Nauset

“ This quite relieves the difficulty that was felt by Professor Rafn, who labored to show that the island in question was Nantucket, notwithstanding the fact that it lay too far east. For a fuller knowledge of Isle Nauset, see New England Historic and Genealogical Register, vol. xviii, p. 37; and Massachusetts Historical Collections, vol. viii, series iii, pp. 72-93.
[104] In speaking of the immediate vicinity of Wonder-strand, the second account of Thorfinn's expedition says, "There were places without harbors," which has always been the case, this coast being dangerous ”

“ Awful is it for human heart to bear
The might and burden of the solitude!' HEMANS.
Many weeks elapsed after the Nausett party had joined the friendly Pequodees, ere any preparations were made for journeying to the west; and these days were chiefly employed by Henrich in improving his knowledge of the Indian language, and especially of the Nausett dialect, by conversing with Oriana and her young companions, both male and female. He also endeavored to learn as much as possible of the habit and the ideas of the simple people among whom his lot was now cast ”

“ So please will you tell me now what the next deed is that I have to do?'
'Will you go by ark?' Mr. Noah asked, rolling up his yellow mat to make an elbow rest and leaning on it; 'I shall be delighted.'
'I thought,' said Philip, 'we might go in the Lightning Loose. I've never sailed her yet, you know. Do you think I could?'
'Of course you can,' said Mr. Noah; 'and if not, Lucy can show you. Your charming yacht is steered on precisely the same principle as the ark. And in this land all the winds are favourable. ”

“ And Nausicaa made answer, “Thou seemest, stranger, to be neither evil nor foolish; and as for thy plight, the gods give good fortune or bad, as they will. Thou shalt not lack clothing or food, or anything that a suppliant should have. And I will take thee to the city. Know also that this land [360] is Phæacia, and that I am daughter to Alcinoüs, who is king thereof.”
Then she called to her maidens, “What mean ye, to flee when ye see a man? No enemy comes hither to harm us, for we are dear to the gods; but if one cometh here overborne by trouble, it is well to succor him. ”

“ When they have killed him and dragged him to shore, they call all their chief lords together, and sing a song of joy; and these chief lords, whom they call sagamores, divide the spoil, and give to every man a share, which pieces so distributed they hang up about their houses for provision; and when they boil them, they blow off the fat, and put to their pease, maize, and other pulse which they eat."—"Weymouth's Voyage."
[238] Nantucket in 1744 had forty sloops and schooners in the whale-fishery. The catch was seven thousand to ten thousand barrels of oil per annum. ”

“ The parrot and the Hippogriff between them managed to get Mr. Noah to the castle by noon of the next day.
'Would you have minded,' Philip immediately asked him, 'if I'd had an ark built without asking you to do it?'
'Well,' said Mr. Noah mildly, 'I might have been a little hurt. I have had some experience, you know, my Lord.'
'Why do you call me that?' Philip asked.
'Because you are, of course. Your deed of slaying the lions counts one to you, and by virtue of it you are now a Baron. I congratulate you, Lord Leo,' said Mr. Noah. ”

“ Noah steers much better when there's no land in sight. It's all practice, you know.'
'And when we come in sight of land, will he steer badly then?'
'Oh, anybody can steer then,' said Billy; 'you if you like.' So it was Lucy who steered the ark into harbour, under Mr. Noah's directions. Arks are very easy to steer if you only know the way. Of course arks are not like other vessels; they require neither sails nor steam engines, nor oars to make them move. The very arkishness of the ark makes it move just as the steersman wishes. ”

“ But they only saw Nantucket, with its homely, boat-lined strand;
But they saw it—oh! so plainly—through the glass of coming doom.
Then they crept into the whale-boat, and pulled toward the forest's gloom,—
All their suffering clear that moment, like the moonlight on their wake,
Now contracting, now expanding, like a phosphorescent snake.
Hours speed on: the dark horizon yet shows scarce a streak of gray
When old Sculpin comes on deck to walk his restlessness away. ”

“ One admires and admires the dignity, the quiet, the beauty, and then a sadness comes over one's spirit. Is there too much gentility here? When whale-oil and not flowers perfumed the air and Nantucket was young and lusty, was she so conscious? Underneath her brave front I think she knows she does not earn her own living any more and that alien summer people keep her alive. Two thousand people, so they say, live here in winter, and thirteen thousand in summer. The summer people cherish her tenderly—no profaning emigrants swarm through the wide houses of the old whaling captains. ”

“ In the morning the priest consecrated their union, and when all was over he said,—
"And now farewell, my children, and be happy and faithful to your vows."
"Will you not stay with us till the next ship comes?" asked Anatole.
"No; I can provide for myself, and I wish to see more of this island while I am here. I may see you again before you leave this island. God be with you, now let me go alone." ”

“ The ten Kings were no longer alone. The learned gentleman—no one had noticed how he got there—stood with them on the steps of an altar, on which lay the dead body of the black bull. All the rest of the courtyard was thick with people, seemingly of all classes, and all were shouting, 'The sea—the sea!'
'Be calm,' said the most kingly of the Kings, he who had lassoed the bull. 'Our town is strong against the thunders of the sea and of the sky!'
'I want to go home,' whined the Psammead.
'We can't go without him,' said Anthea firmly.
'Jimmy,' she called, 'Jimmy!' and waved to him. ”

“ Noah, waving his hat and thumping Lucy on the back.
'I'm awfully glad I thought of it,' she said; 'that makes two deeds Sir Philip's done, doesn't it? Two out of the seven.'
'Yes, indeed,' said Mr. Noah enthusiastically. 'I must make him a baronet now. His title will grow grander with each deed. There's an old prophecy that the person who finds out how to unravel the carpet must be the first to dance in the Hall of Public Amusements.
'The clever one, the noble one,
Who makes the carpet come undone,
Shall be the first to dance a measure
Within the Hall of public pleasure. ”

“ Noah. 'But, you see, you built those cities in two worlds. It's pulled down in this world. But in the other world it's going on.'
'I don't understand,' said Philip.
'I thought you wouldn't,' said Mr. Noah; 'but it's true, for all that. Everything people make in that world goes on for ever.'
'But how was it that I got in?'
'Because you belong to both worlds. And you built the cities. So they were yours.'
'But Lucy got in.'
'She built up a corner of your city that the nurse had knocked down.'
'But you,' said Philip, more and more bewildered. 'You're here. ”

“ In May, 1605, Captain Weymouth is said to have “become entangled among the Nantucket Shoals” [4] , and in 1620 Captain Dermer certainly visited the island.
[4] Drake’s Nooks and Corners of New England, p. 324.
In approaching the consideration of the Nantucket Indians, the following beautiful legend [5] cannot be passed over in silence, as it reveals the fact that self-sacrifice and the tender passion are not limited in their influence to any race or color, but are the hallowed heritage of mankind. Such a record deserves a foremost place in any associated local history. ”

“ Good voyage, brute of a pig-faced Rento! Good voyage, old 'Nautilus!' Go all to the bottom with my blessing, and I dance on the wharf, and marry the pretty Lena, and get all the old miser's money, and wear velvet coats. Ah! Franci, my handsome little boy, why did you let them send you to sea, hearts of stone that they were! You, born to shine, to adorn, to break the hearts of maidens! Why? tell me that!" He waved his legs in the air, and contemplated with delight their proportions, which were certainly exquisite. "Caramba!" he murmured; "beauty, that is it! ”

“ Noah. 'She flew back to the island directly you left her. Sails are called wings, are they not? White wings that never grow weary, you know. Relieved of your weight, the faithful yacht flew home like any pigeon.'
'Hooray!' said Philip. 'I couldn't bear to think of her rotting away in a cavern.'
'I wish Max and Brenda had come to say good-bye,' said Lucy.
'It is not needed,' said Mr. Noah mysteriously. And then everybody said good-bye again, and Mr. Noah rolled up his yellow mat, put it under his arm again, and went—for ever. ”

“ Noah is sure to come for me,' she most sensibly told herself. 'And I'll get as many clothes on as I can.' Her own dress, of course, had been left at Polistopolis, but the ballet dress would be better than the seaweed tunic. When she was dressed she ran into Philip's room and rolled his clothes into a little bundle and carried it under her arm as she ran down the stairs. Half-way down she met Mr. Noah coming up.
'Ah! you're ready,' he said; 'it is well. Do not be alarmed, my Lucy. The tide is rising but slowly. There will be time for every one to escape. ”

“ That there is a power beyond me,
Unto which I have to yield me.
Great the love I bear Wonoma,
And if she so truly loves you,
There should only be between us
Words and thoughts that are most friendly.”
When Wauwinet had thus spoken, the two chiefs grasped each other by the hand in mutual affection, and, before they parted, they amicably arranged between them the land which had caused their dispute, and while pledging themselves to enduring peace, Wauwinet gladly sanctioned the union of Wonoma and Autopscot. From that day to this Peace has reigned over and blest the island of Nantucket. ”

“ When Nantucket was purchased by the colonists in 1659, there were two Chief Sachems Wanackmamack and Nicornoose (acting probably for Wauwinet) , and at least two other Sachems, Autopscot (or Attapehat) and Potconet—besides a few petty Sachems—governing all the Indians on Nantucket and Tuckernuck. It may be assumed that at this time Wauwinet was old and feeble, and that his eldest son, known as Nicornoose, acted as his deputy, inasmuch as among several of the earliest deeds we find Nicornoose signing as Sachem, and there are no signatures by his father. Mr. ”

“ Noah explained. 'He cannot carry more than one person at a time unless one is an Earl. No, if I may advise, I should say go by camel.'
'Can the camel carry two?'
'Of course. He is called the ship of the desert,' Mr. Noah informed them, 'and a ship that wouldn't carry more than one would be simply silly.'
So that was settled. Mr. Noah himself saddled and bridled the camel, which was a very large one, with his own hands.
'Let me see,' he said, standing thoughtful with the lead rope in his hand, 'you'll be wanting dogs—'
'I always want dogs,' said Philip warmly. ”

“ He took Lulu's hand, and the three wended their way southward along Sunset Heights, greatly enjoying the sight of the ocean, its waves glittering and dancing in the brilliant sunlight, their booming sound as they broke along the beach and the exhilarating breeze blowing fresh and pure from them.
"This is a very dangerous coast," the captain remarked, "especially in winter, when it is visited by fierce gales; a great many vessels have been wrecked on Nantucket coast." ”

“ Noah, 'and I am happy to announce that your fifth deed is now accomplished. You remember our empty silver fruit-dishes? Your fifth deed was to be the supplying of Polistarchia with fruit. This island is the only place in the kingdom where fruit grows. The ark will serve to convey the fruit to the mainland, and the performance of this deed raises you to the rank of Duke.'
'Philip, you're a dear,' said Lucy in a whisper. ”

“ Occasionally you may meet with one who has long since passed the meridian of life, one, perhaps, who has never been off of the island of his birth; and he will tell you of the Nantucket of the past, before her peaceful shores had been invaded by the stranger; when they might lay them down to sleep, without thought of bolt or bar, save old ocean's faithful bands. You will learn of Nantucket from the beginning down to the present time. Then the island was big with prosperity. ”

“ Such were the rulers of Nantucket when the settlers arrived.
What a revelation the incoming of the whites must have been to the red men, who had lived on the island, probably from a very early age, among their own people, under their own laws, perpetuating their own habits and customs—living close to Nature—for the most part in peace25 and amity—simple in their lives, and knowing nothing, caring nothing for the external world beyond them! ”

“ These are the banks which afforded to the first inhabitants of Nantucket their daily subsistence, as it was from these shoals that they drew the origin of that wealth which they now possess; and was the school where they first learned how to venture farther, as the fish of their coast receded. The shores of this island abound with the soft- shelled, the hard-shelled, and the great sea clams, a most nutritious shell-fish. Their sands, their shallows are covered with them; they multiply so fast, that they are a never-failing resource. ”

“ Names of Some of the Nantucket Indians Occurring in the Registry of Deeds, Petitions, Etc. Wanackmamack, Head Sachem of Nantucket in 1659. Wauwinet, aged Head Sachem of Northeastern section. Nicornoose, successor to Wauwinet. Autopscot (Attapechat or Attaychat) , Sachem of Southwestern section. Potconet (or Pottacohannet) , Sachem of Tuckernuck, etc. Nanahuma, probably a petty Sachem. Harry, a witness, son of Wapakowet. Wauwinnesit, or Amos, second son of Nicornoose. Saucoauso, alias Jeptha, son of Wanackmamack. Joshua Jethro, eldest son of Nicornoose. Wat Noose, bastard son of Nicornoose. ”