THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF 
 
IT WAS A BLEAK, GLOOMY DAY IN JANUARY WHEN I FIUST BEHELD HEU. 
 
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Qgacmitlan'g Colonial JLifttarg 
 
 THE 
 
 LOG OF A SEA- WAIF 
 
 BEING UKCOLI.KCTIOXS OF 
 
 THE FIK8T FOUR YEAES OF M SEA IJI'E 
 
 r.Y 
 
 FRANK T. BULLEN, RR.G.S. 
 
 AUIHOK Olf "lUE CKUISE OF IHL 'CACHALOT,"" "IDILLS 0» XHK BKA," KTC. 
 
 WITH EIGHT ILLU6TEATI0NS 
 
 '^Toronto 
 ^lETHODr^ BOOK AND PUBLISHING HOUSE 
 
 H n D n 
 MACMILLAN AND CO., Limitki) 
 
 No. 383. 18 9 9 
 
 All rights reserved 
 

 This edition is intended for circuhtion only in India 
 and the British Colonies. 
 
TO 
 
 J. ST. LOE STRACHEY 
 
 IN 
 
 GRATEFUL RECOGNITION OF 
 
 HIS UNWEARYmQ ENCOURAGEMENT OP 
 
 AND PERSISTENl KINDNESS TO 
 
 THE AUTHOR 
 THIS BOOK IS AFFECTIONATELY DEDICATED 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 -•0»" 
 
 Notwithstanding the oft-reiterated statement that the 
 days of sea romance are over, it may well be doubted 
 whether any period of our literary history has been 
 more prolific in books dealing with that subject than 
 the last twenty-five years. Nor does the output show 
 any signs of lessening, while the quality of the work 
 done is certainly not deteriorating. Writers like 
 Kipling, Cutcliffe Hyne, Joseph Conrad, and Clark 
 Eussell, each in his own style, have presented us with 
 a series of sea-pictures that need not fear comparison 
 with any nautical writers' work of any day, although 
 they deal almost exclusively with the generally con- 
 sidered unromantic merchant service. Having admitted 
 this, the question perforce follows, "Who, then, are 
 you, that presumes to compete with these master 
 magicians ? " 
 
 To that inevitable question I would modestly answer 
 that the present book is in no sense a competitor 
 with the works of any writers of nautical romance. 
 But having been for fifteen years a seafarer in almost 
 every capacity except that of a master, and now, by 
 
vm PliEFAOE, 
 
 the greatest kindness and indulgence on the part of 
 men holding high positions in the literary world, being 
 permitted to cater for the reading public in sterling 
 periodicals, it has often occurred to me how little 
 landsmen really know of the seaman's actual life. 
 " Two Years before the Mast," although written by 
 an American, and of life on board an American 
 merchantman, has long held undisputed sway as a 
 classic upon the subject. And for the only reason, 
 as it seems, that no serious attempt has been made 
 by a Britisher to do the same thing for life in British 
 ships. 
 
 Still, conscious as I certainly am of small literary 
 equipment for such a task, I should hardly have dared 
 to try my hand but for the encouragement most 
 generously and persistently given me by Mr. J. St. 
 Loe Strachey, who, with that large faith in another's 
 abilities that breeds confidence in its object, how- 
 ever diffident, urged me strongly to tell the public 
 some of my experiences of sea-life. And his advice 
 to me was to set them down, just as they occurred, 
 as nearly as memory would permit. Of course, it 
 was not possible to cover the whole field of my 
 experiences at once, except in the most scrappy and 
 unsatisfactory way, and therefore I decided to take 
 the first four years — from the age of twelve to six- 
 teen. Following my friend's advice, I have written 
 nothing but the truth, and, in most cases, I have given 
 the real names of ships and individuals. If the book, 
 then, does not please, it will be owing to my lack of 
 
PItEFACE. IX 
 
 discrimination between interesting and commonplace 
 details, and not because the pictures given of life at 
 sea in the forecastle are not faithful. 
 
 And now, as I know that there are a great many 
 people who do not read prefaces, I will close mine by 
 humbly commending this " autobiography of a nobody " 
 to that tremendous tribunal, with whom lies the verdict 
 of success or failure, and from whose fiat there is no 
 
 appeal — the Public. 
 
 FRANK T. BULLEN. 
 
 Camberwell, 
 
 September, 1890. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 rRAPTKK I'AGB 
 
 I. My First Ship ... ... ... ... ... 1 
 
 II. OUTWARD-BoUND ... ... ... ... 11 
 
 Til. Arrival at Demeraua ... ... ... ... 23 
 
 IV. The Mutiny and After ... ... ... 85 
 
 V. The Land of Liberty ... ... ... ... 47 
 
 VI. To Havana a^.d After ... ... ... 61 
 
 VII. Off to Sea again... ... ... ... ... 76 
 
 VIII, Struggles in Liverpool ani> London ... ... 9i 
 
 IX. Bound for Jamaica ... ... ... ... lOl 
 
 X. Adventures of a Shipwrecked Crew ... ... 115 
 
 XI. An Eventful Passage Home ... ... ... 128 
 
 XII. Adrift in Liverpool once Moke ... ... 143 
 
 XIII. The Dawn of Better Days ... ... ... 156 
 
 XIV. Due South ... ... ... ... ... io8 
 
 XV. Eight Weeks' Calm ... ... ... ... 178 
 
 XVI. Up the Indian Ocean to Bo.mhay ... ... 189 
 
 XVII. On the Coromandel Coast ... ... ... 20:^ 
 
 XVIII. Homeward to London ... ... ... ... 210 
 
 XIX. A CiiAraE of Nationality... ... ... ... 222 
 
 XX. The Passage to Melbourne ... ... ... 233 
 
 XXL I become a Colonial Coaster ... ... ... 240 
 
Xll CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTKR TAGK 
 
 XXII. Prosperity palls upon me ... ... ... 259 
 
 XXIII. Another Queer Ship... ... .. ... 272 
 
 XXIV. Deep- Water Amenities ... ... ... ... 283 
 
 XXV. Proceedings at Rangoon ... ... ... 295 
 
 XXVI. IIojiewaud-Bound in Difficulties ... ... 309 
 
 XXVII Deep-Water Coasting ... ... ... 319 
 
 XXVIII. Which brings us to Pout at Last ... ... 333 
 
 XXIX. Conclusion ... ... ... ... ... 345 
 
 LIST OF IT.LUSTRATIONS. 
 
 TO FACR PAO» 
 
 It was a bleak, gloomy day in January when I first behold her 
 
 Frontispiece 
 
 We could have put in several montlis on that barren patcli of sand 
 
 quite happily ... ... ... ... ... ... 58 
 
 A huge sea rose between us, hiding her from view, and when we 
 soared on the crest of the next one, slie was gone like a foam 
 
 11(1 Kt3 ••• ••• ••• ta« «•• ••• ••• i/jy 
 
 At each tremendous lift and heave of the doomed vessel all hands 
 
 would make a frantic rusi; to the side ... ... ... 113 
 
 For a short minute or so they faced him, their eyes glaring with the 
 
 lust of superstitious cruelty ... ... ... ... 120 
 
 Everybody on deck was terrified at the apparition of a mother- 
 naked giant, armed with the cook's axe ... ... ... 138 
 
 Twenty miles down the river we ran into the region of a bush fire 25G 
 
 •♦I suppose you don't believe in this, do you?" ... ... ... 303 
 
THE LOG OP A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 KY FIRST SHIP. 
 
 Many boj's clamour for a sea life, will not settle down 
 to anything ashore, in spite of the pleading of parents, 
 the ^Yarnings of wisdom, or the doleful experiences of 
 friends. Occasionally at schools there breaks out a 
 sort of epidemic of ''going to sea," for which there is 
 apparently no proximate cause, but which rages fiercely 
 for a time, carrying off such high-spirited youths as can 
 prevail upon those responsible for them to agree to their 
 making a trial of a seafaring life. All this is quite as 
 it should be, of course, in order that Britain may 
 continue to rule the waves ; but many a parent, whoso 
 affectionate projects for the future of his offspring are 
 thus rudely shattered, bitterly resents what he naturally 
 considers to be unaccountable folly. 
 
 In my own case matters were quite otherwise. I 
 belonged to the ignoble company of the unwanted. In 
 spite of hard usage, scanty food, and overwork, I 
 ridiculously persisted in living, until, r« the approach 
 of my twelfth year, an eligible opening presented itself 
 for mc to go to sea. Being unde^ no delusions what- 
 ever as to the prospect that a'^'.aited me, since I had 
 
 B 
 
2 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 known intimately those who had experienced all the 
 vicissitudes of a sailor's hfe, I was not unduly elated at 
 the idea. Nevertheless, food and shelter were ohjects 
 pecuHarly hard cf attainment ashore, while I felt 
 satisfied that at sea these necessaries would be always 
 provided, even if their quality was none of the best. 
 
 The vessel in which I obtained a birth as cabin-boy 
 was commanded by my uncle : a stubborn, surly, but 
 thoroughly capable old seaman. Soured by misfortune 
 and cross-grained by nature, it was small wonder that 
 he had no friends, not even the sterling honesty of his 
 character, or his high ability, being sufficient to counter- 
 balance the drawback of his atrocious temper. His 
 latest command was not calculated to improve him, 
 for she was a survival of a bygone day, clumsy as a 
 Dutch galliot, impoverished by her owner, who was 
 heartily sick of seeing her afloat, and would have 
 rejoiced to hear that she was missing ; and withal leaky 
 as a basket. "When I first saw her huddled into a more 
 than usually dirty corner of the West India Docks, I 
 was filled with wonder to see that her cutwater was 
 sunken between two swelling bows like the cheeks of 
 a conventional cherub. Though I could be no critic 
 of marine construction, this seemed an anomaly for 
 which there appeared to be no excuse. Her bowsprit 
 and jibboom soared into the air exactly like those of tho 
 galleons of old, and her three skimpy masts stood like 
 broomsticks at difterent angles — the foremast especially, 
 which looked over the bows. 
 
 It was a bleak, gloomy day in January when I first 
 beheld her. The snow, which had fallen heavily for 
 some days previously, was, wherever it could be, 
 churned into filthy slush, and where undisturbed, was 
 
MY FmST SHIP. 3 
 
 begrimed moro into the similitude of soot-heaps tlian 
 anything else. Everything wore a pinched, miserable 
 appearance. So forbidding and hopeless was the out- 
 look that, had it been practicable, I should certainly 
 have retreated. But there was no choice ; I had burned 
 my bridges. 
 
 Climbing on deck, I found such a state of confusion 
 and dirt reigning as I could hardly have believed 
 possible. Owing to the parsimony of the owner, not 
 even a watchman had been kept on board, and, in 
 consequence, the decks had not smelt a broom for a 
 month. The cargo and stores were littered about so 
 that progress was gymnastic, while in every corner and 
 hollow lay the dirty snow. Several discontented-looking 
 men were engaged aloft bending sails, others wero 
 gradually coaxing the cargo on deck into the hold, but 
 no one seemed to have any energy left. Seated upon 
 an up-ended beef- cask was a truculent-looking individual 
 whom I instinctively regarded as the boss. Him, 
 therefore, I timidly approached. Upon hearing my 
 message, he rolled off his throne and led the way aft, 
 uttering all the time some, to me, perfectly unintelli- 
 gible sounds. I made no pretence of answering, so I 
 suppose he took me for a poor idiot hardly worthy of 
 his attention. When, after some effort, he disappeared 
 down the cabin companion, I was close behind him, and, 
 understanding his gestures better than his speech, made 
 out that here was to be the scene of my future labours. 
 The place was so gloomy that I could distinguish none 
 of its features by sight; but the atmosphere, a rank 
 compound of the reek of bilgewater, mouldering stores, 
 and unventilated sleeping-places, caught me by the 
 throat, making my head swim and a lump rise in my 
 
4 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF, 
 
 chest. A small locker by the ladder's foot, reminding 
 me curiously of a rabbit-hutch, was pointed out to me 
 as my berth, but I naturally supposed it to be a place 
 for my bag. How could I have dreamed that it was 
 also to be my chamber ? But everything began to reel 
 with me, so, blindly clutching the ladder, I struggled on 
 deck again, where the bitter wind soon revived me. 
 
 Henceforth no one noticed me, so I roamed about the 
 deck, prying into holes and corners, until the stevedores 
 knocked off for dinner. Presently the mate came 
 towards where I sat, shivering and solitary, on the 
 windlass end, and made me understand that I was to 
 come ashore with him. He conducted me through a 
 labyrinth of mean streets to a spacious building in a 
 wide thoroughfare, around which were congregated many 
 little groups of seamen of all nations. We entered the 
 place at once, and soon reached a large bare room 
 crowded with seamen. Here I was told to wait while 
 Ml'. Svensen went to seek the captain. While I stood 
 bewildered by the bustle of the crowded place, I heard 
 occasional hoarse demands for " Three A.B.'s an' one 
 ordinary for Pernambuck ! " " Cook an' stooard for 
 Kingston, Jamaica ! " " All the croo of the Star o' Peace /" 
 and similar calls, each followed by a general rush 
 towards the speaker, accompanied by a rustling of dis- 
 charges in the air as their owners sought to attract 
 attention. 
 
 After about an hour's wait I heard the cry '* Croo 
 of the Arabella here ! " which was followed by the 
 usual rush ; but, to the disappointment of the watchers, 
 the whole of the crew had been already selected. 
 One by one they squeezed through the crowd into an 
 office beyond, whither I managed to follow. I was 
 
MY FnST SHIP. 
 
 too much amazed at the hurly-hurly to notice who 
 ^Yere to be my future shipmates, but I paid a sort of 
 awe-struck attention to the reading of the ** articles." 
 Doubtless much excuse must be made tor the officials, 
 who have to gabble the same rigmarole over so many 
 times each working day ; but I certainly think some 
 attempt might always be made that the essential parts 
 of the agreement should be clear to men who are about 
 to bind themselves for a long period to abide by it. In 
 our case, the only words clearly accented, heard, and 
 understood by all, were the last three, "no spirits 
 allowed." Each man then signed the articles, or made 
 his mark, ending with myself, when I found I was 
 entitled to receive five shillings per month, without any 
 half-pajr- or advance. Each of the men received a 
 month's advance, in the form of a promissory-note, pay- 
 able three days aftei the ship left the Downs, " pro- 
 viding the said seaman sails in the said ship." None of 
 them lost any time in getting away to seek some 
 accommodating (?) shark to cash their notes at an 
 average discount of about forty per cent., most of the 
 proceeds being payable in kind. 
 
 This important preliminary over, I was free till next 
 morning, when all hands were ordered on board by ten 
 o'clock. Not feeling at all desirous of returning to the 
 ship, yet being penniless, and in a strange part of London, 
 I made my way westward to the Strand, where I soon 
 managed to pick up enough for a meal. I spent the 
 night in Hyde Park in a snug corner, unknown to the 
 police, that had often served me as a refuge before. At 
 daybreak I started East, arriving on board at about 
 half-past nine very tired and hungry. The mate eyed 
 me suspiciously, saying something which I guessed to 
 
6 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 bo uncomplimentary, although I was still unable to 
 iindorstand a word. But, as before, he did not interfere 
 with mo or set mo any task. 
 
 The litter of cases, bales, etc., about the deck was 
 fast disappearing under the strenuous exertions of the 
 stevedores and dock-wallopers, while the raffle of gear 
 aloft was reduced to as near an approach to orderly 
 arrangement as it could ever be expected to assume. 
 Presently a grimy little paddle-steamer came alongside, 
 through the clustering swarm of barges, and was made 
 fast ahead and astern. An individual with a stentorian 
 voice, a pilot suit, mangy fur cap, and brick-red face 
 mounted the forecastle, bellowing out orders apparently 
 addressed to no one in particular. Their effect was at 
 once evident, however, for we began to move deliberately 
 away from the wharf, splitting the crowd of barges 
 asunder amid the sulphurous remarks of their attendants. 
 Once out into the comparatively clear centre of the dock, 
 we made good progress until the last lock was reached ; 
 but there we came to a full stop. As yet none of the 
 crew had arrived, the vessel being handled by a shore- 
 gang so far After about a quarter of an hour's delay, 
 during which the captain and pilot exhausted their 
 vocabulpi-y in abuse of the laggards, the latter hove in 
 sight, convoyed by a motley crowd of tailor's "runners," 
 boarding-masters, and frowsy looking women. 
 
 They made a funny little group. The sailors were in 
 that happy state when nothing matters — least of all the 
 discounter of an advance-note ; hence the bodyguard of 
 interested watchers, who would leave no stone unturned 
 to see that their debtors went in the ship, although, being 
 under the vigilant eyes of the police, they dared not 
 resort to violent means. The ladies, possessing but a 
 
MY FIRST SHIP, 7 
 
 fast-fading interest in outward bounders, were probably 
 in evidence more from slackness of business than any 
 more sentimental cause. But having cajoled or coerced 
 Jack to the pierhead^ be seemed unpersuadable to tho 
 final step of getting aboard. Again and again a sailor 
 would break lose and canter waveringly shoreward, only 
 to be at once surrounded by his escort and hurriedly 
 hauled back again. At last, exasperated beyond en- 
 durance by the repetition of these aimless antics, the 
 skipper sprang ashore followed by the pilot. Bursting 
 in upon the squabbling crowd, they seized upon a couple 
 of the maudlin mariners, hurling them on board as if 
 they had been made of rubber. With like vigour the 
 rest were embarked, their " dunnage " flung after them ; 
 tho warps were immediately let go, and the ship began 
 to move ahead. 
 
 Outside the dock-gate a larger tug was waiting in 
 readiness to hook on as soon as we emerged, and tow 
 us down the river. With a final shove, accompanied 
 by a stifling belch of greasy smoke, our sooty satellite 
 shook herself free of us, retreating hastily within the 
 basin again, while, obedient to the increasing strain on 
 our hawser ahead, we passed rapidly out into the 
 crowded stream. 
 
 During the uneventful trip the shore-gang, under 
 the direction of Mr. Svensen and the second mate (who, 
 being also the carpenter, was always known as " Chips "), 
 worked indefatigably to get the decks clear for sea — 
 lashing spars, water-casks, boats, etc. But their efforts 
 were greatly hindered by the crew, who, not being suffi- 
 ciently drunk to lie still in the forecastle, persisted in 
 tumbling continually about the decks, offering assistance 
 while getting in everybody's way. In vain were they 
 
8 THE LOO OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 repeatedly conducted to their dog-hole ; no sooner were 
 they left than they were out again, until the hard-work- 
 ing ** lumpers " were ready to jump on them with rage. 
 Meanwhile I grew so weary of standing about 
 that I was quite grateful when Chips ordered me to 
 fetch him a marlinespike. What ho wanted I had 
 not the slightest idea; but, unwilling to confess such 
 ignorance, I ran forward and asked a labourer who 
 was stowing the cable. He told me that it was a 
 pointed bar of iron with a hole at one end for a 
 lanyard to hang it round the neck by, adding that I 
 should find some in the fo'lk'sle, " right forrard in the 
 eyes of her." Away I went into the thick darkness 
 of the men's dirty cave, groping my way into its inner- 
 most recesses among the bags, chests, and beds with 
 which the deck was bestrewn. Reaching the farthest 
 corner, I felt a great bundle of something upon what 
 I took for a shelf, which barred my further search. 
 Tugging heartily at it to get it out of my way, I 
 suddenly felt it move ! I did not wait to investigate, 
 but floundered back on deck again almost witless from 
 fright. Breathlessly I reported to Chips my discovery, 
 which brought him quickly to the spot with a light. 
 Sure enough there was a sea-bag, about six feet long, 
 stuffed full — the draw-string tightly closing the mouth. 
 As soon as it was touched, there was a movement 
 within. Its contents were evidently alive. Chips and 
 his assistant promptly muzzled the bag, dragging it out 
 on deck, and, casting the cord adrift, turned it bottom 
 upwards. Out there tumbled, head foremost, a lanky 
 nigger-lad, who had been missing since the previous 
 morning and given up as having deserted. On being 
 questioned as to the meaning of this freak, he humbly 
 
MY Fin ST SHIP. 9 
 
 explained that, despairing of ever getting warm again, 
 he had put on his entire wardrobe, lain down in his 
 hunlr, and crept into his bag, managing somehow to 
 draw the string tight over his head; that he had been 
 there ever since, and was likely to have died there, 
 since he could not get his arms up again to let himself 
 out. He was dismissed to work with a grim promise 
 of being warmed in an altogether different fashion if he 
 was again guilty of skulking. 
 
 Upon arrival at Gravesend we anchored; the tre- 
 mendous racket made by the cable rushing over the 
 windlass giving me a great fright. I thought the 
 bottom of the ship had fallen out. The tug departed 
 for a berth close at hand, the pilot and shore-gang 
 leaving us in a wherry. I looked longingly after them 
 as they went, for I felt strangely that the last link 
 connecting me with England was now broken, and, 
 although I had not a single soul ashore to regret me, 
 or one corner that I could think of as home, there was 
 sufficient sadness in the thought of leaving the land of 
 my birth to bring to my eyes a few unaccustomed tears. 
 
 Fortunately the cook, a worn-out seaman, who, in 
 common with most vessels of that class, we carried 
 for the double duty of cook and steward, was now sober 
 enough to get supper ready. In the emphatic sea- 
 phrase, he " Couldn't boil salt water without burning 
 it;" but, as nobody expected anything different, that 
 passed without comment. My regular duties now 
 began : my uncle, the captain, giving me my first lesson 
 in laying the table sea-fashion, showing me wdiere to 
 find the gear, and so on. The curious atmospheric 
 compound below was appreciably improved, but still 
 there was a prismatic halo round the swinging lamp. 
 
10 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 The skipper and his two officers took no notice of it, 
 seeming quite at their ease as they silently ate their 
 Immhle meal, though I got a racking headache. Supper 
 over, I ^Yas ordered to "Clear away the wreck," and 
 get my own meal in the pantry : a sort of little-ease in 
 a corner of the cuddy, wherein a man might successfully 
 block all the crockery from falling out by inserting his 
 body in its midst. Hungry as I was, I could not eat 
 there, but stealthily seized the opportunity, as soon as 
 the skipper had retired to his state-room, to flee forrard 
 to the galley with the cook. His domain consisted of 
 an erection about six feet square, with sliding doors on 
 either side, which was lashed firmly down to ring-bolts 
 in the deck. A coaMocker ran across it at the back, its 
 lid forming a seat. Between it and the stove there was 
 just room to turn, while most of the cooking utensils — 
 no great store — had permanent positions on the range. 
 
 Here, by the dim flicker of an antique contrivance 
 of a lamp like a handleless teapot — the wick sticking 
 out of the spout and giving almost as much smoke as 
 flame, — I spent quite a pleasant hour with the ancient 
 mariner who ruled there, eating a hearty supper of 
 biscuit and tea. Ho was not in the best of spirits, for 
 the drink was dying out of him; but bis garrulous, 
 inconsequent talk amused me mightily. At last, feeling 
 that I might be wanted, I returned to the cabin, where 
 I found the captain and Chips making melody with 
 their snores ; Mr. Svensen being on deck keeping watch, 
 for which none of the crew were yet available. And, 
 finding no other corner wherein I might creep, I made 
 just such a lair as a dog might, in the liutch that held 
 my scanty stock of clothing, and, crav/ling into it, was 
 soon in the land of perfect peace. 
 
( 11 ) 
 
 CIIArTEPv II. 
 
 OUTWARD-BOUND. 
 
 Something banging at the bulkhead close to my ear 
 aroused me from a deep sleep in great alarm. The hole 
 in which I lay was so pitchy dark that, oven when I 
 realized where I was, which took some little time, 
 I fumbled fruitlessly about for several minutes before 
 I finally extricated myself. "When at last I stood 
 upright on the cuddy-deck, I saw the captain seated 
 at the table writing. He looked up and growled, 
 "Now then, look lively! Didn't you hear, 'Man the 
 windlass '5'" Alas! I knew no more what he meant 
 than as if he had spoken in Hebrew; but I gathered 
 somehow that I ought to be on deck. Up I scrambled 
 into a bitter, snow-laden north-east wind and darkness 
 that, but for the strange sheen of the falling flakes, 
 was almost Egyptian. Shivering as much with queer 
 apprehensions as with cold, I hurried forrard, whore 
 I found the mate and Chips hard at work getting the 
 hands out of the fo'lk'sle, and up on top of it, to where 
 the two gaunt levers of the windlass made a blacker 
 streak in the prevailing darkness. Tumbling up against 
 Jem, the darky, he said, as well as his chattering teeth 
 would allow, " Specs yo gotter haul back chain longer 
 
12 TUE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 me, boy; yars a hook fer yer," — putting into my hand, 
 as he spoke, a long iron hook with a cross-handle. 
 Then, when at last the half-dead sailors began to work 
 the levers, and the great clumsy windlass revolved, Jem 
 and I hooked on to the massive links of the cable, dragging 
 it away from the barrel and ranging it in long flakes 
 beside the fore-hatch. Every few fathoms, when the 
 chain had worked its way right across the barrel, and 
 the turns were beginning to jam one another up against 
 the bitt, Jem called out, " Fleet, oh !" Then a couple of 
 men descended from Mount Misery and hooked i« mighty 
 iron claw, which was secured by a stout chain to the bitfc, 
 on to the cable before the windlass. This held the 
 whole weight while the turns of chain were loosed and 
 laboriously lifted back to the other end of the windlass- 
 barrel again. When thick with mud, so that each link 
 was movQ like a badly made raw brick than aught else, 
 this primitive performance was an uncouth job, and 
 I could imagine many pleasantcr occupations. 
 
 Two o'clock on a winter's morning, struggling with 
 mud-besmeared masses of iron, upon a footing so greasy 
 that standing was a feat, hungry and sleepy withal, 
 there was little romance about this business. At last 
 the mate bawled, " She's short, sir ! " and told the men 
 to *' 'Vast heavin'." Out of the gloom around the tug- 
 boat emerged, coming close alongside to receive her 
 end of the big rope by which she was to drag us out 
 to sea. No sooner was it fast than a strange voice aft 
 — the Channel pilot's — roared out, "Heave right up, sir ! " 
 "Aye, aye, sir!" answered the mate. "Heave 'way, 
 boys ! " The clatter of the pawls recommenced, con- 
 tinuing until the anchor was as high as it would come. 
 The subsequent "catting" and "fishing" of the big 
 
OUTWARD-BOUND. 13 
 
 *' mud-hook " was all a confused dream to me. All 
 I knew was that I had to sit down and pull at a rope 
 which was wound round a capstan by the steady tramp 
 of the crew, of whom one would occasionally growl at 
 me to mind my " surge," and I would feel a jerk at my 
 rope that shook me up dreadfully. It seemed an 
 intorminablo job ; but, like everything else, came to an 
 end at last. The mate now walked aft, ordering Jem 
 and my small self to coil ropes up and clear away 
 generally. But he called out almost immediately, ** All 
 hands lay aft to muster ! " The whole crowd slouched 
 aft, grouping themselves at the break of the poop, where 
 a sort of elevated deck began just before the mizzenmast. 
 Each individual's name was now read out and answered 
 to as announced. I found that there were six able 
 seamen, and the nigger-boy, Jem, '* foremast hands." 
 The captain, mate, Chips, cook, and myself formed 
 the " afterguard." 
 
 The " crowd " were now divided into watches, the 
 mate having first pick for the port watch, and getting 
 Jem over. This ceremony concluded, the word was 
 passed to "Pump ship." Several grumbling comments 
 were made on the " one-arm sailor " pumps : a mean, 
 clumsy contrivance, only fit for the smallest vessels, 
 requiring twice the exertion for half the result obtain- 
 able from any of the late patents. But the amazement 
 and disgust of the fellows can hardly be imagined when, 
 after half an hour's vigorous " Clankety, clankety, 
 clankety, bang ! " — three strokes and a pause as the 
 fashion is — there was no sign of a " suck." A burly 
 Yorkshireman, leaning up against the brake to mop his 
 
 brow, said, "Well, boys, if this old scow ain't just 
 
 sprung a leak, or bin left fur 'bout a mouth thout pumpin*, 
 
14 THE LOa OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 we're in for a fine thing ov it." Thero was hardly 
 
 any intelligible response, they all seemed choking with 
 rage and curses. However, they sucked her out, and 
 then the big man asked Chips quietly whether that 
 ** spell " was usual. Chips assured him that she had not 
 been baled out for a long time, and that she would 
 certainly *'take up" in a day or two. Oil on the 
 troubled waters, but very risky, for ho had only just 
 joined himself; nor did he know anything of the old 
 tub's previous record. 
 
 Meanwhile the cook, or "doctor," as his sea-sobriquet 
 is, had been busy making coffee. Unlike any beverage 
 called by that name ashore, even the funny mixture 
 sold at a halfpenny a cup at street corners being quite 
 luxurious in comparison with it, yet it was a godsend — 
 boiling hot, with plenty of sugar in it — to those poor 
 wretches with the quenchless thirst of many day's 
 indulgence in the vilest liquor making thrir throats 
 like furred old drain-pipes. It calmed the rising storm, 
 ])esides doing them a vast amount of physical good. 
 I was at once busy supplying the wants of the officers, 
 to whom the refreshment was heartily welcome. All 
 the time, we were ploughing steadily along behind the 
 strenuous tug at a greater rate than ever I saw the old 
 barky go afterwards. (I have omitted to mention that 
 we were bound for Demerara with a general cargo, 
 but our subsequent destination was not settled yet.) 
 All hands were allowed a pretty long spell of rest, with 
 the exception of the man at the wheel, and one on the 
 look-out, because, until we were well out, sail would have 
 been more hindrance than help. The wind increased as 
 we got farther down, until, as we passed out of the river, 
 quite a sea was rising, to which the old hooker began H 
 
OUTWARD-BOUND. 15 
 
 bob and curtsey like a country girl looking for a situation. 
 The relentless tug, however, tore her through the fast- 
 rising waves, making them break over the bows in heavy 
 spray. This was uncomfortable, but the motion was far 
 worse. All the horrors of sea-sickness came suddenly 
 upon me, and, like an ailing animal, I crept into a corner 
 on the main-hatch under the long-boat, wishing for 
 oblivion. Bea-sickness is a theme for jesting, no doubt, 
 but those who have suffered from it much, know how 
 little room there is for laughter at such suffering— suffer- 
 ing too for which, at the time, there seems no hope of 
 allf^viation except the impossible one of the motion 
 
 ceasmg. 
 
 From that morning for several days I remained m 
 this miserable condition, not caring a pin's point whether 
 I lived or died, nor, with the sole exception of the negro, 
 Jem, did any one else on board seem to give me oiic 
 moment's thought. Not that I would lightly accuse 
 them of cruelty or callous indifference to suffering; but, 
 being all fully occupied with their work, they had little 
 leisure to attend to a seasick urchin that was of small 
 use at his best. However, poor black Jem never forgot 
 me, and, although he had nothing likely to tempt my 
 appetite, he always brought his scanty moals to where I 
 lay helpless under the long-boat, trying in various quaint 
 ways to coax me into a returning interest in life. 
 Fortunately for me, the wind held in a quarter that 
 enabled the ship to get out of the Channel fairly soon, 
 considering her limitations, and, once across the dreaded 
 stretch of the Bay of Biscay, she speedily ran into fine 
 weather and smoother seas. 
 
 When I did eventually find my sea-legs, and resumed 
 my duties in the cabin, I was received with no good 
 
16 TEE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF, 
 
 grace by my uncle or the doctor. The latter had, indeed, 
 special cause to feel himself aggrieved, since he had 
 borne the burden of double duty during my illness : a 
 hardship which he was a long time in forgetting. But 
 she was an unhappy ship. The skipper held aloof from 
 everybody, hardly holding converse with the mate. He 
 even kept the ship's reckoning alone, not accepting the 
 mate's assistance in taking the sun for the longitude in 
 the morning, but doing it all himself after a fashion of 
 his own, so that the chief officer was as ignorant of the 
 vessel's true position as I was. Then the food, both 
 forrard and aft, was, in addition to being strictly on the 
 abominable oflicial scale which is a disgrace to a civilized 
 country, of so unspeakably vile a quality that it was 
 hardly fit to give to well-reared pigs. I have often seen 
 the men break up a couple of biscuits into a pot of cofi'ee 
 for their breakfast, and, after letting it stand a minute or 
 two, skim off the accumulated scum of vermin from the 
 top — maggots, weevils, etc. — to the extent of a couple of 
 table-spoonsful, before they could shovel the mess into 
 their craving stomachs. Enough, however, for the 
 present on the food-question, which, being one of the 
 prime factors in a sailor's life, must continually be 
 cropping up. 
 
 The bleak, biting edge of the winter weather was 
 now gone, the steady north-easterly breeze blew mild 
 and kindly, while from an almost cloudless heaven the 
 great sun beamed benignantly — his rays not yet so fierce 
 as to cause any discomfort. My sensations on first dis- 
 covering that no land was visible, that we seemed the 
 solitary centre of an immense blue circle, whose sharply 
 defined circumference was exactly joined to the vast 
 azure dome overhsad, were those of utter loneliness and 
 
OUTWARD-BOUND. 17 
 
 terror. For I knew nothing of the ways of navigators 
 across this pathless plain, nor realized any of the verities 
 of the subject set forth in the few books I had read. 
 School learning I had none. Had there been any one 
 to whom I could have gone for information, without 
 fearing a brutal repulse, I should doubtless have felt less 
 miserable ; but, as it was, use alone gradually reconciled 
 me to the solemn silence of the illimitable desert around. 
 At rare intervals vessels appeared, tiny flecks of white 
 upon the mighty waste, which only served to emphasize 
 its immensity as the solitary light of a taper does the 
 darkness of some huge hall. 
 
 But the sea itself was full of interest. Of course I 
 had little leisure ; but what I had was spent mostly in 
 hanging spell-bound over the side, gazing with ever- 
 growing wonder and delight upon this marvellous world 
 of abounding life. This early acquired habit never left 
 me, for, many years afterwards, when second mate of one 
 of our finest passenger clippers, I enjoyed nothing so 
 much as to pass an hour of my watch below, seated far 
 out ahead of the ship by the martingale, gazing down 
 into the same beautiful sea. 
 
 There were no books on board or reading matter of 
 any kind, except the necessary works on navigation on the 
 captain's shelf; so it was just as well that I could take 
 some interest in our surroundings, if I was not to die 
 mentally as most of the sailors seemed to have done. 
 As I got better acquainted with them, even daring to pay 
 stolen visits to thoir darksome home in timorous defiance 
 of the stern orders of my uncle, I found, to my amaze- 
 meut, that they could tell me nothing of what I wanted 
 to know. Their kindness often went the length of invent- 
 ing fabulous rephes to my eager questions, ])ut they 
 
18 THE LOa OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 seemed totally ignorant of anything connected with the 
 wonders of the ocean. 
 
 The days slipped rapidly away, until we entered the 
 Sargasso Sea, that strange vortex in the middle of the 
 Atlantic. It was on a Sunday morning, when, according 
 to custom, no work was a-doing, except for the doctor and 
 mo. Even our duties were less exacting than usual ; so 
 that I "was able to snatch many a short spell of gazing 
 overside at the constantly increasing masses of Gulf- 
 weed that, in all its delicate beauty of branch and bud, 
 came brushing past our sides. That afternoon the sea, 
 as far as eye could reach, bore no bad resemblance to a 
 ripe hayfield, the weed covering the water in every 
 direction, with hardly a patch of blue amid the pre- 
 vailing yellow. Before the light trade-wind we were 
 hardly able to make any headway through the invest- 
 ing vegetation, which overlaid the waves so heavily that 
 the surface was smooth as a millpond. Through the 
 bewildering mazes of that aquatic forest roved an 
 innumerable multitude of fish of every shape, size, and 
 hue, while ihe branches themselves swarmed with 
 Crustacea, so that a draw-bucket full of weed would have 
 furnished quite a large-sized aquarium with a sufficiently 
 varied population. I could have wished the day forty- 
 eight hours long; but I was the only one on board that 
 derived any pleasure from the snail-like progress wo 
 made. The captain's vexation showed itself in many 
 w^ays, but mostly in inciting Chips to order various 
 quite uncalled-for jobs of pulling and hauling, which 
 provoked the watch so much that there was a continual 
 rumble of bad language and growling. Even the twenty 
 minutes* spell at the pumps, which, from its regularity 
 every two hours, now passed almost unnoticed, was this 
 
OUTWABD-BOUND. 19 
 
 afternoon the signal for a great deal of outspoken and 
 unfavourable comment upon the characters of ship, 
 owner, and captain. The latter gentleman paced his 
 small domain with uncertain tread, as usual ; but the 
 glitter in his eye, and the set of his heavily bearded lips, 
 showed how sorely he was tempted to retaliate. But he 
 prudently forbore, well aware of his helplessness in case 
 of an outbreak, as well as being forced to admit full 
 justification for the bitter remarks that were so freely 
 indulged in. 
 
 Indeed, it was a serious question how long the 
 present peace would last. The rigging was dropping 
 to pieces ; so that a man never knew, when he went 
 aloft, whether he would not come crashing down by the 
 run, from the parting of a rotten footrope or a perished 
 seizing. The sails were but rags, worn almost to the 
 thinness of muslin, every flap threatening to strip them 
 from the yards. There was no material for repairs, no 
 new rope, canvas, or "seizing-stuff;" half a barrel of 
 Stockholm tar, and a few pieces of old "junk " for sennit 
 and spunyarn, representing all the boatswain's stores on 
 board. In fact, the absence of all those necessaries, 
 which are to be found on board the most poverty- 
 stricken of ships, for their bare preservation in service- 
 able condition, was a never-failing theme of discussion 
 in the folksle. And one conclusion was invariably 
 arrived at, albeit the avenues of talk by which it was 
 reached were as tortuous and inconsequent as could 
 well be. It was the grim one that the Arabella was 
 never intended to return. This thought tinctured all 
 the men's ideas, embittered their lives, and made the 
 most ordinary everyday tasks seem a burden almost too 
 f^rievous to be borne. 
 
20 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 Had it not been for the overwhelming evidence that 
 the condition of the afterguard was almost as miserable 
 as their own, the abject humility of the mate, in spite 
 of his really good seamanship, and the hail-fellow-well- 
 met way in which Chips confessed his utter ignorance 
 of all sailorizing whatever, I very much doubt whether 
 there would not have been a mutiny before we were a 
 fortnight out. But as the villainous food and incessant 
 pumping were not aggravated by bullying and ** working 
 up," matters jolted along without any outbreak. Born 
 as I was under an unlucky star, my insignificance 
 nearly overthrew the peace that was so precariously 
 kept. The deadly dulness of the cabin was so stifling, 
 that I felt as if I should die there in the long, dreary 
 evenings between supper and bunk. Nothing to read, 
 nobody to speak to, nothing to do, and forbidden with 
 threats to go forrard among the men — that I should 
 transgress sooner or later was a certainty. I took to 
 creeping forrard oftener and more openly, because no 
 detection followed, until a sharp rope's- ending from my 
 uncle brought me up ** with a round turn," as the 
 sailor says. By this time I had become rather a 
 favourite forrard, as well as something of a toy, being 
 very small for my age and precocious as might be 
 expected from my antecedents. One man especially — 
 Joe, the big Yorkshireman — became strongly attached 
 to me, endeavouring to teach me thoroughly the rudi- 
 ments of sailorizing. This was at considerable sacrifice 
 of his own time, which, as he was an ardent model- 
 maker, was sufficient proof of his liking for me. 
 
 Now I was almost destitute of clothing, and what 
 little I did possess I was rapidly growing out of. So 
 the next day after my disciplinary castigation, Joe 
 
OUTWAIiD-BOUND, 21 
 
 walked aft in his watch below demanding audience of 
 the skipper. There was an unpleasant scowl on the 
 old man's face, as he came on deck to see the audacious 
 man, that boded ill for the applicant in any case. But 
 when Joe boldly tackled him for a bit of light canvas 
 whereof he might make me a **Cunarder" (a sort of 
 habergeon) and a pair of trousers, the skipper's face 
 grew black with rage. The insult, all the grosser for 
 its truth, was too obvious. When he found his tongue, 
 he burst into furious abuse of Joe for daring to come 
 aft on such an errand. Joe, being no lamb, replied 
 with interest, to the delight of his fellows, who strolled 
 aft as far as the mainmast to hear the fun. This 
 unseemly wrangle, so subversive of all order or discipline, 
 lasted for about ten minutes, during which time I stood 
 shivering at the foot of the cabin ladder in dread of the 
 sequel. Finally the old man, unable to endure any 
 more, roared, *'Get forrard or I'll shoot ye, ye d — d 
 ugly thief of a sea-lawyer ! I'll have ye by the heels 
 yet, an' w'en I do ye'U think Jemmy Smallback's 
 gruppin* ye ! " With this parting shot he turned on 
 his heel without waiting the retort discourteous that 
 promptly followed, descending abruptly into the cabin 
 with the ironical cheers of the dehghted crew ringing 
 unmelodiously in his ears. 
 
 Under such provocation it was little wonder that 
 I paid for all. It must have been balm to my relative's 
 wounded pride to rope's-end me ; at any rate, he did 
 so with a completeness that left nothing to be desired. 
 And, in order to avenge himself fully, he closed our 
 interview by kicking me forrard, daring me, at the 
 same time, ever to defile his cabin again with my 
 mischief-making presence under pain of neck-twisting. 
 
22 THE LOG OF A SEA-WATF. 
 
 Of course I was received iu the fo'lk'sle with open 
 arms. My reception went far to mollify my sore back, 
 for the seclusion of the cabin had grown so hateful, 
 that I would willingly have purchased my freedom from it 
 with several such coltings as I had endured, not to speak 
 of the honour of being welcomed as a sort of martyr. 
 Before long I owned quite a respectable rig-out, made 
 up, by the dexterity of Joe, from all sorts of odds and 
 ends contributed by all hands at a tarpaulin muster. 
 Now each man vied with the other in teaching me all 
 they knew of their business, and I was such an apt 
 pupil that, in a short time, they were able to boast that 
 there was no knot or splice known to seafarers, that I 
 was not capable of making in sailor fashion. Being no 
 olimbist, as might be expected from an urchin born and 
 bred in London streets, getting used to the rigging was 
 unpleasant at first ; but that was mastered in its turn, 
 until nothing remained unlearned but the helm. The 
 one aim, apparently, of every man forrard was to eo 
 fit me for the w^ork I might be called upon to do, as 
 that no excuse might be found for cruelty of any sort. 
 Whether I had the ability to meet his demands or not, 
 it did not seem prudent for the old man to try his hand 
 on me again in the colting line, and I went gaily enough 
 on my progressive way. 
 
( 23 
 
 criArTER III. 
 
 ArjUVAL AT DEMERARA. 
 
 If all sea-voyages were like the usual passage to the 
 West Indies, except for an occasional nasty spell of 
 weather in the English Channel, the sailor's life would 
 be a very easy one. Day succeeds day under the same 
 limpid blue sky fringed at the horizon with a few tufts 
 of woolly cumuli. Placid as a sheltered lake, every 
 wavelet melting into its fellow like a caress> the 
 sapphire sea greets the gazer every morning like a 
 glad smile of unfathomable love. Beautiful beyond 
 description is the tender tropical sea, and hard indeed 
 it is to realize that this same delightsome expanse of 
 inexpressible loveliness can ever become the unappeas- 
 able destroyer, before whose wrath even the deep-rooted 
 islands seem to shake. 
 
 The nights rival the days. During the absence of the 
 moon tho blue-black vault appears like a robe of imperial 
 purple, besprent with innumerable diamonds of a lustre 
 unknown to earth's feeble gems. So brilliant is the 
 radiance of the heavenly host that even the unassisted 
 eye can detect the disc of Venus or Jupiter, while the 
 twin streams of the Galaxy literally glow with diffused 
 light, suggesting unutterable glories in their unthinkable 
 depths. And up from the horizon towards the zenith, 
 with clear yet indefinite outline, as of the uplifted finger 
 
24 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 of God, rises the mysterious conical flame-sliadow of 
 the Zodiacal Light. Under such a sky the sea seems 
 to emulate the starry vault above, for in its darkling 
 depths there is a marvellous display of gleaming corusca- 
 tions. In the foam churned up by the vessel's bows 
 they sparkle and glitter incessantly, while in her wake, 
 where the liquid furrow still eddies and whirls from 
 the passing of the keel, there are a myriad dancing 
 lights of every size and degree of brilliancy. Like a 
 bevy of will-o'-the-wisps they sport and whirl, glow 
 and fade — never still, never alike, yet always lovely. 
 
 But when the full-orbed moon in a moHen glow of 
 purest silver, before which the eye shrinks almost with 
 pain, traverses the purple concave as a conquering 
 queen escorted by her adoring subjects, the night 
 becomes a sweeter, softer day, in which men may sit 
 at ease reading or working Ai* fancy dictates. They 
 dare not sleep in that white glare, lest with distorted 
 features and sightless eyeballs, they vainly regret their 
 careless disregard of the pale beam's power. And as the 
 stately satellite settles slowly horizonwards, or ascends 
 majestically towards the zenith, how dazzling the mile- 
 wide pathway of shimmering radiance she sheds along 
 the face of the doep ! The whalers, with more poetic 
 feeling than one would expect, call it the "moon-glade," 
 as though she must needs spread a savannah of splendour 
 for her solemn progress over the waste of ocean. 
 
 Here, perhaps, I should pause to disarm criticism, 
 if possible. Such thoughts as I have feebly tried to 
 express were undoubtedly mine in those youthful days, 
 in spite of squalid surroundings and brutal upbringing. 
 And if I could fairly reproduce the multitude of fancies 
 which throng my memory as being the daily attendants 
 
ARRIVAL AT DEMERARA. 25 
 
 of my boyish daydreams, I should fear no unfavourable 
 reception of such a book as they would make. 
 
 But to our voyage. Coming on deck one morning 
 soon after daylight, I was startled to notice that the 
 bright blue of the sea was gone. In its place a turbid 
 leaden flood without a sparkling wavelet extended all 
 around. I asked the doctor what this strange change 
 meant. ** Gettin' near land, I s'pose ! " was his gruff 
 reply. Nor did I get any other explanation from the 
 men, for none of them knew that we were in fresh water, 
 which, rushing down to the sea from many mighty 
 rivers, overlaid the heavier salt flood for a great distance 
 from land. We did not sight the lightship Demerara 
 until next day at noon, although we were going at fully 
 five knots an hour. Behind it the low palm-fringed coast 
 lay like a sullen black cloud-bank just appearing above 
 the horizon, for in truth it was almost level with the sea. 
 Thicker and dirtier grew the water, until, as we passed 
 the light-vessel, we seemed to be sailing in a sea of mud. 
 Between her and the shore we anchored for the night and 
 to await the coming of the pilot ; thus closing our outward 
 passage, which might have been as successfully performed 
 in an open boat, so steadily fine had we found the weather. 
 
 "What a strange sensation is that of first inhaling the 
 breeze from a foreign shore ! I stood on the forecastle 
 that evening, hardly able to realize that we had crossed 
 the Atlantic, full of queer feelings as the heavy sweet 
 scent of the tropical forest came floating languidly off 
 from that dim, dark line of land. There was a continual 
 chorus of insects, like a myriad crickets chirping, the 
 sharp, crisp notes curiously undcrtoned by the deep bass 
 of the sleepy line of surf upon the beach. But this 
 persistent music, by its unvarying monotony, soon 
 
26 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 became inaudible, or acted as a lallal»y to which we all 
 Biiccumbed excei)t the anchor- watch. 
 
 Shortly after daylight a large canoe came alongside, 
 manned by negroes, bearing a pompous-looking negro 
 pilot in what he, no doubt, took to be a very swell 
 costume of faded serge, surmounted by a huge straw 
 hat. lie mounted the side by the man-ropes, with 
 the air of a conqueror. As he stepped over the rail 
 with a ludicrous assumption of importance, he said, 
 patronizingly, *' Good mawnin', cap'n, hope you'so 
 berry well, sah?" ** Mornin', pilot, same t* you," 
 curtly answered the old man ; and, in almost the 
 Fame breath, " Dy'e think there's water 'nough on 
 the bar frus ? We're drawin' fourteen feet aft." 
 "Neb' mine 'bout dat, cap'n; dat'll be all right. Ise 
 bcttin' big money dis yah packet gwine beat 'nuff 
 watah 'head ob her ter float in er linerbattle ship. 
 Gorbress my sole, cf I ebber see sich er front ecnd on er 
 craf in my days. Wasser name? de Avk doan' it? 
 ha ! ha ! ha ! " — and he threw back his head, laughing 
 80 capaciously that the broad, glistening range of his 
 teeth illuminated his coal-black visage like a shutter 
 flung suddenly open to the sun. But the old man 
 looked sour. Such jeering at his command by a nigger 
 was in some sort a reflection on himself, and, thence- 
 forward, he held no more converse with our sable guide 
 than was necessary for the working of the ship. 
 
 Wo were soon under way, tbough poor Jem and 
 myself got in a disgusting condition of mud by the time 
 the anchor was up. The fo'lk'sle, too, from the fact of 
 the cable running through it, was like a neglected sewer, 
 the blocks of foul-smelling mud dropping continually 
 from the links as they came in through the hawsepipes. 
 
An RIVAL AT DEMERARA. 27 
 
 All sail was loosed previously, but only the jib was set 
 until the anchor was out of the ground, when, humoured 
 by the helm, she turned kindly off the wind, gathering 
 way from its pressure on her broad stern, while the 
 ** mudhook " was hove right up. Then everything was 
 set that would draw, the wind being fair and strong ; but, 
 in spite of the favourable conditions, our progress against 
 the turbulent ebb of tlie great river was so slow that we 
 were the best part of the day going the few miles that 
 lay between the roadstead and the moorings. 
 
 But at last we reached the group of vessels which 
 lay off the business part of the town. With great skill 
 our pilot tried a *' flying moor," letting our anchor go 
 while we were forging ahead at a good rate, then imme- 
 diately clewing up all sail. By tlie time our way was 
 exhausted, about ninety fathoms had been paid out on 
 the first anchor. The second was then let go, its cable 
 being veered away as the first one was hove in, until an 
 equal amount was out on each ; both were then hove in 
 till the moorings were taut, and the vessel swung almost 
 on a pivot. This i?, a ticklish evolution to perform suc- 
 cessfully in a crowdod anchorage ; but, in our case, the 
 result was entirely satisfactory, saving much labour. 
 
 The sails being furled and decks cleared up, work 
 ceased for the da}'. The curious appearance of the wide 
 verandahed houses embowered in strange-looking trees, 
 the assortment of vessels of all rigs — from the smart 
 Yankee schooner to the stately iron coolie- ship from 
 Calcutta, the muddy rushing river — all claimed atten- 
 tion, but for one attraction that outweighed them all. 
 Waiting alongside were two or throe bumboats well 
 Btocked with fruit, soft-tack, eggs, and such curios as a 
 Bailor might be supposed to covet. I had seen such 
 
28 THE LOa OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 fruit before, on the other side of plate-glass windows in 
 the West End of London, or in the avenue at Covent 
 Garden, but never in such generous profusion as now. 
 One boat especially was laden to the gunwale with 
 giant bunches of crimson bananas, each fruit treble 
 the size of ordinary ones ; baskets of golden mangoes, 
 green limes, luscious-looking oranges flecked with green, 
 and clusters of immature cocoa-nuts : the kind that only 
 contain sweet juice and delicate jelly within a soft shell 
 covered by husk as easy to cut as a turnip. PeoiDle 
 accustomed to regular meals of decent food cannot 
 imagine how the sight of these dainties affected our ill- 
 used stomachs. Happily there was little delay in 
 choosing our purveyor, who promptly hoisted great part 
 of his stock on deck for us to choose from. In virtue 
 of being the only person in the fo'lk'sle who could wTite, 
 I was appointed book-keeper, ray remuneration being a 
 fair proportion of the good things withou- payment. In 
 reply to eager inquiries, the bumboatman declared that 
 he had no rum, saying that he very well understood the 
 unwritten law prohibiting the supply of intoxicants by 
 the bumboats, and assuring the men that if he were 
 detected breaking it, he would forfeit his license as well 
 as all payment for goods he had supplied on credit. 
 
 We were a happy company that evening. A plentiful 
 meal after such long abstinence put every one in good 
 spirits, although there was much wishing for the cup 
 that both cheers and inebriates. In spite of this want, 
 joviality was the order of the night. Song and dance 
 went merrily round, at which the two darkey boat-boys, 
 hired by the skipper to take him backwards and for- 
 wards to the shore, assisted with great glee. Their fun 
 was spontaneous and side-splitting, seeming superior to 
 
ABRIVAL AT DEMEEARA. 29 
 
 all external influences — a well of continual merriment 
 bubbling up. Song, quip, and practical joke followed 
 one another incessantly, with all the thoughtless abandon 
 of happy children, and mirthful enjoyment thnt might 
 have thawed an anchorite. All the pent-up laughter 
 of the passage burst out that evening, the first really 
 jolly one I had ever spent. 
 
 At daylight all hands were busy rigging cargo-gear, 
 for our lading was long overdue. The discharging-gang 
 of negroes were early on board, awaiting only our 
 preparations to begin their work. They were akin to 
 the boat-boys in their behaviour. Poor, even to the 
 most utter raggedncss of the sacking most of them were 
 covered with — hunger-bitten, for all the provision brought 
 by the majority was a tiny loaf, and about two ounces 
 of sugar each — they were yet full to the lips with sheer 
 animal delight of living. Some, the haughty aristocrats 
 of the party, proudly displayed fragments of salt fish 
 or rusty-looking salt pork, flanked by a green plantain, 
 a coco, or chunk of wooden-looking yam ; but though 
 these favoured ones were evidently stuck up, their poorer 
 brethren showed no envy. Their pay was the equivalent 
 of one shilling per day, which, as the price of food 
 was high, except for a very few local products, must 
 have been all too little to keep hunger at bay. Yet, 
 when they got to work, how they did go at it ! They 
 seemed to revel in the labour, although the incessant 
 singing they kept up ought to have taken most of their 
 breath. Streaming with sweat, throv/ing their bodies 
 about in sheer wantonness of exuberant strength as they 
 hoisted the stuff out of the hold, they sometimes grew 
 60 excited by the improvisations of the " chantey man," 
 who sat on the corner of the hatch solely employed in 
 
30 
 
 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 leading the singing, that often, while for a minute awaiting 
 the next hoist, they would fling themselves into fantastic 
 contortions, keeping time to the music. There was douht- 
 Icss great waste of energy ; but there was no slackness of 
 work or need of a driver. Here is just one specimen of 
 their songs ; but no pen could do justice to the vigour, 
 the intonatioi-' and the ahamlon of the delivery thereof. 
 
 :i 
 
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 CUOBUS. 
 
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 CiioHrs. ^^ 
 
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 A 
 
 
 
 ^F 
 
 Gwineter git a home bime-by - e-high, G wineter Rit a home bime-by. 
 
 The rushing, muddy stream literally swarmed with 
 
AnRlVAL AT DEMERARA. 31 
 
 ground-sharks,, who sometimes came to the Rurface 
 with a rush, looking terribly dangerous. Yet the negroes 
 took but little heed of them, merely splashing a bit 
 before diving if they had occasion to go down and clear 
 some vessel's moorings. Sharks and cat-fish were the 
 only fish to be seen : neither of them available for eating. 
 Strange to say, the great heat troubled me very little. 
 Perhaps because, having for so long regarded cold as 
 one of the chief miseries of my life, the steady search- 
 ing warmth by night and day was grateful to my puny 
 body. At any rate, but that the bloodthirsty mosquitoes 
 and sandflies tormented me cruelly, as they did all 
 hands, the tropical climate suited me very well. It 
 may have been the healthy season too, for, as far as I 
 know, there was no illness on board any of the ships. 
 All our crew were in robust health, and putting on 
 flesh daily in consequence of the liberal diet. 
 
 I wanted much to go ashore, but dared not ask 
 leave ; but, to my astonishment, on Sunday afternoon 
 the mate told me to get ready and come ashore with 
 him. Glad as I was of the chance to see a little of 
 this strange land, I felt small gratification at the 
 prospect of being his companion; I v,'ould rather a 
 thousand times have gone with Joe. However, it being 
 Hobson's choice as well as dangerous to refuse, I rigged 
 myself up as best I could (a queer figure T made too), 
 got into the boat with my inviter, and away we went. 
 Landing at one of the ** sterlings," as the wharves are 
 locally named, we strolled up into the main street in 
 silence. It was a wide avenue with quite a river 
 running down the centre, and doubtless on weekdays 
 would have been very lively. But at this time it was 
 deserted, except by a few stray dogs and sleeping negroes. 
 
32 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF, 
 
 We trudged along without a word, till suddenly Mr. 
 Svensen hauled up at a grog-shop, the bar of which 
 was crowded with seafarers. Pressing through the 
 throng to the bar he called for some drink, and, meeting 
 a couple of his countrymen, entered at once into an 
 animated conversation with them in Norwegian. For 
 over an hour I waited impatiently, the air of the place 
 being stifling and the babel of tongues deafening. At 
 last, in desperation, I crept in behind him and attracted 
 his attention. He turned sharply upon me, saying, 
 "Veil, 'n yai joii vant?" "Please, sir," I humbly 
 replied, *' may I go an' have a look round ? " " Oh, co 
 to hell ef jou lige, I ton'd care. Only jou ked bag to 
 dcr poad pefoar sigs o'clog, or I be tamt ef I tond trown 
 jou coin' off — see! " "Thank you, sir," I said gratefully, 
 disappearing promptly before he had time to change 
 his mind. 
 
 What an afternoon I had, to be sure. I wandered 
 right out jf the town through tangled paths crowded on 
 cither side by the loveliest flowers growing wild I had 
 ever dreamed of. I was like a boy in a dream now, 
 except for that haunting reality " sigs o'clog." And, to 
 crown my pleasures, when I had strayed as far as I 
 dared, I came suddenly upon a pretty villa in an open 
 glade, the house itself being embowered in the most 
 gorgeous blossoms. I went up to the back of the premises 
 to beg a drink of water, which an amiable negress gave 
 me with a beaming smile, squeezing into it a fresh-fallen 
 lime with a large spoonful of white sugar. While I 
 drank, a dear little white boy about five years old came 
 running round the corner. When he saw me he stood 
 for a moment as if petrified with astonishment ; then, 
 recovering his wits, darted back again. A kindly-faced 
 
AliniVAL AT D EMEU ABA. 33 
 
 man in white, with a big brown beard, then appeared, 
 leading the httle one. After a few inquiries ho invited 
 me into the house to tea, treating me with so much 
 kindness that, between his attentions and those of his 
 beautiful, weary-looking wife, I was several times upon 
 llie point of bursting into tears. She plied m j with 
 questions, soon getting all my sorrowful little life-story 
 out of me ; and more than once I saw her furtively wipe 
 away a tear. The little son sat on my knee, great 
 friends with me at once ; and what with the good fare, 
 the pleasant talk, and the comfort of it all, I forgot 
 everything else in the world for a time. Suddenly I 
 caught sight of the clock — it was a quarter to six. I 
 must have looked terrified, for my host, Mr. Mackenzie, 
 asked me witli much solicitude whether I felt suddenly 
 ill. As soon as he heard the cause of my alarm ho left 
 the house, returning to the front in a minute or two 
 with a beautiful mule and a smart trap. I took a 
 hurried leave of my kind hostess and her child, pro- 
 mising to come again if I could ; and presently found 
 myself bowling along a level road at a great rate behind 
 the swift hybrid, who seemed to glide rather than trot. 
 Arriving at the boat, nearly half an hour late, we found 
 the mate not yet there, one of the boat-boys volunteering 
 the information that he was well drunk up at the rum- 
 mill. "That being so," said Mr. Mackenzie, "I will 
 see you on board." So we shoved off for the ship. 
 During our short transit I told my new friend how 
 matters siood between my uncle and myself, begging 
 him not to inadvertently make matters worse for me. 
 He promised to be discreet. We reached the ship and 
 climbed on board. I fled forrard on the instant, while 
 he interviewed the old man. Whatever passed between 
 
 D 
 
34 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF, 
 
 them in their few minutes' talk, I don't know ; I heard no 
 more of the affair. But I was never again allowed on 
 shore while I belonged to the Arabella. The mate came 
 on board quietly and turned in, no word reaching us 
 forrard of any trouble about his little flutter. 
 
( Sa ) 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 THE MUTINY AND AFTER. 
 
 It must bo confessed that during our stay in Demerara 
 the fellows had a pretty good time of it. Since there 
 were no stores on board of rope, paint, or canvas, the 
 work was mainly confined to washing decks or scrubbing 
 paintwork, a good deal of time also being wasted making 
 sennit, i,c. plaiting rope-yarns for chafing-gear. What 
 sailorizing was undertaken was in the nature of kill-time, 
 and well understood as such by the men. Nevertheless 
 they were by no means pleased with their easy times, for 
 they had not yet been able to get any drink ; their dis- 
 pleasure being heightened by the knowledge that the 
 mate had been ashore and got a skinful. Any one versed 
 in the ways of seamen should have known that mischief 
 was brewing, even though no definite plan of action hiid 
 yet been discussed. It only wanted a bottle or two of 
 rum to fire the magazine. 
 
 At last liberty day drew nigh. The cargo was all 
 out, the ballast all in, no cargo being obtainable for the 
 crazy old Arabella in Demerara. I do not now even 
 know whether it be a legal enactment that seamen shall 
 be allowed twenty-four hours' freedom in foreign ports, 
 with some portion of the wages due to them t°o spend| 
 
9 
 
 6 THE LOO OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 but if not, the custom is so well established that it has 
 all the force of law. The men were like schoolboys at 
 l)rcaking-up time, half crazy with delight at the thouglit 
 of the joys (?) that awaited them ashore. They received 
 but a few shillings each, much to their disgust, because 
 there was as yet little wages due to them, and no 
 amount of begging or bullying could avail to get them 
 any more. The mate's watch went first, among them 
 my stout friend Joe, whom I tearfully begged not to get 
 drunk and kick up a row, for my sake. Looking back I 
 wonder at my temerity, for it must have been like 
 getting between a tiger and a shin-bone ; but he took it 
 very meekly, and actually promised that he would como 
 aboard sober. During their absence the ship was 
 strangely quiet, very little work of any kind was done, 
 and the waiting watch were as sulky as bears. Next 
 morning about eight o'clock the revellers returned, all 
 except Joe, in a bedraggled, maudlin condition that told 
 eloquently of their enjoyment. Had it not been for Joe 
 they would have all been in the lock-up, or " chokey " as 
 sailors invariably call it; but he had worked like a 
 Trojan to keep them together and out of harm as much 
 as possible. He had quite a triumphant air of unwonted 
 virtue as I whispered my delight at seeing him again, 
 and sober. 
 
 Then the starboard watch, with the doctor, took 
 their innings, with strict injunctions not to be late 
 the next morning, as we were going to unmoor and 
 drop down stream a little in readiness for sailing. The 
 day passed like the previous one, black Jem doing the 
 doctor's work as well as he could with such assistance 
 as I could give. The next morning at daylight pre- 
 parations were made for unmooring, and at eight o'clock 
 
TUB MUTINY AND AFTER. 37 
 
 a pilot Ctame on board, a smart-looking, sliarp-featurcd 
 Yankee who looked around the old hooker with undis- 
 guised contempt. Nine, ten o'clock, and no sign of the 
 liberty men. The old man went ashoro on business, 
 leaving full instructions with the mate about unmooring, 
 which he expected to bo carried on in his absence. 
 He had barely been gone half an hour when the starboard 
 watch returned; but it was evident at once that they 
 had their own views upon the unmooriu' question, 
 which by no means coincided with the skipper's. They 
 were all half-drunk and quarrelsome, especially the 
 doctor, who strutted about more like a bloodthirsty 
 pirate than an elderly spoiler of ships' provisions. 
 Unfortunately, too, each man had brought with him 
 a plentiful supply of rum, which they at once began to 
 share with the port watch, all except Joe, who would 
 have none of it. They even invited Mr. Svensen and 
 Chips to partake, meeting their courteous refusal with 
 quite gratuitous displays of bad language and ill-temper. 
 At last, the mate, mindful of the wigging he might 
 certainly expect on the skipper's return if no work was 
 afoot, ventured to give the order, " Man the windlass ! " 
 the pilot taking up his post on the forecastle. For all 
 answer there came a howl of derisive laughter from 
 the den, where all hands, with one exception, were 
 busy ''freshening the nip." Mr. Svensen wisely took 
 no notice ; but, in a cajoling tone, said, " Now den, 
 poys, gum along, mage a sdart; ids kedding lade, ju 
 dond vant ter ked me indo a row, do jer ? " Forth 
 strode the truculent doctor, an uncanny figure, all asway 
 with drunken rage. "Looky hear, yew square-headed son 
 of a bitch, yew ain't agoin' ter border me about any 
 more, so I tell ycr ! I ain't a goin' ter do another stroke 
 
38 TUE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 abort! the rotten barge-built old batbin' masbeen, so 
 there ! " (I suppress the every-other-word profanity 
 throughout.) During the delivery of this speech he 
 was wildly gesticulating and spluttering right up against 
 the mate's breast, shaking his withered fists in the big 
 man's face, and otherwise behaving like a very maniac. 
 The rest of them gfithered around, adding to the clamour; 
 but the burden of all was the same, " No more work, 
 not another hand's-turn aboard this " (collection of all 
 the abusive sea epithets known) **old lobster-pot." Joe, 
 meanwhile, was calmly doing some trifling job aft, by 
 the break of the poop on the starboard side. To him 
 sauntered an Irishman, hitherto one of his best friends, 
 now laboriously polite and anxious to know whether 
 he intended being a sneak, a white-livered et-cetera and 
 so forth. For all reply, Joe turned his back on him. 
 I was cleaning knives on the same side forrard by the 
 galley door, but not making much progress on account 
 of so many distracting episodes taking place. The 
 babel of abuse around the unfortunate mate was going 
 strong all the time. A thrill of terror went through me 
 as I saw the Irishman suddenly lift his hand and strike 
 Joe on the back of the neck. He turned like a flash, 
 shooting his right fist into Patsy's face, with a crash 
 that laid him out, sounding horrible to me. "Without 
 a word Joe turned again to resume his work. Patsy 
 gathered himself slowly up and staggered forward, 
 bleeding profusely, and muttering disjointed blasphemy 
 as he came. He passed me, going into the fo'lk'sle; 
 but my attention was suddenly attracted by a yell of 
 laughter from the other side of the deck. Peeping 
 round the galley, I saw with amazement that the 
 drunken devils had actually triced the poor mate up 
 
THE MUTINY AND AFTER. 30 
 
 spread-eagle fashion in the main rigging, and were 
 jeering him to their hearts' content. Then they made 
 a rush for the cabin. Chips was nowhere to be seen. 
 Presently they returned, bringing the ensign, which they 
 proceeded to hoist in the rigging, Union down, a sea 
 signal of the most m*gent importance, denoting anything 
 dreadful from fire to mutiny. 
 
 A step beside me made me turn, startled, to see 
 wlio it was, and I just caught sight of the grim blood- 
 besmeared visage of Patsy, who was stowing the long 
 cabin carving-knife in the waistband of his pants. 
 While I stared at him, breathlessly wondering what his 
 little game might be, he broke suddenly into a run 
 aft to where Joe still pursued his peaceful task, all 
 undisturbed by the riot around. **Look out, Joe," I 
 screamed, "he's got the carving-knife! " The warning 
 came only just in time ; for as Joe turned sharply he 
 met the raging Patsy at close quarters, aiming a savage 
 stab at him. Naturally lifting his arm, he received the 
 descending blade through the fleshy fore-part of it ; but, 
 with the otlier, he caught the Irishman by the throat, 
 and jammed him back against the rail. Kicking the 
 knife, which had dropped from the wound, far forward 
 as he sprang, ho plucked an iron belaying pin from its 
 socket, and brought it down with a sickening thud upon 
 Patsy's already battered face. Again ho fell, this time 
 to remain until dragged forward, a limp, disfigured 
 lump. 
 
 By this time the inverted ensign had told its tale 
 asliore, and a largo canoe well-manned with negro 
 policemen, under a white sergeant, was coming olY to 
 us at a spanking pace. This sight drew all the mutineers 
 to the side, whence they could watch her approach, 
 
40 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 svliich they hailed with the liveliest expressions of joy. 
 Chips now put in an appearance, looking very sheepish, 
 and, assisted by Joe, released the mate from his un- 
 dignified suspension in the rigging. He tottered alt, 
 looking very unwell, and muttering bitter reproaches 
 on the carpenter for having abandoned him to such 
 a fate. The police-canoo bumped against the side, her 
 stalwart crew clambering on board like cats. AVhile the 
 officer hastened aft to hear the news from tlie mate, 
 his myrmidons were amazed to find themselves hailed 
 with delight by the excited crew, who fraternized with 
 them as if they had come to convoy them to a picnic. 
 The mate's tale being soon told, the sergeant of police 
 gave orders to his men to arrest the mutineers, and, with 
 joyful outcry, all hands hurried forward to prepare for 
 their departure. 
 
 During the preparations, the pilot, the mate, and the 
 police-officer foregathered on the poop to indulge in 
 a smoke, and discuss the ways of seamen in general. 
 But though their palaver lasted a long time, there was 
 no sign from forrard. At last, his patience exhausted, 
 the sergeant strode forward to the fo'lk'sle, demanding, 
 with many objurgations, the reason of this delay. To 
 his rage and dismay he found that the supply of rum 
 had been so plentiful, and had circulated so freely, that 
 policemen and sailors were involved in one common 
 debauch. Indeed it was hard to say which was the 
 most drunken of the two gangs. Uproarious was the 
 din, nearly every man shouting some fragment of song 
 at the pitch of his lungs, or laughing insanely at the 
 gorgeous fun of the whole affair. Back came tbe 
 sergeant, almost speechless with anger and apprehension, 
 for this no doubt meant dire disgrace to him. lie was 
 
THE MUTINY AND AFTER. 41 
 
 made worse, if anything, by the unstinted laughter with 
 which the mate and pilot received the news. Small 
 blame to them, the thing was so ludicrous. 
 
 Up went the police-flag again — to the main truck 
 this time. In addition to this the sergeant hoisted a 
 small VvX'ft at the peak, explaining sulkily that this 
 was an urgent private signal for reinforcements. He 
 added, ''An' all / hope is that the infernal scoundrels 
 '11 fall out an' kill one another before my boss comes, 
 or else I'm booked for a reduction in grade that'll dock 
 me of a quarter of pay — none too much as it is." Before 
 many minutes had passed a large launch was seen 
 approaching, rowed by fourteen men, who, unlike the 
 iirst lot, were all white. With them came our old man, 
 whose face was a study. I just caught one glimpse of 
 it, and its fury scared me so that I dared not go near 
 him. There was now no more fooling ; in double quick 
 time all the roysterers, policemen as well as sailors, 
 were collected from the fo'lk'sle, handcuffs put on them, 
 their effects flung into the launch, and themselves 
 bundled after with scant ceremony. So rapid was the 
 work that in less than ten minutes they were all on 
 their way ashore, making the air resound with their 
 discordant yells. 
 
 A painful quiet ensued. Joe and I, sole repre- 
 sentatives of the foremast hands, leisurely cleared up 
 the decks, after which he busied himself preparing 
 a meal which should do duty for dinner and supper. 
 The captain went ashore again, much to my relief, for 
 while he was on board I couldn't get quit of the idea 
 that in some way or other he would bring me in 
 responsible for his disappointment, and take his con- 
 Bolation out of my poor little carcass. I had been so 
 
42 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 used to this vicarious sort of paj^ment of old, that the 
 idea was a fixed one with me whenever there was a row. 
 lu fact, I often feel the old sensation now. But to-day 
 he seemed unahle to give vent to his feelings, so 
 nothing disturbed the calm of the afternoon. Joe 
 informed me ' lat he had gone ashore to ship a fresh 
 crew, and that we should certainly sail in the morning, 
 lie having heard the old man tell the pilot as much 
 wlicn he took the dinner aft. 
 
 Sure enough, just before sunset the skipper re- 
 turned, bringing with him a fresh crowd in place of 
 the old hands, who had each, we were told, received 
 summary sentence of two months' hard labour. Quick 
 work, truly. The new crew were a mixed lot. There 
 Y/as a Newfoundland Irishman named Flynn, a fat- 
 faced blubber-bodied fellow, who was for ever eating 
 tobacco; a stalwart fiery-headed ex-man-o'-war's man 
 who could only be called Ginger ; a long, melancholy- 
 looking Englishman, who signed as George Harris ; a 
 Eurasian of gentlemanly appearance, but most foul 
 and filthy behaviour ; a delicate pretty-faced, Liverpool 
 Irishman, with a fair silky beard, for cook; a broad 
 shouldered Greek, who had not a word of English ; and, 
 lastly, a precious piece of ornament in the shape of 
 a Chinaman, pigtail and all, as if he had just come 
 cut of Foochow, whom the captain had shipped as 
 steward for nothing a month. Gloomy Jem, the un- 
 fortunate negro youth, of course, remained of the old 
 crew. In some misty fashion he went on his melancholy 
 way, the butt of everybody but myself, his only relaxation 
 an occasional incoherent chatter with me in some dark 
 corner, when there was no work afoot. 
 
 Next morning at daybreak we unmoored, and 
 
TEE MUTINY AND AFTER, 43 
 
 proceeded down the muddy river, witbout hitch of any 
 kind. The new crew worked well, glad enough, no doubt, 
 to leave such miserable quarters as they had lately been 
 enduring. You Sing, the Celestial, was a great acquisi- 
 tion. He was made to understand at once, that what- 
 ever work was to be done, he must take a hand in it, and 
 he certainly toiled like a beaver. Beautiful weather 
 Btill favoured us, and with an occasional glimpse of 
 what looked to my exuberant fancy like fairyland rising 
 out of the sparkling blue sea, we crept steadily westwards 
 into the great gulf of Mexico. In spite of the miser- 
 able food and swinish forecastle, the fresh crew worked 
 well and peaceably. What growling they did was in- 
 dulged in out of hearing, and, after late experiences, I 
 hardly knew the old ship. Without a single incident 
 worth recording, we rolled along until we sighted the 
 ^lexican coast, which, as the position of our first calling- 
 place was somewhat vague, the captain proposed to 
 fckirt until he came to it. The weather now became 
 less settled, squalls of considerable violence being 
 frequent, making a great deal of sail-handling necessary, 
 One night, when vre were suddenly called upon to 
 shorten sail in a deluge of rain, it happened that the 
 long Englishman, George Ilarrig, and Ginger, the 
 quondam man- o'- war's man, found themselves together 
 furling the main to'-gallant sail. Now, Giuger, though 
 a big fellow, was, as usual with his class, of very little 
 use at furling sail under merchant-ship conditions. 
 Where one man is employed in the merchantman, six 
 or seven crov/d in on board of Andrew; and the "blue- 
 jacket" is consequently handicapped when he finds 
 himself thus lonely. The sail was stiff with wet, the 
 wind was high, and George, in trying to make up for 
 
 ^. 
 
44 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 Ginger's deficiency, ruptured himself badly. He got 
 down from aloft somehow, and took to his bunk, a very 
 sick man. The treatment he received only aggravated 
 his mishap, while he grew rapidly weaker from his 
 inability to eat the muck, which even in his case was 
 unchanged. Although never very friendly with me, I 
 was filled with pity for him, and actually so far forgot 
 my dread of the terrible "old man," as to creep below 
 and steal a few cabin biscuits, which were less coarse 
 and whiter than ours. It was comparatively easy to 
 evade the officers, and I chuckled greatly over my 
 smartness, being richly rewarded by the gratitude of 
 the invalid, who made quite a hearty meal of my plunder 
 soaked with some sugar. But I reckoned without You 
 Sing. That slit-eyed pagan in some unholy fashion found 
 me out, and at once betrayed me to the skipper, of whom 
 he stood in such awe, that he was ready to jump over- 
 board at a nod from him. I was called aft, questioned, 
 and found guilty. There and then, with a bight of the 
 gaff-topsail halliards, he gave me such a dressing down 
 as I have never forgotten. You Sing standing by with 
 a face like a door-knocker for expressionless calm. Even 
 amid my sharpest pangs I rejoice to think I didn't howl. 
 Perhaps I gained little by that. At last the skipper 
 Hung me from him, saying grimly, *' Now ye can go an' 
 thank George Harris for that." And when, twenty 
 years after, I saw that stern old man, reduced to earning 
 a precarious living as a ship-keeper, fall from a ship's 
 side in the ^lillwal.' Dock, injuring himself so frightfully 
 that death would have been refreshment, I could not 
 lielp thinking of the grist which is ground by the Mills 
 of the Gods. Joe, my faithful ally, was furious when 
 I went forward quivering with pain. He was for 
 
THE MUTINY AND AFTEIi. 45 
 
 vengeance, first on the old man, then on the placid pig 
 ^Yho had betrayed me; but I bogged so hard that ho 
 wouldn't make matters worso by interfering that at 
 last ho yielded. But he never settled down again 
 satisfactorily. 
 
 Just a week afterwards we came to a slight indenta- 
 tion in the coast, where a Norwegian barque lay at 
 anchor. From her we got the information that the 
 place w\as called Tupilco, upon whicli we anchored, it 
 being our port of call for orders. The anchor was no 
 sooner down than Harris crawled aft and implored the 
 captain to take him ashore so that he might get some 
 medical aid. Desire of life made the poor fellow quite 
 eloquent, but he might as well have appealed to a 
 bronze joss. "When, exhausted, he paused for breath, 
 the old man said, with bitter emphasis, " Ef I'd ben a 
 loafin' on my shipmcts s'long's yon liev', I'd take 'ii 
 heave me useless carcass overboard, ye wuthless sojcr. 
 Git forrard 'n die. It's 'bout the bes' thing you ken do." 
 George crept forrard again without a word. 
 
 "We lay at this forsaken-looking spot for four days, 
 holding no communication with the shore except twice, 
 when a launch came off, manned by a truculent-looking 
 crew of *' dagoes," i.e. Greeks, Italians, Spaniards, and 
 half-bred Mexicans. Soon after their second visit v/o 
 weighed again, having received instructions to com- 
 mence loading at Sant' Ana, some distance along the 
 same coast. We had an easy run thither, with a fair 
 wind all the way, and were pleasantly surprised to find 
 that, although an open roadstead like Tupilco, there 
 was quite a fleet of ships at anchor there. They were 
 of all sizes and rigs, from rakich-looking Yankee 
 schooners to huge full-rigged ships, and of several 
 
4G THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 nationalities — British, American, and Norwegian pre- 
 dominating. There was a heavy landward swell on 
 when we passed through them to our anchorage, and it 
 was anything hut cheering to see how they rolled and 
 tumbled about in far more unpleasant fashion than as 
 though they had been under way. In fact, some of the 
 fore and afters had actually got staysails set, with the 
 sheets hauled flat aft, so as to counteract in som9 
 measure the dangerous wallowing they were carrying 
 on. I watched one Baltimore schooner, with tremen- 
 dously taunt spars, roll until she scooped up the sea on 
 either side with her bulwarks, the decks being all in a 
 lather with the foaming seas tearing across them, and 
 I couldn't help thinking what a heavenly time those 
 Yanks must have been having down below, for there 
 were none visible on deck. 
 
( 47 ) 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 THE LAND OF LIBERTY. 
 
 We came to an anchor near the middle of the roadstead 
 in seamaniiko fashion, every sail heing furled before the 
 anchor was dropped, and the old tub brought-to as if 
 going into dock. Then, as it was understood that our 
 cargo was ready for us, preparations were immediately 
 made for its reception. A stout spar was rigged across 
 the forecastle, protruding twenty-five feet on the star- 
 board side, with a big block lashed to its end through 
 which ran a five-inch rope. A derrick was rigged over 
 the main- hatch with a double chain purchase attached, 
 and a powerful winch bolted to the deck, round which 
 the chain revolved. Numbers of iron spikes (dogs), with 
 rings in them, were fitted with tails of rope about 
 three f-^ct long, and lengths of hawser cat for " mother- 
 ropes." The rafts of mahogany and cedar logs are 
 made by driving a tailed '* dog " firmly into the side of 
 each log a foot or so from the end. As each one is thus 
 spiked it is secured by a *' rolling hitch" of the tail to 
 the "mother rope" (caho inadre of the Spaniards), until 
 as many are collected as required. This operation is 
 always performed in the river just inside the bar, where 
 the logs are sorted after their loug drift from the 
 
 r- 
 
48 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 interior. Then the raftsmen, ^vho are equipped with 
 capacious boats pulHng six oars, and carrying about 
 three hundred fathoms of grass rope, secure one end of 
 their tow-line to the mother-rope, and pull away sea- 
 ward in the direction of the ship, the steersman casting 
 out line as they go. Arriving at the end of their tether 
 they anchor, and all hands turn-to with a will to haul 
 the raft up to the boat. This operation is repeated as 
 often as is necessary to cover the three or four miles 
 between ship and shore, until at last the long line of 
 tumbling logs are brought alongside their destined 
 vessel, and secured to the big spar on the forecastle. 
 At whatever time they arrive all hands must turn out to 
 receive them, and on board the American ships the 
 uproar used to be fearful ; oaths, yells, and showers of 
 belaying pins rattling against the bulwark?;, bearing 
 eloquent testimony to the persuasive methods of dis- 
 cipline in vogue on board of them. The stevedores, or 
 stowers of the timber, arrived on board shortly after we 
 anchored ; like the rest of the population, they were a 
 mixed crowd of Latins and Greeks, but all speaking 
 Spanish. Owing to their presence we fared much 
 better than we should otherwise have done, for they 
 were fed by the ship, and by no means to be offered any 
 such carrion as usually fell to our lot. Their pay was 
 high, five dollars a day; but they certainly worked well, 
 besides being very skilful. With our first raft there 
 was trouble. Flynn, the ** blue-nose" Irishman, was 
 sent upon the uncertain row of logs alongside to sling 
 them ; but after several narrow escapes from drowning 
 or getting crushed between the rolling ponderous masses, 
 some of them over five tons in weight, he clambered on 
 deck again, and flatly refused to risk his bones any 
 
THE LAND OF LIBERTY, 49 
 
 longer. Nor, in spite of the skipper's fury, could ttiiy 
 other man be persuaded to attempt so dangerous a task. 
 Finally, the old man turned to one of the Greeks of the 
 stevedore gang, and ordered him to act as slingsman. 
 " Oah yez, capane," said Antonio, " sposa you giva mo 
 eight dolla day." After a little more language the old 
 man said, ** All right, 'Tonio, I'll give you eight dollars. 
 An' I'll stop it out of your pay, you skulking sojer you " 
 (to Flynn). Which was mirthful, seeing that eight 
 dollars represented a fortnight's pay for our shipmate. 
 
 However, Antonio proved a most expert raftsman, 
 being almost amphibious and smart as any eel. But the 
 work was exceedingly severe. Lifting such great masses 
 of timber tried the old sticks terribly, and when she 
 rolled suddenly to windward, tearing the log out of 
 water with a jerk, you almost expected her to fall apart. 
 When, at last, the log showed above the rail, if she 
 started her antics, all hands near stood by for a run, 
 for the log would suddenly slue inboard, and come 
 across the deck like a gigantic battering ram. The 
 whole process was a series of hairbreadth escapes. 
 Down in the hold, where the stevedores toiled with 
 tackles, rousing the logs about, there were many 
 casualties ; but these dagoes never seemed to care. 
 For every hurt they had one remedy : plenty of " cafia," 
 a fiery white spirit, fresh from the still. Poured into 
 a gash, or rubbed on a bruise, with half a pint to drink, 
 this vitriolic stuff seemed to meet every emergency. 
 
 The enormous rate of pay prevailing here during 
 the height of the season, had the inevitable effect of 
 causing frequent desertions; so that as much as three 
 hundred dollars was freely offered for the run to New 
 York or Europe for seamen. Consequently a vigilant 
 
 E 
 
50 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 watch was kept by the ofiicers of ships, lest any of the 
 crew should take French leave, although getting ashore 
 was difticult. We, however, had a very large long-boat, 
 for which there was no room on deck, and, contrary to 
 the usual practice it was put overboard, and kept astern 
 at the end of a small hawser. The temptation was too 
 much for my friend Joe, who, accompanied by the 
 Eurasian, Rlipped over the bows one dark night, and 
 swam aft to the unwieldly ark, unheard by the officer 
 on watch. Poor fellow! he couldn't keep awake night 
 and day. At daybreak, when the skipper came on deck, 
 and looked over the taffrail, always his fu-bL move, the 
 idle rope hung down disconsolately — the long-boat was 
 gone ! Seizing his glass he mounted to the cross-trees, 
 and scanned the horizon, discovering the derelict far 
 out at sea. The gig was lowered and manned by 
 Flynn and Jem, the skipper himself taking the tiller, 
 and off they went in pursuit. It was nearly noon when 
 they returned, towing the runaway, and half dead with 
 thirst and fatigue. Then only did the skipper learn 
 that two of his best men were gone. In his hurry he 
 had not stayed to inquire, and now his rage knew no 
 bounds. Judge, then, how he felt when he discovered, 
 by the aid of his glass, that the deserters were no 
 further away than our nearest neighbour, an American 
 brig that lay less than half a mile away. Anger over- 
 came his prudence, and he actually went alongside the 
 Yank, intending to go on board and claim his men. 
 He was received with contumely, the American skipper 
 refusing to allow him over the rail. His state of mind 
 on his return must have been pitiable; but he sought 
 bis cabin without a word, and remained there ail the 
 rest of the day. 
 
THE LAND OF LIBEIITY. 51 
 
 In some way the news spread round the fleet, and that 
 evening we were boarded by the captain of the Panuca, a 
 Liverpool barque, who came to condole and relate his 
 woeful experiences. He said that his men had refused 
 duty altogether, upon which he was advised to take them 
 ashore to the "Commandant," who would deal with 
 them in summary fashion. Accordingly he took them, 
 finding the soi-d'isaiit official to be a stalwart Greek, who 
 lield the position by virtue of his election by his fellow 
 rascals, for law there was none. El Senor Comman- 
 dante, however, told him to leave his men wita him, 
 and he would soon bring them to their bearings. Very 
 reluctantly he followed this advice, since he had no 
 choice, and returned on board, cursing his stupidity 
 for ever taking them there. To his joyful surprise 
 they returned on board, next morning, as meek in their 
 demeanour as if they had, indeed, been taught a lesson. 
 But two nights afterwards there was a desperate hubbub 
 raised, during which the rascals looted the cabin, and, 
 getting into the whale-boat hanging at the davits, went 
 ashore with their phmder. They had strictly followed 
 the instructions given them by the commandant, who 
 made them a handsome present in return for the fine 
 boat they brought him. When the half-frantic captain 
 arrived on shore, and learned the truth, he was so 
 enraged that he actually tried to take his boat off the 
 beach where she lay, narrowly escaping being shot 
 for his pains. This tale, poured into our skipper's 
 sympathetic ears, somewhat reconciled him to his loss, 
 since he still retained his boat. 
 
 But one disaster succeeded another. A curious 
 malady of the feet attacked every one of the crew. 
 It caused the legs and feet to swell enormously, and 
 
52 THE LOG OF A HEA-WAIF. 
 
 culminated in a suppurating wound horribly painful and 
 slow to heal. Then a deadly encounter took place between 
 the cook and You Sing, which was only settled by send- 
 ing the Chinaman ashore, since the two seemed bent 
 upon murdering one another. Worst of all, when the 
 ship was half-full, the timber ceased to arrive. Ship 
 after ship sailed away, until there were only three of us 
 left ; and the season of the " Northers " being close upon 
 us, when those destructive gales blow right home ail 
 along the coast, every one began to look very glum. 
 The unfortunate invalid, George Harris, after lingering 
 longer than any one could have believed possible, was 
 set free from his misery at last, to the manifest relief of 
 his shipmates, who were heartily tired of his taking so 
 long to die. Sounds horrible, doesn't it ? But it is the 
 naked truth. Under such circumstances as ours were, 
 the better part of humanity generally disappears, or 
 only shines in individuals who are often, almost always, 
 powerless to help. 
 
 Miserable as the time had been, \\> was not all lost 
 upon me. As far as the hardship went it was no worse, 
 if as bad, as I had endured in the London streets ; and 
 here, at any rate, it was always warm. I had learned 
 to chatter Spanish fluently, although much of it I would 
 gladly unlearn if it were possible, for I have always 
 noticed that, in picking up a language colloquially, one 
 learns easiest and remembers longest the vilenesses. 
 And how vile the Latin tongues can be, few Englishmen 
 can realize. I did not grow much, not being well- 
 enough nourished ; but I was wiry, hard as nails, and 
 almost as brown as an Indian, being half naked from 
 want of clothes. At last, one morning, my uncio sent 
 for me. Although unconscious of any offence I was 
 
THE LAND OF LIBERTY. 53 
 
 terribly friglitencd, but went, shaking with dread, to 
 meet him. To my utter amazement he spoke kindly, 
 Baying that the shijD was so old, and the season so late, 
 that he feared there was great danger of her never 
 reaching home. Therefore he had decided to send mo 
 ou board the barque Discoverer, commanded by a friend 
 of his, in which, as she was a splendid vessel, I should 
 be far safer. She was to sail the next day, so I must go 
 ou board that night. I only said, " Thank you, sir," 
 but volumes could not have expressed my gratitude. 
 To leave this awful den, to be once more treated to a 
 kind word occasionally — for, since Joe was gone and 
 Jem had been driven ashore (which I have forgotten to 
 mention), I had no friends at all on board ; th-- prospect 
 was too delightful for contemplation. 
 
 My wardrobe being on my back I was spared the 
 labour of packing up. Farewells there were none to 
 say, although, being naturally a tender-hearted little 
 chap, I should have been glad of a parting God-speed. 
 But no one said anything to me as I bundled into the 
 boat and was rowed alongside my new home. As soon 
 as I climbed on board I was met with a very chorus of 
 welcome. The warmth of my reception amazed me, 
 accustomed as I had been for so long to the miserable 
 state of affairs on board my old ship. But I soon over- 
 came a strong temptation to cry for joy, and, steadily 
 choking down the lump in my throat, set about taking 
 stock of my new vessel. To my inexperience she seemed 
 a most noble ship. Everything was on a much finer 
 scale than anything I had yet seen in my brief travels. 
 She had been built for the purpose of Arctic exploration, 
 and consequently presented a somewhat clumsy appear- 
 ance outside from the doubling of the bow planks and 
 
54 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 stern bends, and the diagonal oaken sheathing with 
 which she was protected. Inboard, though, she was 
 roomy, clear, and comfortable as could be imagined, 
 while her rigging and spars were all of the very best, 
 and in tip-top condition. 
 
 Quarters were assigned to me in the comfortable 
 cabin of the steward, whose helper I was supposed to 
 be, although, from the first, I had the free run of the 
 ship fore and aft. Next morning we weighed with a 
 gentle favouring breeze, homeward bound. But I soon 
 discovered that there was one drawback to all this 
 comfort — the captain was a confirmed drunkard. While 
 the process of getting under way was going on, he was 
 mooning about the deck with a fishy eye and an aimless 
 amble, getting in everj'body's way, and causing much 
 confusion by giving ridiculous orders. Had he confined 
 himself to that all would have been well, for the men 
 humoured him good-temperedly, and took no notice of 
 his rubbish. But when they had " catted " the anchor, 
 they were obliged to leave it hanging while they got 
 some sail on her, the fall of the cat-tackle being stretched 
 across the deck and belayed to the opposite rail, as there 
 was no fo'lk'sle-head, and consequently no capstan. All 
 hands l^eing aft, the skipper maundered forrard, to find 
 his further progress stopped by this rope. Muttering 
 unintelligibly, he cast it off the pin to which it was 
 belayed. The result staggered even himself, for there 
 was a rush and a roar, a perfect blaze of sparks, a 
 cloud of dust, and with a jerk that almost threw every- 
 body flat, the last link of one hundred and twenty 
 fathoms of cable brought the ship up all standing. All 
 hands had flown forrard at the first bang, but they 
 were powerless to do anything except pray that the cable 
 
THE LAND OF LIBEIiTT. 55 
 
 might part. It was too good for that, bearing the 
 terrible strain to which it was subjected of bringing a 
 ship up, in twenty fathoms of water, that was going 
 nearly four knots an hour. 
 
 The mate got the old man aft into his cabin while the 
 fellows clewed up the canvas again, and then issued 
 the order to man the windlass once more. But this 
 the men flatly refused to do, alleging that after their 
 forenoon's work, it was unreasonable to expect such 
 a thing. The mate was powerless to insist, so nothing 
 further was done till next day but give the sails the 
 loosest kind of a furl. At daybreak next morning the 
 heavy task of getting the anchor was begun, the skipper 
 keeping out of sight. There was a great deal of growl- 
 ing and bad language ; but the mate managed to get 
 hold of a demijohn of the old man's whisky. This he 
 dispensed with no niggard hand, and so the peace was 
 kept ; but it was late in the day when she was again 
 fairly under way for home. 
 
 After that, everything went on smoothly enough. 
 Although, as usual, the cr^w were of several nationalities, 
 they all pulled together very well, nor did they take the 
 advantage they might have done of the utter absence of 
 any shadow of discipline on board. The whole working 
 of the ship devolved upon the mate, for the skipper was 
 always more or less drun'c, and the second mate was 
 helpless, having had his riglit foot smashed by a log of 
 mahogany in loading. What work was necessary during 
 the daytime w\is done cheerfully enough, and a general 
 air of peace and contentment pervaded the ship. For 
 one thing the food was really good and plentiful, and 
 none of the men were of that blackguardly kind that 
 glory in taking every advantage of any weakness aft. 
 
56 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 Of course the watch-keeping at night was bad. A big 
 London bo}^ who was much disUked for his lazy, dirty 
 habits, was made to keep the look-out always in his 
 w^atch — a duty which he usually performed with his 
 head between his knees. The rest of the men slept 
 the night through, seldom knowing whose watch on 
 deck it was ; so that if sail required trimming all hands 
 generally turned out to it after a good deal of inviting. 
 The captain was supposed to keep the second mate's 
 watch, but he set a shining example to his crew, by 
 sleeping it out wherever he happened to drop when he 
 came on deck. 
 
 I was very happy. Never since the time my troubles 
 began, that is, at about eight years old, had I been 
 treated so well. Being very small and fairly knowing, 
 besides having a rather sweet treble voice, I was made 
 a sort of plaything — an universal pet. And in the dog- 
 watches, when seated upon the main hatch surrounded 
 by the crew I warbled the songs I knew, while not 
 another sound disturbed the balmy evening, but the 
 murmur of the caressing waters alongside, and the 
 gentle rustle of a half-drawing sail overhead, I felt as 
 if my halcyon days had dawned at last. That fortnight 
 is one of the pleasantest recollections of my life. The 
 weather was delightfully fine, and by day the ship was 
 like a huge aviary, a multitude of brilliant-hued little 
 birds being continually about her, although we were 
 out of sight of land. They were of many kinds, but 
 all BO tame that they freely came and went through 
 cabin and forecastle, hunting for the cockroaches with 
 which she was infested. On the upper yards a small 
 colony of kestrels kept vigilant watch, descending like 
 a flash upon any unwary birdling that dared to venture 
 
THE LAND OF LIBEBTY. 57 
 
 far into the open. The men made many nocturnal 
 excursions aloft after the ''pirates," as they called them, 
 giving them short shrift when they caught them. So 
 tlie days drowsed on quietly and peacefully, seeming, 
 to my youthful ignorance, as nearly perfection as they 
 could possihly be. Not hut what I felt an occasional 
 f.winge of sorrow at the continual drunkenness of the 
 captain. Mixing with the men forrard freely as I did, 
 their rough but half-pitying comments upon him and 
 his behaviour could not fail to impress me, although 
 I often wondered how it was that, being so well aware 
 of the danger they ran by reason of such general neglect, 
 they were not themselves more watchful, instead of 
 taking such advantage as they did of the captain's 
 fault, to sleep al^ night. 
 
 At last, on the fifteenth day from leaving port, on 
 a clear starlit night with a gentle, fair wind blowing, 
 and all hands, including the captain — whose watch it 
 was — asleep, the vessel ran upon a coral reef and 
 became a total wreck. Having told the story in [mother 
 place, I cannot enlarge upon the circumstances attendant 
 upon her loss here; it must suffice to say that, after 
 many perils, all hands escaped safely to land upon the 
 "cay" or sandy islet which crowned the highest point 
 of the reef. A fairly large quantity of food and water 
 was saved; so that we ran no risk of privation, even 
 had the islet failed to furnish us with fish, fowl, and 
 eggs in plenty as it did. One circumstance I must 
 record in passing as being well worthy of notice. Ae 
 soon as it was evident that the vessel was hopelessly 
 lost, the seamen forrard, though perfectly well behaved, 
 insisted that every drop of intoxicating liquor should 
 be thrown overboard, and, in order that it should bo 
 
oS THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 done thoroughly, themselves carried it out. As the 
 giant breakers destroyed the upper works of the ship, 
 much useful wreckage came ashore, and one calm day 
 a visit was paid to her, which was rewarded by the 
 salvage of several sails and a quantity of cordage. 
 With these, comfortable tents were rigged, and I have 
 no doubt that, had it been necessary, we could have put 
 in several months on that barren patch of sand quite 
 happily. Huge turtle came ashore to deposit their 
 eggs, and were easily caught. Sea-fowl of many kinds, 
 principally boobies and frigate birds, swarmed in thou- 
 sands, whose eggs, eepecially those of the frigate-birds, 
 were delicious eating, although, never being pressed 
 by hunger, we left their rank, fishy flesh severely 
 alone. Fish of course abounded, while the crevices 
 of the rocks concealed great numbers of clams and 
 oysters, and at night the lighting of our beacon fire 
 attracted quite a host of crabs from the sea, who fell 
 victims in great numbers to their curiosity. Hard- 
 ships there were none, and I would far rather have 
 lived here for six months than for one week on board 
 the old Arabella. 
 
 Ten days passed gaily away, during which the sail- 
 maker and carpenter had made a fine seaworthy craft of 
 the pinnace in which most of us reached the shore. 
 Fitted with new sails and riggiug and half-declicd, she 
 was fit for a much longer voyage than was necessary to 
 reach the mainland of Campeche, the nearest town of 
 which. Sisal, was barely a hundred miles distant. But 
 one morning as the look-out man was ascending the 
 rocky promontory, where a flag-staff was erected to 
 hoist the signal of distress we always kept flying by day, 
 he saw a handsome barque lying-fo only a])out two or 
 
WE cori,i) iiAvi; n t in skvkkal .munhis u\ that uakukn tatc u 
 
 01' SAXU QUITK HAl'I'lLY, 
 
TUB LAND OF LIBERTY. 50 
 
 three miles away. The French ensign was flying at her 
 peak, and a boat had left her side which was being 
 rapidly pulled shorewards. They soon landed, and by 
 expressive signs the officer in charge gave us to under- 
 stand that ho was prepared to take us all on board, but 
 that we must make haste, as the vicinity was much too 
 dangerous to linger in longer than was absolutely 
 necessary. Not one word of each other's language did 
 wc understand, yet we found no diffi.culty in getting at 
 one another's meaning sufficiently near for all practical 
 purposes. To my amazement, however, the skipper, 
 the mate, and four others, refused to avail themselves 
 of the opportunity to escape. They said they did not 
 want to go to Havana, where the barque would land us, 
 preferring to sail in the pinnace to Sisal and take their 
 chance there. When the French officer realized this, he 
 looked as if he thought the small party refusing to come 
 with him were mad. But after an outburst of volubility, 
 quite wasted upon our misunderstanding, he shrugged 
 his shoulders and retreated towards his boat, followed 
 by all who were ready to go with him. His men had 
 made good use of their time by getting a goodly quantity 
 of birds and eggs collected, and now disposed themselves, 
 with a perfect uproar of chattering, in as small a compass 
 as they could, while our fellows took the oars and pulled 
 away for the barque. Looking back, I saw the little 
 group of our late shipmates standing watching us from 
 the beach : a sight so pathetic that I could not help 
 bursting into tears, quite forgetting that it was entirely 
 in accordance with their own desires that they were 
 thus abandoned. 
 
 We soon reached the ship, swarmed on board, and 
 swung the l)oafc up to the davits in a twinkling, while 
 
GO THE LOO OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 the officer who had hrought us — the chief mate — held an 
 animated colloquy with the captain on the poop. From 
 the expressive gestures used, we had no doubt but that 
 they were discussing the incomprehensible resolve of 
 our captain and his followers. They terminated their 
 conversation by mutual shoulder-shruggings, as who 
 should say, " But what would you, my friend ? they are 
 English, whose ways are past finding out." Nothing 
 could be more cordial than our reception by all hands. 
 The big long-boat was cleared out for our sleeping- 
 place, as the barque's fo'lk'sle accommodation was too 
 limited to admit any more than at present occupied it ; 
 and a bountiful meal of fazhole hlatic, a delicious puree 
 of haricot beans, good biscuit, and vin ordinaire was 
 served out to us. 
 
( 01 ) 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 TO HAVANA AND AFTER. 
 
 This seems to bo an approi^riate place for noticing how, 
 at less cost, the Frenchmen fared so much better than 
 in any sailing ship I have ever l)cen in. The Board 
 of Trade scale of provisions for the Mercantile ]\rarine 
 must strike every landsman as being a most absurd 
 compilation. On four days of the week each man is 
 entitled to one and a half pounds of salt beef, 
 including bone, accompanied by half a pound of flour, 
 except on Saturdays, when half a pint of rice mcnj be 
 given, or nothing. The other three days each bring 
 one and a quarter pounds of salt pork and one- 
 third of a pint of sx^lit peas. Every day there is an 
 allowance j^rr capita of one pound of bread (biscuit), 
 an eighth of an ounce of tea, half an ounce of coffee, 
 and three quarts of water ; and each week twelve ounces 
 of sugar and half a pint of vinegar is allowed per man. 
 What scope is there here for any variety or skill in 
 cookery ? Even supposing that the beef and pork were 
 in any way comparable with the same articles on shore 
 — which they cannot be in the nature of things — such 
 a diet must soon become infernally monotonous. But 
 the very best ship's beef and pork is not nice; the second 
 
(32 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 best is nasty; and what will pass an inspector, is often 
 utterly unfit for men to live upon entirely for any 
 length of time, while it would bo considered loathsome 
 ashore. And what can be done with half a pound of 
 flour ? Lacldug anijthin(j else, except a few hops, 
 obviously the best thing to do is to make bread, which 
 is a little more palatable than the flinty outrage on the 
 name of food that is called ship's biscuit. What is 
 usually done is to make "duff." This is really boiled 
 bread, with the addition of some skimmed grease from 
 the coppers in which the meat is boiled. As an act of 
 grace, but by no means of necessity, a pannikin (pint) 
 of molasses is doled out for all hands on duff days, bat 
 the crew are not allowed to forget that they have no 
 claim to this dainty by Act of Parliament. 
 
 On pork days pea-soup is made, or "yellow broth," 
 as sailors call it. But pease and writer with a flavouring 
 of pork (not too much lest the soup become uneatable 
 from salt) needs a stretch of courtesy to be called soup. 
 A little, very little, addition of vegetables would make 
 it palatable, but " 'tis not i' the bond." And even if so, 
 do you think, reader, you would feel contented with fat 
 pork and pea-soup for dinner three times a week for 
 four months on end ? For breakfast and supper (tea) 
 there is biscuit and beef, or biscuit and pork, washed 
 down with the result of the modicum of coffee or tea. 
 And that is all. For very shame's sake, a minority of 
 shipowners do provide a few extras : such as butter, an 
 occasional mess of tinned meat, and a few preserved 
 potatoes and pickles. But these are the exception and 
 not the rule. Moreover, whenever these additional 
 helps are given, the men are always reminded that they 
 have no right to them, that no owner need give anything 
 
TO HAVANA AND AFTKIi. 63 
 
 more than the bare pound and pint of the Board of 
 Trade scale. 
 
 Contrast this with our living on board the Bordeaux 
 barque Poiosi. In the first place the bread, which was in 
 large puffy cakes, became, under the slightest moisture, 
 as easy to eat and as palatable as baker's bread. This 
 alone was an enormous boon. Breakfast, which, like 
 all other meals, was taken by all hands at once, was 
 hardly a meal in our sense of the term. It was only 
 a cup of coffee (exceedingly good), some bread, and 
 about a gill of cognac. Luncheon at noon consisted 
 ■ of half a pound of meat, free of bone, and some pre- 
 paration of vegetables, bread, and half a pint of wine. 
 Dinner at four p.m. was a grand affair. The changes 
 were rung upon haricot beans, lentils, vermicelli, maca- 
 roni, and such legumes cooked with meat and flavoured 
 so that the smell was intensely appetizing. Bread, and 
 half pint of wine. And there was abundance, but no 
 waste. Yet I am persuaded that the cost was much 
 less than that of our authorized scale of provisions, 
 about which it is difficult to speak with patience. It 
 will, I think, be admitted that where men are shut up 
 to a life of such monotony as the seaman's calling 
 must necessarily be, their food ought at least to have 
 some consideration. The meal-hours form almost the 
 only breaks in the day's sameness, and if the food be 
 poor in quaHty and without variety, it is bound to 
 engender bad feeling and a hatred of those of whose 
 fault it is the outcome. This by way of apology for 
 such a lengthy dwelling upon the subject, if any be 
 needed, though I have always felt that its importance 
 is great enough i^ merit much more attention than it 
 commonly receives. 
 
64 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF, 
 
 We had a very pleasant passage. The barque was 
 a wonderfully handy vessel, and her equipment was so 
 good that it excited the wondering admiration of all our 
 men. The discipline was quite naval in its character, 
 and the day's duties v/ent on with the regularity of 
 clockwork. Of course we could not understand the 
 language, and were, in consequence, unable to know 
 whether there was the same amount of grumbling 
 commentary forward, upon the sayings and doings of 
 the officers, as is almost universal in British ships, with 
 the exception of '* Blue-noses " (Canadian vessels). But 
 it was admitted by all of us that the crew seemed well 
 content and heartily willing, and that she was indeed 
 a model ship. My scanty knowledge of Spanish came 
 in useful, for the captain spoke that language about as 
 well as I did. On his discovering this fact he sent for 
 me, and, by dint of patience, succeeded in learning from 
 me such facts as he wished to know, re arding me with 
 many a tit-bit from his table, as well as some very 
 useful gifts of clothing, which, as I was almost naked, 
 were most acceptable. 
 
 Arriving at Havana, we were handed over to the 
 British consul, leaving the friendly Frenchmen with 
 much regret and three hearty cheers, which they 
 returned with interest a la Frangaise. "We were no 
 sooner clear of her than they began to get under way 
 again, and, by the time we were on the wharf, she was 
 once more headiug for home. By the orders of the 
 consul we were marched up to a " fonda," or eating 
 house, facing the Plaza de Armas, which we understood 
 was to be our home during our stay, A plentiful meal 
 was set before us, but we did not appreciate it much, 
 every dish being saturated with the flavour of garlic. 
 
TO HAVANA AND AFTER. 65 
 
 But as two bottles of wine were apportioned to each 
 individual, the meal was a merry one, all hands declar- 
 ing that bread and wine would suit them down to the 
 ground. A bundle of cigars were distributed by a 
 benevolent-looking old stranger, who introduced himself 
 as the shipping-master, and spoke excellent American, 
 being, as he informed us, a native of New Orleans. 
 
 After a smoke, we were conducted to a large paved 
 room at the back of the premises, which was simply 
 furnished with a couple of huge tables and sundry 
 benches, and had in one corner an unprotected well. 
 Here we were told we must spread such bedding as 
 we had, and make ourselves as comfortable as we could, 
 until our proper dormitory was vacated by the recruiting 
 party that at present occupied it. The said party were 
 by no means an inviting crowd. They swarmed about 
 the big bare chamber we were in, looking fit for any 
 villainy, and ostentatiously displaying their vicious- 
 looking bowie-knives. AU our fellows had been de- 
 prived of their sheath-knives upon first coming ashore, 
 under the plea that the carrying of weapons was un- 
 lawful, though we were the only unarmed people I saw 
 in the city during my stay. However, we had no 
 choice of quarters, so we proceeded to spread such ragged 
 blankets as we possessed upon the flagstones against 
 one of the bare walls, and in due time ranged ourselves 
 thereon. Owing, I suppose, to the unusual quantity 
 of wine they had drunk, all our men were soon asleep, 
 and when some one took away the smoky kerosene 
 lamp, the place was pitchy dark, except where the silver 
 bars of moonlight, streaming through the unglazed holes 
 in the walls, divided the blackness into rigid sections. 
 I could not sleep. The novelty of the situation, tho 
 
 F 
 
6(j THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF, 
 
 strange smells, and an indefinable fear of that truculent 
 crowd of armed men, kept all my senses at highest 
 tension. There was no door, and, through the opening 
 in the wall, dark shapes of men came and went softly 
 on Heaven knows what errands. I had reached a 
 condition of mind when I felt as if I must scream to 
 relieve my pent-up feelings, when I saw some figures 
 bending over my sleeping shipmates as if searching for 
 something. By this time my eyes had become able to 
 distinguish objects in the surrounding gloom, and I 
 found that there were at least twenty men in the place. 
 Terribly frightened, and hardly knowing what I did, 
 I roused the carpenter, by whose side I lay, and whis- 
 pered hoarsely in his ear what I had seen. The word 
 was passed along, and in a few minutes we were all 
 afoot and straggling out into the moonlight-flooded 
 courtyard. There we stood like a flock of startled 
 sheep, irresolute what to do. But some of the knife- 
 carrying gentry emerged after us, and began whetting 
 their weapons on the blocks of stone laying about — 
 portions of a ruined wall. This significant hint decided 
 us, and we passed out into the silent street, feehng to 
 the full that we were strangers in a strange land. 
 Lights of any kind there were none, and the intense 
 brilliance of the moon cast shadows as soHd as does 
 the electric glare. A few yards of uncertain wandering, 
 and we were lost. There seemed to be no one about, 
 and yet I could have sworn I saw dark shapes gliding 
 along in the inky shadows. And presently I fell head- 
 long over something in the road, my outstretched hands 
 striking with a splash into a pool of mud. A cold 
 thrill ran along my spine when I lound I was lying 
 across a corpse, and that the sticky paste on my hands 
 
TO HAVANA AND AFTER, 67 
 
 was red. We quickened our steps after that, keeping 
 in the middle of the streets, but as ignorant of our 
 direction, or our purpose, as if we had been a herd of 
 swine devoid of instinct. At last, from sheer weariness, 
 we sat down upon the steps of some large building, and 
 drooped our heads. As if he had risen from the ground, 
 a ** vigilante" (watchman) appeared, bearing a short 
 spear, from the upper third of which dangled a lantern. 
 **Vamos, perros!" he growled, prodding those nearest 
 to him into instant wakefulness. No one needed a 
 translation, or a second bidding to " Begone, dogs ! " So 
 we tramped wearily along, our bare feet bruised by the 
 littering stones. As often as we dropped for a brief 
 rest, one of those ubiquitous serenos moved us on again 
 to the same monotonous epithet of contempt. I often 
 think what a queer-looking procession we must have 
 been. My only garments were a flannel singlet and a 
 pair of canvas trousers, so stiff that they creaked 
 woodcnly as I trotted along. Cap or boots I had none. 
 The rest were in much the same pi'ght, though none 
 were quite so naked as me. Going along a narrow lane, 
 whereof I read the title, " Aguacalle," on a building at 
 the corner, I slipped off the hummocky sidewalk into a 
 slough of soft slush up to my armpits, and was dragged 
 out by my next friend with a new covering of such evil 
 odour that I had to keep a respectful distance from my 
 companions thenceforth. Finally we emerged upon 
 what seemed to be a wide common or piece of waste 
 ground. Here at last we were permitted to squat 
 unmolested. Fear of scorpions, centipedes, and snakes, 
 kept me from sleep ; but all my companions lay sound 
 in strange attitudes, under the full glare of the moon, 
 while I watched, wondering if the night would ever end. 
 
G8 TEE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 At the first glimmer of dawn i aroused my companions, 
 who were all reeking with dew, and we made for the 
 streets again, going as straight back to our lodgings as 
 if we knew the road. When we entered, the warriors 
 had all gone. No one belonging to the establishment 
 was astir, so we cast ourselves down on our rags and 
 slept like stones until roused at eight o'clock by the 
 servants. Until eleven we dozed on the benches, or in 
 whatever corners we could find, when a plentiful break- 
 fast revived us in spite of the garlic. 
 
 After our meal the \ ice-consul paid us a visit. He 
 listened gravely to our complaints of the accommodation 
 we had found. Then he invited us to accompany him 
 to the consul's office. On our arrival all hands were 
 shown into a large, bare room, while I was called upstairs 
 to undergo a searching cross-examination by the consul 
 as to w'hat clothes the men had saved, the incidents of 
 the shipwreck, etc. I suppose he thought that so young 
 a boy would be more likJy to tell a true tale than those 
 artful rogues of sailors, as he seemed to regard them. 
 He was not at all kind or sympathetic : that was no part 
 of his business, I suppose ; but as he was writing an 
 order upon a slop-seller for some clothing for us, a 
 handsome young lieutenant from an English man-o'-war 
 came in. His eyes fastened upon me at once, and, after 
 a hurried question or two of the consul, he came to me 
 and spoke pitifully, giving me two dollars out of his 
 pocket as a solid token of his sympathy. Then the 
 consul had all hands in and harangued them, telling 
 them to be sure and keep sober (which, as they were 
 penniless, was rather uncalled-for advice), and by no 
 means to stray away from the immediate vicinity of the 
 shipping-office. They would be sure to get a ship in a 
 
TO HAVANA AND AFTER. 69 
 
 day or two, he said. T ' missing us with a curt good- 
 dnjt he retired, while we followed the vice-consul to the 
 clothier's. Here the men received each a rig-out of 
 cheap garments, but I was treated much better ; why, 
 I do not know. After all the men had been served and 
 had returned to our lodging, I was furnished with quite 
 a nice suit of clothes, with good underclothing, patent 
 leather shoes, and broad-brimmed Panama hat. A 
 brilliant red silk sash was given me by the shopkeeper 
 as a present, and, thus glorified, I felt quite transformed. 
 AVith many cautions as to my behaviour, the official 
 bade me good-day, and I was left to my own devices. 
 And then began one of the strangest experiences of my 
 life. Wherever I went, people looked kindly at me, and 
 spoke to me as if they were interested in me. I entered 
 into shop after shop to spend some of my money, but 
 found it impossible, for the shopkeepers insisted upon 
 giving me what I asked for without payment, and often 
 added to my store of cash besides. When at last I 
 returned to the fonda, I was loaded with cigars, fruit, 
 pastry, and all sorts of odds-and-ends, so that my ship- 
 mates were loud in their welcomes. By nightfall we 
 were all in a very contented condition of mind, and, 
 v'hen the landlord politely requested me to inform my 
 friends that our sleeping apartment was prepared, wo 
 felt that our comfort was complete. But our joy had 
 a tremendous set-back when we were shown the said 
 bedroom. It was a long lean-to shed erected against 
 an ancient wall of rubble that had never known contact 
 with a whitewash brush. The floor was of dried mud. 
 Along the centre of its whole length ran an open ditch, 
 which carried in a sluggish stream all the sewage of the 
 house. On either side of this foul cloaca were ranged 
 
70 TEE LOG OF A 8EA-WAIF. 
 
 "charpoys," a sort of exaggerated camp-stool, wbich 
 constituted the entire furnishing of this primitive bed- 
 chamber. It was well ventilated, although there were 
 no windows, for daylight was visible in many places 
 through gaps in the boarding of the outer wall and roof. 
 Many and vigorous were the comments passed upon the 
 filthy hole, but there was no suggestion of raising any 
 complaini>, as all felt that it would be useless, and, at 
 any rate, the place was our own, and we could barricade 
 the door. So spreading our blankets upon the charpoys, 
 we turned in, and were soon oblivious of all our 
 surroundings. 
 
 Next day, in the course of my wanderings, I entered 
 the fine billiard room of the Hotel St. Isabel and 
 chummed up with the marker. I was well acquainted 
 with the game, having learned how to mark in one of 
 the strange bye-paths of my nomad life before going to 
 sea. And this knowledge now came in usefully, for the 
 marker was a one-armed man who was often sorely 
 bothered by the management of his three tables, 
 especially when the players were lively American and 
 English skippers. I was made heartily welcome, being 
 helpful, in a double sense, from my knowledge of Spanish 
 as well as my acquaintance with the game. From that 
 time forward the ** Fonda del buen gusto " saw little of 
 me, and that little at uncertain intervals. I had a 
 comfortable chamber, the best fare the hotel afforded, 
 while as for money, the customers supplied mo so 
 liberally that my pockets were always full. As I could 
 not spend it, most of it found its way to my shipmates, 
 for I never came across one without handing some of it 
 over. The idea of saving any never dawned upon me, 
 and, when all my old shipmates were gone afloat again, 
 
TO HAVANx' AND AFTER. 71 
 
 I could always manage to find some English-speaking 
 mariners to whom I was welcome company for a ra mble 
 romid town. 
 
 The time flew by on golden wings. All my former 
 miseries were forgotten in my present luxurious life, 
 and I blossomed into that hateful thing, an impudent 
 boy uncontrolled by anybody, and possessing all the 
 swagger and assurance of a man. Such as I was, how- 
 ever, I attracted the attention of a gentleman who held 
 a most important post under government as a civil 
 engineer. He was a fairly constant visitor at the 
 hotel when in Havana, and our acquaintance ripened 
 into a strong desire on his part to adopt me, and save 
 me from the ruin he could see awaited me. His only 
 son, a young man of three- and-twenty, was his assistant, 
 the two being more like brothers than parent and child. 
 Having made up his mind, he fitted me out with an 
 elegant suit of clothes made to his liking, and one day 
 took me in his carriage to see the consul and arrange 
 matters. To his intense surprise and disgust the consul 
 flatly refused to sanction the affair, telling him that he 
 was responsible for my return to England, and that, as 
 I had admitted that my father was alive, any inquiry 
 after me, which resilted in the discovery that I had 
 been allowed to remain in Cuba without my parent's 
 consent, would make matters very unpleasant for him. 
 All attempts on Mr. D.'s part to shake this decision 
 were fruitless. The consul refused to discuss the matter 
 farther, and closed the conversation by warning rae that 
 I was liable to severe punishment for absenting myself 
 BO long from the home (?) where he had placed me. What 
 I felt I cannot describe. Mr. D., with a deeply dejected 
 fac*, bade mo good-bye, his duties calling him into the 
 
72 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 interior next day. He gave me twenty-five dollars as 
 a parting present, and advised me to get a ship as soon 
 as possible for home. It may readily be imagined that 
 I had no hankering after the sea again. The pleasant, 
 aimless life I had been leading, the inordinate petting 
 and luxury I had grown accustomed to, had made me 
 look upon ship-life with unutterable loathing, and I 
 secretly determined that if I could avoid it I would never 
 go to sea any more. 
 
 About this time a terrible epidemic of yellow fever 
 set in. So great was its virulence, that even the never- 
 ending warfare between the royalists and insurgents 
 slowed down, and instead of a ragged regiment of 
 wastrels being despatched into the mountains about 
 twice a week, the authorities were hard put to it to 
 collect recruits at all. The great bell of the cathedral 
 tolled unceasingly. All night long the rumble of the 
 waggons over the uneven causeways sounded like sub- 
 dued thunder, as they passed from house to house 
 collecting the corpses of the victims. The harbour 
 was crowded with vessels denuded of their crews, and 
 from every masthead flew the hateful yellow flag. It 
 was heart-breaking to see and hear the agony of the 
 sailors being taken ashore to hospital. They knew full 
 well that there was hardly a glimmer of hope that 
 they would return. The Chinese, who acted as nurses, 
 were destitute of any feeling of humanity, and the 
 doctors were worked to death. The nuns, who gave 
 their lives nobly, could do little but minister such 
 ghostly comfort as they knew how; but the net result 
 of the hospital treatment was, with hardly an exception, 
 death. Yet, in spite of the scourge, and general paralysis 
 of trade in consequence, life, as far as I could see, went 
 
TO HAVANA AND AFTER. 73 
 
 on much the same as ever. The inhabitants kerned 
 determined to put a brave air on, whatever their inner 
 feeUngs might be, and I declare that I saw very little 
 to frighten me. One can get used to anything, espe- 
 cially when one has not learned to think. Several 
 weeks passed away, and I was still free, though not 
 quite so flush of money, for the customers at the hotel 
 were necessarily fewer. 
 
 One day I was taking a stroll down by the deserted 
 wharves, when I noticed a peculiar glow in the sk}'. 
 It came from the heart of a gigantic cloud that 
 draped half the heavens, and seemed as if it hid hell 
 behind it. Fascinated by the sight, though my heart 
 thumped furiously, I waited on the wharf and watched 
 its development. The cloud spread until the whole 
 dome was covered in by it, and the fierce glare took 
 a strange greenish tinge. All around the edge of 
 the darkness ran an incessant tangle of vari-coloured 
 lightnings, and a continual rumble of thunder seemed 
 to make the earth vibrate. Suddenly the storm burst. 
 Jamming myself into a corner between some posts, 
 whence I felt sure no wind could dislodge me, I waited 
 and watched. For the first few minutes I thought I 
 should have died of fright. Torrents of water, like the 
 fall of a sea, were lashed into foam as they fell, and all 
 torn into gleaming fragments by innumerable flashes 
 flying in every conceivable direction. An overpowering 
 smell like burning sulphur pervaded all. As for the 
 wind, its force must have been frightful, judging from its 
 effect upon the shipping and houses ; but where I stood 
 only a very strong gale could be felt, such as no sea- 
 man would think extraordinary. This lasted about an 
 hour (but I cannot say much for time), and then the 
 
74 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 rain ceased. What a scene of horror the bay presented ! 
 Vessels of all kinds drifted aimlessly about, wrecking 
 each other, and covering the boiling miielstrom of the 
 harbour with their debris. Overhead a louder roar 
 occasionally made me look up to catch sight of a flying 
 roof like a cloud fragment fleeting through the murky 
 air. A large Yankee schooner was torn from her 
 anchors, and lifted on to a ledge beneath the Moro 
 Castle, which jutted out of the perpendicular cliff about 
 a hundred feet above high-water mark. There she 
 remained upright, with her bottom stove in like 
 Columbus's egg. Of all the vessels in the harbour, 
 the only ones that survived without serious damage 
 were the warships, which, with topmasts housed and 
 cables veered out to the clinch, were all steaming full 
 speed ahead, and, even then, hardly easing the 
 tremendous strain on the latter. 
 
 Taking advantage of a lull I emerged from my corner, 
 drenched to the skin, of course, and so cramped from my 
 long crookedness, that at first I could hardly feel my feet. 
 As hurriedly as I could I made my way towards the hotel, 
 finding the roadways almost blocked with ruins. The 
 hotel had escaped r uch damage, and I was received 
 with open arms, soon forgetting all my fears in a good 
 meal and cheerful talk. In spite of the havoc it had 
 made, the general feehng was one of thankfulness, it 
 being taken for granted that the hurricane would be 
 found to have swept away the far more dreaded ** Yellow 
 Jack." And this was literally true, for not a single 
 fresh case was reported from that day forward. Business 
 revived with a bound, for there was much work to do 
 everywhere, shipwrights especially commanding almost 
 any wages they liked to ask. About a week after the 
 
TO HAVANA AND AFTER, 75 
 
 hurricane, I was standing watching the transport of a 
 huge fiteam-lauiich over an isthmus to the dockyard, 
 when I felt a hand on my shoulder. Turning sharply, 
 I saw the yellow visage of the vice-consul, who waa 
 accompanied by a man in uniform, to whom he gave ?uo 
 in charge. I was fairly caught, and without further 
 delay, in spite of my vehement protestations, I was put 
 into a boat and taken on hoard a large barque, the Sea 
 Gem of St. Andrews, N.S. The captain, a kindly looking 
 old gentleman, heard my impudent remarks in amused 
 silence, until he thought I had gone far enough. Then 
 he stopped me with a quiet, *' That'll do, my lad, you 
 don't want a rope's-ending, I'm sure." I had not lost 
 all sense, so I pocketed my gi'ievance and crept sullenly 
 forward. 
 
G THE LOG OF A SEA-WAtF, 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 OFF TO SEA AGAIN. 
 
 The Sea Gem had suffered greatly from the liurricane, 
 but, by dint of stranuous effort on the part of her 
 agents, was now fairly seaworthy again. The ravages of 
 pestilence, however, had left her almost unmanned, the 
 only survivors being the second mate, the carpenter, and 
 a couple of American negro youths. The new captain, I 
 learned from the carpenter — who had taken me under 
 his protection — had been retired for some years, occupy- 
 ing a fairly well-paid post ashore in Havana. But 
 tempted by a lucrative offer from the agents, and greatly 
 longing to return home again, he had accepted the post 
 of master of the Sea Gem. He had succeeded in collect- 
 ing another crew to take the vessel home; but they were, 
 indeed, a motley crowd. Three Austrians, a Montenegrin, 
 a Swede, a Frenchman and two more negroes made up 
 the complement forward, all of whom spoke a barbarous 
 dialect of Spanish among themselves, although the 
 Austrians also conversed indiff'erently in some Slav 
 tongue as well as in Italian. There was as yet no 
 chief mate, but another American negro had been 
 secured for cook and steward. 
 
 No cargo being procurable, we were to proceed in 
 
OFF TO SEA AGAIN, 77 
 
 ballast to Mobile for cotton, and thonco home. I had 
 not yet lost hope of being able to escape before sailing ; 
 and the carpenter, who seemed to be greatly amused 
 by my company, rather encouraged me in the idea. 
 Strangely enough, nobody seemed to trouble about me, 
 and I foolishly sulked about all day, doing nothing but 
 brood over the possibility of getting away. At last a 
 chance presented itself. All the members of the new 
 crew were taken ashore to the consul's office to sign 
 articles, and I, of course, went along. I had still a 
 good deal of money, and, as soon as I had signed, and 
 been ordered by the captain to go down to the boat and 
 await his coming, I demurely obeyed, and bolted in a 
 contrary direction as soon as I had turned the street 
 corner. I was free. True, I had an uneasy feeling tliat 
 at any moment I might be arrested for desertion ; but I 
 refused to entertain it, and hurried up town to the Hotel 
 St. Isabel. Here I got a shock. My old friend the 
 billiard marker was gone, and the new man did not 
 look upon me at all favourably. My other acquaintances 
 in the hotel, too, appeared anxious to avoid me, as if 
 they had been warned not to give me harbourage there. 
 So I wandered forth disconsolately, feeling as if the 
 place was quite strange to me. In the course o? a long 
 ramble I fell in with a young American seaman who 
 was outward bound, i.e. hard up, but as full of fun as if 
 he had just been paid off. We had a great time together 
 for a couple of days, getting as far away as Matanzas, 
 and using up my stock of dollars at an alarming rate. 
 The third day we were a bit weary of skylarking about, 
 and uecided to return to his boarding-house and have a 
 good night's rest. When we arrived there it was past 
 closing time, and the place was all dark and silent. It was 
 
78 THE LOa OF A SEA-WAU\ 
 
 a big cornor building, springing straight from tho road- 
 way, with flat walls, up to a height of about fourteen feet, 
 where a balconj' ran ripht round the building. To rouse 
 tho landlord was more than we dared ; so, after mucli 
 scheming, wo managed to find a light cart under a shed, 
 which W3 dragged from its place and up-ended under 
 the balcony. My chum, who was very tall, climbed up 
 the shafts and scaled the balcony, then lowered his long 
 sash to me. I was spef:dily by his side, and together 
 we sought and found his room, which opened on to tho 
 balcony and was luckily unoccupied. Feeling secure, 
 our love of fua overcame weariness, and after a boisterous 
 pillow-fight wo strolled out on to the balcony again. 
 Just then a sereno loitered round the corner and uplifted 
 his voice, ** Ave Maria purissima, sin pecado concebida. 
 Doce hora ; noche sereiia ! " As the echoes died away, 
 he caught sight of the cart standing where it ought not, 
 and proceeded to investigate. Moved by the same spirit 
 of mischief, we hurried to the chamber, and found a big 
 jug of water, which Zeke carefully poured upon the head 
 of the muttering vigilante. The effect was amazing. 
 Eaving like a lunatic, he assaulted the great door with feet 
 and spear-butt, making an uproar that speedily aroused 
 everybody within earshot. Our house hummed like a 
 hive, ind, before many minutes, we heard the hurried 
 tramp of feet along the uncarpeted corridors, and the 
 babel of many voices — the drenched official's shrilly pre- 
 dominant. Presently they entered our room, to find us 
 just awaking from a sound sleep ! and blinking at 
 the lanterns like owls. So deep had been our slumbers, 
 that it was some time before Zeke could explain how I 
 came to be there ; but the landlord, whom I recognized 
 as an old acquaintance, was quite easily satisfied about 
 
OFF TO SEA AGAIN, 79 
 
 rac. Clearly wg were not the offenders, and the search- 
 party passed along, leaving us to enjoy a frantic jig at 
 tlio glorious disturbance wo had aroused. How tho 
 affair was settled I never heard, for the next day was 
 my last of liberty. 
 
 Zeke went down to tho shipping-office to look for a 
 ship in the morning, leaving mo to my own devices. 
 Aficr an hour's ramble up town, I began to feel a 
 miserable reaction, helped on doubtless by the fact that 
 I had shared my last dollar with my chum, and couldn't 
 for the life of me see where any more were coming from. 
 Presently I turned into a cafe and called for a cup of 
 coffee (I had not learned to drink anything stronger). 
 While I sat moodily sipping it, a drunken, disreput- 
 able-looking man of about forty, roused himself from 
 one of the tables, and, coming over to where I was, 
 addressed me in broad Scotch. With maudlin tears he 
 assured me that he was the chief mate of the Sea Gem, 
 and that he must get on board that day, but how ho 
 did not know. He dared not go out for fear of being 
 arrested; would I take pity on him, and see him on 
 hoard ? He must have been in a queer state of mind, 
 for I was but a boy of thirteen and small for my age. 
 My pride was touched, and I readily assented, leading 
 him carefully down to the wh^rf, and engaging a boat 
 for him. There I would hav -eft him, hut he held on 
 to me like a bear, swearing be would be lost and 
 undone without me, so I had to go off with him. When 
 we got alongside, the second mate appeared at the 
 gangway, and lowered a bowline, which I slipped over 
 the helpless creature's head and under his arms. Thus 
 he was hauled on board like a sack of flour. Then the 
 second mate sternly ordered me to come up. I refused. 
 
80 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 But ho quietly said, "Well, then, I must come and 
 fetch you." That was sufficient; I mounted the side, 
 and said good-bye to Havrna. 
 
 That a rope's-ending awaited mo, I felt sure ; but 
 instead of that, the captain called me into his cabin, 
 and gave me a most fatherly talking to. His kindness 
 made mo feel bad, and I promised him forthwith to be a 
 good boy, and forget my vagabond, independent way of 
 living ashore. Patting me on the head, ho dismissed 
 me to make my peace with the second mate, who was 
 very angry with me indeed. He received my apologies 
 in silence, and, although never friendly, I had no cause 
 to complain of his treatment afterwards. Of the mate 
 I saw nothing for two or three days, for, although wo 
 left Havana the next morning, he was in such a woful 
 condition, after his long debauch, that he could not 
 leave his berth. AVhen he did appear he seemed to 
 have forgotten who I was. His manner to me was 
 extremely brutal ; in fact, he was a brute all round — 
 although a lively regard for his own skin made him 
 careful how he treated the curious crowd of " dagoes " 
 forward. They were not at all a bad lot, and, con- 
 sidering their limited vocabulary, got on fairly well with 
 the work of the ship. The little Frenchman, in par- 
 ticular, was like a bundle of watch-springs. When he 
 once comprehended an order, it was delightful to see 
 him execute it. But his desperate attempts to under- 
 stand what was said were quite pathetic. He spoke a 
 mixture of Spanish and French, which the others did 
 Liot well understand ; and at last he pitched upon me as 
 the only one he could hold anything like a conversation 
 with, though how we managed it I have now no idea. 
 
 Everybody liked the old man. He was so genial, 
 
OFF TO SKA AG AW. 81 
 
 Fo simple, that it was a pleasure to see him. But I 
 am afraid he would have had a bad time of it with a 
 crew of Britishers. They appreciate a tight hand, and 
 are quick to tahc advantage of anything hke easy-going 
 on the part of their ofHccrs. This polyglot crowd, how- 
 ever, gave no trouble ; and, in spite of the bungling 
 stupidity of the mate, who never seemed to got quite 
 clear of the after-effects of his big drunk, things went 
 on oiled wheels. 
 
 We were drawing near our port, when one afternoon, 
 during a fine wholesail breeze, there was a sudden gloom 
 which rapidly overspread the sky. Somebody was keep- 
 ing a bad look-out, doubtless, for before any sail could 
 be reduced, a squall of wind and hail struck the vessel, 
 throwing her on her beam ends. It was so sudden that, 
 although all halliards and sheets were let fly at once, not 
 a yard would come down, the ship lying over at too great 
 an angle. And above the roaring of the wind, and the 
 flapping of the flying canvas, the ominous rumble of the 
 stone ballast rattling down to leeward could be plainly 
 heard. The deck was like the wall of a house, and, 
 when I saw the foaming sea rising up on the leeside as 
 high as the hatches, I felt sure she was turning bottom 
 up. By God's mercy, we had an old suit of sails bent, 
 which the wind stripped from the yards and stays like 
 muslin. Great sheets of canvas flitted away into the 
 darkness to leeward, while the flying running-gear 
 cracked like volleys of musketry. Gradually as the 
 pressure weakened she righted, regaining as even a keel 
 as the shifted ballast would allow, and we were safe. 
 But there were many pale faces besides mine, the old 
 captain especially looking terribly shaken up. 
 
 Every stitch of canvas that had been set when the 
 
 o 
 
!»T 
 
 82 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 squall burst was gone, and, as the weather gradually 
 settled into a strong gale, there was a desperate night's 
 work ahead. Ln our position, with a great deal of land 
 about, it was imperatively necessary to get sail set ; but 
 before that could bo done it had to bo "bent," that is, 
 secured to the yards. Such a task as this tests the 
 capabilities of a crew very well. In a man-of-war, where 
 they can send a man to every roband, and a couple to 
 each earring, the job is fairly easy; but in a merchant- 
 ship it means almost superhuman labour, from the 
 scarcity of hands. I shall not attempt to describe 
 the process, which bristles with technical details, that 
 cannot be grasped without a corresponding idea of the 
 conditions of work aloft in bad weather. Suffice it to 
 say that by midnight the two lower topsails, foresail, 
 and fore-topmast staysail were set, and the hands, 
 thoroughly exhausted, allowed to rest a while. It was 
 my first experience of bad weather at sea, and I thought 
 regretfully of the ease and comfort of my late life. But 
 a kind of philosophic determination not to cry over spilt 
 milk, which has attended me all my life, came to my 
 rescue, and prevented me from being too miserable. 
 
 The poor old captain, however, was severely tried. 
 Evidently his fortitude and ability were less than ho 
 had imagined. He looked worn and decrepit, a settled 
 anxiety gave him a haggard appearance, and all hands 
 pitied him. The fine weather had entirely forsaken us, 
 nothing but fierce squalls and incessantly shifting winds 
 prevailing until we made Dog Island, at the entrance 
 to Mobile Bay, under the lee of which we came to an 
 anchor. Our troubles were even then not over, for a 
 gale sprang up almost immediately, which raised so 
 ugly a sea that the lively vessel almost plunged bows 
 
OFF TO SEA AGAIN, 83 
 
 under. All hands but tho captain and my.solf wero 
 aloft, furling tho pails forward. I stood alono by tho 
 windlass, ready to slack or malco fast such running- 
 f^ear as I was called upon to look after, when, with a 
 tremendous bound, the ship reared herself high in air 
 forrard, snapping tho sorely-tried cable, tho released 
 links of which flew aft over tho windlass-barrel with 
 a deafening crash and shower of sparks. Everything 
 was at once dropped aloft, tho hands came sliding down 
 backstays at their best gait, and in less than five 
 minutes the other anchor was let go. Cable was veered 
 away to ninety fathoms, and fervent hopes expressed 
 that she would hold, for night was almost upon us, and 
 our position was dangerous in the extreme. Happily 
 tho wind hauled soon after, the sea became smooth, and 
 we rode in comparative comfort till noon next day, 
 when a powerful tug came down and tow^ed us up among 
 the shipping to a secure berth. 
 
 A fine fleet of ships lay here, all loading cotton for 
 Liverpool. Nor, in spite of the number of vessels, was 
 there any delay in commencing our cargo, for tho next 
 day. after mooring, a gang of stevedores came on board 
 and set to work, with characteristic American energy, 
 to prepare tho hold. Our captain left us for Mobile 
 City in the same steamer that brought them, returning 
 with the first load of cotton, but only to bid us farewell. 
 He called us all aft, and, with a quivering lip, informed 
 us that he did not feel equal to taking the ship home. 
 Therefore ho had determined to make way for a better 
 man, who would be with us in a few days. He thanked 
 all hands for the way they had treated him, and then, 
 shaking hands all round, got into the boat and was 
 rowed away to an upward-bound steamer, which lay 
 
84 THE LOQ OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 alongside our nearest neighbour, the Manj Durlir. 
 A hearty cheer followed him, whieh, if it lucked the 
 simultaneous volume peculiar to Britons, was certainly 
 no IcBS sincere. 
 
 Then the cotton began to come in. The great 
 loosely pressed bales, weighing some six hujidredweight 
 each, were whipped on board like magic by a single- 
 purchase steam-winch on ])oard tho steamer, and 
 tumbled into tho hold as fast as they came. Below, 
 operations commenced by laying a singlo tier of bales, 
 side by side across tho ship, on tho levelled ballast, 
 leaving sufliciont space in tho middle of tho tier to 
 adjust a jack-screw. Then, to a grunting chantey, tho 
 screw was extended to its full length, and another bale 
 inserted. The process was repeated until at last long 
 wooden levers were attached to the iron bars of tho 
 screw, and the whole gang "tallied" on until the last 
 possible bale was squeezed into tho tier, which was then 
 almost as solid as a beam of timber built into the ship. 
 It was a point of honour among stevedores to jam as 
 many bales into a ship as she could possibly be made 
 to contain, and restraint was often needed to prevent 
 the energetic workers from seriously injuring vessels 
 by the displacement of deck-planks, stanchions, bulk- 
 heads, and even beams. 
 
 On deck there was much to do. A winter passage 
 across the Atlantic was before us. The vessel had been 
 greatly neglected in Havana, and a great deal of sail- 
 making had to be done. The mate, having obtained 
 a demijohn of ** bug-juice " from one of the cotton- 
 steamers, was constantly drunk; so all the work de- 
 volved upon the austere second mate, who toiled early 
 and late to keep matters in hand. Owing to the 
 
OFF TO SEA AOAIIJ. 85 
 
 docility of tlio crow, this was possible ; but he was 
 greatly relieved when one fine morning a tall, deter- 
 mined-looking man wit)» a sallow face, heavy black 
 moustache, and nasal twang arrived on board, and 
 announced himself as " Captain Jones, come to take 
 command." Witliin half an hour of his arrival, he had 
 been all over the ship, had interviewed every member 
 of the crew, and had repeated at least a dozen times 
 that he was a " down Easter," and proposed to " run 
 this packet Yankee fashion." With an intuition I have 
 always had, I determined at once that he was carrying 
 a good cargo of liquor ; and it was as well for the 
 besotted chief mate that this was so, for ho would not 
 otherwise have been bo friendly with him, I'm sure. 
 His rounds completed, ho retired to the " saloon," 
 catching sight of mo as ho went, and appointing mo 
 cabin-boy on the spot. My first duty was to call tho 
 mate into his presence. There and then the two of 
 them, seated vis-a-vis, began to drink themselves speech- 
 less, while I stood in attendance, filling up their glasses 
 until they could no longer hold them. At last they 
 rolled oft' their seats, and lay across one another in- 
 censible. I retired and informed the steward, who 
 lifted his hands despairingly, exclaiming, " Fo' de good 
 Lawd, dis gwine ter be olo hell erfloat. One on 'em's 
 bad nuff, but skipper en mate bofe : wa' we gwine ter 
 do I doan know." But Captain Jones* carouse only 
 lasted a couple of days. At the expiration of that time 
 he *' sohered up," and, though looking very demoralized, 
 went about the ship like a man that knew his bubmess 
 thoroughly and meant doing it. Strangely enough, he 
 allowed the mate to go on as he had been doing, never 
 interfering with him in any way. 
 
86 THE LOQ OF A SKA-WAIF, 
 
 When two-thirds of our carf^o wns in, Captain Jones 
 went up to the city again. During biw absenco tbo 
 ftovodoros quitted work and left ua for tbo CbristmaR 
 liolidayfl. By Cbristmafl Evo tbcro was not a fitcainer 
 left in tbo bay, and an acbinj:j scnso of discontent mani- 
 fested itself all tbrougb tbo fleet. Not to speak of any 
 fostivo provision, tbero was an actual dearth of fresh 
 stores of any kind, as no vessels bad been down for 
 several days. Boats camo and went from ship to ship 
 ou the same errand, seeking wherewithal to make a 
 Christmas dinner; but tbero was no hope, all wore 
 alike unprovided. Gloom sat on every face as tbo 
 prospect of a salt-junk dinner on Christmas Day grew 
 more definite, and the language used about tbo matter 
 was altogether improper and unseasonable. But, just 
 as dusk was stealing in, a solitary schooner was sighted 
 coming into the bay from tbo river under a press of 
 canvas, which, in spito of tbo light breeze prevailing, 
 drove her along at a good pace. It was quite dark by 
 Iho time she reached us, and much to our surprise 
 dropped her anchor close aboard of us. As soon as she 
 swung to the wind the voice of Captain Jones bailed us 
 from her dock, crying, " Send a boat aboard ! " Ho bad 
 no sooner spoken than a perfect chorus arose about him : 
 the squealing of swine, the cackling of geese, and tbo 
 shrill war-cry of turkeys. Blessed discord ! filling us 
 with visions of feasting too delightful for speech. There 
 was no delay in getting the boat afloat, all bands being 
 full of eagerness to assist. 
 
 After receiving the skipper, tbo boat made a tour of 
 the anchorage, Captain Jones standing up as each ship 
 was passed, and shouting the good news at the top of bis 
 voice. Then returning to the schooner, the boatmen 
 
OFF TO HE A AQAIS. 87 
 
 laboured like Trojans to transfer tho fitock to our deck, 
 licsidcs the poultry and pigs, tlicro was a luigo pilo of 
 froflh beef, vegetables, and enough drinkables to furniHli 
 a carouse for tho combined crews of tho whole fleet. Tho 
 transhipment was barely completed when customers 
 began to arrive. Soon wc were the centre of a lloiilla of 
 boats, whoso crows lined our rails whilo tho skippers 
 examined tho provisions. All tho lampn in tho ship wero 
 lighted and hung about, and, a rostrum being erected, 
 Captain Jones began his auction. It was tho strangest 
 scene I ever witnessed on board ship. Roars of laugliter 
 punctuated every remark of tho auctioneer, and, assisted 
 by swiftly circulating bottles of strong waters, tho fun 
 raged furiously until long past midnight. Then, as tho 
 last of tho visitors departed uproariously, our excited 
 crowd quickly calmed down, and quiot reigned until a lato 
 hour on Christmas morning. Of tho subsequent feast 
 there is no need to speak. Sufticient to say that it laid 
 over all my experiences on board ship, for our skipper, 
 having cleared a goodly sum by his **cutenes3" and 
 enterprise, could well afford to be generous ; and he was. 
 Four or live days elapsed before our stevedores 
 returned, and tho work of shipping cargo re-commenced. 
 But once they got to work again no more time was lost. 
 A week more saw every crevice, wherein it was possible 
 to jam, by tho most violent means, a balo of cotton, 
 utilized, and even then the skipper growled because tho 
 time of year made it impossible for him to risk carrying 
 a few bales on deck. At last tho day came on which 
 Captain Jones was to make his last journey to town to 
 clear tho ship for sea. Before ho went, he called all 
 hands aft and offered to buy such clothing as they 
 required for tho homeward passage. Being almost 
 
88 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF, 
 
 destitute of " diinuago," 1 vonturecl to put in my plea 
 for a little, but was grievously disappointed. He would 
 not buy me a rag, telling me that I was not a wage- 
 earner but a passenger, and he couldn't afford to spend 
 money out of his own pocket. Two days after we 
 weighed for home. 
 
 We had fairly good weather as we were swept 
 through the tortuous Florida Straits by the rush of the 
 Gulf Stream, which, whether you will or not, carries 
 3'ou to the north-east at the rate of a hundred miles in 
 twenty-four hours. But we were hardly clear of the 
 land before a fierce north-westerly gale camo howling 
 down upon us, p.nd my sufferings commenced in real 
 earnest. For although I was supposed to be cabin-boy, 
 I had to be on deck almost as much as I was in the 
 cabin. The mate seemed to take a curious sort of 
 pleasure in hazing me about, as if he had some personal 
 grudge against me, although I never could understand 
 why. I was so bitterly cold-footed that I stole a pair 
 of the captain's stockings — I had nothing but a pair 
 of patent-leather shoes — for foot-wear. They (the stock- 
 ings) were very old, and I soon wore out the feet, which 
 I cut off at the ankles, sowed up the openings, and 
 put them on again. This ingenuity led to disaster, for 
 springing up on the after-house one day by the side 
 of the captain, who was leaning against it, he saw his 
 initials on my leg. Investigation followed, in which I 
 pleaded my sufferings I'rom cold and his refusal to get 
 me anything to wear in Mobile. My excuse was, of 
 course, unacceptable, and, although ho did not beat me, 
 I was forbidden tho cabin precincts any more, and com- 
 pelled to go barefoot for the remainder of the passage. 
 I was now in the mate's watch, and that worthy treated 
 
OFF TO SEA AGAIN. 89 
 
 ino with Btudicd brutality. I scarcely ever came within 
 reach of him but I got a kick — he eeldom struck mc 
 with his hands. 
 
 As wo got farther to the eastward the weather grew 
 worse and worse. Gale succeeded gale with hardly a 
 lull between, but our vessel being in such fino trim, we 
 were decidedly better off than as if she had been deep 
 in the water. At last, however, we fell in with a regular 
 hurricane. Every stitch of canvas was taken in but a 
 storm-staysail, made of the heaviest canvas woven, 
 under which we lay-to until she gave a tremendous 
 weather-lurch, and, rolling to leeward with a vicious 
 jerk, the triangular patch of sail blew clean out of its 
 bolt-ropes. From that time we lay under bare poles 
 for eighteen hours, during much of which I sat on th 
 
 c 
 
 poop beside the tiller, hauling back the slack of the 
 wheel-ropes, more dead than alive from the wet and 
 cold. Never having seen such a storm at sea before, 
 I was dreadfully frightened, until I saw how uncon- 
 cernedly the sea-birds hovered about us. Then I 
 reasoned that if those tiny things were so F^cure, surely 
 a big ship like ours must be much more so. Unsound as 
 my conclusion was, it comforted me, and I had no more 
 fear. A few days of light fine weather succeeded this 
 storm, during which everything was made shipshape 
 again aloft. The captain was a prime seam .n, and, 
 having completely left off his drinking, managed every- 
 thing in first-rate style. But he never forgave me for 
 my theft, nor did he ever check the mate for his 
 ill-usage of me. 
 
 One lovely afternoon, to the surprise of all hands, 
 the order was given to shorten sail. There was not a 
 cloud in the sky, and a gentle south-westerly breeze 
 
DO THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF, 
 
 was wafting us along about four knots an hour. But, 
 as the work of furling tho upper canvas proceeded, the 
 rumour wont round that the " glass," as seamen always 
 term tho l)aromctcr, was falling very fast. It may 
 have been, but for tlie twenty-four hours we lay under 
 loNver topsails and courses, not a trace of change in tho 
 serene weather prevailing. In tho first watch of tho 
 next night there stole over the sky a gloomy shade, 
 which deepened until tho heavens were black. Not 
 black as night, or black as ink, but as if a pall of black 
 velvet had been suspended over the sea, scarcely higher 
 than the mastheads. Tho wind died completely away. 
 The w^ater was smooth as oil, and so still that not a 
 creaking rope or rattling sheavo disturbed the death- 
 like silence. When tho look-out man struck four bells, 
 the sound seemed to wound like a sword-cut, so sharp 
 and unnatural was its clangour. This state of things 
 lasted for about three hours. Then, gradually, tiny 
 threads of light ran waveringly in every direction, as 
 if the solemn dome of darkness above was cracking, 
 and revealing an immense glow above it. The brilliant 
 crevices widened, grew longer and more vivid, until 
 the whole firmament was aglow with flashes of intensest 
 light, while all our spars were outlined in lambent 
 flame. This display lasted for about an hour, then 
 faded away ; the gloom disappeared, and the deep blue 
 sky, studded with innumerable stars and unflecked by 
 a single cloud, extended from horizon to horizon. This 
 beautiful weather lasted for another twenty-four hours, 
 and then a gentle westerly breeze sprang up, which 
 gradually freshened, until we were flying along home- 
 ward at tremendous speed, carrying every stitch of 
 canvas the ship could stagger under. 
 
OFF TO SEA AOAIN. 91 
 
 Moamvliilo tbo maio'B treatment of mo got worse, 
 until one night ho dealt me a savage kick, which hurled 
 mo off the poop on to the main deck, where I lay 
 inbcnsiblo for Bomo time. Although no bones were 
 broken, I had received Buch severe injury tliat I was 
 unable to walk for two days. During my confinement 
 I made a desperate resolution, and, as soon as I resumed 
 work again, carried it into effect by boldly approaching 
 my merciless tyrant, and telling him that I was a 
 consul's passenger, as ho very well knew. I promised 
 him that if there was any law that could reach him, I 
 would endeavour to have him punished for his cruelty. 
 And now I said, " You can kill me if you like, I don't 
 care." Much to my surprise, he weakened at once, and 
 for the remainder of the voyage I was freed from his 
 cowardlv attacks. 
 
 The bra^e westerly wind that was hurling us home- 
 ward acted as usual. That is to say it strengthened 
 until, slowly and reluctantly, sail was reduced to the 
 two lower topsails and reefed foresail. The ship was so 
 buoyant that the mountainous seas which surrounded 
 her, and often rose upon either side to such a height as 
 to make it appear as if we were racing through a deep 
 green valley, never broke on board. But the skilful, 
 courageous steering required could only be performed 
 by a few selected members of the rrew. Several men 
 had to be suddenly relieved of the task, for their nerve 
 failed them at sight of the mighty green walls soaring 
 above their heads, and they were within an ace of letting 
 her broach-to. This terrible calamity, which has been 
 the end of so many fine ships, occurs when the vessel 
 swings broadside on to a great sea, which either smashes 
 her up or rolls her over. In the most favourable cases 
 
92 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 much damage is bound to follow. Wo saw one sorrowful 
 instance of it in a brig, which wo flew by, helpless to 
 aid. Sao was just sinking, tho doomed crew clinging 
 to tho weather rigging as if to put oif their inevitable 
 fate for a few fleeting minutes. A huge sea rose 
 between us, hiding her from view, and when wo soared 
 on tho crest of the next one, she was gono like a foam 
 Hake. 
 
 Thus we ran until the colour of the water told us 
 we were nearing tho land, and soon we saw through 
 the flying spindrift the lonely outpost of the Fastnet 
 rock, with its sturdy lighthouse, which looked to mo 
 like a beckoning finger. Then mist-wreaths and snow- 
 squalls shut out everything from view, except a barque, 
 which, apparently going to Liverpool like ourselves, 
 kept steadily on about a mile in front of us. So exactly 
 did we keep in her wake that it looked as if we were 
 following her lead. The weather got thicker, but the 
 gale was unabated, and still we flew before it. Sud- 
 denly we were all startled by the report of a gun, and 
 out of the fog on the starboard bow loomed the figure 
 of a lightship with three ball-crowned masts. Our 
 leader had disaiDpeared. As we passed the lightship 
 she fired another gun, and a lift in the fog showed tho 
 name on her side — Coninr/hcfj. Still we kept on, all 
 hands watching the skipper's troubled face. But a 
 sudden roar of " Breakers right ahead ! " sent all hands 
 flying to the braces. Hard down went the helm, and 
 round came the ship on her heel, the spray from the 
 heavy following sea flying high over our topsail-yards, 
 while the tender vessel heeled over until the lee rail 
 was under water. Not a moment too soon, for the 
 furious roar of the baffled breakers sounded deafeningly, 
 

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 ir 
 
 I 
 
 ^ ■ i 
 
 ijfj-^j^ 
 
 
 
 mi] /jyll 1 
 
 ^^jJm 
 
 
 
 
 
 r7i^JflBH«wJ 
 
 
 
 L« 
 
 ii 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 IH^^La^Mi/^^xfcf^'jl^^ _^^\ x^ 
 
 
 A HIGE SKA ItOSK BI-.TAVKKN rs. HIDING HKU Fli03I VIKW. AM) WIIKN WK SOAUKD 
 ON TIIK ClfEST OF THK NEXT ONE. SHE WAS GONE I.IKE A FOAM Fl.AKE. 
 
OFF TO SEA AGAIN. 03 
 
 as their fleecy crests boiled and foamed uiidor om- lee 
 only balf a dozen cables-length away. Slowly, slowly 
 we clawed off tluit ugly reef. For more Lhan an liour 
 tlie issue was in gravest doubt ; then hope began to 
 revive as the good ship's weatherly qualities became 
 manifest, and it was plain to all that we were drawing 
 clear. The breeze now began to take off a bit, and 
 more sail was made. Without any further incident, we 
 ran steadily up-channel to Point Lynas, where wo got 
 a pilot and a tug, which by daylight brought us safely 
 to an anchorage in the Mersey. Wo only anchored for 
 an hour or two, waiting for high water, when we were 
 coaxed into the Brunswick Dock, and made solidly fast 
 on the side next the street. As soon as ever I could 
 do so unobserved, I slipped down a fender lanj'ard and 
 touched England with my feet, feeling a delightful 
 thrill as I did so. Why, I did not know, but the fact 
 remains. A homeless, friendless waif, with no prospects 
 before me, no one to welcome me, I rejoiced to bo in 
 England again, as if I, too, felt it good to be at home. 
 
-?t<;*t^ 
 
 9-1 TJIE LOG OF A SLA- WAIF. 
 
 CIIAPTEB VIIT. 
 
 BTHUnGLEg IN LIVEnrOOL AND LONDON. 
 
 In a very sliork time all hands had left the ship hut 
 myself. A decrepit old man arrived from somewhere 
 to act as watchman ; but ho took no notice of me, and 
 1 made no advances. Not a word had been said to me 
 by anybody when they left the ship, and I was greatly 
 in doubt as to whether I was supposed to clear out like 
 everybody else. But I was very sure that I did not 
 know where to go, and so I coiled myself up in my bunk 
 and went to sleep, as it was getting late. When I woke 
 it was morning. A heavy fall of snow had covered 
 everything during the night, and the outlook was as 
 desolate and dreary as could be imagined. Making my 
 way aft, I found the cabin all locked up ; so tL^at, though 
 I was ravenously hungry, there was no chance of getting 
 anything to eat. Tiie ancient watcliman was fa.^t 
 asleep in the galley, into which I stole to warm my 
 freezing bare feet. As soon as I got the chill out of 
 my bones I returned to the fo'lk'sle, and found, to my 
 dehght, an old pair of boots that one of the chaps had 
 discarded. With these and some rags I covered my 
 aching feet, and then, mounting on the rail, looked long 
 and eagerly ehorewards. Presently I made out, over 
 
STIiUOOLES IN LIVERVOOL AND LONDON. 05 
 
 tho window of a Bmall shop, tbo Icpjond, "Brunswick 
 Dock Eating-houso," and noted with Ratisfaction a 
 feather of smoke curling from one of tho chimneys 
 belonging to tho building. Hardly stopping to think, 
 I slipped down a rope and ran across the road, knock- 
 ing boldly at the door. A ruddy- faced littlo girl about 
 my own ago opened it, and said, hesitatingly, "What 
 d'you want ? ** Trying to look big, I said, " I'm a 
 sailor belonging to that ship there, an' I want to come 
 an' lodge hero till I'm paid off." With a doubtful 
 glance at my beggarly outfit, she said, "I'll go and 
 call aunty," .aid ran off upstairs. There was a glorious 
 fire roaring in a great open fireplace at the end of the 
 low flagged room, bo, without waiting permission, I 
 entered, and seated myself on a bench close to the 
 bright blaze. In a few minutes a sharp, business-like 
 woman came down. In response to her keen questions 
 I told my story, carefully avoiding any reference to my 
 " passenger " status on board. Apparently she was 
 satisfied, for in a very short time I was supplied with 
 such a breakfast as had long haunted my hungry 
 dreams. Hashers of toasted bacon, boiled eggs, new 
 bread-and-butter, fragrant cofi'ee — it was just heavenly. 
 All my miseries were forgotten in present joys, and I 
 ate and ate until, suddenly looking up, I saw the littlo 
 girl gazing at me with awe. No wonder she was aston- 
 ished. Tho way I was demolishing tho food was a 
 sight to see. But, meeting my eye, she blushed crimson 
 and gabbled something in a strange tongue (which I 
 afterwards learned was Welsh) to her aunt, who stood 
 also looking at me with a good-humoured smile on 
 her face. 
 
 Being warmed and fed, two satisfactory experiences 
 
#•' ^ » 
 
 96 TIIE LOO OF A SEA' WAIF, 
 
 to which I had long boon a stranger, I was in no hurry 
 to leave such comfortal)lo quarters for the bleak outer 
 world. 13ut (lurin|jj the morning I ran over to the ship, 
 and linding there tho cook, I learned that she was to bo 
 paid oil" tho next day. I doterminod to present myself 
 with tho rest at tho Hhipping-oflico, although my hopes 
 of getting any money were very faint. Still I know 
 enough of tho world to bo certain that, without m noy, I 
 should not bo allowed to remain at my present lodgings. 
 So at the appointed hour I marched up to tho Sailors' 
 Homo, meeting with a cordial welcome from my ship- 
 mates, especially tho littlo Frenchman. Letter still, as 
 each of thorn received their money, they very kindly 
 gave mo a littlo, tho total amount thus contributed 
 being twenty-two shillings. Then came my turn to 
 appear at tho pay table. My heart be it fast with 
 apprehension as I faced Captain Jones, my head only 
 just appearing above the counter. His words were grulT 
 and his manner unkind, but I behove he was moved 
 with pity for my forlorn position, for he actually gave 
 me two pounds ton shillings, pay at the rate of ono 
 pound a month. I was so glad that I knew not what to 
 say. but I hastily retreated lest he should change his 
 mind and take the money away again. As fast as my 
 legs would carry me, I ran back to the boarding-house 
 to exhibit my wealth to the landlady. I had never had 
 BO much money of my own before, and was propor- 
 tionately elated, the thought of how much I needed it 
 never entering my head. The landlady immediately 
 suggested that I should treat her and her crony from 
 next door, who was in conversation with her, at which 
 proposition I felt quite a man, and inquired loftily what 
 the ladies would take. A little drop of "Donovans" 
 
BTItUQQLES IS LlVEPiVOOL AND LONDON. 97 
 
 appeared to be tlio fiivourito li(iiior, a totally iiiikriown 
 beverage to mo, but I hIjouUI havo agroeil had it been 
 cbampagno. The littlo niece was dispatched for it, as 
 well as a couple of bottles of ginger-beer for us, who 
 were too young and wise to thirst for "Donovans" — 
 which I knew, as soon as it arrived, to bo rum. 
 
 To do ray landlady justice, she interested herself in 
 getting mo some decent clothing, and promised to koop 
 mo on what remained of my money until 1 got another 
 ship or somo employment ashore. But getting a ship, 
 I found, was an impossible task. My diminutive sizo 
 and weakly appearance obtained for mo only derision 
 when I ventured to ask for a berth on what I considered 
 likely-looking craft, and it soon appeared hopeless to 
 look in that direction any more. Help camo from an 
 unexpected quarter. Next door to my lodging-placo was 
 tho workshop of a figure-head carver, who was a young, 
 energetic man of great skill, and very intimate with my 
 landlady. He was kind enough to employ mo in his 
 business, where I soon became useful in sharpcniug 
 tools and roughing-out work for him and his brother to 
 finish. He paid mo suflicient for my board and lodging, 
 which, considering that he was teaching me his trade, 
 was very generous. Hero I was quite happy, for my 
 new master was kindness itself; and I believe I was 
 really quick to profit by all I was taught, so as to bo 
 worth my pay. But my evil genius pursued mo etill. 
 His brother became jealous of the attentions I received, 
 and, after I had been with them a couple of months, 
 quarrels between them on my account were of almost 
 daily occurrence. This unsatisfactory state of things 
 culminated in my getting knocked senseless one morning 
 by my enemy during his brother's absence at a job. 
 
 H 
 
08 rnR ion of a f^ka-wmf. 
 
 When Mr. R. returned ho wan alarmed at my appear- 
 ance, for I had an ugly cut on the head which made mo 
 look quite ghastly. A tromendouH row followed, tho . 
 upnliot of which was tli.at Mr. l\, florrowfully informed 
 mo that ho was ohlij^'cd to Hcnd rao away before serious 
 harm was done. IIo advisod mo to return to London, 
 where I was better known ('?), and gave mo ten shillinga 
 to pay my faro thither. I took his advice forthwith, 
 linding no difliculiy in getting a half ticket to Euston, 
 where I arrived with two shillings and sixpence in my 
 pocket. 
 
 Tho well-known streets looked strange to mo after 
 my long absence. In fact, I felt more in the way than 
 over. I knew nobody that could or would shelter me, 
 and I had got out of tho way of street life. Husbanding 
 my scanty store of coppers as well as I could, I haunted 
 Thames Street in tho hope that I might pick up a 
 coaster at tho King's Head, where, in those days, 
 skippers of small craft used to get most of their crews. 
 There is a cook-shop with a tank of pea-soup in tho 
 window, where for a penny I could always get a belly- 
 full of the thick, comforting stuff — tho best value for 
 money in the grub lino that I knew of, and I was no 
 bad judge. It — the tank — used to be cleaned out every 
 three days, and a fresh jorum of soup made. On the 
 jBrst day it was comparatively thin ; on the second, 
 being filled up without removing the solid matter settled 
 at the bottom, it was better ; but on the third day you 
 could almost cut it — a spoon would stand upright in it. 
 And, anxious to clear it out, they gave bigger penn'orths. 
 I often used to go without on the second day, so that I 
 could have two separate portions on tho third; after 
 which I felt as bloated as an alderman after a civic feast. 
 
BTnuaaim /y uveuvool and londo.w 00 
 
 But tho prnco failed, and I piclccd up very fow more ; fio 
 tlmt, thou'^'h I Hlopt 111 any liolo or corner I could llnd, to 
 avoid tho cxpcnso of lodgiuRfl, tho tinio Hoon canio when 
 I wns face to faco with Htiirvation aj»ain. Then a htv,;hi 
 idea occurred to mo, flo obviouH that I wondered why 
 it hadn't Hlruck mo before. I hud my diHchar;^o from 
 tho Sea (fern, I would neek a kindly hoarding-maHter, 
 and aHk him to keep mo till I got a Hhip, paying himHelf 
 out of my advance. I knew better than to go to tho 
 BO-called " Sailors' Homo." They don't tako in hard- 
 up fieamcn there. It is only a home for thoHo who can 
 pay down for their accommodation. 
 
 With my fortunate idea burning in my mind, I 
 hastened down tho West India Dock Road, attacking 
 tho fiiHt house I Baw with " boarding-houso for Beamen" 
 painted up over it. Tho proprietor, an old bo'sun, 
 grumbled at my request a good deal, but ho took mo 
 in, God bless him ! More than that, ho got mo a ship 
 three days after by moans of his influenco that way, 
 and onco again I was freod from tho misery of being 
 masterless. Tho vessel in which I was to sail was a 
 splendid barque, reminding mo strongly of tho luckless 
 Discoverer, and about tho same size. I Bhall call her 
 the Bonanza, for reasons of my own, though that was 
 not her name. Sho was bound to a port in Jamaica, 
 with a general cargo for new owners, and with a new 
 captain and ollicers. When we came up to sign on at 
 " Green's Home," I found, to my delight, that I was to 
 have twenty shillings a month. Like all tho rest, I 
 received a month's advance, out of which my boarding- 
 master paid himself, and provided mo with a " donkey 'a 
 breakfast" (straw-bed), hook-pot, pannikin, and plate; 
 a knife, and a suit of oilskins. So he didn't rob mo to 
 
100 TTIE LOa OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 any great extent. He also gave mo a few odds and 
 ends of clotliing, which had been left by boarders, out 
 of which, being a fair hand with my needle, I managed 
 to botch up enough garments to change. I bade him 
 good-bye with hearty feelings of gratitude, which he 
 fully deserved, and took my depjirture on board my 
 ohip. 
 
( 101 ) 
 
 CHAPTErt IX. 
 
 BOUND FOR JAMAICA. 
 
 All hands had been orderod on board in tho afternoon, 
 the tide serving about five p.m., but from some unex- 
 plained cause wo did not sail at the time appointed. 
 This delay led to complications, for although the crew 
 had, for a wonder, come on board fairly sober, they all 
 rejoiced at the opportunity ^iforded them of a last 
 carouse. l>y some mysterious means some money was 
 obtained ; all hands departed for the purlieus of 
 Shadwell, with the result that at ten o'clock the officers 
 were scouring the slums hunting for them. It was a 
 hopeless task, as the event proved, for by midnight 
 only two had been found, and they were both helplessly 
 drunk. They were dragged on board like bimdles of 
 rags, and hoisted into their bunks, where they remained 
 in peace. That tide being lost, the officers had a few 
 hours' rest, turning out again about four a.m. to renew 
 the search. Meanwhile the vessel was shifted into the 
 Shadwell Basin, ready to start the moment her crew 
 were on board. The morning broke cheerlessly enough 
 with a light fall of snow, gradually increasing to a 
 blinding mist of white, through which occasionally a 
 little party came dragging some oblivious mariner, who 
 had spent his respite in filling himself with whatever 
 
102 THE LOG OF A SEA-VvAlF, 
 
 fire-water ho could obtain. At last, weary of waiting, 
 the skipper determined to go on, although he was still 
 two men short. Accordingly the warps were cast off, 
 the tug Lacked in and took hold of us, and away we 
 went down the river through the thick veil of snow that 
 made the "mud pilot's" job both difficult and dan- 
 gerous. There was another boy beside me, a burly 
 fellow of sixteen, who very soon made it clear to mo 
 that I was not going to lead a pleasant time with him. 
 He had come from the WarspUc, and knew nothing of 
 the ways of merchant-ships, which gave me a little 
 advantage over him in one way. But he was well 
 provided with plenty of warm clothing, by the bounty of 
 the Marine Society, while I was so thinly clad that the 
 piercing cold benumbed all my faculties, and I crawled 
 about like a snail, making a very bad impression upon 
 the oflicers. Our arrival at Gravesend came as a 
 blessed relief, for there was a good hot meal of fresh 
 food ready as soon as the anchor was down. And as 
 all the seamen were in a deep, drunken slumber. Bill, 
 my colleague, and myself had a mighty feed all to 
 ourselves ; after which we turned in, and slept un- 
 molested till supper-time. The skipper had gone ashore 
 to get a couple of men in place of the defaulters, and 
 did not return till after dark. He brought two sober 
 seamen with him, who looked as though they had been 
 outward-bound for a very long time. Their checks 
 were quite hollow with hunger, and they had hardly 
 more clothing than they stood in. Yet they were both 
 able men, proving indeed the best seamen on board. 
 After they had eaten a good meal, they were set to 
 keep anchor-watch turn about, until at midnight all 
 hands were called to man the windlass. 
 
BOUND FOR JAMAICA. 103 
 
 I wish it was possible to give my readers an idea of 
 the misery involved in this operation under such con- 
 ditions. First of all, the officers were obliged to drag 
 the Boddened sleepers from their lairs ; then to shake, 
 if possible, some gleam of sense into them, some faint 
 idea of what was required of them. After nearly an 
 hour's struggle, the miserable men were at last 
 mustered on the fo'lk'slc head at the windlass levers, 
 where, exposed to the full fury of the bitter wind, they 
 cowered more like sheep than men. Their feelings, as 
 the drink died out of them, and the cold searched their 
 very vitals, must have been horrible. Occasionally one 
 of them would slip down gently from the fo'ik'slo and 
 disappear, only to be hunted up again by the vigorous 
 boatswain, who kept a watchful eye upon any would-be 
 skulkers. More by dint of the bo'sun's energy, I 
 believe, than any vitality in the limp crew, the anchor 
 was at last lifted, the hawser passed to the hovering 
 tug, and away we glided ghost-like down-stream. Ben, 
 the big boy, and myself were pretty well fagged out 
 with hauling back the big links of cable, and stowing 
 them in neat fakes abaft the windlass ; but the bo'sun 
 believed in keeping boys on the go, so we got no time to 
 think about being tired. Luckily for us the wind was 
 dead on end, so that it was useless making sail. All 
 hands were kept busily employed clearing up the decks, 
 getting the running-gear into its proper places, and 
 generally preparing the ship for independent travelling. 
 By daylight the weather grew better, the wind veered 
 to the eastward a little, and the fore-and-aft sails were 
 set. So we drnv slowly round to the North Foreland, 
 where the tug bilpped our hawser ; all sail was set, and 
 we were f. u-lj stnrted on our voyage. As I got a little 
 
104 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 warmth into my stifYened limbs, I won back some of the 
 good opinion 1 had forfeited by my clumsy, spiritless 
 movements of tho previous day. Being sent aloft to 
 loose some of the square sails, I was cheered by hearing 
 the elderly mate remark quietly, " That's a smart little 
 boy," and I must confess I was not displeased to note 
 that Ben only succeeded in drawing down maledic- 
 tions on his head for his clumsiness and general 
 inability to do what was required of him. There was a 
 vengeful gleam in his eye, as ho saw how inferior he was 
 in smartness to myself, which boded no good to me, and 
 from the first day out he never lost an opportunity of 
 doing me an ill turn. 
 
 Tho captain was a fine, manly specimen of a seaman, 
 with glowing red hair and beard, and a voice of thunder. 
 Fiery tempered, yet easily pacified, he was also one of 
 the most energetic of men, and I never saw a skipper 
 better liked by his crew. The mate was a middle-aged 
 man, at least ten years the captain's senior, rather 
 slow and sedate, but a thorough seaman and navigator. 
 Tho bo'sun, who was acting second mate, was an old 
 shipmate of the skipper's, and quite his equal in energy. 
 He was one of that fast-decaying type of seamen, a 
 Blackwall rigger, to whom every detail of sailoriziug 
 was as familiar as eating his breakfast. Besides this, 
 he was a born leader of men, who would enforce his will 
 regardless of consequences. No man durst give him 
 *' slack lip " on pain of being instantly knocked endways ; 
 a feat of which, by reason of his size and strength, he 
 was fully capable. As a result we were a well-disciplined 
 crowd, from whom no growling was heard whatever the 
 work imposed. There were eight A.B.'s, out of whom 
 only three were foreigners ; but not one of them calls 
 
BOUND FOR JAMAICA. 10") 
 
 for any special description from mo. They all had tlio 
 bad old idea that boys wore born slaves, who must do 
 all the dirty work on deck, and when below bo [content 
 with their leavings, wait upon them hand and foot, and 
 take uncomplainingly all the ill-treatment it was their 
 prerogative to bestow, lieing at the bottom of the 
 scale, I had a wretched life. For I was no match for 
 Ben, who unfailingly passed on his share of blows to 
 me, so that I was seldom without some visible marks 
 of ill-usage. But tho food was certainly above the 
 average. The skipper had the provisioning of tho ship, 
 and, being a just man, ho did not do as so many would 
 have done under tho same circumstances : starve tho 
 men to fatten his own pocket. What with tho decent 
 meals, and the masterfulness of the bo'sun, she was a 
 contented ship, and more work was dono in a day on 
 board than I have ever seen before or since. As usual 
 on this passage, fine weather prevailed, the wind being 
 BO Btcady that for days together we never touched a 
 brace. This was taken advantage of by the skipper to 
 practically refit tho ship, all hands being kept at work 
 all day long splicing, turning-in blocks, serving shrouds, 
 fitting new running - gear, and doing rigger's work 
 generally. At night they all slept, with the exception 
 of tho helmsman, the look-out man, the ofiicer of the 
 watch and a boy, who had to keep near the officer to 
 carry his commands to tho sleepers should the need 
 arise. Heally I was kept so constantly at work that, for 
 all I saw of the sea and its marvels, I might as well 
 have been ashore. Except at night, and then I was 
 always half asleep through getting so little legitimate 
 opportunity for rest. 
 
 Twenty-eight days flew rapidly past without a single 
 
lOG THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 incident worth noting, tho same blue sky overhead, and 
 steady breeze astern, until one morning the beautiful 
 shores of Jamaica loomed up ahead. A few hours later 
 we sailed in between the points of a sheltering coral 
 reef to an anchorage in the pretty little harbour of 
 Falmouth, pompously announcing our arrival by tho 
 firing of a four-pounder gun as the anchor was dropped. 
 While wo were furling sails and clearing up the decks, 
 visitors were arriving from the four vessels in harbour 
 as well as from the shore, so that by the time work was 
 over our decks were thronged. Tho skipper seemed a 
 prime favourite here, judging by tho number of people 
 who came to see him and congratulate him upon his 
 new command — the largest vessel that had yet entered 
 tho little port. There wore high times forrard as well 
 as aft, for canoe-loads of good things were brought, and 
 all hands invested recklessly on credit, forgetting that 
 as yet they had no money owing to them by the ship. 
 Not only eatables but sundry bottles of new rum made 
 their appearance, which potent fluid soon made things 
 exceedingly lively in the fo'lk'sle. Matters culminated, 
 of course, in a free fight, which so alarmed me that 
 I crept into a corner under the heel of the bowsprit, 
 out of the way of the revellers. There I went to sleep 
 so soundly that it was morning when I again emerged 
 at the hoarse cry of the boatswain calling us to 
 "turn to." 
 
 The darkies here were even merrier than my old 
 friends of Demerara. Such a jovial, musical lot I never 
 saw. Living from hand to mouth on the coarsest food, 
 and with the oddest assortment of rags for clothing 
 possible to be imagined, they really seemed to be per- 
 fectly happy. The feeblest joke was sufficient to send 
 
w 
 
 BOUND FOR JAMAICA. 107 
 
 them into convulsions of laiip;liter, and the gift of an okl 
 shirt or pair of pants would keop them on the broad 
 p;riu for a couple of days. My life was so consistently 
 miserable from harsh treatment, that I continually 
 envied them their careless existence, wondering all tho 
 time how tlicy managed to bo so jolly under what I 
 often saw to be painful circumstances. To crown my 
 misfortunes I fell ill. After suffering for two or threo 
 days, I was sent ashore to hospital. Then I was thank- 
 ful for what I had thought the climax of my misery. 
 For in the hospital I was allowed to do pretty well aa 
 I liked. There was no discipline, no rule of any kind. 
 Tho doctor, as we called him (I think he must havo 
 been tlie dispenser), was a mulatto, or quadroon, with 
 a comical notion of his vast importance, but a kindly 
 young fellow enough. Sometimes I had medicine ; but 
 only by accident, I believe. At any rate, I soon got 
 better, and rambled about tho great building or played on 
 the beach outside with the darkio boys of about my own 
 age, forgetting that such a place as the Bonanza's fo'lk'slo 
 existed. At last I began to hope that the captain had 
 forgotten my existence, having some dim idea, I suppose, 
 that I might be allowed to spend an indefinite time in 
 this pleasant way. But I was to be rudel}^ undeceived. 
 One day, when I was presiding with great importance 
 over a game at cricket (much I knew about it), with 
 twenty or v.hirty youngsters of almost as many shades 
 of colour around me, I suddenly heard my captain 
 calling me, with an angry note in his voice that boded 
 me no good. He had come up from the town to inquire 
 about me, and had caught me unaware. " You lazy 
 young sodjer ! " he cried, " this is how sick you are, is it ? 
 I'll give you a lesson for this ! Get down to the boat ! " 
 
108 THE LOG OF A SRA-WATF. 
 
 The thought of returning to the ship was so terrible to 
 mo that I actually dared to ask him to let mo go — to 
 discharge mo. In a voice that shook with fear and 
 anxiety I told him how I had boon treated, and implored 
 him not to take mo back with him. I boliovo ho was 
 half-melted, but his anger at what ho thought was 
 my skulking got the better of him. " Servo you dam 
 well right," ho said. " I'll give you a ropo's-cnding 
 myself when I've got time. Now bo off with you, 
 straight down to the boat." With that he strode on 
 to the hospital, while I, feeling as if I was going to 
 the scaffold, trudged through the sand down to the 
 landing-place. In about an hour he returned, but said 
 no word more to me as the boat danced over the wave- 
 lets back to that hateful prison. It was "knock-off" 
 time, and I busied myself in sweeping up decks with 
 all the alacrity 1 could muster, until I was free to fetch 
 my many nasters their toa from tho galley. They 
 hailed mo with many sarcastic queries after my health, 
 and the noble time they supposed I had enjoyed ashore 
 at their expense, commiserating Ben exceedingly for 
 having boen obliged to do my work, as they said, while 
 I had been loafing ashore. Happily I got over the 
 evening without anything worse than hard words being 
 thrown at me. Some grievance or another had excited 
 the anger of a big Irishman, and he soon monopolized 
 all attention by a recital of his wrongs. It appeared 
 that the bo'sun had "got a down on him," in his 
 opinion ; but if the bo'sun thought that he, Mike, was 
 going to be played with, that was just where he was all 
 adrift. He, Mike, was a blank Fenian, so he was, an' 
 he'd just shwim in blood before he was put upon by any 
 blank dock-walloper that ever mooched around Black' 
 
BOUND FOR JAMAICA. 109 
 
 wall, BO bo woukl. In tlio fervour of his baranguo ho 
 omitted to uotico how ho had raised his voice ; but ho 
 was presently reminded of it by the voice of tho bo'sun 
 at tho fo'lk'wlo door, calling, " Miko, I want you a 
 minute ! " There was complete silence in a moment, 
 which reigned until tho bo'sun repeated his words, with 
 tho quiet addition, " You don't want mo to fetch you 
 out, I s'pose ? " Then ^liko protested feebly that it waw 
 his watch below, that he was having his supper, that 
 various reasons, in fact, prevented him from emerging. 
 Like a tiger tho bo'sun leapt into the crowded space. 
 There was a medley of arms, heads, and legs, a hubbub 
 of inarticulate noises, but out of it all tho bo'sun 
 and Mike emerged on deck. How thoy got there, I 
 don't believe any one knew. I heard the bo'sun im- 
 ploring Mike to stand up to him like a man, and Mike 
 piteously reminding him that ho was by no means his 
 match, that ho was twenty years older (which was 
 nearly true). "Very well, thou," said tho boss, "not 
 so much of your slack next time. If you're an old man, 
 behave like one, an' don't open your mouth so wide, in 
 case anybody jumps down your throat." There was 
 peace after that. Not even a word was said to mo when 
 I ventured to crawl into the raffle of rags which was 
 my bunk. 
 
 At daylight next morning all hands were called to 
 get under way. In the cabin the skipper had been 
 entertaining a large party of friends, who had been 
 keeping up an extensive carouse all night. Uproariously 
 they departed their several ways as we toiled at the 
 windlass, while boats from all the other vessels in port 
 came and fastened on to us to assist us out from between 
 the reefs. Such aid was absolutely necessary unless the 
 
no TIJIC LOO OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 iniHcrably slow mothod of warpinj; out by a kcdgc-aticlior 
 was roHortcd to. For in thcRO "West Indian ports tlicro 
 is invariably, during the nigbt, a Rontlo air from tbo 
 land, wbich soon after daybreak dies away to a conipU to 
 calm, lasting perhaps an hour, and euccocdcd by tho 
 invigorating " doctor," or sca-broozo. This latter Boon 
 gathers strength and blows moro or less forcibly all day 
 long. In consequence of this it becomes imperative to 
 gain an ofling before the " doctor" begins, in order that 
 the vessel may be able to fetch off 1. .< land in tho teeth 
 of an increasing breeze. 
 
 Having assisted us to got about two miles out, tho 
 boats cast ofT from us, and with many hearty farewells 
 returned to port, taking with them our pilot. A stark 
 calm succeeded as usual, during which all hands lounged 
 about and whistled for a breeze, until some of the 
 keener observers noticed that tho strong under-tow was 
 sweeping us rapidly towards a long spit of sand that 
 stretched seaward, about three miles to tho northward 
 of us. Presently the mate's anxiety constrained him 
 to approach the captain, who, with flushed face and 
 abstracted air, was pacing the poop, and suggest that 
 the anchors might be prepared for letting go. Strange 
 to say, the skipper received this hint with a bad grace, 
 answering his officer so abruptly and angrily that bis 
 N.'ords were distinctly audible all over the ship. Tho 
 mate, whose age and experience, apart from his other 
 undeniably good qualities, entitled him to very different 
 treatment, bowed and retired, evidently much hurt. A 
 short period of silence followed, while tho vessel, her 
 sails hanging as if carved in stone, and her hull motion- 
 less, as if in dry dock, was being carried along over the 
 now visible coral bottom at the rate of nearly four knots 
 
BOUND FOn JAMAICA, ill 
 
 an hour. At liiBt tho bo'Hun, unablo to contain himRolf, 
 fitrodo up to tho captain anil said bohlly, " Cap'n — , 
 if you ilon't anchor this flliip'll bo a.shoro in anotlior ten 
 niinntes." "(»et o(T my poop, you impudcuit raHcal ! 
 How daro you conic an' Hpcak to mo like tliat ! For two 
 pins I'd put you in irons. D'yo think I don't know my 
 duty? I never hoard such check in my Hfe ! " and ho 
 stampi'd with fury. But tho bo'sun simply said, "Well, 
 don't you say you wasn't warned, that's all," and, 
 turninj,' on his heel, left tho angry, unroasonablo man 
 to himself. ]3y this time all hands were fully possessed 
 of tho idea that only a miracle could savo tho ship, for 
 tho reef seemed to bo actually touching tho keel through 
 tho clear water which was carrying us so swiftly over it. 
 And tho idea of tho vessel's loss filled mo with unholy 
 joy. No one could realize bow terribly I dreaded tho 
 homeward passage, and, now that deliverance seemed so 
 near, I could hardly restrain ray feelings. Slinking into 
 tho empty forecastle, I waited breathlessly for tho crash 
 I felt sure was imminent. It came, a long grinding 
 sensation, like a boat grounding on a pebbly beach 
 magnified a thousand times. Almost delirious, I danced 
 about tho place, in tho middle of which unpardonablo 
 exercise I was discovered by tho bo'sun. Outraged 
 beyond speech, ho dealt me one savage kick, which put 
 all dancing out of my power for many a day, and for 
 the present stretched mo motionless on tho dock. Not, 
 however, to lie there long, for hearing my name shouted 
 outside, I dragged myself up, mustering all my energy, 
 and hobbled off to obey the call before some worse thing 
 should befall me. 
 
 I found all hands toiling like ants, getting out anchors 
 and hawsers, and doing all that experience could suggest 
 
112 THE LOO OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 to frco tho vosBol from tho poflltion of (liingoi* into which 
 Hho ha'l hooii brought ho rocklcHHly. liiit tlio calm was 
 over, tho Bca-broozo had commenced, and wixh incroaHing 
 HO fast that already tho hitherto placid sea waH begin- 
 ning to foam. Broakors, too, born of tho jagged roof 
 KO close to tho surface, woro rolling in steadily, although 
 as yet thoy were of puny height and weight. Ueing at 
 KO short a distance from tho port wo had left, our plight 
 was plainly visible to those on shore. Consequently, in 
 a coupb of hours, every boat of sutticient size in tho 
 place was alongside. Scores of willing hands plied 
 every means by which good might be done, but the 
 steady increase in wind and sea, driving directly shore- 
 ward, mocked all efforts at heaving tho ship off. There 
 were no steam vessels cither in Falmouth or the 
 adjacent ports, so that, when every purchase that could 
 bo got upon the anchors and cables laid out astern was 
 brought to a standstill, that branch of tho work was 
 perforce abandoned. 
 
 Thou tho cargo was attacked at all three hatches, 
 everybody working as if their very lives depended upon 
 their labours. The negroes especially seemed to regard 
 the whole affair as a gigantic sproo, for without abating 
 one jot of their labours, they yelled, sang, danced about, 
 and behaved generally like a pack of schoolboys just let 
 loose without any supervision. As the day woro on the 
 wind increased to a strong gale, and the rollers attained 
 so formidable a height that at times they lifted the 
 vessel bodily from her jagged bed of rock, letting her 
 fall again with a crash that threatened to shake all her 
 stout timbers apart. After each of these blows she 
 seemed to slide seawards a little, but all her buoyancy 
 was gone — the stern went down at an increasing angle, 
 
AT EACH TKKMKNDOUS LIFT AND HKAVE OF THE DOOMED VESSEL ALL 
 HANDS WOULD MAKE A FHANTIC KUSU TO THE SIDE. 
 
SOUND FOR JAMAICA. 113 
 
 and the water rose in the hold bo freely that it was 
 evident there were some serious gaps in the hull. Still 
 the work went on. Drogher after drogher left us filled 
 with salvage, while others crowded as near as they 
 dared to receive the bags, cases and bundles, that were 
 constantly being hurled overside. By nightfall all our 
 own crew were worn out, and transferred to one of the 
 Rmall craft which clung io our side receiving the salved 
 cargo. Each man secured what he could of his poor 
 belongings, but I, being unable in the scramble and 
 confusion to get hold of the few rags composing my 
 stock of clothing, contented myself with carrying off an 
 old wide-awake hat containing live blind kittens. The 
 anxious mother kept me close company, much to the 
 amusement of the toiling darkies. 
 
 All through the night the wind maintained a most 
 unusual force, and hour by hour the work of salvage 
 became increasingly difficult. Every package had to be 
 dived for into the blackness of the hold, which was quite 
 fuU of water up to the hatch-coamings. Great torches 
 of tarred rope, lashed to conspicuous points, roared and 
 flared in the gale. By their uncertain glare the black 
 toilers darted hither and thither with astounding energy 
 and a deafening incessant tumult of wild song. Every 
 one was mother-naked, and their ebony skins shone like 
 those of a school of gambolling porpoises. At each tre- 
 mendous lift and heave of the doomed vessel all hands 
 would make a frantic rush to the side, leaping with 
 blood-curdling yells into the waiting droghers. But the 
 instant it was seen that she yet survived the shock, 
 back they all came and attacked the cargo with renevv^ed 
 vigour. At last a bigger breaker than ever came along, 
 rearing its hoary crest against the paling sky. Beaching 
 
 X 
 
114 THE LOO OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 the vessel, it enwrapped her in masses of shining foam, 
 lifting her at the same time with such power that for 
 ho,lf a minute she seemed all afloat. As it receded, 
 the ill-used hulk, as if loth to leave its embrace, sHd 
 along the reef with a rending crash, nor stopped until 
 all that remained visible of her was the jibboom, pointing 
 upward to the sky like a warning beacon. In the whirl 
 of weltering foam left by her sudden exit, the droghers 
 danced like mad things, all having been cut adrift as 
 the yelling crowd sprang from the sinking ship. As 
 nothing more could possibly be done for the present, 
 the little fleet made sail, and stood in towards the town 
 with their spoil. In every conceivable and inconceivable 
 position the utterly wearied negroes lay about asleep, 
 regardless of the flying spray or such minor inconveni- 
 ences as being trampled upon by the crews. I found 
 a snug corner out of everybody's way, and there, cuddling 
 my cats, I, too, fell into sweet oblivion. When I awoke, 
 the vessel was just taking the beach in front of the 
 town. The sun was only just rising, but all the popula- 
 tion of Falmouth appeared to be there, and intensely 
 solicitous for our welfare. We were immediately taken 
 to the "hotel," only a few hundred yards away, and all 
 manner of creature comforts pressed upon us with 
 kindly persistence, as if we had been adrift for a month. 
 Suddenly I realized that I was quite a centre of attrac- 
 tion — the fact of my having rescued the kittens appear- 
 ing to appeal to all the visitors in a way that I should 
 hardly have believed possible. But, indeed, our reception 
 generally was so kind that we were all in danger of 
 being spoiled. Within the memory of the oldest inhabi- 
 tant no wreck of such importance had occurred near the 
 port, and consequently, I suppose, we reaped tlie benefit 
 of long- suppressed benevolence. 
 
( 115 ) 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 ADVENTURES OF A SHIPWllECKBD CREW. 
 
 The hotel to which wo had been brought upon our 
 arrival was, although the only ono in the place, far too 
 small to stand the strain of such an influx of visitors 
 as wc were, as far as sleeping accommodation went. 
 Therefore arrangements were made for our lodgment in 
 an empty house in town, while for all meals we were to 
 return to the hotel. To this sheltering place wo were 
 escorted by a delighted band of darkies, who insisted 
 upon carrying such traps as we possessed, and also 
 worked like bees to sweep and cleanse the house. Such 
 bedding as we had was spread upon the floor in a big 
 front-room, and in Oriental fashion; with the sailor's 
 ready adaptability to circumstances, we made ourselves 
 comfortable. We had plenty of company, for the whole 
 coloured population made holiday and visited us. Few 
 came empty handed, the majority bringing such gifts aa 
 they thought would please us : mostly fruit, tobacco, and 
 rum. There was such abundance of the latter, that by 
 dinner-time there was a universal debauch, from which 
 I gladly escaped. Making my way down to the beach I 
 found the work of salvage in full swing, for the hull of 
 the ship had broken apart so much that the floatable 
 
110 THE LOG OF A BEA-WAIF. 
 
 cargo was coming ashore in great quantities. Puncheons 
 of rum, hundlcs of walking-sticks, cakes of bees-wax 
 and innumerable coco-nuts were heaped in scattered 
 piles upon the beach, each of which vas guarded by 
 some one, whose allies were either scouring the shores 
 or paddling furiously after some piece of flotsam ap- 
 parently worth pursuit. Everywhere I found friends. 
 Such a godsend as this had not fallen to the lot of the 
 dusky Falmouthians before, and they were willing to 
 recognize even the humblest member of the crew as in 
 some sense a benefactor. AVhen I got tired of roaming 
 about the beach, I sought the hotel for something more 
 satisfying than fruit, and was received by the host's 
 buxom daughter, Marian, with great delight. She had 
 taken charge of my hatful of kittens, and showed me, 
 with manifest pride, how comtortable the old cat and 
 her blind progeny had been made. Ungrateful puss 
 would hardly recognize me, her changed circumstances 
 had made her forget old but humble friends. 
 
 Noticing that I limped considerably, Marian inquired 
 anxiously whether I had cut my foot, which made mo 
 smile, since, not having worn boots for months, my 
 natural soles were almost as hard as tanned leather. 
 But I admitted that there was something hurting me a 
 great deal, upon which she peremptorily ordered me 
 to sit down while she had a look. A short search 
 resulted in her finding the place, which she proceeded 
 to investigate with a needle, and presently drew there- 
 from a bag about as large as a marrowfat pea, which 
 she opened, and showed me was full of tiny eggs. 
 " You'se had dem chigoes mighty bad, chile," she said, 
 " but I gwineter put stop to 'em right now." With that 
 she went and fetched a tub of warm water. After 
 
ADVENTUIiES OF A SIlIPWIiECKED CHEW. 117 
 
 hatliing my feet thoroughly, she searched most care- 
 fully for more of these pests, finding two other nests, 
 full like the first, of eggs, hut which had caused me only 
 a slight itching sensation. Having removed all she 
 could sec, she made a vile compound of tohacco-ash and 
 kerosene, which she ruhhed into the wounds, causing 
 me exquisite pain. It took all my fortitude to keep 
 from screaming, and I was unahle to prevent a few big 
 tears dropping. AVith many strange words of endear- 
 ment she assured mo of her sympathy, hut declared 
 this heroic treatment to be the only way of effecting a 
 radical cure. I have no doubt that she firmly beheved 
 in her treatment, and I must admit that in the end it 
 was certainly effectual ; but it was so harsh that I w'as 
 quite crippled for over a week. During this miserable 
 time I was a close prisoner in our empty ho"se, being 
 generally alone during the day, while through most of 
 the night the drunken antics of my shipmates kept mo 
 in constant terror. Nevertheless there was some slight 
 consolation, for by some means it had got about that I 
 rould sing, and I was sent for by the officers of the 
 garrison to warble some of my simple ditties for their 
 amusement. As I was unable to walk, the messengers 
 made a rude litter, upon which they carried me to the 
 hotel, where I was propped up in an armchair while I 
 sang. The generosity of the officers provided me with 
 plenty of money, unfortunately of no service to me, 
 since I dared not refuse the constant demands of my 
 shipmates, who, of course, had none of their own. I 
 made two or three friends among the better-class people 
 in the town, who gave me quite a respectable bag of 
 half-worn clothes, and also promised their aid in other 
 directions. 
 
118 TUE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 At last, after the lapse of three weeks, (luring which 
 time a perfunctory Bort of inquiry into the loss of the 
 vessel was hekl, and the captain acquitted of all blame, 
 it was decided to send the crew round to Kingston, 
 whence we might get sliippcd homo. A small schooner 
 was chartered for this purpose, as no steamers ran round 
 the island ; and after considerable delay, provisions for 
 three days were put on board, and wo sot sail, doubt- 
 less much to tlio relief of those worthies who had been 
 obliged to feed such a hungry horde as we were. But, to 
 our great disgust, we found at the first meal-time that, 
 in addition to the stock of food bcinsj disgracefully 
 small, it consisted solely of ship-biscuit, yams, and 
 salt beef of the worst sort. If the kind providers of 
 this outfit could have been aflfected by the maledictions 
 of our part}', they certainly would not have survived 
 the first day of our voyage ; after that, the subject 
 dropped from very monotony. Calms and light airs 
 prevailed, and all faces began to lengthen when, on the 
 evening of the third day, the cook announced that the 
 last of the supply of food was before us for supper, while 
 our passage was only beginning. Luckily a young 
 shark was caught, making us a meagre breakfast. Then 
 hunger stared us in the face. We were at least fifteen 
 miles off the land, with a dead calm, and nothing but 
 water left to supply the needs of fourteen hungry men. 
 No fish came to our hooks, no vessels came near us, 
 and, as there was nothing whatever to occupy tlie men's 
 minds, the subject of food- supply was soon discussed 
 threadbare. Then, as often happens among crews 
 similarly situated, the possibility of there being a Jonah 
 among us was mooted, and called forth an amazing 
 variety of opinions and reminiscences. Unhappily for 
 
ADVENTTTnES OF A SniPWHECI^ED CHEW. 110 
 
 mo, tho bo'Hiin wag indiscreet enough to lot out tlio 
 Btory of my behaviour at tho time of the vessol's striking 
 on tho reef. IIo told it laughingly, referring, with a 
 good deal of satiafaction, to the swinging kick ho had 
 dealt mo, the bruise from which had not even then 
 disappeared. But the eiTect of liis statement upon 
 those ignorant and frightened men was most strange 
 and significant. They accepted it without question as 
 positive proof; first, that all their misfortunes were 
 due to tho presence of a Jonah among them, and, 
 secondly, that I was that Jonah ! 
 
 It may bo found diflicult of belief that, among tho 
 crew of a London ship in tho year 1871, such a thing 
 should have been possible ; but I solemnly declare it to 
 bo true that they at once decided that unless I were 
 cast overboard they would never reach Kingston. I was 
 immediately seized by them and commanded to say my 
 prayers quickly, as I had only a few minutes to live. 
 I looked at those cruel, brutish faces and saw no gleam 
 of pity ; I cried for mercy in incoherent terms while 
 they only scowled. With trembling lips, and scarcely 
 beating heart, I tried to do as they told me — say my 
 prayers ; but my senses were fast leaving me, and I do 
 not really know what I did say. Then one of them tied 
 my hands behind my back with a bit of fishing-line ; and 
 this act first seemed to awaken the three negroes, who 
 were the crew of the schooner, to the fact that murder 
 was intended. It almost drove them crazy with fear 
 and horror. Regardless of the odds against them, they 
 rushed to my rescue, only to bo beaten back with the 
 assurance that little would make my tormentors serve 
 them the same. The bitterness of death was almost 
 past, when, to my unbounded amazement, and renewing 
 
120 THE LOO OF A Sia-WAIF. 
 
 all my hopes of life, help camo from tho most imex- 
 pectcd quarter. Tho ho'siui, who, I do not think, had 
 realized himself how far in earnest thoy were until then, 
 suddenly hestirrod himself, making one strido across 
 the deck to where 1 lay, hardly conscious. Oh, how 
 f,'od-like I thought hiui ! The scene returns to mo across 
 the chasm of years as vividly as a photop[raph. llis 
 manly figure, erect before my poor little shrinking hody, 
 and tho sweep of his strong right arm as ho drovo those 
 hloodthirsty pagans back, will never fade from my mind. 
 "That's enough now," he said, **yc dam idiots! Did 
 yo think /was goin' ter let yer drown tho kid? S'elp 
 me God, of I thought yer really meant it, damfi wouldn't 
 drown two or three of ye meself, ye yelpiu' cowardly 
 scum ! " For a short minute or so thoy faced him, their 
 eyes glaring with tho lust of superstitious cruelty, and 
 then (it should bo remembered that there were ten of 
 thorn) they slank away, muttering blasphemies between 
 their clenched teeth. With a bitter laugh of derision he 
 stooped a?id cut my hands adrift from the lashing, and 
 then resumed his pipe as if nothing extraordinary had 
 happened. It hardly needs saying that I cowered close 
 to his side, nor did I once get out of arm's length of him 
 during the remainder of that passage. 
 
 Happily for us a breeze sprang up, sending the 
 schooner busthng along at a good rate into the harbour 
 of Savannah Le Mar, where we arrived late that even- 
 ing. By some means or other, wliich I don't under- 
 stand, considering our penniless condition, a good 
 supply of yams, salt fish, and water was obtained, and 
 we set sail again at about ten p.m. by the light of tho 
 incandescent moon. Our troubles were at an end for 
 the time, the wind holding strong and fair; so that in 
 
foi; A siio:;t mixutk ok so thky fackd him, niKiii kvks glauino with 
 
 THli LUST OF SITKHSTITIOUS CUUKI-TY. 
 
ADVENTUUEH OF A SIIIPWRECKED CHEW. 121 
 
 leas than forty-oigbt hours we wero running in swiftly 
 past Port Royal and up to the wharves at Kingston. 
 
 It probably bad never occurred to any one of us to 
 doubt tlmt when wo arrived there it would bo all plain 
 sailing for us. As shipwrockod seamen, and in a British 
 port, we naturally supposed that all we needed to do 
 was to march in a body to the Sailors' Homo, show our 
 credentials, and bo received with the warmest of welcomes. 
 And the rest of our stay, until ships were found for us 
 to go home again in, would, of course, be ono delightful 
 round of eating, drinking, and sleeping, varied by such 
 amusements as the place afforded. Accordingly, every 
 man shouldered his belongings, and off we marched, 
 guided by friendly darkies, to the Sailors* Home, which 
 we entered with the air of proprietors. It was a fine, 
 largo building, with a double row of verandahs and an 
 air of coolness and comfort extremely grateful to us 
 after our miserable trip in the schooner. We were 
 received with groat courtesy, and shown to the dormi- 
 tory, which, with its rows of clean beds and white 
 mosquito-curtains, looked like fairyland. We were told 
 that breakfast would be ready in a few minutes; so all 
 hands had a good wash, hastening down grubwards at 
 the first stroke of the welcome boll. There appeared 
 to be scarcely any other boarders; at any rate, there 
 Nvero none visible then. Coffee and bread were brought, 
 and then a white man came, who introduced himself as 
 the superintendent. He called our attention to the fact 
 that there were three tariffs here, according to the kind 
 of food desired, and wished to know which of them we 
 would choose. The bo'sun replied that, as we were the 
 guests of our country, we might as well have the best, 
 and added that, as we were somewhat sharp-set, the 
 
122 Tin: LOO OF A SEA-WATF. 
 
 Booncr wc got it ilic huppur wo Hliould ho. " Ob,'* said 
 tlio oflicial; "if tliiifn tho case, I'm ftfniid I can't tiilvo 
 .voii in. I'vo had no orders; and our rule hero is 
 payment in advance." IJhink amazement ovorsprcnd 
 every face, and half a dozen voicoB vohihly attempted 
 to cxphiin tho fiituation. ]>iit to all romarkH, remon- 
 Htranccs, and ohjurgations, tho superintendent was 
 adamant. IIo had no doubt it was all truo enouj^b ; 
 but ho bad no iuHtructions on our behalf, and, until ho 
 had, wo could either pay or go. When asked who wo 
 ought to apply to, be was blandly ignorant ; but it was 
 increasingly evident tliat bo wanted us gone very badly. 
 "Well, there was no help for it, and so, breakfastiesH 
 and dispirited, we started olY again to tho town, intend- 
 ing to go to the sliippIng-olVice, as the only place wo 
 could think of. In a foreign port wo should, of course, 
 have gone to the consul at once ; but here, under our 
 own flag, no one knew what to do. Our escort of 
 negroes grow quite imposing as wo trudged along, and 
 tho news of our reception passed from mouth to mouth. 
 Floods of advico were poured upon us by our sablo 
 friends, and offers of hospitality also without limit. 
 Indeed, had any of our crowd been orators, there seemed 
 to bo all tho materials necessary for a very decent riot. 
 But, peaceably enough, wo reached the sbipping-oflice, 
 where we asked humbly if we might see his high- 
 mightiness the shipping-master. After keeping us 
 waiting for nearly an hour, this gentleman came out, 
 and in bullying tones demanded our business. Our 
 spokesman, tho bo'sun, laid our hard case before him 
 in a most respectful manner ; but before he had finished 
 his story the shipping-master cut him short, roughly 
 telling him that we had no business to come there 
 
ADrnNTrTRES OF A STlJVWnErjKKD CTiEW\ 12^ 
 
 wliininp, nnd tliiit ho had nothing to do Vi\i\\ Ufl. And 
 \\\i\\ that ho oidorod us out of tlio oflico. I'ttorly 
 nninzod und diHi>iritcd at this treatment, wo retired. 
 Upon reaching the Btreit wo wore surrounded at onco 
 hy tho friendly darkies, who mndo good their previous 
 proniises hy carrying all hands ofT to hreakfast in their 
 several huts, talking and gesticulating violently all tlio 
 time. Fortunately 1 remcnihercd that I had a letter 
 of introduction to a gentleman in tho town ; so, refusing 
 all offers of hospitality, I hurried olY to present it. I 
 was not very cordially received; hut a note to tho 
 superintendent of tho Sailors* Iloino was at onco giveii 
 mo, which procured mo instant admission to that in- 
 slitution, with a right to tho host entertainment they 
 could give. 
 
 Meanwhile tho crow had formulated a plan of cam- 
 paign, romantic enough, hut promising well. It should 
 ho remomhcrcd that Port Koyal, at tho entrance to 
 Kingston Uarhour is, or was, one of our most important 
 colonial naval stations. A hugo old linu-of-hattlo ship, 
 called tho Ahouhir, was then tho guard-ship, and lay 
 moored opposite tho dockyard at Port Eoyal, several 
 miles from Kingston. A deputation of two, one of 
 which was tho ho'sun, determined to hoard the guard- 
 ship and lay tho case heforo tho commodore, feeling, 
 like all Uiitish seamen ahroad, that, although not to ho 
 lightly approached, the captain of a British man-o'-war 
 could always ho depended upon to see justice dono to 
 any sailor, however humhlo. Accordingly, they availed 
 thomsclvos of a friendly fisherman's canoo, and immedi- 
 ately set out on their long paddle down the hay to Port 
 Pioyal. At tho same time tho elderly Irishman hefore 
 spoken of, volunteered to tramp out to Spanish Town, 
 
124 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 the residence of the Governor of Jamaica — a distance of 
 about ten miles, as nearly as I can remember. He said 
 he was well used to the road, having tramped between 
 nearly every seaport in England. And so, while the 
 majority of the crew lay around in the shade discussing 
 the situation over and over again with a deeply interested 
 crowd of darkies, male and female, the messenger fared 
 forth. The Port Royal deputation reached their goal 
 first, and, climbing up the steep side of the great guard- 
 ship, saluted, and asked to see the commodore. They 
 were promptly conducted aft before this officer, who 
 listened patiently to their yarn, and did not interrupt 
 them in its recital. When they ceased speaking, he 
 said, " Is that all, my men ? " •* Yes, yer honour." 
 " Then go forward and get some food at once, and, when 
 you have done so, the second lieutenant will return with 
 you. You shall be cared for. Good morning." With 
 a salute they retreated, and, not being hungry, received 
 a tot of grog instead. Then, to their astonishment and 
 delight, they saw a natty little steam-launch alongside, 
 into which they were invited to descend. A smart 
 young lieutenant in full uniform joined them, the white- 
 clad crew jumped in, and away they went back to 
 Kingston. Long before they arrived at the landing- 
 place the anxious watchers had descried them, and, 
 when they touched land, there was quite an excited 
 crowd ready to welcome them. Straight to the shipping- 
 office went the lieutenant, and at his brief request the 
 shipping-master was immediately forthcoming. With- 
 out wasting a word the lieutenant came to the point, 
 demanding to know whether his commanding officer had 
 been rightly informed by these men of the state of their 
 case. As the facts were undeniable there was little 
 
AD VEti TURKS OF A SHIPWIIECKED CREW. 125 
 
 reply. Sternly, scorn fully, the young officer reminded 
 the discomfited ofiicial of his ohvious duty to British 
 seamen in distress, with an expression of wonder at its 
 being necessary for him to do so. " You will be good 
 enough to see all tliese men's wants immediately attended 
 to, and a passage home found for them at the earliest 
 possible opportunity. The commodore trusts he will 
 hear no more complaints of a like nature." Then, turn- 
 ing on his heel, the lieutenant bade our delighted fellows 
 good day, returning to his launch amid the cheers of 
 the darkies. A clerk was at once sent with the men to 
 the ** Home " with instructions to the superintendent, 
 and the trouble was over. 
 
 Not so those of the unfortunate shipping-master, 
 who must have been heartily sorry for his foolish 
 behaviour. For late in the afternoon our other mes- 
 senger returned in state from Spanish Town in one of 
 the governor's carriages, accompanied by a secretary 
 who bore c message from the governor that made the 
 shipping-master quake. He could only return an abject 
 apology, with an assurance that the shipwrecked crew 
 were now well cared-for, and that nothing on his part 
 should be lacking for their comfort. But, though we 
 heard no more of the affair, I doubt very much whether 
 the shipping-master did. From the stir the event made 
 in Kingston, I am inclined to think it was a long time 
 before he was permitted to forget it. 
 
 For about a fortnight I had a rattling good time in 
 Kingston. Confident in the assurance that I should 
 not be forgotten whenever a chance presented itself of 
 getting away, I cast all care to the winds, and set about 
 enjoying myself all I knew how. Moonlight fishing- 
 excursions in ramshackle canoes to sheltered coves 
 
ll2G THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 around the great harbour, long rambles in the wonderful 
 brakes and jungles with darkies, that, though men in 
 years, were children in their fresh enjoyment of every- 
 thing ; singing-parties along the beautiful beaches in 
 the silky evenings, and all 'with never a thought of 
 to-morrow — oh, it was heavenly ! I scarcely saw any- 
 thing of my shipmates. I didn't want to. My new 
 associates, although black, were full of kindliness, and 
 as pleased with me as I was with them ; what wonder 
 that I avoided, as far as I could, any intercourse with 
 men whose presence only reminded mo of miserable 
 days better forgotten. Out of the many incidents that 
 arc mellowed by time into a haze of half recollection, 
 one grotesque affair stands out sharply, and even now 
 makes mo quiver with laughter as its vivid details 
 reappear. A favourite pastime with the elite of the 
 coloured population was to gather in largo numbers, 
 dressed in all their finer}^ upon an old disused pier, 
 whose crazy piles and beams actually swayed with a 
 stronger breeze than usual. Upon this ancient struc- 
 ture, when the day's work was over, the young men 
 and women would frisk or loll about, according to their 
 humour ; but their chief amusement was the singing of 
 chanties, camp-meeting hymns, and, in fact, anything 
 with a rousing chorus in which all hands could join. 
 On the night in question, song had succeeded song 
 until somebody sent an electric thrill through the whole 
 gathering by starting the negroes' great anthem of 
 freedom, "Marching through Georgia." You could 
 hear the pulses of that great crowd beat while they 
 waited breathlessly for the last word of the sonorous 
 verse; and then, in one tremendous burst of melody, 
 every one lifted up heart and voice, while from far- 
 
ADVENTUBES OF A SHIPWRECKED CHEW. 127 
 
 away fisbermen on tbo bay, and labourers on tbo hills 
 tbo inspiring chorus rolled on. As verso succeeded 
 verse the cntlnisiasm rose to fover-hciit ; every one 
 sprang to their feet, waving tneir arms and stamping 
 in unison until the crazy structure upon whicli they 
 stood trembled to its ancient foundations. It was a 
 wonderful sight, having its ludicrous side, doubtless ; 
 but the high seriousness, and irrepressible energy of 
 the actors, prevented all desire to laugh. Suddenly, in 
 the height of the chorus, there was a rending crash, 
 and the entire fabric collapsed in one chaotic heap 
 of disjointed timbers and shrieking humanity into 
 the placid waters beneath. No one was hurt, for 
 the tide was high, and every darkey swam like a 
 hsh; but the scene of mad merriment on the bcacli, 
 as one draggled figure after another emerged from 
 the wreckage, was indescribable. Not until long after 
 midnight did the peals of laughter entirely cease, 
 for they rose again and again in all quarters of tho 
 town, as tho participants rehearsed the scene to thoso 
 who had not been fortunate enough to witness it. 
 
 I had begun to feel as if I had always lived there, 
 and the thought of leaving had quite disappeared from 
 my mind, when one day I received a note from the 
 gentleman to whom I had brought the letter of intro- 
 duction, telling me to go on board a large steamer, 
 which had arrived at Kingston that morning, as he had 
 seen the captain, and made arrangements for mo to bo 
 allowed to \York my passage home. 
 
128 THE LOQ OF A HEA-WAIF, 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 AN EVENTFUL PASSAGE HOME. 
 
 Now that tho time of my departure drew near, the same 
 old feeling of reluctance to leave a place to which I had 
 become accustomed came upon me with its usual force. 
 Possibly because I was never very long in one place, 
 I have always, except in one instance, felt loth to begin 
 wandcrmg again ; and, even now, my mind often turns 
 regretfully to the many ports I have visited, and quite 
 a painful longing seizes me to see them all again. 
 Therefore I am afraid I did not feel nearly as grateful 
 to my friend as I ought to have done; but, fully realiz- 
 ing how dangerous it was for me not to take advantage 
 of this offer, I made myself as presentable as I could 
 and hurried on board. The captain, a big, burly gentle- 
 man in a smart uniform, received me with a sharp 
 glance, and dismissed me at once with a curt "All 
 right; go and tell the chief steward I've sent you to 
 him." I thanked him, and left the presence, very much 
 in awe of the gorgeous surroundings and great size of 
 everything, so different to all my previous experience 
 of shipboard. She was a fairly large steamship for 
 those days, I suppose of nearly three thousand tons; 
 but to me she was vast beyond conception. When I 
 
AN EVENTFUL PASSAGE HOME. 129 
 
 entered tho saloon, I felt utterly crushed beneath the 
 pplcndour of the place — oh, how small and shabby it 
 would look now, bcpido the floating palaces of to-day ! — 
 and I hardly dared .0 tread upon the thick carpet which 
 Mas laid, the vessel being in harbour. When I found 
 the chief steward, he cross-examined me pretty sharply 
 as to my qualifications, etc. ; but, being short-handed, 
 he was glad of even such help as I could give, and 
 promptly set me to work. Now, for tho first time, I 
 became acquainted with the toilsome routine of house- 
 maid's duties which have to be performed by tho 
 steward's stafY of a passenger steamer : endless dish- 
 washing, knife and silver-cleaning, floor-scrubbing, and 
 metal-polishing. And all the work had to be done by 
 a staff of four, exclusive of my insignificant self; so 
 that tho chief steward had no time to play the gentle- 
 man at large that he so often appears where the man- 
 ning is on a more liberal scale. Indeed, but for tho 
 second steward — a dapper Chinese, rejoicing in the 
 most unappropriate name of "Hadji" — I don't think 
 we could ever have kept things straight. But Hadji 
 was a host in himself. Never in a hurry, always look- 
 ing well-groomed and smart, the amount of work that 
 this wonderful little man got through in a day was 
 marvellous. Not more so, however, than his history, 
 of which one episode will suffice as a sample. While 
 working on board a large steamer of this same employ 
 lying in Colon, there was a terrific explosion on board — 
 whether of gunpowder or nitro-glycerine I have for- 
 gotten. Men, decks, fittings, were hurled skyward 
 amidst a vast cloud of smoke, and the fragments fell 
 in an immense area, extending for hundreds of yards 
 around the unfortunate ship. When the first alarm 
 
 K 
 
130 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 had subsided, the stewards of an adjacent vessel returned 
 to their tasks below, and found Iladji on the saloon 
 table, having crashed through the skylight in his 
 descent, but unhurt, and apparently unaffrighted. It 
 was not easy to imagine what would disturb his smiling 
 sanfffroid. If in a gale of wind a heavy sea found its 
 way below, causing the utmost hubbub and terror 
 among the passengers, whctlier by night or day, Hadji 
 would appear in the thick of the mcUc, calmly setting 
 everything and everybody to rights, his pleasant smile 
 most reassuring to behold. 
 
 But, in my admiration for this invaluable Celestial, 
 I am forgetting current events. The day wo were to 
 sail, I was much astonished to sec all my old shipmates 
 march on board, having been sent by the shipping- 
 master for a passage to England in his anxiety to avoid 
 another interview with the offended powers. They were 
 passengers in the sense that no work was expected of 
 them ; but they lived and messed with the crew. How- 
 ever, as we were at different ends of the ship, wo did 
 not como in contact at all, for which I was grateful. 
 Yet, strangely enough, I got into my first and only 
 scrape on board through them. The waste of food from 
 the saloon table was very great; but my instructions 
 were to throw all broken meats into a ** dog-basket " at 
 washing-up time, with all sorts of dirty odds and ends, 
 which basket was presently emptied over the side. I 
 managed to obtain a clean basket, into which I turned 
 all such broken victuals as I considered worth saving, 
 and, watching my opportunity, I carried this provender 
 forward to my shipmates, who I knew were getting only 
 the usual miserable fare. In this benevolent work I 
 was discovered by the chief steward, who ** clouted my 
 
r 
 % 
 
 AN EVENTFUL PASSAGE HOME. 131 
 
 car," as ho termed it, and threatened mo with all sortfj 
 of pains and penalties if I dared to so offend again. 
 So from thenceforth all the good food not wanted aft 
 went overhoard as before. 
 
 Wo were bound to Liverpool rid Port-au-Prince, in 
 tho Ifiland of Ilayti, and, from a few words let fall by 
 the passengers, I gathered that it was just possible wo 
 might seo some "fun," as they termed it. I did not 
 then know that Ilayti was in tho throes of a successful 
 revolution against the sovereignty of Spain and France, 
 which eventually resulted in the establishment of two 
 republics in tho island ; one-half caUing itself tho 
 republic of Ilayti, the other that of St. Domingo. At 
 that time tho long struggle must have been drawing 
 near its close, for on laud tho triumphant negroes had 
 things all their own way, whilo at sea tho fleets of Franco 
 and Spain played at what they were pleased to call a 
 blockade. Whether any vessels trading with Hayti 
 paid any attention to the alleged blockade, I do not 
 know ; certainly we did not. Nothing at all in our 
 proceedings would have suggested to any one that wo 
 were making for a blockaded port. Even when, as wo 
 steamed briskly up the long V-shaped gulf, at tho apex 
 of which Port-au-Prince lies, we sighted two grim-looking 
 warships lying at anchor on either side of the fairway 
 with steam up, no more notice was taken of them than 
 the usual curiosity evinced by ,]^ng3engers at a strange 
 sail. As we passed beLVt^t\;n them we'could see that one 
 was French, the other Spanish, by their ensigns flying. 
 We rendered the usual sea-courtesy of dipping our 
 flag, but of that no notice at all was taken by them. 
 Doubtless, as usual, they felt none too amicably disposed 
 towards the all-pervading Anglais. Bight onward we 
 
132 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 steamed into the harbour, and alongside the Company's 
 hulk, where such scanty cargo as could bo collected 
 awaited us. The only other vessel lying there was a 
 long, low steamer of perhaps 700 or 800 tons, whoso 
 raking, schooner-spars and funnel, and the light giey- 
 blue that everything was painted, to say nothing of the 
 miniature stars and stripes that floated from her flag- 
 staff, spelt " Yankee filibuster " as plainly as if she 
 had been lettered with those words in characters two 
 feet wide. There was no sign of life on board of her, 
 except a mere suggestion of bluish smoke, that curled 
 slowly from her funnel, telling of banked fires below. 
 For some time she was an object of the greatest interest 
 to all on board, until other matters occupied all our 
 attention. 
 
 The town was in a pitiable condition. What with 
 the long rebellion and civil broils, in addition to the 
 careless, happy-go-lucky fashion in which the farce of 
 government was carried on, whole streets were in 
 ruins ; business was at a standstill, and even the few 
 merchants who still clung to the remnants of their 
 trade were in despair. It was no place for white men, 
 anyhow. The negro was master of the situation. He 
 had fought long and savagely for his independence, and 
 now that he had got it he was drunken with it as with 
 brandy. That careless white man who omitted, from 
 any cause, to salute in the humblest manner any 
 functionary of the Government of the hour, however 
 ludicrous in appearance, speedily found himself in 
 serious trouble, out of which he did not easily extricate 
 himself. And since new officials were constantly 
 emerging from the rag-tag and bob-tail, the only wise 
 course was to salute every black man, no matter how 
 
AN EVENTFUL PASSAGE HOME. IHT) 
 
 menial his capacity might be. One ncvei knew wlietlier 
 the road-mender of to-day might not bo a general of 
 division to-morrow, having power of lifo and death 
 even while wanting a decent pair of trousers. 
 
 A party of our fellows were allowed to go ashore, by 
 a serious error of judgment, and, as they strolled care- 
 lessly along one of the principal thoroughfares, they 
 met a company of soldiers so scarecrow-liko that they 
 simply stood and roared with laughter. This had been 
 crime enough, but the sailor-men must needs aggravate 
 their offence. The officer in command, swelling with 
 rage, demanded their salute. Instead of complying 
 they indulged in some ribaldry, in which his get-up, as 
 well as that of his ragged regiment, was held up to 
 ridicule in effective fashion. This behaviour could not 
 be tolerated. They were surrounded, overpowered, and 
 dragged off to the " calabozo." Then, when they saw 
 what their folly had led them into, they repented sorely. 
 It had been worth any amount of "ko-tow" to have 
 escaped from such a fate as now befell them. The 
 lock-up was apparently an ancient cow- byre, standing 
 like an island in a lake of sewage which, under that 
 blazing sun, sent up a steam of putridity into the heavy 
 air. Through this foul morass they were dragged with 
 every indignity their exulting captors could devise, and 
 there, more dead than alive, they were left for twenty- 
 four hours, when the captain managed to overcome the 
 stubborn attitude of the sable authorities, and induce 
 them to accept a substantial fine. When they were 
 released and brought on board they looked like resus- 
 citated corpses, and every article of clothing they wore 
 had to be flung overboard. The doctor examined them 
 with gathering anxiety upon bis face, but his only 
 
131 THE LOO OF A SICA-WAIF, 
 
 cojiiraont was *' The sooner wo'ro out of this licll-liolo 
 tlio butter." 
 
 Fortunately wo wero to sail in the morning, for 
 every ono was feverishly anxious to bo gone. Tiiat 
 evening a jmHsenger embarked, who came alongside in 
 a canoo imddled by two negroes, bringing with him 
 several weighty chests. Ho was a well-dressed black 
 man, with an air of nervous anxiety; and lio hovered 
 around, while his baggage was being hoisted on board, 
 as if ho dared not trust it out of his Bight. When it 
 was all safely embarked and carried below, to a 
 muttered accompaniment of growls at its weight, the 
 canoe and its sable crew disappeared into tho darkness, 
 while tho passenger also hid himself, and rarely 
 appeared thenceforward. 
 
 At daybreak all hands were astir, the firemen work- 
 ing like sooty gnomes down in their gloomy pit to got 
 steam up, while dense volumes of smoke poured from our 
 funnels, gladdening the eyes of all hands. Amidst the 
 universal activity we yet found time to notice that the thin 
 coronal of vapour hovering above the smoke-stack of 
 the fihbuster was also getting more palpable, and the 
 knowing ones winked at each other meaningly. At last 
 a hissing from our steam-pipe betokened full pressure 
 in the boilers, the "old man" mounted the bridge, and 
 all hands took their stations. ** Cast off fore and aft ! " 
 shouted the skipper. Willing hands released the heavy 
 hawsers from the bitts, and, with a rattle of steam- 
 winches and cheerful yells from the crew, we moved 
 slowly away from the hulk, the ensign and "house- 
 flag " being run up at the same time. Then, to our 
 breathless amazement, the filibuster, ai)parently of her 
 own accord, stole from her position and came gently 
 
Ay I'jyiNTFUL PASSAOi: IJOMh'. I'M) 
 
 alonftBulo, a tall, romantic-looking figure mounting her 
 bridge as bIio did so. So close did she t-onu) that the 
 figure on the bridge was able to stop nimbly on board 
 of us. lie was a spare, clcgantly-biiilt man, dressed in 
 a well-fitting suit of groy silk, with an immense white 
 Panama sombrero on his head. Ho was strikingly 
 handsome, having a dark, oval face, with a heavy black 
 moustache and Velasquez beard, while his black, bril- 
 liant eyes, wide set, seemed to take in everything at a 
 glance. Shaking hands cordially with our captain, ho 
 said a few words inaudible on deck; then the pair 
 descended from the bridge, and, joined by the mate, 
 entered the chart-room. They remained there for a 
 coujdo of minutes with the door closed, and then, 
 coming out again, the Yankee leapt on board his own 
 vessel, while our two ollicers took their stations — the 
 captain on the bridge and the mate forward. Our 
 engine-room bell clanged the order, " Full speed ahead," 
 and, as the engines responded, our good ship vibrated 
 from stem to stern under their impulse. Without any 
 apparent cfl'ort the Yankee kept her place by our side, 
 not a soul visible on board, except the tall figure lolling 
 calmly on the bridge, meditatively pulling at a big cigar. 
 The decks being cleared, there was, for a brief space, 
 nothing to do; so all hands, including passengers, 
 crowded the rails, watching with breathless interest the 
 two warships which still lay in grim silence where they 
 were when wo entered the harbour. Not a word was 
 spoken, and the clanging chorus of the massive machi- 
 nery below seemed many times louder than we had 
 ever heard it before. The scene was sufficiently im- 
 pressive to fix itself permanently in the memory of 
 every one on board. There was not a breath of wind, 
 
13(> T/n; LOQ Of A SRA-WMF. 
 
 tho water of tho wiiloiiiiiR Rulf lyiuj^ liUo anotlior Bky 
 before us, tinted in innumernhlo HhndoH by the lloatinpj 
 clouds and tho richly-coloured hills on either hand. 
 Every thrust of tiio pistons drove ua nearer those two 
 Burly sentinels laden with potential destruction, which 
 wo all well know might, at any moment, ho let loose 
 upon us. Jiut there was much comfort in un occaHionul 
 glance at the splendid old red ensign Hying gallantly 
 overhead, for everybody on board felt how much might 
 and majesty it represented. Nearer and nearer we drew 
 to the point midway between tho warships, that now 
 began to show a thickening cloud of smoke at their 
 funnels, and a white feather of escaping steam. At 
 last wo wero fairly between them. Suddenly the silent 
 Yankee alongside straightened himself, mado us a 
 sweeping bow, and said, '* A thousand thanks, captain. 
 Farewell, ladies and gentlemen, and a pleasant passage. 
 G'lang ahead ! " At his word a gong boomed below, 
 and the lithe vessel sprang forward like an unleashed 
 greyhound, the pitchy fumes from her funnel filling the 
 clear air with the stench of burning petroleum. Boom ! 
 boom ! went two big guns from the men-of-war as they 
 both started in chase, while from the filibuster's mast- 
 head the flag dipped as if in ironical courtesy. Many 
 shots were fired after the daring craft; but although 
 the fountains cast up by the massive shot apparently 
 played all around her, none actually reached her. And 
 as she certainly steamed nearly two knots to their one, 
 she "was soon hopelessly out of range. Eecognizing 
 this, they gave up the chase. I suppose, according to 
 the rules of romance, they should now have intercepted 
 us; but this is fact, not fiction, and so it must be 
 admitted that they paid not the slightest attention to 
 
AN EVENTFUL PASSAGE HOME. IH" 
 
 US, but rcturnotl to thoir old poBition. Doppito our good 
 rate of Hpccil, in Iohh tlian four hours tluro wuh nothiuj» 
 visible of our protrje but a long grimy fltroak in tho 
 bright hluo sky. 
 
 Under ordinary circumstancos bucIi an advonturo 
 would liavo alTorded an inexhauHtiblo topic of conver- 
 Ration during tho remainder of tho paHsago, but un- 
 happily, a much more Hcrious matter fioon claimed 
 cveryhody'H attention. ThoHO truly awful words, " Yellow 
 fever," began to circulate in terrified whispers, wiiilo 
 the merry, genial doctor's face looked terrihly eoloran. 
 There was little Kuspensc. The very next day tho first 
 victim died — one of tho men who had spent the night 
 in that unspeakably filthy calabozo at Port-au-Prince. 
 Ordinary prudence forbado any delay in disposing of 
 the poor remains. In less than an hour after death 
 came tho solemn little meeting, the bare-headed group at 
 the gangway, the long white bundle on a hatch at an 
 open port, the halting, dillident reading of the old 
 sublime Service, and then the hoarse s-s-s-s-h, and the 
 sullen plunge into the unknown depths. 
 
 The destroyer made such strides that a large tent 
 had to be rigged over the main hatch as an open-air 
 hospital, and there the brave, unwearying doctor 
 laboured day and night at his hopeless task. There 
 was no discrimination, except as far as the passengers 
 were concerned — perhaps because they were better 
 seasoned to the climate. At any rate none of them 
 were attacked; but of the ship's company, oflficers, 
 engineers, firemen, sailors, and stewards all gave tithe 
 to death. The disease was terribly swift in its operation. 
 One Friday morning our bo'sun's mate, a huge, hirsute 
 Irishman, suddenly complained of his head. This was at 
 
138 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIT'. 
 
 eight a.m. At ten a.m. he was in the hospital grinding 
 his teeth in dehrium. A few minutes after everybody 
 on deck was terrified at the apparition of a mother- 
 naked giant, armed with the cook's axe, which ho had 
 snatched from beside the galley door, rushing madly 
 about the decks. Not many seconds elapsed before ho 
 was alone, striking furiously at everything in his way, 
 while the foam flew from his gaping mouth. Having 
 made the round of the deck aft, he came to the weather 
 side of the wheel-house, within which the quarter- 
 master was calmly steering quite unconscious of what 
 was happening. Suddenly the maniac caught sight of 
 him through the side window, and immediately rained 
 a torrent of tremendous blows upon the stout teak door. 
 Poor Tedd}' fled out of the lee door, and up into the 
 main rigging just as Carney burst in. Then all was 
 quiet. After a while some one was courageous enough 
 to creep along and peer in. There was Carney, lying 
 at full length on the grating, having fallen upon the 
 upturned edge of the axe, which had sunk deep enough 
 into his chest to have let out a dozen lives. The place 
 was like a slaughter-house. That afternoon one reading 
 of the Service sufficed for three burials, two more 
 men having died while the maniac had possession of 
 the deck. 
 
 Naturally there was little levity on board. Cooped 
 up with such an awful scourge none felt inclined for 
 merriment. But the ordinary routine of work went on 
 without a hitch. My shipmates were set to work on 
 full wages to supply the places of the dead, and, 
 although they did not relish doing nremen's duty, they 
 were not sorry to have the prospect of a little money 
 when they reached home, supposing they were still 
 
EVEUYBonY ON' DECK WAS TEIMUFIEI) AT THE Al'I'AlilTION (lE A MOTIIEU- 
 NAKED GIANT AHMED WITH THE COOK's AXE. 
 
AN EVENTFUL PASSAGE HOME. 130 
 
 alive. My turn came. Ono morning at five o'clock, 
 when, as usual, I was called to begin my day's work, I 
 lifted my head to rise, but it fell again like a piece 
 of lead. A feeling of utter helplessness had seized my 
 whole body, although I could not say I felt ill. But 
 not even the awe in which I stood of the chief steward 
 could overcome my want of strength, and I humbly 
 said, " I'm not able to get up, sir." Instantly alarmed, 
 the steward fetched the doctor, who, after feeling my 
 pulse, etc., pulled me out of the bunk and set mo on 
 my trembling legs, telling thd steward to put me to 
 some work that did not require any running about, but 
 on no account to allow me to sit down. His orders 
 were strictly obeyed, but how I got through that 
 dreadful day I cannot tell. I felt as if I would gladly 
 have given the whole world to be allowed to lie down 
 for a little while, and several times my legs doubled up 
 under me, letting me sink in a heap on the pantry 
 deck, but there was no respite allowed me. This stern 
 treatment was completely successful, for by supper-time 
 I felt quite strong again, and I was troubled no more by 
 any recurrence of those alarming symptoms. What 
 was the matter with me, I never knew ; but undoubtedly 
 I owed my life to the doctor's wisdom, much as I hated 
 his treatment at the time. Day after day dragged on, 
 each bringing with it a death for some one of our 
 diminishing number, while the doctor, worn almost to 
 a shadow, still battled with the enemy with unabated 
 vigour. His chief task was with those who had won 
 through the crisis, to nurse them back to strength 
 again. Beef-tea with brandy was his sheet anchor, and 
 this potent reviver he was continually administering in 
 tiny doses, while commenting cheerily on its marvellous 
 
1-tO THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 virtues, to bis wasted patients. Then, as if to fill up 
 our cup of misfortunes, the engines suddenly stopped. 
 The boilers were old — in fact, too old for safe use — and 
 one of them bad sprung a dangerous leak. Tbe engi- 
 neers attacked tbe trouble witb tbat stolid beroism for 
 wliicb tbeir class is famous, altbougb, from its prosaic 
 nature, little is thougbt or said about it by a world tbat 
 loves its heroes to glitter with pomp and circumstance, 
 and to do tbeir great deeds upon some conspicuous 
 stage. Down beneath the boilers, where tbe narrow 
 limits compelled them to lie at full lengtli, half roasted 
 by the fierce beat, and scalded from bead to heel by 
 the spirtings of boiling water, they laboured with hardly 
 a pause for a day and a night. They succeeded in the 
 almost incredible task of patching up the leaky source 
 of our speed, doing moreover their work so well that, 
 although our rate of going was greatly reduced, the 
 repairs held good until we reached port. 
 
 The joyful day arrived at last when the faithful 
 doctor was able to announce that tbe yellow fever bad 
 left us, and that, unless some of the convalescents died 
 of weakness, there would be no more deaths from that 
 scourge. It was high time. In Hie short period of 
 twenty days we had buried thirty men, every one of 
 whose deaths was distinctly traceable to that foul den 
 in Port-au-Prince. Happily the weather held fine, and 
 the wind bung to tbe south-west, so that we were able 
 to help her along with the sails, until one morning a 
 thrill of delight ran through the ship at tbe sight of 
 green water alongside, sure sign of our nearness to the 
 Channel. Presently that solitary sentinel, tbe Fastnet, 
 hove in sight, and soon behind it we saw tbe green hills 
 of Ireland. All our miseries were now forgotten, and 
 
AN EVENTFUL PASSAGE HOME. 141 
 
 there was a general air of joyful expectation mixed with 
 deep thankfulness that wc had heen spared. That 
 afternoon our negro passenger, whom we had hardly 
 seen during the passage, made his appearance on deck. 
 He was evidently seeking the captain, for, as soon as 
 he caught sight of him, he hastened towards him and 
 the two went straight into the captain's state-room. 
 From thence there soon issued strange noises as of a 
 foreigner under strong excitement, while now and then 
 the deep tones of the skipper chimed in as if he were 
 speaking soothingly. Suddenly the door was flung open 
 and the captain called for the mate. That officer 
 responded promptly, hut did not succeed in hushing 
 the din. On the contrary, the shrill voice of the hlack 
 man rose higher than ever, until he was fairly yelling 
 with fury. The mate blew his whistle, and, when the 
 ho'sun appeared in answer to it, he received an order to 
 bring the carpenter with a pair of irons and three or 
 four men. The reinforcements man-handled the excited 
 negro, hauling him with scant ceremony on dock, and 
 bundling him forward into an empty cabin, wherein 
 they locked him and left him to his own reflections. 
 This mysterious affair caused much excitement among 
 both passengers and crew, but it was not until after 
 the vessel had been in dock some days that any ex- 
 planation was forthcoming. It appeared that, according 
 to his story, the negro had been First Lord of the 
 Treasury, or whatever grandiloquent title they had 
 bestowed upon their keeper of the funds, and, seizing a 
 favourable opportunity, he had levanted with quite a 
 large sum (he said $100,000). Getting safely on board 
 he had committed his loot to the care of the captain and 
 mate, who, however, most unaccountably forgot all about 
 
142 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 it when ho claimod it cominp; up Channel. Finding that 
 ho could by no moans recall it to their memories, he 
 wont temporarily mad — insane enough, at any rate, to 
 institute proceedings against them for its recovery. His 
 story, which I have given above (with the exception of 
 tho way in which ho obtained his wealth), was simply 
 laughed at, and he was fain to revert to his original 
 profession of scullion or some such occupation. 
 
 The passage up Channel was uneventful. Tho hate- 
 ful yellow flag (quarantine) was hoisted as we entered 
 tho Mersey ; but, as soon as tho Health Officer boarded 
 us, we learned that there would bo no delay in docln'ng, 
 yellow fever being innocuous in our favoured land. So 
 the dock gates swung wide and wo passed in to our 
 berth, the vessel being in two hours deserted by every- 
 body except the night watchman and rao. 
 
( 143 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XIL 
 
 ADRIFT IN LIVERrOOL ONCE MORE. 
 
 That night I slept soundly, heedless of to-morrow ; but 
 when the day dawned the prohlom of what I was to do 
 confronted me, and a very awkward question it was. 
 For I was still so puny in size and so dclicato-lookinf^ 
 that I knew it would be no easy matter to persuade 
 any one to employ me. Besides, I was penniless. I had 
 little clothes but what I was wearing, and I felt sure no 
 boarding-master would take me in on the chance of my 
 paying him out of my advance-note here. My only hope 
 was that I might be allov/ed to work by the shi^, at a 
 small weekly wage, until I had earned enough to pay for 
 a v/eek's board, either in the Sailors' Home or some 
 boarding-house where they would try and get me a ship. 
 That hope was soon dashed when the chief steward 
 appeared. With unnecessary gruffness, as I thought, 
 he told me that I was not wanted, and the sooner I got 
 ashore " out of it " the better. Hadji was kinder. He 
 gave me a cheerful smile, a hearty shake of the hand, 
 and half a crown, besides wishing me luck. In a few 
 minutes I stood outside the dock gates with all the town 
 before me, but not a friend or even an acquaintance, as 
 far as I knew, within its limits. Conscious that I had 
 
lit THE LOG OF A tiKA-WAlF. 
 
 no time to lose, I wandered about the docks until I was 
 weary, speaking to every likely looking officer on board the 
 various ships I visited, and getting nothing but plenty of 
 good-natured chaff as well as outspoken comments upon 
 my childish appearance. Yes, I got one good meal ; so 
 that when night fell, and I sought a great heap of hay in 
 the Cobourg Dock that I had noted as a promising place 
 to spend the night, my precious piece of silver was still 
 unbroken. I slept soundly, though none too warm, 
 my long stay in the tropics having thinned my blood. 
 At daylight I crept stealthily from my nest and re- 
 commenced my tramp, but it was fruitless. Then I 
 remembered the wood-carver, and thought I would look 
 him up again. But there was another name over the 
 shop, and I saw that another business was being carried 
 on there. I did not like to go into my old boarding- 
 house next door, feeling sure I should be unwelcome 
 with only two shillings and sixpence in my pocket Hiid 
 no prospects. I went to the Sailors' Homo and told my 
 story, but they refused to take me in — as indeed I had 
 fully expected they would. 
 
 For the next week I roamed about those wretched 
 docks, getting more and more discouraged every day, 
 until, at last, I was afraid to ask for a berth in case I got 
 a cuff as well as a refusal. Finally, when I had been 
 reduced to picking scraps out of the gutter, I resolved to 
 go to the workhouse. How such an idea entered my 
 head I can't imagine, but it did, and seemed feasible 
 too. So off I started up Brownlow Hill, but the strains 
 of a German band arrested my none too eager progress, 
 and, all hungry as I was, I stayed to listen. Perhaps the 
 music cheered me up ; at any rate, while listening, I 
 determined to go to my old boarding-mistress and offer 
 
ADniPT IN llVEliPOOL ONCE MORE. 145 
 
 my services to her in return for a shelter and such 
 Bcraps as she could spare. She received mo un- 
 graciously enough ; hut I pleaded hard, having learned 
 well the hard lesson of not to take " no" for an answer 
 without a struggle, and eventually she agreed. The 
 place was a poor kind of cookshop, the staples of which 
 were penny bowls of broth and tea for the poverty- 
 stricken dock labourers, with twopenny plates of potato- 
 pie for the better-off. I honestly earned my keep, and 
 more ; but business getting slack, she told mo plainly 
 that she could not afford to keep me much longer, and 
 she would allow me a couple of hours a day for a week 
 to look for a ship, at the end of which timo I must shift 
 for myself again. I was not altogether sorry at this 
 chance, slender though it was. Every day I hunted 
 diligently about during the time allotted me, and, after 
 four days, I succeeded in getting a job as cabin-boy on 
 board a German barque, the Oreif of Rostock. The 
 captain had his wife and little daughter on board, 
 neHher of whom spoke a word of English; but the 
 captain said he had just discharged an English boy, 
 who had pleased them very well, and whose name of 
 "Dan" I was in future to answer to. I took up my 
 new duties with zest, doing my best, not only to give 
 satisfaction in my work, but to master the (to me) awful 
 difficulties of the German language. For a time I 
 succeeded admirably, except that the ladies called me 
 " schoufskopf " (sheep's-head) far more frequently than 
 Dan, being irritated, I suppose, by what they considered 
 my stupidity in not being able to understand them. 
 The only person on board who seemed inclined to be 
 hard upon me was the mate, a huge North German, 
 who never missed an opportunity of giving me a blow, 
 
 L 
 
110 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 apparently by way of kcopinp; liis hand in. Therefore, I 
 exercised all the ingenuity I possessed in keeping out of 
 his way — no easy task — for, as soon as my work in the 
 cabin was finished, I was always called on dock to lend 
 Huch a hand as I was able. And I could not help noticing 
 that, in spite of the difliculty I had always found in 
 getting a berth, whenever I did succeed in finding one 
 there was never any trouble in keeping mo fully em- 
 ployed. So matters progressed in fairly even fashion 
 for throe weeks, while the Grnf, which lay in the 
 lluskisson Dock, was taking in a general cargo for 
 Domcrara. I made fair progress with the lauguage, and 
 was certainly something of a favourite with the bo'sun, 
 tho cook, and the sailors. I began to hope that I should 
 succeed at last in making myself comfortable, as well as 
 necessary, in some way, to the comfort of others; and only 
 my dread of the mate gave mo any uneasiness. But 
 one morning tho cook took advantage of some brief 
 leisure I had to get me to chop some firewood for him. 
 Gaily I started to obey him, using ono large piece for a 
 block, and was halfway through my task, when the axe 
 struck a knot, glanced off, and entered the deck, making 
 an ugly mark. Tho next moment I received a blow 
 under the ear from behind which stretched me bleeding 
 and senseless on the deck. When I came to I felt very 
 sick ; but there was such an uproar around me that I 
 speedily forgot my own trouble in my anxiety to know 
 what was the matter. The mate stood, white as chalk, 
 the centre of an angry little crowd of the men, one 
 of whom, a tall, fair Swede, was fairly raving with 
 excitement, and seemed by his threatening motions to 
 be hard put to it to keep his hands to himself. 
 Gradually it dawned upon mo that all this row was 
 
ADUIFT IN LlVr.nVOOL OXVIJ MOUK, 147 
 
 about mo. Tho mato hnd struck mo brutally aiul 
 unjustly for what was a pure accident, and his cruelty 
 had actually caused tho whole crew to resent his action. 
 This was really one of tho strangest experiences I over 
 had. I have been beaten innumerable times in all sorts 
 of vessels, but only onco was a voico ever raised on ray 
 behalf besides this occasion, and that was by Joo, tho 
 Yorkshireman, against my uncle in my first ship. That 
 a mixed crew of Germans and Scandinavians, on board 
 a German vessel, should raise a protest against tho ill- 
 treatment of an English boy, was an unheard-of thing, 
 especially when it is remembered that in those days 
 brutality to boys at sea, except in American ships, was 
 tho almost invariable rule. 
 
 I was more frightened at tho consequences of tho 
 mate's acti m than anything else, especially as it looked 
 as if there would bo a regular riot directly. Before, 
 however, any blows were exchanged, the captain arrived. 
 Ilis presence acted like magic. IIo made no noise, but 
 just pushed his way into tho centre of the disturbance, 
 speaking quietly to the men, who at onco dispersed to 
 their several duties. Then ho turned to me, and said, 
 in the same passionless tono, "Ashore mit you. If I 
 findt 5'ou hicr in den minutes more, I schlings you 
 oferbordt." I did not linger. In less than five minutes 
 I was out of the ship, and again in tho unenviable 
 position of being masterless. There was a change in 
 my hitherto persistent bad luck, however. Strolling 
 dejectedly round the dock, I came to the very biggest 
 Bailing-ship I had ever yet seen. When I had done 
 admiring her enormous proportions, my attention was 
 caught by a new spar, which lay upon the quay nearly 
 ready lor going aloft. I walked round it wondering, with 
 
 -^ 
 
148 7//A' LOO OF A S£:A-l\\ih\ 
 
 all my might, whatever kind of maat it could be. At last 
 I H.topped, and, according to a lifelong habit of miu«', 
 began thinking nloud. " T'ain't a sehooner'H topmast, 
 'cauHO there's tliroe shcaveholes in it ; nor yet a bartiuo's 
 niizzen-topraast, fur the same reason. N'tlnr ain't a 
 fillip alloat as 'ud carry sech a stick fur a to'-gallanin'st, 
 nor yet fur a jibboora. / never see sech a spar *n >/;// 
 life." " You give it up, then, I suppose '?" said a grave 
 voico behind me. Turning sharp round I confronted 
 a tall, distinguished-l )oking gentleman, who was regard- 
 ing me with an amused smile. "Yes, sir," I said, "I 
 thought I knew all al)0ut Hhips' masts ; but I can't think 
 what this one can be for." " Well," he replied, *' I'll 
 enlighten you. It's my ship's foreto'-gallanmast, and 
 that third sheaveholo that puzzled you so much is for 
 tho skys'lo-halliards. Now do j'ou see?" I thanked 
 him and said I did ; but I was none tho less surprised 
 that any ship could carry such a mighty spar :.o high 
 up. And then, by a happy inspiration, I told him my 
 story, right down to the last episode. He heard me 
 in silence, and, as soon as I had finished, turned and 
 went on board, telling me to follow him. Gladly enough 
 I obeyed, until we reached tho quarter-deck, where we 
 found the shipkeeper. Telling him to fmd me some- 
 thing to do, the captain then turned to me, saying, ** I 
 shan't bo able to take you to sea with me, for all our 
 gear is so heavy that wo never carry any boys; but 
 while the ship is in Liverpool you may stay on board 
 doing what you can, and I will pay you twelve shillings 
 a week, out of which you must keep yourself. Now, be 
 a good boy, and I'll see what I can do for you when wo 
 sail." I was hard put to it to express my gratitude ; 
 but he cut me short by walking away, and leaving mo 
 
ADIilFT IN LIVKRVOOL ONCE MORE, Ml) 
 
 to realize my extraordinary good fortune. An fioon aH 
 ho was gone, I. hunted up the shipkoepor, who had taken 
 himself ofY Homcwhore, and asked him for a job. Ho 
 was an easy-going individual, not over fond of work 
 liimself, or given to expecting much from any one else. 
 Ko he said, "Oh, I can't bo bothered just now. You 
 scull round a bit 'n have a look at the ship, 'n I'll lino 
 yer sutthin to do bimoby." That was good enough for 
 me. Vox tho next two or thrco hours I exhausted all 
 my powers of admiration over this magnificent vessel. 
 She was called the Jorawur of London, and built 
 frigate-fashion, with imitation quarter galleries, which 
 added to her already great appearance of size. She 
 belonged to a school that has now departed, whereof tho 
 Si(2)erb, Calcutta, Lady Jocchjn, and Hydospca (tho last 
 two converted steamships), wero conspicuous examples. 
 She carried thirty-two A-E.'s and six petty ofliccrs, so 
 that she was well manned, even taking her great size 
 and enormous spars into account. But alas ! years 
 after, I saw her bought by a firm of Jewish ship- 
 knackers, who razeed her taunt spars, sold the yards 
 olT her mizzenmast, turning her into a barque, and 
 finally sent her to sea with seven A.B.'s forrard. No 
 one was surprised when she took entire charge of the 
 poor handful of men before she got clear of the Channel. 
 God help them ! they could hardly get her yards round, 
 much loss shorten sail. She was eventually picked up, 
 almost derelict, and towed into Falmouth, where tho 
 ill-used crew promptly refused to do any more in her, 
 and wero, of course, clapped in gaol therefor, with that 
 steady application of tho rights of owners so character- 
 istic of our seaport magistrates. But this is digression. 
 •'Knock-off" time came, and with it the exodus of 
 
150 THE LOQ OF A SEA-WAIF, " 
 
 all the motley crowd of riggeri?, painters, and stevedores 
 who had been busy about the ship all day. Seeing them 
 depart homewards I remembered, with some misgivings 
 that I too could only be considered a day-worker, and 
 might also be required to clear out, but whither ? So 
 I sought the shipkeeper, and timidly approached the 
 question whether I might be allowed to stay on board. 
 I found him very glad to have some one who would 
 relievo him of the necessity of keeping so close to the 
 ship as ho had been doing. He at once gave mo the 
 free run of the cabin, and hastened to "clean himself" 
 preparatory to a cruise down town. I busied myself in 
 hunting up such odds and ends as lay about the state- 
 rooms available for bedding, and before long had rigged 
 myself quite a cosy nook near the glowing stove, which, 
 as the weather was cold, was very comforting. My 
 friend having departed, I was left quite alone on board 
 the huge vessel ; but this, so far from giving me any 
 uneasiness, was just in my line — I was more than con- 
 tented. I found the keys of the pantry and store-room, 
 where my eager search soon discovered plenty of cuddy 
 bread (biscuits), half a chest of lea, sugar, oatmeal, 
 sago, and arrowroot. There wac nothing else eatable 
 or drinkable. This find, however, gave me great delight. 
 I felt no apprehensions now that I should have to spend 
 much in food — a fear which had somewhat daunted me 
 before, seeing how badly I wanted to save all my wages 
 to get myself a few clothes and pay for a week's board 
 in the Sailors' Home when the Joraivar sailed. Another 
 expedition to the galley provided me with a saucepan, 
 with which I at once pL-oceeded to make myself a mighty 
 bowl of arrowroot, thinking, in my ignorance, that not 
 only was it very nice to eat, but that it must be most 
 
 % 
 
ADRIFT IN LIVERPOOL ONOE MORE, 151 
 
 strengthening as well. How could I know that it was 
 only starch ? A couple of biscuits and the half-gallon 
 of arrowroot (plenty of sugar in it) made me feel at 
 peace with all the world, if even I was in rather an 
 inflated condition. Fed and warmed, with a good roof 
 over my head, and a fairly comfortable bed (if it icas 
 composed of rags), I only wanted one thing more to be 
 perfectly happy. And even that was forthcoming — a 
 book. *' Bleak House " lay in one of the pantry drawers 
 waiting for me, I felt. Putting the lamp handy and 
 replenishing the fire, I settled down luxuriously into my 
 nest, all my troubles forgotten in present bliss. 
 
 "When the shipkeeper came on board I don't knov;, 
 for when I awoke it was morning — five o'clock. I jumped 
 up, hustled my bed out of sight, and lit t: u fire. "While 
 it was burning up I went on deck for a wash, returning 
 sharp-set to a good breakfast of tea and biscuit, after 
 which I felt ready for anything that might come along. 
 By the look of the shipkeeper when at last he appeared, 
 his last night's excursion had been anywhere but in the 
 paths of virtue. But his amiability was unimpaired, 
 and it was in quite a deprecatory tone that he requested 
 me to " pop across the road " and get him a drop of 
 rum, as he didn't feel very well. Whether it was my 
 alacrity in obeying his request, or the speed with which 
 I afterwards got him a cup of tea, I don't know, but 
 thenceforth our relations were of the pleasantest kind. 
 I wished, though, that he hadn't found me quite such 
 a miserably cold job; for that forenoon he set me to 
 clean out the row of 400-gallon tanks in which the 
 sea-stock of fresh water was carried, my slender body 
 being easily able to slip in through the ** man-hole" — a 
 feat that was really impossible to him. Now, some of 
 
 ***; .,^. 
 ** ii*' 
 
 •*,-,. «!»' 
 
Jfl. 
 
 152 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 these tanks bad over eighteen inches of water in them : 
 all had enough to s^.ome well above my ankles. As it 
 was late autumn I got chilled to the marrow, for, as 
 I must needs bale all the water into buckets and pass it 
 up to him through the man-hole, I soon got wet through. 
 Then I had to scrub and sluice vigorously to get the 
 thick coating of rust off, in which process I became very 
 much like a piece of rusty old iron myself. As each 
 tank was thoroughly cleansed, a pail of limewash was 
 handed in to me with a big brush, and I gave top, 
 bottom, and sides a liberal coating of it. In consequence 
 of this occupation my appearance was filthy beyond 
 words ; but I did not mind that, until, one day, having 
 come on deck for something, I met the captain. Looking 
 at me with an expression of the liveliest disgust, he said, 
 ** Dirty little beast ! " This cut me to the quick, as 
 being both unkind as well as utterly undeserved. How- 
 ever, I made no defence. One of the earliest lessons 
 inculcated on board ship is " no back answers," and the 
 boy of gumption loses no time in understanding that 
 the less he says, by way of excuse, the better for his 
 welfare. Much injustice is thus suffered, of course, but 
 there is apparently no help for it. From that day 
 forward I carefully avoided the captain, lest he should 
 discharge me — a fate which I dreaded. 
 
 The peculiar diet beginning to pall, even upon my 
 palate, I hit upon a plan which, however indefensible 
 morally, gave me then no qualms, while the results 
 were extremely gratifying. The gang of painters who 
 were re- decorating the cabin brought their meals with 
 them, and I supplied them with tea out of the half- 
 chest in the storeroom, receiving in return a portion of 
 their food. By this mearia I still kept my wages intact. 
 
ADRIFT IN LIVERPOOL ONCE MORE. 153 
 
 The only money I spent while on board was on ono 
 unlucky Saturday. Fired by tho description of a 
 savoury dumpling, filled with bacon and kidney, which 
 I read in the late steward's cookery book, I slipped 
 ashore and bought the necessary ingredients. On 
 Sunday morning I tried my hand, and, having succeeded 
 in making the dumpling, dropped it clothless into a 
 saucepan of boiling water, made up a roaring fire 
 under, and hungrily awaited the result. Eigidly re- 
 pressing an eager desire to peep into the pot, I watched 
 the clock until the specified time had elapsed. Then, 
 my fingers trembling with excitement, I lifted the lid 
 and peered through the dense steam. A greyish soup 
 with a villainous burnt smell greeted my sight; my 
 dumpling had melted. Crying with vexation and dis- 
 appointment, I turned the mess out into a dish, but I 
 couldn't eat it. It was too bad even for me. So I fell 
 back upon sago, and made no more experiments in 
 cookery. 
 
 The inevitable day drew near when the ship was to 
 F^'l. Her cargo of salt (for Calcutta) was nearly all in, 
 the riggers had bent the sails, and a smart steward 
 look charge of the cabin, ejecting me summarily. I 
 took refuge in the forecastle that night, and the next 
 morning, having made myself as presentable as I could 
 (I was a queer-looking little scarecrow), I waylaid the 
 captain and besought him to ship me for the voyage. 
 Giving me a half-laughing, half-pitying look, he said, 
 "No, my boy, there is no duty here light enough for 
 you ; I cannot take you to sea with me. But I will take 
 you up to the Home, and tell them to get you a ship. 
 You shan't have to prowl the docks again if I can help 
 it," I thanked him, but ventured to say that I should 
 
154 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 Lave liked much better to Bail in such a splendid ship 
 as the Joraicur. He seemed pleased, but shook his 
 head decidedly, and in a few minutes we were ashore, 
 making for the Sailors' Home. Arriving at the great 
 building, the captain immediately made for the office, 
 and sought an interview with the superintendent. As 
 soon as that gentleman appeared I was brought forward, 
 and introduced to him, with a brief summary of my 
 adventures and present position. My good friend the 
 captain concluded his remarks by paying down a fort- 
 night's board for me, at the same time expressing a 
 hope that they would find me a berth as speedily as 
 possible in some outward-bound ship, so that I should 
 for some time at least be beyond the reach of homeless 
 destitution. The superintendent readily promised his 
 aid, and, bidding me good-bye, the kindly captain re- 
 turned to his duties, happier, I hope, for the knowledge 
 that he had done me a really good turn, for which it 
 was highly improbable I could ever repay him. 
 
 I was at once handed over to the care of one of the 
 stewards, who led the way up a seemingly interminable 
 series of staircases to a cubicle on the fourth floor. 
 The place was built in tiers of galleries, running right 
 round a large central space lighted from above, and 
 paved at the bottom. This covered-in quadrangle was 
 used as a promenade, smoking-room, and lounge by the 
 inmates, while it was, of course, possible to take in a 
 complete view of the whole interior from any one of the 
 seven galleries. Before we arrived at my berth, the 
 steward was in possession of most of my story, and 
 began to regard me with more friendly interest than I 
 looked for, seeing that no ** tip " was to be expected 
 from me. He seemed surprised when, in answer to his 
 
 « 
 
ADBIFT IN LIVER rOOL ONGE MOIiE. 155 
 
 inquiry for my " dunnage," I told him I had none but 
 what I stood in ; and at ouce promised that he would 
 eee what he could do by way of beating up a few duds 
 for me — a promise ho faithfully kept. Then he ushered 
 me into the snug little chamber, with its clean bed and 
 handy lockers, and, giving me a key of it, left me to my 
 own devices. 
 
IjG the log of a SEA'WAIF, 
 
 CHAPTER Xni. 
 
 THE DAWN OF BETTER DAY3. 
 
 Ax last I felt as if I was stauding on firm ground. 
 Here, a Bolven; boarder in this great institution, with 
 thirty-six shillings in my pocket, of which no one knew 
 hut myself, and with the superintendent pledged to get 
 me a ship, there did seem a prospect that the days of 
 ray waifhood were over and done with. I looked around 
 me at the comfort and cleanliness of my little room, 
 I thought of the precarious existence I had been suffer- 
 ing, and I felt very thankful. Outside my door was a 
 row of big basins, well furnished with soap, jack towels, 
 and abundance of water. Off went my clothes, and 
 I fairly revelled in a good wash. I had barely finished 
 when the clangour of a great gong startled me. I 
 rushed to the railings, and looked over to see a general 
 move of the inmates from all quarters towards one goal. 
 Instinct informed me that this strange noise was a 
 summons for dinner; so I hastened to join the throng, 
 and presently found myself in an immense dining-hall 
 filled with long tables, at which a steady stream of men 
 were seating themselves. At one of these tables I tcok 
 my place, in joyful anticipation of a good dinner, when 
 
TEE DAWN OF BETTER DAYS. 157 
 
 suddenly a sharp "Jli!" from the head of the board 
 arrested my attention. It was the steward in charge, 
 who stood waiting to serve out the food. Ho had spied 
 a stranger. As soon as he caught my eye, he said, 
 " What flat are you on ? " Now the barges in Liverpool 
 are known as "flats," and, jumping at the conclusion 
 that I was suspected of being a bargee-boy, I replied, 
 with much heat, *' I'm not on any flat ; I've just left 
 a two-thousand ton ship ! " Surely never did a more 
 feeble unintentional joke meet with a warmer reception. 
 My neighbours roared with delight, and, as the words 
 were repeated from table to table, very soon the whole 
 vast chamber reverberated with merriment. Utterly 
 bewildered, I sat speechless, until it was explained to 
 me that the galleries in the Home were called *' flats " 
 too. They were lettered for convenience of distinction, 
 and the steward's query was in order to assure himself 
 that I occupied a room on the flat under his charge, 
 as, otherwise, I had no right at his table. That little 
 matter was soon cleared up, and feasting began. Never 
 in my life had I sat at such a board. Every one ate 
 like giants, and mountains of food vanished, washed 
 down by huge cans of ale, served out liberally by the 
 attendants. I am ashamed to remember how I ate ; 
 but the blissful thought that this sort of thing would 
 be a regular incident of each day heightened my enjoy- 
 ment. The meal over, diners wandered forth again in 
 very different style to their entrance of half an hour 
 before. Hardly knowing whither I went, I sauntered 
 along one of the galleries, when suddenly the words, 
 "To the Library," caught my eye. No longer un- 
 decided, T hurried in the direction indicated, and found 
 
158 TJJK LOG OF A SEA- WAFF. 
 
 a really fine room, most comfortably furniHlied, with 
 roaring fires and an enormous number of books. There 
 were only three people in it; incleod, it was never 
 well patronized. 1 found a volume of Captain Cook's 
 Travels, coiled myself up in a big armchair, and passed 
 at once into another world. Thenceforth, during my 
 stay, that peaceful chamber was my home. Except for 
 a little exercise, sleep, and meals, I scarcely left it, and, 
 long ago though it is, I can vividly remember how 
 entirely happy I was. Occasionally I heard, through 
 the mighty void that separated me from the outer 
 world, a ringing shout of, "Where's that shipwrecked 
 boy? Anybody seen that shipwrecked boy?" as the 
 huge doorkeeper, standing in the centre of the quad- 
 rangle below, bellowed for me. The said shipwrecked 
 urchin was far too comfortable to desire any change in 
 his present circumstances, and, it must be confessed, 
 did nothing to assist the authorities in their efforts to 
 get him a ship. To tell the truth, whenever I must 
 needs go out, I used to watch my opportunitv and 
 evade the officials downstairs. 1 had tasted the sweets 
 of life and was loth to return to the bitter. 
 
 During my seclusion in the library, however, I 
 made the acquaintance of several officers of ships, 
 through whose kindness I obtained quite a respectable 
 lot of clothes, so that I was able to reserve my precious 
 little hoard to purchase sea-stock with when the inevit- 
 able day came. But, in the meantime, I saw as little 
 of Liverpool as I possibly could. Apart from my love 
 of the library and its contents, the town was hateful to 
 me. Its streets seemed to scowl at me, and every 
 turning reminded me of misery. But one day, as I was 
 
 
rriE DAWN OF nErrnn days. 159 
 
 darting across the quadrangle on my return from eomo 
 errand, a long arm shot out from behind a pillar and 
 grabbed mo. Panting with my run, I looked up and 
 saw the form of the doorkeeper towering over mo. 
 " Why, where ha' you been stowed away all this time, 
 you young rascal?" he said. "Hero have I bin 
 shoutln' myself hoarse after you, an' never a sight of 
 yer could I get. Come along ! " And with that ho 
 marched mo off to the shipping-office in the same 
 building, and handed me over to one of the clerks, who 
 immediately brought me before a jolly-looking captain 
 who was just engaging his crow. What he said I don't 
 remember ; but, in a few minutes, 1 had signed articles 
 as boy at twcnty-ffve shillings per month on board the 
 Western Belle of Greenock, bound to Bombay, and 
 sailing two days after, at eight in the morning, from the 
 Alfred Dock, Seacombo. I received a month's advance 
 like the rest, half of which I had to pay for a week's 
 board, as I had been three weeks in the Home. But 
 with my well-kept little hoard I had sufficient to buy 
 my oilskins, bed, hookpot, pannikin and plate, soap, 
 matches, knife, etc., so that I was better off, in those 
 respects, than I had ever been before. 
 
 Early on the morning of the appointed day, in 
 company with several others of the crew who had been 
 lodging at the Home, I was escorted across the Mersey 
 by the official belonging to the institution, whose 
 business it was to see us safe on board. Like all my 
 companions, I had not the slightest idea what sort of a 
 craft I was going in, except that she vas a ship of 
 1225 tons register. This, however, is one of the most 
 common experiences of the sailor. Of late years it has 
 
 
 » ♦ # ♦ - - -r . f »V* 
 
IGO THE LOG OP A SEA-1VA7F. 
 
 become more the practice for men to criiiso round and 
 eboosc a ship, handing thoir discharges to the mate an 
 a sort of guarantee that they will bo shipped when slio 
 signs articles. But, even now, thousands of men take 
 a leap in the dark, often finding themselves in for a 
 most unpleasant experience, which a little forethought 
 on their part would have saved them. When fore- 
 thought is a characteristic; of tho sailor, his lot will 
 rapidly amend. That, however, is almost too much to 
 hope for. 
 
 We soon arrived at our ship's side, finding her to ho 
 an old American-built soft-wood ship, fairly comfortable 
 looking, and with a house on deck for tho crew instead 
 of the villainous den beneath the top-gallant-forecastle, 
 far in tho fore-part of the ship, which is tho lair of 
 seamen in most English ships. I was told off to tho 
 petty ofBcers' quarters, or " half deck," a fair-sized apart- 
 ment in the after part of the forward deck-house, with 
 bunks for eight, and separated from the men's berth by 
 the galley and carpenter's shop. There was no time to 
 take stock. She was moving, all hands being on board, 
 and, for a wonder, not so drunk as usual. She was 
 rapidly warped down to the dock gates, where one of 
 the powerful tugs, for which Liverpool has long been 
 justlyfamous, awaited her — the Constitution. The hawser 
 was passed and secured, the ropes which held us to the 
 pier cast off, and away we went down the river at a great 
 rate — our voyage was begun. Much to the discomfiture 
 of our fellows a large ship, the Stornoway, came rudhing 
 past us, bound into dock, having just finished the long 
 round we were beginning. The sight of a " homeward 
 bounder" is always a depressing one for Jack who is 
 
 « 
 
THE DAWN OF BETTER LAYS. IGl 
 
 just starting apjain. And it is usually mado harder for 
 him by tho jocular remarks of ilio fortunate crew, who 
 shout of " l)riKht pots and pannikins and clean donkey's 
 breakfasts " (straw beds), usually throwing some of 
 their rusty tinware overboard, at tho same time, to give 
 point to their unkind remarks. 
 
 There was little time though for thought, despondent 
 or otherwise. Wo were rapidly neariug the bar, upon 
 which tho rising wind was making a heavy sea get up, 
 and our jibboom had to bo rigged out. "What this 
 moans is, I am afraid, impossible to make clear to ft 
 landsman. The amount of work involved in getting the 
 long, heavy s_)ar into position, with all its jungle of 
 standing rigging, which looks to tho uuinstructed oyo 
 a hopeless mass of entanglement, is enormous. When, 
 too, it has to be done as the ship is dragged relent- 
 lessly through a heavy head sea, as was now tho case, 
 the difiiculty and danger is certainly doubled. Yet it 
 must be done, and that speedily, for none of the upper 
 spars on all three masts are secure until what seamen 
 call the "head gear" iS set up, to say nothing of the 
 urgent necessity which may, at any moment, arise of 
 setting tho head sails, as the jibs are termed collectivel}'. 
 So rapidly did the sea rise, and so powerful was the tug, 
 that before long heavy masses of water began to come 
 on board, and several ugly lumps came over the fore- 
 castle head, half drowning tho unfortunate men, who, in 
 poor physical condition, were toiling at the head gear. 
 Some of them were, of course, compelled to work right 
 over the bows, where, as she plunged along, the boiling 
 foam now and then surged right over their heads. Under 
 these circumstances some disaster was inevitable. It 
 
 M 
 
162 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 came. Suddenly I saw the boatswain leap from the 
 forecastle-deck aft, a distance of some twenty feet, 
 yelling, while in the air, " Man overboard ! " There was 
 hardly a minute's delay before the tug stopped, and 
 everybody gave a sigh of relief to see that the unfortu- 
 nate man had caught one of the lifebuoys thrown to 
 him. He placed his hands upon the edge of the buoyant 
 ring, which rose edgeways and fell over his head, making 
 him perfectly safe. But he was so eager that he got 
 his arms through, and, with both hands on the buoy, 
 tried to raise himself higher. Unfortunately ho suc- 
 ceeded, and immediately overbalanced, his head going 
 down while his legs hung over the sides of the ring. 
 Burdened as he was with oilskins, sea-boots, and much 
 thick clothing underneath, it was impossible for him to 
 regain his position, and when the boat from the tug picked 
 him up he was quite dead. Steaming back alongside of us 
 the skipper of the tug reported the sad fact, suggesting 
 that he might as well take the body back to Liverpool 
 when he had finished towing us. This was of course 
 agreed to, and the towage resumed. But no sooner had 
 the news of our shipmate's death reached us, than there 
 was a rush to the forecastle by our crew, to divide the 
 dead man's belongings — a piece of barbarism quite 
 uncommon among seamen. They made such a clean 
 sweep of everything, that when the captain sent to have 
 the deceased seaman's effects brought aft, all that was 
 produced would hardly have filled a large handkerchief, 
 although he had brought two great bags and a bundle 
 on board with him. So passed from among us poor 
 Peter Hill, a steady middle-aged seaman, leaving a 
 widow and two children to mourn their loss, and exist as 
 
THE DAWN OF BETTER DAYS. 163 
 
 best they could without the meagre half pay ho had 
 left thorn. 
 
 After this calamity the speed of the tii^< vms reduced 
 until the jibhoom was rigged and the anchors secured. 
 Then the impatient tug-skipper tried to make up for 
 lost time. Green seas rolled over the bows as the blufif 
 old ship was towed through tho ugly, advancing waves 
 at a rate quite beyond anyth'ng she could have done 
 unaided. She strained and groaned as if in pain, while 
 tho severity of her treatment was attested by a long 
 Fpell at the pumps, the quantity of water she had in her 
 giving rise to many ominous mutteringg amon^ the 
 crew. At last the Tuskar was reached, the topsails and 
 lower staysails were set, and tho tug let go of us, much 
 to our relief, as the motion at once became easier. 
 Then came the muster and picking for watches, when 
 the grim fact became apparent that we were grievously 
 undermanned. There were but twelve A.B.'s and ono 
 ordinary seaman forward, four tradesmen, i.e. bo'sun, 
 carpenter, sailmaker, and painter, with three boys in 
 the half-deck, steward and cook. Aft were the captain 
 and two officers. Under any circumstances this would 
 have been a very small crew for a ship of her size ; but, 
 to make matters worse, she was what sailors call " parish 
 rigged," meaning that all her gear was of the cheapest 
 — common rope, that with a little usage grew swollen 
 and clumsy, often requiring the strength of one man to 
 ^- ill the slack of it through the wretched ** Armstrong 
 patent " blocks, and not a purchase of any kind to assist 
 labo': ! except two capstans. Already we had gotten a 
 taste of her quality in setting the scanty sail she now 
 carried ; what it would be, later on, when all sail came 
 
1G4 THE LOO OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 to be made, we could easily anticipate. The crow w'crc, 
 us usual, a mixed lot. There was an elderly Yankeu 
 bo'sun's mate answering to the name of Nat, who, in 
 spite of his fifty years, was one of the best men on board; 
 a smart little Yorkshircman, very tidy and quiet ; and 
 two Liverpool-Irishmen — dirty, slovenly, and obscene 
 always — Flanagan and Mahoney. They, I learned 
 afterwards, had come home a fortnight before from the 
 East Indies with a fairly good pay-day, which they had 
 never seen a copper of, having lain in one continuous 
 state of drunkenness in a cellar, from the evening of 
 their arrival, until the vampires who supplied them with 
 liquor had somehow obtained a claim upon all their 
 wages. Then, when the money was drawn, the two 
 miserable fools were flung into the gutter, sans every- 
 thing but the filthy rags on their backs. A jovial 
 darkey from Mauritius, with a face whose native ugliness 
 was heightened by an extraordinary marking from small- 
 pox, kept all hands alive with his incessant fun. He 
 signed as Jean Baptiste, which sacred appellation was 
 immediately anglicized to Johnny the Baptist, nor did 
 he ever get called anything else. There was also a 
 Frenchman from St. Nazaire, who, though his English 
 was hardly intelligible, had sailed in our country ships 
 so long that he had lost all desire for anything French. 
 He was also a fine seaman, but the wrong side of forty. 
 A taciturn Dane, tall and thin, but a good man as far 
 as his strength went, was also of orr company; and 
 a brawny, hairy Nova Scotiaman, John Bradley, able 
 enough, but by no means willing to exert his great 
 strength. Lastly, of those whom I can remember, came 
 Peter Burn and Julius Csesar. "When the first-named 
 
THE DAWN OF BETTER DAYS. 105 
 
 fiigncd in Liverpool, ho looked like a liulo old soci-dog 
 about fifty, worth half a dozen young, unseasoned men. 
 Unfortunately for us, ho had como out of the experienced 
 hands of Paddy Finn, a well-known boarding-master 
 renowned as a "faker-up" of worn-out and 'long-shoro 
 sailors. Paimour had it, too, that ho had recently 
 married a young woman, who had eloped with several 
 years' savings, leaving him without any prospect but 
 the workhouse, until Paddy Finn took him in hand for 
 the sake of his month's advance. Be that as it may, it 
 was almost impossible for any one to recognize in the 
 decrepit, palsied old wreck that crawled aft to muster, 
 and answered to the name of Peter Burn, the bluff, 
 hearty old seaman that hud signed on so boldly two or 
 three days before. Julius Ca3sar was a long, cadaverous 
 lad, willing and good-natured, hailing from Vermont, 
 but so weak and inexperienced that you could hardly 
 feel him on a rope. The other three men have entirely 
 faded from my memory. 
 
 Of the petty officers with whom I lived, it only needs 
 just now that I note them as all Scotch, belonging, like 
 the skipper and mate, to the shores of the Firth of Forth, 
 with the exception of the painter. He was a Yarmouth 
 man, really an A.B., but, in consequence of his great 
 ability in decorating, mixir paints, etc., given five 
 shillings a month extra, with a bunk in the half-deck. 
 There was no sea-sobriquet for him, like "Bo'sun," 
 ** Chips," " Sails," or " Doctor," so he was called by his 
 rightful surname, "Barber." The cook, or "doctor," 
 was a grimy little Maltese, not quite such a living libel 
 on cookery as usual, but dirty beyond belief. I said 
 there were three boys in the half-deck, but that state- 
 
166 TBE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 ment needs qualifying. The eldest of the trio was as 
 good a man as any on board the ship, and deserves 
 much more than passing notice. He had been, like 
 myself, a London arab, although never homeless; for 
 his mother, who earned a scanty living by selling water- 
 cresses, always managed to keep a corner for him in her 
 one room up a Shoreditch court. But Bill was far too 
 manly to be a burden to his mother a day longer than 
 he could help, so, after trying many ways of earning an 
 honest crust, he finally managed to get taken on board 
 the WarsjntG training-ship, whence he was apprenticed 
 in the Western Belle for four years. He was now in his 
 third year of service, a sturdy, reliable young fellow of 
 eighteen, not very brilliant, perhaps, but a first-class 
 seaman : a credit to himself and to his training. The 
 other boy, besides myself, was a keen urchin about my 
 own age, on his first voyage, of respectable parentage, 
 and with a good outfit. Whatever his previous ex- 
 perience had been I don't remember ; I think he came 
 straight from school. Anyhow, he was artful enough to 
 
 early earn the title of " a young sailor, but a d d 
 
 old soldier," which concise character sums up all that 
 a seaman can say as to a person's ability in doing as 
 little as possible. Captain Smith, our chief, was a jolly, 
 easy-going Scotchman of about sixty, always good- 
 tempered, and disinclined to worry about anything. He 
 had his wife and daughter with him, the latter a plain 
 you J lady of about twenty-two. Both of them shared 
 the skipper's good qualities, and the ship was certainly 
 more comfortable for their presence. Mr. Edny, the 
 chief mate, was a splendid specimen of manhood, a 
 Scotchman about thirty-five years of age, with coal- 
 
THE DAWN OF BETTER DATS. 167 
 
 black hair and eyos. Ho was the most hirsute individual 
 I have ever seen, a shaggy black mane, longer and 
 thicker than any Newfoundland dog's, waving all over 
 his chest and back. Mr. Cottam, the second mate, was 
 a square-built, undersized man from the Midlands, the 
 bane of my existence, but a prime seaman who loved 
 worlf for its own sake. 
 
1G8 TUE LOa OF A SIHA'WAJF, 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 DUB SOUTH. 
 
 riiRiiArB an undue amount of spaco has been given to 
 particularizing the Western Belle's crew, but my excuse 
 must be that this was my first big ship (the steamer 
 didn't count), as well as my first long voyage. To mo 
 it was the commencement of a new era. Hitherto I 
 liad not been long enough on board any one ship to 
 take much interest in either her or her crew. The 
 changes had been so numerous and rapid, that while I 
 was certainly accumulating a large stock of varied 
 experiences, I was unable to put them to much practical 
 use, because I remained so small and weak. But now 
 I knew that, barring accidents, I was in for a twelve- 
 months' voyage ; I. should cross the "line" four times 
 round the Cape twice, and return a regular " Sou'- 
 Spainer," looking down from a lofty height of superiority 
 upon other sea-boys who had never sailed to the 
 *' Suthard." 
 
 When the watches had been picked I found myself 
 imder the second mate, whom I dismissed rather sum- 
 marily at the close of the last chapter, because I shall 
 have a great deal to say nbout him later on. For the 
 
DUE SOUTH. IGO 
 
 present it suffices to note that my evil genius must 
 liavo been in the ascendant, for " Jemmy the Scrubber," 
 as we always called Mr. Cottam behind his back, was a 
 regular tyrant, who spared nobody, not even himself. 
 The men of his watch took things easily, as usual, 
 knowing full well that ho was unable to coerce them ; 
 but I was helpless in his hands, and he did not fail to 
 let me know the fact. There was some compensation 
 for me in having Bill Smith, the sturdy apprentice 
 before mentioned, as my watch-mate, for he was both 
 able and willing to lend me a helping hand whenever 
 possible, although of course ho could not shield me 
 from the amiable weaknesses of Jemmy the Scrubber. 
 Still, his friendship was very valuable to me, and it has 
 endured unto this day. 
 
 At the outset of the voyage I found, that if I had 
 never earned my pay in my life before, I was going to 
 do so now. When there was one hand at the wheel 
 and one on thi look-out, there were four A.B.'s, Bill and 
 myself, available to make or shorten sail. Consequently 
 it became the practice to send me up alone to loose 
 whatever sail was going to be set during the night, and 
 I would go up and down from one masthead to the 
 other while the men did the hauling on deck. Then 
 when the job was finished the men retired to their 
 several corners, more often than not into their bunks in 
 the fo'lk'sle, leaving me to coil up all the ropes and 
 then return to my post aft in front of the poop, ready 
 to carry Jemmy's orders when he gave any. She was 
 a very heavy-working ship, as before noted, making the 
 ordinary duties of trimming sail for such a handful of 
 men most exhaustive ; but, in addition to that, the food 
 
170 TnE Loa OF a sea- waif. 
 
 was BO bad that it romindod mo Htrongly of tho Amhdla, 
 Yet BO UHunl, so universal, was this shamoful condition 
 of tbingR, that there was no moro than tho ordinary 
 quantity of "growling"; no complaints brought aft; 
 and things wont on pretty comfortably. Of courso she 
 leaked — " made a good drop o* water," as sailors say 
 — but still in lino weather tho pumps would " suck " 
 in ten minutes at four-hour intervals. But sail she 
 couldn't. A Rochester barge would havo given her two 
 miles in ten, and as to "turning to windward" — that 
 is, zig-zagging against a contrary wind — it was a moro 
 farce. She made so much leeway that sho just sailed 
 to and fro on tho same old track till tho wind freed. 
 Therefore it was a weary time before we got down as far 
 as that dreaded stretch of stormy sea known to seamen 
 as the " Bay," although it extends many a league 
 Atlantic-wards from the Bay of Biscay. Here we bat- 
 tered about for several days, against a persistent south- 
 westerly wind that refused to let us get south, until at 
 last it freshened into a bitter gale, accompanied by the 
 ugly cross sea that gives this region such an unenviable 
 notoriety. Under two lower topsails and reefed foresail 
 we wallowed and drifted, watching with envious gaze 
 tho "flyers" gliding homeward under enormous clouds 
 of canvas, steady and dry, while we were just like a 
 half -tide rock, swept fore and aft by every comber that 
 came hissing along. Here I got a narrow squeak for 
 my life. I was coiling up the gear in the waist when 
 she lurched heavily to windward, just as a green mass 
 of water lifted itself like a hill on that side. Before she 
 could rise to it, hundreds of tons of foaming water 
 rolled on board, sweeping me blindly off my feet and 
 
DUE SOUTH, 171 
 
 out over the loo mil. Clinging doflporfttoly to tho ropo 
 I held, I waited, swollen almost to bursting with 
 lioUling my breath, but quite uuconsciouB of tho fact 
 that I was overboard. At hint Hho rolled to windward 
 again, and I was swept back by another wave, which 
 flung mo like a swab into tho tangle of gear surrounding 
 tho mainmast, liLtlo tho worse for my perilous journey. 
 And thus sho behaved all that night, never frco from a 
 roaring mass of water that swept fore and aft con- 
 tinually, leaving not a dry corner anywhere. Sundry 
 noises beneath tho foro-hatch warned us that something 
 heavy among the stores had broken adrift ; but it was 
 impossible to go down and sec, not only for fear of tho 
 water getting below, but because of tho accumulated gas 
 from tho coal, which, unvcntilated for days, would only 
 have needed a spark to have blown the ship sky-high. 
 Towards morning, however, tho weather fined down. 
 As soon as possible tho fore-hatch was taken oflf, and 
 there wo found in the 'tween decks a mess awful to 
 contemplate. The whole of our sea-stock of salt beef 
 and pork in tierces had broken adrift, together with two 
 casks of Stockholm tar, and had been hurled backwards 
 and forwards across the ship until every barrel was 
 broken in pieces. There lay the big joints of meat like 
 miniature islands in a sea of tar, except that, with every 
 roll of the ship, they swam languidly from side to side 
 in the black flood. All hands were set to work to collect 
 the food — it was all we had — hoist it on de.3k, and 
 secure it there in such fashion as we could. Then it 
 was scraped clear of the thickest of the tar, the barrels 
 were set up again and refilled with the filthy stuff, into 
 the midst of which freshly-made pickle was poured. It 
 
172 THE LOG OF A SEA- WMF. 
 
 v;a8 not good food before, but now, complotely fiatiirutod 
 with tiir, it was naiiscoiiH boyond tiio power of wonls to 
 deHcribc. Yet it was eaten, and before long wo got so 
 used to the flavour that it passed unnoticed. Tliis 
 diversion kept all liunds buny for two or throo days, 
 during which the weather was kind to us, and wo 
 gradually stole south, uudl tho steady trado took hold 
 of us and helped us alonp; into settled Ihio weather. 
 
 By this timo all hands had settled down into their 
 several grooves, determined to make tho best of a bad 
 bargain. One thing was agreed upon — that, except for 
 her short-handedness and starvation, she was a pretty 
 comfortable ship. There was no driving, no rows ; 
 while tho feminine influence aft mado itself felt in tho 
 general freedom from bad language that prevailed on 
 deck. But wo were not yet low enough in numbers, 
 apparently. Tho old man, Peter Burn, who shook so 
 much that he was never allowed aloft, became perfectly 
 useless. Ho had been an old man-o'-war's man, living, 
 whenever possible, a life of riot and debauchery, for 
 which he was now called upon to pay tho penalty. At 
 a time of life when many men are not long past their 
 prime, he was reduced to childishness — a very picture of 
 senile decay. His body too, in consequence, I suppose, 
 of the foul feeding, became a horrible sight upon tho 
 opening of more than forty abscesses, from which, 
 however, he seemed to feel no pain. Strange to say, 
 his rough shipmates, who of course had to make good 
 his deficiency, showed no resentment at the serious 
 addition to their labours. With a gentleness and care 
 that could hardly have been expected of them, they 
 endeavoured to make the ancient mariner's declining 
 
DUE SOUTTI. I7n 
 
 (liiys as comfortablo as tlio clrcumstancofl would allow, 
 and I am euro that nowhoro could tlio old follow have 
 been moro carefully looked after. 
 
 Slio was an unlucky ship. Ilcr slow gait, oven with 
 favouring winds, was something to wonder at ; but, as if 
 even that wore not delay enough, wo mot with a most 
 abnormal amount of calms and light airs — hindrances 
 that would have made some skippors I have known 
 unboarablo to live with. But Captain Smith was one of 
 a thousand. Nothing seemed to rullllo his eoreno good- 
 humour. It must have been infectious, for tho con- 
 ditions of food and work were so bad that a littlo ugly 
 temper added thereto would certainly have caused a 
 mutiny. As usual I, unluckiost of urchins, was about 
 tho worst-off person on board. Jemmy the Scrubber, 
 unable to imbue the rest of his watch with his own 
 restless activity, gave mo no peace night or day. Woo 
 betide me, if, overcome by sleep in ray watch on deck at 
 night, I failed to hoar his first call. With a bull's-eyo 
 lantorn in one hand, and a piece of ratline stuff in tho 
 other, he would prowl around until he found mo, and 
 then — well, I was wido-awako enough for the rest of 
 that watcli. In the half-deck I was treated fairly well, 
 except in the matter of food, and even that got put right 
 in time. I have often wondered since how four men of 
 good standing, like our petty officers, could delibor.f;oly 
 cheat two boys out of their scanty share of the only 
 eatable food we had; but they certainly did. Every 
 other day except Saturday was "duff'" day, when the 
 modicum of flour allowed us was made into a plain 
 pudding by the addition of yeast and fat. Tke portion 
 due to each made a decent-sized plateful, and, with a 
 
174 TnE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 spoonful of qucstionablo molasses, furnished the best 
 meals wg got. Now the duff for the half-deck was 
 boiled in a conical bag, and turned out very similar in 
 shape and size to a sugar-loaf. It was brought into the 
 house in a tin pan not wide enough to allow it to lay 
 flat, so it stuck up diagonally. The sailmdker always 
 "whacked it out," marking off as many divisions as 
 there were candidates. So far so good. But when he 
 cut off his portion, instead of cutting fair across the duff, 
 he used to cut straight down, thus taking off half the 
 next portion as well, owing to the diagonal position of 
 the duff. Then cama the bo'sun, who of course followed 
 suit, and the others likewise, until the last two ** whacks" 
 falling to the share of the boys was really only the size 
 of one. For a long time this hardship was endured in 
 silence, until one day, at the weekly apportionment of 
 the sugar, much the same sort of thing took place. 
 Then Bill Smith broke out, and there was a rare to-do. 
 Our seniors were dreadfully indignant at his daring to 
 hint at the possibility of their being unfair, and, for 
 some time, I feared a combined assault upon the sturdy 
 fellow. All their tall talk, however, only served to stiffen 
 his back, and, in the result, w^e got our fair share of what 
 was going. 
 
 Hitherto I had not seen any deep-sea fishing; so, 
 when one day a school of bonito came leaping round 
 the bows, and the mate went out on the jibboom end 
 with a line, my curiosity was at fever-heat. How ever I 
 endured until eight bells I don't know. Once or twice 
 the wrath of Jemmy was kindled against me for in- 
 attention, and 1 got a sharp reminder of my duties. At 
 last eight bells struck. I had the dinner in the house in 
 
DUE SOUTH. 175 
 
 a twinkling, and in another minute was rushing out 
 along the boom to where the mate had left his lino 
 while he wont in to "take the sun." The tackle was 
 simplicity itself, consisting solely of a stout line about 
 the thickness of blind-cord, with an inch hook firmly 
 seized to its end, baited with a shred of white I'ag. ]\ry 
 fingers trembled so that I could hardly loose the neat 
 coil the mate had left, for below me, gambolling in the 
 sparkling foam beaten forward from the bluff bows, were 
 quite a large number of splendid fish, although they did 
 not seem nearly as large as they were in reality. At 
 last I got the line free, and, bestriding the boom-end with 
 my legs firmly .locked between the jib guys, I allowed 
 the lure to flutter away to leeward, jerking it gently so 
 as to imitate a leaping squid or bewildered flying-fish. 
 Splash! and the graceful curve of my line suddenly 
 changed into a straight ; I had hooked one. In a perfect 
 frenzy of excitement I hauled madly, scarcely daring to 
 look below where my prize dangled, his weight fairly 
 cutting my hands. At last I had him in my arms, but 
 such was the tremendous vibration of his massive body 
 that, although I plunged my thumbs through his gills, I 
 was benumbed from head to heel. All feeling left me, 
 and my head was beginning to swim, when I bethought 
 me of plunging him into the folds of the jib, which was 
 furled on the boom. With a last flash of energy I 
 accomplished this, falling across the quivering carcase 
 half dead myself. But before he was quite dead I bad 
 recovered, and, prouder than any victorious warrior 
 returning from the hard-won field, I bore him inboard, 
 I was received in the half-deck as a benefactor to my 
 species, for had I not provided twenty pounds of fresh 
 
176 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 food. How welcomo my catch was can hardly bo 
 comprehended by those who have never known what it 
 means [o subsist upon beef and pork, which when dry 
 turns white and hard as salt itself, with the flavour of 
 tar superadded, and that for many weeks. The first 
 flush of excitement over, attention was called to my 
 gory appearance. I had not noticed it before, but nov>- 
 I found that I was literally drenched in blood, black-red 
 from the chin downwards. What of that ? I had caught 
 ray first big fish, and nothing else mattered. Out I went 
 again, succeeding in a few minutes in hooking another. 
 But one of my watchmates must needs come interfering, 
 and take it away from me, in spite of my protests. I 
 was actually bold enough to tell him that the way he 
 was carrying it was unsafe — the idea of me, with my five 
 minutes' experience, dictating to an old " shellback" like 
 Bradley. I was right, though, for, when half-way in, 
 the fish gave a convulsive plunge and fell, leaving his 
 gills in Bradley's fist. I didn't say anything, but, like 
 the parrot, I did some tall thinking. All the fish left us 
 instanter, attracted doubtless by the blood of their 
 mutilated fellow ; so, sulkily coiling up the line, I came 
 in. There was a jDlentiful supper at four bells, and, 
 though I should now pronounce the flesh of a bonito as 
 dry and tasteless, then it was sweeter to me than I 
 could express. While it was yet in my mouth, yea ! ere 
 it was chewed, retribution overtook me. I heard the 
 watch on deck setting sail forward, and more con- 
 versation ensuing upon the performance than usual. 
 Suddenly a shock-head thrust itself into the half-deck. 
 The voice of Csesar said ominously, ** Tom, th* mate 
 wanse yer ! " With a thrill of dread crawling up the 
 
DUE SOUTH 177 
 
 roots of my hair I obeyed, following tho messenger 
 forrard. There stood the port watch, grouped round 
 the mate, gazing upward at the sail they had just been 
 setting, the jib. Well they might. From head to tack 
 down its whole length ran ghastly streaks and patches 
 of gore, a sight that made my flesh creep. *' Did yon 
 do that ? " said the mate in an awful tone. There 
 was no need for any answer ; my guilt was manifest. 
 Vengeance lingered not, and, in a few minutes, tho 
 manes of my first fish were propitiated. Lamely I 
 retired to complete my supper with what appetite 
 I could muster, and to vow that the next fishing I did 
 I would take a sack out with me. But the evidence of 
 my offence was permanent, surviving the bleaching of 
 sun, rain, and spray throughout the whole of tho 
 voyage. My waspish little tyrant, the second mate, 
 could hardly rope's-end me again for the same fault ; 
 but he made it an excuse for robbing me of a goodly 
 portion of each day-watch below, keeping me on deck 
 sorting the carpet-thrums of which he was for ever 
 making hearthrugs. Oh, how I did hate his fancy- 
 work and him too. But I dared not complain or refuse, 
 although at night I was always getting into trouble for 
 going to sleep, which I really couldn't help. 
 
 N 
 
178 THE LOG OF A BEA-WAIF. 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 EIGHT weeks' calm. 
 
 Leisurely as our progress had been hitherto, we had 
 always raanaged to make some Southing each day. But 
 now ensued a time unique in all my experience. What 
 our exact position was I do not know; but I fancy it 
 must have been somewhere near the Equator in the 
 Atlantic. When the faltering, fitful breezes first failed 
 us, a long succession of rain deluges set in, which at 
 first were most heartily welcome. For, like many other 
 ships of her class in those days, the Western Belle's 
 store of water-tanks contained barely enough of the 
 precious fluid to suffice us for half the voyage, even 
 upon the regulation allowance of three quarts per man 
 each day. Eain was depended upon to replenish them 
 in time, and on such voyages, of course, seldom failed 
 to afford a bountiful supply. Now, however, it fell for 
 whole days in one solid, roaring downpour that, in spite 
 of the many openings by which the decks were drained, 
 filled them so that it was possible to swim from poop 
 to forecastle in fresh water. Everybody turned out all 
 their belongings that were washable, and a regular 
 carnival of soap and water took place. Then the ports 
 
EIQTIT WEEKS' CALM, 179 
 
 were opened and the decks cleared of water. It fitill 
 poured over the front of the poop like a small Niagara, 
 and from thence, as being the cleanest, we refilled all 
 our tanks. Still the flood came down without a break, 
 until the incessant roar became awe-inspiring. Many 
 of the crew spoke of it as passing all their experience, 
 even hinting at the possibility of another flood. It was 
 so heavy that the experiment was successfully tried of 
 scooping up drinkable water off the sea-surface, which 
 was like a mill-pond for its level, although all a-foam 
 with the Tailing torrent. The ship lay as nearly motion- 
 less as it is possible for a ship to be out in mid-ocean. 
 For Coleridge's simile of **A painted ship upon a 
 painted ocean " is only a poet's licence, and grates 
 upon a seaman as the sole picture in that wonderful 
 work which is not literally true. Admiral AVharton's 
 remark that "In all the incalculable mass of the ocean 
 not one particle is ever absolutely at rest," may strike 
 most people as strange; but it is sober truth, and 
 'therefore it is impossible for a vessel at sea ever to bo 
 perfectly motionless. 
 
 Gradually the massive downpour abated, the sun 
 peeped out, and the sodden decks and gear dried up. 
 But there was no breath of wind. And as Captain 
 Smith was a practical man, with all his patience, he 
 decided to utilize this otherwise barren time in carrying 
 out a scheme he had purposed leaving for some long 
 spell of waiting in Indian harbours. We had on deck 
 three huge, rough spars— long logs, in fact. These 
 wore loosed from their lashings and lifted on to the 
 gallows, whereon the boats usually rested. A big rip- 
 saw was produced — the only time I ever saw one on 
 
180 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF, 
 
 board ship — and the strange spectacle was witnessed of 
 a ship's deck being turned into a saw-pit, sailors into 
 nawyers. Thick slabs were sawn off the spars, after 
 which the carpenter, and a couple of men who could 
 l)andle axe and adze, set to work to fashion them into 
 topsail-yards. Meanwhile, the rest of the hands toiled 
 like beavers, unbending sails, sending down yards, and 
 overhauling standing rigging, until the old ship looked 
 as if she were in some snug dock-corner being dis- 
 mantled. All day long this work went on, no one 
 knowing or caring whose watch on deck it should be, 
 and at night the woary workers lay around promis- 
 cuously, sleeping away the hours of darkness in calm 
 certainty of being undisturbed. This curious interlude 
 in an ocean voyage developed strange faculties in our 
 men. The iron bands, which form part of the fittings 
 of a ship's yards, were, owing to the skipper's desire 
 to have heavier spars, found to be too small. No 
 matter. An impromptu forge was rigged up on a barrel 
 filled with sand, a most ingenious bellows was made 
 by somebody, and, as if born and bred in a smithy, 
 the bo'sun and two hands manipulated that iron- 
 work in such workmanlike fashion that it answered 
 its purpose as well as if turned out of a Blackwall 
 foundry. 
 
 For many days this work went on, with apparently 
 no more notice taken of its strangeness than as if it 
 were the normal course of events. But gradually the 
 deathly stillness of our surroundings, the utter absence 
 of the faintest air of wind, or sign of any other vessel 
 in a similar plight, began to tell upon everybody's 
 nerves. Men took to gathering in twos and threes in 
 
ElOnr WEEKS' CALM. 181 
 
 the evenings to recount their experiences of lengthened 
 calms, and the yarns they had heard of hygono 
 tragedies connected with ships that had strayed into 
 windless seas. Even the busy working-hours could not 
 prevent the men from gazing uneasily over the side 
 where the familiar, smiling face of the sea was under- 
 going a mysterious change. There is about the deep 
 sea, even in the hottest weather, a delicious atmosphere 
 of cool cleanliness, a searching purity, such as the eartli 
 can never yield, giving one the fixed idea that to this 
 vast, unpoUutable limpidity the nations owe their health. 
 In some dim fashion this thought is present with all 
 seafarers, however dense and unnoticing they may be. 
 Therefore, when that familiar freshness was found to 
 be giving place to a stale, stagnant greasiness to which 
 a mawkish, uninvigorating atmosphere clung, what 
 wonder that uneasiness — all the more difficult to bear 
 quietly because undefinable — became generally manifest. 
 Adding to the sense of eerieness, was the fact that old 
 Peter was failing fast. I have already mentioned how 
 v;illingly his share of the common burden was borne by 
 his shipmates, and how loyally they tended him, even 
 though such service as he needed could not be spoken 
 of without ofifence. But now his mind had completely 
 gone. He lived in some misty past, about which he 
 babbled unceasingly. Often, in the still evenings, all 
 hands would gather round him, listening, in perfect 
 silence, to his disjointed reminiscences of desperate deeds 
 in the way of duty, of long-drawn-out debaucheries in 
 filthy rookeries of home ports, as well as the well-known 
 hells at Hong Kong, Calcutta, or Callao. They were 
 strange scenes, those dog-watch gatherings, nothing 
 
182 THE LOO OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 distinctly viaible but tlio red glow of the pipes — except 
 when the sudden glare of a match, struck to light fresh 
 tobacco, shed a momentary gleam over the group of 
 haggard, bearded faces, each beclouded with an unwonted 
 shadow. In the midst, a placid stream of sound, Peter's 
 voice prattled on, its lurid language in the strangest 
 contrast to the gentleness of his speech. Still the days 
 dragged on and the faces grew longer. All the refitting 
 was finished, and only the ordinary routine of ship-lifo 
 was left to be carried on. Happily those duties are always 
 in the hands of capable oflicers, sufficiently onerous to 
 prevent time ever hanging heavily. One of the strangest 
 of all the strange notions current ashore about sea-Hfe is 
 that sailors have nothing to do butwatch the ship go along, 
 except daring stormy weather. One would have thought 
 that the never-ending, ever-beginning round of work 
 in a house that is properly kept would have taught 
 all landsmen and women that the great complicated 
 machine called a ship would demand at least equal 
 labours to keep it fit and in working order. But " watch 
 and watch " was now restored, which, of courso, threw 
 a great deal of additional time upon the men's hands, 
 since they could still sleep through the night, if they 
 chose, without fear of being disturbed. So for hours, 
 when unemployed, men took to hanging over the rail, 
 watching, -with an imnatural curiosity, the myriads of 
 strange creatures that, lured from their silent haunts 
 in the gloomy middle-depths of the ocean by the long- 
 enduring stillness above, came crawling about, blinking 
 glassily with dead-looking eyes at the unfamiliar light. 
 Truly it was an uncanny sight. Not only fish of bizarre 
 shape abounded, but vast numbers of great medusae-— 
 
EiailT WEEKS' CALM. 183 
 
 Bomi-trunBparont Bimulacra of all tho liidcoiis thingfi 
 that ever haunted a maniac's droam — crawled greasily 
 about us, befouling tho onco dear blue of tho sea, and 
 coating its slock surface with stagnant slime. And, 
 deeper down, mighty shadows passed sluggishly to and 
 fro, filling tho gazers with wordless terror as tho days 
 crept wearily away and those formless apparitions 
 gradually chose higher levels. Overhead the sweet 
 fathomless azure of the sky paled as if in sympathy 
 with tho silent sea. Cloudless, indeed, but overspread 
 with a filmy veil of strange mist, that, while it robbed 
 the sun of its glare, seemed to enclose us within a dome 
 of heat, unventilated and stale. When night fell, 
 instead of cool refreshment — such as comes, even in 
 tropical calms, after sunset at all ordinary times — 
 there arose a foul odour of decaying things that clung 
 clammily to the palate like a miasma. Tho densely 
 populated ocean beneath palpitated with palo fire, tho 
 gleaming of putrescence. Instead of tho usual brisk 
 movement seen among tho glowing denizens of tho deep, 
 everything crawled languidly, as if infected with some 
 universal pestilence. Moon and stars lost their strong 
 silver glow, and were no longer reflected in the smooth- 
 ness beneath as if shining in another heaven. And at 
 moonrise, when the fantastic mist-wreaths writhed 
 about the horizon, the broad red disc of the moon 
 would bo distorted into many uncouth shapes, or 
 patterns of strange design were drawn across her paling 
 surface. 
 
 At last, one night, when old Peter was holding his 
 usual levee, he suddenly raised his voice, and authori- 
 tatively demanded that his auditors should bear him 
 
184 TDK LOO OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 on to tho forccastlo lioad. Tlioy iiifltantly obeyed, 
 lifting him tenderly upon his mattress, and laying him 
 gontly by tho side of tho capstan. Then all hands 
 gathered round him in the darknuss, only the glow of 
 tlie pipes fitfully illuminating tho rugged countenances. 
 Slowly tho moon rose, but sent no silvery pathway 
 across tho sea, until suddenly, as if with a great effort, 
 she broke through the hampering mist- wreaths that 
 seemed to clog her upward way. A pure, pale beam 
 shot right athwart our vessel, lighting up tho little 
 group of watchers on tho forecastle, and lingering as if 
 lovingly upon tho ^Yithcred, weather-scarred face of our 
 ancient shipmate. As it did so he smiled — a patient, 
 happy smile — his lips unclosed, and, with a sigh of relief 
 like a weary child, ho died. 
 
 Breaking the steadfast silence camo tho mate's 
 mellow cry, " Square the mainyard ! " As the men rose 
 to obey, a gentle breath, welcome as tho first thrill of 
 returning health, kissed tho tanned faces. Slowly tho 
 great yards swung round, a pleasant murmuring as of 
 a mountain rivulet arose from the bows, and the long 
 calm was over. In quiet attendance upon the dead 
 camo the sailmaker, with a roll of worn canvas under 
 his arm in which tho poor, shrivelled remains were 
 reverently wrapped and neatly sewn up. A big lump 
 of coal was found and secured to tho feet, and tho long 
 parcel was borne gently aft to the gangway. There in 
 the moonlight we all gathered, while tho skipper, with 
 faltering, unaccustomed voice, read the stately words of 
 the Burial Service, all hands standing like statues as 
 they listened to what all admit to be one of the most 
 solemn, as well as majestic selections known in our 
 
Kianr weeks' calm. 18") 
 
 Bplcndid langiiaRG. Siuldonly there wan a pauso ; tlin 
 flkippcr raised his Imnd, and thoso who Bupported tho 
 plunk on which tho worn-out tabornaclo of okl Potor hvy, 
 gently raised its inner end. Thoro was a eubduod 
 B-s-s-h as tho white fardel slid slowly seaward, followed 
 l»y a sullen plunge. All rushed to tho side, where an 
 ascending column of green light marked tho dcHcont 
 into thoso calm profundities of our dead. An almost 
 inaudible sigh of relief escaped from every lip, as if a 
 well-nigh intolerable burden had been removed. Un- 
 doubtedly that was tho predominant fooling, intenHiiied 
 by the fact that a sweet breezo was now blowing 
 steadily. In tho blue dome above, tho moon and her 
 attendant stars were shining with their full splendour, 
 and from tho now sparkling face of the surrounding sea 
 the sickly mist was rolled quite away. 
 
 Thenceforward, although our progress was wretchedly 
 slow, of course, we were littlo troubled by calms. But 
 our tribulations wore not yet all over. Barber, tho 
 painter A.B., was taken ill ; so ill as to be quite useless, 
 nor did he ever again that voyage recover sufficiently 
 to resume his place as an active member of the crew. 
 And other men were grievously tried by scurvy, which, 
 though in a mild form, was painful and weakening. 
 How it was that they were no worse, I cannot think, for 
 tho food was bad enough truly for tho development 
 of that malignant disease in its worst form. But, 
 somehow, we worried along in dogged fashion, every 
 one showing rare patience under their unmerited 
 BulTerings. 
 
 And so, in laborious fashion, we crept southward 
 and round the Cape without any bad weather worth 
 
18G TTIK LOO OF A SRA-WAIF. 
 
 mentioning, until woll to tlio oaBtward of that justly 
 dreaded point. Then one night wo had a narrow escape 
 from Borioufl diflastor. It was our (tho Hocond mato*H) 
 watch on deck from eight to midnight. Wo were jog- 
 ging along before a light Houth-westcrly broozo, at about 
 four knots, tho weather being singuhirly Uno for those 
 latitudes. Down in tho cabin tho skipper, his wife and 
 daughter, and the mato were playing cards, while tho 
 second mate, with a carelessness most unusual with 
 him, was hanging over tho open scuttle, absorbed in 
 watching tho game. Rees, tho old Trencliman with 
 a WoIhIi name, was on the look-out, and I heard him 
 muttering and grumbling because tho officer of tho 
 watch was oblivious of tho fact that an ominous- 
 looking cloud was rising in tho north-east, or almost 
 right ahead. Presently from its black bosom faint 
 gleams of lightning showed themselves, while tho 
 subdued murmur of tho breeze we had became hushed 
 in an unnatural quiet. With a quickness that seemed 
 miraculous, the threatening cloud ahead overspread 
 the sky, and still the second mato did not reahze 
 what was coming. As all sail was set, the position 
 began to look so threatening that all tho watch 
 took tho alarm, and gathered in tho waist, ready for 
 the sudden emergency imminent. Presently tho wind 
 dropped dead, its sudden failure arousing the supine 
 officer, who, lifting his head, took in the situation at a 
 glance. But before ho could issue an order, there came 
 a smart patter of rain, followed immediately by a roar 
 as the north-east wind, like a savage beast, leapt upon 
 us, taking us flat aback. Then there was a hubbub. 
 Up rushed the skipper and mate, shouting for all hands. 
 
Kin JIT WEEK!? CALM, 1P7 
 
 Evorythinf? wan lot go at onoo ; but tlio sailfl, jammrul 
 backward aj^aiiiHt tbo mantH, rofuBod to allow tho yanlH 
 to como down. Tho Hliip began to drivo astern moBt 
 dangerously, nor could ebo bo got round by any nieana. 
 Presently hIio dipped bor storn rigbt under, taking a 
 sea in over tbo tafTrail tliat filled tbo docks foro and 
 aft. It was now a question of niinutos witli us. If sbo 
 could not be got round sbo would certainly go down 
 stern foreinont, for again and again sbo drovo bor broad 
 stern under tbc rising sea as tbo now furious gale 
 burled bor backwards. Tbo feeblo ofTorts of tl;o crew 
 Boomed utterly unavailing against tbo migbty forco of 
 tbia sudden tempest. But, providentially, a bu^^'o sea 
 caugbt bcr on one bow, flinging bor bead oil' far onougli 
 for tbo wind to grip tbo bead sails. Round sbo spun 
 upon ber heel like a top, and in another minute tho 
 shreds of tho rending sails wero thundering above our 
 beads as thoy flow to fragments. In an indescribablo 
 ui)roar, wherein tho howling of tho gale, tho reverbera- 
 tions of tho thunder, and tbo crash of our yrrds wore 
 all mingled, the ill-used vessel sped away beforo tho 
 wind as if fleeing for her life. An almost continual 
 glare of lightning shed an unearthly light over all, by 
 which the havoc that was being wrought was plainly to 
 bo seen. IIow that night's work was ever accomplished 
 I havo no idea. But when morning dawned wo were 
 fore-reaching under tho three lower topsails and foro top- 
 mast staysail, the fluttering rags of what remained of 
 our lighter sails being secured in somo haphazard sorii 
 of fashion to the yards. We had escaped tho doom oi 
 many a fine ship, whoso crew have paid the penalty 
 of carelessness with their lives. It was long, however, 
 
188 TnE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 before we overtook the labour which those few hours 
 involved us in. For many days wo jogged along under 
 easy sail, getting farther and farther to the northward 
 every day, happily for us, and so putting a greater 
 distance between ns and bad weather. 
 
C IB*J ) 
 
 CHAPTER XYI. 
 
 rP THE INDIAN OCEAN TO BOMBAY. 
 
 At certain seasona of the ye^r the iwinds of jDariners 
 navigating the Indian Ocean are always, more or less, 
 upon the tension of expectancy concerning the possibility 
 of their encountering one of th'>se tremendous meteors 
 known as cyclones. A keen watch is continually kept 
 upon the mercury in the barometer for any deviation 
 from its normal ebb and flow, which occurs with the 
 greatest regularity in the tropics during settled weather. 
 For these truly awful storms are so justly dreaded, by 
 even the bravest seaman, that no danger of navigation 
 claims more attention. The possibility of meeting, or 
 being overtaken by one, bulks largely in the dog-watch 
 discussions among the foremast hands, and he who has 
 successfully braved an encounter with a cyclone, speaks 
 with an authority denied to his fellows who have never 
 had such a painful experience. Even to me, juvenile 
 as I was, an almost deferential hearing was accorded 
 when I spoke of my Havana experience — the hurricane 
 of the West Indies, the typhoon of the China seas, and 
 the cyclone of the Indian Ocean being only different 
 nameo for the same mighty atmospheric convulsion, 
 
lf)0 TUE LOG OF A ZE.fi'YvyllF. 
 
 Happily, our leisurely progress northward was un- 
 attended by any such deeply perilous adventure as the 
 encounter with a cj^clone would have been. Doubts 
 were freely expressed as to the probability of the Western 
 Belle weathering one at any time, but especially under 
 our present short-handed conditions. Every day, there- 
 fore, that passed seeing us nearer port was noted with 
 delight, as lessening our chances of utter extermination. 
 And when at last we passed the latitude of Cape 
 Comorin and entered the Arabian Sea, there was a 
 distinct lightening of faces and a tendency to make 
 little of the weary passage now gradually nearing its 
 end. We did not see a vessel of any description, during 
 our journey from the Cape, until within two hundred 
 miles of Bombay, neither did we sight any land. But 
 one morning, to my amazement, I saw a vessel nearing 
 us unlike any I had ever seen before — except in pictures. 
 She had a hull like the half of an egg cut lengthways, 
 and was propelled by an enormous white sail of lateen 
 shape, or almost like one of our jibs. She could not 
 have been more than ten or fifteen tons capacity, and 
 how she stood up under such an immense spread of 
 sail was a mystery. She came flying along like a huge 
 sea-bird, shooting up almost in the wind's eye, and 
 presently, graceful as an albatross, rounded-to under 
 our stern and " spilled " her sail. Seated in the after 
 part of this queer craft were two or three dignified- 
 looking men in white raiment, with the peculiar stiff 
 headgear affected by Parsees. One of the black, unclad 
 natives forming her crew hooked on to our fore-chains, 
 and, with an agility I should have hardly believed 
 possible, one of the white-robed visitors seized a rope 
 
UP THE INDIAN 0(JEAN TO BOMBAY. 191 
 
 flung over the side and skipped on board. Speaking 
 correct English, he saluted the mate, who stood at the 
 gangway ; then hastened aft, and, making a low salaam 
 to the skipper, solicited the honour of being our 
 **dubash," or general purveyor, while we wore in 
 harbour. To his groat disappointment, however, Cap- 
 tain Smith was an old Bombay trader, and always 
 employed the same dubash ; so that, after a few com- 
 pliments, our visitor politely took his leave, hoping for 
 better luck next time. 
 
 Thenceforward we met many native craft, or '*bug- 
 galows," as they call them, lumbering along the coast 
 on various errands, all characterized by a general 
 makeshift appearance that made me wonder however 
 they dared brave the dangers of the sea at all. But 
 that is a pecuharity of all Eastern native craft. They 
 are things of shreds and patches, and look as seaworthy 
 as a waggon with a worn-out tarpaulin set. Most of 
 them creep along shore pretty closely, and, at night, 
 lower their wooden anchors down about twenty fathoms, 
 furl sail, and turn in — or, at least, go to sleep. She is 
 pretty safe to fetch up somewhere, and time doesn't 
 matter. If she gets run down by some busthng ship 
 or another, it is Kismet, and not to be helped. 
 
 At last we drew near Bombay — that Liverpool of 
 the East — the first sight of which is so amazing to an 
 untravelled Briton. I was almost stupefied with wonder 
 at the mighty stream of traffic, the immense fleet of 
 ships that lay at anchor in the magnificent harbour, 
 and the beauty o; the great city. We had shipped a 
 white pilot, whc, being anxious to get up to the anchor- 
 age before du !'. o.iid make one job of the mooring, was 
 
102 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 "cracking on" to an exceedingly stiff breeze, making 
 the old ship heel over alarmingly. Suddenly I heard 
 my name called. Running aft, I was met by the second 
 mate, who, handing me a coil of line, ordered me to go up 
 and reeve the signal halliards in the mizzcn truck. Now, 
 I should premise that, like all American-built ships, 
 we carried very long "royal poles," or bare tapering 
 extensions of the masts above the highest part of the 
 rigging. Ours were extra long — some sixteen feet or 
 so — and crowned at the top, which was not much 
 thicker than a man's wrist, with a flat piece of wood 
 about as large as a cheese-plate, in one side of which 
 wa,s a sheave for the signal halliards or flag-line. I 
 started aloft boldly enough ; but when I reached the 
 base of the pole, and saw to what a height its bareness 
 towered above me, while the staggering ship lurched 
 to leeward and the foaming sea roared a hundred 
 and twenty feet below, my heart failed me, my head 
 swam, and all my scanty stock of strength left me. 
 For some time I sat with my legs clutched round the 
 pole, just clinging, without powder to move. Then I 
 heard the voice of the second mate pealing up from 
 the deck. " Hurry up there with those halliards ! " 
 Strange as it may appear, although I felt that I was 
 going to certain death, my fear of him was so great 
 that I made the attempt. Pulling myself up, I shut 
 my eyes and murmured a prayer. Trembling in every 
 nerve, but fighting against my benumbing weakness, 
 I actually struggled to the top. As I write, the cold 
 sweat bursts from every pore, for I feel again the 
 terrible agony of that moment. Opening my eyes, I 
 thrust at the opening of the sheave with the end of the 
 
UF THE ISDIAN OCEAN TO BOMBAY, IDo 
 
 Hue ; but it was knotted, and would not go through. 
 1 liad tried and failed, and with my last flash of energy 
 I grasped the pole again in both arms, and slid down 
 on to the eyes of the royal rigging. Here I clung for 
 a few minutes to recover myself, and to be violently 
 sick; then, feeling as if the bitterness of death was 
 past, 1 descended to the deck, walked up to Mr. Cottam, 
 and said, " I have tried, and I can't do it, sir — not if 
 you kill me." lie stared at me blankly for a moment. 
 Then turning away, as if the situation was beyond him, 
 he called my constant chum, Bill Smith, and gave him 
 the job. lie, being strong as a boar and agile as a 
 monkey, very soon managed it; not without consider- 
 able grumbling at Jemmy for sending a " weakly kid " 
 like me on such an errand. The whole episode may 
 seem trivial; but I frankly declare that having, in my 
 experience, faced death many times, I have never felt 
 Buch terror as I did then. 
 
 We made a "flying moor" in fine style, in spite of 
 the great fleet of ships surrounding us, the sails were 
 furled, decks cleared up, and all hands dismissed 
 forrard to meditate upon the successful close of our 
 passage of seven months from Liverpool. Soon every- 
 body's attention was drawn to a large ship near by, 
 whose crew were weighing anchor, homeward bound. 
 It was the Stornoway, the vessel we had seen towing 
 into Liverpool as we left. She had discharged and 
 loaded in Liverpool, made her passage out, and now, 
 having discharged and loaded in Bombay, was return- 
 ing again. Such differences there are between sailing 
 ships. 
 
 The morning brought a chattering crowd of coolies 
 
 
 
194 TUE LOa OF A SEA'WAIF, 
 
 carrying littlo shallow baskets aud short hoes. At first, 
 the idea of discharging two thousand tons of coal by 
 such childish means seemed absurd, and, when a start 
 was made, impossible. For the poor wretches — men, 
 women, and children — did not appear to have the faintest 
 idea of working, or to possess enough strength to do 
 more than carry their attenuated bodies about. But 
 they were formed into lines, from the hatches to the 
 gangways, and, while some scratched the coal into the 
 baskets with the hoes, the rest passed them from hand 
 to hand to a monotonous chant of " Jal marck ooday, 
 jal marck ooday leeallah, jal marck ooday." The 
 spelling, of course, is phonetic, and I haven't the 
 faintest idea what it meant. So mechanically did they 
 "puckarow" those baskets, that often one would pass 
 from the hatch to the gangway empty, the coolie on the 
 rail going through the motions of tilting it over into the 
 lighter and returning it. In any case, I do not think 
 the average weight of coal passed in a basket was seven 
 pounds. Yet somehow the lighters got filled. There 
 was such a number of coolies, and the passing was so 
 incessant, that it was bound to tell. The crew, apart 
 from the discomfort of the all-pervading coal-dust, had 
 a very good time, as little work being required of 
 them as possible. And, while a plentiful allowance of 
 fresh meat and vegetables was provided by the ship, 
 there was also a bumboat in attendance that kept 
 the men well supplied, at their own cost, with fruit, 
 eggs. etc. I was fortunate enough again to be book- 
 keeper, receiving in return as much fruit as I 
 wanted. 
 
 Except on Sundays, matters went on in a very 
 
VP THE INDIAN OCEAN TO BOMBAY, 195 
 
 humdrum style, tho only incident out of the common 
 being a picnic excursion to tlie rock-temples of Elophanta. 
 But I have no intention of describing such places, that, 
 indeed, are as well known to readers as the Isle of 
 Wight. My object is a totally different one. On Sundays 
 I should think tho bulk of tho trading population got 
 afloat, and came Bhip-visiting. If our ship's deck was 
 a fair sample of those of the rest of the fleet, there 
 could have been little merchandise left in the bazaars. 
 From the cabin to the forecastle tho decks were almost 
 impassable for the piles of curios of all kinds — clothes, 
 cigars, birds, etc. The bulk of the stuff was dreadful 
 rubbish, almost worthless, in fact; yet, owing to tho 
 ignorance of sailors of what can be bought in decent 
 shops at homo, the trash fetched high prices, at least 
 double what really good articles of the same stylo and 
 place of origin could be bought for in London. And, 
 in addition to that, by a system nothing short of 
 robbery, each man was charged two shillings and 
 fourpence for every rupee he drew against his hardly 
 earned wages, while at that time tho rupee was quoted 
 officially at one shilling and eightpence. Who pocketed 
 the eightpence, I do not know ; but I shrewdly suspect 
 that it was considered, like the backsheesh levied from 
 the tailor and the bumboat-wallah, the captain's legiti- 
 mate perquisite. I have known a captain pocket fifty 
 rupees off a bumboat bill of two hundred and fifty, and, 
 of course, the keen-witted Hindu based his charges to 
 the men on the expectation of such a tax ; so that Jack 
 was robbed on every hand, unless he sternly made up 
 his mind to spend nothing ** in the country." And, as 
 not one in a hundred sailors have such resolution as 
 
19G TlIK LOa OF A SEA'WAIF. 
 
 that, there are some very pretty pickings out of their 
 Beauty wages. 
 
 The time spotl swiftly away, and soon the coal was 
 all out and most of the stone ballast in. No cargo was 
 obtaiuablo for us in Bombay, so we were ordered to 
 proceed to Bimliapatam on the Coromandel coast, and 
 after that to Coconada to complete. But, before our 
 departure, the time-honoured custom of giving the crew 
 twenty-four hours' liberty must be observed. Conse- 
 quently the mate's watch duly received twenty rupees 
 each, and, dressed in their best, started for the shore 
 one morning at eight o'clock. All of them returned the 
 following morning except Bradley, the hirsute Bluenose 
 who lost my fish for me on the passage out. But oh ! 
 what a pitiful, dirty, draggled lot they were. And, in 
 spite of their miserable condition, they must needs get 
 up several fights among themselves in order to crown 
 the delights they had been indulging in ashore. It was 
 quite out of the question to allow the second mate's 
 watch ashore that day ; and this decision nearly caused 
 our first serious row, so eager were the other half of the 
 crew to go and do even as their fellows had done. But 
 as there was nothing to prevent the petty ofiicers going, 
 they all furbished up and started, taking us two boys 
 with them. My chum Bill Smith was of the party; 
 but as soon as we landed he went off with me, being far 
 too old a hand to be led by anybody. Of course, poor 
 fellow! having no wages, he had to contrive to earn 
 a little by washing, etc., and every copper was carefully 
 hoarded for the Bombay bazaars, where, he informed 
 me, better bargains in clothes could be got than any- 
 where in London. Up and down the crowded lanes of 
 
VP THE INDIAN OCEAN TO BOM DAY. 107 
 
 the bazaar ho led mo, driving away with contumely the 
 pilots who ofTered to personally conduct us for a con- 
 sideration, and fingering tho goods of the various shop- 
 keepers with tho air of ono who is bursting with wealth. 
 At last, finding a booth to his mind, he entered, and 
 forthwith selected a groat heap of things : such as 
 soldier's trousers, woollen shirts, dungaree jumpers 
 and trousers, towels, caps, soap — in fact, a regular 
 outfit. At last tho middle-aged Mussulman who ran 
 the show began to look suspicious, and said, ** You got 
 plenty rupee, Johnny ? " *' I'vo got all I want, Johnny," 
 said he. " Gimmo jar o' ginger. Ginger, mind ; none 
 o' yer m'lasses." The ginger was brought and added 
 to tho heap. Then Bill said, " Now then, Johnny, how 
 much for tho lot?" A portentous calculation ensued, 
 which occupied, I should think, twenty minutes. At 
 last the account was made up — forty-five rupees. With- 
 out moving a muscle of his face. Bill immediately 
 replied, " I'll give you ten." Horror, amazement, 
 indignation, chased one another over the countenances 
 of the shopkeepers. At last one of them found words. 
 " You make plenty laugh, Johnny ; speakee barabba ono 
 time. Gib forty rupee." *' Not another pice," 3aid Bill, 
 pulling out his money and counting it ostentatiously. 
 AVell, the antics those two natives did cut, to be sure ! 
 They worked themselves up into a foaming rage, they 
 cast their turbans recklessly in the dust ; in such English 
 as they could command they reviled their tormentor 
 and all his relations to the remotest degree, and finally 
 came down to thirty rupees. That, they swore with 
 sudden solemnity, was absolutely the bottom figure, 
 at which they would lose at least five rupees on the 
 
193 THK LOO OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 transaction. " Oh, very well," said Bill, " then I'm oil'." 
 And rising, ho said, " Come along, Tom." Out wo 
 went, and strolled leisurely along tho alloy for about a 
 hundred yards, when suddenly one of tho merchantH 
 camo flying after us, and, with many smiles, besought 
 Bill to return and "spealceo barabba" now. Back wc 
 went, and tho game began again. I got thoroughly 
 weary of it at last; but Bill's patience was inexhauK- 
 tiblo. ITo was rewarded, finally, by thc'r absolute sub- 
 mission to his terms, when, to my consternation, ho 
 refused to have tho goods unless they gave him a largo 
 bottle of pepper as backsheesh. Surely, I thought, this 
 will so disgust them that they will assault us. But no ; 
 after another quarter of an hour's haggling they yielded 
 tho last point, and, laden like a sumptor mule. Bill took 
 his triumphant departure. 
 
 By this time I had seen more than enough of the 
 steaming hubbub of the bazaars. But Bill had more 
 business to transact ; so wo parted company ; and I 
 wandered away alone, gazing with wide-eyed wonder 
 at tho innumerable strange sights to be seen in this 
 great humming city. No one molested mo, although 
 many curious glances were cast at me by groups of 
 languid natives, of all shades, as I trudged along without 
 any definite idea whither I was going. At last, utterly 
 weary, I found myself down at the water's edge again. 
 The afternoon was gcttiiig on, and I should soon have 
 to return on board; but as I had still two rupees, I 
 thought I would like a trip up the harbour to Mazagan, 
 or beyond it. Full of my project, I chartered a canoe 
 with two men in it to take me for a sail, bargaining, as 
 well as I was able, in my ignorance of the language, for 
 
UP THE INDIAN OCEAN TO BOMBAY. 100 
 
 a two hours' Bail, ending on board my hhip. Wo started, 
 and, for perhaps half an hour, I thoroughly enjoyed 
 myself, aa the canoo glided along right up past the 
 r. and 0. moorings and the Araonal. Then, when wo 
 were clear of the shipping, my boatmen suddenly 
 stopped and began an animated discussion with mo, 
 which was somewhat complicated by the fact that 
 neither of us understood tho other. Eventually I be- 
 came convinced that they wanted moro money, and 
 their previously mild behaviour grow cortahily aggres- 
 sive. I felt very nervous, but struggled to conceal tho 
 fact, speaking boldly, as if accustomed to be obeyed. 
 Finally I produced my money, and turned my pockets 
 inside out to show that I had no moro. Upon seeing 
 this they held a long conversation, during which tho 
 canoe drifted idly and I sat upon thorns. At last, 
 much to my relief, they turned tho boat's head towards 
 tho anchorage again, and, without another word, pad- 
 dled homeward. Arriving about a cable's length from 
 tho ship they stopped, and demanded their money. But 
 I, having seen the stalwart figure of tho mato standing 
 on the forecastle head, stood up, and, with all tho voice 
 I could muster, shouted, " Westinii Belief ahoy ! " ^fr. 
 Eduy heard me and waved his hand. This move on 
 ray part evidently disconcerted them, and they paddled 
 vigorously for the gangway. As soon as tho canoo 
 touched the side, I sprang up and told Mr. Edny what 
 had happened. He asked me what I had promised 
 them. I told him one rupee. Taking eight annas from 
 me, he wont down the gangway and offered it to them. 
 When they set up a perfect storm of protests, he just 
 pitched tho piece of money into the canoo and pushed 
 
200 Till': LOO OF A SICA-WAIP, 
 
 it away from tho side, rcttirning on board without tiiking 
 liny further notice. NcodlosH to Bay, 1 wnH lioartily 
 thankful to bo well out of what at one timo looked liko 
 an ugly scrape. 
 
 Noxt morning tho liberty men returned on board in 
 tho uflual condition, but liradley was not with them. That 
 night, however, he paid uh a viflit by Htealth, coming up 
 tho cable and rifling several of his HhipmatoB' cheats of 
 whatever was wortli carrying olT. Then ho wont ashoro 
 again nnpercoivcd, showing what a very slack watch 
 was kept. Thero was consternation in the forecastlo 
 when tho robbery was discovered, and a good deal of 
 wild talk; but ]^radley was something of a "bucko," 
 and I very much doubt whether any of them would 
 have said much to him had ho been thero in person. 
 Throo days longer we remained at anchor, although 
 apparently quite ready for sea. On tho second morning 
 Bradley returned, and climbing on board, walked aft 
 and coolly asked tho mate for a rupee to pay his boat- 
 man with. Being curtly refused and ordered forward, 
 ho stripped off tho filthy white shirt he was wearing, 
 and rolling it up, flung it over to the dinghy-wallah, 
 bidding him to " Kinnaree jao, jildee " (get ashore 
 quick). With this the poor beggar was perforce content, 
 making off hurriedly. Bradley then made for his bunk, 
 isaying no word to any one until tho afternoon, when he 
 bade Julius Cajsar go and tell the skipper that he was 
 very ill. This message actually made the old man 
 angry. He came forward and gave the defaulter a 
 piece of his mind ; but being evidently impressed by the 
 look of the man, who had been gutter-raking in ail 
 the filth of " coolie town " for three days, he sent for 
 
W» THE INDIAN OCtlAN TO liOMIlAY. 201 
 
 tho liaibour doctor. That worthy, after examination, 
 gave it an his opinion that tiuro ^va^4 nothing]; the 
 matter witli th(! f'-llow hut i)inl [(\\\ and want of food, 
 asHuring tho Hkippi r timt lie would l)e all right as soon 
 as we got to nea. 
 
 Next morning we got under way and flailed, not 
 without another protest from IJradlcy, of which no 
 notice was taken, as tho medical olViccr, who was then 
 ])aying his fmal viKit, adhered to his opinion. Wo took 
 a favourable wind at tho harbour's mouth, and slid 
 gently down the coast under easy sail, tho vessel being 
 ''tender" from scanty allowance of ballast. 13ut the 
 woathor was lovely, tho wind fair, and everything 
 promised r. delightful trip. Bradley, however, uteadily 
 got worse. Presently an angry-looking eruption of 
 pimples burtjt out all over his body, even tho inside of 
 bis mouth being invaded. Then my purgatory com- 
 menced. No one would have anything to do with him, 
 although ho was quite helpless. He was shifted out of 
 tho forccasilo up on to tho forecastle-head, and a sort 
 of tent rigged over him to keep the sun oft'. Tlien I was 
 told off to attend to him. The horror of that time will 
 never leave me. lie was, as I have before noted, with 
 tho exception of the mate, tho most hairy man I over 
 saw, the black shaggy covering of his arms and legs 
 being at least an inch and a half long, while his chest 
 and back were more like c great ape's than a man's. 
 Therefore, when all those pimples grew until they were 
 large as a finger-top, and so close together that not a 
 speck of sound flesh was visible, the task of washing 
 him, which I had to perform alone, was really an awful 
 one. I must draw a veil over the further development 
 
202 THE LOa OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 of those horrible pustules. . . . Happily for the patient 
 ho became delirious and apparently insensible to pain. 
 IIow I kept my reason I don't know; but I thought, 
 and still think, that it was a frightful ordeal for a 
 youngster under fourteen to endure for a whole week. 
 I had nothing else to do ; no relief, except my ordinary 
 watch below, during which he was left quite alone. On 
 the eloventli day after leaving Bombay we entered 
 liimliapatam Eoads, and just as we did so death mer- 
 cifully came to his rescue and mine. The carpcDter 
 botched up a rough coffin, into which the unrecog- 
 nizable heap, with all its bedding, was hurriedly 
 bundled, taken ashore, and buried at the foot of the 
 flagstaff without any ceremony whatever. No one 
 seemed to know what the disease had been ; but I can 
 only say that having seen lepers in all stages of dis- 
 figurement, and many other cases of terrible pestilential 
 ravages, I have never seen anything so awful as the 
 case of William Bradley. 
 
( 203 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 ON THE COROMANDEL COAST. 
 
 Freed from that horrible incubus, I had now leisuro to 
 look about and enjoy the varied scenes that presented 
 themselves. The place we were lying at was, I suppose, 
 a typical native coast village, a big hill facing the 
 anchorage having a rock-hewn temple upon its sea-front. 
 There was no harbour or shelter of any kind, so that 
 vessels lay all ready for sea in case of bad weather 
 Betting in. All cargo was brought off in the crazy 
 *' massulah" boats, which have been so often described 
 by visitors to Madras, and are the only craft able to 
 stand the rough usage of the surf-beaten beach. The 
 fishermen went out on primitive contrivances of three 
 logs lashed together without any attempt at hollowing 
 out or fashioning bow and stern. Kneeling upon the 
 two outer logs in the centre of the crazy thing, the poor 
 wretch would paddle seaward until out of sight, his 
 sole equipment a palm-leaf basket secured just in front 
 of him, and containing his fishing tackle. Neither food 
 nor water could be carried, yet in this miserable condi- 
 tion they would remain out for many hours, at the 
 mercy of every wave that came along, and often being 
 
204 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 rolled over several times iu succession. The catches of 
 lisli they made were always pitifully small, it seemed to 
 me, sometimes consisting of only a couple of dozen 
 large prawns, though how they caught them out there 
 was a mystery to me. 
 
 Our cargo was an assorted one. Jaggery, or palm 
 sugar — looking like hags of hlack mud, and almost as 
 nice to handle, — huiYalo horns and hides, cases of castor 
 oil, hags of myrabolums (a kind of dye-nut), and sundry 
 other queer things came off to us in small quantities at 
 a time, and were flung on board in a most haphazard 
 fashion, owing to the constant swell, which made the 
 boats tumble about alongside vivaciously. All the 
 stowage was done by the crew under the direction of 
 Jemmy the Scrubber, who proved himself as capable a 
 stevedore as he was a seaman. No one went ashore 
 except the skipper while we lay there, and he would 
 gladly have avoided the necessity, if possible, since it 
 usually meant a thorough drenching. On the whole, we 
 were by no means sorry when the news came that we 
 were to leave and proceed down the coast to Coconada. 
 As we were always ready to sail, there were none of the 
 usual preliminaries ; we just hauled in the fenders, 
 hove the anchor up, and started. Here our skipper's 
 local knowledge was of great service. For we hugged 
 the coast closely all the way down, keeping a favourable 
 wind, which brought us into Coconncla Bay in a few 
 hours, while the Andromeda, a big Liverpool ship that 
 sailed at the same time for the same port, stood off the 
 land, got into bad weather, and did not arrive for 
 twenty-eight days. She had also sustained severe 
 damage to both ship and cargo. 
 
ON THE aOIiOMANDEL COAST. 2i)j 
 
 While Coconada was evidently a much more impor- 
 tant place than Bimliapatam, wo saw nothing of tho 
 town, for wc lay a long way off in the centre of a liugo 
 bay. Wo were near enough, though, to hear the various 
 cries of the wild beasts, among which the hideous noiso 
 of the hyenas was especially noticeable. Our unhappy 
 painter, who had remained in Bombay hospital during 
 tho whole of our stay there, was again so ill that ho had 
 to be lauded here. But, getting convalescent, he and a 
 fellow patient went for a stroll one day, and, wandering 
 out of tho town, they met a hyena. Barber was so 
 scared that he fainted right away, but the other man 
 found suflQcient vitality to scramble up a tree. He had 
 not got very high, though, before weakness overcame 
 him, and be fell, breaking his leg. When Barber came 
 to there was no trace of the hyena, but he and his 
 fellow were in a pitiful plight. There they would 
 doubtless have stopped, and had their bones picked 
 clean by the morning, but for a party of friendly coolies 
 who came along, and, seeing their condition, fetched a 
 couple of "palkees" and carried them back to hospital 
 again. 
 
 Here, then, we remained for three weeks, filling the 
 hold with a miscellaneous collection of Indian produce, 
 of which cotton, linseed, and myrabolums formed the 
 staple, until the great capacity of our ship for cargo 
 ^'as effectually satisfied, and she was jammed full to the 
 h?.tch coamings. Then all hands, released from their 
 stifling labours below, bent their energies to getting 
 ready for sea. Meanwhile, although our crew were 
 certainly a most patient set of men, their discontent at 
 the short-handedness, which ever since leaving home 
 
20G TUE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 had pressed so hardly upon us all, gathered to a head, 
 culminating in a visit of all hands to the quarter-deck 
 with a request to see the skipper. Gen \\ as ever. 
 Captain Smith appeared, his ruddy face wearing an 
 expression of benign wonderment at the unusual 
 summons. *' Well, what is it, men?" said he. Then 
 stepped forward an elderly Yankee, who had been a 
 bo'sun's mate in the American navy, a shrewd, intelli- 
 gent man with a rich fund of native humour, and a 
 prime favourite fore and aft. *' We've taken thelibbaty, 
 sir, ov comin' aft t'ask yo ef it's yeur intenshun ter sail 
 'thout shippin' enny more hands ? " was his reply. 
 ** Well, in the first place, Nat," answered the skipper, 
 ** there's no hands ter be got here, an' besides, in sech 
 a easy-workin' ship as this is, there's no hardship in 
 bein' a cupple o* hands short." ** The good Lawd 
 fergive ye, sir ! " exclaimed Nat ; ** ef thishyers a heasy- 
 workin' ship, what mout ye reckon a /mrcZ-workin' one 
 *ud be like? Why, cap'n, it takes two men to haul 
 thro' the slack ov th' braces, an' it's all a man's work to 
 overhaul the gear of a to'gantsle. 'Sides, sir, yew know it 
 takes all hands to shorten her down to the taupsles, 'n 
 what we k'n do with her in a squall — well, I hain't fergot 
 thet plesant cvenin' off the Cape ef yew have." At this 
 vigorous reply the old man could only laugh to show 
 his aj)preciation of the home-thrusts it contained, but 
 with native shrewdness he changed his base, still pre- 
 serving his cheery good temper. " Mind ye, I don't say 
 we ain't short-handed," he said — " very short-handed ; 
 but we're gettin' out ov the Bay o' Bengal 'fore the 
 sou-west monsoon sets in, 'n yew know 's well *s me 
 that it's fine weather 'mos' all the way ter the Cape 
 
ON TBE COIiOMANDEL COAST. 207 
 
 onco wo cross the lino. 'N if wo git enny dirt offn tlio 
 Capo I'll kocp her under easy sail, 'n lot the 'Gulhas 
 current swoop her roun*, 'n then we'll jest bo homo in 
 no time. Yew leav' it t' rao. Wo hain't boon eight 
 months together 'thout knowin* each other, 'n yew all 
 know yew k'n depend on mo to do the best I k'n tor 
 make yo comfortable. But I canH get any hands in 
 this God-forsaken place if wo only had two loft forrard." 
 That speech settled it. If Captain Smith had boon an 
 irritable man, inclined to put on airs of outraged dignity 
 because his crew asked him a perfectly roasonablo 
 question, and to rate them like a sot of factious children, 
 there would have boon an instant refusal of duty on tho 
 part of the men, followed by much sulYering and loss on 
 both sides, for tho chaps wore thoroughly in earnest. 
 But tho skipper's frank good-humour and accej ciuco of 
 the situation disarmed them, and they returned forward 
 with minds made up to see tho voyage out as best they 
 could. Next day we weighed anchor and sailed for 
 London, the windlass revolving to tho time-honoured 
 tune of "Good-bye, fare-you-well ; hurrah, my boys, 
 we're homeward bound." 
 
 Just prior to our departure we received on board 
 some two or three hundred fowls and two goats, which, 
 added to about twenty pigs— mostly bred on board, two 
 large dogs, two monkeys, sundry parrots and two cats, 
 made the ship bear no bad resemblance to Noah's Ark. 
 None of these animals had any settled abiding place ; 
 they just roamed about the decks whithersoever they 
 would, except on the sacred precincts of the poop, 
 which were faithfully guarded by one of the dogs, who 
 allowed no intrusion by any of the grunting, clucking or 
 
208 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 chattering crowd. But this state of things was a great 
 trial to all concerned. For one of the cardinal necessi- 
 ties of British or American shijis is cleanliness, which 
 is secured by copious floods of salt water, and vigorous 
 scrubbing every morning. Under present conditions 
 keeping the vessel clean was manifestly impossible, the 
 crowd of animals even invading the men's quarters, 
 fis well as every nook into which they could possibly 
 squeeze themselves. There was a great deal of dissatis- 
 faction forward at this state of things, and fowls were 
 continually flying overboard, being chased and smitten 
 by angry men, who found everything under their hands 
 befouled and stinking. Still the nuisance was unabated 
 until we were ten days out. Just off Cape Comorin wo 
 got our first stiff breeze of the homev/ard passage, and 
 very soon, in accordance with her invariable custom, 
 the old ship began to take sufficient water over the rail 
 to flood the decks fore and aft. Then there was a 
 commotion in the farmyard. The watch, up to their 
 waists in water, sxjlashed about collecting the squawking 
 chickens, and, driving the bewildered swine into a 
 temporary shelter, rigged up under the topgallant fore- 
 castle. Next morning at least four dozen dead fowls 
 were flung overboard, in addition to many that had fled 
 blindly into the sea on the previous day. This loss so 
 disgusted the skipper that he ordered all hands to be 
 fed on poultry until the stock was exhausted. At first 
 this benevolent (?) command gave a good deal of delight, 
 but when the miserable, leathery carcases, boiled in salt 
 water, unclean and unsavoury, were brought into the 
 forecastle, there was almost a riot. A deputation waited 
 upon the captain to protest and demand their proper 
 
ON TUE COIiOMANDEL COAST. 209 
 
 rations of " salt horse." Tbcy wero reccivod by the 
 Kkippcr with a very ill grace, and the usual senseless 
 remarks about sailors' fastidiousness in the matter of 
 food were freely indulged in by the " old man," ^vho 
 seemed quite out of temper. We got no more Coro- 
 mandel poultry, though, which was a blessing, albeit they 
 wero served up to the cabin as usual. Being prepared 
 in a civilized fashion, I suppose, the officers found 
 them eatable. But in various ways the flock of fowls 
 diminished rapidly, much to our relief, and gradually 
 the decks began to assume their normal cleanliness. 
 The pigs, numerous as they were, could be kept within 
 bounds forward ; in fact, the dogs rarely permitted 
 them to come abaft the foremast. As for the two goats, 
 they grew so mischievous, gnawing the ends of all the 
 ropes, and nibbling at everything except iron, that 
 orders for their execution went forth, and since no one 
 would eat them, their bodies were flung overboard. 
 
210 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF, 
 
 CnAPTER XVJII. 
 
 HOMEWARD TO LONDON. 
 
 As Captain Smith had forctokl, we w^cre having an 
 exceedingly finc-wcather passage. All the way down 
 the Indian Ocean we were favoured with pleasant 
 breezes, fair for our course, and glorious weather. 
 Every care was taken to make the work as light as 
 possible for the small crew, although we in the starboard 
 watch were sorely exasperated by the second mate's 
 devotion to sand and canvas — a mania that had given 
 him his well-earned sobriquet of " Jemmy the Scrubber." 
 If he could only have his watch slopping about with a 
 few buckets of sand and rags of old canvas, rubbhig 
 away at the dingy interior of the bulwarks, that with 
 all his attentions never icoxdd look white, he was 
 in his glory. But oh! how we did hate the messy, 
 fiddling abomination. It made our discontent the 
 greater to notice that the mate's watch scarcely ever 
 touched it. Like a sensible man, Mr. Edny preferred 
 to have one thoroughly good scrub down at lengthy 
 intervals, going over the whole of the paint in one day, 
 to scratching like a broody hen, first here and then 
 there, in patches, and never making a decent job after 
 
nOMKWAlW TO LONDON. 211 
 
 all. It kept the watch in a chronic state of growl, which 
 was only prevented from breaking out into downright 
 rebellion by the knowledge that the second mate was 
 always in hot water affc, although, owing to his seven 
 years* service in the ship, the skipper and mate allowed 
 him to have pretty much his own way. Apart from 
 this, things went on smoothly enough, ^[any a time 
 did Jemmy, with only such assistance as Uill and I 
 could give him, set and take in the lighter sails without 
 disturbing the rest of the watch, who were fast asleep 
 in their several bunks. They knew this well, and con- 
 sequently never turned out, even upon the most urgent 
 necessity, without a chorus of growls at tho second 
 mate, although he neyer took the slightest notice of 
 them. 
 
 Ho we slowly lumbered homeward in uneventful 
 monotony, until one morning we made the land about 
 East London, and congratulated ourselves that wo wero 
 near the southern limit of our journey home. Still tho 
 weather was kind to us. No envious southerly gale 
 battered us back from the Cape we were striving to get 
 round, and presently we found ourselves in the embrace 
 of the great Agulhas current that for ever sets steadily 
 round tho Cape westward. Homeward bounders have 
 reason to rejoice when they enter the limits of this 
 mighty marine river, for, in spite of contrary winds or 
 calms, they are irresistibly carried on the way they 
 would go at a rate that is the same for the blull'-bowed 
 sea-waggon as for the ocean-flyer. And one day, to my 
 intense delight — for I had heard a tale from Bill — the 
 wind died completely away and the water became as 
 smooth as a mirror. Every bit of line in the ship that 
 
212 TIIK LOO OF A Sr':A-\KiIl'\ 
 
 coultl by any possibility Borvo us a fisbing-liuo was 
 ferreted out, and fisbing commenced. At firat only tbo 
 favoured few, whoso linos were fifty or sixty fathoms 
 long, got a look in, bringing up from tho bank far below 
 us some magnificent specimens of cod. Tlion, as tho fish 
 followed their disappearing comrades up, tho shorter 
 lines came into play, and tho fun became general. It 
 M'tts a regular orgic of fishing. At least Ihroo hundred 
 splendid fish of various kindn, but chiefly cud, rewarded 
 our efforts, tho subsequent feast being something to 
 date from. Better still, tho weather being cool, wo 
 were able to salt down a largo quantity for use later 
 on, so that we had fish for nearly a month afterwards. 
 After about eight hours of this calm a gcntlo south- 
 easterly breeze sprang up, which persisted and strength- 
 ened, until, with tho dim outlines of the high land 
 behind the Cape of Good Hope on our starboard 
 quarter, we were bowling cheerily along under every 
 rag we could muster, our head pointing north-north- 
 west, homeward-bound indeed. 
 
 Then the work that must be undertaken in every 
 respectable ship on the ** home-stretch '* came with a 
 rush. Setting up rigging, rattling down, general over- 
 haul of running and standing gear, chipping iron-work 
 and painting it with red lead, scraping bright wood- 
 work, etc., etc., kept us all busy, although we were 
 allowed watch and watch all along. In most ships it is 
 the custom while in the south-east trades, homeward- 
 bound, to give no afternoon watch below in order that 
 the bulk of the "redding-up" may be done before 
 crossing the line. But for several reasons our skipper 
 did not think it advisable to tax his scanty crew too 
 
HOMEWARD TO lOSDON. 213 
 
 inucli. As for attondanco on tlio sails, wo might have 
 hccn a steamship for all tho work of tliat kiiul rcquirod 
 — tho " south-cast trades " hcing notoriously steady and 
 reliahlo in tho Atlantic, while tho north-cast trades aro 
 often entirely wanting. So wo had trades, fi-oin tho 
 Capo to tho line, that did not vary a point in force or 
 direction for thrco weeks ; and, if sho would have 
 steered herself, sho could have made that part of tho 
 passage unmanned. The time literally flew hy, hoing 
 delightfully punctuated every Sunday hy a glorious feed 
 of roast pig — two of our large stock of homo-bred porkers 
 bring sacrificed each Saturday, and fairly apportioned 
 among all hands. 
 
 St. Helena was sighted ten days after losing sight of 
 tho African land — a huge black mass, towering to an 
 enormous height, as it seemed to me. We approached 
 it very closely, purposing to report ourselves there, but 
 not to anchor. Coming round under tho huge crags of 
 tho southern end with all sail set, wo had a splendid 
 view of tho cliffs, rising sheer from the sea, whereon the 
 gliding shadow of our ship was cast in almost perfect 
 resemblance. "Who was responsible for tho neglect, I 
 do not know, but suddenly down a gorge in tho mountain 
 rushed a fierce blast almost at right angles to tho wind 
 wo were carrying, and making tho canvas shake and 
 flap with a thunderous noise. There was a great bustle 
 to get sail off her, but unfortunately sho paid off rather 
 smartly, and crach went the mizzen-topmast before the 
 sails came down. A piece of gross carelessness ! for no 
 coast of that kind should ever be approached under sail 
 without all due precautions for shortening down. Neglect 
 of such preparation has caused the loss of many a fine 
 
211 THE LOG OF A SKA- WAIF, 
 
 Hhip and countlosH boats, with appalling Bacrifico of life. 
 It wtts tlio ouly flpar wo lost during tlio wholo of that 
 voyaRo. 
 
 hy tho timo wo had got tho kitoH o(Y hor wo had 
 opened out tho f,'rcat Rorgo, in \vhieh, as if it liad hocn 
 dropped from tho chlTri ahovo, licH tho town, tho Iiouhch 
 ai)puaring curiouBly juuihlod together. Wo woro go 
 closo in tliat tho great hidder, credited, I })eliovo, with a 
 rung for every day in tho year, whicli leads up on to 
 tho clifTa from tho town, was plainly visiblo. Only ono 
 fillip, tho Noach VIII., of liottordam, one of tho regular 
 ohl Dutch East Indiamon from Java, was at anchor, for 
 even then tlio prosperous days of St. Helena as a sort of 
 ocean " half-way house" had departed, novor to return. 
 Wo spelt out our name and ports of departure and 
 destination with tho length of passage, our information 
 being duly acknowledged from tho flag-staff. In a few 
 minutes more wo were again in the grip of our faithful 
 friend the south-east trade, and feeling that another 
 important milestone was passed on our long journey, 
 riacidly, equably, we joggnd on, four days afterwards 
 sighting and signalling to tho barren volcano-scarred 
 island of Ascension, tho exclusive domain of men-o'-war, 
 for whose behalf a large naval establishment is main- 
 tained in highest efficiency. Another landmark left 
 behind. Onward we sped with freshening trades and 
 increasing speed until wo wore actually in eight degrees 
 north latitude, so kindly had the fair wind we took 
 off the pitch of the Capo favoured us. But our good 
 fortune still held. Instead of at least a week of tho 
 detestable doldrums we fully expected, we had only one 
 day's detention before the north-east trades swept down 
 
nOMFAVAIiD TO LONDON, 215 
 
 iipnn na, and away wo wont, braced sharp up ontho Htar- 
 l)Oftr(l tack to tlio north-woHtward. And now for a while, 
 all tho tarry work being dono, all handH were tranH- 
 formod into paintern and varnishora. Within and without 
 also, as far aa tho wash of tho sea alongHido would allow, 
 wo painted and poliHhcd, until tho grimy, onco 8hahl)y 
 old packet looked quite smart and nhining. Tho second 
 mate was right in hiH oloiuent. Ho begrudged liimHolf 
 necessary rest, and often looked angrily at tho nun when 
 setting, as if ho felt ho was being defrauded out of a 
 few minuto3 more of his beloved labour. Never surely 
 was there a man who loved work for its own sake better 
 than he. Never had a ship a more energetic seaman- 
 like ofiicer. Yet ho was by no means appreciated aft, 
 although his worth was undeniable. And as so often 
 happens, ho was doomed to bo a junior ollicor all his 
 life, for ho could not do tho simplest problem in navi- 
 gation without making tho most ludicrous mistakes. 
 However ho "passed" for second mate was a mystery 
 known only to tho examiners. ^Mainly, I believe, by his 
 untiring oil'orts, all our painting operations were success- 
 fully completed before wo reached tho northern verge of 
 tho tropic, where changeable weather began to appear. 
 But, when once tho paint was on, ho was like a hen with 
 one chick. His eager eye was ever on tho watch for 
 any unfortunate who should dare to sully tho whiteness 
 of tho bulwarks within, or heave anything overboard 
 carelessly that might mark the glossy blackness outside. 
 But his great carnival was yet to come. One morning 
 shortly after four, under his directions, I lugged up 
 from tho fore-peak a number of lumps of sandstone, 
 which he busied himself till daylight in shaping into 
 
216 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 sizeable blocks, while I pounded the smaller pieces into 
 Band. Promptly at four bells the watch were gathered 
 aft, and "holystoning" commenced. This delightful 
 pastime consists of rubbing the decks, along the grain of 
 the "wood, "with blocks of sandstone, the process being 
 assisted by scattered sand and "water. For three days 
 the decks "were in a continual muck of muddy sand, and 
 Jemmy's face wore a steady, beaming smile. When, at 
 last, all the grit was flooded away, the result was 
 dazzling. The decks were really beautiful in their 
 spotless cleanliness. Then, to my unbounded amaze- 
 ment, no sooner were they dry, than a vile mixture of 
 varnish, oil, and coal-tar, was boiled in an impromptu 
 furnace on deck, and with this hideous compost the 
 spotless planks were liberally besmeared. I felt per- 
 sonally aggrieved. **Why" — I could not help asking 
 my chum Bill — "why, in the name of goodness all 
 this back-breaking holystoning only to plaster such a 
 foul mess on the decks immediately afterward ? " 
 " Preserves the wood," was the sententious reply, and 
 it was all the answer I could get. Certainly the poop 
 was varnished only, which made it a fine golden hue 
 until the first water was poured on it. After that it 
 always looked as if a lot of soapsuds had been poiu'ed 
 over it and left to dry. 
 
 But with this final outrage on common sense, as I 
 couldn't help considering it, our ship-decorating came 
 to an end. Henceforth the chief object in view appar- 
 ently was to preserve, as far as possible, the spick and 
 span appearance of the vessel until she reached home. 
 Those beautiful decks, especially, were the objects of 
 Jemmy's constant solicitude. He found some nail- 
 
HOMEWARD TO LONDON. 217 
 
 marks one day left by somebody's boots, and one would 
 have thought the ship had sprung a leak like a wcll- 
 mouth by the outcry he made. As far as possible work 
 was confined to the fore part of the ship, and beside the 
 ordinary routine little was done but the plaiting of rope 
 yarns into sennit — always a kill-time. But we were now 
 BO far north that the variable weather of the North 
 Atlantic began to give us plenty of occupation in the 
 working of the ship. Fortunately we were not long 
 delayed by contrary winds. The brave westerlies came 
 to our assistance, driving us along in fine style and at 
 increasing speed, until one day through the driving 
 mist we sighted Corvo, one of the northern outposts of 
 the Azores. It was fortunate that we did so, for thence- 
 forward thickening weather and overcast skies prevented 
 any observation of the heavenly bodies, and " dead 
 reckoning" was our only means of knowing the ship's 
 position. Now Captain Smith, though thoroughly at 
 home on the Indian coasts, had a great dread of his 
 own shores, and as the distance from land grew less he 
 became exceedingly nervous, until at last, when by his 
 estimate we were well up Channel, he dared no longer 
 run as fast as the following gale would have driven him, 
 but shortened sail, much to every one else's disgust. 
 Ship after ship came up astern, passed us, and sped away 
 homewards, while we dawdled through those crowded 
 waters, running the risk of the fair wind blowing itself 
 out before we had gained our port. Before we had 
 sighted land or light it came down a thick fog — a regular 
 Channel fret — which is a condition of things dreaded 
 by all seamen on our dangerous coasts. We hove-to, 
 keeping the foghorn going with its melancholy bray. 
 
218 THE LOO OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 Thus for six mortal hours wo lay helplessly tossing in 
 tho fairway, listening to tho miserable discord of fog- 
 horns, syrens, and whistles, but unable to see the 
 ship's length away from us. The anxiety was exceed- 
 ingly great, for at any moment we were liable to bo run 
 down by something or another, whose commander was 
 more venturesome than ours. Suddenly out of tho 
 gloom came a hoarse hail, "D'ye want a pilot, sir?'* 
 A sweeter sound was never heard. Without a moment's 
 hesitation tho old man replied, ** Yes, where are you ? " 
 lie had hardly spoken before the dim outlines of a 
 lugger came into view close alongside. " Are you a 
 Trinity pilot ? " asked the skipper. ** No, sir, but I can 
 run you up to him," replied the voice. " IIow much ? " 
 queried tho captain. ** Five pounds, sir ! " came 
 promptly back. " All right, come aboard ! " said tho 
 old man, and all hands crowded to the side to see our 
 deliverer from suspense. "Heave us a line, please, 
 sir!" came up from the darkness, where we could see 
 the shadowy form of the big boat tossing and tumbling 
 in the heavy sea. The main brace was flung out to 
 her, and, as she sheered in towards us, a black bundle 
 seemed to hurl itself at us, and in a few seconds it stood 
 erect and dripping on deck — a man swathed in oilskins 
 till he looked like a mummy. Only pausing to dash 
 tho water out of his eyes, he shouted, " Square the 
 mainyard ! " and walking aft to the helmsman ordered 
 him to "Keep her away." A minute before all had 
 been miserable in the extreme, and the bitter gale 
 roaring overhead seemed to be withering all the life out 
 of us. But what a change ! The man seemed to have 
 brought fine weather with him ; the perfect confidence 
 
nOMEWABD TO LONDON. 219 
 
 that every one had in him dispelling every gloomy 
 thought. The lesson of that little episode, so common- 
 place, yet so full of instruction, has never been forgotten 
 by me. It is so palpable that I dare not enlarge 
 upon it. 
 
 Meanwhile one of the lugger's crew had folio vved his 
 chief, and was busy begging tobacco, meat, and any- 
 thing else the steward could find to part with. "When 
 ho had got all ho could, the lugger sheered in again, 
 and ho tumbled back on board with his booty. Very 
 soon the fog cleared away, and as soon as it did so wo 
 saw the light on Dungeness close aboard. Wo ran up 
 to the pilot's cruising ground and hovo-to, burning a 
 blue light as a signal, while our friendly hovellcr 
 pocketed his five pounds and departed, well pleased 
 with his four hours' earnings. These men get called 
 some very hard names, and may perhaps occasionally 
 deserve them; but as long as sailing-ships exist they 
 will be found, as we undoubtedly found one, a very 
 present help in time of need and the salvation of many 
 a fine ship. 
 
 The Trinity pilot was soma time making his appear- 
 ance, for there were many ships about, and we must 
 needs await our turn. But in due time we were 
 supplied, the yards were again squared, and away we 
 went around the Foreland. Presently there was a 
 welcome sound of paddle-wheels, and up came a tug 
 anxious for the job of towing us up to London. But 
 our captain's Scotch economy forbade him to take 
 steam while there was so much fair wind going for 
 nothing; and the subsequent haggling was almost as 
 protracted as Bill's celebrated feat in Bombay. At last, 
 
220 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 after two or three departures of the tug in fits of 
 irritation, a bargain was struck, and the ever-wolcomo 
 command camo pealing forward, " Get the hawser 
 along ! " No need to call all hands. Everybody camo 
 on the jump, and that mighty rope was handled as if 
 it had been a leud-line. In a wonderfully short time 
 the end was passed to the tug, a severe turn was taken 
 with our end round the windlass bitts, and with what 
 the sailor calls " a fair wind ahead," we went spinning 
 up through the intricate channels of the Thames 
 estuary. All hands worked with a will to get the sails 
 clewed up and unbent from the yards, as it was now 
 daylight. Such a morning's work had not been done 
 on board for many a day, for was not the end of the 
 voyage here. As for me, I was continually in hot 
 water, for I could not keep my eyes off the wonderful 
 ecenes through which we were passing. It was my 
 first home-coming to London by sea, and on the two 
 previous occasions of leaving, I had either no heart to 
 look about me or I had come down at night. Just 
 stopping at Gravesend long enough to exchange pilots, 
 since the sea pilot never takes a ship into dock, we sped 
 onward again, the tug straining every nerve to save the 
 tide. Soon everything was ready for docking, and all 
 hands were allowed to "stand by/' resting until we 
 should reach Blackwall. 
 
 The East India Docks at last, with the usual little 
 group of expectant yet nonchalant officials and the 
 loafers in the background. Are we going to dock at 
 once, or will she tie up in the basin? As anxiously 
 as if docking was going to take a month were these 
 questions bandied about, fio eager were all the fellows 
 
BOMKlVAIiD TO LONDON. 221 
 
 to get aslioro. Joy ! — she is hauled in to the aide of 
 the basin, mado fast temporarily, and the mate, ^vith 
 a merry twinkle in his eye, says the closing benediction, 
 " That'll do, men." By this time the voracious crowd 
 of boarding-mast *8* runners, tailors' ditto, and un- 
 classified scoundrels were swarming on board (it was 
 before the beneficent regulations were passed forbidding 
 these gentry to board an in-coming ship), and the fore- 
 castle was a perfect pandemonium. But one by one 
 the chaps emerged with their dunnage, and were carried 
 off in triumph by one or other of the sharks, until, the 
 last one having gone, we of the half-deck were left in 
 peace. And now I was home what was I going to do ? 
 I felt like a stranger in a strange land, and it was with 
 a sense of great relief that I accepted an invitation to 
 stay by the ship for the present. 
 
222 TJIE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 A CHANGE Ot NATIONALITY. 
 
 Much as I longed for my liberty, the certain sense of 
 a home afforded by the ship was so comforting that I 
 was in considerable dread of the time when, as I sup- 
 posed, I should be paid off and sent adrift like the rest 
 of the crew. Therefore it was Tith joy that I received 
 the welcome news from the mate that I might remain 
 and work by the ship, and that my wages would be 
 fourteen shillings a week, out of "^hich I was to keep 
 myself. The future, which had began to worry mo 
 greatly with its possibilities of misfortune, owing to my 
 still insignificant size, now took a decidedly roseate hue. 
 My arch-enemy (as I considered him), the second mate, 
 became qii'.te amiable, even condescending to inform 
 me that the plenteous kicks and cuffs he had bestowed 
 upon me had all been prompted by a sincere desire for 
 my best interests, and that, before I was much older, 
 I should thank him heartily for his rigorous treatment. 
 In this latter prophecy he was grossly in error, for I 
 have never been able to find any excuse for the brutality 
 of a man to the helpless who chance to be in his power, 
 whether human or brute. 
 
A CHANQE OF NATIONALITY. 223 
 
 Pay-day camo and I received my account of wages, 
 finding that I was entitled to nine golden sovereigns. 
 At the appointed hour I made my way up the East 
 India Dock-road to Green's Home, where I foregathered 
 with most of my shipmates, who were dogged by vil- 
 lainous-looking men as closely as if they were criminals 
 out for an airing. While waiting, they made frequent 
 visits to the public-house at the back of the office, which 
 fairly hummed with the accumulated rascality of the 
 neighbourhood. But for the danger of actions for libel, 
 I would tell some pretty little stories of what I have 
 seen in some of the highly respectable (yoe evidence 
 before the Licensing Committees) liquor-shops in 
 ** sailor town." But I must refrain, comforting myself 
 with the knowledge that such tales have already been 
 better told elsewhere. When at last my turn came, and 
 I received that little pile of gold — more money than I 
 had ever seen at one time before — I was almost afraid 
 of being the possessor of so much wealth. And know- 
 ing well, as I did, the risk I ran if any one got an 
 inkling of my riches, did not lessen my fears. I did 
 not think of the Post Office, strange to say ; but, in a 
 few minutes, formed a resolution to lay all my money 
 out in a stock of clothes — which, indeed, I was urgently 
 in need of — and depend upon my weekly earnings from 
 the ship to keep me The thought of losing my employ- 
 ment never seems to have dawned upon me. Full of 
 my project, I staried hx Aldgate; but brought up 
 sharply at the Baths before I had gone a hundred 
 yards. A nice warm bath — what a luxury ! In I went 
 and enjoyed myself immensely. In about half an hour 
 1 was out again and walking briskly westward, when 
 
224 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF, 
 
 I stopped to malvG some trifling purcliaso — to find uiy 
 money gone, purso and all. On the instant I turned 
 and rushed back to the Baths, flew past the doorkeeper, 
 and up the corridor towards the bath I had recently 
 left. The door stood wido open, and there was my 
 purso on the seat, with tho money intact. I grabbed 
 it and drew a long breath, tho first, it seemed to me, 
 since I missed it. Going out, I met an angry man at 
 the door, who was anxious to know what I thought I waa 
 up to, and so on. A shilling assuaged all his curiosity 
 and lit up his lowering face with sudden smiles. Clutch- 
 ing my purso, I made all the haste I could to Messrs. 
 Moses and Sons, arriving there with a sigh of thankful- 
 ness. I didn't feel capable of owning so much money, 
 much less taking caro of it. A gorgeously attired 
 individual strode forward with an ironical air of courtesy 
 as I entered, and, bowing low, wished to know my 
 pleasure. Ah ! if I was going to spend all my money, 
 here was at least a chance to taste the sweets of that 
 power "which its possession brings. With all tho 
 hauteur I could assume, I said, as I swelled my four 
 feet of stature in opposition to the shopwalker's majestic 
 presence, ** I want an outfit, something plain and sub- 
 stantial ; say about nine or ten pounds." And as I spoke 
 I secretly emptied my purse in my pocket, and, drawing 
 out a few sovereigns nonchalantly, I passed them through 
 my fingers and dropped them into another pocket. Out 
 of the corner of my eye I watched my gentleman's face. 
 All his sarcastic attitude vanished, and for the time ho 
 was my obsequious, humble servant. But oh ! how 
 shamelessly he made me pay for his attendance. Even 
 after this lapse of years I blush to think how I was 
 
A CllANQE OF NATIONALlTr, 225 
 
 taken in — tho shoddy rags which I rocoivcd for my gohl, 
 and tho swclUng prido with which I ordered them to bo 
 sent down to my ship. When I left tho hiigo shop I 
 felt quite an important personage, although I had but 
 fivo shillings left out of my year's wages. Still, such 
 as they were, I had a complete stock of clothing, in- 
 cluding a chest and bedding, oilskins and sea-boots ; in 
 fact, such an outfit as I had never owned before. "When 
 I returned on board I informed Bill of my purchases. 
 Ho applauded my resolution, but blamed mo for not 
 keeping a little money in case of an emergency — ho 
 always did himself, he said. For a fortnight, however, 
 I found no reason to regret my precipitate action. 
 Then, on a Saturday afternoon, came the stunning 
 intelligence that, as there was no more work to be done, 
 I was no longer wanted. Fortunately I had saved 
 enough out of my weekly wage to pay for a week's 
 board; so I immediately made my way to my old 
 boarding-house in the West India Dock-road, and was 
 received with open arms. I paid my twelve shillings 
 down manfully, telling the master that I wanted a ship 
 as soon as possible. After finding out by cross-exami- 
 nation that I had been paid off with nine pounds, ho 
 was much less cordial. In fact, he grumbled a good 
 deal ; but finally promised to do his best to get me a 
 ship at once. Fortunately (as I thought at tho time), 
 before the week was out, I got a berth on board a large 
 American ship — the Pharos of Boston — which was lying 
 in the South-West India Dock, loading general cargo 
 for Melbourne. As she was only about half full, I 
 begged permission to come and work on board for my 
 food, so that I should not get into debt at the boarding- 
 
 Q 
 
22(5 TTJE LOQ OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 bouse. Tho mate, who engaged mo, readily granted 
 my request ; in fact, ho seomed to take no interest iu 
 tho matter. So I took up my quarters on board, 
 becoming great friends immediately with the amiablo 
 old mulatto steward, who, besides being a most valuablo 
 servant, was a deeply religious man according to his 
 lights. 
 
 And now my linos woro cast in truly pleasant places. 
 I had heard of tho good times enjoyed by boys iu 
 American ships — such floating hells for their crews as 
 a rule — and my experiences at present fully boro out the 
 truth of my information. But I very soon saw that all 
 was not right on board. Tho mato was utterly neg- 
 lectful of the cargo, spending most of his time tippling 
 in his berth with all sorts of visitors. Tho second mato, 
 a stalwart youth of twenty, busied himself constantly 
 with the rigging, studiously avoiding any encroachment 
 upon tho mate's province of attending to the shipment 
 of the cargo. Tho captain rarely appeared. Ho was a 
 very old man, with an awful scowl, and, although 
 bearing himself erect, and smart-looking, was evidently 
 long past the efficient performance of his duties. The 
 only other members of the crew on board were tho 
 carpenter, a Finn of about sixty years of age, and 
 the cook, a garrulous Dane, who spent most of his time 
 yarning at tho galley door with a huge knife in one 
 hand as if it were his sceptre. A good deal of drinking 
 went on about that galley, and often at knock-off time 
 the stevedores had much ado to get ashore, so drunk 
 were they. At last the mate left — how or why I do not 
 know — and from thenceforward no pretence was made of 
 tallying in the cargo at all. Not until three days before 
 
A CnANQE OF NATIONALITY. 227 
 
 ebe was advoriisod to sail did wo get anothor mato, n 
 prim littlo man, who had been long raastor of English 
 ships, and looked liko a fish out of water on board the 
 
 Shipping day came, and, leaving the second mate, 
 steward, and carpenter (who woro on the original 
 articles) on board, the rest of us went down to a shoj) 
 in Ratcliff Highway to " sign on." It was a Jew tailor's, 
 of all places in the world, and never shall I forget my 
 astonishment at the sight it presented. "Wlicn wo 
 got there the shop was full of as motley a crowd of 
 scallawags as ono could collect anywhere. Apparently 
 they were shipping in some other American whip, from 
 the scraps of conversation I heard. Presently ono of 
 tho fellows asked a question of the sturdy-looking 
 Israelite behind the counter. Looking up from his 
 book, that worthy said fiercely, ** Get out ! " Tho man 
 hesitated, and muttered some reply. With a howl liko 
 an enraged tiger the tailor snatched up a pair of shears 
 and sprang over tho counter after him. There was a 
 regular scuffle among tho crowd for a few seconds, as 
 tho thoroughly scared candidate rushed for tho door, 
 just succeeding in making his escape as the vengeful 
 Jew reached tho pavement. In another second tho 
 tailor was back at his book as if nothing had happened. 
 But I noticed that nobody asked any more questions, 
 except ono man, whom I took to be the captain of the ship 
 signing on. After some little confusion the first crowd 
 took their departure, and another assortment took their 
 places, ready to sign in tho Pharos, Tho whole pro- 
 ceedings were an utter farce, though with a somblanco 
 of legality ; but what surprised me most of all was that 
 
228 THE LOO OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 each man received, whether ho wanted it or not, two 
 months' advance in the form of a promissory note, 
 payahlo at this Hhnp three days after tho ship left 
 Gravesend. Only three out of tho whole crowd Higned 
 their names, the rest modestly made their mark, and 
 tho tailor wrote down such fantastic designations as his 
 fancy suggested. Then one of his aflHistaiits marshalled 
 US all together like a Hock of sheep, and convoyed us to 
 the oflico of tho American Consul-Gencral in tho city, 
 where, in wholesale fashion, wo were made citizens of 
 tho United States of America. Tho ceremony was 
 no sooner over than wo were told to go, but siiarply 
 reminded of tho hour of sailing. Our guide mysteriously 
 disappeared, leaving ua to find our way back to sailor- 
 town as best wo could. 
 
 To my surprise and gratification I found myself 
 shipped as an ordinary seaman, at thirty shillings per 
 month, three pounds of which I already held in the 
 form of a *' promise to pay." I immediately hastened 
 to my boarding-house to get the said paper converted 
 into money, but, as I didn't owe him anything, tho master 
 refused to touch it, and further favoured mo with his 
 opinion that I shouldn't find anybody who would give 
 me more than ten shillings for it. Somewhat alarmed 
 at this, I hurried to various places where they professed 
 to discount seamen's advance notes, finding, to my 
 amazement, that he had spoken the truth. Then I 
 suddenly remembered an old acquaintance with whom 
 I had become friendly, and who, being a tradesman, 
 might be able to change my note. Off to him I hurried, 
 finding him both able and willing ; so I got my three 
 pounds in full. But I afterwards learnt that the highest 
 
A ClIANQE OF NATJOSAllTY. 2'1\) 
 
 iimoiint any of tlio Bailors had boon able to get for their 
 notes of Bit pounds had been two pounds ton HhillingH, 
 iind of this a goodly portion liad to be taken out in clothcH. 
 And this I was tohl was because of tho uncertainty 
 jittacliing to tho payment of these notes when they were 
 presented. Under such conditions there was little room 
 for wonder that cases of disappoaranco of tho men who 
 had obtained those advanco notes wore froipient. It 
 wan no unusual thing for luUf of a crew to bo missiu;,' 
 when a vessel sailed, when, of cour.so, tho.so who had 
 given anything for tho notes lost their money beyond 
 hope of recovery. 
 
 Although it seems premature to say so, I feel bound 
 to add that tho friend who cashed my note received his 
 money, when it was duo, without question. Seven of the 
 men who signed on with mo did not turn up on sailing- 
 day, 80 that wo loft tho dock shorthandcd to that extent. 
 We anchored at Gravesond, however, and a scratch lot 
 of "hard cases" were found to mako up our com- 
 plement. For three days wo lay at tho Eod Buoy 
 below Gravesond, while I wondered mightily at such 
 delay, foreign altogether to my notions of tho despatch 
 of Australian packets. But finally a huge lighter 
 painted a brillinnt red camo alongside, and imme- 
 diately the order was issued for all fire or light of any 
 kind to be extinguished, as wo were going to ship gun- 
 powder. As soon as tho ofiicers wore satisfied that 
 there was no danger from a stray spark to bo appre- 
 hended, the transhipment began, and soon fifty tons of 
 explosives were transferred to the square of our main 
 hatch, in cases and kegs, from which a good deal of 
 loose powder was leaking. The stowing completed, the 
 
230 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF, 
 
 hatch was securely battened down for sea, the lighter 
 left, and the order was given to man the windlass. 
 Hitherto I had been agreeably surprised to sec how 
 quietly the work went on, altogether a different state of 
 affairs to what I had expected on board a Yankee ship. 
 13ut the reason was not far to seek. Vicious as the 
 captain looked, he was utterly helpless to inaugurate a 
 reign of terror on board, for ho had no truculent set of 
 officers to back him. The mate was a quiet, elderly 
 man, looking as unlike a seaman as possible, and cer- 
 tainly was not the man to develop into a bully. The 
 second mate was too young, although as smart a man 
 us ever stepped, to tackle the whole crew single-handed, 
 even had he felt disposed ; and, of course, the ancient 
 carpenter counted for nothing. Half the crew were 
 exceedingly hard citizens, who looked as if all the ways 
 of " Western Ocean blood-boats " were familiar to 
 them ; the other half were Norwegians and Swedes, who 
 were unable to speak English, and ready to endure any 
 kind of brutality, at whoever's hands it might be pre- 
 sented. Poor wretches ! had they but known it, they 
 were fortunate, for the worst that befell them was being 
 treated as boys by the hard-bitten members of the crew, 
 and made to wait on them hand and foot. On dock 
 their lives were easy enough and the food was really 
 goad. 
 
 In order to save the skipper trouble, I suppose, we 
 had a Channel pilot on board to take the ship as far 
 as Portland. He, poor man, was sadly out of his 
 element with the skipper, whom he early described, to 
 the half-dozen passengers we carried, as an unmitigated 
 hog. Still there was no open breach between them 
 
A CHANGE OF NATIONALITY. 231 
 
 until wo arrived off tho Wight. Then when tho pilot 
 altered tho course (wo had been coming down in mid- 
 channel), to close in with the land, tho old man walked 
 up to tho helmsman and sternly ordered him to resume 
 tho course he had been steering, right down the centre 
 of tho Channel. Of course there was an explosion. 
 The pilot proiested in no measured terms against this 
 behaviour, saying that, as his contract was performed, 
 ho was anxious to be put ashore. The captain, however, 
 treated him with cool insolence, assuring him that ho 
 wasn't going one mile out of his way to land him, and 
 the utmost he would do would be to put him on board 
 any homeward-bounder we might pass near enough. 
 This nearly drove the pilot frantic. Wo could hear him 
 all over the ship. But, for all the impression he made 
 upon the venerable Yankee, he might as well have 
 saved his breath. Then there was trouble with the 
 passengers. They had been led to believe that they 
 would be sumptuously fed and waited upc^n, the char- 
 terers in London having painted in glowing colours the 
 comforts sure to be met with in so large a ship for 
 seven passengers. Now, however, they found that even 
 the cooking of their food was a privilege for which they 
 must fee the cook, the steward was forbidden to wait 
 upon them, and they were entirely thrown upon their 
 own resources. When they complained to the captain he 
 calmly told them that their difficulties were no concern 
 of his; he had quite sufficient annoyance in seeing 
 them occupying his saloon, which he could assure them 
 was intended for the reception of a very different class 
 of people to them. Happily they were all fairly well 
 used to roughing it, and so they sensibly set about 
 
232 THE LUG OF A 8EA-WA1F. 
 
 making the best of their very bad bargain, and thence- 
 forward ignored the scowhng skipper altogether. Tlio 
 unfortunate pilot ^vas kept on board five days, and 
 finally put on board a homeward-bound Mediterranean 
 steamer that we spoke half-way across the Bay. As ho 
 went over the side ho hurled his opinion of the skipper 
 back at him, his voice rising higher and higher, until 
 ho was no longer audible, to the huge delight of 
 passengers and crew alike. 
 
( 233 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 THE PASSAGE TO MELBOURNE. 
 
 We were now fairly on the voyage, aud it must l)0 
 confessed at the outset that the work of the ship, in 
 spite of the paucity of officers, went on with automatic 
 regularity. No disturbance of any kind marred the 
 general peace, all hands seeming well content to do 
 their duty quietly, although fully aware of the weakness 
 of the afterguard. My own position was a queer one. 
 Although I was on the articles as an ordinary seaman, 
 and slept in the forecastle among the men, neither of 
 the officers ever gave me any work to do, and I was 
 compelled in self-defence to fall back upon my old 
 friend the steward for something to occupy my time. I 
 had all my food with him, and whenever I could do so 
 without fear of being discovered by the captain, he 
 allowed me to perform a few small offices for the 
 unfortunate passengers. Before we had been a fort- 
 night out, a circumstance, which I dare not hint at the 
 nature of, compelled me to give up my quarters in the 
 forecastle and take refuge in the cabin, where I spread 
 my nightly couch under the saloon table. The captain 
 never seemed to notice my existence at all, at which I 
 
234 TUB LOG OF A SEA'WAJF. 
 
 used to wonder much; but feeling that obscurity was 
 not a bad thing for mc, I kept out of his way as much 
 as possible. I do not think it would bo possible to find 
 a more perfect representation of Bunyan's 'Tope" 
 than ho was. Whenever he looked at one of the men 
 his scowl was shocking, almost murderous, and he wan 
 continually snarling at the mate for not using violence 
 towards them. But the first gale we encountered 
 revealed a now and still more unpleasant side of his 
 character. Although the ship was new, and staunch as 
 faithful building could make her, her equipment in all 
 details of the very best procurable, I was astonished to 
 see how rapidly sail was reduced, as if she had been the 
 veriest poverty-stricken old hulk that ever was sent to 
 eea to sink. Long before the gale attained its height she 
 was "fore-reaching" under a main lower-topsail and 
 storm staysails, and he, the commander, like an unquiet 
 spirit, was prowling incessantly about the cabin, or pacing 
 restlessly in front of the wheel. In one hand he held 
 a large plug of tobacco, from which his trembling fingers 
 tore leaf after leaf and crammed them into his mouth 
 until it would hold no more. Then he would pause for 
 a moment at the lee rail and disgorge, only to resume 
 his feeding an instant later. He even consulted the 
 poor old steward, asking him, in quite familiar tones, 
 whether he thought the gale was taking off, although at 
 other times he spoke to him rather more brutally than 
 a costermonger would do his donkey. But the crowning 
 act of almost lunatic fear was to come. I was doing 
 something in his beautiful state-room, when I heard 
 him descending the ladder. I could not get out without 
 passing him, so I hid myself behind a curtain, feeling 
 
THE FASSAOE TO MELBOURNE. 235 
 
 Buro that he would not remain there more than a 
 minute. Peeping cautiously out, I saw him standing 
 gazing fixedly at a largo print of the Lord's Prayer that 
 adorned one of the panels. Presently ho hurst out into 
 the most terrible blasphemies : guttural cursings that 
 sent cold chills of horror chasing one another over my 
 Bcalp. Then he began to moan pitifully, as if in pain, 
 and suddenly, to my intense relief, he hurriedly went 
 on deck again. I fled in to the steward, shaking from 
 head to foot, and told him what I had heard. " Doan 
 tak' no notice, honey," said the kind old fellow. " I 
 guess he's a-gettin' mighty olo 'n scared, so'a ho don' 
 know haef wat he sez. Ennyhaow, we cain't ho'p his 
 cussedness, 'n de good Lawd ain't a-gwine ter mek us 
 pay fer him. I knows Him better'n dat. Don yew 
 lissen t'im no mo', sonny, ef yew kin he'p it." Little 
 need to t^ll me that, I thought. There was really 
 nothing extraordinary in the gale. Even the pas- 
 sengers, apart from the discomfort of their surround- 
 ings, were unmoved by it, for the splendid vessel 
 behaved herself grandly, hardly shipping a drop of 
 water. Gradually the wind took off; but not until 
 every trace of bad weather was out of the sky was any 
 attempt made to set sail again. And when at last 
 orders were given to loose the topsails and staysails, 
 the captain seemed half afraid of his own temerity, 
 although two or three vessels passed us with every 
 stitch se\ , their crews lining the bulwarks to stare at us 
 in wonder as to why we were thus wasting the fine fair 
 wind. 
 
 This cautious navigation, however, troubled nobody 
 but the passengers ; and even they were less disturbed 
 
'JOG THE Loa OF A sJ':a-]vaif. 
 
 by it than thoy would have boon had they known any- 
 thing of the ship's position. But that no one in the 
 ship knew, with any certainty, except tho okl fellow 
 himself; for ho navigated tho vessel, and did not 
 allow the mate to take an observation, treating him in 
 this matter, as in all others, with a contempt almost 
 too groat for words. Why, no one could toll ; for Mr. 
 Small was a good officer and seaman, keeping the ship 
 in perfect order, and attending to all his duties in a 
 most exemplary way. The ouly reason that could bo 
 imagined for the captain's behaviour to him was that 
 he had none of the loud-voiced bully about him, and 
 utterly refused to beat, kick, or swear at any member 
 of the crew. One thing was especially noticeable: 
 neither of the officers ever went forward of the men's 
 quarters after dark, unless absolutely compelled to do 
 so in the course of trimming or setting sail. This 
 reluctance, on their part, to venture into what they had 
 come to look upon as the men's part of the deck, was of 
 the greatest assistance to the crow in the pursuit of 
 their nefarious schemes of plunder, which were carried 
 on here to a greater extent than I ever heard of else- 
 where. It has been already noticed that a good deal 
 of drunkenness was indulged in before the vessel left 
 the dock, owing to the previous mate's total neglect of 
 duty, and that this was principally focussed about tho 
 galley. Now, it so happened that the stock of kindling- 
 wood fell very low, and this furnished an excellent 
 excuse for the cook to be much in the fore-hoid, seeking 
 such stray pieces of dunnage-wood as ho might burn. 
 He was a poor cook, but a superlatively ingenious 
 robber. For, finding that the 'tween decks held little 
 
THE PASSAGE TO MELBOURNE. 2\M 
 
 worth his attention, ho wrought unceasingly to get tho 
 lower hatches lifted — a tremendous task, from tlio 
 massive weights stowed on top of them. At last he 
 succeeded in getting into the lower hold, and laying 
 open tho vast accumulation of valuahlo cargo that lay 
 honeath. Having done this ho informed the "hard- 
 caso " mcmhers of his exploit, and considerately ar- 
 ranged tho fastenings on tho fore-hatch so that they 
 could £'et below when they listed. Thenceforward that 
 forecastle was a scone of luxury such as I heliove has 
 never been equalled in a merchant ship. "Wire chan- 
 deliers, fitted wuth massive wax candles, lit up tho 
 usually darksome house, the burning of costly cigars 
 filled it with aroma, liquors of every kind were drunk 
 from tin pots, and at meal-times all sorts of canned 
 meats, seasoned with various condiments, tickled their 
 palates. Yet, strange to say, there was no drunkenness. 
 One man, the ringleader in this systematic robbery, 
 possessed sufficient force of character to actually prevent 
 any of his shipmates from "giving the show away," as 
 he termed it. In consequence, this eating and drinking 
 of luxuries went on for fully three months, and never 
 a whisper of the goings-on reached the officers' ears. 
 Even the passengers shared in the plunder. Their 
 stores, besides being of bad quality, were so limited in 
 quantity and variety that they were glad to purchase 
 from the sailors a little of their spoil, asking no 
 questions as to its origin. As the various cases were 
 emptied the cook broke them up, carried the fragments 
 into the galley and burnt them, so that no trace was 
 left of the depredations. 
 
 The nightly excursions below were attended with 
 
238 THE LOO OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 awful risk. In tlio first place the men posscsRod no 
 (lark lantern, so they carried naked candles flaring in 
 their bands as tbey crawled through the restricted 
 spaces between the cargo and the deck overhead. And, 
 on first entering the lower hold, they had to make their 
 way over hundreds of drums of naphtha. These were 
 all sealed, it is true ; but had there been one leaky can 
 in that temperature over which a naked light passed ! 
 More than that, in their investigations the marauders 
 penetrated as far aft as the stern, passing among little 
 heaps of loose gunpowder which had sifted through the 
 hatches of the between-decks, and writhing over kegs of 
 blasting-powder which were stowed right across the 
 vessel amidships. At first they did this unthinkingly ; 
 but when they realized it they still went on as before. 
 No doubt this statement of mine will stagger many who 
 have found no difficulty hitherto in accepting my word 
 that this book contains absolutely nothing but the truth, 
 and is a record of my personal experience. Neverthe- 
 less, I solemnly declare that I have not deviated one 
 iota from the simple facts of the case. What is strange 
 to myself about it is that I did not, could not, then 
 realize what frightful danger we were continually in ; 
 but ever since, when I recall the events of that voyage, 
 the cold sweat starts out upon mo and 1 tremble 
 violently. 
 
 True to his traditions the old man kept north as 
 soon as we were well round the Cape, afraid to run the 
 easting down in the usual latitudes because of the stern 
 vigour of the brave west winds. Consequently, we 
 dawdled along with variable winds and dirty weather, 
 never keeping a steady breeze for more than a day or 
 
THE PASSAGE TO MELBOURNE. 239 
 
 two at tho outfiido. But, as tbo longest passage must 
 como to an end at last, when nearly four months had 
 elapsed since leaving London, a rumour ran round tho 
 ship that wo were on tho meridian of Capo Locuwin, 
 tho south-westernmost point of Australia. This put all 
 hands in an exceedingly good humour, and incidontiiUy 
 bad strange consequences. Not that she had ever boon 
 an uncomfortable ship, except for tho mate and tho 
 passengers. There was never an angry word or a growl 
 heard. Orders were executed with as much alacrity aa 
 if there had been half a dozen belaying-pin-wielding 
 officers prowling about, ready to knock any skulker 
 senseless on tho instant. No doubt this was owing 
 to some strange under-current of feeling about their 
 nefarious proceedings on the part of tho crew, as if tliey 
 could, in some measure, set-off their wholesale robbery 
 by tho prompt, cheerful obedience they paid to all 
 orders. But, as I have said, the report of our nearness 
 to port sent a glow of unusual cheerfulness through 
 the ship. Under its influence the prime mover in the 
 plundering felt so benevolent that he actually went and 
 fetched a bottle of brandy out of his chest, and, hiding 
 it in the breast of his jumper, brought it to the old 
 carpenter as he sat solitary in his berth at the after-end 
 of the forward-house. Chips was profuse in his thanks, 
 earnest in his protestations that he would be very care- 
 ful not to take too much and so let the officers into tho 
 secret. No sooner was he left alone, however, than, 
 pouring himself out about half a pint of the glowing 
 "Three Star," he drank it off at a draught. His age 
 fell from him like a shed garment. With a strange 
 glitter in his eye he seized the bottle again, and treated 
 
240 THE LOO OF A SEA-WAIF, 
 
 this new man tlmt had entered into him to another 
 jorum like the first. Then, on the instant, all tho 
 contumely that ho had so long and patiently endured 
 from tho skipper rushed into his mind — a hateful 
 hurdcn of memories too heavy to ho longer tamely 
 horno. Flinging wide his door ho stepped on deck and 
 solemnly marched aft, high determination apparent in 
 every motion of his transformed hody. Halting heforo 
 tho cahin door, ho shouted, "Cap'n Collier, yo mouldy- 
 headed old son of a hitch, como out here ! I'm jest goin' 
 tor lam do measly olo hed olfn ye ! " Tho rest of his 
 harangue was unfit for puhlication. SuQicient to say 
 that, in spite of his deficient acquaintance with tho 
 English language, ho showed himself marvellously fiuont 
 in all tho quaint profanity of which Americans aro tho 
 acknowledged masters. Thrice was he forcihly removed 
 to his herth hy tho two officers, redouhling his efforts 
 to induce the captain to ai)pcar, and thrice ho hurst 
 forth again and clamoured for the old man's blood. At 
 last, seeing that nothing else would suffice, ho was put 
 in irons, his feet were lashed together, and, thus bound, 
 he was cast into his bunk to "sober up," while the 
 second mate searched his berth for the fans it origo 
 mali. He soon found it, and brought it aft to tho 
 captain. Then a close examination of the fore-hatch 
 was made, revealing tho fact that it was unlocked, 
 although the cook swore that he had always locked it 
 before he returned the keys to the second mate. How- 
 ever, it was now made secure, and the keys brought aft 
 and given to the captain. Neither of the officers re- 
 membered, though, that a spacious ventilator through 
 the fore-part of the house led directly down into the 
 
THE PASSAGE TO MELliOUIiNE. 241 
 
 liold. This was accordingly loft unfastened, and every 
 iiif^lit ono or other of the unhappy foreif^ni'ra woro 
 compelled to Blido down it and pasH up such Btoros as 
 thoy could lay their hands on. And so the game went 
 merrily on. 
 
 Meanwhile tho weather holding fino and the wind 
 fair, wo drew rapidly nearer to tho end of tho passage. 
 For my part, easy as my lot had boon, I was thoroughly 
 sick of it. I had never boon aloft all tho passage, nor 
 had I boon allowed to take any part in tho ordinary 
 work of tho ship. Consequently I felt as if I wero 
 losing all my knowledge of my business, and I had 
 gloomy forebodings of my sufferings in tho next ship. 
 Moreover I felt very uneasy in my mind as to tho 
 probable outcome of tho goings-on in tho forecastle and 
 galley. I had been so much amongst it that I felt sure 
 it would bo difficult for me to clear myself if it came to 
 court, and as each day passed I felt more and more 
 certain that there would be a wholesale arrest as soon as 
 the vessel arrived. Therefore I was thoroughly unquiet, 
 longing for the passage to end, yet dreading tho arrival 
 in port. But, so far as I could see, those dismal reflec- 
 tions troubled the crew not at all. Tho seasoned hands 
 had evidently prepared a plan of campaign, and had 
 made ample provision for a lengthy tramp up-country, 
 by stocking their bags with such preserved foods as 
 they fancied. In addition each man had a fino gun, 
 out of a case they had found, and a goodly quantity of 
 cigars and spirits. Such utter recklessness, in the face 
 of their probable wholesale arrest before the ship came 
 alongside the wharf, was hard to understand; yet so 
 
 they acted. 
 
 B 
 
242 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIK 
 
 At lafit the lonp5-looko(l-for light on Capo Otway was 
 Bighted, and Ix foro a splendid woHtorly brcczo wo Hpud 
 through liaRs'H Btraits, nnd northward for Porfe riiiilip 
 IIoadH. Without any hindrance, except to take up n 
 pilot, wo raced onwards until wo reached the anchora^^o 
 off WillianiHtown, where, with the red Hag flying at our 
 mainraast head in token of the dangerous nature of our 
 cargo, we brought up and furled all sail, 155 days out 
 from London. It was the longest passage that any 
 vessel had made for years, and great was the astonish- 
 mcnt manifested by all who boarded us to hear of it. 
 None of them could understand how it was that so fino 
 a ship could possibly have taken the time, especially 
 as another ship, belonging to the same owners, and 
 admittedly a much slower vessel, had been in port a 
 fortnight, having loft London one month after us. 
 Captain Collier told the reporters a terrible tale of the 
 severity of our passage, which did great credit to his 
 imagination, but left his veracity derelict. Four days 
 passed at the Williamstown anchorage before wo finally 
 got rid of our powder — days of utter misery for every 
 one concerned in the depredations, for they were in 
 momentary expectation of the arrival of a police-boat 
 with orders for their arrest. To this day it is a mystery 
 to me why this did not happen. Of course the skipper 
 could not know how far the robbery had gone, but that 
 "broaching of cargo" had been indulged in he must 
 have been well aware. But ho was so utterly con- 
 temptuous of all things English, that he may have felt 
 quite indifferent as to what became of Englishmen's 
 property. As his ship was chartered by a London firm 
 it was doubtless their loss. At any rate, he did not 
 
TUE rAbHAQE TO MhiLUOUIiNK 243 
 
 trouble himfiolf to order any examination of tlio hold, or 
 make any infiuiry into the BUHpicioufl circumHtanccfl 
 that hud taken phu;o on tiio paHflago. At hist, all being 
 ready, wo woif^hed anchor an<l were towed over to tho 
 Handrid^o Tier. We arrived there late in the afternoon, 
 BO that by the time wo were moored it was dusk. Tho 
 decks were cleared up, and all hands sent to supper. 
 About an hour afterwards every man forrard, with tho 
 exception of tho youn^ foreigners, who had hardly 
 learned EnRlinh, shouldered their bags and walked 
 ashore. Tho old man was parading tho poop as tho 
 row of deserters marched up the pier, but ho eitlu r did 
 not or would not see them. So they disappeared, and 
 wo saw them no more. Nor did wo hear of them again, 
 although two days afterwards a reward of four pounds 
 each was offered for their apprehension — a piece of folly 
 almost inconceivable in its fatuity. Of course tho cook 
 had gono along with them, tho danger of his position 
 far outweighing tho loss of twenty pounds in wages 
 which ho thus forfeited. 
 
 As far as I was coucerncd, things ran along as 
 smoothly as heart could wish. But I was unsettled, 
 nor could all tho kindness of tho worthy steward a\ail 
 to satisfy me. Theoretically, I ought to have been 
 exceedingly comfortable. I had literally nothing to do 
 but avoid tho skipper ; I had thirty shillings a month 
 as wages, abundance of good food, and I was on tho 
 best of terms with every soul on board but one. Yet, 
 somehow, I longed to bo out of it all, and could not 
 bring myself to face the possibility of going to sea again 
 in the ship. I took to frequenting the largo coasting- 
 steamers, which used to lie at the shore end of tho pier, 
 
244 THE LOO OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 and at last made great friend f3 with the chief cook of 
 one of them: the Womja Wour/a. This worthy was a 
 herculean negro, rejoicing in the name of Sam White, 
 which, an a piece of charcoal would have made a white 
 mark on him, was somewhat inappropriate. At the 
 close of a delightful evening spent in his company on 
 hoard the Wonga Wonr/a, I made hold to ask him if ho 
 could get mo a passage to Sydney with him. Oh, thero 
 could bo nothing easier than that, according to him ; 
 it was only necessary for him to speak the word, and 
 he could take half a dozen friends up with him. But 
 it was usual to make him a small present. I, of course, 
 had no money ; hut I timidly offered him a gold scarf- 
 pin, which had been given me by the passengers as 
 a present (I afterwards learnt that it was worth fifty 
 shillings). He was graciously pleased to accept it, and 
 told me to bring my dunnage along at once. In a fever 
 of excitement I returned on board the Pharos, and 
 packed up all my belongings, now swollen to a goodly 
 heap by the many articles of clothing given me by the 
 passengers when they left. When I had completed my 
 packing, I could scarcely drag the great pile of chest, 
 bag, and bundle along the deck, and I dared not ask 
 any one on board to help me. But I had plenty of 
 resource ; so I hooked on the yardarm cargo-tackle to 
 the lot (all well lashed together), and after a struggle 
 succeeded in hoisting it high enough to swing on to the 
 wharf, having first seen that the watchman was com- 
 fortably dozing in the galley. Very carefully I lowered 
 my precious cargo on to the pier, then crept ashore, 
 and dragged it under a railway truck, while I went 
 back to the Wonga Wonga^ and enlisted the services of 
 
TEE PASSAGE TO MELBOURNE. 245 
 
 the cook's mate to come and carry it up to their ship, 
 and place it under Mr. White's care. Then I got ray 
 final instructions. I was to return on hoard the l^Jtaros, 
 and remain there till the next day at dinner-time, when 
 I must hasten on hoard the steamer, where Mr. "White 
 would receive me, and in an hour I should be on my 
 way to Sydney. Making my grateful acknowledgments, 
 I returned on board, and upon a heap of old canvas 
 slept dreamlessly imtil morning. 
 
24G THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 CHAPTEB XXI. 
 
 I BECOME A COLONIAL COASTER. 
 
 Surely never morning contained so many hours as ditl 
 this one. Never hefore, in all my varied experience, had 
 I felt time to be so leaden-footed. For, do what I would, 
 the thought that at the last moment some hindrance 
 would arise and prevent me from following all my 
 earthly possessions would not be put aside. My good 
 old friend, the steward, noted my nervous condition, 
 and at last called me into the pantry and asked me, in 
 kindly, serious tones, what was the matter. In a few 
 broken words I told him all, so fully did I trust him. 
 He was silent for a couple of minutes, then he said, 
 ** Well, Tommy, my boy, I'm sorry you'se gwine ; but I 
 couldn't wish to keep ye here. It's no place for ye. 
 And, alldough I'm 'fraid I'm not doin' de right ting 
 to let ye go, I cain't fine it in me heart to stop ye. I 
 only hope you'll be a good boy an' do well, and I shall 
 pray God to bless ye. I don't s'pose you've got any 
 money, so here's ten dollars for ye. Don't let anybody 
 know you've got it, or you'll be sure to get it stole ; an* 
 if de times should be bad in Sydney it'll keep ye fur a 
 while. Good-bye, my son." And with that he kissed 
 
I BECOME A COLONIAL COASTER. 247 
 
 me. That broke mo all up. I declare that, never since 
 I lost my dear old aunt, had I ever felt the genuine 
 thrill of human affection as I felt it then at the touch 
 of that good old coloured man, whose memory I shall 
 cherish as long as I live. 
 
 At last the whistle sounded for dinner, and, almost 
 immediately after, I heard the hoarse notes of the 
 Wonga Wonga's warning that she was ready to depart. 
 Like an eel I glided over the side, and off up the pier I 
 ran, catching a glimpse between the trucks of the grim 
 figure of Captain Collier as he prowled up and down the 
 sacred limits of his poop. When I reached the steamer, 
 she was in a great state of bustle. A host of passengers 
 with their baggage were embarking, and it was one of 
 the easiest of tasks to slip on board unnoticed. I rushed 
 below to the cook's quarters, finding him in the thick of 
 preparations for the saloon dinner. Hardly looking at 
 me, he uttered a few hurried instructions : the purport 
 of them being that I must creep down through a dim 
 alleyway into the chain-locker, and there remain until 
 he should send for me. At the same time he gave me 
 a hunk of bread and meat. Then it dawned upon 
 me that I was nothing but a " stowaway " after all, 
 especially as he whispered a final command to me not 
 to mention his name upon any account. It was a shock 
 indeed, but there was no place for repentance; I had 
 burned my bridges. So wriggling through the dark 
 crevice he had indicated, I wormed my way along until 
 I reached the chain-locker, where I made myself as 
 comfortable as the rugged heaps of chain-cable would 
 allow. Overhead I heard, as if at an immense distance, 
 the hurry-scurry of departure, and presently, that all- 
 
248 THE LOO OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 pervading vibration following the deep clang of the 
 engine-room gong that told mo we were off. Satisfied, 
 BO far, that I was unlikely to return, I wont to sleep, 
 and, despite the knobby nature of my couch, slumbered 
 serenely. How long I had thus been oblivious of my 
 strange surroundings I don't know, but it suddenly 
 occurred to me that some one was pulling my legs as 
 they protruded beyond the bulkhead of the chain-lockcr. 
 
 " Sailor-man, by his boots, sir ! " said a gruff voice, 
 answered by another, '* All right, rouse him up ! " 
 Roused up I was accordingly, and, sliding forward, I 
 confronted an elderly man in uniform, whom I took to 
 be the mate, and a stalwart fellow in a guernsey — 
 apparently a quarter-master. In answer to thoir 
 inquiries, I told them that I had run away from an 
 American ship at Sandridge, and, being anxious to get 
 to Sydney, had stowed away. " Why didn't you como 
 and ask mo for a passage?" said the officer. "I 
 didn't dare to risk a refusal," I answered. "Don't you 
 know you can be punished for stowing away? " queried 
 my interlocutor, severely. " No, sir," I replied, *' an' 
 I don't care much. I'm satisfied to know that, unless 
 you head me up in a'^beef-ccsk and throw me overboard, 
 I shall get to Sydney anyhow." At this impudent 
 reply he iiowned a little ; but being, as I afterwards 
 found, one of the best-tempered men in the world, he 
 merely said, " Well, come along on deck and we'll see 
 if we can't find you something to do." 
 
 Thenceforward I was regarded as one of the crew, 
 and very pleased I was to find things turn out so com- 
 fortably. On the third day out we arrived off Sydney 
 Heads, and went up the magnificent bay to the city 
 
I BECOME A COLONIAL COASTER. 240 
 
 amid scenes of loveliness that I do not believe can 
 be surpassed by any harbour in the wido world. !Mr. 
 White had kept me at arm's length all the passage, 
 apparently prepared to deny all knowledge of mo should 
 I show any signs of discovering our bargain to any 
 one ; but now, as we neared the A.S.N. Company's 
 wharf, he called mo to him and endeavoured to malic 
 me believe that my good treatment was entirely owing 
 to his having interested himself on my behalf. I didn't 
 believe a word ho said, but I had thoroughly learned 
 how unwise it was to make enemies needlessly, so I 
 pretended to be grateful for his protection. He inquired 
 what my plans were, and, finding that I had none, 
 oft'ered me the hospitality of his home until he should 
 be able to find me a berth in one of the steamer^. 
 This offer I accepted, feeling glad to have somewhere 
 to go to as well as to avoid the necessity of breaking 
 into my little stock of money. So we parted for the 
 time on the best of terms, and I returned to my v/ork 
 until knock-off time, when it was understood that I 
 was to accompany him ashore. While I was washing 
 I was agreeably surprised to be called by the mate, 
 who with great kindness presented me with a sovereign, 
 and promised to do his best to get me a berth as 
 lamp-trimmer. He also gave me some good advice 
 as to the company I got into, warning me to beware 
 of the larrikins that infested certain quarters of the 
 town. I thanked him as earnestly as I was able, 
 t<=lling him that I was going to lodge for the present 
 with one of the crew, and, bidding him good-bye, went 
 down the gangway and through the warehouse to wait 
 for the cjok as we had arranged. He soon joined me, 
 
250 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 followed by his two mates bearing my chest, which 
 was put upon a lorry and conveyed up town. I found 
 his wife a kindly, slatternly white woman, and his 
 home a weather-board house in Lower York Street, 
 with hardly any pretensions to comfort. Still, I reasoned, 
 it would do for the time as well as any other place 
 I should be likely to find, and, from the stories I had 
 heard of " down town " Sydney, was probably a great 
 deal safer. 
 
 I spent a week ashore wandering wherever I had a 
 minc'i to, and seeing the beautiful place thoroughly ; but 
 I made no acquaintances. One thing was early im- 
 pressed upon my mind, and subsequent experience only 
 confirmed my belief, that Sydney was the most shame- 
 lessly immoral place I had ever seen. That, of course, 
 was twenty-seven years ago, so may not be at all the 
 case to-day. At the end of the week I was overjoyed 
 to get a berth, without anybody's assistance, as lamp- 
 trimmer on board a pretty little steamer, called the 
 nden M'Gregor, that ran regularly between Sydney and 
 the town of Grafton on the Clarence Eiver, calling at 
 Newcastle and sundry places on the river en route. By 
 closely observing the duties of the " lamps " on board 
 the Wonga Wonga, I had been fairly well prepared to 
 take such a berth ; but I thought, with a bitter smile, 
 how little my sailorizing would avail mo now. Still, 
 the wages were two pounds ten shillings per month, 
 the same as the A.B.'s had been paid on the outward 
 passage, so I was well content. 
 
 My lamp-room was a mere cupboard by the side of 
 the funnel, on deck, and just abaft the galley. To do 
 my work I had to kneel on a hot iron plate in front of 
 
I BECOME A COLONIAL COASTEIi. 251 
 
 tlio said cupboard, exposed to whatever weather was 
 going. But the cook had all my sympathies. In his 
 tiny caboose he had to prepare meals for seventy or 
 eighty people, while all his pastry-making, butchering, 
 etc. (for we carried live sheep and fowls with us), must 
 ^^'^eds bo done on deck. Now the vessel, though exceed- 
 ingly pretty to look at in harbour, was utterly unfit to 
 cope with the tremendous seas that sweep along the 
 eastern shores of Australia. Somewhere, in one of 
 Henry Kingsley's books (the ** Hillyars and Burtons," 
 I think), ho speaks of a little steamer climbing one of 
 those gigantic seas like a bat clinging to a wall. That 
 was a common experience of ours. Her motions were 
 frightful. I have seen every soul on board sea-sick 
 while she crawled up, up, up one mountainous wave 
 after another, plunging down into the abysses between 
 them as if she would really turn a complete summer- 
 sault. Everybody was black and blue with being flung 
 about, and the passengers, who had perforce to be 
 battened down in the sweltering saloon, or second cabin, 
 suffered misery untellable. Yet even that wretchedness 
 bad its ludicrous side. To see our fierce little hunch- 
 back cook astride of a half-skinned sheep, to which he 
 held on with a death-liko grip, his knife between hia 
 teeth and a demoniacal ghire in his eye, careering fore 
 and aft in a smother of foam, surrounded by the debris 
 of the preparing dinner, made even men half dead with 
 fatigue and nausea laugh. But it was terrible work. 
 A.S for me, I got no respite at all at night. For I had 
 to keep the lamps burning ; and she thought nothing of 
 hurling both the big side-lanterns out of their slides on 
 deck, or shooting both binnacle-lights at once into the 
 
253 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 air, leaving tlio helmsman staring at a black disc instead 
 of the illuminated compass - card. And often, as I 
 painfully made my way forrard with the side-lights, 
 after a long struggle with wetted wicks and broken 
 glass, she would plunge her bows under a huge comber, 
 lifting a massive flood over all, which seized mo in its 
 ruthless embrace and swept me, entangled with my 
 burden, the whole length of the deck, till I brought up 
 against the second-cabin door right aft, with a bang 
 that knocked the scanty remnant of breath out of my 
 trembling body. Down in the engine-room the grey- 
 headed chief-engineer stood by the grunting machinery, 
 his hand on the throttle-valve, which he incessantly 
 manipulated to prevent the propeller racing the engines 
 out of their seats whenever she lifted her stern out of 
 the water and the screw revolved in thin air. For the 
 old-fashioned low-pressure engines had no " governor," 
 and consequently, no automatic means of relieving the 
 terrific strain thrown upon them in buch weather as 
 this. And the firemen, who had to keep steam up, 
 though they were hurled to and fro over the slippery 
 plates like toys, were probably in the most evil case 
 of all. 
 
 She must have been staunchly built, for she bore 
 the fearful buffeting without any damage worth speak- 
 ing of, except to the unfortunates who were compelled 
 to attend to their duties under such difficulties. And 
 after the gale blew itself out, and the glorious sun 
 mounted triumphantly in the deep blue dome above, 
 the scene was splendid beyond description. We always 
 kept fairly close in with the land, except when cross- 
 ing a deep biglit, and the views we obtained of the 
 
J liLCOMK A COLONIAL COASTER, 253 
 
 ma^uificent scenery along that wonderful coast were 
 worth emluring a good deal of hardship to witness. 
 Wo arrived ofY the entranco to the Chirenco River just 
 at dark, and, to my great astonishment, instead of going 
 in, sail was set, tho fires were damped down, and we 
 stood "off and on" until daylight. As soon as thero 
 was KuHicient light to distinguish objects on shore, wo 
 stood in ; all passengers were ordered below and every- 
 thing was battened down. All hands perched them- 
 selves as high as they could on the bridge, upper-deck, 
 and in the rigging, while wo made straight for the bar. 
 These precautions had filled mo with wonder, for I knew 
 nothing of bar harbours. But when, on our nearer 
 approach, I saw the mighty stretch of turbulent breakers 
 rolling in mountains of snowy foam across tlio river's 
 mouth, I began to unders^nnd that the passage through 
 that would mean considerable danger. Every ounco 
 of steam we could raise was on her, and the skipper, 
 a splendid specimen of a British seaman, stood on the 
 bridge, the very picture of vigorous vigilance. AVo 
 entered the first lino of breakers ; all around us seethed 
 the turmoil of snowy foam, with not a mark of any kind 
 to show the channel, except such bearings as the skipper 
 knew of on the distant shore. Perched upon the rail, 
 a leadsman sounded as rapidly as ho could, calling out 
 such depths of water as amazed me, knowing our 
 draught. Along came an enormous wall of white water, 
 overwhelming the hull and hiding it from sight. " Lead 
 — quick ! " yelled the skipper above the thunder of the 
 sea; and Joe screamed, "Two, half one, quarter less 
 two." Ah ! a long and grinding concussion as she tore 
 up the ground, then along came another mighty comber 
 
254 TllK LUO OF A SEA' WAIF, 
 
 over all. When it had passed wo woro over the bar and 
 in Bmooih water, only tlio yeasty flakes of tlio spent 
 breakers following us as if disappointed of their prey. 
 A very few minutes sufticcd to dry up the decks, and 
 the passongors appeared well pleased to bo in tho placid 
 waters of tho^rivor and at peace once more. What a 
 lovely scene it was ! At times wo sped along close to 
 tho bank, while a great stretch of river extended on tho 
 other sido of us a milo wide, but too shallow for even 
 our light draught. On gleaming sand-patches flocks of 
 pelicans performed their unwieldy gambols, and shoals 
 of lish reflected the sunlight from tlieir myriad glittering 
 Gcales. Turning a sharp bend wo would disturb a flock 
 of black swans that roso with deafening clamour in 
 such immense numbers as to darken tho sky overhead 
 like a thunder-cloud. And, about tho bushes that 
 clothed tho banks, flew parrots, cockatoos, and magpies 
 in such hosts as I had never dreamed of. For an hour 
 wo saw no sign of inhabitants; then, suddenly, wo 
 sighted a little village with a rude jetty and about 
 half a dozen houses. All tho population, I suppose, 
 stood on the pier to greet us, who camo bearing to 
 them in their lonely corner a bit of the great outside 
 world. Our skipper, though noted for his seamanship, 
 was equally notorious for his clumsiness in bringing 
 his vessel alongside a wharf, and we came into tho 
 somewhat crazy structure with a crash that sent tho 
 shore-folk scurrying off into safety until it was seen 
 to be still intact. We were soon fast, and all hands 
 working like Chinamen to land the few packages of 
 goods, for we had a long way to go yet and several other 
 places to call at. Our discharging was soon over, the 
 
1 BECOME A COLONIAL COAQTEU, 256 
 
 warps cast ofT, nnd, followed by (aa I thought) tho 
 wiHtful lookH of tho littlo community of Ilocky Mouth, 
 wo proceeded up tho river ngaiu. OccaHioually wo 
 Bifihtcd a homestead Rtanding among a thick plantation 
 of banana trcefl, each laden with its maBsivo bunch 
 of fruit, and broad areas of Bugar-cauo or maize. From 
 amongst tho latter as wo passed rose perfect clouds 
 of cockatoos and parrots, screaming discordantly, and 
 making even tho dullest observer think of tho heavy 
 toll they were levying upon tho toiling farmer. Again 
 and again wo stopped at villages, each bearing a family 
 likeness to tho first, but all looking thriving, and 
 inhabited by well-fed, sturdy people. Just before 
 sunset wo arrived at Grafton, having passed but two 
 vessels on our journey up — one a handsome brigantine, 
 whoso crow were laboriously towing her along at a 
 snail's pace in a solitary boat, and tho other a flat- 
 bottomed, stern-wheel steamer of so light a draught 
 , that she looked capable of crossing a meadow in a 
 heavy dew. There was a substantial jetty built out 
 from the steep bank, to the end of which, after con- 
 siderable fumbling about, we moored. Tho only house 
 visible was a rather fine dwelling whose front verandah 
 overlooked tho jetty from tho top of the bank. But, 
 when work was dono for the evening and I climbed 
 up the bank, I was surprised to find quite a con- 
 siderable town, with well-laid-out streets and every 
 appearance of prosperity. There was littlo inducement 
 to remain, however, and I soon hurried on board again 
 to enjoy some grand fishing over the side. 
 
 Here we remained for a week discharging our cargo 
 and reloading with maize, cases of preserved beef and 
 
256 TEE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 mutton, and bags of tin ore. Juci' before sailing we 
 received a good deal of farm produce, including several 
 hundred bunches of bananas, for which there was always 
 a good demand in Sydney. In order not to miss a tide 
 wo sailed sometime before daylight one morning, and, 
 when about twenty miles down the river, ran into the 
 region of a bush fire. As we had to hug the bank 
 rather closely just there, we had an anxious time of 
 it, the great showers of sparks and sheets of flame 
 reaching out towards us as if determined to claim us, 
 too, among their victims. The sight was terribly grand; 
 the blood-red Bky overhead and the glowmg river 
 beneath making it appear as if we were between two 
 furnaces, while the deep terrific roar of the furious fire 
 so near drowned every other sound. All hands were 
 kept on the alert dowsing sparks that settled on board 
 of us, and rif'bt glad was everybody when we emerged 
 into the cool and smoke-free air beyond. After that 
 we had a most humdrum passage all the way to 
 Sydney. 
 
 I made at least twenty trips afterwards, all very 
 much alike in their freedom from incidents worth 
 recording here — except one, which made a very vivid 
 impression upon me of the hardships endured by settlers 
 in that beautiful country. It had been raining steadily 
 for several days, making our transhipment of cargo 
 a miserable operation; and it was noticed by all of 
 us, as we lay at Grafton jetty, how rapidly the river 
 was running. Before dark one evening the skipper 
 ordered the warps to be cast off, and we hauled out 
 into the fairway, anchoring there with a good scope 
 of cable. All night long the rain poured down harder 
 
TWENTY MILES DOWN THE lilVEU WE KAN IN'lO THE liEGION 
 
 Of A BUSH fine. 
 
I BECOME A COLONIAL COASTER. 257 
 
 than ever. When daylight broke, so thick was the 
 obscurity caused by the deluge of rain, that we could 
 hardly make out the familiar outlines of things ashore, 
 even at that short distance. But we could both feel and 
 see that the river was now a torrent, bringing down 
 with it massive trees and floating islands of debris torn 
 from the banks higher up. Towards noon the rain 
 took off, and revealed to us a disastrous state of affairs 
 ashore. The river had risen over twenty feet ; so that 
 we now floated on a level with the top of the bank, and 
 might have steamed over the wharf at which we had 
 lain the previous evening. It became necessary for 
 our skipper to go ashore, although it was a most 
 dangerous task navigating the boat through that 
 raging, tumultuous current. But the sight of those 
 poor folks' plight in the town made us forget all else. 
 The turbid flood was everywhere; all the houses 
 standing like iblands in a muddy sea, and boats plying 
 busily to and fro, carrying loads of stricken people 
 who had seen the labour of years destroyed in a night. 
 And all down the river the tale was the same : homes, 
 crops, stock— everything that had been slowly and 
 painfully accumulated by years of self-sacrifice — buried 
 under the all-devouring flood. It was too pitiful for words . 
 How terribly true those wo"''g of warning returned 
 now which I had read some months before in one of 
 the Sydney newspapers, *' Beware of the rich alluvial 
 soil along the banks of rivers." As far as I remember, 
 but little notice was taken of the matter in Sydney; 
 for there had been a great flood on the Hunter Eiver, 
 much nearer to them, at about the same time, and 
 that seemed to occupy most of the public attention. 
 
 8 
 
258 TEE LOa OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 So many pathetic incidents were witnessed by us on 
 that trip that it would be invidious to make a selection, 
 even if it were not outside the scope of my purpose 
 to do so; but one scene, from the intensity of its 
 pathos, has haunted me ever since. A certain home- 
 stead on the shores of a lovely bend of the river, some 
 twenty miles from Grafton, was one of the most familiar 
 of our landmarks. The man and his wife were a 
 splendid couple, full of energy and ability, and they 
 had, by their own unaided efforts, made such a homo 
 of this out-of-the-way corner as gladdened the eyes 
 to look upon. Whenever we went up or down thero 
 the worthy couple would be, surrounded by their 
 vigorous group of sunburnt youngsters, shouting greet- 
 ings to us as if we were all old friends. At this 
 particular season they had a more than ordinarily 
 fine crop of sugar-cane, for which they had already 
 received a good offer from the manager of a new sugar- 
 mill erected in one of the reaches above Grafton. When 
 we passed down after the flood, there, on a heap of 
 muddy rubbish, sat the man, his head bowed on his 
 knees and his children crouching near in the deepest 
 wretchedness. Blowing our whistle, as usual, we roused 
 him ; but after a momentary glance his head fell agctin. 
 All was ruin and desolation, utter and complete. Even 
 the grove of banana trees that used to embower his 
 house had been swept away. And his wife was nowhere 
 iQ be seen. 
 
 *'■( ' • ■■: '.•■ ■ '. ". ■ :,'. ■ s'.'i... 
 
9 «» '*^!*» 
 
 
 
 
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 J 
 
 
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 1 
 
 259 
 
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 ** 
 
 
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 )» 
 
 ■*■•' 
 
 
 
 
 CHAPTEK XXII. 
 
 PROSPERITY PALLS UPON ME» 
 
 As I grew better acquainted with the conditions of life 
 on board the coasting steamers, I became extremely 
 dissatisfied with mv treatment on board the Helen 
 M'Gregor, For while I had the usual duties of a 
 lamp-trimmer to attend to, I was also compelled to 
 work at all hours as one of the crew, while the heavy 
 weights I was ordered to handle were far beyond my 
 strength, and several times I was severely hurt. So 
 that at a fitting opportunity I left her, taking up my 
 abode with a shoemaker, who had a large connection 
 among steamer-hands, and for two or three weeks led 
 the unprofitable life of a gentleman at large. This was 
 bad for me in many ways. The company I was thrown 
 amongst was doubtful ; I did not then know how much 
 BO, and, although I did not get involved in any of their 
 shadier exploits, I began to drink pretty heavily, and, 
 to put it briefly, go to the devil generally. This career 
 was fortunately put a stop to by the emptying of my 
 purse, which compelled me to get employment again. 
 
 My next ship we-3 one of the finest on the coast, the 
 last new vessel of the Australasian Steam Navigation 
 

 260 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 Company's (A.S.N.) fleet, which was called the Went- 
 worth. To my juvenile ideas she was a floating palace, 
 everything on board being on a grand scale as compared 
 with the little Heleii M'Gregor. The mate was a huge 
 Scotchman named Wallace, rough as a bear, but very 
 just and straightforward. When he engaged me, ho 
 gave me to understand that my duties consisted 
 solely in attending to the lamps and polishing the 
 ornamental brass-work about the deck, and that I 
 was on no account to do anything else or take orders 
 from anybody but himself or the captain. This, added 
 to the fact that my wages were now to be three pounds 
 ten shillings a month, made me feci quite an important 
 personage — in fact, I was almost " too big for my boots." 
 Everything on board was so excellent in quality, and 
 BO well managed, that I felt great pride in my ship, 
 and I determined that, as I had only one master to 
 please, I would do all I could to succeed. The first 
 thing I resolved was that no ship in harbour should 
 have such dazzling brass as mine, and, after I had 
 polished it all, I used to go round the other ships and 
 look at theirs. If there was one that I thought looked 
 more brilliant than mine I would come back and go 
 over my polishing again until I was satisfied, and so 
 I gradually got the reputation of being smart at brass- 
 cleaning anyhow. I lived entirely alone in a little 
 cubicle by my lamp-room, which was a spacious apart- 
 ment, well fitted and quite sheltered from the weather, 
 being on the main-deck. In return for trimming the 
 cook's lamps, I received all my meals from the saloon 
 messes, and thus I lived better than i have ever done 
 before or since. Not that the men fared indifferently. 
 
PROSPERITY PALLS UPON ME. 261 
 
 The food supplied to them was of the best quality, and 
 as for quantity — well, they had steaks, chops, and 
 potatoes, with unlimited baker's bread, for breakfast; 
 roast joints and potatoes for dinner, and for supper 
 the same as for breakfast. The waste was shameful. 
 The first two or three hands to arrive on the spot where 
 they took their meals, would cut all the brown off a ten 
 or twelve-pound joint. When the laggards came along, 
 if the appearance of the meat was not to their liking, 
 which was usually the case, they would just fling it 
 over the side and go to the galley for more. The cook 
 dared not complain, as the officers always took the 
 crew's part. This partiality was owing to the system 
 obtaining, whereby a contractor ashore supplied all 
 provisions at so much per head, finding cooks and 
 stewards himself. And any suggestion upon the part 
 of his servants that food was being wasted was always 
 fiercely resented by every member of the crew, who 
 would immediately accuse them of trying to fatten their 
 employer at the sailor's expense. The result was that 
 as much food was wasted each passage as would have 
 supplied another ship of the same size. 
 
 Those were the palmy days of Australian coasters. 
 A.B.'s received £7 per month, and one shilling and 
 sixpence per hour overtime when in harbour, while 
 the day consisted of eight hours only. Firemen got 
 £10, and trimmers £8 per month, with overtime in 
 addition like the sailors. And, in justice to them, 
 it must be said that they seemed to value their privi- 
 leges, and did not behave in the senseless way that 
 deep-water sailors usually do. They spent a lot of 
 money on dress and theatre-going, it is true ; but many 
 
2G2 2IIE LOG OF A SEA WAIF. 
 
 of them owned house-property or land. Nor was their 
 life a hard one. There was none of that tremendous 
 drive and tear seen on the American coast, where high 
 wages are paid — as if the officers are determined to get 
 the last ounce of energy out of every man because he 
 was well paid. No ; take it all round, it was the most 
 comfortable sea-service that ever I saw or heard of, and 
 I never ceased to wonder at it, or imagine that it was 
 much too good to last. From all reports that have 
 reached me of late years, my ideas on the latter point 
 seem to have been well founded, for I hear that neither 
 pay nor conditions of service are in any degree com- 
 parable with what then obtained. 
 
 As for me, I led a gentleman's life. Called at 
 daylight to take in the lamps, I was ablo to finish all 
 my work before ten a.m., and from thenceforward I 
 was my own master. So heavily did the time hang 
 when at sea, that I took in washing from both sailors 
 and firemen at the rate of three shillings and sixpence 
 per dozen, and thus earned a lot of extra money. 
 Unfortunately, I had :io ideas of thrift ; and so, although 
 I must have been in receipt of at least thirty shillings 
 weekly, I never saved a penny. My earnings used to 
 leak away as if all my pockets were sieves. But, on 
 the other hand, the comfortable life, abundance of good 
 food, and freedom from ill-usage, had such an effect 
 upon my hitherto puny body, that I began to look and 
 feel as if I was capable of doing a good day's work, 
 and should, therefore, not now be ashamed to ask for 
 employment. I no longer felt like a sailor, nor did 
 the prospect of a return to the old life ever enter my 
 head — in fact, I am afraid I never thought of the future 
 
PROSrEIilTY PALLS UPON ME. 2G3 
 
 nt all. My life was very pleasant; and there was 
 nobody in the world who cared a row of pins what 
 became of me — what more natural than that I should, 
 like any other pampered animal, live contentedly in the 
 present ? 
 
 Oar usual trip was between Sydney and Melbourne, 
 and it generally occupied from eight to ten days. Any- 
 thing more delightful than the ordinary run along the 
 coast would be hard to imagine. I got to know every 
 landmark between the two ports as intimately as one 
 knows the route between his work and his own street- 
 door. But, although I was always interested in the 
 Australian scenery, I felt delighted to hear one trip that 
 we were bound to Auckland next voyage. I had heard 
 so much of New Zealand that I had got to regard it as 
 a sort of fairy-land — a group of Islands of the Blest. 
 "We left Sydney on Christmas Eve for our Auckland trip, 
 much to the disgust of everybody on board except 
 myself ; but as we carried the mails no delay could be 
 allowed. The next day we were, of course, out of sight 
 of land, steering straight across that stretch of fhe 
 Pacific that lies between Australia and New Zealand; 
 the sea was like a lake of glowing oil, and the sky a 
 fleckless dome of deepest blue, with one mighty globe of 
 molten gold hanging in its midst. Festivities began 
 early — so early, indeed, that by dinner-time some of the 
 fellov/s were getting very frivolous. There was a Gar- 
 gantuan feed, of course ; and, after that— well, it was 
 surely expecting too much of human nature to suppose 
 that steam would or could bo kept up as usual. At 
 any rate it wasn't. It went down, down, down until, 
 by four p.m., the propeller was just feebly revolving, the 
 
 
2G4 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 vessel making no more than two knots at the outside. 
 By dusk I verily believe that the only two sober males 
 on board were the captain and myself. Drunkenness 
 reigned supreme in saloon, stokehold, and forecastle. 
 By-and-by the screw stopped altogether, and we lay 
 almost motionless. A few of the more vigorous revellers 
 made spasmodic efforts to " keep it up ; " but gradually 
 the "fun" fizzled out, and general sleep succeeded. 
 How long it lasted I don't know, for I turned in as 
 usual ; but in the morning she was going again, though 
 at no great speed it is true. The only redeeming 
 feature about the whole orgie was the absence of 
 quarrelling. General good-humour prevailed every- 
 where on board, and not a word was said in recrimi- 
 nation after the resumption of work. A day late, wo 
 sighted the Three Kings — those solitary rocks off the 
 north point of New Zealand that stand up so sternly 
 out of the blue waste about them. When we made 
 them out, it was in the tremulous lovely light of dawn — 
 beautiful beyond expression in those latitudes — and their 
 rugged outlines stood out sharply against the tenderly 
 tinted sky, through that lucent atmosphere, like the 
 shadows cast by an electric beam. Then, as the sun 
 sprang into the smiling heaven, they were gilded, and 
 became like some fantastic ruin in black marble fringed 
 with fiery rays and floating on a sea of many-coloured 
 flame. A few hours* run brought us to the Gulf of 
 Hauraki, up which we steamed amidst some of the most 
 beautiful scenery in the world. As w^e glided onward 
 to where, apparently, a huge mountain completely 
 blocked up the apex of the gulf, a lovely island was 
 pointed out to me on tho starboard hand as the earthly 
 
 J 
 
FliOSPEIilTY PALLS UPON ME. 265 
 
 paradise of Sir George Grey— Tiri-tiri. Here I was 
 told it was his custom to receive troops of his Maori 
 friends, and entertain them for days, minghng with 
 them without the shghtest consciousness of any differ- 
 ence of rank or colour between him and them. No 
 wonder they loved him, and will hand his memory 
 down to their remotest descendants as the great white 
 chief who loved them and justice. 
 
 Nearer and nearer we drew to Eangitoto, the 
 frowning peak that loomed heavily right in our path. 
 At last, when within a very short distance of it, wo 
 made a sharp turn, and, skirting a reef that extended 
 some distance from its base, we presently opened up 
 Auckland Harbour, which, if not so picturesque as its 
 approaches might have led one to expect, had all the 
 merits that a good harbour should have — pre-eminently, 
 
 " the chief one of being safe with all winds. In a few 
 minutes we were alongside the wharf, and besieged by 
 an eager crowd who had been anxiously awaiting us, 
 as we were 3o much over our time. As was my con- 
 stant habit, 1 began at once to inquire as to the fishing 
 possibilities of the place, learning, to my intense delight, 
 that the harbour literally swarmed with fish of all 
 kinds, and that even from the wharf they could be 
 
 ' caught in enormous quantities. That settled my spare- 
 time occupation for me. During our tbree visits to the 
 city, although our stay lasted a week each time, I only 
 went "up town" twice, and then strictly on business. 
 
 * My beloved sport claimed all my attention. For some 
 reason, perhapii to avoid accidents, the authorities did 
 not permit fishing from the wharf in working hourr. 
 So at daylight, enthusiastic fishermen like myself 
 
M'f 266 TEE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF, 
 
 "would gather along its lee edge, where the furious 
 current boiled and bubbled around the piles, and eagerly 
 try to **jag" a few of the tiny mackerel that clustered 
 in shoals wherever there was an eddy. As soon as one 
 was caught he would be impaled on a large hook, 
 fastened to the end of a long, stout line, and cast out 
 into the current without any other gear attached. As 
 the line "slithered"' through one's fingers, an eager 
 watch was kept where the bait might be expected to be. 
 Presently, like a bar of dilver, a huge fish would leap 
 into the air, and it was pull for your life. There was 
 no finesse, no sport, in the angler's sense of the term, 
 but I doubt if any angler ever enjoyed his fishing more 
 than I did. This particular kind of fishing, however, 
 always had to cease at six o'clock, that is, when work 
 began. At other times I fished on the bottom from 
 the ship, and was often at a serious loss to know what 
 to do with the enormous numbers I caught. But even 
 , * then I did not realize how vast were the shoals of fish 
 in the harbour, until one day I took an oar in a boat 
 conveying a pleasure party from our vessel down the 
 bay. When near the reef which fringed Eangitoto 
 Mountain, the numbers of kauwhai (a fish much like an 
 overgrown mullet, and averaging four or five pounds in 
 weight) were so great, that each dip of the oar slew 
 them until the water around us was reddened with their 
 blood. They were a fish of most delicate flavour, and 
 would have commanded a high price in any civilized 
 fish-market. But the people of Auckland seemed quite 
 indifferent to the piscatorial advantages they enjoyed. 
 
 So in this pleasant, easy-going fashion the months 
 passed away, until one day we_ loffc Sydney for 
 
 •^ i 
 
 
PROSPERITY PALLS UPON ME. 207 
 
 Melbourne in the teeth of a southerly gale. It was hope- 
 less to expect that we should make any progress ; but 
 I was told, that because we had the mails on board, wo 
 were bound to **show willing." We managed to get 
 round the South Head, and there we stuck ; the engines 
 doggedly pounding away, green seas coming over all, 
 passengers all sea-sick, and we not gaining an inch 
 against the fierce wind that roared up from its icy breed- 
 ing place in the Antarctic regions. At last the * ' governor ' ' 
 carried away, and all attempts to repair it were in- 
 effectual. This, coupled with the fact that night was 
 coming on, determined our skipper to run back and 
 anchor in Watson's Bay, just behind the North Head, 
 for shelter. The word was given, and she spun round 
 as if rejoicing to be freed from the enormous strain 
 she had been undergoinf^. As we drew rapidly near the 
 mouth of the harbour the sight was one of the grandest 
 conceivable. From the summit of the North Head — 
 a gigantic cliff over four hundred feet high — fountains 
 of spray shot up forty or fifty feet into the air, the 
 incalculable pressure of those tremendous waves, rolling 
 up against it from their thousand-league journey, having 
 forced the reluctant sea upwards through the interstices 
 of that massy cliff to such a stupendous height. We 
 flew in through the entrance and immediately all was 
 still. As we rounded to in the quiet little bu.y and 
 dropped anchor, it was almost impossible to realize 
 what a tormented waste of boiling sea we had just left, 
 since here we lay perfectly motionless, without a ripple 
 on the waters around. As it was dusk I prepared the 
 ** riding-lamp," which is always suspended from the 
 fore-rigging of a vessel at anchor ; but, for some stupid 
 
268 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 reason of my own, I did not place it in its position. 
 Then T forgot all about it. The captain was the first 
 to discover its absence, and, blowing his whistle for the 
 chief officer, he reproved him sternly for his inattention 
 to this important detail. Smarting at this, the mate 
 called me and asked why I had not put the light up. 
 I made some idiotic excuse, telling him that it was 
 already lighted and awaited his orders. He was almost 
 speechless with rage ; but controlled himself so far that 
 he presently said calmly, " Well, go and hang it up." 
 I did so promptly, and soon thought no more about 
 it. There was just this shade of excuse for me — that 
 I had never been anchored in a fairway before, since 
 I had been a lamp -trimmer, except up the Clarence 
 River, and there the gangway-lamp sufficed. 
 
 We resumed our voyage on the morrow, and re- 
 turned to Sydney without incident worth rememberiEg 
 On the first morning after our arrival the mate called 
 me, and, giving me the balance of my month's money, 
 discharged me. Not a word was said, but I felt sure 
 of the reason, and did not feel sufficiently courageous 
 to try and appease him. Nevertheless I was very sore, 
 for I knew that, while I had had one of the best ships 
 on the coast, I had also done my work thoroughly 
 well, for over and over again the mate had commended 
 me upon it. I slunk ashore like a beaten dog, not 
 caring what became of me, and, returning to my old 
 lodgings at the shoemaker's, set about spending my 
 little stock of cash in reckless fashion. It did not 
 last long, of course, and I was soon fain to look for 
 a ship ; but, strange to say, I hadn't the heart to try 
 lor another berth as a lamp-trimmer. It suddenly 
 
PROSPERITY PALLS UPON ME. 269 
 
 occurred to me that I would like to go "home" again. 
 That is one of the most incomprehensible things 
 imaginable to me. Never, during the first thirteen 
 years of my life at sea, did I have any home in England, 
 or one friendly face to welcome me back there. Yet, 
 however well I was treated in foreign countries or in 
 the Australasian colonies, I always felt a longing to 
 get back to my own country again; and the sight of 
 my home-land never failed to make a lump come 
 in my throat and raise a feeling of wordless love for 
 her in my breast. Why a homeless waif should thus 
 love his native land, I do not profess to understand ; 
 but it is a solid fact, and one that has to be reckoned 
 with, since I do not for a moment suppose that I am 
 any different to the ordinary run of people. 
 
 In consequence of this strange longing to see the 
 white cliffs of England once more, I neglected the 
 intercolonial steamers altogether, and spent much of 
 my time hanging about Circular Quay watching the 
 proceedings on board the splendid clipper-ships that 
 lay in that beautiful cove discharging their outward 
 cargoes of merchandise, or filling their capacious holds 
 with the wool, tin, copper, and meat of the Colonies 
 for transhipment to the mother country. But, owing 
 to a diffidence that has always afflicted me, I did not 
 venture on board any of them to ask whether my 
 services were required, although I was now a sturdy 
 youngster, well able to do a day's work and looking 
 like it. One day, as I was prowling round one of the 
 outlying wharves, I got into conversation with a burly 
 Londoner, who was second mate of an old barque lying 
 therO; apparently waiting for freight, which was not 
 
 t.^ 
 
 k 
 
270 TEE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF, 
 
 forthcoming for any such out-of-date craft as she was. 
 This individual informed me that his ship was in want 
 of two ordinary seamen, and that if I would go to a 
 certain hotel {Anglicef public-house) in the vicinity, 
 I should find the skipper there, and that he would 
 probably engage me at once if I was willing. This 
 was by no means the kind of ship that I had purposed 
 going home in; but I was heartily weary of being 
 ashore doing nothing (my money was all gone), so I 
 turned my steps towards the skipper's haunt at once. 
 I found it without any difficulty — indeed, the place 
 was fairly well known to me by sight — and, entering, 
 I inquired of a red-faced man (Vf ho, in his shirt-sleeves, 
 with unbuttoned vest, was leaning over the bar from 
 the inside, smoking a "churchwarden" pipe) if he 
 could tell me where I might be likely to find Captain 
 Bunker. He turned a liquorish eye upon me, and 
 murmured, between the puffs of smoke, ** What might 
 ye be wantin' of him?" "I'll tell him when I see 
 him," was my ready reply; at which he removed his 
 pipe and laughed most unmusically, much to my 
 annoyance, as I did not feel like being made game 
 of. At last he said, "I'm Captain Bunker, m' lad; 
 whadjer want of me?" For a moment I stared at 
 him incredulously; and then, the conviction dawning 
 on me that he was speaking the truth, I told him 
 my errand. Immediately he assumed a magisterial 
 air, and began to cross-examine me as to my qualifi- 
 cations, etc. My replies being satisfactory, he then 
 tried to cut me down in the wages. But I held out 
 for three pounds per month, and, strange to say, 
 succeeded in getting his consent to give it to me ; but 
 
PROSPERITY PALLS UPON ME, 
 
 271 
 
 not before he assured me that, if I couldn't fulfil what 
 he was pleased to call the duties of an ordinary seaman, 
 he would stop my pay altogether. As, in addition to 
 my confidence in my own abilities, I knew that ho 
 was talking nonsense, I made no complaint about this ; 
 and he drew me a glass of ale to clinch the bargain. 
 Then he told me I might go on board and consider 
 myself one of the crew, and that ho would ** sign me 
 on " with the other new hands in a day or two. 
 
 ^■4- 
 
 V 
 
 0' 
 
 ^ 
 
 •I . "■. 
 
 ,♦^•■''■ 
 
 ^; 
 
 ■4^ 
 
272 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 ANOTHER QUEER SHIP. 
 
 Having thus Batisfaclorily arranged for my future 
 during some months, at all events, I lost no time in 
 getting on board my new ship, finding her fairly com- 
 fortable, although the crew's quarters were under the 
 top-gallant forecastle — that abominable place that no 
 men should ever be housed in. She was called the 
 Harroivhy, a barque of some five hundred tons, and, 
 as nearly as I could judge, about twenty years old. 
 She had been absent from England nearly two years, 
 having been running backwards and forwards between 
 the Colonies and Mauritius for some time, and was 
 now, in the absence of any other freight offering, going 
 in ballast to Rangoon for a cargo of rice to the United 
 Kingdom. Of her original crew but half was left : the 
 captain, mate, and second mate aft, two apprentices, 
 the carpenter, and three seamen [forward. The mate 
 was a tall, wiry, red-headed Cumberland man, stern 
 and morose, but a good seaman, and inflexibly just. 
 The second mate was so fat and easy-going that he 
 looked more like an East-end Jew tailor than a sailor ; 
 but he was a very jolly fellow, knowing his business well, 
 and thoroughly independent, so that he stood not the 
 
ANOTHER QUEER SHIP. 273 
 
 slightest in awe of his superior officers, but did pretty 
 much as he liked. The two apprentices were gentle- 
 manly lads, whose parents had paid heavy premiums 
 for their indentures in this old tub, where they were 
 just loblolly boys, at every one's beck and call, no one 
 pretending to teach them anything, and kept on pre- 
 cisely the same level as the crew, except that they had 
 a little pigstye of a berth to themselves beside the 
 carpenter's in a house on deck. Poor lads ! they were 
 bitterly disillusioned, and full of projects for showing 
 up this shameful neglect when they got home again. 
 At this time one of them was acting as cabin-boy, and 
 the other was playing at cook, with such casual direction 
 as he could get from Hansen, an old Danish seaman. 
 But, generally speaking, the hands went ashore to 
 dinner and chalked their bills up to the skipper's 
 account. The old carpenter was a philosopher in his 
 way. Nobody interfered with him, and he just muddled 
 along from day to day, finding himself enough work 
 to keep him from being actually idle, and coming 
 forrard every evening for a smoke and a yarn with 
 old Hansen, who, with a lanky Irishman and a pimply 
 faced young cockney, formed for the present the whole 
 of the crew forrard. 
 
 To my amazement I learned that for nearly a 
 fortnight the vessel had been ready for sea, but the old 
 man was so enamoured of his snug quarters behind the 
 bar of the little pub, that he could not tear himself 
 away. Nobody seemed to care very much. They killed 
 time in a variety of ways, making believe to do some 
 work, but principally occupied in ** dodging Pompey." 
 This state of things was broken into by my advent. 
 
 X 
 
274 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 Whether the act of engaging me had recalled Cai)tain 
 Bunker to a sense of his duty or not, I cannot tell ; but 
 in the course of a couple of days we were joined by an 
 elderly Yankee A.B., rejoicing in the name of Oliver 
 Peck, an ex-mounted policeman, whom we always called 
 Joe; a tall, merry Suffolk man, who was the very 
 incarnation of good-humour ; a white-faced Scotchman, 
 who said he had been chief cook of a huge steamship 
 called the Mikado, and had just shipped with us as 
 cook to work his passage home; another ordinary 
 seaman, like myself a Londoner, but twice the man I 
 was ; and a delicate, artful little fellow, about my own 
 age, who shipped as cabin-boy. Now we had a full 
 crew, and soon the skipper made his appearance on 
 board, marching us up to the shipping-office with him 
 in great pomp and putting us all on the articles. 
 Having once broken the spell that had bound him to 
 the pub, he kept free, remaining on board that night, 
 and hauling off into the channel at daylight ready to 
 sail. But while we were actually getting under way 
 a boat came alongside, bearing a lady in deep mourning 
 and an official, who mounted the side, and solemnly 
 presenting the skipper with a piece of stamped paper, 
 informed him that he had come to stop the ship until 
 all charges due to Mrs. Blank, landlady of the St. 
 Margaret's Hotel, for board, lodging, and refreshments 
 supplied, had been settled. The old man made a ghastly 
 attempt to smile, but the thing was too palpable. 
 Besides, all his crew were witnesses of his attempt to 
 pay the widow with the ** foretopsail sheet," as sailors 
 say, and, hugely as they enjoyed the spectacle, he 
 looked as if he had been suddenly attacked by cholera 
 
ANOTHER QUEER SHIP. 275 
 
 inorhns. There was no help for it ; he had to pay up, 
 although how he did it I don't know. At any rate he 
 succeeded in satisfying the bailiff, who bade him an 
 elaborate farewell and descended to the boat, where the 
 widow was volubly holding forth, in our delighted hear- 
 ing, upon the many delinquencies of our skipper. The 
 news of the settlement of her claim only seemed to 
 add fuel to her fire, and, as long as she was within 
 hearing, she continued to favour us with a minute 
 account of the many acts and deeds of meanness of 
 which Captain Bunker had been guilty. As the shrill 
 sounds grew fainter, I could not help thinking that it 
 was an inauspicious commencement for our voyage ; 
 and, in accordance with an old mental trick of mine, 
 began to run over in my mind the probable state of my 
 feelings had I been in the skipper's place. There was 
 quite a little spell of silence after the boat's departure, 
 during which all hands looked first at one another and 
 then at the rubicund face of the skipper, which bore a 
 peculiar vacant smile, but not the slightest symptom 
 of shame. At last the uneasy quiet was broken by 
 the harsh voice of Mr. Messenger, our chief, shouting, 
 ** Man the windlass ! " In an instant we were all busy 
 again, and did not cease our labours until the old 
 barque, under all canvas, was gliding gently down the 
 beautiful bay towards the wide Pacific. ^ -^ 
 
 At first my hopes were high that we should be going 
 north about, for, in addition to a strong desire to avoid 
 the unpleasantness inseparable from working to the 
 westward through the Great Australian Bight, I was 
 anxious to see something of the East Indifin Archi- 
 pelago. But the thought of Torres Straits, with its 
 
276 TEE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 intricacies anJ baffling currents, was evidently too much 
 for Captain Bunker's courage or confidence in his navi- 
 gating ability, for we made the best of our way to the 
 southward as soon as we were well cleai of the Heads. 
 At the picking of watches I found myself, much to my 
 satisfaction, under the second mate, who seemed to 
 have some little liking for me as his townsman. My 
 watch-mates were the Yankee, Oliver, the ex-policeman, 
 and the Suffolker. As I could steer, and, except for 
 being rather a light weight on a rope, was well up to 
 my work, we felt pretty well manned on our side. But 
 the mate's watch came worse off, as their *' ordinary " 
 could not steer. Oh, it was weary work after my late 
 life of ease ! The deadly slowness of our progress, too, 
 down the coast I had been used to skirt with the regu- 
 larity of a railway-train, was hard to bear. And, in 
 addition to all this, I soon found that my poor three 
 pounds a month was rankling in the skipper's mind, 
 and he was determined to try and reduce it if possible. 
 I got a friendly hint or two from the second mate, who, 
 although he liked me well enough, certainly did not 
 intend to openly side with me against the old man. In 
 most matters, it is true, he treated the skipper with 
 such scant courtesy that I was amazed, but he put in 
 no word of backing for me. A fortnight passed away, 
 and we had all fairly shakeu down into sea-life, while I, 
 by strenuous efforts, had managed to recall all my 
 previous experience and use it, with the added benefit 
 of my additional strength. What troubled me most were 
 the stun'sails. Studding-sails, as the word should be 
 spelt, are the betes noires of seamen. Modern vessels 
 have practically discarded them, happily for their 
 
ANOTBER QUEER SHIP, 277 
 
 crews ; but such vessels as the TIarrowhy cling to them 
 as long as they live. They are temporary sails, which 
 in fair weather are set at the ends of some of the yards, 
 thereby extending the spread of canvas (when they are 
 carried on both sides) to nearly double its normal 
 width. They are set by means of booms, which slide 
 along in two hoops screwed into bands on the yards. 
 These booms vary in size, of course, with the ship, 
 and also with the height at which they are carried ; 
 but even a top-gallant stun'sail-boom, the size of an 
 average scaffold-pole, which has to be rigged out by 
 one man, or even a boy, is a quite heavy enough 
 piece of timber to have loose on your hands, or hand 
 (since you must hold on), while swaying on a footrope 
 some eighty or ninety feet above the deck. Then 
 the sails themselves, with their complicated gear, re- 
 quire deft handling to get them adjusted in their lofty 
 positions, and as the upper ones need to be taken into 
 the tops, there is some fancy gymnastic work involved 
 in handling them, which generally falls to the boys. 
 But when they are set, if there is any wind worth men- 
 tioning, and the vessel does not steer well, the helmsman 
 has a bad time, for their gear being necessarily slight 
 and simple, catching them aback is apt to bring them 
 down by the run in a raffle of ropes, torn canvas, and 
 splintered booms. These delights on a dark, wet night 
 cannot be explained ; they must be endured to be 
 appreciated. No doubt a ship with stun'sails set below 
 and aloft, flying along with a steady breeze just abaft 
 the beam, the golden sunlight glancing on her canvas, 
 and making her look like a mountain of snow, while 
 the sparkling wavelets leap around her or are churned 
 
278 THE LOO OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 into lovely wreaths of dazzling foam by tho eager sheer 
 of her cutwater, makes a magnificent picture, and one 
 that will be soon only seen in pictures. But when one 
 remembers the cruel toil and deadly danger attached to 
 these *' flying kites," as sailors term them, one can 
 only feel devoutly thankful that their day is done. 
 Unfortunately, in the Harroiohy we were continually 
 harassed by these wretched things, which was the more 
 aggravating as she was a dull sailer, to whom they 
 made not a shadow of difference as far as any accelera- 
 tion of her speed went. But wo accepted them grum- 
 blingly, as sailors do any other crook in their never 
 very straight lot. Nevertheless I felt pretty sure that, 
 sooner or later, I should suffer in some severe way from 
 them, and the fulfilment of my forebodings was not 
 long delayed. We got a heavy breeze from the north- 
 east off Cape Leeuwin, and the skipper, laudably 
 anxious to get round that awkward corner and up north 
 into finer weather, carried on all the sail the old barky 
 could stagger under, including topmast and lower 
 stun'sails. Now the Harroivhy steered none too well at 
 the best of times, for she was fitted with the old- 
 fashioned chain and barrel steering-gear, that made a 
 two hours' trick at the wheel a fairly stiff ordeal for a 
 youngster like me. By dint of the hardest trying, 
 however, I had managed so far to get along without 
 more than an occasional growl from the skipper to the 
 effect that I was making a devilish bad course. At last, 
 on the night in question, I came aft at four bells, fully 
 equipped in oilskins, for it was raining as well as 
 blowing. As I reached to take the spokes from Oliver, 
 he muttered, " Yew'd better shed them oilskins, er ehe'lJ 
 
ANOTUEIi QUEER 8IIJF, 270 
 
 sweat yer hull soul out. She's kickin' like a broncho.'* 
 I took his advice, i^reforring to get "wct than to bo 
 hampered by too many coverings at such a task. It 
 was as diirk as the inside of a coal-sack, so that there 
 was nothing to steer by but the compass and the 
 ** feel " of the wheel, which every sailor knows is 
 not conducive to keeping a straight course, as the 
 compass, however lively, never moves at the same 
 moment the ship's head does, and consequently you 
 can't meet her with the helm as quickly as when the 
 stars or clouds are visible and indicate her slightest 
 movement. Besides, the "old man" was on dock, 
 and, before I had time to get into her present peculi- 
 arities, he was at me with, "Now, then! mind y'r 
 weather helium. "Where th' hell er ye goin* with the 
 
 ship ? Meet her — meet her ! D n your eyes, meet 
 
 her ! Goin' to sleep — er what ? " and so on. I might 
 have done fairly well but for this brutal nagging ; but 
 now I certainly steered badly, and the thought of 
 wiping her up into the wind and bringing all that 
 raffle of stun'sails and gear down about the ears of 
 the watch on deck made me as nervous as a cat. 
 However, I sculled her along bomohow — about two 
 points each way, I reckon — the " old man " keeping 
 up a running commentary all the time, until sud- 
 denly, along came a howling big sea, hitting her on 
 the weather-quarter and sending a dense mass of 
 spray right over the quarter-deck, drenching my tor- 
 mentor and twisting her up into the wind till the 
 weather-leech of the lower stun'sails began to flap. 
 Down sprang the second mate to my assistance, and 
 hove the wheel up so that she sp'-;\ off the wind again 
 
280 TEE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF, 
 
 like a weather-cock. "Ob, we can't have any more 
 
 of this ! " yelled the old man. *' That fellow's 
 
 no good. 'Nother hand to the wheel ! " " 'Nothe,r hand 
 to the wheel ! " roared the second mate ; and I declare 
 I wasn't sorry, though my pride was sorely hurt at 
 the injustice of the thing. The Suffolker came aft, 
 good-humoured as was his wont, and smiled pleasantly 
 as he took the wheel from my clammy hands. He 
 favoured me with a sly wink, too, as much as to say, 
 "Now you'll see some fun!" As I w^ent forrard along 
 the lee alley-way, the old man followed me, saying, 
 "I'll log ye to-morrow. I'll show ye how ter come 
 aboard my ship on false pretences." This did my 
 business, and I turned savagely round, saying, "I 
 can steer as well as any man in the ship if I'm let 
 alone, and you know that. You only want an excuse 
 
 to stop my wages " Further remarks were drowned 
 
 in a tremendous roar of tumbling water and cracking 
 spars as the ship flew up into the wind, taking a mighty 
 mass of black sea over all, and bringing the stun'saiis 
 down v.ith a uproar truly terrific. "All hands on 
 deck ! Tumble up, there ! Shorten sail ! " screamed 
 the skipper, ffdrly dancing in his excitement. Well, 
 there was a mess, and no mistake ! It took us three 
 hours of hard struggle before we got her clear and 
 shortened down, and during that time there were as 
 many curses levelled at the old sinner as would have 
 sunk the British Navy if their weight had been pro- 
 portionate to the wishes of their utterers. For my 
 part I was speechless with delight, for I felt if ever 
 a poor fellow was vindicated promptly it was me. The 
 diversion gave us all sore bones, though; and when, 
 
ANOTHER QUEER SHIP. 281 
 
 at last, we got below, we were almost too weary to 
 growl. Stripping off our drenched rags we tumbled 
 into our bunks, and slept so soundly that the two hours 
 and a half left of our watch seemed only like five 
 minutes. I took my usual trick at the wheel again 
 without comment ; but after breakfast, to my amaze- 
 ment, I was called down into the cabin. The skipper 
 solemnly read to me an entry in the Official Logbook 
 
 to the eflfect that on the night of , in lat. — , 
 
 long. — , it haviiig been found that I could not steer, 
 I was sent from the wheel, as unfit for my work, 
 and, m consequence, my wages were reduced to one 
 pound per month. This libel was signed by the second 
 mate as a witness. I was then invited to sign it; 
 but I refused, saying that the entry was false, and 
 appealing to the second mate to support my protest. 
 He, standing behind the skipper, gave me a reassuring 
 wink which cheered me mightily, and, after bandying a 
 few more compliments with the skipper, I was told to 
 ** Get out of my cabin." The events of the past nigbt 
 were the subject of a good deal of comment forrard, 
 and the general conclusion arrived at was that the 
 old man was no good, and any deference or politeness 
 towards him might usefully be dropped in future. 
 
 But something happened that day whicli, although 
 in no wise the skipper's fault, made the feeling of 
 insubordination ten times stronger than it otherwise 
 would have b3en. Hitherto we had been living fairly 
 well upon fresh meat and vegetables, although the 
 cooking was very bad. The pasty-faced Scotchman 
 who had shipped as cook might have been cook of the 
 Mikado as he said; but, if so, he had certainly 
 
282 THE LOG OF A oEA-v AIF. 
 
 forgotten the most elementa"^ portion of his duties. 
 Having just come to an end of the fresh provisions, 
 he informed us pompously that he was going to make 
 us *'duff " to-day, "An', ma wurrd," said he, with an 
 air, ** a'll gio ye somethin' ye can eat ! Ye dinna ken 
 whatn' duff's like aboord ther win'jammers." As may 
 be imagined, we were in high glee at the prospect of 
 Buch a notable benefit as high -class duff would be. 
 The last stroke was hardly off the bell at seven bells 
 before I was at the galley with the kid, my mouth 
 watering in anticipation of this superlative duff. But 
 it strikes me that the subsequent proceedings were 
 important enough for a new chapter. 
 
 " ' . ^ ■ 
 
( 283 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 DEEP-WATER AMENITIES. 
 
 The cook stood by the galley stove, swelling with 
 conscious dignity, as of a man whose position is unas- 
 sailable — above criticism. *' Now then, cook ! " I cried, 
 " Where's that duff?" For all answer he seized his 
 "tormentors" — a sort of miniature pitchfork — and 
 began jabbing them down into the seething copper. 
 " Look out, cook 1" I said, in terror, ** you'll bust the 
 duff-bag, won't you?" No answer deigned he, but 
 presently, with a mighty heave of both hands, he pro- 
 duced a square grey mass of something unlike anything 
 edible that ever I had seen. This he dumped into the 
 kid without a word, and waved his hand to bid me 
 begone. Too much amazed to speak, I bore the ugly 
 thing into the fo'lk'sle, setting it down in the midst of 
 my expectant watch-mates, and silently retired to my 
 corner in hungry anticipation of some fun presently. 
 Joe approached the kid, knife and plate in hand, but 
 on seeing the c(>r-t<mts, drew back with a start and an 
 
 exclamacion of '* What the is that ? " ** Duff, the 
 
 cook calls it," I murmured softly. "Well, I'll be 
 
 if ever I s. . or sraelt anything like it in all my life," said 
 
284 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 lie ; "but p'raps it eats better'n it looks, so here goes." 
 So saying, lie attacked it with his knife, but only suc- 
 ceeded in removing some sodden, sloppy morsels from 
 the outside of the lump. Upon the stuff itself he could 
 make no impression; it was like a piece of indurated 
 gutta-percha. Heavens ! how he did swear. Then 
 Oliver had a try ; but in a minute he, too, was reciting 
 the commination service. For the mess was hopeless. 
 It was nothing but a mixture of flour and water, without 
 yeast or fat, which had been roughly moulded into a 
 square, and, without any covering, had been dropped 
 into a cauldron of boiling, dirty sea-water. Of course 
 it had hardened and toughened, as well as attracted to 
 itself all the suspended grime in the water, until it had 
 emerged the outrageous abomination before us. The 
 men's wrath was really too great for ordinary bad 
 language ; they wanted to kill somebody. Presently 
 Joe snatched up the kid and rushed to the galley with 
 it, but the cook had wisely retreated to the cabin. 
 Thither the furious men followed him, shouting in 
 strident tones for him to ** Come out of that ! " they 
 wanted to speak to him. Of course the old man showed 
 himself first, blustering grandly about the impudence 
 that thus invaded the holy calm of his cabin. This 
 precipitated matters, and in about a minute there was 
 a furious row. It culminated presently in Joe hurling 
 the kid and its slippery contents right into the cabin, 
 and striding forward with a savage string of oaths to 
 the effect that not another stroke would he do until he 
 got something that he could eat. Quiet reigned for a 
 brief space, until presently Harry, the cabin boy, poked 
 his nose round the fo'lk'sle door, saying with a grin, 
 
DEEP' WA TEE AMENITIES. 285 
 
 *' Cook's a'wful sorry he spiled the duff, but he's coming 
 forrard presently with a tin o' soup and bully as soon's 
 the old man's back's turned. Don't go for him, pore 
 beggar! he's nearly frightened to deth." The wrath 
 having been mostly diverted to the skipper, this pro- 
 position was not unfavourably entertained, and in due 
 time the cook sneaked forrard with a hang-dog air, a 
 huge tin of preserved soup under his apron. And so it 
 came to pass that peace was patched up for the time, 
 although this outbreak of hostilities made the way 
 plain and easy for a succession of rows, until the 
 skipper's authority was a thing of naught. To make 
 matters worse we actually fell short of provisions. 
 This was a most scandalous thing to happen, for we 
 were only six weeks out Trom Sydney, where all sorts of 
 ship's consumable stores were both excellent and cheap. 
 And we were informed by one of the apprentices that 
 he knew for a fact that the owners had ordered Captain 
 Bunker to provision the ship fully in the colonies for 
 this very reason. We were stinted in everything ; but 
 by the connivance of the cabin-boy, Harry, who used to 
 leave the pantry door unlocked, I made many a nightly 
 raid upon its contents, such as they were. Many a 
 time I had to crouch in its dark recesses, while the old 
 man, prowling about on his bare feet, was peering in 
 and inquiring querulously, *' Who's there ? I thought 
 I heard somebody ! " The instant his back was turned 
 I would bolt for the fo'lk'sle, with my cap full of sugar 
 or the breast of my jumper full of cuddy biscuits, or 
 whatever spoil was comeatable. These nocturnal depre- 
 dations were a source of endless delight to the second 
 mate. His fat sides would shake with silent laughter 
 
28G THE LOO OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 as he watched the stealthy glidings to and fro, and 
 heard the mutterings of the suspicious skipper, who 
 never dared say a wry word to him. One night, at the 
 wheel, I was telling him how savagely hungry I was, 
 when, to my amazement, he replied, *'Well, there's a 
 meat pie on the swingin' tray, why don't ye go an' 
 pinch it?" ''What?" I said in a horrified whisper, 
 " an' have the old man come out an' catch me ! Why 
 he'd put me in irons for a month." **G'way," he 
 muttered scornfully, "he'd never hear ye. No man 
 thet smokes ez much ez he does is a light sleeper. You 
 ain't got pluck enough, that's what's the matter with 
 you. Yew'd rather go hungry than run a little risk." 
 The fact was, I didn't trust him any too much, for it 
 occurred to me that it might fall in with his notions of 
 fun to see the old man come out and muzzle me in the 
 very act of embezzling that pie. His next move, how- 
 ever, completely dissipated all my fears. For he rolled 
 off the hencoop, where he had been lolling, and dis- 
 appeared below, returning in a few minutes with the 
 information that he had lashed the old man's state-room 
 door-handles together, so that he couldn't get out if he 
 did wake. I immediately resigned the wheel to him, 
 shot down into the darkness, and had that pie on deck 
 before you could count ten. I sat on the break of the 
 poop and ate it, while the second mate steered as well as 
 he could for laughing at the precipitous disappearance 
 of the pie. When I had concealed it all, I replaced the 
 empty dish on the swinging tray, and returned to the 
 wheel. Then the second mate cast adrift the lashings 
 on the door, and all resumed its normal calm, preceding 
 the hurricane at breakfast-time, when the loss was 
 
DEEP-WATER AMENITIES. 287 
 
 discovered. But there wtiS no breach of coulidence, and 
 the vanished pie took its place among the unsolved 
 mysteries of life for Captain Bunker. 
 
 As vre crept closer and closer to our port, favoured 
 by fine weather, discipline disappeared altogether as 
 far as the skipper was concerned. Work still went on 
 as usual out of deference to the officers, with whom the 
 chaps felt they had no quarrel, but if the old man 
 opened his mouth he was sure to be insulted by some- 
 body. I have not told — indeed, I dare not tell — a tithe 
 of the things that were said to him ; the only persons 
 preserving any show of deference towards him being 
 old Hansen and the boys. The officers, of course, did 
 not openly flout him — they just ignored him, while he 
 almost cringed to them. And then one day, a week 
 before our arrival off the mouth of the Irrawaddy, 
 Harry came forrard and told us something that made 
 sport for all hands for the rest of that voyage. Every- 
 body was hungry now, fore and aft, the commons being 
 woefully short. But at the usual time for taking the 
 forenoon sights for longitude, the skipper being in his 
 state-room with the' door shut, Harry went to call him, 
 supposing him to be asleep. After knocking two or 
 three times, Harry heard a muffled voice within saying, 
 *'Go away, I'm at my devotions." Such a statement 
 took Harry's breath away for a moment, but yielding 
 to an uncontrollable impulse, he stooped and peeped 
 through the keyhole. There sat Captain Bunker, a 
 square tin of biscuits between his knees, a pot of jam 
 open by his side, and his mouth bulging with the 
 delicate food. Harry had seen enough; and in ten 
 minutes it was all over the ship. From that time 
 
288 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF, 
 
 forward, *' Don't disturb me, I'm at my devotions," 
 was beard wbenever it was possible to drag it in, until 
 tbe monotonous repetition of the phrase became weari- 
 some as a London catch- word. It annoyed the skipper 
 almost to madness ; but that only gave delight to the 
 men, who felt that at last they had got hold of a cheap 
 and effective way of repaying him for the hardships 
 they were enduring through him. 
 
 We were favoured with splendid weather, although 
 the north-east monsoon, being almost "dead on end " — 
 that is, blowing right from the direction in which we 
 had to go — made our progress exasperatingly slow ; and 
 as the scanty stock of bad provisions got lower and 
 lower the gloomiest anticipations prevailed. But we 
 managed to reach Elephant Point before we were quite 
 starved, and with the utmost joy received a white pilot 
 on board, who, finding that he was likely to hunger if 
 he had to make any lengthened stay with us, used all 
 his skill to get us into port quickly. There were some 
 fine screw-tugs plying on the Irrawaddy, but, of course, 
 we could not avail ourselves of their assistance, the 
 towage being enormously high, and our old man most 
 anxious to curtail expenses to balance his waste in 
 other directions. So we were treated to an exhibition 
 of backing and filling up the river on the flood, just 
 as the old Geordie colliers do to this day up the Thames : 
 a feat of seamanship requiring a great deal of skill 
 for its successful accomphshment. Of course the tide 
 will carry a vessel up the river, but it is necessary 
 to keep her under control, and, with the wind blow- 
 ing straight down the river, the only way of doing 
 this is to stand across the stream, say on the starboard 
 
LEEF- WATER AMENITIES. 289 
 
 tack, with all sails full ; then, when as far as possible 
 has been sailed, to haul the yards aback, and go stem 
 foremost back again. In this manner we worked up 
 the noble stream, finding ourselves at the turn of the 
 tide within a few miles of our destination, at a spot 
 known as Monkey Point. Here we anchored for the 
 night, the rushing of the swift ebb past us keeping up 
 a continual undertone of energy, and straining our 
 cable out taut as if we were stemming a gale. All 
 manner of bloodthirsty ir^ sects boarded us in battalions, 
 lured in our direction, doubtless, by the smell of fresh 
 supplies of food, and through their united efforts we 
 spent a most miserable night. So much were wc 
 tormented, that when daylight called us to resume our 
 journey we were languid and worn-out, hardly able to 
 tear the anchor from its tremendous hold upon the 
 thick, elastic mud forming the bed of the river. We got 
 under way at last, however, and then another couple 
 of hours brought us up to the anchorage off the city, 
 where a great fleet of steamers and ships lay loading 
 rice, mostly for India, for the relief of a famine which 
 was then raging. 
 
 We moored with an anchor ahead and another 
 astern, as is usual in crowded anchorages, so that the 
 vessel, as I have before explained, swings round and 
 round as if moored to a post, taking up little more 
 room than her own length. In many respects this was 
 the strangest place that I had yet visited, the pointed 
 spires of the numerous pagodas rising out of the dense 
 leafage giving the city a truly Eastern appearance, 
 while the lofty shining summit of the great pagoda domi- 
 nated everything else. As soon as the work of furling 
 
 u 
 
290 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 sails and clearing up dcclcs was done — as tlie skipper 
 had hurried ashore — we were allowed the remainder of 
 the day to rest, and, rigging up an r.wning over the fore- 
 castle, we proceeded to enjoy ourselves. Here the boats 
 are propelled by the boatmen in exactly the same way 
 as a gondola is, and the way those fellows managed their 
 cumbrous craft in the swift current was something 
 compelling all our admiration. The native vessels, too, 
 that came majestically gliding down from far up countr}"" 
 laden with rice for shipment, were the most interesting 
 that I had yet seen. They wero of largo size, some 
 of them carrying fifty tons of cargo, and roofed in by 
 a deeply slanting covering of bamboo mats to protect 
 the cargo. Both stern and bow rose in a graceful curve, 
 while the stem often towered high in air — a perpendi- 
 cular beam of teak most richly carved into elaborate 
 designs of the quaintest and most eerio character. A 
 tiny deck aft accommodated the steersman, who with 
 great effort manipulated a gigantic oar working through 
 a hole in the stern, also richly carved and decorated 
 in some cases with gilding. But the men— the yellow, 
 almond-eyed Burmese — not satisfied with the prodigious 
 amount of labour expended on the adornment of their 
 craft, decorated their own bodies so elaborately that it 
 was difficult to understand however they could have 
 borne the tedium of the tattooing, to say nothing of the 
 pain. No people in the world carry the practice of 
 tattooing to auch artistic lengths as the Burmese 
 universally do. Every man we saw had a magnificent 
 series of designs covering his trunk to the waist, 
 executed in vermilion, and representing flowers, animals, 
 and graceful whorls filling in any spaces too small to 
 
DEEP' WATER AMENITIES. 291 
 
 allow of anythiug else being tattooed there. From 
 the waist to the knees they were tattooed in blue, the 
 designs being plainer and not so artistic as above. 
 They were a jolly, cheerful lot; but dignified, too, 
 having none of the exuberance of the negro about them. 
 Just across the river, 02)posite to where we lay, 
 was a great saw-mill, where a herd of a dozen elephants 
 were gravely occupied in drawing teak-logs from rafts 
 in the water up through the mud, and piling them 
 in stacks well above high-water mark. They worked 
 in couples, and seemed to need no directing what to 
 do. Two or three natives lounged about among them ; 
 but every effort they made was apparently the result 
 of their own initiative as far as could be seen. They 
 worked in couples — sedately, ponderously ; but the 
 sum-total of their labour was quite in keeping with 
 their huge bulk. One enormous beast was apparently 
 the foreman (our fellows called him the bo'sun). He 
 roamed about leisurely, bearing in his trunk a couple 
 of yards of massive chain, which he flourished now 
 and then as if it were a scourge which he would use 
 upon his toiling charges should he see fit to encourage 
 them to more strenuous effort. But as we stared at 
 the strange sight with intense interest, there was a 
 jet of steam from the mill a deep whistle sounded, 
 and on the instant every elephant dropped whatever 
 he had in his trunk and, with quickened steps, made 
 for his quarters. It was " knock-off time." 
 
 Work proceeded in a very easy-going fashion, for 
 the captain had taken up his quarters on shore and 
 did not return for several days, being supposed by 
 all of us to have entered upon a steady course of spree. 
 
292 THE LOO OF A SEA-WAlF. 
 
 Wo got the hold ready to receive the cargo, and did 
 Buch other duties as were required of us, without any 
 undue strain upon our energies, while our bumboatman 
 kept us well supplied with oil auch luxuries, in the 
 way of fruit, soft-tack, eggs, etc., as sailors delight 
 in in Indian ports. Matters proceeded in this way 
 until one day an order came off from the skipper 
 that an anchor-watch must bo kept. This meant that, 
 instead of one man keeping watch all night, and being 
 free from any other duty, every man must take one 
 hour's watch in addition to his day's work. Now, this 
 sort of vigil is only kept during a temporary anoliorage, 
 never as a harbour duty; and, consequently, there was 
 an instant refusal to obey unless the day's work was 
 shortened. The officers, having no authority to do 
 this, refused to entertain the idea, and the result was 
 that no regular watch was kept at all. Two or three 
 nights passed until, in the midst of a tremendous storm 
 of thunder, lightning, and rain, I was roused by old 
 Hansen with the words, " Tom, id's your vatch, und 
 de olt man's 'longside, kigging up de fery teufel cause 
 dere's nopody avake." I was lying on the forecastle- 
 head under the awning, nearly stifled with the heat; 
 and, muttering a blessing upon the old man, I pulled 
 off my sole garment and sallied forth into the black, 
 steaming deluge in the costume of Adam before the 
 fall. As I reached the gangway the old man just 
 climbed on board ; and at that moment a flash of 
 lightning revealed everything as if in full noonday glare 
 — especially my shining white skin. He was just angry 
 drunk ; and the sight of me standing there, naked and 
 not ashamed, nearly made him split with rage. He 
 
DEEr-WATER AMENUIES. 293 
 
 howled like a hyena for the mate, who, startled beyond 
 measure, came rushing oiit of his cabin into the flood. 
 Turning savagely to him, the skipper, almost unintelli- 
 gibly, demanded the reason of this disgraceful state 
 of affairs— pointing to me, standing, like Lot's wife, 
 under the incessant play of the lightning. It was an 
 irresistibly funny tableau. Over the rail peered the 
 black faces and glaring eyeballs of the Hindu boatmen 
 who had brought the skipper off, their impassive faces 
 showing no sign of the wonder they must have felt at 
 these unprecedented proceedings. The hisaing down- 
 pour of rain descended pitilessly its noise almost 
 drowning the infuriated voice of Captain Bunker, who, 
 foaming with rage, be-rated the saturnine mate. Every 
 other second we were all invisible to each other — the 
 darkness engulfed us. Then a rending glare of white 
 light revealed us all again, standing as if posing for 
 our portraits. The mate tired of it first, and, turning 
 to me, said grimly, " Go an' get some close on. 
 Y'ought ter be 'slmmed o' yerself comin* aft like that." 
 I instantly retreated forrard, while the old man, still 
 raging, followed the mate as he returned to his cabin 
 without deigning a word of reply. I rigged myself 
 hurriedly and came aft again, prepared to keep the 
 rest of my watch under the poop-awning in such 
 comfort as I could. But I had hardly lit a cigar 
 (the rupee a hundred sort), and settled myself cosily 
 in the skipper's long chair, when that restless man 
 emerged from the companion and strolled towards me. 
 I did not stir — indeed, it was too late, since I was 
 caught. I could only brazen it out. At first I feared 
 his rage would choke him, for he gasped as if the 
 
294 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 flow of eloquence was literally strangling him in its 
 frantic efforts to find a vent. Suddenly he made two 
 steps toward me, gurgling as he did so, ''Git off 
 my poop or I'll kick ye down the steps ! " I sprang 
 lightly out of my seat and stood on the defensive, 
 saying nothing, but backing cautiously to the ladder, 
 v/hich I descended with my face towards him. I heard 
 no more of him afterwards, for my watch was soon 
 over, and my relief, one of the apprentices, came 
 on watch at once. Next day there was a regular 
 inquiry into the vexed anchor- watch question ; and, 
 after much heated discussion, it was arranged that 
 we should resume work one hour later each morning 
 and keep regular watch one hour each through the 
 night. As soon as this was settled our worthy chief 
 departed on shore again j and there, to our great relief, 
 he remained. 
 
( 295 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 rROCEEDINGS AT RANGOON. 
 
 Freed from the annoyance of the captain's presence, 
 "svo were by no means an unhappy crowd. Lying in 
 such a crowded anchorage there was plenty of sight- 
 seeing, and the coming and going of vessels was in- 
 cessant, owing to the demand for rice to feed the 
 famishing millions on the other side of the Bay of 
 Bengal. Besides that, we youngsters often got a run 
 ashore when the mate or second mate wanted to go up 
 town, which was pretty frequent, as there was no 
 restraint upon them. To while away the time of 
 waiting on the pier for them we used to have great fun 
 with the boatmen, who squatted there sucking their 
 eternal hubble-bubbles and chattering continually. 
 Many a queer 3'arn, in queerer gibberish, did I hear 
 from those good-natured fellows, only understanding 
 about one word in ten that they said, and averaging 
 the rest ; so that I have no doubt that a comparison 
 between my idea of a story and the story itself must 
 have been exceedingly funny. But one day, when sur- 
 rounded by a knot of Hindus, I suddenly remembered 
 that when I was quite a child I had read in Chamherss 
 Miscellany a number of stories of Hindu mythology. 
 
296 THE LOO OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 all of which ^Yere as fresh in my memory as the 
 alphabet. Accordingly I commenced to repeat the 
 "Avatar of the Fish" in such broken English, and 
 occasional native words, as I thought would best convey 
 my meaning. The effect was wonderful. Usually 
 undemonstrative, they seemed fairly startled out of all 
 their reserve, and over the ring of eager black faces 
 wave after wave of conflicting expressions chased one 
 another, while broken ejaculations burst irrepressibly 
 from their parted lips. As the well-known names of 
 Eama, Vishnu, Siva, Ganesh and Co. rolled trippingly 
 off my tongue, their delight knew no bounds ; and when 
 at last I halted for lack of breath, they were ready to 
 give mo anything they possessed. Thenceforward I 
 was a prime favourite among them. Well for me that 
 it was so, for very shortly afterwards an event happened 
 that nearly brought my career to a premature close. 
 I had been shaking hands with them all round, 
 and boy-like, had been showing off my strength by 
 squeezing their slender delicate hands in mine, extorting 
 from them all sorts of queer grimaces and expressions 
 of wonder at my strength of wrist. Presently a Mussul- 
 man joined the group. He had just come up from the 
 water, where he had been bathing, after having his poll 
 shaven. Clad only in a waist-cloth, his torso was fully 
 revealed, its splendid proportions showing a develop- 
 ment that many a pugilist would have envied. Our 
 proceedings did not appear to please him, for he wore a 
 most diabolical scowl, which, as he was anything but 
 handsome, gave me a serious disrelish for his company. 
 But suddenly, as if by an uncontrollable impulse, he 
 thrust out his hand to mc, making signs for me to try 
 
PROCEEDINGS AT liANGOON. 297 
 
 my strength on him. I would have refused, but jiride 
 forbade ; so I placed my hand in his and waited for his 
 grip, determined to show no sign even if the blood 
 should spurt from my finger-tips. We stood facing one 
 another thus for almost a minute, when, without 
 warning, he lifted my arm high, and at the same time 
 thrust me backwards towards the edge of the wharf, 
 which was thirty feet above the mud (the tide being 
 out) and totally unprotected. Another second and I 
 should have been over, when the whole crowd of boat- 
 men rushed at him, and, dragging him off me, forced 
 him to retreat up the wharf ehorewards. Mad with 
 rage I seized a log of wood and rushed after him ; but 
 the remainder of my friends surrounded me, and 
 implored me not to pursue him, as I should certainly 
 be killed. And, indeed, as soon as I cooled down some- 
 what, the justice of their contention was evident, for in 
 those tortuous alleys one might be attacked from a 
 dozen differing directions at once, and never see the 
 aggressor. Therefore I felt glad that I had not been 
 allowed to have the way my mad folly would have led 
 me, and thankfully meditated upon my undoubtedly 
 narrow escape. The affair made a deep impression 
 upon me, for it was the only time in all my experience 
 that I was ever attacked abroad. 
 
 The loading of our vessel proceeded very slowly, 
 which was not to be wondered at, since all the energies 
 of the shipping people seemed to be absorbed by the 
 demands of the big steamships that were incessantly 
 carrying rice to Calcutta because of the famine. But, 
 slow as it was, it gradually approached completion, and 
 the important question began to occupy all our minds : 
 
208 TEE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 Were we going to get any liberty or money ? Since the 
 night of the skipper's surprise-visit, we had only seen 
 him once, and that was when he retm'ned on shore the 
 next morning. The oflicers were wa^Uy approached 
 upon the subject, but they knew no more than we did 
 of the skipper's movements or intentions. At last, after 
 a prolonged council of war, it was decided tc send him 
 a letter, signed by one of the A.B.'s on behalf of the 
 restc But then the difficulty arose; who was to write 
 the important document ? Not one of the men was 
 capable of doing so — in fact, I was the letter- writer in 
 ordinary for all hands. So I was approached as to my 
 willingness to do what was required. I readily con- 
 sented, only stipulating that I should be held blameless 
 in the event of trouble ensuing. ** Oh, of course," said 
 they all, " we wouldn't let you take the blame." Well, 
 I wrote the letter, and, although I was no hand at 
 composition, I remember that it was exceedingly terse 
 and to the point. With a good deal of pride I read it 
 to the assembled conclave, and all agreed that it was a 
 model of what such a letter ought to be. But when it 
 came to signing the document, I was disgusted to find 
 that each man was anxious that some other fellow 
 should have the honour. All professed readiness to 
 take the responsibility, but when it came to putting 
 their names to paper they hung back. At last, to my 
 secret amusement, the old Dutchman, Hansen, said, 
 '' Oh, all righd, put my name to id; I tondt care for te 
 oldt man nodt a liddle pidt." It struck me at once 
 that the old fellow had no idea of the vigour of the 
 language used, but that was none of my afiair. So 
 "Hans Hansen" was appended to the letter; it was 
 
PROCEEDINGS AT RANGOON. 299 
 
 enclosed in an enveloi")0, and sent per the ** dubash " to 
 the "British Burmah Bar," where the old man was 
 living. In a perfect fever of excitement I awaited the 
 result. It was not long delayed. Shortly after dinner 
 the skipper came on board in a perfect fury, and, before 
 he had got his foot over the rail, yelled for Hansen. 
 The poor old Dutchman paddled aft, shaking like a 
 feather-vane in a gale of wind, and, when he got to 
 where the old man was standing, he looked as if his 
 legs would dou1)le up under him. Good heavens ! how 
 the skipper did rave. Seeing who he had to deal with 
 he just spread himself, so to speak, and, much to his 
 satisfaction, succeeded in scaring Hansen nearly to 
 death. Suddenly my name was called, and, in a 
 moment, I recognized that I had been given away. 
 Well, I had to face the music ; so I determined to put 
 the best face I could upon the matter, and, in any 
 case, to show no cowardice. I strolled quietly aft, and 
 received the old sinner's broadside with a perfectly 
 unmoved front. He threatened me with prison — almost 
 hanging — for the unparalleled crime I had committed ; 
 but I smiled sweetly, and, as soon as I could get in a 
 word, I told him he couldn't do anything to me at all. 
 Then he changed his tactics, and tried to wheedle me 
 into saying that the men had compelled me to write, 
 and begged me to tell him whose composition it was. 
 Having by this time grown bolder, I told him that I 
 was the author, and that I felt proud of it. This so 
 enraged him that he ran at me foaming and screaming 
 to me to get out of his cabin. But, even then, his 
 prudence did not desert him, for he never ventured to 
 strike me, and both the ofiicers remained strictly 
 
300 THE LOO OF A SEA-WAIF, 
 
 neutral. And, after all, the desired end was attained 
 for every one except myself, for the next day liberty was 
 announced, with cash to the extent of twenty rupees 
 each. But from this I was to be excluded. However, 
 after the other fellows had gone, my fellow ordinary 
 seaman and I were told by the mate that we might go 
 too, if we chose, but that he had no money to give us. 
 We had a couple of rupees between us, enough to get 
 ourselves something to eat, so we gladly availed our- 
 selves of his permission and were soon ashore. 
 
 From the first hour of our arrival I had looked with 
 longing eyes upon the mighty mass of the Golden 
 Pagoda, and never ceased hoping that I might be able 
 to see it near at hand ; and now I determined to lose no 
 time in realizing my desires. Bill wanted to go down 
 town, and hunt up some of our shipmates for the 
 purpose of borrowing a little from them; but I dis- 
 suaded him, and, after a bottle of beer each, and the 
 purchase of a fistful of cigars for the equivalent of 
 twopence, we trudged off. There was no mistaking the 
 way, for the road was broad and the pagoda itself was 
 our guide ; but I have ever since rejoiced that I did not 
 know how far it was, or I certainly should never have 
 visited it. The fierce sun glared down upon the white 
 dusty road so that it was like walking in an oven, 
 gharries and ekkas rolled tantalizingly by, and our 
 throats became like leather. But we persevered, and 
 after I am afraid to say how long, we came at last to 
 the imposing avenue of colossal black marble monsters 
 leading to the first plateau. Immensely broad flights 
 of steps led up to an enormous platform, around which 
 we roamed, bewildered by the wonderful array of 
 
FROCEEDINQS AT RANGOON. 30 1 
 
 uncouth monsters grouped everywhere. Then up more 
 steps on to another plateau from whence sprang the 
 central mass, a sort of pyramid without angles, and 
 rising in broad steps of masonry ^Yhich, flat at first, 
 gradually sloped upward until they were lost in the 
 glittering cone of the towering summit. Around the 
 base of this vast structure were small temples like 
 porticoes leading to the interior of the main building ; 
 but far as we could see, each of them was self-contained, 
 and no entrance to the central edifice was visible. I 
 made many inquiries whether that great pyramid was 
 solid, or contained chambers of any sort ; but the answers 
 I got were so conflicting that I could come to no con- 
 clusion at all. The strangest feature of the whole 
 wonderful place was the number of elaborately decorated 
 bells of all sizes which hung about, some of them on 
 the most flimsy erections. They emitted, when struck, 
 tones of the most silvery sweetness, such as I have 
 never heard from bells (except specimens from the 
 same country) before or since. And presently we 
 came upon one in a secluded corner that must be, 
 I should think, one of the largest bells in the world, 
 although I have never seen any mention of it in books 
 or articles where big bells are spoken of. It was hang- 
 ing under a sort of conical shed, suspended from a 
 gallows built of huge baulks of teak, but its lip was 
 only iibout eighteen inches off the ground. It was 
 covered with inscriptions — in Burmese, I suppose — 
 but had no other enrichment. Curious to hear its tone, 
 I struck it with a large deer-horn, of which there were 
 many lying about ; but there was no response. Harder 
 and harder I struck, until at last Bill hove a massive 
 
302 THE LOa OF A SEA-WAIF, 
 
 fragment of stone against it with all his force ; but still 
 not a sound could be heard — no, not so much as an iron 
 wall would have given back. Baffled in sampling its 
 tone, we tried to measure it roughly, and found that 
 with outstretched arms we could reach round it in four 
 times. This would make its circumference about twenty 
 feet. Then, lying flat on my back, I tried to measure 
 its thickness of metal; but my arm was not long 
 enough — it was much thicker than I could reach in 
 from outside. Its height I should estimate at twelve 
 feet; but that is very rough, since we had no pole. 
 Altogether a grandfather of bells. Gilding was going 
 on in all directions, the workmen perched upon flimsy 
 bamboo scafolding in all sorts of precarious positions ; 
 and I remember trying to calculate how much gold 
 it must take to keep so great a place brilliant. I 
 did not then know that the gold-leaf was one of 
 the principal offerings made by worshippers, although, 
 when we presently entered one of the temples, and 
 witnessed the worship, the strangeness of the proceed- 
 ings ought to have enlightened me. Yellow-garbed, 
 close-shaven Phoongyees were squatting all over the 
 pavement of the building, apparently absorbed in 
 reverent adoration of the row of idols ranged along 
 the inner end of the place. Yet, at the same time, 
 more workmen were busily engaged in gilding the idols 
 themselves — one, especially, was plastering the face of 
 the central figure with it, until it shone in that dim 
 hall like a setting sun, I was speechless with wonder 
 at what seemed such a strange mixture of irreverence 
 and worship. While I stood silently gazing at the 
 strange scene, a voice near me said, in most perfect 
 
1 SUPPOSE YOU DOK't BELIKVE IN THIS, DO YOU?' 
 
PROCEEDINGS AT RANOOON. G0:> 
 
 high-bred EngUsh, **I suppose you don't bcHevo iu 
 this, do you?" I turned sharply; and there at my 
 elbow stood a Chinaman, simply dressed in \;\).\iQ silk, 
 with purple cap and shoes. A delightful subtle scent 
 exhaled from his robes, and a gentle smile played about 
 his calm, intellectual face. In fact, *' gentleman " was 
 writ large upon him ; but I could not grasp the idea 
 that it was he who had spoken. As soon as my 
 bewilderment had passed a little, I said, "Was it you 
 that spoke just now ? " He nodded, and repeated his 
 question. "Of course not," I answered; "neither do 
 you, I should imagine ? " With the slightest possible 
 shrug of his shoulders, he said, " Why not ? I do nut 
 claim to be wiser than the myriads of my ancestors 
 whose faith it was. What sufficed them may surely 
 content me." "But," I replied eagerly, "you have 
 evidently studied in some English-speaking country, 
 and you must have read our books. Did they not alter 
 your opinions as to the wisdom of your ancestors ? " 
 " I have taken my B.A. degree at Cambridge," said he, 
 " and I am fairly conversant with Western literature ; 
 but upon religious topics I do not profess any opinions. 
 The subject is far too vast for me to attempt to take 
 up, since it would necessarily mean the exclusion of 
 all others; and I have much to do. Consequently I 
 accept unquestioningly that form of religion in which 
 I was born, taking the line of least resistance. But I 
 must bid you good day, hoping you will enjoy your 
 visit." And before I could say another word he was 
 gone. I felt very small and ignorant beside this exqui- 
 site Oriental, whose gracious manners and beautiful voice 
 have haunted me ever since, and, although I am fully 
 
304 TUE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 conscious how poor a figure I must have cut beside so 
 gifted and highly educated a man, I have never ceased 
 to regret that I did not have a longer enjoyment of 
 his pleasant company. While I still stood musing over 
 this strange encounter, a heavy hand was laid upon 
 ray shoulder, and, turning sharply round, I was con- 
 fronted by our second mate, whose ill-fitting clothes, 
 gross, animalized face and boisterous behaviour, formed 
 a complete contrast to the dainty gentleman who had 
 just quilted my side. "Hullo ! " he said with a sneer, 
 " what you doin' ere, hay? Goin' ter turn Me'omme- 
 dun ? " I made some jesting reply, looking anxiously 
 meanwhile at his cigar, and then at the silent row of 
 priests, in grave doubt as to how they might take his 
 noisy behaviour in iheir sacred building. But they 
 were apparently used to it, for they took not the 
 slightest notice. "Got 'ny money?" he queried with 
 a grin, knowing pretty well how unlikely it was. Upon 
 my telling him how poorly we were off, he kindly gave 
 me two rupees and then went on his way. 
 
 As I had by this time had quite enough of sight- 
 seeing, besides being hungry and thirsty, I started 
 to look for my chum; and, after some search, found 
 him sitting in a shady angle of the great flight of 
 steps, intently watching the impassive figure of one 
 of a long row of mendicants that lined the side of 
 the way up to the temple. He was quite happy, 
 and very much interested in the queer offerings that 
 he had seen made to the beggar whom he had been 
 studying. Shreds of tobacco, a few grains of rice, and 
 other trifles unfamiliar to us, but of the tiniest possible 
 value, were being dropped into his basket by the native 
 
PROOEEDINOS AT RANGOON. 305 
 
 passers-by, in response to the mellow note which 
 resounded from a triangular piece of metal which ho 
 held suspended from a stick, and occasionally tapped 
 with a bone. " Goin' ter give him anythin'. Bill?" 
 I asked. '"Oo? Me? Wot djer tek mo for? Lazy 
 olo swine ! I bet *ees got a dam sight more brass 'n 
 you er me '11 ever 'avo. No bloomin' fear! " It may 
 have been fancy, but certainly I thought I saw a gleam 
 in that beggar's filmy eye as if Bill's contemptuous 
 words were quite understood by him. ** Well," I said, 
 *' I'm goin' ter give 'im a tanner fer luck." And, as 
 I spoke, I fished out four annas and dropped the little 
 piece of silver into his cup, I turned to go imme- 
 diately ; but he stretched forth a skinny arm, offering 
 me a withered, blood-red flower, and murmuring some 
 (to me) utterly unintelligible words. Now, I would 
 not willingly hurt any one's feelings gratuitously; so 
 I smiled cheerfully back, accepted his flower, and 
 saying, "Bote accha; Salaam, ole stockin*," skipped 
 off down the steps, followed grumblingly by Bill. As 
 we went, I told him of the second mate's gift. Ho 
 immediately suggested taking a gharry back. I was 
 in no wise loth to agree, for the remembrance of 
 our morning's trudge was anything but pleasant. But, 
 when we arrived at the place where the vehicles were 
 grouped, those infernal gharry-wallahs were all so inde- 
 pendent that they wouldn't bate a pice of three rupees 
 for the trip. As this was quite out of the question, we 
 took the road again with heavy hearts and aching 
 feet: Bill cursing, in choicest Bermondsey, niggers in 
 general and gharry-wallahs in particular. For about 
 half a mile we trudged doggedly along, when, suddenly 
 
306 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 turning a Blight bend in the road, we sighted a gharry 
 ambling along with one door open. A bright thought 
 seized me, and, whispering to Bill my idea, we hurried 
 noiselessly after the slowly-moving carriage. As soon 
 as we get near enough, we saw that the driver was 
 soundly asleep upon his box, the reins dangling loosely 
 from his fingers, and the old horse plodding along 
 at his own sweet will. Gently we popped into the 
 crazy old ambulance, quietly closed the door, and 
 lounged back hke two plutocrats. I don't think I 
 ever enjoyed a ride more, for, slowly as we went, 
 we arrived at the gharry-stand in Phayre Street all 
 too soon to suit me. Before the gharry stopped we 
 opened the door, and, quietly as we had entered, were 
 stepping out, when that unlucky Bill caught his foot 
 in the step, and, catching at the door to save himself, 
 gave the whole concern a heavy lurch. This effectually 
 roused the driver, who jumped down off his box and 
 demanded his fare. Bill was furious (at being caught, 
 I suppose), and was proposing to slay and eat the 
 fellow, whose yells speedily brought all his chums 
 round. As I was getting nervous I offered him eight 
 annas, at the same time trying to pacify my burly 
 shipmate, who was carrying on like a madman. 
 Fortunately a white policeman came along, before 
 whose dignified approach ail the clustering natives 
 stood respectfully back. To him I told the exact 
 facts of the story. Without a word he took the eight 
 annas from me, gave it to the hackman, and uttered 
 the single word *' Jao." The effect was magical. The 
 crowd melted away, and we were at liberty to resume 
 our journey. The rest of the day passed uneventfully 
 
PIWCEEDINGS AT BANGOOK 307 
 
 enough. Wo had a splendid dinner in one of the 
 bazaar dining-rooms at a rupee each, washed it down 
 with a bottle of Bass, and, after sundry cigars, strolled 
 leisurely down the pier, and sat there enjoying the 
 coolness of the evening, until, feeling tired of shore, 
 we hailed the ship, and were fetched on board by 
 the two apprentices. A quiet night's rest succeeded ; 
 but the morning brought diversions. The ex-policeman 
 came on board quietly enough, as befitted a man 
 accustomed to discipline; but the rest, with the 
 exception of old Hansen, who had returned early on 
 the previous day, were in a parlous state. Two did 
 not return; and, later news came that they were 
 safely in chowkey, having covered themselves with 
 glory by routing a whole brigade of native police who 
 tried to arrest them, and caused grievous bodily harm 
 to several white constables who had finally carried 
 them off. One of them was the jolly Suffolker, who 
 had thup falsified all my previous estimates of his 
 amiability; the other was Mick, the long Irishman, 
 at whose outburst nobody was surprised. It is hardly 
 necessary, perhaps, to say that no work was done 
 that day, except a little clearing up decks, for which 
 of course we boys were available. But^ towards 
 evening, the repentant revellers began to realize the 
 extent of their folly, and to appear, in some measure, 
 r.shamed of t'lemselves. Just at sunset a police-boat 
 arrived bringing Mick, a deplorable object, his clothes 
 hanging from him in festoons, and his flesh caked 
 up with dried filth and blood. He was certainly much 
 the worse for wear, but filled with an unholy delight 
 at the thought of the glorious time he had enjoyed. 
 
308 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 It appeared, however, that the behaviour of Charley 
 the SufTolker had been so outrageous, and his refusal 
 to return to his ship so decided, that the authorities — 
 lenient, as they undoubtedly were, to sailors — were 
 compelled to give him a month's hard labour. Upon 
 hearing his sentence he lifted up his voice and shouted, 
 "Hooray! " to the great annoyance of the magistrate, 
 who had him incontinently man-handled off to the 
 cells. 
 
( 309 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 nOMEWARD-BOUND IN DIFFICULTIES. 
 
 And now — our cargo being all on board, sails bent, and 
 hatches battened down — we began to look forward to 
 the homeward passage. But our anticipations were in 
 no sense pleasurable, for, although we had certainly 
 lived well while in port, we had as yet received no 
 stores for sea use, and we were in grievous doubt as 
 to the intentions of our commander in this respect. 
 At last, when we were fully prepared to refuse to 
 proceed unless we saw some reasonable prospect of 
 being fed while at sea, a boat-load of stores came off, 
 accompanied by a new recruit to take the place of 
 Charley, who was busy mat-making in Eangoon gaol. 
 He was an old acquaintance of mine, having been cook 
 of a barque called the Gemshok, which lay at Auckland 
 during one of my visits — a fair-haired, happy-go-lucky 
 Englishman ; but a very poor sailor, however able he 
 might have been as a cook. He had not been half 
 an hour on board before he had joined us in solemn 
 condemnation of the scanty stock of provisions he 
 had accompanied on board, declaring that we should 
 all be starved before we got home, unless we made a 
 
310 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 wonderfully rapid i^assage. But, with the carelessness 
 of sailors, we allowed our opportunity of protesting to 
 slip by ; and, next morning, we unmoored and dropped 
 down to Monkey Point, ready to proceed down the 
 river. For some unexplained reason we lay here all 
 day doing nothing, although everything was as favour- 
 able as it could well be for our departure. Towards 
 evening, when all hands were sitting on the top-gallant 
 forecastle, enjoying the cool and smoking the universal 
 cheroot of Burmah, the devil entered into Mick, and 
 induced him to sneak down into the forecastle and 
 search for something to drink. He succeeded in 
 discovering a bottle of square gin — the cayenne and 
 turpentine brand at twelve annas a bottle — in Hansen's 
 chest, which, as is customary in all ship's fo'lk'sles, was 
 left unlocked. Knocking the neck of it off immediately, 
 he poured the contents into a hookpot, and, at one 
 draught, swallowed about a pint of the horrible stuff. 
 Another drink nearly finished it ; and in a few minutes 
 he returned to our midst, not drunk, but a raving 
 lunatic. For a little while we were highly amused 
 at his antics; but presently, yelling, "Well, so long 
 all ! " he rushed to the rail with the evident intention 
 of flinging himself overboard. Bill — the other ordinary 
 seaman — and I rushed at him, dragged him back, 
 and, after a severe struggle, got him to lie down. 
 Then commenced such a night of labour as I have 
 never experienced before or since. Every device that 
 his mad cunning could suggest did he try in order 
 to take his own life. We got not a moment's rest. 
 Sometimes he would feign to be asleep; but, the 
 moment we were off our guard, he ^?ould be at it 
 
HOMEWARD-BOUND IN DIFFICULTIES. 311 
 
 again, startling us almost out of our wits, and giving 
 us a fearful struggle before "we could get him quieted 
 again. None of the others would relieve us, or lend 
 us a hand — nay, they cursed us for a pair of idiots 
 that we did not let lim go, with a wannion on him. 
 How could we? Although we bitterly resented the 
 utterly uncalled-for toil, we dared not relax our 
 vigilance : both of us feeling that, if we did, his blood 
 would be upon our heads. And, to add to our miseries, 
 a land-breeze brought off mosquitoes and sandflies 
 in myriads, so that, in our exposed condition, we 
 were stung almost beyond bearing. At last, just as 
 the first streak of dawn appeared over the jungle, he 
 dropped off to sleep in reality. Before we had time 
 to snatch the briefest doze came the strident voice 
 of the mate, "Man the windlass!" Of course Mick 
 was excused — he was ill; but we, poor wretches, who 
 had been engaged in a life-and-death struggle with 
 him the whole night through, were compelled to work 
 as if we had enjoyed our lawful night's rest. And 
 we were so weary ! Hardly able to crawl about from 
 our tremendous exertions, and continually blackguarded 
 for our lack of smartness, it was with no kindly feelings 
 towards Mick that we dragged ourselves forecastlewards 
 at breakfast-time, when, the ship being under way 
 and pointed down the river, we had a short spell of 
 leisure. Of course he sat up and looked for his 
 breakfast, confound him ! As I handed him his coffee, 
 I said, "A pretty fine dance you led Bill and me 
 last night, Mick!" *'Fhwat the divil d'yez mane?" 
 growled he. I told him as frankly as I could; and, 
 as soon as I had done, he said, " Well, I alwuz tought 
 
312 TEE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 yez wur a pair ov fules, an' now oim ^vell 
 
 sure ov ut. Fliwy'nt yez let me go, dam yer dhirty 
 sowls V hell?" I answered him never a word; but 
 I swore solemnly to myself that, come what might, 
 I would never again move one inch to protect a drunken 
 man from the consequences of his own act, and I 
 have devoutly kept that oath. 
 
 Our progress down the river was but little faster 
 than the flow of th^ tide, for there was not sufficient 
 breeze to keep the sails full, and we all noticed that 
 the old man seemed to be in an unusual state of 
 nervous agitation. A tiny pillar of smoke astern 
 seemed to attract most of his attention; so palpably, 
 indeed, did he watch it, that we began to whisper 
 among ourselves that he had been paying somebody 
 with the "fore-topsail sheet" again. And the event 
 proved that we were right in our surmise, for before 
 long a steam-launch overtook us, and a peremptory 
 order was given from on board of her for us to lay 
 the foreyard aback. Our pilot immediately complied, 
 the launch sheered alongside, and a red-uniformed 
 official climbed on board. His firit act was to present 
 the skipper with a piece of paper. But that worthy 
 had no need to read it ; he knew well enough what it 
 contained. Then a white man, very well dressed, came 
 on board, and began slanging the miserable captain in 
 rare style. He had been at his old games again ; 
 eating and drinking — especially drinking — at somebody 
 else's expense during the whole of our stay in port, 
 and then trying to get away without paying his bill. 
 This time, however, matters looked serious for him, 
 for he had very little money, and his bill amounted 
 
BOMEWARD-BOUND IN DIFFICULTIES. 313 
 
 to one hundred and fifty rupees. There was a tre- 
 mendous amount of haggling done before the hotel- 
 keeper would accept a compromise r but at last, a 
 number of bolts of new canvas and several coils of 
 rope were transferred to the launch, and with these, 
 I have no doubt, the creditor was very well paid indeed. 
 But what excuse the skipper would hatch up to satisfy 
 his owners about those missing stores we could none 
 of us imagine. Undoubtedly he placed himself com- 
 pletely in the power of every one on board by his 
 mean and dishonest behaviour. As if we had only 
 been waiting for his discomfiture, no sooner had the 
 launch left us than we squared away to a spanking 
 breeze, which took us well clear of the land before 
 nightfall, fairly started on our long homeward passage. 
 And now we all pursued a definite course of action. 
 It was unanimously agreed that the skipper had fairly 
 put himself out of court, and that to him no respect 
 whatever was due. The officers, on the other hand, 
 who did their part well under these trying circum- 
 stances, were treated by every one with that deference 
 which was their right, and consequently the work of the 
 ship went on in seamanlike fashion. We were fortunate, 
 too, in getting out of the Bay of Bengal before the 
 setting in of the south-west monsoon, when the weather 
 is unspeakably vile. Steaming weather, variable winds, 
 and frequent deluges of rain make life at sea in the 
 Bay then a burden almost too grievous to be borne. 
 The ropes swell so much that they can hardly be hauled 
 through the blocks without any weight attached to 
 them, and the sails become like boards for stiffness. 
 But we had a steady northerly wind, nights of perfect 
 
314 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 beauty, and days of unclouded sunshine; so that but 
 for the harassing want of good food, which attacked us 
 as soon as we were clear of the land, our lot was as 
 pleasant as any sailor can ever expect. Very little 
 work of any kind was done beyond the necessary hand- 
 ling of the sails, for no doubt the officers felt that it 
 would be unwise to attempt too much under the strained 
 condition of things. 
 
 And now in the long night-watches, when over a 
 quiet sea, flooded with moonlight, the sturdy old vessel 
 glided silent as a disembodied spirit, not a flap of a 
 sail or creak of a rope breaking the solemn stillness, 
 I spent many, many hours alone communing with my 
 own soul. The old boy-life was fast slipping away from 
 me, and the ugly sordidness of much that I had endured 
 for the past seven years was already beginning to be 
 mellowed by the softening haze of time. I felt deep, 
 hungry longings for better thmgs — often flushing hotly 
 in the darkness as I remembered how I had wasted my 
 opportunities in Australia, and again thinking wearily 
 how utterly friendless and alone I was in the world. 
 I felt that if I only had some one to work for, some one 
 to whom my well-being was a matter in which they 
 took a lively interest, that I was capable even now — in 
 spite of my ignorance — of doing something in the world ; 
 and I built whole cities full of castles in the air upon 
 the most filmy foundations. And then all my hopes 
 and dreams would die in thickest darkness of despair. 
 ^Vhat gleam of bright prospect could there be for me, a 
 mere bit of driftweed upon the awful ocean of humanity, 
 with no destination, except that which I shared with 
 all mankind ? So I would lay musing, looking upward 
 
HOME WABD' BOUND IN DIFFICULTIES. 315 
 
 into the infinite blue overhead v/here the never-ceasing 
 glory of the stars kept me most comfortable company. 
 These nights were a grand counterpoise to the petty 
 discomforts and miseries of the day, when the dis- 
 content of their lot made the men of my watch so 
 humpy and disagreeable that I could hardly keep out 
 of hot water with them. I had no books but a Bible, 
 for which I am now most grateful, because I read that 
 grand old book — a literature in itself — through and 
 through from end to end I know not how many times. 
 And although I know I had not the smallest devotional 
 intent, I am sure that the very fact of saturating myself 
 from such a well of English undefiled was of the very 
 greatest service to me. Religion, indeed, was a by- 
 word among us. "We knew that the owners of the 
 ship were considered a highly religious firm, and that 
 Captain Bunker was believed by them to be a holy 
 man. Illogically, we transferred some of our hatred 
 of his hypocrisy to his employers, who were probably 
 not in the least to blame for our sufferings. Therefore, 
 in the many discussions which took place in the fore- 
 castle on things in general, the conversation usually 
 turned upon the general worthlessness and scoundrelism 
 of religious people in general, and our captain and 
 owners in particular. There were no arguments, for 
 we were all of one way of thinking, and there was no 
 one to show us any light upon the subject. As far as 
 I was conceiued my early piety had all gone, with the 
 exception of an awful fear of death, in what I felt was 
 my unprepared (!) condition, and an utter inability to 
 accustom my tongue to the continual blasphemy of 
 sailor-talk. In other directions my language was as 
 
:U6 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 foul as anybody's, so that I had nothing to brag about 
 if I had thought of doing so. As we drew down towards 
 the African land, the question of food became very 
 serious again. The flour which had been bought in 
 Eangoon was already almost uneatable — full of vermin 
 of various kinds, and of a dirty grey colour. Our 
 cargo was not available, being unhusked rice, or 
 "paddy," and the meat was the worst I had ever seen, 
 with the exception of that in my first ship. A portion 
 of it boiled, and left for a few hours became white and 
 hard as a piece of marble, with the exuding salt. There 
 was an increasing monotone of grumbling, which 
 nothing but the lovely weather and easy times pre- 
 vented from breaking into open revolt. At last we 
 made the land somewhere about East London, and it 
 began to be whispered about among us that the old 
 man meant going into Algoa Bay for supplies. What 
 foundation there was for the rumour I don't know, but 
 it had a marked effect upon every one's spirits, so that 
 she was quite a different ship. Port Elizabeth had 
 been the Harroichifs first port at the beginning of 
 her long voyage, and probably that had some weight 
 in making the skipper determine to call there again. 
 Some of his old cronies would doubtless welcome him, 
 for he had not then begun to practise leaving without 
 settling his accounts. Whatever the cause, the con- 
 firmation of the rumour that we were going to put in 
 re-invigorated us, and we all showed the utmost 
 willingness at every task. 
 
 The weather now began to play tricks upon us : 
 baffling winds, fogs, and cold, raw rain replacing the 
 idyllic climate we had so long been enjoying. And, as 
 
JIOMEWABD-BOUND IN DIFFICULTIES. 317 
 
 WO gradually crept south, more than one gale gave us a 
 severe drubbing — sometimes blowing us so far off the 
 land that we began to fear he would give up the idea of 
 going in, after all. But when one morning the order 
 came to get the anchor over the bows, and bend on the 
 cables, all doubts and fears were silenced, and a general 
 air of expectancy took their place. The next night the 
 wind veered to the eastward, and blew bard ; but under 
 a heavy press of sail we stood in for the land, heading, 
 as we believed, straight for our port. All through the 
 night a keen look-out was kept, but nothing was seen. 
 When the grey, cheerless dawn broke we were still 
 plunging shoreward through the ugly cross-sea, making 
 wretched weather of it, not a dry corner to be found 
 forrard or aft. A dense mist prevented us from seeing 
 many ships' lengths ahead, but that gave none of us 
 forrard any uneasiness, as we believed that with all his 
 faults the old man was a fairly good navigator. Two 
 of us were on the look-out, peering through the grey 
 veil, when suddenly on the starboard bow, not more 
 than a mile away, appeared the tall spectre of a light- 
 house, the red and white bands upon it just visible. 
 A chill of horror ran through us all, added to the next 
 moment by the appalling cry of "Breakers right 
 ahead !" The helm was instantly put up and the yards 
 squared, but oh ! how lazily she answered her helm. 
 Then the haze lifted, and, as she slowly paid off, we 
 saw all along our starboard beam, and apparently not 
 a cable's length off, the mighty foaming range of 
 breakers that seemed hungry for us, flinging their tops 
 high into the air and bellowing like a thousand savago 
 bulls. Just as if there was some almost irresistible 
 
318 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF, 
 
 attraction drawing us broadside on to that tumult of 
 death, we crawled along, burying the Ice-rail under water 
 with the tremendous press of sail wo were carrying, 
 and expecting each moment to hear a crack overhead, and 
 see some of our spars go, sealing our death-warrant. 
 But our end was not yet. Presently the most de- 
 spondent among us could see that we were gaining 
 ground, and gradually we clawed off that frightful reef 
 out to the friendly sea again. A good offing having 
 beeu made, we stood to the westward once more, for 
 the lighthouse we had seen was Cape Kecife, and our 
 objective was but a short distance to the northward of 
 it. We had just struck the wrong side of it, that was 
 all. Still, with all our efforts, it was as much as we 
 could do to get into Algoa Bay before dark, and anchor 
 well to seaward of all the other vessels, in readiness to 
 leave again. 
 
( 319 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI 1. 
 
 DEEP-WATER COASTING. 
 
 Landing that night was quite out of the question, for all 
 the surf-boats had been secured, and even had wo 
 possessed a good boat of our own (which we did not) 
 we could not have landed in this tumultuous bay as 
 ever was. So the anchor-watch was set, and everybody 
 else turned in to sleep the curious, uneasy sleep of the 
 sailor just in port, after a long series of watches at sea 
 four hours on and off. But the earliest surf-boat out 
 in the morning came alongside, and took Captain 
 Bunker ashore. His last words to the mate were to 
 "heave short" at noon, for he would then be off with 
 the stores, and we should weigh immediately. That 
 was all very well for him, but by ten o'clock a howling 
 black south-easter was blowing, and we had a full taste 
 of the delights of Algoa Bay. The gale blew right into 
 the open harbour, and by noon the scene was one of the 
 most savage grandeur. Every vessel there was plunging 
 and straining at her moorings as if she must tear her- 
 self to pieces or uproot the steadfast anchors, while 
 great sheets of spray often hid the labouring craft from 
 view. Our position was dangerous in the extreme. 
 
320 TEE LOa OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 Vessels anchored in Algoa Bay for any length of time 
 always have a huge hawser bent to the cables, which, 
 of course, has more elasticity than chain, and to this 
 they ride, even in the worst weather, with comparative 
 comfort. But we had no such device. In the first 
 place we had no hawser fit for it, in the next we had 
 made no preparations for such an emergency. So all 
 that we could do was just to give her all the chain we 
 had got on a single anchor, and stand-by to let go the 
 other one in case of the first one carrying away. For 
 hours we watched that tortured windlass, and listened to 
 the horrible grind of the massive links around the iron- 
 shod barrel thereof, wondering each moment whether 
 the next would be the last or not. Again we were 
 spared, although better - prepared vessels than ours 
 came to grief, piling their poor remains up among the 
 many other relics scattered about that ravenous shore. 
 By nightfall the wind had taken off greatly, although 
 the old sea still kept her leaping and curtseying like a 
 lunatic, and made our sleep a mere pretence. And wo 
 all felt sure that our reverend skipper was snugly 
 ensconced in some red-curtained bar ashore, with a 
 jorum of grog and a churchwarden aglow ; and would 
 be rather relieved than otherwise to know that his ship 
 had come to grief, and thus prevented the catastrophe 
 that was surely awaiting him on his return home. 
 Along about noon, however, he hove in sight. When 
 he came alongside the cargo he had brought with him 
 set all our mouths watering. There was a side of fresh 
 beef, two carcases of mutton, and a small cartload of 
 potatoes, cauliflowers, and onions. But of sea-stock 
 there was hardly any. Three packages comprised ^he 
 
DEEP- WATER COASTING. 321 
 
 whole — one of peas, one of flour, and one of limejuice. 
 Yet with an obtuseness that is even now a mystery to 
 me, no one raised any objection. The things were just 
 hoisted on board, the boat left, and, when the order was 
 (3(iven to man the windlass, there was not a dissentient 
 murmur. Of course remarks were bandied about as 
 freely as usual upon the never-failing subject of the old 
 man's delinquencies ; but that was because he stood 
 upon the house aft, his knobbly face glowing like a port 
 sidelight, his hands upon his hips, and his whole 
 bearing that of a man whom a skinful of whisky had 
 put upon the best of terms with himself. Up and down 
 went the windless-brakes cheerily, while Bill and I 
 hauled back the chain ; but presently she gave a dive, 
 and, when she sprang upward again, there was a sudden 
 grind of the cable, and out flew several fathoms of it, 
 tearing the chain-hooks from our hands, and treating 
 us to an extremely narrow escape of following them. 
 Then there was a chorus of language from the men on 
 the forecastle. All sorts of epithets were hurled at our 
 unfortunate heads for our failure to hold on. But 
 while they yet spake, she gave another curtsey, and out 
 went some more. That was sufficient to indicate the 
 kind of a picnic we were in for, and no time was lost in 
 rigging a big fourfold or *' luff "-tackle, which was 
 stretched right along the deck from a stout ringbolt 
 near the mainmast, and the forrard end hooked on to 
 the chain. The fall was then taken to the after-capstan, 
 and we two ordinary seamen, aided by the skipper and 
 the two boys, hove at it continually as the chain came 
 slowly in. As long as there was any scope of cable 
 out, things went on all right, but as soon as we were 
 
322 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 hove short, it looked aa if some damage was hound to 
 ensue. Sail was loosed, ready to get way upon her as 
 soon as the anchor was off the ground, she all the time 
 straining and jumping at her cable like some infuriated 
 wild beast. At last she dipped her bows right to the 
 level of an incoming swell, which, as it passed under 
 her forefoot, flung her high in air. There was a 
 rending crash, a shower of sparks, and she was free. 
 ** Anchor's gone, sir! " shouted the mate, springing off 
 
 the forecastle amid a chorus of *' good job, too," 
 
 from all hands. As hard as we could pelt we got the 
 sail on her, and in a few minutes were outside the 
 Bay, the loose end of the parted cable hanging at 
 the bows. So closed our expensive visit to Port 
 Elizabeth, and before nightfall we were under all 
 canvas, slipping down towards the Cape with the 
 favouring current and wind at a great rate, our star- 
 board anchor still hanging over the bows. All minor 
 discomforts were forgotten, however, in the glorious 
 feed provided for us by the cook. While we were 
 revelling in the good fresh mutton and vegetables, that 
 worthy came into the forecastle, and received our con- 
 gratulations with the self-satisfied air of one who feels 
 that he has deserved well of his fellows. Presently he 
 informed us confidentially that he had received no 
 orders as to the disposal of the provisions, and that 
 it was therefore his fixed determination to serve them 
 out to all hands, both forrard and aft, impartially, as 
 long as they lasted. He kept his word right manfully. 
 For a week, during which we hugged the land right 
 round the CwT)e with the anchor still outboard, we lived 
 as we had never done since we left Sydney. Our gaunt 
 
DEEP-WATER COASTING. 323 
 
 faces filled up their sombre hollows, our shrunken 
 muscles developed, and we grew skittish as young colts. 
 Then, without warning, our luxuries all ceased, and the 
 same grim state of privation set in as before. 
 
 As I have so often experienced since, we took a 
 steady southerly wind right off the pitch of the Cape, 
 before which we hurried homewards under every rag 
 of sail we could muster — every hour bringing us nearer 
 home. According to all the established rules on board 
 ship, we should now have begun that general " redding- 
 up " to which every homeward-bounder is subjected as 
 soon as she gets into the south-east trades. Thanks, 
 however, to our skipper's peculiar notions of how to 
 deal with his owner's property, we had no new ratline 
 stuff on board wherewith to *' rattle down " — as the 
 process of fittinoj new rungs to the rope-ladders leading 
 aloft is termed. We could not reeve new running-gear 
 for the same reason, or fit new footropes, or repair the 
 "service" where chafed out aloft. We had hardly any 
 paint, or varnish, or tar, yet the apprentices declared 
 that when she left home she was fully provided with 
 such stores for a three years' voyage — as the owners 
 were large ship-chandlers and never let their own ships 
 go to sea meanly supplied. She had been out barely 
 two years — very little of anything had been used — so 
 that she was quite poverty-stricken aloft, and yet there 
 was nothing left to mrke her look respectable coming 
 home. We all had easy times, it is true ; but that was 
 not altogether a blessing, since sailorizing is generally 
 liked by seamen, who would growl like tigers at the 
 petty half-and-half scavenging often done on board such 
 ships ftd the Harrowby under pretence of smartening 
 
324 THE LOG OF A SEA-WATF. 
 
 ship. So restless and irritable did the men become 
 that it was easy to see trouble at hand. Only a spark 
 was needed to kindle a big explosion. This was supplied 
 by the unhappy cook, who burnt most scandalously the 
 only meal wc could really eat with any heartiness — our 
 pea- soup. Poor wretch ! — in answer to the ferocious 
 inquiries of the men for something to stay their gnaw- 
 ing stomachs with, he could only bleat feebly that ho 
 '* hadn't got nothing ; nothing at all to give 'em." 
 They knew very well that this was true ; but our latest 
 recruit, Sam, the ex-cook, swore he would have some- 
 thing to eat or he'd know the reason why. So, snatching 
 up the steaming kid of soup, he rushed aft with it, and, 
 in a voice broken with rage and excitement, demanded 
 the skipper of the grinning boy at the cabin door. 
 " Tell him I'm engaged — can't see him now ! " shouted 
 the skipper from within. That was enough. In bounced 
 Bam, pale with fury, and, shoving the reeking tub of 
 soup under the skipper's nose as he sat at the table, 
 hissed, **W'at kinder stujff djer think thet is fer men 
 feat ? " Leaning back as far as possible from the 
 foul mess the skipper panted, " Git out o* my cabin, 
 yew impident scoundrel ! What jer mean by darin* ter 
 come in 'ere like thet ? " Splash ! and over went the 
 kid of soup on top of the skipper's head, which rose 
 from out of that smoking yellow flood like a totally new 
 kind of Venus. The liberal anointing ran down the 
 old man's beard and back, even unto the confines of 
 his trouser-legs, while he spluttered, choked, and 
 scooped at his eyes in utter bewilderment. As for 
 Sam, he stood like a statue of wrath, in full enjoyment 
 of his revenge, until the outraged skipper recovered his 
 
DEEP-WATER COASTINO. 325 
 
 voice, and screamed for help. Down tumbled the mate 
 through the after-companion, but the sight which 
 greeted his astonished eyes fairly paralyzed him. 
 " Seize him ! put him in irons ! " yelled the skipper. 
 " He's scalded me ! th' infernal vagbon's scalded me ! " 
 But Mr. Messenger was disinclined to undertake the 
 job single-handed — knowing, too, how likely it was 
 that any such attempt would almost certainly bring 
 all hands on the scene ripe for a row. Therefore, Sam, 
 after unpacking his heart of a few hearty curses upon 
 skipper and ship, made good his retreat forward to the 
 fo'lk'sle, where his version of the encounter was received 
 with delirious merriment. The delight shown at this 
 summary assault upon the old man actually took the 
 place of dinner, and, although no substitute for the 
 spoiled soup was forthcoming, nothing more was said 
 on the subject. When the cabin-boy came forrard that 
 evening with his nightly budget of stories about the 
 common enemy, he convulsed us all by his graphic 
 details of the skipper's struggles to free himself from 
 the clinging mess congealed about him. But there was 
 not heard one word of pity — no, not even when Harry 
 told us that his bald head was as red as a beetroot. 
 This affair kept all hands in quite a good-humour for 
 some days, until one evening. Chips, who rarely left his 
 lonely den, came mysteriously into the fo'lk'sle and said 
 oracularly, " Boys, we ort ter be gittin' pretty cluss ter 
 Sant Elener. I don't blieve th'ole man means ter 
 sight it at all; but if he don't we shall all be starved 
 ter death afore we cross the line. I think we ort ter go 
 aft in a body 'n tell him 'at we ain't er-goin* ter do 
 another hand's turn less he goes in 'n gits some grub 
 
326 THE LOO OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 ter carry us home." All agreed at once, and the time 
 for our ultimatum was fixed for the next day at noon. 
 But I happened to he doing some trivial job on the 
 main-royal yard next morning, and, before coming down, 
 took, as I usually did, a long look all round the horizon. 
 And I saw far aft on the port quarter the massive out- 
 lines of the island of St. Helena, fully thirty or forty 
 miles away. This so excited me that I could not wait to 
 descend in the usual leisurely fashion, but, gripping the 
 royal backstay, came slid'ng to the deck like a monkey. 
 Without losing a minute I rushed forrard and told my 
 news. There was no longer delay. Headed by the 
 carpenter, all hands came aft and demanded ai. inter- 
 view with the skipper. As soon as he appeared the 
 option was given him of either going in to St. Helena, 
 or sailing the ship himself. He then informed us what 
 was our exact position, and dwelt upon the length of 
 time it would take to beat back against the strong 
 trade blowing. Old Chips, however, was ready for him. 
 He said at once, *' Very well, sir, why not go into 
 Ascension ? " ** Oh, they won't let us have any stores 
 there : it's a Government dockyard, 'n they only supply 
 men-o'-war." '* That be damned for a yarn," said 
 Chips : '- w'y, I've had stores there myself only two 
 year 'n a half ago. Anyhow, cap'n, there it is : you 
 k'n do wot yer like, but we ain't a-goin' ter starve 'n 
 work the ship too." After a minute or two's cogitation, 
 the old man replied wearily, " Oh, very well, I'll go and 
 draw up the bapplication, an' j^ou'll all 'ave ter sign 
 it." Artful old curmudgeon ! Still, we didn't care as 
 long as we got some grub; bo, when he called us aft 
 again and read out the string of fabrications he had 
 
DEEP-WATER COASTING. 327 
 
 concocted, carefully omitting all mention of our call at 
 Algoa Bay, all hands signed it as cheerfully as if it had 
 been their account of wages. 
 
 But the look-out that was kept from that day forth, 
 and the careful calculations of course and distance 
 every watch, I have never seen equalled in a ship's 
 fo'lk'sle before or since. And when at last the rugged 
 burnt-up heap of volcanic debris appeared above the 
 horizon right ahead, our relief was immense. Our 
 simple ;^ireparations for anchoring were soon made, and 
 our one serviceable boat cleared for hoisting out, for, 
 like the majority of that class of vessels, the boats were 
 stowed and lumbered up with all sorts of incongruous 
 rubbish, as if they were never likely to be needed ; and 
 the long-boat — upon which, in case of disaster to the 
 ship, all our lives would depend — was so leaky and 
 rotten, that she would not have kept afloat five minutes 
 in a millpond. As we opened up the tiny bay, where 
 the Government buildings are clustered, we saw, flutter- 
 ing from the flagstaff at the summit of a conical hill, 
 most prosaically like a huge ** ballast "-heap, a set of 
 flags silently demanding our business. Our set of 
 signals being incomplete, we could only reply by hoist- 
 ing our ensign and standing steadily in for the 
 anchorage. But before we came within a mile of it, 
 a trim cutter glided alongside, and a smart officer in 
 naval uniform sprang on board. With just a touch of 
 asperity in his tone, he inquired our business, and, 
 upon being deferentially informed by the skipper, imme- 
 diately ordered the main-yard to be laid aback while he 
 went below to inspect the contents of our store-room. 
 Apparently his scrutiny was satisfactory, for, returning 
 
328 TEE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF, 
 
 on deck, he ordered the main-yard to he filled agam, 
 and conned the ship up to the anchorage. He then 
 re-entered his boat and sped away shoreward, while 
 we, as soon as ever the ship had swung to her anchor, 
 just clewed up the sails, and then made all haste to 
 get the boat into the water. As soon as this was done, 
 four hands and the skipper got into her and pulled for 
 the shore ; the old man's last words being, " I 'spect I 
 shall be back in an hour." 
 
 To while away the time, pending their return, I 
 started fishing; but I never want to get among such 
 fish as they were again. Lovely in their hues beyond 
 belief, but with nothing else to recommend them, they 
 tried my patience sorely. I have since learned that 
 they were a sub-variety of Chcetodon, having teeth 
 almost like a human being, but so keen and powerful 
 that they were able to sever copper-wire. After losing 
 most of my hooks, I at last "snooded" with a few 
 strands of silk not twisted together. By this means 
 I succeeded in getting half a dozen of the gorgeous 
 creatures on deck. But their amazing colours, fearful 
 spikiness, and leathery skin effectually frightened us 
 from eating them, as most of us were painfully aware 
 of the penalty for eating strange fish. The swelled 
 and burning head, lancinating pains, and general 
 debility afterwards, consequent upon fish-poisoning, 
 make sailors very careful to taste none but known 
 kinds of deep-sea fish, and any queer shape or colour 
 among reef-fish is sufficient to bar their use as food. 
 
 At the expiration of two hours and a half our 
 boat returned, laden to the gunwale with bags and 
 cases, showing plainly that here, at any rate, the old 
 
DEEP-WATER COASTING. 329 
 
 man had not been permitted to exercise his own judg- 
 ment as to -svhat his requirements were likely to be. 
 In feverish haste we got the stores on board, the 
 skipper appearing in a high state of nervous appre- 
 hension lest the keen-eyed watchers ashore should 
 deem him slack in leaving. Indeed, the report of 
 the boat's crew was to the effect that the skipper 
 had been treated with very scant courtesy — not even 
 being allowed to say how much of this, that, or the 
 other, he would take ; and, when he was leaving, being 
 sternly admonished to lose no time in getting under 
 way, or he would certainly find himself in trouble. 
 Such was the haste displayed all through, that, within 
 four hours from the time of the officer's boarding us, 
 we were off again, our head once more pointing 
 homeward. 
 
 From that time onward, until our arrival in Fal- 
 mouth, we never had cause to complain of bad food. 
 Everything supplied us from the Naval Stores was the 
 best of its kind — as, of course, it should be. It filled 
 us all with respect for the way in which men-o'-war's 
 men are fed, even without the many opportunities 
 allowed them for exchanging the service rations for 
 shore provisions. In consequence of this welcome 
 change everything on board went on greased wheels. 
 The old man effaced himself, as usual, never interfering 
 with anybody, and, for a month, we were as quiet a 
 ship as you would find afloat. Slowly we edged our 
 way across the belt of calms to the northward of the 
 Line, inch by inch, our efforts almost entirely confined 
 to working the ship and making sennit. By-and-bye 
 we came into a calm streak, where sea and sky were 
 
330 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 BO much alike that it was hard to tell where one left 
 off and the other began : weather beautiful beyond 
 description, but intensely aggravating to men tired 
 of the ship and the voyage, and exceedingly trying 
 to the temper of all hands. For a week this stagnant 
 state of things prevailed ; and then, one morning, 
 we were all interested to find another barque within 
 a couple of miles of us. In that mysterious way in 
 which two vessels will draw near each other in a 
 stark calm, we got closer and closer, until at last 
 our skipper took a notion to visit her. So the boat 
 was got out, and we pulled alongside of her. She 
 was the Stanley Slcath of London, from 'Frisco to 
 London, one hundred and sixty days out. She was 
 an iron vessel, and never shall I forget the sight she 
 presented as she rolled her lower strakes out of water. 
 Great limpets, some three inches across, yard-long 
 barnacles, and dank festoons of w^eeds, clothed her 
 below the water-line from stem to stern, and how 
 she ever made any progress at all was a mystery. 
 She smelt just like a reef at low water ; and it looked 
 as if the fish took her for something of that nature, 
 for she was accompanied by a perfect host of them, 
 of all shapes and sizes, so that she rolled as if in 
 some huge aquarium. She certainly presented a 
 splendid field for the study of marine natural history. 
 None of us went on board but the skipper; but some 
 of the watch below leaned over the rail as we swung 
 alongside an^ told us a pitiful story. Through some- 
 body's negligence the lid of their only water-tank 
 had been left off, with the result that some rats had 
 got in and been drowned. This had tainted all the 
 
DEEP-WATER COASTING. 331 
 
 water so vilely that no one save a sailor burning 
 with thirst could drink it, and nothing would disguise 
 that rotting flavour. The captain had his young wife 
 on board, and she had been made so ill that she was 
 delirious, her one cry being for "a drink of water." 
 And no one seemed to have had suflicicnt gumption 
 to rig up a small condenser ! It hardly seemed 
 credible, had it not been that similar cases were well 
 known to most of us. We had plenty of good water, 
 and our skipper sent us back on board with orders 
 to the mate to fill a two-hundred-gallon cask, bung 
 it up tight, and lower it overboard. We were then 
 to tow it back to the Stanley Slcath. As a cask or 
 tank of fresh water floats easily in the sea, this was 
 not a difficult task, nor were we long in executing it. 
 It was the best deal made by our old man for many 
 a long day, for he got in exchange a fat sow, weighing 
 about fifteen stone, two gallons of rum, and a case 
 of sugar. Followed by the fervent thanks of her 
 anxious commander, we rowed away from the Stankij 
 Sleath, our approach to our own vessel again being 
 heralded by the frantic squeals of our prize, who lay 
 under the thwarts, her feet securely bound but her 
 voice in splendid working order. That evening a breeze 
 sprang up, and, slow as we were, we soon left our late 
 consort hull down. Thenceforward for nearly a fort- 
 night w^e saw nothing of our teetotal skipper. The 
 rum had been given us in lime-juice bottles, packed 
 in the original case, so that nobody knew but what 
 a case of lime-juice had come on board. And yet, 
 as we had an abundance of lime-juice, we wondered 
 why the skipper had not chosen something else in 
 
332 THE LOO OF A SEA-WAIF, 
 
 payment for the water. The cabin-boy, as usual, got 
 the first inkling of the mystery. Somehow he was a 
 prime favourite with the old man, who, I suppose, 
 turned to Harry in his loneliness and made something 
 of a pet of him, getting, in return, all his little weak- 
 nesses reported verbatim to the fellows forward every 
 evening. Going to call the captain to supper on the 
 same evening we visited the other ship, the boy noticed 
 an overpowering smell of rum, and, upon tapping 
 at the state-room door, he heard a thick voice murmur, 
 " 'Mnor vry well shevenin' ; shlay down bit." That 
 was enough for Harry. Peeping in, he saw the skipper 
 lolling on his chest, a big black bottle wedged securely 
 down b} his side, and a glass in his hand. From 
 that spell of drink lie did not emerge until the last 
 of the bottles was emptied. 
 
( 333 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 WniCn BRINGS us TO PORT AT LAST. 
 
 Fortunately for us the condition of the skipper didn't 
 count for anything, as we made our usual progress 
 homeward indifferent to his pranks. The north-east 
 trades hung far to the eastward, allowing us to make 
 an excellent course northward ; but, as they were very 
 light, our gain from their favouring cant was shght. 
 Just upon the northern verge of the tropic we lost them 
 altogether, and lay lolling about in windless, stagnating 
 ease for another week, exasperating all hands at this 
 unlooked-for extension of our already lengthy passage. 
 But even this enforced wait had its advantages. We 
 spoke another barque — homeward-bound from Brisbane 
 — and again our adventurous commander would go 
 ship-visiting. In fact, he allowed it to become known 
 that, but for our determined attitude about calling at 
 Ascension, he had intended to beg his way home — a 
 peculiarly iiritating practice much fancied by men of 
 his stamp, who thus levy a sort of blackmail upon 
 well-found ships. They pitch a pitiful yarn about bad 
 weather and abnormal length of passage, with such 
 embroidery as their imagination suggests, and generally 
 succeed in getting quite a lot of things " on the cheap." 
 
 
334 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 What sort of a yarn our mendacious skipper spun to 
 this last vessel we had no means of knowing, as the boat's 
 crew were not allowed to board her ; but he succeeded in 
 getting a couple of cases of preserved beef and some 
 small stores. Much to his disgust, however, there was 
 no liquor of any kind to be had. The only thing that 
 the other ship wanted was a few coals for the galley 
 fire ; so, while our skipper stayed on board, the boat was 
 sent back for them. No>v it was Sunday afternoon, 
 and when Bill and I were ordered to go down into the 
 fore-peak and fill three sacks with coal, we felt much 
 aggrieved. So, grumblingly, we dived into the black 
 pit forrard, and began to fill the sacks. But, suddenly, 
 a bright idea struck us. The only pretence at ship- 
 smartening we were likely to make was "holystoning" 
 the decks, and, to this end, several lumps of sandstone 
 had been saved ever since we left Sydney. Now, I have 
 before noted in what abhorrence holystoning is held 
 by all who have to perform it, and here was a heaven- 
 sent opportunity to make the job impossible. So we 
 carefully interspersed the lumps of stone among the 
 coal in the sacks, taking every precaution to leave not 
 a fragment behind. Away it went to the other ship : it 
 was hoisted on board, our boat returned, a breeze 
 sprang up and we parted company, seeing each other 
 no more. Two or three days after the order was given 
 to get up the holystones for cleaning ship. Words could 
 not express the wrath of the mate when it was reported 
 to him that none were to be found. Every bit of coal 
 in the fore -peak was dug over under his immediate 
 supervision, he getting in a most parlous mess the 
 while, but in vain. I never saw a man get so angry 
 
WHICH bhinos us to port at last. 335 
 
 over a trifle. He swore that they had been thrown 
 overboard by somebody, being certain that there had 
 been an ample store. Singularly enough, he never 
 dreamed of the real way of their going, and the actual 
 perpetrators of the certainly immoral act were never 
 even suspected. We had to do the best we could with 
 ashes and brooms, but they made a poor substitute for 
 the ponderous scouring of the stones. I regret to say 
 that neither of us felt the slightest remorse for our deed, 
 and, when we heard the delighted comments of the men 
 were more puffed up, I am afraid, than we should have 
 been by the consciousness of having acted ever so 
 virtuously. 
 
 And now, as we were approaching the area of heavy 
 weather, and our stun'sails were worn almo^^t to muslin, 
 we began to send down the stun'sail gear. The first 
 thing that happened : the ex-cook, in sending down one 
 of the topgallant stun'sail-booms (a spar like a smooth 
 scaffold-pole), made his " rolling hitch " the wrong way. 
 Perfectly satisfied that all was in order he sung out to 
 us on deck to "hoist away." The moment we did so, 
 and the boom swung out of the irons in which it had 
 been lying, it assumed a vertical position and slid 
 through the hitch like lightning, just missing the rail, 
 and plunging end-on into the sea alongside. We were 
 going about four knots at the time, and when it sprang 
 upwards again it struck us under the counter with a 
 bang that almost stove in the outer skin of the ship. 
 And, instead of being at all chagrined at such a gross 
 piece of bungling, the offender simply exhausted hia 
 copious vocabulary of abuse when the "old man" 
 ventured to rebuke him. Oh, our discipline was grand ! 
 
336 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 Hardly an hour afterwards, in taking in the fore-topmast 
 stun' sail, the halliards carried away. The tack and 
 sheet, rotten as cobwebs almost, followed suit, so we 
 lost that too. The rest of the rags were saved for the 
 old-rope merchant. 
 
 Still the fino weather persisted, and at last we 
 crawled up under the lee of Terceira in the Azores, 
 where we got becalmed within a couple of miles of 
 Angra. That was on a Sunday afternoon — and if 
 Captain Bunker didn't actually propose to go ashore 
 and have a donkey-ride ! He was perfectly sober, too. 
 But this was too much for even our quiet mate's 
 patience. He turned upon his commander at last. I 
 was at the wheel, and heard him tell the skipper that 
 if he carried out his proposal, and a breeze sprang up 
 while he was ashore, he, the mate, would certainly 
 make sail and leave him there. He was sick to death 
 of the state of things, and he would have no more of it. 
 This outburst frightened the old fellow terribly, and, 
 with a feeble remark that he was "only joking," he 
 disappeared below. The calm continued all through 
 the night, some invisible influence setting the vessel so 
 closely inshore that I began to fear we were going to 
 lose her after all. Yet nothing whatever was done to 
 prepare for such a contingency. The anchor was 
 securely lashed in its sea-position on the forecastle, 
 and, to all outward appearance, no notice was taken at 
 all by the officers of our undoubtedly perilous proximity 
 to the shore. Just before dawn, however, a little south- 
 easterly breeze sprang up, to which we trimmed the 
 yards, and soon glided away from all danger. Gradually 
 the wind freshened and veered until at west-south-west 
 
WHICH BRINGS US TO PORT AT LAST 337 
 
 it was blowing a strong steady breeze, and, with all 
 square-sail set, the old Harroichy was bowling along at 
 a good eight knots for the Channel. Faithful as usual, 
 this well-beloved wind to the homeward-bounder never 
 relaxed its strenuous push until the changing hue of 
 the water, plain for all men to see, told us that we were 
 once more on soundings. Oh, blessed sight, that never 
 falls upon the deep-water sailor, the fading away of 
 that deep fathomless blue which for so many, many 
 weary watches has greeted the eyQ ! Somehow or other, 
 too, the green of the Channel of Old England has a 
 different tint to any other sea-green. It is not a pretty 
 colour, will not for a moment bear comparison with the 
 blazing emerald of some tropical shores, but it looks 
 welcome — it says home; and even the most homeless 
 and hardened of shell-backs feels a deep complacency 
 when it gre^^ts his usually unobservant eye. Contrary to 
 my usual experience of the brave westerlies, this breeze 
 of ours did not culminate in a gale ; but as we neared 
 the Scilly Isles it gradually took off, and the weather 
 brightened, until one heavenly morning at daybreak we 
 saw under a pale-blue sky, bathed in brilliant sunshine, 
 those straggling outposts of dear old England like bits 
 of fairyland — uncut jewels scattered over a silver sea. 
 And here, to our intense delight, came a dandy : one 
 of those staunch Falmouth boats with the funny little 
 jigger perked up aft like the tail of a saucy cockerel.. 
 She made straight for us in business-like fashion, 
 rounded to alongside, and her commander climbed 
 nimbly on board, while the other two men in her hove 
 on board a splendid mess of fish. The enterprising 
 boatman was the runner for a Falmouth tailor, who 
 
 » » 
 
338 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 had come out thus far seeking customers. He "was, of 
 course, elated to find that we were bound into Falmouth, 
 and that his diligence was likely to he rewarded. For few 
 inder d are the homeward-bounders calling at Falmouth 
 for orders, whose crews do not liberally patronize the 
 Falmouth outfitters, getting good value for their money, 
 and being able to choose their goods with clear heads, 
 apart from the bestial distractions of sailor-town. And 
 the captains of such vessels are never loth, of course, 
 to allow their men to run up a bill with the tailor, 
 and to forward the amount from the port of discharge, 
 wherever it may be. 
 
 Favoured still by fortune we sped on toward the 
 lovely harbour, and at four p.m. rounded the well- 
 known old tower of Pendennis and entered the anchor- 
 age. Sail-furling and clearing up decks was got over 
 as if by magic, and, by the time we were at leisure 
 here was the prompt tailor-man with his leather-covered 
 trunks full of boots and clothes, ready to reap the 
 first-fruits of our labours. 
 
 Here we lay in serenest peace for a couple of 
 days, the weather being more like late spring than 
 November, so fine and balmy as to make us wonder 
 whethev we had not mistaken the time of year. Then 
 orders came for us to proceed to London. We towed 
 out of the harbour on a lovely afternoon, with the 
 Channel looking like a glimpse of fairyland under the 
 delicate blue of the cloudless sky. Under all sail we 
 gently jogged along the coast, standing more to seaward 
 as night came on, and noting, with comfortable com- 
 passion, the outward-bounders just beginning the long 
 journey of which we were bo near the end. I had 
 
WHICH BRINGS US TO PORT AT LAST. 339 
 
 the ten to midnight wheel, and, in consequence of 
 the mild weather, was lightly clad in the usual tropical 
 rig of shirt, trousers, and cap. Before half my " trick " 
 was over there was a sudden change. The wind came 
 out from the north-east, and piped up with a spiteful 
 sting in it that pierced me through. My thin hlood 
 seemed to suck up the cold until I was henumbcd 
 and almost unable to move the wheel. But there 
 was no chance to wrap up. All hands were as busy 
 as bees shortening her down, for the wind rose faster 
 than they could get the sail in, and at midnight it 
 was blowing a gale, with squalls of sleet and driving 
 banks of fog. One o'clock came before I was relieved, 
 and then I had hardly enough vitality left to get 
 forrard, my two garments being stiff upon my lead- 
 coloured flesh. Somehow I got into the forecastle 
 and changed my rig; th^n, rolling my one blanket 
 round me, I crawled into my bunk. No sleep and 
 no warmth could I get, nor did I feel more than half 
 alive at eight bells. But I dragged myself on deck 
 and suffered, till at five a.m. the cook shouted " Coffee ! " 
 as usual, and then the pannikin of boiling brown water 
 did comfort my frozen vitals. 
 
 We were now just fore-reaching under two lower 
 topsails, reefed foresail, and fore-topmast staysail — not 
 even holding our own. Every little while the big 
 flyers outward-bound would spring out of the fog- 
 laden gloom, and glide past us under a pyramid of 
 canvas like vast spirits of the storm. Or a panting, 
 labouring tramp -steamer would plough her painful way 
 up channel right in the wind's eye, digging her blunt 
 snout int'j the angry brine, and lifting it aboard in 
 
340 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 a roaring flood that bid her for a minute entirely 
 under a mantle of white foam. We had even some 
 pity to spare for the poor devils in such evil case 
 as that on those perishing iron decks, or being flung 
 like a tennis-ball between bunker, bulkhead, and 
 furnace-door in the Gehenna below, while the freezing 
 floods came streaming down upon them through the 
 grated *' fidley " above. Fifteen days did that merciless 
 north-easter thrash and wither us, until we felt that 
 nothing mattered — we had reached such a dumb depth 
 of misery. Still, we did make some progress, for on 
 the sixteenth day we sighted Dungeness, the first 
 clearly distinguishable laud we had seen since leaving 
 Falmouth. The arrival of the pilot cheered us up, 
 as it always does. He seems to bring with him the 
 assurance of safety, to be a hand stretched out from 
 home able and anxious to draw you thither. And, 
 as so often happens, too, the weather fined down almost 
 immediately. Under his wise guidance we stole 
 stealthily along the coast until, off Dover, a big tug- 
 boat sallied out and made for us. None of us took 
 any notice of him; we knew too well that we were 
 not the sort of game he was after. A ship about 
 five times our size was nearer his weight. Still, he 
 came alongside and hailed us with, *' 'E ye takin' 
 steam up, cap'n ? " ironically, as we all felt. *' Ah ! " 
 replied the old man, ''yew're too big a swell fr me." 
 "Nev' mind 'bout that," promptly came back. ^Tm 
 a-goin' up, anyhow, 'n you won't make any diff'rance 
 ter me. Come, wot'll yer gimme?" "Ten pounV' 
 sniggered the old man. " Oh ! Go on ahead ! "—the 
 interjection explosive, and the order snarled down 
 
WniGH BRINGS US TO PORT AT LAST. 341 
 
 the speaking-tube to his engineer. Before, however, 
 the paddles had made one revolution he stopped them, 
 and shouted back, ** Looky 'ere, I ain't foolin' ; I'll 
 take ye up fur thutty poun'. Thet won't 'urt yer." 
 " Can't do it," drawled the skipper. " Ov/ners wouldn't 
 v«.y it. 'Owever, ef yew mean bizness, I'm 'lowed 
 to go ter tNventy, 'n not 'nother pice." Then the fun 
 began. They argued and chaffed and swore until, 
 finally, thj tug got so close that her skipper stepped 
 off the paddle-box on board of us, and, as he did so, 
 we saw a bottle sticking out of his pea-jacket pocket. 
 They both went below, and there was silence. When 
 they reappeared our old man's face was glowing like 
 burnished copper, and Oliver muttered, ** I'm off'rin' 
 big money thet bottle's empty, and the steam-boat 
 man ain't a-hed much neither." But they hadn't 
 settled the bargain. No; the next game was to toss 
 one another — best two out of three — whether the tug 
 should take us up for twenty pounds or twenty-five. 
 Steam won ; and the old man immediately signed to the 
 mate to get the hawser up. Great Caesar ! how we did 
 snake the hatches off before the order came, forgetting 
 that we hadn't got a hawser fit for the job. That made 
 no odds ; the tug-boat man wasn't going to let a little 
 thing like that stand in his way, especially as his 
 coal supply was so low that every minute was precious. 
 So he lent us his tow-line, and in less than five 
 minutes the Robert Bruce was pelting away homeward 
 as if nothing was behind her at all, and we were all 
 admiring the first bit of speed the old Harrowhy had 
 put on since we had belonged to her. Night fell as 
 we passed the Nore, but there was no delay. Onward 
 
342 THE LOG OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 we went, until, passing everything on the way, we 
 anchored at Gravesend. Off went the tug with the 
 last shovelful of coal in the furnaces, just in time. 
 Then down came the fog, a regular November shroud, 
 so thick that the mainmast was invisible from the 
 poop. Somehow the "mud "-pilot found us, his boat 
 taking away our deep-water man, in whom — such is 
 the fickleness of mankind — we had now lost all interest. 
 All the next day that thick darkness persisted; but 
 about seven in the evening it lifted a little. The tug 
 was alongside of us directly, so anxious was her skipper 
 to get his cheap job over. We were mighty smart 
 getting under way, being off up the river in less than 
 half an hour from the first glimmer of clear. All 
 went well till we entered Long Reach, when down 
 came the curtain again thicker than ever. The tug 
 turned round and headed down the river, just keeping 
 the paddles moving as we dropped up with the young 
 flood. It was a terribly anxious time. The river was 
 full of craft, and every minute or two there was a 
 tempest of howls as we bumped into some bewildered 
 barge, or came close aboard of a huge ocean steamer. 
 At last the pilot could stand it no longer, and, telling 
 the carpenter to get his maul ready for knocking out the 
 ring-stopper of the anchor, he shouted, ** Stand clear 
 the chain ! " At that instant, as if by some pre- 
 arranged signal, the fog rolled up, and in five minutes 
 the sky was as clear as heart could wish. The tug 
 swung round again, and, under a full head of steam, 
 we rushed onwards, entering the Millwall Docks just 
 at the stroke of midnight. The process of mooring in 
 our berth was all a confused jumble of rattling chains, 
 
WUICIl BlilNQS US TO POUT AT LAST. 343 
 
 hoarse orders, and breathless, unreasoning activity, 
 succeeded by that sweetest of all sounds to a homeward- 
 bound sailor's ears, " That'll do, men." 
 
 Unearthly as the hour was, most of the fellows 
 would go ashore, delivering themselves over to the 
 ever-watchful boarding-house runners like a flock of 
 sheep. But three of us — Oliver, Bill, and myself — 
 rolled once more into our bunks, and, utterly wearied, 
 soon fell fast asloep. When wo awoke in the morning 
 the new sensation of being our own masters, able to 
 disregard the time, and lay in till noon if we chose, was 
 delightful. But just because we could do as we liked 
 we rose at daylight, had a leisurely wash, and, dressed 
 in our best, climbed over the rail and sauntered along 
 the gloomy, grimy quays towards the dock-gates. We 
 had just two shillings and sixpence between us, sufficient 
 to get a good meal only, but we knew where we could 
 get more. And that is one of the first pitfalls that 
 beset the path of the homeward-bounder. Many skippers 
 have sufficient thoughtfulness to advance their crews a 
 little money upon arriving in dock, and thereby save 
 i'lem from the dangerous necessity of borrowing from 
 those harpies who abound and batten upon the sailor. 
 Nothing of the kind could be expected from our skipper, 
 of course, so we just had to take our chance. As I was 
 at home and familiar with every corner, I became the 
 guide, and led the way to a snug eating-house in the 
 West India Dock Eoad, where I knew we could get a 
 civihzed breakfast. But Oliver hove-to at the first pub, 
 and swore that what he needed was rum. I tried hard 
 to dissuade him, assuring him that he wouldn't be able 
 to eat any breakfast if he got drinking rum first. I 
 
344 THE LOO OF A SEA- WAIF. 
 
 might as well have tried to tie an elephant with a rope- 
 yarn. He had his rum : a full quartern of the famous 
 brand that used to be sold about sailor-town, whereof 
 the bouquet was enough to make a horse sick. Then I 
 hurried him off to the coffee-shop, where, with a lordly 
 air, I ordered three haddocks, three hot rolls and butter, 
 and three pints of coffee. Oh, the ecstatic delight of 
 that meal ! — that is, to us two youngsters. Oliver just 
 pecked a little daintily, and then, turning to a burly 
 cabman sitting by his side who had just finished a 
 mighty meal, he said coaxingly, " I say, shipmate, I 
 ain't touched this grub hardly : can you help me out ? " 
 With a commiserating look the carman reached for the 
 food, and concealed it like an expert conjurer. 
 
( •'^45 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 CONCLUSION. 
 
 As I had no home, and cared little where I lodged, I 
 was easily persuaded by Oliver to accompany him to 
 the little beershop in the Highway, where he had 
 put up before. I had my misgivings, for I knew that 
 unsavoury neighbourhood well (it is somewhat different 
 now) ; but it was necessary to find harbourage some- 
 where until the ship paid off, which was, as usual, likely 
 to be three days longer. Bill departed unto his own 
 place among the purlieus of Bermondsey, and we two 
 trudged off to Oliver's hotel. After the glowing accounts 
 of it I had received from Oliver, I was dumbfounded to 
 find it a regular den : che bar filled with loafers furtive 
 of look and mangy of clothing, while the big taproom at 
 the back was just a barn of a place open to all. The 
 fat landlord seemed a decent fellow, but his fatter wife 
 v/as a terror. She had vigour enough to command a 
 regiment, and woe to the loafer who crossed her. Still 
 I felt that it was now too late to draw back, and besides, 
 I had little to lose ; so I had my scanty kit brought up 
 from the ship, and saw it shoved into a corner of the 
 common room, where I reckoned it would be ransacked 
 thoroughly as soon as darkness set in. The landlord lent 
 
34G THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 me a sovereign readily enough, and, as soon as I received 
 it, I bade good-day to Oliver, who was fast drinking 
 himself idiotic, and, taking the train from Shadwell 
 to Fenchurch Street, was whirled out of that detestable 
 locality. All the rest of the day I roamed about the 
 well-known streets, where the very buildings seemed to 
 greet me with the air of old friends. I thoroughly 
 enjoyed myself, and, with only a couple of shillings gone 
 out of my sovereign, returned to my lodging shortly 
 after ten. I found things worse than over. The land- 
 lady was half inclined to abuse me because I hadn't 
 been in to my meals, and every loafer in the place was 
 sponging for a drink. Outside I knew was not healthy 
 at this time of night for me, so I quietly asked permission 
 to go to bed. Grumbling at such an unreasonable request, 
 the landlady snarled, ** You'll 'ave ter wite till yer bed's 
 ready. 'Ow wos hi ter know as you'd wanter sleep all 
 day." I said nothing, seeing it was the wisest course ; 
 but perching myself in a corner under the big flaring 
 kerosene-lamp^ tried to read a book I had brought iu 
 with me. I had not been thus quietly engaged for more 
 than five minutes, before an awfully repulsive-looking 
 fellow came up to me, and, pushing down my book, 
 said, ** Got enny munny in yer close, young 'un ? " I 
 looked at him in silence for a minute, thinking hard how 
 best to answer him. But growing impatient he growled, 
 '* Look 'ere, giv us the price of a drink, er I'll bash yer 
 jor in." That settled it. Indignation overcame prudence, 
 and I shouted at the pitch of my voice, *' Mr. Bailey, 
 do you allow this to go on in your house ? " There was 
 an uproar immediately, in the midst of which Mrs. Bailey 
 cleared the room of the swarming loafers — my assailant 
 
tb 
 
 CONCLUSION. 347 
 
 wscaping among them. Then, turning indignantly to 
 me, she abused me roundly for making a disturbance, 
 treating my statement aa a '* pack er lies." I got to 
 bed safely, though, and really the bed was better than 
 I had expected, although the room was just a bare box 
 of a place, with damp-begrimed walls that might have 
 been a coal-cellar. 
 
 Eising early in the morning I went down and had 
 an interview with Bailey, in which I asked him to have 
 my dunnage put away, as I was going on a visit and 
 should not return that night. He was pleasant enough 
 about it, and offered me a rum-and-milk at his expense, 
 being greatly amazed at my refusal. Then I escaped 
 and took Tip my abode at a lodging-house in Newman 
 Street, Oxford Street. The time dragged rather heavily 
 until pay-day, as I dared not do anything costing 
 money ; but at last I found myself once more at Green's 
 Home, with my account of wages in my hand, telling 
 me that after all claims were satisfied, I was entitled 
 to sixteen pounds. It was a curious paying-off. Every 
 man, as he got his money, gave the skipper a piece of 
 his mind ; and but that a stout grating protected the 
 old man from his crew, I am afraid there would have 
 been assault and battery. I came last, with the excep- 
 tion of Bill, and, when I held out my account of wages 
 to the clerk, the old rascal said, ** I've a good mind to 
 stop yer wages as I promised yer." What I said doesn't 
 matter, but I never felt the poverty of language more. 
 And when I saw that he had given me on my certificate 
 of discharge an excellent character for conduct (which 
 I didn't deserve) and a bad character for ability (which 
 was utterly unjust), I felt that his malignity would 
 
348 THE LOG OF A SEA-WAIF. 
 
 pursue me long after I had seen the last of him. For 
 such a dischargt is a millstone round a young man's 
 neck. Captains don't take much notice of a character 
 for conduct — whether it be good or bad — but they do 
 want their men to be of some uso at their work, and 
 will return such a discharge R3 mine was contemptu- 
 ously. Bill took his pay without looking at it, and, 
 without a word passing between him and the old man, 
 joined me outside. We strolled away together along 
 the East India Dock Boad, he bungling over his money 
 all the time, till suddenly he cried, *' Why, I've got a 
 five-pound note too much ! Here, come on, let's get 
 out 0* this, case he sends after us." And thus was I 
 avenged. The morality of the thing never troubled 
 me in the least, I only felt glad from my heart that 
 mine enemy would have to refund all that money. 
 
 And now I have reached the limit of my book. At 
 the outset I only proposed to deal with the vicissitudes 
 of my life on board ship as a boy. And with the close 
 of this voyage I felt that I was a boy no longer. I was 
 getting more confident in my ability to hold my own 
 in the struggle for life, and, although I saw nothing 
 before me but a dreary round of the drudgery of the 
 merchant seaman's career before the mast, the prospect 
 did not trouble me. I had no plans, no ambitions, 
 nobody to work for, no one to encourage me to strive 
 for better things. I lived only for the day's need, my 
 only trouble the possible difticulty of getting a ship. 
 Of the future, and what it had in store for me, I 
 thought nothing, cared nothing. And yet I was not 
 unhappy. If at times there was a dull sense of want — 
 want of something besides food and clothing — I did 
 
■5' ; 
 
 CONCLUSION. 349 
 
 not nurse it until it became a pain. Only I kept away 
 from sailor-town. The museums, picture galleries, and 
 theatres kept me fully amused, and, when I was tired, 
 a good book was an unfailing resource against dulness. 
 In fact I lived in a little world of my own, quite content 
 with my own company and that of the creations of 
 my fancy or the characters in the books I devoured. 
 
 This unsatisfactory life, thank God ! was soon to be 
 entirely changed ; but that, of course, was hidden from 
 me, nor does it come within the scope of this book. As 
 I write these last few words I think curiously whether, 
 if ever they see the light, those who read them v»ill 
 think contemptuously, " This fellow seems to imagine 
 that the commonplace details in the life of a nobody arc 
 worth recording." Well, I have had my doubts about 
 that all along, and my only excuse must be that I have 
 been assured, upon very high authority, that a book like 
 mine, telling just the naked, unadorned truth about an 
 ordinary boy's ordinary life at sea, could not fail to be 
 of interest as a human document. And, in spite of the 
 manifest shortcomings, the obvious inability to dis- 
 criminate wisely always between things that are worth 
 the telling and things that are not, I do confidently 
 assert that I have here t forth the truth impartially, as 
 far as I have been able to do so. I feel strongly tempted 
 to diaw a few conclusions from my experience; but I 
 must resist the temptation, and allow the readers to do 
 that for themselves. In the hope that some good may 
 be done, some little pleasure given, by this simple 
 recital of a boy's experiences at sea, I now bid my 
 readers, respectfully, 
 
 so LONG I 
 
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 THE GOLDEN TREASURY OF THE BEST SONGS AND LYRICAL 
 
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 F. T. Palgravb. 
 Second Series. 
 
 LYRIC LOVE : an Anthology. Edited by William Watson. 
 
 THE CHILDREN'S GARLAND FROM THE BEST POETS. Selected by 
 
 Coventry Patmork. 
 THE CHILDREN'S TREASURY OF LYRICAL POETRY. Arranged by F. 
 
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 THE FAIRY BOOK. The Best Popular Fairy Stories. Selected by Mrs. Craik. 
 
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 A BOOK OF GOLDEN THOUGHTS. By Henry Attwell. 
 
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 THEOLOGIA GERMANICA. Translated by S. Winkworth. Preface by 
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 THE SONG BOOK. Words and tunes selected and arranged by John Hullah. 
 
 SCOTTISH SONG. Compiled by Mary Carlyle Aitken. 
 
 LA LYRE FRAN<;;AISE. Selected and arranged, with Notes, by G. Masson. 
 
 BALLADEN UND ROM ANZEN. Being a Selection of the Best German Ballads 
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 SELECTED POEMS OF MATTHEW ARNOLD. 
 
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 HYDRIOTAPHIA, AND THE GARDEN OF CYRUS. Edited by W. A. 
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 POETRY OF BYRON. Chosen and arranged by Matthew Arnold. 
 
 SELECTED POEMS OF A. II. CLOUGH. 
 
 LETTERS OF WILLIAM COWPER. Edited, with Introduction, by Rev. W. 
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 SELECTIONS FROM COWPER'S POEMS. With an Introduction by Mrs. 
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 BALTHASAR GRACIAN. ART OF WORLDLY WISDOM. Translated by 
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 HEINRICH HEINE'S LIEDER UND GEDICHTE. Selected and Arranged 
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 ClIRYSOMELA. A Selection from the Lyrical Poems of Robert Herrick. By 
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 TOM BROWN'S SCHOOL DAYS. By An Old Boy. 
 
 THE POETICAL V/ORKS OF JOHN KEATS. Edited by Prof. F.T. Palgrave. 
 
 KEBLE. the CHRISTIAN YEAR. Edited by C. M. Yonge. 
 
 LAMB'S TALES FROM SHAKSPEARE. Edited by Rev. Alfred Ainger, M.A. 
 
 SELECTIONS FROM WALTER SAVAGE LANDOR. Edited by Sidney 
 
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 BALLADS, LYRICS, AND SONNETS. From the Works of Henry W. 
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 THE SPEECHES AND TABx.E-TALK OF THE PROPHET MAHOMMAD. 
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 PHAEDRUS, LYSIS, AND PROTAGORAS OF PLATO. A new translation 
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 SOUTHEY. POEMS. Chosen and arranged by E. Dowden. 
 
 THEOCRITUS, BION, AND MOSCHUS. Rendered into English Prose by 
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 POEMS, RELIGIOUS AND DOCTRINAL. From Works of J. G. Whittier.' 
 
 POEMS OF WORDSWORTH. Chosen and edited by Matthew Arnold. 
 
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