d. So unpopular was he that
when a plot was entered into by the whole crew to punish his misdeeds
with death, he had not a single friend among six hundred souls to warn
him of his danger. It was the custom on board the king's ships that upon
his birthday the entire ship's company should be drawn up upon deck,
and that at a signal they should discharge their muskets into the air
in honour of his Majesty. On this occasion word had been secretly passed
round for every man to slip a slug into his firelock, instead of the
blank cartridge provided. On the boatswain blowing his whistle the men
mustered upon deck and formed line, whilst the captain, standing well in
front of them, delivered a few words to them. 'When I give the word,' he
concluded, 'you shall discharge your pieces, and by thunder, if any man
is a second before or a second after his fellows I shall trice him up to
the weather rigging!' With these words he roared 'Fire!' on which every
man levelled his musket straight at his head and pulled the trigger.
So accurate was the aim and so short the distance, that more than five
hundred bullets struck him simultaneously, blowing away his head and a
large portion of his body. There were so many concerned in this matter,
and it was so hopeless to trace it to any individual, that the officers
were unable to punish any one for the affair--the more readily as the
captain's haughty ways and heartless conduct had made him quite as
hateful to them as to the men whom they commanded.

"By his pleasantries and the natural charm of his manners our hero so
far won the good wishes of the ship's company that they parted with
infinite regret upon their arrival in England. Filial duty, however,
urged him to return home and report himself to his father, with which
object he posted from Portsmouth to London, intending to proceed thence
to Shropshire. As it chanced, however, one of the horses sprained his
off foreleg while passing through Chichester, and as no change could
be obtained, Cyprian found himself compelled to put up at the Crown and
Bull for the night.

"Ods bodikins!" continued Smollett, laughing, "I never could pass a
comfortable hostel without stopping, and so, with your permission, I'll
e'en stop here, and whoever wills may lead friend Cyprian to his further
adventures. Do you, Sir Walter, give us a touch of the Wizard of the
North."

With these words Smollett produced a pipe, and filling it at Defoe's
tobacco-pot, waite