Fiction > Book editions > New York, 1893 - David Balfour

DAVID BALFOUR 287
side and spread my arms ; tlie ship swung down on us,
the patroon humoured his boat nearer in than was per-
haps wholly safe, and Catriona leaped into the air. I
was so happy as to catch her, and the fishers readily
supporting us, escaped a fall. She held to me a mo-
ment very tight, breathing quick and deep ; thence
(she still clinging to me with both hands) we were
passed aft to our places by the steersman ; and Captain
Sang and all the crew and passengers cheering and cry-
ing farewell, the boat was put abont for shore.
As soon as Catriona came a little to herself she un-
handed me suddenly but said no word. No more did
I ; and indeed the whistling of the wind and the breach-
ing of the sprays made it no time for speech ; and our
crew not only toiled excessively but made extremely
little way, so that the Rose had got her anchor and
was off again before we had approached the harbour
mouth.
We were no sooner in smooth water than the patroon,
according to their beastly Hollands custom, stopped his
boat and required of us our fares. Two guilders was
the man's demand, between three and four shillings
English money, for each passenger. But at this Catri-
ona began to cry out with a vast deal of agitation. She
had asked of Captain Sang, she suid, and the fare was
but an English shilling. '^ Do you think I will have
come on board and not ask first ? " cries she. The pat-
roon scolded back upon her in a lingo where the oaths