"Let us, my friends," said he solemnly, "first ask a blessing."
"Dinna be o'er lang, Sandy man," whispered Madame. She had been in act to dip her spoon, and the scent of concentrated turtle had come near to driving forth from her all the polite restraints of civilised feeding. "Cut the grace short if you love me."
Alexander asked a blessing, fervent in its agitated brevity. He did not keep them waiting long. He was himself too eager to begin.
Then they dipped their spoons, slowly sucked down the quintessence of turtle—and worshipped. Their thanks before meat may have been perfunctory; afterwards it was heartfelt. They all guzzled, every man and woman of them. Willatopy sought not to enquire why his Marie was not present in attendance upon her mistress. He was too busy with his spoon. Mrs. Toppys with Joy and Cry, though turtle was no new experience for them, fell to as eagerly as did the Europeans. In some respects it may be considered by the judicious to have been a horrid spectacle. But give me the most sour-faced and dyspeptic of social critics, let me place him before a carapace well filled with real turtle, cooked native fashion for eight hours, and his high-browed criticism will go to blazes. He will guzzle with the rest.
They did not stop until exhaustion, following upon repletion, drove them to the rugs about the fire. There they lay and smoked Madame's cigarettes. They did not digest. One does not digest real turtle, cooked native fashion in its own juices. One absorbs it whole.
Then the brown boys came and fell upon the turtle. They lapped it up with balls of dried grass; they ate noisily and disgustingly; but those who had fed before them looked on with approving sympathy. No restraints, no civilised conventions, can be expected of those, white or brown, who sup late and hungry upon real turtle. Especially of those who have cooked it.
When all was finished, Madame suddenly remembered the humble hard-working sucker, to whose exertions they owed the feast which had been spread. She beckoned Willie to her side and whispered:
"What became of the dear sucker?"
"Oh!" replied he indifferently. "It was still attached to the turtle when we drew it in. It died in the boat, so I threw it away. It was no more good."
For a full minute Madame said nothing. Then: "Mankind," observed she sententiously to the stars which twinkled yet heeded not, "Mankind was never grateful to its true benefactors. And mankind never changes. But next time, Willie, please put the sucker back in the water before it is dead. It might come in useful another time."