160 A YEAR WITH A WHALER 



his countryman and side-partner, into his confi- 

 dence. Nelson loved the boy like a father and 

 did his best to persuade him to give up the idea, 

 but Peter was determined. 



One twihght midnight with the sun just skim- 

 ming below the horizon, Peter wrapped from 

 head to foot in an Eskimo woman's mackintosh 

 of fish intestine, with the hood over his head and 

 half hiding his chubby face, climbed over the rail 

 into an Eskimo boat with a number of natives, 

 his sweetheart among them, and set out for 

 shore. Nelson and several sailors watched the 

 boat paddle away, but no one but Nelson knew 

 that the person bundled up in the native rain- 

 coat was Peter. The boat got half a mile from 

 the brig. Then Nelson could stand it no longer. 

 The strain was too much. He rushed back to 

 the quarter-deck where old Gabriel was walking 

 up and down. 



" Peter's run away," Nelson blurted out. 

 " There he goes in that boat. That's him 

 dressed up like a woman in fish-gut oil-skins." 



Without ado Gabriel called aft the watch, 

 manned a boat, and set out in pursuit. The 



