|
Main
- books.jibble.org
My Books
- IRC Hacks
Misc. Articles
- Meaning of Jibble
- M4 Su Doku
- Computer Scrapbooking
- Setting up Java
- Bootable Java
- Cookies in Java
- Dynamic Graphs
- Social Shakespeare
External Links
- Paul Mutton
- Jibble Photo Gallery
- Jibble Forums
- Google Landmarks
- Jibble Shop
- Free Books
- Intershot Ltd
|
books.jibble.org
Previous Page
| Next Page
Page 16
mew'ing, _crying, like a cat_.
a dopt'ed, _received as one's own_.
ad mir'er, _one who likes another_.
voy'age, _journey by water_.
dain'ty, _nice in form or taste_.
a loft', _on high; in the air_.
wind'ward, _the point from which the wind blows_.
star'board, _the right-hand side of a ship_.
bruised, _injured, hurt_.
* * * * *
OUR SAILOR CAT.
She was a sailor cat, indeed, and it was a sailor who first brought her
on board.
Our steamer was lying at her pier in the North River, at New York,
taking in cargo.
One of our men, who had been ashore, came back with a little
gray-and-white kitten in his arms. She was very poor and thin, and her
little furry coat was sadly soiled with dirt and grease.
But she had not lost all her fun, for she was making play with her tiny
fore-paws at the ends of the sailor's red beard, to honest Jack's great
delight.
"Where did you pick that up, Jack?" asked the third officer.
"Well, your honor," said Jack Harmon, touching his cap with a grin,
"seems to me she must have left her ship and gone to look for another,
for I found her tramping along the pier there, and mewing as if she was
calling out for somebody to show her the road.
"So I thought that, as we have many rats aboard the old craft, she would
be able to pick up a good living there; and I called to her, and she
came at once, and here she is."
Here she was, sure enough; and as Jack ended his story, she chimed in
with a plaintive little "Me-ow," which said, as plainly as ever any cat
spoke yet, "I'm very cold and hungry, and I do wish somebody would take
me below and give me some food!"
She had not long to wait. Half an hour later she was the best-fed cat in
that part of New York City, and that night she lay snugly curled up with
a good warm blanket over her.
Of course, the first thing to do with an adopted cat is to give it a
name, and Jack Harmon, who was a bit of a wag in his way, and a great
admirer of the monster elephant which was just then making such a stir
in New York, called his new pet "Jumbo."
Jumbo soon became the pet of the whole crew, and of the passengers, too,
when they came on board, a few days later, for the voyage back to
England.
Before we were half-way across the ocean, the bits of meat or cake, and
bits of white bread soaked in milk, which were being constantly given
her by one and another, had made her look as round as an apple.
The ladies were never tired of stroking her soft fur and admiring her
dainty white paws, which were now as spotless as snow. The children
romped all day with this new playmate, who seemed to enjoy the sport
quite as much as themselves.
But Jumbo was not content with mere play. She seemed to think herself
bound to do something to "work her passage." Whenever any of the crew
went aloft to take in sail, Jumbo would always climb up, too, as if to
help them.
Previous Page
| Next Page
|
|