Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Lost And Saved; Or, Nellie Powers, The Missionary's Daughter.
shipmates , where dry clothes were soon exchanged tor his wet ones . Every one of his shipmates showed their joy at his rescue in one way or another , often in their efforts to help retarding the end they sought to obtain . " Tom , old boy , '" said Peter , " give us your flipper . I am right glad to see you . Never was more happy in my life . Just take a drop of this ancl it will warm you up , " ancl Peter handed him a glass of grog which the captain had passed down into the
forecastle . " You puts me in mind of the time Jack _ Brea _ . ee was hauled out of the barrel of whale oil , only you ain't so slippery or half so seared . " " How did it happen you , Tom ? " asked Sam Watson . " One would think your present company wasn't good enough for you , or that you had been partaking of the ardent , to be floppin' overboard like a fish . What was . the matter ? Wasn't our company good enough for a man of your learnin' ? Ah , you was a strange fishTom
, , to be leavin' your college chums , and takin' to such a life as this . But hoAv Avell none of them chums came ivith you to keep the dry togs on you . 0 give ' em up , Tommy ; take to your-true love , and don ' t be cuttin' up any more of your capers . How did you come overboard anyway ? "
" I don't see how it was myself , " said Tom , who had now begun to feel much better under the generous treatment of his shipmates . " The more I tries to think how it happened , the more I gets mixed up . The first thought I had after I got into the water was that I was aboard a fore an' after , and that her main boom guy had chucked me overboard . Thin I thought that couldn't be , for , says I , the ' Sparkler' is a square rigger , ancl therefore didn't have any main boom guy down amidships . Thin I
thought , even if she had she could not reach me with it , and I Avas more confused ( bin iver . I thought of lots of ways , shipmates , but as I was leanin' jiretty far over the rail , I think it was the lurch she gave that threw me over . It felt moi ghty like as though I was pushed , but that couldn't be , for there was no one near me , so I lays it to the ' Sparkler , ' ancl a moighty bad girl she was to trate her old admirer in that way , and he a college bred man that knows the difference between politeness and bad manners . "
As none of the men had seen Tom fall over , . they could not account for it in any other way than that it was one of the freaks of the "Sparkler . " Often when the sea was comparatively calm she would be taken with a violent fit of rolling , which warned the men to keep away from the rail . Many Avere the incidents called forth by Tom ' s adventure , and some of the yarns spun were perfectly marvellous , especially the one told by Sam Watson . Sam ' s yarns were always amusing to the men . When he had
one to spin he would always lay his pipe clown on the floor , stand up , clear his throat , say "hem" once or twice ( but this could not be depended upon , he had been known to vary from one to six times ) get all ready , and then off he went like a sky rocket , making the most extravagant gestures with his hands , which he accompanied by corresponding motions of his body . He had been known to relate yarns concerning a trip he claimed to have made around the North Poleancl would get into lengthy arguments
, with any one rash enough to dispute that remarkable voyage . On the evening in question , Sam , to the astonishment of his messmates , related his yarn sitting down , and even kept his pipe in his hand . As the story was told under sucli extraordinary circumstances , they listened with more than their usual attention .
"You see , " began Sam , "this incident wot happened to me , happened on the Mississipp i River . I wos runnin' a barge on the river then , and one ni g ht along towards midnight , after I had been two weeks on the trip , I became disgusted with the mosquitos , ivhich were eatin' me up , so I went ashore and clum up a big tree so as to get a little rest . It had been rainin' hard for a few days past , and while I ivas sleepin' in the tree a freshet come down and washed the banks . The tree I was in
grew on a point of land that projected out into the water , and when I woke up in the mornhi' it was just gettin' ready to topple over . The land had already gone , and the tree was not long in goin ' . When that tree went over I most lost my hold on it , but finally came right side up on top of the branches , and in this way I floated down the river . After three or four days I got pretty hungry now , you may reckon , and thoug ht
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Lost And Saved; Or, Nellie Powers, The Missionary's Daughter.
shipmates , where dry clothes were soon exchanged tor his wet ones . Every one of his shipmates showed their joy at his rescue in one way or another , often in their efforts to help retarding the end they sought to obtain . " Tom , old boy , '" said Peter , " give us your flipper . I am right glad to see you . Never was more happy in my life . Just take a drop of this ancl it will warm you up , " ancl Peter handed him a glass of grog which the captain had passed down into the
forecastle . " You puts me in mind of the time Jack _ Brea _ . ee was hauled out of the barrel of whale oil , only you ain't so slippery or half so seared . " " How did it happen you , Tom ? " asked Sam Watson . " One would think your present company wasn't good enough for you , or that you had been partaking of the ardent , to be floppin' overboard like a fish . What was . the matter ? Wasn't our company good enough for a man of your learnin' ? Ah , you was a strange fishTom
, , to be leavin' your college chums , and takin' to such a life as this . But hoAv Avell none of them chums came ivith you to keep the dry togs on you . 0 give ' em up , Tommy ; take to your-true love , and don ' t be cuttin' up any more of your capers . How did you come overboard anyway ? "
" I don't see how it was myself , " said Tom , who had now begun to feel much better under the generous treatment of his shipmates . " The more I tries to think how it happened , the more I gets mixed up . The first thought I had after I got into the water was that I was aboard a fore an' after , and that her main boom guy had chucked me overboard . Thin I thought that couldn't be , for , says I , the ' Sparkler' is a square rigger , ancl therefore didn't have any main boom guy down amidships . Thin I
thought , even if she had she could not reach me with it , and I Avas more confused ( bin iver . I thought of lots of ways , shipmates , but as I was leanin' jiretty far over the rail , I think it was the lurch she gave that threw me over . It felt moi ghty like as though I was pushed , but that couldn't be , for there was no one near me , so I lays it to the ' Sparkler , ' ancl a moighty bad girl she was to trate her old admirer in that way , and he a college bred man that knows the difference between politeness and bad manners . "
As none of the men had seen Tom fall over , . they could not account for it in any other way than that it was one of the freaks of the "Sparkler . " Often when the sea was comparatively calm she would be taken with a violent fit of rolling , which warned the men to keep away from the rail . Many Avere the incidents called forth by Tom ' s adventure , and some of the yarns spun were perfectly marvellous , especially the one told by Sam Watson . Sam ' s yarns were always amusing to the men . When he had
one to spin he would always lay his pipe clown on the floor , stand up , clear his throat , say "hem" once or twice ( but this could not be depended upon , he had been known to vary from one to six times ) get all ready , and then off he went like a sky rocket , making the most extravagant gestures with his hands , which he accompanied by corresponding motions of his body . He had been known to relate yarns concerning a trip he claimed to have made around the North Poleancl would get into lengthy arguments
, with any one rash enough to dispute that remarkable voyage . On the evening in question , Sam , to the astonishment of his messmates , related his yarn sitting down , and even kept his pipe in his hand . As the story was told under sucli extraordinary circumstances , they listened with more than their usual attention .
"You see , " began Sam , "this incident wot happened to me , happened on the Mississipp i River . I wos runnin' a barge on the river then , and one ni g ht along towards midnight , after I had been two weeks on the trip , I became disgusted with the mosquitos , ivhich were eatin' me up , so I went ashore and clum up a big tree so as to get a little rest . It had been rainin' hard for a few days past , and while I ivas sleepin' in the tree a freshet come down and washed the banks . The tree I was in
grew on a point of land that projected out into the water , and when I woke up in the mornhi' it was just gettin' ready to topple over . The land had already gone , and the tree was not long in goin ' . When that tree went over I most lost my hold on it , but finally came right side up on top of the branches , and in this way I floated down the river . After three or four days I got pretty hungry now , you may reckon , and thoug ht