George led the mate into the office. “Here, father, here's a man to go in our vessel,” said he. The old man looked upon him with a serene importance, as if he was fettered with his own greatness.
“My shipping interests are becoming very extensive, my man; I own the whole of four schooners, and a share in the greatest steamship afloat-I mean screw-ship, the South Carolina—you've heard of her, I suppose?” said the old man.
Jack stood up with his hat in his hand, thinking over what he meant by big interests, and “reckoning he hadn't seen the establishment of them ship-owners about Prince's Dock, what owned more ships apiece than there were days in the month.”
“Now, my man,” continued the old man, “I'm mighty strict about my discipline, for I want every man to do his duty for the interests of the owners. But how many dollars do you want a month, my man?”
“Nothing less than four pounds starling; that's twenty dollars your currency, if I reckon right,” said Jack, giving his hat a twirl upon the floor.
“Wh-e-w! you belong to the independent sailors. You'll come down from that afore you get a ship in this port. Why, I can get a good, prime nigger feller sailor for eight dollars a month and his feed.”
Jack concluded not to sail in any of the old man's big ships, and said, “Yes, I joined them a long time ago, and I ha'n't regretted it, neither; wouldn't pull a bow-line a penny less. I don't like drogging, no-how. Good morning, sir,” said he, putting on his hat and backing out of the door.
“I wish you'd a' taken a chance with my father, old fellow; he'd a' made you captain afore a year,” said George, as he was leaving the door.
“The like o' that don't signify. I've been skipper in the West Ingie trade years ago. There isn't much difference between a nigger and a schooner's captain,” said Jack, as he walked off to the Janson, preparatory to taking lodgings ashore.
That afternoon about five o'clock, a loud noise was heard on board a little schooner, of about sixty tons' register, that lay in a bend of the wharf a few lengths ahead of the Janson. Captain Thompson and his second mate were seated on a locker in the cabin, conversing upon the prospects ahead, when the noise became so loud that they ran upon deck to witness the scene.