I was taken to the
pastor's house until I got better; but they were crowded, and I
felt myself in the way, and made excuse to join with an old seaman,
a Scotchman, who had built him a warm cabin, and had room in it for
another. He was looked upon with regard, and had stood by the
pastor in some troubles with the people. He had been on one of
those English exploring parties that found one end of the road to
the north pole, but never could find the other. We lived like dogs
in a kennel, or so you'd thought if you had seen the hut from the
outside; but the main thing was to keep warm; there were piles of
bird-skins to lie on, and he'd made him a good bunk, and there was
another for me. 'Twas dreadful dreary waitin' there; we begun to
think the supply steamer was lost, and my poor ship broke up and
strewed herself all along the shore. We got to watching on the
headlands; my men and me knew the people were short of supplies and
had to pinch themselves. It ought to read in the Bible, 'Man
cannot live by fish alone,' if they'd told the truth of things;
'taint bread that wears the worst on you! First part of the time,
old Gaffett, that I lived with, seemed speechless, and I didn't
know what to make of him, nor he of me, I dare say; but as we got
acquainted, I found he'd been through more disasters than I had,
and had troubles that wa'n't going to let him live a great while.
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