"Why, either of these men talk better English than any ordinary Kanaka who has made a four years' voyage in a whaler."
Our boat was seen returning, and the old man came on board with a favorable report. He gave orders to get the chains up and the anchors off the bow at once, having made up his mind to go in.
"It's a snug harbor," I heard him telling the mate, "and it's easy getting into it. I have some doubts about getting out again as easy, but I guess we shall have a slant of wind. Taber went in only yesterday and is bound on Japan too. He wants a consort, and will stay as long as we do, in case our job of stopping the leak should detain us. The Englishman is all ready for sea, now, but he can't get out with this wind."
Within an hour we were riding quietly at anchor in six fathoms, but a short distance from the beach, and in a convenient place for heeling the ship to repair the injury which had caused us so much monotonous and fatiguing labor at the pumps.
CHAPTER XIX.
STRONG'S ISLAND.
The first duty that engaged our attention after coming to anchor was, of course, to stop the leak; which was done much in the same manner as in the former case at Dominica, except that it was necessary to stow all the heavy articles forward, and bring the ship down by the head, instead of the stern. We also attached a purchase to the mainmast head, and to a tree on the shore, to assist in careening the ship.
The natives appeared to watch all these operations with great interest; and our decks were alive with them, both men and women, the day after our arrival. Compared with the savages, whom we had previously visited, these people might be called gentle and quiet in their habits. Nothing could exceed the eagerness and the perseverance displayed, particularly by the women, in acquiring a thorough knowledge of our language. Every word that could be picked up to add to their English vocabularies seemed to afford them a peculiar source of delight. "What name o' this? What name man?" were questions put to us at every turn, and our answers were echoed and repeated over and over, till the sound was fully mastered. Thus the English spoken by these women was not murdered, for each word was thoroughly learned before passing on to the next.