A tolerable state of order and regularity had been brought out of the confusion that prevailed on board of the Ocklockonee, and the newly appointed officers went to the stations where they belonged. Sampson reported the engine of the steamer as in good order, and ready for service.  
"Who is the chief engineer of the Ocklockonee, Mr. Sampson?" asked Captain Passford, after he had listened to the report.
 
"His name is Bockburn; he is a Scotchman, and appears to be a very good fellow," replied the engineer of the Bronx.
 
"Does he talk at all about what has just happened on board of his steamer?" asked the captain, deeply interested, for he had some difficulty in arranging the engineer's department on board of the prize, as he considered the new order of things.
 
181 "Yes, sir; he talks at the rate of twenty knots an hour, and if his steamer can get ahead as well as his tongue, she is a fast one," replied Sampson, laughing.
 
"Well, what does he say? I want to know how he stands affected by the present condition of affairs," continued the captain rather impatiently, for he was too busy to enjoy the humor of the engineer.
 
"He is a thrifty Scotchman; and I don't believe he has any interest in anything under the sun except his wages; and he is a little sour on that account to find that his cruise is finished, as he puts it."
 
"Send for him and his assistants, Mr. Sampson."
 
The engineer went to the engine hatch, and called the men below.
 
"Now send for Mr. Gawl," added the captain. "He is your first assistant; is he a competent man to run an engine?"
 
"As competent as I am myself; and the engine of this steamer is exactly like that of the Bronx, so that he can have no trouble with it, if you think of retaining him on board of the Ocklockonee," replied Sampson.
 
182 "I propose to make him chief engineer of her."
 
"You could not find a better man," said Sampson, as he went to summon Gawl.
 
The three engineers of the prize came on deck, and the captain took the chief aside.
 
"Mr. Bockburn, I believe, the chief engineer of the Ocklockonee?" said Christy.
 
"Of the Scotian, sir; for I know nothing of the jaw-cracking names that the officers in the cabin have given her," replied the engineer, shrugging his shoulders, and presenting a dissatisfied air.
 
"Are you an engineer in the Confederate Navy, sir?" asked Christy, bringing the business to a head at once.
 
"No, sir, I am not," answered the engineer very decidedly. "You see, captain, that the Scotian was sold to come across the water, and I was out of a job, with a family to support. They did not say anything about the service in which the Scotian was to be engaged, but I understood it. When they spoke to me about it, I was glad to keep my place as long as she did not make war on the United Kingdom. In truth, I may say that I did not care a fig about the quarrel in the States, and was as ready to run an engine on one side as 183 the other as long as I got my wages, and was able to support my family handsomely, as, thank God, I have always done. I am not a student of politics, and I only read enough in the newspapers to know what is going on in the world. I always find that I get ahead better when I mind my own business, and it can't be said that Andy Bockburn ever—"
 
"Precisely so, Mr. Bockburn; but I will hear the rest of your story at another time," interposed the captain when he found that the man was faithful to the description Sampson had given of his talking powers.
 
"You understand perfectly what has transpired on board of the Scotian as you choose still to call her; in a word, that she is a prize to the United States steamer Bronx?"
 
"I understand it all as clearly as though I read it in a book; and it was all on account of the want of a bolt that I was sure I put on board of the vessel before she sailed; and I am just as sure of it now as I ever was. But then, you see, captain, a man can't always be sure of the men under him, though he may be sure of himself. I have no doubt—"
 
184 "Short yarns, if you please, Mr. Bockburn. You understand the situation, and I will add that I intend to use this vessel as well as the Bronx in the service of my government. Are you willing to do duty on board of her in any capacity in which I may place you in the engineer department, provided you receive the same wages as before?"
 
"I am, sir; and I was paid a month in advance, so that I shall not lose anything," chuckled the careful Scotchman.
 
"If you are regularly appointed, though I can only give you a temporary position, in addition to your wages, you will be entitled to your share in any prize we may hereafter capture."
 
"Then I will take any position you will please to give me," answered the engineer, apparently delighted with the prospect thus held out to him.
 
"I shall appoint you first assistant engineer of the Bronx," continued the captain, not a little to the astonishment of Flint, who wondered that he was not assigned to the Ocklockonee.
 
"I am quite satisfied, captain," replied Bockburn, bowing and smiling, for wages were more 185 than rank to him. "I will bring up my kit at once, sir. You see, captain, when a man has a family he—"
 
"Precisely as you say, Mr. Bockburn," interrupted the captain. "You will report to Mr. Sampson in the engine room of the Bronx for further orders."
 
"Thank you, sir; I supposed I was out of a job from this out, and I was feeling—"
 
"Feel your way to the engin............