shipwreck. I wished him to call one
of the lads James, after St. James; but, somehow, I never could persuade
Thomas to see all the excellence of that pious young man."
Dutton was a little embarrassed, for St. James had left any thing but a
godly savour behind him; and he was about to fabricate a tolerably bold
assertion to the contrary, rather than incur the risk of offending the
lord of the manor, when, luckily, a change in the state of the fog
afforded him a favourable opportunity of bringing about an apposite
change in the subject. During the whole of the morning the sea had been
invisible from the head-land, a dense body of vapour resting on it, far
as eye could reach; veiling the whole expanse with a single white cloud.
The lighter portions of the vapour had at first floated around the
head-land, which could not have been seen at any material distance; but
all had been gradually settling down into a single mass, that now rose
within twenty feet of the summit of the cliffs. The hour was still quite
early, but the sun was gaining force, and it speedily drank up all the
lighter particles of the mist, leaving a clear, bright atmosphere above
the feathery bank, through which objects might be seen for miles. There
was what seamen call a "fanning breeze," or just wind enough to cause
the light sails of a ship to swell and collapse, under the double
influence of the air and the motion of the hull, imitating in a slight
degree the vibrations of that familiar appliance of the female toilet.
Dutton's eye had caught a glance of the loftiest sail of a vessel, above
the fog, going through this very movement; and it afforded him the
release he desired, by enabling him to draw the attention of his
companions to the same object.
"See, Sir Wycherly—see, Mr. Wychecombe," he cried, eagerly, pointing in
the direction of the sail; "yonder is some of the king's canvass coming
into our roadstead, or I am no judge of the set of a man-of-war's royal.
It is a large bit of cloth, too, Mr. Lieutenant, for a sail so lofty!"
"It is a two-decker's royal, Master Dutton," returned the young sailor;
"and now you see the fore and main, separately, as the ship keeps away."
"Well," put in Sir Wycherly, in a resigned manner; "here have I lived
fourscore years on this coast, and, for the life of me, I have never
been able to tell a fore-royal from a back-royal; or a mizzen head-stay
from a head mizzen-stay. They are the most puzzling things imaginable;
and now I cannot discover how you know that yonder sail, which I see
plain enough, is a royal, any more than that it is a jib!"
Dutton and the lieutenant smiled, but Sir Wycherly's simplicity had a
cast of truth and nature about it, that deterred most people from
wishing to ridicule him. Then, the rank, fortune, and local interest of
the baronet, counted for a good deal on all such occasions.
"Here is another fellow, farther east," cried Dutton, still pointing
with a finger; "and every inch as big as his consort! Ah! it does my
eyes good to see our roadstead come into notice, in this manner, after
all I have said and done in its behalf—But, who have we here—a brother
chip, by his appearance; I dare say some idler who has been sent ashore
with despatches."
"There is another fellow further east, and every inch as big as his
consort," said Wychecombe, as we shall call our lieutenant, in order to
distinguish him from Tom of the same name, repeating the very words of
Dutton, with an application and readiness that almost amounted to wit,
pointing, in his turn, at two strangers who were ascending to the
station by a path that led from the beach. "Certainly both these
gentlemen are in His Majesty's service, and they have probably just
landed from the ships in the offing."
The truth of this conjecture was apparent to Dutton at a glance. As the
strangers joined each other, the one last seen proceeded in advance; and
there was something in his years, the confident manner in which he
approached, and his general
of the lads James, after St. James; but, somehow, I never could persuade
Thomas to see all the excellence of that pious young man."
Dutton was a little embarrassed, for St. James had left any thing but a
godly savour behind him; and he was about to fabricate a tolerably bold
assertion to the contrary, rather than incur the risk of offending the
lord of the manor, when, luckily, a change in the state of the fog
afforded him a favourable opportunity of bringing about an apposite
change in the subject. During the whole of the morning the sea had been
invisible from the head-land, a dense body of vapour resting on it, far
as eye could reach; veiling the whole expanse with a single white cloud.
The lighter portions of the vapour had at first floated around the
head-land, which could not have been seen at any material distance; but
all had been gradually settling down into a single mass, that now rose
within twenty feet of the summit of the cliffs. The hour was still quite
early, but the sun was gaining force, and it speedily drank up all the
lighter particles of the mist, leaving a clear, bright atmosphere above
the feathery bank, through which objects might be seen for miles. There
was what seamen call a "fanning breeze," or just wind enough to cause
the light sails of a ship to swell and collapse, under the double
influence of the air and the motion of the hull, imitating in a slight
degree the vibrations of that familiar appliance of the female toilet.
Dutton's eye had caught a glance of the loftiest sail of a vessel, above
the fog, going through this very movement; and it afforded him the
release he desired, by enabling him to draw the attention of his
companions to the same object.
"See, Sir Wycherly—see, Mr. Wychecombe," he cried, eagerly, pointing in
the direction of the sail; "yonder is some of the king's canvass coming
into our roadstead, or I am no judge of the set of a man-of-war's royal.
It is a large bit of cloth, too, Mr. Lieutenant, for a sail so lofty!"
"It is a two-decker's royal, Master Dutton," returned the young sailor;
"and now you see the fore and main, separately, as the ship keeps away."
"Well," put in Sir Wycherly, in a resigned manner; "here have I lived
fourscore years on this coast, and, for the life of me, I have never
been able to tell a fore-royal from a back-royal; or a mizzen head-stay
from a head mizzen-stay. They are the most puzzling things imaginable;
and now I cannot discover how you know that yonder sail, which I see
plain enough, is a royal, any more than that it is a jib!"
Dutton and the lieutenant smiled, but Sir Wycherly's simplicity had a
cast of truth and nature about it, that deterred most people from
wishing to ridicule him. Then, the rank, fortune, and local interest of
the baronet, counted for a good deal on all such occasions.
"Here is another fellow, farther east," cried Dutton, still pointing
with a finger; "and every inch as big as his consort! Ah! it does my
eyes good to see our roadstead come into notice, in this manner, after
all I have said and done in its behalf—But, who have we here—a brother
chip, by his appearance; I dare say some idler who has been sent ashore
with despatches."
"There is another fellow further east, and every inch as big as his
consort," said Wychecombe, as we shall call our lieutenant, in order to
distinguish him from Tom of the same name, repeating the very words of
Dutton, with an application and readiness that almost amounted to wit,
pointing, in his turn, at two strangers who were ascending to the
station by a path that led from the beach. "Certainly both these
gentlemen are in His Majesty's service, and they have probably just
landed from the ships in the offing."
The truth of this conjecture was apparent to Dutton at a glance. As the
strangers joined each other, the one last seen proceeded in advance; and
there was something in his years, the confident manner in which he
approached, and his general
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