“What’s a blizzard?” said Mr Meldrum, smiling at the other’s nasal intonation, which was more marked than usual, even for a citizen of the land of the setting sun.
“Why, darn my moccasins, deon’t yew know what a blizzard is?”
Mr Meldrum shook his head in the negative: he felt that he should laugh outright in the other’s face if he opened his mouth to speak, and he did not wish to appear wanting in politeness.
“Waal,” said the American, drawing himself up, as if proud of his superior knowledge and ability in being able to enlighten a backward Britisher. “A blizzard’s a hurricane and a tornader and a cyclone, all biled inter one all fired smash and let loose to sweep creation. We have ’em to rights out Minnesota way; and let me tell you, mister, when you’ve ten through the mill in one, you wouldn’t kinder like to hev a share in another. Snakes and alligators! Why, a blizzard will shave you as clean as the best barber in Boston, and then friz the marrow in your bones an’ blow you to Jericho. It’s sarten death to be caught out on the prairie in one of ’em: your friends won’t find your body till the snow melts in the spring. I guess you wouldn’t like to try one, streenger!”
“No, I think not,” said Mr Meldrum, shivering at the description, for he had heard before of these “Northers” of the Far West; but, the next moment, the thoughts of blizzards and all belonging to them were banished from his mind by what he saw, for the storm was upon them.
It came with a blast that shook the ship from truck to keelson and almost turned her over, the wind being accompanied by a shower of hail and rain that pelted those on deck like grape-shot and completely took their breath away.
“Let go everything!” shouted the captain. Fortunately, the halliards being cast off in time, the ship was not taken aback; and the steersman putting the helm down, she paid off from the wind and ran off for sometime directly before it, tearing through the water at the rate of twenty knots an hour, with everything flying by the run.
“Thank God!” exclaimed Mr Meldrum, in heartfelt thanksgiving to Him who controls the winds and storms, as he sprang to aid the man at the wheel, seeing that he had a hard task to keep the helm over.
“Ya-as, I guess that were a narrow squeak,” said the American; “and I kalkerlate I’ll make tracks down south fore another of them snorters come!” So saying, Mr Lathrope dived down the companion-way, his departure being accelerated by a heavy sea which washed over the quarter and floated him below.
“Way aloft there!” shouted the captain; and, although his words could not be heard from the howling of the wind, which shrieked and raved like pandemonium broken loose as it tore through the rigging, the men knew what was wanted and scrambled up the shrouds as well as they could, sometimes stopping for breath as a stronger blast than usual pinned them to the ratlines, where they stuck as if spread-eagled for sport.