But he was standing in the presence of the commander of the steamer, and he had no time to reach a conclusion of any kind, satisfactory or otherwise.
Christy took the offered hand of Captain Battleton, and looked earnestly into his face to determine whether he had ever seen him before; but the face was entirely new to him.

He was quite confident that he had never seen the commander before.

There was something rather ludicrous in the situation, and he felt as though he was taking part in a farce; at any rate, there was nothing serious or compromising in it, and in spite of the confusion in his mind, he could not help smiling.
"I thank you, Captain Battleton, for your very kind interest in the state of my health, but with the exception of the first signs of a cold in the head, I never was better in my life," said Christy in reply to the salutation of the commander, still holding his hand.
"Then you have improved wonderfully since last evening," added Captain Battleton.
"I am glad to be informed of the fact, for I am not conscious of any such improvement as you describe.

In fact, I am not in quite so good condition in a sanitary point of view as I was last evening, for I took my cold about midnight, or a little later, last night," added Christy, his smile becoming a little more pronounced.
It was now the turn of Captain Battleton to be puzzled, if not mystified, by the statement of his passenger, and he looked inquiringly into his face as if to ascertain if he was not the victim of a practical joke.

But naval officers on duty are not given to pleasantries; and if he had any such suspicion, he banished it at once, for there was nothing in the appearance of the lieutenant to warrant it.
"Pardon me, Mr.Passford, but were you not sick when you came on board of the Vernon last evening ?" asked the commander, with something like a frown upon his brow as the situation became more bewildering.
"If you will excuse me for making an indirect reply, captain, I did not come on board of the Vernon last evening," answered Christy, his smile becoming still more decided; and if he had not been on the quarter-deck of a vessel in service, he might have suspected that he was himself the victim of a practical joke.
"You did not come on board of the Vernon last evening!" exclaimed Captain Battleton, gazing very earnestly into the face of his passenger.
"I did not, captain," replied Christy quietly, though he was amused rather than disquieted by the earnestness of the commander.
"You did not ?" "Certainly not; and if my simple affirmation is not enough, I could prove that I slept in my father's house at Bonnydale last night, took my breakfast there this morning, and was in the city of New York at ten o'clock this forenoon," answered Christy, in the best of humor.
"This is very strange," said Captain Battleton, fixing his gaze upon the planks on which he stood, possibly considering whether he or his passenger was dreaming or out of his head.
"If I were still at Brooklyn doubtless I could find the boatman who put me on board of the Vernon not more than an hour ago," continued Christy, willing to convince his auditor that he was entirely in earnest in his statement.
"I beg your pardon, Mr.Passford, but I did not intend to question the truth of your reply to my question," said the commander, fearing that he had overstated his doubts.