cooking, 'specially as we wa'n't partic'lar, but we could see she had a
temper to beat the Old Scratch. If anything got burned, or if the kittle
upset, she'd howl and stomp and scatter things worse than a cyclone.

"I reckon 'twas about the third day that I noticed she was getting sweet
on Hammond. She was giving him the best of all the vittles, and used
to set at the table and look at him, softer'n and sweeter'n a bucket of
molasses. Used to walk 'longside of him, too, and look up in his face
and smile. I could see that he noticed it and that it was worrying him a
heap. One day he says to me:

"''Edge,' says he, 'I b'lieve that 'ere chromo of a Lobelia 'Ankins is
getting soft on me.'

"''Course she is,' says I; 'I see that a long spell ago.'

"'But what'll I DO?' says he. 'A woman like 'er is a desp'rate
character. If we hever git hashore she might be for lugging me to the
church and marrying me by main force.'

"'Then you'll have to marry her, for all I see,' says I. 'You shouldn't
be so fascinating.'

"That made him mad and he went off jawing to himself.

"The next day we got the schooner patched up and off the shoal and
'longside Lazarus' old landing wharf by the shanty. There was a little
more tinkering to be done 'fore she was ready for sea, and we cal'lated
to do it that afternoon.