Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1891-04-07
THE SAILORS YARN.
TWO YOUNG SALTS IN LOVE FIGHT
BY PROXY FOR A GIRL.
The Lovers, I'm Order to Preserve Their
Beauty. Allow Their Seconds to Fight
The Old Sailors Antagonist Wins.
rAposrHuMous STORY ny CAPTAIN coFFrS.l

him, all drinking hot spiced rum ana SPIN
ming Christmas yarns, but she nau
dreadful taking way with her, ana pre-
sumo that even at your age Of life you mas
noticed "a the takin'ist wimmin amt oy
no means the handsomest. But as II 10
make up for the lack of beauty, some VIM
min are awfully magnetic-so TO SPEAK
and have way Of sidlin' mp to men as
fetobes ,em every time. KNOWN the case
Of this here identical cal there were scarce
a chan az boarded at old Mother Hughes >
in TJnion street, Liverpool, but What coz
sidered il n honor, as well as ueiiguC'
for Ia be permitted to peel spuds Oh
nieht when It was POuy's watch IN inc
kitchen. s,J xIo.bar
POLY were a pot-slewer for Old Mother
Hughes. her age beln' ,twi&t tWehIy aliIs
tb;rfv RiCeed up of o Sunday she looked
tba fust. In the mornin', maxim the
scouse. or black-ball soup, FOL, maybe
three or four ships crews, she look th,rty
II a dav. and at night, when the dishes had
been washed and she snugged herself up
hit and sat down to peelln' spuds YOU
take her for about FIVE and twenty, 80
nuts her age at 'twixt twenty and thirty
because likes TO be exact and do her no
"Of course. sir, with three or four ships
companies to provide for, 1t took nigh hand
TO a barrel of 'spuds tor the nornlh :
scouse. and the slewers was glad enough
for TO have FIVE or SIX OF Us chaps lehu
hand at the peelin'.
~ was Young them times, and though
Won might not Judge 1t looking at me now,
/ was "a good-loOking chap as you meet
in davis walk. and Polly havin' the pick
of the house naturally chOosed me and a
vonno fellow as was in the Shenandoah
PHILADELPHIA packet when fuSt know d
him. | 6ein' in the Yorkshire, and me and
him goin' out of one ship into another, he
TO be always in Liverpool at about the
same time. and backn' and film round
Polly, etarnally in each others way.
LooKH' BACK.
II presumes, lookin' back at il now in
the light Of experience, as duun the three
months when we wasn't there, tins other
chan which his name were Bob Lyons,
com to Philadelphia and me 90 New York,
as Polly squinted ut other chaps MAXIM
them believe, as she sartinly made me and
Bob believe. rs she liked EN- better than
all the rest of the world; but them times; l
helm scarce out Ofmv teens, and Bob only
list past twenty wears old, we both had au
idea as there weren't nobody as could SHINE
alongside of Polly az We could, and 80 cute
was Polly that each Of us believed "a she
thought more of him than she did Of the
other She used for to say to me when twas
my night of with her, That softly Bob
LYONS. / wonder what ever he means IA
tOoliug round me; why he amt tit 10 be
named in the same day with you, lom,'
and I'm telling you, sir, hysted IL al
In as Gospel. IL are wonderful, sir, what
an amount of humbuggin' man VIII
l.1- ItNFn a
Polly of and on for year or SO, got
dreadful spOonoy onto her and wus lookin'
for'ard to the time when / might make
with her long splice and tie a knot with
nv tongue as | couldn't unto with my
teeth. Bob were similarly disposed,
and we got TO be dreadfully IN the way of
each other. and two or three times come
nigh hand hayu' 1t out IN the kitchen;
Finally, things come TO Crisis, ami golh
down aboard the night before CHRISTMAS
arter we'd both been very uncomiortaple
along of Polly, Bob says 30 me, as we
turned out OF Union street into Waterloo
road:
cittin' athyart each others Eawsers night
arter night We can't both splice Polly,
and I'm game for to do 1t, II youth sheer
off,
Ut takes two to make bargain,
Bob" says |. and | don't think the
Young woman will look at you II she thinks
Pm around III
of rs can soil in if the other will sheer of.
At present we're only aggravatn, each
other and troubhn' Polly. Both OF Us 10
good men, lets go down TO the North Shore
tomorrow mornin', bright and arly, ana
have il out man fashion the best man 10
have shy at Polly for the rest OF the time
we're here, and If 50 be as she won't Civ
in TO him, then when we come next wage
the other are TO be free to spark her.
Says |, Good enough cause / were
that s9rtin as | could whip Bob out Of his
boots. Finally, this bein' Christmas eve,
we concluded as how next mornln' would
be the best for the mill, and | named as
my second chap of the name OF Cleye
Whitman, as were great chum or mine
Bob nanin' q shlpmate OF hls'n, called
Fred Nichols, and both of Us stepped INTO
the Windmill Tavern, kept by wldder OF
the name of Ohaue, a5 were Wlhu 10
hang It up for Bob. We had a drink onto
it. arter which We went down aboard, our
ships bein' close TO one another IN the
Waterloo Dock, feelIn' better than for
many nights past, and glad as we'd ar
ranged 1t all in such a friendly manner.
Christmas morning at daybreak all
four of us went down nigh hand TO BOOtle
Landmark. There's docks there now,
but them times II were as nice place for
little mill as one would wish, the beach
as hard and springy "a dancing
floor. Gettln' there Steve whitman
said a. how HIM ami Fred had talked
the matter over the night aTOre ana
had come to the conclusion az neither
of US wouldn't be in no mt condition for
sparkln' Polly arter hard mill slch as We
was likely to have. and sIch being the case,
they-him and Fred-had argued as they
would d , the fghtln' themselves. Steve for
me and Fred for Bob, and that this would
answer the same purpose 80 Tar as Polly
were consumed, and that me and Bob
should stand the drinks arter all was over,
share and share alike.
THE CHRISTMAS MoRs1NG YIGHT.
Me and Bob agreed 'as it was very
kind thing for them TO do, but Jlst what
would have been expected of two good
shipmates, and the men stripped and the
fight begun. AFTER about an hour OF as
nice fbbin as / ever seen ] found 1t i'm
possible TO rouse Steve, he was that tuck
cred out, and Civ In for him. and then |
seen how gone TO leeward by such a ar
rangement, for whereas ! were morally
sartIn / could have whipped Bob, Steve
never couldn't whip Fred, and Polly were
were lost 10 me forever. However, wasn't
a man az would 90 back on bargain, and
from that time on 1 never went into that
kitchin, and Bob had the gal all TO hisself.
las soon as we got Steve all right-he
was a bit dazed fust Olive all four went
to q place kept by man named Phillips, as
had been mate Of a ship, and had splIced
the wilder as kept the place, and so come
10 be the skipper of it. There we busted
it out for an hour or so in q seamanlIke
manner. don't think as Bob done much
courtin' that night, and | know as / were
in no condition for any such nonsense; but
heerd tell some time arter that o havin'
shipped for London next voyage, as Bob
and Polly were spliced. and that he'd took
her 10 PHILADELPHIA.