CHAPTER XXIV.

HALF ROUND THE WORLD.

The wind was fresh, and The Starry Flag was under easy sail when the Caribbee was discovered. Though Levi immediately ordered the foresail to be hoisted, he saw, with intense chagrin, that the advantage was against him. He had hauled down the fly, and he hoped, as Dock Vincent was not on board of the Caribbee, that her people would not recognize the yacht. The wind was east, and the vessel was beating out, while The Starry Flag had the wind on the beam.

Levi, trusting that his craft would not be identified, intended to crowd the Caribbee so as to oblige her to tack, and then, while she was in stays, to lay alongside, and board her. Mr. C. Augustus Ebénier stood, with his revolver in his hand, ready to follow his "excellent captain," who was similarly armed, to the deck of the chase. Three other men were also detailed to join the party, though Levi did not expect much, if any, resistance.

The young skipper kept out of sight himself, that he might not be recognized before the decisive moment came. His heart bounded with excitement. He saw Bessie standing on the deck with Dock's wife, and a few moments more would restore her to him, and he should have the proud satisfaction of sailing up New York Bay, and giving her back to her father. The steward was ready to do greater wonders than ever before. Thus far he had done all the hard fighting, and he was prepared to do it unto the end.

The decisive moment did not come then. The quick eye of Mat Mogmore had recognized the yacht, and the Caribbee suddenly tacked, and stood away to the south-east. But Levi did not give up the chase. He had the weather-gage, and his foresail was now drawing well. In spite of Dock's brags about the speed of his vessel, the young skipper believed the yacht would outsail her; but this was only a blind confidence.

The Caribbee was headed directly towards a shoal place called the "Oil Spot," and as it was dead low tide, Levi thought she could not pass over it. Farther to the southward was a ledge, with only nine feet of water on it. But Captain Gauley knew all about the dangers of the navigation on this part of the coast. He went just to the southward of the Oil Spot; and, instead of gaining anything, Levi was obliged to keep away, and lose the weather-gage, in order to avoid the shoal himself.

He was disappointed and felt cheap after his failure. The Caribbee, close-hauled, was standing off to the south-east, while The Starry Flag was a quarter of a mile astern of her. Neither had the advantage, and it was still an open question which could make the best time. Levi soon found that the Caribbee was running away from him; but she carried a main gaff-topsail and a staysail. Fortunately he had similar sails on board, though he seldom used them. They were set when the two vessels were about a mile apart.

The wind held fresh and steady, and Levi was happy when he realized that the Caribbee was no longer gaining upon him. Hour after hour he followed her, without any perceptible change in the distance between them. It was plain now that the two vessels were about equally matched, and day and night Levi held his course. On the third day out he spoke a ship bound to New York. He knew what agony Mr. Watson was suffering, and he wrote two letters to him, one directed to New York, and the other to Rockport; "I shall follow the Caribbee round the world if necessary, and I will not return without Bessie," he wrote. These letters he sent on board of the ship, and in due time both were received by Mr. Watson.

For weeks and weeks The Starry Flag followed the Caribbee; but the voyage would be as tedious to the reader as it was to Bessie Watson. From the summer time, the yacht went into the heat of the torrid zone, and from that to the spring time of the south temperate. A week out from New York she encountered a heavy gale, and lost sight of the chase; but Levi, true to his promise, did not give up the pursuit, though he did not see the Caribbee again for weeks. As the yacht was getting short of water and provisions, he put in at the Island of St. Helena for fresh supplies, and learned that the Caribbee had left the port only the day before.

Again he made a harbor at Cape Town; but the chase had not been there. With fresh provisions, he sailed again, not expecting to see the Caribbee till he found her at Melbourne, the port for which she had cleared; but as he went out of the harbor, he discovered her coming in. The Caribbee went about, and stood on her course again to the eastward. Levi was in high spirits now. He had outsailed his rival from St. Helena. He had profited by an attentive study of the current chart, and gained a day. Proud of this triumph over the skilful seaman who was in charge of the chase, he persevered in the pursuit.

Bessie saw The Starry Flag from the deck of the Caribbee, and understood why Captain Gauley put about. She was amazed at the persistent devotion of Levi in following her so far, and hope brightened and inspired her. Captain Gauley and Mat laughed at what they called the folly of Levi, and assured Bessie he would never find her.

Week after week both vessels held on their course, through sunshine and tempest. Off the southern coast of Australia a fearful storm burst upon them, and for the third time since leaving the Cape of Good Hope, they parted company; but both of them weathered the tempest. One hundred and seven days from New York, in the spring time of the southern hemisphere, The Starry Flag was approaching Bass Straits. The navigation was difficult and dangerous. Levi had read up his nautical library, and carefully studied the charts he had obtained at Cape Town. The wind was blowing a fresh gale from the southward and westward, and the young commander was full of doubt and anxiety. The night was coming on, with the promise of thick and heavy weather. Another day would enable him to reach Melbourne; but it was hazardous to attempt to thread his way among the rocks and coral reefs in the night and the storm. Prudently, therefore, he put about, and stood away to the southward, close-hauled, with the heavy seas washing his decks, for his bulwarks had been stove in the tempest a week before.

"Sail, ho!" shouted the man on the lookout forward.

"Where away?" asked Levi.

"On the weather bow."

"It's the Caribbee!" exclaimed Levi to Bob Thomas, who had been made first mate of the yacht.

"Ay, ay! It is," replied the mate.

"She went to the southward of Hammetts, while we went to the northward, after the great storm. The southerly current has carried her off her course, I should judge," added Levi.

The captain and the mate watched her with the most intense interest. The Caribbee stood on her course, and it was evident that she intended to enter the Straits, regardless of the perils before her. Levi could not do less than follow, reckless as it seemed to him. He did follow; but he took extraordinary precautions. He bent on his heavy anchor, and made other preparations for trying events. But the Caribbee, instead of entering the Straits in the darkness, stood away to the northward. All night long the gale piped its angry notes, and The Starry Flag again lost sight of the chase in the gloom.

The weather moderated in the morning, though the gale only partially subsided. Again the Caribbee was discovered, hull down, in the south. She was then entering the Straits, to the southward of King's Island, where no prudent navigator would venture in bad weather. The yacht was headed in that direction, and anxiously did Levi watch the chase. He had no intention of following her through the intricacies of that rock-bounded channel. Two hours later, the cry ran through the yacht that the Caribbee had struck on a hidden reef!

The heart of the young skipper was in his mouth. Bessie was in great peril, and he was almost distracted as he thought of her, perishing in the angry waves, surrounded only by enemies. The yacht dashed madly on towards the scene of the disaster. Trembling with anxiety, Levi went below to consult his chart, which lay all the time on the cabin table. He found the locality, and the ledge on which the Caribbee had struck. There was no other peril very near it, and he stood on confidently till The Starry Flag was within hail of the wreck, or would have been in less tempestuous weather.

The foremast of the Caribbee had gone by the board, and the waves were making a clean sweep over her decks. The life-boat, which swung at the port davits of the yacht, had been cleared away, in readiness to be lowered. Finding he had good holding-ground under him, Levi ordered the men to let go the heavy anchor. Fortunately it brought her up; but the other anchor was also thrown over. The sails were lowered, and the yacht rode tolerably easy. The gale was abating, and Levi was satisfied that the two anchors would hold her.

The life-boat was manned with four men, and Levi took his place in the stern-sheets. It was no easy matter to board the wreck while the sea was making a clean breach over her. She had struck her bow upon the sharp rock, and stove in her bottom. She had filled, and her stern had settled down, and the water was over her taffrail, while her stem projected up into the air. Her hull had swung round a little, so that there was a choice of sides in approaching her. The foremast had been jammed up by the breaking of the keelson where it was set, and hung over the side. To this the life-boat was made fast, and Levi, followed by Bob Thomas, climbed on board.

Crouching under the lee of the camboose, the young skipper found Bessie, Mrs. Vincent, and the two children, while the crew were clinging to the rigging of the bowsprit to prevent being washed overboard.

"O, Levi!" cried Bessie, when she saw the manly form of her true friend.

In the blast and the spray, Levi clasped her hands, and both of them wept. It was more than three months since they had parted in the house of Mr. Watson. There was no time to think of the past, or even of the future; the present absorbed all the energies of the young seaman. With the assistance of Bob Thomas, Levi conveyed Bessie along the fallen spar, and lowered her into the life-boat. Mrs. Vincent and her two children were assisted into the boat in the same manner. Mat Mogmore and two men—all that were left of the crew—were then permitted to enter the boat, which pulled back to the yacht.

With much difficulty, and the exercise of no little skill, the life-boat was kept right side up, and the rescued party were safely placed on board of The Starry Flag, though the females had to be hoisted up in slings over the stern.

"You are safe, Bessie," said Levi, as he conducted her to the cabin.

"Thanks to our Good Father, and to you, Levi, I am!"

"I have the inexpressible happiness of greeting you again," said Mr. C. Augustus Ebénier, as he threw open the door of her state-room.

The gale rapidly subsided, and in the afternoon, after the wreck had been boarded again, the yacht sailed for Melbourne.

CHAPTER XXV.

A HAPPY REUNION.

The sea in the Strait was comparatively smooth, and the yacht sped on her way to Melbourne. Mrs. Vincent and her children had been installed in Mr. Watson's state-room, while Bessie occupied her own. From her Levi had obtained all the particulars of her voyage. She told him what she had suffered, what she had feared, and what she had hoped.

"Who had charge of the Caribbee?" asked Levi, when, after Bessie and Mrs. Vincent had been made comfortable, they gathered in the cabin.

"Captain Gauley," replied Bessie.

"Who was he?"

"He was a pilot on a steamer," replied Mrs. Vincent. "He and my husband became acquainted while they were on a boat near New York. I never saw him till just before we sailed from the Cape. He is a bad man."

"That is plain enough," added Levi; "but where is he now?"

"He and three other men were washed overboard when the vessel struck on the rocks."

"And three of the men were saved?"

"Yes; Mat Mogmore, the steward, and another man."

"Why did you sail without your husband, Mrs. Vincent?" asked Levi.

"I don't know anything about this business. I hadn't anything to do with it," replied the poor woman; and Levi and Bessie pitied her because she was the wife of such a bad man.

"I am sure she had nothing to do with carrying me off, Levi," interposed Bessie. "She has been very kind to me from the moment I went on board of the Caribbee, and would have assisted me to escape, if there had been any chance."

"I am very glad indeed to know that," added Levi. "I don't see why this Captain Gauley sailed without your husband."

"Captain Vincent sent a letter to him, saying that things were going wrong with him, and ordered him to sail at once."

Levi wondered how Dock had sent the letter. When told that it was written in pencil, and that the address on the envelope was not in her husband's hand, he was satisfied that Constable Cooke had rendered him this important service.

"My husband was to come to Australia by the steamer from England," added Mrs. Vincent. "Perhaps he is here now."

"I think not," replied Levi.

"Why so?"

"Because he was arrested, and committed to jail before I left the Cape. Augustus caught him."

"I had that honor," said the steward, who was standing near the party; and the incident was fully described.

"I suppose my poor father and mother do not know what has become of me," continued Bessie, the tears starting to her eyes.

"Yes, they do. I sent two letters by a ship we spoke. If this vessel reached New York, I am sure he knows where you are. I wrote him that I should follow you round the world, if need be."

"How brave and noble you are, Levi!" she said, bestowing a glance of admiration upon him. "And this Starry Flag has rendered me a greater service than the other Starry Flag."

"She has indeed! She is the finest little craft that ever floated; and I shall love her as long as I live. In that great gale a week ago, she was under water half the time, I believe. We had to batten down everything, and lash ourselves to the deck."

"That was a fearful storm. I hope I shall never see another such. How grateful we ought to be for our preservation!"

"I trust we are grateful to God for his goodness and his mercy," replied Levi, devoutly.

On the following day the yacht took a pilot, and came to anchor in the harbor of Melbourne. Mat Mogmore had kept out of sight since he came on board, spending all his time in the forecastle; but when the anchor was dropped he appeared on deck.

"I think I will go on shore now, Levi," said he, with an assumed coolness.

"I think not," replied Levi, decidedly.

"What do you mean by that?" demanded the young villain.

"I mean that you shall not leave this vessel, unless you leave it in irons. I shall state the case to the American consul; and I think you will return to the United States as a prisoner."

"Why, what have I done?" asked Mat.

"What have you done!" exclaimed Levi, indignantly. "Besides being guilty of meanness and treachery, you have committed a crime which will send you to the state prison for the next ten years."

"Do you mean to say that I stole your uncle's money?"

"I didn't say anything of the kind. You and Dock Vincent conveyed Miss Watson on board of the Caribbee. That's a state-prison offence, to say nothing of stealing the money."

"Don't be hard on me, Levi."

"Hard on you! I'm not half so hard on you as you are on yourself. You were employed as a hand on board of this vessel, and you used your position to deceive Miss Watson, and get her on board of the Caribbee. You then came to me, with your mouth full of lies, and told me she had gone to Portland with her father, by railroad. I trusted you, and you betrayed me. I can forgive you, but I can never respect you again," said Levi, warmly.

"Don't be too hard on me, Levi," pleaded Mat. "I got into a scrape, and Dock helped me out; but he made me do everything he said after that."

"You needn't commit yourself to me. I don't ask you to make any confessions. Dock Vincent is in jail now, and the whole truth will come out in due time."

"What's the use!" exclaimed Mat, in despair. "I'm ruined now. If you'll let me go ashore here, I'll try to be an honest man."

"It is not for me to let you go, though I have no doubt you were the tool of Dock Vincent. I have no right to let you escape."

"I'll tell you all about it, Levi; and you will see what a bad scrape I was in," said Mat, fixing his eyes on the planks of the deck. "Your uncle borrowed a screw-driver in the shop——"

"Levi! Levi!" shouted Bessie Watson, who was in the standing-room, looking at the shipping in the vicinity.

The young skipper sprang towards her, fearful that some terrible event was about to happen; for Bessie was waving her handkerchief, and dancing about the deck like an insane person. A boat, with two gentlemen in the stern-sheets, was approaching the yacht, and at this Bessie was gazing with intense earnestness.

"What is the matter, Bessie?" asked he, looking at her, rather than the boat, to assure himself that her trials had not affected her reason.

"Why, don't you see, Levi?"

"I don't see anything. What is it?"

"My father! My father!" cried she, laughing, almost in hysterics.

Levi glanced at the boat. One of the gentlemen was certainly Mr. Watson, though he was not quite willing to believe the evidence of his own senses. The boat had approached near enough to enable him to be sure of the fact.

"It is my father!" repeated Bessie, as the boat ran up to the accommodation ladder, and Mr. Watson leaped on board of the yacht.

"My child! My child!" ejaculated the fond father, as he folded her in his arms.

"O, father!" exclaimed she, as she hugged him in a transport of joy.

Twined in each other's arms, they wept and laughed, in the exuberance of delight, at this happy reunion. Levi could hardly restrain his own tears as he gazed upon the affecting scene, and in the depths of his heart he thanked God, who had guided his little bark over the stormy ocean, half round the world, and enabled him to save Bessie from the hands of her grasping enemies.

"Levi!" said Mr. Watson, gently disengaging himself from his daughter's embrace, and giving the young captain his hand.

"I am glad to see you, Mr. Watson," replied Levi, grasping the offered hand.

"If Levi hadn't followed me, you would never have seen me again," added Bessie, throwing herself upon her father's breast again.

"God bless you, Levi!" exclaimed the delighted father, wringing the young man's hand again.

Mr. Watson seemed to be bewildered by the ecstasy of his joy. He grasped the hand of Augustus, who was so pleased that he forgot to use any high-flown speech. The gentleman who had come in the boat with Bessie's father was introduced to the party as the American consul.

"We did not expect to see you, Mr. Watson," said Levi.

"I have been in Melbourne for three weeks," replied he. "This is the port for which the Caribbee cleared at the Custom House. But where is the Caribbee?"

"She struck on a rock to the southward of King's Island, in the gale, yesterday morning. She has broken up before this time."

"And I was on board of her at the time," said Bessie.

"Though the Caribbee was twenty tons larger than The Starry Flag, we were just a match for her in sailing," added Levi. "We lost her a week out of New York, saw her again at the Cape of Good Hope, and then lost sight of her three or four times; but we arrived at the entrance of Bass Strait about the same time."

"I think I will not stop to hear the story now. Bessie, there is some one on shore who wishes to see you," replied Mr. Watson.

"Who? O, I know, father! It is mother! Come, let us go on shore, this minute!" exclaimed the bewildered girl, dancing about again, as this new joy dawned upon her.

Levi informed the consul that one of the conspirators had been saved from the wreck, and this gentleman promised to attend to the matter. The life boat was lowered; and leaving his mate in charge of the vessel, with strict injunctions not to let Mat Mogmore escape, Levi went on shore with Bessie and her father.

"My mother in Australia!" exclaimed Bessie.

"And Mrs. McGilvery, too!" added Mr. Watson.

"Why, then the whole family are here! Only think of it! I didn't expect to see you or mother for months yet."

"We could not do anything but come, for every hour seemed like an age to us," replied Mr. Watson. "When I received Levi's letter, I saw that nothing more could be done on our side of the world, and I decided to follow you. Dock Vincent assured me I should never see my daughter again; and I was satisfied by the confidence he exhibited, and the persistency with which he urged me to pay his demand, that the Caribbee had indeed sailed upon her long voyage. Levi's letter, written when he had been three days at sea, with the Caribbee in sight, fully confirmed my view. I was sorry Levi did not return to New York, instead of following the vessel."

"Why so?" asked Levi, blushing under the implied censure.

"If I had known the result in season, I might have sent a steamer in pursuit of the Caribbee. As it was, I did not get the letter till a week after her departure."

"The chances of a steamer finding the Caribbee were not more than one in fifty," replied Levi.

"I was sorry then, Levi; but I am not now. You have achieved almost a miracle, and I am willing to believe now that your course was the best and the safest. I decided at once to be in Melbourne when the Caribbee arrived. I sailed for England in the steamer with your mother and your aunt. We came from there by the way of Egypt, and landed here three weeks ago. I have an agent in every principal port in Australia on the lookout for the Caribbee. When any fore-and-aft vessel came into this harbor I was informed of the fact, and you may judge my surprise when I saw The Starry Flag. I will not tell you what I feared when I recognized her, for all that passed away when I saw Bessie on the deck;" and the devoted father clasped her in his arms again.

The party landed. In a few moments they reached the hotel, and Bessie was folded in the embrace of her mother.

CHAPTER XXVI.

CONCLUSION.

Mrs. Watson wept tears of joy over her lost child, now restored to her. Mrs. McGilvery declared that the pleasure of witnessing such a joyful meeting was worth a voyage half round the world, or, indeed, all the way round the world.

"Well, Levi, what shall we do next?" asked Mr. Watson, when the young skipper had been thanked and extolled by the ladies till his cheeks burned with blushes.

"Go home, I suppose, sir, unless the ladies desire to settle here," replied Levi.

"Doubtless we shall go home," added Mr. Watson; "but how shall we do it? I think the ladies will not care to be kept on board of the yacht for three months or more."

"I will do what I can to make them comfortable if they will return in The Starry Flag; but that is saying only a little."

"You would arrive on the coast of the United States in the middle of the winter, and you will see many heavy storms, and much bad weather," suggested Mr. Watson.

"Yes, sir; it was bad enough coming out here, especially after we left the Cape of Good Hope; but it would be worse returning. I cannot honestly advise them to go back in the yacht, glad as I should be of their company;" and Levi glanced at Bessie. "I think they had better go by the way you came."

"I am very clear of that," added Mr. Watson. "But, Levi, I can't bear the idea of your knocking about for three or four months, perhaps six, in such a small vessel."

"It won't hurt me any. I rather like it," laughed Levi. "I will have a stove put up in the cabin for use when we get into the cold region, and we shall be as comfortable as a bug in a rug."

"I'll tell you my plan, Levi. I can sell the yacht, and you can return with us by steamer."

"Sell The Starry Flag!" exclaimed Levi. "I should as soon think of selling my mother, if I had one. I love her, after the good service she has done, and I don't think any builder could get up another as good as she is. I know what she is now. She has weathered a hurricane, and don't mind an ordinary gale any more than a summer zephyr. Besides, I have a crew of six men, without the cook and steward. If you want to sell her, I'll buy her."

"She is yours now, and you may do as you please with her."

"Then I shall certainly take her home. She needs some repairs, and then she will be as good as new."

"If the ladies are willing, we will all go on board of her," said Mr. Watson. "We must make some arrangements for Mrs. Vincent and her children, and attend to Mat Mogmore's case."

The party went on board of the yacht. Mr. Watson summoned the crew, as soon as they reached the deck, and gave each of them a check for a thousand dollars. This little incident made the day a happy one to them, as well as to the members of Mr. Watson's family. He then asked Mrs. Vincent what she purposed to do; and Levi offered her a return passage in the yacht. She had been kind to Bessie, had been her companion and friend in her distress, and her conduct merited a grateful recognition. The poor woman did not know what to do. She had no idea what her husband had done with all the money he had collected. It was not to be found, and no one knew anything about it. It was afterwards ascertained that the proceeds of the sale of his house and furniture had been expended upon the fitting out of the Caribbee, and he had deposited the ten thousand borrowed of Mr. Fairfield in Boston until he was ready to leave the country.

Mrs. Vincent did not wish to return to her native land. Her husband had ruined himself and disgraced his family, and she did not care to meet the obloquy which awaited her in the midst of her friends. The consul informed her, when she had stated her views, that she could make a good living, and perhaps a competency, by keeping a boarding-house in Melbourne. Mr. Watson promptly offered to assist her to the means for making a beginning. Before the yacht sailed on her home voyage, the consul had purchased for her such an establishment as she needed, and she was in a fair way to do better for herself than her husband had ever done for her.

The consul met the family in the cabin of the yacht, and Mat Mogmore's case came up for discussion. The steward, and the other seamen from the Caribbee, had gone on shore to shift for themselves, as Mat would have done if he had been permitted.

"Mat says he got into a scrape, and Dock helped him out," said Levi, when the matter was brought up. "The old rascal had him in his power then, and made a tool of him in this business."

"What scrape did he get into?" asked Mr. Watson.

"I don't know. He began to tell me when your boat came alongside," replied Levi. "He said my uncle borrowed a screw-driver of him; but I don't know what this had to do with it."

"Send for him, Levi," added Mr. Watson. "If he tells the truth, and means to do well, perhaps we may do something to help him."

The steward was called, and directed to bring the prisoner—for such he was—into the cabin. Mat was on the stool of repentance. All his expectations had been blasted; and, whichever way he turned, the prospect was dark and forbidding, as it must sooner or later be to all evil-doers. Even if permitted to go on shore, he was alone and friendless in a strange land. The share he was to receive of Bessie's ransom had failed him; another evil speculation had also come to nought. If he returned to his native land in the yacht, it was only to be covered with merited disgrace, and to spend years of his life in the state prison.

When Mat Mogmore entered the cabin under the escort of the steward, he felt like a ruined man—one who, by his own folly and wickedness, had sacrificed all his hopes in this world. Mr. Watson and the consul spoke to him with the utmost plainness, the latter informing him that, if he declined to return home in the yacht, he should procure his arrest on a criminal charge.

"I will return in her, if you say so," blubbered Mat, whose pluck was all gone.

"If you wish to explain your conduct, you may do so," added Mr. Watson.

"I don't know as it's any use. I wish I had been drowned in the Caribbee."

"You began to tell me your story," said Levi.

"I was going to tell you how I happened to help Captain Vincent. He made me do it. I'll tell you about it, if you like."

"Go on," added Mr. Watson.

"Perhaps I'm worse than you think I am; but I'll tell the whole truth."

"That's what we want."

"Levi's uncle borrowed a screw-driver of me in the shop. I wanted to use it pretty soon, and I went over to Mr. Fairfield's after it. He was fixing a board to put over a hole in the plastering in his chamber. I saw he had cut away the laths, and I knew he wasn't putting up the piece to keep the cold out, as he said. I made up my mind he had money hid in that hole. At the fire, when the folks had left the room, and all the men were on the roof, I took off that board, for I thought the money would be all lost if there was any there. I found the four bags of gold. I dropped them out the window into the lilac bushes, and put the board up again. I didn't mean to steal it then. I never stole anything in my life, not even a pin."

"What did you put the board up again for?" asked Levi.

"I didn't screw it up till afterwards. I carried the gold over to the shop, and hid it under the floor. Then I went back and fastened up the board, just as I found it. While I was doing this Dock Vincent came in, and saw what I was doing. I turned it off as well as I could, and helped move the furniture where the water was coming down upon it. There was a lot of money in those bags, and I didn't like to give them up. Dock had said something to me about going to Australia with him, and I thought I could take the money out here with me.

"Just as soon as it came out that the gold was gone, Captain Vincent pitched into me. He knew then what I was screwing up that board for. It wasn't any use to deny it to him after what he had seen. I said I would give it back to the old man, and tell him I had taken it to keep it from being lost in the fire. Dock said it wan't worth while to do that; the old man had lost it, and he wouldn't feel any worse if he didn't find it. We talked it over, and after a while I agreed to divide with him.

"Then he began to tell me, a little at once, about carrying off Miss Watson again. I didn't like the job; but Dock said he'd send me to jail for stealing the gold if I didn't go in with him; and I had to go. When the new Starry Flag came round, he told me Levi wanted to hire me before the mast, and told me to engage with him, so as to help him get Miss Watson when the time came. All along, Dock said that Levi was in his way. If he could get rid of him, he could carry her off without any trouble. So he laid the stealing to him, and tried to prove it on him.

"Dock told me to put the bag and some of the gold in the state-room, but I hadn't any chance to do it; the steward was in my way all the time. The yacht was going off the next day, and Dock wanted to have Levi taken up before he started. I handed the bag I had fixed to Ben Seaver, and told him I had forgotten to do what the captain had ordered. I asked him to give it to the steward, and tell him Levi wanted him to put it into a locker in his state-room. Ben did just what I told him; and I knew he was going off that day. Levi was taken up; but things didn't work as Dock wanted. He was discharged.

"All this time the money was hid under the shop. After the examination, Dock wanted the money divided. I had taken out one hundred and fifty dollars. We put fifty in the bag before, and divided a hundred. I agreed to meet him at the old fish-house, that was burned, and I carried the bags down, and put them under an old sail, where I could get the money when we wanted it.

"Dock and I met in the fish-house at ten o'clock. He had a lantern, so that we could see to count the money. We sat down on the rocks to talk the matter over, for Dock wanted the whole of the money then, and promised to give me my share when we got to Australia. I didn't like this; and while we were talking about it, the steward tumbled down through the floor of the loft right between us. I never was so scared in my life. I thought the evil one was after me for what I had done. Dock was as scared as I was, and we both ran off as fast as our legs would carry us.

"We went into Dock's back kitchen, and staid there till the alarm of fire was given. We meant to go back, but neither of us dared to do so. The fish-house got afire, and burned up; and that was the last we saw of the gold. Augustus can tell you better than I can where it went to."

"I have told that already," interposed the steward.

"When the Caribbee was ready to sail," continued Mat, "Dock went to New York, and told Captain Gauley to follow as soon as Miss Watson was on board. I was told to watch my chance when Levi was on board the yacht, and go to her, saying he had sent me for her. I waited three days without having such a chance, when the race at Portland fixed things just as I wanted them. You know how I worked it. I wouldn't have done it if I hadn't been afraid Dock would send me to jail. As soon as we got to New York, Captain Gauley sent a letter to Boston, where Dock was keeping himself out of sight till he could get the money. I suppose he sent his letter to Mr. Watson as soon as he heard Miss Watson was missing. We waited ten days below New York; but Dock didn't come. Then Captain Gauley got a letter from him, saying things were going wrong with him, and ordering the vessel to sail without him. He was to come out here by steamer."

Mat Mogmore's confession made everything plain. What was not understood before was clear enough now. Dock Vincent did not believe in the power of goodness; and when he took advantage of the robbery to charge the crime upon Levi, he did not realize that a young man's character is his tower of strength. He failed to break down his reputation, failed to ruin him, failed to injure him in the opinion of any for more than a brief period. Perhaps, if he could have ruined Levi, and got him out of the way, as he desired, he might have succeeded in his wicked intention, though God does not often permit such iniquity to prosper.

By the next steamer Mr. Watson's family departed for home. The Starry Flag was carefully repaired, an abundant supply of provisions put on board, and she sailed for the United States. Mat Mogmore returned voluntarily in her. As Mr. Watson had decided to spend two or three months in Europe on his return, Levi did not hasten his homeward voyage. At the Cape of Good Hope he staid a couple of weeks, to see the country. He remained about the same time at St. Helena, at Ascension, at the Cape Verde Islands, and at the Bermudas, thus avoiding the winter storms of the North Atlantic, besides seeing the wonders of the sunny isles of the ocean.

About the middle of May The Starry Flag was discovered entering Sandy Bay. Mr. Watson and his family, who had arrived a month before, had gone to their summer home; and when those who cast frequent glances to seaward discovered the yacht, Mr. Watson was informed of her arrival. With Bessie on his arm, he hastened down to the Point, where hundreds of Levi's friends had already gathered to welcome him. The anchor of the yacht went down among the rocks off the Point, the sails were furled, and all hands went on shore.

Levi's reception was worthy of a hero. He was cheered as though he had been a great admiral coming home from his conquest of the seas; but the tearful welcome which Bessie Watson bestowed upon him was more grateful than the plaudits of the multitude. He went with her to her father's house, and the rest of the day and a long evening were spent in relating the incidents of their return from that distant land, half round the world.

"How is my uncle now?" asked Levi of Mr. Gayles, who formed one of the party.

"He is about the same as usual," replied the constable. "He has lost ten thousand dollars by Dock Vincent, and he groans about that night and day."

"That money can be recovered," said Mr. Watson. "Vincent did not use it."

"The trial of Dock has been postponed from time to time on account of your absence," added Mr. Gayles. "The case will be called again next week."

When it was assigned the next time, the witnesses were in the court-room. Dock and Mr. Fairfield were arraigned. Mat Mogmore was permitted to testify for the government. Both were found guilty; but, while Dock was sentenced to the longest term of imprisonment provided by law for his crimes, the old man was sentenced to the shortest, with a fine of one thousand dollars. Dock's term was ten years. It broke his spirit. His little plan was a total failure, and too late he found that the way of the wicked shall not prosper. He was sent to the state prison, and disappeared from public view.

Mr. Fairfield was sent to the common jail; but it was evident that he was dying by inches of mental disorder, and his pardon was procured by the influence of Mr. Watson. He went back to his home. The ten thousand dollars which Dock had borrowed of him was recovered, in process of law, of the person with whom the swindler had deposited it. The old man had really lost but a thousand dollars, the amount of his fine; but he was too miserable to survive long, and died two years after his discharge from prison. Levi was his heir, but he gave his aunt the use of the money while she lived. Her Bible and her religious newspaper were her best friends, and she learned to open her heart and open her purse-strings. She had nothing to do now, and she became, under Levi's good advice, a blessing to the poor and the suffering.

When Levi was twenty-one, Mr. Gayles's function as guardian ceased, and he paid over to his ward his entire fortune. But this was a trivial event compared with another, which occurred a few months later, in Boston; when, in Mr. Watson's elegant mansion, Levi and Bessie received the congratulations of all their friends. Rockport was strongly represented on this interesting occasion.

"May all angels, celestial and terrestrial, keep perpetual vigil over you, Mrs. Fairfield," said Mr. C. Augustus Ebénier, as he touched the gloved hand of the bride, whom he did not presume to kiss, as others did. "And the next time you attempt the semi-circumnavigation of this mundane sphere, may I have the honor to be the cabin steward of the bark that bears you o'er the stormy sea."

"May prosperity and happiness be yours, Mrs. Fairfield," said Squire Saunders. "Levi, this time I must commit you—to the care of this lady."

"I have taken care of Levi for a good many years, Mrs. Fairfield," added Mr. Gayles; "but I cheerfully resign in your favor."

"I never saw so many grand people and sech nice things in all my born days," said aunt Susan; "but Levi's wuth the whole on 'em. I know he'll make you a good husband, and you'll make him a good wife;" and the old lady planted a hearty smack on the cheek of each.

When Levi and Bessie returned from their bridal tour in Europe, in the following spring, they took up their residence in the mansion of Mr. Watson, on the Point. The Starry Flag and The Starry Flag, Jr., both lie in sight of the house, and both of them are frequently used for long and short trips. While Captain Fairfield—as he is generally called—and his beautiful wife hope the day is far distant which will make him a millionnaire, this event, in the course of nature, must occur; yet is he richer now, in the possession of a noble character and a true Christian spirit, than he can be made by any Freaks of Fortune.