The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1884-02-02

droll little American from Fiji, hard
bitten beachcomber style of old repro
bate, with a keen zest for liquor. The
old fellow pTofessed lightness of purse
and arranged with the people of the
ship that he should occupy one of the
state-rooms in the ''second cabin" de-
partment, which was quite empty, hav-
ing the run of the first-class saloon for
his rations. "Fiii'' had a good thing
of it with that six-berthed state-room
all to himself; and he improved his OPP
portunity by having all his baggage, Of
which he had no inconsiderable guam.
tity and some of which looked SUSPECT
ously unlike personal effects" slowed
in the state-room to keep him COM
pany. From his first day he went at
the drink, but even in an advanced
state of cocktail, the queer gnarled old
stick maintained a curiously saturnine
demeanor. The American gentleman
with the moist eve drank with him in
dustriously, standing treat with quite q
reckless freehandedness and getting, tc
all appearance, himself into more
mixed temperament than "Fiji' ever
exhibited. But the American gentle
man had marvellous faculty of swift
self-recuperation | spoke to him once
or twice when heseemed very far gone;
he drew long breath, shook himself
looked at me out of those wonderful
blue eyes, whose limpidness no alcohol
seemed to affect. with the Original
quaint contemplative gaze, and replied
with deliberate coherency. And, strang
er still, no sooner had we parted thar
he had visibly lapsed again into -Aie-
coughs, incoherency, and other ugly
testimonials to insobriety. One after.
noon, while both the gentlemen werl
liquoring up as usual, the moist-eyel
man complained vehemently to the s.
sstant purser of the heat of his berh,
which it seemed was adjacent to Che
engines. He explained in proof ofchis
complaint that he always kept bttle
of grog on tap in his state-room fer his
friends. who, when they came down to
partake of convivial glass with HIM,
growled because the liquor h. gave
them was lukewarm. ''Why don't you
come aft my way?" cried FIJI" with
a hiccough, and on this gerial hint,
which probably had been drawn from
Eli" by the mention of the moist
eyed gentleman's facilities fol refresh
ment, the latter effected tiansfer of
residence. / am bound to say that this
added propinquity did not seem to in
spire in the room-mates any.practical
admiration for total abstinence. One
night Fiji" evacuated the smoking
room more than commonly disguised.
Next morning heard him Eliminating
at his steward for not having Sc
cured his baggage by flashing it. The
trunks, he said, had gone adrift dur
ing the night because of the roll Of the
ship; which struck me as strange, for
she had not been rolling more than her
somewhat emphatic wont. He grum-
bled consumedly that the wax on the
seal of a special little trunk had got
smashed in the fall 81 sleep like a
dead whale" he grunted across to the
moist-eyed gentleman who had begun
to sputter and yawn in his bunk over
the way; ''but darn it, | wonder the
muss among the baggage didn't rouse
you up"
Boss" replied the moist-eyed one,
genially, 81 guess | sleep like dead
whale as has been resurrected, got tired
O the bother of keepin' alive, and gone
dead again for good.'
Great Scott'' exclaimed Fiji" as
he scrambled for his raiment, ''seems
to me that defunct insec' has been gaily
frisllin' around my pants. They re
right out from under the pillow where
| slowed 'em last night, an dog goned
eff my keys amt loose in the spitbox!"
"Blowyou pants, y retorted the moist
eyed gen tleman," 'don't you feel like
washin' down them ere cinders as is
stickin' in your vcntilator?" and with
that he passed over the grog- bottle.
The pair continued inebriate, and al
length their names were given to the
bartender, a measure which stopped
the supplies. | heard the moist-eyed
gentleman one evening complaining
touchingly of thirst to little Ameri-
can Jew-with-a-da sh-of-the- Cockney,
who was one of the passen-
gers, and who was travelling
up from Australia professedly in the
buggy interest. The jew volunteered
to procure drink if the moist-cyed man
was ready with the compensation. The
latter, | noticed, got strangely soon af-
fected. | supposed that the old debauch
was not yet quite dead in him. 1t was
then that the little jew, taking him
aside, impaired to him secret, which !
overheard The Hebraic worthy had
two trunks stuffed with "dutiable
goods" on which he was most anxious
to make no contribution to the Federal
revenues. Far gone us he was, the
most-eyed man was promptly equal to
the occasion. ASK for Colonel o. Dris-
col on the jetty, an square him. know
he can be got at. Besht thing, before
you come ashore of youself, send ON to
the wharf little note addressed to the
Colonel, with twenty-five dollars an
your card inclosed; and then strike
him as soon as you land. You'll find
him hunky, you bet. That'll pass you
along as easy S slipping off a log.
Only, never give Il soul hint put you
up to this!'' ''All right, pardner," was
the philosophic comment of the astute
Hebrew, ''guess the lot on you ROSTERS
understand each other, kinder-eh?''
The moist-eyed man winked and hic-
coughed, and Mr.. Moses retired TO rest
in the pleasing consciousness of not hav-
ing wholly wasted his friendly offices in
circnmventing the bartender.
At Honolulu the "Tasmaniann en-
no ri oH larfrn 1ra e. nf s.,