They were alone, as it were, on this broad and mysterious ocean, and they had lost that odd old man who was their guiding spirit, and who never failed them as friend and protector.

All through that night the men watched and strained their eyes in every direction, expecting to see the old sailor rise on some crest; and more than one sailor that night cheered his drooping feelings with the firm belief that some mysterious agency would give them back the old captain before morning.
There was no one on that ship, however, who felt the loss more seriously than Tite.

It seemed to change all his prospects, to throw a shadow over his future.

He paced the deck, silent and thoughtful, until long after midnight.

To him the captain had been not only a friend, but a father.
Between them there had grown up the strongest of attachments.