I saw him immediately, waving his travelling cap with a flourish of joy, and I snatched a little comfort from that.
As soon as the steamer was brought to, he was the first to come aboard, and I scanned his face as he hurried up the gangway. It was beaming.
"It's all right," I thought; "a man could not look as happy as that if he were bringing me bad news."
A moment afterwards he was shaking my hand, clapping me on the shoulder, and saying:
"Splendid! Magnificent! Glorious achievement! Proved your point up to the hilt, my boy!"
And when I said something about not having gone all the way he cried:
"Never mind! You'll do it next time," which made some of my shipmates who were standing round with shining eyes say, "Aye, aye, sir," and then one of them (it was good old O'Sullivan) shouted:
"By the stars of heaven, that's thrue, my lord! And if anybody's after saying that the Commanther was turned back this time by anything less than the almighty power of Nature in her wrath, you may say there's forty-eight of us here to tell him he lies."
"I believe it," said the chairman, and then there were further congratulations, with messages from members of my committee, but never a word from my dear one.
Thinking the chairman might hesitate to speak of a private matter until we were alone, I took him down to my state-room. But he had nothing to say there, either, except about articles to be written, reports to be compiled, and invitations to be accepted.