es, but _how_ easy, very few knew.

Capt. Figgles's family consisted of himself, three daughters, one
married and "settled," the other two at home; an ancient colored woman,
who had served in the Captain's family,--ship and shore--a lifetime.
Dinah and old Sam, her husband, with two or three farm-laborers,
constituted the Captain's household. Betsy, the youngest daughter, the
old man's favorite, had been christened Elizabeth, but that not being
warm enough for Capt. Figgles's idea of attachment, he ever called his
daughter, Betsy, and so she was called by _almost_ everybody at all
familiar with the family. Betsy Figgles was not a very poetical subject,
by name or size. She was a fine, bouncing young woman of
four-and-twenty; she was dutiful and bountiful, if not beautiful. She
was useful, and even ornamental in her old father's eyes, and, as he was
wont to say, in his never-to-be-forgotten salt-water _linguae_--

"Betsy was a _craft_, she was; a square-bilt, trim, well-ballasted
craft, fore and aft; none of your sky-scraping, taut, Baltimore clipper,
fair-weather, no-tonnage jigamarees! Betsy is a _woman_; her mother was
just like her when I fell in with her, and it wasn't long afore I
chartered her for a life's voyage. And the man who lets such a woman
slip her cable and stand off soundings, for 'Cowes and a market,' when
he's got a chance to fill out her papers and take command, is not a
_man_, but a mouse, or a long-tailed Jamaica rat!"

Between Capt. Tiller, our Lake boatman, and Capt. Figgles, there was an
intimacy of some years' standing, but the old Captain and the young
Captain didn't exactly "hitch horses"--whether it was because Capt. T.
came under the old man's idea of "a Jamaica rat," or because he looked
upon inland sailors as greenhorns, deponent saith not.

Dr. Mutandis and Capt. Figgles were only upon so-so sort of business
sociality, though both the junior Captain and the Doctor were intimate
enough with both the Miss Figgleses. Capt. Tiller, as we intimated, was
about to leave for coming duties on the Lake, and being so full of old
Nick, it was indispensable that he must play off a practical joke, or
have some fun with somebody, as a sort of a yarn for the season, on his
boat.

The Figgleses announced a grand quilting scrape; the Doctor and Captain
were among the invited guests, of course, and for some hours the
assembled party had indeed as grand a good time generally as usually
falls to the lot