A truly tragic tale of a sea captain who after a career of fame and fortune falls on hard times yet is determined to preserve his dignity and support his daughter who has married poorly and is facing financial ruin in Australia. Despite the wealth of support that he receives, from I am sure almost every reader and the urgent, desperate hope that course of tale will change, Captain Whalley remains in the grip of circumstance and his tethering to the dissolute, criminal and pernicious eventually drags him down to bottom of the sea.