Wild Life in the Land of the Giants (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1888 edition. Excerpt: ...worst, then " " Hush, hush. Why you arc a pessimist " " I don't know that ship. But never mind. You don't smoke?" " N--no," said Jill, " not yet." " Let me catch him at it," I said. " What have ye got under the sail, sir?" " Why, the dogs," said Jill, laughing. " You didn't think I was going to leave them, did you? Look here." He lifted the corner of the sail as he spoke, and there, sure enough, were Ossian the noble Scottish deerhound, and Bruce the collie. " Mind," continued Jill, " both o' these would have done a little fighting if the worst had come to the worst." The wind held steadily from the west and by north, and blew stiff after a time, but the boats sailed dry--neither were far distant from the other--and everything was as comfortable as could be expected under the sad circumstances. " If there doesn't come any more north in it than this," said Ritchie, with a glance skyward, " it'll do. But, you see, we ought to be heading up Famine Reach now." " What a name " said Jill. " Ay, and there is a sad and terrible story to it too, that some day I may perhaps tell you." The afternoon wore slowly away, neither Jill nor I saying much; Ritchie, with his old-world yarns, doing nearly all the talking, and indeed it was a treat to listen to him. There was nothing of the nature of what are called sailor's yarns about Ritchie's talk, but an air of truthfulness in every sentence. Many a time by the galley fire in the dear lost Salamander, when asked by some of the men to "spin 'em a yarn," Ritchie would reply--" If I thinks on anything as has really happened, I'll tell that. Mind ye, men," he would add," I'm going on for fifty. That ain't a spring chicken, and I've knocked about so much and seen such a deal, that if I tells all the truth an' nobbut...