The Mate of the Vancouver — page 12: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

ON BOARD THE VANCOUVER. 8 likeness either of body or mind between us; for Will had a failing that never troubled me, and never will; he was always fond of his glass, a thing I despise in a seaman, and especially in an officer, who has so many lives to answer for. In 1881, when I had been out of my ap- prenticeship for rather more than four years, and had got to be mate by a deal of hard work—for, to tell the truth, I liked practical seamanship then much better than naviga- tion and logarithms—I was with my brother in the Vanoowver, a bark of 1100 tons reg- ister. If it hadn’t been for my mother, I | wouldn’t have sailed with Will, but she was 1 | always afraid he would get into trouble : through drink; for when he was at home and heard he was appointed to the command of this new vessel, he was carried to bed a great deal the worse for liquor. So when he offered me the chief officer's billet, mother persuaded me to take it,