Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1882-06-01

! one saturday night an drops anchor,
Ior there's strong current from the St.
Lawrence there, an we should ha'
drlfted onto the island if we hadn' It.
Next day was Sunday, and still there
wasn't a breath of wind. When it come
AFTERNOON the ship was all quiet like
the skipper he'd got tired o. whistling
1or a breeze an bossing round with his
hands In his pockets, so he'd settled
down In his big canvas chair on the
poop va long pipe an glass o. grog
alongside him, an the rest of us was
LOT ara, some washin' clothes, some
piayin' cards, most lynn on their backs
ooin nothing at all, when all on sud-
olnt we hears voice hailing the ship
seemingly right under the bows. Up
we all Jumps an looks over the bull
warks, an sure enough there was moth
ing 70 be seen, 'cept the swirl O. the
tide running past the cable. well, one
says, that's rum!' an another says,
'Ihat was you'll an in fact most on US
put 1t down to a young limb of a boy
called Bill Masters, who was always up
TO some monkey trick or other, tho he
sWore as he'd never said nothing, an
run to the side like the rest. So pres
emily we all settles down again, but we
hadn't been no more'n. two minutes
afore we hears the hailagain. blanche
Macgregor ahoy!' it says quite close to
US, Just as plain as you hears me now,
with long sing out of the 'ahoyp' at
the end. We rushes to the bulwarks
again. feelin' certain this time there
must besa boat alongside, but when we
finds nothin' there as before, by George,
some OF 'em looked up rather pale an
began to ask each other in whisper
what on airth it could be. Then some
body says, That's that young Bill!'
and we all feels quite relieved an says,
why in course it ISL an goes for Bill.
But no sooner was he knocked head over
heels down the foke'sle ladder, where
he lies sniveling at the bottom, an the
bo'sen was s'lecting lanyard for to
foller him with, than the voice comes
again palmer than ever: blanche Mac
gregor ahOy! y'-twice this time.
None on us goes to the side any more
then, but we all took to our heels, and
rushed aft as hard as we could go, main
scared [ can tell you; for we sees then
that there was somethin' in it more'n
flesh an blood could take soundings of.
The noise woke the skipper, an he
jumps out of his chair an looks over
the poop at us on the deck below, an
asks what's the matter. None on us
liked to say. but at last the carpenter
speaks up an says how we had heard
somebody hailing the ship.
"Hailing the ship!' roars the old
man, in passion; 'it's my belief you've
all been hailing some O. that Internal
squareface you've been buying ashore !;
you're drunk, all the lot of you. Get
away for'ard an don't let me hear any
more, or some of you'll be hailing a
ropes end!'
"Well, we skunk off, feelin' pretty
small, but just as we reached the waist,
we hears young Bill Masters, who had
tumbled out of the foke'sle, yell out,
Lord, ha' mercy! look there!' and
come flynn toward us. An l can tell
you, when 1 see what was comm up
over the bows, all my insides seemed to
go to ice.
"There was a mans head and shout
ders rising over the bulwarks, but such
a head an such face as nobody ever
see afore. Long hair an long beard an
shaggy eyebrows, all like teased-out
rope yarn, and big round eyes, an a
sort o. pretty colored skin, an the arms
an breast covered with close, smooth
seaweed, like the green laber you see
on the rocks at low tide. But when he
draws hisself up by the arms he filings
up big fish's tail like dolphin's, in
stead of legs, into the air, an jerks his
self inboard, where he falls with a
| whack on the deck. an then I see it
were norman. Back we runs again
an all huddle behind the mainmast on
the larboard side, for the norman was
coming aft at full speed on the other
| flop, flop. flop. like a fish hops about
out O. the water, only more reg'ler, an
| as straight as line, with his head up
| an sort of snakey movement from his
breast to his tail that sends him along
at the rate O. knots. The skipper heard
us run back and jumps out of his chair
with an oath, but when he sees what
was coming toward him, his long pipe
| drops from his hand an he stands with
his hair nearly liftin' his broad-brimmed
Panama, an his face as white as sheet.
AS soon as the norman got to the break
of the poop he shot up straight, throw
| ing round turn in his tail to lean back
on.
"sAre you the Cap'en of this shipP'
he SAYS
"'Yes, sir!' says the skipper, very
humble, an shakin' all over; yes, sir,
at your service
"'I've hailed your vessel three times,
Cap'en-I read her name on the bow
down below-an' nobody was perlite
enough to answer, so I've come up the
CABLE says the norman, severe like.
s''I'm very sorry, sir, as you should
have had so much trouble puts in the
Cap'en; 'wot kin 1 have the pleasure of
dom for you?'
"'Well, it amt MUCH says the mer-
man, bit softer, 'but you've bin and
dropped your anchor right in front of
our chapel door, and our folks can't
get in. We didn't have no meetin' this
mornin', an the ladies say they must
have their regular Sunday evenin' to-
night, so we'd take it as great favor
if you'd ship your anchor a couple of
fathoms or so to the BASTARD, afore
half-past seven.'
"Just then the steward put his head
up through the cabin skylight an quiet
w shoyeS the skipper's o1ln loaded an,