her return from her second voyage,
she ran right into the _Providence_, which had started that very morning
from Liverpool upon her third outward trip. The _Providence_ was almost
cut in two, and sank within five minutes, taking down the captain and
six of the crew, while the _Evening Star_ was so much damaged about the
bows that she put into Falmouth in a sinking condition. That day's work
cost the African firm more than five and thirty thousand pounds.

Other mishaps had occurred to weaken the firm, apart from their trade
with the coast. The senior partner had engaged in speculation without
th