"I know not if I ought to tell you what is, however, indispensable to be told, that a certain feeling then arose within me which, without changing my being, yet made me feel as if I was more than man; and rising up in the boat I addressed myself to all the men who were gathered around us, and who listened attentively to my words. 'Misfortunes,' I said, 'are never mended by sitting down idly to lament them--good luck never befriends the pusillanimous soul; we are ourselves the fabricators of our own fortunes, and there breathes not a man who has not the capability of raising himself. The cowardly, though born rich, are always poor, like the miserly beggar. I speak thus, my friends, in hopes of exciting and impelling you to better your lot, to quit these poor nets and fishing tackle, and small boats, and go in search of the treasures that are to be gained by noble enterprises. I call such enterprises noble as are undertaken for high and great ends. If the man who tills the earth by the sweat of his brow, hardly obtains enough for the day's sustenance, and gains no fame, why does he not take a lance instead of a spade in his hand, and without the fear of the heat of the sun, or the inclemencies of the weather, seek to win, besides his daily bread, fame which can place him high among his fellow men? War, though but a step-mother to cowards, is a true mother to brave men, and for them she has rewards that surpass all calculation. Then arouse yourselves, my friends; cast your eyes towards yonder ship which bore away the beloved prize from the arms of your companions, ye valiant youths. She lies on the shore, and seems left to us as by the peculiar ordonnance of Heaven. Let us take possession of her, and become pirates, not for love of gain like most pirates, but to redress our wrongs: we are all skilled in navigation; in that ship we shall find everything we need to manage her, for she was despoiled of nothing but the women, and if our injury is great, very great also is the opportunity that offers itself of avenging it. Follow me then who will, I entreat you, and Carino and Solercio ask you also, for well I know that they will not leave me to undertake this noble enterprise alone.' "Hardly had I ceased speaking, when a murmur of many voices arose among all the boats,--the men were asking each other what they should do,--and then from the crowd a voice exclaimed, 'Embark, generous guest, and be our captain and our guide, for we will all follow thee.'