/5 & 7º-
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--


In One Thick Volume, Royal 8vo., Price 11.11s. 6d. cloth.
THE
COMPLETE CONCORDANCE TO SHAKSPEARE,
BEING A WERBAL INDEX TO ALL THE PASSAGES IN THE
DRAMATIC WORKS OF THE POET.
BY
M A R Y CO W D E N C L A R K E.
--
“Order gave each thing view.
SHARSPEARE.





--


- º - -
º - Zºº / º


|KIT BAM'S ADVENTURES;
or, THE
YARNS OF AN OLD MARINER.
BY
M A R Y 00 W D E N C L A R K E.
AUTHOR OF THE CONCORDANCE TO SHAKSPEARE.
Twere a pity
To stint the wondrous to the known, and leave
Imagination not a world to conquer.
We thus may welcome fresh true wonders,
Most Sinbad-like, nor give up dear astonishment.
I could hear such mixture
Of truth and fiction for a summer's day.
LEIGH HUNT.
ILLUSTRATED BY GEORGE CRUIKSHANK.
LONDON :
GRANT AND GR IFFITH,
SUCCESSORS TO
J. HARRIS, CORNER OF ST. PAUL’s CHURCHYARD.
1849.


LONDON :
Printed by S. & J. BENTLEy, Wilson, and FLEX,
Bangor House, Shoe Lane.
-


2.35
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£ THIS
§
W O L U M E O F A D W E N T U R ES
g IS AFFECTIONATELY INSCRIBED
- TO
z J O H N A N D E M I L Y R O L T,
<
-> BY THEIR FRIEND,
MARY COWDEN CLARKE.
ºi-
º,





C O N T E N T S.
CHAPTER I.
PREFATORY AND INTRODUCTORY.
THE SWALLow FAMILY : THE YOUNGER ONEs’ LovE of
FICTION ; The ELDERs' opinions of FANCY AND MATTER-
OF-FACT; IMAGINATION AND REALITIES.—KIT BAM ; His
FIRST YARN : THE ISLAND OF FALSE APPEARANCES . . . .
CHAPTER II.
KIT's SECOND YARN.—HIS SHIP-MATE, John PAUL.—
THE RAINBOW AND THE GOLDEN KEY.--THE ROCKY WAL-
LEY.--THE OCEAN OF IMAGINATION.—THE LONE MOTHER
AND CHILD. • * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
CHAPTER III.
continuation of KIT's YARN of THE LoNE MoTHER
AND CHILD.—HER STORY. —KALLISAH.-FELIX.-NEW AS-
SOCIATES. . . • * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
CHAPTER IV.
KIT’s THIRD YARN.—A PEEP INTo FABLE-LAND.—
TITTA, THE ITALIAN CABIN-Boy; STEvKNS, THE MATE.—
THE STORM.–THE DECISION OF THE DICE.--THE WRECK.
CHAPTER V.
THE SEQUEL OF THE WRECK.—UBERTO AND BION-
DELLo ; the LITTLE BARBER ; KING IMBECILIO, PRINCEss
EUDoRA, AND LoRD IGNORIo; BARON FERoccio, AND THE
LADY ELLENA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
PAGE
65
94
| 24


IV CONTENTS.
CHAPTER WI.
PAGE
KIT GoFS IN SEARCH of UBERTO.--THE MANSION of
OLD ERUDITO.-QUADRATA.—THE RETURN TO THE CITY,
—KIT SETS SAIL AGAIN.—THE GRANITE ISLAND.—THE
HoRSE of BRASS.—THE FEAST of THE SATYRs. . . . . . . 158
CHAPTER VII.
THE ABODE OF SUBTILIA ; DRUSILLA; THE ENCHANTED
FountAIN; ERUDITO's GIFT ; THE LAKE, AND ISLAND
RETREAT ; SIR LIONEL ; THE MYSTIC RINGs. . . . . . . . ... 188
CHAPTER VIII.
THE DIAMOND MERCHANT.-WILL WAVELANCE's IS-
LAND.—SCYLLA AND CHARYBDIS.—THE SIRENS.–POLY-
PHEMUs.-EGYPT.--THE MUMMY SLAVE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216
CHAPTER IX.
THE PIGEONs of ST. MARK.—THE PHANTOM goNDola,
AND THE DOOMED MAN.—BARBARA.-THE HARZ FOREST.
THE BROCKEN MOUNTAIN.—KARL.-LEOPOLD. . . . . . . . . . . 243
CHAPTER X.
LUCERNE.—LAKE of THE FOUR CANTONs.—THE DEVIL’s
BRIDGE.-GENOA.--THE SINGER AND THE PRISONER.—
TITTA's MoTHER.—THE LONE HOUSE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279
CHAPTER XI.
THE FIRE AT SEA.—THE ISLAND OF OMBROSA.-
WELATA. • * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 309
CHAPTER XII.
THE NORTHERN SEAS.–THE GIGANTIC WANDERER.—
THE KRAKEN.- THE SEA SERPENT.- THE ALBATROS.–
THE MERMAID,--THE GROTTO.--THE SUBTERRANEAN JOUR-
NEY. — THE NATION OF THE ANTHROPOPHAGI. — CON-
CLUSION. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 341


THE
STRANGE ADVENTURES
OF
KIT BA M, MARINER,
CHAPTER I.
PREFATORY AND INTRODUCTORY.
The SWALLOW FAMILY ; THE YOUNGER oNES’ LovE OF FIC-
tion ; THE ELDERs' opinions of FANCY AND MATTER-OF-
FACT, IMAGINATION AND REALITIES.—KIT BAM ; HIS FIRST
YARN ; THE ISLAND OF FALSE APPEARANCES.
“MAMMA,” said Dick Swallow to his mother one
evening, during the holidays, “before the candles
come, and Fanny and I have our game of chess
together, I wish you'd tell us one of your famous
long stories, as you used to do.”
“I fear, my dear boy,” replied his mother, “that
you and your sister have exhausted my stock of “fa-
mous stories' (as you are so polite as to call them)
long ago; besides, you are too old now to care for
stories, surely; you hope to go to college in a couple
B


2 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
of years, and are very often quite a man already, you
know, in your own opinion.”
“And yet, mother, I really think I shall never be
too old to like a good long story,” answered Dick.
“In the first place, listening instead of reading, is
such pleasant, lazy work—such complete rest, after a
day's fag at Latin and Greek. And then, when the
stories are about fairies, and spirits, and strange ad-
ventures, such as yours used to fell of, I feel as if
they took me out of the horse-in-a-mill routine of
books and study, which is all very right and useful,
of course, and must be attended to, but which makes
one long for amusement and rest—I mean rest for
the thoughts and the head, as much as cricket, and
Iowing, and going to bed, are rest for the limbs after
sitting many hours at lessons.”
“I sometimes feel the same thing, Mamma;” said
his sister Fanny; “I often wish I had one of your old
stories of an evening to amuse me after lessons and
my duty-walk are over; an interesting story is such
pleasant rest; and, you know, I am not allowed to
read novels yet—they are ‘too old’ for me, it is
said.”
“I know well your love of stories, my dears!" said
their mother; “and I agree with you that there are
few things afford so perfect a relaxation to the mind
as fiction, and its pleasant appeals to the imagination.
You, Dick, will soon form an acquaintance with the
fine old poets; their lovely classical stories, and
beautiful fancies, will prove a grand resource for you
as a relief from severer studies; and you, my dear


KIT BAM, MARINER. 3
Fanny, may, in a year or two, hope to enjoy with me
those interesting fictions from the pen of some of our
best authors, which have so well depicted the stage of
human life, its various hopes, disappointments, aspira-
tions, duties, and feelings; and which form a not
inapt introduction to the world itself, where you will
some day be called upon to act your part. But it is
not well too early to anticipate the amusement and
even instruction to be derived from such a course of
reading; and, meantime, I will own that you are both
deprived of a pleasant source of amusement, if it is
decreed that you are ‘too old’ for the stories of your
childhood, and that the Poets and Novelists are ‘too
old’ for you. I have been thinking, therefore, that
as my own story-telling powers are exhausted, I will
endeavour to procure you another source of enter-
tainment of the like kind, which may supply the want
you feel; and that your favourite twilight hour may
still be spent in the way you both love so well, in
listening to a long story.”
“Capital, mamma!” exclaimed both the young
Swallows, joyfully, as they jumped up to give her
a hearty kiss; for though Dick had nearly attained
the manly age of fourteen, and his sister Fanny was
but a year younger, yet they both frequently ex-
pressed their joy in a burst of childish rapture, and
were generally as gay as larks. The nature of their
education had made our two young friends simple in
their manners, though sensible in their heads; their
hearts were young, though their minds were strong,
active, and well-stored. They had been brought up


4. THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
under the superintendence of their mother, a woman
of keen sensibilities, yet firm judgment. She had
indulged their fancy, while she had secured solid
instruction; and the result was, that, though Dick
could construe Virgil, or work many of the problems
in Euclid, and Fanny was a good modern linguist
and an accomplished needlewoman and housekeeper,
yet they both of them still loved a long twilight tale,
and listened to it with all their old-young delight.
They were child-like, though not childish, in taste
and feeling; and their manners were unconven-
tional, and unlike the little old men and women we
now-a-days often meet with in young people of their
age.
“Your father tells me he has invited his old ship-
mate, Kit Bam, (of whom you have often heard him
speak,) to come and spend the remainder of his days
close by us,” resumed their mother; “the little cot-
tage in the lane, just by the clump of beech trees, at
the back of our grounds, has been prepared for him,
and we expect that he will arrive from town to-day,
and take possession of his new abode. Indeed, I
should not wonder if it is the reception of his old
friend which detains papa at this very moment, for it
is much after his usual hour of return from his walk.
I dare say he is now at the cottage welcoming his
favourite Kit, and settling him in his new home.
We will ask papa to go with us to-morrow morning
to see his old friend, that we may make his acquaint-
ance.”
“That will be pleasant ' " said Dick.


KIT BAM, MARINER. 5
“If he is pleasant,” added Fanny, in a lower tone.
“Do you know Mr. Kit Bam, mamma 7" enquired
she. “Is he pleasant? Is he good-natured 2*
“Very good-natured,” replied her mother; “and
very pleasant—especially pleasant he will seem to
you both; for he has seen a vast deal, and passed
through a great many adventures in his time, so that
he has plenty of long stories to tell—if you can coax
him to relate them; and I know you have rather a
knack in persuading those from whom you have
hopes of a story, Fanny.”
Next morning, forth the party sallied; the day was
bright, the birds were singing cheerfully; the young
people were in high spirits at the idea of the new
acquaintance they were about to make; and their
parents were happy in the thought that they had
secured a comfortable asylum near them, and the
enjoyment of complete repose in his old age, to one
whose youth and maturer years had been faithfully
employed in a course of active exertion, uncomplain-
ing hardship, many perils, and ceaseless wandering.
Across the lawn, skirting the fishpond, between the
flower-beds, by the arbour, down the gravel-walk,
along the avenue, out at the little wicket-gate, into
the lane, all flowery with hedgerow climbers and
plants—the honeysuckle, the dogrose, the hawthorn,
the briony; and all bowery with hedge-row trees—
the maple, the oak, the elm, and the ash; on passed
the four walkers, till they came to a cottage in a
small garden, that was screened off from the lane by
a quickset hedge. Through a slight opening in this


6 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
hedge Captain Swallow looked, and beckoned to his
wife that she should silently follow his example.
“Does not the dear old fellow look a perfect pic-
ture of contented comfort?” asked he in a whisper.
Dick and Fanny peeped too. Sitting on a bench
in the sun, they saw an old man with grey hair, a
very brown face, and still browner hands, which were
folded carelessly together round a thick knotty stick,
that lay between his knees. He wore coarse dark
blue clothes that looked too big for him; indeed so
big and so loose, that they appeared as if they would
have held an additional set of legs and arms without
any inconvenience to the limbs already there. On
his head was a shiny glazed hat; so shiny that it
made our young friends wink as they looked at it
sparkling and glistening in the bright sun; but as it
was worn perched very forward, it shaded the old
man's own eyes, without his suffering any apparent
annoyance from the ends of black ribbon which dan-
gled from its brim, and occasionally fluttered into the
corner of one of them, as he gazed thoughtfully at a
hive of bees that stood near him.
“It's a home-loving though a wandering life,” they
heard him murmur; “they range freely abroad in the
pure air and sunshine, and collect stores of sweet and
pleasant things to enjoy quietly in their wintry days.
They’re strangely like men, those bees;–the flowery
fields and the wide ocean—the warm hive, and the
Snug cottage—a wandering youth, and a tranquil old
age, are each their portion; and then, the honey-juice
of blossoms, and the pleasant hoard of sweet fancies


KIT BAM, MARINER. 7
and recollections that the bee and the man both gather
in their early rambles, are equally the gift of a boun-
teous Creator. And how well the little things
manage it all! They're as orderly and as handy at
their work, and get as little in each other's gangway
as a ship's crew mustering ‘all hands' at the call of
the boatswain's whistle. Ay, ay, sir; this way, cap-
tain;" added the old mariner a moment after, as he
started up from his seat, on hearing his friend's voice
saluting him with a hearty cheer, while the party ap-
proached and entered the little garden-gate. “This
way, madam; this way, my young lady,” continued
he, as he bustled about to do the honours of his new
house to his visitors. -
He shewed them the straight rows of cabbages and
potatoes, and carrots, and onions, in the orderly little
garden, and gathered a posy of sweet-williams and
bachelors'-buttons for Fanny and her Mamma. He
shewed them the draw-well, with its bucket quite handy;
and told them that the water was as fresh and bright
as crystal; as a proof of which he took some up in
the hollow of his hand, and let it fall in sparkling
drops from his palm, which he once raised to his lips,
as if willing to confirm his words by drinking some;
though, on second thoughts, he let that handful fall
too, sprinkling it over the flowers; remarking, with
a sly smile at the captain, “that they liked it, poor
things, it did them good! And yet I can remember
times when I would have given more for that handful of
fresh water than for all the wine that ever was crushed,
either from grapes or in a jovial cup,” added he, with


8 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
a thoughtful look that often came over his weather-
beaten countenance, giving a strange contradiction to
his usual careless sailorlike manner and appearance.
He shewed them the bees next, saying, “they were
tight lads for work.” He took them into the snug
cottage with its cozy sitting-room and comfortable
bed-room, and said it was as warm a berth as heart
could desire; and that it was just like his ship-
mate's kind way, to think of getting it rigged for
him to turn into in his old age.
While Kit was grasping their father warmly by the
hand, and saying this in a hearty tone to their mother,
Dick whispered to Fanny, “I wonder whether he'd
tell us one of his stories now. I should like to hear
some of his adventures.”
“I think he must be too tired to-day to talk much,
after his journey yesterday,” said Fanny; “besides,
he's busy and taken up with papa and mamma now,
and I don't like to interrupt him.”
Soon after their parents took leave; and, as they
walked home, their mother told Fanny she had over-
heard how considerate she had been towards their old
friend; but that she and her brother should come and
spend an hour or two every afternoon with him, if
they pleased. Accordingly, that very afternoon, the
moment the cloth was removed, the young Swallows
were darting off, when their father cried out, “Hallo!
youngsters, whither so fast? I never saw you in such
a hurry to run away from a dish of currants and cher-
ries before '"
Dick and Fanny both began in a breath to reply:


Kit BAM, MARINER. 9
but their mother said, smiling, “Never mind; take
your dessert on some leaves, and away with you, and
I'll explain to your father.”
“They are off to renew their acquaintance with old
Kit, I suppose,” said Captain Swallow, when his chil-
'dren had vanished; “they appeared to be prodigiously
taken with him this morning—as indeed he seemed
to be with them. Well, they'll amuse him, and help
to make the dear old fellow's time pass pleasantly.”
“They rather hope he will amuse them, I believe,”
said their mother; “they have a passion for long sto-
ries, and I should think he has plenty to tell them.”
“Yes, he has indeed; Kit will spin you a yarn as
long as a ship's cable, only once set him a talking,"
replied the captain. “But do you think all these
strange adventures and wonderful histories of his are
quite the sort of thing for the children to listen to,
my dear! Kit has a knack of relating marvels that
I very much suspect never had any existence but in
his own brain; for, though he's as true and honest a
chap as ever lived, he has a spice of romance in him
that, I've a notion, has led him to see all his adven-
tures with a fanciful eye. You know, all we sailors
have the reputation of being a superstitious set—our
# naturally engenders strange beliefs and extraor-
hary imaginings. While surrounded for the most
part by grand natural objects, sky and ocean, the
sun, the moon, the stars, yet we are, nevertheless,
shut within a narrow limit, and confined in our daily
intercourse, for days and weeks together. This cir-
cumscribed life has, in Kit's instance, been even


10 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
enhanced by many solitary wanderings. Frequently
thrown far apart from his own species, an indulgence
in silent musing, and a habit of following his own
whimsical thoughts, joined to a great taste for ima-
ginative reading, and an originally contemplative
disposition, have combined to make him unusually
credulous—even for one of us sailors. Don't you
think, therefore, his yarns will be apt to set their
wits a-wandering and a-wool-gathering, when maybe
it would be better that they should be hove-to,
steady, and brought alongside more useful things,
safe in the harbour of knowledge ("
“Even during Dick's holidays, they both work hard
at their lessons in the morning,” replied his wife;
“and while they work, I try to keep their young
heads steady and attentive, and really intent upon
storing up as much useful information as possible,
that they may secure the all-important advantage of
a solid education. But the more careful I am that
they shall not think of anything else while they are
at study, the more anxious I am that they should
have plenty of amusement at other times—and no
amusement do they like so well as what they call ‘a
long story.’ While they work, let them work with their
whole souls, and when they play, let it be as º
The very nature of the narratives they will h
from your old friend, too, will form a judicious con-
trast to the matter-of-fact practical sort of acquire-
ments I have endeavoured to lead them to cultivate,
as being better fitted to their station in life than
mere flimsy accomplishments; and as I think the


KIT BAM, MARINER. 11
tendency of the present age (in which they will be
called upon to act their part) is perhaps rather too
strictly utilitarian in its nature, so this will be best
counteracted by the appeals to the imagination and
fancy that will be made by Kit's stories, which may
form a kind of introduction to the classical fictions
they will read by-and-bye. We are too apt, I think,
now-a-days, to heap upon bewildered childhood an
accumulation of dry facts, scientific scraps, and hard
information; which, ill-arranged, ill-digested, and
unrelieved by lighter matter, only serve to render
young people the prating, superficial, addle-brained
little pragmatists which they too frequently are. Let
them have sterling knowledge, by all means, but let
them have holiday of the mind too.”
“I think you are right in the main, my love,” said
the captain, smiling at his wife's warmth; “for though
I've often regretted that my early love of the sea and
a sailor's profession led me to neglect the opportunity
of learning while young, and so have been compelled
to blunder through life more of a dunce than you in
your wifely partiality would perhaps be willing to
allow, yet I have known some of the happiest mo-
ments of my existance from an ardent enjoyment of
nature, and a passionate love of the beautiful.”
“And if we too strictly exclude the cultivation of
the Imagination and Fancy in young people,” replied
his wife, “I am sure we deprive them of these very
sources of happiness you speak of “My mind to
me a kingdom is!' and surely the region of idea is
its most precious dominion. The poetry and ro-


12 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
mance of Thought are the best solace for daily toil,
and the surest refuge from the inevitable common-
places of every-day existence. I feel sure we shall
do well in permitting our children to take an interest
in all the wild tales and travellers' wonders of old Kit,
while we are careful at the same time to instil sound
principles, an earnest love of truth, and a veneration
for the light of Wisdom.”
“Very true,” said the captain. “Besides, Kit,
though a sailor and a wanderer, is anything but a
common man. His natural love of romance and ad-
venture gave a tone of sentiment and imagination to
his thoughts, and led him to observe and reflect upon
what he saw. He was always noted among us for a
lad extremely fond of reading, whenever he could find
time, and get hold of a book; and this, joined to his
naturally ardent fancy, his good simple heart, and his
strict sense of honour and moral worth, gave him a
cultivated and refined tone of mind very different
from what his station in life might lead one to expect.
Therefore, on the whole, I do not know but what his
society is the very thing we could desire for our chil-
dren; for, at the same time that he amuses their
fancy, and excites their love of the marvellous, he will
lead them to reflect, and draw a moral from most
of his narratives, wild and even mystical as they
may be.”
Meantime, the young Swallows reached the cot-
tage of their new-old friend. They found him com-
fortably seated in a wooden arm-chair near the
hearth (though, the season being early, there was no


KIT BAM, MARINER, 13
fire in the grate), with his legs stretched out at full
length and crossed easily over one another, his arms
folded, and his eyes glancing occasionally towards
the model of a ship that stood on a table in the
corner of the room, though they were more fre-
quently employed in gazing through the little cot-
tage-casement at the soft glories of the setting sun,
in which he seemed to read and revolve innumerable
memories of the past. Between his lips rested a
short pipe, from which he drew lazy puffs at long
intervals, as if rather from habit than actual enjoy-
ment; though now and then it became firmly
clenched between his teeth, as he murmured a
lengthened “Ah! —'m " and shook his head
slowly, and closed his eyes dreamily;-though when
they were open, they were keen, grey, piercing eyes,
and looked at the sunlight with as steady and un-
winking a gaze as an eagle's. But they wore a kind
and even tender expression as they suddenly fell
upon the figures of our two young friends as they
appeared at the open door, which was thrown back
to admit the sweet breath of the evening air, rich
with the odour of the flowers in the cottage garden.
“I hope we don't disturb you,” said Fanny, as she
stole softly to the old man's side; “but we know
you have some wonderful stories to tell, and we want
you to tell them to us, if you please; and you have
a good thinking face on now, and we hope you'll
begin directly, if you could be so good as to remem-
ber one—could you ? Would you, do you think, Mr.
Bam!” She said this with a childlike mixture of


14 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
eagerness and timidity, while she put her arms round
his large blue sleeve, and hugged it close and win-
ningly. The old mariner's face looked so pleasantly
towards her, as she urged her entreaty, that she could
not help letting her hand glide round his huge blue
collar, and rest for an instant on the bald spot at the
top of his head, and then drawing it caressingly down
his silver hairs, and smoothing his withered cheek,
marked with a thousand minute red lines, while her
own round rosy one crept nearer to it, she whispered
a repeated:—“Could you be so very kind, do you
think, Mr. Bam . "
“To be sure I will, my lass—my dear young lady!
Disturb me ! that you don't, my dears! Remember?
Of course I can—want of memory's not my failing.
But I say, my dear lass,” continued the old mariner
affectionately, “when you look in my eyes in that
way, with a smile so like your father's (God bless
him () just call me Kit, plain Kit, as he always does;
and not Mr. Bam, which sounds formal, and is more-
over a name I somehow never particularly liked.
What's your name, my man 2" added he turning to
her brother.
“Richard–Dick,” answered he.
“Ay, Dick that 's right ! your brave father's
name. Come and sit here in the corner, Dick, my
fine fellow; and you, my lass-what's your name :
Oh, Fanny ; come and perch close to me on the
other side.”
“But the story, Mr.—I mean, my darling old Kit;
won't you begin and tell us your story !” 2


KIT BAM, MARINER. 15
He smiled at her eagerness:– “I should begin, I
believe, by telling you, that though I was born in a
quiet little inland village, never boy had greater
hankering after a wandering life, or a more ardent
desire to go to sea. My longing to behold other
scenes, and take part in those active exertions that
engaged my fellow-creatures in the world beyond,
filled me with intolerable craving, and rendered the
monotony of our simple village existence insupport-
ably wearisome to me. Often did my father check
me for the repining spirit which this restless desire
for change engendered in me, and would exclaim in
the pity of a wiser experience: “Poor lad! thou
little know'st what thou wishest for l’ My mother
had a brother living at a small sea-port town about
forty miles' distance, on the nearest coast to the part
of the country where our village was situated; and
to this uncle's house I was once sent by my father,
not without a hope, I believe, that the rough usage
which he knew I should meet with there would have
the desired effect of sickening me of a town life, and
the wear and tear of the world, and so lead me to love
and return to my own quiet home. For this uncle
was a hard, money-loving man, and his wife was a
hard, money-loving woman, and, moreover, a shrew,
with a loud, shrill voice, fierce eyes, thin lips, and
bony arms, who thought the chief virtue of the mis-
tress of a house was to scold her servants for faults
they might possibly commit some time or other, and
to give them continual orders about work they were
at the moment doing.


16 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
“My uncle had persuaded my father to send me to
him, that he might “push my fortune, and give me a
lift in the world, instead of letting me rot in an out-
of-the-way village all my life,' as he expressed it; so he
proceeded to shew his ideas of promotion and worldly
advancement, by installing me, immediately on my
arrival, in the honourable post of errand-boy, in
which office were included the slight duties of clean-
ing knives, brushing boots and shoes, washing dishes,
chopping wood, drawing water, lighting fires, scrub-
bing floors, cleaning windows, taking down and
putting up the shop shutters, opening the door
(which, as my thrifty aunt-mistress let lodgings, was
a charge that kept me trotting up and down the
kitchen stairs like a canary-bird incessantly hopping
from perch to perch), carrying trays that were too
heavy for the bit of a girl who passed for the maid of
all-work to the establishment, running with letters,
parcels, and messages for the lodgers, besides occa-
sionally helping my uncle in his business, which was
that of a shoemaker.
“Of all these various duties there were none I per-
formed so willingly as those which in any way helped
to save my poor little fellow-servant, ‘the bit of a
girl' I spoke of She was a thin, hollow-eyed, pale-
faced creature, bleached and smoke-dried with per-
petual dwelling in a town air; and yet I thought her
pretty, from a meek, patient look she had. She
would fix her soft blue eyes with a sort of helpless
fascination on the flashing fierce ones of her mistress,
while she was giving her ‘a good set-down,' as she


KIT BAM, MARINER. 17
called it; and with her quivering lips, and submissively
imploring eyes, poor Molly would stand there to be
rated as “a good-for-nothing, idle slut,’ and ‘a bold-
faced staring minx, till my blood boiled with a sense
of wrong that all my own hardships failed to excite
in the like degree.
“And yet these hardships of my own were bad
enough. Coarse, and grudgingly-given food; in-
cessant labour; want of the pure country air, to which
I had been accustomed from infancy; brutal, unkind
usage; violent, abusive language; little or no rest—
for I was up early and down late: all these were
but harsh substitutes for the peaceful existence I had
hitherto led in my native village; where, if I worked
hard, it was in the fresh free air, and with those who
loved and fostered me. Still, these, my first rude
experiences of life from home, did not lead me to
wish for a return to that home. I longed, it is true,
to escape from this bondage, this miserable drudgery
(so doubly irksome to one of my peculiar disposition),
—but it was that I might wander forth to those
scenes which my fancy still portrayed to me as full
of joy, animation, and beauty. My only consolation
during those ten dreary months that I spent at my
uncle's were the few stolen opportunities I found of
devouring a book now and then, or of creeping down
to the sea-shore and indulging my visions about
those far distant lands, that lay stretched away be-
yond the ocean, and which my imagination painted
in the most vivid and alluring colours, Innumer-
able castles in the air did my boyish fancy build, of
C


18 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
taking my poor little gentle Molly away from her
thraldom, and of setting sail together for some de-
lightful island, where we might live happy and free
the livelong day, with no one to thwart or control
us. In those charming day-dreams I pictured her to
myself the queen of our beautiful solitude, wandering
hand in hand with me through shady groves, and
flowering thickets, and majestic woods, where the
birds should be our sole companions; and there, I
thought, her blue eyes would lose those dark rings
that encircled them—there her cheeks would become
dimpled and rosy, and her lips would smile instead of
tremble. Poor, meek, gentle Molly!”
Here Kit sighed and paused for a moment, then he
resumed:—“One morning poor Molly told me, with
tears in her eyes, that her mistress had bid her clean
the windows, and that she was afraid. “But I will do
them, said I, ‘that's always my job.' But she re-
minded me that I was going on an errand to a place
at some little distance from the town that day for my
uncle, and, therefore, her mistress insisted that as I
could not do them, Molly should; as nothing would
induce her to put off the regular day for cleaning the
windows. I comforted her as well as I could, assur-
ing her that I would make the utmost haste, so that
I might be back in time, to prevent her doing what
she so much dreaded. But everything that unhappy
day was fated to turn out in misery. I was detained
late by my uncle before I set out—I was detained at
the house to which I was sent—I was detained on my
road back by an accident which nearly ended in a


KIT BAM, MARINER. 19
child being run over. I had scarcely helped to rescue
the infant from its dangerous vicinity to the wheels
of the cart, and seen it safely placed in its mother's
arms, when I resumed the quick pace which I hoped
would still enable me to return in time. I reached
the entrance to the town; I turned into the street
where my uncle lived; but I had scarcely done so,
when I perceived a large crowd assembled before his
house, who surrounded something that lay upon the
pavement. I will not pain your tender hearts, my
dears, by dwelling upon the horror of that moment;
suffice it to say, that on making my way through
the crowd, I found my poor Molly stretched upon
the ground, bleeding and lifeless! Her cruel mis-
tress had insisted upon her getting outside the upper
window to clean it; the poor girl had missed her
footing; she fell, and was killed upon the spot. As
I approached they were lifting her from the earth
tenderly, and conveying her into the house. Her
cap had fallen off, and her comb dropped from her
long hair upon the pavement. I picked it up mecha-
nically, and followed those who were bearing the
body like one in a fearful dream. I scarcely heard
my uncle's voice, though he was storming loudly as I
entered the shop. I found, a few minutes afterwards,
that he was raving at me for my having loitered so
long on my errand; but I stared at him, with dry
eyes and a parched mouth, for some time without
making out the sense of what he was talking about.
At length he drew a letter from his pocket, saying:—
“But here's what releases me from all farther care


20 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
of you, you lazy lout, you; your father's dying, and
you are to go home to your mother; she sent me this
letter to say so this morning; so pack up your alls,
and begone ! Off with you at once, and good rid-
dance of bad rubbish! Nothing but plagues and
troubles in this world, I do think!’ As he finished
speaking, he took up his work again; and I, merely
repeating (in a tone which I could not think
of afterwards without shuddering), ‘your father's
dying, and you are to go home to your mother,'
turned round, and went out of the shop. I re-
member shivering, and feeling a sharp pain shoot
through my limbs, as I passed close to the spot where
my poor Molly had lain dead so lately. I remember
looking vacantly at her comb, which remained uncon-
sciously clutched in my fingers; and I remember
something of walking through the streets, and taking
the road which led across the country towards my
village home, and which happened to be the same I
had traversed in the morning on my luckless errand;
but I recollect nothing else till I found myself lean-
ing heavily and faintly against the parapet of a little
bridge that crossed the road near where the accident
had happened to the child that morning. How long
I remained thus I do not know, but the first thing I
was conscious of, was a pair of little chubby bare
arms clinging round my neck, and a voice saying:
‘Ay, kiss him, and hug him, and love him, Billy, for
he saved your life this morning, that he did!' I
looked up, and found it was the poor woman with her
child, who was so nearly run over, and whom she was


KIT BAM, MARINER. 21
holding close to me that he might thank me in his
baby way. I verily believe the poor little infant re-
turned me life for life at that moment, and was an
instrument in the hands of Providence for bringing
relief to my overburthened heart, for I burst into
tears, and thus found vent for the grief and sorrow
that had struck me such cruel blows in the death
of my poor Molly, and my father's danger, and
had made me unable to shed one tear until that
time.
“Seeing me ill and sorrowful, the kind woman took
me into her cottage, which was close by, where she
gave me some food, and made me lie down upon her
bed for a couple of hours, telling me that even if I
could not sleep, it would be better to take some rest,
as I should set out on my journey all the stronger
for it. But heaven sent the blessing of sleep to
support the poor boy in his early trouble, and I did
not awake till the afternoon, when my kind friend
told me she had thought of a good plan for me, which
was no other than to get a lift in the waggon that
would pass by, before evening, on its way to the
part of the country where our village was situated.
She knew the waggoner, she said, and she would
speak to him for me, and tell him how well I de-
served help. Well, my dears, I reached home, but it
was too late My father had died of the fever that
he had taken suddenly, and I found that my poor
mother was rapidly sinking under the same disease;
which, joined to the fatigue and anxiety of nursing
him, carried her off in three days after my return, so


22 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
that in the course of one week I followed both pa-
rents to their graves. Nothing consoled me so well
under the grief I suffered for their loss, as the recol-
lection that I had never yielded to my ardent desire
to become a sailor while they lived; but now that
they were gone, and I had no tie to bind me to
home, my old longing for the sea returned with greater
force than ever. To my desire for wandering, was
now added a disgust towards the land that amounted
to loathing. I thought that those who spoke of the
perils and dangers of the ocean, strangely overlooked
the equal risks that existed on the shore. Had I not
lost my dear and only friends by violent and painful
deaths though they had never stirred abroad? As
my thoughts dwelt in horror upon the mangled form
of my poor Molly, and the fevered sufferings of my
dear parents, I asked myself whether winds, and
waves, and stormy shipwrecks, could have worse ter-
rors. Again, the vision of the sea, the vast, the
boundless ocean, arose to my imagination, as the only
free and unlimited range for man's spirit, and I .
yielded to my insatiable craving, by setting forth the
very next day on my voyage of life.
“I have already kept you so long, my dears, talk-
ing of my early sorrows, that I shall not stay to tell
you all the particulars of my difficulties in getting a
berth on board a ship; suffice it to say, that I did at
last contrive to obtain one, and was likewise so fortu-
nate as to find my captain and shipmates as kind a
master and as pleasant companions as ever fell to the
lot of a poor cabin-boy on first going to Sea. It will


KIT BAM, MARINER. 23
frequently happen in the course of my after adven-
tures, that I shall have to allude to the early friends
I made among the crew, in that first cruise of mine,
but I shall not stop to describe them now, as it is
getting nearly time for you to return home, and I
want to tell you a bit of a yarn before you go, that
you mayn't think all my adventures are as melan-
choly as those of my childhood were.
“In one of my wanderings—it was some time after
my first voyage—I was sent ashore, with another
sailor and a young boy, by the captain, to get a sup-
ply of fresh water. The latitudes we were in then,
being very hot, and the atmosphere very stifling, we
had been for some days greatly distressed on board
ship for the want of this important provision, so that
it became absolutely necessary to seek water, notwith-
standing there was some risk in so doing. Many of the
men had demurred when the captain had first talked
of landing—others had evaded the task—and all had
muttered hints of dread and dislike of this place,
though it was fair and inviting to all appearance,—
saying it was as well to perish of thirst at sea, as to
tempt a still more horrible fate on this shore, from
which no one was ever known to return. My natural
love of adventure, and my usual habit of obedience,
however, made me at once accept the task, when the
captain selected me for the purpose; and one of the
least cowardly of the other sailors and the boy having
been appointed to accompany me, we accordingly
lowered the boat and rowed to land, which in itself
certainly presented anything but a hostile aspect.


24. THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
Trees, of the most beautiful shape and foliage,
stretched forth their palmy branches with assurance
of a cooling and luxurious shade; the sands, over
which the waves rippled in gentle undulation, were
of the most dazzling whiteness, and were strewed with
innumerable shells of the most vivid colour and varied
form; birds, of bright and glowing plumage, glanced
from tree to tree, uttering melodious cooings, inter-
mingled with gay outbursts of joyous thrilling song;
and the grass, which lay like a soft green carpet be-
neath the trees beyond the sands, was sown with a
thousand many-coloured flowers; while a sparkling
stream of clear water flowed like a silver thread
through the brilliant landscape, affording the most
delicious promise of the needed refreshment. My
two companions, on beholding this rivulet, forgot their
fears, and pushing the boat gently aground, sprang
ashore, and ran to enjoy the desired draught, heedless
of my earnest entreaties that they would stay to help
me take the casks out of the boat. Knowing the
anxiety of the captain to secure the desired supply,
and the extreme state of suffering to which the crew
were reduced from its want, as well as having the
habit of always punctually observing the old rule of
‘duty first and pleasure afterwards,' I remained stea-
dily at my post; lifting out the casks and vessels we
had brought with us, as well as I could by myself,
though not without some impatience at my compa-
nions' desertion. I have never in my life, my dears,
had reason to repent my adherence to the rule I spoke
of just now, which should form a chief one in the con-


KIT BAM, MARINER. 25
duct of everybody, particularly in that of a sailor; but
in the instance I am now relating, it was of singular
service to me. Just as I had succeeded in rolling
one of the casks ashore, I raised my head towards my
companions, with the intention of calling to them
again to come and help me, when I was struck with
terror and indescribable dismay at what I beheld.
The sailor had gained considerably on the steps of the
young boy, and had preceded him by some minutes
in arriving at the brink of the beautiful streamlet.
Here he had thrown himself down in all the rash
eagerness of ardent thirst, and had swallowed several
long draughts of the tempting liquid, when, on rising
from the ground with a gesture of luxurious satisfac-
tion, and while I almost seemed to hear the sigh with
which he yielded himself to the exquisite enjoyment
of allayed thirst, I saw him no longer-he had va-
nished entirely from my wondering eyes! I placed
my hands involuntarily before them for an instant,
and then again strained them in the endeavour to
make out this marvellous disappearance. In vain
the man had totally vanished from the scene. The
spot where he had stood an instant before, and where
he had intercepted my view of the fatal rivulet, was
utterly vacant; and there was no oné to be seen but
the advancing boy, who, struck like myself by the
miraculous disappearance of his comrade, had halted
for a moment in consternation, but was now hastening
forward again. I shouted to him to return—I im-
plored—I threatened; but to no purpose. Goaded
alike by his amazement, his curiosity, and his raging


26 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
thirst, he speeded on to the fatal brink, as if fasci-
nated to his destruction; and, to my unspeakable
horror, I beheld him share the same fate as his
companion
“Whether they faded into the air, whether they
merged into the shining water beside them, or whether
they sunk into the earth beneath their feet, I was
equally unable to determine, and all my efforts to
discover the actual cause of their unhappy doom
were unavailing. I could not, however, fail to con-
nect their fate with the mysterious rivulet, and,
though parched with thirst, and ready to sink with
exhaustion,-the result of my terror and exposure
to the noon-day sun, I firmly resolved I would not
yield to the sort of fascination which I was sensible
was fast creeping over me, and urging me to go and
drink also ; but, turning my eyes resolutely away
from the tempting shore and alluring stream, I looked
in the direction of the ship, determining to row back
to her immediately, while I had strength and courage
left. These, however, had very nearly forsaken me
altogether when I discovered that the ship was
rapidly receding from my view, and that she was, in
fact, making all sail away from this dangerous and
dreaded place. Giving myself up for lost, I uttered
a cry of agony and sunk on the sands in despair;
when, reflecting on the weakness and folly of such
self-abandonment, I summoned sufficient energy to
crawl beneath the shade of one of the spreading
palm-trees, where, stretched on the velvet turf, I
could yield with greater safety to the overwhelming


KIT BAM, MARINER. 27
drowsiness and stupor which was stealing over my
senses. My sleep, however, was fevered and rest-
less. Visions of delicious cool draughts tantalizingly
held to my parched lips, and snatched away at the
moment of enjoyment, tortured and disturbed my
repose. I beheld translucent waves within an inch
of bathing my feet; I saw showers of silver spray
burst in a thousand sparkling drops just a hand's-
breadth from my aching brow; I vainly struggled to
plunge my burning hands into a crystal vase that
seemed placed but a pace or two from the tree beneath
which I lay; but, as I eagerly pressed forward to
seize it, it eluded my grasp, and, assuming the form of
the departing ship, seemed to vanish in a double mock-
ery, which so stung and maddened me that I started
and awoke with a deep groan. On unclosing my
eyes, the first object they encountered was a human
face hanging over me with an expression of interest
and wonder; and, springing up to be on my guard, I
found it belonged to a short queer little being about
three feet high, who began making a series of sharp
quick bows, strutting hither and thither, laying his
hand on his breast, winking his eyes, and chattering
very fast, though unintelligibly; but this, joined to
his gestures, which were anything but uncourteous,
inspired me with a feeling of the ludicrous rather
than of the terrible, so that I soon concluded that I
had nothing to fear, especially as the creature's size
rendered him no very formidable antagonist, even
should he prove himself to be one instead of a friend.
“Trusting, therefore, to these conclusions, I made


28 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
signs to him that I was perishing with thirst, and
that I entreated him to help me to some means of
allaying the fever that consumed me; when he
stepped forward, and, nodding consequentially, twice
or thrice, he took me by the hand,-which he con-
trived to do with a very patronizing air, notwith-
standing the difference in our height, and led me
from the spot. But what was my consternation,
when I found that he was leading me towards the
fatal streamlet; and how quickly did all my first
misgivings of him revive, when I found that this
abominable little dwarf actually made signs to me
that I should drink. I started back in abhorrence,
and was just about to give way to my desire to punish
him for his treachery, by pitching him into the water
head foremost, when I reflected that, as he was the
only creature I had met with in this apparently unin-
habited region, I absolutely depended on him for
assistance and relief, and that I had better not de-
stroy him till I had tried whether I could not make
him of use to me.
“I accordingly made signs to him that he should
drink first, which, however, he immediately declined
by stepping back, laying his hand on his breast as
before, with innumerable jerking bows, sharp twink-
lings of his eyes, and a profusion of grimace and
chattering. He then pointed to a tree at a little
distance, on which grew several clusters of a ruddy
juicy-looking fruit, and, perceiving that I hesitated,
he ran towards it, and, making a sudden and agile
spring, he succeeded in plucking down a branch, and


KIT BAM, MARINER. 29
gathered three or four of the finest-looking, which he
immediately proceeded to eat, nodding and smiling
and winking at me all the while with a sly sagacious
leer of triumph and encouragement.
“The sight of this delicious fruit, which streamed
with juice as the dwarf opened and sucked it, was
irresistibly tempting to me; and, satisfied with the
precaution I had taken, I recklessly seized some, and
buried my dry, parched lips in the rosy refreshment.
No bad effects, however, followed my rash act; on
the contrary, the cool, pulpy repast quite invigorated
me, and I felt not only my strength repaired and my
spirits revived, but my confidence in my diminutive
acquaintance was partially restored, by the pleasant
meal he had been the means of procuring for me.
“I accordingly advanced towards him, and shook
him heartily by the hand, as the best means of ex-
pressing to him my good faith; this salutation he
received with his usual struts, shrugs, and grimaces,
and ended by standing on tiptoe and endeavouring to
hit me a smart slap on the back, which friendly effort
falling short, only produced a feeble tap on the edge
of my blue jacket.
“However, he seemed to feel that amity was now
re-established between us, and so, taking me by the
hand again, which he did by placing his little fingers
round mine, in the same style of protection and sus-
taining care with which a nursery-maid would lead
along her young charge, he conducted me under the
trees, along the smooth grass, and then across a field
or two, where, to my surprise, I saw wheat growing


30 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
with all the signs of cultivation and human care.
Beyond these fields, I beheld a hut rudely built, but
surrounded by a garden and an orchard, and bearing
marks of order and habitation. But what made me
look at this hut with peculiar attention, was its re-
markable size, and the large proportions of its doors,
windows, and general dimensions. I had no sooner
remarked this, and had concluded from that very cir-
cumstance that it could not be the residence of my
diminutive guide, than I perceived that he was conduct-
ing me straight towards the garden-gate, through
which we immediately passed, and soon after found
ourselves standing before the tall door of the hut. The
dwarf, still clutching my hand, stepped up upon the
door-sill, stood on tiptoe, strained his little person to
the utmost, and succeeded in lifting the huge knocker
with the tips of his finger-nails, letting it drop again
with a ponderous single knock, which somehow fell
upon my heart like a note of evil warning.
“I had hardly time to reflect upon this, and to
entertain thoughts of extricating my hand from the
dwarf's grasp, which, though small, was as tight as a
vice, when the door was opened by a figure that made
my heart quail with dread.
“It was that of a monster some eight or nine feet
high, who glared at us with red flaming eyes, set
round with flaxen lashes, and brows that gave a
strange, weak, silly look to his great features; and
his wide nose and big mouth gaped horribly as he
smiled a ghastly welcome, and displayed enormous
gums, as red, and almost as thick, as beet-roots.


KIT BAM, MARINER. 31
“I shuddered, and closed my eyes involuntarily;
but when I opened them again, and would have re-
treated, I found the door made fast behind me, and
that I was in the hut with the malicious dwarf and
the terrible giant.
“The two were soon engaged in a vehement con-
versation, of which I immediately guessed I was the
object, from the frequent glances that they each
directed towards me; but it was not long before I
found I had more to dread from the polite attentions
of the detestable little dwarf, with his eternal bowings
and scrapings, than from the mighty arm of the giant,
who had filled me with such terror by his frightful
eyes and vast grinning gums. At one period of their
conference, when the dwarf became exceeding wroth,
and was making as if he would rush towards me, the
giant suddenly and effectually stopped him by put-
ting his forefinger on the top of his head; and at
last, finding, I suppose, that it was hopeless arguing
the point any longer with his obstinate little comrade,
he ended the dispute by opening a door and poking
me into a side room, where, upon recovering my
breath from the force of the giant's push (which,
though doubtless intended for a gentle one, was suffi-
ciently powerful to fling me down upon my hands and
knees into a corner), I found myself a close prisoner,
without a hope of escape. The door was fast locked,
and the window, being accommodated to the giant's
height, was far above my head; and, moreover, there
was no chair or table by which I could hope to climb
up to it, and endeavour to make my way out. In-


32 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
deed, there was no furniture of any kind in the apart-
ment, which seemed to be used as a sort of store-room
to the farm—if farm the hut could be called,—for on
all sides were ranged high shelves, on which lay pro-
visions of many kinds, such as loaves, butter, cheese,
eggs, and several sorts of fruits, among which I
perceived some of those delicious, juicy, rosy-cheeks
that I had enjoyed so much soon after my first meet-
ing with the hated dwarf.
“The peril of my situation, and the dread of in-
censing still further those creatures in whose power
I now so completely was, could not prevent my feeling
the pangs of hunger and thirst to so violent a degree
that the sight of these stores high above my reach
filled me with insupportable longings, and made even
my desire of escape yield to the immediate wish to
obtain some of this tempting food.
“Inspired by this ardent craving, I seized off my
hat and flung it up at one of the shelves, in the hope
of sweeping down some of the good things with it :
but alas! it only brought down one of the rosy-
'cheeks, and an egg, which latter, of course, was
smashed to bits by the fall; and what was worse, my
hat had pitched right on to the shelf, and remained
there. However, I made the best of my misfortune,
by devouring the fruit and draining every drop of
the juice it contained; but I had hardly knelt down
upon the floor, carefully endeavouring to sip a little
of the yoke from the broken egg, before I heard the
key turn softly in the door, and in an instant after
beheld the broad round face of the grinning giant,


KIT BAM, MARINER. 33
peering in at me. I was about to start up with a
cry of alarm and entreaty, when I perceived that the
big monster was making signs to me to be quiet; and
at the same time pointing over his shoulder stealthily
with the huge thumb of his other hand.
“I remained perfectly still; upon which he ad-
vanced into the room; and, coming towards me, he
perceived the remains of the shattered egg, and then
glancing up, he discovered on the shelf my unfortu-
nate hat, which plainly betrayed the source of the
accident. To my great surprise, however, and no
less relief, he took up the offending missile with a
smile of pity, as if he understood and commiserated
the hunger which had driven me to this expedient
for obtaining food; and then, placing it with would-
be gentleness on my head-though the weight of his
descending hand, as he playfully patted it on, nearly
stunned me, he proceeded to break open two loaves,
and placing a pat of butter and a lump of cheese
within them, between the crumb, he thrust them
hastily into my hands, and strode back to the door,
beckoning me to follow him silently. This I did, of
course, and entering the same room I had been in
before, on first coming to the hut, I saw the remains
of a repast spread on the table, at one end of which
sat the dwarf, reclining in an arm-chair, with a half.
emptied goblet of wine before him, his tooth-pick in
his hand, his mouth open, his head thrown back, and
his eyes closed in a profound slumber. The friendly
giant led me past this sleeping enemy; and I had hard-
ly time to wonder within myself at all this deferential
D


34 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
observance on the part of this strong creature towards
one whom one blow of his huge fist would have an-
nihilated in an instant, when I found that we had
proceeded through the door of the hut, and were
making our way across the garden towards the orchard.
I felt almost as much perplexity as gratitude at the
conduct of the giant, for I could not account for his
generosity towards me, and even doubted now that
he was really aiding me to escape, so forbidding was
his aspect, and so at variance was his terrible ap-
pearance with his kind demeanour. But I soon had
a convincing proof of the real goodness of his inten-
tions towards me; for, seeing a brook running be-
neath the hedge which formed the boundary between
the garden and the orchard, I was stooping down to
assuage the thirst which still tormented me, when
the giant suddenly snatched me by the shoulder, and
forcibly upheld me and prevented my drinking, while
his vehement gestures and eager expression of coun-
tenance warned me to forbear. In an instant the
truth flashed upon me;—it was the fatal stream |
The same rivulet whose pernicious waters had doomed
my comrades to destruction before my eyes that very
morning. I drew back in dismay; and, struck with
the conviction of my friendly giant's genuine bene-
volence, I seized his immense hand between both
mine.and pressed it fervently to my lips. He seemed
pleased with this token of my gratitude; then, lead-
ing me back a few paces towards a well that stood in
the garden, he drew for me a bucket of the delicious
element, and watched me with grim benignity, while


36 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
in which I had been misled and deceived throughout
by appearances, I could never recur in imagination
to that spot without naming it in fancy the Island of
False Appearances. But it is getting late, my dear
young people,” said Kit, interrupting himself; “and
though it is very pleasant chatting away to you of old
adventures, yet I must leave off now, lest we should
not be allowed to spin yarns together any more.”
“Good-bye, then, dear Kit,” said Fanny, affection-
ately; “we shall be sure to come again to-morrow
evening for another story;—and you'll tell us one,
won't you?”
The old man nodded a smiling assent, and the two
young folks returned home at a pace that betokened
light and happy hearts.


KIT BAM, MARINER. 37
CHAPTER II.
KIT's SECOND YARN.— His SHIP-MATE, JOHN PAUL.— THE
RAINBOW AND THE GOLDEN KEY. —THE ROCKY WALLEY.-
THE OCEAN OF IMAGINATION.--THE LONE MOTHER AND
CHILD.
“Now then, my dear Kit!” exclaimed Fanny, as
she and her brother bounced into the old mariner's
cottage on the following evening, “now then, for
another yarn . But, in the first place, I want you to
tell me all about the very first adventure you ever
had. What was the first strange event that ever
happened to you? And how old were you?”
“Oh, but first, Fanny, I want Kit to finish his yarn
about the Island of Appearances,” said Dick, “and to
tell us how he managed after he had got away from
the wicked dwarf and the amiable giant.”
“Well, but which of you am I to obey” said Kit
laughing, “I can't do what you both wish at once,
can I ?”
“Then tell Dick what he wishes,—he's the eldest;”
“tell Fanny what she wishes, she's the youngest;”
exclaimed both the young Swallows in a breath.
“You are both good,” said the old man, smiling,
“to be so willing to give up to each other; but per-
haps “eldest’ or ‘youngest’ are bad reasons. If a


38 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
lad's given up to because he's the eldest, it's only
adding another chance to the usual ones that he is
made a selfish domineering man by the over-indul-
gence of his mother and sisters; and if a girl is given
up to because she's the youngest, it's only teaching
her to be more exacting and whimsical than younger
ones are apt to be. However, I'll give your sister
her way this time, Dick, my friend, for a reason that
I don't know is much wiser than the one you thought
of, but which will do for us two, because we’re gal-
lant men, arn’t we ? We'll give Fanny her wish,
because she's a woman, eh? shall we ?” -
The young folks laughed merrily, and then, Kit,
nodding and laughing too, began his second yarn.
“My first strange adventure happened to me as I
was returning from my first voyage with that plea-
sant ship's company that I mentioned to you yester-
day. It was a calm afternoon; the weather had been
serene and beautiful for many days; we were sailing
on a smooth sea, with only just breeze enough to
send us merrily on. The captain was in his cabin
enjoying his cigar and his glass of grog after mess;
the sailors were all grouped lazily about, either chat-
ting to each other in quiet talk, or lolling idly on
different parts of the deck half dozing, or perhaps
thinking, for there was nothing particular to do, and
all hands were at ease. I was hanging listlessly over
the side, watching the rippling waves as they danced
and sparkled beneath my eyes, while my thoughts
were in that state half idle, half employed, which I
believe some people call musing. My fancy care-


2
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—t
/?,
º





KIT BAM, MARINER. 39
lessly wandered over some of the early scenes of my
infancy, when, quite a child, I had toddled about the
floor of our small cottage watching my mother en-
gaged about some household work; insignificant
trifles floated indistinctly to and fro before me; I saw
the sanded hearth, and the deal tables and chairs
snow-white with my mother's housewifely care; I
heard the wooden clock tick, and the cat pur, and
even the clatter of the tea-cups and saucers as they
were ranged on the board for our evening meal.
These slight home-fancies were succeeded, or rather
crossed and chequered by curious things that had
been told me at different times by some of my favo-
rite ship-mates-Will Wavelance, Geoffry Tabard,
John Paul, Edmund Faery, and others, who would
spin yarns by the hour together, when any one of
them and I kept watch together. Well, I can't tell
how it was, I could not make it out at the time,
and I can't even now say exactly how it happened,
—but in the midst of this dreamy state, I suddenly
found myself plunging and flouncing in the open
sea, and buffeting with the waves for dear life. I
suppose I must have lost my hold, and slipped over
the side while I was wandering and wool-gathering
among all that cross-fire of fancies and odd notions,
—but however, there I was sure enough; and what
was worse, I could not swim fast enough to gain upon
the ship, and no one on board seemed to be aware of
my having fallen overboard, nor could I make them
hear my cries, shout and bawl as I would, and pretty
lustily I did that, you may be sure. Fortunately I


40 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
was a good swimmer; and, though my heart sank
within me when I found that I could neither over-
take the ship, nor make the crew hear me, yet still it
did not fail me altogether, and I swam on with toler-
able courage for some time, knowing that I could
not be very far from land, which we had seen at in-
tervals for some days past, as if it were the coast of
some large continent. At length I became conscious
that my power would soon be exhausted, and I cast
about eagerly in my mind how I could best husband
it, to enable me to reach land in safety. I remem-
bered hearing, that if you could but hold yourself
perfectly still in the water, and allow yourself to lie
flat on your back, you might float with ease and
safety. I contrived carefully to assume this position,
and the weather being calm, and the tide flowing in,
they favoured my endeavours, and it was not long
before I found myself gently drifting right on to the
desired land, which proved to be a shelving, sandy
shore, and very convenient for my purpose. I had
no sooner effected my safe landing than I threw my-
self on my knees and returned heartfelt thanks to
God for my preservation; and then, having allowed
myself half an hour's rest after my toilsome swim-
ming, I proceeded to explore the place where I was,
and to find out whether it would not afford some
means of satisfying the hunger, of which I began
to feel sensible.
“The country was fertile and beautiful, but there
were no marks of habitation, and the few birds and
animals I met with were so little alarmed by my ap-


KIT BAM, MARINER. 41
pearance, that I felt convinced they had no human
beings to dread. Though this relieved me from fear
of meeting with savages or other foes, yet it consi-
derably lessened my hope of finding any means of
assuaging my growing appetite for food. As I
walked on, my attention was attracted by the ma-
noeuvres of a bee, that was wrestling in the cup of a
beautiful bell-shaped flower, and seemed to be almost
unable to extricate himself, either clogged by the
weight of wax he had collected, or detained by the
sticky nature of the petals of the flower on which he
walked, or rather stumbled along buzzingly. I stop-
ped to help him out of his uncomfortable strait, and
I soon had the pleasure of seeing him dart away in a
hurried manner, as if he thought he had better
return home in case of a change of weather. He
did not fly far, however, for I saw him settle on a
neighbouring tree, where he went straight to a small
crevice in one of the lower branches, and crept in
with his load. If I could but help myself to a little
of that wild bee's store, thought I, in return for the
service I have just rendered him! A feast of honey
would be no bad thing ! I went towards the tree,
and, with a little climbing, soon reached the branch;
which, as I conjectured, contained the bee's nest,
with a considerable store of honey. Indeed, I was
soon convinced that all this large collection was not
owing to the industry of my little friend alone, for
out flew a dozen or more of his hive-mates, as soon
as I had helped myself to a handful of their store.
Whether my little friend, the bee, had prepossessed


42 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
his companions in my favour, by having informed
them of the assistance I had just given him, or
whether they were naturally hospitable, and willing
that I should enjoy a share of their good things, I
know not; but certain it is, that they left me per-
fectly unmolested; and I, rejoiced to be spared an
attack of their stings, sat at my ease in the tree,
enjoying my feast, which was soon enhanced by my
pulling off some of the cones or pods which grew on
the boughs near me, and, finding that they contained
a sort of floury substance very like wheat;-so that
I do not know that I ever eat a better treat of bread
and honey in all my life.
“The scene was beautiful—my meal was pleasant,
and seasoned by that best of sauces, hunger—my
heart was light with the feeling of recent deliverance
from peril–and I gave myself up to the pleasurable
feeling of the moment, without suffering myself to
be depressed by the thought of any coming evil that
might possibly be in store for me. Even the uncer-
tainty of food and lodging for the night, I would not
permit to interfere and perplex me then; and I have
frequently had reason, my dears, to be thankful to
the Almighty for having blessed me with this happy
temper of mine—a power of enjoying the passing
good, without meeting a coming misfortune half way.
“Presently I had cause to admire that keen fore-
knowledge of weather which my friend the bee had
shewn himself to possess in common with all his.
tribe; for, as I sat dangling my feet from my com-
fortable perch on the branch, and enjoying myself as


44 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
the rainbow. It was John Paul—I believe he had
Some other name — some surname — but I never
heard him called anything but John Paul among our
crew. Well, once when we stood together at the
ship's prow admiring a majestic rainbow that lay
across the heavens before us, John Paul told me that
he had heard it frequently affirmed in his native
land, Germany, that on the spot where the rainbow
rises, a golden key is to be found. Now, I thought
of this; now that I felt in the very centre of the
rainbow itself, as it were, I thought of this tale of the
spot where it rises, and of the golden key, and I won-
dered whether I was not actually on the very place
indicated.
“I looked vaguely on the ground, with certainly
but a very faint idea of seeing my hope realized,
when what was my astonishment to behold lying on
the grass at a few paces from me, a golden key ! I
started forward and seized my prize eagerly, and in-
deed such was the joy that took possession of me
as I gazed on it with wonder and admiration at its
richness and beautiful shape, that I could scarcely
forbear clasping it to my heart, or pressing it to my
lips. It was a strange indescribable rapture that I
felt as I examined this new-found treasure again and
again. A sort of unaccountable transport glowed in
my heart, and made my veins thrill with glad ecstasy.
And yet I knew not why I should be so delighted
with the discovery of this key ! I have said it was
rich, and of a beautiful shape. It was so, for it was
of gold, and its wards were formed of graceful lines


KIT BAM, MARINER. 45
and curves, that delighted the eye by their variety and
harmonious proportion. Still, singular to say, it was
extremely simple withal, and I believe that it was this
extreme simplicity, joined to its magic beauty, that
filled me with such wild and almost absurd admira-
tion. My next feeling was one of wonder to what
or to where it belonged. Did it open some mysteri-
ous castle : Did it make fast some concealed trea-
sure, of which I was to be the fortunate discoverer?
Did it close in some crime from the eye of day ! or
did it withhold from the light some wondrous know-
ledge 2
“I was recalled from my reverie about the key by
perceiving that the shades of evening were gradually
stealing over the landscape, and that I must speedily
make up my mind as to what I had best do for a
berth to sleep in. Not a trace of hut, cabin, or
habitation of any kind was there to be seen, and the
hills were too distant for me to hope to be able to
reach them in time for me to find a cave to sleep in.
At length I resolved to climb up again into my
friendly tree which had already afforded me such
excellent shelter; so after having sought about till
I found some berries on a bush near at hand, I made
a tolerably hearty supper on these, as I did not wish
to tax the hospitality of my friends the bees too
heavily, and then I went to bed, with the best cheer
I might. I had no sooner fallen asleep, however,
than my dreams took the colour of the events which
had so lately occupied my waking thoughts, I
fancied that I was still in the lonely spot where I


46 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
had found the golden key, and that I sat on a grassy
mound intently gazing upon it, while I revolved all
the questions concerning its shape and purpose which
had recently perplexed me.
“As I gazed, methought I was sensible of an in-
creased brilliancy in the rainbow-tinted atmosphere
that still suffused every surrounding object, and on
raising my head to discover the cause, my eyes en-
countered those of a being who was gazing on me
with an aspect of benign encouragement.
“Its figure was that of a young seraph, and was
robed in a garment of shining white. Two curious
wings, of vivid and varied hue, sprung from his shoul-
ders; his limbs were of the most graceful mould, and
bespoke strength and swiftness, combined with deli-
cacy; while the exquisite features that composed his
countenance shone with a radiant expression of good-
ness, intelligence, and happiness, that were more than
mortal. As I looked up to this lustrous stranger
with respectful admiration and attention, his lips
parted with a serene Smile, and he spoke with a voice
of silver sweetness. -
“‘Happy human being !” said the vision; ‘you
hold in your hand the means of a beatitude seldom
attained in perfection by your race. It is within the
reach of almost all; and yet how few are the happy
ones who resolutely stretch forth their hand to seize
the blessings contained in its dominion. Even you,
mortal, are ignorant of its value; you know not how
to use the means actually within your power—in
your very grasp !’


KIT BAM, MARINER. 47
“The figure glanced at the key I held in my hand,
and continued:—“That key, rightly used, conveys to
the owner unbounded wealth, exhaustless treasures, in
realms apart from the common haunts of men. But
beware of seeking these riches sordidly, or with an
unhallowed motive; the key will never turn, the lock
will never yield. That key, in the hands of one with
a pure heart and clear brain, renders him more po-
tent than a monarch, more mighty than an emperor,
and possessing more rule over his fellow-men than a
conqueror at the head of a vast army. That key,
truly applied, lets in the free light of heaven to the
deepest and darkest dungeon that ever disgraced the
earth, and leads forth the closest prisoner that ever
pined for life and liberty. Bright, and with honest
mastery, that key discloses exalted and infinite bless-
ings;–rusty, consigned to neglect, or, worse than all,
misused, it becomes a blight and a withering curse to
its possessor.”
“I shuddered; the voice ceased; I recovered, and
looked up; but, alas! the vision had departed, and
left me uninstructed as to the way in which I was to
set about gaining the requisite knowledge as owner
of the key. The pang of disappointment I endured
gave me such pain, that I awoke with a start. I
found the dawn just breaking, and the chill of the
morning air so benumbed my limbs, that I was glad
to descend from my tree couch, and try what exercise
would do towards restoring warmth and vigour to
them. I walked sharply forward then, in the direc-
tion of the hills, and soon I found the motion bring


48 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
not only elasticity to my frame, but comfort and
animation to my spirits, which had been somewhat
depressed by the baffling dream; so that by the time
the sun rose in all his majesty, I was in a fit state of
energetic resolve and buoyant hope, to pay him my
morning salutation, and to offer up my devotions to
the bountiful Creator of all good, with a grateful and
trusting spirit. By the time I reached the hills, my
appetite, sharpened by early exercise, warned me that
I was quite ready for breakfast, and bade me look
keenly in search of something that might supply me
with one. From a slight rift in a gentle eminence
a little further on, all overhung with flowering shrubs
and drooping brambles, and floating garlands of a
kind of wild honeysuckle, I saw a little rill trickling
forth; and I was just admiring this natural fountain,
and congratulating myself on this pleasant substi-
tute for tea or coffee after a long morning's walk,
when, peering about in its neighbourhood for a seat
where I might rest myself while I enjoyed a cool
draught of the refreshing beverage, I suddenly found
I had scared a flock of birds, something like our plo-
vers. They rose in a body into the air at my abrupt
appearance, though they evidently did not fear me
much, as they settled again very shortly, and not
far off.
“On approaching the spot whence they had risen,
and which was a sort of sheltered grassy nook not far
from the fountain, I found to my great joy a number
of eggs, scattered about in clusters here and there,
which made me guess that these creatures used this


KIT BAM, MARINER. 49
pleasant spot as a sort of general nest for their com-
munity. You may imagine I did not scruple to help
myself to some of their treasure, and a very excel-
lent meal of eggs and spring-water did I make. After
breakfast I resumed my journey, and about ten
o'clock, as I guessed by the sun, I had surmounted
the chain of hills. On descending the other side,
I found myself in a rocky valley, wild and desolate
beyond description. There was a sort of dull leaden
atmosphere, too, that hung over this dreary spot,
which rendered its sterile features still more gloomy
and repulsive, though they were sufficiently austere
in themselves. Steep rocks of one uniform dull grey
colour frowned in rude grandeur on every side, and
seemed inaccessible to all human footsteps. Stern,
sullen, arid, and blank, the barren monotony of the
scene struck a chill to the heart, and cast an oppres-
sive weight on the spirits. I traversed the valley
with listless, aimless steps, and with a jaded supine-
ness of feeling that was more insupportably weari-
some than the hardest labour, or the most irksome
tasks could have been. I dragged my limbs along,
and yet I seemed to have no object in proceeding.
How was this inert. apathy changed, however, into
joyful energy and thrilling expectation when I ar-
rived on the other side of the dreary valley, and
beheld in the granite wall of rock which formed
its opposite boundary, a key-hole—a distinct, well-
defined key-hole,_and one that instantly struck me
as being of similar dimensions with my new-found
treasure of the previous evening—the wondrous
E


50 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
golden key ! I drew it forth from my bosom, where
I had carefully secured it, and was about to apply it
eagerly to the lock, when the words of the vision
flashed upon my memory, and I hesitated with a
timid doubt of my own unworthiness and inefficiency
for the task before me. The key was to be ‘rightly
used, “truly applied;’ did these require any pre-
vious consideration or study ? It was to be directed
by the hands of one who had a ‘pure heart and a
clear brain;' did I possess either? I hardly knew,
young and inexperienced as I was, how to resolve
these questions. But I thought, ‘I do know that I
shall use it without one sordid or unhallowed motive;
for I do not particularly covet riches or power, and
it is solely with a hope of strange adventure and new
incidents that I feel urged to try the power of the
golden key. Besides, neglect and rusty disuse are
equally to be avoided by its possessor; let me then
endeavour to apply it honestly and trustfully. Step-
ping lightly forward, then, and breathing a short
but fervent prayer to heaven that my enterprise
might prosper, with a throbbing but resolute heart
I placed the key in the lock. I had no sooner done
so, than a strain of solemn music pealed forth as of
a rich and deep-toned organ in some cathedral aisle;
a soft and gracious perfume pervaded the atmo-
sphere, and the granite rocks parted before me, and
disclosed a scene of sublime beauty. I beheld a
wide expanse of ocean steeped in the most gorgeous
sunshine; the waves heaved and fell in glowing un-
dulations of light; the sky blazed in noon-day splen-


KIT BAM, MARINER. 51
dour, and reflected lustrous brilliancy on the grey
rocks that surrounded the valley, gilding even their
dullness. I stepped forth to meet this burst of ra-
diance, when the granite gates of the rocky valley
closed immediately behind me, and I then perceived
that I had inadvertently left the key in the lock on
the other side. I felt little temptation, it is true, to
return to the dreary monotony of the rocky valley;
the rather, as I reflected that the key had already
done its office in having introduced me to this
new and glowing region, so inviting and so full of
promise.
“I gazed with rapture on this grand expanse of
ocean, and felt all my early love of the sea revive
in full force, with an added sense of beauty that
swelled my heart, and filled my eyes. Mingled awe
and admiration possessed my soul as I contemplated
this ever-heaving bosom of Mother Nature, which
conveys her children to behold all those distant
wonders that fill the imagination, and dilate the
heart with burning desire to wander forth and come
face to face with their marvellous reality. I felt
even physical effects of this yearning of the spirit;
my chest expanded, my breathing was deep yet
hurried, my fingers were clutched in impatient con-
vulsion, and my feet curled and writhed with the
vehemence of my longing to set forth at once. As I
stood thus pantingly, and strained forth my eyes, I
distinguished, amid the dazzling undulations of the
waves, a small object, which proved to be a boat; it
was not moored, but balanced lightly to and fro, as if
tºry
"fºsſiy of it,


52 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
beckoning me to put forth upon that glowing ocean.
A few plunges enabled me to reach it, as it lay close
in shore, and stepping in, I yielded myself up to the
delight of finding myself launched upon the alluring
waters, taking no thought of rudder, compass, or sails,
but feeling a sort of lulling, though blind faith in the
power of this slight vessel to convey me prosperously
to some desirable haven.
“I had proceeded thus some hours, feeling neither
hunger nor thirst, so absorbed was I with the delight
of this new world of waters, when towards evening I
became sensible that I was approaching land. I
folded my arms, and drooping my head a little, I
closed my eyes, and yielded to a sort of dreamy re-
pose between sleeping and waking, partly the result
of the strong emotions I had felt during the day. As
I sat thus, I was roused from my soothing composure
by a something that pressed softly and warmly across
my feet. I know not why, but I did not unclose my
eyes immediately; when I was still more startled by
feeling the warm soft object move, then followed a
gentle cooing sound, and, on opening my eyes, I be-
held, to my infinite astonishment, a little child
crawling over my feet, and stretching forth its fat
dimpled hand to my knee with a winning murmur of
entreaty, as if it besought me to take it up and
caress it. In the utmost amazement, I took it in my
arms, and set it on my knee, and pressed its soft,
blooming cheek to my bosom, while I kissed its fair,
curly head, and uttered an incoherent exclamation of
tenderness and surprise. The little creature only


54 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
then expanding a pair of curiously folded wings, as
he remained hovering for a few seconds more, he
suddenly darted away over the sea, and flew swiftly
towards the land. The secret was now at once ex-
plained—he had flown into my boat. Yet a more
perfectly human creature than the little fellow
seemed, could hardly be. His flesh was mottled,
firm, and dimpling, and yielded to the pressure of my
fingers with the true elasticity yet smooth surface
which distinguishes the limbs of childhood.
“By this time I had arrived close to the shore, and
as I prepared to land, I perceived a young woman
standing near the water's edge, holding a child in her
arms, which I soon discovered to be no other than my
winged visitant. I stepped out of the boat, and ap-
proached them, when I observed my little friend
stretch forth his hands towards me, and in another mo-
ment, he sprung out of his mother's arms, and flying
towards me, fluttered against my breast, till I clasped
him fondly to me. The woman uttered a cry of
alarm, and springing after the child, exclaimed wildly,
* Felix! Felix l’
“I was much surprised to hear her speak in Eng-
lish; but, anxious to relieve her alarm as speedily as
possible, I said, cheerfully, ‘Never fear, dear madam,
your boy is as safe with me as in your own arms; he
and I have made acquaintance before.'
“Her surprise at hearing me speak thus, equalled
my own; but I went on endeavouring to reassure her,
in which task I found some difficulty, for I think I
never, in the whole course of my life, met with a per-


KIT BAM, MARINER. 55
son so little within the control of reason when under
the influence of her fear or anxiety.
“When she had a little recovered from her terror,
which I think was rather from beholding how con-
tentedly her boy nestled still with me, than from any
arguments of mine, she proposed our going to her
habitation, that I might take some repose and refresh-
ment, as well as relate to her by what strange acci-
dent I had found my way thither. This made me
recollect the boat in which I had arrived, and I looked
towards the sea, in the hope of seeing it still near the
shore. In vain, however; without moorings, without
fastening of any kind, it had drifted away with the
ebbing-tide, and I descried it in the distance lightly
dancing to and fro on the waves, as I had first beheld
it in the morning; but now each moment receding still
further amid the world of waters, until it was entirely
lost to view.
“I turned with a half sigh to my guide, as she led
me towards her habitation, which proved to be a kind
of cavity, naturally formed in the rock—lofty, spa-
cious, and commodious enough; but I soon ceased to
feel any regret as I hugged the beautiful child in my
arms, and thought of all the endearing ways of this
new little friend of mine.
“After I had made a hearty repast of some fruit,
milk, and a kind of cake or bread which my hostess
set before me, I was preparing to comply with the
request she had previously made, that I would tell her
how I came to this place; when she interrupted me,
by telling me that she would hear my story on the


56 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
morrow, when I should be better recovered from my
fatigue; and that she would now shew me where I
could rest for the night.
“The cave is so spacious, said she with a feeble
smile, “that it would afford many spare bedrooms
did we need them for numerous visitors; but as it
is, you can take your choice of one of them, and I
will arrange some skins in it as well as I can for your
accommodation, hoping that you will enjoy a com-
fortable night's rest.’
“Her manner was quiet, and marked by a sort of
apathetic indifference that chilled me, and forbade
the warm thanks that sprung to my lips, and with
which I was about to reply; indeed, she looked like
one so lost to outward objects, and to be so wholly
possessed by some absorbing inward sorrow, that all
unnecessary words seemed an impertinence, and
merely an intrusion on her melancholy. For some
time after she had left me to repose, I was unable to
sleep, from pondering on her singular manner and
evident misery, as well as indulging in many con-
jectures relative to her winged boy, and the strange
histories which doubtless belonged to them both; but
by degrees, her pale unhappy face blended its hues
with the rosy ones of her little son's countenance—
the mother's woe-stricken lines became confused
with the chubby rounded cheeks of the infant—my
thoughts faded into inaction, and I slept profoundly.
“When I awoke the next morning the sun's rays
were making their way through the crevices of the
rock, and darting bright reproach into the part of the


KIT BAM, MARINER. 57
cavern where I lay; for I had fully intended being
up with the earliest dawn, in order to assist my
hostess as much as possible by forwarding some of
the household arrangements before she should herself
get up. However, to the great relief of my con-
science, I found that she was not yet stirring; for,
like many people who give way to an overwhelming
grief, she had acquired a habit of lying in bed—a
very foolish habit, by-the-bye, my dear young friends;
for there is an animating principle and a strengthen-
ing stimulus in the fresh morning air which early
rises alone know how to value properly. Had this
poor woman sought the healthful courage imparted
by the custom of early rising, she would have per-
haps been better able to meet and sustain her me-
lancholy fate. But you will find, as I proceed to tell
you all I afterwards learned of my unhappy hostess,
that this was not the only point in which she dis-
covered a want of wisdom and knowledge of what
was best for her. -
“To return to the first morning of my acquaint-
ance with her. On issuing from the portion of the
cavern where I had slept, I found to my joy, as I
told you, that my hostess was not yet up. I passed
through the principal space in the cave where I had
supped on the previous evening, which might be
called the dining-room; and after arranging matters
here to the best of my power (for you must know
that a sailor learns to turn his hand to anything, and
can make a bed, or sew on a button, with any cham-
bermaid or workwoman of them all), I went out into


58 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
a sort of enclosed space near the cave, which was
surrounded by a neat paling, and where I observed a
cow and two or three goats grazing, evidently ready
to be milked; and having provided myself with a
wooden vessel that lay near at hand, I prepared to
perform this office as well as I could. Considering
that I had never learned to milk a cow, for my
father had been far too poor to keep one, I managed
pretty well on the present occasion; and I had already
made good progress in my work, having finished
with the cow, and was beginning with one of the
goats, when I heard a little merry laugh not far from
me, and looking up in the direction whence the
sound proceeded, I perceived the winged boy perched
on the paling close by. When he saw by my nod-
ding and smiling that I had discovered him, he flew
towards me, and settled on my shoulder; and there
he stood fluttering and hovering, half on tip-toe,
half held up by his quivering spread wings, while he
tried to steady himself by clasping his dimpled arms
round my head. ‘Steady, Felix steady, boy, steady!'
cried I, while he laughed and crowed with delight;
and thus his mother found us when she came soon
after to summon us to breakfast.
“She seemed reconciled now to the attachment
which had evidently sprung up between her son and
me, and bore to see him in my arms with a compla-
cency very different from her wild alarm of the pre-
vious evening, so we returned to the cave in very
sociable style; the child frolicking about us, first
fluttering to his mother, and then back to me again


KIT BAM, MARINER. 59
—for he could evidently fly much better than he
could walk. But though this poor woman made me
welcome in the cave, and in her negligent fashion
allowed me to feel that my arrival at this place was
nowise disagreeable to her, yet it was long before her
melancholy reserve yielded to my efforts at consola-
tion: while my cheerful endeavours to draw her into
conversation, and a more comfortable train of thought
than the one which habitually engrossed her, were
for some time met by a chilling apathy that was inex-
pressibly discouraging. After the first morning, when
she had heard my history of the account I gave of my
adventure in reaching this shore, she had expressed
no more curiosity, and appeared to take no further
interest in my presence. She seemed to have made
up her mind that I was a nowise dangerous associate
for her child, and beyond this she appeared to have
no thought about me, but remained absorbed in moody
grief and wrapt in silence. The gaiety and cheer-
fulness natural to my age, of course rendered me a
more acceptable companion to little Felix, than his
poor young mother, with her pale face and moping
ways, could be to him; and when she wandered away,
as was her daily custom, to the sea-shore, where she
would sit for hours gazing fixedly across the wide
ocean, he would remain by my side and watch me
while I worked, or gambol with me when I indulged
him after the morning labour was done with a game
of play. Happy days were those I spent with this
fascinating little being ! He was so beautiful, so
graceful, so full of joy and innocent mirth, and


60 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
yet so gentle, and winningly affectionate! Dear
charming Felix How my heart doted on your be-
witching loveliness! And how I longed to make it
a means of wiling your poor mother from her use-
less, her pernicious indulgence in her hopeless grief.
At length, with the courage inspired by this thought,
I would follow her to the lonely seat among the rocks,
where she was accustomed to remain buried in her
melancholy musings; and, seeming merely to follow
the lead of my young companion, I would induce
him to frolic and play his pretty gambols where she
might observe them, and become inspired by their
cheering influence. For some time this went on,
she scarcely appearing to notice us or our romping,
till I almost despaired of ever winning her to a smile
or a remark; when, one day we were returning to
our noontide meal after a morning spent among the
rocks, she gazing as usual drearily and silently over
the sea, and Felix and I having fairly worn ourselves
out with a violent romping-bout, accompanied by
roars of laughter; he had now fallen fast asleep in
my arms as I bore him home; and she suddenly spoke
to me of her own accord. -
“You are a kind youth, Kit,” she said, ‘and have
been most patient and good with me and my sor-
rows; bearing with my moody silence, forbearing to
intrude upon my secrets, and yet gently and affec-
tionately seeking to relieve me from the burthen of
their solitary endurance. But it is too late | Had I
met with you sooner, could I have earlier learnt
the lesson taught me by your wise cheerfulness, and


KIT BAM, MARINER. 61
imitated the wholesome energy with which you meet
your hardships by activity and courage, instead of
yielding to despondence; had I not weakened my
powers, and exhausted even my spring of hope by
supine lamentation and unavailing regret, I might
have profited by your friendly help, and have be-
lieved that a future was still in store for me. But it
is too late!' she repeated with a deep sigh.
“Why too late 2" exclaimed I eagerly. “With
such a treasure in your possession as this dear child,
—with such a motive to make life dear to you.-
with darling little Felix to keep a brave heart for-
why despair why talk of its being too late : Why
should it be too late?
“‘I am dying, said she, sadly, but quietly; “I am
dying, Kit, though your young, hopeful eyes cannot
see it. I feel too surely that my unhappy lot, with
my want of submission to the Almighty's decree, and
my unmindfulness of the blessings he has vouchsafed
to me to relieve the misery of my fate, has worn
away my existence, and as certainly brought my life
to a close, as if I had deliberately drunk poison.’
“I was inexpressibly shocked, and could not utter
a word in reply as she paused.
“Presently she resumed, ‘I should have no right to
pain your young heart by this declaration, had I not
a hope of interesting your sympathy, and inducing
you to promise aid and protection to my poor Felix,
to my poor motherless boy, as I feel convinced he
will shortly be. Alas! in all probability, then
entirely an orphan.’ -


62 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
“This last word seemed to excite her grief beyond
the power of control, for she burst into a flood of
tears, bitter, and frightfully vehement; but, after a
few minutes, she made a strong and convulsive effort,
and mastering her emotion with evident difficulty,
she resumed:—‘It is your due, Kit, that you should
learn all the particulars of my sad story; you who have
been so true a friend to me, and will, I hope, continue
your loving-kindness to my boy hereafter; you, who
have so considerately respected my grief hitherto, and
restrained all expression of curiosity, ought to have
nothing withheld from you; therefore, by to-morrow,
I will endeavour to gain composure and courage to
relate to you my history, and by what accident I
arrived here.”
“The next day, accordingly, when we were seated
in the usual nook among the rocks, with Felix play-
ing at our feet, busily engaged in pouring out and
replacing the shining contents of my purse, with
which employment I had purposely provided him, to
occupy his attention during his mother's relation,
she began her story as follows:—but,” said Kit, sud-
denly breaking off, and interrupting himself; “I fear
it is getting time for you two to be off home, so I'll
tell you what she told me, when you come here to-
morrow evening.”
“Well, dear Kit, we'll go then,” replied Fanny,
leaving the old man's side reluctantly. “Come
along, Dick; though I do long to hear the poor
lady's story, and more about the little Felix, with his
curious wings, yet we must do as Kit wishes, or,


KIT BAM, MARINER. 63
perhaps, he’ll play the tyrant, and refuse to tell us
any more of his wonderful stories.”
“But, Fanny, I must ask him one question before
we go,” said her brother; “I want to know, Kit,
whether the golden key really did bring you riches,
and wealth, and power, and all the grand things men-
tioned by the vision ? Did you ever find them after
opening the gates of the rocky valley, and sailing
across that bright sea 1"
“My dear lad,” answered the old mariner thought-
fully, “I have often asked myself the same question.
And in pondering over the matter, I have come to
this conclusion; that the key admitted me through
those ponderous barriers from the desolate sterile
valley, and led me to the shore of that resplendent
sea, which I have always since named the Ocean of
Imagination,-for it conducted me to the life I had
always sighed for from earliest childhood—a life of
adventure, of romantic incident, and of ever-shifting
scenes of beauty and entrancing strangeness, worth
more to me than sumless heaps of treasure, or
mines of costliest gems. I have fancied that a
hearty enjoyment of life, a power of abstracting my
mind from the disagreeables and hardships of travel,
while I dwelt with rapture on the ideas it conveyed,
and the keen sense of gratification with which I was
able to extract enjoyment from all my adventures
under circumstances which might have depressed and
discouraged a less ardent imagination than mine, was
in fact, the sumptuous gift bestowed upon me by the
possession of the key, and I do not know but that I


64 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
have had reason to receive it with more gratitude
than any other treasure whatsoever.”
The old mariner, at the conclusion of this speech,
bidding his young friends gravely and affectionately
farewell, they sped away home.


KIT BAM, MARINER. (35
CHAPTER III.
CONTINUATION OF KIT'S YARN OF THE LONE MOTHER AND
CHILD. – HER STORY..—KALLISAH.-FELIX. - NEW ASSOCI-
ATES.
THE next evening when the two young Swallows
were comfortably ensconced in the old mariner's cot-
tage, Dick snugly crouching on one side of him, and
Fanny hugging his other arm as usual, Kit thus re-
sumed his yarn, where the lone mother was beginning
to tell him her story.
“My first misfortunes began,” she said, “with the
loss of my poor mother, who was sickly and weak-
spirited, and unable to contend with the grief of dis-
covering that her husband was an habitual drunkard.
He had contrived to deceive her with regard to this
defect in his character until after their marriage, but
when once he had gained his point in inducing her
to become his wife, he had relapsed into his usual
excesses, and brought her to an early grave with
shame and regret before I had reached the age of
six years. My second calamity was my father's
marrying again, and giving me for a stepmother a
hard cruel woman, who ill-used me, and made me
little better than a servant to her own children, who
were born in rapid succession after her union with
F


66 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
my father. On this little family I had to wait from
morning till night, endure all their caprices, and
abide by their ill-tempers, their mother's exactions,
and my father's injustice. I sunk into a mere abject
drudge, and was so broken spirited, that when, at the
age of eighteen, I found that I had engaged the at-
tention and sympathy of a young midshipman who
came to lodge at the house next door to that in
which we lived, and that he often took occasion to
talk to me and manifest an interest in my fate, I
could only at first conclude that he was jeering at
me, and mocking my suffering, by a pretended kind-
ness and solicitude. Soon, however, he contrived to
convince me that his sympathy was sincere, and that
it had produced an ardent attachment for me, which
no time could weaken or destroy.
“For one who had been from childhood the un-
ceasing object of unkindness, neglect, and cruelty, to
inspire such an affection was as the opening of new
life—the disclosing of an earthly heaven. I yielded
myself impetuously to this unexpected prospect of
happiness; and finding my young lover impatient to
make me his before his next voyage should take
him away for an indefinite period, and, possibly,
separate us for ever, I gave him my hand with a joy
equal to his own at receiving it, and became the
wife of Felix Morton. Mere boy and girl as we
both were, for my husband was scarcely twenty-we
stayed not to calculate the importance of the step we
had taken, or the consequences in which it would
involve us; we loved with all the warmth and reck-


KIT BAM, MARINER. 67
less ardour of youth; we married, and were for a
time as happy as mortals could desire, notwithstand-
ing the threatening event which marked the very
first day of our clandestine union. Too much in
awe of my father and tyrannous step-mother to con-
sult them in the affair, or to dream of asking their
consent, we were married privately one morning, at
a neighbouring church; and, returning to our re-
spective homes, I learned by a singular chance in the
course of the afternoon, that my Felix's ship had
sailing-orders, and that she was to leave port that
very evening. In the utmost agitation I flew through
the garden to my lover's lodging to learn the truth,
and found a small hurried note, bidding me a dis-
tracted adieu, and informing me of his having been
compelled to obey his captain's orders, which were
to execute some commission at a neighbouring town
to our own, which was a sea-port; that he should
thus be detained till a late hour in the evening—
indeed until only within a short hour of the one
fixed for the ship's weighing anchor; and that he,
therefore, conjured me to meet him, if possible, on
the quay at that hour, that he might assure me of his
constant affection, his unshaken faith, and his firm
hope of meeting again at some happier time, when
he might claim his beloved bride, and make her all
his own. I was absolutely stunned with this dread-
ful news. The thought of parting with my new-
made husband, whom I adored so passionately, was
worse than death to me. This being, so frank and
handsome, so generous, so brave yet so gentle,_


68 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
so animated yet so tender —this being, who had
first taught me the bliss of loving and being loved;
who had raised and cherished the poor despised
outcast, and inspired her with hope and self-respect;
could it be that this being was to be torn from me
just as I had learned to cling to him as my only
earthly treasure ? Buried in grief, I returned to my
miserable home, and resumed my usual drudgery, de-
vouring my sobs and tears of anguish, and concealing
them as well as I could from observation.
“Towards evening, however, while I was endea-
vouring to devise some means of stealing down to
the quay unperceived, my father called me to him;
and, after making some harsh remark upon my red eyes
and sulky ways, he bade me go and fetch him some
liquor from a public-house, at a tolerable distance
from where we lived, but which had a name for sell-
ing good spirits. I was preparing to obey him, when
my stepmother employed me about something for one
of the children, which detained me so long as to ex-
asperate my father, who was subject, like most intem-
perate men, to fits of violent passion. He took me
by the shoulder, and bestowing a hearty curse upon
me, turned me out of doors, bidding me begone, like
a good-for-nothing lazy slut as I was, My heart was
almost broken with this cruelty of my father's, com-
ing in the midst of the grief from which I had been
previously suffering, and I fled through the darkening
streets with a sort of mad bewilderment. ‘Begone !’
I exclaimed wildly, repeating my father's words; “ay,
begone!—would I could be gone, indeed; and return


KIT BAM, MARINER, 69
no more to this wretched home, where I have never
known anything but injustice and ill-treatment! Oh
that I could be gone—gone far away with my own
Felix—my own dear husband!' I paused for an in-
stant, struck with the recollection that this must be
about the very hour he had spoken of as being the
one when he had hoped to meet me previous to his
departure. I hurried on, forgetful of aught but Felix
and my anxiety to see him; when just as I was
emerging from a dark narrow street which led straight
on to the quay, close to that part where I knew his
vessel lay, and where the crew were busy finishing her
last preparations for sea, he perceived me, and sprung
forward to clasp me in his arms, drawing me as he
did so within the shadow of the houses in the narrow
street. Here he earnestly repeated the passionate
protestations of regret, constancy, and hope, which
his note had expressed; and learnt in return from
me my deep affliction, as well as the recent cause I
had to dread and detest my home more than ever.
“‘This shall not, must not be l’exclaimed he with
a vehement burst of emotion; ‘she must not return
to be trampled on and destroyed by her hateful rela-
tions. Who will protect her when I am away? She
will sink and die before I can return to rescue her.
She must be saved, and at once l’
“He paused for a few seconds in deep thought;
and then, with the energetic decision which marked
his character, strode a few paces up the narrow street,
drawing me still with him, towards a small shop
dimly lighted by a flaring tallow-candle, and in which


70 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
they sold slop-clothes and other ship's stores. Enter-
ing the shop, and bidding me wait close outside, Felix
purchased a suit of coarse dark-blue clothes, of a lad's
size, and quickly returning to me, he whispered:—
“There is still time for my project, Nanny, if you
will be a brave girl, and do as I would have you; but
keep a stout heart, and lose not a moment.’
“I answered as boldly as I could (for his presence
somehow always inspired me with greater courage
than I could muster at any other time); and he then
proceeded hurriedly to explain that he wished me to
equip myself in the sailor-boy's suit he had just
bought, and that in this disguise he hoped I should
escape observation sufficiently for him to smuggle me
on board ship, and carry me off with him. The hope
of release from my bondage, but, far more, the
thought of escape with my beloved husband, excited
me to act with promptitude and resolution; and, ac-
cordingly, I no sooner comprehended his design, than
I retired quickly into a deserted yard or wharf not far
from where we stood, and there, behind some broken
casks and ship lumber, I effected an expeditious
change of clothes, and returned to my lover, who de-
clared that I now looked as trim a little cabin-boy as
he would wish to see. It was by this time necessary
to hasten back to the quay, and join those going on
board. We were just in time; for a rough voice
calling out, ‘Now then, where are those lads! here,
you boys, look alive there,' pushed me onwards with
a group of young sailors who were loitering about,
and among whom I had immediately mingled on


KIT BAM, MARINER. 71
reaching the spot; and thus, amid the bustle and
darkness, I found myself hurried on deck, whence
Felix soon contrived to convey me below unnoticed
by any one. It was of course not very long that I
could remain undiscovered; and the presence of a
cabin-boy more than their number was perceived by
the crew before many days had elapsed. However, a
feigned story of my being a runaway lad whom love
of the sea had rendered a truant from the home of
his parents, and had induced him thus to steal a berth,
found credit with the captain, who was the uncle of
my Felix; and probably not unwilling to connive at
what he believed to be a scape-grace trick of his
nephew's to introduce a favourite comrade or school-
fellow on board his ship. The other officers and
sailors were always jealous of Felix, and of the fancied
favouritism with which his captain treated him on the
score of relationship; but it was some time before I
discovered this enmity on their part, or indeed awoke
to the perception of anything but the single all-
engrossing fact of my being with my husband, and
the constant object of his love and fond attention.
While I was wrapped in this dream of happiness, I
was the most enviable—the most blest of mortals;
but, alas! the time came when I could no longer re-
main blind to the murmurs of discontented feeling
and vindictive jealousy that prevailed among my
Felix's shipmates against him; and my awakening
from my dream of bliss was as abrupt and alarming,
as my previous repose had been balmy and secure.
The first thing which startled me to a sense of his


72 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
danger, were the rough taunts of one of the subordi-
nates of the crew, in reply to some order which Felix
had given him as midshipman, and his superior offi-
cer. The man ended by muttering—‘A pretty thing
indeed, to be ordered about by a whipper-snapper of
a boy, who is himself led in tow by a petticoat–or
what ought by rights to be one, or to wear one, it's
all the same thing.’
“‘This hint at the discovery of my sex and dis-
guise, made me tremble for my secret, but still more
for the safety of my husband, which I felt to be
perilled by what might be considered an act of insu-
bordination if represented to the captain malignantly,
as the man's manner shewed it would be, if reported
at all.
“‘The next day I had fatal confirmation of all my
worst fears.
“‘While sitting below, each moment expecting
Felix, for he took every opportunity of stealing down
to see me when his duty would permit, I heard loud
voices, and tokens of vehement contention on deck;
and, creeping up the companion with knocking knees
and a beating heart, I beheld a scene of confusion
and altercation of which I only too surely and at
once comprehended the meaning. The sailor who
had so brutally taunted Felix on the previous day
stood forward, loudly charging my husband with
having secreted a woman on board, and taxing the
captain with undue partiality and favoritism, in
having connived at this breach of discipline on the
part of his nephew. The man was warmly supported


KIT BAM, MARINER. 73
in his accusations by the majority of the crew, and,
as the captain scarcely repelled the charge, but pro-
ceeded to rebuke them severely for their own insu-
bordination and mutinous behaviour, in thus daring
to dispute his justice and arraign his conduct, the
remainder of the men gradually fell from him and
left him standing side by side with Felix alone
together. I would have sprung forward to the spot
where they stood, but I was so hemmed in and im-
peded by the crowd of men who now all occupied
the side of the deck where I was, that I could not
force my way through them.
“‘I should tell you that we had by this time been
about six weeks or nearly two months at sea, and we
were, at the period I speak of in the offing of a large
continent that cannot, I feel sure, be far from where
we at present are, and which I have always believed
to be just visible from the point of rock on which we
are seated.’
“The lone mother paused, and pointed with her
trembling hand to a dim speck just perceptible on
the horizon, which she believed to be the land she
spoke of Her pale face and quivering lips shewed
what a severe restraint she had been putting on her
feelings, in order to narrate her sad tale collectedly
and intelligibly; but the effort evidently cost her
dear, and was made at the expense of strength and
even vitality. She resumed, however:-
“‘The mutiny once begun, it increased rapidly,
and all the long-concealed wrath and jealous doubts
of the captain and his nephew, flamed forth in open


74. THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
rebellion and avowed threats of vengeance—threats
which were cruelly and speedily fulfilled, and carried
into fatal execution. Finding all their menaces fail
in subduing Captain Morton's inflexible notions of
their respective duties, and that they could not make
him yield one jot of his command, or promise one
point of their manifold exactions, they suddenly
agreed to end the dispute at once by placing him
and his detested nephew in an open boat, cutting
them adrift, and letting them find their way ashore
as they best might, whilst they themselves would
seize the ship and command her as they chose. On
hearing this horrible sentence passed on my beloved
husband, I staggered and reeled, as if struck by a
heavy blow, and, as I gasped forth a shriek for
mercy, Felix heard me, and our eyes met in one
mute expression of anguish. It was our farewell
look—as brief and intense as our joys had been ;-I
never beheld my Felix more—I fainted.
“‘Would to Heaven I had never recovered from
that death-like swoon, which, at least, spared me the
sense of my misery, resumed the poor young crea-
ture after a pause of emotion such as seemed to
deprive her of several hours—nay, days, of life, and
bring her nearer to the grave, as it were, before my
eyes; ‘but when I returned to consciousness, I heard
remarks from the mutinous ruffians around me which
evinced plainly their regret that, instead of having
been left behind, a mere useless burden on their hands
to remind them of their guilt, I had not been turned
adrift with my friends. How fervently I echoed


KIT BAM, MARINER. 75
their regret in the depths of my heart, you may easily
imagine, Kit; but I gave no token of hearing or
seeing aught that passed; and at length, after
various proposals for getting rid of so troublesome a
witness of their misdeeds, some even going so far as
to talk of knocking me on the head and pitching me
overboard at once, I heard them determine upon
putting me ashore on the first land we touched at.
In the course of a few hours we neared this place.
I felt them lift me up from the spot where I lay still
apparently insensible; and, so utterly devoid was I
of any thought or care of life, now I had lost all that
rendered it of any value to me, that not one murmur
of remonstrance did I utter, not one token of anima-
tion did I give to prevent their consigning me to this
living death. I remained in a kind of dumb stupor,
almost like a corpse in their arms, as they lowered
me into a small boat in which I was rowed to land,
where they placed me on a ledge of rock just beyond
the sands; the boat then returning to the ship, which
set sail again immediately. Not one sensation ap-
proaching to regret or added horror, at thus finding
myself abandoned on a lone shore to perish, was I
conscious of feeling. My one great grief had swal-
lowed up and effaced all lesser and merely personal
considerations. If I felt anything at all, it was a
kind of vague wonder (which I remember crossed my
mind in the strange way that the like trivial fancies
will wander into one's brain at such moments) that
these ruffians, who could cold-bloodedly doom me to
such a fate, should yet lift me gently and with an


KIT BAM, MARINER. 77
now, with the clearer vision of approaching death, to
this period, I feel how blameably ungrateful and
unmindful I was of the boon accorded to me by a
merciful Creator, in the shape of this simple black
girl, who would have been a comfort and support to
any less wilfully repining spirit than mine. As it
was, I rather yielded to, than accepted, her cherish-
ing care; and permitted her attention and hospitality,
instead of receiving them with the warmth of wel-
come and mutual affection. From that first evening,
when, finding me alone and perishing, she restored
me to consciousness, and led me to her cave, her
conduct was marked by one unceasing course of
lavish solicitude and prodigal attachment; met on
my part—I now shame to feel and avow—by un-
thankful negligence, cold indifference, and mere sel-
fish indulgence in my own sorrow.
“‘Day after day, week after week, month after
month, did I yield to my absorbing misery; and,
wandering away from her companionship, would sit
brooding on this rocky point in solitary despair,
gazing over the wide waters, fixing my eyes on the
dim speck of the horizon which I believed to be the
land that contained all I held dear—my beloved
husband—from whom I had been so rudely torn, and
so cruelly and eternally separated.
“Here would I sit for hours, absorbed in this one
engrossing idea, delivering myself over to voluntary
gloom and despair. Not once did I seek help and
courage from the society of Kallisah, or by relieving
her from part of her household duties, give wholesome


78 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
exertion to my frame, and, by using the body, endea-
vour to strengthen the mind. Equally unmindful of
her feelings—wounded, as they must be by my
cold, ungrateful neglect, as of my own moral health,
I suffered myself to become a mere inert lump of
uselessness, and the morbid victim of a diseased
imagination. Even the conviction that I was shortly
to become a mother had scarce power to raise me
from my lethargy, or turn my thoughts to any subject
apart from the one which filled my soul with a single
yearning desire, and kept my straining eyes fixed on
that dimly-seen, far-away, coveted shore. Some
lines that I had once read in an old play-book, often
wandered into my musing brain, and I would fre-
quently mutter to myself,
“Like one that stands upon a promontory,
And spies a far-off shore where he would tread,
Wishing his foot were equal with his eye;
And chides the sea that sunders him from thence,
Saying—he'll lade it dry to have his way.”
“But more than all—more than any hope of lading
the sea dry, did I long for wings—for wings that I
might skim the surface of the waters, and clear the
space that held me from my Felix. Had I but
wings! then would I soar over these relentless waves
that rolled in ceaseless mockery of my anguish,
raising eternal barriers between me and my beloved,
and there would I find blessed peace in his arms.
Had I but the power of flight! This was the
longing desire that haunted me ever, and ever, and
ever. What wonder, then, that when my baby was


KIT BAM, MARINER. 79
born, he was born with wings? An angel-token
sent from heaven, of warning for past misused facul-
ties, of hopeful strength for the future.
“‘The advent of this cherub, truthfully read and
rightly used, might have proved such a token to his
poor mother, but, weakly passive by nature, and
totally unskilled in mental discipline, she was regard-
less of the blessed influence, and remained blind to
the alleviations with which heaven had balanced the
one great sorrow in her lot. But keenly, though
tardily awake as I am, to my mistaken existence—an
existence consumed rather than spent—I must not
dwell upon my sad story longer than necessary, Kit.
You must have heard enough to learn a serious lesson
of the folly and wickedness of allowing the mind to
dwell unhealthfully upon one single thought, and of
permitting the imagination to become diseased, and
to destructively prey upon the body. I will merely
tell you the events that succeeded the birth of my
boy, during which period of pain and suffering I was
waited upon and tended night and day by my gentle
Kallisah, the tenderest and most solicitous of nurses.
The whole time I was thus confined to the cave, she
would quietly sit by the side of my bed, heaping up
the skins with which it was spread, arranging them
beneath my weary head, and comfortably disposing
them around my exhausted frame; her skill in herbal
preparations, and cooling drinks from fruit and berry
were inexhaustible; and they were administered to
my fevered lips with tones of healing comfort and
soothing encouragement. Her affectionate nature


80 THE STRANGE ADTENTURES OF
inspired her with devices that supplied the place of
experience and skill; and, as I gradually recovered,
she would, with unwearied patience and inventive
fancy, beguile the passing hours, in relating her
history by means of emphatic tones and expressive
gestures. I learned that she had been carried off by
a slave-ship from her native country; that, in the
course of the voyage, a British vessel had attacked
the one in which she was; and that, with the cruelty
frequently practised by slave-ships under pursuit, the
captain had thrown her overboard, with many others
of her wretched companions, into the sea, to lessen his
freight to the prescribed number of victims, should he
be overtaken and examined. Young and active, she
had contrived to swim on shore: alone, however; for
whether taken up by the British ship, rescued by
other means, or drowned in the sea, she could not
tell, but not one of her unhappy companions had ever
reached that land. Hardy, and from childhood ac-
customed to depend greatly on her own exertions for
obtaining the means of existence, she readily found
food in this fertile place, which abounded in fruit and
vegetables of various kinds; the cave afforded her
commodious shelter, and the pursuits of her early
savage home had taught her skill sufficient to add
many advantages to these natural ones of mere food
and shelter. She fashioned rude tools, which enabled
her to put a paling round the enclosed space in
which she kept her cows and goats; a well-directed
missile from her practised hand, and impelled by the
strength of her youthful arm (the vigour of which no


KIT BAM, MARINER. 81
enervating habits of civilized life had weakened and
impaired), would frequently procure her the comfort
and luxurious warmth of some wild animal's skin for
her couch; and thus, when my destiny threw me on
this shore, it came that she was so well provided with
means for the hospitable welcome with which her
kind nature prompted her to greet the poor wanderer.
How was it that I could remain insensible to so much
goodness as shone conspicuous in the gentle character
of this child of nature, enshrined though it was in an
ebon casket. But it was not the dark exterior, it
was the mist of self-indulgence and uncontrolled
passion that veiled my eyes, and shrouded the price-
less gem from my view! But no more of this!
Suffice it, that not even her gentle tendance in my
time of trouble effected the cure of my mental blind-
ness. It was decreed that by her loss alone could I
be brought to a sense of the invaluable treasure I
possessed in her, with the consequent perception of
my own previous ingratitude, and the perverse aid
which it had afforded Fate in my martyrdom.
“One evening, not very long before your arrival
here, Kit, when Felix was little more than a twelve-
month old, I returned to the cave somewhat sur-
prised that I had not been fetched home by the faith-
ful Kallisah, who used to bring Felix to my rocky
seat, and then return with us to the afternoon meal,
which her own activity and skill had meanwhile pre-
pared. I found my boy alone, restless, and almost
fretful at the absence of his affectionate nurse and
playfellow, who was nowhere to be seen. I com-
G


82 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
forted the child, and taking him in my arms, we
sought through all the recesses of the cave, through
all the neighbouring nooks of the rock, in the pad-
dock, every where around, but in vain—no Kallisah!
Nor did she come that evening, or that night, through
the dark hours of which, I kept restless vigil, listen-
ing vainly for her approaching steps, and striving to
still the moaning and plaintive wail of my little
Felix, who was uneasy at missing his kind and loving
friend.
“Next morning, as soon as the sun had risen,
taking my child in my arms (for he had now fallen
into a heavy slumber, in which I dared not leave him,
lest he should wake in my absence), I set forth in
quest of my faithful companion, dreading some fatal
accident had befallen her, as nothing else, I felt,
would have prevented her returning to us before.
My fears were too speedily verified. I had not pro-
ceeded many hundred paces into the little wood
which skirts the grassy plains adjoining the cave,
before Ibeheld my poor Kallisah stretched beneath the
trees, a disfigured lifeless corse ! Her dark skin
prevented the appearance of any discolouring marks
of the poison, but the swollen flesh, the starting eye
balls, the distorted mouth, told but too plainly the
secret of her death, and gave distinct evidence of
her having been attacked by a serpent, and mortally
wounded by its deadly fang. The thought of sparing
my child from the horror of this ghastly spectacle,
gave me strength to dig a hasty shallow grave in the
soil, which was fortunately of a light and crumbling


KIT BAM, MARINER. 83
nature; and with the help of boughs and leaves I
succeeded in concealing the body of my hapless
friend, and affording it the respect of a slight though
bowery tomb; so that by the time Felix awoke, I
had not only conveyed him from the spot, but had
saved him from any risk of encountering so sad an
object, in case his wings should by chance convey
him to this neighbourhood. For, I should tell you,
that his power of flight had preceded the ability to
run alone, which generally begins to manifest itself. I
believe, in children of about his age; and I often
dreaded that this gift of winged strength in my boy
might prove a source of anxiety to me, lest he should
wander beyond my care, and inflict upon me the
pang of losing a second Felix. However, he has
never hitherto been able to effect any long flight, and
I suppose it was in attempting one of greater distance
than usual, in the direction of the sea, that caused
him to seek rest and protection in your boat when
you were approaching this shore. If a mother's
judgment may be trusted on such a point, his wings
are an additional charm to the many beauties that
render him one of the loveliest and most interesting
beings that ever breathed; and his affectionate loving
nature shews itself in every infantine caress, and
tender fondling, which he lavishes on his poor mother,
as well as in the constancy with which he long
pined after his faithful nurse,_the lost Kallisah!
But it is this singular beauty of his, both in frame
and nature, that makes me surpassingly anxious with
respect to his future fate, and bids me secure your


84 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
friendship and protection for my orphan child.' The
lone mother fixed her eyes wistfully on mine as
she paused, and after I had in a few warm and fer-
vent words assured her that my affection for the
interesting little creature equalled, if possible, her
own; and that nothing should henceforth part me
from him while we both lived, she pressed my hand,
and concluded her story in the following words: “For
my own part, I shared the regret of my little one
for the loss of Kallisah, and mourned for her as per-
severingly as he did; but her death first opened my
eyes to the error of my past conduct, and awakened
fears for the future. Should my child be deprived of
my care as he had been of hers, by any adverse and
unforeseen accident, what was to become of him :
These thoughts, and many other associated reflections,
now shared my lonely musings with the one theme
which had formerly been their only object; for so
inveterate a thing is a habit of reverie, and an in-
dulgence in solitude, that I still wandered daily to
my rocky seat, and pursued my usual contemplation
of the wide and ever-restless sea. In this state of
awakened conscience and motherly solicitude you
found me, Kit, on your arrival; and I had not known
you long, before your frank nature, your generous
anxiety to win me from my sorrows, and above all,
your evident attachment to my boy, led me to con-
fide in you, and place all my hope for my boy's
future welfare in your promise to adopt him. This
hope is now realized by your assurances, in which I
have full faith, and I have nothing now left to wish


KIT BAM, MARINER. 85
for, but that I may be speedily called to meet my
beloved husband in a happier and a better world.’
The poor young mother rose as she finished speaking,
for the sun was declining from the meridian, and
Felix began to shew symptoms of hungry anxiety
to return to the cave, that he might have his dinner,
which had been delayed somewhat beyond his usual
hour by the long narrative his mother had been giving
Ine. -
“She was greatly exhausted, and did not rally at
all after our meal; so that when I took leave of her
for the night, my fears were joined to her own convic-
tions that she was not destined long to remain on
this earth, and they kept me some time awake in
sorrowing sympathy for her fate. Just as I was
sinking into a feverish slumber, however, I thought I
heard a stifled groan, followed by a feeble cry. I
started up, and listened intently, as I hurried on some
clothing, and prepared to hasten forth. As I listened,
the cry was repeated, and I was not long in finding
my way through the labyrinths of the cave towards
the space occupied by my hostess as her own sleep-
ing apartment. It was near the outer part of the
cavern; and, through some fissures and chasms of the
rock, the light of a southern moon streamed in rays of
softened splendour, and revealed to me a scene which
will never be effaced from my memory. The poor
young mother lay lifeless on her couch, while her
child had crawled along the bed towards her on his
hands and knees, and was hanging over her in all the
terror and grief of finding her insensible to his cries


86 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
and inarticulate entreaties. As he knelt there in
the moonlight, looking at her motionless form, with
his bent head, his drooping wings, and his little
clasped hands extended towards the object of his
infantine grief, they looked like a marble group of
Death, mourned by Seraph Innocence. But I re-
covered from the spell by which I was held for a
moment in contemplation of this touching picture,
and soon rallied all my courage to soothe and com-
fort my baby friend, and it was not very long before
I succeeded in wiling him from the side of his dead
mother. But though he was gentle, and yielded
quietly to all my efforts to beguile his grief, I could
perceive that he had not the usual facile spirits of
childhood; he dwelt with a pertinacity foreign to his
age, on the idea of his departed mother, and the
remembrance of her pale face haunted his young
imagination. He drooped visibly; and even after
she had been removed (for I had taken the opportu-
nity one night when he was in a profound sleep to
pay her the last sad duties of interment) he would
seek her still with wistful eyes, and evidently missed
her in her accustomed seat and wonted places. I
had buried her in a grassy spot of earth close to the
nook among the rocks where she had spent so many
lonely hours, and had pleased myself with the thought
that it was in all probability the very spot she would
herself have best approved. Hither her little son
would now frequently draw me, as if aware of the
vicinity where his mother lay; but it was in all pro-
bability from a fond clinging to the place where he


KIT BAM, MARINER. 87
had so frequently beheld her—on the rocky seat
commanding a view of the sea.
“He and I were sitting here one day, he fluttering
to and fro, taking short circling flights over the sea,
and skimming lightly just above the surface of the
waves, while I flattered myself with the pleasing
hope of his reviving health and spirits; when sud-
denly I heard voices at a little distance, and on lis-
tening attentively I heard them again, and became
more and more convinced that they were human tones,
and proceeded from that part of the sea-shore beyond
the rocks which lay between it and the spot where I
had landed. I placed Felix softly on the rocky seat,
and, charging him to remain there till I came back, I
hastened in the direction whence I had heard the
voices. On arriving at the sea-shore, which formed
a sort of miniature bay on the coast, I perceived a
party of sailors who had just landed from a boat that
lay to, and who were in evident quest of fresh water.
I went towards them and offered my services to lead
them to a spring which welled forth its delicious
waters near to the cave which formed my habitation,
as I could then provide them with rest, shelter, and
food, with a draught of milk in addition to the water
they sought, and which I knew would prove welcome
refreshment to sea-faring men. They accepted my
proposal with the same frankness with which it was
made, and we returned in the direction I had come;
this led across the rocks, as I have said, towards
the spot where I myself had originally landed, and
then to the cave itself close by. As we crossed


88 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
the rocky pass, I looked eagerly for Felix, and
approached the seat where I had left him, a few
paces in advance of the party. An instant after, I
heard the report of a gun close behind me, and the
words: “By Jove I saw a curious large bird fly
up! I’ll have him ' " I sprung forward just in time
to catch my little Felix in my arms as he sunk
bleeding on the grassy mound which covered the
remains of his poor mother. An affectionate look—
a fluttering sigh—an expiring breath—and the gen-
tle spirit of this angel child had fled to its kindred
heaven, leaving his mortal frame in my embrace,
inanimate and motionless—winged though it was 1
“The whole seemed like a dream, so quickly had it
all passed; but, alas! it was too fatally true, and I
had indeed lost the lovely cherub who had twined
itself so closely about my heart, and engaged so
powerfully my best affections. But a few moments
since, instinct with life and beauty, and now, dead!
gone for ever!
“The sailors, awed by the accident which their
heedless love of sport had occasioned, tendered me
their rough but honest sympathy. Aided by them,
we soon dug a grave for my poor lost Felix, and he
was laid gently and reverently by the side of his
dead mother in her grave; and, when they were
covered with the grassy sod again, and hidden for
ever from my view, my manhood failed me, and I
wept bitter tears. I turned from the spot hallowed
by so many mournful recollections; I was followed
by the party of strangers; and the cares of hospi-


KIT BAM, MARINER. 89
tality in which their presence necessarily involved
me, did the usual part of unselfish exertion in form-
ing a distraction for my thoughts, and aiding me to
throw off my load of sorrow for a time. It was
agreed among my guests, that they should spend a
night on land with me; and that on the next day we
should all set sail, they taking me away in their com-
pany, as the thought of remaining in this place was
now become insupportable, bereft as I was of all that
endeared it to me. But when night came, and I was
left alone, after having seen to the accommodation
of all the party, the weight of my grief returned
upon me again. I resolutely struggled against its
oppressive ascendancy, and endeavoured to 'soothe
myself with the reflection, that my little Felix was
now at rest with his mother, who had loved him so
well; and that he was thus secured against the pos-
sible evils that might have attended his future fate.
Singularly gifted as he was, might not his mother's
fears have predicted truly that he was unfitted for
an existence among the common run of human
beings? And, as it was more than probable that my
thirst for adventure and active life would lead me to
quit this solitary shore, should I not then have ex-
posed him to the risk of mingling with an uncon-
genial race : Somewhat consoled with these thoughts,
I yielded to their composing influence, and slept.
“A solemn apparition visited my slumbers, and
inspired gracious comfort and elevating trust. Me-
thought I beheld the moonlit group of mother and
child as I had witnessed it in the cavern, on the


90 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
night of her death; but in my present dream her
marble countenance beamed with a heavenly joy,
and her young boy's face reflected the hopeful smile
which irradiated hers. The scene faded, and was re-
placed by the outlines of the seat among the rocks,
with the adjacent grassy mound that enclosed the
remains of the lone mother and child; but as I
gazed, and the traces of the well-known spot as-
sumed distinctness, I beheld my sweet Felix in his
mother's arms, their countenances still wreathed in
smiles; while close beside them stood a youthful
manly form which I knew, methought, at once, for
that of Felix Morton, the long-mourned husband.
The figure pointed proudly and fondly to his wife
and child, and bent his eyes with benignant approval
upon myself;-then, while the group turned eyes of
loving gratitude towards me in tender farewell, they
expanded their wings (with which the parents were
now furnished in common with their seraph child,)
and all three floated gently away through the air
across the sea, and soaring, were soon lost to view
amid the realms of light beyond the sky.
“Next morning, invigorated and consoled by this
beatific vision, I arose with new strength and spirits
for my re-entrance into the world, and its various
duties and pursuits; and I prepared to set forth with
my new associates in quest of fresh adventures. I
had not joined them long, however, before I found
they were not companions greatly to my taste. The
crew were not exactly bad men, but they were selfish,
addicted to low tastes, coarse almost to brutality, and


KIT BAM, MARINER. 91
ignorant; which last word, perhaps, accounts for all
their other characteristics. The captain was vain,
capricious, weak to a fault, and a glutton; and the
mate, who had headed the party that landed for fresh
water on the shore where I had lately sojourned, was
a hard wiry man, with thin white lips, and eyes that
never looked any one directly in the face who chanced
to address him suddenly.
“Let me own that I early felt a prejudice against
this man, when I learned that he was the person who
had fired the unlucky shot which destroyed my little
Felix; but as I was conscious of my prejudice, I en-
deavoured not to let it sway me unfairly, knowing that
the accident was unintentional; and that, therefore,
neither this, nor the man's mere looks, ought to war-
rant my entertaining an actual dislike towards him,
until I found more substantial reasons in his conduct
and actions.
“Instead of the books and intelligent conversation
that formed the chief delights of my earliest friends,
the shipmates of my first voyage, these present asso-
ciates took pleasure in games of hazard, betting, &c.,
and their usual consequences followed—idle habits,
frequent bickerings, coarse language, with mutual ill-
will and mistrust of each othre. I would not con-
demn the use of harmless pastime for sailors, or banish
amusement from among them, far from it; but let
them, if they are wise, choose games of skill rather
than of chance, and abjure all betting and laying of
wagers, as breeders of discord and vice. I did all I
could to dissuade my new acquaintances from con-


KIT BAM, MARINER. 93
much leisure for making himself acquainted with the
pursuits of his men during their hours of relaxation,
or for endeavouring profitably to direct their tastes
and amusements.
“One day-but I declare,” said Kit, interrupting
himself, “it is getting late, so we must break off our
yarn for this evening, Good night, my dear young
friends.”
“I’m so sorry we must go,” said Fanny. “I’m
always fond of the words “One day' in a story, and
so impatient to listen on ; because then I know
there's something new going to happen.”
“But you shall hear to-morrow what happened
‘one day, my lass,” said the old mariner; “and so
once again, Good night, and be off with you both,
without another word ' "


94. THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
CHAPTER IV.
KIT's THIRD YARN.—A PEEP INTo FABLE-LAND.—TITTA, THE
ITALIAN CABIN-Boy ; STEVENS, THE MATE.--THE STORM.–
THE DECISION OF THE DICE.--THE WRECK.
“‘ONE day !"—Well, Kit, ‘one day!' exclaimed
both the young Swallows, as they flew breathlessly
into the old mariner's cottage early the following
evening; “now tell us all about what took place
‘one day, when you had joined your new ship's com-
pany.”
“Why, ‘one day, when I had been among them
about a fortnight,” said Kit, “and had had time to
make up my mind a little as to what kind of chaps
they were, as I told you last evening, we neared the
coast of a country that seemed flourishing and beau-
tiful; and nothing would suit the captain but that
one of the crew should go ashore and fetch him some
game, and a pine-apple or two for his table. The
men were most of them deeply engaged in a game of
loo, I think they called it, and the others were as
anxiously interested about the issue of some wager
or other depending on a rat-hunt down in the hold of
the vessel; so that I found it would be acceptable to
all parties if I offered to undertake the execution of
this commission myself. This suited me exactly;


KIT BAM, MARINER. 95
for I felt no objection to a few hours absence from
company so little congenial to me, as well as from
my always being ready for any thing that promised
change and novelty of adventure.
“On landing, I found I was in the vicinity of a
village, that seemed to form one of the suburbs to a
large town that lay about a mile and a half distant
from the spot where I then was, Mindful of my
commission, I looked everywhere about for pines,
and pheasants, or partridges. None however, could
I spy, though I looked diligently around. Neat cot-
tage gardens, trim orchards, paddocks, and meadows
were there on all sides, much as in England, remind-
ing me of my own lovely native village; and then I
recollected that a simple country hamlet would not
be so likely to afford the delicacies I sought, as a
large town; so, in the direction of the one I per-
ceived in the distance, I forthwith determined to
proceed. As I walked through the village, I noticed
that I met not a single human being, and just as this
circumstance struck me, happening to glance in at a
cottage window, I beheld a comely tortoiseshell Cat
busily engaged in frying some veal-cutlets that were
hissing in a pan on the fire. As I watched her, I
was amused to see the gravity and orderly manner in
which she pursued her culinary avocations,—pressing
the morsels now and then gently with a fork, and
shifting them occasionally in the pan, that they
might not burn. When they were nearly done to
her satisfaction, she drew off the gloves she had
worn to preserve her hands from the scorching effects


96 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
of the fire (which slight circumstance told me a
once that she could be no mere common cook) and
tying a meat white apron on, she proceeded to lay the
cloth, and then drawing an arm-chair to that part of
the dinner-table where she had placed the lemon and
cayenne by the side of a plate and folded napkin,
she quickly dished the cutlets, and, placing them on
the table, ran towards a side door that led to a small
parlour, and called to some one, saying:—‘Dinner's
quite ready, captain.' This was answered by a voice
that said “And I’m quite ready for dinner, I can as-
sure you, Mrs. Capsicum, my darling;' and then, in
walked an old Goat in faded regimentals, with his
gouty legs swathed in flannels. He seemed to me to
be a retired half-pay officer, who having been a rover
in his youth, had settled down comfortably and soberly
in his old age by marrying his housekeeper; who ap-
peared indeed, to be quite a domestic animal, and to
take excellent care of her lord and master. I left
them cosily seated opposite each other, enjoying
their meal, just as he had leaned across the table to
chuck her under the chin, while he tossed off a glass
of old madeira to her good health, with a playful
wink.
“A little further on, I came to a humble porch
with a low plank placed across the door—and peep-
ing in, I beheld, ranged along the sanded floor, half a
dozen dwarf benches, on which were perched rows of
tender fledglings, and almost callow nestlings, whose
infant studies were superintended by a grave old Owl,
birch-rod in hand, who raised her spectacled eyes


me a
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hem on Bºº |
a small
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a voice
Câm 3S-
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th his
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KIT BAM, MARINER. 97
from the primer she held in the other, as she glanced
towards me, to discover what intruder darkened the
doors of her dame-school.
“In a meadow just on the outskirts of the village,
I saw a large party of Grasshoppers enjoying a hearty
game of Cricket; and among them I observed a Bat,
who flitted about to and fro, doing great execu-
tion, and taking a remarkably active part in the
game.
“As I hastened on, and entered the town, I over-
took a demure-looking Hen, a schoolmistress, mar-
shalling her pretty Chickens two by two, as they
returned from a rural walk, and gathering them
carefully under her protective wings at the least
approach of danger. I saw her cast a very anxious
and suspicious glance at a Wolf, on the opposite side
of the way, walking arm-in-arm with an innocent
little Lamb, whom he was luring to destruction, by
leading her to a milliner's window, and pointing to a
chip bonnet trimmed with orange blossoms and bridal
veil, while he induced her to listen to his false vows.
“I found I was now in the principal street of the
town, for there was plenty of bustle and some very
showy shops; but not one poulterer's or fruiterer's
could I discover, where I could make the purchases I
came for. As I stood on the pavement, irresolute
what I had best do, a state carriage rolled by, in
which sat a sleek and portly Mare, whose gown and
chain sufficiently bespoke the principal civil func-
tionary, while, on the seat opposite sat a lively
Turtle, entertaining his friend with rich aldermanic
H


98 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
jokes and fat unctuous jests, on their way to the Hall
of Justice.
“Then came by a handsome chariot, in which re-
clined a skilful Leech, in a suit of shining black,
with a neatly powdered wig and a gold-headed
cane, as he drove towards the mansion of a graceful
Swan, celebrated for her beauty, her stately mien
and aristocratic airs, who was one of his best lady-
patients.
“Presently I was jostled as I stood on the pave-
ment, by two friends who passed arm-in-arm, one of
whom, a great Boar, held the other tightly by the
button-hole, and insisted upon inflicting an evidently
unwelcome long story upon his companion, a Hog,
who remained as obstinate as a pig, and only replied
by an occasional grunt of disgust, declaring it made
him as sulky as a bear to be so badgered.
“As I had made up my mind by this time, that I
would not return to the ship with my errand unac-
complished, I determined to wait where I was until
the following morning in hopes of better success;
and as it was now past five o'clock, I looked about in
search of an hotel where I might dine and secure a
bed for the night. I perceived a respectable-looking
tavern at a little distance, bearing the sign of the
‘Hook;’ and entering, I found in the hall the land-
lord, a grinning Fox, who bowed to the ground as he
assured me I could have a well-aired bed, and that a
dinner should be prepared for me immediately. He
told me he would send a chambermaid to shew me to
my room; and, while I awaited her coming, I per-


KIT BAM, MARINER. 99
ceived a Cormorant in a small private room on one
side of the passage, gorging a profuse dinner, in-
cluding “every delicacy of the season, all by himself;
and on the opening of a door opposite I obtained a
view of the commercial room, where two grinning
Spoonbills and a Wagtail were enjoying a poor little
lark between them, and cutting up a miserable snipe
that seemed roasted to rags.
“The chambermaid, a brisk busy little Bee, now
approached, and flitted up stairs before me; and I
had not to wait very long for my dinner, which was
served by a smart young Dog of a waiter, who fetched
and carried the several dishes to and fro with great
fidelity and assiduity. He appeared to be a cross
between a terrier and a poodle, though the next
morning when I gave him my parting fee, he mani-
fested tokens of being rather of the spaniel breed;
for he fawned upon me prodigiously and almostlicked
my hand. When the third course of the dinner was
served, however, he proved himself an admirable -
pointer, as the game came upon table, and through-
out the meal was a faithful and attentive guide to
the various tit-bits, when I was blind to my own gas-
tronomic interests by selecting less excellent morsels
than his practised scent enabled him to discover for
me. He shewed great sagacity upon other points
too; for, during dessert, meditating how I should
pass the evening, I enquired of him what amuse-
ments there were in the town, and what theatres were
open, when he replied, that, if he were me he should
endeavour to obtain a stall at the opera, as there was
-


100 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
an excellent company here now. He was very elo-
quent upon this subject, and, indeed, appeared to be
quite a musical connoisseur, and well versed in all the
opera cabals and theatrical tittle-tattle, for he pro-
ceeded to say: “O yes, sir, you must go this even-
ing. The celebrated prima donna, the Nightingale,
appears to-night in her favourite character of Norma.
There is also an excellent tenor—a fine game cock—
who is known under the sobriquet of ‘Chanticleer.’
He certainly is first-rate; but he has the defect of
being a dreadful intriguer, getting up all sorts of
shameful cabals in the theatre; trying to make the
public believe that the Nightingale is as hoarse as a
raven, by getting his friend the Puffin, who is the
editor of our leading journal, to write all sorts of fibs
about her; and he has even been known to send a
flock of Geese into the pit on the nights of her new
characters. The fact is, Chanticleer is never satis-
fied unless he has all his own way in the theatre, and
is made perfect cock of the walk. The right of crow-
ing over the rest to this extent, is disputed with him
by the leader of the band, a pert Sparrow, who is
never satisfied unless he is playing first fiddle wherever
he is. It is rumoured,’ pursued my voluble informant,
‘that the great Star-fish is expected down here shortly,
to play a round of all his grandest tragic characters;
but as they propose giving him the off-nights with the
Nightingale (who, in my opinion is a perfect duck),
it is expected that he will decline the offered engage-
ment. There was a foolish Donkey who attempted
to draw in comedy, about a month since, but he only


KIT BAM, MARINER. 101
proved himself an ass, and not worth his salary of
thistles.' The impudent Dog, my waiter, rattled off
all this theatrical scandal and chit-chat with a glib
ease that took away my breath; but he was presently
called away by the chambermaid, who rated him for
a lazy hound, an idle cur, a contemptible mongrel,
and I know not what offensive and discourteous
names besides. Not feeling much inclination to go
and shut myself up in a hot theatre, for it was a
lovely evening still, I strolled out for another lounge
through the streets, feeling sure of meeting with
plenty to amuse me till bed-time.
“The first thing I saw were three or four old Cats,
with baskets and bags hanging on their arms full of
worsted work, tatting and notting, netting and knit-
ting needles; they were evidently going out to a tea-
party, a dish of scandal, and a hand at cards. In
their company there was a younger one, a playful
little Puss, who frisked hither and thither, and seemed
immensely to disconcert her aunts, the old tabbies,
by her kittenish tricks. Later, I noticed a grave
black Tom, their footman, proceeding with a lantern,
umbrella, several pairs of pattens and clogs, and a
heap of calashes and cloaks for his mistresses, to
fetch them home after their card-party.
“My attention was attracted to the cab of an old
Lion, who was lolling back, driving easily and com-
placently, with his eye-glass stuck in one eye; on
the seat beside him, I perceived a roll of paper, so
that I immediately guessed he was going out to read
a new manuscript play to a circle of admiring friends.


102 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
At the back of the cab, swung a spruce young Tiger
in white knee-cords and top-boots.
“I sauntered on, past a cigar shop, where I beheld
three or four foolish young Puppies, among whom I
distinguished my impudent Dog of a waiter, smartly
dressed, and smoking with the rest; all evidently
flattering themselves that they looked the height
of fashion, and the supreme of gentlemanly elegance.
I also passed a large well-lighted gaming-house, up
the steps of which were flocking a crowd of Gulls,
Rooks, Pigeons, and Geese, in company with several
Ponies. This was not the only place in the town
where I met with Gulls; on the contrary, they
seemed to abound in most of the public thorough-
fares; I noticed a group of them in red coats, loiter-
ing near a barrack, or guard-house, while a few more
in the guise of country clowns, stood gaping and
staring at a Kite, who wore the cap and many-
coloured floating ribands of a recruiting-officer.
Others too, I observed peering earnestly in at a lot-
tery-office window, where the prizes were displayed
in large figures; and still larger numbers were ling-
ering in the doorway of a railway share office,
where they were joined by a herd of Stags. Out of
one of the inns of court, I saw a Shark issue forth
dressed like a lawyer, and followed by a clerkly Pike,
who endeavoured to satisfy the numerous complaints
of a shoal of client Gudgeons, who glided swiftly in
their wake, vainly endeavouring to snatch a few
crumbs of comfort about some pending suit.
“There was a mischievous Monkey goading and


KIT BAM, MARINER. 103
worrying a slow Tortoise and an obstinate Mule that
he had harnessed together, in order that he might
grin and chatter at this ill-assorted pair he was try-
ing to drive; but not one creature of my own race
did I perceive throughout my walk that evening.
However, although I met no human inhabitant in
this country, yet I saw traces which indicated that
they were not unknown here; for, in one of the
public squares of the town, I saw some monuments
which appeared to be raised in honour of individuals
of the species, who seemed to be renowned in this
land. They were marble statues placed on pedestals
which severally bore the names of Phaedrus, La Fon-
taine, Gellert, Lessing, and Gay; and it could not
be for the beauty of their form that these statues
were erected, for, among them, I noticed one of a
little, crooked, hump-backed fellow, whose pedestal
displayed the word AEsop.
“The next morning I rose betimes, determined
to pursue my search for the game and pine desired
by my captain, still more diligently than I had done
on the previous evening; and, despairing of meeting
with what I wanted in the town, as it contained
neither of the shops that sold the articles I wanted, I
sallied forth into the country again, only stopping for
five minutes to look at a gay wedding-party that
came trooping out of a church door as I passed. A
pair of Turtles came first (the bride all of a flutter),
and were followed by a circle of attendant Ring-doves,
their relations; then the happy couple, mated for
life, hopped into a travelling carriage with four


104. THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
horses, and set off on their wedding tour, that they
might enjoy a short flight abroad before they settled
down in their new cage, and prepared to build a nest
for any young ones with whom they might hereafter
be blest. -
“I walked many miles before I discovered what I
wanted. At last, about midday, to my great joy I
approached a large preserve of game belonging to a
fine estate; and here I doubted not I should suc-
ceed, as I beheld some glorious pheasants, hanging
their sleek tails from the branches, and flitting about
in great numbers among the trees. I was just pre-
paring to secure a brace, when I recollected that I
had no right to help myself to these birds without
asking leave of their owner, for, though they were
wild creatures originally, they were evidently not so
here, but fed and preserved carefully. I walked on
towards the great house, which I observed at a little
distance, in the hope of meeting some one who could
grant me the permission I hoped to gain; when, on
peeping over a park paling, I beheld a gentlemanly
Bull of prepossessing appearance, sauntering along
beneath the shady trees at an easy pace, with his
hands carelessly folded together behind his back
beneath his coat tails. He was talking with two
friends of his, neighhours; the one, an Otter, a keen
sportsman, and the other, a Beaver, the owner of a
fine estate containing both land and water. I found
out these circumstances by their conversation, as well
as that the gentlemanly Bull was a large landed pro-
prietor, and, indeed, master of the house, the park,


KIT BAM, MARINER. 105
the preserves, and the whole domain around us. He
and his friends were deep in talk about the country,
the government, the rights of landlords, the game-
laws, &c., and I heard the gentlemanly Bull say—‘I
never have stood for the county, and I never wish to
be a member of parliament—I leave that for Rats and
Cameleons; but I do say this—I will have my game
respected, and I never will forgive a poacher.’
“‘Why, now, you know, Squire Bull, replied the
Otter, ‘that your low is always worse than your gore;
and as to “never forgiving a poacher, didn't you let
that fellow off the other day that was found sneaking
in your preserves, only because he told some whining
excuse about his wife and family starving, which
made you order him some good broth for them, and
some bread and cheese for himself, telling him with a
pretendedly gruff bellow, that they were far fitter
food for such as he and his, than hares and pheasants?”
“And when that farmer was brought up before
your brother magistrate, added the beaver, ‘for
carrying a gun in the shooting season, and the chap
talked some shuffling palaver about its being very
hard to have his grain devoured, and his young crops
destroyed, didn't you burst out into a loud roar that
startled the court, and declare that the man was in
the right?'
“The gentlemanly Bull looked down and blushed
deeply at these retorts from his friends, whose charges
he could not deny, and, with a bashful admission of
his weakness, owned that he did not mind giving his
game, but that he hated to have it taken.


106 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
“On hearing this, I took courage, and stepping
lightly over the paling, I presented myself before the
three country gentlemen; and making a low obei-
sance to Squire Bull, I presented my captain's com-
pliments, and told him what I sought in his name.
“The gentlemanly animal replied with a benevo-
lent courtesy of manner that did not belie his agree-
able aspect and bland expression of countenance;
for, desiring I would offer his compliments in re-
turn to my captain, he called to a Hind who stood at
a little distance in a countryman's frock, and bid him
go with me up to the great house, and see that his
orders were executed with regard to my having what
game I chose, with a couple of the finest fruit his
pinery could afford; ending all with requesting me
to be sure and drink a large mug of home-brewed
ale in his kitchen before I left the premises. Having
enjoyed his good cheer with extra relish for the
hearty manner in which it was bestowed; and having
drunk the gentlemanly Bull's health, with sincere
wishes for his continued prosperity (of which he
made such excellent use), and long life to him, I
quitted the estate, and made the best of my way to
the sea-shore, and on board ship, delighted with my
trip and pleasant peep into what I could conclude
to be no other than the far-famed Fable-Land.
Contrary to my expectation, I escaped all reproach
from the captain on the score of my delay and
night's absence. He was too well satisfied with my
success in procuring him the desired delicacies, to
grudge the time spent in obtaining them. The


KIT BAM, MARINER. 107
ship proceeded on her voyage, and the only cir-
cumstance that relieved the disagreeable monotony
of my existence among people so repugnant to me
as her crew, was a sort of attachment that had
sprung up between myself and a poor Italian lad
called Titta, who had been picked up as an extra
cabin-boy at Genoa, some weeks since, when the ship
was short of hands.
. “It was from a feeling of sympathy for his forlorn
condition, that first awakened this attachment on my
part; for, from his speaking a different language from
themselves, the men, who were too brutal to make
any effort to understand or communicate with one so
insignificant in their eyes, either jeered at his ‘foreign
lingo,' or neglected and despised him altogether. My
sympathy was afterwards heightened by indignation,
when I found that Titta (which is the abbreviation for
Battista, one of the commonest of Italian Christian-
names) was the constant object of Stevens's injustice
and cruel tyranny. This Stevens (the mate, whom
I before mentioned as having excited an early pre-
judice in my feelings towards him, by his ill-looking
countenance, and by his having occasioned the death
of my little Felix) seemed to take a malicious plea-
sure in heaping insult and contumely of all kinds
upon young Titta; besides savagely setting him tasks
beyond his strength, subjecting him to needless
hardships, and exposing him to continued damp and
unduly protracted watches.
“To all these injuries from his tyrant, would Titta
most frequently submit with patient resignation, and


108 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
a spirit of resolute endurance that might have touched
a less vindictive villain than Stevens. At other
times he would suffer with an air of dogged sullen-
ness and dull obedience to the mate's commands, as
those of his superior officer, and as such to be impli-
citly observed, however unjust or irksome; but there
were moments when this usual bearing of poor Titta's
was exchanged for one of haughty reprisal, and then
the Italian lad's dark gleaming eyes would flash with
proud disdain, reproach, and even defiance.
“Such instances, however, were rare, and evi-
dently kept so by the ceaseless care and constant
exertion of poor Titta himself, who maintained a
strong guard upon his temper. He would bite his
lips till the blood sprung, to repress the escape of a
bitter expression, I have seen him close his eyes to
veil their bright flashes, and imprison the indignant
tears; while his pale, sallow cheek would assume an
almost livid tint with the effort to check the sobs that
swelled his heart to bursting.
“One night I had an early watch; after which,
creeping below with the usual eagerness of a sailor for
sleep, secure of being ‘as fast as a church' within two
seconds of his head touching his pillow after turning
into his hammock, I stumbled over a cabin-boy who
lay stretched across some planks below decks, and
which only just prevented his lying in a pool of water
that saturated the place just there. Perceiving it
was Titta, I asked him how he came to sleep in such
a damp unwholesome spot; when, telling me it was
appointed by Stevens as his usual berth, he thanked


KIT BAM, MARINER. 109
me, but said he did not much care about it, and only
wished that was the worst he had to bear.
“This drew more expressions of sympathy from
me, with questions as to what could be the cause of
so much ill-will and malice on the part of Stevens,
and if Titta himself could assign any grounds for the
determined enmity he had evidently excited.
“But too well,” replied the cabin-boy, in a hoarse
whisper. “I have observed the kind feeling you
have for me and my sufferings, Kit, and have fre-
quently desired an opportunity of thanking you for
it, and of giving you my confidence in return. No
occasion has hitherto offered for speaking to you
unheard, and I do not choose any one but my friend
to be acquainted with my sufferings, and to give me
their pity, continued the Italian in a proud tone; ‘I
cannot stoop to receive commiseration from such
men as the rest of our crew—but from a kind heart
like yours, Kit, it will be a comfort and a joy to me;
So, if you do not mind the damp, and the darkness, and
the rats—I don't, they are my bed-fellows too often—
you can creep down here beside me, where we shall
be sure not to be overheard.’ He then proceeded to
tell me his simple history: how he had lived happily
all his days with his mother and his pretty sister Pep-
pina, in a little hut among the hills, not far from
Genoa; that they had never known any trouble but
poverty, and had never felt that, as long as they could
get polenta or risotto enough to eat, until Peppina had
reached sixteen years of age, when a young goatherd
in the neighbourhood fell in love with her and she


110 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
with him, and that then they all for the first time re-
gretted they were so poor as to prevent any hopes of
marriage for the young couple. While things were
in this state, and Titta was earnestly desiring to hit
upon some method of making a fortune, that he might
give it all to his dear Peppina and her lover, this
ship had arrived in the port of Genoa; and the captain
offering the situation of cabin-boy to Titta, he had
eagerly closed with the proposal, as the desired means
of obtaining money for his darling sister. Mean-
while this sister had been seen by Stevens, and
her beauty had made so strong an impression upon
him, that he had left no course untried to pre-
vail upon her to give up the young goatherd, and
accept himself. “The evening before we set sail,'
proceeded Titta, and I could hear the gasping agita-
tion of his voice through its whispered tones, as he
clutched my hand in his feverish grasp, “that evening
I overheard the villain endeavouring to persuade my
Peppina to break her faith with her young lover,
Gianni, to leave our fond mother and our humble
cottage, and to go far away over the sea with him,
where he would make her a princess of some beauti-
ful island, and deck her in silks and satins, with bright
jewels and a golden crown. Peppina knew better
than to trust to his white face and black heart; and
she told him firmly that she would not give up those
she loved, to be made queen of the world. This so
exasperated him, that, muttering something about
knowing what was for her good better than she did,
and carrying her off whether she would or no, the


KIT BAM, MARINER. 111
ruffian was just about to throw his arms about her,
and lift her from the spot by force, when I stepped
forward, and bid him release my sister at his peril, as
I had a stiletto, and knew how to use it. He flung
her from him with a sneer, muttered a deep curse,
and, turning on his heel, left us abruptly.
“Eager to carry out my project of earning money,
and thinking I was secure of the captain's protection
from any ill-usage on the part of this man, should he
hereafter resent the course I had taken in this scene,
I hesitated not to fulfil my engagement, by sailing in
the ship, as cabin-boy, on the following day. But,
alas! I knew not how little reliance is to be placed
on a weak master, too supinely devoted to his own
luxuries to care whether justice is dealt among his
subordinates; or how ingenious in torture a villain
can be, who has to resent a by-gone injury inflicted
on his victim by himself. By insinuation and example,
he contrived to inspire his shipmates with contempt
and dislike of me, and, by careful management, he
conveyed enough of distrust and suspicion into the
mind of his captain on my account, to cause him to
issue an order that I should be closely searched and
disarmed of my stiletto. After this, Stevens pursued
his malignant hatred towards me with impunity; and
I, feeling myself in his power and totally defenceless,
ceased to contend with my fate, and endeavoured to
submit without murmur to what I could not resist.
I am too proud to bewail what I cannot repel; be-
sides, I feel that when I look at him indignantly, I
recall to him the recollection of my sister, and I would


112 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
not have even her image come near him, to be sullied
and polluted by his contemplation.’
“I could hear that my companion ground his teeth
fiercely, as he gave utterance to the proud writhings
of his wounded heart; but he added more softly—‘I
have hoarded up all my scanty earnings, Kit, in the
hope of one day returning with them to the hut
among the hills; but I have sometimes of late
thought that I am never destined to see my loved
home more—I have a presentiment that I shall never
live to return, and I want you to promise that the
task of taking this hard-earned money to the mother
and sister—to secure whose happiness and prosperity I
would encounter even worse suffering than mine has
been—shall be yours—your task, for the sake of your
poor friend Titta. You will not refuse me, Kit?
You will grant my request—will you not, Kit The
poor lad uttered all this in his broken English (which
I have repeated in distinct words that you might the
better comprehend, my dear young friends), but with
an earnestness of tone and a vehemence of gesture
which won my assurances of interest and consent.
At the same time, I endeavoured to dissuade him
from entertaining any superstitious doubt of his sur-
viving to execute his own wishes with regard to the
money, but told him I hoped to come to see him in
Italy some day when he was cosily settled at home
with his mother and sister in the hut among the
hills. He only shook his head with a mournful
smile, while he persisted in shewing me the small
sum which he had secured in the corner of his neck-


KIT BAM, MARINER. 113
handkerchief, and of which he made me again pro-
mise to take charge, and convey as he desired, in
case I should survive him.
“After I had given him my solemn promise that
nothing should prevent my fulfilling his wishes if I
had life, we parted for the night; he, with an ap-
pearance of greater calm and satisfaction than I ever
witnessed in him before, and I, filled with compassion
and sympathy for this hapless youth. These feel-
ings caused me to encounter Stevens the next morn-
ing with increased disgust and aversion; but soon,
all other thoughts gave way to anxiety about the
threatened change of weather; for, towards the after-
noon, there was every appearance of a coming storm,
and all hands were now aloft to prepare everything
closereefed and trim against the expected contest
with the elements. The sun sunk in sullen majesty,
surrounded by angry louring copper-coloured heaps
and heavy masses of purple vapour, interlaced with
green streaks; whilst across the heavens swept tracks
of rose-coloured clouds, sinister in their very beauty
of tint, and foretelling violent wind. Night closed
in with an awful calm, and a pause terrific in its very
stillness; and then suddenly the tempest burst forth
in all its fury, and raged incessantly for several hours.
The billows rose mountain high on every side of us,
the wind howled, and tore among the shrouds and
rigging with boisterous force, the lightning darted
its impetuous forked flames, the thunder rolled its
solemn deep-toned wrath, and, in the midst, struggled
our labouring vessel, the seeming victim of the sur-
I


114. THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
rounding elements, and the disputed sacrifice of fire,
air, and water. The scene was sublime in its awful
peril; and, while my eyes swam, and my ears rung
with the confusion of threatening sights and sounds
that stunned and bewildered me, yet I was conscious
of one added horror on that dreadful night apart
from aught of storm or tempest.
“About mid-watch I was startled by a piercing
shriek, that thrilled high above the crash and din of
the thunder-peals, and penetrated sharp athwart the
keenest whistling of the storm-blast, claiming atten-
tion by its shrill appeal of human agony. I made my
way in the direction of the yell, but could perceive
nothing in the dense obscurity which then shrouded
every object. Suddenly, a vivid flash of lightning
revealed to me the figure of Stevens, standing alone,
trembling from head to foot, his face and lips of a livid
pallor that glared a ghastly spot of white in the dark
space around, while his eyes seemed starting from
their sockets as they remained fixed on the foaming
waters, boiling and surging beyond the ship's stern.
“Here his gaze seemed to be riveted, without any
power of his to withdraw it; for, after having ac-
costed him, asking whether he had called, if he had
heard aught, or wanted help, a second flash again
gave him to my view in precisely the same attitude,
while he answered shortly that he had heard nothing,
wanted nothing, and bade me roughly begone and not
stand there watching him, waving me back with his
arm, at the same time that his head and eyes main-
tained the same position, and remained unswervingly


KIT BAM, MARINER. 115
fixed in the exact direction I had first beheld them.
I shrunk back, appalled, for the man looked like one
spell-bound, and under the influence of some terror
stronger than any arising from the storm and its
perils. The whole of that dreadful night I kept fear-
ful watch, alternately contemplating the tempest and
musing on the strange trance of terror in which I
had found Stevens. As morning dawned the tem-
pest abated, and the captain, with some negligent
commendation of my exertions and active conduct
during the past night, dismissed me to my hammock,
where Islept some hours profoundly. When I awoke,
and rose to my usual avocations, I was surprised to
see Titta nowhere about, neither below, nor on deck,
nor among the shrouds, nor, in short, in any part of
the ship. I asked one of the men (who was some-
what less brutal than the rest), where the boy was,
and he answered that he feared he had been swept
overboard in the storm during the night, for that
none of them had seen anything of him since the
previous evening. “Poor lad!’ added the fellow
with the remorse which too often seizes obtuse people
only when too late, ‘I am sorry now I ever jeered
him, and made game of his being a Talian—for he
couldn't help that, you know! I wish I hadn't teased
him, now that he's drownded, poor lad!’
“That night, it so happened, that it was this same
man's turn to keep the mid-watch; and, as he was
ill, and I felt pleased with his expression of regret
for poor Titta, I offered to serve the watch in his
stead.


116 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
“The weather was now clear and calm over head,
though the sea still rolled with the heavy swell which
always continues some time, after the turbulent com-
motion of a storm; and, as I gazed into the dark-blue
canopy of heaven, I offered heartfelt devotion and
thanksgiving for my preservation through the late
tempest.
“As my thoughts thus ascended skyward, they were
recalled abruptly by a singular hissing noise that
sounded directly astern. I crept softly towards the
spot, and there beheld Stevens in the same rigid
attitude of terror as I had seen him last night about
the same hour. His eyes were still fixed with a
stricken stare upon the tumbling billows that rolled
in the wake of our ship; and his colourless cheeks and
quivering bloodless lips still shaped the hideous patch
of white in the centre of sombre midnight. My quiet
approach, and my being screened from his view, by
standing somewhat apart, caused my presence to be
unperceived by him; and I could not help remaining
rooted to the spot in a sort of fascination of horror, to
observe this spell-bound man. There was a sort of
faint singular gleam that seemed to proceed from the
spot upon which his gaze was riveted, and which shed
a dim reflection upon the brow of the figure before
me, so that I was able to see him distinctly. I could
perceive that his convulsed lips were flecked with
foam, and that they could not repress his agitated
breathings, which exhaled in a series of lingering,
gasping, hissing utterances, which seemed as if they
were impelled forth by a power not his own, and occa-


KIT BAM, MARINER. 117
sionally seemed almost to form themselves into inco-
herent and involuntary words. ‘Thy sister! So, Titta,
sol” were the first intelligible sounds I distinguished;
then followed, ‘that blackened throat witnesses against
me!’ while the muttered sentences hissed forth in the
articulation of the rattle-snake. His hands clenched,
his eyes strained eagerly, his form writhing and dilat-
ing, as ‘So, Titta, so l’ again hissed from his frothed
lips, and he looked more like a serpent than a human
being. I recoiled in horror; but the next moment I
perceived his limbs relax, his staring eyes close, his
lips become mute; and as the singular gleam, for
it could scarcely be called light, faded into dark-
ness, I beheld him stagger along the deck, retreat
towards his own cabin, and I saw him no more that
night.
“The horror of this scene, and the circumstances
of its repetition, haunted me fearfully through that
night and the next day; and I resolved to change
watches with the man who had the coming midnight
one, in order that I might have an opportunity of
observing Stevens again. A frightful surmise that
had crossed my mind when I first heard of poor Titta's
disppearance, had recurred more forcibly since, and was
now gaining the strength of conviction. As the mid-
watch came on, I perceived that Stevens was on deck
also, walking about in a constrained manner, and as
if acting under involuntary impulse. I purposely
kept my station not far from the stern of the vessel,
and this circumstance seemed to annoy and perplex
him not a little. He seemed to be afraid of express-


118 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
ing openly his desire that I should avoid that vicinity,
but he spared no efforts to draw me away by stra-
tagem more towards the bow of the ship. As the
time crept on, he grew evidently more and more un-
easy, and even condescended to assume a familiar and
almost friendly tone of conversation, in the hope of
diverting my attention, and withdrawing me from the
fatal spot. At length he feigned to remember some-
thing that wanted attending to, or doing, at the head
of the ship, and despatched me to look to it imme-
diately. I went forward, but came back in a few
seconds, as I knew that it must be just upon midnight.
I shall never forget the black scowl with which he
saw me return to his side again. I beheld it by the
reflection of the faint gleam astern, which shone forth
just as he seemed about to make some angry excla-
mation; when, instead of uttering it, his figure became
suddenly struck into rigidity, and assumed the atti-
tude of intense horror, in which I had seen it twice
previously. His foaming lips again hissed forth their
terrible sounds—his eyeballs once more started from
their sockets in that riveted gaze; but though he was
powerless to avert his looks, he seemed to be con-
scious of my presence, and waved his arms in furious
token to me to be gone. But I was determined to
abide by my purpose, and I nerved myself to watch
steadily, through the whole time that this strange
spell should endure. It held the stricken wretch for
about the space of a quarter of an hour, during which
period I saw and heard enough to convince me that
I had done him no injustice in believing him to be


KIT BAM, MARINER. 119
the murderer of poor Titta; but when the trance
ceased, and his limbs relaxed, and he was able to con-
trol his strained vision, the first use he made of his
restored powers was to spring upon me, with mingled
reproaches and threats. I shook off the reptile, for I
was stronger as well as younger than he, and the
baffled miscreant shrunk away, muttering curses, and
vows of vengeance.
“The next morning, as I was casting about in my
mind how best to state my accusation of the mur-
derer to my captain, I was summoned to his presence
to attend a charge of murder which was alleged against
myself. I learned that Stevens had been beforehand
with me; finding that I had discovered his foul secret,
and that I should probably not be long in revealing it,
and publicly accusing him of the fatal deed, he deter-
mined to have the advantage of precedence, and
throw discredit on the tale I should relate of him, by
previously staining my own reputation.
“I found that he had ingeniously contrived to throw
suspicion on the circumstance of a body having been
found in the grave opened for the reception of my
little Felix's remains. He declared that he believed
the buried female who was discovered there to have
been the victim of my cruelty, and to have fallen by
my hand; and such was the vehemence with which he
declared that since this conviction had struck him, no-
thing should prevail upon him to consort further with a
murderer, and that therefore he demanded my imme-
diate imprisonment, until I could be tried at the first
civilized country we arrived at, that it was not very


120 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
long before he succeeded in bringing many of the
crew round to his opinion, and several loudly de-
clared that for their parts they did not like consorting
with a murderer either.
“The captain, in his weak inconclusive way, now
declared that it was really very shocking, and that he
positively could not tell what to think.
“‘What is very shocking?' asked I indignantly;
‘nothing has been proved against me yet. Is it very
likely that if I had murdered a woman, I should lead
strangers to her very grave, and bid them dig it
open º'
“Stevens here reminded them that I was in such a
state of grief at the time when I lost my little Felix,
that I probably had not reflected on the consequences
of anything I then did. This allusion to my winged
darling, together with the consciousness that it was
to this very wretch himself that I owed his destruc-
tion, joined to the abhorrence I felt for his recent
deeds and present treachery, inspired me with such
rage and loathing, that I hastily retorted his charge,
and accused him of having murdered the cabin-boy,
Titta. An accusation thus rashly and abruptly made,
of course brought with it rather the appearance of
retaliation, than an honest detestation of crime; and
looked more like a desire of revenge and a mean
attempt to screen myself by attaching blame to
another, than a simple disclosure of truth. I soon
read the mischief I had done to my own cause in the
countenances of those around me; and it is not the
only time in my life, my dear young friends, that I


KIT BAM, MARINER. 121
have observed how fatally a rash word, an impetuous
action, or an ill-advised step, may injure a righteous
cause. It is well, therefore, in emergencies of vital
importance, to keep strict watch upon the temper, and
hold the judgment cool and prepared.
“Had I acted with more moderation and wisdom
on the present occasion, it might have been better
for me; as it was, I found the men had not only made
up their mind that my accusation of Stevens was a
mere false subterfuge, but that they were making a
halfjesting proposal to the captain that the question
of my guilt or innocence should be decided by throws
of the dice, as it was impossible now to return to the
shore we had so long quitted, to collect proofs of the
murder with which I stood charged.
“‘Certainly not, it is out of the question to retrace
our way,” said the captain, “that would be sad loss of
time indeed;’ and with those words he dismissed the
reconsideration of the cause until another day, as he
declared himself quite tired and worn to death with
so much talking.
“I found myself now, however, an object of marked
avoidance and detestation to my shipmates; and the
proposal which had originated jestingly, was soon
resumed and debated in earnest. There was a sort
of novelty and excitement in the idea, which pos-
sessed a certain charm for their betting souls; and,
unable to withstand the temptation of a game, where
the stake involved a fellow-creature's freedom or
condemnation, nay, his very existence, they were not
long in coming to a decision, and, as it was now near


122 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
noon, they made preparation for throwing the dice at
midday.
“I vainly entreated them to wait till night, when
they should have an opportunity of beholding confir-
mation of my words; but they jeeringly replied they
would decide my fate first, and they would attend to
the matter of Stevens's alleged misdeeds afterwards.
I glanced towards the mate as I uttered this allusion
to the appalling vision in which his remorse held
him nightly spell-bound; but he stood with his arms
folded and his head bent, silently watching the ar-
rangements the men were making for casting the
dice; and it was only by a slight shudder, and a
paling of the lip, that I discovered he had noticed
what I said. It was a horrible mockery that was
enacted in the full blaze of that noontide sun'
The men stood round the board on which the dice
were successively cast, their countenances agitated
by bad passions, and absolutely void of one feeling of
compunction for the deed they were about to perpe-
trate, or for the victim who was its object. I gazed
vacantly on the scene, unable to gather the results
of their play, for I knew not so much as what throws,
or combinations of throws, had been agreed upon to
decide my fate; when, just as a loud brutal huzza
from the men, and a glance of malignant triumph
from the white face of Stevens, had informed me of
my doom, a tremendous shock was felt on board, so
violent as to cast most of the crew prostrate, and a
few minutes more sufficed to shew that the ship had
struck upon a rock and was going to pieces,


124 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
CHAPTER V.
THE SEQUEL of THE WRECK.—UBERTO AND BIONDELLO ; THE
LITTLE BARBER ; KING IMBECILIo, PRINCESS EUDORA, AND
LoRD IGNORIO ; BARON FEROCCIO, AND THE LADY ELLENA.
“WELL, Kit, what happened when the ship struck
upon the rock and went to pieces?” asked Dick, the
next evening.
“And how did you escape from the wreckº” added
his sister.
“Immediately the nature of the disaster was as-
certained,” replied Kit, “for the crew had been so
deeply engaged in their wicked pursuit that they
had not kept a strict look-out enough to be aware of
the rocks that lay a-head, and on which our ship
struck with such fatal force, all hands were in requi-
sition to provide for their safety; but, with the usual
brutal selfishness which uniformly characterizes an
inveterate gamester, they one and all devoted their
efforts solely to securing their own individual rescue,
losing sight of the general good, and forgetful that,
in neglecting the salvation of the whole, they might
probably involve their own risk of ultimate peril
and loss.
“And thus it proved; for, being at some distance
from land, and the ship splitting and sinking more


KIT BAM, MARINER. 125
rapidly than could have been believed, they all en-
deavoured to seize the boats, and, crowding into
them rashly as fast as they could, many were drowned
in the very outset, and boat after boat were sunk and
lost, with the weight of the numbers that overloaded
them. The last that survived was the long-boat;
but as I swam rapidly towards it, in the hope of being
taken up, I beheld the white face of Stevens glaring
upon me, as he leaned forward, and hit me a smart
blow on the hand (which I had placed on the side of
the boat) with a cutlass; and I had hardly darted back
with the pain of the wound, and a bitter feeling of de-
spair, when I beheld the boat drawn towards the fast-
sinking ship; and I had scarcely time to exert my
utmost strength to swim beyond the whelming circle,
when I beheld both ship and boat sucked into the dread-
ful vortex, and plunged beneath the abyss of waters.
“I struggled hard for my deliverance, and toiled
with all my might to gain the land, which seemed to
elude all my efforts to reach it, and to recede in pro-
portion as I advanced. Spent and exhausted, I did
just contrive to make my way as far as the shallow
water, through which I crawled wadingly, and then
sunk down on the sands at the very brink, insensible.
“The first thing of which I felt conscious, on re-
turning to life, was being drawn from my perilous
situation, and placed gently on the higher and drier
part of the sand; and then of a sweet voice, which
said, “Oh no, dear Uberto, he is not dead, he must
not die; raise his head a little on to your knee;
there—see, he opens his eyes!”


126 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
“I looked towards the gentle speaker, and saw a
youth bending over me with soft kind eyes, in which
I read anxiety for my recovery, and tender goodness
of nature mingled with bright intelligence.
“His hand is badly wounded, said the person who
was supporting my head, as he raised the right wrist
carefully to examine the cut cruelly inflicted by Ste-
vens, but which was in fact the means of my preser-
vation. I perceived that the last person who spoke
was a somewhat elder, taller, and more robust youth
than the one I had first beheld; but while I gazed, his
features swam indistinctly before me, I felt faint, and
closed my eyes again.
“I was not perfectly insensible, though, for I heard
the sweet voice of the first youth utter a sorrowing
exclamation; and then I heard the other reply, ‘I will
lift him into the shadow of those bushes, out of the
sun; and if you will stay and watch by the poor fel-
low, Biondello, I will run home for a cordial for him,
which I hope will give him strength enough, with my
assistance, to reach the cottage.'
“‘Do so, dear Uberto,' answered the soft voice,
‘and I will take care of him meanwhile.’
“The elder youth having effected his purpose of
placing me in the shade, ran off at a quick pace, and left
me alone with the one whom he had called Biondello,
and who immediately set about binding my wounded
hand with his handkerchief, which he tore into strips
for the purpose, and applied with a lightness and deli-
cacy of touch that a surgeon might have envied. The
relief from pain which this dressing afforded me, and


KIT BAM, MARINER. 127
the refreshment of the cool shady nook, caused me
to revive; and it was not long before I was able to
sit up and tender my acknowledgments to my young
protector, for his share in my rescue from the waves,
and for the relief his gentle care had since afforded me.
“He received my thanks with modest grace, and
yet with a noble air that well became his beautiful
features and high-bred appearance; his look and car-
riage were equally gracious and dignified, and I no-
ticed that he wore a velvet riding-suit, rich, though
of a dark sober hue, and simple fashion.
“Presently, there was the sound of approaching
footsteps, and the voices of people in apparent quest
of some one. Biondello started up, and, after listening
for an instant, he said rapidly to himself—"They seek
me, they must not find him, or meet Uberto;' then
hurriedly addressing me, the youth added,—‘Stranger,
you will remain here; Uberto will soon return, and
lead you where you can have shelter and refreshment.
Farewell!—we may meet again; but, meanwhile,
silence and discretion l’
“He placed his finger on his lips with a sweet,
serious expression, and, waving his hand in graceful
adieu, he glided away to meet those who approached,
and seemed to lead them back the way they came;
for I soon heard the receding steps of the whole party,
while I merely caught the words, “Alone! unattended!
wandering by the sea-shore! these solitary rambles
cause me great uneasiness, lest your highness should
meet with any—.' Here the voice died away, and I
heard no more until I was roused by Uberto, who


128 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
hurried towards me with the cordial, raised me from
the reclining posture into which I had again sunk on
the departure of Biondello; and when I was suffi-
ciently restored to be able to walk, conducted me
towards his dwelling, and bade me welcome with a
courtesy and good breeding that savoured of a higher
station than the one indicated by his attire, which was
that of a shepherd.
“After he had set food before me, and congratu-
lated me on my escape, waiving the thanks I earnestly
proffered, with a hearty good-humoured warmth of
manner, and a frank assurance that he had only aided
his friend Biondello to save me from the waves, and
draw me ashore, he begged I would lie down and
rest myself for an hour or two while he went to look
after his flock, which he had somewhat neglected that
morning while enjoying a ramble on the sea-shore.
“He pointed to a large wooden settle that stretched
across one side of the table towards the hearth; and,
opening the door of the apartment which led im-
mediately into the porch, he quitted the cottage with
a friendly nod and an easy freedom of manner that
made me feel at home at once, and as if I had known
him for eighteen years at least-that is to say, all
our life; for our respective ages each appeared to
comprehend little more than that period of time.
“When he left me, however, I was by no means
inclined to sleep; my frame was too well inured to
hardships not to be almost restored to its usual vigour
by the refreshment and aid I had already received;
and my mind was too busy revolving the circum-


KIT, BAM, MARINER. 129
stances that had recently befallen me in the new
acquaintance I had made with the two youths, to
permit any indulgence in slumber before night should
COIne On.
“The afternoon sun streamed through the flaunt-
ing branches of roses and jasmine that embowered
the cottage casement, and shewed me the room that
I was in, to be no more like the abode of a simple
shepherd, than the bearing of the youth himself
assorted with the lowly calling which his dress be-
spoke. The apartment, though humble in the ex-
treme, looked far more like the closet of a student
than the interior of a shepherd's hut; for around the
walls on all sides were shelves closely packed with
books, books, and books of all shapes and dimensions,
from the thin tall folio to the compact duodecimo;
from the portly quarto to the medium octavo; they
were ranged in various groups from the historic mag-
nificence of twelve, the biographic importance of
four, the romantic interest of three, down to the
precious single volume, with its quaint lore and con-
densation of wisdom compressed into its few odd
pages. But through all this profuse company of
books, there was not one fine coat among them;
their bindings were all homely, even unto shabbi-
ness, though they looked worn with loving use, and
not injured by slovenry or neglect. Besides the one
on which my repast had been served, there was
another table, spread high and wide with more books,
and which also bore materials for writing. Even on
the settle beside me were strewed one or two books,
K


130 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
which, on examination, I knew enough to be aware
were Greek and Latin classic poets.
“In my eagerness to learn more of this shepherd-
philosopher, I rose, and strolling through the cottage
porch, all fragrant with the flowery bloom that dis-
tilled its sweets, as it crept around door and window
in rich profusion, I issued forth into the open air,
and made my way across some meadows, in the
direction I had seen taken by my host when seeking
his flock. I found myself in a lovely, peaceful
valley, undisturbed by sight or sound but those of
Nature in her serenest aspect of beauty; and, di-
rected by the tinkle of a distant sheep-bell, I wan-
dered on till I came to a grassy plain on the slope of
a hill, where lay scattered the fleecy treasure of my
host, cropping their evening meal beneath his watchful
care; for he sat at a little distance under a shady
tree enjoying a book, while his sheep enjoyed their
meal, and his lambs their frisking, sportive game of
play.
“He rose to meet me when he observed my
approach, and, closing his book, said he was glad to
find I was sufficiently recovered to be able to take so
long a walk. I replied by telling him of my admira-
tion of his cottage-study, and of my longing to know
more of its master.
“He smiled, and said, my surprise at finding so
many books in the possession of a poor scholar would
cease when he informed me that they had been the
gift of his uncle Erudito, of whose vast library they
formed but a slight portion. That his venerable


KIT BAM, MARINER. 131
relation had spent one period of his life in that
cottage, during which he had taken great pleasure
in forming the mind of Uberto and of infusing into
his nephew's spirit the same earnest love of know-
ledge that inspired his own, he himself being one
of the most celebrated scholars in the country. That
he had for the last three years gone to reside at a
lone and romantic house he possessed among the
mountains inland, where he could pursue his favorite
study—that of the stars; giving the books and the
cottage to Uberto as his parting token of love and
fatherly regard. ‘The flock, my sole parental in-
heritance, supplies all my wants,’ said Uberto, in
conclusion, “and as long as I can enjoy my peaceful
shepherd-life out-of-doors, and my treasury of books
in-doors, my utmost desires of wealth are fulfilled.'
“Then collecting his flock, and wending homewards,
he spoke of Biondello, and asked me how it was that
he had left me, before he himself could return. I told
him, how Biondello had been sought by some people
whom I had not seen, and I was about to add what I
had overheard, when Biondello's last words, “mean-
while, silence, and discretion!” echoed in my ears
their soft tones, and I checked myself.
“Uberto, however, replied:—'I hardly wonder at
his having quitted you abruptly. Though I have
known Biondello myself a long time, and in some
respects intimately, yet there has always been some-
thing about him that I could not precisely fathom—a
sort of mystery connected with him that I could not
discover; but, indeed, I have never greatly cared, or


132 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
much sought to know what this mystery might be,
but have contented myself with enjoying the pleasure
of his society on his own terms, without seeking to
inquire into what he evidently withholds. Any allu-
sion to his birth or station, or what he is at all beyond
the engaging youth I know and see, appears to dis-
tress and vex him; and I care not to trouble our calm
and pleasant intercourse by any unseasonable ques-
tions. It is now more than two years since I first
beheld him, and the action in which I found him en-
gaged, led me to love him as soon as I saw him. Our
friendship begun from that moment, and has continued
ever since.” -
“What were the circumstances under which you
first beheld him '' asked I, ‘if I may indulge more
curiosity than you have permitted yourself to exer-
cise with regard to this interesting Biondello,' I added
with a smile.
“There is a small brook, crossed by a plank and
handrail, close to our cottage,' replied Uberto. “One
morning, on approaching this spot, I beheld a youth
leading carefully my poor blind Martha (the old wo-
man who keeps my humble home in order for me),
who it seems had missed her footing in crossing the
frail bridge I mentioned, had fallen into the brook,
and had been rescued thence by the youthful stranger,
who was now soothing her with his gentle voice, and
tenderly supporting her homewards. The youth
(who you will guess was no other than Biondello)
continued to press her to lean upon him, though his
slight figure seemed to afford but a slender hope of


KIT BAM, MARINER. 133
much strength, and utterly regardless of his rich hunt-
ing-suit, which might be soiled in the muddy contact of
the old woman's dripping clothes. This humanity, and
freedom from selfish fastidiousness (too rare among the
class to which his dress bespoke him to belong) pre-
possessed me at once in his favour. I addressed him
with thanks for his care of my poor old dame, re-
lieved him from her burden, and we proceeded towards
my cottage together; for I then learned that he had
originally been coming thither, when he met with the
adventure of the blind woman. He told me that he
had a great thirst for knowledge, with little or no
means of acquiring any; that his mother had early
inspired him with a veneration for learning, and had
bid him seek it with unswerving diligence, when she
should be no more; that she had often spoken to him
of the profound wisdom and philosophic lore of my
venerable uncle Erudito, and had desired him to spare
no entreaties to obtain his friendship, and secure his
instruction; that accordingly, since the death of his
mother, he had never ceased desiring to carry out
her wishes; and that now, when he had some-
what recovered the shock of his bereavement, he
had hastened hither in obedience to her solemn
injunctions.
“‘He appeared struck with dismay when I informed
him of the departure of my uncle. He gazed mourn-
fully round upon the books, as if deploring this sud-
den bar to his hope of becoming acquainted with their
contents, and he looked so touching in his innocent
sadness, as he sat with clasped hands and tearful eyes,


134, THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
that I bade him take courage, and said, that if he
liked, I would help him in his difficulty.
“‘You?” said he with his sweet voice—for you may
have noticed that Biondello has a remarkably sweet
voice—as he looked up in my face with blushing
eagerness and renewed hope.
“I will: I shall not make you so good a master to
be sure, as my clever uncle; but he has kindly taught
me a good deal, and, if you like, I will teach it to
you again; and we can, at any rate, go on until you
know as much as I do. Thus then our acquaintance
began, and thus was our friendship established as
master and pupil, continued Uberto; “Bionello comes
to my cottage as often as he pleases for his lessons,
which most frequently take place in the little study;
but occasionally we carry our books into the open air,
sometimes sitting under a tree in the vicinity of the
flock, and sometimes wandering along the sea-
shore, as we fortunately did this morning, when we
discovered you on the sands. But though I cannot
help fancying, from Biondello's manners, appearance,
and dress (for the dark hunting-dress he invariably
wears, seems to be costly though simple), that he is
of high rank and birth, yet he always comes alone and
unattended, as if he dreaded observation; and I have
noticed, that after our lessons, when I offer to walk
with him part of the way on his road home, he never
permits me to accompany him beyond a certain point;
but always insists on my returning, when we have
reached the furthest verge of the little wood which
lies between this valley and the city, where I imagine


KIT BAM, MARINER. 135
is his abode. I know little of the great city, seldom
having occasion to quit this peaceful valley, which
contains all I desire upon earth; and less of the court,
which holds its state there; for even if my inclination
led me to seek its glittering wonders, my humble sta-
tion would preclude any hope of gaining admission to
behold them. But sometimes I have imagined that
my friend Biondello is no other than the heir of Lord
Ignorio, the prime minister, who I have heard has a
son of that name; and from all I have ever heard of
the father, he is the very man to render it necessary
for a child of his to seek knowledge (if he have any
thirst for it), with secrecy and mystery. However, if
such be the enigma of my friend's incognito, I do not
care to master its solution, while it is his whim to pre-
serve it intact.'
“We had by this time reached the cottage, and
evening closing in, after a frugal but pleasant meal,
rendered doubly so by my host's conversation and
hearty manners, he shewed me to the room formerly
occupied by his uncle as a bed-chamber, and left me
to enjoy a sound night's rest, which I did, undisturbed,
by one of the many reflections and cogitations that
had doubtless frequently employed the brain of its
former learned occupant. Next morning, Uberto
playfully remarking that his solitary humour ought
to be no guide for me, a stranger, who would doubt-
less like to see some of the lions of the neighbouring
metropolis, strongly advised my paying a visit to the
great city beyond the wood; telling me I might bring
home an account of all the wonders I had seen, to


136 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
amuse him after his morning ramble with his sheep.
Accordingly, soon after breakfast, I set forth, and en-
tered the city long before mid-day. I found it like
most other large cities I have ever seen; with grand
streets and grand shops; plenty of wealth and plenty
of squalor; large lofty houses, and poor lowly dwell-
ings; luxurious carriages mingling with heavy-laden
carts; and easy opulence everywhere neighboured by
bustling commerce, labouring poverty, orneedybeggary.
“I stopped for a moment to look into a jeweller's
shop, my eye being caught by the dazzling heaps dis-
played in the window; and then I passed on to the
next, a bookseller's, thinking, at the moment, that if
I had money, how much more welcome a present I
could carry home to Uberto from the second shop
than the first; when a little dapper man, a barber,
who had been observing me, stepped across the street,
and pointing back to his shop on the other side of the
way, asked me if I would not like to be shaved.
“I put my hand to my smooth chin, which, it must
be owned, advanced but small claims as yet to his
services, and looked him smilingly in the face, shaking
my head expressively as a sufficient answer. But, no-
wise abashed, he smirked, and bowed, and said:—
“‘But your hair, sir; perhaps you would like to
have it cut $ its luxuriant growth would be improved
by a liftle trimming, I venture to think, and may,
perhaps, suggest—
“While he was obsequiously uttering this speech,
it occurred to me that a rest in his barber's chair
would not be unwelcome to me after my sauntering


KIT BAM, MARINER. 137
walk through the town, and that I might possibly
pick up some amusing intelligence the while from
this polite little man, whose calling proverbially in-
cluded that of a newsmonger.
“I accordingly suffered him to lead me across the
way to his shop; and he had no sooner commenced
operations on my head, than I began to question him
a little concerning the current talk of the town, the
state of politics there, the court gossip, and whether
he knew anything of the Lord Ignorio. -
“‘His right honourable lordship, the prime mi-
nister? To be sure I do, replied the little man, con-
sequentially; “his lordship is my excellent good
friend and constant patron. I have not only his own
right honourable beard under my hands every morn-
ing, but I have the honour of dressing his daughter,
the Lady Ellena's lovely curls, and his son, Count
Biondello's hair; with the prospect of the future
culture of the latter's moustachios and whiskers, when
heaven shall, in its own good time, invest the youth
with these insignia of manhood. Indeed it is not
from any want of zeal on the part of my right ho-
nourable patron, Lord Ignorio, that I have not the
beard and hair of majesty itself under my jurisdic-
tion; but the fact is,'—and here the little barber
dropped his voice to a confidential whisper- the
fact is, there is much, very much, my dear sir, to be
understood in these matters that does not appear on
the surface; wheel within wheel, my dear sir,
counteracting interests, cabals and intrigues with-
out end,-considerations of policy, prudence, expe-


138 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
diency, and I know not what-prevent skill and
peculiar fitness from receiving their due weight in
court appointments. I name no names,’ added the
little barber, almost breathless with the importance
of his communication, and the mystery attached to
it. “But this I will say, that, considering the high
influence which Lord Ignorio doubtless possesses
with the most illustrious personage in this kingdom,
it must be some of the motives I have just alluded to,
which caused a certain person's appointment to the
post of court barber instead of your humble servant.”
“Then Lord Ignorio's influence with his Majesty
is very great º' asked I, as soon as I could edge a
word into the midst of my barber's stream of talk.
“‘His right honourable lordship's power near the
throne is undoubted and enormous, replied the little
man; ‘so undoubted and so enormous, indeed, that it
does not fail to raise the jealousy and enmity of the
base-minded populace, who contend that it is not
well for their aged monarch to be so wholly led by a
man who, they say, is well known to be an unlet-
tered, ignorant, obstinate man, entertaining the great-
est contempt for intellectual power, and believing
the whole glory and greatness of a nation to consist
in her military achievements and the extension of her
dominions. These absurd slanders of my noble pa-
tron (if indeed, I ought to call them slanders, when,
for my part, I venture to think, and may perhaps
suggest, that they are admirable principles for a
prime minister)—but these opinions of the populace
concerning my right honourable patron, have arisen


KIT BAM, MARINER. 139
partly from the circumstance of his having betrothed
his only daughter, the Lady Ellena, to the com-
mander-in-chief and generalissimo of the forces,
Baron Feroccio, and from his universally labouring
to promote the military advantages of the country,
to the neglect, and even prejudice, of her civil,
commercial, artistic, and financial interests. Count
Biondello, too, his lordship's son, seems to have inhe-
rited his father's predilections, and to be a worthy
successor in his views, for, notwithstanding it is
whispered that he is rather a wild youth, and given
to follow his own lordly will—which I venture to
think, and may perhaps suggest, are very allowable
indications of his high rank and aristocratic consci-
ousness of privilege and impunity; but, notwith-
standing these rumours, I say, it is believed that he
has, at present, quitted the court with the intention
of going to the wars, and joining Baron Feroccio,
his sister's betrothed, under whom he will probably
serve a few campaigns incog. This sudden disap-
pearance of Count Biondello from court, was, by
Some, attributed to dread of a match which, it is
understood, was contemplated by our venerable mon-
arch, King Imbecilio, who, in his partiality for his
favourite minister, had thought of bestowing his only
child, the Princess Eudora, on Lord Ignorio's son,
Count Biondello, in marriage. Now, sir, you must
know—a little oil will, I venture to think, and may
perhaps suggest, be an improvement to your hair,
sir. No!—oh, very well—no oil—quite simply—as
you please, of course. Well, sir, as I was saying,'


140 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
continued the little barber, resuming the thread of
his discourse, which he had abruptly snapped with a
professional solicitude about my head, ‘as I was
saying, you must know, that the Princess Eudora is
a very peculiar person, if I may venture to think and
suggest such a thing of a royal individual—very
peculiar. She not only will never permit any one to
touch her hair, which she always dresses and arranges
herself, according to her own particular notions
of grace and beauty, a thing which, I venture to
think, and may perhaps suggest, is very unladylike,
not to say unprincessly, savouring of plebeian in-
dependence, and low, artist-like individuality of taste,
wholly unbecoming her distinguished rank and sta-
tion;–not only has she this peculiarity, but she is
said to have a decided abhorrence for show and
proper dignity, which she calls ostentation and pride;
she despises homage and observance as servility and
fawning, and talks of fashionable ease and courtly
polish, as frivolity and folly; she has even been
heard to censure war and conquest, as wasteful bur-
thens on the state, and is well known to prefer study
to amusement. No wonder poor Count Biondello
should take fright at the proposal of a union with such
a woman, even though she be a princess of the royal
blood, and heir apparent to the throne,—for, I ven-
ture to think, and may perhaps suggest, that a bookish,
learned wife, is not formed to be a very eligible com-
panion, or a very attractive mistress, to a gay soldier.
Poor young man! and poor old man, too, if all be
true that I hear,’ pursued the little barber, ‘for I


KIT BAM, MARINER, 141
understand, that the poor old king, her father, is
sometimes perfectly desperate about her odd ways
and whimsical notions, and is ready to run distracted,
at the little sense she has of what is due to her posi-
tion, when she avows her sympathy with the very
poorest and most abject of the people, creatures
that you would not touch with my pole, long as it is,
and ragged and dirty as they are:-declaring that
even their vices are more to be pitied than blamed,
desiring the amelioration of their condition above all
things, studying her own improvement for their sake,
reading and thinking, instead of dressing and visit-
ing, and, in short, committing a thousand eccentric
absurdities, enough to break a father's heart, espe-
cially a kingly father’s.’
“The little barber concluded his speech just as his
officiation with my hair came to a close, so, rising
from my seat and paying him, I took my leave, with
many thanks for his entertaining gossip and court
news. As I quitted his shop, and proceeded in the
direction which I knew would lead me towards the
part of the country where lay the valley and Uber-
to's cottage beyond the wood, a carriage drew up to
the edge of the pavement, and, stopping near to
where I stood, a person stepped out and addressed
me. He had on a coat covered with gold lace, car-
ried a gold stick in his hand, and looked like a court
footman. Making a low bow, he told me he was
instructed to fetch me to the palace immediately,
as his Majesty, King Imbecilio, desired to speak to
me. I of course immediately obeyed, and was con-


142 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
veyed speedily to the very place concerning which,
its doings, and some of the people who figured in its
circle, I had just been hearing so much.
“I was ushered straight into the presence-cham-
ber, where sat an aged man, on a throne, whose coun-
tenance seemed to be compounded of vacant insi-
pidity and foolish wonder, and whose weak aspect
and silly expression inspired but little respect, not-
withstanding the grandeur of his position and the
magnificence by which he was surrounded. On each
side of the throne were ranged splendidly dressed
guards, in brilliant uniforms, and around stood troops
of jewelled noblemen, robed in rich velvets and silks,
while snowy plumes waved from their caps, and gave
animation and life to the scene. But what chiefly
attracted my eyes, amid all this gorgeous array, was
a figure that sat on a couch placed in close vicinity
to the throne, and whom I immediately guessed to
be the king's daughter, Princess Eudora. She was
attired in simplest white, but, from the slight circlet
that crowned her princely brow, a lustrous veil of
golden hair fell in clustering profusion over shoulders,
bosom, and waist, and made her the brightest object
in that bright scene.
“Her face, too, was of surpassing beauty; the white
polished temples shone with intellectual supremacy;
her eyes beamed forth mingled softness and spiritual
elevation; the roses of her mouth bloomed sensibility,
and ever-fresh gentleness and gracious kindness; in-
telligence and sweetness sparkled and played alter-
mately, or blended harmoniously in every expressive


KIT BAM, MARINER. 143
feature; and the brilliancy of her complexion, toge-
ther with her radiant tresses, shed a sunshine around
the spot, as if a youthful Aurora had sat there to dazzle
human vision.
“I gazed entranced upon this beauteous figure,
struck by some vaguely remembered impression, as
well as by the present one, when my attention was
recalled by the king's addressing me, and my eyes
fell again upon the foolish wondering face of the old
man, whose grey hairs were the sole thing in his ap-
pearance that claimed genuine respect. I knelt to
him, while he told me that having heard I was a
stranger who had been cast ashore, the sole survivor
from the vessel which was wrecked off that coast the
previous day, he had sent for me to see what could be
done to relieve the destitute condition to which I
doubtless found myself reduced by this accident; and,
as he was struck by my stalwart appearance, good
height, and the athletic proportions of my frame
(which promised great strength when I should reach
maturity), he resolved to bestow upon me a post in his
army, and would engage to give me the command of
a troop on the first signal proof I should give of
bravery and military ardour.
“His majesty paused, evidently expecting that I
should be transported with this mark of his bounty;
but when I had a little recovered my amazement, I
ventured to state, that so far from ever expecting to
distinguish myself by military ardour, or zeal for a
profession of which I had ever felt a scrupulous aver-
sion, from its involving the necessity of putting a fel-


144 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
low-creature to death, I must beg respectfully to de-
cline his majesty's intended boon, and to relinquish
any claim upon his compassion from my late accident,
as I hoped speedily to be in a condition to resume
my sailor life; until when, I was contented to be
obliged to a generous friend for the means of pre-
sent subsistence.
“King Imbecilio appeared to be about to return
some angry reply, when his daughter rose from her
couch, and, laying her hand gently on her parent's
arm, murmuring, ‘Nay, dear father—." She went on
to whisper something earnestly to him, while I started,
struck once more by some vague remembrance sug-
gested by those soft tones; then, turning towards me,
she added—‘Go, friend you are right, perhaps—but
go now, and at once.' She waved her hand graci-
ously but firmly—gentleness and dignity in every
look—while I, dropping for an instant to her feet,
and pressing the hem of her white garment to my
lips, promptly withdrew from the royal presence.
“I once again wended my steps towards the coun-
try, pondering on my visit to court, and stopped not
until I reached Uberto's cottage, where I entertained
my host with an account of all I had seen and heard
on my visit to the great city.
“He seemed to dwell most on what I had heard
from the little barber concerning Count Biondello,
Lord Ignorio's son; observing, that the circumstance
of the youth's disappearance confirmed what he had
some time suspected; and that what mere report had
represented as wildness, wilfulness, and determination


KIT BAM, MARINER. 145
to follow his own predilection for war, might in reality
be a resolute determination to pursue the path of
knowledge unthwarted by his unlettered father, and
so render himself worthy of his promised bride, and
of hereafter reigning with her.
“And this promised bride, this beautiful princess
herself, added Uberto, after a moment's pause; “she
must needs be a glorious creature, Kit; and of all
your wonders, the only one I should care to see.'
“The next day I wandered down to the sea-shore,
that I might see if there were any trace of my un-
happy shipmates, or any portion of the wreck to be
discovered on the sands; but not a vestige, not a
token did I find: I was apparently the only one saved
from that luckless crew; and, as I returned, I failed
not to render fervent thanks for my preservation.
“On entering the porch of the cottage, I heard the
voice of Uberto reading aloud, and, as I lingered for
an instant to look into the little study ere I crossed the
threshold, I saw him seated on the oaken settle with
Biondello by his side, who was looking up into his
face, and drinking in every word that fell from his lips
with avidity and devoted attention. The two youths
made a nice picture, sitting thus; the eager pupil,
with his soft eyes and rosy mobile lips, the very per-
sonification of listening, earnest, Docility; the grave
master, with his high-minded look, his impressive
delivery of the lofty theme, and his benign interest
for the neophyte beside him, looked like the genius
of Instruction. The younger lad had cast aside his
dark velvet cap, and wore a sort of crimson silk met,
L


146 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
of Spanish fashion, which contrasted well with his
fair hair and still fairer skin; the elder one in his
simple rustic guise, his glowing cheek embrowned by
open air and healthful exercise, and his dark chestnut
locks clustering close round his noble forehead, broad
and high in the expanse of intellect, they looked
two rare and exquisite specimens of youthful and
manly beauty.
“After I had indulged my fancy for a few moments
by contemplating them thus in silence as they sat
together, I advanced from the porch, and entered the
little study just as Uberto had concluded his period,
and Biondello had ejaculated—‘Sublime wisdom ''
The cadence of the voice struck me, as those soft
tones fell again upon my ear, and I paused involun-
tarily; while Biondello, raising his eyes, met mine,
and read something in their expression that caused a
bright crimson blush to flash into his face, then to
spread, until it suffused his very throat, that lay bare
beneath the open collar of his hunting vest, thrown
partially back on account of the heat.
“But he also seemed to read in my face something
that reassured him, for he recovered himself by the
time Uberto had said—‘You were so absorbed in the
old philosopher's doctrines, Biondello, and are, more-
over, so unaccustomed to any one else's presence in
this solitary study of ours, that you had forgotten I
have a guest in the stranger whom I helped you to
rescue from the waves the other morning.’
“So saying, he introduced us to each other with
his usual ease and courteous freedom of manner, and


148 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
Kit, you have discovered who I really am ; but I
perceive also that you have respected my mystery,
and have repaid the service I rendered you in saving
your life, by strictly observing the injunction I gave
you of “silence and discretion.’ Could you but know
how difficult has been my path hitherto—how beset
with obstacles and impediments I have been through
life in my endeavour to fulfil my duty honestly and
conscientiously, you would not wonder at my having
recourse to this disguise to obtain what I could not
otherwise achieve. Ignorance, prejudice, and parental
authority injudiciously exercised, hemmed me in,
and prevented my attaining what my soul thirsted
for-knowledge and wisdom; but, feeling that on
my freedom from the thraldom of narrow-minded
views, depended not only my own enlightenment,
but in that enlightenment the future welfare of
thousands, I resolved to brave all risks and devote
myself to study, reflection, and intellectual acquire-
ment in the humble guise of an unknown youth; this
secluded valley, the abode of the scholarly Erudito
and his nephew, apart from courtly trammels and
screened from impertinent interference, has been the
happy scene of my education, and I trust to your
good faith, Kit, in preserving my secret scrupulously,
for the continuance of my scheme, and for the secu-
rity of the results with which I hope to see it ulti-
mately crowned. Remember, to you and Uberto I
am Biondello still. From him, particularly, guard
my secret carefully. Once more then—' farewell;
and, silence and discretion!’


KIT BAM, MARINER. 14.9
“A moment more, and I was left quite alone be-
neath the trees; and, ruminating on what I had just
heard, I returned slowly to the cottage.
“Next day, I hoped in vain to see Biondello again;
all the morning I could scarcely attend to the book
which Uberto was reading aloud to me, as we sat
together beneath our favourite tree, for thinking of
Biondello and looking for his arrival. The subject
of the volume was interesting to me, it was a book
of voyages and travels, but my attention perpetually
wandered, and at length Uberto perceived it, and
said—‘I don't wonder at your being interested in
Biondello, and longing to see more of him. He is
certainly the most fascinating of human beings, and
I myself am conscious of feeling that my old liking
and affection for my gentle pupil has of late deep-
ened and strengthened into an attachment that is
becoming a part of my very existence. His presence
is a joy and delight to me; his absence saddens and
depresses me. I am haunted, when he is away, by
the musical echo of his soft tones, and his gentle
smile plays ever fitfully before me, making me pine
to bask in its kindly warmth again, as if it were a
vital principle. I reason with myself, and endeavour
to wean myself from the fascination which this
youth's society possesses for me; for if, as I suspect,
he is indeed Lord Ignorio's son, how should I hope to
retain for ever the companionship of one so high-
born, and so remote in position from myself? Count
Biondello, the mature nobleman, will forget his
humble shepherd-master; and the instructor of the


150 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
gentle lad, Biondello, will long in vain to see his old
pupil.’
“Uberto paused with a deep sigh and a troubled
look, very different from the usual calm expression
of his thoughtful, though frank and open countenance.
But his brow cleared as I said energetically—‘Do
not think it, Biondello will never forget the friend
of his youth : his nature is too noble.’
“Uberto grasped my hand with cordial warmth, as
he replied:—
“‘True; you do him better justice than I do in
the selfishness of my exacting attachment.’
“He turned, as he spoke, to go homewards; and I
saw that he too partook of my anxiety for the ar-
rival of Biondello. Afternoon came, however, but
still the youth did not appear; and I heard Uberto
repeat his deep sigh as he put away the books on the
shelves, which he had spread on the study-table that
morning, in the hope of his beloved pupil's advent—
a hope that he now evidently relinquished, though
with reluctance.
“Restless and uneasy, he then proposed our walk-
ing forth again into the open air; and we naturally
enough took the direction of the little wood. Our
thoughts being pre-occupied, we as naturally walked
on in silence ; but the exclamation which burst
from us both at the same moment, shewed plainly the
subject which had employed them severally and alike.
“‘There he is 1' we suddenly ejaculated, as Bion-
dello emerged from the wood, and hurried towards us.
“His manner and appearance filled us with alarm.


KIT BAM, MARINER. 151
His dress was disordered, and his face was pale and
agitated; he trembled violently, and looked back
every now and then in the direction whence he came,
as if he dreaded pursuit.
“‘What is the matter, Biondello 2' asked Uberto,
forcing himself to be calm, that he might the better
soothe his young friend's agitation.—‘What has hap-
pened?—What has alarmed you?”
“‘There has been a frightful scene there, gasped
the youth, pointing in the direction of the city; “a
popular tumult; the people have risen in defence of
their rights; they have proclaimed their abhorrence
of the late government—denounced the prime minis-
ter as their chief enemy; attacked his house; re-
quired him to surrender himself to their custody;
and are preparing to dictate terms to the king.’
“Biondello appeared to be about to add something
more, as he looked appealingly into his friend's face;
but at that moment he seemed to hear a noise in the
wood that sounded to him like approaching pursuit;
for, gasping faintly, and pointing in the direction
of his fears, his limbs failed him, and he would have
sunk to the ground had not Uberto caught him in
his arms and supported him from falling.
“‘He has swooned; help me to bear him to the
cottage, Kit; and we will get old Martha to help us
to revive him,' said Uberto, with the same deter-
minately calm manner, as if he resolved not to let
his anxiety master his power of being useful to his
friend.
“We bore Biondello into the little study, and


152 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
placed him on the oaken settle; but in so doing, by
some accident the crimson silk net became detached,
and fell upon the floor. With it fell the bright gold
tresses; they poured forth in their luxuriant abun-
dance, like the sun's rays streaming in at the lattice
of a morning chamber; and the beautiful woman lay
revealed beyond all power of disguise.
“I raised my eyes to Uberto's countenance to see
the effect of this sudden discovery upon him. It
was electrical; all traces of his forced calmness had
vanished, and his features worked with uncontrolable
emotions of surprise and agitation; his lips were
parted, and quivered sharply; his nostrils dilated,
and his face was pale—then flushed abruptly; his
eyes were fixed in passionate sadness upon the lovely
prostrate figure before him; but I noticed that his
appearance betokened, not so much sympathy and
alarm for his young friend, as some powerful in-
ward struggle of his own with which he was contend-
ing. His emotion was so evident, and shook him so
strongly, that I involuntarily exclaimed,
“‘ Uberto l'
“He started; then, muttering something of seek-
ing old Martha's aid, he abruptly lifted one of the
golden ringlets to his lips, with reverent fervour,
for one instant, and sped from the room. The old
blind woman soon after came to my assistance, and,
with some cordial restorative and a glass of fair
water, we tried every means to restore our sweet
patient.
“The fainting-fit was obstinate, however; pre-


KIT BAM, MARINER. 153
vious anxiety and alarm, together with the fatigue of
the long, hurried walk, had thrown her into a deep
swoon, and it was long before it yielded to our joint
efforts. At length tokens of returning conscious-
ness manifested themselves; her eyes opened, and
languidly sought those of her friend, her instructor,
but perceiving no Uberto, she closed them faintly,
and leaned against poor blind Martha, who knelt be-
side her, and uttered soothing words to the gentle
young creature who had once supported her feeble
steps. The kindly heart that had never repressed
its natural tenderness, or refused its sympathy to-
wards the suffering poor, because they happened to
be of inferior station, now drew comfort from this
aged crone in return, and placing her arms round
the old woman's neck, she suffered the tears to flow
from her closed lids, and laid her young cheek
against Martha's withered one, in simple womanly
claim of loving consolation. It was the true spark
of Nature asserting itself, and proclaiming equal
kindred between prince and peasant, in the moment
of mutual sorrow and kindliness.
“I left them together, and withdrew to seek
Uberto, somewhat surprised at his absence during
his guest's recovery, and not a little anxious con-
cerning himself, when I recalled the state of struggle
and agitation in which he had abruptly quitted the
little study. But I could find him nowhere; I had
soon been through the rooms in the cottage, and
was preparing to set forth and search the valley in
all his wonted places, when, on the table in my


154 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
chamber I perceived a paper, addressed to myself.
I snatched it up, and read as follows:—
“The struggle is over. I should be unworthy
of the wise teaching of my venerable instructor, and
more than father, did I not endeavour to prove my-
self able to choose integrity and honour, when op-
posed to selfish inclination. I could not see her, and
refrain from uttering the new wild passion which has
suddenly sprung from my old fond affection for my
beloved pnpil. I now read the enigma; she has
taken her brother's name, that she might gain the
education of a man. To you, Kit, I leave the charge
of protecting and serving this noble creature, since
so dear a privilege is denied to me by a fatal ob-
stacle. Shield her carefully from all harm, and con-
ceal her from all eyes, in my humble cottage, as long
as she may deem concealment necessary. Should
she inquire for her hapless friend, tell her that he is
gone on an indispensable mission to old Erudito's
house; she need never know the motive which really
banishes me thither, and imperatively bids me quit
Biondello for ever ! Once more let me call her by
that cherished name. Farewell, Biondello! Fare-
well, kind friend Kit !
“‘UBERTO.”
“As I gazed upon the paper and debated with my-
self for a moment or two, whether I would preserve
his secret or shew the letter at once, to account for
his absence, it struck me forcibly that mystery is


KIT BAM, MARINER. 155
always a bad thing, and to be avoided, if possible, and
that, moreover, in the present case, it had already
been productive of misunderstanding and suffering;
so I quickly resolved that I would have no reserves,
but at once give Biondello the power of judging fully
what was now best to be done. As I revolved these
thoughts, I reflected that I must no longer use the
old familiar name of Biondello, but at once recognize
the Princess Eudora, by treating her with the ob-
servance due to her rank, since all disguise was now
at an end.
“I entered the little study, accordingly, with all
the more homage in my heart, as well as in my out-
ward bearing, for seeing her simply seated there, on
the old oaken settle, in the dark hunting-suit, with
blind Martha, the object of her former kind help, as
her sole attendant, instead of occupying a throne,
crowned and robed, with a dazzling retinue around
her. Dependent, thus, on me alone for help and pro-
tection, she inspired me with more respect and ho-
nouring admiration than when I had beheld her the
brilliant centre of that gorgeous presence-chamber.
I approached then, deferentially, kneeling on one
knee, but she smiled and raised me, observing, that
a wandering princess should hold no state. She
thanked me with earnestness for having been so
true a knight to her, in guarding her secret with so
much discretion, and then, with a playfulness which
shewed that her spirits had revived with her recovery,
yet with a blush that became her well, she added,—
“But where is my other true knight and still older


156 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
friend, my dear master, Uberto ? why is he not here
to receive the thanks of his pupil, and to aid his new
friend in her difficulties º'
“For all answer, I placed his letter in her hands.
Her cheek heightened its bloom, when she began
to read, but paled as she continued.
“‘Gone, and bids Biondello farewell for ever !' she
at length, exclaimed. “But this—' her brother's
name!’—'a fatal obstacle!"—what may this mean º'
added she.
“I explained, that Uberto had always believed his
mysterious pupil to be no other than Lord Ignorio's
son, Count Biondello, that he now, doubtless, con-
cluded her to be the Lady Ellena, Count Biondello's
sister, and that the well-known circumstance of the
Lady Ellena's betrothment to Baron Feroccio was,
most probably, the ‘fatal obstacle' to which he
alluded.
“Fatal mystery !’ exclaimed Eudora; ‘why did
I not trust entirely one so virtuous and high-minded
as the noble Uberto? Oh! my dear master, my
kind instructor, why are you not here to save your
poor Biondello.'
“The princess then told me that she had come
hither that afternoon with the intention of seeking
the aid of Uberto and myself, and of asking his
counsel and judgment, to assist her and her father in
this emergency of the popular insurrection.
“I bid her highness avail herself to the utmost of
her true knight's poor services, which, though hum-
ble, were heartily proffered; and she, with that


KIT BAM, MARINER. 157
blended gentleness and dignity, sweetness and grace,
which distinguished her, saying, that one faithful
warm heart was of more value to a prince than a
hundred lukewarm swords, it was agreed upon be-
tween us, that I should, on the morrow, set forth to
the mansion of old Erudito, in search of Uberto, and
entreat his return in her name.
“But it is very late, my young friends," said the
old mariner, breaking off; “it is nearly time you
were going to bed, as the Princess Eudora did, at-
tended by old Martha; and, though the roof was
humble, and her attendant poor and blind, yet, had
she not been kept awake by anxiety, it is probable
that she would have enjoyed as sound sleep in the
cottage, after the fatigues of the day, as she had ever
done in her father's palace.


158 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
CHAPTER VI.
KIT GOES IN SEARCH OF UBERTO.--THE MANSION OF OLD
ERUDITO.-QUADRATA.—THE RETURN TO THE CITY..—KIT
SETS SAIL AGAIN.—THE GRANITE ISLAND.—THE HORSE OF
BRASS.-The FEAST OF THE SATYRS.
“Now for the disguised princess!” exclaimed
Fanny, as she and her brother took their usual
places in Kit's cottage, the next evening.
“Did you find Uberto at his uncle's house, Kit?'
inquired Dick.
“The next morning,” answered the old man, “just
as I was setting out from the cottage, to proceed in
quest of him, I beheld a large troop of horsemen
enter the valley, and by the time I had returned to
inform the princess of their approach, they swelled
into a large train, that, with much pomp and cere-
mony, marshalled its way straightforwards in the
rection of the cottage.
“The princess, perceiving at once that they were
aware of her presence there, and were, in all probability,
envoys charged with some message to her, as their
peaceful procession indicated no hostile approach,
she bid me inquire their will, and, if it were as she
supposed, to usher the heralds into her presence at
once. When I had obeyed her instructions, I found
*


KIT BAM, MARINER. 1.59
that she had divined truly the object of their coming.
Two reverend men, elders of the city, who headed
the procession, dismounted from their horses, and
entered the little study, where they found the prin-
cess awaiting their approach with simple, unaffected
dignity. They must have been well-pleased to have
found her thus, surrounded by the books from which
she had reaped such fruitful harvest and collected so
manifold and valuable stores of knowledge ; for it
proved that they came as representatives of their
fellow-citizens' wishes that the Princess Eudora
should assume the crown, and govern them in future
by virtue of the wisdom she had acquired, and ac-
cording to the dictates of her own discreet, virtuous,
and gentle nature. It appeared, that her merits had
gained her the hearts of the people, and that—when
they had revolted against a military tyranny, and
had refused longer submission to the ignorant and
narrow-minded sway of Lord Ignorio, who, they felt,
governed them in reality, through the medium of his
influence over the weak old king, their nominal
sovereign—they determined to enforce the minister's
resignation, the foolish monarch's abdication, and to
raise the Princess Eudora to the throne, secure of
their rights beneath her mild rule and wise judg-
ment.
“But she asked them in reply, how they thought
she would prove herself wise and virtuous in accept-
ing a throne which her parent had just been com-
pelled to abdicate 1 or how she would be likely to
confirm their partial opinion of her, were she to wear a


KIT BAM, MARINER. 161
known, she led him to a window that overlooked a
spacious square, which was now thronged by a vast
concourse of the inhabitants; and here she addressed
the people in behalf of her father, conjuring them to
return to their allegiance, and not to force her to
reign by an act of filial outrage, but to let her be still
a faithful daughter and their loving princess. She
repeated her proposal to elect a new minister, whose
worthy counsels should inspire and aid their aged
sovereign, and ended by proposing to them as a fit
person to fill the important office of state counsellor
and prime minister, the nephew of the well-known
Sage and philosopher, Erudito.
“When the shout of applause which rung through
the multitude at the conclusion of the princess's ad-
dress ceased, and the colour which had mounted to
her cheek as she spoke, subsided also, she resumed
with fresh energy, as if resolved that no private emo-
tion should interfere with the public tribute due to
the excellences of her friend and master, and she
went on to say with modest firmness—‘We would
have entreated the venerable Erudito himself to
come and aid us, my friends, had he been younger
and more able to endure the fatigues of public life;
as it is, his wise retirement and prudent devotion to
study and quiet leisure plainly evince that such a
sacrifice ought not to be asked at his hands; but his
nephew, gifted by nature, educated by his learned
relative, generous in heart, sound in principle, simple
in conduct, in the full vigour of youthful manhood,
and capable of highest self-devotion,-he is the very
M


162 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
being of all others fitted to be your prime minister,
the guardian of his country's welfare and honour, and
the counsellor of your aged monarch.'
“The Princess Eudora retired amid the acclama-
tions of the people; and the news soon rung through
the city that the old king was restored to his throne,
—that Erudito's nephew, Uberto, was to be elected
prime minister-and that their beloved Eudora, by
choosing to remain but a princess at present, was
proving herself still more worthy to be a queen
hereafter.
“When she had a little recovered from her late
excitement, I ventured to ask permission to approach
the couch where she lay, and proffered what I guessed
would be the best restorative to her spirits and in-
ward hope. I offered my services to set out imme-
diately to fetch Uberto and inform him of what had
happened. The princess smiled her old gentle smile,
and said in those winning tones that I had so loved
in Biondello, “My true knight still ! to offer to depart
even at this hour ! Faithful, kind heart ' ' Then
she added in a lower voice—“Tell him nothing, but of
the call his countrymen make upon his services—
that will suffice to rouse his noble heart, I know.
Once again,_silence and discretion.’
“No token from Biondello 7 not a word 7" en-
quired I, wishing to take some comfort to my friend,
and emboldened by the thought of his suffering letter.
“Eudora paused for an instant in maiden hesita-
tion, then faltered—‘Tell him that Biondello is
safely returned to his friends—and happy,+could he


KIT BAM, MARINER. 163
but once see the old days again, when he sat by the
side of his master in Uberto's little study.'
“I knelt to kiss her hand, and set forth imme-
diately; for the afternoon was far advanced, and I
feared that evening would close in before I could pro-
ceed far on my journey; so that I should have to
pass the night in the wild and desolate district which
I had heard lay between the city and the place where
old Erudito had chosen his retirement.
“At first my way was pleasant enough; it led
across the peaceful valley that I knew so well, where
Uberto's cottage was situated, and where I had spent
so many pleasant hours with that kind and noble
friend. His flock were nibbling their green supper,
as I passed, and I thought of their absent master, as
I looked at the lad who had been left in charge of
the fleecy creatures by the thoughtful provision of
Eudora; she had desired him to remain here, not
only as shepherd, but in order that Martha might
have some one with her in the cottage at night,
the faithful blind woman staying to take care of the
home of her kind master, and arrange his books
against his return, which she fondly hoped would not
be long delayed.
“When I reached the foot of the mountain range
that rose abruptly on the opposite side of the valley,
I turned to gaze once more on the tranquil spot,
praying that I might be destined to return to it ere
long with my friend; and, as my eye rested on the
minarets and spires of the distant city beyond, that
lay bathed in the last rich glow of the departing


164 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
western sun, I joined that other noble-hearted being
in my aspirations, and blended their joint names in
my prayers for their happiness. Then turning to the
east, which looked as if its dark blue sky had deep-
ened many shades during the few moments that I
had turned my gaze upon the splendours of the sun-
set, I began my toilsome ascent, trusting to the
active exertion requisite in attaining the summit for
sufficient warmth to protect me against a sharp, chil-
ling wind that was beginning to be perceptible in
this mountainous region, and to spring up with the
decline of day. My path became more rugged and
difficult as it became more steep, but I knew I could
not wander far from my right road, as I had heard
Uberto mention that his uncle's abode lay due east
from the cottage, and after the sun set, I could guide
my course by the stars, which fortunately shone out
soon after.
“As night came on, the way grew wilder and
wilder; I could distinguish yawning caverns and
deep rifts and chasms on either side of me, that
spread wide their hollow jaws, as if they were gi-
gantic animals standing ready to devour me; gloomy
pine-trees waved their spiring bodies to and fro in
the night-wind, as if mocking and beckoning to me;
lofty, towering rocks sprung up sheer from the side
of the narrowledge on which I sometimes had to
make my way, and threatening cliffs overhung their
mighty heads above me, as if nodding destruction
from their stony sleep. Ever and anon, I was star-
tled by the sharp cry of some bird of prey, that


KIT BAM, MARINER. . 165
flapped its powerful wings, and sailed across a neigh-
bouring ravine, roused by my approach and the un-
usual echo of a human footstep; and then, at in-
tervals, I heard the prolonged howl of the wolf, the
wailing, discordant yell of the hyaena, with its hor-
rible mingling of weeping complaint and malicious
laughter, and once I heard the deep roar of a distant
lion. I looked up hopefully, beyond the crags and
caverns, into the blue sky that covered all with its
blessed canopy, and kept my heart firm, in the midst
of that wild scene, by thinking of the friend who
had so lately passed through it, sustained only by
just principle and a consciousness of doing what he
felt to be right and honourable. “And shall I, who
possess hope of coming happiness for those I love,
to support and encourage me, be less brave-hearted
than he Let me be worthy of his example, of his
hospitable kindness to the shipwrecked mariner, and
let me go boldly on to carry tidings of joy to his
stranded hopes.’
“Such thoughts as these elevated and strength-
ened me, and led me trustfully on through the pe-
rilous path of that lonely night, and, when morning
dawned, I found myself but a few hours' journey
from the mansion of old Erudito. Mayhap about
eleven o'clock I reached his abode, which was a
quaint, curious building, of irregular form, sur-
mounted by a lofty observatory, and situated in the
very heart of this remote and solitary region. I
knocked at a small wicket that stood in one angle
of the rough wall that enclosed the tenement, and,


166 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
after waiting a few moments, the gate was opened
by an odd little figure, that looked singularly in
keeping with the quaintness of all around. It was
that of a little squat girl, with a square face, set
upon square shoulders, which surmounted as square a
skirt, terminated by two splay feet with square toes.
Her face looked as if it were covered with strained
parchment, instead of skin, in the middle of which
was stuck a small flat nose; her eyes looked like
two pierced holes, and her mouth like a straight slit
cut across the said parchment with a pair of scissors.
I think I never beheld a more ugly little body in all
my life, for, though she seemed not to be more than
eighteen, she had none of the grace or beauty that
mere youth itself bestows on the person. She
bobbed a quick little ducking curtsey, in reply to
my inquiries, and led me into the house, while she
went to inform her old master of my arrival. She
had not waddled away above two minutes, when I
heard a quick firm step, and, in another moment, my
hand was warmly grasped in that of Uberto. He
took me, at once, to his uncle's study, where the
venerable sage greeted me with a cordiality and
energetic kindness that contrasted well with the
snows of age crowning his reverend head, and
shewed how green and fresh philosophy keeps the
hearts of her votaries. As vivid and as keen, too,
did the feelings of this old man prove themselves
still to be, when I disclosed the object of my mission,
and told him of the universal call made by his coun-
trymen upon the talents and virtues of his nephew ;


168 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
“‘And Biondello 2'
“I repeated the precise words I had been bid to
use as Biondello's message, and Uberto, uttering one
deep sigh, merely said,
“‘Be it so | The good of my native land must
be my hope now. In that I'll find my happiness
and life.’
“Once resolved, he lost no time in setting out,
and, after taking a cordial leave of old Erudito, who
gave me a small volume, of curious worth, as a part-
ing gift, we left his mansion on our way home.
The path through the mountains, viewed by day-
light, and in the company of a friend, seemed far
less wild and perilous than it did in the lonely night-
time, and Uberto beguiled its tedium by cheerful
conversation and animated discussion. He seemed
to avoid, with peculiar care, all allusion to the agi-
tating scene which had preceded his departure from
his cottage home, as if he did not choose to trust
himself with so interesting a subject; but he spoke
frankly of his hopes of filling his new appointment
worthily and beneficially, of his venerable relative,
Erudito, of the young heart and mind that dwelt
in his old frame, and of his contented solitude, where
he saw no human being but Quadrata, the odd little
damsel I had seen on my arrival.
“I smiled involuntarily, as I recollected this
quaint little fright, and Uberto, observing it, said,
“‘Ay, to you, who know nothing of her but her
strange ugliness, I don't wonder at your smiling at
my uncle's choice of a handmaiden; but he, with


KIT BAM, MARINER. 169
the eyes of true wisdom, can descry the loveliness of
honesty, cheerful activity, faithful service, soft nurs-
ing, thoughtful tendance, zealous care, watchful assi-
duity, and constancy of attachment, beneath the
parchment skin and angular figure of poor little
Quadrata.”
“We reached the valley towards nightfall, and
Uberto resolved to remain at the cottage till morn-
ing, when he might present himself to his sovereign,
at the palace, and tender in person his required devo-
tion and service.
“Accordingly, next day we proceeded to the court,
and were at once ushered into the royal presence.
All was precisely as I had beheld that brilliant scene
on a former occasion; but the figure that occupied
the couch by the side of the old king was now veiled
not only by her luxuriant shining hair, but was
covered from head to foot by a gauze of golden
fabric that fell in bright folds to the very floor.
Uberto stood forth with firm manly dignity in that
august assembly, his handsome intellectual head and
simple attire forming no inapt contrast with the
glittering crowd that stood around. It seemed as if
the shepherd-god, Apollo, had descended amidst
mortals to assist and guide them with the glorious
wisdom they lacked,
“With noble yet modest words, Uberto then knelt
and tendered his services to his country and his sove-
reign, and vowed to devote them zealously and
faithfully in so righteous a behalf to his life's end.
“The aged monarch raised him, accepting him as


170 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
the minister chosen by the voice of the people, and
welcomed by himself; adding, that it had been further
resolved, that the hand of the Princess Eudora, his
daughter, should be conferred upon him in marriage,
to strengthen his attachment to the throne and the
interests of the kingdom, by an alliance with the
heiress-apparent to the crown.
“In choosing such a husband for my child,’ said
the old king in conclusion, “my people secure to her
a more congenial consort than I formerly meditated
in the son of Lord Ignorio, and to themselves in
future a wiser monarch than I fear I have made
them; but I shall thus have the comfort, in my old
age, of seeing the happiness of my daughter and of
my people both ensured.’
“Uberto paused, as if grieved to respond to these
gracious words of his sovereign by aught but grateful
acquiescence, but, collecting fortitude from a convic-
tion of what was the only righteous course for the
sake of all parties, he, in simple but firm words,
avowed that he was compelled to decline the in-
tended honour of the princess's alliance, for that his
affections were irrevocably fixed upon another object.
“‘Let not your majesty or her highness reflect
upon me for my sincerity, he said. “Feeling as I
do that my attachment, though hopeless, is eternal, I
do not dare to outrage the princess by marrying her
to a man with a dead heart. I have bid adieu for
ever to love, and devote myself to patriotism alone.’
“He knelt, inclining lowly and reverently to the
veiled princess, and withdrew from the presence.


172 THE STRANGE ADVENTUREs of
blushing face of Biondello–Eudora, Uberto's pupil,
friend, and mistress, all revealed in one !
“He knelt to receive assurance of the delicious
truth; while she, eager to reward his self-denying
honour and loving constancy, told him all her story,
from her early thirst for knowledge, feeling its neces-
sity to enable her worthily to fulfil her high destiny;
her seeking his cottage in obedience to her dying
mother's injunctions; her assuming disguise that she
might gain the sterling education of a man, the better
to fit her for reigning hereafter; her adopting the
name of him once destined for her husband; her
studying so happily in the cottage under the tuition
of her shepherd-master; her seeking his aid; her
grief at his flight; her joy at his return doubled and
trebled by his noble refusal of Eudora for the sake of
the lost Biondello;-all, all was told, up to the very
moment when she had prepared this blissful surprise for
him in the very scene of their former happy pursuits.
“‘I have had this room fitted up for my study,
Uberto, added she; “the very model, as you see, of
our peaceful happy one in the cottage. Here, when
wearied with cares of state, or oppressed with the
splendours and hollow grandeur of court life, will we
repair to seek in quiet reading and placid contempla-
tion, repose and refreshment. Here, too, in this
humble study, and from these well-worn books, may
we gather wholesome lessons of modesty, self-scru-
tiny, and gentle forbearance towards others, as well
as comfort, hope, and gratitude towards the bounteous
Giver of all good.’


KIT BAM, MARINER. I73
“It was not long before I had the pleasure of
witnessing the completion of the happiness of my
friend Uberto in his marriage with the Princess
Eudora. But, after the nuptials, which were cele-
brated with great magnificence, and amid the uni-
versal rejoicings of the people, my old love of
wandering returned upon me with its usual force;
and now that I could no longer hope to be of any
use to my friends, I asked and obtained permission
to leave the court, and once more go to sea. My
generous friends would fain have loaded me with
rich gifts and costly tokens of their remembrance;
but I said that at my age, and with my wandering
tastes, I could have no possible use for wealth; how-
ever, I told the princess that there was one precious
gift in her power to bestow upon me, if she would
pardon the presumption of my solicitation in consi-
deration of the reverential love which dictated the
request. Her gentle voice and smile then encou-
raged me to beg for one of those shining tresses, as a
memorial of the touching scenes with which they
were so tenderly associated;—scenes in which I had
once borne a part, and which would ever be remem-
bered by me with affectionate interest and love for
my two dear and honoured friends.
“She turned with her usual dignity and winning
grace towards her husband, saying—“Those tresses
are all Uberto's now; but he shall sever one for you,
and it shall be our joint gift.' And, when her hus-
band divided the lock from her fair head, she placed
it in a small crystal locket set round with large dia-


174 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
monds, which she took from her bosom, and, placing
the chain which held it round my neck, she said—
“The contents I know you will keep ever, for the
sake of your loving friends; but promise me, Kit,
that, should you at any future time want money, you
will convert these gems into a more available shape
for use than they are at present, which will do well
enough now as a small compass for a sailor's hoard,
and permit of his carrying it always about his person.
Farewell; think sometimes of your friends, Uberto
and Eudora, as they often will of their true knight,
Kit.”
“The ship in which I now set sail, could boast of a
very superior crew to those among whom I had last
been in company. They were a light-hearted, excel-
lent set of fellows, with a good-natured captain at
their head, and I spent my time very easily and
agreeably among them. Indeed, on recalling to
memory their many good qualities and sociable disposi-
tion, I cannot reconcile their conduct in sailing away
without me, with what I remember of their general
behaviour. For it was this very ship that I told you
of in my first yarn, that sailed away and left me on
the Island of False Appearances. I can only account
for it, by imagining that they thought I had fallen a
victim to the fatal streamlet as well as my unfortu-
nate companions.”
“Oh then, now we shall hear what you did when
you got away from the malicious dwarf, by the help
of the amiable giant,” said Dick Swallow.
“Yes," replied Kit; “I may as well go on at once


KIT BAM, MARINER. 175
from that period of my history; for no particular
adventure happened to me in the interval of our
leaving the country of King Imbecilio, with the
exception of the frightful drought from which we suf-
fered for some days previous to our arriving at the
island, where we landed in search of fresh water, as I
mentioned to you. The remembrance of that dread-
ful thirst, and its accompanying evils, even now
comes over me with a horrible sense of pain whenever
it crosses my mind. The sea and sky were of one
lurid copper hue, and seemed to spread in scorching
sheets of blazing metallic substance around us, re-
flecting fierce unrelenting defiance upon our parched
mouths and blistered skins. Burning heat glowed
above with intolerable fervour upon our aching heads
and languid moistureless eyeballs, that sought relief in
vain from the waters below, which seemed but a vast
dazzling mirror, doubling and intensifying the sur-
rounding furnace. Fevered and exhausted by expo-
sure to such sufferings, no wonder that my two
comrades rashly sought relief at all risks, and em-
braced even death in the shape of irresistible fresh,
cool, delicious, spring water.
“But, to resume the thread of my yarn, when I
quitted the shore in the boat that afternoon, I had a
notion that I was among a sort of cluster of islands,
that did not lie very far apart from each other in
those seas; so I rowed away for some time straight
from the land I had just left, in the hope that I might
reach some other before evening should close in.
Night, however, "came on while I was still in the


176 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
open sea, and nought could I see but water around
me and sky above. The blue arch of heaven deep-
ened and deepened the tone of its azure expanse, and
then out came the blessed stars to cheer and revive
me with their hopeful eyes. I gazed towards those
countless orbs, and let my spirit take free range amid
the firmament, where a supreme law appoints their
mighty course, and bids them shed consoling radiance
upon the humblest midnight wanderer. From the
trackless paths of ocean, from the dreary waste of
waters, as from the stifling crowds and most populous
haunts of his fellow mortals, may the spirit of man
ascend in yearning aspiration on a starry night; and
seeking communion with those sublime creations of
the Almighty in their unfathomable remoteness, feel
himself elevated as if to the presence of his God.
“My soul strengthened and my arm nerved by
this contemplation, I rowed stoutly on, till suddenly
I became aware that I was nearing land, though it
seemed to be sterile and unpromising, so far as I
could discern by starlight.
“The shore seemed to be composed of steep rocks;
for, on approaching, I found that the sea rose in
breakers against the masses of hard stony cliff that
projected their inhospitable fronts, as if to bar my
advance, and refuse any response to my hope of
effecting a landing there. However, my exhausted
frame and limbs, weary with so many hours' rowing,
warned me not to be easily baffled in seeking repose
and shelter; I, therefore, kept off shore as well as I
could, while I endeavoured to coast round in search


KIT BAM, MARINER. 177
of some favourable cavern, where I could creep in
for the night, or succeed in finding some rather less
rugged access than any which had hitherto presented
itself.
“At length I came to a kind of craggy inlet, on
one side of which the rocks shelved down to the
water's edge so low, that I believed I could climb up
on to them from the boat, which with some difficulty
I succeeded in doing. But I had no sooner attained
this flat shelf of rock, than I perceived that I had
quitted my little vessel without having taken the
precaution of first landing the provisions that had
been given me by the friendly giant, and which, from
all that I could see around, was the only food I
should be likely to procure that night. I was ac-
cordingly compelled to leap back into the boat,
though it was tossed about so by the surge that it
was a narrow chance I did not plunge into the waves
instead. However, I succeeded in securing the pre-
cious keg of well-water, and the two loaves in which
the giant had enclosed the butter and the cheese,
and then I contrived to scramble up once more on to
the shelving platform of rock beside them, though,
the instant I had done so, the thought flashed across
me that I had no means of mooring my little vessel.
No bush, no tree, not even a stump or a jagged
point of rock, to which I could lash the rope and se-
cure the boat. Even if it escaped uninjured by the
breakers, I could scarcely expect that it would re-
main in the bay where it now was; and, if it drifted
away before morning, what chance of escape had I
N


178 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
from this stony shore, where my first welcome had been
so inhospitable and unpromising? But every spark
of hope, with respect to the frail bark, was speedily
destroyed by the boiling waves; they tossed it to and
fro, and flung it against the savage rocks, that threw
it contemptuously back: and thus, almost as I gazed,
I beheld my sole means of retreat dashed to pieces
before my very eyes. I comforted myself as well as
I could with the only glimpse of consolation I had at
that moment the heart to perceive; which was, my
having fortunately preserved the food and water from
perishing with the boat. So, determining to avail
myself to the utmost of this alleviating circumstance
in my situation, I made a hearty meal of one of the
half loaves, some of the butter and cheese, and a
draught from the keg. After this, feeling refreshed,
I secured the remainder of my provisions, by placing
them carefully on a sheltered ledge in a rift of the
rock, and I determined to set out in search of some
more comfortable shelter for the night than that
barren flattened reef could afford. I walked on some
time, in the hope of meeting with a more fertile spot
inland; but not a vestige of a tree, shrub, or plant
was to be seen. Not only were there no trees, or so
much as a ragged stunted bush any where about, but
there was not even the least trace of verdure or vege-
tation of any sort, to clothe the bare sterile rock
which spread every where beneath my feet as far as
the eye could reach. Not a blade of grass, not a
patch of moss, not a solitary slender lichen, sprung
from the callous monotony around—all was sullen,


KIT BAM, MARINER. 179
obdurate, unyielding granite. What was my dismay,
when, after walking for about two hours, I found that
I approached the sea-shore again,-a shore precisely
like the one I had just quitted,—a mere flattened
reef of rocks; and that, in fact, I was imprisoned in
a small desert island, containing absolutely nothing to
support nature, but was a mere huge granite slab, set
in the midst of the ocean. I felt like one of those poor
isolated insects I had noticed when a boy—some
luckless ant, or beetle, that had by mischance strayed
upon a floating leaf, and was carried away in strange
waſtage along the current of a brook or pond. Like
that poor perplexed creature, I felt prompted to run
hither and thither in mad bewilderment, and spend
my strength in vain efforts to extricate myself from
my hapless position. I checked these rash thoughts,
however, as I best might, and lay down on the bare
rock humbly and trustfully, grateful, at least, that
there was the starry canopy above me, instead of a
stormy and adverse sky.
“With the first dawn of light I arose, and, forlorn
as my situation undoubtedly was, I could not be in-
sensible to the beauties of that early morning, rising
in mid ocean, and shedding its glories upon one deso-
late human being, apart from all his race in granite
solitude. Blessed prodigality of Nature! that la-
vishes its wonders on desert wastes where no eye
may ever mark the marvellous beauty, content to
work its own bounteous decrees in magnificent
profusion.
“Roseate clouds replaced the grey dawn; golden


KIT BAM, MARINER. 181
at any rate until another day should dawn and lend
me its light.
“The pangs of hunger, as well as the growing
horrors of my situation, combined to keep me awake
the greater part of that night, and I resumed my
search the next day, exhausted as well as dispirited.
I endeavoured to calculate on what side of the island
the particular reef could lie, by recalling the position
of the stars at the time I landed, as well as by the
direction in which I had beheld the sun rise the
previous day, which, of course, indicated to me the
eastern quarter of the island; but I found the long
fast I had sustained was beginning to have its effect
upon my faculties, which, I felt, were becoming con-
fused and indistinct in the process of thinking. An-
other night darkened upon me, with the added horror
of approaching illness, for I felt fevered and restless,
besides being conscious of a sort of wandering in my
mind. This last feeling increased to such a degree
before morning, that next day I was in a strong fit
of the seaman's disease, the calenture, or home-
longing, that haunted me with terrible distinctness
and pertinacity, for some hours. The granite island
had faded completely from my sight, and I beheld
the entire scene of my dear native village, with the
vivid force of reality. There was the church spire
against the background of an English sky, pale blue,
flecked with light fleecy clouds; the church itself
with its glistening windows reflecting the mild rays
of the evening sun; the simple churchyard, with its
green mounds and plain gravestones; there was the
rº-> T- –––– - -


182 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
little wicket-gate, leading to the village green, with
the humble cottages skirting its sides, and straggling
towards the green lane that led away into the high
road; there were the fields, dotted with sheep and
grazing cattle, the neat orchards, the little gardens,—
every well-known object was there, palpably, visibly.
Not only did I see these things actually before me,
but my other senses aided the delusion, and I heard
the gentle lowing of the kine, the bleating of the
sheep, the barking of a distant watch-dog, the music
of the church bells, and the murmur of children's
voices, as they sported on the village green. My
tears flowed, and my heart panted to be gone, that
I might melt into this tranquil scene, and be for
ever at rest. As I gazed, methought my mother
issued from the door of our cottage home, and beck-
oned, smilingly, to her sailor son. I followed, as I
fancied, and saw her point towards the oaken cup-
board that contained refreshment for her poor wan-
derer. In my delirium I rose to my feet, and, pur-
suing the direction of my mother's hand, I went for-
ward, towards what seemed in my heated imagi-
nation, to be the small cupboard in the cottage wall;
when, on putting forth my hand to grasp the food
I saw, I found that I held the very loaves that I had
secreted on my first arrival, and that I, in fact, was
guided, in my fevered vision, to the precise spot, the
rift in the rock, which I had sought so long in vain.
“You may imagine that, though very stale, never
had bread tasted so deliciously to me before, and the
keg, kept fresh and cool beneath the shelter of the


KIT BAM, MARINER. 183
rock, poured forth its pure contents to my parched
lips, with a refreshment that no wine, however rare,
could have produced. I slept well and soundly that
night, and, when I awoke in the morning, I found, to
my inexpressible joy, that my fever had abated, and
that I felt healthful and strong enough to form very
energetic resolutions of revolving some means of
escape from my granite prison. But how were these
means to be found ! Not a morsel of wood any-
where, to make a raft—not a single stick to fasten
my handkerchief to, that I might hoist it as a signal
in case any ship should fortunately pass within hail.
But not a vessel, not a sail, could I descry; the sea
all round looked smooth and unruffled, and was as
undisturbed and unproductive a monotony as the
granite slab which formed my prison.
“Utterly baffled, and all my hopes of help by self.
exertion thus reduced to nought, I stood mutely in-
active, with folded arms, and a sort of dull resigna-
tion to the inert neutrality that my fate forced upon
me, when, suddenly, I was struck by observing a glit-
tering object high in the air, which, as it advanced
and gradually descended, I perceived to be a horse
of burnished brass. It alighted not far from the
spot where I was, and then stood as still as a stone,
looking as immoveable as the granite island itself.
I shaded my eyes with my hand, as I gazed at this
wondrous horse, which dazzled like the unclouded
sun, and I tried to recollect what I had heard one
of my early shipmates, Geoffrey Tabard, once tell
me about just such a horse of brass.


184 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
*
“It was of fine proportions and of great breadth
of chest, all formed for swiftness and endurance, just
as Geoffrey had described it to me; and I remem-
bered that he told me of its possessing the power of
conveying its master to whatever quarter of the
earth he pleased to ride, within the compass of a
day; or, if he desired to soar like an eagle, it would
bear him, without danger, through the regions of
birds, to the place of his destination, and that, in its
progress, it was so staid and so soft, that its rider
might sleep, without fear, upon its back. Then,
remembering how Geoffrey had explained that in its
management there required no other skill than the
turning of a pin that was fixed in its ear, I deter-
mined boldly to avail myself, if possible, of the
means this brazen steed offered of quitting the gra-
nite island.
“I therefore approached resolutely, and laid my
hand upon the rein, which was a bridle of curious
workmanship, encrusted with jewels, and then the
horse began to trample and caper, as if he recog-
nized one who was acquainted with his nature. I
mounted, turned the pin, and left it to the discretion
of my charger to conduct me whithersoever he
pleased, believing that, as he delivered me from
peril, he would best know where to take me for my
future good. We soared gently aloft, and he bore
me through the air and across the sea, till we ap-
proached land, when, stooping from his flight, the
horse alighted in a grassy plain, where I dismounted.
Then, after remaining a few moments, as if rooted


KIT BAM, MARINER. 185
to the ground, and quiet as a stone again, he sud-
denly rose from the earth, and the horse of brass
soared away, and vanished from my sight.
“I waved a grateful farewell to him, and turned to
look round upon the place in which he had left me.
I found I was in the neighbourhood of a thick wood,
and, as I felt the rays of the noontide sun some-
what oppressive, I sought the refreshing shade of
the trees, and wandered for some time beneath them,
enjoying the cool air and the green luxurious repose
of the bowery spot, affording such exquisite con-
trast with the hard, barren monotony of the place
I had just quitted, the dreadful granite island. I
revelled in the sweet smell of the wood, a mingled
odour of wild flowers, boughs, blossoms, mossy bark,
and teeming earth; I, as it were, bathed my eyes in
the verdant freshness of the overhanging leaves, the
clear azure of the sky that peeped between the
foliage, and the soft purple haze that appeared to
suffuse the ground beneath the trees; I bared my
brow to the pure breath of heaven, my senses seemed
steeped in refreshment, and I felt as if I drank in
reviving influence at every pore.
“Presently, I heard a sound of rural merriment;
I looked up, and beheld a troop of fauns and satyrs.
coming through one of the forest glades, shouting
and singing a shepherd rhyme, and making the
woods echo with their merry piping and gladsome
revelry. On they came, wearing the ground with
their horned feet and backward-bent knees, leaping
like wanton kids in pleasant spring, and joyful as the


186 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
birds, while with them came dancing, hand in hand,
nymphs and light-footed hamadryads, waving green
branches, all just as I had heard Edmund Faery (an-
other of the early friends of my first voyage), many
and many a time, describe them to me, when he
had told me of these wood-born people; his very
words came into my memory, so vividly had he
painted them. Though they were rude-favoured, mis-
shapen creatures, with their frowning foreheads sur-
mounted by rough horns and their strange limbs
hairy and hoofed, yet there was an air of natural
goodness about them and guileless enjoyment, that
inspired confidence and liking. The procession
stopped in an open, grassy spot, where the glade
widened, not far from the place in which I stood; and
then I saw the merry busy crowd prepare for a rustic
feast, by spreading the ground with boar's and kid's
flesh, goodly fowls and birds, piles of rosy fruit, and
heaps of green and purple grapes, intermingled with
drinking-horns, flagons, and swollen wine-skins.
“The jolly company were just about to seat them-
selves around on the grass, when espying me, they
sent up a boisterous shout that made the welkin
ring, then, gently grinning, they, by grotesque becks
and barbarous courtesy, signified to me that I should
approach and share their repast, while two buxom
nymphs sprang forward, and, playfully crowning my
head with green coronals and wreathing me round
with vine garlands, they led me towards their wood
companions, and, with uproarious mirth, pressed me
down upon a mossy seat in the midst of them.


KIT BAM, MARINER. 187
“No-wise averse, I enjoyed their wild hospitality
and shared their hearty merriment, eating and drink-
ing my best, and mingling my voice with their joy-
ous shouts and sportive songs; but, when I began to
perceive that joviality was merging into mad ex-
cess, and jocund hilarity was fast becoming mere
tumult and noise, I bethought me that my human dis-
cretion had best take means to withdraw from the
company of these wild wood-gods, while I yet pre-
served my senses. Thanking them, therefore, for
their courtesy and good cheer in one more rousing
cup, which I resolved should be the last, I seized the
opportunity, when their attention was occupied in
pressing some vast bunches of grapes into a huge
bowl and crowning it with garlands, that they might
drink a loving cup round to the health of old Syl-
vanus, and quietly rising, I stealthily effected my
escape among the neighbouring leafy coverts, and
soon lost sight of the uproarious train, thinking how
closely my situation resembled that of some tem-
perate guests of whom I had heard in civilized life,
who were compelled to abscond by stratagem from
the indiscreet society of some too-hospitable human
host.
“I wandered on beneath the trees, until I came to
the skirts of the wood, where I beheld a stately
mansion.
“But I must tell you to-morrow what adventures
befel me there, my dears,” said the old mariner,
“for it is too late to spin any more yarns to-night.”
-- ~~~~ * ~


188 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
CHAPTER VII.
THE ABODE of subtilia ; DRUSILLA; THE” ENCHANTED FOUN-
TAIN ; ERUDITO's Gift ; The LAKE, AND ISLAND RETREAT ;
SIR LIONEL ; THE MYSTIC RINGs.
“You left off last evening just where you came in
sight of a stately mansion, Kit,” said both the young
Swallows in a breath, when they were next seated
happily with their dear old friend the mariner.
“I bent my steps towards it,” resumed Kit, “and
shortly approached the high bronze gates which
formed the entrance to this lordly domain; they
yielded to my hand, and I advanced through a long
avenue that led straight to the flight of marble steps
surmounted by the portal of the mansion. On each
side of the avenue stretched a fine park, and, in the
vicinity of the house I saw plantations and thick
shrubberies, that bespoke beautiful pleasure-grounds
and lovely gardens fit for voluptuous retirement. I
ascended the flight of steps, and found that the portal,
like the bronze gates, gave way at once beneath the
pressure of my hand, and I entered a lofty hall of
dazzling white marble, from the centre of which rose
a staircase, that, after a short flight, diverged, and led
to the rooms above. I went straight up to the first
landing, where I found a magnificent suite of rooms,


KIT BAM, MARINER. 189
draped with rich hangings, and ornamented with
gilded mouldings and cornices; superb pictures deco-
rated the walls, luxurious couches, soft carpets, mir-
rors, candelabra, and vases, were every where around
in costly profusion. But I saw no one; I met not a
single person amid all this splendour; not one occu-
pant in this stately household. I wandered on
through many rooms, all grand, all betokening lordly
habitation, but still not a soul could I see; through
many more, above, around, and below, but all was
silent and deserted, and I strayed on alone—quite
alone, without a sound but my own echoing footsteps,
or the sight of a human countenance, excepting an
occasional glimpse of my own, as I passed some huge
mirror that reflected my wandering figure, and startled
me with its unexpected motion amidst this still and
silent solitude. I descended again to the marble
hall, where I perceived some windows reaching to
the ground, that opened on to the broad terrace
which occupied the back of the mansion, and com-
manded a view of the gardens and pleasure grounds.
I stepped forth, and stood for some time to admire
the beauty of the scene that lay stretched before me,
while I mused upon the strange desertion of a place
so bountifully endowed. I gazed forth upon the
lovely pleasaunce, the green alleys, the brilliant
flower-beds, the bowery alcoves, the graceful statues,
and silvery fountains, that diversified the tasteful ele-
gance of the surrounding grounds, when, suddenly,
my ear caught the sound of a plaintive voice uttering
a low wailing lamentation. I looked hastily round,


190 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
but no one could I see; and, indeed, the sound was
too stifled and distant for it to have proceeded from
any one in the open air, or near to me. I listened,
and, hearing the plaintive sound repeated, I crept
softly in the direction whence it seemed to proceed.
It led me to the end of the terrace, and then, de-
scending a few steps, I heard it more distinctly, and
found that it seemed to issue from a low angle of the
building among some flowering shrubs, that grew in
a cluster near to the foot of the terrace. As I
stooped towards them I distinguished these words,
uttered in the disconsolate tone which had before
reached my ear—“Ah me, unhappy Drusilla! Why
bemoan thy miserable fate Why indulge in useless
complaint, when there is no one near to listen and
console ! Wretched, wretched maid : Lost, aban-
doned, deserted by all, cease to deplore thy cruel
doom, but let grief do its work—break thy heart at
once, and die!" Much moved by this melancholy
plaint, and by the touching voice of woe in which it
was uttered, I strained my eyes eagerly through the
slender branches which screened the portion of the
building whence the voice seemed to issue, and I dis-
covered a low grated window close to the ground; on
looking still more intently, I could distinguish behind
the bars the figure of a beautiful damsel, who was
wringing her hands piteously, casting her weeping
eyes up to Heaven, while she gave way to those
bitter lamentations which I had overheard. I no
sooner perceived her, than I endeavoured to make
her aware of my presence, and to offer my services


KIT BAM, MARINER. 191
in aid of her distress. I cut away some of the
branches of the flowering shrub that intervened, and,
approaching as near to the grating as I could, I beg-
ged her to believe that there was one near, anxious
to assist and console her, would she but accept his
services, and direct him how best they could be
exerted in her behalf. The fair damsel, after the
first blush of surprise at my sudden appearance,
smiled graciously, and told me that she was an un-
happy prisoner, confined in that lonely dungeon by
the arts of a wicked enchantress, Subtilia, whose
abode was the luxurious mansion that reared its walls
above the cell of her victim; and then the damsel,
who told me that her own name was Drusilla, asked
me how I had contrived to escape the observation of
Subtilia, and gain access to the neighbourhood of her
dungeon, so as to discover its situation. I informed
her of my having entered the house, of my having
wandered all over it without encountering any one,
and of my subsequent visit to the terrace, whence I
had been fortunately led by the sound of her voice to
the discovery of her imprisonment, from which I now
longed so eagerly to be the means of her deliver-
ance. She thanked me warmly for my proffered aid,
and then, recurring to the former portion of my
speech, where I had recounted my having found the
mansion empty, she said:—‘Then Subtilia is absent;
she is doubtless gone on one of her errands, fraught
with mischievous peril to knights and damsels who
have unhappily provoked her admiration or her wrath;
for her partiality towards the one sex is as fatal as


192 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
her malignant hatred of the other. Had she seen
you, gallant stranger, added Drusilla, with a compli-
mentary glance, “it is more than probable that you
would never have been permitted to emerge from her
abode, even so far as to the terraces and gardens.
She is an avowed admirer of handsome youths, and
loves to see bravery and beauty swell her train of
followers.”
“I felt abashed by this open flattery of Drusilla's,
and hastened to check its course, by leading the
conversation back to her own misfortunes, asking
her if she could account for the animosity which had
led Subtilia to cast her into the dungeon where she
now languished.
“‘Alas, no!’ exclaimed the damsel, casting her
eyes modestly down; ‘unless it be that these poor
charms have excited her envy, and drawn her enmity
upon their unhappy possessor.”
“I looked at her as she stood there, in her blush-
ing beauty, with the bright tears streaming over her
glowing cheeks and glistening upon her coral lips,
like dew-drops trembling in the cup of a rose, and,
notwithstanding her consciousness and vanity, which
revolted my better taste, I could not help admiring
her loveliness, and permitting myself to be biassed
in her favour by the irresistible attraction of youth,
softness and distress.
“I bade her command me ever, vowed to deliver
and protect her, though at the peril of my life, and
besought her to bestow some token of her regard
and acceptance of my devotion to her cause.


KIT BAM, MARINER. 193
“The damsel blushed and smiled, and then, press-
ing one fair arm through the bars of her prison-
window, she permitted me to kiss her white hand, on
which I perceived a heart-shaped ruby ring. Tran-
sported with her condescending softness, I would
fain have drawn this ring from her finger and placed
it on my own, but she suddenly withdrew her hand,
and, telling me the ring might perhaps be my guerdon,
when I should have succeeded in delivering her from
the power of Subtilia, she told me that I had best
avail myself of the enchantress's absence, by return-
ing immediately to the house, seeking the way to
the dungeon-door, and so freeing Drusilla from pri-
son before the return of her enemy should interfere
with our plans. I agreed to the reasonableness of
this proposal, and asking Drusilla if she could afford
me any indication of the direction in which the pas-
sage leading to the dungeons lay within the house,
she told me that she had been conveyed thither from
the great hall of white marble blindfold, and that,
therefore, she possessed no clue wherewith to guide me
in my search. However, doubting not that I should
be able easily to discover the way, and anxious to
lose no more time in endeavouring to effect Drusilla's
escape, I bade her farewell, and hastened to retrace
my steps along the terrace, and return to the house.
“Arrived once more in the marble hall, I paused
a moment, to calculate, as well as I could, the pro-
bable direction of the dungeon, when, opening a door
to the right, I found myself in a long gallery, lead-
ing to a beautiful conservatory, filled with rare
O


194 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
flowers of every shape and hue. Convinced that
this could not form the approach to the subterranean
range of prisons destined for the reception of Sub-
tilia's victims, I returned to the hall, where I again
debated in what direction I had best proceed. I ob-
observed that several doors stood ranged on the
two opposite sides of this hall, leading into galleries
right and left through the extensive wings of the
mansion, so, as I had no means of deciding which of
these galleries was the passage I sought, I deter-
mined to go regularly through them all, in the hope
of discovering the one I so ardently desired. The
second door I opened admitted me into a gallery at
the end of which I found myself in a spacious
library, the third led to a superb aviary, another
to a saloon of rarest sculpture, another to a well-
proportioned music-room, each to various retreats
of refined amusement and elegant leisure, but none
that bore the remotest likelihood of conducting me
to the range of dungeons beneath the building, which
I longed as eagerly to find as others had probably
desired to avoid. At length, at the end of one of
the galleries, I beheld a staircase, that led down
windingly to a dark vaulted passage, and, though
evening was by this time closing in, I hesitated not
to descend at once, hoping that I had at last dis-
covered the way to the prison of the lovely Drusilla.
The passage was of stone, and echoed drearily be-
neath my feet, as I proceeded, groping carefully on
either side, to find the dungeon doors, which I con-
cluded could not now be far distant.


196 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
of the building, and forming a secret means of
egress from the mansion. I found that it had
brought me out beneath the avenue in front of the
edifice, and the brilliant moonshine which silvered
the tops of the lofty trees, and shed soft lustre upon
every surrounding object, enabled me to find my
way readily to the principal entrance; and I once
more returned to the marble hall.
“Before I resumed my search through the few
doors that yet remained unopened by me, I deter-
mined to repair to the grated window of Drusilla's
prison, that I might inform her of the fruitless
search I had hitherto made, and, by assuring her
that I meant immediately to return and prosecute
it further, account for the suspense in which she had
been detained, and revive her hope for future suc-
cess. I hastened along the terrace, and was soon at
the low grated window, but what was my dismay,
when I received no reply to my reiterated calls upon
the fair damsel's name. I urged her, by every ear-
nest expression I could imagine, to take pity on my
uneasiness, and to relieve the torture I suffered in
her behalf; I conjured her to believe that the delay
in her deliverance had been occasioned by no want
of ardour on my part, and that if it was this circum-
stance that offended her and kept her silent, I en-
treated she would at least have compassion on my
fears for her, and assure me of her presence by a
single word.
“But I pleaded in vain; no sound, not a sigh
reached my ear, and I became convinced that the


KIT BAM, MARINER. 197
dungeon no longer contained its fair tenant. In-
deed, the moon shone so brightly, that I should have
discovered the figure of the damsel, had Drusilla
still occupied her prison, but not a line, not a hint of
her fair shape could I distinguish, to break the
uniform darkness of the space into which I gazed.
Amazed and dispirited, l arose from the kneeling
position I had assumed, the better to peer down
through the dungeon window, and wandered on
through the moon-lit gardens, musing vainly on the
cause of my mistress's strange disappearance. The
title I had given to Drusilla, in my reverie, struck
upon my fancy, and I paused to consider what
reason I had to look upon her in the light of a
lover.
“I have seen her but a few hours, I know nothing
of her qualities, and yet I talk of her as my love—
my mistress—my future bride I Do I love her?
Do I wish to pass my life with her ? Do I really
desire to devote my future existence to this damself
—to the formation of her happiness and my own in
our union ?” I asked myself these questions, and
was surprised to find how the remembrance of her
beauty was the sole response, and how that faded
before the recollection of her evident coquetry and
vanity, which had been thrown into shadow while my
eyes were dazzled with her personal charms in the
presence of the fair Drusilla.
“My own conduct, too, did not satisfy me, upon
reviewal, any more than hers in the interview be-
tween us. As I thought over these things, I drew


KIT BAM, MARINER. 199
I looked round involuntarily, though I was so situ-
ated that no one could possibly be standing in the
position which had suggested itself to me; for, I had
seated myself on the marble brink of a large vase-
like basin, in the centre of which played a fountain
that sent up its silver sparkles among the moon-
beams, and fell again in graceful showers to the
rippling water.
“But the sigh was repeated, and I heard the plain-
tive voice of Drusilla murmur—“And is that my real
picture ? Are those my true colours? Am I indeed
the worthless vain coquette I there see depicted?
Ah, Lionel, well art thou vindicated Deeply,
fatally, are thy wrongs avenged, by my present hope-
less admission of the justice of my doom l’
“The voice ceased, and I heard nothing but the
soft plashing of the fountain, and the thrilling notes
of a nightingale in the neighbouring grove.
“Drusilla! speak again! Drusilla! ‘Where are
you, lady ?' I exclaimed impetuously.
“‘You see me not, gallant stranger, though I am
close beside you,' replied her voice; ‘by the cruel
sorceries of the enchantress Subtilia, I am nightly
transformed into this fountain; as evening closes in,
I quit my dungeon, and with it my human shape,
which I resume not until morning dawns, when I
exchange one imprisonment for another. The free
open air, the close cell, are equally thraldom for poor
Drusilla! Listen, stranger, she continued, “for your
magic volume has unsealed my eyes, and bids me
value truth now above all things; listen, and I will


200 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
tell you the whole of my sad history, of which I
allowed you to understand only a portion this morn-
ing. I am a king's daughter, and my early years
were spent in the midst of unbounded luxury, un-
checked whims, unlimited praise of my beauty, and
injudicious indulgence of all kinds. My natural
defects were thus cherished into faults, and my ca-
price, disdain, and tyranny, when I came to have
suitors, were intolerable and incessant. Of all of
them, I only really loved Sir Lionel, but I never
would permit him to feel sure of this, and scarcely
treated him better than any of the others. Still, .
spite of all, he loved me fondly, faithfully; and his
ardent affection roused the vindictive jealousy of
Subtilia, who had herself cast eyes of favour upon
my handsome lover. One evening, I was pacing
idly along one of the green alleys of the royal gar-
dens, surrounded by a train of my admirers, one of
whom I sent to catch a butterfly, another for a bunch
of forget-me-nots, another for a riband for my dog's
neck, a fourth for my pet monkey, and a fifth for I
know not what, when I suddenly found myself alone
with Sir Lionel, and, in the embarrassment of the
moment, instead of despatching him like the rest
upon some frivolous errand, I said—‘and you, sir
knight, may give me that opal from your finger if
you think fit to bestow it upon me: it will be a meet
gift, you know, for one so changeable as you have
frequently told me that I am.’
“‘Be true to your own better nature, then, lady
mine, said Sir Lionel, emboldened by the encourage-


KIT BAM, MARINER. 201
ment I gave him in my request; ‘give me that ruby
ring of yours in exchange for my opal, and tell me
they shall bear witness of our mutual constancy.’
“When I do give you that heart-shaped ruby,
sir knight, you may boast of my constancy,' I ex-
claimed, haughtily drawing back.
“‘He was incensed at the sudden change in my
manner, which, an instant before had been all playful
softness, and said, ‘Then I part not with my opal,
unless in exchange for the ruby.'
“‘I would sooner exchange places with that foun-
tain,’ said I, pointing carelessly to one that played
near us, ‘than part with my ring to Sir Lionel.'
“‘Sir Lionel will never submit his heart to your
sway, fair tyrant, exclaimed my lover impetuously,
‘until you yield him your ruby ring, and own that
you have used unworthily a heart hitherto but too
willing to devote itself to your service.’
“‘He broke from me with these bitter words, and
I have fatal reason to believe that these rash speeches
of ours threw us both into the power of Subtilia; for,
that very night, her enchantments were put in force
against myself, and I have no doubt my unfortunate
lover is equally subject to her spells. There is a
retired spot, towards the south, not far from hence,
—a small island situated in the centre of a lake,
where the enchantress devotes herself to pleasure,
and to the society of those whom she has enwoven in
her fatal snares. Here, I fear, my dear knight, Sir
Lionel, has been conveyed; and, alas! my own con-
duct scarcely permits me to hope that his constancy


202 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
has been proof against the wiles doubtless employed
to win him to her allegiance. It is but too probable
that he has yielded to her blandishments, and has for
ever abandoned all thought of the miserable Drusilla!'
“‘Then you regret your false knight, and still love
only Sir Lionel !' I exclaimed, in a tone which I
vainly endeavoured to render free from reproach.
“She understood me, and replied with new-born
frankness, the offspring of her perusal of Erudito's
magic gift—‘My behaviour to you this morning,
gallant stranger, warrants your rebuke. It was my
old self then acting. It was the coquette—the vain
thoughtless beauty—heedless of what pain she might
inflict, while intent solely upon conquest and securing
new worship. Be generous as you are brave, kind
stranger, and withdraw not your proffers of assist-
ance from an unhappy damsel because she has the
courage to own the truth. Be content to think her
candour renders her moreworthy of your help, though
not of your love; and still benevolently strive to
relieve her from distress, even when she honestly
avows that she loves another better than yourself.
Above all, do not call Sir Lionel, false knight. He
was ever true and kind, till I urged him beyond for-
bearance. His further submission to my caprice and
tyranny would have been scarcely manly; and if, in-
deed, his constancy should have swerved in the trial
to which I doubt not it has been subjected by the
arts of Subtilia, I may mourn his loss—as I must
eternally—but I shall have only my own former self
to blame for the cessation of his love.’


KIT BAM, MARINER. 203
“Again the voice ceased with a plaintive cadence,
and I heard nought but the nightingale's musical
descant and the soft plashing of the fountain, which
seemed faint echoes of Drusilla's love and tears.
“Her contrition and her ingenuous self-blame,
wrought their due effect upon me, and, after a mo-
ment's pause, I burst forth in cordial expressions of
my willingness to serve her, and to do all I could to
restore the lovers to each other, unthoughtful of any
more selfish reward than the happiness of promoting
theirs.
“‘'Tis no more than I believed of you, generous
stranger, she exclaimed; “your bearing is frank and
noble; and think not now that I flatter you lightly,
as I perhaps might have done before I beheld my two
portraits truly depicted in your wondrous volume
there. My abhorrence of my former self, and my
hope of what my present self may eventually become
through the meek teaching of an awakened con-
science, authorize my telling you that I confide en-
tirely in your friendly goodness, as expressed by your
every look and manner. Take, then, this ruby ring,
find out my true knight, Sir Lionel, and give him
the token, with Drusilla's full avowal of her affec-
tion, of her self-blame, and of her sole hope now
consisting in his unaltered faith towards one, who
will devote her whole life to prove worthy of his
love.’
“As she ceased speaking, a small gold-fish swam
towards the marble brink, holding in its mouth the
heart-shaped ruby ring, which I immediately recog-


204 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
nized to be the one I had beheld that morning on
Drusilla's white hand. -
“As I reached forth mine for the token, I renewed
my assurances of fidelity to her service, and, bidding
her be of good cheer as to the success of my enter-
prize, I withdrew, determined to set forth in quest of
her knight by earliest dawn on the morrow.
“I slept in one of the sumptuous bed-chambers in
the deserted abode of the enchantress, Subtilia; but
my dreams were calm, and my slumbers refreshing-
mayhap none the less so, that my mind was free from
any thoughts of a flirtation, and the thousand tor-
menting solicitudes and misgivings of a growing,
though fancied preference.
“On the following morning I rose eagerly to my
task, but, previous to my departure, I stole down to
the low grating of the dungeon window, beyond the
terrace, that I might say a parting word of hopeful
comfort to the fair Drusilla, if she should be returned
thither, and awake to note me.
“The morning sun was up in his glory, and dart-
ing his kindly rays athwart the iron bars, shewed me
the form of the fair Drusilla stretched upon her
prison-pallet, but with a smile of loving brightness
and artless joy upon her countenance, that bespoke a
pure renovated heart and dreams of a happy future.
That her first waking thoughts might partake of their
cheerful hue, I hastily gathered some wreaths of
honeysuckle blossoms, emblems of hopeful constancy,
and, twining them through the grating, I hurried
away on my quest for her lover. Remembering her


206 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
little time, drying my wet garments, and marking
the beauty of the drooping boughs that dipped their
pendant leaves into the waters, to meet and kiss their
twin semblance; while the cool umbrageous reflec-
tion seemed to shrink and tremble coyly, gliding
away elusive from beneath their playful touch.
“Presently a delicious sound of music crept into
my ears; a lulling harmony of blended wind instru-
ments, that swelled and rose majestically from mur-
muring softness into loud outpouring strains, then
sunk again in soothing cadence; at one moment a
tender passionate melody breathed alone its persua-
sive accents in eloquent entreaty—then the impera-
tive thrill of silver trumpets and loud-voiced clarions
would ring forth, amid the impressive sway and deep-
toned richness of trombones and bass-horns, and anon
the lingering liquid notes of recurring gentleness and
beauty would enchain the attention in stronger and
more willing bondage.
“Drawn by the luscious strains to a nearer enjoy-
ment of their sounds, I left my leafy covert and made
my way through the grove that surrounded me; but,
on approaching a thick-pleached hedge that seemed
to encircle the spot whence the music proceeded, I
looked through the close interstices of its branches,
and beheld a scene that at once rivetted my attention,
and drew it firmly towards the object I had in view,
—the disenthralment of Drusilla's lover, Sir Lionel.
“On a rustic throne of moss and mingled flowers,
reclined the enchantress Subtilia. She was attired
in gorgeous satin robes, of the hue which the phea-


KIT BAM, MARINER. 207
sant's throat displays when the bird basks in rays of
sunshine; on her arms and breast glowed gems of
rarest water—the diamond, the sapphire, the ruby,
and the emerald; and amid her raven hair lurked
pearls of orient worth, like clusters of starry jasmin
peeping from among their dark foliage. Her beauty
well became this attire—it was haughty and com-
manding, and her eyes sparkled with conscious power
and proud dominion.
“On the grass at her feet lay a steel-clad knight,
idly waving a fan of snowy feathers, the riband of
which still clung round the wrist of its beauteous
mistress; but I marked that his eyes seldom rose to
meet those of the enchantress, which often sought
his: I saw that they were not occupied with the light
figures of the nymphs who were floating in a mazy
dance before him, I could see that they were not
even following the air-drawn circles which he was
listlessly describing with the waving fan in his hand,
but I perceived that they were most frequently fixed
in sad abstracted gaze upon a ring which he wore on
his finger—a lustrous opal. His continued abstrac-
tion at length became apparent to Subtilia, for, say-
ing, ‘You are weary of this dancing and this music,
dear knight; I will bid them begone, and you shall
tell me what occupies your thoughts.' She waved
the nymphs to retire, and the musicians to cease
playing. Then black pages, attired in white and
scarlet, brought vases of gold, and flasks of crystal
enriched with silver frost-work, from which they
poured rubious and amber-tinted wines into goblets


208 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
encrusted with gems and crowned with flowers, and
handed them, together with cool fruits heaped in
tempting groups, upon chased salvers and chargers,
to the enchantress and her guest.
“But the wine brought no exhilaration, the fruits
no refreshment to the satiated palate of the knight;
he appeared rather to be overwhelmed than revived
by the succession of voluptuous pleasures heaped
upon him by his gracious entertainer, and I could
perceive that the languid sigh he uttered was not so
much one of enjoyment, as of oppression and palled
appetite, while his thoughts were so evidently wan-
dering from the scene before him, that Subtilia again
challenged them, and said,
“You long for more stirring scenes; is it not so,
dear knight? you weary of this soft repose and per-
petual inaction. To-morrow we will repair to the
main land, and enjoy all the vivacity and animation
of the chase. My hunting-lodge shall be prepared,
the fleetest hounds, the swiftest horses, shall be at
our command, and we will rouse the stag or the
ferocious boar, while our steeds bear us flying along
to the spirited call of the bugles, and the far-re-
sounding shouts of the hunters. Come,’ added she,
seeing that a light beamed in the eyes of Sir Lionel,
at this mention of something in the shape of active
pursuit, and relief from the round of insipid diver-
sions and sensualities in which he had lately been
steeped, ‘come, you shall give me some reward for
my promised hunting-party; you shall give me that
gem from your finger. I grudge the many thought-


KIT BAM, MARINER. 209
ful looks you bestow on the senseless opal; when
transferred to my hand, I shall better endure that it
should attract your gaze; it will remind you that
that little hand seeks no dearer employment than to
confer benefits and endless happiness on its cherished
friend, Sir Lionel.”
“The enchantress extended her fair hand, as she
spoke, with a smile full of blandishment, expecting
that the knight would place the ring on her finger,
fascinated by her encouraging condescension; but he
merely raised the lady's hand to his lips, mutely
declining to yield her the opal.
“Subtilia's dark eyes flashed fire at this refusal.
“‘Ungrateful knight!' she exclaimed, “no com-
plaisance moves you, no generous confidence can
win that stubborn heart of thine ! Mock not my
kindness, disdain not my affection, or learn to dread
the animosity which may, ere long, replace in my
bosom the too fond weakness with which I have
hitherto regarded you.’
“So saying, the enchantress swept past, casting an
angry glance towards him, and quitted the spot, sur-
rounded by her train of pages and attendants.
“The knight fell again into his abstracted gaze
upon the ring.
“‘Too well she knows, he murmured, ‘that to yield
her this, would be to relinquish the last slender tie
which binds me to a better existence—the last slight
defence I possess against becoming entirely the vic-
tim of her power. No! not to her—not to her,’ he
added, as he pressed the gem passionately to his
P


210 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
lips. Yet why should I cling to the vain hope that
Drusilla will ever free us from the spells that en-
thrall us both, by uttering the humble words that
would disenchant us. Alas! capricious, imperious,
as she is, spite of her bewitching loveliness, how can
I hope that she even bears me in remembrance 2'
“On hearing these words of Sir Lionel, I stepped
forth from my leafy screen, where I had hitherto
concealed myself behind the hedge, and abruptly
placed myself before him, confronting him, and hold-
ing forth my hand, which bore the heart-shaped ruby
ring.
“He recoguized the token instantly; he started,
and, springing to his feet, made as if he would seize
me by the throat, while he exclaimed,—
“‘Caitiff! where did you obtain that ring º'
“‘Hold !” I cried; ‘let not the valiant Sir Lionel
commit an injustice he may repent, and mistreat the
messenger who bears him tidings of joy and deliver-
ance. This ring is a token from the fair Drusilla,
sent to her true knight, with loving words and ac-
knowledgement of error.’
“‘How! error!’ exclaimed he wildly, as he seized
the heart-shaped ruby, and covered it with kisses and
fond murmurs of delight.
“I hastily explained to him the whole of Dru-
silla's adventure with myself, the revelation which
the “Book of Self-Disenchantment' had been the
means of making to her, how it had opened her eyes
to the frivolity of her past conduct, how deep was
the regret she expressed, how fervent was her hope


KIT BAM, MARINER. 211
of future improvement in her own nature, as well as
of faith and constancy from him, and how she looked
to him as her deliverer, her true knight, her fond
lover, her long-beloved Sir Lionel; in fine, I deliver-
ed to him the whole of her humble, loving message.
“And can she deal thus generously by me !
Error!’ again exclaimed the knight. “No, she was
not so much in error, as it was I that was to blame
for my petulance, my wilful rashness. But, let us
go; let us hasten, kind stranger, to my beloved lady;
let us lose not a moment in returning to free Dru-
silla from the toils in which the wicked Subtilia has
so long held us both.'
“As we hurried towards the lake, I asked the
knight how it was he could now escape from the
bondage in which he had hitherto been detained on
this island by the enchantress, and he explained to
me that the words of his rash vow had placed him
in her power, until the heart-shaped ruby ring should
be yielded to him, with words of humility and ac-
knowledgement of blame on the part of Drusilla.
That, therefore, the possession of her token, which
I had happily brought him, freed himself from the
thraldom to which he had till now been subjected,
and that it only remained to effect a personal ex-
change of the opal ring for the one she had sent him,
with his lady, Drusilla, as speedily as might be, in
order to liberate them both, entirely and for ever,
from the wicked arts of Subtilia, who had no power
to effect harm against two constant hearts bound by
loving union.


KIT BAM, MARINER. 213
Subtilia's mansion, and I led Sir Lionel at once to
the low grated window of the dungeon where his
lovely mistress was confined. He knelt to receive
the gentle greeting with which she flew to welcome
him, but she had no sooner extended her hand to-
wards him, to receive the opal which he placed with
transport upon her slender finger, than the bars of
her prison melted, and vanished into air, permitting
Drusilla to throw herself into the arms of her true
knight, and give him rapturous assurance of her
love, and her true repentance of her former coy
caprice.
“I left them to this blissful exchange of mutual
forgiveness and tender vows, while I sauntered to
and fro upon the terrace, until they should rejoin
me to enter the mansion together, that we might
seek refreshment after our day's anxiety and fatigue;
for I, who had no lady-love to engage my thoughts,
began to indulge in sundry visions of good cheer,
and looked forward to the enjoyment of a comfort-
able repast, which I felt would be extremely accept-
able, and which I knew, from previous experience,
the larder and cellar of Subtilia's mansion could fur-
nish in excellent abundance.
“I was revolving these pleasant speculations, and
endeavouring to pacify my growing appetite (which
you may have perceived, my dears, on various occa-
sions in the course of these yarns of mine, always led
me to pay careful attention to its demands,--a sailor
should always stow in good ballast, you know), by
considering with what delicacy I should first assuage


214 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
its voracity, when my attention was attracted by the
appearance of a glittering object in the distance,
approaching from the same quarter whence Sir Lionel
and myself had just arrived; that is to say, in the
direction of the lake.
“As it came nearer, I could distinguish the glit-
tering object to be a golden car, in which sat the
haughty Subtilia, drawn by four fiery dragons. They
ramped and tore up the ground before them, emit-
ting flames and glowing sparks from their nostrils;
but the fury and rage that shot their angry lightnings
from the flashing eyes of the enchantress herself,
shone with a far more terrible glare, and seemed to
scorch and wither all that she looked upon.
“I called loudly, to warn the lovers of the ap-
proach of their enemy; and they had scarcely reached
my side, to learn the cause of my alarm, when Sub-
tilia arrived at the steps of the terrace. But, ere
the enchantress could descend from her car, two
benignant forms were seen to emerge from the
centre of a thickly clustering rose-bush near at hand;
and, warning Subtilia to advance no nearer, they
pointed triumphantly to the mystic rings, which
shone upon the lovers' fingers in loving exchange, as
they stood hand in hand together.
“‘Thy spells are broken! thy power is at an
end, vile sorceress!” said one of the good fairies.
‘Against frivolity, vanity, petulance, and rashness,
the blandishments of the voluptuary, the arts of the
wicked may prevail; but against truth, modest worth,
and the loving faith that is the offspring of self-


KIT BAM, MARINER. 215
knowledge and generous forbearance, the shafts of
envy and the snares of worldly pleasure fall pointless
and ineffectual. Begone, therefore, and seek no
longer to disturb the union of two wedded hearts.'
“The enchantress quailed beneath the virtuous
rebuke, and, with a dark scowl, shrunk back, while
the other fairy godmother, who had remained silent
while her sister addressed Subtilia, now advanced
to where I stood with Sir Lionel and Drusilla, and
bidding us follow her, she led us from the terrace
through the marble hall of the mansion, into the
avenue in front, where we found a travelling equi-
page with six cream-coloured horses awaiting us.
Then, bestowing a blessing on the two lovers, she
bid us hasten our departure to the court of Drusilla's
father, where we should be welcomed by the good
old king, who had long mourned his fair daughter's
absence, and pined for her return.
“Before night closed in we reached the palace,
where, you may imagine, great were the rejoicings
which greeted the princess and her knightly lover
on our arrival; and where, I assure you, I heartily
enjoyed the sumptuous banquet which was served in
celebration of their happy return. The royal house-
hold, I have no doubt, exerted their utmost resources
and used their best speed; but, I can tell you, after
such long fasting as mine, the least delay of the
meal seemed an age, and when it did appear on table,
I made up amply for lost time, as you must now do,
my dears; so off with you, lest you reach home too
late for supper.”


216 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
CHAPTER VIII.
The DIAMOND MERCHANT.-WILL WAVELANCE’s Island.—
SCYLLA AND CHARYBDIS.–THE SIRENS.-POLYPHEMU.S.–
EGYPT.
NExt evening, the old mariner resumed his yarns
as follows:—
“I spent some time very merrily and happily at
this court, my dears, in the pleasant society of my
friends, Sir Lionel, Drusilla, and the old king, her
father, who all treated me most kindly
“But, to tell the truth, I often found myself
hankering after the company of the sea-faring men
who visited the city, or, lounging down to the wharfs
and quays, to gain what intelligence I could of the
arriving and departing vessels.
“One evening I was drinking some sherbet in a
public garden much resorted to by ship-captains,
merchants, and travellers, while I amused myself by
listening to their talk, and their accounts of the differ-
ent voyages they had made. My attention was
more particularly directed to a small company who
were assembled round a table in the neighbourhood
of the one at which I sat, and who were highly
diverted with the droll stories and adventures related
for their entertainment by a jolly sea-captain, who


KIT BAM, MARINER. 217
was drinking as hard as he was talking. On one
side of him sat a quiet sly-looking youth, and on the
other, a spare haggard man with restless eyes, and a
nervous mouth, who, with the rest of the listeners
seated round the table, were laughing at some exag-
gerated account of the wondrous properties of a small
telescope which the captain was holding in his hands,
and which he declared had been given to him by the
Emperor of Morocco. The telescope itself was or-
dinary enough, being merely a glass set in brass and
japan, but the case belonging to it, and which lay
upon the table before him, close to his drinking gob-
let, I perceived was inlaid with precious stones. In
the midst of the mirth occasioned by the captain's
rhodomontade, I observed that the eyes of the youth
were fastened upon the case, and I could see that
those restless ones of the other man very frequently
wandered in the same direction. Presently, the cap-
tain raised his goblet to his lips, while the company
exploded in a roar of merriment occasioned by the
witticism with which he had concluded his story, and
in that moment I saw the youth seize the case, and
convey it, as he thought, unobserved, into his bosom.
But the sea-captain, though a good deal intoxicated,
instantly perceived the loss of his case, and, turning
suddenly upon the spare man with the restless eyes,
he seized him by the collar and loudly accused him
of the theft. The man turned deadly pale, trembled
violently, and exhibited all the marks of guilt; when
the sea-captain, storming and raving, insisted that he
should be searched upon the spot, and compelled to


218 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
give up the stolen case. I stepped forward, and, as
soon as I could gain a hearing amidst the uproar and
confusion that had arisen, Ibade them detain the youth
and search him, as the real culprit. The lad, who
till then had kept his demure look, and had waited
calmly on the spot, as if merely one of the spectators,
now vehemently protested his innocence, and asked
them, in piteous tones, if they would stand by and see
a poor lad insulted by suspicion and slander. The
tipsy captain, with the usual blindness and obstinacy
of those in his condition, seemed inclined to believe
him, and returned pertinaceously to his collaring and
abusing the spare man, who trembled still and re-
sisted anxiously the threatened search. I interfered
between them, and calmly repeated my desire that
the youth should be searched first, as I had actually
beheld him commit the theft, and convey the jewelled
case to his bosom. On this plain accusation the by-
standers seized the lad; and, in a few moments, his
guilt was made manifest by the production of the
case from his breast-pocket. There was a universal
expression of disgust at the depravity of the young
sinner, who proved to be a common thief well-known
in the city, haunting the public places and thorough-
fares of most resort, and trading upon his demure
ooks and his nimble fingers. As the crowd dispersed,
and led him away, the captain made a sort of clumsy
apology to the spare man for having wronged him
by misplaced suspicion and rough usage, and then
went away likewise, leaving the man and myself
standing together on the scene of the late uproar.


KIT BAM, MARINER. 219
We were no sooner alone, than the man with the
restless eyes grasped me by the hand, and thanked
me warmly for my interference, and for having saved
him from being searched. Besides the ignominy,
he told me that he had reason to dread other con-
sequences of a personal search; from which, he said,
he could never sufficiently acknowledge my goodness,
in having been the means of preserving him. He
then explained to me that he was a diamond-
merchant; that he was in the habit of trading
largely in those precious stones, and that he, in fact,
had an immense quantity concealed upon his per-
son at that very time, which, if discovered in the
presence of so many people as had been there assem-
bled, would have caused him never-ceasing anxiety
and alarm for the future. He said that his gaze had
been attracted to the precious stones set in the stolen
case, merely from his habit of judging of the compa-
rative value of gems, and that he had looked at them
only with the eye of a lapidary. He told me that he
was to sail on the morrow for Cairo, where he ex-
pected to dispose of his diamonds to great adºtage ;
that the captain of the vessel in which he was about
to sail was his own cousin, but that, nevertheless, he
should be very glad if I would engage to accompany
him in his voyage, as the generous protection which
I had already afforded him was a guarantee that I
should be faithfully attached to his interests. As I
was very anxious to form an engagement which
should lead me to sea again, and throw me in the
way of fresh adventures, I closed with his offer, and


220 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
promised to be ready to go with him on the following
day. -
“When I took leave of Sir Lionel and Drusilla,
they used many kind expressions of regard and gra-
titude; and, forcing upon my acceptance a superb
ring of blended opals and rubies, in commemoration
of my adventure with them, they entreated me to
bestow on them the precious volume given to me by
Erudito, which had been the means of conducing so
greatly to bring about their present happiness, and
which, they told me, should be handed down as a
cherished heir-loom in honour and veneration to their
children's children.
“I had not sailed many days with my new acquain-
tance, the diamond merchant, before I half repented
that I had engaged to accompany him. The voyage
itself was pleasant and smooth enough, but it made
me melancholy to be with so spiritless, so uncom-
fortable a companion as this man proved to be. He
was rich, but he was miserable; his wealth, instead
of bringing him enjoyment, was productive of nothing
but . mistrust, and unhappiness. His gains
were a fancied source of joy and pride to him, but
they were in reality no other than a nest of scorpions
and enemies, which repaid his love by disturbing his
repose and embittering his life. His whole existence
was a dreary mistake; he believed he was acquiring
treasure, power, luxury, felicity, and he was hoarding
up wasted health, careful days, wakeful nights, un-
generous misgivings of his fellow-creatures, and the
destruction of his own heart and mind. The man's


KIT BAM, MARINER. 221
spirit, the very essence of his being, seemed concen-
trated and contained in those bits of sparkling stone
which he carried constantly about his person, en-
closed in a small casket. The burning solicitude to
obtain them, and to obtain them at the lowest pos-
sible cost, in the first instance,—the gnawing rest-
lessness that consumed his days in protecting them
whilst in his possession,-the wearing anxiety and
perpetual calculations as to what sums they would
bring him when disposed of all combined to render
his daily life a burthen and a constant fever, rather
than the enjoyment of existence as vouchsafed by God
to man. How is it that human beings will thus mis-
use their dearest blessings, and convert them into
curses by their own wilful and mistaken blindness?
I pitied this man, but I could not like or respect him
—for all his riches; and, had it not been for the
engagement I had voluntarily entered into, to go
with him as far as Cairo, I should have sought the
first opportunity of quitting his society and the vessel
in which we sailed, on our next approaching land.
As it was, I endeavoured as little as possible to note
his defects, except as a warning to myself, should I
ever detect a growing inclination for money, unac-
companied by a careful consideration of its right uses.
“Others, I could perceive, were less conscientious
with regard to him than I was; for his cousin, the
captain of the ship, who, notwithstanding the relation-
ship between them, could perceive the suspicions
which he shared in the merchant's mind with all his
other associates, did not scruple to play with his


222 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
cousin's fears, and amuse himself by exciting his
alarm groundlessly and from mere love of mischief.
He would make ill-timed allusions to the casket,
which he said he knew was in his cousin's possession;
he would banter him upon his expected gains, ask
him where he kept his hoard of money, and torment
him with all sorts of questions about his will, and
about his own hopes of inheriting the major part of
all these riches, which, he felt sure, were being
amassed for him.
“This captain was a wild thoughtless fellow, and
excited his cousin's distrust and dislike, I verily be-
lieve, almost as much by the character he had for-
merly gained of being a spendthrift, with a careless
disregard of money—a dissolute prodigal, a reckless
lender, and a good-humoured, though poor man, al-
most as much as he did by his teasing and vexing
the merchant personally.
“One evening, when we had been nearly three
weeks at sea, the ship was sailing placidly on be-
neath a sky of azure, when, of a sudden, a violent
hurricane arose, and, in fewer moments than I could
have thought it possible, the sea was dashing over the
decks and sweeping all before them. I had but just
time to mark where the diamond merchant stood,
grasping anxiously at the beloved casket concealed
within his bosom, while the captain cast a malicious
look of scrutiny towards him, as he rushed past to de-
liver orders to the crew, when I was caught by a huge
wave, as it rolled over the deck, and was carried in
the midst of its overwhelming waters into the sea.


KIT BAM, MARINER. 223
“The suddenness of the accident, the stunning
force of the blow, the wild rush of the surges, all
combined to deprive me of my faculties, and I was
conscious of nothing more until I found myself upon
dry land, and quite alone.
“My surprise was extreme when I discovered that
I was lying upon soft grass, in a beautiful tranquil
spot, and with a serene blue sky over my head; for,
with returning consciousness, came the recollection
of the cause of my accident, and I could not but re-
member that there was a storm blowing violently at
the time I was swept overboard. This could not
have been so very long ago, for night had not yet
closed in, and I knew that it was rather late in the
afternoon when the hurricane arose. I raised myself
on my elbow and gazed around. What I saw was
singular beyond expression in its effect upon me—
for I felt as if I had suddenly been transported to a
spot well known to me, though I was equally certain
that I had never visited it before.
“There lay the familiar scene, all traced in vivid
characters before me. I saw the simple cell, screened
from the weather by a lime-grove; further on was a
mantled pool, and around were scattered pines and
cedars, crab-trees, clustering filberd-bushes, among
which fluttered the jay and the nimble marmozet ; I
recognized the shore, that bowed over its wave-worn
basis, washed by the foaming brine; the very grass
seemed known to me as it grew, lush and lusty, and
green beneath my feet; and the air breathed upon
me sweetly, as if I had been previously conversant


KIT BAM, MARINER. 225
this very scene; when, hearing voices, I stepped
aside to mark who might come.
“There were two I knew well; the first was a
savage freckled whelp, a thing most brutish, as dis-
proportioned in his manners as in his shape, who
bore under one arm a bottle made of the bark of a
tree, and under the other a bowl full of water with
berries in it, which he devoured ravenously, with low
growls like an angry bison, while he taunted and
reproached the airy being who was with him. This
other was habited something like a nymph of the sea,
though seeming more ideal still—but an air, a touch,
a feeling; and, while he playfully replied to his com-
panion's taunts, he flitted to and fro in glad buoy-
ancy, half flying, half swimming—now sporting under
the blossoms that hung from the boughs near—now
emulating the bee in rifling sweets from the cow-
slip's bell—and anon speeding back ere you could
breathe twice, to answer his savage companion. I
gathered from what passed between them, that the
sudden hurricane had been raised by the malicious
wickedness of the uncouth Savage, and had been as
suddenly allayed by the interference of the airy being,
who had exerted his gentle spiriting in behalf of the
freighting souls within our ship.
“I learned that the savage was left to enjoy his
desired sovereignty of the island by the airy sprite,
who cared only to be as free as mountain winds, and
to frolic hither and thither amid the elements, as his
sportive liberty-loving nature dictated, only interfer-
ing where his gentle influence might counteract the
Q


226 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
baneful one which the brutish malignant disposition
of the other led him to exercise whenever he could,
against wandering mariners and luckless vessels that
approached the island.
“Abruptly their conference came to a close, for
the sprite, as if weary of further intercourse with so
uncongenial a nature, suddenly sprung upon the back
of a bat as it flitted by, and then, riding on the
curled clouds, was soon lost to view, leaving the
savage muttering curses and threats in the impotent
rage of baffled spite.
“I, too, left the spot, determined to try and find
my companions, whom I hoped to rejoin ere they
should have quitted the safe harbour, where I had
learned they had been conducted by the friendly
sprite. As I passed the mouth of the cell, I looked
in, and saw some scattered chess-men and the frag-
ments of a broken staff, which looked as if it had
been dug from its burial-place certain fathoms in the
earth, by the loving labours of the delicate sprite,
eager to preserve some relic of that noble master,
whom he had once served without or grudge or
grumblings in the old bygone times.
“In an odd angle of the isle I found the ship in
safe harbourage; the men all in a sort of sleepy stu-
por, from which they awaked shortly after my ar-
rival; then came the diamond-merchant and his
cousin the captain, who, it seems, had suffered the
same fate as myself; had been swept overboard dur-
ing the tempest, and had been wandering ever since
about the island, and had only just found their way


KIT BAM, MARINER. 227
back to the vessel. They were anxious to set sail
immediately; which we accordingly did, while they
gave us a confused account of their having seen
strange shapes, heard singular hollow noises, mingled
with the hum of a thousand twangling instruments,
and, at intervals, the sound of a pipe and tabor.
“As for me, I sat for some time apart, gazing ear-
nestly on the receding outline of the island as our
ship sailed away, and the shore faded in the distant
horizon. The names of Ariel — Caliban — flitted
across my memory as being those of the free sprite
and the uncouth savage, and made me feel that I had
indeed beheld the island described in immortal words
by my beloved friend Will Wavelance. I remember
him well—indeed he was one of those men whom,
once to have known, is never to forget. He would
sit with me in the night watches; and, let him talk,
or let him be silent, there was something in his very
glance that made all Nature seem more glorious and
beautiful. The moon shed her rays more glowingly
and more brilliantly for his presence; the heaving
billows swelled more majestically, and their ripple
shot forth more silvery sparkles, reflecting her light;
the stars shone with more vivid scintillations; the
blue heaven embraced all with a more intense depth
—at least, they all appeared to do so, and to speak to
me with a truer, a more divine eloquence of beauty,
when Will was with me.
“I see, my dears, you wonder to hear me talk thus
of him to you; but, should you ever become ac-
quainted with such a spirit as this man's, you will not


228 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
wonder at my enthusiasm towards a being, a com-
munion with whom, doubles and trebles all human
enjoyment.”
Here Kit for a few moments seemed to be lost in
his recollections (a habit the old mariner sometimes
had), and then resumed.
“Our voyage continued prosperously, though our
course was driven slightly northwards, which thus
brought us within the danger of the terrible monsters
Scylla and Charybdis, who keep their deadly watch
on either side the Straits of Messina, to seize
unhappy mariners who too unskilfully guide their
vessels between these perilous enemies.
“We were fortunate enough to elude their fatal
Snares, but it was only by so near a chance, that most
of us narrowly escaped the almost equally terrible
lot of dying from fear. We heard the dismal baying
of those fearful hounds that surround the person of
Scylla; we beheld the cruel six necks which this
fell monster darts forth to seize her prey, while, on
the opposite side yawned the black throat of Cha-
rybdis, sucking in, with her insatiate draught, the
dark boiling waters, and then disgorging them again,
roaring and tumbling, in search for human victims
to whirl within the dread abyss.
“Scarcely had we, in awe-struck silence, made our
way strictly between these two fiend-like monsters,
and had barely found time tremblingly to congra-
tulate ourselves upon having safely cleared their
relentless rocks and whirlpool, than we beheld a
bevy of fair forms floating round and round our


KIT BAM, MARINER, 229
ship, making courteous gestures to us, and charming
all the air with their fascinating music. The sounds
they uttered were ravishingly sweet, and were min-
gled in so celestial a harmony that I knew, at once,
these potent musicians could be no other than the
Sirens. Their singing and beckoning courtesy be-
witched some of our crew into headlong self-aban-
donment, so that the poor fellows cast themselves
rashly into their white arms, which lured them but
to destruction; others, however, of our company
escaped their wiles, through firmer principle or
greater callousness of nature. The diamond mer-
chant was fenced from all attacks, through eye and
ear, that came not in the idolized shape of proffered
wealth; his cousin, the captain, was proof against
allurements that were only a reflex of pleasures
which he had revelled in to satiety, in his former
luxurious and prodigal course of life; and, as for
myself, I had learned too well the true nature of
these enchanting Sirens, from what I had gathered
concerning them in my old conversations with the
shipmates of my first voyage, to trust the seductive
blandishments that now assailed my senses. In
gazing upon their beauteous forms, I steadily kept
in view the mead where I knew they sat encircled
by dead men's bones, and through the entrancing
strains which they sang, I listened perseveringly to
the groans of their victims, ruthlessly slain, after
being enticed by their treacherous music.
“Harassed by the dangers we had passed through,
the poor remainder of our ship's company gave


230 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
themselves up to despondency and melancholy idle-
ness, spending much of their time in sleep and list-
less apathy, when not absolutely engaged in working
the vessel. One evening, while still pursuing our
course along this romantic coast, I happened to be
almost alone on deck, the steersman occupied solely
with the management of his helm, and the diamond
merchant absorbed in his money-dreams, when, on
casting my eyes towards the shore, I beheld a gi-
gantic shepherd figure, seated on a huge mass of
rock, piping in the calm Sicilian sunshine, and gaz-
ing vacantly and sadly over the sea beyond the vine-
clad trees and the weedy shore. His notes were
melodious, though mournful, and his broken sen-
tences, which were borne to me across the waters,
came in passionate cadence as of wasting tenderness.
“‘O my white love, my Galatea! why avoid me
for my one rugged brow and single eye I cannot
cease to love thee; my head and feet throb for very
wretchedness! O Galatea! my white love l’
“The sounds melted sorrowfully, as our ship held
on her way, but my heart long afterwards yearned
towards that poor giant shepherd and his lonely
lamenting ugliness,
“We landed at Alexandria, and reached Cairo
without further adventure, and my acquaintance, the
diamond merchant, was speedily engaged in the en-
deavour to effect the most lucrative sale of his pre-
cious stones. He expected to meet with a Jew
here, with whom he hoped to make a good bargain,
but we had some difficulty in finding the precise part


KIT BAM, MARINER. 231
of the city in which he dwelt, and, during the mer-
chant's search for his abode, he used every means in
his power to detain me with him, as a sort of aid and
protection.
“One morning, the merchant was pursuing his
inquiries in a bazaar, and while he was cross-ques-
tioning a Jewish lad, whom he fancied could give
him intelligence of the old Israelite he sought, I
entertained myself with examining the various rich
stuffs, brocades, silks, jewels, and other articles ex-
posed here for sale. While the merchant went on
talking-for the lad seemed to hold back his in-
formation, either through caution or some other mo-
tive, and detained his questioner some time, I no-
ticed a curious figure, crouched beneath a sort of
counter just by, who was employed in watching the
diamond merchant, stealthily, but intently. The
figure was nearly concealed by a heap of bright-
coloured stuffs that lay there, so that at first I only
saw a pair of black beady eyes, staring earnestly
from among the pile of goods; but, by degrees, as
his eagerness became more and more uncontrollable,
two high cheek-bones appeared, then a face was
thrust forth, then two skinny hands, and, at length,
I could distinguish the whole figure of a singularly
hideous being attired in dusky, time-stained gar-
ments, with a countenance as dingy as his apparel.
Presently, catching my eye, and perceiving that it
was upon him, the shrivelled, dusky figure suddenly
withdrew beneath the heap of stuffs, and remained
motionless, I kept my eye fixed upon the heap


232 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
however, and quietly approaching the spot where it
lay, I directed a sharp kick right into the centre of
the pile of stuffs, hoping to expose the stealthy
watcher to public view. The stuffs fell asunder,
indeed, but no figure was there to be seen beneath
them, and so completely had all traces of a recently
hidden person disappeared, that I could almost have
believed the whole of what had passed to have been
a delusion of my senses.
“Finding that the diamond merchant had, by this
time, concluded his parley with the Jewish lad, I
joined him, and we quitted the bazaar together. I
was just about to mention the concealed figure I had
remarked, when I recollected that it would only serve
to alarm and agitate him needlessly, as there had
been no harm done; but I determined within myself
that I would redouble my own care, and keep upon
my guard for him. He now told me that he had,
at last, discovered the man of whom we were in
search, and that, as his dwelling was situated at
some distance, in one of the remote suburbs of the
city, we would repair thither at once. He indulged
himself in a few golden visions, as we went along,
descanting to me at length upon his hopes of dis-
posing of the casket advantageously, and the large
sum he hoped to realize by the sale. He said not
one word of the purchases he intended to make with
this sum, or of the new enjoyments he intended
to obtain from them, so that I could hardly refrain
from the thought that he, in fact, did but exchange
one hard substance for another, and that he might,


KIT BAM, MARINER. 233
for all real benefit that it brought him, just as well
hoard up his diamonds as his gold money. But,
like most lovers of mere wealth, he lived upon
meagre fancies, instead of enjoying solid advantages,
and contented himself with the power of obtain-
ing good things, instead of the good things them-
selves.
“The old Jew's abode was in an obscure, filthy
quarter, where squalor and wretchedness dwelt side
by side with ignorance and vice. As we entered
a miserable blind alley, and knocked at the low door-
way of the dirty decaying hovel where the Jew lived,
I could not but feel this as another instance in point;
here was a man, who probably possessed large store
of riches, surrounding himself voluntarily with all
the exteriors of poverty—darkness, filth, rags, and
impure air.
“The door was opened by a bending old man,
with a long, grizly beard, and astute, twinkling eyes.
He knew my companion at once, and bade him wel-
come, extending the greeting to me, when the dia-
mond merchant introduced me as his kind friend and
a most safe person. He led us along a dusty, dark
passage, into a dim room, for though there was broad
Egyptian sunshine out of doors, there was within the
Israelite's house, if not Egyptian darkness, at least
Egyptian twilight, for all here was so obscure, that
I could scarcely distinguish any of the objects, as I
first entered. By degrees, however, my eyes became
accustomed to this partial light, and I could perceive
that there was great store of valuables, of many kinds,


234 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
in this miserable dim parlour, half sitting-room, half
warehouse. The diamond merchant placed his pre-
cious casket upon the table in the centre of the
room; its contents were displayed and valued, and,
while he and the Jew pursued, in muttered whispers,
their estimates, and calculations, and transacted the
bargain between them, I had plenty of time to pursue
my own thoughts, and to examine the various costly
articles with which the room was thronged. Here
lay a sword, with its richly jewelled handle and its
polished damascene blade, inlaid with many an ela-
borate arabesque and filmy line of gold and blue
steel; there were curiously wrought pistols, with
silver mountings and inlayings; close to them was a
fine set of cameos; and beyond lay an agate-headed
dagger, a bracelet of carbuncles, and a girdle set with
sapphires. Bronze figures, marble groups, chased
goblets, alabaster vases, ebony cabinets, ivory cru-
cifixes, gemmed crescents, and beaded rosaries, were
heaped around, in heterogeneous profusion.
“My eyes were chiefly attracted, however, by a
painting of the Madonna and child, which hung im-
mediately opposite to me, and which seemed to be
the production of some rare old master of Italy or
Spain. As I gazed upon the divine affection irra-
diating that tender maternal face, and the infantine
grace blended with grave intelligence and super-
human thought in the sweet babe's countenance, I
mused upon the strange chance which had brought
that picture into the house of a Jew, and wondered
whether any thought of the subsequent anguish


236 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
the Nile, and grinned a ghastly smile of derision and
malice, that made his face look more hideous than
ever; but we soon crossed the river, and passed the
long causeways erected over the flat land against
the inundations, and still I kept up with him, the
same distance as before. I did not gain upon him,
it is true, but I did not lose ground.
“On we went, till we reached the burning plain of
sand, where the pyramids raise their venerable forms
in simple grandeur. Their gigantic sides glowed in
the rich light of the setting sun, which clearly de-
fined their colossal outlines, and shed a deep blood-
red hue upon the extensive scene; slowly the fierce
glare faded into the softer prismatic tints of yellow,
green, azure and purple, and then night stole over
the vast expanse around, while still the dusky figure
made on before me, and still I steadily maintained
my pursuit. As the gloom deepened, I perceived
that a strange light, like that of a mephitic vapour,
seemed to proceed from the head of the mysterious’
being before me, and, as the darkness still increased,
the light became a lambent flame, issuing distinctly
from his forehead, resting there, and casting a bright
reflection upon his hideous countenance, as he turned
it several times now towards me, as if in rage at my
pertinacious pursuit. Each time that he turned it
towards me, it seemed to assume additional hideous-
ness, and to become more shrivelled, more brown, and
less human; until, at last, as we rapidly approached
close to the pyramids, his dreadful face glared upon
me in the full undisguised horror of an exhumed


KIT BAM, MARINER. 237
mummy! But I was not deterred from my resolve
of following him by the frightful conviction that
flashed upon me that he was no inhabitant of this
earth; should he even lead me to the dismal abode
where he and his buried companions lie entombed,
yet still I determined I would not relinquish my hope
of regaining what I considered as having been left
in my especial charge. I believed I had a duty to
perform, which no selfish fear ought to prevent me
from endeavouring to accomplish, even at the risk of
life; and, accordingly, when I beheld the mummy
rush towards the entrance of one of the pyramids, I
boldly nerved my heart, and dashed impetuously after
him. The lambent flame which played on his fore-
head sufficiently tracked his course, and I still pursued
the still advancing dusky figure. Through long gal-
leries, labyrinthine passages, excavations both narrow
and steep, flat landing-places, occasional square cham-
bers, up rude steps, down others, and along wider and
longer galleries, I followed the flame which indicated to
me the flight of the spoliator, and we stopped not until
we came to a portal of granite, which, after a moment's
pause, opened, and disclosed a large apartment, in the
centre of which stood a royal sarcophagus. I fol-
lowed closely the dusky figure, who no sooner entered
the apartment, than he knelt before the sarcophagus
in which lay a mummy swathed in kingly robes, and
depositing the stolen casket at the feet of his royal
master, he dropped rigidly and mutely amid a range
of recumbent mummies that surrounded the tomb of
their sovereign. I was springing forward to possess


238 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
myself of the casket, when I was arrested by behold-
ing the figure of the royal mummy slowly and ma-
jestically arise, and then it spoke in a deep, sonorous
voice, which echoed strangely through that palace of
tombs:—
“‘'Tis not for the royal blood of Egypt to detain
treasure unjustly obtained, and justly reclaimed. It
was the act of a devoted, though misguided, slave, to
seize what might enrich the monument of his master;
but that master disdains to reserve what is re-
demanded by courage and fidelity. Take, then,
the casket; restore it to its rightful owner; and
believe that Cheops can admire bravery and firm
adherence to duty beyond all the treasures of the
universe. Be it the task of my slave, in punishment
of his misdeed, to guide thee, mortal, back to the
light of day, and the realm of existence. Farewell! 9.
“The royal mummy sank back in the sarcophagus,
and resumed his sleep of ages; whilst the dusky
figure of the mummy-slave once more arose, and
displayed the lambent flame to re-conduct me through
the pyramid. That this complaisance was the mere
result of obedience to the behest of his royal master
I could perceive from the scowl which distorted his
withered face as he turned to precede my steps. But
I cared little for his displeasure while secure of his
sovereign's protection. As I again threaded the long
galleries and granite passages, I recalled to memory
a legend of the royal Cheops, which I had once heard
recounted on board the ship in which I first sailed, by
a Mrs. Jane Flower, the wife of a great naturalist,


KIT BAM, MARINER. 239
who was going abroad on a voyage of botanical dis-
covery ; she had told us a strange story of a mummy,
which my recent adventure brought into my mind;
but while I was pondering over the circumstance, the
lambent flame stood still. I found I was close to the
door of egress, and as it opened, the dusky figure
disappeared within the recesses of the pyramid, and
I saw him no more.
“Morning dawned as I emerged from the aged
edifice, and my spirit rose to meet the glorious
freedom of the open air. I inhaled the gracious
breath of heaven as it was wafted gently beneath the
group of sycamores and palm trees, held sacred by
the Arabs, which cast their welcome shade near this
spot. The leaves in their unscathed beauty, and
vivid green colour, looked doubly welcome amid this
Sandy plain, and seemed part of the pleasant freshness
of early day. My senses were excited by the de-
licious feeling of liberty and successful exertion, and
I could almost have fancied that I heard that ancient
Theban head breathing its morning music from lips
of stone, and that the resonant hymn was waſted
along the waters of old Nile to the spot where I
stood offering my own humble song of prayer and
thanksgiving.
“I made the best of my way to Cairo, but it was
some time past noon when I arrived at the cara-
vansera, where the diamond merchant and I had
taken up our abode. I hoped to find him in our
apartment, but he was absent; and I learned shortly
after, that he was busily engaged in seeking me, as


KIT BAM, MARINER. 243
CHAPTER IX.
THE PIGEONS OF ST. MARK.—THE PHANTOM GONDOLA, AND
THE DOOMED MAN.—BARBARA.-THE HARZ FOREST.--THE
BROCKEN MOUNTAIN•—KARL--LEOPOLD,
“WELL now, Kit, tell us what you did first, when
you got to Venice;” said the young Swallows, on
the following evening.
“Why, the very first thing I did was to hire a
boat, that I might row myself about wherever I
wished in this wonderful city, where the streets are
all water,” said Kit; “for I was determined to give
myself a holiday for a time, and see all that was to
be seen. So I paddled my gondola about nearly
all day long, soon getting practised in the use of the
one oar that is used there, and becoming speedily
accustomed to the narrow confined alleys of water
between the houses, and the sharp corners round
which I had to turn, uttering at the same time the
low warning cry which I heard used by the gondoliers
to prevent collision.
“In these luxurious wanderings I saw many beau-
tiful churches, adorned with all the richest splendour
of art; I beheld the picturesque old palaces of the
ancient nobles, with their marble steps leading from
the stately portal into the very water; the busy,


244 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
close-thronged bridge of the Rialto, ringing with
many voices of eager buyers and sellers; the gay.
and ever-shifting scene of the grand canal; the si-
lent, shut-in, smaller ones, and the lonely waters of
the lagunes.
“I beheld Venice under all her beauteous aspects;
brilliant, sparkling, and animated, amid sunshine and
daylight; calm, silent, and impressive, beneath the
placid beams of the moon, as I rowed far out upon
the still waters, and contemplated the fair city by
night.
“One sultry day, I sought relief from the glare of
the noontide waters, and lounged on the shady side
of the Piazza of St. Mark, indulging myself with that
necessary Italian luxury, an ice. I sat long idling
on a wooden bench, belonging to one of the coffee-
houses there, letting the cool fruity delicacy glide
pleasantly over my palate, while I admired the bar-
baric magnificence of the showy cathedral; and now
and then amused myself with breaking off small
morsels of the focaccia, or small bun, which is served
with the ice, and throwing them to the pigeons, who
flock in great numbers on that spot, and are regarded
with veneration and traditional respect by the
Venetians. These birds are carefully fed daily at
two o'clock precisely; and, at the very first stroke of
the hour, as it peals from the neighbouring bell-
tower, these sagacious little creatures congregate,
and present themselves at the various windows of the
surrounding houses, whence their quotidian meal is
scattered to them.


KIT BAM, MARINER. 247
which reminded me to return to the city and seek
warmer repose.
“Just as this shudder crept over me, and I was
preparing to obey its dictates by rowing back to
Venice, I perceived at a little distance from me upon
the water, a small gondola, with its usual hearse-like
black awning, gliding along slowly, though without a
roWer.
“That there was some person in the boat, how-
ever, I could not doubt, for a sound issued from the
mournful awning as of one sitting beneath in bitter
anguish. Sobs and deep groans, as if wrested from
the unwilling chest of manly sorrow, that ever seeks
to forbid itself such feminine relief, burst forth in
frightful vehemence, and reached my ear with a force
that terrified me. I felt as though all human conso-
lation must be unavailing to such profound grief and
despair, and while I paused, awe-struck, I beheld a
man spring out of the gondola and cast himself head-
long into the lagune. Reproaching myself for my
hesitation, I prepared to row to his assistance, but,
on casting my eyes once more in the direction where
I had beheld him throw himself out of the boat, the
gondola itself had disappeared, and no trace of man
or bark was to be seen. All had vanished, like
breath from a polished mirror, and I was entirely
alone upon the broad lagune.
“I felt my heart pause, and my breathing sus-
pended, as I rowed towards land, and it was not until
the return of next morning's sun, with the cheerful
influences and reviving thoughts of awakened day,


248 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
that I could rally from the impression that had been
left upon me by the mysterious vision of the past night.
“I did not feel tempted to go upon the water that
day; I strolled among the arcades of the Piazza; I
examined the shops and looked at the new prints; I
saw the two bronze figures on the summit of the
curious blue and gold clock that bears the signs of the
Zodiack, hammer each passing hour on their huge
bell—and twice beheld the mimic procession of the
three kings, preceded by a trumpeter dazzling in gold
and red, who issue from a portion of this same won-
derful clock every third hour, and pay their homage
to the infant Saviour and his mother, who sit there
in effigy; I watched the flocking pigeons, as they
varied their picking and feeding, with wheeling
flights and aerial soarings; I saw them come punc-
tually to their daily repast as the clock struck; I saw
the pretty maiden fondle her favourite bird from the
high window, and speed him away on his errand—if
errand it really were; and, in short, I exhausted all
the few land resources that Venice possesses to a
wanderer like myself. When night came, however,
I could refrain no longer from the smooth water, the
gliding boat, and the fresh cool air. But I did not
row towards the lagune. I could not do that; so I
guided myself to and fro through the narrow canals,
musing upon the pride and magnificence of the old
Venetian nobles—their lordly sway—their merchant
power—their maritime dominion—their patrician ty-
ranny—their cruel policy—as I glided beneath the
decaying walls of their ancient palaces, that spoke


KIT BAM, MARINER. 249
eloquent truths of departed grandeur, and self-evident
reasons for instability and downfall.
“As I silently passed beneath the Bridge of Sighs,
I looked up between the frowning walls of contiguous
palace and prison, where so much wrong and suffer-
ing had been inflicted and endured; I looked up to-
wards the sky, intensely blue and gemmed with stars,
and felt how hopefully a better future arose for Italy
over the blind and arrogant misrule of her past ages.
At that moment I was struck by the same sounds of
woe and anguish that had reached my ear on the pre-
vious night amid the wide waters of the lagune, and
close beside the low murky portal whence the bodies
of strangled prisoners were wont to be carried forth,
at dead of night, in the old bygone times, I beheld
the black gondola with its solitary inmate uttering
his heart-rending lamentation.
“I would have approached; but the boat suddenly
shot past me, and glided swiftly away in the distance.
Its motion was so abrupt as it darted close to my
gondola, that I felt sure it must be shivered in the
collision; but, as the swart bark rushed by, I was
sensible of no greater shock than if a raven's wing
had swept the side.
“I was greatly appalled by this mysterious gon-
dola, and would have given much to penetrate its
dark secrets, as well as to learn the cause of its in-
mate's anguish, and, if possible, to assuage his throes,
—but how to effect this?—how to seek communion
with a being who eluded all observation, and who
baffled all conjecture as to his identity ?


250 THE STRANGE ADVENTUREs of
“I felt haunted by the vision of this unhappy suf-
ferer, and could not prevent my thoughts from hover-
ing uneasily round the subject, though conscious that
I could do little by harassing myself with surmises
and fruitless anxiety.
“On the following day, I threw myself into the
society of the gondoliers and sea-faring men who
usually congregate on the quay of the Piazzetta, be-
neath the granite pillar which supports the winged
lion of St. Mark; for I felt that company and cheerful
intercourse with my fellow-man would do more than
anything to dispel the haunting solicitude and un-
wholesome dwelling upon one painful subject, which
was fast taking possession of me, and might produce
the ill effects of a diseased imagination.
“I found these gondoliers a good-humoured, plea-
sant set of fellows, with that frank cordiality of man-
ner that distinguishes the poorer classes among
Italians. They laughed and chatted, and freely admit-
ted me to their conversation, helping me out with my
bad Italian, and making light of the mistakes I made,
with a genial courtesy which, I fear, is far rarer among
us English, when foreigners speak our language badly.
They were all, just then, bantering one of their com-
panions, a handsome young gondolier, named Antonio,
about his being in love. They said they were sure
he was, because he sighed often, was sometimes lost
in thought, and tied on his neck handkerchief with a
smart air. And yet, they said, the fellow was so sly,
and kept his secret so carefully, that no one had ever
seen his sweetheart.


KIT BAM, MARINER. 251
“‘Is it Bianca, the pretty water-carrier? or
Cecchina, the grape-seller ? or Maria? or Nina ; or
who'—they insisted on his naming her.
“But Antonio only shook his head and smilingly
said—
“‘None of them all; I love none but this bird,'
he added, as one of the pigeons of St. Mark flew
down and settled upon his shoulder. His companions
laughed loud and long, as he caressed and fondled
the bird, joining in their laugh good-humouredly;
while I could not help fancying I had found the
solution of the enigma which had puzzled me about
the girl and the bird, and that I had now discovered
the object of the love-messages despatched by means
of the pigeon.
“Not long after this, I found an opportunity of
questioning Antonio as to the truth of my suspicions,
and he owned that they were correct.
“The young girl was the daughter of a rich
tradesman, who kept a jeweller's shop beneath one of
the arcades of the Piazza St. Mark; the father of the
maiden had forbidden the union of the lovers, until
Antonio should have earned a certain sum, and
proved himself worthy of his mistress by constancy
during a probationary term of separation; they had
hit upon this expedient for lessening the pains of
absence, and his mistress had taught the bird to fly
to and fro between them, carrying the bliss of com-
munion on its downy pinions.
“In caressing its pretty plumage,’ Antonio simply
said, in conclusion, “I have the pleasure of passing


KIT BAM, MARINER. 253
“Suddenly I heard the anguished accents of the
unhappy being I had twice before met during the
night, and, raising my eyes, I beheld him seated on
the uppermost steps of the Giants' Stair-case, with
his face buried in his hands and his body bent for-
ward upon his knees. Again those piteous sobs and
deep groans thrilled me with pity and terror; softly I
approached the stair-case and began to ascend to-
wards the sufferer; but when I reached the landing-
place, half way up, he raised his head, and waving to
me mournfully, he bade me remain there and come
no nearer on peril of my life.
“‘I know the motive which leads you to me—
but all aid, all comfort, is of no avail,' said he, in
deep unearthly tones; ‘I am beyond all human suc-
cour, as I am beyond a higher mercy. Consolation
is not for grief like mine; and crimes such as I have
committed deserve retribution, not forgiveness. Con-
demned as I am by Heaven's justice, I submit though
I deplore, too fortunate if submission and humility
may in time win a mitigation of my doom. What
this fearful doom is, you now shall know, for thrice
have you crossed my path—thrice in your heart have
offered sympathy—and generous sympathy is too
precious to be thrice offered in vain. Yours has won
this much; I am permitted to tell you my fearful
story, and inform you what is the punishment
awarded to my guilt.'
“I trembled with awe; the doomed man resumed—
“In the time when Venice had her Doge and her
Council of Ten; when the state prisons were throng-


254 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
ed, and the midnight death-dealing permitted; when
the patricians were all-powerful, and no man was
safe from the secret denunciation of his neighbour;
at that time, in short, when the dread Lion's mouth
played its awful part in State policy, and none knew
who next might be its victim,_I dwelt, a living
Venetian, and moved here in the flesh, as I now do
in the spirit, among my fellow-citizens. I was poor,
for I was improvident; I was base and selfish, for I
pursued the dictates of my animal nature, at the
sacrifice of all that was good and noble. To indulge
my propensity for idle dissipation, I at first recklessly
squandered the small means I carried with me from
the paternal roof, which I quitted in disgust at its
restraint and virtuous parsimony; and, when that
little was gone, I resorted to vice to supply me with
fresh indulgence. In fraudulent play, in treacherous
theft, I was an adept; and not unfrequently has this
hand been hired to plunge the assassin's poniard, and
deal the deputed death-blow that was to feed my
employer's revenge. A fruitful source of revenue,
too, was found in stealthily dropping the secret de-
nunciations of some timid but rich patron, into the
fateful Lion's mouth, which conveyed the alleged
offence to the knowledge of the State.
“One terrible day, I had deposited one of these
accusing papers within the stone jaws, and was
revelling in the purchase-money of my treachery,
when I suddenly learned (by singular means, and
doubtless through the interposition of wrathful Pro-
vidence, who willed that such crime should meet its


256 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
my former villany, and washing with repentant tears
the traces of my past guilt. Here, on this spot, in
the neighbourhood of the lion's mouth, so long fanged
by human venom, am I condemned to endure hours
of torture in listening to the accusing murmurs that
issue thence, to appal and overwhelm me with echoes
of my victims' sufferings, their groans, their cries,
and their appeals for vengeance. There, beneath
the Bridge of Sighs, close beside that dismal arch-
way, that disgorged its still warm corpse fresh from
the strangling hands of the midnight executioner—
there, where my innocent brother had his brave
young spirit abruptly quenched, and his still quiver-
ing limbs were thrust forth shrouded only by a sack,
to be plunged ruthlessly into an unmarked watery
grave, there, in that foul lurking-place must I linger,
and annually recall the whole revolting circumstances
of the cruel tragedy. And, yet more, at the still
hour of new-born day, amid the lonely waste of waters
of the wide lagune, it is my destiny again to madden
fiercely with the sense of sharp remorse, to writhe
beneath its unavailing pangs, and, stung by despair,
once more to plunge into the eternal unrest of sui-
cide.’
“The unhappy being wrung his hands wildly, and
arose from his seat, as if summoned by some super-
human power; then, gliding along the stone gallery,
he disappeared at the angle of the building; and,
though I could not help following quickly, yet, when
I reached the outer balcony that leads from the gal-
lery along which he had passed, I could see no traces


KIT BAM, MARINER. 257
of the spectre—excepting that, out upon the waters
of the lagune, beyond the quay, I could distinguish
amid the silver ripples of the reflected moonbeams a
solitary gondola, pursuing its phantom course unim-
pelled, unsteered, while a mournful sound of lament-
ation lingered faintly in its dark wake.
“Next day I bade adieu to Venice, queen of
earthly cities—lovelier in her decay than they in
their flourishing prosperity, and wandered forth on
my proposed land pilgrimage. I lingered in quiet,
picturesque Verona; indulged myself with a day's
rest in charming terrace-built Bergamo; loitered by
the exquisite shores of lakes Lecco and Como; and
spent some brilliant moonlight hours in the romantic
old town of Chiavenna among the mountains. But
how may I find words to express my emotions on
finding myself at sunrise among the lofty peaks of
the Alps! How was my heart thrilled with awe-
stricken admiration, and my soul elevated towards
the great Creator, as I made my way through the
natural aisles and transepts of this, his loftiest
earthly temple! To how infinitely small a point did
they cause all human temples to shrink in the com-
parison. Man has erected the noble cathedral of
Milan, resplendent with every conceivable decoration
of art, and profuse in every effort of mortalingenuity
—but what is even that superb edifice, raised in its
marble brilliancy against the blue sky, compared with
the eternal majesty of the snow-clad glaciers, rearing
their sublime heights amid the solitude of Nature, to-
wards the azure presence of God himself? It was on
S


258 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
the summit of the lofty Splugen that I felt my spirit
dilate in aspirations, such as no temple built by
merely human hands had ever created within me,
and I pursued my path, through the stupendous
passes and gigantic ravines of the Via Mala, in
adoration and heartfelt devotion towards the bene-
ficent Father who conducts the humblest of his
creatures above the roaring torrent and beneath
the thundering avalanche in safety and trusting
gratitude.
“I wandered through a great part of Switzerland
and Germany, avoiding, as much as possible, popu-
lous cities and the more beaten tracks of travellers,
for scenes more congenial with my romantic and
adventurous disposition, so that I am able to tell you
little concerning the more prominent features of the
countries I passed through on my continental pil-
grimage. One evening, I found myself in the vici-
nity of the Brocken Mountain, that lies on the
borders of the Harz Forest, and among the mines,
that there yield their abundant treasure of ore. I
had been walking far that day, and had begun to
feel very weary, when, just as I was thinking of
asking a meal and a night's shelter at the next
miner's hut I should come to, I heard a voice sing-
ing, so softly and sweetly, that I involuntarily
checked my steps, that I might not interrupt so
gentle a strain. From the spot where Istood, I could
catch a glimpse of the singer, and I remained perfectly
still to look at her and listen. She was a young
girl of about sixteen or seventeen years of age, and


KIT BAM, MARINER. 259
was seated at the door of a rude cottage, where she
plied her knitting needles, that sparkled and glittered
in the rays of the setting sun and twinkled beneath
her active fingers. On her calm features and soft
blue eyes there sat a modest expression of humility
and sweetness that was touchingly beautiful, and,
as she now and then raised the drooping lids, and
cast her eyes upwards in the supplication of her
song, which was a vesper hymn to the Virgin, there
was a fervour of ecstasy and a beaming rapture on
her countenance, that irradiated her with a saint-like
holy look, that made me feel as if I gazed upon a
beatific vision.
“Her devout melody ceased; yet still I gazed, re-
maining apart, as if my human presence were an
intrusion; but the last faint echoes of her tones died
away, and I heard the slight clicking sound of her
busy needles, which recalled me to earth-born
thoughts. I approached, quietly and reverentially
raising my hat as I passed on, thinking merely to
allow myself a nearer glance at her fair counte-
nance, but she arose, and dropped me a little curtsey,
with so artless a simplicity and a look of candour
and kindness so winning in its frank unembarrassed
cordiality, that I found courage to crave a draught
of water.
“She fetched me some, with the alacrity of youth
and goodness, and, as she gave it to me, said she
wished it had been gose,” for my sake.
“But we are too poor to afford ourselves beer,'
* The beer of that country, which is celebrated for its excellence.


260 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
she added with a smile; “and, by the blessed Virgin's
help, water refreshes the parched throat even better,
I think.’
“I thanked her for her kind words, still more than
for her refreshment, and entreated her to indulge
me with yet another draught, that I might enjoy the
pleasure of staying the longer near her gentle face
and sweet voice. At length I withdrew, thinking of
her beauty, and wondering that I had not ventured
to beg hospitality at her cottage, instead of wending
further on that night in search of a night's lodging.
But, I know not how it was, she inspired me with
more respect even than admiration, and I felt as if I
could as soon have asked the Queen of Hanover for
an apartment in her palace, as that simple girl for
shelter, that might perhaps be inconvenient for her
to bestow upon me. And so indeed it proved that
it would have been; for the good miner and his
wife who gave me leave to sleep in their hut that
might, not very far distant from the cottage where
I had seen the young girl, informed me that she and
her brother lived with their father, a rough miner,
who treated his children harshly, and would, in all
probability, have rendered it impossible for his
daughter to have given me the hospitality I sought.
“Next day, I could not refrain from lingering
about the cottage, in the hope of again seeing the
sweet girl who had interested me so powerfully.
From the spot where I had stood listening to her
hymn on the previous evening, I could see well,
without myself being seen, and here I obtained


KIT BAM, MARINER. 261
several glimpses of her during the morning, as she
flitted to and fro in the cottage, attending to her
various household duties, making the home of her
father and brother neat and comfortable. In the
evening, I had again the delight of listening to her
lovely voice, pouring forth its exquisite tones in
praise and thanksgiving, but there was something
in her gentle purity that prevented my addressing
her again, for I felt still that there was a sort of
impertinence in intruding myself upon her, unsought
and probably undesired. Methought I wanted some
occasion where my presence could be useful or my
aid needful to this innocent saint-like being, to war-
rant my approach.
“This occasion presented itself sooner than I could
have expected, or, indeed, wished, for I already
learned to prefer her peace and happiness to my
own gratification.
“I ought to mention that I had made an agreement
with the worthy miner and his wife that I should pay
them for the use of the small room which they could
afford to let me have out of the narrow space there
was for themselves and their large family of children
in the hut they inhabited, and, under pretence of
wishing to explore the mines in the vicinity, I was
enabled thus to linger in a spot so interesting
to me.
“One evening, I had been detained rather later
than usual, by a visit I had paid to a neighbouring
mine, in order to give colour to my pretext, and, on
repairing to the nook where I pursued my concealed


262 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
watching, I found I had out-stayed the hour of the
vesper hymn, and I had scarcely regretted this, ere
I was seized with far deeper regret, on seeing the
gentle singer herself issue from the cottage door, in
tears.
“She was accompanied by a coarse, ill-favoured
man, whom, from all I had, heard from my host and
hostess, I had no difficulty in guessing at once to be
her father. From amidst the thick, grizzly mat of
hair which formed his moustachios and beard there
hung a pipe, that sent up clouds of smoke over his
hard, disagreeable features, while he flung himself
upon the seat his daughter had occupied the first
evening I had seen her. She now stood meekly be-
fore him, her hands folded on her breast and her
tears falling fast, while he sat puffing away, and
growling roughly, as he said,
“‘Listen to me, girl, and mark well my words.
I am determined I will not be thwarted any longer
by that idle, wilful young dog, your brother. He
has too long had his own way, and lost his time with
a parcel of idle fancies that are only fit to fill his
head with nonsense and prevent his becoming a good
hard-working miner, like his father and his grand-
father before him. Who's he 7 Who's Karlº I
should like to know, that he's to set himself up
above his honest forefathers, and pretend to be a
gentleman, forsooth ''
“The soft voice of his daughter here interposed,
with—
“Indeed, father, Karl has no thought of becoming


KIT BAM, MARINER. 263
a gentleman or desiring to be better than yourself,
he only wishes—'
“‘He only wishes—he only wishes, broke in the
man with an angry growl; “don’t tell me, girl. I
know very well that Karl despises a miner's life, and
sighs to go abroad and make a fool of himself; and I
don't choose that he shall—do you hear, Barbara!
I choose that he shall stay at home and gain an
honest livelihood by working in the mines by my
side. I choose that he shall remain with me, as you
are so soon to leave me, girl. So tell him that, Bar-
bara, and tell him that I will be obeyed,—do you
mind,-or he shall rue it bitterly.’
“So saying, the man arose, and seizing his fur
cap, he flung from his daughter, heedless of her sor-
row, and walked away, muttering, growling, clenching
his hands, and frowning fiercely.
“Poor Barbara dropped upon the seat he had just
quitted, and buried her face in her hands.
“The sight of her distress and her sisterly sorrow,
inspired me with boldness, in the hope of relieving
them, so I crept to her side, and, gently drawing
away the hand, wet with tears that crept through the
slender fingers, I said,
“‘Tell me what I can do to help you, Barbara.'
“She looked surprised, but not so much so as
might, perhaps, have been expected, for she only
said, -
“‘The blessed Virgin sends me a kind voice to
comfort me, and a manly arm to aid me. I remember
you,' she added, gazing into my face with a simple


264. THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
earnestness as remote from freedom as it was from
the usual bashful regard with which girls of her age
usually meet a stranger's look; “you received a
draught of water at my hands the other evening
with a kindly warmth of thanks that bespoke your
own grateful heart rather than the value of the
gift.”
“‘Tell me if I can render you better than thanks,
in the shape of help, Barbara, I replied; for I felt
suddenly relieved from my sense of respect and dis-
tance, by her frank unembarrassed manner, as well as
by my hope of being useful to her.
“‘Yes, I think you can help me,’ she said; “and
it would be doing injustice to your generous kindness,
no less than to the aid vouchsafed to me by the blessed
Mother of Heaven, who has doubtless sent you to me
in my distress, did I fail to unfold my griefs to you,
or refuse to avail myself of your offered assistance.’
“Barbara then related to me her little history.
She told me how her brother had ever shewn a dis-
inclination for a miner's drudgery, and had frequently
exasperated their father by declaring his intention of
quitting this life of slavery, as soon as he should be
old enough to free himself. She said Karl had early
shewn a talent for drawing, and raved perpetually of
his longing to become an artist, and of his deter-
mination to wander some day to Italy, that he might
study there. That he spent all his leisure time in
sketching and drawing on the walls of their huts
with pieces of chalk or coloured earth, and that he
incurred their father's frequent displeasure by losing


266 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
had been literally covered by her brother's hand, and
from the little judgment I was able to form upon
such a matter, they appeared to me to indicate great
power and truth to nature. I was sorry that a lad
who felt within himself a desire to rise above a
sordid pursuit and a conviction of his own talent
to carry into effect this aspiration, should be chained
and withheld from his endeavour to soar. But my
thoughts were suddenly recalled from the contem-
plation of the young artist's productions, by the
recollection of a few words that her father had
uttered.
“‘What did your father mean, Barbara, by saying
‘that he chose Karl to remain with him, as you were
so soon to leave him : " asked I, abruptly.
“‘When I was about a twelvemonth old,” an-
swered Barbara, “my mother had a dangerous illness,
and she vowed that, if she were permitted to recover,
she would dedicate her little daughter to the service
of the Virgin, in the convent of St. Barbara close by,
when the child should have reached the age of
seventeen. My mother recovered from that illness,
although she sunk beneath another which she had
four years after; but my father adheres to the fulfil-
ment of her vow, and knows that I am to enter my
noviciate on my seventeenth birthday, which will
fall in a week's time.'
“I felt that I turned deadly pale; but I put a
firm control on my emotion, when I perceived the
calm, hopeful, Saintlike expression on Barbara's coun-
tenance, which betokened how entirely her own de-


268 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
bouring village, where his rough companions will
detain him drinking and laughing till daylight; he
frequently stays until the time for next day's labour,
and so returns not to our cottage until the following
evening after one of these carousals; so we shall be
able to follow my poor Karl unobserved to his ap-
pointment, which I cannot help dreading is of a fear-
ful nature, for I saw his face as he uttered those
words, and there was that in it which made me
tremble with dismay.' I availed myself of the agita-
tion that seized her as she merely recalled her
brother's look, and urged her to let me follow him
that night alone. I represented to her that it was
more than probable her sisterly heart led her to exag-
gerate the danger, and that she could confide in me
to protect him to the utmost. I at length prevailed,
and she promised to remain.
“From my post of concealment, whence I had so
often observed Barbara in her innocent beauty, and
listened to her liquid song, I watched the cottage far
into the hours of darkness. Just as the neighbouring
convent clock chimed eleven, I saw a youth steal
softly forth, and proceed with rapid steps in the di-
rection of the forest. At first I carefully kept my-
self screened within shadow, as I followed the track
of the youth, lest he should by chance turn and per-
ceive that he was watched; but he was far too deeply
absorbed in his own thoughts, and the project which
occupied him, to heed any thing or any body. He
went eagerly and recklessly on, and scarcely seemed
to note the familiar objects that met his eye, though


270 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
* equally ineffectual in checking his progress; on he
went, and on I followed him.
“Suddenly amid the crash and din of the warring
elements, came a strange sound as of the chase;
discordant bugles, baying hounds, and trampling
horses, mingled their noise in the air, and I beheld a
train of skeleton hunters take their spectral way
along a pale streak that glimmered athwart the dark
turbid sky. -
“Karl shouted wildly—‘Black huntsman of Ro-
denstein, descend! come to my succour!'
“But the spectral train kept on, the men hallooing,
the horses neighing and trampling, the dogs baying,
and the lordly hunter cheering them on in their mad
career through the air.
“We too went on till we came to a waste hill-
side, where, beneath the withered branches of a light-
ning-scathed tree stood a gigantic hairy figure, his
head and loins begirt with oak leaves, and in his
hand an uprooted fir-tree, that served him as a club.
“‘Demon of the Harz, I invoke thy aid!' gasped
Karl; ‘refuse not to help me ; remember thou hast
ere now promised thy assistance, should I seek it
with a determined spirit. I am now resolved.’
“The demon burst into a harsh derisive laugh.
“‘I have yet another name, as thou well knowest!
Call upon me by that l’ yelled the fiend as he
vanished.
“But the last faint echo of his mocking peal of
laughter had scarcely died away, and given place to
the solemn stroke of midnight that reached us from


KIT BAM, MARINER. 271
the distant convent bell, when a form in a succinct
scholarly dress, with a single tapering feather depend-
ing from his student's cap, stood confronting Karl
with folded arms, piercing look, and scornful attitude.
“‘And yet it matters not that thou shouldst utter
the word,' said the form, a malignant sneer curling
his lip; ‘thou hast already repeated it many times
in thy heart, when writhing beneath the perverseness
of thy fate. And so thou art resolved, art thou?
Tell me how thou art resolved, and why thou hast
hitherto disdained my assistance,—assistance offered
more than once, ungrateful boy, in our forest meet-
ings Speak boldly, and tell me how, and why.’
“‘I am resolved no longer to submit to undue
tyranny,' replied the unhappy youth, with the reck-
lessness of one determined to abide all risks in the
pursuance of a cherished hope; ‘as long as I believed
that patience and submission would at last win me a
fair hearing—as long as I fancied that a reasonable
preference might gain attention, and a laudable am-
bition be permitted to have its free course, I endea-
voured calmly to await the time when parental
authority would yield its prejudice and sanction my
choice. I dreaded to disobey my father, and could
not endure the thought of quitting my dear Barbara,
—my sweet, innocent sister.’
“‘Name her not l’ hastily interrupted the frown-
ing form.
“‘But my dutiful passiveness has been trampled
on,' continued Karl, heedless of the interruption;
‘my aspirations have been scoffed at and forbidden;


272 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
I am irrationally and tyrannically doomed to per-
petual slavery, instead of liberty, to a living burial
beneath the earth, instead of free enjoyment of air
and sunshine,—to a withering of my faculties, amid
the drudgery of a mine, instead of their cultivation,
their development, their crowning fruition in the
study of a glorious art. Goaded to desperation by
so despotic a fate, I am resolved to elude its grasp
and fly my native home for ever. Give me the
means!' -
“‘And who art thou?—who am I?—that I should
endow thee with means to pursue thy will ?” scof-
fingly replied the swart spirit. ‘Come—be honest—
thou knowest me well, and what I would have in re-
turn for these means—these golden wings that shall
enable thee to escape thy fetters and seek artistic
freedom and glory. Thou canst doubtless write, as
well as thou canst draw,' sneered he. “I will be
plain—trace thy name simply here, and unlimited
riches, to travel or to spend as thou wilt, shall be
thine. Sign, and be free l’
“‘Enslaved rather, murmured the youth shudder-
ing, as the spirit drew forth a tablet and a pen, in
which lurked a ruddy drop, and held them towards Karl.
“‘Think of the dark, deep mine, where, shrouded
from the light of day, your limbs will waste in slavish
toil, and your young spirit will be consumed in its
own smothered ardour, urged the evil tempter;
‘think of Italy and her illustrious Artist-children,
among whom your name may one day be enrolled as
an adopted brother!'


KIT BAM, MARINER. 273
“‘And thus win immortality among men, at the *
peril of my own immortal soul!' faltered the un-
happy youth. “What—what can I do?”
“‘Think of thy pure sister! Think of thy
Heavenly Father, and implore his Almighty aid, I
exclaimed aloud.
“A sharp clap of thunder rent the air, and then
rolled in deep reverberations along the hill-side, while
the swart form vanished from the side of Karl, who
sank senseless into my arms, as I sprang from my
lurking-place to sustain him.
“A startled scream had mingled with the thunder-
clap, and presently Barbara came running towards me
from the forest, and, flinging herself on her knees
close to her brother, used every effort to assist me in
recovering him from the deep swoon into which he
had fallen.
“Upon his slowly regaining his senses, we all three
entered into mutual questions and explanations, which
tended to calm and restore the unhappy youth, after
the excitement and violent revulsion of feeling that
he had lately undergone. We found that Barbara,
unable to bear the suspense and anxiety that seized
her upon remaining alone in the cottage after her
brother had gone forth, had determined to follow us,
and had succeeded in overtaking us, just as the sud-
den thunder-clap had startled her, and she had beheld
her brother fall into a swoon. I pressed Karl's hand
as a signal that he should mention nothing of the
frightful interview that had preceded her arrival,
though it was evident that she suspected something
T


KIT BAM, MARINER. 275
the safety and happiness of my dear brother, together
with that of his brave and generous friend, whom,
notwithstanding his difference of faith, I trust I may
hereafter meet in heaven, to thank spiritually for his
goodness to me and mine here on earth.' *
“At first my spirit sickened to feel that this
fair creature, whom I loved so deeply, was thus
lost to me for ever in this world; but as I re-
volved the misery which almost invariably attends a
union between those who differ in religious creed, I
learned to rejoice in her being so fully wedded to the
vocation to which she had been devoted by her
mother. She, at any rate, would be spared regret
and suffering, and I resolved to find comfort in this
thought, and to do my best towards reconciling myself
to my own disappointment. Besides, I thought, what
right had I to expect that this gentle inland girl
would ever have consented to become the wife of
one who had an insatiable craving after a wandering
life : Why should I doom her to live with a hus-
band who would feel a residence on land a perpetual
chain, and perhaps come in time to regard her as the
irksome link that rivetted his fetters; or condemn her
to a companionship with one who probably might
induce her to quit her native land, and incur the
perils and hardships of an ocean life for his sake
When I thought of these things, I felt self-rebuked,
and contemplated with greater Serenity my approach-
ing separation from the sweet, saint-like Barbara.
You see, my dear young friends, the magic volume,
the gift of old Erudito, the book of self-disenchant-


276 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
ment had left some traces of the useful lessons I had
read there, and that it had at any rate taught me the
habit of conscientous discipline and self-examination;
so that when, soon after, I was called upon to attend
with Karl the ceremonial of his sister's entering upon
her noviciate in the convent of Saint Barbara, her
patron saint, I was enabled to maintain a calm ex-
terior, and to subdue any remaining pangs of selfish
regret.
“I beheld her installed among her sister novices,
and led away in their train; their white garments
and timid maiden steps, preceding the sober pro-
cession of the black-clad nuns, as they paced round
the chapel of the convent where the ceremony was
performed, previous to admission within the interior
precincts. I watched their floating veils, and their
departing figures; and as the sad and solemn hymn
was softly chanted by their united voices, I fancied I
could distinguish the sweet, full tones that had so
often thrilled me with their devotional purity, and
which now seemed to reach me with the tender fare-
well of a benignant angel in soft compassion for my
human regret.
“The very next day Karl and I set off on our
journey; he eager to reach the land of his long-
desired studies, I anxious to quit a vicinity that had
now lost all charm for me.
“At Hanover I converted another of my diamonds
into cash; and though I did not make so good a
bargain as I did with the Jew at Cairo, yet it sufficed
for our travelling expenses, which were conducted on


KIT BAM, MARINER. 277
the most frugal plan, in order to reserve as much
money as possible to furnish funds for Karl's resi-
dence in Rome, as well as to supply me with the sum
which I had always determined to bestow on the
mother of poor Titta, the murdered cabin-boy, as
the legacy left her by her son. I resolved to seek
her as soon as we reached Genoa, and to give her
enough to render the latter days of her old age as
comfortable as the small sum which went to the
bottom of the sea in the poor lad's neck-kerchief
would have made her, had it been quadrupled by
the exertions, which he would never have remitted
had he been spared to return to her.
“At Göttingen, also, we tarried for a day to call
for a young student there, who had once been a
neighbour of Karl's, and who was as anxious to visit
Italy as Barbara's brother. This young student,
whose name was Leopold, had parents who were not
only much richer, but more indulgent than the father
of my poor friend, and who had yielded to their son's
desire to become a musician. After a period of
general study, therefore, at the university at Göt-
tingen, he was about to prosecute his own favourite
science in Italy, the cradle of the Fine Arts; and he
was as anxious to go in the society of his old friend
and neighbour, as Karl was to have his companion-
ship.
“Cheerfully and happily did we trudge along day
by day. My spirits rose with those of the two merry,
good-humoured youths, who were full of pleasant
anticipations and high romantic hopes of future fame


278 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
and success; and as we drew nearer and nearer to
the goal of their wishes they were gayer and gayer
and happier and happier. As I looked at Karl's
joyous face, and listened to his frank, free laugh, I
asked myself whether I had not reaped a rich harvest
in converting the agitated care-worn expression that
had distorted his countenance that night upon the
Brocken into the smiling animated glance that now
sparkled from his eyes.
“I sighed as I thought of Barbara; but I was
consoled when I looked upon her brother, and saw his
present happiness, in which I knew hers was so
enwrapt.”
“But here is the darkness coming on, my dears,”
said the old mariner, interrupting his narrative; “I
did not know it was so late.”
“But you can talk in the dark, you know, Kit, just
as well as in the light, can't you?” asked Fanny.
“Get along, do, you coaxer,” answered the old
man, as he put her gently away from him, bidding
God bless her, and wishing them both good night.


KIT BAM, MARINER. 279
CHAPTER X.
LUCERN.E. — LAKE OF THE FOUR CANTONS. — THE DEVIL’s
BRIDGE. — GENOA. - THE SINGER AND THE PRISONER. —
TITTA’s MOTHER.—THE LONE HOUSE.
THE next evening Fanny and her brother resumed
their seats by the old mariner's side, and he his nar-
rative, as follows:—
“At Lucerne a letter reached Karl from his sister
Barbara. It represented her as the happiest of the
happy in her new placid sphere of existence; it
invoked blessings on her brother and their joint
friend; and anticipated joyfully the period when
Karl should return to his native land, an artist of
sufficient eminence to paint an altar-piece for the
convent of Saint Barbara.
“This letter conduced still farther to animate our
spirits, and we embarked next morning on the bosom
of the lake of the four cantons, as if wafted onward
by seraphic guidance and protection. The misty
vapours that ushered in the dawn settled like a thick
veil upon the waters, shrouding the features of the
surrounding scenery from our view; but when, at
length, the sun arose in his strength, and the white
folds rolled away, gradually lifting up and floating
off in lengthening wreaths, chased by his resistless
power, what a scene of grandeur and beauty was dis-


KIT BAM, MARINER. 283
noticed at what point of the road he had joined our
party, or whence he came, or who he was, or whither
he was going; but he walked beside us at our pace,
and mingled so easily in the talk, which we were by
this time pursuing in loud-voiced earnestness, that it
seemed a matter of course to let him go on walking
and talking without farther question. He seemed to
be, like ourselves, a traveller, in the modest garb of a
student, and with no particular mark or pretension
about his face or figure. He seemed to be well
educated, and to have read a good deal, for with all
the subjects touched upon in the course of our con-
versation he seemed to be conversant, and able to
express himself fluently, and even to afford informa-
tion. But I noticed that there was a tinge of sarcasm
in all he said, and a sort of unconscious malice, and
involuntary power of depicting the evil side of every
thing that came under discussion, which made me
instinctively dread and dislike this stranger, while it
checked the youthful spirits of my two companions,
and made them each moment less gay and animated.
In the midst of some trustful vision of the future,
uttered in the hopeful spirit of youth by the musician,
Leopold, the stranger would throw in some chilling
remark about the sanguine temperament of artists,
and the ignorance and want of taste with which the
public too frequently met their best efforts; and when
Karl, in the innocence of his heart, indulged in some
dream of a historical picture that was to employ
months, nay, years of happily devoted existence, the
stranger would drop hints of the attachment which


284. THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
cardinals and English residents in Rome proverbially
cherished for their own portraits. All this was so
artfully done, so subtly, though so securely intimated,
that the two youths were unconscious of the effect
produced upon their minds by the stranger's conver-
sation, but I could perceive the venom he instilled
through his apparently careless sentences, and marked
well the gloom that crept into the conversation, and
spread its shadow over the usually beaming counte-
nances of Karl and Leopold. Each time the stranger
spoke, it was as if a deep shade were cast upon
everything around, like that of a passing cloud cross-
ing the blue heavens, and blotting earth's fair surface.
“We had left the district of oaks, ashes, and other.
trees, and had ascended to less cultivated regions,
where pines and struggling shrubs were the only
tokens of vegetation. Leopold had lingered some-
what behind, whilst I was rather in advance, when I
came upon a bridge crossing a gigantic waterfall
that hurled its foaming waters down with roaring
vehemence, and dashed forth clouds of white spray
amid a crash and din that almost deafened me. I
stood to gaze upon the wild grandeur of the tumbling
torrent, and waited until my companions should come
up with me. I looked back to note how far off they
were, and I could see, in one of the winding paths
below, Leopold toiling on, while in the intervening
turning between him and myself, were Karl and the
stranger, apparently in deep conversation. From
the spot where I stood, I gained a view of the path
which wound, as I have mentioned, like a map be-


KIT BAM, MARINER. 285
neath me; and I could thus perceive the approach-
ing figures of each of my comrades. I could even
distinguish the countenance of Karl, which bore
marks of strong agitation and terror; but though he
was near enough for me distinctly to discern this, the
deafening roar of the cataract prevented my hearing
the words of their conversation. Presently Karl
stopped, and I beheld the figure of the stranger as-
sume an imperative attitude that reminded me of
something I had seen before, and then Karl drew
back, and shook his head, and waved the stranger
from him, while he in turn pressed forward, and
eagerly urged some point upon the youth. But sud-
denly I saw Karl draw himself up, and stretching
forth one arm firmly, with an air of indignant menace
towards the stranger, he drew forth with his other
hand his sister Barbara's letter, which he kissed re-
verentially, and then placed to his brow, to either
side of his bosom, and to his heart, crossing himself
devoutly, whilst he cast appealing eyes to heaven,
and by the motion of his lips I could see that he
called loudly upon the sacred name, for protection
against the temptation of the evil spirit. A deep
plunge, a discordant yell of defeated malice that
rang sharp and high above the roar of the cataract,
and then, far down amid the boiling waters of the
torrent, I beheld for one moment the form of the
Arch-fiend himself, as I had beheld it in succinct dress
and taperingly feathered student's cap on the Brocken,
one wild and well-remembered night.
“On Karl's overtaking me, his blanched lips and


286 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
pallid cheeks plainly betokened the awful struggle
he had lately undergone; but his eyes sparkled with
a triumphant lustre that equally betokened his sense
of conquest, and determined me to make no allusion
to the interview I had witnessed, or the disappear-
ance of the mysterious stranger.
“Singularly enough, when Leopold rejoined us,
he also avoided all mention of our late travelling
companion; as his presence had been unsolicited, so
his absence was unnoticed, and we all seemed to be
contented with the relief afforded by his withdrawal
from our society, without indulging in any comment.
But in my own heart, I could not help congratulating
myself on the proof I had thus obtained of Karl's
having thrown off all subjugation to the influence of
the fiend; I could not but rejoice to find he had es-
caped the snares of temptation, and that henceforth he
was able to protect himself. I resolved, therefore,
that when we should reach Italy, if an opportunity
offered of my going to sea, I would relinquish the
farther guidance of my young friends, by providing
Karl with the promised sum, and despatching him
and Leopold on their short journey to Rome. We
arrived in Genoa without farther adventure, and after
I had converted my diamonds into money, which I
did very advantageously, I divided my little fortune
into what I considered due proportions, giving the ma-
jor part to Karl, and reserving the remainder for Tit-
ta's mother. We spent a few days in this beautiful
city, that my two young companions might enjoy some
rest after our long journey; and in order that I might


KIT BAM, MARINER. 287
give them a little treat before we parted company,
I offered to take them to the Carlo Felice Theatre,
where there was an opera performing, in which the
part of the Prima Donna was supported by a young
English singer, then in the zenith of her fame, and
turning the heads of all the Italians.
“Before we went to the Carlo Felice, we were all
three taking a turn upon the Corso, when an English
carriage rolled by, in which I beheld a fair face that
attracted my attention, from its unaffected beauty
and candid expression. Such is the force of preju-
dice, which commonly attaches a stigma to the name
of actress, that I felt astonished when some one near
me exclaimed : ‘That is Anastasia, the English
Prima Donna.' On the carriage repassing me, which
it did on coming round the Corso again, I once more
raised my eyes to the countenance of my fair country-
woman, and in my heart asked pardon for the insult
I had tacitly offered her, in fancying that because a
woman is an actress, her reputation must be injured,
and in wondering to see her look good and pure.
Whether my face bore the expression of what I felt,
I know not, but certain it is, that the lady looked
earnestly upon me, and did not withdraw her eyes
from me, until the carriage had borne her past the
spot where I and my companions stood. Fame had
not exaggerated her talent; for in the evening we
were entranced by the beauty of her singing, and
the magic power of her acting, Karl and I agreed
that her voice excelled even Barbara's in rich sweet-
ness, and volume of tone, while her artistic cultiva-


288 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
tion rendered her singing infinitely superior. As for
Leopold, he was perfectly enchanted. During the
first act of the opera, he was in a state of ecstasy,
and while the divertissement (as they call the short
dance which they give between the acts) occupied the
stage, he deigned not to glance towards it; when the
opera was concluded, he started up and quitted the
theatre, declaring he could not drag down his thoughts,
exalted to the seventh heaven by music, to the frivolous
region of dancing, ballet, and pantomime, and left Karl
and me to stay by ourselves. Just as we also were
quitting the theatre, when the performances were
all over, a girl darted through the crowd, and
seizing my wrist, said: “Follow me!' I hesitated;
but she repeated more earnestly, ‘Follow me, I tell
you; the Signora Anastasia wants to say something
to you of importance.'
“Curious to learn what this could mean, I bade
Karl hasten to our lodging, and sup with Leopold
without waiting for me, as I might be detained; then,
following my conductress, she led me through the
stage-door, along some dark passages, up some stairs,
down others, across another passage, at the end of
which I beheld a glimpse of the stage, the canvass
backs and wooden frames of the side scenes, and
some half-extinguished lamps; then up some more
steps, where there was an open doorway screened by
a dark curtain of maroon baize. This curtain was
drawn aside by my conductress, and she ushered me
into a room, bidding me wait there until the Signora
Anastasia came to tell me what she had to say, and


KIT BAM, MARINER. 289
then vanished without another word. I stood patiently
for some time, expecting the approach of the Prima
Donna in this apartment, which I supposed was her
dressing-room. Wax candles stood lighted upon a
handsome toilette table strewed with all sorts of
elegant knick-knacks, such as scent-bottles, caskets of
jewellery, rouge-jars, a fan, a plume of feathers,
heaps of bouquets, half-opened notes, verses, a tiara,
a spangled veil, and a mask. The floor, too, was
littered with various objects; here lay a white satin
slipper, there a hastily drawn-off silk stocking; trail-
ing from the tall dressing-glass, a crimson velvet robe
spread its ample ermined folds, and on a sofa was
flung a black mantle, worn for disguise in the first
scene. But when I had looked at all these scattered
indications of Anastasia's profession, and had amused
myself in recalling how I had seen them make
their appearance on the stage that evening; these
thoughts then recurring more than twice in succession,
I began to wonder that Anastasia did not come, and
also to indulge a suspicion that there must be some
mistake or some caprice. This latter notion was
confirmed soon after by a man coming through the
passages, in making his round of the theatre, to see
that all the lights were properly put out; and by his
exclaiming:—
“‘That careless wench, Laura, has never put away
the Prima Donna's things, and here are the candles
still in. And—why, what do you do here?" added
he, addressing me, astonished to find a stranger there.
“I explained, by telling him how I had been sent
U


KIT BAM, MARINER. 291
more than the sum devoted to defray his expenses at
Rome. Words had passed,—a blow been given,_a
fine exacted; unable to pay which, Leopold had been
at once thrown into prison; and he had sent to me,
knowing he could rely upon me for advice and
assistance. “I know, Kit,” he concluded, “that I can
have twice the money at any time from my indulgent
parents, by writing to them for it; but think of the
shame, the deep disgrace of letting them know that
their son has not strength of mind sufficient to pre-
vent him from risking the very sum which was to
enable him to attain the highest aim he had—that of
perfecting himself in a noble art. Unworthy, de-
graded wretch that I am! A gambler —a night-
brawler | But listen to me, Kit, while I here take a
solemn oath never, never, while I live, to touch card
or dice-box more.’
“‘Fatal cards! fatal dice the bane of all that is
worthy or noble in man! Well do you to abjure
them, good youth!' cried a voice near us.
“It was that of a young man, a fellow-prisoner of
Leopold's; but I had not noticed him when first I
entered the cell. He was extremely handsome, but
so wan and thin, and his eyes looked so hollow, and
shone with so wild a fire, that I felt at once interested
in him; and as soon as I had consoled Leopold as
well as I could, by assuring him that means should
be taken to secure his freedom, I entered into con-
versation with this young stranger, and found that
his story was indeed a sad one. He was an English-
man, the son of a man richly connected, but who had


292 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
speculated largely, and had died suddenly on the
failure of his hopes, leaving his widow and son
totally unprovided for. The poor widow, anxious,
nevertheless, to secure for her son the advantages of
foreign travel, had solicited the requisite sum from
her friends, and had sent him abroad inadequately
informed of the real state of their affairs. The
young man, unaccustomed to consider the true value
of money, and reared in expensive habits, had been
unable to withstand the temptations of the gaming-
table, and had, on arriving in Genoa, not only staked
and lost all the money he possessed, but had incurred
other debts for worthless toys and extravagant follies,
and had been thrown into prison for the amount.
But when he at length summoned courage to write
to England for remittances, he had received a harsh,
abrupt reply from his rich relations, informing him
that his mother was dead, and that, for their part,
they never desired to see so wicked a reprobate
In Ore.
“‘I have often taken comfort in the thought,' said
he, in conclusion, “that the blow which then struck
me to the heart was my death-blow. But there are
times when I could wish that I might be once more
permitted to breathe the fresh air of heaven, and be
granted a short period of probation on earth to
redeem my former guilt.”
“His fine eyes flashed eagerly as he spoke of
liberty, and his wan cheek burnt with one bright spot,
that made me long to bestow fresh air and freedom
upon one who seemed too sorely punished for a


294, THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
among which bloomed a profusion of roses and
other flowers. In a cool shady apartment overlook-
ing the gardens, sat Anastasia, who received me with
a graceful apology, for having caused me to wait so
long last evening expecting her.
“‘It was owing to a mistake of the poor little
dresser, Laura, who attended me last night n the
absence of my own maid,” said she; ‘and I am sure
you will forgive the heedless monkey, as I did myself
for the many blunders she made in robing me; for
the truth is, her poor little head and heart were all
the time occupied by thoughts of her mother, who is
lying dangerously ill. The Italians are famous for
their filial attachment and loving care of their
parents; and I have seen instances of this grateful
affection, as well as of other kinds of self-denial and
devotion to duty among the poor dancers and chorus-
girls that would do honour to many a high-born
young lady. Our profession is sadly belied,—it pos-
sesses brave and charitable hearts, with often a con-
stancy in goodness perfectly marvellous, when we
consider to what temptations its members are pecu-
liary exposed, and by which they are generally
surrounded and assailed. However, I must not allow
myself to be run away with by a theme on which I
own I feel somewhat warmly when I reflect upon the
injustice that is frequently done us actresses and
singers.'
“I felt myself unconsciously rebuked as Anas-
tasia said this, for I recollected the thoughts I
had allowed myself to entertain yesterday, when


KIT BAM, MARINER. 295
she passed me for the first time. But she went on
to say:—
“I have sent to request your assistance in an
affair of some delicacy, sir; for I have no friend
here with whom I could entrust its execution, and
seeing a countryman of mine, with a countenance
whose frankness and pleasant open look warranted
my confidence, I ventured to ask him to undertake
the matter for me, secure of his kind help.' I
bowed, and she continued:—‘It is this: I went yes-
terday morning with a party of Italian friends to
visit the prison here, as one of the lions of the city,
when I was struck with the appearance of a young
Englishman there, who interested me peculiarly. He
gave me the idea of a chained eagle,_of one who
longed to soar in mid-air, but who was fettered to
earth, and who was pining to death for lack of sun-
shine and liberty. I inquired his history, and found
that it confirmed my idea. For a miserable sum,
a few trifling hundreds, such as are thrown away
frequently by the hand of vice or folly upon a shawl
or a bracelet, this noble-looking being is to waste
hopelessly away in despairing inaction, instead of
being restored to light and life and liberty-and,
what is still dearer, the chance of redemption from
a sense of past error, by a virtuous future.'
“‘You mean Sydney Vincent,' I cried, interrupting
her; and then I explained how I came to know him,
and how fully I shared her sympathy for the unhappy
young man, as well as her anxiety that he should be
ransomed.


296 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
“It is for this very purpose that I sent to request
your assistance,” said Anastasia, eagerly. ‘Take
this purse; it contains the amount of my poor
countryman's debt. Pay it, and set him free; but
give me your solemn promise that you will never
divulge to Vincent himself, or to any living soul,
who it was that furnished his ransom-money. I have
a particular reason for this;–nay, why should I
hesitate to tell you at once what it is, that you may
guard my secret all the more carefully. The fact is,
then, there is such a prejudice against all we ac-
tresses do, that were it known I had given a few
hundred pounds to redeem a prisoner, and that
prisoner a handsome young man, poor Anastasia would
very probably lose her character; it would be said
that his fine eyes and hair, his graceful figure and
intellectual head, had been the motives of her com-
passion, but that had he been an ugly old man, and
fifty times her countryman, she would have left him
to rot in gaol long enough. Be secret then, and
fulfil my commission faithfully, and as speedily as
you possibly can; I know you long, as I do, to set
him free.’
“I hastened at once to the prison, and enjoyed the
delight of bringing away with me, not only Leopold,
but the young Englishman, Sydney Vincent, who
could scarcely credit his senses when I told him he
was free, and that I begged him to accompany us
from that den of misery. He looked so radiant with
joy, and even his naturally very handsome features
were so embellished by happiness and the rapturous
---------------- _2~~~~~~~~


KIT BAM, MARINER. 297
thought of liberty, that I could not help a moment's
wonder crossing my mind whether Anastasia really
did love this handsome Englishman after all; though
I checked myself for it the next instant as an in-
justice to the candour with which she had treated
Ine.
“I soon had convincing proof that her liberality
had been inspired by no personal liking, but from a
pure motive of charity and tender sympathy for an
unfortunate captive, deprived of the dearest privilege
to an English bosom—freedom; for I learned that
very day, that she was on the eve of marriage with
a young Italian nobleman. After I had seen my
two friends, Karl and Leopold, off on their journey to
Rome, and bade adieu to young Vincent, who made
many ineffectual attempts to urge me to reveal to
him who was the benefactor that advanced the sum
for his release, I repaired to Anastasia's house to
inform her of his delivery, of his happiness, and of
his departure from Genoa in new life and hope.
“Even had I not heard the fact of her approaching
marriage, her manner when I told her of the young
Englishman's departure, would have convinced me
she merely thought of him with kindness and com-
passion, for she thanked me heartily and uncon-
strainedly for the way in which I had conducted the
affair for her. ‘I know you have yourself found too
much pleasure in the execution of my wishes and
the release of one of our countrymen, for me to
offer you any token of my gratitude, kind friend,'
she said, gracefully, and going to her instrument as


300 THE STRANGE ADVENTUREs of
“How did you know so surely that Titta was
drowned?” asked I, seeing that she spoke so calmly.
“‘Before the fatal thunder-storm that came one
evening among our hills, and struck the light for
ever from these eyes, replied the blind woman, ‘I
saw my poor Titta's figure several times. I knew it
was his apparition, come to warn me of his death;
and the first time I beheld it, I felt afraid, and sore
distressed; but, by degrees, I became accustomed to
the truth, and I felt as if it were a blessed visitation
sent by Heaven to soften the grief of a mother's
heart and wean her from the idea of a living son.
I learned to welcome the figure of my poor drowned
Titta, and to watch for its appearance by the side of
my arm-chair in the summer evenings; and, after I
was struck with blindness, and could no longer look
upon the form I had loved so well living, and che-
rished so tenderly still, yet I often knew that it
hovered near, and I frequently feel that it is close
beside my arm-chair, while I console myself with the
thought that his blest spirit is among the angels
before the throne of God.”
“I raised my eyes involuntarily as she spoke, and
there, behind her chair, I beheld the well-known
figure of poor Titta, gazing upon me with happy eyes
and a serene smile—how different from the expres-
sion his face had worn that night I had seen him
last, when he poured forth the writhings of his
wounded heart. I suppose I uttered some exclama-
tion of surprise and awe; for the blind woman
said—


KIT BAM, MARINER. 301
“‘You see him,-do you, sir? I knew he must
be near—tell me how my boy looks.'
“Happy and peaceful, as a blessed spirit should
look,' I whispered, sinking to my knee, and joining
in the thanksgiving which was breathed by the be-
reaved but resigned mother. -
“I remained some time with her, talking in a
cheerful strain, when we had each recovered ourselves
from the solemn feeling that possessed us for some
time after the vision had departed; and then she set
milk and fruit before me, and thanked me earnestly
for my coming so far to bring her the legacy of her
beloved son, rendering her old age comfortable and
contented through his means. I left her at length,
with the pleasant conviction of her complete resig-
nation and calm happiness, and pursued my moonlight
path towards Genoa; for evening had now quite
closed in. My road wound through a solitary valley
that lay beneath the hills, and I soon approached a
lone and dismantled house that I had noticed on my
way hither, and which looked as if it had been a
country palace belonging to one of the noble Genoese
families in former times. I had inquired its history
of Titta's mother when I was chatting with her on
indifferent subjects, and found that it had the repu-
tation of being haunted.
“It had been once upon a time in the possession
of a certain Count Giulio, who was a renowned
Genoese warrior, and who possessed a very beautiful
wife, of whom he was frightfully jealous—so jealous,
that he had put her to death on bare suspicion of her


302 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
infidelity. So ran the legend, however; and the
blind woman added, that it was said he had caused a
beautiful full-length picture to be painted of his
lovely countess; that after his death a marble statue
had been sculptured of the warrior by order of his
successor, and that both picture and statue were still
to be seen in that old deserted palace, though it had
been left to goto ruin by the descendants of the family,
who had seen strange sights and heard strange noises,
which had induced them to live there no longer.
“I thought over all these things I had so lately
heard, as I stood gazing on the grass-grown and
moss-patched steps that led to the front entrance
of the dilapidated mansion, and wished that I could
obtain a sight of the picture, at least, as the countess
had been such a celebrated beauty. But the hall-
door resisted all attempts I made to open it, and I
was retreating disappointed, when I perceived a little
side-entrance, which I hoped would afford the means
of my gaining admission.
“It proved just as I could have wished; the little
door opened readily, and I found myself in a narrow
passage, at the end of which there was a winding
stair. I went forward and ascended, till I found
another door, which was covered with tapestry on the
inside. I raised the drapery, and found myself in a
large well-furnished study, but the books were
mouldering on the shelves, the tapestry hung in
rags from the walls in many places, the tables and
chairs were covered with dust, which looked like the
accumulation of centuries; and a pair of globes, that


304 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
itself, and glide away through an opposite door. I
sprang after the receding form, and found myself in
darkness, while the door through which I had rushed
closed after me instantly, with a noise like that of a
spring-lock snapping to. I groped my way forwards
a pace or two, when I felt my extended hand firmly
seized by a cold marble grasp, that I could by no
effort shake off. I put forth my other hand, that I
might ascertain what it was that held me, and I
could not help a sickening shiver, as I plainly felt
marble fingers clasping round my own living ones;
and then a wrist and an arm as far as I could reach,
convincing me that I was fast within the clutch of a
statue ! At that moment a loose outside blind of
the dilapidated mansion flapped back in the night
breeze, and by the rays of the moon that streamed
through the casement, I discovered that I was in a
large hall hung round with grim ancestral portraits,
that frowned upon me as I stood there in the grasp
of their descendant. I turned my eyes towards this
descendant himself, and found that it was indeed the
statue of Count Giulio, just as I had heard it de-
scribed. It was that of a tall portly man, in warrior
attire; his countenance was stern, and looked doubly
cold and inflexible in the pale moon-beams that lay
full upon it; his left hand rested upon the hilt of
his undrawn sword, and his right griped my unfor-
tunate wrist, keeping me rooted to the spot.
“I trembled to think of the horrible fate I must
endure, detained prisoner thus, to starve gradually,
and perish alone in a dismal place, abandoned by my


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KIT BAM, MARINER. 305
fellow men, and in the power of this ghastly being;
but soon I made an effort to shake off the terror
that held me spell-bound almost as much as the
marble grasp, and cast about in my mind for means
to free myself, if possible. I writhed and twisted
'my hand to no purpose; I could not withdraw it
from the cold fingers that maintained so strict a
clasp; my contortions but served to strain my arm
and exhaust my strength. Suddenly a bold thought
came into my head, as I perceived a group of ancient
arms, among which was a heavy battle-axe, lying
not far from me, and, stretching myself out as far
as I could to reach it, I succeeded in seizing the
weapon, exclaiming, as I wielded it on high, “I
will be contented to wear a marble bracelet for the
remainder of my days, if I can but mash Signor
Count Giulio's wrist off, in return for his squeezing
mine so tight.' But ere the battle-axe could descend
with the heavy blow, which I aimed with such hearty
good will, a loud laugh rang in unearthly tones
through the old hall, and I was arrested in my pur-
pose by hearing the statue exclaim, ‘Bravo, valiant
Englishman' I have often heard that few things can
quell the stout hearts of your gallant countrymen, or
deprive them of courage and presence of mind to
free themselves from peril, however threatened, how-
ever beset. I have beheld many a daring feat
in my living martial days, and have ever been
an admirer of intrepidity, so I am not likely now to
resent a bold act, merely because it is directed
against myself. Thou art free, therefore, brave
X


306 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
Englishman,’ said he, relinquishing his marble grasp,
‘and thy undaunted behaviour has won that from
Count Giulio, which no cringing solicitation, no
pusillanimous dread of his power could have won
from him. Beneath this hall is a vaulted chamber,
that contains evidence whether fawning or fear ever
met favour from me; there lie the skeletons of those
who fell victims to my marble grasp when they
shrunk dastardly beneath the terror of its imprison-
ment, and sought not, like thee, to free themselves
by the exercise of mental and bodily energy. You
may, if you choose, behold these skeletons. Through
yonder door you will find a staircase; you can
satisfy yourself of the truth of my words, by de-
scending among those heaps of worthless bones, and
witnessing the effects of my loathing for all that is
cowardly and base.'
“I thanked him, but declined to avail myself of
his polite offer, as I begged to assure him I could
perfectly rely upon Count Giulio's word, without
counting the skeletons of his victims; “yet,' I ven-
tured to add, “there is one question I would fain
ask—that picture—
“Hold!’ interrupted the statue, in a voice of
thunder, while I could perceive his marble fingers
clutch and quiver, as if scarcely able to refrain from
seizing my wrist again; “carry not boldness into
rashness—seek not to pry into secrets that concern
thee not! Away ! and thank thy stars that thou
hast escaped the penalty of thy impertinent cu-
riosity.’


KIT BAM, MARINER. 307
“I waited not to be twice bidden; I took such
excellent advice as speedily as I could, by advancing
to the hall door, and drawing back the rusty bolt;
and when I found myself once more without the
walls of the dismantled palazzo, I failed not to utter
a devout thanksgiving, that instead of mouldering
beneath its dreary vaults, I was hale and hearty in
the flesh, and breathing the pure air of heaven, and
trudging cheerily back to Genoa, singing a blithe
sea-ditty. Not many hours more, and I was at sea
once again, sailing away from the harbour of ‘Genoa
la Superba;' and as I looked back upon the mag-
nificent city, which rose like a vast amphitheatre of
palaces against the stately range of maritime alps,
I acknowledged the meetness of the surname which
the Italians had bestowed upon the beautiful birth-
place of Columbus, Prince of Mariners.
“I felt my spirit rise, and my heart dance with
buoyant delight, as I once more found myself bound-
ing away over the element I loved so well. I
exulted as I was borne aloft upon the crests of the
waves, and darted like a bird over the bright clear
waters, that heaved and swelled proudly, rolling
their translucent length in ceaseless undulation. I
felt as if I could gaze for ever into their green
depths, and ponder upon their fathomless mysteries
I was transported with a sense of freedom, of bound-
less liberty, as I scanned the distant horizon, and
bared my brow to the ocean breeze, and looked
abroad into the vast expanse of sky—in short, my
dears, I was an old sailor going to sea again, after


308 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
some months of wandering upon land—which suffi-
ciently explains the state of rapture in which I found
myself on quitting the shores of lovely Italy. But
we must think of new adventures to-morrow ; it is
too late to-night for any more yarns.”


KIT BAM, MARINER. 311
until you've made quite sure that you've got the
best of it.’
“‘Well, my toast, when I have my grog next,
shall be —Huzza for a sailor's life—may he long
enjoy a light heart and a merry one !” said the
young fellow.
“‘And mine shall be — Huzza for the sailor!—
may he ever keep a watchful eye, a ready hand, and
a brave heart!' replied the old seaman.
“‘Why, of course, every sailor has a brave heart,
hasn't he, old Neptune? I suppose we shall all be
brave enough when danger comes, shan't we ?'
“‘We shall see,' quietly rejoined the old helms-
man; and there the conversation dropped. -
“Presently, there was a man came astern, who
hurriedly said that smoke had been seen to issue
from one of the hatchways. The mere thought of a
fire on board ship in the open sea is sufficient to
appal the stoutest heart, and very soon all betokened
the consternation which followed the man's announce-
ment. The captain gave immediate orders for seve-
ral sails to be wetted and placed across the hatchways,
to prevent, if possible, the air from penetrating into
the hold; but it had already obtained a free passage
thither, and caused a great volume of smoke to
ascend, and the fire to gain considerable ground. All
hands were busily employed in endeavouring to
extinguish it; the pumps were kept at work;
buckets were passed to and fro; even our fresh
water was emptied from the tanks, sacrificed at
once, and cast hastily upon the flames; they, how-


KIT BAM, MARINER. 313
whom I before mentioned; he was standing close to
his captain, urging him to save himself and quit the
ship, while he shook off the red-hot cinders that
poured around his own grey head. As he spoke, a
portion of the burning wreck swept the captain over-
board, and the old man, casting his eyes devoutly to
heaven for one moment, threw himself resolutely
into the sea, where I saw him seized in the clutch of
a poor drowning wretch, who dragged him beneath
the waters, and they both sunk together. The young
fellow, who had boasted so loudly in the morning,
had found his way, with a few other equally bold
companions, to the spirit-store, where they had
staved in a rum-cask, and died roaring drunk. The
fate of the old seaman had taught me precaution;
so that the first thing I did, upon leaping overboard
myself, was carefully to shun the struggling wretches
around, who would have seized and involved me in
their own destruction. Fortunately I escaped this,
and all the other perils of the burning vessel, for I
swam rapidly and steadily to windward, that I might
avoid her dangerous proximity. I had not gained
more than a couple of miles distance, when l heard
a tremendous explosion, and, looking back, I per-
ceived huge pieces of flaming wood hurled high into
the air, amid a cloud of darkness: the fire must
have reached the powder-room, and blown up the
ship. With it, I suppose, perished all my unfortu-
nate shipmates, for I never beheld one of them again,
My heart wept with compassion for my lost friends,
and my senses reeled with this crowning horror of


KIT BAM, MARINER. 317
with the rays of a burning sun darting full upon my
uncovered head, had combined to throw me into a
severe fever, and I now began to sink under the first
coming on of the attack. I dragged my heavy
limbs through the grove, and made my way from
beneath the trees, with the idea of seeking shelter in
the solitary hut I had perceived near the entrance of
the wood; but, though the distance was so slight, my
strength was insufficient to bear me thither, and I
sunk upon the grass just as I had reached the
threshold. The tranquil island scene swam before
my distempered vision, my head throbbed and reeled,
my burning eyelids closed, a deep sigh fluttered from
my parched lips, and I fell prostrate.
“The first thing of which I was conscious, when I
recovered, was a sense of delicious coolness; a balmy
fragrance seemed to pervade the air, and a deep feel-
ing of repose and healing was diffused throughout my
languid frame, I heaved a sigh of placid content-
ment—oh, how different from the one which had
fluttered forth when I sunk to the earth last,-and I
dreamily opened my eyes to discover where I was. I
found that I was lying upon a couch of skins, in a
wooden hut, which I soon concluded must be the
interior of the one I had seen when I was attacked
by fever.
“But, though I was able to conclude thus far, I
could form no guess as to how long I had lain there,
or by whom I had been transported thither. And
yet the suppleness of my skin, the moisture of my
mouth, the relief of my aching head, having so en-


318 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
tirely replaced the feverish symptoms by which I was
oppressed when I sunk beneath my illness, all con-
firmed my impression that I must not only have had
a serious illness, but that I had been carefully tended
and nursed through it by some unknown friend.
Who could this kind friend be I gazed feebly
round the small apartment—for I was still weak—
and all I saw convinced me that it was a woman's
hand which had been so benevolently extended to my
relief. There were so many evidences of a feminine
presence, even in that rude interior, that I could not
doubt for a moment but that a woman had been my
preserving angel. There was that general air of
neatness which the cabin of the wildest savage
almost instinctively assumes, in common with the
boudoir of the lady of fashion; there was that grace-
ful disposal of flowers around the window of the hut,
which might have been arranged in a clusteringly
heaped vase elsewhere; there was a smooth comfort
in the piling of the skins around me, that would have
been a judicious placing of pillows and downy quilts
in a civilized bed; there was a cooling drink set
close by my side—that was surely mingled by no
other than a womanly hand, whether the vessel that
contained it were formed of a cocoa-nut shell, or of
elaborate Dresden china.
“I lay musing thus, pleasantly enough, while I
watched the rays of the sun playing among the leaves
and blossoms at the window, and casting twinkling
shadows upon my couch, when suddenly I heard a
low sweet womanly voice singing close outside of he


KIT BAM, MARINER. 319
window, in that sort of gentle undertone, as if the
singer were anxious not to disturb another, yet giv-
ing vent to her own blithe feelings while she pur-
sued her work. I could distinguish words; they
seemed to be a sort of invocation for aid in garden-
ing, and a eulogium on the beauty of the flowers she
was doubtless employed in training and tending. I
lay listening breathlessly. Presently the song ended,
and the door of the hut was pushed gently, as if some
one were endeavouring to enter without noise. The
door opened, but no object darkened the threshold.
The sunshine streamed through the doorway in an
uninterrupted flood of light, and I could distinctly see
the beautiful landscape during the few seconds before
the door was shut again softly by the same unseen
hand.
“My heart beat chokingly, and I closed my eyes.
As I lay perfectly motionless, I felt a warm breath
close to my cheek, as if some one leant over me.
“‘He is better-surely better,” said a voice close
to my ear.
“I could not help starting violently, and I fancied
the person withdrew as abruptly, while I gasped in
irrepressible emotion—
“For Heaven's sake, who is there 7"
“‘I,’ said the same sweet voice; “it is only I.’
“‘But who are you? and where are you?' ex-
claimed I impatiently, for, though I strained my eyes
in the direction of the voice, I could see nothing.
“I am Velata—I am here, close to your heap of
skins; is it possible you do not see me? Or is it


KIT BAM, MARINER. 321
But when they found more than an hour elapse, and
that I still gave no signs of returning to myself,
they had tried to persuade her to leave me to my
fate, as it was then time to return to their canoes.
She explained to me that it was the habit of the
young maidens of a neighbouring large island, to
come hither in the spring season of the year, and
celebrate a vernal festival with various sports and
pastimes. It was a rule that no man should join
this festival on any pretence whatever, and that
therefore the canoes were conducted hither by the
troops of young girls themselves, who steered and
rowed with much expertness, and performed feats of
great dexterity during their annual visit to this spot.
The festival was looked forward to with delight, and
was a source of great pride and enjoyment to its fair
votaries. A sense of freedom and independence in
the management of their miniature fleet, complete
seclusion and liberty in their frolicsome games while
dancing, singing, running, playing, gathering fruit,
and sporting hither and thither uncontrolled through
the lovely plains of this pleasant island, made the
vernal festival a cherished privilege among them.
Great, then, was their dismay upon finding a male
intruder suddenly make his appearance among them;
and when they would have left the stranger to his
fate, upon finding their benevolent attempts to restore
him ineffectual, the approach of the hour when
it was necessary for them to return to their own
island in the canoes, they found they could not per-
suade Velata to accompany them. She said that
Y


322 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
nothing should induce her to leave an unfortunate be-
ing to perish; that she had no particular ties to bind
her to their own island; and that she felt it now to
be her first duty to stay and protect the charge which
chance had cast in her way. The hut, which was a
sort of rustic temple, dedicated to the entertainment
of the fair vestals during their resort to this spot,
would suffice for a shelter for herself and her poor
patient, and she bade them hesitate not to leave her
where she herself preferred, and determined, to stay.
On her repeated assurances to this effect, and finding
that all their persuasions were vain, they quitted her,
and returned to the canoes, not without some laugh-
ing mockery at her quixotic devotion to self-imposed
hospital duties.
“‘I listened to their gay voices,’ said Welata, in
conclusion, “as they gradually receded; soon the
last faint echoes of their rallying mirth died upon
my ear, and I found myself alone with my poor
patient, whose fevered breathing and restless twitch-
ings soon occupied all my attention I have had
sad teaching in the part of a nurse,' continued she,
‘ for my poor father lingered long of the fever and
wounds of which he died, after fighting bravely for
his country in one of the battles between ours and a
neighbouring land; but I have had reason to rejoice
in my experience, since it has been at length the
means of restoring you to health. But you are not
yet strong, and I have too long neglected my nurs-
ing duties while I have been talking; so I will now
go and prepare some of these herbs for you.’


324. THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
soon my amusement merged into an intense wish
to behold the fair motive power itself, and to feel
again assured of her actual presence.
“Velata l' I exclaimed, ‘I wish you would speak;
I cannot see you—and I want to hear you—to be
certain you are there.'
“She laughed a pleasant little musical laugh, and
then chatted gaily about the herbs and the fruit she was
arranging, and said, “she hoped I should soon be well
enough to get up and walk out into the fresh air.’
“‘I think I am well enough already,' said I, mak-
ing an effort to raise myself upon my elbow; but I
soon found my strength was unequal to the task, for
my arm gave way under me immediately, and I fell
back upon the couch.
“I heard a little hurried movement towards me,
as if my nurse feared I was ill; but, perceiving how
it was, she uttered her pleasant laugh again, and
said—
“You see you must still be content to be my
patient for a while, and must not attempt to move,
till I give you leave.’
“I soon saw by the motion of some of the articles
in the hut, that Velata was employed in little house-
wifely duties, of arranging and disposing the order
of the room; I took delight in watching her progress
through them, and by constantly talking to her, and
winning her to answer, I contrived very well to
ascertain whereabouts she was. I then bethought
me of asking her to bring me a branch of the
flowery woodbine that threw its garlands around the


KIT BAM, MARINER. 329
out in the open air, on a mossy seat, which my nurse
had prepared for me beneath a tree that grew near to
the hut.
“She had been singing to me, and chatting cheer-
fully, and devising various means to entertain her
“impatient invalid, as she called me, declaring that
she could by no means call me her ‘patient;' but I
was restless, and, instead of being soothed by her
voice, as I usually was when I listened to it, I felt
my longing to behold her irritated and roused to an
insupportable degree; I sighed more than once half
unconsciously, as I yielded to a despondent feeling
that crept over me, and that cast a gloom even upon
the fair landscape, the bright sunshine, and the plea-
sant free air.
“‘You are worse to-day, I fear, my dear friend,'
said Velata tenderly, sitting down beside me; “and
yet this lovely morning and pure air ought to make
you better—nay, quite well.'
“‘I used to long for my recovery, but I have
learned to dread getting well,' said I, more sadly
than I felt her kind care deserved from me; but I
could not resist the depression of the moment.
“Indeed! Then you are out of spirits as well as
out of health. Perhaps you are tired of this inactive
life, and long to pursue the wanderings of which you
have so often told me,’ added she tremulously. “But
you know you must be well for that; you cannot go
to sea until you are strong again.'
“‘It is not I who wish to go away; I only fear
that when my kind nurse finds her ‘impatient inva-


330 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
lid, quite recovered, that it is she who will be anxious
to quit this place and return to her own country.'
“‘I have nothing to lead me to wish to return
thither,’ said she. “When my poor father died, I
had no parent left, for my mother never loved me,
and would scarcely ever bear me in her sight. I did
not even live with her; for, when she bade me quit
her presence, as one long loathed and only tolerated
during my father's life, I took refuge with friends,
the parents of a young companion of mine, who was
one of those who came to this island on our late fes-
tival here. I have no true home,’ added Velata, in
a tone as sad as my own had been.
“But it was joyfully now, that I exclaimed:
“Then let us make one here, together! I desire no
other home! I wish but for you—to stay with you,
Velata, ever!'
“I passed my arm round the gentle being that sat
on the moss beside me, as I added:—‘be mine,
Velata, and crown your generous kindness, by telling
me you are as happy in remaining with me, as I am
in vowing to live here for ever with you!”
“A little quick-beating heart fluttered beneath the
hand with which I held her to me, and a drooping
head leant upon my bosom, as I heard her say:
‘You would have me be your wife, then º'
“‘I desire nothing upon earth so fondly 'I replied.
“I will tell you now, why I refused your garland,
the other day, whispered Velata, after a short pause.
‘It is the custom of our nation, when two people wish
to become man and wife, for them to place a coronal


334 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
same time, I will own, that my yielding so utterly to
my misery was weak and wicked; and the only cir-
cumstance I can reflect upon with complacency in
that period of my unhappiness was, that instead of
looking upon the white dove with resentment, as the
cause of my detention, and consequent misfortune, I
cherished it carefully, binding its wounded wing, and
endeavouring to extract some comfort from a deed
of charity and tenderness.
“After wandering restlessly, blindly, and vainly,
about, everywhere in Welata's wonted haunts, and
taking a sort of fierce pains to prove to myself that
I had really and hopelessly lost her, I sunk at length
stunned and exhausted upon the mossy seat beneath
the tree, where I had that very morning received the
assurance that made me a happy husband, and had
opened to me the blissful prospect of a life-long
wedded existence. Nature wore her loveliest aspect of
beauty and serenity—the one star of evening shone
forth mild and lustrous — the unclouded heavens
embraced earth with their azure expanse—and all
things seemed held in loving silent communion;
what a contrast did this scene, in its holy tranquillity,
present to the storm of tumultuous emotions that
were contending within my own sore and troubled
heart!
“Long I strove for a more submissive spirit; fer-
vently did I pray for calm and resignation, that I
might bear my trial as became a man, and the crea-
ture of God's will. I bent myself prostrate to his
decree, and humbly besought his mercy to the bruised


KIT BAM, MARINER. 335
heart that laid itself trustfully open to his healing
Care.
“The radiant Hesperus shed its bland influence
upon my upturned eyes, and I felt as if a gracious
power had vouchsafed encouragement, protection,
and consolation. I arose meekly, and went into the
hut, with a calmer spirit, though without hope of rest.
But as I flung myself upon my couch of skins, I found
a half-blown rose, that lay upon the pillow.
“I seized the precious token, as a harbinger of
hope and comfort, for well I knew whose hand must
have placed it there. I inhaled its delicious perfume,
and steeped my senses in the ecstasy of the belief
it conveyed that I was remembered and beloved,
however inexplicably abandoned.
“My rose lay close to my heart that night; it has
lain there ever since, nor will it ever quit its place
but with life,” said the old mariner, in a low voice,
and covering his eyes for a moment with his wrinkled
hand. “Its once ruddy leaves are now colourless
and withered, but the memories that hallow the
slight fragments will be ever fresh and vivid, till
the heart, close to which they lie, shall cease to
beat.”
After a short pause he resumed:—“The effort
I had so strenuously made to endure my bereave-
ment with becoming fortitude, was much strengthened
by this circumstance, and I laboured hard to resist a
recurrence of the despondency which had so completely
overwhelmed and unmanned me at first. I strove
by physical exertion to repel the attacks of mental


338 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
tial feast, she said, ‘when, from the opposite quarter,
which you know is the slope that leads down to the
sea-shore, I perceived two people of my own nation
approaching the hut, whom I immediately recognised
for my friend Nascosta, and her lover, Bruno. Nas-
costa is the young girl I mentioned to you with
whose parents I lived after my father's death, and
who was one of my companions when we came to
this island on the occasion of the vernal festival.
She was well acquainted with all the circumstances of
the estrangement that existed between my mother
and myself; indeed, it was owing to her and her
parents' conviction of the injustice with which I was
treated by my own surviving one, that led to their
offering me an asylum after the loss of my father.
But she told me that my mother had been seized
with a sudden and violent illness, which was so dan-
gerous in its nature, that there was no likelihood of
her recovery. In the remorse and clearer-sighted
conscience of a near prospect of death, she had raved
incessantly of her former unkindness to her only
child, and had vehemently petitioned that her
daughter would return and forgive her before she quit-
ted earth for ever. Nascosta, knowing how bitterly I
had always deplored the want of a mother's affection,
felt that no time was to be lost in fetching me to her
side; and, knowing where I was, had set out imme-
diately to seek me in her lover's canoe. This now
awaited my instant return, for my friend assured me
that it was all we should be able to do, to reach our
native island in time to forestal the fatal hand of


KIT BAM, MARINER. 339
death. A mother's dying voice rung suppliant in my
ears; it adjured me to fly without delay; every
moment that elapsed seemed to sound a knell to my
hopes of being able to lighten her departing hour
with the assurance of my filial love, and to receive
her last—and alas, almost only—blessing before she
should be removed for ever. I could not hesitate—
I would not trust myself to think of you, my husband,
in that moment of contending duty; hastily gather-
ing a rose, and placing it as a token of ever-constant
wedded love, where I knew it must reach your hand,
and (as I fervently trusted) convey comfort and
assurance to your heart, I followed my friends to the
boat. My courageous conquest over myself in this
sharp struggle of conflicting feelings, met with its
reward in my timely arrival at my mother's feet
while she was yet alive. We exchanged consoling
assurances, embraces, and words of loving-kindness,
such as at one time I never hoped to receive from
my mother; and I had the blessed conviction that
my return had been the means of causing her to die
happy and contented. But I had no sooner received
her last sigh, than I flew back to the spot where a
faithful heart awaited me—I feared, in anxiety and
alarm at my unaccountable absence. In short, I am
returned—your wife is returned—never more to
part from her beloved husband.’
“Her tender voice ceased, and I felt her kind arms
steal round my neck, while I encircled her waist with
mine, and drew her close to my heart. The shades
of evening had quite closed in, and my passionate


342 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
wandered over our beautiful island together; we
laboured together to lavish all kinds of luxuries and
ornaments upon our homestead, the rustic hut; we
sought together the needful provision for our daily
repasts, which were plentifully supplied with game
by means of Velata's bow-and-arrows, with fish
by nets of my making and casting, and with fruit
and vegetables, the profuse production of this fertile
island; and we even set about building a canoe
together, which should transport us to Velata's native
island. It was one of her pleasant anticipations that
we should proceed thither, in order that she might
enjoy the triumph of presenting the husband she
loved so well to her friends Nascosta and Bruno ;
while she looked forward to the delight of watching
my perplexity and amusement when I should be
among a nation of invisible people. She indulged
in a thousand whimsical fancies about my expected
wonder to see numberless offices performed by unseen
means, as well as to hear remarks, conversation,
singing, and talking, all going on around me, without
my being able to perceive the persons from whom
the sounds proceeded.
“But this airy castle-building of hers was destined
never to be realised. One fatal morning, the very
day we had fixed to set forth in our canoe, or rather
raft, for it resembled the latter more, in its flat
form, Velata complained of unusual lassitude, and
did not rise from her couch as early as was her wont.
I hastened to compose some cooling draught of herbs
under her direction, but her fever increased, and


KIT BAM, MARINER. 343
before evening she was delirious. The whole of that
miserable night I listened to her murmured wander-
ings, and did my best to soothe her disturbed fancies,
to moisten her parched lips, and to fan her burning
brow. As the sun arose, her words suddenly grew
more coherent, and I indulged a hope that she was
recovering; but as I leaned over her, and softly
whispered this hope, she replied in such a manner as
to deprive me of any.
“She spoke rationally, indeed, and calmly; but it
was with the calmness of despair at the conviction
that she was about to quit me for ever on this earth.
She roused herself, however, to speak consoling
words to me, and bade me trust that though we were
forbidden to remain longer united here, yet that we
should hereafter be permitted to meet in eternal
bliss, if we encouraged that trust, and behaved con-
sonantly with the virtuous fortitude it inspired. In
short, in her last moments, as in all of those that had
elapsed during our intercourse, did this admirable
creature forget herself to minister to me and my
comfort.
“I controlled the transports of my grief as I best
could, in order that I might spare her the anguish of
witnessing mine; and I will not even sadden your
young hearts, my dears, by dwelling upon the agony
which wrung my soul, as I felt that beloved hand grow
cold within my own, as I listened to the last deep-
drawn breathings that fluttered from those lips, and
as I counted the last flickering pulses that throbbed
within that dear gentle bosom. Suffice it, that she
-tº-º-º- –––


KIT BAM, MARINER. 345
proach for a long indefinite period. I took no count
of time, but merely dropped asleep during some of
the hours of darkness, when my bruised heart sunk
exhausted with watching its misery; and I took
occasionally enough nourishment to keep life in me,
when the natural pangs of hunger and thirst grew
sufficiently importunate to press upon my attention.
I should tell you, that the raft had been amply stock-
ed with provision, in the prospect of our intended
journey, which I mentioned to you as having been
fixed for the very day on which I left Ombrosa, so
that, as it happened, I was well supplied in a particu-
lar which otherwise I should have certainly failed in,
had it depended on my own subsequent exertions. I
had been wandering thus some time, when the tem-
perature altered considerably; it became intensely
cold, and the vast floating masses of ice that I now
occasionally encountered, shewed that my frail vessel
had been wafted towards the frozen regions of the
North. Indeed, it was singularly providential that I
never came into collision with any of these icebergs,
for if I had, or my raft had unhappily got between
some of them, I might have perished helplessly.
“Showers of sleet, clinging fogs, and frequent hazy
mists, varied by falling snow, and piercing winds,
now daily beset my course among these dreary seas,
and awoke me to a sense of extreme bodily discom-
fort amid the oppression of my internal suffering.
Yet I scarcely made an effort to change the direction
of my progress, but permitted myself to be conducted
on, and on, and on, at the caprice of the winds and


KIT BAM, MARINER. 347
passed like a terrible spectre, and left me with the
conviction that I had seen the very creature once
fashioned by the daring hand of a mortal, pre-
sumptiously ambitious in its endeavour to wield a
power reserved alone for the Most High. I remem-
bered how I had heard Mary, the wife of one of my
early shipmates, Percy Shelton, relate an affecting
story of the fatal consequences of this intemperate
ill-directed ambition on the part of a young student
in the University of Ingolstadt; and I could not but
believe that I had just beheld the work of Victor
Frankenstein's hands—at once his creature, his vic-
tim, and the bane of his own existence. As I re-
called the unhappy circumstances that marked the
career of these two beings, the instruments of each
other's misery, the mutual blighters of each other's
hopes and aspirations, I received a certain consolation
in the thought that remorse, that unappeasable,
never-dying sting, had no share in the sufferings that
consumed my heart, and I uttered the first fervent
thanksgiving that I had been able to join with my
prayers since I had lost my Welata.
“After I had pursued the course of the narrow
channel, which seemed to me to be formed by a rift
or strait chasm across a vast ice-field, I found that I
emerged into an open sea, in which drifted many
smaller icebergs, that occasionally menaced my raft,
but fortunately never injured it. Once I encoun-
tered an object, which I at first took to be one of
these floating masses, but on a nearer approach it
proved to be a slumbering kraken, which, when I


KIT BAM, MARINER. 351
the spot where the sleeping damsel couched. I
snatched up my bow and arrows, and springing from
my raft on to the shelvy rock, I aimed a shaft right
at the animal's eye. Fortunately I struck him pre-
cisely where I intended, and the beast, uttering a
savage yell, retreated, just as the damsel awoke.
She shrieked piercingly, when she discovered the
danger she had been in; but instead of rising from
her half-recumbent position, she let herself gently
slide away from the ledge against which she had
been leaning; and to my great surprise, remained
floating upright in the water, the surface of which
reached her waist. She did not, however, leave the
shore, but kept buoyantly still, like a graceful vessel
at anchor; while, by expressive looks and gestures
of gratitude, she seemed to acknowledge the share I
had had in her preservation from the bear. I en-
deavoured, by signs, to induce her to come on shore,
but she smiled, shook her head, and beckoned to me
in her turn. I now looked round for my raft, as a
means of reaching her; but what was my dismay,
on discovering that it had drifted away, when I had
quitted it so suddenly to prevent the menaced attack
upon the damsel. She seemed to divine the cause
of my anxiety, but she only smiled as before, and
then exchanged her beckoning for a waving motion
of the hand, while she floated gently by the edge of
the shore, pointing to me to proceed along it in the
same direction. I obeyed her guidance, keeping my
eyes on my singular conductress, who maintained her
watery way, now wafted on in liquid ease, now cutting


358 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF
imagined that my project would occupy me some
time, so that I had taken care to let my supply of
oil be ample; but I now began to be seriously un-
easy when I found how far I was exceeding the
length of time I had calculated upon for my absence.
Many hours elapsed, and I instinctively felt that I
was still rambling away from the point I wished to
gain, instead of recovering its right direction. My
anxiety interfered to prevent my enjoying, as I should
otherwise have done, the beauty and magnificence of
the path I was traversing, but I could not be wholly
insensible to its grandeur. The lamp I held in my
hand shed its rays upon the sides of the caverns
through which I passed, and shewed me that they
were not less varied in their colour and structure,
than they were fantastic and imposing in their
form.
“Now the lamp-light would be reflected from huge
masses of rock that blazed and sparkled with a thou-
sand diamond points; anon it would be tinted with
a pervading glow of red, as I entered a space that
looked like a vault formed of an entire carbuncle;
this would change to a brilliant green as I wandered
through an arcade of emerald pillars; then flashes of
golden light would burst upon my view, as I found
myself in a stately hall of topaz; and next would
appear a roof studded with sapphires, amethysts, and
rubies. Still, as I went on, I encountered lofty gal-
leries, with polished marble walls—now of purest
white, anon streaked and mottled, then of all the
varied hues of green, yellow, and red;—then came a


KIT BAM, MARINER. 359
narrower passage, fretted and bossed with silver,
which widened and towered into a spacious granite
chamber, smooth and unornate as a Druidical monu-
ment, piled together in primitive simplicity; and
this was succeeded by groups of columns, surmounted
by graceful arches, that sprang airily and symmetri-
cally upwards, as if devised by architectural taste,
while they supported a roof that dropped at intervals
in pendant fretwork, looking as if sustained by the
magic of skill alone. From this florid beauty, and
regularity of conformation, I emerged upon rude
heaps of primaval rock that led in shapeless uninter-
esting monotony for some distance; and then my
lamp suddenly reflected a lurid dun-red glare, and I
felt as if I were entering a furnace, while the glowing
copper-coloured hue struck upon my eyes with almost
the effect of heat; this was succeeded by a cavern,
gloomy, dull, and leaden in its aspect; then another,
heavily and richly encrusted with gold; the next,
shone bright and dazzling with polished brass; the
next, and the next, frowned murkily in alternate
blocks of sullen copper and wan lead; and these
opened upon a space resplendent with the vivid blue
of the lapis lazuli.
“I stopped for a moment to admire the brilliant
effect of this superb azure apartment: and also to
relieve in a measure the sense of weariness and ex-
haustion that had for some time been gaining upon
me, and marking significantly the length of my wan-
derings. As I paused and held the lamp above my
head, the better to examine the beauty of the place,


KIT BAM, MARINER. 361
“I staggered in the direction of the welcome cur-
rent, and as I gazed through the surrounding obscurity
I became aware of a small point of light that seemed
to be at a great distance. I kept this in view, as
my guiding star, and at length beheld it widen and
widen, and brighten and brighten, until at length I
found it proceed from an opening in the rock, which
led me out upon a broad level country. I had not
quite emerged from the shelter of the rocky entrance,
when I paused to reconnoitre the scene in which I
found myself.
“I discovered that I was on the verge of a desert
plain, that looked utterly desolate, wild, and sterile.
Not very far from the rocks beneath which I stood,
there was a rude fire of sticks and logs, with a still
ruder attempt at a spit, upon which seemed to be
roasting some kind of joint. On the ground near,
there crouched a heap of garments, as if some human
being sat huddled beneath, engaged in watching the
roast; while at a little distance lay strewed frag-
ments of flesh and bones, that I could not help, with
a shudder, believing to be those of a human being
also.
“I fancy I made some half-articulate exclamation
of horror, as this belief crossed my mind; for the
heap of garments stirred, rose up, and came towards
me. This strange figure bore the appearance of a
large cloak hung upon a prop, and moving of its own
accord; but I could see legs beneath the drapery,
and presently an arm protruded itself. Then the
hand belonging to the arm dived again for an instant


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10 CRANT AND CRIFFITH,
Qſìje 3bbe' (Saultier's Geograpjical & Säort:g.
1. FAMILIAR GEOGRAPHY, with a concise Treatise on the
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*** For the purpose of playing the Games, a set of Counters, on which the
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An ABRIDGMENT of ANCIENT GEOGRAPHY, divided
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BATTLE FIELDS. A Graphic Guide to the Places described in
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{Hrg. 310betjillº's Grammatical &Qāortg.
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