Sam and Tom insisted upon waiting upon those at table, and little Joey had been eager to assist them, but Uncle Ben declared that he wouldn't be able to eat a mouthful unless the baby was by his side, therefore, the two boys had the pleasure of conducting the feast unaided.
How the food disappeared after the feasters got well to work! If Sam's skill as a cook had not already been spoken of he would have understood that it was fully appreciated before that dinner came to an end. Even though so much had been prepared, it was necessary to fry six more lobsters, else the two boys would have gone hungry, for nearly everything on the table was gone before the last man declared it was impossible for him to eat any more.
"It's the best dinner I ever put into my mouth," Mr. Mansfield said decidedly as he sipped the steaming coffee. "I've heard it said Sammy Cushing could beat any cook that ever sailed out of the Port; but I never put much faith in the talk till to-day. I allow you're buildin' up quite a family here, Uncle Ben?"
"That's what I'm hopin' to do, William," the old lobster catcher replied modestly. "Not havin' child nor chick of my own, it seems as if I oughter do somethin' in the way of lookin' after youngsters what haven't got any homes. Apple Island is big enough for a good many, an' now that we've got this 'ere schooner to be used in fishin', I'm allowin' that we can provide for quite a number of lads who are willin' to help themselves. Since Reuben Rowe wants to stay with us, an' will run the 'Sally,' it stands to reason that with what the vessel brings in, added to the lobsterin', we'll be able to do more than pay our way."
"I've allers allowed that you was a good citizen, Uncle Ben," Mr. Mansfield said as he rose to his feet, "an' we at the Port are proud of you, even though we haven't said very much about it. When the selectmen got so snug that they couldn't afford to keep Joey at the poor farm, an' you gave him a home sich as any boy can be happy in, we had a better idee of what you was tryin' to do than if you'd spent a week explainin' it. The upshot of the whole matter is that we of the Port made up our minds to have a hand in the business, an' without much tryin' we've raised a hundred dollars cash, with the agreement to give more when it's needed, so here's the money."
Having said this, Mr. Mansfield laid before Uncle Ben a roll of bank-notes, and then sat down with the air of a man who is nearly on the verge of exhaustion from much speaking.
Uncle Ben was so surprised that during several moments it seemed impossible for him to say a word; he swallowed something which seemed to have come up in his throat suddenly, brushed his eyes as if they were full of dust, started up to leave the table, and then sank back again as if unable to do other than keep down the lump in his throat.
It was Mr. Rowe who put an end to what was becoming really unpleasant by crying out loudly:
"Three cheers for Uncle Ben an' the people of the Port who've found out what kind of a man he is!"
Then all hands, except the old man himself, cheered wildly, and in the confusion caused by this outburst Mr. Mansfield proposed that the guests go ashore in order that the boys might have a chance to set the deck of the schooner to rights after the thanksgiving feast.