I only know that he had a small steamer in these waters." "Send for Mr.Amblen at once!" exclaimed the commander, who appeared to have become suddenly excited.

"There will be no moon to-night in these parts, and we may be able to hurry this matter up if we have a competent pilot." Christy called Dave, and sent him for the acting third lieutenant, for he knew that Mr.Flint had had the watch since four o'clock.

Mr.Amblen was sunning himself on the quarter deck, and he promptly obeyed the summons.
"I am glad to see you, Mr.Amblen, and I hope you will prove to be as useful a person as I have been led to believe you may be," said the captain.
"I shall endeavor to do my duty, sir," replied the third lieutenant, who was always very ambitious to earn the good opinion of his superiors.
"I mean to do the best I can to make myself useful, Captain Blowitt." "I know that very well; but the question now is what you know rather than what you can do as an officer.

Mr.Passford informs me that you were formerly engaged in some kind of a speculation on the west coast of Florida." "Hardly a speculation, sir, for I was engaged in the fish business," replied Mr.Amblen, laughing at the name which had been given to his calling.

"When I sold a small coaster that belonged to me, I got in exchange a tug boat.