"Then you must be made better acquainted before any thing can be done,"

replied the owner, pointing to the captain of the steamer. "Mr. Percy, this is Captain Breaker, the commander of the steamer."

"And this," added Captain Breaker, pointing at the owner, "is Captain Pa.s.sford, who is the fortunate owner of this vessel, though she is soon to pa.s.s into other hands."

"Captain Pa.s.sford!" exclaimed Percy, bowing to both gentlemen as he was presented to them. "That is a familiar name to me; and upon my word, I thought it was Colonel Pa.s.sford of Glenfield when I first looked at him."

"He is my brother; but I never heard him called 'colonel' before," added the owner, laughing at the odd-sounding t.i.tle, as it was to him.

"Colonel Homer Pa.s.sford is the name by which he is often called near his residence," Percy explained. "He is the nearest neighbor of my father, Colonel Richard Pierson."

"Indeed! then you probably know my brother," said Captain Pa.s.sford, interested in spite of himself.

"As well as I know any gentleman in the State of Alabama," replied Percy. "By the great palmetto! you are Colonel Pa.s.sford's brother; and I think you must know Miss Florence Pa.s.sford, who has been staying all winter with her uncle."

"She is my daughter," replied the owner with some emotion, which he could not wholly conceal when he thought of his mission in the South.

"I have met her several times, though not often, for I have been away from home at school. But my brother, Major Lindley Pierson, I learn from my letters, is a frequent visitor at your brother's house: and they even say"--

But Percy did not repeat what they said, though he had gone far enough to give the father of Florry something like a shock.

"What were you about to say, Mr. Percy?" he asked.

"I think I had better not say it, for it may have been a mere idle rumor," answered Percy, who was now beginning to disclose some of his better traits of character.

"Does it relate to my daughter, sir?" asked the captain rather sternly; for, in the present condition of the country, he was more than ordinarily anxious about his daughter.

"I ought not to have said any thing, sir; but what I was about to say, but did not say, does relate to Miss Florence," replied Percy, not a little embarra.s.sed by the situation. "But I a.s.sure you, sir, that it was nothing that reflects in the slightest degree upon her. As I have said so much, I may as well say the rest of it, or you will think more than was intended was meant."

"That is the proper view to take of it, Mr. Percy."

"It was simply said that my brother Lindley was strongly attracted to your brother's house by the presence of your daughter. That is all."

But the fond father was very anxious. Of course the major was a Confederate.

CHAPTER VIII

A DISCONSOLATE PURCHASER OF VESSELS

The information in regard to Florry was very meagre and very indefinite.

She was a very beautiful young lady of eighteen; and it was not at all strange that a young Confederate officer should be attracted to her, though the thought of it was exceedingly disagreeable to her father, under present circ.u.mstances.

Percy evidently was not satisfied with the situation; and after he had given the information which had so disturbed the owner of the steamer, he desired to change the subject of the conversation, to which Captain Pa.s.sford only a.s.sented after he realized that nothing could be ascertained from him in regard to his daughter.

"I don't think I quite understand the situation on board of this steamer," said Percy, when he had told all he knew about the visits of his brother at Glenfield.

"What further do you desire to know in regard to her?" asked Captain Pa.s.sford; for the commander, when he saw that there was a family matter involved in the conversation, was disposed to be very reticent.

"I did not come on board of this vessel in the manner I did--I do not even know her name yet," continued Percy; and when he found that he was talking to a brother of Colonel Pa.s.sford, he dropped all his rather magnificent airs, and became quite sensible.

"The steamer is called the Bellevite," replied the owner.

"The Bellevite. It is an odd name, but I think I can remember it. I was about to say that I did not come on board of her, as I did, without an object; for I a.s.sure you that I am high-toned enough not to do any thing in an irregular manner unless for the most weighty reasons," said Percy, with an anxious look directed towards the island, which was now almost out of sight.

"I do not ask your reasons; but, if you wish to give them, I will hear all you have to say, Mr. Percy," replied the owner.

"I talked with Mr. Pierson on sh.o.r.e; and though he was disposed at first to chaff me, and avoid giving me any information in regard to this steamer, he afterwards informed me that the gentleman who owned her intended to get rid of her as soon as he could."

"And you came on board for the purpose of buying her?" suggested Captain Pa.s.sford.

"I did not expect to buy her myself, of course; but my father is exceedingly anxious to obtain a steamer like this one, and he asked me to do what I could to obtain any information in regard to her. That was the object which brought me on board of her in a clandestine manner."

"You were very zealous in meeting the wishes of your father."

"More than that, I was at work in a good cause; and I think I have patriotism enough to do my duty to my country in the hour of her need,"

added the young man, with a swell of the chest.

"After his family, a man's first duty is to his country," said the owner.

"I wanted to go into the army, for I am eighteen years old; but my father insisted that I could be of more service to the Confederacy as his a.s.sistant in obtaining vessels for its use."

"I understand your motives."

"From what I learned from Mr. Pierson,--though I do not yet know who or what he is," said Percy, bestowing a smiling glance upon Christy.

"You may look upon him as my nephew," added Captain Pa.s.sford, glancing at his son, who gave a slight bow for the benefit of the guest on board.

"From what I could learn from your nephew, sir, I concluded that this steamer could be bought, if I could only obtain an interview with the owner," continued Percy, with an inquiring glance at all who were present "I understand you are the owner of the vessel, Captain Pa.s.sford."

"You are quite right: she has been my yacht since she was built, and a stronger and more able vessel was never put into the water."

"Mr. Pierson gave me to understand that he was in sympathy with the Confederacy; and since I came on board, and learned that you were a brother of our nearest neighbor, I have no difficulty in arriving at the conclusion that you are a devoted friend of the Southern cause."

"What I am, for the present, I do not feel at liberty to say," replied Captain Pa.s.sford, who was certainly reluctant to play a double part before the young man, though he felt that the necessities of the occasion required him to do so.

"Quite right, sir; one cannot be too cautious in these times. But it is time for me to say that I did not intend to take pa.s.sage in the Bellevite, and I am sure my father will be very anxious in my absence."

"May I ask how you did intend to proceed?"

"I can hardly tell myself, sir; but my object was to see the owner as soon as I could discover who he was. But I have found you now, Captain Pa.s.sford, and I am glad to find in you a friend of our holy cause."

The owner only bowed; and it was as true as it could be that the representative of the intended purchaser of vessels jumped at nearly all of his conclusions, giving the captain but little occasion to say any thing that was not literally true; though the deception was just as real as though it had been carried on with actual falsehood.

"May I ask you for a few minutes in private, Captain Pa.s.sford?"

continued Percy.