Roving Jack, The Pirate Hunter — page 87: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

_ = ROVING JACK, THE PIRATE HUNTER. ee — ——— the heart of a wampire. yer.” [ Much to the surprise of the crew, Sim Smut, through the mediation of Ben Bouncer, who had taken a fancy to him, received a full pardon and was permitted to remain on board and take his place among the other men. Proud and elated, though rather sea-sick, Sim Smut mounted on the deck and stumbled about in the rocking vessel in a state of joyous excitement. - As he was walking forward to the forecastle a sailor touched his arm. Turning round he perceived a tall, gauky, red- haired, cast-eyed person, whose chin was beardless, though he was by no means a tender juvenile. Sim recoiled and stared at the sailor with a look of dismay. The sailor, as he passed, uttered low twice in the chummy’s affrighted ear,— *€ Poll Potts !” Sim staggered back, yelled, and fainted. Lead on, sir; I follers CHAPTER XLIV. A TOUGH ARGUMENT BETWEEN PETER MOPER AND BOB STAY. ONE evening the crew were taking their grog below. ’ One or two acquaintances had been admitted on board, and by way of keeping up the hilarity of the evening, Tom Taffrail, a smart young seaman, was called upon for a song. But Peter Moper, another of the crew, and a very melancholy-looking fellow, rose up and protested against any singing. ‘ “ Avast,” said he; “the wind blows pretty stiff just now, and singing may increase it.” ‘‘ Belay, belay !” cried Tom Taffrail, “‘let’s have none of your superstitious palaver now, old Peter ; we never try to pass a merry hour or two but what you attempt to throw a wet blanket over us.” ** A song, a song |” roared some twenty voices. ' Tom Taftrail struck up, well aided by a powerful chorus :— Blue Peter at the mast-head flying, ™ Warns us to set sail again ; The pirate bold our threats defying, Scorning fear still ploughs the main. But if once our guns should reach him, Then his mettle shall be tried ; Grappled close we'll quickly teach him, Britons will not be defied! Tom Taftrail gave this in the true sailor’s style. He met with due applause from his hearers. But Peter Moper sat with his arms folded, and although all his messmates were full of merriment, he scorned to join it, “ You sing about Blue Peter,” said he, ‘“‘ but I am afraid it will be a long time before you see him flying at the mast-head.” | “What ails you now, friend Peter?” asked Bob Stay, a sturdy and jolly-faced old tar; “ what new maggot has got into your head ?” _ “Ts no use gibing and jeering in that way, Master Stay,” replied Peter Moper. “TI positively tell you we shall have no luck in this voyage.” “ Give yer reasons, old shiver-the-mizen.” “ Why here we have been at anchor in these roads for ten days, and here we are likely to remain, for the wind seems determined to set right in our teeth.” “Boo! it will chop round to-morrow.” -“Ton’t ye remember when we were going to weigh from Portsmouth, there were two cursed crows or ravens hovered over the vessel and pitched upon our topsail yards; that was a bad omen, you'll allow.” “Well, there may be summut in that.” “Summut in? Why, blow me, shipmates, although we fired blank cartridges at them, they would not come down till Tom Taffrail pitched them down with a charge of small shot.” “But, friend Peter,” said Bob Stay, “I’m afraid you give way too much to these superstitious fancies ; we have met with no ill fortune since we set sail, except, to be sure, that we have got wind-bound before we have cleared the British coast ; but that’s not a misfortune, it’s more a matter of accident.” “Not a misfortune!” exclaimed Peter Moper. “JT think it is. Accidents are misfortunes, ain’t they? What the devil’s the difference between them? If you break your neck by accident, that’s a misfortune, ain’t it? If you get shipwrecked, and lose all you have on board, that’s a misfortune, ain’t it? So now, Mister Wiseacre, I should like to know the difference between accident and misfor- tune?” “Why, a great deal,’ replied Bob. “A man may find a sum of money by accident—that’s no misfortune, is it? A rich relation may die by ac- cident, and leave one a fortune—that’s no mis- fortune, is it?” “Stop there, bring to, Master Stay; you upset your Owr tactics there,” ‘““ How so, my hearty ?”’ “T grant that the accident is no misfortune to him that gets the property; but you don’t mean to say that the accident is no misfortune to the person that is killed by it?” “But, hark ye, shipmate—”’ “No, no, Mister Stay; if you attempt to sail on that tack you are sure to go to leeward. I ain’t superstitious ; but although you and the rest of the crew may sneer at it, be assured that there are omens and forewarnings of what is about to hap- pen : as, for instance, recollect the very day that we were preparing to sail, did not that old tom- cat scratch under his left ear, just before we left the George and Dragon? and when [I said it fore- boded ill luck, you all laughed at me,” ed eaisjagy & “Well, but wasn’t Iright? For poor Tom Jigger, who had carried too much sail aloft (z.e. got drunk), lost his bearing as he was stepping aboard, pitched into the water, and was drowned; that was an ac- cident, and you'll allow that to be a misfortune.” “Granted, messmate ; but blow me hard if I can see what puss a scratching under his left ear has to do with it.” “Avast; don’t you remember when the owners in London paid Jack Gray, the boatswain’s mate, with a cheque ; and because we were in a hurry, he held it to the fire to dry ; and didn’t I say, ‘ Jack Gray, you should never dry writing by the fire, because it’s unlucky?’ but I was right, for Jack Gray had the tails of his Flushing coat cut off, and pockets, cheques, money and all were grabbed by some land pirate, as he was on his way to the bankers, and there he went full sail down Cornhill, like a vessel that had lost her mizen; and that was an accident and a misfortune too, or the devil’s in it!” Bob Stay gave up the argument. He declared Peter to be incorrigible, and there- fore left him to pursue his own course. Their visitors took leave and went ashore. The night watch was set. Peter Moper retired to his hammock, to ponder on future untoward events. SS RMON] ONOKO Sa CO)