The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1873-04-19
a YOUNG HERO.


on pyramidal Jatla as it rises up in terrace
after terrace of stern gray masonry against
the lustrOuS evening sky, with the foam-tippcd
breakers at his feet. Beside me, with his ell
bow on the handrail, and his short pipe be
tween his teeth, lounges the chief engineer,
as thorough an Englishman as if he had not
spent two-thrds of his life abroad, and de
lighted to get hold of listener who Gas he
phrases IT. has been about n bit"
mo; they amt got an Englishman's sea
sonin', +" he continues, pursuing his criticism
OF the Dalmatian seamen; "and what's more,
they amt got an Englishman's plack neither,
not when it comes to a real scrape"
"Can no one but an Englishman have any
pluck, them" asked I, laughing.
"Well, | won't just go for to say hat
o. course a man as rs Il man ull have pluck
in him all the world over. I've seed a.
Frencher tackle shark to save his mess
mate; and I've seed Rooshan stand to his
gun arter every man in the battery, barrin'
himself, had been blowed to smash, But, if
yer come to that, the pluckieSt tcllcr rs ever
l seed warnt IA man at all "
what was he, thcn--a Woman;'
mo, nor that neither though, mark yc
don't go for to say as how women amt got
pluck enough tOO-sOme OMEN, at least My ,
old 'ooman, now, saved me once from Tub
Der OF POrtigec as was Just a-gOin to stick
with handspike. (You can hear her spin
the yarn yourself if you like to pay US Wis i
1t when we gets to COnstantinopIc( But TINS +
'un as I'm talkin' on was little lad not much -
bigger'n Tom Thumb, only with sperrit OF :,
his own us nd ha' blowcd up a mano, war ~
Almost Would yer like to hear about it:' u
| eagerly assent and the narrator, knock :,
ing the ashes out Of his pipe, folds his d"
brawny arms upon the rail, and commences :,
as follows: !,
Bout three years ago, atOrc ! got thi, W
berth as I'm in now | was second engineer !;
aboard Liverpool steamer bound for New ~
York. IhcTe'u been lot of extra cargo sent :,
down just at the last minute and we'd had ~,
no end of job stowin it away, and that ran o
Us late o startin; 50 that altogether, as you W.
may think, the tapn warn't altogether in the IN
sweetest temper in the world, nor the mate c. c.
neither; as for the chieicngnccr, he was an ~
easy going sort o. chap as nothin' on earth A,
could put out But on the third day out from ~, ~
Liverpool he cum down to me in Il precious ~
hurry lookin' as il soWethia' had put him -
out considerably.
Tom says ne, what dye think? Bles
II we amt found a stowaway' CThacs the
name, you know, sir, We gives TO chaps rs
hides themselves aboard 0utward-bound YES fro
sells, and gets carried out unbcknown to cv- to
erybody) He
nc ulChcnS you nave! says |. VINO Is Oh
he, and where did yer find him" bro
"'Wcll, we found him slowed away among me
he casks lor'ard; and ten to one we'd never cry
la' twigged him II the shippers dog hadn't ori
'nitled him out and begun barkin' Stitch II lon
title mite as he Is, too, | could almost put tan
lim in my baccypOuch poor little bcggar; vis'
,ut he looks to be goOdp luckcd I'm for all the
hat WEI
Il didn't wait to near no more but up ON tair
lcck like 4 SkyrOckct; and there | did see on
light, and no mistake. Every man-Jack o. and
he crew and what few passengers we had so
board, was all in u ring in the fo'c'stlc and was
n the middle stood the the iustmatc lOokn' by
S black as thunder Right IN front of him, MAJ
ookin' regular mite among them big icl- this
ers was Il little bit Of lad not ten years old cha
ragged as II SCarcCrOW, but with bright mig
urly hair, and bonnie little face o. his own, II tr
f it hadn't been SO woctul and pale. But, cro
less yer soul 10 see the way that little chap lol
leld his head up, and looked about him. you'd cict
la thought the whole ship belonged to him Il
The mate was great hulkin' black bearded fcw
ciIcI' WIN 4" IoOh 'liat uu ha frightened it, u
'Orse, ana voice III 10 make one Jump through bus
kcy-iolc' puJ me young uh Warnl bit sire
tearcd-hc stood straight up, and looked not
lin full IN the face with them bright clear not
yes o hisn, for all the world as he was Prince wa,
ialfred himself Folk dd say arterward" and
lowering MS VOICE 10 Il "hlspcrJ "aS now he no,
omed o better blood nor what he ougat; and ="
or my part I'm raythcr o that way o. thiuk- sid,
ne myself, loI never yet seed IL common but
trect llarab las they calls EN- now carry il mo
III like him. You might ha' heard pin drop, \
S the mate spoke, van
''WcII, you young whcp, says he, in his her
,rimmc-t voice, what has brought nan here sto,
OW? -
LIT wa, my stcp-tathcr as done it, said the ed
'Ov in a weak little voice but rs steady AS ho;,
,ould be. Fathers dead, and mothers mar =,
led again and my new father says he won't -
ave no hrats about catin' w his wages and I q,
e slowed me away when nobody warnt II
DOkin', and guv me some grub To keep me
DIN for % day or two till | got to sea. He Rn
avs I'm 10 90 to Aunt Jane at Halifax; and Eli
icrc's her address tor
And with that, he slips his hand into the spl
rcast OF his shirt and out with scrap % >,
,aper, awful dirty and Crumpled up, but with "A
he address on it right enough. M
we AL believed every word ont, even with
ut the paper; for his look, and his voice. and an
NJ way hr spoke, was enough 10 show that cal
here warn % hgpOUh of lyin' in his whole
kin Bus The mate didn't seem to swallcr
he yarn 30 all; he only shrugged his shout Nj
ers With kind o grin, as much ~ 10 say thi
I'm too old q bird To be caught with Mat
ind o. chGtt; = and 'hcn he says 10 him: Look fin
ere my lad; that's all very fine, but ii won't
10 hcrc-somc % these men o. mine are in ri
he secret, and mean to have it out of 'cm. go,
Sow, YOU just point out the man rs slowed dn,
on away and fed you, this very minute, if bui
on don't it'll be the WORSE for YOU" all
The bog looked up in his bright fearless
way it did my heart good to look at him, the va,
rave liltic chapy and says, quite quicty:l' .
I've told you the truth; | amt got no more wi
more to say en-,
Inc maze says hothlh nut looks NJ INN AS tol
f ned seen clear through him; and then he up
accd around Ia the men, lookin' blackcr than fol
yer. Reeve 4 rope to The yard" lac sings on
,ut, loud enough Ia raise the dead; be smart, er
lOw,
The men all looked at each other, rs much Sc,
l. 10 say: What ON earth's IA comm now y ia,
But aboard q course, when you're told 10 do
lh inn WON W nnL IN do II 20 tL1 rnun ,-.I.