44 THE BOY CAPTAIN.

“Dunham, sir. My father was George Dunham, of
Yarmouth.”

“Tt is not necessary I should ask you for any informa-
tion which may be painful, since the log-book will tell me
what I need to know.”

«There is no reason why you should not learn all you
care to hear from me. The sorrow remains in my heart
whether I speak of it or not.”

“Will you tell me where the Progressive Age was
bound for?”

“«“ Formosa.”

“JT wonder why the crew abandoned her here, instead
of making that port?”

«“T think it was because the second mate no longer
felt able to control the men. After the death of my
father and the first officer, he gave himself up almost
entirely to drinking, and allowed the crew free access to
the spirits, until it was impossible to enforce obedience.”

“It must have been a terrible time for you,” Ben said,
half to himself, and she replied, sadly :

“Tndeed it was, sir. It seemed as if I must be under
the influence of some terrible dream, and even to be
abandoned here, with no one but the steward on board,
was a great relief. I should give the men credit for treat-
ing me with all possible respect; but the respect of
drunken men is oftentimes brutal.”

Ben wanted to say something expressive of sympathy,
and yet never before had he found it so difficult to decide
upon what words should be used.