Song Birds and Water Fowl 



mountain top, an ancient mariner left strand- 

 ed on the beach, courtly in thought, if not in 

 bearing — such was my cook and waiter, host 

 and hero; a regular hermit in his life and 

 tastes, as genial and hearty as sailors commonly 

 are, and not half as profane ; although I felt 

 that he had a smouldering, hot vocabulary of 

 impiety kept in reserve for emergencies, even 

 without a single exhibition of it. As I was 

 very desirous of passing the night on the island, 

 which was possible only with his permission, 

 and at his house, and being a perfect stranger 

 to him, I asked, with considerable trepidation, 

 whether such a thing would be possible. To 

 my surprise, he assented cordially; and when 

 I asked him his price for supper, lodging, and 

 breakfast, he replied, with a simplicity and 

 unworldliness that I have looked for in vain 

 in New York City : "Oh, pay what you please, 

 and if my aocommodations are not worth any- 

 thing, then don't pay anything." As he made 

 his own fires, did all the cooking, and washed 

 all the dishes, this answer amounted to a good 

 deal more than merely a polite bit of euphony ; 

 and his hospitality did not slumber for an in- 

 stant throughout my stay. With many asser- 

 tions of inability to serve my needs acceptably, 



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