he has since proved herself the best of wives, being
very domestic and fond of home pleasures. Annie, my younger sister, was
eighteen years of age, and she was then my special pride and delight;
as, indeed, she has been all her life. She was tall and slender, but
well proportioned and graceful. Her features were regular and
expressive, and her complexion was very delicate; yet it has retained
its freshness until now, instead of fading, as is the case with most
clear, soft complexions. She was then, and is still, a beautiful woman.
She was very vivacious and witty, was fond of society, and cared less
for domestic pursuits than to have a gay time in a large company. She
was petted and indulged a great deal, being the youngest and a beauty,
so that she was not often called upon to practice self-denial. It is
probably partly due to this lack of restraint during her early years
that she never has had the strength of character and devotion to good
principles as Lucy."

Here the Captain sighed heavily, and stopped speaking for a minute or
two. I handed him a glass of ice-water, which he drank mechanically. He
then continued:

"As I before stated, I became first mate when my father retired. The
company was a wealthy one, owning a number of ships, so that the chances
for promotion were very good. My most intimate friend was a young man
named Henry Thayer. We had long been ship-mates together, and had passed
through a school of navigation at the same time. He was a thorough
seaman, a careful, considerate officer, and a true friend. He was a
general favorite on account of his cheerful disposition, and we soon
became like brothers. Whenever we returned from a voyage, I would bring
Henry out to the farm to spend a few days, and, about the time of my
promotion, I found that he had become warmly attached to Annie. At every
opportunity, he would run down to see her, and in every foreign port we
entered, he would be sure to buy some rare and curious present for her.
His affection was reciprocated by Annie, and one day, after I had made
two or three short voyages as first mate, I returned to the farm and
found Annie wearing an engagement ring. I laughingly asked her when it
was to come off, and she replied, with many blushes, that they were to
be married on Henry's return from his next voyage. I knew that Annie was
very fond of gentlemen's society, so I advised her to try to overcome
her taste for dress and company; since, when she was