The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1920-08-13
HAVE SEA FLAVOR
Nautical Expressions Common In
Old Nantucket.
May Seem Somewhat Odd to the Vie
Itor, but Are Used by the Natives
Without Thought Of Any
Ineonorulty.

Ineonorulty.
The widow OF Newburyport sea
captain--she had once brought his shin
to port herself when he was incapaci.
tated by injuries received In typhoon
was long the Joy Of an old-fashioned
boarding house whose other residents
were chiefly quiet maiden ladies, be-
cause of her breezy manner, loud voice
and oddly nautical turns OF express.
sion. She would invite fellow board
or across the narrow table to pass the
butter In tones suited rather to hail.
Ing the masthead In q gale. Every
wrang her store Of foreign sweet
meats. and jams and jellies compound
% OF queer tropical fruits, provoked
An Eruption Of small, red ants,
which would emerge In endless process.
MON from the crevices in her closet !;
and every spring she would shout
Aloud at breakfast her Intention to
"swab the hull place with lie Of pen
nyr'yal and then calk every drafted
crack"
Judge John G. Crosby Of the Massa-
ehusetts Supreme court, an authority
on the history and customs Of quaint
Nantucket, has recently given some
interesting instances of the adaptation
there Of nautical terms to landward
uses. Whether or not the inhabitants
the island are the salt Of the earth,
heir manners and speech are enjoya-
~ seasoned by the salt of the sea.
J When man goes to the mainland
he Is said to Ego to America" or to
sthe continent" This form of express
sion is in everyday use without any
consciousness Of Its popularity.
In Nantucket you don't raise an UNI
brella you "set 1t" like jib.
A house blind does not work loose;
1t gets adrift.
Everything is drawing" means max
Ing the most progress. During the
last phase of the war you heard that
the allies have got everything draw
Ing"
When one Is prepared to 60 any
where he is said to be shove short
(that is, on his anchor cable) and
ready to trip" (the anchor). Just be-
fore the kaiser's flight was told that
he was shove short and about ready
to trip"
Instead Of saying that man is used
up or "all in" they say that he Is "fin
out" Qike a dying whale): II was
nearly fin out with the Influenza"
once heard II said of an extrava-
CANT man on the island, who spent
more than his income, that he had
"two lamps burning and no ship at
sea-"
When Obed Macy, who wrote the
history Of whaling in 1885, drafted his
will I'm the year 1841, he inserted the
following clauses, which are character
istic Of the nautical expressions of the
natives: Item. l have cruised with
my wife, Hubby Jane, since 1911. We
signed articles in town before the
preacher on Independence day. want
her and my son, lothian, to be captain
and mate In bringing to port whatever
leave and see that every one of the
crew gets the lay as writ down on
this paper. put mother in command.
! know sheet be captain anyway, for
nix months after we started on our
life cruise found out that / was mate
and she was master. l don't mean
that she ever mutinied, but / know
that whenever we didn't agree she al
ways manOovred to windard.
"Item. i want mother to have the
house on Union street till she goes
aloft. Then / want 1t to go to the
children In equal lays, ETC."
Not long ago the following notice
was published In the local Nantucket
newspaper:
"The thief who stole a jug of oil
from the life-saving station on Great
Point on Sunday last is requested to
return the jug to the place which he
took II and he may keep the oil to
light his crime-stained steps through
purgatory. And no questions will be
asked by Caleb Cushman, superinten-
dent."-Youth's Companion.