I’d bring up these consolin’ thoughts a sight when I’d be a-layin’ on my narrer piller and a-thinkin’ that only a few boards wuz between me and—what? And I’d kinder shudder and turn over, and try to forgit it.
How cold the water wuz and how deep, and how lonesome it would be a-sinkin’ down, and down, and down, and how big the shark’s mouth wuz, and how the cold, bitter, chokin’ waves would wash anythin’ to and fro like a piece of weed, and sweep one so fur off and so fur down that it didn’t seem as if the Angel of the Resurrection could ever find us!
But I spoze he could.
It stands to reason that we could as well be found in a shark as in some poseys that grow up from the dust of our body, and whose perfume exhale in the mornin’ dew goin’ up to the clouds, fallin’ in rain, and goin’ through countless forms before the resurrection.
Oh! did I not bring up all these thoughts anon or oftener? And did I not say to myself, time and agin, for my comfort and consolation, “The One who formed me out of nothin’ is able to reform me.” Yes, my best comfort wuz to ask the One who careth for ’em who go down to the sea in ships to care for me, and to rest in that thought.
To lay down in the depths of that wide love and care and repose myself in it.
Wall, we had a pretty good time on board. There wuz lots of different kinds of folks there, jest as there always is on land.
I had hearn that there wuz a live English Lord on board, and Josiah picked him out the first time we went on deck.
Yes, there he wuz, as we spozed, a tall, slim, supercilious-actin’ and lookin’ feller, who ordered round the ship’s crew, and wuz dissatisfied with his food, and snubbed the ocean, and felt that it hadn’t no need to breathe so loud, and looked askance at the Heavens if the day wuz dull.
Yes, he looked down on everybody and everything. And Josiah sez—“He can’t help it, he wuz brung up that way; he is a Lord.”