"I saw him twice while at New Castle," said Anthony, shocked; "and they thought him improved."
"He was a steady, good seaman," said Charles, "and we shall miss him much;" and then, the speculative look still in his eye, "Would you care to take the ship and sail in his place?"
"No," said Anthony.
"Don't be hasty," said Charles. "Let your mind work with the thought a little. Think."
"I have no need to think," said Anthony. "I stay in this counting-room until I've mastered its history."
"You surprise me," said Charles; "for I felt sure the blood of your grandfather would speak there."
"Perhaps it has," said Anthony quietly.
"Weir said you wouldn't take the ship; indeed, he said you shouldn't." Charles laughed and nodded his head. "I never saw the captain agree with any one as he does with you. He seems to be always of your mind exactly. Whatever you think best, he consents to at once."
And Anthony, as he listened to this, felt a stirring of unrest in his mind; it was a vague thing, yet it left him questioning, and, somehow, insecure.