364 THE FAT OF THE LAND 



poises, as it kept with easy fin, alongside of our 

 ocean greyhound, with pleasure unalloyed by 

 any feeling of non-utility. But now these " hogs 

 of the sea " reminded me of my Chester Whites, 

 and the comparison was so much in favor of the 

 hogs of the land, that I turned from these spec- 

 tacular, useless things, to meditate upon the price 

 of pork. Even Mother Carey's chickens gave me 

 no pleasure, for they reminded me of a far better 

 brood at home, and I cheerfully thanked the 

 noble Wyandottes who were working every third 

 day so that I could have a trip to Europe. To 

 be sure, I had European trips before I had Wy- 

 andottes ; to have them both the same year was 

 the marvel. 



Before we reached Queenstown, Jarvis had 

 gained some ground by twice picking me out of 

 the scuppers ; but as I resented his steadiness of 

 foot and strength of hand, it was not worth men- 

 tioning. I could see, however, that these feats 

 were great in Jane's eyes. The double rescue of 

 a beloved parent, from, not exactly a watery 

 grave, but a damp scupper, would never be for- 

 gotten. The giant let her adore his manly strength 

 and beauty, and I could only secretly hope that 

 some wave tidal if necessary would take 

 him off his feet and send him into the scuppers. 

 But he had played football too long to be upset 

 by a watery wave, and I was balked of my revenge. 



Jack and Jessie were rather a pleasure to me 

 than otherwise. They settled right down to the 



