Peter the Whaler, by W.H.G. Kingston.
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Peter's father is a country vicar in Ireland, and Peter is a naughty
teenager, who has got in with friends who encourage poaching, at that
time a most serious offence. His father confiscates the gun, but one
night Peter recovers the gun and has another coaching expedition, during
which he is caught by the gamekeepers. The magistrate releases him to
his father, who travels with him to Liverpool. For fifteen pounds
Captain Swales of the BLACK SWAN agrees to take him and to teach him the
rudiments of seamanship on a return voyage to Canada. It turned out she
was an ill-managed emigrant ship, and the emigrants were very badly
treated. Captain Swales and his officers are as nasty as they come.
There is a fire on board, and the people are rescued by the MARY,
Captain Dean, who is a very different kind of man than the despicable
Captain Swales. At Quebec Peter joins the FOAM, Captain Hawk. There
then follows a series of events, some good, and some bad, but all
well-written.
It must be remembered that Peter the Whaler was probably the first
seafaring book by Kingston, although he had written several books during
the previous twenty years or so, The book was very well received by the
public, and Kingston took up writing adventure novels for teenagers as a
permanent occupation, until his death about thirty years later.
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