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"Why, Dale, my lad, what's the matter?" he said. "Did you see a whale?" At that moment Barney shouted from where he stood forward, unseen for the mist of dimly illuminated steam which lay between us, though his voice was plainly heard, and sent a thrill through all who heard "Boat-ho! Two on 'em astarn." "Ay, ay!" roared Bob Hampton in a voice of thunder, "lying doo east.
On the afternoon of the third day they finally came out in triumph on the banks of the river above the cascades, having cut a road of about nine miles in extent. Once again, then, behold them afloat and paddling up stream still westward with hopes animated and fortune smiling, or, as Reuben put it, with "a gale of luck blowin' right astarn."
I went to the gangway, and held out my hand to assist my father in over our low bulwarks, whilst Bob hove the end of a coil of line into the canoe, shouting to the blacks, "Now then, darkies, look out, and catch a turn with this here rope's-end, will ye? for if you goes astarn, you'll have all your work afore ye to overhaul us and get alongside again."
"If you had had the boat astarn, Captain Spike, an order would have been given to cut it adrift the first time the brig made sail on the wind." "Nobody knows, Jack; that boat would have been very useful to us while at work about the wreck. You never even turned out this morning to let me know where that craft lay, as you promised to do, but left us to find it out by our wits."
As to catchin' either of them sharks, why, we haven't got no hook to catch 'em with. And, if we had, 'twouldn't be of no use to try; them fish ain't to be caught; they're astarn of us for a purpose; and there they'll stay until that purpose have come to pass. I've knowed this sort of thing to happen afore.
I'll tell you how it is, Miles; a man must either look ahead, or look astarn; there is no such thing as satisfying himself with the present moorings. Now, this was my misfortune; for, ahead I had nothing to look forward to; and astarn, what comfort had I in overhauling past sins!" "I think I can understand your difficulties, my friend; how did you manage to get rid of them?" "I left the island.
Why that's E. F.'s he was the greatest farmer in these parts, another of the aristocracy, had a most a noble stock o' cattle, and the matter of some hundreds out in jint notes; well he took the contract for beef with the troops; and he fell astarn so, I guess its a gone goose with him. He's heavy mortgaged.
Marble?" the captain observed, hesitating whether to fire or not. "Mistake, sir? Lord, Captain Robbins, you might cannonade any of the islands astarn for a week, and never hurt an honest man. Let 'em have it, sir; I'll answer for it, you do good." This settled the matter. The loggerhead was applied, and one of our sixes spoke out in a smart report. A breathless stillness succeeded.
'Whaur's the Amphitrite, Alan? asked Shargar, for Robert was dumb with disappointment and rage. 'Half doon to Stanehive by this time, I'm thinkin', answered Alan. 'For a brewin' tub like her, she fummles awa nae ill wi' a licht win' astarn o' her. But I'm doobtin' afore she win across the herrin-pot her fine passengers 'll win at the boddom o' their stamacks.
"Well, I changed my course at once; bore straight down on her, an' soon overhauled her, but the nearer I came the more did my courage run out, so I gradooally begun to take in sail an drop astarn. At last I got savage, `You're a fool, Jenkins! says I to myself. `That's a fact! says su'thin' inside o' me.
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