"I must be on the ascendancy, for God knows that I am at the nadir just
at present." He breathed in the sweet freshness which still clung to
the morning, and settled his shoulders like a recruiting sergeant.

"How well the man has studied his English!" thought Fitzgerald. He
rarely hesitated for a word, and his idioms were always nicely adjusted.

The admiral was alone. He received them with an easy courtliness,
which is more noticeable in the old world than in the new. He directed
the servants to take charge of the luggage, and to Breitmann there was
never a word about work. That had all been decided by letter. He
urged the new secretary to return to the library as soon as he had
established himself.

"Strange that you should know the man," said the admiral. "It comes in
pat. From what you say, he must be a brilliant fellow. But this
situation seems rather out of his line."

"We all have our ups and downs, admiral. I've known a pinch or two
myself. We are an improvident lot, we writers, who wander round the
globe; rich to-day, poor to-morrow. But on the other hand, it's
something to set down on paper what a king says, the turn of a battle,
to hobnob with famous men, explorers, novelists, painters, soldiers,
scientists, to say nothing of the meat in the pie and the bottom crust.
I'm going to write a novel some day myself."

"Here," said the admiral, with a sweep of the hand, which included the
row upon row of books, "come here to do it. Make it a pirate story;
there's always room for another."