n walked, an walked. Las, jes as I got to de pint, I rose my ole
head, an looked straight afore me, an thar, clar ef I didn't fine
myself shut in,--reglar prison,--mind I tell you,--an all round me a
reglar cumferince ob water an rock, widout any way ob scape. Tell you
what, if dar ebber was a ole rat in a trap, I was at dat ar casion."

"Couldn't you have waded through it before it got too high?"

"Waded? Not a wade; de water was rough an deep, an de bottom was
stones dat I'd slipped oba an almost broke my ole head, sides bein
drownded as dead as a herrin. Why, what you tink dis ole nigga's made
ob? I'm not a steam injine, nor a mowin machine, nor a life boat. I'm
ony a ole man, an shaky in de legs too,--mind I tell you."

"Well, how did you manage it?"

"Manage! Why, I didn't manage at all."

"How did you find that place where you were sitting?"

"Wasn't settin. I was tied up in a knot, or rolled up into a ball. Any
way, I wasn't settin."

"Well, how did you find the place?"

"Wal, I jes got up dar. I stood on de sho till de water drobe me, an I
kep out ob its way till at las I found myself tied up de way you saw
me."

"Why didn't you halloo?"

"Hollar? Didn't I hollar like all possessed?"

"We didn't hear you."

"Wal, dat ar's dredful sterious. An me a hollarin an a yellin like
mad. Tell you what, I felt as ef I'd bust my ole head open, I did yell
that hard."

"Couldn't you manage to climb up that cliff?"

"Dat cliff? Climb up? Me? What! me climb up a cliff? an dat cliff?
Why, I couldn't no more climb up dat ar cliff dan I could fly to de
moon. No, sah. Much as I could do to keep whar I was, out ob de
water. Dat was enough."

"Don't you know that we walked two miles up the shore?"

"Two miles! Two! De sakes, now, chil'en! did you, railly? Ef I'd a
ony knowed you war a comin so near, wouldn't I a yelled? I bet I
would."

"Why, you didn't think we'd have left you."

"Lef me? Nebber. But den I didn't tink you'd magine anyting was wrong
till too late. What I wanted was help, den an dar. De trouble was,
when you did come, you all made dat ar circumbendibus, an trabelled
clean an clar away from me."

"We thought at first you could not be so near the point."

"But de pint was de whole difficulty. Dat's de pint."

"Well, at any rate, you've saved the lobsters."

"Yah! yah! yah! Yes. Bound to sabe dem dar. Loss my ole hat, an
nearly loss my ole self; but still I hung