heartily in favor of the supper and theater party, refused to become a
member of it. The Captain bore the shock of the refusal with, to say the
least, manful resignation. He had a huge respect for Mrs. Wyeth, and
he liked her because his beloved Mary-'Gusta liked her so well, but his
liking was seasoned with awe and her no in this case was a great relief.

So the following evening at six Mary and her uncle met Crawford at the
Quincy House and the three dined together, after which they saw the
performance of "The Music Master" at the Tremont Theater. Crawford found
the dinner quite as entertaining as the play. Captain Shadrach was in
high good humor and his remarks during the meal were characteristic.
He persisted in addressing the dignified waiter as "Steward" and in
referring to the hotel kitchen as the "galley." He consulted his young
guests before ordering and accepted their selections gracefully if not
always silently.

"All right, Mary-'Gusta," he observed. "All right, just as you say.
You're the skipper of this craft tonight, and me and Crawford here are
just passengers. If you say we've got to eat--what is it?--consummer
soup--why, I suppose likely we have. I'll take my chances if Crawford
will. Course, if I was alone here, I'd probably stick to oyster stew and
roast beef. I know what they are. And it's some comfort to be sure of
what you're gettin', as the sick feller said when the doctor told him he
had the smallpox instead of the measles. You don't mind my callin' you
'Crawford,' do you?" he added, turning to that young gentleman. "I'm old
enough to be your father, for one thing, and for another a handle's all
right on a jug or a sasspan, but don't seem as if 'twas necessary to
take hold of a friend's name by. And I hope we're goin' to be friends,
we three."