t--

"Goodnight, beloved, not farewell!"

He went home to Music-Land, where they praise Him day and night.

One day we shall all meet again, and together with him we will tune
our song to harps of gold.

CHAPTER II

JOINING THE NAVY

Now about the temptation already hinted at, and all that followed in
its train. The steamer in which I crossed the harbour twice daily,
passed quite close to the 'Impregnable,' and thus gave me ample
opportunity to scan her vast dimensions, and to gaze in wonder at her
tall masts. But best of all was to see the sailor-boys on the
forecastle, in the rigging, and manning the boats which were fastened
to her lower booms. At the sight of all this my little life seemed to
be thrilled, and oh, how I longed to become a sailor boy! I would
give all the gold in the Mint did I possess it, in exchange for the
realisation of my yearning desire. How nice to pull the ropes, to
climb the rigging, but, above all, to wear a sailor's uniform.
Thoughts such as these haunted my mind constantly, and this daily
allurement only helped to swell the number.

Full well I knew my parents would not consent my joining the navy.
Still, one day I ventured to broach the subject to my mother, who
replied "That she could not bear to hear of such a thing." The
craving still grew, and my parents, clearly understanding the bend of
my inclination, made a compromise, steeped in love. This was it:
"Seeing you have such a desire for the sea, we have been praying much
about the matter, and after due consideration, conclude it will be
far better for you to join the service as a young man, not as a poor,
helpless boy. You shall have the trade of a shipwright--(the same,
trade as the one I should have been apprenticed to in the dockyard,
had I desired to pas the necessary qualification, but as a matter of
fact, this desire for the sea swallowed up every other)--and when out
of your time you will be in a different position to enter!" All this
my uncle, who himself had been in the navy, corroborated by saying:
"I should not put a dog before the mast--poor boys are huffed and
cuffed shamefully; but when a young man has a trade, and then joins,
his treatment, by reason of his manhood and trade, is totally
different."

After all this advice my enthusiasm cooled down, only to reappear in
a short time with greater fervour. In the meantime, I was apprenticed
to a shipbuilding trade, and although seven years was the required
ti