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"I'll thank He," agreed Toby. "We'll be gettin' on our knees." The two boys knelt. "Lard, Charley and I be wonderful thankful for the owl and the swile You sends us. And we'll be tryin' to think o' things to do for You, and we has a chanst. Amen." "That makes me feel better," Charley confessed. "Now what shall we do with the seal?" "I'll be gettin' a rope, and we'll haul he over to camp."
The barrenness of the larder suggested a fruitful topic of conversation with which to win the confidence of these staring, open-mouthed children, and I therefore tenderly asked what they would most like to eat, supposing IT were there. One and all affirmed that "swile" meat was a delicacy such as their souls loved and repeated questions could elucidate no further.
Every little stone bes worth more nor all the fore-and-afters on the coast. I bes a rich man now richer nor the governor, richer nor any marchant in St. John's richer nor the king o' England, maybe. Holy saints be praised! Never agin will I wet a line at the fishin' nor feel the ache o' hunger in my belly. Denny Nolan will soon be cursin' the day he batted me about like a swile."
She was desperate bad wid the fever, was Nora, when first the skipper took her home wid him; but now she bes plump as a young swile, sir, an' too beautiful entirely for the likes o' meself to look at." Mr. Darling's face went white again. "The skipper?" he asked, huskily. "For God's sake, man, what are you saying? Why does she stay in Chance Along?
A light breeze sprang up while they were eating, and when they made their departure from Swile Island Skipper Zeb hoisted a leg-o'-mutton sail, and then sat and smoked his pipe and told stories of experiences and adventures on the trail, while Toby took the rudder.
Is you goin' t' take un? "'I wathn't thinkin' o' that, says she. 'I wathn't thinkin' o' not. I wath jutht, says she, 'wonderin'. "'They isn't no sense in that, Liz, says I. 'You just wait an' find out. "'What'th hith name? says she. "'Shoos, says I. 'Moses Shoos. "With that she up with her pinny an' begun t' cry like a young swile. "'What you cryin' for, Liz? says I.
"'Tis the way of The Labrador, and the way of the Lard, to share what we has with castaway folk or folk that's in trouble. 'Tis a pleasure to have you with us, lad. Mrs. Twig and I'll just be havin' two lads instead of one the winter, and we were always wishin' we has two. So here you be out o' your fix, and we're all happy as a swile on a sunny rock."
He's wonderful fine about gettin' out of fixes. Dad'll know what to do. He'll be gettin' you out of your fix easy as a swile slips off a rock. You'll see!"
Sometimes they would themselves eat seal meat, and though the Twigs were fond of it, and Charley had pronounced the meat excellent when he and Toby were starving on Swile Island, he now thought it strong and not as palatable as he would like. On the last day of June Skipper Zeb's trap boat, calked and made tight, was launched, and Skipper Zeb announced: "Well, now!
Wull, Sir, 't was a poor swile, wi' blood runnun all under; an' I got my cuffs an' sleeves all red wi' it. So I smoothed away the snow wi' my cuffs, an' I sid 't was a poor thing wi' her whelp close by her, an' her tongue out, as ef she'd a-died fondlun an' lickun it; an' a great puddle o' blood, it looked tarrible heartless, when I was so nigh to death, an' was n' hungry.
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