Breaking Away by Oliver Optic

It was useless for me to remain any longer in the wheel-house, and I descended by the forward ladder to the deck. I was indignant, but I was determined to "face the music. " The best of friends are liable to "fall out" at times, and no better than Vallington and myself had ever existed. He was burdened by the responsibility of the position he had assumed, and perhaps did not feel just right about the course he had taken. These things may have made him irritable. Though I had never before known him to be unkind or uncourteous, he had certainly "pitched into me," on the present occasion, in a manner which my self-respect would not permit me to endure.

I had been acting, in charge of the wheel, to the best of my ability; and I was perfectly confident that nothing would have gone wrong with the steamer if the engineer had not stopped the wheels. However I felt on the general question of duty, I was quite satisfied that I had been faithful to the interests of the expedition upon which we had embarked; and I could not bear to be "snapped up," and treated like an inferior in knowledge and skill, even by my chosen leader. I was "chief of navigation," at least; and I felt that the general had interfered with my part of the work. He accused me of causing the mischief, when he had been the author of it himself; and this was so plain to me that I could not help resenting it.