Page:Chetyates00yateiala.pdf/159

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you get up?" and held out his hand to help him.

"No, no," mumbled the man again, shaking his head and catching his breath, "I'll sit here."

"Sure you're not hurt?" asked the sailor.

"No, it's the danger, the terrible—" and he began rocking himself back and forth.

The sailor stood and looked at him, and I should have thought that the big man would have shrivelled up and dropped through one of the cracks. "Didn't you hear what the captain said?" he demanded.

"Yes; but the waves,—oh!" as a particularly big one struck the boat and made it roll so that he nearly lost his balance, since his hands had nothing to clutch.

"And you're not sick?" asked the sailor.

"No, no,—go away and let me be!"

"You bet I will," said the sailor,—and he did.

I began watching the wake of the boat. I really didn't care anything about the lunch; but I hated to see the man sit on it, when there were plenty of perfectly good chairs around. Bess was looking at me, and I commenced whistling and kicking my heels against the rail.