"Look sharp! Now, heave her, b'y!"
And Jimmy, in the bow of the skiff, with coiled painter ready, tossed it
to one of the men. The boats were straightened out, the skiff drawn
alongside, and in a moment Jimmy and Bobby were aboard, with Skipper
Ed's skiff trailing behind.
"Why, it's Skipper Ed's partner an' Abel Zachariah's lad! My eyes! My
eyes now! And whatever brings you driftin' around the sea at this time
of the mornin', and with nary an oar?" exclaimed the man astern, who
proved to be Captain Higgles of the Newfoundland fishing schooner _Good
and Sure_, who for as long as the lads could remember had anchored for
at least one night each summer on his outward voyage down north, or on
his homeward voyage south, in the shelter of the island upon which
Skipper Ed had always fished, or behind Itigailit Island. And so it
happened that Captain Higgles recognized Bobby and Jimmy, and they
recognized him.
"Oh," explained Bobby, "we were getting ice off a berg yesterday, when
she shifted and turned us over and we lost our oars."
"Yesterday, was it? And so you young scallawags ha' been cruisin' about
since yesterday, eh, with nary an oar. Now listen t' that, b'ys!
Cruisin' around with nary an oar! My eyes! Oh, my eyes!" and the captain
roared with laughter, as though it were a great joke, and the four
seamen laughed with him.
"And neither of you'd be eatin' a biscuit, an' drinkin' a mug o' tea,
now, if you had un!" he continued. "I'll be bound both o' you young
daredevils'd turn up your nose at a mug o' tea and a biscuit, now.
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