Richard hesitated to ask in what fashion Astbury had made his voyage, seeing that the usual way to dispose of thieves and vagabonds was to ship them off to the American plantations; but Astbury loved the sound of his own voice, and stretching out his legs towards the fire, took up his tale in the fashion of the professional story-teller.  His history ran somewhat as follows, though it sounds bald enough without the expletives with which he garnished it, growing somewhat less shy of his Major's nephew as he went on.