A Message From the Sea | Page 6

said the captain, rising to give her his chair, and
dexterously sliding it close to another chair on which the young
fisherman must necessarily establish himself,--"in my country we
should call Devonshire beauty first-rate!"
Whenever a frank manner is offensive, it is because it is strained or
feigned; for there may be quite as much intolerable affectation in
plainness as in mincing nicety. All that the captain said and did was
honestly according to his nature; and his nature was open nature and
good nature; therefore, when he paid this little compliment, and
expressed with a sparkle or two of his knowing eye, "I see how it is,
and nothing could be better," he had established a delicate confidence
on that subject with the family.
"I was saying to your worthy mother," said the captain to the young
man, after again introducing himself by name and occupation,--"I was
saying to your mother (and you're very like her) that it didn't signify
where I was born, except that I was raised on question- asking ground,

where the babies as soon as ever they come into the world, inquire of
their mothers, 'Neow, how old may you be, and wa'at air you a goin' to
name me?'--which is a fact." Here he slapped his leg. "Such being the
case, I may be excused for asking you if your name's Alfred?"
"Yes, sir, my name is Alfred," returned the young man.
"I am not a conjurer," pursued the captain, "and don't think me so, or I
shall right soon undeceive you. Likewise don't think, if you please,
though I do come from that country of the babies, that I am asking
questions for question-asking's sake, for I am not. Somebody belonging
to you went to sea?"
"My elder brother, Hugh," returned the young man. He said it in an
altered and lower voice, and glanced at his mother, who raised her
hands hurriedly, and put them together across her black gown, and
looked eagerly at the visitor.
"No! For God's sake, don't think that!" said the captain, in a solemn
way; "I bring no good tidings of him."
There was a silence, and the mother turned her face to the fire and put
her hand between it and her eyes. The young fisherman slightly
motioned toward the window, and the captain, looking in that direction,
saw a young widow, sitting at a neighbouring window across a little
garden, engaged in needlework, with a young child sleeping on her
bosom. The silence continued until the captain asked of Alfred, -
"How long is it since it happened?"
"He shipped for his last voyage better than three years ago."
"Ship struck upon some reef or rock, as I take it," said the captain, "and
all hands lost?"
"Yes."
"Wa'al!" said the captain, after a shorter silence, "Here I sit who may
come to the same end, like enough. He holds the seas in the hollow of
His hand. We must all strike somewhere and go down. Our comfort,
then, for ourselves and one another is to have done our duty. I'd wager
your brother did his!"
"He did!" answered the young fisherman. "If ever man strove faithfully
on all occasions to do his duty, my brother did. My brother was not a
quick man (anything but that), but he was a faithful, true, and just man.
We were the sons of only a small tradesman in this county, sir; yet our
father was as watchful of his good name as if he had been a king."

"A precious sight more so, I hope--bearing in mind the general run of
that class of crittur," said the captain. "But I interrupt."
"My brother considered that our father left the good name to us, to keep
clear and true."
"Your brother considered right," said the captain; "and you couldn't
take care of a better legacy. But again I interrupt."
"No; for I have nothing more to say. We know that Hugh lived well for
the good name, and we feel certain that he died well for the good name.
And now it has come into my keeping. And that's all."
"Well spoken!" cried the captain. "Well spoken, young man!
Concerning the manner of your brother's death,"--by this time the
captain had released the hand he had shaken, and sat with his own
broad, brown hands spread out on his knees, and spoke aside,--
"concerning the manner of your brother's death, it may be that I have
some information to give you; though it may not be, for I am far from
sure. Can we have a little talk alone?"
The young man rose; but not before the captain's quick eye had noticed
that, on the pretty sweetheart's turning to the window to greet the young
widow with a nod and