It is not easy to find the heart of a son in the body of a physician." "What, then, will you do, my poor friend ?" "That is my secret, captain." During this conversation, the missionary had put a thousand questions to Willis and Fritz relative to his father, mother, and sisters, and a smile now and then lit up his features as Fritz related some of the family mishaps.
"You must have undergone some hardships in your voyage from the antipodes to Havre de Grace," said Littlestone to Jack, "notwithstanding the skill of my friend the Pilot." "Yes, captain, a few," replied Jack.

"I myself made a narrow escape from being killed and eaten by a couple of savages." "And how did you escape ?" "Providence interfered at the critical moment." "Well, so I should imagine." "Our friend the Pilot was more fortunate; he was abducted by the natives of Hawaii; but, instead of converting him into mincemeat, they transformed him into a divinity, bore him along in triumph to a temple, where he was perfumed with incense, and had sacrifices offered up to him." "Willis must have felt himself highly honored," said the captain, smiling.
"These fine things did not, however, last long, for next day they were wound up with a cloud of arrows." "And another interposition of Providence ?" "Yes, none of the arrows were winged with death." "After that," remarked Willis, "we fell in with a Yankee cruiser, were taken on board, and carried into the latitude of the Bahamas, where we fell in with Old Flyblow, who, after a tough set-to, sent the Yankee a prize to Bermuda, and took us on board as passengers." "And," added Jack, "whilst we were under protection of the American flag, Willis fell in with a certain Bill Stubbs, who was shot in the fight and died of his wounds.

This trifling accident did not, however, prevent Willis falling in with him alive in Havre." "You still seem to delight in paradoxes, Master Jack," said the captain.
"The English cruiser," continued Jack, "was afterwards captured by a French corvette, on which it appears you were on board _incognito_." "What! I on board ?" "Yes; ask Willis." "If you were not, captain, how could you come to my cabin every night and ask me questions ?" inquired the latter.
At this point, a shade of anxiety crossed Littlestone's features; he turned and looked at the missionary--the missionary looked at Fritz--Fritz stared at his brother--Jack gazed at Willis--and Willis, with a puzzled air, regarded everybody in turn.
"At last," continued Jack, "after experiencing a variety of both good and bad fortune, sometimes vanquished and sometimes the victors, first wounded, then cured, we arrived here in Havre, where, for a time, we were plunged into the deepest poverty; we were blacksmiths and carpenters by turns, and thought ourselves fortunate when we had a chair to mend or a horse to shoe." "The workings of Providence," said the missionary, "are very mysterious, and, perhaps, you will allow me to illustrate this fact by drawing a comparison.

A ship is at the mercy of the waves; it sways, like a drunken man, sometimes one way and sometimes another.

All on board are in commotion, some are hurrying down the hatchways, and others are hurrying up.