Captain Farraday pressed the matter upon me, and declared it was a great pity that a good sailor should be spoiled to make an indifferent merchant or mechanic. I promised to give him an answer the next morning; and the prospect of being a sailor, even for the brief period of three or four weeks, seemed to be some compensation for the loss of my money. I was not disposed to be a fatalist; but it passed through my mind once, that, as I was destined to be a sailor, I had lost my money so that I might not miss my destiny.
I went down to supper with Captain Farraday, who still plied his favorite topic, and gave me a rose-colored view of "a life on the ocean wave." He stopped at the bar on the way to the dining-room, and he was not agreeable company after he had taken one more dram. After supper, I left him, and went to the post office, for I had been expecting a letter from my father ever since I arrived in the city.
I found one this time. It was full of good advice and instructions, forgotten before I left St. Louis. He gave me fuller particulars than I had obtained from the newspaper in regard to the forgery of Mr. Lamar's name. I learned with surprise that Mr. Ben Waterford was now strongly suspected of the crime, and his visits to Mr. Lamar, ostensibly to sell land, were really to enable him to see the check book of the firm. The evidence was not conclusive, but it was tolerably strong.
CHAPTER VI.
IN WHICH PHIL SIGNS THE SHIPPING PAPERS AND RECOGNIZES THE NEW MATE.
I had no difficulty in believing that Mr. Ben Waterford was a rascal and a swindler, but it was hard to realize that one who had occupied so respectable a position in Chicago had sunk so low as to commit the crimes of forgery and robbery. With my father's letter before me, I was satisfied that Mr. A. McGregor was no other than Mr. Ben Waterford. After he had committed forgery in St. Louis, he had abundant reason for wishing to remain unseen and unknown.
He had obtained the money on the forged checks, crossed the country to Cincinnati, and joined the steamer in which I had taken passage. It was possible, and even probable, that he knew I had a considerable sum of money with me, and that he had come on board for the purpose of obtaining it, as much for revenge on account of the check I had put upon his operations as for the sake of the money. My friends in St. Louis all knew that I was going to Europe, and I had procured my gold at a broker's. His iniquity seemed to be prosperous at the present time, for so far as I had learned, he had yet escaped detection.
My desire to be a sailor, even for a few weeks, got the better of other considerations, and before the next morning I had about decided to take passage in the Michigan, or rather to ship as one of the crew for the outward voyage to Palermo. I met the captain at breakfast, and he was quite sober then. I supposed that he kept sober on board ship, for the discharge of his responsible duties required a clear head, though the wonderful mate was competent to handle the vessel. He was just as persistent sober as he had been drunk, that I should embark in the Michigan, and I was weak enough to believe that I had made a strong friend in him. I might never again have such an opportunity to go to sea, with the master interested in me, and desirous of serving me.
I am satisfied that, if I had not met Captain Farraday, I should have asked my father to send me the money needed for my trip, and taken the steamer, as I had intended. Such a powerful friend in the cabin would necessarily afford me a very comfortable berth in the forecastle. He was the superior even of the wonderful mate; and, if the latter did not take a fancy to me, as the friend of the captain I should not be likely to suffer any great hardships. I might even expect an occasional invitation to dine in the cabin, and certainly, if I was not comfortably situated on board, I should have the courage to inform my excellent friend of the fact, and he would set me right at once.