“Yes, yes; I had forgotten.  The Brazil Banks, where our whalers go, are in the Atlantic.  But what can have taken Gar’ner into Rio, unless it be to spend more money!”

“By reading the letter, sir, we shall soon know.  I see there is something about spermaceti oil here.”

“Ile?  And spalm ile, do you say!” exclaimed the deacon, brightening up at once—­“Read on, Mary, my good gal—­read the letter as fast as you can—­read it at a trot.”

“Deacon Israel Pratt—­Dear sir,” continued Mary, in obedience to this command, “the two schooners sailed from Beaufort, North Carolina, as stated already per mail, in a letter written at that port, and which has doubtless come to hand.  We had fine weather and a tolerable run of it, until we reached the calm latitudes, where we were detained by the usual changes for about a week.  On the 18th Oct. the pleasant cry of ’there she spouts’ was heard aboard here, and we found ourselves in the neighbourhood of whales.  Both schooners lowered their boats, and I was soon fast to a fine bull, who gave us a long tow before the lance was put into him, and he was made to spout blood.  Captain Daggett set up some claims to this fish, in consequence of his line’s getting foul of the creature’s jaws, but he changed his mind in good season, and clapped on to help tow the whale down to the vessel.  His irons drew from a young bull, and a good deal of dissatisfaction existed among the other crew, until, fortunately, the school of young bulls came round quite near us, when Captain Daggett and his people succeeded in securing no less than three of the fish, and Mr. Hazard got a very fine one for us.

“I am happy to say that we had very pleasant weather to cut in, and secured every gallon of the oil of both our whales, as did Captain Daggett all of his.  Our largest bull made one hundred and nineteen barrels, of which forty-three barrels was head-matter.  I never saw better case and junk in a whale in my life.  The smallest bull turned out well too, making fifty-eight barrels, of which twenty-one was head.  Daggett got one hundred and thirty-three barrels from his three fish, a very fair proportion of head, though not as large as our own.  Having this oil on board, we came in here after a pleasant run; and I have shipped, as per invoice enclosed, one hundred and seventy-seven barrels of spermaceti oil, viz., sixty-four barrels of head, and rest in body-oil, to your order, care of Fish & Grinnell, New York, by the brig Jason, Captain Williams, who will sail for home about the 20th proximo, and to whom I trust this letter”—­

“Stop, Mary, my dear—­this news is overpowering—­it is almost too good to be true,” interrupted the deacon, nearly as much unmanned by this intelligence of his good fortune as he had previously been by his apprehensions.  “Yes, it does seem too good to be true; read it again, child; yes, read every syllable of it again!”

Mary complied, delighted enough to hear all she could of Roswell’s success.