that he must remain quiet for a day or
two. From that moment, however, he got rapidly better, and in a week
was almost as well as ever. He was the last person seized with the
complaint on board the two brigs. On board the _Fate_, the master, and
mates, and half the crew died; and had not we and the other survivors of
the _Kite's_ crew arrived at Smyrna, it would have been difficult to
find hands to take her to sea. Captain Mathews, however, directed
Captain Tooke to take command of her, and sent Mr Cole as mate, with
Charley Iffley and me, while most of our men shipped on board her. I
thought that we were to go home, but I found that my summer cruise was
to be a very much longer affair than I had expected. Had I gone home
then, I think that I should have followed my kind grandmother's wishes
and given up the sea. Instead, however, of returning to England, the
brig was employed running from place to place, wherever she could secure
a freight. In that way I visited nearly every part of the coast of the
Mediterranean. Sometimes we went up the Adriatic; then across to
Alexandria; then to some port in Greece, or to one in Italy; then up to
Constantinople, and away over to the ports on the northern coast of
Africa. I saw a number of strange people and strange sights, but have
not now time to describe them.

I wrote home several times to my grandmother and aunt, but, as I was
always moving about, I got no answers. I thought very likely that my
letters or their replies had been wrongly directed; still I began to
grow very anxious to hear what had become of the only two relatives I
had on earth, and whom alone I had really learned to love. After I had
been out about a year I asked leave, if I could find the chance to go
home. The captain on this laughed at me, and reminded me that
apprentices were not their own masters, and that I must make up my mind
to stay where I was till the owners wanted the brig home.

Three years passed away so rapidly that I was astonished to find how
long I had been out in those seas. During all that time no accident had
happened, and I began to hope that I was not going to suffer any further
misfortunes in consequence of my rash oath. I expressed my feelings to
Charley Iffley. He laughed at me, and said that had nothing to do with
the matter, that there was no great harm in what I had said, and that,
consequently, I could not expect to be punished for it. I thought
differently. I k