"'Nonsense!' sez she. 'I ain't a-goin' to stand it. You're all in a plot to make this 'ere v'yidge o' mine a failure. I won't have it! Janders Blue, you set them lazy sailors to work right off with hot water 'n' soap a-scrubbin' that stuff off. Ugh! Tar! Ugh!'
"I hope I may turn into a bloomin' Sally Growler ef the Cap'n didn't do jes wot she told him. Ye never in the hull course o' your life see sich a ridikalous sight as sailor-men a-scrubbin' the tar off their own riggin'. An' that weren't the wust o' 't. Byme-by, o' course, it come on night, and the side-lights were set. Now it so happened that we had a strong breeze on the starboard beam that night, an' we was putty well hove over. Mrs. Blue she come on deck jes after the lights was sot, an' she vowed as how she were tired o' the starn part o' the wessel, an' were a-goin' to walk up an' down forrad. She came along to the fok's'le deck an' got down on the lee side to walk up an' down. Jes as soon as she done that she seed the red light in the port riggin'. She let out a yawp as almost killed the wind, and called fur Bill Doosenbury. He come a-runnin' half scart to death, fur fear she'd got hurt. But she sez to him, sez she:
"'Take that nasty red light down. It hurts my eyes.'
"'But, ma'am,' sez Bill, 'that's our side light.'
"'Waal,' sez she, 'put it on t'other side, and put the green one over here. I don't mind green.'
"'Couldn't you walk on t'other side?' sez Bill.
"'No, I couldn't,' sez she; 'you know it's too windy up there. You change them lights!'
"Bill tried to tell her why it couldn't be did, but she wouldn't listen to him. She hollered fur the Cap'n, an' he come forrad, an' findin' out wot were the matter, offered to put out both lights, blow me fur a herrin' ef he didn't.
"'Wot!' sez she, 'an' leave me in the dark to fall down an' break my neck?'