"Welcome back, my young friend," he said, cordially, rising to meet him.
"I am glad to see you, but I didn't expect you quite so soon. How did
you happen to come in advance of the captain?"
"Then you have not heard what happened at sea?" said Robert.
"Yes," said the merchant. "I heard, much to my regret, of Captain Evans'
death. He was a worthy man, and I am truly sorry to lose him. What do
you think of his successor, Captain Haley? He has never before sailed
for me."
"After I have told my story, you can judge of him for yourself. I did
not return on your vessel, Mr. Morgan, but on the _Superior_, Captain
Smith."
"How is that?" asked the merchant, surprised.
"Because Captain Haley left me on an island in the Southern Ocean, bound
to a tree, and probably supposes that I am dead."
"Your story seems incredible, Robert. Give me a full account of all that
led to this action on the part of the captain."
My readers shall not be wearied with a repetition of details with which
they are already familiar. Robert related what had happened to him in a
straightforward manner, and Mr. Morgan never thought of doubting his
statements.
"This Haley must be a villain," he said. "You are, indeed, fortunate in
having escaped from the snare he laid for you,"
"I have been fortunate in another way also," said Robert. "I have
succeeded in the object of my voyage.
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