"God bless the dear creetur and her babby," he murmured, and a big tear stole down his cheek and dropped upon the paper.
As the correspondence was written by a stranger, he did not expect there would be many tender passages, but he found the letters cold and formal, and for the moment cursed his fate, and imagined how warmly she would greet him with her own lips could he but see her then. However, he knew she was naturally shy; and comforting himself with the reflection that they would meet when his time was up, he put the letters in his tobacco box, and went in search of Jerry Thompson, to whom he imparted the news.
"Well, I'm werry glad to think it's a boy, but wouldn't you have liked a gal better, Tom?"
"I like either a gal or a boy; it's all the same to me."
"Well! you're a father and I ain't, but if I was in your shoes I'd prefer a gal. I always likes the gals afore any other sex. By-the-by, I have heered from my Mary Ann."
"Have you? What does she say?"
"Well, first of all she says her missis av bin werry dicky and likely to croak, and the sawboneses sent them off to Nice for the air, and she's as hearty as a brick, and a learnin' French like one o'clock. But I hope she won't learn it on the same principle as I did German."
Clare who was very little interested in his friend's recital, inquired rather vaguely,
"Have you ever learned German?"
"Yes—well—I—excuse me; there's the old man a hollerin' for me. Good-bye, Tom." Saying which the coxswain got up and walked briskly aft, as if in obedience to the captain's summons.