sn't, I should say that that observation of
yours was wit without either soul or body, it's so uncommon short; too
witty, in short. Couldn't you manage to add something more to it?"

"Yes, father," said Thursday, with a deprecating smile, "I have come to
ask--to ask you for leave to--to--to--"

"Well, Toc, you have my cheerful leave to--to--to, and tootle too, as
much as you please," replied Adams, with a bland smile.

"In short," said Thursday, with a desperate air, "I--I--want leave to
marry."

"Whew!" whistled Adams, with a larger display of eyeball than he had
made since he settled on the island. "You've come to the point _now_,
and no mistake. You--want--leave--to--marry, Thursday October
Christian, eh?"

"Yes, father, if you've no objection."

"Hem! no objection, marry--eh?" said Adams, while his eyebrows began to
return slowly to their wonted position. "Ha! well, now, let's hear;
_who_ do you want to marry?"

Having fairly broken the ice, the bashful youth said quickly,
"Susannah."

Again John Adams uttered a prolonged whistle, while his eyebrows sprang
once more to the roots of his hair.

"What! the widdy?"

"Yes, Mr Young's widow," replied Thursday, covered with confusion.

"Well, I never! But this _does_ beat cock-fightin'." He gave his thigh
a sounding slap, and seemed about to give way to irrepressible laughter,
when he suddenly checked himself and became grave.

"I say, Toc," said he, earnestly, "hand me down the Prayer-book."

Somewhat surprised, the lad took the book from its shelf, and placed it
on the sailor's knees.

"Look 'ee here, Toc; there's somethin' here that touches on your case,
if I don't misremember where. Let me see. Ah, here it is, `A man may
not marry his grandmother,' much less a boy," he added, looking up.

"But, father, Susannah ain't my grandmother," said Toc, stoutly feeling
that he had got an advantage here.

"True, lad, but she might be your mother. She's to the full sixteen
years older than yourself. But seriously, boy, do you mean it, and is
she willin'?"

"Yes, father, I do mean it, an' she is quite willin'. Susannah has bin
kinder to me than any one else I ever knew, and I love her better than
everybody else put together. She did laugh a bit at first when I spoke
to her about it, an' told me not to talk so foolishly, an' said, just as
you did, that she might be my mother; but that made no odds to me, for
she's not one bit like my mother, you kno