A BULLEN YARN.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 177, 5 November 1910, Page 10

A BULLEN YARN.

Mr. Frank Bullen, in hia latest volume of short stories, tells the following: A piece of comedy that arose from a very simple matter of salvage once came under my notice, and is a proof of how easily the true seafarer is amused. Moreover, this has no element of the tragic in it g.t all. I was one in a barque called the Dartmouth, and on tlio passage out to China we picked up a case during a calm. Upon its being opened, it was found to be full of opera hats; but our saturnine skipper, disgusted at having lowered ft boat for so worthless a catch, ordered the case and its contents to be flung overboard. Then he, went below, and the men pleaded to be allowed to keep those hats. The chief officer yielded. The hats were distributed, the secret of the .spring being discovered, and thenceforward, for nine months, she was the merriest ship afloat. At the wheel, on the look-out, furling royals, or reeling topsails. nothing could induce any member of the crew to wear anything upon his head but a tall hat. The skipper protested several times, but it was a matter beyond his jurisdiction, and nothing came of his protests. Yet. I set it down as a mark of his amazing imperviousness to humor that never once did I see him smile during the whole of that voyage, although many of the incidents were killingly funny. He went ashore at Gravesend to clear the ship, and so did not witness the pure joy which greeted our arrival at the pierhead of the East India Docks, the cheers of the gamins, the shrill shrieks of the women, as we gravely went about our work of mooring the ship, all in top hats,, but the rest of our costume ia disgrace to any rag-shop.