cried Ronald, impatiently.
“Well, it must be twenty year ago,” said Stumpy, reflectively, “I ship on cargo steamer to Scotland, your father’s and mother’s country, you hear them tell.”
“‘Bonnie Scotland!’ we know,” said Lesley, drawing nearer.
“We have good voyage Scotland, nothing much happen, all same every day. We land cargo place called Newhaven, all right, get new cargo take back—you not care about that—and when everything ready for leave, Captain say we go ashore, have good time. Some men they stay on board keep watch, but ten go ashore, and messroom boy—he funny fellow, I think he not right in head” (tapping his forehead)—“he say he take ship’s cat, give her good time, too; maybe catch Scotch mouse.
“We all laugh at him. I tell you he funny fellow, and we go uptown and leave him on beach with cat. Some men go get good dinner; some men get drunk, like always; I find other sailor like me, been all over world and we ‘swap yarn,’ you know.”
“We know,” nodding heads wisely, for old sailors often came to the island.
“We have orders get back twelve o’clock night,” continued Stumpy; “we know, anyway, got do that, and we all start along ’bout eleven, pretty dark, big wind, storm coming all right.
“We get to beach—some, they smoke, some whistle, some walk pretty crooked, and Johnny, that’s what mess-boy call himself, sing out to us, ‘Come on, boys, big storm ahead, cat get wet.’
“We all laugh some more and make fun, but we don’t see anything till we get to boat and there be Johnny with the cat—she was white one, thanks to God!”
“Why do you thank God because she was white?” asked Ronnie, curiously.