Winkle: the Eel-Man 155 



manner changed. His eyes sparkled like 

 coals of fire, and he said, with unusual in- 

 terest, even enthusiasm, " Yes, I'll go ; but 

 how did you hear all this ?" 



" It is down in an old commonplace book 

 I have. The Betsy Ann belonged to my 

 great grandfather," I replied, with some evi- 

 dence of pride in my manner of speaking, 

 for I knew he could not doubt my authority 

 for all that I had told him. 



" Umph !" grunted Winkle ; but just how 

 to construe that frequent ejaculation of the 

 man I never learned. 



I was ready, then and there, to go, and 

 Winkle was never unprepared. He had 

 always boasted of being free as a bird and 

 had made his boast good, which showed his 

 superiority over some men I have met. We 

 were soon aboard this strange man's trim 

 little boat, and its owner's semi-aquatic 

 nature seemed to animate the vessel. It 

 more than merely floated. It swam like a 

 wary diver, just skimming the surface ; yet 

 we were a heavy load for so light a craft, 

 but Winkle's wrist was as true a machine as 

 ever was turned out by an engine-builder. 

 His sculling was marvellous. Familiar points, 



