Indeed, he added, he already knew of one, as an old friend of his who commanded a ship just leaving Valparaiso for Australia had told him that he wanted a third mate.
"And if you like," said the skipper, "I'll recommend you to Captain Giles for the post." "I shall be only too glad," I replied.

The skipper did so; and the whole thing was settled off-hand, I signing articles with my new captain the same day, shortly before my late one left in the mail-steamer, which was just on the point of starting.
I took a cordial farewell of Captain Billings, promising that as soon as I got back to England, from the voyage I was just starting on, I would look him up.

He promised, likewise, to give me a berth on board any ship he commanded--should the Board of Trade not withhold his certificate after the inquiry that would be held on the loss of the _Esmeralda_ on his arrival home; and I may as well state here, that the officials entirely exonerated him from any blame in the destruction of the ship and cargo, putting the matter down to one of the ordinary risks of commercial life.
The skipper also promised to see Sam Pengelly for me, and to tell him how I was getting on.

These mutual engagements being gone into, I and Jorrocks, having shaken hands with Captain Billings and Mr Macdougall, the latter of whom said he would "never forget me as long as he lived," were both making our way along the front of the one long street that Valparaiso consists of, thinking of taking off a boat soon to our new ship, the _Jackmal_, lying out in the offing--for Jorrocks, learning that Captain Giles wanted a boatswain, and knowing that I was going with him, agreed to go to sea with him in a moment--when, all at once, who should we come full butt on but the very last person in the world I expected to see here.

I thought he was still at Dr Hellyer's, at Beachampton, cramming for an Oxford scholarship, as far as I knew to the contrary--who but-- Yes!-- Tom Larkyns, my old chum, who acted so wickedly in concert with me, when we blew up the schoolmaster and ran away to sea! His uncle, he told me, had a foreign agency here; and the old gentleman having written home to his mother offering Tom a situation, he had at once been sent out at his own wish, preferring such a life greatly to that of going to the university and afterwards having to take holy orders, that being the only opening held out to him in England.
Tom also related that the Doctor had become a bankrupt, and the school broken up; but I was unable to hear anything further about the scene of my past misdeeds and experiences of "pandying" and "way of his own" of my former master, for while we were yet chatting together, Captain Giles came up, saying he was going off to the _Jackmal_ at once, and would like Jorrocks and myself to come on board with him, as he intended sailing that afternoon.
So, wishing Tom good-bye, before many hours were over I was again floating on the deep.
From Valparaiso, we sailed to Sydney; then, taking a cargo of all sorts of "notions," as the Yankees say, we went on to Singapore; going thence to Bombay, in ballast.