“No,” she said, shaking her head. “I’ll get a chair.”
“Two chairs wouldn’t do it,” cried Hilary, who, sailor-like, was pretty ready at ideas. “Here, I know. Get a long stick; put the bread and milk down first.”
She placed the jug on the ground, and was about to run off.
“Cover your handkerchief over them first,” cried Hilary, “or I can’t bear to sit and look at them.”
“I won’t be a minute,” cried the girl; and she ran off, leaving the young sailor in the position of that mythical gentleman Tantalus, waiting her return.
The minute had reached two when a peculiar grunting noise was heard, and, to Hilary’s horror, an exceedingly pendulous, narrow-backed pig came snuffing and rooting into sight, turning over stones with its huge pointed snout, investigating clods of earth, pushing aside pieces of wood, and all the while making an ill-used grunting squeaking noise, as if protesting against the long period that had elapsed since it was fed.
“Well, of all the ugly, hungry-looking brutes I ever saw,” said Hilary, as he gazed down at the pig, “you are about the worst. Why, you are not fit to cut up and salt for a ship’s company, which is saying a deal. Umph! indeed! Get out you ugly—Oh, murder! the brute’s coming at my breakfast! Addy, Addy, quick! Yah! Pst! Get out! Ciss! Swine! Co-chon! Boo! Bah–h–h! Oh, if I’d only got something to throw at the wretch! Quick, Addy, quick!”
His sufferings were bad enough before, but now they were agonising, for, treating the loud objurgations of the prisoner with the greatest contempt, after raising its snout sidewise and gazing up at him with one little eye full of porcine wisdom, and flapping one of its ears the while, the pig came to the conclusion that Hilary could only throw words at it such as would not injure its pachydermatous hide, and then with a contemptuous grunt it came on.
Nearer and nearer to the breakfast came the pig, twiddling its miserable little tail about, investigating here and turning over there; and more frantic grew the prisoner. He abused that unfortunate pig with every sentence, phrase, and term he could remember or invent, but the animal paid not the slightest heed.
“Au, you thick-skinned beast,” he cried; “if I were only down there with a stick!”