disposition. Soon after I was born, my father, being old, retired
from a seafaring life, purchased a small cottage in a fishing
village on the west coast of England, and settled down to spend the
evening of his life on the shores of that sea which had for so many
years been his home. It was not long after this that I began to
show the roving spirit that dwelt within me. For some time past my
infant legs had been gaining strength, so that I came to be
dissatisfied with rubbing the skin off my chubby knees by walking
on them, and made many attempts to stand up and walk like a man;
all of which attempts, however, resulted in my sitting down
violently and in sudden surprise. One day I took advantage of my
dear mother's absence to make another effort; and, to my joy, I
actually succeeded in reaching the doorstep, over which I tumbled
into a pool of muddy water that lay before my father's cottage
door. Ah, how vividly I remember the horror of my poor mother when
she found me sweltering in the mud amongst a group of cackling
ducks, and the tenderness with which she stripped off my dripping
clothes and washed my dirty little body! From this time forth my
rambles became more frequent, and, as I grew older, more distant,
until at last I had wandered far and near on the shore and in the
woods around our humble dwelling, and did not rest content until my
father bound me apprentice to a coasting vessel, and let me go to
sea.

For some years I was happy in visiting the sea-ports, and in
coasting along the shores of my native land. My Christian name was
Ralph, and my comrades added to this the name of Rover, in
consequence of the passion which I always evinced for travelling.
Rover was not my real name, but as I never received any other I
came at last to answer to it as naturally as to my proper name;