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Literary Lapses
·
Stephen Leacock
141
III.--OLD
MR.
LONGFELLOW
ON
BOARD
THE
HESPERUS.
"It
was
the
schooner
Hesperus
that
sailed
the
wintry
sea,
And
the
skipper
had
taken
his
little
daughter
to
bear
him
company."--LONGFELLOW.
There
were
but
three
people
in
the
cabin
party
of
the
Hesperus:
old
Mr.
Longfellow,
the
skipper,
and
the
skipper's
daughter.
The
skipper
was
much
attached
to
the
child,
owing
to
the
singular
whiteness
of
her
skin
and
the
exceptionally
limpid
blue
of
her
eyes;
she
had
hitherto
remained
on
shore
to
fill
lucrative
engagements
as
albino
lady
in
a
circus.
This
time,
however,
her
father
had
taken
her
with
him
for
company.
The
girl
was
an
endless
source
of
amusement
to
the
skipper
and
the
crew.
She
constantly
got
up
games
of
puss-in-the-corner,
forfeits,
and
Dumb
Crambo
with
her
father
and
Mr.
Longfellow,
and
made
Scripture
puzzles
and
geographical
acrostics
for
the
men.
Old
Mr.
Longfellow
was
taking
the
voyage
to
restore
his
shattered
nerves.
From
the
first
the
captain
disliked
Henry.
He
was
utterly
unused
to
the
sea
and
was
nervous
and
fidgety
in
the
extreme.
He
complained
that
at
sea
his
genius
had
not
a
sufficient
degree
of
latitude.
Which
was
unparalleled
presumption.
On
the
evening
of
the
storm
there
had
been
a
little
jar
between
Longfellow
and
the
captain
at
dinner.
The
captain
had
emptied
it
several
times,
and
was
consequently
in
a
reckless,
quarrelsome
humour.
"I
confess
I
feel
somewhat
apprehensive,"
said
old
Henry
nervously,
"of
the
state
of
the
weather.
I
have
had
some
conversation
about
it
with
an
old
gentleman
on
deck
who
professed
to
have
sailed
the
Spanish
main.
He
says
you
ought
to
put
into
yonder
port."
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