Connecticut western news., 1884-09-03

werry dillygent like Ill the mlzzen chains, when heerd the wust skreechln' on deck, and all the men runnin' ford to see what ailed the Greek. l looks over the rail, and then I finds it more agreeable to keep on sweepin'. The yellin' on deck didn't grow no lighter, and pretty soon up comes the executive officer from the wardroom and wants to know whatit war all about. The young gentleman as had charge of the deck he says as how some of the men had stolen somethin' from the bumboatman, but what it was he couldn't make out, and all that time tue little Greek was jumpin' up and down and wavin' hls arms and rollin' his eyes and tearin' his hair and frothin' at the mouth. l reckoned his mouth would 8 run dry be- fore long. It alters war werry dryin' to the mouth to keep it open so much, you know.
 "As I war sayin' the little Greek stretched so that nobody couldn't hear nothin' till the executive officer told him to stow it or he'd chuck him overheard. Then hears the bo'sen call all hands and I runs ford and takes my place. We'll, sir, to make short story of it, they sarched that ship fore an aft, 'ceptin' the cabin, in course. They even went aloft and looked under the tarpaulins in the tops, but nary jug could they find, cause nobody didn't think of lookin' in the water for what had been lost inboard, and the little Greek he tuk his departure and refused to be consoled, and all this time he war so excited that he could tell nothin' of what he'd lost only that 1t was a jug, Lordy, if I'd know'd what war in that jug
 "About eight bells that night the old man comes of in his gig, and in ten minutes we hears the bos'en callin' all hands up anchor, and before we gets the topsails on her the word comes ford that we'd got orders to report to the north Atlantic squadron what war a cruisin' in the West Indies. Meantime I'd hauled in the very fine fish as were danglin' from my line in the port chains and slowed it in the bottom of my bag.
 "We war crusin' around in the In- dies sommers about three months, I reckon, and I managed to get away with about pint of my grease. l carried 1t ashore in a small tin box. It didn't sur prise me to see the way the barbers 'ud smile when they seed it, cause it was their trade to use the stuff, and they treated me very fine, the fool was. Then we p'inted fur New York, and got shore leave, and was soon in the bussum of my uncle's family, what lived up near the old shipyard what used to be at the foot O Pike street. l had seven female cousins there what ware some on style, and so | takes lem my grease, and tells 'em how got 1t. They all looked werry solemn over it until Marian, which she war the oldest, said: 1t sarved i'm right, it did, and our Jack Il be Admiral yet
 "So the girls they made free with the grease as I'd brought it to 'em, and didn't kick up no row when l said as how they must divvy up with little blue-eyed darlin' as lived around the corner. They said as how they'd go around there, and I should give my sweetheart the half of it. So wemarches around in reglar procession, with ne at the head carryin' of the jug. We walks into the door of the house, for there warn't no tenements there in them days, and what does we see but the priest of the parish sittin' in the parIor. 'Ah, Jack, my son. says he, for he'd knowed me ten years or more, what have you in the iug?'
 "'Only bit of hair ile,' says I, abashed like, for I war thinkin' how I got it. Only a bit of hair ile as I war bringing to Nora, from the Levant, sir
 "'All the way from the Levant, eh, said he with curus smile on his round fat face. Let me see 1t, Jack
 ''So hands it to i'm, and we all stood there afore him like a lot O looms a watchin' the tide run out. He takes the cork out O the jug and sniffs it bit, and then sniffs at the jug, and then snitfs at the cork ag'in.
 "'War it full, Jack, when you got it 9 said he pretty soon. Yes, sir, says J.. Did you buy it ? says he. No, sir, says I, cause he war the priest. T know'd it, says he. Do you know what it arp says he. Hair ile. says I, and then thought he'd bust the buttons of his weskit with laughin'. When he'd got his breath like says, An it please your worship, would ye mind tellin us what it ar makes you laugh SOP I will, says he. You stole this, Jack, without knowin' what it war. It ar altar O roses and it ar worth matter O $500 pound. I reckon you had enough here to make you rich, Jack, when you started With that thinks what fool I'd been, an rushes out of the house and gets bilin drunk, and war taken in by the cops and sent aboard ship and war quaran. tined for tryin' to knock the bo'ser down, till the ship sailed again."
 "Well, what became of the altar o roses ?"
 "My cousin. Marier, she divvied III square with Nora and they sold the stuff aud when Nora, she were married thu next Christmas to ship carpenter, the. do say she war rigged out in silks anC laces and no eend O finery, all along c the hair ile what tux from the Greel
 without knowin' it war fortune to tn man as owned it."
 ''JAMEs, I find bad quarter in tn