Accordingly, leaving the house and her little brothers in the care of the negroes, Barbara took passage in the first passing vessel for Baltimore, where in a few days she arrived safely. After the usual demur and delay, she succeeded in getting the whole of the insurance-money, and then she set out in search of a clipper. She was fortunate in having a choice of three, and went about the work of inspecting them with a perfectly composed and competent manner, and astonished the grizzled old skippers of the port, by pronouncing the first unseaworthy; the second, very little if any better; and by ordering certain very judicious alterations and repairs to be made upon the third, which she finally decided on purchasing. “Who the deuce have we here? What the demon sort of a girl is this, who knows all parts of a ship as well as she does the chambers and cupboards in her mother’s house, and disputes about the build and rigging of a craft with the oldest ‘salt’ among us? aye! and can work a ship, I have no doubt in the world, as well as the best mate we have!” said one grey old sea-captain to another. “Well! she _is_ an ‘old salt,’” replied the other, “as _old_ a _salt_ as so _young_ a _girl_ can be! That is old Brande’s daughter, he who was lost on the Mercury. I suppose she is about twenty-one or twenty-two years of age, and Brande used to take her to sea with him from the time she was five years old! So Barbara may have seen fifteen years of sea-service, for aught I know.” “But what is she going to do with the clipper she has purchased?” “Ah! Lord knows! Give one of her brothers the command of it, I suppose, if she has one grown up and capable of taking it.” While the old skippers took “the bearings,” of her course, Barbara, quite undisturbed by the opinions and comments of others, completed her purchase, and left the wharf. The same week, Barbara returned home to place affairs in order there before going to sea. She arranged the old house, and left it, together with the garden and the stock, in care of old Neptune and his wife, with whom also she left a small sum of money for their incidental expenses. Having made all preparations, accompanied by her two brothers and attended by her negro sailors, young Neptune and Ignatius, two stalwart sons of the old couple left in care of the house, Barbara embarked in an up-bay packet for Baltimore. Very profound was the astonishment of her old acquaintances, the skippers, when they discovered that Barbara herself would take command of her own vessel. Their surprise would have been greater still, perhaps, if they had known how thoroughly competent in all respects was this eagle-eyed, lion-hearted maiden for the task! She was fitted for the position by nature, constitution, and disposition, for she was a girl of great personal strength, courage, and activity, with a profound passionate attraction toward a sea life.