We Go A-Fishing 113 



understand such joy as this ; but to me and to 

 some people I know, a boat, and especially a 

 sail-boat, is a never-failing source of pleasure. 

 The fact that I have seen some pretty rough 

 days in the Nelly, and that there have been 

 times when I would not have wagered much 

 upon my chances of getting her into port, seems 

 rather to endear her to us; a boat that has 

 stood a hundred gales, and has carried us thou- 

 sands of miles, deserves something of gratitude 

 in return. I cherish on the desk at which I 

 now write a brass cleat from a little sail-boat I 

 once owned ; it serves as a paper-weight, and 

 as a reminder of scores of pleasure days. On 

 one side of it is engraved the name of the boat, 

 and on the other the date "April-December, 

 1880." When the time came for selling her, I 

 retained this memento of many an exciting sail, 

 and, as my wife would add, of many a hair- 

 breadth escape. 



We hoisted the Nelly s sail to dry in the sun, 

 and started back to breakfast. There were but 

 few of the natives about the shore, but among 

 those few I found my friend the Cap'n, who 

 had been out to his nets, and had brought back 



8 



