ATRIP TO THE ISLE OF MAN

Waikato Times, Volume XXXI, Issue 2513, 18 August 1888, Page 1 (Supplement)

ATRIP TO THE ISLE OF MAN

[Continued.'] Having expressed our satisfaction with the accomodation, and arranged for a sort of tea-dinner; we asked to be shown our bedroom, for the purpose of having a good wash, which, we both felt, was much needed. This room was rather small for the two iron bedsteads and washstands, which it contained ; but everything looked very clean and comfortable.

Whilst performing our abolutions, Walter asked me what I thought of Bella, for by this name we had heard the landlady address her daughter iu the shop. I replied that she was the prettiest girl I had ever seen. "Hullo!" he said, " none of that now, please ; I see how it will be. You will be wanting to stop spooning across the counter with that bemuslined young shemale, instead of going out rowing, fishing, sight-seeing and acting like a sensible fellow." I took no notice of this remark, but asked him if he did not think she had splendid golden hair. "Humph!"he said, "golden do you oall it ? It must be jeweller's gold then, for I have noticed that they always speak of that as being so many carats fine." Here he laughed at his own wretched pun. I felt very indignant that those beautiful locks should be so maligned, and told him that he was incapable of appreciating the higher type of female loveliness. "Oh, well 1" he replied, " so much the better for you. If I admired that style of beauty I might cut you out; but don't be alarmed, lam not going to worship your golden image. She's evidently a girl of mettle though. Didn't you notice what a silvery voice-she has got, in addition to her golden hair ? Only get her in a melting mood, and she'll prove a real treasure—you might marry her with a lock of her own hair for a wedding ring!" " And pay the parson's fee with some of your brass, ' I added. " Well, yes! if you had it, but you couldn't expect such a mixture of metals to produce happiness pure and unalloyed. Never mind, Charlie, don't be riled; you'll feel better after dinuer, and so shall I. By George, I shall astonish the landlady; I never felt the pangs of hunger to such an extent before." He had by this time finished the adornment of his person, and we left the room together. On entering the sitting or dining room, we found the cloth already laid for dinner, and had scarcely taken our seats when the landlady entered with three fried mackerels on a dish ; at the sight of which Walter exclaimed, "By Jove!" the sea owes me a meal: I'll just replaco the breakfast I lost with ono of those mackerel, and then I'll think about dinner."

I laughed, and so did the landlady, though I think she, perhaps, scarcely approved of this amalgamation of meals.

He was as good as his word ; the fish soon disappeared, and a dish of fried ham and eggs, thnt was then put upon the table, was attacked with undiminished vigor: this was followed by a damson pie which he, and I also, did full justice to, and the whole having been washed down with three cups of tea, Walter declared that " he felt better, and less like nn empty sack than he did awhilo ago." I was getting up to tako one of the vacant arm chairs, when, forgetful for the moment of Walter's fearful length of limb, I stumbled »ver one of his legs, which he had stretched out, one on each fide of the round table. "Confound those legs of yours, Walter," I said, "I wish you would keep them on your own side of the room." " Can't do that my boy; the apartment is not large enough," he replied ; and then added, " What a pity they are not like pocket telescopes, and would shut up when not on active service." "Well! that would be a convenience, not only to yourself, but your friends also," I said, rubbing my shin, which I had struck a sharp blow against the chair I was about to sit down upon. " Well ! he said, "they have their uses too. You may outlive me; but, through them, (slapping hin lears), I shall havo been longer in the world than you j they enable me to take a more lofty view of things in general: mv horizon is more extended than yours; and then you see, I am more looked up to than you are." " There's Bardolf, a six foot column of fop, A lighthouse without any light atop." I quoted. " Don't say that, 'he rejoined, taking out his cigarette case, " for I am just about to light up and then gathering in his telescopes, ha assumed the perpendicular, and proposed a stroll. This I agreed to, and felt a slight quickening of the pulse, as I thought of seeing and exchanging a few words with the fair Isabella. In this I was doomed to be disappointed ; for behind the couuter, stood a girl, taller and stouter, with dark brown eyes to match, very good looking, and a sister evidently, but lacking the grace and charm of Isabella. In speaking thus, I am simply giving my own opinion, for Walter, I am bound to say, differed entirely in his estimate of the beauty of the sisters. He declared that Sarah (the eldest) excelled her sister in beauty, as much as she outweighed her in pounds Avoirdupois. She was certainly a kind-hearted girl, fond of fun, and from the first (which no doubt added to her attractiveness in Walter's eyes) seemed to appreciate, and rather admire his bombastic style and farfetched jokes. With an unembarrassed air and ease that I secretly very much envied, my companion walked up to the counter, and, removing hia cap, said—" Good evening MissS., allow ms the honour of introducing to your notice the new lodgers. I am Walter C—. Though at present a stranger, my good qualities will be more apparent by and by; aud this young gentleman, Charley C r . (you see he is very young, but he is improving of that fault every day), has been entrusted to my fatherly, or shall I say elder brotherly, care, on this his first flight from the maternal nest. My height, age, gravity, sobriety, and knowledge of the world, render me peculiarly fitted to be the mentor and guardian of unsophisticated youth. We aro now about to take a stroll, and receive our first impressions of the town of Douglas, the most remote portion of Her Majesty's dominions that we have, either of us, ever visited. By the way what time do you usually close the establishment; for though we shall probably not be away for more- than a couple of hours this evening, it will be as well to know the rules and regulations of the place for our guidance ou future occasions." During this rather long speech of Walters, I noticed that Sarah (I may as well call her by that name at once, as we

speedily became sufficiently friendly to do so) looked amused, ard with some difficulty refrained from laughing outright. She now composed her features, and replied that "9 30 p.m. was the usual time for closing the shop, and that half an hour later was their ordinary hour for retiring for the night; but that wo need be under no apprehension of bm'ne shut out, even if that hour was exceeded," and then "he added with a smile, " that her mamma had in her possession a latch-key, with which the more sedate of their lodgers had occasionally been trusted ; and she thought there could be little doubt that a gentleman, (here she looked at Walter) who occupied the responsible position of mentor and guardian of (hero her gaze was turned to me) unsophisticated youth, would be entitled to a similar mark of confidence."

"Just so," Baid Walter, who appeared to think he had met his match ; " we will now take our stroll, and postpone the question of the latch-key till some future occasion. Good evening for the present, Miss S." " Good evoning," she said ; " I hope you will have a pleaaant walk." Then, looking at me, "our town is usually very quiet of an evening, but had it been otherwise there could he little fear of harm befalling you when accompanied by a gentleman so peculiarly fitted (here she had much ado to preserve her gravity) to be the guardian of unsophisticated youth." I laughed : Walter gave a loud "hem," and looked somewhat disconcerted, and before he was quite prepared with a reply I took him by the arm and said, " Come on Walter. Good evening, Miss S and we raised our caps and passed into the street. " By Jove, that's a jolly girl," said Walter, as soon as we were out of hearing. "She's worth fifty of your golden-haired divinities, you'll see. We shall have some fun here. I wonder if the pastry cook would allow his daughters to go out for a row, or drive, or anything of that sort." " Can't say," I replied ; " perhaps he might if you bad a little more the look of the character yon were giving yourself awliilt ago. Why, that girl read you like a book ; she could see that your only qualifications for the role of mentor lay in an abuormal length of limb and unmitigated cheek.'' " Don't be envious, Charley, my boy; you know you would give vour little finger to be a couple of inches taller. You must be content to play second fiddle when lam in the orchestra. Yon ought to be thankful that golden hair will fall to your lot, while I ain employing my fascinations on the elder sister." We had now reached the bottom of Duke-street, and turned to walk towards the Pier, when Walter gave uie a nudge, and said— "I say, Charley, just cast your eye on this elaborately adorned young woman, leaning on the arm of the stunt gent.lema.i coming this way. Do you know, I was very near putting an end to her existence on board that beastly steam boat a few hours agft ?"

"Indeed," I said, "and what prevented yon from carrying out your nefarious design ?" '' Design be hanged; there wns no design about it; but she was simply saved by the interposition of divine providence, and the way of it was this, I had been feeling aa ill, as I thought it possible for anyone to do, and yet live ; when I began to get even worse, the confounded stnell of the engine room, near to which I was lying, was becoming more intolerable every minute ; when I caught sight of a bundle of shawls and rugs, at no great distance, on what they call the les side of the ship. I thought, if death was at hand, I could die easier on that soft heap than on the beastly hard deck ; so with a desperate effort, I rose to my feet and staggered towards it; but just then the ship gave a larch, the paddle wheel on that side began hammering the water harder than ever, I missed my aim, and fell helplessly alongside the haven, I had steered for, The noise of my fall, (it was no joke of a one I can tell yon) caused a slight movement in the heap, and elicited a feeble moan from the being there concealed. But for that providential lurch, I should have homicided that girl, and no mistake. It would have required so little to squeeze out the frail remnant of life still left. Well I where I fell, there Hay, and my fate was rendered harder to bear by the pitiable moans of the wretched being beneath the rugs. It is true, I was somewhat comforted by the thought that I had been prevented from taking the life of a fellow creature: I believe I joined in the melancholy dirge; and there I passed the most miserable half hour of my existence. At length the crisis came ;it came to both of us at the same moment: we had suffered long, but the torture we had undergone was as nothing to what now awaited us. With one accord we rose, clutched convulsively at the side of the vessel, leaned over, and gazed upon the depths below. The moaning ceased, and was succeeded—but I spare you the description of what followed. I think I have heard of somebody, who compared the sensation to au attempt to throw up one's immortal soul: that's it exactly. I can assure you that it is a mystery to me how mine remained, when everything elso went over the ship's side; it must havo had a tight grip of my body, or it would assuredly have gone with the rest. I gavo up all—all, but the ghost. Strange I after this effort, I felt better ; aud as I raised and turned iny head, [ caught a glimpse of the beiug who, like myself, had just cast from her the pent up agony of hours. The face, though now wonderfully altered for the better, was that of the young lady we have just passed. I think I ought to turn back, and claim acquaintance with her ; our moans were uttered in unison, our sighs miugled, and the same breeze wafted them away. We stood side by side in our misery, and the same wave eugulfed the cause of our distress. If ' one touch of nature makes the whole world kin,' she ought to acknowledge the relationship at once, eh ?" I could not help laughing at Walter's description, but told him that I thought it would perhaps be butter not to attempt to renew the acquaintance, as there were moments in our lives wheu we wished for no prying eyes to intrude, and I thought it likely that she would not eare to have such an exceedingly unpoetic episode brought to her recollection. " Well I" he said, " perhaps so ; but if her memory is as good as mine, she won't forget it in a hurry, and I'd bet my bottom dollar, ns the Yankees say, that she does remember it, and remember ray phiz, too, although she pretended not to,. Well, wo may meet again, and if I can get her to look at me, I'll put a whole bookful of secret intelligence into a wink, to see if she understands the language of the eyes. Nothing but that serious dispensation of Provideuce in causing the lurch at the critical momont, prevented that girl being flattened like a pancake." We walked up aud down the Fie. - several times, and met and exchanged nods with more than one who had oiossed over with us, and then, after partaking of what Dick Swiveller calls " a modest quencher,'* wended our way back to our lodgings. (To be Continued.) The bar steward of the steamsbsp Alaska says that on one trip fro n the United States last summer his receipts netted £700 in seven days.