List, Ye Landsmen! A Romance of IncidentRussell, William Clark
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List, Ye Landsmen! A Romance of Incident
Russell, William Clark
English fiction -- 19th century; Sea stories
I was busy in bringing the brig to a stand while Greaves was at
breakfast, and on passing the skylight and looking down, I saw the lady
Aurora seated at table with him. When he came on deck after breakfast,
she followed; Jimmy placed chairs and she was about to sit, but catching
sight of me she approached, bowing low, with a fine arch smile, and her
hand extended. I supposed she meant merely to shake me by the hand, but
on grasping my fingers she retained them, and I felt a foolish blush
upon my face, as she drew me to the binnacle stand, at which she
pointed, saying, “compass.” She then led me to the side, and projecting
her glittering hand over the rail, said “sea.” Then, looking aloft, she
laughed and shook her head, and cried:
“No sar, señor.”
“Star,” said I.
“_Si_--star--_gracias_,” she exclaimed.
“Had you not better mind your eye?” exclaimed Greaves, as we approached
him. “Somebody’s told her the value of your share in the chinks below.
She’s no clipper, but she’s got a devilish fine bow and run, and you’d
find her bends sweetly good, I’ll warrant you, were you to careen her
and clear her sides. By Isten! Fielding, she’ll be forging ahead and
taking you in tow if you don’t mind your helm.”
I made no reply. I did not greatly relish Greaves’ humor. The girl’s
ignorance of our tongue was an appeal to our respect. But then I was
twenty-four--an age of sensibility. Greaves was an older man, and though
I love his memory, I must say the sea had a little blunted some of the
finer points of feeling in him.
Madam Aurora took the chair which Jimmy had placed, and she and Greaves
sat together, but in silence. Some business of the brig occupied my
attention. Presently Greaves told me to go below and breakfast.
“I will look after the ship,” said he.
I went below and made a good breakfast. There was a dish of terrapin;
the Dutch sailor Wirtz, the burly, carroty man, with the deep roaring
voice--but all our Dutchmen had deep voices--had somewhere learnt the
art of cooking terrapin. He had stayed in the brig to dress this
delicious meat, and Frank Hals, the cook, had gone ashore in his place
in the longboat. I fared sumptuously, washing the delicate morsels down
with some of the _Casada’s_ cocoa, which had been prepared for the pot
by Thomas Teach, who professed to have learnt what he knew under this
head in two voyages he had made to the Dutch Spice Islands.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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