United States or Niger ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
There was nobody on deck, but a light burned in the foc'sle, and after a careful peep below he descended. Henry, who was playing, a losing game of draughts with Sam, looked up with a start, and overturned the board. "Lord love us, cookie!" said Sam, "where 'ave you been?" The cook straightened up, smiling faintly, and gave a wave of his hand which took in all the points of the compass.
And at the second mate's first word, the trap door dropped shut, I clattered out of the foc'sle, and to work; but I was turning that little matter of the forepeak hatch over in my mind, you bet! It was near dusk, well on in the first dog-watch, when the mates let up with their driving, and herded all hands aft to the main deck.
Newman pushed through our crowd until he was fairly into the port foc'sle, and there he stood, filling the doorway, and effectually blocking any attempt on the part of those behind him to rush the room. Well, Newman looked down at the mate, and he commenced to chuckle very softly to himself. After a moment we began to chuckle too, every man-jack of us.
"If the fat marine now occupying the foc'sle will kindly bring 'is status quo to an anchor yet once more, we may be able to talk like gentlemen not to say friends," said Pyecroft. "He regards you, Mr. Hooper, as a emissary of the Law."
Had I not been offered a fighting man's billet by the Swede, himself? Was not that glory? Then how much greater the glory if I spoke up with a devil-may-care lilt in my voice, and shipped in the hottest packet afloat! Glory! why, I would be the unquestioned cock of any foc'sle I afterward happened into.
You can tell him what I said if you like. You can tell him something more. Blackie and me think there is a snitch in this gang, and the Big 'Un had better keep his eyes peeled for a double-cross. You tell him that. You tell him to ask Nigger about it." "What do you mean?" I cried. His answer was a mysterious shake of the head, and he disappeared into the foc'sle.
By eight o'clock in the morning, when the starboard watch went below again, we found the poor chap daft, and babbling, and on fire with fever. The mate gave up his efforts to arouse him, and admitted to Lynch that "the damn little stock fish is a bit off color. Needs a dose o' black draught." After breakfast, Newman and I stepped into the port foc'sle.
I scurried forward, intent upon dinner. I drew my whack from the Chinaman in the gallery, and bolted it down in the empty foc'sle. It was a miserable repast, a dish of ill-cooked lobscouse, and a pannikin of muddy coffee, and I reflected glumly that I had joined a hungry ship as well as a hot one. I finished the last of that mysterious stew, and then filled and lighted my pipe.
But I pointed out that offering immediate violence to Cockney might alarm the afterguard, and change their plan of action; moreover, we might use the spy to carry false tales of our intentions to the enemy. So when Cockney breezed into the foc'sle, at four bells, his reception in no way aroused his suspicions. Everything seemed going his way.
The singer was invisible, but around the words of her song one could conjure up pictures of the sturdy serang asleep in the foc'sle of some westward-flying steamer, or haply of the bearded trader afare through the passes of the North-West Frontier, the while his wife in the small upper room waited with prayers for his home-coming, even as the lady of Ithaca waited for the man of many wiles.
Word Of The Day