The Steam-Packet: A Tale of the River and the Ocean — page 83: what you’re looking at

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

58 ss HE STEAM PACKET, ladies on board (for several of the Luminaries had brought their wives and daughters, besides Mr. Pifpaf) now went below; but Aramintha persisted in. staying with Captain Pentonville. She was quite en- chanted with the voyage—expressed her infinite delight at thus rolling “‘o’er the glad waters of the dark blue sea,”—and determined to wait | on deck to behold the light-house at Margate appear above the hori- zon, like ‘‘ a sea-Cybele fresh from ocean.” Suddenly turning towards the helmsman, she asked him, pointing to a gull, if it were a wild sea- mew. ; ‘“‘ Lord, no, Miss,’’ answered the sailor; ‘‘ that is a chicken!” “A chigkent !”’ ejaculated Aramintha. ‘‘ Yes, Miss—one of Mother Carey’s chickens,” : Aramintha subsequently communicated this fact to Mr. Rumtutch, the secretary, who very properly recorded, in the minutes of this memorable voyage, the circumstance that several curious chickens, — belonging to an elderly lady of the name of Carey, had been descried far out at sea, and apparently quite wild. But at length even Aramintha herself was compelled to follow her mother and sisters to the ladies’ cabin, where she forgot all her poetry and her romance—aye, and even her love, in that most annoying of indispositions called ‘‘ sea-sickness.” The wind had freshened—a few dark clouds hovered queraal and obscured the light of that sun which had shone so refulgently m the morning—and a thin mizzling rain began to fall. The spray beat like a thin sleet over the deck, upon which the dense black smoke from the chimney was blown ever and anon; and the vessel pitched in a manner calculated to upset the equilibrium of even a very strong ~ stomach. Nothing could now equal—and no pen can fully describe— the piteous appearance of the illustrious Luminaries. Many of them had never been so far in a steam-vessel before, not having formed a part of previous aquatic excursions, nor having ever met any other inducement to lead them from home beyond Greenwich or Richmond. ‘“‘ My dear fellow,” said Mr. Pifpaf, dragging himself up towards the spot where Captain Pentonville was sitting, ‘‘ pray tell me‘if you know of—of—any rem—remedy for—for—sea-sick—sick—ness ?” ‘A devilish good glass of brandy-and-water, cold,” answered the captain, who was himself very pale; ‘“‘ and that’s what—what I’m ta—a—king myself.” ‘“‘ Brandy be hanged!” ejaculated Mr. Buckram; “it makes you- worse. Gin I always take. Our foreman always : Fortunately a sudden pitch of the vessel cut short Mr. Buckram’s | speech, by pitching him violently against Mr. Pifpaf, who lost his 4 comichbookscom