Part 8 (1/2)
”Goo-goo-oo-ah!” Iasleep in the ain the next moment--it seemed to me--from a horrible dreaes, ere dancing roundtoaway at e to say,impression appeared to confiroing on all round and a yellony face was bending over ht that streah the open door of the cabin fall upon it, while the owner of the face was shaking e dialect, ”Hi, lilly pijjin, rousee and bittee!”
CHAPTER SIX
THE STARLING
Rubbingthem to the full, wide awake at last, I at once recollected where I was, and as speaking to , the Chinese cook, s out a tin pannikin with sorant smell which made my mouth water
”Hi lish, although froibly than the majority of his countrymen, ”Mass' Looney me axee lookee after lilly pijjin, and so me fetchee piecee coffee number one chop You wanchee-- hey?”
”Thank you,” I cried gratefully, drinking the nice hot coffee, which see I was in the top bunk, I sprang off thefurther than I thought, it being quite six feet to the deck below; and, knocking down the good-natured Chinas scattered about the floor and landed finally outside the door of the deck-house in a heap, rolled up with him in the blanket I had clutched as I fell!
Fortunately, however, neither of us was injured by this little scrie, which somehow or other see acquaintance, both of us grinning over the affair as a piece of good fun
”Chin-chin, lilly pijjin,” said my new friend, as he picked hialley with the elad to have sed before ju out of the bunk, or else it would have been spilt in another fashi+on ”When you wanchee cho you coivee you first chop”
”Thank you,” I replied again, not knowing then what he h I fancied he intended so kind, and probably of an edible nature, as he was the cook But all thoughts of him and his intentions were quickly banished from my mind the oing on in the shi+p; for,throith heavy bangs, the captain and Mr Mackay both on the poop were yelling out queer orders that I couldn't understand, and Mr Saunders and the boatswain on the forecastle were also shouting back equally strange answers, while, to add to the effect, blocks were creaking and canvas flapping aloft, and groups of sailors everywhere were hauling and pulling as if their lives depended on every tug they gave
It was broad daylight andafter eight o'clock and a bright beautiful , with every prospect of fine weather before us for the run down the Channel
We had co from the estuary of the Thames ahead of the North Foreland, which proudly raised its head away on our starboard bow, the sun shi+ning on its bare scarp and picking out every detail with photographic distinctness Further off in the distance, on our port quarter, lay the French coast hazily outlined against the clear blue sky, fro over the water had withdrawn their veil, the fresh nor'- easterly breeze sweeping them away seaith the last of the ebb
The tide was just on the turn, and the dead loater showed up the sandbanks at the river's ht ahead; but she had eased her paddles and stopped towing us, preparatory to casting off her hawser and leaving the Silver Queen to her own devices The good shi+p on her part see about as fast as they could to e--all the preli being only soto do with the proper business of the gallant vessel
And here I suddenly became confronted with one of the discomforts of board-shi+p life, which contrasted vividly with the conveniences to which I had been accusto , or rather, as I had gone to sleep inmyself as tidy as I could; but, lo and behold, when I looked round the cabin of the deck-house, nothing in the shape of a washhand-stand was to be seen, whileunderneath a lot of traps, I was unable to open the lid of it and make use of the little basin within, as I wished to do if only to ”christen it”
I was co me Tom Jerrold, one ofhis face and hands in a bucket of sea-water in the scuppers, I followed suit, drying ed tohich he lent me in a friendly way, albeit I felt inclined to turn up ht, I suppose,” observed Jerrold with a grin, ”that you'd have a nice bath-roo establishment for your acco too, and quite cheerful under the circu determined to act on my father's advice, which Tie at any joke or chaff froreeables like a eot a little washhand-basin fixed up inside et at it”
”So have I in mine, old fellow,” he rejoined familiarly; ”and it was only sheer laziness that preventedat sea gets one into terribly slovenly habits, sailors generallythat co no doubt awfully wise and solehed in a jolly sort of way
”I tell you what, Graham,” he remarked affably as he proceeded to plaster his hair down on either side with the moistened palm of his hand in lieu of a brush ”You're not half a bad sort of chap, though Weeks thought you too entleman for us; and, d'you know, I'll back you up if you like to keep our quarters in the deck- house here tidy, and set a better exah the latter has left us now, by the way, for a cabin in the saloon, the skipper having promoted hiree, eh, to our ht! I'll try if you'll helphis friendly advances, as he seeht, than that little snob Sainal dislike to the latter being far from lessened by the observation Jerrold told s to be neat and tidy; and as my father used to say, 'cleanliness is next to Godliness'”
”I'm afraid, then,” chuckled Toh we live on the water and have the ocean at cole foremast hand that washes himself oftener than once a week, at least while he's at sea, fro hiain atthe truth, as you'll find if you ask the boatswain, whoot chu to set the tops'les; and we'll have the skipper or old Sandy Saunders after us with a rope's-end if we stop jawing here any longer”
Fro for a very long time; but, really, our conversation had only lasted a couple ofiven eJerrold with his palm brush I also utilised the bucket of sea-water as an i of ht and fix my collar
The ropes I had heard thrown about the decks were the halliards and clewlines, buntlines, and other gear belonging to the topsails being let go, the gaskets having been thrown off before I ake; and now at a quick word of command from Mr Mackay--”Sheet home!”--the sails on the fore and main-topsail yards were hauled out to the ends of the clews and set, the canvas being thus extended to its full stretch