Be Ye Also Ready, for in Such an Hour as Ye
Think Not the Son of Man Cometh
The ship was at her anchorage in the lower harbor. In a few days came the hour of departure. Hitherto I had thought little about parting with my mother. Now the thought of it was distressing and the actual leave-taking heart-breaking.
My parents had provided me with a sea chest which was better looking and more costly than that of the average sailor. My father accompanied me to the wharf, where we found a large gathering, composed of sailors and their friends, who had come to bid them good-by. My father showed much feeling in his parting words, and like most fathers, he enjoined obedience, faithful discharge of duty and exemplary habits. The realization of the life upon which I was about to enter came upon me with full force. My chest and I were taken aboard of a large catboat, and, as we slipped away, I saw my father standing on the wharf and was not conscious of the presence of any one else. An incident added to my discomfiture. Among all the chests mine was the most noticeable, and this fact elicited unkind remarks from some of my companions.
“It’s a boy’s box,” said one.
“Full of baby’s things,” observed another.
“Call it a fancy chest,” remarked a third.
“Call the young chap himself, ‘Fancy Chest,’” cried a fourth.
“So we will,” they exclaimed.
Then one of the men scraped his feet along the chest as if to remove the paint.