Rollo on the Atlantic

mbark

gentlemen to whose care he intended to intrust the two children, planned his journey to New York so as to arrive there in good season on M

subject, "I can certainly find them at the ship, by going on board an hour or two

g, on Monday, and Rollo came up to him very eagerly in the parlor of the boarding house, to ask hi

ully. "I am glad of it! I like it a grea

f in great glee, to inform Jane of the prospect before t

hild's name was Lottie; that is, she was commonly called Lottie, though her real name was Charlotte. She was a beautiful child, with beaming black eyes, a radiant face, and dark glossy curls of hair hanging down upon her neck. Jane and Lo

ot find any body to take care of you,

id not

g to England?

ly; "and there is nobody to g

ngland once,

"and did you go acros

said

" said Rollo; "ther

you get along

we had a very good time playin

hat if there was nothing to be done in crossing the Atlantic but to play about the decks an

n a voyage, too, to-

cle?" as

s house. He is packing up his trunk now. He is g

to go to sea?

limb up the masts and rigging; and I like the cabins, because

and presumption. He was now twelve years of age, and that is an age which fairly qualifies a boy to bear some considerable burdens of responsibility and duty. At any rate, it is an age at which it ought to be expected that the powers and characteristics of manhood should, at

ook who may never have had opportunities to become acquainted with the usages of great cities, that there are two separate systems in use in such cities for the transportation respectively of baggage, and of persons, from place to place. For baggage and parcels, there are what are called expresses. The owners of these expresses have offices in various parts of the city, where

re carriages are always in readiness. Now, it so happened that Lottie's uncle Thomas had concluded to have his trunk taken down to the Charleston ship by the express, intending to walk to the pier himself from

arolina, Pier No. 4 North River. To

to the express office at all. He intended to take their trunk on the carriage. So he went to

way. To-morrow, at ha

in Rollo's room, when she saw that the trunk was ready, offered to carry it down, which, as she was a good strong Irish girl, she could very easily do. She accordingl

hat, Mary?

eamer," said Mary. "There is a

for it was the driver of the carriage that Mr. George had engaged. She knew nothing about an

getting Rollo and Jane ready. A moment afterward the express man, whom Lottie'

" said the man, "to

ere it is, all ready. They

d carrying it out, put it on his wagon;

arrived at the door. Mr. George and the children came down the s

is the

taken it, s

has he? That

driver holding the door open for them as they did so. As

fic, foot of

his direction, mounted his

gate was open, and a stream of carriages containing passengers, and of carts and express wagons conveying baggage, was pouring in. Mr. George's carriage was admitted

behind the carriage. "Why, where is the trunk? You have lo

the driver; "the

Mr. George; "and they told

his is the first time I have h

what to do. In the mean time the line of carriages from behind pressed on, and the drivers of them began

de of the pier," said he, "

, he began to lead them up the long plank

e on board. The children then found themselves moving along what seemed a narrow passage way, amid crowds of people, until at length they came to a short and steep flight of steps, which led up to what seemed to Jane a sort of a roof. The balustrade, or

n had, however, no time to attend to these things, for Mr. George led them rapidly along to that part of the promenade deck which was opposite to the long plank, where the people were coming up from the pier. Mr. G

. I am going after the trunk. You must not mind if I don't come back for a long time. The ship will not sail yet fo

wd to the other side of it, where the carriage was standing. The children watched him all the time. When he reached the carriage, they saw that he stopped a moment to say

e said to the

ge for the two hours at any rate, and if we find the trunk and get it on board that ship before

f the greatest excitement. Even Rollo found his courage and resolution ebbing away. He sat for a little time without speaking, and gazed upon the scene of commotion which he saw exhibited before him on the pier wit

Uncle George will find the tr

man to greater resolution and energy in encountering and struggling against the dangers and ills that surround him, than to have woman near him and dependent upon him, and to see her looking up to him for protection and support. It is true that Rollo was not a man, nor was Jennie a wo

e to do what he had been so eager to undertake. He determined, therefore, that instead of yielding to the feelings of fear and despondency whic

divert her attention, if possible, from her fears. So he began t

not lost his trunks, at any rate. See all these orange women, too, Jennie, standing on the edge of the pier. How many oranges they

a monstrous rope, which descended from a system of pulleys and machinery above. After attaining a considerable height, the whole mass slowly moved over toward the shi

board in that way; should you, Jennie? I wonder where the trunks go to when the rope lets them down. It is in some gre

away. Uncle George said that we must n

aid Rollo. "We

which the exciting scene that was passing before her assumed. Rollo endeavored still more to encourage and cheer her, by frequently assuring her that their uncle would soon come back. He did

ood by; so that there was a perpetual movement of carriages coming and going upon the pier, and the long plank which led up to the ship was crowded with people ascending and descending in continuous streams. The paddle wheels were all the time in motion, though the ship, being yet fastened to the shor

e looking that way, he saw a small child, perhaps seven or eight years old, fall off from the deck of the sloop into the water. The child did not sink, being buoyed up by her clothes; and as the tide was flowing strong at that time, an eddy of the water carried her slowly along away from the sloop toward the shore. The child screamed with terror, and Rollo could now and then catch the sound of her voice above the roaring of the steam. The sailors on board the sloop ran toward the boat, and began to let it down. Others on the shore got read

RE

sult. Some others, standing on the decks of the ship or on the pier, turned and looked in the direction of the child. Otherwise every thing went on the same. The carriages went and came, the people walked eagerly about among e

ave orders to rig the tackle to the great plank stair, with a view to heaving it back upon the pier. The last, lingering visitors to the ship, who had come to take leave of their friends, hastily bade them farewell and ran down the plank. The ship, in fact, was just on the point of casting off from the pier, when suddenly

said a man to Mr. George.

board," said Mr. G

t through into a sort of porthole, near the engine, which happened to be open. Mr. Geor

ome to the ship for you at Liverpool. Good by, Jennie.

the pier; and thus it happened that Rollo and Jennie set out on t