Though we believe, that the officers of the British navy are, perhaps, more distinguished for simplicity of feeling and openness of heart, than the men belonging to any other profession whatsoever; yet, it would appear, that some of the officers of the Clorinde had given entertainment in their breasts to the green-eyed monster, Envy. And hence, when they observed the close intimacy which subsisted between Clapperton and Mackenzie, and the kind attention which, during his illness, the latter experienced from the former, they said among themselves, but loud enough to be heard by Clapperton, “The canny Scotsman knows what he is about, by attaching himself so closely to a sprig of nobility; he courts his favour that he may use him as his instrument for obtaining promotion.” The effect of these injurious whisperings upon the mind of our hero was, in the first instance, to cause him to make a great sacrifice of feeling to the injury both of himself and his friend. He withdrew all attention from Mackenzie, and ceased, not only to keep company with him, but even to speak to him when they met. Mackenzie, in utter ignorance as to the cause of the change which had so suddenly taken place in the conduct of Clapperton towards him, after having puzzled and perplexed his mind in conjecturing in what way he had given such deadly offence to his friend, as to make him behave in the manner he was doing, at last mustered courage, fairly to ask him, why he had of late treated him with so much coldness and distance? On this, Clapperton, with his feelings strongly excited, stated to his friend what had been said among their shipmates, of the interested motives which had been attributed to him, as the cause of what they had represented as pretended friendship on his part. “But,” he added, “my dear Mackenzie, I have been wrong to punish both myself and you, in listening to these most false and injurious speeches. And henceforth let the best of them beware how they use them in future; for the first man whom I detect doing so, must do it at the risk of his life.” As this hint was pretty publicly intimated on the part of Clapperton, his friendship for Mackenzie suffered no interruption afterwards, so long as they served together in the same ship. But the disease which he had caught returned upon him again, and after causing him to linger for some time as an invalid, he was sent to his friends, with little hope of his recovery; nor indeed had he been long at home, till he died. While, however, he lay upon his death-bed, he spoke with all the enthusiasm of sincere and warm friendship, of the kind attentions he had received from Clapperton when ill and far from home; and entreated his relations, and especially his mother, to discharge the debt of gratitude which he owed him, by treating him as a son, in requital of his having, so long as he had it in his power, treated him as his brother.