Ben Burton: Born and Bred at Sea

by William Henry Giles Kingston

  CHAPTER SEVEN.

  My poor mother was crying bitterly. It was at the thoughts of partingwith the Little Lady. In vain my father attempted to console her. Giveher up, she said she could not. She loved her almost as her own child.Lieutenant Schank had written home to his mother and sisters, who, inreturn, had expressed their perfect readiness to receive the LittleLady. But how was she to be conveyed into Lincolnshire? Captain Cobbamply fulfilled his promise by putting a handsome sum into theLieutenant's hands.

  "There, Schank," he said; "it is not you who receive it, remember, it isthe little girl, so do not talk of thanking me. I only wish I had beenrather more certain of what Mrs Cobb would say, or that I feltconsiderably more sure than I do that she would be pleased, and I shouldhave liked to have had the Little Lady myself. It would have been amatter of interest to hear about her when one was away from home, and apleasure to look forward to see her again. She promises to be a sweetlittle creature. Your womenkind will be well-pleased to see her, dependon that; and I say, Schank, if I can help her on in the world in any wayI will do so. Remember, we are old shipmates, so do not stand onceremony." As Captain Cobb went on talking, and thought of parting fromthe Little Lady, his heart warmed up; and at that time, I believe, if hehad had the will, he would have given her half his property. However,there was one thing to be said of him: in spite of his peculiarities, hewas a man who would never depart from his word, and that Mr Schank knewvery well. But that in no way detracted from the Lieutenant'sgenerosity, for he had made up his mind to take charge of the LittleLady, whether the Captain assisted him or not. Highly as he esteemed myfather and mother, he considered perhaps justly, that they were not in aposition to bring up a little girl whose parents were evidentlygentlefolks. Be that as it may, it was settled that she was to be sentoff as soon as an opportunity should occur, to old Mrs Schank'sresidence, in the village of Whithyford, Lincolnshire. The difficultyof sending her there was solved by the offer of my mother to convey herherself, with the sanction of my father; indeed, he proposed to go downalso, provided the journey could be delayed till the ship was paid off.

  "Two children, you see, sir," he said to Mr Schank, "would be rathertoo much for my good woman to take charge of alone, and I suppose, sir,it would not just do for you to go and help her. People might thinkwhat was not the case."

  Mr Schank laughed. He had never thought of that, and certainly had notbargained either to take care of one child himself, or to assist mymother in taking care of two.

  "By all means, Burton," he said. "I have some business in London whichwill keep me for a few days, and the Little Lady will give interest andamusement enough to my family till I make my appearance."

  The heavy coach took us to London under the escort of Lieutenant Schank,who saw us off for Whithyford in another, far heavier and morelumbering. My father and I went outside; my mother and the Little Ladyhad an inside place. Behind sat a guard with a couple of blunderbussesslung on either side of him, dressed in an ample red coat, and a braceof pistols sticking out of his pockets. There were a good manyhighwaymen about at the time, who robbed occasionally on one side ofLondon, and sometimes on the other, and an armed guard, from hisformidable appearance, gave the passengers confidence, though he mightpossibly have proved no very efficient protector if attacked. My fatherwas in high spirits, and pointed out everything he thought worthnoticing to me on the road. Each time the coach stopped he was off hisseat with me clinging to his back, and looking in at the window toinquire if my mother or the Little Lady wanted anything. Now he wouldbring out a glass of ale for one, now a cup of milk for the other or forme, or sandwiches, or cakes, or fruit. He had the wisdom never to letme take either ale or grog. "Very good for big people," he used to say,"but very bad for little chaps, Ben."

  At length we were put down at the inn at Whithyford. Mrs Schank liveddown a lane a little way off the road, and thither, my mother carryingthe Little Lady on one arm and holding me by the other, and my fatherladen with bundles and bandboxes, we proceeded. The cottage waswhitewashed, and covered with fresh, thick thatch. In front was theneatest of neat little gardens, surrounded by a well-clipped privethedge, and the greenest of green gates. Indeed, neatness and orderreigned everywhere outside as it did, as I was soon to find, in theinterior. The Misses Schank had been expecting us. Three of themappeared at the door. They all seemed much older than LieutenantSchank. Two of them were very like him, tall and thin, and the otherbore a strong resemblance, I thought, to our worthy Captain. Theirnames I soon learned. There was Miss Martha, and Miss Jemima, and theyoungest--a fat one--was Anna Maria. They all shrieked out in differenttones as they saw us. Miss Anna Maria seized me in her arms and gave mea kiss, and then, looking at me, exclaimed, "Why, I thought it was to bea little girl! This surely is a boy!" at which her sisters laughed, andbending forward, examined the Little Lady, who was still in my mother'sarms, and whom Miss Anna Maria had not observed. Miss Martha at lengthventured to take her in the gentlest possible manner and kissed herbrow, and said, "Well, she is a sweet little thing; why, Mrs Burton, Iwonder you like to part with her," at which observation my mother burstinto tears.

  "I don't, ma'am, indeed I don't," she answered; when gentle Miss Marthaobserved, "I did not wish to hurt your feelings, Mrs Burton"; and MissAnna Maria, who was fond of laughing, said something which made herlaugh, and then she laughed herself, so that with between crying andlaughing we all entered the cottage and were conducted into the parlour,on one side of which sat old Mrs Schank in a high-back chair, and in avery high cap, and looking very tall and thin and solemn, I thought atfirst.

  My father followed with the bundles and bandboxes, but stood in thepassage, not thinking it correct for him to advance into the parlour.

  "Who is that?" asked the old lady, looking up and seeing him through theopen door.

  "Please, ma'am, that is my husband," answered my mother, courtesying.

  "What is he?" inquired the old lady.

  "A sailor, ma'am."

  "Eh, my son is a sailor, my Jack is a sailor, and I love sailors for hissake. Let him come in. Come in, sailor, and put those bundles down;they may tire you. There, sit down and rest yourself. And this is thelittle girl my son wrote about. Let me see her, Mrs--what is yourname?"

  "Burton, ma'am," answered my mother.

  "Let me see her, Mrs Burton. A very pretty sweet little damsel she is;and whose child is she, do you say?"

  "That is what we do not know, ma'am," answered my mother.

  "And I am sure I do not," said the old lady, who, I should observe,never was at a loss for a remark.

  "Well, that does not much signify; we shall like her for herself. Andwho is that little boy?"

  "That is my son, ma'am," answered my mother.

  "Oh! Then he is not the little girl's brother, I suppose?"

  "No, ma'am," answered my mother, "though I love the little girl as ifshe were my own child, and indeed I sorely feel the thoughts of partingwith her."

  "Very natural, and right, and proper," remarked the old lady. "I amsure I should love such a pretty little damsel, especially if I hadnursed her as I suppose you have. However, we will not talk about thatjust now. You and your husband must stay here for some days, and yourlittle boy too, until this little lady gets accustomed to us. Isuppose, sailor, you do not want to go to sea in a hurry? What is hisname, my good woman?"

  "Richard Burton," answered my mother, "late quarter-master of HM frigate`Boreas'."

  "Well, Richard Burton, you may make yourself at home here, and as happyas you can. My son Jack has written to us about you, only I could notrecollect your name."

  Although the old lady did not appear at first very wise, she had,however, a fair amount of shrewd good sense, and she was excessivelykind, and liberal, and generous as far as she had the means. The ladieshad prepared a very nice room for my mother and father, and I had a bedin a corner of it, and they really treated them as if they were guestsof consequence.
/>   While the old lady was speaking, Miss Anna Maria stood laughing andsmiling at me, trying to gain my attention and confidence. As I lookedat her I thought she must be very good-natured. She was short, and veryround and fat, with black twinkling eyes and a somewhat dark complexion,a smile constantly playing on her mouth. Her sisters, as I haveremarked, reminded me very strongly of their brother. They all made agreat deal of me, and still more of the Little Lady. Having noservants, they did everything themselves, and were busily occupied frommorning till night, each having her own department. Miss Anna Maria wascook, and I used to think that perhaps that made her so fat and dark. Itook great delight in helping her, and soon learned to peel thepotatoes, and wash the cabbages, and stone the raisins for plumpuddings. Indeed, knowing well that occupation is useful, not only forsmall boys but for big ones, she set me to work immediately. Not onlydid they work indoors but out of doors also, and kept the garden inperfect order, trimming the hedges and mowing and digging. Besidesthis, they found time to read to their old mother, as well as tothemselves; and from the way they talked of books and things, I have nodoubt were very well informed, though I was no judge in those days. Inthe parish in which they had all been born they were looked up to withthe greatest affection. They had done much to civilise the people andto keep them from falling back into a state of barbarism, or, I may say,heathenism, for the vicar of the parish was a hunting parson who wasseen once a week in the church, where he hurried over the service, andread a sermon which lasted some twelve or fifteen minutes; the shorterthe better, however, considering its quality. His horse used to be ledup and down by a groom during the time, and as soon as his work was overhe remounted and rode off again, not to be seen till the following weekunless one of his parishioners died, and he could get no one else toperform the funeral service. He seemed to think that the Misses Schankhad a prescriptive right to labour in the parish; but he was excessivelyindignant when on one or two occasions a dissenting minister came topreach in a barn; and he declared that, should so irregular a proceedingbe repeated, he would proceed against him as far as the law would allow.My kind friends' father had had three or four successors. The one Ispeak of, I think, was the fourth, and, I hope, an exception to thegeneral rule.

  "It will not do for us to complain," observed the mild Miss Martha, "butI do wish that our vicar more resembled a shepherd who cares for hissheep, than the wolf he must appear to the poor people of the parish.He takes to the last penny all he can get out of them, and gives themonly hard words and stones in return." Miss Martha, however, bless herkind heart, gave the poor people not only gentle words, but many "a cupof cold water," in the name of Christ, and to the utmost of her meansassisted her poorer neighbours, as, indeed, did also her sisters. Manya day their meals were dry crusts and tea, when they were givingnourishing food, good beef and mutton, to some of the poor around them,requiring strengthening. I mention these things because it will showthat the Little Lady had fallen into good hands. My father and motherdid all they could to help them, and certainly their labours werelightened after our arrival. The very first morning my father was up bydaylight, with spade in hand, digging in the garden, while my motherhelped Miss Anna Maria in the kitchen. Indeed, my father was not a manto eat the bread of idleness either ashore or afloat.

  The happiest day we had yet spent was that on which Mr Schank arrived.It was delightful to see the way in which his old mother welcomed him;how she rose from her seat and stretched out her arms, and placed herhands on his shoulders, and gazed into his weather-beaten face; and howhis sisters hung about him, and how Miss Anna Maria, who, I ought tosay, was generally called the baby, came and put her short fat armsround his neck and kissed him again and again, just as she used to dowhen she was a little girl. Indeed, just then she evidently hadforgotten her own age and his, and probably thought of him just as shedid when he came home a young midshipman the first time from sea, proudof his dirk and uniform, and full of the scenes he had witnessed and thewonders of the foreign lands he had visited. He patted me on the headvery kindly, and told me he hoped I would some day be as good a seamanas my father. Then he told his sisters that he had been making interestto obtain a warrant for Burton as a boatswain, and that he had littledoubt he would get it, for a better seaman never stepped, while it washard to find a more trustworthy or braver man. "Not that I have anyinterest myself," he observed, "but I have put young Harry Oliver up toit, and he has plenty of interest, and so he made the application in myname through his friends."

  "If it is a good thing, brother Jack, to be a boatswain, I shall be soglad to tell Mrs Burton," said Miss Anna Maria. "She is a very nicegood creature, and I should like to make her happy."

  "Yes, baby, it is a great rise for a seaman," answered Mr Schank, "andI have no doubt Dick Burton is the man to appreciate it; so if you like,you can go and tell them, for I feel very sure he will obtain it."

  I understood very clearly all that was said. Miss Anna Maria, taking meby the hand, hurried off to the kitchen, where my father and mother weresitting. I scarcely know which was the better pleased to hear this goodnews. I rather think my father was. My mother remarked that it waswhat her Richard fully deserved; indeed, I rather suspect that if shehad been told he had been made a lieutenant or even a commander, shewould only have thought that he had received his deserts; but that wasall very right and proper. It is a great thing that a woman should havea high opinion of her husband, and it is a very unhappy matter for herwhen she has not, or at all events when he does not deserve it.

  I believe my father had several times proposed leaving Whithyford, andlooking out for a ship; but my mother urged him to stay a day or twolonger, for she could not bear to part from the Little Lady. At lengthhe said he must go; and though Mr Schank told him that he was welcometo remain, he said that he had been idle long enough, and must now lookout for another ship.

  "But, Burton, do you intend to take your wife to sea again with you?"asked the Lieutenant.

  "I should like to, sir; and yet I am rather doubting about it," heanswered, "even if I can obtain permission; but if I do not, she wouldlike to go and pay a visit to her friends in Ireland. It is a long timesince she has seen them, and they made her promise to go when she could,and now that I am likely to be a warrant officer, they will look uponher and her boy with more respect than they might have done. Do yousee, sir, they are a somewhat upper class of people. Polly loved me,and so we married; but they seemed to think that she was letting herselfdown greatly in splicing with a seaman, and would not, indeed, for sometime have anything to say to her."

  Mr Schank reported this to his sisters. They, however, had taken sucha liking to my mother, that they had made up their minds to ask her tostay with them instead. They knew that they had a powerful inducementto make her accept their invitation; and Miss Martha, with a good dealof tact, took care to make the offer, holding the Little Lady in herarms, and when she smiled and held out her hands to my mother, veryspeedily gained the victory. My father was too glad to leave his wifein such safe keeping, and so the matter was soon arranged.

  My father was appointed to a sloop of war, which he at once joined, andin which he saw a good deal of hard service.

  Several captains applied for Mr Schank, who was looked upon as such anexcellent First-Lieutenant, that even his best friends declared that itwould be a pity to have him promoted. The Admiralty, however, sent himto look after a young lord in delicate health and indolent disposition,who required a cruise to improve the first, and a man who would do allhis work for him, in order that he might indulge in the second.