“And then,” said another, “it will be interesting to know the fate of the three donkeys.”
We admitted that, after so much encouragement, we must write a book, and dedicate it to the officer, who had had the Roman fever.
Several anecdotes were related. One passenger said, “There was a house near Hyde Park, which formerly belonged to an old gentleman, who left his property to trustees on certain trusts, provided they buried him on the top of his house.”[16] Several instances were told of persons desiring in their wills to be buried in their garden; and one or two cases were mentioned where the wish had been disregarded.
The weather became rainy, and our compagnons de voyage, sought shelter elsewhere. We, however, still clung to the fresh sea-air, and as we paced the deck near the wheel, we could not help observing the silent seaman, gazing intently in solemn earnestness, on his compass, as if, like Dr. Dee, he noted many things, within a magic crystal. He was a good-looking, though weather-beaten man, with a dark moustache.
In answer to an observation we made, as to the weather, he said, “Well, sir, I never felt it so cold as it was last Sunday—not even in the Baltic last winter, when I had ice, an inch thick on my back. Why, I had three coats on last Sunday!”
We then remarked, that there were few accidents on the line of steamers.
“Accidents you think seldom occur on this line? Well, I don’t know. There was the Echo last winter; not a soul saved! I’ve slipped four in my time, as have soon after gone down.”
“You’ve been lucky,” said we.
“Lucky? Well—if there is such a thing as luck; but I think Providence ordains all things; I believe all things are ordained for us.” Many sailors we have met, have been men of deep religious feeling; below a rough surface, we have often found much true piety.
The Chevalier still remained on deck, and we had a long conversation about Iceland. The Icelandic language is the same as the old Norwegian language; but he told us that it is difficult for one who speaks only modern Norwegian, to learn Icelandic. In Iceland, he said, they were great snuff-takers; it was calculated that each person took 2lbs. of snuff per head each year. Like the Scotch, they had their mulls or snuff-horns.