"I'll go," said Jack, promptly.
"Very likely he'll fall over into the water and be drowned," suggested Aunt Rachel, cheerfully.
"I'll take care of that, ma'am," said Capt. Bowling. "Won't you come yourself?"
"I go to see a vessel!" repeated Rachel.
"Yes; why not?"
"I am afraid it wouldn't be proper to go with a stranger," said Rachel, with a high sense of propriety.
"I'll promise not to run away with you," said the captain, bluntly. "If I should attempt it, Jack, here, would interfere."
"No, I wouldn't," said Jack. "It wouldn't be proper for me to interfere with Aunt Rachel's plans."
"You seem to speak as if your aunt proposed to run away," said Mr. Harding, jocosely.
"You shouldn't speak of such things, nephew; I am shocked," said Rachel.