Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1891-08-29

OF meetings to lift US up from the
sadness connected with the thought
tba, here we who have been drawn
very closely together In very short
time are to separate aud as individ-
uals be lost 10 a crowd of strangers.
Speaking of loneliness, Or rather
thinking of it, calls to mind the in
frequency of getting asight Of other
ships after leaving port. For exam
Die. when We left New York two
steamships soon passed US and soon
30, oat of sight. We met none
coming in. The next day we saw
not a single sail, and the next only
ne, aud then several days Doue.
Whales, porpoises. flying fish, and
sea birds, were tLeD all that we saw
beyond our ship OF things having
lite, and all were anxious to have a
share in all such sights, and when
,he. time approached for seeing land
i, was easy to give up lunch or ever
dinner to get the welcome sight.
!, II must not be supposed that time
hung heavily on oor hands. Shuttle
board and ring TOSS on deck aud
chess AID cards IN falcons, were
very popular. The first especially,
two games going on at once and
four PLAYERS in each, went on almost
continuously from morning until
ni9ht. This is the game which Mark
Twain describes as something be-
,we+n Hop Scotch and something
else, ard calls horse billiards, and
sag il is played with crutches. Be-
sides all OF this there were reading,
On one case a young lady very kind
y and cbaritably sitting by an old
arson day by day some hours and
giving him for his amusement and
Instruction the experience of an
American girl in London) prom
enaiing, talking over plans of travel
on the Continent, watching the
movements OF officers, of sailors, and
Of Flemish laborers in heavy sabots,
calculating the time of day by count
ing the bells, studying the character
Of fellow passengers i. steerage and
saloons, music after the labers of the
day, the Captain. the Chief Steward
and a few OF the passengers being
the contributors, and last but not
least, in long paren,hesis, eating aud
Sleeping.
II inid-ocean a poor fellow, a
steerage passenger who had died
about 36 hours before, was buried 10
the sea, the service from the Prayer
Book being read 10y the Captain very
implessiveIy. Tie whole was well
conducted and as many of the cabin
passengers IS could were near to
see and hear The body, in decen,
coffin we'll weighted and with holes
bored in it to let in the water, was
let down with pul!eys and ropes =,
! the stem Of the ship, slowly and
carefully, and at once sank to The
bottom. This was the only religious
service held on board, the two cler
gynen in this case not being asked
and when asked thinking it better
to decline. Apart from disability
the difficulty in having a service or
ship board is about as great as with
a regiment in time Of war.
Sea swallows Il don't know
whether they are the birds called
Mother Carey's chickens, as there
was a difference Of opinion on board,
followed the ship all the way across
Cults also were seen every day
these however only in small num'
bers. AS we approached land large
numbers of them accompanied u.
continually, sometimes hundreds Of
them balancing themselves mos,
gracefully and apparently with very
little effort ever the ship, and now
and then darling down to pick OF
scraps of food floating on the surface
10 be continued neat aceek)