Katey s Voyage

7/29/2019 Katey s Voyage

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LIBRARY OF THE SfUNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA $JLOS ANGELES *p


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KATEY'S VOYAGE.

Bonbon:GROOA1BKIDGE & SOS 3, PATE USOSrEB HOW.


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l&ateg's Ft 5350.

IT is a fine evening in autumn, and littleKatey is standing at her father's door, nearthe quay, at Douglas, Isle of Man. Thesteam packet is just going to sail for Eng-land, and a great many people are hurryingby to go on board. Porters are carryingheavy boxes, and hampers, and trunks, andsacks to the custom house, near the end ofthe quay, that the custom house officers maylook in to see that no passenger is takinganything away with him that he ought not.And in the midst of all this bustle Katey islooking on. She can see the red chimney ofthe steam packet in the distance, and she isjust wishing that she was going to Englandtoo, for she has never been off the quiet lifetleisland ; and she thinks that great big Eng-land, with its large towns and many people,


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6 KATEY S VOYAGE.must be a wonderful place. She would atleast try to get on board for a little while be-fore the vessel sailed.

So little Katey, not considering what awrong thing she is going to do, runs into thehouse for her every-day bonnet, which sheknows she shall find hung on a peg of thehat stand. But first she peeps into the par-lour, where her mama is nursing the baby tosleep, and her papa reading ; both of thembelieving that Katey is with Ann, the maid,in the kitchen, helping to wipe apples, tokeep through the winter : ^Kd indeed, if AnnIf^i been a thoughtful good/resjjant, whatweltfe about to relate would neverna^^ip.peneck But Ann chose to slip out to a friendin the yard, leaving Katey to wipe the applesby herself; and then it was that 41ie littlegirl, growing tired of her employmem, walkedunobserved upstairs, and openmg* the streetdoor, stood gazing on the passers-by as we-have seen. ^T'Katey's papa and mama did not perceiveher curly head peeping in at the parlourdoor. So she put on her bonnet and ranout, tying the strings as well as she could asshe hurried along the quay with the crowd.


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KATET'S VOYAGE. 7No one noticed her; for Low could they sup-pose that such a little girl could be going,all alone, into a large steam packet full ofpassengers, and fish, and cattle, and roughsailors !

Katey on board the packet ! TVhat a bus-tle there is on Douglas quay ! How thepassengers and porters bustle and push eachother as they haste to the narrow gangwayof the steamer and down the stairs to thedeck ! A policeman tries to keep them inorder, while they pass him, one by one, fromthe shore ; but he has hard work of it, forthere are many going, and the evening is sovery fine that every one is full of spirits.Our friend Katey slipt quietly on boardthe packet behind a decent countrywoman ;and as the little girl was dressed in herchecked pinafore, printed frock, and commonbonnet, every one took her to be the coun-trywoman's child. And when she was onceon board, she kept so still, looking about her,and everybody else was so busy, that no onjtook any notice of her whatever.

' But was she not afraid ?' asks a littlareader. Iso, my dear, not yet. The scene


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KJiTEY'S VOYAGE.was so strange and new, that she felt nothingbut astonishment for many minutes. She :had

gotclose by the luggage, where it

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was being piled on a heap near the boiler,and was watching the sailors in the other-part of the vessel, called the steerage. Theytvere as busy as so many bees, clearing the,deck, rolling the great barrels of fish intotheir proper places, mopping up the wet anddirt, coiling thd) ropes out of the way of the-passengers, and placing benches for them tosit upon. After a while the countrywomanwent and sat upon one of these with someother women and a manyiand Katey wasgoing to sit down too, for sKe was tired orstanding, when she happened to catch sight oftwo very pretty little calves in a stall under thegangway. They looked very much frightened,and Katey pitied them exceedingly. So sheran to them, and began stroking and talking'to them ; and so busily was she thus occu-pied, that she never noticed the ringing ofthe bell that summoned ashore all the peoplewho did not intend sailing to England, buthad only come on board the steam packet tobid farewell to their friends. *\ King, ring,ring, ting, ting, ting, went the bell, louder


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KATEY S YOYAGE.aud louder, and still Katey took no notice otit, her whole attention being given to sooth-ing the patient little calves, and patting theirpretty red heads. The vessel was cleared,the bell ceased to ring, the engine began tomake the paddles spin round and round, thepier with its crowded edge passed rapidly by,and little Katey was on the open sea, sad-ing away with a fair breeze to England.

THE ALAEM.will you do now, little Katey ? andyour poor father and mother, Katey, whatare they doing? They missed their little

daughter a quarter of an hour ago, and aftermaking vain inquiries of the servant Ann,can only learn that she last saw her youngmistress in the kitchen, busy with therosy apples. They search every corner offrhe house. Then the anxious father turnshis hopes in another direction, and sendingthe servant one way, himself goes another, toask all the neighbours whether they haveBeen little Katey. They return seriously


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10 KATEY'S VOYAGE.alarmed, for no one has seen her ; and theheart-sick mother searches the house oncemore, and this trme in the most unlikelyplaces, with a despairing hope of findingher darling stout 'little girl as she is fastasleep in some drawer or box ! Vain hope !poor mother's heart ! It' is now quite dark,and early people are going to bed, whena neighbour steps in to say, with e^ger^half-frighted face, that John Quail, a poorhalf-witted boy, saw Miss Katey runningalong the quay in her bonnet and pinafore.If John Quail had not been a poor half-wit>-ted fellow, he would also have told that itwas just before the steam packet sailed, andthen the sorrowful parents would have had aclue to the whereabouts of their missing lit-tle one. But as he omits to say that, andthey enquire in vain of the old sailors stillidling about the quay, a dreadful fear seizesupon them ; they scarcely dare to whisper itto themselves, can their dear child kavefallen over the quay into ihe dark greenwaters below ?


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KATE I *S VOYAGE. 11

THE VOYAGE.THE vessel rode on ; the waves foamed and

swelled, and dujhtu" llfV i .......^.i>. Themoon came from behind ti cloud, and one ofher beams dm ltd buiit?atl-4he gfmgrvay of

--Uie stc?m> packetfell on the brow and curlingtresses of a sleeping child.

' I say, Jem, saw you ever the like ?'Jem, the sailor, came round the gangwaystairs- at this rough summons from his mate,who >vas standing looking at the stall wherethe ciiives were confined.

' AVhat is it ?' enquired Jem.' V," .v, '.'.i-m't. you see that little curly headin the corner with the calves ?'Join looked closer, and there indeed, re-

vealed by the moonlight, lay the weary, sor-rowful form of our poor little Katey. Herv had fiflien oil', and she was in a soundslumber. She had wept herself to sleep.

Katey had not understood her real positionuntil, having patted the calves to her heart'scontent, she was roused by the quietnesssucceeding to the bf-.stie that had failed to


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12 KATEY'S VOYAGE.attract her attention. Himning then to theside of the steam packet, for the sea wascalm, and the vessel rode smoothly as yet,and people could walk steadily on the deck,she observed with dismay that the quay,and the town, and her own dear home, andthe very shores of her native island werealmost out of sight.Her first impulse was to scream alfAid ;hut Katey was a shy child, and when shelooked around, and saw the number of stmnge

faces on board, she dared not scream. Soshe hurried back to the calves, who appearedto be her only friends, and after looking atthem awhile with eyes dim with tears, shecrept quietly into the stall, and hid herself inits darkest corner, where the little lost childcried until she could cry no longer, as shethought of her dear papa and mama, and hersweet little baby-brother, whom she thoughtshe should never see again.^Now she knewwhat a foolish child she had been, and wor.Idhave given all the world to be in her ownsuug little bed, with her kind mama bendingover her pillow to bestow the good-nightkiss. In the midst of her sad thoughts andtrouble she fell asleep; and after drearcmg


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KATEY'S TOYAGE. 13that she was drowning in Douglas bay, andthat she saw her papa and mama stretchingout their arms in vain to save her, site sleptuntil discovered by the two sailors, as wehave already seen.

A FRIEND IX XEED.DEAB me !' exclaimed the captain, whenJem and his friend, having awakened Katey,

presented her before him, and told him howthey had found her, and that she was quitealone, * dear me ! what ? come on board byyourself! Whom do you belong to, littlftgirl ? What's your name ?'

' Katey,' sobbed the child.' And who is your father, my dear ?'' My father is Philip Hanson.'* I Know him,' said one of the men. ' He

lives at Douglas, just off the quay.''I know him too. I've bought goods athis warehouse,' observed a lady ; for all thepassengers had pressed to tin? division be-tween the steerage and fore cabin, io see the


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11 KATET'S TOTAGE.poor child, who looked so lost and bewildered,and sobbed so bitterly.

' "What shall I do with her P' enquired thecaptain, in dismay ; ' I have nowhere to take-her to till the vessel sails again.'' Captain/ said the lady who had spoken

before, ' will you trust her with me ? I willtake her to my house in Liverpool until thereturn of the packet.'

1 "What do you say, my dear,' asked thecaptain, of the little girl ; ' von. see, I can'tput about and convey you home now, andyou will not be able to return till Friday.Will you go with this kind lady r'

Looking up through her tears, Katey metthe gaze of the pleasant motherly face thatsmiled so kindly upon her. 'Yes,' she re-plied softly, * I will go.'The lady drew her to her side, and beganto converse with her ; and the little girl hadsoon acquainted her new friend with the his-tory of her thoughtless flight from home, ofher repentance and misery. Then the ladyspoke very gently to her, and told her ho\rshe1, would take her to visit her own littlechildren at irlnjir Koine in Liverpool until she


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KATEY'B VOYAGE. 15could place her beneath the care of the goodcaptain to return to the Isle of Man.After a while Katey became very sick, forby this time the packet was out in the open,sea, quite out of sight of land ; and then, oh!how she wished more than ever that she hadnot been so silly as to leave her dear parentsand her pleasant home. But the kind lady,whose name was Mrs. Stephens, took greatcare of her, laying her down gently on a sofa'n the saloon, and bathing her forehead witheau de Cologne, until, at length, she fell intoa troubled sleep.

KATEY ARRIVES IS" LIVERPOOL.WHAT a bustle, what a hurrying of im-mense waggons and huge drays, of coachesand carriages, and people. Surely some un-

usual occurrence has drawn the crowd to-gether ; the streets cannot always be so busy ?Katey had never seen so many people in herlife before.The coach rattles along, and comes into amore quiet part of the town. At lengththey reach Rodney Street: Katey 's friend


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18 KATEY S VOYAGE.points out the name, and tells her that theywill be at home immediately. The streetlooks dull after the bustle they have passedthrough ; but Katey is glad of the quietness,for her little brain was beginning to turn.The coachman draws up before a row of gen-teel houses. Two rosy children come skip-ping- down the steps of the door oppositewhich the coach stopped.

* Mama ! mama !'they cry in the gladness of their hearts ; andmama, having left the coachman and the lug-gage to the care of the housemaid, tenderlyembraces her dear ones, and then introducesKatey, still in her straw bonnet and pinafore,and wofully tumbled and dirty after her seaadventures.

' Xow, my dear/ said Mrs. Stephens toKatey, M-hen she had a little recovered herrecollection, 'you shall go upstairs withSarah, the housemaid, and Emma and Gracefrhall go with you. Emma dear, you and,Katey are nearly the same size. Do youthink we can select a set of your clean clothesfor her ? While they are airing, Sarah willhelp her to wash, and brush her hair, andassist her to dress.'

* Emma was delighted with the task assigned


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KATEY'S YOYAOE. 17her, aud tho three children went off together.

How pleasant our little truant Manx girllooked, when she came down again, clean androsy, with her hair nicely brushed, and one ofEmma's pretty gingham frocks on !It was two days before the packet wouldsail on its return to the Isle of Man. Mrs.Stephens was extremely anxious to send aletter to Katey's parents, for she knew howmiserable they must be; but there was noother vessel sailing to the isle except thatwhich would take bad; Katey herself, the


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18 KATEY'S VOYAGE.best comfort. So there was nothing for it batpatience ; and Katey endeavoured to amuseherself with her new playmates, though notwithout seeding many a sorrowful thought^across the sea to that dear home where fonddespiring hearts almost gave her up as dead.

KATEY S RETURN.KATEY remained two whole days with her

friends, Mrs. Stephens, and Emma and Grace,and on the third the packet was to sail. SoMrs. Stephens ordered a coach, and she andher two little daughters, with Katey, drovedown to the Clarence dock, where the Swal-low, easily to be distinguished from the othervessels by its tall red chimney, was prepar-ing for the voyage. Then Katey was takenon board, and the captain desired the stew-ardess to pay her every attention.How kind the good Liverpool lady hadbeen to her little visitor ! She had had herclothes nicely washed, and the ribbons of herbonnet smoothed, and had presented her with& nictf warm cloak and gloves, that Katey


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KATEY'S VOYAGE. 19might return to her home like a respectablelittle girl who had been paying a regular visitto England, instead of looking like a silly, littlechild as she was, who had run away from herhome. Besides all this, Katey carried withher a pretty basket filled to the brim withbiscuits, apples, figs, and such other goodthings, and having a tiny note at the bot-tom of all, written by Mrs. Stephens her-self to Katey's parents, to explain what hadoccurred, and also to say how much pleasedshe should be if they would allow Katey tovisit her in the spring.The day is almost as warm as in summer ;a gentle breeze just ruffles the surface of theshining waters, and waves the brown curls ofour friend Katey, who is standing on the deckof the Swallow, eagerly gazing in the direc-tion where she expects to catch the firstglimpse of her native isle. She was sittingon deck in the course of the afternoon, eat-ing a biscuit, for she began to feel hungry,when the captain tapped her on the shoul-der.

' Well, my little maid,' said he, kindly,' would you like a peep at the shores oflovely Manx ?* meaning the Isle of Maa.


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20 HATET'S VOYAGE.* Oh yes ! l and Katey jumped and clappedher hands ; ' Oh yes, sir. Are we near ? do

show me !*The captain led her to the forepart of thevessel, wThere he mounted her on a large cask.

1 Do you see that cloud in the distance,just on the edge of the waves ?'

Katey looked very hard, and at length dis-cerned what indeed appeared only like a dimhaze, but which, the captain assured her, wasone of the precipitous hills of the Isle ofMan. There was no hunger after this ; shecould not eat a single mouthful, her littleheart was too full as she thought of the nearmeeting with her beloved parents.


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ICATET'S VOYAGE. 21

THE JOTFUL MEETING.IT is six o'clock in the evening ; the sun

is throwing his level rays across the white- "washed houses, the glittering bay, and pic-turesque rocks of Douglas. The quay iscrowded with people, who are waiting to wel-come their friends and relatives, expected bythe Swallow. And now the good old packetcomes slowly in sight, seen first by the smokefrom her tall chimney. Nearer and nearershe draws ; the captain mounts the gangwayto issue his final orders ; the seamen are allbusy aiding her entrance into port. Katey,her cheeks flushed with excitement, her heartbeating rapidly, is mounted on the caskwondering if it be possible that her parentsguess where she has been, and are there tomeet her. tut no ! as the vessel passesalong the quay, friendly faces smile upontheir acquaintances on board, and hats arewaved and hands are held out, but no oneis waiting for poor little Ivatey. Yet, as shecontinues to gaze, she sees one or two whomehe knows, after lifting up their hands and


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22 EiTEY'S TOTAGE.eyes wonderingly, break away and run as hardas they can in the direction of her father'shouse. And before the vessel quite stops,she sees her dear papa, pale and agitatedwaiting impatiently until he can pass on theboat, and embrace his dear little girl oncemore.

' Your mother, my own darling, your poormother is very ill. Oh ! Katey how could yougrieve us so ?'


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KATET'S VOVAGE. 2&Katey's father hurried her home. Hermother had fainted quite away on learn-

ing from a breathless neighbour the joyfulnews that her little girl, whom she almost be-lieved to be drowned in the green waters ofthe bay, and long since carried out by the re-tiring waves to her grave in the wide ocean,had returned safe ; so little Katey found herpoor despairing, and now too happy motherlying, pale and exhausted, on the sofa. AsKatey came running in, she strove to riseand meet her, and press her to her thankfulheart. But she was too weak with the mis-ery of those three dreadful days ; and Katejrushed to her embrace as she lay, and poureciforth all her sorrow, and repentance, and joyat returning home, in one long gush oftears.


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Katey s Voyage