s and take
advantage of what has been collected for us. However, I have had notice
that lots of oil will be brought on board in a few days, and when we get
that, we will put to sea even though we are not quite full."

The captain shortly afterwards paid Radforth a visit; but the boatswain
was raving at the time, and never again spoke while in his senses. The
following day we carried him to his grave on shore. The death of one
who was looked upon as the most seasoned and strongest man, had, as may
be supposed, a most depressing effect among the crew. It was soon also
evident that the first mate was ill with the fever, and indeed more than
half our number were now down with it.

Still the captain could not bring himself to quit the river. "In a few
days very possibly we shall have a full cargo Harry," he said to me.
"In the meantime, I daresay, the rest will hold out. Radforth
overworked himself, or he would not have caught the fever. Take care
Harry you don't expose yourself to the sun, and you will keep all to
rights my boy,--I am very careful about that--though I am so well
seasoned that nothing is likely to hurt me."

"I wish we were out of the river, Captain Willis," I could not help
replying. "The mates and the men are always talking about it, and they
say the season is unusually sickly or this would not have happened."

"They must mind their own business, and stay by the ship, wherever I
choose to take her," he exclaimed, in an angry tone, and I saw that I
should have acted more wisely in not making the observation I had just
let fall. Still, to do him justice, Captain Willis was as kind and
attentive as he possibly could be to the sick men; he constantly visited
the first mate, and treated him as if he had been a brother.

All this time not a word about religion was spoken on board; I had, it
is true, a Bible in my chest, put there by my sisters, but I had
forgotten all about it, and there was not another in the ship.

Except in the instance I have mentioned, and in one or two others, not
even the sick men seemed concerned about their souls. The only
consolation which those in health could offer to them, was the hope that
they might recover. "Cheer up Dick," or, "cheer up Tom, you'll struggle
through it, never say die--you will be right again before long old boy,"
and such like expressions were uttered over and over again, often to
those at their last gasp, and so the poor fellows went out of the w