Cloaks And Pillows Became More Thought Of Than Either Songs Or Friends;
Indefinable Sensations Of Melancholy Rendered The Merriest Of The Party
Silent, And A Perfect Deluge Of Rain Rendered A Retreat Into The Lower
Regions A Precautionary Measure Which Even The Boldest Were Content To
Adopt.
Below, in addition to the close overpowering odour of cabins
without any ventilation, the smell of the bilge-water was sufficient in
itself to produce nausea.
The dark den called the ladies' cabin, which was
by no means clean, was the sleeping abode of twelve people in various
stages of discomfort, and two babies.
I spent a very comfortless four hours, and went on deck at dawn to find a
thick fog, a heavy rain, the boards swimming with soot and water, and one
man cowering at the wheel. Most of the gentlemen, induced by the
discomfort to be early risers, came up before we reached Bedeque, in
oilskin caps, coats, and leggings, wearing that expression on their
physiognomies peculiar to Anglo-Saxons in the rain.
The K - - s wished me to go ashore here, but the skipper, who seemed to
have been born with an objection on the tip of his tongue, dissuaded me,
as the rain was falling heavily, and the boat was a quarter full of water;
but as my clothes could not be more thoroughly saturated than they were, I
landed; and even at the early hour of six we found a blazing log-fire in
the shipbuilder's hospitable house, and "Biddy," more the "Biddy" of an
Irish novelist than a servant in real life, with her merry face, rich
brogue, and potato-cakes, welcomed us with many expressions of
commiseration for our drowned plight.
Who that has ever experienced the miseries of a voyage in a dirty,
crowded, and ill-ventilated little steamer, has not also appreciated the
pleasure of getting upon the land even for a few minutes? The
consciousness of the absence of suffocating sensations, and of the comfort
of a floor which does not move under the feet - of space, and cleanliness,
and warmth - soon produce an oblivion of all past miseries; but if the
voyage has not terminated, and the relief is only temporary, it enhances
the dread of future ones to such an extent that, when the captain came to
the door to fetch me, I had to rouse all my energies before I could leave
a blazing fire to battle with cold and rain again. The offer of a cup of
tea, which I would have supposed irresistible, would not induce him to
permit me to finish my breakfast, but at length his better nature
prevailed, and he consented to send the boat a second time.
After allowing my pocket to be filled with "notions" by the generous
"Biddy," I took leave of Miss Kenjins, who is good, clever, and agreeable
enough to redeem the young-ladyhood of the island - nor was there enough of
pleasant promise for the future to compensate for the regret I felt at
leaving those who had received a stranger with such kindness and
hospitality.
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