Part 23 (1/2)

”'Well, young man, this s.h.i.+p--by the way, the finest whaler that was ever stuck together--is named for a friend of mine; just such a man as she is a s.h.i.+p--the best of them all.'

”'Was he a sailor?'

”'Aye, aye, sir, and such a sailor. Fight! why, man, fighting was meat and drink to him--'

”'Was he a whaler?'

”'No, he wa'n't; but he was the best man I ever knew who wa'n't a whaler. He was a navy sailor, he was, and a whole ten-pound battery by hisself. Why, you jest ort to see him waltz his old tin-clad gun-boat up agin one of them reb forts--jest naturally skeered 'em half to death before he commenced shooting at all.'

”'Wasn't he killed at the attack on Vicksburg?'

”'Yes, yes; you knowed him didn't you? He was a--'

”'He was my father.'

”'What? Your father?' yelled Captain Burrows, jumping up and grasping both my hands. 'Of course he was; darn my lubberly wit that I couldn't see that before!' Then he hugged me as if I was a ten-year-old girl, and danced around me like a maniac.

”'By all the G.o.ds at once, if this don't seem like Providence--yes, sir, old man Providence himself! What are you a-doin'? When did you come out here? Where be you goin', anyway?'

”I found my breath, and told him briefly how I was situated. 'Old man Providence has got his hand on the tiller of this craft or I'm a grampus! Say! do you know I was wis.h.i.+n' and waitin' for you? Yes, sir; no more than yesterday, says I to myself, Chuck Burrows, says I, you are gettin' long too fur to the wind'ard o' sixty fur this here trip all to yourself. You ort to have young blood in this here enterprise; and then I just clubbed myself for being a lubber and not getting married young and havin' raised a son that I could trust. Yes, sir, jest nat'rally cussed myself from stem to stern, and never onct thought as mebbe my old messmate, Duncan McDonald, might 'a'done suthin' for his country afore that day at Vicks--say! I want to give you half this s.h.i.+p. Mabee I'll do the square thing and give you the whole of the tub yet. All I want is for you to go along with me on a voyage of discovery--be my helper, secretary, partner, friend--anything. What de ye say? Say!' he yelled again, before I could answer, 'tell ye what I'll do! Bless me if--if I don't adopt ye; that's what I'll do. Call me pop from this out, and I'll call you son. _Son!_' he shouted, bringing his fist down with a bang on the table. '_Son!_ that's the stuff! By the bald-headed Abraham, who says Chuck Burrows ain't got no kin? The ”Duncan McDonald,” Burrows & Son, owners, captain, chief cook, and blubber cooker. And who the h.e.l.l says they ain't?'

”And the old captain glared around as if he defied anybody and everybody to question the validity of the claims so excitedly made.

”Well, gentlemen, of course there was much else said and done, but that announcement stood; and to the day of his death I always called the captain Father Burrows, and he called me 'son,' always addressing me so when alone, as well as when in the company of others. I went every day to the s.h.i.+p, or accompanied Father Burrows on some errand into the city, while the boat was being refitted and prepared for a three-years'

cruise.

”Every day the captain let me more and more into his plans, told me interesting things of the North, and explained his theory of the way to reach the Pole, and what could be found there; which fascinated me.

Captain Burrows had spent years in the North, had noted that particularly open seasons occurred in what appeared cycles of a given number of years, and proposed to go above the eightieth parallel and wait for an open season. That, according to his figuring, would occur the following year.

”I was young, vigorous, and of a venturesome spirit, and entered into every detail with a zest that captured the heart of the old sailor. My education helped him greatly, and new books and instruments were added to our store for use on the trip. The crew knew only that we were going on a three-years' cruise. They had no share in the profits, but were paid extra big wages in gold, and were expected to go to out-of-the-way places and further north than usual. Captain Burrows and myself only knew that there was a brand-new twenty-foot silk flag rolled up in oil-skin in the cabin, and that Father Burrows had declared: 'By the h.o.a.ry-headed Nebblekenizer, I'll put them stars and stripes on new land, and mighty near to the Pole, or start a b.u.t.t a-trying.'

”In due course of time we were all ready, and the 'Duncan McDonald'

pa.s.sed out of the Golden Gate into the broad Pacific, drew her fires, and stopped her engines, reserving this force for a more urgent time.

She spread her ample canvas, and stood away toward Alaska and the unknown and undiscovered beyond.

”The days were not long for me, for they were full of study and antic.i.p.ation. Long chats with the eccentric but masterful man whose friends.h.i.+p and love for my father had brought us together were the entertainment and stimulus of my existence--a man who knew nothing of science, except that he was master of it in his own way; who knew all about navigation, and to whom the northern seas were as familiar as the contour of Boston Common was to me; who had more stories of whaling than you could find in print, and better ones than can ever be printed.

”I learned first to respect, then to admire, and finally to love this old salt. How many times he told me of my father's death, and how and when he had risked his life to save the life of Father Burrows or some of the rest of his men. As the days grew into weeks, and the weeks into months, Captain Burrows and myself became as one man.

”I shall never forget the first Sunday at sea. Early in the morning I heard the captain order the boatswain to pipe all hands to prayers. I had noticed nothing of a religious nature in the man, and, full of curiosity, went on deck with the rest. Captain Burrows took off his hat at the foot of the mainmast, and said:

”'My men, this is the first Sunday we have all met together; and as some of you are not familiar with the religious services on board the 'Duncan McDonald,' I will state that, as you may have noticed, I asked no man about his belief when I employed him--I hired you to simply work this s.h.i.+p, not to wors.h.i.+p G.o.d--but on Sundays it is our custom to meet here in friends.h.i.+p, man to man, Protestant and Catholic, Mohammedan, Buddhist, Fire-wors.h.i.+per, and pagan, and look into our own hearts, wors.h.i.+ping G.o.d as we know him, each in his own way. If any man has committed any offense against his G.o.d, let him make such reparation as he thinks will appease that G.o.d; but if any man has committed an offense against his fellow-man, let him settle with that man now and here, and not worry G.o.d with the details. Religion is goodness and justice and honesty; no man needs a sky-pilot to lay a course for him, for he alone knows where the channel, and the rocks, and the bar of his own heart are--look into your hearts.'

”Captain Burrows stood with his hat in his hand, and bowed as if in prayer, and all the old tars bowed as reverently as if the most eloquent divine was exhorting an unseen power in their behalf. The new men followed the example of the old. It was just three minutes by the wheel-house clock before the captain straightened up and said 'Amen,'

and the men turned away about their tasks.

”'Beats mumblin' your words out of a book, like a Britisher,' said the captain to me; 'can't offend no man's religion, and helps every one on 'em.'