PERSEVERANCE AGAINST FORTUNE. 329

seated, “ Mr. Hardman,” says Mr. Carleton, “I have ~
often heard part of your adventures, but never had a
regular account of the whole. If you will favour me
and my little boy with the story of them, we shall
think ourselves much obliged to you.” ‘ Lack-a-day,
sir,’ said he, “ there’s little in them worth telling of,
so far as I know. I have had my ups and downs in
the world, to be sure, but so have many men besides.
Tlowever, if you wish to hear about them, they are at
your service ; and I can’t say but it gives me pleasure
sometimes to talk over old matters, and think how much
better things have turned out than might have been
expected.” “ Now, I am of opinion,” said Mr. C.,
“ that, from your spirit and perseverance, a good con-
clusion might have been expected.” “ You are pleascd
to compliment, sir,’ replied the farmer, “ but I will
begin without more words.

“You may, perhaps, have heard, that my father was
aman of good estate. He thought of nothing, poor
man! but how to spend it; and he had the uncommon
luck to spend it twice over. Tor when he was obliged
to sell it the first time, it was bought in by a relation,
who left it him again by his will. But my poor father
was not aman to take warning. He fell to living as
he had lived before, and just made his estate and his
life hold out together. He died at the age of five and
forty, and left his family beggars. I believe he would
not have taken to drinking, as he did, had it not been
for his impatient temper, which made him fret and
vex himself for every trifle, and then he had nothing
for it, but to drown his care in liquor.

“ Tt was my lot to be taken by my mother’s brother,
who was master of a merchant ship. I served him as
an apprentice several years, and underwent a good
deal of the usual hardships of a sailor’s life. He had
just made me his mate, in a voyage up the Mediterra-
nean, when we had the misfortune to be wrecked on
the coast of Morocco. The ship struck at some dis-
tance from shore, and we lay a long, stormy night,