Noting more than a few glances toward her longship and crew; some curious, while others appear wary, decides to tell an amusing tale about a silly seafarer. . .

'Once upon a time there was a bad-tempered admiral. He and his men sailed the seven seas and all the rivers, lakes, ponds and puddles of the world. Where'er he went he ranted and roared until earthquakes shook the land and volcanoes spewed out streams of lava and more ash than an old wizard's pipe.

The admiral's poor sailors could stand his endless bawling nei longer, for their heads ached fit to split, and the only way to sleep was lying on both ears, and, as e'ery sailor knows, tis nei easy matter unless you happen to have both ears on the same side of your head. So one day they put their heads together, and when the admiral was sitting on shore, and drinking his tenth keg of rum, they weighed anchor and set sail for the horizon.

At that very moment the admiral happened to glance from the tavern window seaward, and he could not believe his eyes ....there was his very own ship sailing off somewhere, straight along the equator. "Octopuses, sharks and anchovies!" he roared, turning purple with rage. "Why, stone the crows, they have made off with me ship, and me admiral's hat to boot!" And off he ran after it, sea or nei sea, dashing o'er the waves to catch his vessel.

Since 'twas right on the equator, where the earth is fattest of all, he had a godt long way to go, but he had nearly caught up when, from the crow's nest, the voice of Roger called, "Look out, Admiral sir, you are running across the sea!" The admiral looked down at his feet and, shiver his timbers, so he was! He got such a shock that he fell in the water and, since he could not swim, he altogether drowned.

Well, he was not much of a sailor, anyway!'