The Crew of the Dolphin Author:Hesba Stretton Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER III. LAST HOURS. was but little sleep in Peter Blake's home that night. The children slept, and more than once Peter went to look at them, and ... more »to listen to their quiet breathing. They were very dear to him, and they seemed dearer to him than ever now. Bessie, too, and his mother, it was always a hard struggle to leave them; though now the matter was settled, they said nothing to grieve him, and simply set about the necessary preparations for his departure. The articles were signed early the next morning in Penrose's office. Peter was care- ful to inquire the name of the owner of the " Dolphin," and was told it was James Blackburn -- a name quite strange to him, but it satisfied him that the ship was not the property of Penrose. Within the last few years Pen rose had lost a large number of vessels, and prudent seamen fought shy of sailing in one of his boats. Peter was one of the prudent seamen. He held it to be his duty both to God and to his family not to sail in any doubtful craft, whatever might be the inducements offered to him. " No ; not to ' be skipper," he had often said to himself. He was afraid that his heart might fail him in a moment of peril if his conscience was not clear that he had not run into it with his eyes open. Yet as the day wore on, busy as he and Victor were, he grew somewhat uneasy about the coming voyage. From one side of thebow-window overlooking the river he could see the lading of the " Dolphin." Every hour she was sinking lower and lower in the water ; yet still the cargo was being stowed away in every spare foot of room. If the vessel was sound and seaworthy, and if the weather was fair, the trip might be made with safety ; but he could see plainly that no margin was being left for unforeseen casualt1es. It was quite clear...« less