"How are you, Mr Brail?--glad to see you, Mr Lanyard--Mr Donovan, I hope you are better," said Sir Oliver. We made our acknowledgments. "Where is your little passenger, Mr Lanyard. Have you brought him on board?" "Why, yes, Sir Oliver, he is in the boat alongside, but the people have so monkeyfied him, that he is scarcely presentable on the quarterdeck." "Never mind, hand him up--hand him up--let us see him." And poor little Dicky Phantom was straightway transferred from the stern-sheets of the boat to the frigate's deck, amidst a buzz of laughter from officers and men. The poor child was frightened, and ran crying to me, when Sir Oliver, with his innate right feeling and kindliness of heart, asked me to bring him down into the cabin, which I did, where the little fellow soon became quite at home, and began to amuse himself with some books of plates, and little Chinese figures that the commodore took out of a locker for his entertainment. I related the particulars of my interview with his parents and kinsfolk on board the ship, which moved the kind old man exceedingly; but dinner was now announced, and Dicky was handed over to Lennox, who had come on board in the novel capacity of dry-nurse. I could see the whole crew clustered on the main-deck, in expectation of his coming out of the cabin; and the moment he made his appearance,--"Lennox, pass him forward."--"I say, Jack, Jack Lennox, lend him to me, man."--"Oh! d--n my eyes, man, do give us a spell of the piccaniny."--"No, no--hand him to me first--here to me, man--I bespoke him, Jack, before Bill, there," resounded on all hands; and the two monkeys and hog in armour were as dust in the balance compared with Dicky Phantom. We sat down to dinner. Mr Lanyard, and old Sprawl, along with one of the mates, were present, and every thing went on very much as usual. "We must endeavour," said Sir Oliver, "to find out that poor little fellow's family and relations when we get to England; but what are we to do with him until we get there?" I cheerfully offered to take care of him on board the Midge. "You are very good, Mr Brail--but in so small a hooker it would be inconvenient, so I shall make shift the best way I can here."