A Trip to California—Jumping Overboard—-The Grand Supper and what Came of it—The Captain's Little Daughter.
s the most agreeable method of conveying to the reader a correct account of Little Wolf's adventures, and personal feelings during her journeying, we will quote largely from letters addressed from time to time to her friend, Mrs. Tinknor.
"From the first we take the following:
"While I write, the Captain's little daughter sits beside me. We have met several times on the hurricane deck—Flora and I—and are on quite intimate terms, considering the shortness of our acquaintance. The first twenty four hours she was seasick, 'wery, wery sick,' she informed me, and her pale face bore traces of the ordeal through which she had passed; and, indeed, the countenances of most of the passengers are suggestive of Tompsonian doctors. To such, our three days at sea must have been uncommonly disagreeable, the weather having been rough the entire period. Yesterday, we were favored with a storm. The commencement was most sublime, but all having been unwillingly ordered below I was borne resisting into the cabin and the splendid exhibition of nature shut from my view, of course I could not keep on my feet, but I managed to climb upon a stand, and holding on with all my might, I could see the waves through the port hole run mountains high, and what silly thing do you think I did? I actually cried with vexation, shut up in that miserable place.
"It was as if Black Hawk had been bearing me exultant on a wild gallop in the face of winds that shook the very foundations of the earth, and, the loftiest enthusiasm having been enkindled, I was suddenly plunged into a sickening, stifling, dismal cavern, and shut out from light and liberty.
"I made frantic assaults upon the porthole, and the remonstrances of the ship carpenter, who chanced to spy me, would have availed him nothing had he not forcibly lifted me down, and seated me upon the floor of my state-room.
"The miserable creature imagined me frightened out of my senses. 'No immediate danger Miss,' said he, 'compose yourself; the ship will right up directly—throwing all the light trash overboard—chicken coops just gone over.'
"'Man,' moaned a woman on whose face was blended an expression of benevolence and nausea, 'did you open those coops, and let out those fowls, that they may not drift about and starve?'
"'The sea, madam,' said the builder of ships, grandly, 'the sea has swallowed them coops and all.'