We and the World: A Book for Boys. Part IIEwing, Juliana Horatia
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We and the World: A Book for Boys. Part II
Ewing, Juliana Horatia
Sea stories
no more conscience over bothering a gentleman for money nor if he was
one of themselves,' said Barney; 'sorra a halfpenny shall the railway
rogues rob him of.' Ah, little stowaway, ye may guess my delight! And
hadn't we glorious weather at first, and wasn't the dear old man happy
and proud! I can tell ye I yelled, and I sang, and I laughed, when I
felt the old hooker begin to bound on the swell when we got into the
open, but not a look would Barney turn on me for minding the boat; but I
could hear him chuckling to himself and muttering about the railway
rogues. It wasn't much time we either of us had for talking, by and by.
I steered and saw to the main sheet, and Barney did look-out and minded
the foresail, Tim Brady's boat towing astern, getting such a dance as
it never had before, and at last dragging upside down. We'd one thing in
our favour, anyhow. There was no disputing or disturbing of our minds as
to whether we'd turn back or not, for the gale was at our backs; and the
old hooker was like my father's black mare--you might guide her, but she
was neither to stop nor turn. How the gallant old boat held out as she
did, Heaven knows! It was not till the main-sail had split into ribbons
with a noise like a gun going off, and every seam was strained to
leaking, and the sea came in faster than we could bale it out, that we
righted Tim Brady's tub and got into her, and bade the old hooker
good-bye. The boat was weather-tight enough--it was a false move of
Barney's capsized her,--and I'd a good hold of her with one hand when I
gripped him with the other. Oh! Barney dear! Why would ye always have
your own way? Oh, why--why did ye lose your hold? Ye thought all hope
was over, darling, didn't ye? Ah, if ye had but known the brave hearts
that--"
I suppose it was because I was crying as well as Dennis that I did not
see Mr. Johnson till he was standing by the Irish boy's hammock. I know
I got a sound scolding for the state of his pulse (which the third mate
seemed to understand, as he understood most things), and was dismissed
with some pithy hints about cultivating common-sense and not making a
fool of myself. I sneaked off, and was thankful to meet Alister and pour
out my tale to him, and ask if he thought that our new friend would have
brain-fever, because I had let him talk about his shipwreck.
Alister was not quite so sympathetic as I had expected. He was so much
shocked about the crucifix and about Dennis praying for Barney's soul,
that he could think of nothing else. He didn't seem to think that he
would have fever, but he said he feared we had small reason to reckon on
the prayers of the idolatrous ascending to the throne of grace. He told
me a long story about the Protestant martyrs who were shut up in a
dungeon under the sea, on the coast of Aberdeenshire, and it would have
been very interesting if I hadn't been thinking of Dennis.
We had turned in for some sleep, and I was rolling myself in my blanket,
when Alister called me--
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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