The Children's Hour, v 5. Stories From Seven Old FavoritesTappan, Eva March
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The Children's Hour, v 5. Stories From Seven Old Favorites
Tappan, Eva March
Children's stories; Literature -- Adaptations
now got among people of my own stature and strength. The carpenter
came, and in a few minutes sawed a passage about four feet square,
then let down a small ladder, upon which I mounted, and from thence
was taken into the ship in a very weak condition.
The sailors were all in amazement, and asked me a thousand questions,
which I had no inclination to answer. I was equally confounded at the
sight of so many pygmies, for such I took them to be, after having so
long accustomed mine eyes to the monstrous objects I had left. But the
captain, Mr. Thomas Wilcocks, an honest, worthy Shropshire man,
observing I was ready to faint, took me into his cabin, gave me a
cordial to comfort me, and made me turn in upon his own bed, advising
me to take a little rest, of which I had great need. Before I went to
sleep, I gave him to understand that I had valuable furniture in my
box, too good to be lost: a fine hammock, an handsome field bed, two
chairs, a table, and a cabinet; that my closet was hung on all sides,
or rather quilted, with silk and cotton; that if he would let one of
the crew bring my closet into his cabin, I would open it there before
him, and show him my goods. The captain, hearing me utter these
absurdities, concluded I was raving; however (I suppose to pacify me),
he promised to give order as I desired, and going upon deck sent some
of his men down into my closet, from whence (as I afterwards found),
they drew up all my goods, and stripped off the quilting; but the
chairs, cabinet, and bedstead, being screwed to the floor, were much
damaged by the ignorance of the seamen, who tore them up by force.
Then they knocked off some of the boards for the use of the ship, and
when they had got all they had a mind for, let the hulk drop into the
sea, which, by reason of many breaches made in the bottom and sides,
sunk to rights. And indeed I was glad not to have been a spectator of
the havoc they made; because I am confident it would have sensibly
touched me, by bringing former passages into my mind which I had
rather forget.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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