"She gave it to me to use, and I am afraid, if she saw it was not soiled by handling, she would think it had not been well used."
"I am glad you use it. I don't fail to read mine morning and evening."
Somers could not believe him, and he could not see that a traitor to his country should have any use for the New Testament.
"By the way, Somers, did you see your friend Wynkoop again before we sailed?" added Mr. Pillgrim.
"I did not; I have not seen him since we dined together. I judge that you were better acquainted with him than I was."
"My acquaintance with him was very slight. By the papers I saw on the table before you, when you were at dinner, I think you made good use of the short time you knew each other."
"To what do you allude?" asked Somers, now assured that Mr. Pillgrim knew the nature of the papers.
"To your commission as a commander in the Confederate navy. Mr. Somers, I could not believe my eyes."
"Were you very much astonished?"
"If I had been told that President Lincoln had gone over to the rebels, I should not have been more astonished. Your conduct has severely embarrassed me. It was my duty to denounce you as a traitor, in the service of the enemy, but—"