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 STORIES OF THE SEA.
 
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 " A nhout hurst from Marbled throat, and a si^ht mot my eyes that causod 
 the blood tu ru»li hi u torrent through my heart," — Page 55.
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA: 
 
 BEING 
 
 NARRATIVES OF ADVENTURE, 
 
 SELECTED FROM THE '• SEA TALES " 
 
 BY JAMES FENIMORE C00PFJ1. 
 
 A BOOK FOR BOYS. 
 
 ILLUSTRATED FROM DRAWINGS BY DARLEY. 
 
 NEW YORK: 
 JAMES G. GREGORY, PUBLISHER, 
 
 4C Walker Street. 
 
 HDCOCLXTLL.
 
 Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1862, by 
 
 JAMES G. GREGORY, 
 
 In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for the 
 
 Southern District of New York. 
 
 O. A. ALVOED, 8TEREOTYPER AND PEINTEK.
 
 NOTE. 
 
 It was believed that the leading incidents of Mr. Cooper's Sea 
 Novels, when freed from those accessory details that belonged 
 to the general story, would be found to be complete narratives in 
 themselves, which, from their stirring action and graphic interest, 
 would prove highly entertaining to young readers. With this 
 view this book has been compiled, and in pursuance of the plan, 
 the editor has been enabled to crowd into one small volume, a 
 large number of the most spirited and absorbing incidents in 
 Mr. Cooper's famous tales of the sea. The sketches, with the 
 exception of the introductory paragraphs, are given in the author's 
 own language, but necessarily condensed. The books from which 
 they were drawn are, " The Red Rover," " The Water-Witch," 
 " The Pilot." "Afloat and Ashore," "Miles Wallingford," and "The 
 Crater." The work forms a companion to one entitled " Stories 
 of the Woods." 
 
 New York, 1862.
 
 CO^TE^TTS. 
 
 Page 
 
 the wreck of the dawn 9 
 
 the bed rover 62 
 
 fid's story 63 
 
 the battle 78 
 
 the water-witch 99 
 
 the combat 102 
 
 THE NIGHT ATTACK l"2:i 
 
 THE SHIP <>N FIKE 140 
 
 THE EE8CUE ... 162 
 
 ADVENTURES IX THE PACIFIC 179 
 
 LONG TOM COFFIN AND THE A KIEL 229 
 
 THE WHALE 232 
 
 THE FIGHT 243 
 
 THE \\ BECK OF THE ARIEL 25."} 
 
 THE CRATER; OR, THE CRCSOES OF THE PACIFIC 272
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 THE WRECK OF "THE DAWN." 
 
 The story of the remarkable escapes and adven- 
 tures of the crew of the " Dawn" is told in Mr. Feni- 
 more Cooper's admirable romance of the sea, called 
 tk Miles Wallingford." The "Dawn" was a merchant 
 vessel, owned by and under command of Captain Miles 
 "WaUingford, on a voyage from New York to Ham- 
 burgh. The various adventures of the voyage were 
 very striking, some of them quite thrilling, and 
 others amusing ; but it is our purpose to give you 
 only the account of the wreck, which occurred on the 
 coast of Ireland. The period of the incidents of the 
 story was a short time before our war with Great 
 Britain, in eighteen hundred and twelve. France 
 and England were then at war, and England, having 
 great need of sailors to man her war-ships, was in 
 the habit, as no doubt you have read in the histories 
 of the times, of boarding American vessels, and for- 
 cibly taking from (hem such of the sailors as were 
 supposed to be of English birth. Our government 
 protested very energetically against this coarse, bat
 
 10 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 the British ministers persisted in the practice, until 
 at last the American Congress resolved that this in- 
 sulting conduct could not be submitted to any longer, 
 and declared war against Great Britain. Well, the 
 Dawn, as usual, was visited by an English man-of- 
 war, a number of her seamen impressed, and then on 
 the ground that her cargo, which consisted of sugar 
 raised on the French West India islands, was forfeit 
 to the English crown, was seized as a prize, a prize- 
 crew placed on board, and ordered into Plymouth 
 harbor. 
 
 But Captain Wallingford, her mate, Moses Marble, 
 and two negroes, Neb and Diogenes, all that remained 
 of the original crew, were so far unwilling to be car- 
 ried into a foreign port, with a chance of having 
 the vessel and cargo declared a prize by the courts — 
 for, although the vessel was sent into port as a prize, 
 the law courts had to investigate the case and decide 
 whether the seizure was lawful — that they got to- 
 gether and laid a scheme for retaking the vessel. It 
 was a very ingenious plan, and succeeded admirably. 
 They dressed up a block of wood like a man, secretly 
 dropped it in the sea, and then raised a great cry of 
 vt man overboard !" In an instant a boat was manned ; 
 our American sailors managing to appear very busy 
 on the deck of the ship, into the boat hurried a good 
 part of the British crew, and off they rowed in search 
 o[' the supposed sailor. It did not take long, then, 
 for Wallingford and his men to overcome the rest of 
 the prize-crew, and obtain command of their ship. 
 You may imagine the rage of the English seamen
 
 ... 
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 11 
 
 when they discovered the trick that had been played 
 upon them. But there was no help for it, and the 
 best they could do was to make terms with the 
 Americans, to receive their fellow-seamen into the 
 boat, and to be supplied with water and provisions, 
 which Captain Wallingford passed to them over the 
 side of the ship. Luckily a ship was in the offing, 
 which picked them up. 
 
 After this the Dawn, having now only four men to 
 work her, had a number of adventures and narrow 
 escapes ; once falling into the hands of a French pri- 
 vateer, from which Miles Wallingford as ingeniously 
 rescued her, as in the case of the English prize-crew ; 
 at other times being hotly pursued by English frigates ; 
 until, at last, in attempting to run up the Irish Chan- 
 nel, between Ireland and Scotland, during a very 
 heavy gale, was obliged to seek anchoring ground on 
 the coast of Ireland. We shall now let Miles Wall- 
 ingford tell his story in his own words: 
 
 I never knew precisely the point on the coast of 
 Ireland where we anchored. It was somewhere be- 
 tween Strangford and Dundrum Bay; though the 
 name of the headland which gave us a sort of pro- 
 tection, I did not learn. In this part of the island, 
 the caasl trends North and South, generally ; 1 hough 
 at the place where we anchored, its direction was 
 nearly from north-north-east to south-south-west — 
 which, in the early part of the gale, was as close as 
 might be the course in which the wind blew. At the 
 
 moment we broughl up, the wind had hauled a little 
 further to the northward, giving us a better lee; but,
 
 12 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 to my great regret, Michael (a fisherman who had 
 piloted them to this spot), had scarcely left us, 
 when it shifted to due north-east, making a fair rake 
 of the Channel. This left us very little of a lee — the 
 point ahead of us being no great matter, and we 
 barely within it. I consulted such maps as I had, 
 and came to the conclusion that we were off the 
 county Down, a part of the kingdom that was at least 
 civilized, and where we should be apt to receive good 
 treatment, in the event of being wrecked. 
 
 It was past noon when the Dawn anchored ; and 
 the wind got more to the eastward, about half an 
 hour afterward. It was out of the question to think 
 of getting under way again, with so strong a wind, 
 and with our feeble crew. Had it been perfectly 
 smooth water, and had there been neither tide, nor 
 air, it would have taken us half a day, at least, to get 
 out two bowers. It was folly, therefore, to think of 
 it, situated as we were. It only remained to ride out 
 the gale in the best manner we could, but I had great 
 forebodings of evil from the commencement of the 
 tempest. Nothing occurred for several hours, except 
 that the gale increased sensibly in violence. Like an 
 active disease, it was fast coming to a crisis. There 
 Mas a little relaxation of the force of the gale in the 
 middle of the night, but, with the return of day, came 
 the winds howling down upon us, in a way that an- 
 nounced a more than common storm. All hands of 
 us were now up, and paying every attention to the 
 vessel. My greatest concern had been lest some of 
 the sails should get adrift, for they had been furled
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 13 
 
 by few and fatigued men. This did not happen, 
 however, our gaskets and lashings doing all of their 
 duty. We got our breakfasts, therefore, in the ordi- 
 nary way, and Marble and myself went and stood on 
 the forecastle, to watch the signs of the times, like 
 faithful guardians who were anxious to get as near 
 as possible to the danger. 
 
 It was wonderful how the ship pitched! Fre- 
 quently her Aurora was completely submerged, and 
 tons of water would come in upon the forecastle, 
 washing entirely aft at the next send, so that our 
 only means of keeping above water was to stand on 
 the wmdlass-bitts, or to get upon the heart of the 
 main-stay. Dry we were not, nor did we tbink of 
 attempting to be so, but such expedients were neces- 
 sary to enable us to remain stationary ; often to ena- 
 ble us to breathe. It was quite clear the fishermen 
 knew very little about finding a proper berth for a 
 ship, and that we might pretty nearly as well have 
 brought up in the middle of St. George's Channel, 
 could our ground-tackle reach the bottom, as to have 
 brought up where we were. 
 
 Just about nine o'clock, Marble and I got near each 
 other on the file-rail, and held a consultation on the 
 subject of our prospects. Although we both clung 
 to the same topsail-sheet, we were obliged to hollo 
 to make ourselves heard, the howling of the wind 
 through the rigging converting the hamper into a 
 sort of tremendous Eoliau harp, while the roar of 
 the water kept up a species of bass accompaniment to 
 this music of the ocean. Marble was the one who
 
 14 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 had brought about this communication, and he was 
 the first to speak. 
 
 "I say, Miles," he called out, his mouth within 
 three feet of my ear—" she jumps about like a whale 
 with a harpoon in it ! I've been afraid she'd jerk the 
 stem out of her." 
 
 " Xot much fear of that, Moses — my great concern 
 is that starboard bower-cable; it has a good deal 
 more strain on it than the larboard, and you can see 
 how the strands are stretched." 
 
 " Ay, ay — 'tis generalizing its strength, as one may 
 say. Spose we clap the helm aport, and try the 
 effects of a sheer ?" 
 
 " I've thought of that ; as there is a strong tide go- 
 ing, it may possibly answer" — 
 
 These words were scarcely out of my mouth, when 
 three seas of enormous height came rolling down 
 upon us, like three great roistering companions in a 
 crowd of sullen men, the first of which raised the 
 Dawn's bows so high in the air, as to cause us both 
 to watch the result in breathless silence. The plunge 
 into the trough was in a just proportion to the toss 
 into the air ; and I felt a surge, as if something gave 
 way under the violent strain that succeeded. The 
 torrent of water that came on the forecastle prevented 
 any thing from being seen; but again the bows rose, 
 again they sunk, and then the ship seemed easier. 
 
 "We are all adrift, Miles!" Marble shouted, lean- 
 in-- forward to be heard. "Both bowers have 
 snapped like thread, and here we go, head-foremost, 
 in for the land !"
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 15 
 
 All this was true enough ! The cables had parted, 
 and the ship's head was falling off fast from the gale, 
 like the steed that has slipped his bridle, before he 
 commences his furious and headlong career. I looked 
 round for the negroes ; but Neb was already at the 
 wheel. That noble fellow, true as steel, had per- 
 ceived the accident as soon as any of us, and he 
 sprang to the very part of the vessel where he was 
 most needed. A motion of my hand ordered him 
 to put the helm hard up, and the answering sign let 
 me know that I was obeyed. We could do no more 
 just then, but the result was awaited in awful expec- 
 tation. 
 
 The Dawn's bows fell off until the ship lay broad- 
 side to the gale, which made her reel until her lee 
 lower yard-arms nearly dipped. Then she overcame 
 the cauldron of water thai was boiling around her, 
 and began to draw heavily ahead. Three seas swept 
 athwart her decks, before she minded her helm in the 
 least, carrying with them every thing that was not 
 mosl firmly* lashed, or which had not animal life to 
 direct its movements, away to leeward. They swept 
 off the hen-coops, and ripped four or five water-casks 
 from their lashings, even, as if the latter had been 
 pack-thread. The camboose-house went also, at the 
 last of these terrific seas ; and nothing saved the 
 camboose itself, but it s great weight, added t<> the 
 strength of its fastenings. In a word, little was left, 
 that could very well go, but the launch, the gripes of 
 which fortunately held on. 
 
 By the time this desolation was completed, the ship
 
 16 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 began to fall off, and her movement through the 
 Avater became very perceptible. At first, she clashed 
 in toward the land, running, I make no doubt, quite 
 half a mile obliquely in that direction, ere she got 
 fairly before the wind : a course which carried her 
 nearly in a line with the coast. Marble and myself 
 now got aft without much trouble, and put the helm 
 a little to starboard, with a view to edge off to 
 the passage as far as possible. The wind blew so 
 nearly down channel, that there would have been no 
 immediate danger, had we an offing ; but the ship 
 had not driven before the gale more than three or 
 four hours, when we made land ahead ; the coast 
 trending in this part of the island nearly north and 
 south. Marble suggested the prudence of taking 
 time by the forelock, and of getting the main-top-sail 
 on the ship, to force her off the land, the coast in the 
 neighborhood of Dublin lying under our lee bow. 
 We had taken the precaution to close-reef every 
 thing before it was furled, and I went aloft myself to 
 lower this sail. If I had formed a very respectful 
 opinion of the power of the gale while on deck, that 
 opinion was materially heightened when I came to 
 feel its gusts on the main-top-sail yard. It was not 
 an easy matter to hold on at all ; and to work re- 
 quired great readiness and strength. Nevertheless 
 I got the sail loose, and then I went down and aided 
 Marble and the cook to drag home the sheets. Home 
 they could not be dragged by us, notwithstanding we 
 got up a luff; but we made the sail stand reasonably 
 well.
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 17 
 
 The ship immediately felt the effect of even this 
 rag of canvas. She drove ahead at a prodigious 
 rate, running, I make no question, some eleven or 
 twelve knots, under the united power collected by 
 her hamper and this one fragment of a sail. Her 
 drift was unavoidably great, and I thought the cur- 
 rent sucked her in toward the land; but, on the 
 whole, she kept at about the same distance from the 
 6hore, foaming along it, much as we had seen the 
 frigate do the day before. At the rate we were go- 
 ing, twelve or fifteen hours would carry us down to 
 the passage between Holy Head and Ireland, when 
 we should get more sea-room, on account of the land's 
 trending again to the westward. 
 
 Long, long hours did Marble and I watch the pro- 
 gress of our ship that day and the succeeding night, 
 each of us taking our tricks at the wheel, and doing 
 seaman's duty, as well as that of mate and master. 
 All this time, the vessel was dashing furiously out 
 toward the Atlantic, which she reached ere the morn- 
 ing of the succeeding day. 
 
 A wild scene lay around us, at the return of light. 
 The Atlantic resembled a chaos of waters, the por- 
 tions of the rolling sheet that were not white with 
 foam, looking green and angry. The clouds hid the 
 sun, and the gale seemed to be fast coming to its 
 height. At ten, we drove past an American, with 
 nothing standing but his foremast. Like us, he was 
 running oft*, though we went three feet to his two. 
 Hall' an hour later, we had tin; awful sighl before our 
 eyes of witnessing the sudden disappearance of an 
 2
 
 18 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 English brig. She was lying-to, directly on our 
 course, and I was looking at her from the windlass, 
 trying to form some opinion as to the expediency of 
 our luffing-to, in order to hold our own. Of a sud- 
 den this brig gave a plunge, and she went down like 
 a porpoise diving. What caused this disaster I never 
 knew ; but in five minutes we passed as near as pos- 
 sible over the spot, and not a trace of her was to be 
 seen. I could not discover so much as a handspike 
 floating, though I looked with intense anxiety, in the 
 hope of picking up some fellow-creature clinging to a 
 spar. As for stopping to examine, one Mho did not 
 understand the language might as well hope to read 
 the German character on a mile-stone, while flying 
 past it in a railroad car. 
 
 At noon, precisely, away went our fore-top-sail out 
 of the gaskets. One fastening snapped after another, 
 until the whole sail was adrift. The tugs that this 
 large sheet of canvas gave upon the spars, as it 
 shook in the wind, threatened to jerk the foremast 
 out of the ship. They lasted about three minutes, 
 when, after a report almost as loud as that of a small 
 piece of ordnance, the sail split in ribands. Ten min- 
 utes later, our main-top-sail went. This sail left us as 
 it might be bodily, and I actually thought that a gun 
 of distress was fired near us, by some vessel that was 
 unseen. The bolt-rope was left set ; the sheets, ear- 
 ings, and reef points all holding on, the cloth tearing 
 at a single rent around the four sides of the sail. 
 The scene that followed I scarcely know how to de- 
 scribe. The torn part of the main-top-sail flew for-
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 19 
 
 ward, and caught in the after part of the fore-top, 
 where it stood spread, as one might say, held by the 
 top, cat-harpins, rigging, and other obstacles. This 
 was the feather to break the camel's back. Bolt 
 after bolt of the fore-rigging drew or broke, each 
 parting with, a loud report, and away went every 
 thing belonging to the foremast over the bows, from 
 the deck up. The main-top-mast was dragged down 
 by this fearful pull, and that brought the mizzen-top- 
 gallant-mast after it. The pitching of so much 
 hamper under the bows of the ship, while her after- 
 masts stood, threw the stern round, in spite of the 
 manner in which Marble steered; and the ship 
 broached-to. In doing this, the sea made a fair 
 breach over her, sweeping the deck of even the launch 
 and camboose, and carrying all the lee bulwarks, in 
 the waist, with them. Neb was in the launch at the 
 time, hunting for some article kept there; and the 
 last I saw of the poor fellow, he was standing erect 
 in the bows of the boat, as the latter drove over the 
 vessel's side, on the summit of a wave, like a bubble 
 floating in a furious current. Diogenes, it seems, had 
 that moment gone to his camboose, to look after the 
 plain dinner lie was trying to boil, when probably 
 seizing the iron as the mosl solid objeel near him, lie 
 was carried overboard with it, and never reappeared. 
 Marble was in a tolerably sate part of the vessel, at 
 tiie wheel, and he kept his feet, though the water 
 rose above his waist; as high, indeed, as his arms. 
 As for myself, I was saved only by the main-rigging, 
 into which I was driven, and where I lodged.
 
 20 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 I could not but admire the coolness and conduct of 
 Marble even at that terrific moment ! In the first 
 place, he put the helm hard down, and lashed the 
 wheel, the wisest thing that could be done by men in 
 our situation. This he did by means of that nautical 
 instinct, which enables a seaman to act, in the direst 
 emergencies, almost without reflection, or, as one 
 closes his eyes to avoid danger to the pupils. Then 
 he gave one glance at the state of things in-board, 
 running forward with the end of a rope to throw to 
 Diogenes, should the cook rise near the ship. By the 
 time he was satisfied the hope of doing any thing in 
 that way was vain, I was on deck, and we two stood 
 facing each other, in the midst of the scene of desola- 
 tion and ruin that was around us. Marble caught my 
 hand with a look that spoke as plainly as words. It 
 told me the joy he felt at seeing I was spared, his de- 
 termination to stick by me to the last ; yet, how low 
 were his hopes of ultimate preservation ! It was such 
 a look as any man would be glad to receive from a 
 comrade in the heat of battle ; nevertheless, it was 
 not a look that promised victory. 
 
 The situation of the ship would now have been 
 much better than it had been, in many respects, were 
 it not for the wreck. All the masts forward had gone 
 over the lee bow, and would have lain in a sufficiently 
 favorable situation for a strong crew to get rid of 
 them ; but in our case we were compelled to let things 
 take their course. It is true, we could cut away, and 
 this we began to do pretty freely, but the lower end 
 of the foremast lay on the forecastle, where it was
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 21 
 
 grinding every thing near it to pieces, with the heav- 
 ing and setting of the waves. All the bulwarks in 
 that part of the ship threatened soon to be beaten 
 down, and I felt afraid the cathead would be torn 
 violently out of the ship, leaving a bad leak. Leaks 
 enough there were, as it was. The launch, camboose, 
 water-casks, and spare spars, in driving overboard, 
 having forced out timber heads, and other supports, 
 in a way to split the plank sheer, which let in the 
 Mater fast, every time the lee gunwale went under. 
 I gave up my cargo from the first, bringing my hopes 
 down as low as the saving of the ship, the instant I 
 saw the state of the upper works. 
 
 Marble and I had not been educated in a school 
 that is apt to despair. As for my mate, had he found 
 himself on a plank in the middle of the Atlantic, I do 
 believe he would have set about rigging a jury-mast, 
 by splitting off a piece of the hull of his craft and 
 spreading Ins shirt by way of sail. I never knew a 
 more in-and-in-bred seaman, who, when one resource 
 failed, invariably set about the next besl visible expe- 
 dient. We were at a loss, however, whether to make 
 an effort to get rid of the foremast, or not. With the 
 exception of the damages it did on the forecastle, it 
 was of use to us, keeping the ship's bow up to the 
 wind, and making better weather for us on deck. 
 The after-masts stauding, while those forward were 
 gone, had the effect to press the stern of the vessel to 
 leeward, while this support in the water prevented 
 Ins- bows from falling oil" and we rode much nearer 
 to the wind than is usual with a ship that is lying-to.
 
 22 BTOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 It is true the outer end of the fallen spars began to 
 drive to leeward ; and acting as a long lever, they 
 were gradually working the broken end of the fore- 
 mast athwart the forecastle, ripping and tearing away 
 every thing on the gunwale, and threatening the foot 
 of the mainstay. This made it desirable to be rid of 
 the wreck, while on the other hand, there was the 
 danger of the ship's bottom beating against the end 
 of the mast, did the latter get overboard. Under all 
 these circumstances, however, we determined to cut 
 as much of the gear as possible, and let the fallen 
 spars work themselves clear of us, if they could. 
 
 Our job was by no means easy. It was difficult to 
 stand, even, on the deck of the Dawn, in a time like 
 that ; and this difficulty was greatly increased forward, 
 by having so little to hold on by. But work Ave did, 
 and in a way that cleared most of the rigging from 
 the ship, in the course of the next half-hour. We 
 were encouraged by the appearances of the weather, 
 too, the gale having broken, and promising to abate. 
 The ship grew a little easier, I thought, and we moved 
 about with more confidence of not being washed away 
 by the seas that came on board us. After a time, we 
 took some refreshments, eating the remains of a for- 
 mer meal, and cheered our hearts a little with a glass 
 or two of good Sherry. Then we went at it again, 
 working with a will and with spirit. The wreck aft 
 wanted very little to carry it over the side, and going 
 aloft with an axe, I watched my opportunity, cut one 
 or two of the shrouds and stays, just as the ship 
 lurched heavily to leeward, and got rid of the whole
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 23 
 
 in the sea handsomely, without further injury to the 
 ship. This was a good deliverance, the manner in 
 which the spars had threshed about having menaced 
 our lives before. We now attacked the wreck for- 
 ward for the last time, feeling certain we should get 
 it adrift, could we sever the connection formed by 
 one or two of the larger ropes. The lee shrouds, in 
 particular, gave us trouble, it being impossible to get 
 at them, in-board, the fore-channels being half the time 
 underwater and the' bulwarks in then- wake being 
 all gone. It was, in fact, impossible to stand there to 
 Avork long enough to clear, or cut, all the lanyards. 
 Marble was an adventurous fellow aloft, on all occa- 
 sions ; and seeing good footing about the top, with- 
 out saying a word to me, he seized an axe, and liter- 
 ally ran out on the mast, where he began to cut the 
 collars of the rigging at the mast-head. This was 
 soon done ; but the spars were no sooner clear, than, 
 impelled by a wave that nearly drowned the mate, 
 the end of the foremast slid oft* the forecastle into the 
 sea, leaving the ship virtually clear of the wreck, but 
 my mate adrift on the last; I say virtually clear, for 
 the lee fore-top-sail-brace still remained fast to the 
 ship, by some oversight in clearing away the smaller 
 ropes. The effect of this restraint was to cause the 
 whole body of the wreck to swing slowly round, until 
 it rode by this rope alone. 
 
 Here was a new and a most serious state of things! 
 I knew that my male would do all that man could 
 perform, situated as he was, but what man could swim 
 against such a sea, even the short distance that inter-
 
 21 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 posed between the spars and the ship ? The point of 
 the wreck nearest the vessel, was the end of the top- 
 sail-yard, to which the brace led, and this was raised 
 from the water by the strain (the other end of the 
 brace leading aloft), fathoms at a time, rendering it 
 extremely difficult for Marble to reach the rope, by 
 means of which I could now see, notwithstanding all 
 the difficulties, he hoped to regain the vessel. The 
 voice could be heard by one directly to leeward, the 
 howling of the winds and the roar of the waters hav- 
 ing materially lessened within the last few hours. I 
 shouted to Marble, therefore, my intentions — 
 
 " Stand by to get the brace as I ease it off, in- 
 board," I cried ; "then you will be safe !" 
 
 The mate understood me, giving a gesture of assent 
 with his arm. When both were ready, I eased off the 
 rope suddenly, and Marble, partly by crawling, and 
 partly by floating and dragging himself by the hands, 
 actually got to the yard-arm, which was immediately 
 raised from the water, however, by the drift made by 
 the spars, while he was achieving his object. I trem- 
 bled as I saw this stout seaman, the water dripping 
 from his clothes, thus elevated in the air, with the 
 angry billows rolling beneath him, like lions leaping 
 upward to catch the adventurer in their grasp. Mar- 
 ble's hand was actually extended to reach the brace, 
 when its block gave way with the strain. The eye 
 of the strap slipping from the yard, down went the 
 spar into the water. Next the trough of the sea hid 
 every thing from my sight, and I was left in the most 
 painful doubt of the result, when I perceived the mate
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. ZO 
 
 lashing himself to the top, as the portion of the wreck 
 that floated the most buoyantly. He had managed to 
 get in again, and coolly went to work to secure him- 
 self in the best berth he could find, the instant he re- 
 gained the main mass of the wreck. As he rose on 
 the crest of a sea, the poor fellow made a gesture of 
 adieu to me ; the leave-taking of the mariner ! 
 
 In this manner did it please Divine Providence to 
 separate us four, who had already gone through so 
 much in company ! With what moody melancholy 
 did I watch the wreck, as it slowly drifted from the 
 ship. I no longer thought of making further eflbrts 
 to save the Dawn, and I can truly say, that scarce a 
 thought in connection with my own life crossed my 
 mind. There I stood for quite an hour, leaning 
 against the foot of the mizzen-mast, with folded arms 
 and riveted eyes, regardless of the pitches, and 
 lurches, and rolling of the ship, with all my faculties 
 and thoughts fastened on the form of Marble, expect- 
 ing each time the top rose to view to find it empty. 
 He Mas too securely lashed, however, to strike adrift, 
 though he was nearly half the time under water. It 
 was impossible to do any thing to save him. No 
 boat was left ; had there been one, it could not have 
 lived, nor could I have managed it alone. Spars he 
 had already, hut what must become of him without 
 food or water? I threw two breakers of the last 
 into the sea, and a box of bread, in a sort of idle 
 hope they might drift down near the wreck, and help 
 to prolong the sufferer's life. They were all tossed 
 about in the cauldron of the ocean, and disappeared
 
 26 STOEIES OF THE SKA. 
 
 to leeward, I knew not whither. When Marble was 
 no longer visible from deck, I went into the main- 
 top and watched the mass of spars and rigging, 
 so long as any portion of it could be seen. Then I 
 set it by compass, in order to know its bearing, and 
 an hour before the sun went down, or as soon as the 
 diminished power of the wind would permit, I show- 
 ed an ensign aloft, as a signal that I bore my mate in 
 mind. 
 
 " He knows I will not desert him as long as there 
 is hope — so long as I have life !" I muttered to my- 
 self; and this thought was a relief to my mind in that 
 bitter moment. 
 
 Bitter moment, truly ! Time has scarcely lessened 
 the keenness of the sensations I endured, as memory 
 traces the feelings and incidents of that day. 
 
 By the time the sun set, the wind had so far abated, 
 and the sea had gone down so much, as to remove all 
 further apprehensions from the gale. The ship lay-to 
 easily, and I had no occasion to give myself any trou- 
 ble on her account. Had there been light, I should 
 now have put the helm up, and run to leeward, in the 
 hope of finding the spars, and at least of keeping near 
 Marble; but, fearful of passing him in the darkness, 
 I deferred that duty until the morning. All I could 
 do was to watch the weather, in order to make this 
 cflort, before the wind should shift. 
 
 What a night I passed ! As soon as it was dark, 
 I sounded the pumps, and found six feet water in the 
 hold. It was idle for one man to attempt clearing a 
 vessel of the Dawn's size ; and I gave myself no fur-
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 27 
 
 ther thought in the matter. So much injury had 
 been done the upper works of the ship, that I had a 
 sort of conviction she must go down, unless fallen in 
 with by some other craft. I cannot say apprehen- 
 sion for my own fate troubled me any, or that I 
 thought of the ruin to my fortunes that was involved 
 in the loss of the ship. My mind reverted constantly 
 to my companions; could I have recovers! them, I 
 should have been happy, for a time at least. 
 
 I slept two or three hours, toward morning, over- 
 come with fatigue. When I awoke, it was in conse- 
 quence of receiving the sun's rays in my face. Spring- 
 ing to my feet, I cast a confused and hurried glance 
 around me. The wind was still at north-east, but it 
 barely blew a good whole-sail breeze. The sea had 
 gone down, to the regular roll of the ocean ; and a 
 finer day never shone upon the Atlantic. I hurried 
 eagerly <>n ileck, and gazed on the ocean to Leeward, 
 with Longing eyes, to ascertain if any thing could be 
 seen of the wreck of our spars. Nothing was visible. 
 From the main-top, I could command a pretty wide 
 horizon; but the ocean lay a bright, glittering blank, 
 
 the Crests of its own waves excepted. 1 felt certain 
 the Dawn w:is so weal lierly, thai the spars were to 
 leeward; but the ship must have forged miles ahead, 
 during the last twelve hours ; and there was almost 
 the equal certainty of her being along distance to 
 
 the southward of the floating hamper, her head 
 
 having lain in that direction since the time she 
 broached-to. To get her oil' before the wind, then, 
 was my first concern, after which I could endeavor
 
 2S STOBIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 to force her to the northward, running the chance of 
 falling in with the spars. Could I find my mate, we 
 might still die together, which would have been a 
 melancholy consolation just then. 
 
 Feeling the necessity of possessing all my strength, 
 I ate a breakfast before I commenced work. It was 
 with a heavy heart, and but little appetite, that I 
 took this solitary meal ; but I felt that its effects were 
 good. When finished, I knelt on the deck, and 
 prayed to God fervently, asking his Divine assistance 
 in my extremity. 
 
 My first measure was to lead the jib-stay, which 
 had parted near the head of its own mast, to the 
 head of the main-mast. This I did by bending on 
 a piece of another rope. I then got up the halyards, 
 and loosened and set the jib ; a job that consumed 
 quite two hours. Of course, this sail did not set 
 very well, but it was the only mode I had of getting 
 forward canvas on the ship at all. As soon as the 
 jib was set, in this imperfect manner, I put the 
 helm up, and got the ship before the wind. I then 
 hauled out the spanker, and gave it sheet. By these 
 means, aided by the action of the breeze on the hull 
 and spars, I succeeded in getting something like 
 three knots' way on the ship, keeping off" a little 
 northerly, in which direction I felt sensible it was 
 necessary to proceed in quest of the spars. I esti- 
 mated the drift of the wreck at a knot an hour, in- 
 cluding the good and moderate weather ; and, allow- 
 ing for that of the ship itself, I supposed it must be, 
 by that time, some twelve miles to leeward of me.
 
 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 29 
 
 These twelve miles I managed to run by noon, when 
 I hauled up sufficiently to bring the wind abeam, 
 heading northwardly. As the ship would now steer 
 herself, that is, as small as it was necessary for me to 
 go, I collected some food, took a glass, and went up 
 into the main-top, to dine, and to examine the ocean. 
 
 The anxious, anxious hours I passed in that top ! 
 Not an object of any sort appeared on the surface of 
 the Avide ocean. It seemed as if the birds and the 
 fishes had abandoned me to my loneliness. I watched 
 and examined the surrounding sea, until my hands 
 were tired with holding the glass and my eyes 
 became weary with their office. For t unate!y the 
 breeze stood, though the sea went down fast ; giving 
 me every opportunity I could desire of effecting my 
 object. The ship yawed about a good deal, it is 
 true ; but on the whole she made a very tolerable 
 course. I could see by the water that she had a mo- 
 tion of about two knots, for mostof the time; though 
 as the day advanced, the wind began to fall, and her 
 rate of going diminished quite one-half. 
 
 At Length, after passing hours aloft, I went below, 
 to look after tilings there. On sounding the pumps, 
 I found ten feet water in the hold ; though the upper 
 works were now not at all submerged, and the mo- 
 tion of the vessel was very easy. That the Dawn was 
 gradually sinking under me, was a fact too evident 
 to be denied; and all the concerns of this life began 
 to narrow into a circle of some four-and-twenty 
 hours. That time the ship would probably float — 
 ihly a little longer, should the weather continue
 
 30 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 moderate. The wind was decreasing still, and, think- 
 ing I might have a tranquil night, I determined to 
 pass that time in preparing for the last great change. 
 We must all yield up our lives once ; and though my 
 hour came rather early, it should be met as a man 
 meets every thing, even to death itself. 
 
 Some time before the sun set, I went aloft to take 
 a last look at the ocean. The ocean beamed glori- 
 ously that eventide, and I fancied that it was faintly 
 reflecting the gracious countenance of its divine Cre- 
 ator, in a smile of beneficent love. I felt my heart 
 soften, as I gazed around me, and I fancied heavenly 
 music was singing the praises of God on the face of 
 the great deep. Then I knelt in the top, and prayed. 
 
 Rising, I looked at the ocean, as I supposed, for 
 the last time. Not a sail w r as anywhere to be seen. 
 I cannot say that I felt disappointed — I did not ex- 
 pect relief from that quarter. ]\Jy object was to find 
 my mate, that we might die together. Slowly I 
 raised the glass, and the horizon was swept with de- 
 liberation. Nothing appeared. I had shut the glass, 
 and was about to sling it, when my eye caught the 
 appearance of something floating on the surface of 
 the ocean, within a mile of the ship, well to leeward, 
 and ahead. I had overlooked it, in consequence of 
 ranging above it with the glass, in the desire to 
 sweep the horizon. I could not be mistaken — it was 
 the wreck. In a moment the glass was levelled, and 
 I assured myself of the fact. The top was plainly 
 visible, floating quite high above the surface, and 
 portions of the yards and masts were occasionally
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 31 
 
 seen, as the undulations of the ocean left them bare. 
 I saw an object, lying motionless, across the top-rim, 
 which I supposed to be Marble. He was either dead 
 or asleep. 
 
 What a revulsion of feeling came over me at this 
 sight ! A minute before, and I was completely iso- 
 lated ; cut off from the rest of my species, and resign- 
 ed to a fate that seemed to command my quitting 
 this state of being, without further communion 
 with mankind. Every thing was changed. Here was 
 the companion of so many former dangers, the man 
 who had taught me my profession, one that I can 
 truly say I loved, quite near me, and possibly dying 
 for the want of that aid which I might render. I 
 was on deck in the twinkling of an eye ; the sheets 
 were eased off, and the helm put up. Obedient to 
 my wishes, the ship fell off, and I soon got a glimpse, 
 from the spot where I Stood, at the wheel of the 
 wreck, a little clear of the weather catdiead. By this 
 time, the wind was so light, and the ship had got to be 
 so deep in the water, that the motion of the last was 
 very slow. Even with the helm up, it scarce equalled 
 half a knot ; I began to fear I should not be able to 
 reach my goal, after all ! 
 
 There were now intervals of dead calm ; then the 
 air would return in little puffs, urging the great mass 
 heavily onward. I whistled, I prayed, I called aloud 
 for wind ; in short, I adopted all the expedients 
 known, from that of the most vulgar nautical super- 
 stition, up to profound petition to the Father of 
 mercies. I presume nil this brought no ehange,
 
 32 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 though the passage of time did. About half an hour 
 "before the sun dipped into the ocean, the ship was 
 within a hundred yards of the wreck. This I could 
 ascertain by stolen glances, for the direction I was 
 now compelled to steer, placed the forward part of 
 the ship between me and my object, and I did not 
 dare quit the wheel to go forward, lest I should miss 
 it altogether. I had prepared a grapnel, by placing 
 a small kedge in the lee waist, with a hawser bent, 
 and, could I come within a few feet of the floating 
 hamper, I felt confident of being able to hook into 
 something. It appeared to me now, as if the ship 
 absolutely refused to move. Go ahead she did, not- 
 withstanding, though it was only her own length in 
 five or six minutes. My hasty glances told me that 
 two more of these lengths would effect my purpose. 
 I scarce breathed, lest the vessel should not be steered 
 with sufficient accuracy, ft was strange to me that 
 Marble did not hail, and, fancying him asleep, I 
 shouted with all my energy, in order to arouse him. 
 " What a joyful sound that will be in his ears," I 
 thought to myself, though to me, my own voice 
 seemed unearthly and alarming. No answer came. 
 Then I felt a slight shock, as if the cut-water had hit 
 something, and a low scraping sound against the 
 copper announced that the ship had hit the wreck. 
 Quitting the wheel, I sprang into the waist, raising 
 the kedge in my arms. Then came the upper spars 
 wheeling strongly round, under the pressure of the 
 vessel's bottom against the extremity of the lower 
 mast. I saw nothing, but the great maze of hamper
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 33 
 
 and wreck, and could scarcely breathe in the anxiety 
 not to miss my aim. There was much reason to fear 
 the whole mass would float off, leaving me no chance 
 of throwing the kedge, for the smaller masts no 
 longer inclined in, and I could see that the ship and 
 wreck were slowly separating. A low thump on the 
 bottom, directly beneath me, drew my head over the 
 side, and I found the fore-yard, as it might be, a 
 cock-bill, with one end actually scraping along the 
 ship's bottom. It was the only chance I had, or was 
 likely to have, and I threw the kedge athwart it. 
 Luckily the hawser, as it tautened,, brought a fluke 
 directly under the yard, within the Flemish horse, 
 the brace-block, and all the other ropes that are fitted 
 to a lower yard-arm. So slow was the motion of 
 the ship, that my grapnel held, and the entire body 
 of the Avreck began to yield to the pressure. I now 
 jumped to the jib-halyards and down-haul, getting 
 th.it sail reduced; then I half-brailed the spanker; 
 this was done lest my hold on the yard should give 
 way. 
 
 I can say, that up to this instant, I had not even 
 looked for Marble. So intense had been my appre- 
 hensions of missing the wreck, that I thought of 
 nothing else, could see nothing else. Satisfied, how- 
 ever, that my fast would hold, I ran forward to look 
 down on the top, that the strain of the hawser had 
 broughl directly under the very bow, over which it 
 had fallen. It was empty! The object I had mis- 
 taken for Marble, dead or asleep, was a part of the 
 hunt of the main-top-sail, that had been hauled down 
 3
 
 34 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 over the top-rim, and secured there, either to form a 
 sort of shelter against the breaking seas, or a bed. 
 Whatever may have been the intention of this nest, 
 it no longer had an occupant. Marble had probably 
 been washed away, in one of his adventurous efforts 
 to make himself more secure or more comfortable. 
 
 The disappointment that came over me, as I ascer- 
 tained this fact, was scarcely less painful than the 
 anguish I had felt when I first saw my mate carried 
 off into the ocean. There would have been a melan- 
 choly satisfaction in finding his body, that we might 
 have gone to the bottom together, at least, and thus 
 have slept in a common grave, in the depths of that 
 ocean over which we had sailed so many thousands 
 of leagues in company. I went and threw myself on 
 the deck, regardless of my own fate, and wept in very 
 bitterness of heart. I had arranged a mattress on 
 the quarter-deck, and it was on that I now threw my- 
 self. Fatigue overcame me, in the end, and I fell 
 into a deep sleep. As my recollection left me, my 
 last thought was that I should go down with the 
 ship, as I lay there. So complete was the triumph of 
 nature, that I did not even dream. I did not remem- 
 ber ever to have enjoyed more profound and refresh- 
 ing slumbers ; slumbers that continued until returning 
 light awoke me. To that night's rest I am probably 
 indebted, under God, for having the means of relating 
 these adventures. 
 
 It is scarcely necessary to say that the night had 
 been tranquil ; otherwise, a seaman's ears would have 
 given him the alarm. When I arose, I found the
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 35 
 
 ocean glittering like a mirror, with no other motion 
 than that which has so often been likened to the 
 slumbering respiration of some huge animal. The 
 wreck was thumping against the ship's bottom, an- 
 nouncing its presence, before I left the mattress. Of 
 wind there was literally not a breath. Once in a 
 while, the ship would seem to come up to breathe, as 
 a heavy ground-swell rolled along her sides, and the 
 wash of the element told the circumstance of such a 
 visit ; else, all was as still as the ocean in its infancy. 
 I knelt again, and prayed to that dread Being, with 
 whom, it now appeared to me, I stood alone, in the 
 centre of the universe. 
 
 Down to the moment when I arose from my knees, 
 the thought of making an effort to save myself, or to 
 try to prolong existence a few hours, by means of the 
 wreck, did not occur to me. But, when I came to 
 look about me, to note the tranquil condition of the 
 ocean, and to heed the chances, small as they were, 
 that offered, the love of life was renewed within me, 
 and I seriously set about the measures necessary to 
 such an end. 
 
 The first step was to sound the pumps anew. The 
 water had not gained in the night as rapidly as it had 
 gained throughout the preceding day. But it had 
 gained ; there being three feet more of it than when I 
 last sounded — the infallible evidence of the existence 
 of a leak that no means of mine could stop. It was, 
 then, hopeless to think of saving the ship. She had 
 settled in the water, already, so as to bring the lower 
 bolts of both fore and main channels awash ; and I
 
 36 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 supposed she might float for four-and-twenty hours 
 longer, unless an injury that I had discovered under 
 the larboard cat-head, and which had been received 
 from the wreck, should sooner get under water. It 
 appeared to me that a butt had been started there ; 
 such a leak would certainly hasten the fate of the 
 vessel by some hours, should it come fairly into the 
 account. 
 
 Having made this calculation as to the time I had to 
 do it in, I set seriously about the job of making pro- 
 visions with my raft. In one or two particulars, I 
 could not much improve the latter ; for, the yards 
 lying underneath the masts, it rendered the last as 
 buoyant as was desirable in moderate weather. It 
 struck me, however, that by getting the top-gallant 
 and royal masts, with their yards, in, around the top, 
 I might rig a staging, with the aid of the hatches, 
 that would not only keep me entirely out of water, 
 in mild weather, but which would contain all one man 
 could consume, in the way of victuals and drink, for 
 a month to come. To this object, then, I next gave 
 my attention. 
 
 I had no great difficulty in getting the spars I have 
 mentioned, loose, and in hauling them alongside of 
 the top. It was a job that required time, rather than 
 strength ; for my movements were greatly facilitated 
 by the presence of the top-mast rigging, which re- 
 mained in its place, almost as taut as when upright. 
 The other rigging I cut, and having got out the fids 
 of the two masts, one at a time, I pushed the spars 
 through their respective caps with a foot. Of course,
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 37 
 
 I was obliged to get into the water to work ; but I 
 had thrown aside most of my clothes for the occasion, 
 and the weather being warm, I felt greatly refreshed 
 with my bath. In two hours' time, I had my top- 
 gallant-mast and yard well secured to the top-rim and 
 the caps, having sawed them in pieces for the pnrjDOse. 
 The fastenings were both spikes and lashings, the car- 
 penter's stores furnishing plenty of the former, as well 
 as all sorts of tools. 
 
 This part of the arrangement completed, I ate a 
 hearty breakfast, when I began to secure the hatches, 
 as a sort of floor, on my primitive joists. This was 
 not difficult, the hatches being long, and the rings 
 enabling me to lash them, as well as to spike them. 
 Long before the sun had reached the meridian, I had 
 a stout little platform, that was quite eighteen inches 
 above the water, and which was surrounded by a 
 species of low ridge-ropes, so placed as to keep arti- 
 cles from readily tumbling oft* it. The next measure 
 was to cut all the sails from the yards, and to cut 
 loose all the rigging and iron that did not serve to 
 keep the wreck together. The reader can easily 
 imagine how much more buoyancy I obtained by 
 these expedients. The fore-sail alone weighed much 
 more than I did myself, with all the stores I might 
 have occasion to put on my platform. As for the 
 fore-top-sail, there was little of it left, the canvas hav- 
 ing mostly blown from the yard, before the mast 
 went. 
 
 My raft was completed by the time I felt the want 
 of dinner; and a very good rait it was. The platform
 
 38 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 was about ten feet square, and it now floated quite 
 two feet clear of the water. This was not much for 
 a sea ; but, after the late violent gale, I had some 
 reason to expect a continuation of comparatively good 
 weather. I should not have been a true seaman not 
 to have bethought me of a mast and a sail. I saved 
 the fore-royal mast, and the yard, with its canvas, 
 for such a purpose ; determining to rig them when I 
 had nothing else to do. I then ate my dinner, which 
 consisted of the remnants of the old cold meat and 
 fowls I could find among the cabin eatables. 
 
 This meal taken, the duty that came next was to 
 provision my raft. It took but little thne or labor. 
 The cabin stores were quite accessible ; and a bag of 
 pilot-bread, another of that peculiarly American in- 
 vention, called crackers — some smoked beef, a case 
 of liquors, and two breakers of water, formed my 
 principal stock. To this I added a pot of butter, with 
 some capital smoked herrings, and some anchovies. 
 We lived well in the cabin of the Dawn, and there 
 was no difficulty in making all the provision that six 
 or eight men would have needed for a month. Per- 
 ceiving that the raft, now it was relieved from the 
 weight of the sails and rigging, was not much affected 
 by the stores, I began to look about me in quest of any 
 thing valuable I might wish to save. The preparations 
 I had been making created a sort of confidence in 
 their success ; a confidence (hope might be the better 
 word) that was as natural, perhaps, as it was unrea- 
 sonable. I examined the different objects that offered, 
 with a critical comparison of then value and future
 
 STORIES OF TIIE SEA. 39 
 
 usefulness, that would have been absurd, had it not 
 afforded a melancholy proof of the tenacity of our 
 desires in matters of this nature. I always carried to 
 sea with me a handsome chest, that I had bought in 
 one of my earlier voyages, and which usually con- 
 tained my money, clothes, and other valuables. This 
 chest I managed to get on deck, by the aid of a pur- 
 chase, and over the ship's side, on the raft. It was 
 much the most troublesome task I had undertaken. 
 To this I added my writing-desk, a mattress, two or 
 three counterpanes, and a few other light articles, 
 which it struck me might be of use — but, which I 
 could cast into the sea at any moment, should it be- 
 come necessary. When all this was done, I conceived 
 that my useful preparations were closed. 
 
 It was near night, and I felt sufficiently fatigued 
 to lie down and sleep. The water had gained very 
 slowly during the last few hours, but the ship was 
 now swimming so low, that I thought it unsafe to 
 remain in the vessel, while asleep. I determined, 
 therefore, to take my leave of her, and go on the raft 
 for that purpose. It struck me too, it might be un- 
 safe to be too near the vessel when she went down, 
 and I had barely time to get the spars a short dis- 
 tance from the ship," before darkness would come. 
 Still, I was unwilling to abandon the Dawn alto- 
 gether, since the spars that stood on board her, would 
 always be a more available signal to any passing ves- 
 sel, than the low sail I could set on the raft. Should 
 Bhe float during the succeeding day, they would in-
 
 40 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 crease the chances of a rescue, and they offered an 
 advantage not to be lightly thrown away. 
 
 To force the spars away from the ship was not an 
 easy task of itself. There is an attraction in matter, 
 that is known to bring vessels nearer together in 
 calms, and I had this principle of nature first to over- 
 come ; then to neutralize it, without the adequate 
 means for doing either. Still I was very strong, and 
 possessed all the resources of a seaman. The raft, 
 too, now its length was reduced, was much more 
 manageable than it had been originally, and in rum- 
 maging about the twixt-decks, I had found a set of 
 oars belonging to the launch, which had been stowed 
 in the steerage, and which of course were preserved. 
 These I had taken to the raft, to strengthen my stag- 
 ing, or deck, and two of them had been reserved for 
 the very purpose to which they were now applied. 
 
 Cutting away the kedge, then, and casting off the 
 other ropes I had used with which to breast-to the 
 raft, I began to shove off, just as the sun was dipping. 
 So long as I could pull by the ship, I did very well, 
 for I adopted the expedient of hauling astern, instead 
 of pushing broad off, under the notion that I might 
 get a better drift, if quite from under the lee of the 
 vessel, than if lying on her broadside. I say the 
 "lee," though there wasn't a breath of air, nor 
 scarcely any motion of the water. I had a line fast 
 to a stern-davit, and placing myself with my feet 
 braced against the chest, I soon overcame the vis in- 
 ertice of the spars, aud, exerting all my force, when it 
 was once in motion, I succeeded in giving the raft an
 
 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 41 
 
 impetus that carried it completely past the ship. I 
 confess I felt no personal apprehension from the suc- 
 tion, supposing the ship to sink while the raft was in 
 absolute contact with it, but the agitation of the 
 water might weaken its parts, or it might wash most 
 of my stores away. This last consideration induced 
 me now to go to work with the oars, and try to do 
 all I could, by that mode of propelling my dull craft. 
 I worked hard just one hour, by my watch at the 
 expiration of that time, the nearest end of the raft, or 
 the lower part of the foremast, was about a hundred 
 yards from the Dawn's taflrail. This was a slow 
 movement, and did not fail to satisfy me, that, if I 
 were to be saved at all, it would be by means of some 
 passing vessel, and not by my own progress. 
 
 Overcome by fatigue, I now lay down and slept. 
 I took no precautions against the wind's rising in the 
 night ; firstly, because I thought it impossible from 
 the tranquij aspects of the heavens and the ocean; 
 and, secondly, because I felt no doubt that the wash 
 of the water and the sound of the winds would arouse 
 me, should it occur differently. As on the previous 
 night, I slept sweetly, and obtained renewed strength 
 for any future trials. As on the preceding morning, 
 too, I was awakened by the warm rays of the rising 
 sun falling on my face. On first awaking, I did 
 not know exactly where I was. A moment's reflec- 
 tion, however, sufficed to recall the past to my mind, 
 and I turned to examine my actual situation. 
 
 I looked for the ship, toward the end of the mast, 
 or in the direction where 1 had last seen her; but
 
 42 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 she was not visible. The raft had swung round in 
 the night, I thought, and I bent my eyes slowly 
 round the entire circle of the horizon, but no ship 
 was to be seen. The Dawn had sunk in the night, 
 and so quietly as to give no alarm ! I shuddered, for 
 I could not but imagine what would have been my 
 fate, had I been aroused from the sleep of the living, 
 only to experience the last agony as I passed away 
 into the sleep of the dead. I cannot describe the sen- 
 sation that came over me, as I gazed around, and 
 found myself on the broad ocean, floating on a little 
 deck that was only ten feet square, and which was 
 raised less than two feet above the surface of the 
 waters. It was now that I felt the true frailty of my 
 position, and comprehended all its dangers. Before, 
 it had been shaded by the ship, as it might be, and I 
 had found a species of protection in her presence. 
 But the whole truth now stood before me. Even a 
 moderate breeze would raise a sea that could not fail 
 to break over the staging, and which must sweep 
 every thing away. The spars had a specific lightness, 
 it is true, and they would never sink ; or, if they did 
 sink, it would only be at the end of ages, when sat- 
 urated with water and covered with barnacles ; but, 
 on the other hand, they possessed none of the buoy- 
 ancy of a vessel, and could not rise above the rolling 
 waters, sufficiently to clear their breakers. 
 
 These were not comfortable reflections ; they pressed 
 on my mind even while engaged at my morning de- 
 votions. After performing, in the best manner I 
 could, this never-ceasing duty, I ate a little, though I
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 43 
 
 must admit it was with a small appetite. Then I made 
 the best stowage I could of my effects, and rigged 
 and stepped the mast, hoisting the sail, as a signal to 
 any vessel that might appear. I expected wind ere 
 long ; nor was I disappointed ; a moderate breeze 
 springing up from the north-west^ about nine o'clock. 
 This air was an immense relief to me, in more ways 
 than one. It cooled my person, which was suffering 
 from the intense heat of a summer's sun beating di- 
 rectly on a boundless expanse of water, and it varied 
 a scene that otherwise possessed an oppressively 
 wearisome sameness. Unfortunately, this breeze met 
 me in the bows; for I had stepped my mast in the 
 fore-mast, lashed it against the bottom of the top, 
 which it will be remembered was now perpendicular, 
 and stayed it to the mast-heads and dead-eyes of the 
 top-mast rigging, all of which remained as when 
 erect, though now floating on the water. I intended 
 the fractured part of the foremast for my cut-water, 
 and, of course, had to ware ship before I could 
 gather any way. This single manoeuvre occupied a 
 quarter of an hour, my braces, tacks, and sheets not 
 working particularly well. At the end of that time, 
 however, I got round, and laid my yard square. 
 
 As soon as the raft got fairly before the wind, and 
 the breeze had freshened, I had an opportunity of as- 
 certaining what it would do. The royal was a large 
 one, and it stood well. I had brought a log-line and 
 (lie slow-glass with me, as well as my quadrant, slate, 
 &c., and began to think of keeping a reckoning. I 
 had supposed the ship to be, when it fell calm, about
 
 4-i STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 two hundred miles from the land, and I knew her to 
 be in latitude 48° 37". The log-line told me the raft 
 moved through the water, all that forenoon, at the 
 rate of about half a knot in the hour ; and could I 
 keep on for fifteen or sixteen days, in a straight 
 course, I might yet hope to get ashore. I was not so 
 weak, however, as to expect any such miracle to be 
 wrought in my favor, though, had I been in the trades, 
 the thing might have occurred. By cutting adrift the 
 two yards, or by getting them fore and aft, in a line 
 with the water, my rate of sailing might be doubled ; 
 and I began seriously to think of effecting this great 
 change. Cut the yards adrift I did not like to do, 
 their support in keeping me out of water being very 
 important. By hauling on the lift, I did get them in 
 a more oblique position, and in a measure thus lessen- 
 ed tiipir resistance to the element. I thought that 
 even this improvement made a difference of half a 
 knot in my movement. Nevertheless, it was tedious 
 work to be a whole hour in going less than a single 
 mile, when two hundred remained to be travelled, 
 and the risks of the ocean were thus constantly im- 
 pending over one! 
 
 "What a day was that ! It blew pretty fresh at one 
 time, and I began to tremble for my staging, or deck, 
 which got washed several times, though the topsail- 
 yard made for it a sort of lee, and helped to protect 
 it. Toward the decline of the day, the wind went 
 down, and at sunset every thing was as tranquil as it 
 had been the previous evening. I thought I might 
 have been eight or nine miles from the spot where
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 45 
 
 the Dawn went down, without computing the in- 
 fluence of the currents, which may have set me all 
 that distance back again, or so much further ahead, 
 for any thing I knew of the matter. At sunset I took 
 an anxious survey of the horizon, to see if any sail 
 were in sight ; but nothing w r as visible. 
 
 Another tranquil night gave me another tranquil 
 night's rest. I call the last tranquil, as it proved to 
 be in one sense, though I was sorely troubled with 
 dreams. Toward morning I fell into a doze, the 
 fourth or fifth renewal of my slumbers that night; 
 and I remember that I had that sort of curious sen- 
 sation which apprises us itself it was a dream. In 
 the course of the events that passed through my 
 mind, I fancied I overheard Marble and Neb con- 
 versing. Their voices were low, and solemn, as I 
 thought ; and the words so distinct, that I sti^re- 
 member every syllable. 
 
 " No, Neb," said Marble, or seemed to say, in a 
 most sorrowful tone, one I had never heard him use 
 even in speaking of his hermitage. "There is little 
 hope for Miles, now. I felt as if the poor boy was 
 lost when I saw him swept away from me, by them 
 bloody spars striking adrift, and set him down as one 
 gone from that moment. You've lost an A. No. 1 
 master, .Mister Neb, I can tell you, and you may sarve 
 a hundred before you fall in with his like agin." 
 
 "I nebber sarve anoder gentleum, Misser Marble," 
 returned the black; "dot as sartin as gospel. I born 
 in 'e Wallingford family, and I lib an' die in 'e same 
 family, or I don't want to lib and die at all. My real
 
 46 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 name be Wallingford, dough folk do call me Claw- 
 bonny 
 
 " The ship is sartainly gone down, Neb : otherwise 
 she would have been seen floating hereabouts, and we 
 may log him as a man lost overboard." 
 
 "P'rhaps not, Misser Marble," said the negro. 
 " Massa Mile swim like a fish, and he isn't the gen- 
 tleum to give up as soon as trouble come. P'rhaps 
 he swimming about all dis time." 
 
 " Miles could do all that man could do, Neb, but 
 he can't swim two hundred miles — a South-sea man 
 might do something like that, I do suppose, but they're 
 onaccountably web-footed. No, no, Neb ; I fear we 
 shall have to give him up. Providence swept him 
 away from us, like, and we've lost him." 
 
 After this I heard no more ; but every word of that 
 which I have related, sounded as plainly in my ears 
 as if the speakers were within fifty feet of me. I lay 
 in the same state some time longer, endeavoring, as I 
 was curious myself, of catching, or fancying, more 
 words from those I loved so well ; but no more came. 
 Then I believe I fell into a deeper sleep, for I remem- 
 ber no more, for hours. 
 
 At dawn I awoke, the care on my mind answering 
 for a call. This time I did not wait for the sun to 
 shine in my eyes, but, of the two, I rather preceded 
 than awaited the return of the light. On standing 
 erect, I found the sea as tranquil as it had been the 
 previous night, and there was an entire calm. It was 
 still so dusky that a little examination was necessary 
 to be certain nothing w r as near. The horizon was
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 47 
 
 scarcely clear, though, making my first look toward 
 the east, objects were plainest in that quarter of the 
 ocean. I then turned slowly round, examining the 
 vast expanse of water as I did so, until my back was 
 towards the approaching light, and I faced the west. 
 I thought I saw a boat within ten yards of me ! At 
 first I took it for illusion, and rubbed my eyes to make 
 sure that I was awake. There it was, however, and 
 another look satisfied me it was my own launch, or 
 that in which poor Neb had been carried overboard. 
 "What was more, it was floating in the proper manner, 
 appeared buoyant, and had two masts rigged. It is 
 true that it looked dusky, as objects appear just at 
 dawn, but it was sufficiently distinct. I could not be 
 mistaken ; it was my own launch thus thrown within 
 my reach by the mercy of Divine Providence! 
 
 This boat, then, had survived the gale, and the 
 winds and currents had brought it and the raft to- 
 gether. What had become of Neb ? He must have 
 rigged the masts, for none were stepped, of course, 
 when the boat was in the chocks. Masts, and sails, 
 and oars were always kept in the boat, it is true ; but 
 the first could not be stepped without hands. A 
 strange, wild feeling came over me, as a man might 
 be supposed to yield to the appearance of supernatural 
 agencies, and, almost without intending it, I shouted, 
 "Boat ahoy!" 
 
 "Yo boy!" answered Marble; "who hails?" 
 The form of the mate appeared rising in the boat ; 
 at the next instant, Neb stood at his side. The con- 
 versation of the previous night bad been real, and
 
 48 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 those whom I had mourned as lost stood within thirty 
 feet of me, hale, hearty, and unharmed. The hoat and 
 raft had approached each other in the darkness ; and, 
 as I afterward learned, the launch having fanned along 
 for several hours of the night, stopped for want of 
 wind nearly where I now saw her, and where the 
 dialogue, part of which I overheard while half asleep, 
 had taken place. Had the launch continued on its 
 course only ten yards further, it would have hit the 
 fore-top-mast. That attraction of which I have al- 
 ready spoken, prohahly kept the boat and raft near 
 each other throughout the night, and quite likely 
 had been slowly drawing them together while Ave 
 slept. 
 
 It would not be easy to say which party was the 
 most astonished at this recognition. There was Mar- 
 ble, whom I had supposed washed off the raft, safe in 
 the launch ; and here was I, whom the other two had 
 thought to have gone down in the ship, safe on the 
 raft ! We appeared to have changed places, without 
 concert and without expectation of ever again meet- 
 ing. Though ignorant of the means through which 
 all this had been brought about, I very well knoAV 
 what we did, as soon as each man was certain that 
 he saw the other standing before him in the flesh. 
 We sat down and wept like three children. Then 
 Neb, too impatient to wait for Marble's movements, 
 threw himself into the sea, and swam to the raft. 
 When he got on the staging, the honest fellow kissed 
 my hands, again and again, blubbering the whole 
 time like a girl of three or four years of age. This
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 40 
 
 scene was interrupted only by the expostulations and 
 proceedings of the mate. 
 
 " What's this you're doing, you bloody nigger !" 
 cried Marble. " Desarting your station, and leaving 
 me here, alone, to manage this heavy launch, by my- 
 self. It might be the means of losing all hands of us 
 again, should a hurricane spring up suddenly, and 
 wreck us over again." 
 
 The truth was, Marble began to be ashamed of the 
 weakness he had betrayed, and was ready to set upon 
 any thing, in order to conceal it. Neb put an end to 
 this sally, however, by plunging again into the water, 
 and swimming back to the boat, as readily as he had 
 come to the rait. 
 
 " Ay, here you are, Neb, nigger-like, and not know- 
 ing whether to stay or to go," growled the mate, busy 
 the whole time in shipping two oars. "You put me 
 in mind of a great singer I once heard in Liverpool; 
 a chap that would keep shaking and quavering at the 
 end of a varse, in such a style that he sometimes did 
 not know whether to let go or to hold on. It is on- 
 becoming in men to forget themselves, Neb; if we 
 have found him we thought to be lost, it is no reason 
 for desarting our stations, or losing our wits — Miles, 
 my dear boy," springing on the raft, and sending Xeh 
 adrift again, all alone, by the backward impetus of 
 the leap — " Miles, my dear boy, God he praised for 
 this !" squeezing both my hands as in a vice — " I don't 
 know how it is — but ever since I've fallen in with my 
 mother and little Kitty, L've gol to be womanish. I 
 suppose it's what you call domestic affection." 
 4
 
 50 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 Here, Marble gave in once more, blubbering just as 
 hard as Neb himself had done. 
 
 A few minutes later, all three began to know what 
 we were about. The launch was hauled up alongside 
 of the stage, and we sat on the latter, relating the 
 manner in which each of us had been saved. First, 
 then, as to Neb : I have already told the mode in 
 which the launch was swept overboard, and I inferred 
 its loss from the violence of the tempest, and the 
 height of the seas that were raging around us. It is 
 true, neither Marble nor I saw any thing of the 
 launch after it sunk behind the first hill of water to 
 leeward, for we had too much to attend to on board 
 the ship, to have leisure to look about us. But, it 
 seems the black was enabled to maintain the boat the 
 right side up, and, by baling, to keep her afloat. He 
 drove to leeward, of course, and the poor fellow de- 
 scribed in vivid terms his sensations, as he saw the 
 rate at which he was driving away from the ship, and 
 the manner in which he lost sight of her remaining 
 spars. As soon as the wind would permit, however, 
 he stepped the masts, and set the two luggs close- 
 reefed, making stretches of three or four miles in 
 length, to windward. This timely decision was the 
 probable means of saving all our lives. In the course 
 of a few hours, after he had got the boat under com- 
 mand, he caught a glimpse of the fore-royal-masts 
 sticking out from the cap of a sea, and watching it 
 eagerly, he next perceived the whole of the raft, as it 
 came up on the same swell, with Marble, half-drowned, 
 lashed to the top. It w;ts quite an hour before Neb
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 51 
 
 could get near enough to the raft, or spars, to make 
 Marble conscious of his presence, and some time 
 longer ere he could get the sufferer into the boat. 
 This rescue did not occur one minute too soon, for 
 the mate admitted to me he was half drowned, and 
 that he did not think he could have held out much 
 longer, when Neb took him into the boat. 
 
 As for food and water, they fared well enough. A 
 breaker of fresh water was kept in each boat, by my 
 standing orders, and it seems that the cook, who was 
 a bit of an epicure in his way, was in the habit of 
 stowing a bag of bread, and certain choice pieces of 
 beef and pork, in the bows of the launch, for his own 
 special benefit. All these Neb had found, somewhat 
 the worse for salt water,, it is true, but still in a con- 
 dition to be eaten. There was sufficient in the launch, 
 therefore, when we thus met, to sustain Marble and 
 Neb, in good heart, for a week. 
 
 As soon as the mate was got off the raft, he took 
 direction of (he launch. Unluckily, he made a long 
 stretch to tin- northward, intending to tack and cross 
 what lie supposed must have been the position of the 
 ship, and come to my relief. While the launch was 
 thus working its way to windward, I fell in with, 
 and took possession oft lie rait, as has been described. 
 Marble's calculation was a good one, in the main; 
 brt it brought him near the Dawn the night she 
 sank, and the raft and boat were both too low to be 
 seen at any distance, the one from the other. It is 
 probable we were not more than ten or twelve miles 
 asunder the most of the day I was on the raft. Marble
 
 52 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 putting up his helm to cross the supposed position of 
 the ship, about three in the afternoon. This brought 
 him down upon the raft, about midnight, when the 
 conversation I have related took place, within a few 
 yards of me, neither party having the least notion of 
 the proximity of the other. 
 
 I was touched by the manner in which Marble and 
 Neb spoke of my supposed fate. Neither seemed to 
 remember that he was washed away from a ship, but 
 appeared to fancy that I was abandoned alone, on 
 the high seas, in a sinking vessel. While I had been 
 regretting their misfortunes, they had both thought 
 of me as the party to be pitied ; each fancying his 
 own fortune more happy than mine. In a word, 
 their concern for me was so great, that they alto- 
 gether forgot to dwell on the hardships and dangers 
 of their own particular cases. I could not express all 
 I felt on the occasion ; but the events of that morn- 
 ing, and the feelings betrayed by my two old ship- 
 mates, made an impression on my heart, that time 
 has not, nor ever can, efface. Most men who had 
 been washed overboard, would have fancied them- 
 selves the suffering party ; but during the remainder 
 of the long intercourse that succeeded, both Marble 
 and Neb always alluded to this occurrence as if I were 
 the person lost and rescued. 
 
 We were an hour or more intently occupied in 
 these explanations, before either recollected the fu- 
 ture. Then I felt it was time to have some thought 
 for our situation, which was sufficiently precarious, 
 as it was ; though Marble and Neb made light of any
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 53 
 
 risks that remained to be run. I was saved, as it 
 might be, by a miracle; and that was all that they 
 could remember, just then; But a breeze sprang up 
 from the eastward, as the sun appeared, and the agi- 
 tation of the raft soon satisfied me that my berth 
 would have been most precarious, had I not been so 
 providentially relieved. It is true, Marble made 
 light of the present state of things, which, compared 
 to those into which he had been so suddenly launched 
 — without food, water, or provisions, of any sort — 
 was a species of paradise. Nevertheless, no time 
 was to be wasted ; and Ave had a long road to travel 
 in the boat, ere we could deem ourselves in the least 
 safe. 
 
 My two associates had got the launch in as good 
 order as circumstances would allow. But it wanted 
 ballast to carry sail hard, and they had felt this dis- 
 advantage, particularly Neb, when he first got the 
 boat on a wind. I could understand, by his account 
 of the difficulties and dangers he experienced — 
 though it came out incidentally, and without the 
 smallest design to magnify his own merits — that 
 nothing but his undying interest in me, could have 
 prevented him from running off before the wind, in 
 order to save his own life. An opportunity now 
 offered to remedy this evil, and we went to work to 
 transfer all the effects I had placed on the stage, to the 
 launch. They made a little cargo that gave her sta- 
 bility at once. As soon as this was done, we entered 
 the boat, made sail, and hauled close on a wind,
 
 54 STORIES or tup; sea. 
 
 under reefed luggs ; it beginning to blow smartly in 
 pnffs. 
 
 I did not part from the raft without melancholy 
 regrets. The materials of which it was composed 
 were all that now remained of the Dawn. Then the 
 few hours of jeopardy and loneliness I had passed on 
 it, were not to be forgotten. They still recur vividly 
 to my thoughts with deep, and I trust, profitable, re- 
 flections. The first hour after Ave cast off, we stood 
 to the southward. The wind continuing to increase 
 in violence, and the sea to get up, until it blew too 
 fresh for the boat to make any headway, or even to 
 hold her own against it, Marble thought he might 
 do better on the other tack — having some reason to 
 suppose there was a current setting to the southward 
 and eastward — and we wore round. After standing 
 to the northward for a sufficient length of time, we 
 again fell in with the spars — a proof that Ave were 
 doing nothing tOAvard Avorking our Avay to AvindAvard. 
 I determined, at once, to make fast to them, and use 
 them as a sort of floating anchor, so long as the foul 
 wind lasted. We had some difficulty in effecting 
 this object; but Ave finally succeeded in getting near 
 enough, under the lee of the top, to make fast to one 
 of its eye-bolts— using a bit of small hawser, that 
 av.ms in the boat, for that purpose. The boat was 
 then dropped a sufficient distance to leeward of the 
 spars, where it rode head to sea, like a duck. This 
 was a fortunate expedient; as it came on to blow 
 hard, and we had something very like a little gale of 
 Avind.
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 55 
 
 As soon as the launch was thus moored, we found 
 its advantage. It shipped no more water, or very 
 little, and we were not compelled to be on the look- 
 out for squalls, which occurred every ten or fifteen 
 minutes, with a violence that it would not do to trifle 
 with. The weather thickened at these moments; 
 and there were intervals of half an hour at a time, 
 when we could not see a hundred yards from the 
 boat, on account of the drizzling, misty rain that 
 filled the atmosphere. There Ave sat, conversing 
 sometimes of the past, sometimes of the future, a 
 bubble in the midst of the raging waters of the At- 
 lantic, filled with the confidence of seamen. AVith 
 the stout boat we possessed, the food and water we 
 had, I do not think either now felt any great concern 
 for his fate ; it being possible, in moderate weather, 
 to run the launch far enough to reach an English port 
 in about a week. Favored by even a tolerably fair 
 wind, the object might be eftected in even two or 
 three days. 
 
 I was on the point of responding to a question of 
 Marble's when a sort of shadow was suddenly cast on 
 the boat, and I fancied the rushing of the water seemed 
 to he increased at the same instant. We all three sat 
 with our faces to leeward, and all turned them to 
 windward under a common impulse. A shout burst 
 from Marble's throat, and a sight met my ryes, that 
 caused the blood to rush in a torrent through my 
 heart. Literally within a hundred feet of us, was a 
 large ship, ploughing the ocean with a furrow that 
 e to her hawsedioles, and piling before her, in her
 
 56 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 track, a mound of foam, as she came down upon us, 
 with top-mast and lower studding-sails set — over- 
 shadowing the sea, like some huge cloud. There Avas 
 scarcely time for more than a glance, ere this ship 
 was nearly upon us. As she rose on a swell, her 
 black sides came up out of the ocean, glittering and 
 dripping, and the line of frowning guns seemed as if 
 just lacquered. Neb was in the bow of the launch, 
 while I was in the stern. My arm was extended in- 
 voluntarily, or instinctively would be the better word, 
 to avert the danger, when it seemed to me that the 
 next send of the ship would crush us beneath the 
 bright copper of her bottom. Without Neb's strength 
 and presence of mind, we had been lost beyond a 
 hope ; for swimming up to the spars against the sea 
 that was on, would have been next to hopeless ; and 
 even if there, without food, or water, our fate would 
 have been sealed. But Neb seized the hawser by 
 which we were riding, and hauled the launch ahead 
 her length, or more, before the frigate's larboard 
 bower-anchor settled down in a way that menaced 
 crushing us. As it was, I actually laid a hand on the 
 muzzle of the third gun, while the ship went foaming 
 by. At the next instant she was past ; and we were 
 safe. Then all three of us shouted together. Until 
 that moment, none in the frigate were aware of our 
 vicinity. But the shout gave the alarm, and as the 
 ship cleared us, her taffrail was covered with officers. 
 Among them was one grey-headed man, whom I 
 recognized by his dress for the captain. He made a 
 gesture, turning an arm upward, and I knew an order
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 57 
 
 was given immediately after, by the instantaneous 
 manner in which the taffrail was cleared. 
 
 "By George!" exclaimed Marble, "I had a gen- 
 eralizing time of it, for half a dozen seconds, Miles." 
 
 " There was more risk," I answered, " than time to 
 reflect on it. However, the ship is about to round-to, 
 and we shall be picked up, at last. Let us thank God 
 for this." 
 
 It was indeed a beautiful sight for a seaman, to 
 note the manner in which that old captain handled 
 his vessel. Although we found the wind and sea too 
 much for a boat that had to turn to windward, 
 neither was of much moment to a stout frigate, that 
 carried fifty guns, and which was running off with 
 the wind on her quarter. 
 
 She was hardly past us, when I could see prepara- 
 tions making to take in canvas. At the instant she 
 overshadowed us with her huge wings, this vessel 
 had top-gallant-sails set, with two top-mast, and a 
 lower studding-sail, besides carrying the lee-clew of 
 her main-sail down, and the other customary cloth 
 spread. IT}) went her main-sail, almost as soon as 
 the captain made the signal with his arm ; then all 
 three of the top-gallant-sails were flying at the same 
 moment. Presently, the yards were alive with men, 
 and the loose canvas was rolled up, and the gaskets 
 ] Hissed. While this was doing, down came all the 
 studding-sails together, much as a bird shuts its 
 wings. The booms disappeared immediately after. 
 
 " Look at that, Miles I" cried the delighted Marble, 
 "That chap leaves nothing to be done over again.
 
 58 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 He puts every thing in its place, like an old woman 
 stowing away her needles and thread. I'll warrant 
 you the old blade is a keen one !" 
 
 " The ship is well handled, certainly, and her people 
 work like mariners who are trying to save the lives 
 of mariners." 
 
 While this was passing between us, the frigate was 
 stripped to her three top-sails, spanker, jib, and fore- 
 course. Down came her yards next ; and then they 
 were covered with blue-jackets, like bees clustering 
 around a hive. We had scarcely time to note this, 
 ere the men lay in, and the yards were up again, with 
 the sails reefed. This was no sooner done, than the 
 frigate, which had luffed the instant the steering-sails 
 were in, was trimmed close on a wind, and began to 
 toss the water over her sprit-sail-yard, as she met the 
 waves like one that paid them no heed. No sooner 
 was the old seaman who directed all this, assured of 
 the strength of the wind he had to meet, than down 
 went his main-sail again, and the tack was hauled 
 aboard. 
 
 The stranger was then under the smartest canvas 
 a frigate can carry ; reefs in her top-sails, with the 
 courses set. Her sail could be shortened in an in- 
 stant, yet she was under a press of it; more than an 
 ordinary vessel would presume to carry, perhaps, in 
 so strong a breeze. 
 
 Notwithstanding the great jeopardy from which we 
 had just escaped, and the imminent hazard so lately 
 run, all three of us watched the movements of the 
 frigate with as much satisfaction as a connoisseur
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 59 
 
 would examine a fine painting. Even Neb let several 
 nigger expressions of pleasure escape him. 
 
 By the time sail could be shortened and the ship 
 hauled close on a wind, the frigate was nearer half 
 than a quarter of a mile off. We had to wait, there- 
 fox - e, until she could beat up to the place where we 
 lay. This she soon did, making one stretch to the 
 southward, until in a line with the boat, when she 
 tacked, and came toward us, with her yards braced 
 up, but having the wind nearly abeam. As she got 
 within a cable's-length, both courses were hauled up, 
 and left hanging in the brails. Then the noble craft 
 came rolling by us, in the trough, passing so near 
 that we might be spoken. The old officer stood in 
 the weather gang-Avay, with a trumpet, and he hailed, 
 when near enough to be heard. Instead of asking 
 questions, to satisfy his own curiosity, he merely com- 
 municated his own intentions. 
 
 "I'll heave-to, when past you," he cried out, "wear- 
 ing ship to do so. You can then drop down under 
 my stern, as close as possible, and we'll throw you a 
 rope." 
 
 I understood the plan, which Avas considerate, hav- 
 ing a regard to the feebleness of our boat's crew, and 
 the weight of the boat itself Accordingly, when she 
 had room enough, the frigate wore, hauling up close 
 on the other tack, and laying her main-yard square. 
 As soon as the ship was stationary, Neb east off the 
 hawser, and Marble ami he manned two oars. AN e 
 got the boat round without much risk, and, in less 
 time than it takes to write it, were sending down to-
 
 60 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 ward the ship at a furious rate. I steered, and passed 
 so near the frigate's rudder, that I thought, for an 
 instant, I had gone too close. A rope was hove as 
 we cleared the lee-quarter of the frigate, and the peo- 
 ple on board hauled us alongside. We caught the 
 man-ropes, and were soon on the quarter-deck. A 
 respectable-looking elderly man, of a square, compact 
 frame, and a fine ruddy English face, in a post-cap- 
 tain's undress, received me, with an extended hand, 
 and a frank, generous, hearty manner. 
 
 " You are welcome on board the Briton," he said, 
 warmly ; " and I thank God that he has put it in our 
 power to relieve you. Your ship must have been lost 
 quite recently, as you do not seem to have suffered. 
 When you feel equal to it, I should like to hear the 
 name of your vessel, and the particulars of her dis- 
 aster. I suppose it was in the late blow, which was 
 a whacker, and did lots of mischief along the coast. 
 I see you are Americans, and that your boat is New 
 York built ; but all men in distress are countrymen." 
 
 This was a hearty reception, and one I had every 
 reason to extol. So long as I stayed with Captain 
 Rowley, as this officer was named, I had no reason to 
 complain of any change in his deportment. Had I 
 been his son, he could not have treated me more kind- 
 ly, taking me into his own cabin, and giving me a 
 seat at his own table. I gave him an outline of what 
 had happened to us. Captain Rowley had no sooner 
 heard my story, which I made as short as possible, 
 than he again took my hand, and welcomed me to his 
 ship. The mate was sent into the gun-room, and
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 61 
 
 recommended to the hospitality of the lieutenants ; 
 while Neb was placed in the care of the cabin serv- 
 ants. A short consultation was then held about the 
 boat, which it was decided must be sent adrift, after 
 my effects were passed out of it ; the Briton having no 
 use for such a launch, nor any place to stow it. I 
 stood at the gang-way, and looked with a melancholy 
 eye at this last remnant of the Dawn that I ever be- 
 held.
 
 62 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 THE RED ROVER. 
 
 Perhaps one of the most effective descriptions of a 
 sea-battle is afforded by Mr. Cooper, in his popular 
 romance of " The Red Rover." It is an account of a 
 struggle Avith a famous pirate, [known by the name 
 given to the book,] but in which unfortunately the 
 "Rover" w r as successful. In order to understand 
 the account a few circumstances must be explained. 
 Lieutenant Henry Ark, attached to His Majesty's 
 ship, the " Dart," prompted by a desire to bring this 
 famous pirate to justice, under the name of Wilder, 
 succeeds in introducing himself into the vessel of the 
 Rover, with two sailors, Richard or Fid, and Scipio, 
 an African. He receives the appointment of second 
 in command from the pirate, who unaccountably feels 
 a very profound interest for the young officer ; and is 
 afterward put in charge of a trading vessel, " The 
 Royal Caroline," which is on a voyage from New- 
 port, in Rhode Island, to a Southern port, and which 
 it is the pirate's intention in due time to capture upou 
 the seas. But this vessel is wrecked, and Lieutenant 
 Wilder, with two lady passengers, Mrs. Wyllys, 
 and her ward Gertrude Grayson, are saved in the 
 small boat of the vessel, and picked up by the pirate. 
 This pirate, or, " Red Rover," is so different a man 
 from what Lieutenant Ark, or, calling him by his 
 assumed name, Wilder, supposed, so far less blood-
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 63 
 
 thirsty and cruel, and evinces toward him and the 
 ladies so much consideration and good feeling, that 
 Wilder, when the pirate vessel crosses the path of the 
 English war-ship, the " Dart," feels reluctant to carry- 
 out his original plan of entrapping the " Rover" into 
 the hands of the English commander, Captain Bignall. 
 The period of the story was a short time before our 
 own Avar for independence. The " Rover" Avas born 
 in the Colonies, and the principal motive of his unlaw- 
 ful career Avas hatred of the British, at Avhose hands 
 he had suffered some great indignities. Lieutenant 
 Wilder Avas a foundling, having been found on a 
 Avreck Avhen an infant, by the tAVO sailors, Fid and 
 Scipio. The particulars of this event are so very in- 
 teresting, as told by Fid himself to the ladies in the 
 presence of the " Rover," that before proceeding to 
 extract the account of the battle, we will first give 
 you 
 
 fid's story. 
 
 " ' You Avere saying, it is four and tAventy years,' 
 interrupted Mis. Wyllys, 'since you made the ac- 
 quaintance of Mr. Wilder?' 
 
 "'Acquaintance!' (replied Fid, to this remark from 
 the elder of the two lady passengers.) 'Acquaint- 
 ance! Lord, my lady, little did he knoAV of ac- 
 quaintances at that time ; though, bless him! the lad 
 has had occasion to remember it often enough since.' 
 
 "'The meeting' of two men of so singular merit, 
 must have been somewhat remarkable,' observed the 
 Rover.
 
 64: STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 " ' It was, for that matter, remarkable enough, 
 your honor ; though, as to the merit, notwithstand- 
 ing Master Harry is often for overhauling that part 
 of the account, I've set it down for just nothing at 
 all.' 
 
 " ' I confess that, in a case where two men, both 
 of whom are so well qualified to judge, are of differ- 
 ent opinions, I feel at a loss to know which can have 
 the right. Perhaps by the aid of the facts I might 
 form a truer judgment.' 
 
 " ' Your honor forgets the Guinea, who is alto- 
 gether of my mind in the matter, seeing no great 
 merit in the thing either. But, as you are saying, 
 sir, reading the log is the only true way to know how 
 fast a ship can go ; and so, if this lady and your 
 honor have a mind to come at the truth of the affair, 
 why, you have only to say as much, and I will put it 
 all before you in creditable language.' 
 
 "'Ah! there is reason in your proposition,' re- 
 turned the Rover, motioning to his companion to fol- 
 low to a part of the poop where they were less ex- 
 posed to the observations of inquisitive eyes. ' Now, 
 place the whole clearly before us ; and then you may 
 consider the merits of the question disposed of defini- 
 tively.' 
 
 " Fid was far from discovering the smallest reluc- 
 tance to enter on the required detail ; and, by the 
 time he had cleared his throat, freshened his supply of 
 the weed, and otherwise disposed himself to proceed, 
 Mrs. Wyllys had so far conquered her reluctance 
 to pry clandestinely into the secrets of others, as to
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 65 
 
 yield to a curiosity which she found unconquerable, 
 and to take the seat to which her companion invited 
 her by a gesture of his hand. 
 
 " ' I was sent early to sea, your honor, by my fa- 
 ther,' commenced Fid, after these little preliminaries 
 had been duly observed, ' who was, like myself, a 
 man that passed more of his time on the water than 
 on dry ground ; though, as he was nothing more than 
 a fisherman, he generally kept the land aboard, which 
 is, after all, little better than living on it altogether. 
 Howsomever, when I went, I made a broad ofling at 
 once, fetching up on the other side of the Horn, the 
 very first passage I made ; which was no small jour- 
 ney for a new beginner ; but then, as I was only 
 eight years old' 
 
 " ' Eight ! you are now speaking of yourself,' inter- 
 rupted the disappointed governess. 
 
 " ' Certain, madam ; and, though genteeler people 
 might be talked of, it would be hard to turn the con- 
 versation on any man who knows better how to rig 
 or how to strip a ship. I was beginning at the right 
 end of my story ; but, as I fancied your ladyship 
 might not choose to waste time in hearing concern- 
 ing my father and mother, I cut the matter short, by 
 striking in at eight years old, overlooking all about 
 my birth and name, and such other matters as are 
 usually logged, in a fashion out of all reason, in your 
 every day sort of narratives.' 
 
 "'Proceed,' she rejoined, with a species of com- 
 pelled resignation. 
 
 " ' My mind is pretty much like a ship that is about 
 5
 
 6Q STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 to slip off its ways,' resumed Fid. ' If she makes a 
 fair start, and there is neither jam nor dry-rub, smack 
 she goes into the water, like a sail let run in a calm ; 
 but, if she once brings up, a good deal of labor is to 
 be gone through to set her in motion again. Now, 
 in order to wedge up my ideas, and to get the story 
 slushed, so that I can slip through it with ease, it is 
 needful to overrun the part which I have just let go : 
 which is, how my father was a fisherman, and how I 
 doubled the Horn' — ah ! here I have it again, clear of 
 kinks, fake above fake, like a well-coiled cable ; so 
 that I can pay it out as -easily as the boatswain's yeo- 
 man can lay his hand on a bit of ratline stuff. Y^ell, 
 I doubled the Horn, as I was saying, and might have 
 been the matter of four years cruising about among 
 the islands and seas of those parts, which were none 
 of the best known then, or for that matter now. 
 After this, I served in his majesty's fleet a whole 
 war, and got as much honor as I could stow beneath 
 hatches. Well, then, I fell in Avith the Guinea — the 
 black, my lady, that you see turning in a new 
 clue-garnet-block for the starboard clue of the fore- 
 course.' 
 
 " ' Ay ; then you fell in with the African,' said the 
 Rover. 
 
 " ' Then we made our acquaintance ; and, although 
 his color is no whiter than the back of a whale, I care 
 not who knows it, after Master Harry, there is no 
 man living who has an honester way with him, or in 
 whose company I take greater satisfaction. To be 
 sure, your honor, the fellow is something contradic-
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 67 
 
 tory, and has a great opinion of his strength, and 
 thinks his equal is not to be found at a weather-ear- 
 ing, or in the bunt of a topsail ; but then he is no 
 better than a black, and one is not to be too particu- 
 lar in looking into the faults of such as are not actu- 
 ally his fellow-creatures.' 
 
 " ' Xo, no ; that would be uncharitable in the ex- 
 treme.' 
 
 " ' The very words the chaplain used to let fly 
 aboard the ' Brunswick !' It is a great thing to have 
 schooling, your honor ; since, if it does nothing else, 
 it fits a man for a boatswain, and puts him in the 
 track of steering the shortest course to heaven. But, 
 as I was saying, there was I and Guinea shipmates, 
 and in a reasonable way friends, for live years more ; 
 and then the time arrived when we met with the mis- 
 hap of the wreck in the West-Indies.' 
 
 " ' What wreck V 1 demanded his officer. 
 
 "'I beg your honor's pardon; I never swing my 
 head-yards till I'm sure the ship won't luff" back into 
 the wind ; and, before I tell the particulars of the 
 wreck, I will overrun my ideas, to see that nothing is 
 forgotten that should of right be first mentioned.' 
 
 "The Rover, who saw, by the uneasy glances that 
 she cast aside, and by the expression of her counten- 
 ance, how impatient liis companion was becoming for 
 a sequel that approached so tardily, and how much 
 she dreaded an interruption, made a significant sign 
 to her to permit the straight-going tar to take his own 
 Course, as the hest means of coming at the facts they 
 both longed so much to hear. Left to himself, Fid
 
 68 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 soon took the necessary review of the transactions, in 
 his own quaint manner ; and, having happily found 
 that nothing which he considered as germain to the 
 present relation was omitted, he proceeded at once to 
 the more material, and what was to his auditors by 
 far the most interesting, portion of his narrative. 
 
 " ' Well, as I was telling your honor,' he continued, 
 ' Guinea was then a maintopman, and I was stationed 
 in the same place aboard the ' Proserpine,' a quick- 
 going two-and thirty, when we fell in with a bit of a 
 smuggler, between the islands and the Spanish Main ; 
 and so the captain made a prize of her, and ordered 
 her into port ; for which I have always supposed, as 
 he was a sensible man, he had his orders. But this is 
 neither here nor there, seeing that the craft had got 
 to the end of her rope, and foundered in a heavy 
 hurricane that came over us, mayhap a couple of day's 
 run to leeward of our haven. Well, she was a small 
 boat ; and, as she took it into her mind to roll over on 
 her side before she went to sleep, the master's mate 
 in charge, and three others, slid off her decks to the 
 bottom of the sea, as I have always had reason to be- 
 lieve, never having heard any thing to the contrary. 
 It was here that Guinea first served me the good turn ; 
 for, though we had often before shared hunger and 
 thirst together, this was the first time he ever jumped 
 overboard to keep me from taking in salt water like 
 a fish.' 
 
 " ' He kept you from drowning with the rest ?' 
 " ' I'll not say just that much, your honor ; for 
 there is no knowing what lucky accident might have
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 69 
 
 done the same good turn for me. Howsomever, see- 
 ing that I can swim no better nor worse than a dou- 
 ble-headed shot, I have always been willing to give 
 the black credit for as much, though little has ever 
 been said between us on the subject ; for no other 
 reason, as I can see, than that settling-day has not 
 yet come. Well, we contrived to get the boat afloat, 
 and enough into it to keep soul and body together, 
 and made the best of our way for the land, seeing that 
 the cruise was, to all useful purposes, over in that 
 smuggler. I needn't be particular in telling this lady 
 of the nature of boat-duty, as she has lately had some 
 experience in that way herself; but I can tell her this 
 much : had it not been for that boat in which the 
 black and myself spent the better part of ten days, she 
 would have fared but badly in her own navigation.' 
 
 " ' Explain your meaning.' 
 
 " ' My meaning is plain enough, your honor, which 
 is that little else than the handy way of Master Harry 
 in a boat could have kept the Bristol trader's launch 
 above water, the day we fell in with it.' 
 
 "'But in what manner was your own shipwreck 
 connected with the safety of Mr. Wilder?' demanded 
 the governess, unable any longer to await the dilatory 
 explanation of the prolix seaman. 
 
 "'In a very plain ami natural fashion, my lady, as 
 fou will say yourself, when you come to hear the 
 pitiful part of my tale. Well, there were I and Guinea, 
 rowing about in the ocean, on short allowance of all 
 things but work, for two nights and a day, heading-ill 
 for the islands ; for, though no great navigators, we
 
 70 6T0KIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 could smell the land, and so we pulled away lustily, 
 when you consider it was a race in which life was the 
 wager, until we made, in the pride of the morning, as 
 it might be here, at east-and-by-south, a ship under 
 bare poles ; if a vessel can be called bare that had 
 nothing better than the stumps of her three masts 
 standing, and they without rope or rag to tell one 
 her rig or nation. Howsomever, as there were three 
 naked sticks left, I have always put her down for a 
 full-rigged ship ; and, when we got nigh enough to 
 take a look at her hull, I made bold to say she was of 
 English build.' 
 
 " ' You boarded her,' observed the Rover. 
 
 " ' A small task that, your honor, since a starved 
 dog was the whole crew she could muster to keep us 
 off. It was a solemn sight when we got on her decks, 
 and one that bears hard on my manhood,' continued 
 Fid, with an air that grew more serious as he pro- 
 ceeded, ' whenever I have occasion to overhaul the 
 log-book of memory.' 
 
 " ' You found her people suffering of want!' 
 
 " ' "We found a noble ship, as helpless as a hallibut 
 in a tub. There she lay, a craft of some four hundred 
 tons, water-logged, and motionless as a church. It 
 always gives me great reflection, sir, when I see a 
 noble vessel brought to such a strait ; for one may 
 liken her to a man who has been docked of his fins, 
 and who is getting to be good for little else than to 
 be set upon a cat-head to look out for squalls.' 
 
 " ' The ship -was then deserted V 
 
 " ' Ay, the people had left her, sir, or had been
 
 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 71 
 
 washed away in the gust that had laid her ovei\ I 
 never could come at the truth of them particulars. 
 The dog had been mischievous, I conclude, about the 
 decks ; and so he had been lashed to a timber-head, 
 the which saved his life, since, happily for him he 
 found himself on the weather-side when the hull right- 
 ed a little, after her spars gave way. Well, sir there 
 was the dog, and not much else, as Ave could see, 
 though we spent half a day in rummaging round, in 
 order to pick up any small matter that might be use- 
 ful ; but then, as the entrance to the hold and cabin 
 was full of water, why, Ave made no great affair of the 
 salvage, after all.' 
 
 " ' And then you left the wreck ?' 
 
 " ' Not yet, your honor. While knocking about 
 among the bits of rigging and lumber above board, 
 says Guinea, says he, ' Mister Dick, I hear some one 
 making their plaints beloAV.' Noav, I had heard the 
 same noises myself, sir; but had set them down as the 
 sph-its of the people moaning over their losses, and 
 had said nothing of the same, for fear of stirring up 
 the superstition of the black ; for the best of them are 
 no better than superstitious niggers, my lady ; so I 
 said nothing of what I had heard, until he saw fit to 
 broach the subject himself. Then Ave both turned-to 
 to listening with a will ; and sure enough the groans 
 began t" take a human sound. It Avas a good Avhile, 
 howsomever, before I could make up whether it was 
 any thing more than the complaining of the hulk it- 
 self; for you know, my lady, that a ship which is
 
 72 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 about to sink makes her lamentations just like any 
 other living thing.' 
 
 " ' I do, I do,' returned the governess, shuddering. 
 ' I have heard them, and never will my memory lose 
 the recollection of the sounds.' 
 
 " ' Ay, I thought you might know something of the 
 same ; and solemn groans they are : hut, as the hulk 
 kept rolling on the top of the sea, and no further signs 
 of her going down, I began to think it best to cut into 
 her abaft, in order to make sui'e that some miserable 
 wretch had not been caught in his hammock at the 
 time she went over. Well, good-will, and an axe, 
 soon let us into the secret of the moans.' 
 
 '"You found a child?' 
 
 " ' And its mother, my lady. As good luck would 
 have it, they were in a berth on the weather-side and 
 as yet the water had not reached them. But pent 
 air and hunger had nearly proved as bad as the brine. 
 The lady was in the agony when we got her out ; and 
 as to the boy, proud and strong as you now see him 
 there on yonder gun, my lady, he was just so miser- 
 able, that it was no small matter to make him swallow 
 the drop of wine and water that the Lord had left us, 
 in order, as I have often thought since, to bring him up 
 to be, as he at this moment is, the pride of the ocean !' 
 
 " ' But, the mother ?' 
 
 " 'The mother had given the only morsel of biscuit 
 she had to the child, and was dying, in order that the 
 urchin might live. I never could get rightly into the 
 meaning of the thing, my lady, why a woman, who 
 is no better than a Lascar in matters of strength, nor
 
 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 73 
 
 any better than a booby in respect of courage, should 
 be able to let go her hold of life in this quiet fashion, 
 when many a stout mariner would be fighting for 
 each mouthful of air the Lord might see fit to give. 
 But there she was, white as the sail on which the 
 storm has long beaten, and limber as a pennant in a 
 calm, with her poor skinny arm around the lad, hold- 
 ing in her hand tL«t very mouthful that might have 
 kept her own soul in the body a little longer.' 
 
 " ' What did she, when you brought her to the 
 light V 
 
 " ' What did she !' repeated Fid, whose voice was 
 
 getting thick and husky, 'why, she did a d d 
 
 honest thing ; she gave the boy the crumb, and mo- 
 tioned, as well as a dying woman could, that Ave 
 should have an eye over him, till the cruise of life 
 was up.' 
 
 " ' And was that all ?' 
 
 "'I have always thought she prayed; for some- 
 thing passed between her and one who was not to be 
 seen, if a man might judge by the fashion in which 
 her eyes were turned aloft, and her lips moved. I 
 hope, among others, she put in a good word for one 
 Richard Fid ; for certain she had as little need to be 
 asking for herself as any body. But no man will ever 
 know what she said, seeing that her mouth was shut 
 from that time forever after.' 
 
 '"She died!' 
 
 " ' Sorry am I to say it. But the poor lady was 
 past swallowing when she came into our hands, and 
 then it was but little we had to offer her. A quart
 
 14: STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 of water, with mayhap a gill of wine, a biscuit, and 
 a handful of rice, was no great allowance for two 
 hearty men to pull a boat some seventy leagues with- 
 in the tropics. Howsomever, Avhen we found no more 
 was to he got from the wreck, and that, since the air 
 had escaped by the hole we had cut, she was settling 
 fast, we thought it best to get out of her : and sure 
 enough we were none too soon, seeing that she went 
 under just as we had twitched our jolly-boat clear of 
 the suction.' 
 
 " 'And the boy — the poor deserted child!' exclaimed 
 the governess, whose eyes had now filled to overflow- 
 ing. 
 
 " ' There you are all aback, my lady. Instead of 
 deserting him, we brought him away with us, as we 
 did the only other living creature to be found about 
 the wreck. But we had still a long journey before 
 us, and, to make the matter worse, we were out of 
 the track of the traders. So I put it down as a case 
 for a council of all hands, which was no more than I 
 and the black, since the lad was too weak to talk, and 
 little could he have said otherwise in our situation. 
 So I begun myself, saying, says I, ' Guinea, we must 
 eat either this here dog, or this here boy. If we eat 
 the boy, we shall be no better than the people in your 
 own country, who, you know, my lady, are cannibals; 
 but if we eat the dog, poor as he is, Ave may make out 
 to keep soul and body together, and to give the child 
 the other matters.' So Guinea, he says, says he, 
 'I've no occasion for food at all; give 'em to the 
 boy,' says he, 'seeing that he is little, and has need
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 75 
 
 of strength.' Howsomever, Master Harry took no 
 great fancy to the dog, which we soon finished be- 
 tween ns ; for the plain reason that lie was so thin. 
 After that, we had a hungry time of it ourselves ; for, 
 had we not kept up the life in the lad, you know, it 
 would have slipt through our fingers.' 
 
 " ' And you fed the child, though fasting your- 
 selves?' 
 
 " ' No, we wern't altogether idle, my lady, seeing 
 that we kept our teeth jogging on the skin of the 
 dog, though I will not say that the food was over 
 savory. And then, as we had no occasion to lose 
 time in eating, we kept the oars going so much the 
 livelier. Well, we got in at one of the islands after 
 a time, though neither I nor the nigger had much to 
 boast of as to strength or weight, when we made the 
 first kitchen we fell in with.' 
 
 '"And the child?' 
 
 " ' Oh ! he was doing well enough ; for, as the 
 doctors afterward told us, the short allowance on 
 which he was put did him no harm.' 
 
 " 'You sought his friends?' 
 
 "'Why, as for that matter, my lady, so far as I 
 have been aide t<> discover, he was with his best 
 friends already. We had neither charl nor bearings 
 by which we Knew how to steer in search of his fam- 
 ily. His name he called Master Harry, by which it is 
 clear he was a gentleman horn, as indeed any one 
 may see by looking at him; but not another word 
 could I learn of his relations or country, except that, 
 as he spoke the English language, and was found in
 
 76 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 an English ship, there is a natural reason to believe 
 he is of English build himself.' 
 
 " ' Did you not learn the name of the ship ?' de- 
 manded the attentive Rover, in whose countenance 
 the traces of a lively interest were very distinctly dis- 
 cernible. 
 
 " ' Why, as to that matter, your honor, schools 
 were scarce in my part of the country ; and in Africa, 
 you know, there is no great matter of learning ; so 
 that, had her name been out of water, which it was 
 not, we might have been bothered to read it. How- 
 somever, there was a horse-bucket kicking about her 
 decks, and which, as luck would have it, got jammed- 
 in with the pumps in such a fashion that it did not 
 go overboard until we took it with us. Well, this 
 bucket had a name painted on it ; and, after we had 
 leisure for the thing, I got Guinea, who has a natural 
 turn at tattooing, to rub it into my arm in gunpowder, 
 as the handiest way of logging these small particu- 
 lars. Your honor shall see what the black has made 
 of it.' 
 
 So saying, Fid very coolly doffed his jacket, and 
 laid bare, to the elbow, one of his brawny arms, on 
 which the blue impression was still very plainly visi- 
 ble. Although the letters were rudely imitated, it 
 was not difficult to read, in the skin, the words: 
 "Ark, of Lynnhaven." 
 
 " ' Here, then, you had a clue at once to find the 
 relatives of the boy,' observed the Rover, after he 
 had deciphered the letters. 
 
 " ' It seems not, your honor ; for we took the child
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 77 
 
 with vis aboard the 'Proserpine,' and our worthy 
 captain carried sail hard after the people ; but no one 
 could give any tidings of such a craft as the 'Ark, of 
 Lynnhaven ;' and after a twelvemonth, or more, we 
 were obliged to give up the chase.' 
 
 " ' Could the child give no account of his friends ?' 
 demanded the governess. 
 
 " ' But little, my lady ; for the reason he knew 
 but little about himself. So we gave the matter over 
 altogether ; I, and Guinea, and the captain, and all of 
 us, turning-to to educate the boy. He got his sea- 
 manship of the black and myself, and mayhap some 
 little of his manners also ; and his navigation and 
 Latin of the captain, who proved his friend till such 
 a time as he was able to take care of himself, and, 
 for that matter, some years afterward.' " 
 
 The story of Fid Avas interrupted by a cry of 
 " Sail, ho !" which proved to be the king's ship, the 
 "Dart," in which Lieutenant Wilder had his com- 
 mission. We now transfer ourselves from the dn-k 
 of the pirate ship, the "Dolphin," to that of the 
 "Dart," whence, by consent of the Rover, Wilder is 
 soon enabled to follow us. Prompted by the extra- 
 ordinary kindness evinced toward him by the pirate, 
 Wilder revealed to him who and what he was, warned 
 him of the approach of the "Dart, 1 ' with its purpose 
 to capture or destroy him, and earnestly endeavored 
 to persuade him to abandon his unlawful career. To 
 this, the Rover, whose name and title were Captain 
 Heidegger, turned a deaf ear, but being unaccount- 
 ably attracted toward the young officer, permitted
 
 78 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 him to rejoin his ship, taking with him the ladies, 
 Mrs. Wyllys and her ward, and the two sailors, Fid 
 and Seipio. Struck by the generous forbearance of the 
 Rover, Wilder would have prevented an encounter 
 with him, if his duty to his country and his command- 
 er had permitted it. Captain Bignoll, indeed, upon 
 hearing his lieutenant's story, sent the most liberal 
 offers to the Rover ; but to all that singular man re- 
 turned only his defiance. " I will neither seek nor 
 avoid your boasted cruiser," was his reply. Unhap- 
 pily, Captain Bignall, confident of the strength and 
 power of his own vessel, and believing that his duty 
 to his king and to mankind did not permit him to 
 allow the pirate to escape, gave the order for 
 
 THE BATTLE. 
 
 The " order for all hands to clear ship for action" 
 was again given, and received in the cheerful tem- 
 per with which mariners are wont to welcome any 
 of the more important changes of their exciting pro- 
 fession. Little mnained, however, to be done ; for 
 most of the previous preparations had still been left, 
 as at the original meeting of the two vessels. Then 
 came the beat to quarters, and the more serious and 
 fearful-looking preparations for certain combat. Af- 
 ter these several arrangements had been completed, 
 the crew ;if their guns, the sail-trimmers at the braces, 
 and the officers in their several batteries, the after- 
 yards were swung, and the ship once more put in 
 motion.
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 79 
 
 During this brief interval, the vessel of the Rover 
 lay, at the distance of half a mile, in a state of entire 
 rest, without betraying the smallest interest in the 
 obvious movements of her hostile neighbor. When, 
 however, the " Dart" was seen yielding to the breeze, 
 and gradually increasing her velocity, until the water 
 was gathering under her fore-foot in a little rolling 
 wave of foam, the bows of the other fell off from the 
 direction of the wind, the topsail was filled, and, in 
 her turn, the hull was held in command, by giving to 
 it the impetus of motion. The " Dart" now set again 
 at her gatf that broad field which had been lowered 
 during the conference, and which had floated in tri- 
 umph through the hazards and struggles of a thou- 
 sand combats. No answering emblem, however, was 
 exhibited from the peak of her adversary. 
 
 In this manner the two ships " gathered way," as 
 it is expressed in nautical language, watching each 
 other with eyes as jealous as though they had been 
 two rival monsters of the great deep, each endeav- 
 oring to conceal from his antagonist the evolution 
 contemplated next. The earnest, serious manner of 
 Wilder had not failed to produce its influence on the 
 straight-minded seaman who commanded the "Dart;" 
 and, by tins time, he was as much disposed as his 
 lieutenant to approach the conflict leisurely, and with 
 proper caution. 
 
 The day hud hitherto been cloudless, and a vault of 
 purer blue never canopied a waste of water, than the 
 arch which had swept for hours above the heads of 
 our marine adventurers. But, as if nature frowned
 
 80 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 on their present bloody designs, a dark, threatening 
 mass of vapor was blending the ocean with the sky, in 
 a direction opposed to the steady currents of the air. 
 These well-known and ominous signs did not escape 
 the vigilance of those who manned the hostile vessels, 
 but the danger was still deemed too remote to inter- 
 rupt the higher interests of the approaching combat. 
 
 " We have a squall brewing in the west," said the 
 experienced and wary Bignall, pointing to the frown- 
 ing symptoms as he spoke ; " but we can handle the 
 pirate, and get all snug again, before it works its way 
 up against this breeze." 
 
 Wilder assented; for, by this time, high profes- 
 sional pride was swelling in his bosom also, and a 
 generous rivalry was getting the mastery of feelings 
 that were possibly foreign to his duty, however nat- 
 ural they might have been in one as open to kindness 
 as himself. 
 
 " The Rover is sending down even his lighter 
 masts !" exclaimed the youth ; " it would seem that 
 he greatly distrusts the weather." 
 
 " We will not follow his example ; for he will 
 wish they were aloft again, the moment we get him 
 fairly under the play of our batteries. By George 
 our king, bat he has a pretty moving boat under him. 
 Let fall the main-course, sir ; down with it, or, we 
 shall have it night before we get the rogue abeam." 
 
 The order was obeyed ; and then the " Dart," feeling 
 the powerful impulse, quickened her speed, like an 
 animated being that is freshly urged by its apprehen- 
 sions or its wishes. By this time, she had gained a
 
 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 81 
 
 position on the weather-quarter of her adversary, who 
 had not manifested the smallest desire to prevent her 
 attaining so material an advantage. On the contrary, 
 while the " Dolphin" kept the same canvas spread, she 
 continued to lighten her top-hamper, bringing as much 
 of the weight as possible, from the towering height 
 of her tall masts, to the greater security of the hull. 
 Still, the distance between them was too great, in the 
 opinion of Bignall, to commence the contest, while 
 the facility with which his adversary moved ahead 
 threatened to protract the important moment to an 
 unreasonable extent, or to reduce him to a crowd of 
 sail that might prove embarrassing, while enveloped 
 in the smoke, and pressed by the urgencies of the 
 combat. 
 
 " We will touch his pride, sir, since you think him 
 a man of spirit," said the veteran, to his faithful co- 
 adjutor : " Give him a weather-gun, and show him an- 
 other of his master's ensigns." 
 
 The roar of the piece, and the display of three 
 more of the fields of England, in quick succession, 
 from different parts of the " Dart," failed to produce 
 the slightest evidence, even of observation, aboard 
 their seemingly insensible neighbor. The "Dolphin" 
 still kept on her way, occasionally swooping up grace- 
 fully to touch the wind, and then deviating from her 
 course again to leeward, as the porpoise is seen to turn 
 aside from his direction to snuff the breeze, while he 
 lazily sports along his briny path. 
 
 "He will not be moved by any of the devices of 
 lawful and ordinary warfare," said Wilder, when he
 
 82 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 witnessed the indifference with which their challenge 
 had been received. 
 
 " Then try him with a shot." 
 
 A <nin was now discharged from the side next the 
 still receding "Dolphin." The iron messenger was 
 seen bounding along the surface of the sea, skipping 
 lightly from wave to wave, until it cast a little cloud 
 of spray upon the very deck of their enemy, as it 
 boomed harmlessly past her hull. Another, and yet 
 auothei-, followed, without in any manner extracting 
 signal or notice from the Rover. 
 
 " How's this !" exclaimed the disappointed Bignall. 
 " Has he a charm for his ship, that all our shot sweep 
 by him in rain ! Master Fid, can you do nothing for 
 the credit of honest people, and the honor of a pennant ? 
 Let us hear from your old favourite ; in times past she 
 used to speak to better purpose." 
 
 " Ay, ay, sir," returned the accommodating Rich- 
 ard, who, in the sudden turns of his fortune, found 
 himself in authority over a much-loved and long cher- 
 ished piece. "I christened the gun after Mistress 
 Whiffle, your honor, for the same reason, that they 
 both can do their own talking. Now, stand aside, 
 my lads, and let clattering Kate have a whisper in the 
 disci mrse." 
 
 Richard, who had coolly taken his sight, while 
 speaking, now deliberately applied the match with his 
 own hand, ami will) a philosophy that was sufficiently 
 to be commended in a mercenary, sent what he bold- 
 ly pronounced to be "a thorough straight-goer" 
 across the water, in the direction of his recent associ-
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 83 
 
 ates. The usual moments of suspense succeeded, and 
 then the torn fragments, which were seen scattered in 
 the air, announced that the shot had passed through 
 the nettings of the " Dolphin." The effect on the 
 vessel of the Rover was instantaneous, and nearly 
 magical. A long strip of cream-colored canvas, 
 which had been artfully extended, from her stem to 
 her stern, in a line with her guns, disappeared as sud- 
 denly as a bird would shut its wings, leaving in its 
 place a broad blood-red belt, which was bristled with 
 the armament of the ship. At the same time, an en- 
 sign of a similar ominous colour, rose from her poop, 
 and, fluttering darkly and fiercely for a moment, it 
 became fixed at the end of the gaff. 
 
 " Now I know him for the knave that he is !" cried 
 the excited Bignall ; " and, see ! he has thrown away 
 his false paint, and shows the well-known bloody side, 
 from which he gets his name. Stand to your guns 
 my men ! the pirate is getting earnest." 
 
 He was still speaking, when a sheet of bright flame 
 glanced from out that streak of red which was so well 
 adapted <<> work upon the superstitious awe of the 
 common mariners, and was followed by the simultane- 
 ous explosion of nearly a dozen wide-mouthed pieces 
 of artillery. The startling change, from inattention 
 and indifference, to this act of bold and decided hos- 
 tility, produced a strong effect on the boldest heart on 
 board the king's cruiser. The momentary interval of 
 suspense was passed in unchanged attitudes and looks 
 of deep attention ; and then the rushing of the iron 
 storm was heard hurtling through the air, as it came
 
 84 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 fearfully on. The crash that followed, mingled, as it 
 was, with human groans, and succeeded by the tearing 
 of riven plank, and the scattering high of splinters, 
 ropes, blocks, and the implements of war, proclaimed 
 the fatal accuracy of the broadside. But the surprise, 
 and, with it, the brief confusion, endured but for an 
 instant. The Eno-lish shouted, and sent back a return 
 to the deadly assault they had just received, recover- 
 ing manfully and promptly from the shock which it 
 had assuredly given. 
 
 The ordinary and more regular cannonading of a 
 naval combat succeeded. Anxious to precipitate the 
 issue, both ships pressed nigher to each other the while, 
 until, in a few moments, the two white canopies of 
 smoke, that were wreathing about their respective 
 masts, were blended in one, marking a solitai'y spot 
 of strife, in the midst of a scene of broad and bright 
 tranquillity. The discharges of the cannon were hot, 
 close, and incessant. While the hostile parties, how- 
 ever, closely imitated each other in their zeal in deal- 
 ing out destruction, a peculiar difference marked the 
 distinction in character of the two crews. Loud, 
 cheering shouts accompanied each discharge from the 
 lawful cruiser, while the people of the Rover did their 
 murderous work amid the deep silence of despera- 
 tion. 
 
 The spirit and uproar of the scene soon quickened 
 that blood, in the veins of the veteran Bignall, which 
 had begun to circulate a little slowly by time. 
 
 "The fellow has not forgotten his art!" he exclaim- 
 ed, as the effects of his enemy's skill were getting but
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 85 
 
 too manifest, in the rent sails, shivered spars, and tot- 
 tering masts of his own ship.. " Had he but the com- 
 mission of the king in his pocket, one might call him 
 a hero !" 
 
 The emergency was too urgent to throw away the 
 time in words. Wilder answered only by cheering 
 his own people to their fierce and laborious task. The 
 ships had now fallen off before the wind, and were 
 running parallel to each othei*, emitting sheets of 
 flame, that were incessantly glancing through immense 
 volumes of smoke. The spars of the respective ves- 
 sels were alone visible, at brief and uncertain intervals. 
 Many minutes had thus passed, seeming to those en- 
 gaged but a moment of time, when the mariners of 
 the " Dart" found that they no longer held their ves- 
 sel in the quick command so necessary to their situa- 
 tion. The important circumstance was instantly con- 
 veyed from the master to Wilder, and from Wilder 
 to his superior. A hasty consultation on the cause 
 and consequences of this unexpected event was the 
 immediate and natural result. 
 
 "See!" cried Wilder, "the sails are already hang- 
 ing against the masts like rags ; the explosions of the 
 artillery have stilled the wind." 
 
 "Hark!" answered the more experienced Bignall: 
 "There goes the artillery of heaven among our own 
 guns. The squall is already upon us — port the helm, 
 sir, and sheer the ship out of the smoke ! Hard aport 
 with the helm, sir, at once! — hard with it aport, I 
 say." 
 
 But the lazv motion of the vessel did not answer
 
 86 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 to the impatience of those who directed her move- 
 ments, nor did it meet the pressing exigencies of the 
 moment. In the mean time, while Bignall, and the 
 officers whose duties kept them near his person, as- 
 sisted by the sail-trimmers, were thus occupied, the 
 people in the batteries continued their murderous em- 
 ployment. The roar of cannon was still constant, and 
 nearly overwhelming, though there were instants 
 when the deep ominous mutterings of the atmosphere 
 were too distinctly audible to be mistaken. Still the 
 eye could lend no assistance to the hearing, in deter- 
 mining the judgment of the mariners. Hulls, spars, 
 and sails were alike enveloped in the curling wreaths 
 which wrapped heaven, air, vessels, and ocean, alike, 
 in one white, obscure, foggy mantle. Even the per- 
 sons of the crew were merely seen at instants, labor- 
 ing at the guns, through brief and varying openings. 
 
 " I never knew the smoke pack so heavy on the 
 deck of a ship before," said Bignall, with a concern 
 that even his caution could not entirely repress. 
 " Keep the helm aport — jam it hard, sir ! By Hea- 
 ven, Mr. Wilder, those knaves well know they are 
 struggling for their lives !" 
 
 "The fifrht is all our own!" shouted the second 
 lieutenant, from among the guns, stanching, as he 
 sp< »ke, the blood of a severe splinter-wound in the face, 
 and far too intent on his own immediate occupation, 
 to have noticed the signs of the weather. " He has 
 not answered with a single gun, for near a minute." 
 
 '"Fore George, the rogues have enough!" exclaimed 
 the delighted Bignall. " Three cheers for vie — "
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 87 
 
 " Hold, sir !" interrupted Wilder, with sufficient 
 decision to check his commander's premature exulta- 
 tion ; " on my life, our work is not so soon ended. I 
 think, indeed, his guns are silent ; but, see ! the smoke 
 is beginning to lift. In a few more minutes, if our 
 own fire should cease, the view will be clear." 
 
 A shout from the men in the batteries interrupted 
 his words ; and then came a general cry that the 
 pirates were sheering off. The exultation at this fan- 
 cied evidence of their superiority was, however, soon 
 and fearfully interrupted. A bright, vivid flash pene- 
 trated through the dense vapor which still hung about 
 them in a most extraordinary manner, and was fol- 
 lowed by a crash from the heavens, to which the 
 simultaneous explosion of fifty pieces of artillery would 
 have sounded feeble. 
 
 " Call the people from their guns !" said Bignall, 
 in those suppressed tones that are only more porten- 
 tous from their forced and unnatural calmness: "Call 
 them away at once, sir, and get the canvas in!" 
 
 Wilder, startled more at the proximity and ap- 
 parent weight of the squall than at words to which he 
 had been long accustomed, delayed not to give an 
 order that was seemingly so urgent. The men left 
 their batteries, like athletaa retiring from the arena, 
 ^onie bleeding and faint, some still fierce and angry, 
 and all more or less excited by the furious scene in 
 which they had just been actors. Many sprung to 
 the well-known ropes, while others, as they ascended 
 into the cloud which still hung on the vessel, became 
 lost to the eye in her rigging.
 
 88 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 " Shall I reef, or furl ?" demanded Wilder, standing 
 with the trumpet at his lips, ready to issue the neces- 
 sary order. 
 
 " Hold, sir ; another minute will give us an open- 
 ing." 
 
 The lieutenant paused ; for he was not slow to see 
 that now, indeed, the veil was about to be drawn 
 from their real situation. The smoke, which had lain 
 upon their very decks, as though pressed down by 
 the superincumbent weight of the atmosphere, first 
 began to stir, was then seen eddying among the 
 masts, and finally whirled wildly away before a 
 powerful current of air. The view was, indeed, now 
 all before them. 
 
 In place of the glorious sun, and that bright, blue 
 canopy which had lain above them a short half-hour 
 before, the heavens were clothed in one immense 
 black veil. The sea reflected the portentous color, 
 looking dark and angry. The waves had already 
 lost their regular rise and fall, and were tossing to 
 and fro, as if awaiting the power that was to give 
 them direction and greater force. The flashes from 
 the heavens were not in quick succession ; but the 
 few that did break upon the gloominess of the scene 
 came in majesty, and with dazzling brightness. They 
 were accompanied by the terrific thunder of the trop- 
 ics, in which it is scarcely profanation to fancy that 
 the voice of One who made the universe is actually 
 speaking to the creatures of his hand. On every side, 
 was the appearance of a fierce and dangerous strug- 
 gle in the elements. The vessel of the Rover was
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 89 
 
 running lightly before a breeze, which had already 
 come fresh and fitful from the cloud, with her sails re- 
 duced, and her people coolly but actively employed 
 in repairing the damages of the fight. 
 
 Not a moment was to be lost in imitating the ex- 
 ample of the wary freebooters. The head of the 
 " Dart' 1 was hastily and happily got in a direction 
 contrary to the breeze ; and, as she began to follow 
 the course taken by the " Dolphin," an attempt was 
 made to gather her torn and nearly useless canvas to 
 the yards. But precious minutes had been lost in the 
 smoky canopy, that might never be regained. The 
 sea changed its color from a dark green to a glitter- 
 ing white ; and then the fury of the gust was heard 
 rushing along the water with fearful rapidity, and 
 with a violence that could not be resisted. 
 
 " Be lively, men !" shouted Bignall himself, in the 
 exigency in which his vessel was placed; "Roll up 
 the cloth; in witli it all — leave not a rag to the 
 squall! 'Fore George, Mr. Wilder, but this wind is 
 not playing with us; cheer up the men to their work ; 
 speak to them cheerily, sir!" 
 
 "Furl away!" shouted Wilder. Cut, if too late, 
 work away with knives and teeth — down, every man 
 of you, down — down for your lives, all!" 
 
 There was that in the voice of the lieutenant which 
 sounded in the ears of his people like a supernatural 
 cry. He had so recently witnessed a calamity simi- 
 lar to that which again threatened him, that perhaps 
 his feelings lent a secret horror to the tones. A score 
 of forms were seen descending swiftly, through an
 
 90 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 atmosphere that appeared sensible to the touch. 
 Nor was their escape, which might be likened to the 
 stooping of birds that dart into their nest, too earn- 
 estly pressed. Stripped of all its rigging, and already 
 tottering under numerous wounds, the lofty and over- 
 loaded spars yielded to the mighty force of the squall, 
 tumbling in succession toward the hull, until nothing 
 stood but the three firmer, but shorn and nearly use- 
 less lower masts. By far the greater number of those 
 aloft reached the deck in time to insure their safety, 
 though some there were too stubborn, and still too 
 much under the sullen influence of the combat, to 
 hearken to the words of warning. These victims of 
 their own obstinacy were seen clinging to the broken 
 fragments of the spars, as the " Dart," in a cloud of 
 foam, drove away from the spot where they floated, 
 until their persons and their misery were alike swal- 
 lowed in the distance. 
 
 " It is the hand of God !" hoarsely exclaimed the 
 veteran Bignall, while his contracting eye drunk in 
 the destruction of the wreck. "Mark me, Henry 
 Ark ; I will forever testify that the guns of the pirate 
 have not brought us to this condition." 
 
 Little disposed to seek the same miserable consola- 
 tion as his commander, Wilder exerted himself in 
 counteracting, so far as circumstances would allow, 
 an injury that he felt, however, at that moment to be 
 irreparable. Amid the howling of the gust, and the 
 fearful crashing of the thunder, with an atmosphere 
 now lurid with the glare of lightning, and now nearly 
 obscured by the dark canopy of vapor, and with all
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 91 
 
 the frightful evidences of the fight still reeking and 
 ghastly before their eyes, did the crew of the British 
 cruiser prove true to themselves and to their ancient 
 reputation. The voices of Bignall and his subordi- 
 nates were heard in the tempest, uttering those man- 
 dates which long experience had rendered familiar, 
 or encouraging the people to their duty. But the 
 strife of the elements was happily of short continu- 
 ance. The squall soon swept over the spot, leaving 
 the currents of the trade rushing into their former 
 channels, and a sea that was rather stilled than agita- 
 ted, by the counteracting influence of the winds. 
 
 But, as one danger passed away from before the 
 eves of the mariners of the " Dart," another scarcely 
 less to be apprehended, forced itself upon their atten- 
 tion. All recollection of the favors of the past, and 
 every feeling of gratitude, was banished from the 
 mind of Wilder, by the mountings of powerful pro- 
 fessional pride, and that love of glory which becomes 
 inherent in the warrior, as he gazed on the untouched 
 ami beautiful symmetry of the "Dolphin's" spars, 
 and all the perfect, and still underanged order of her 
 tackle. It seemed as if she bore a charmed fate, or 
 that some supernatural agency had been instrumental 
 in preserving her unharmed, amid the violence of a 
 second hurricane. But cooler thought, and more im- 
 partial reflection, compelled the internal acknowledg- 
 ment, thai the vigilance and wise precautions of the 
 remarkable individual who appeared not only to gov- 
 ern her movements, but to control her fortunes, had 
 their proper influence in producing the result.
 
 92 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 Little leisure, however, was allowed to ruminate 
 on these changes, or to deprecate the advantage of 
 their enemy. The vessel of the Rover had already 
 opened many broad sheets of canvas ; and, as the 
 return of the regular breeze gave her the wind, her 
 approach was rapid and unavoidable. 
 
 " 'Fore George, Mr. Ark, luck is all on the dishon- 
 est side to-day," said the veteran, so soon as he per- 
 ceived, by the direction which the " Dolphin 1 ' took, 
 that the encounter was likely to be renewed. " Send 
 the people to quarters again, and clear away the 
 guns; for we are likely to have another bout with 
 the rogues." 
 
 " I would advise a moment's delay," Wilder earn- 
 estly observed, when he heard his commander issu- 
 ing an order to his people to prepare to deliver their 
 fire, the instant their enemy should come within a fa- 
 vorable position. " Let me entreat you to delay ; we 
 know not what may be his present intentions." 
 
 " None shall put foot on the deck of the ' Dart,' 
 without submitting to the authority of her royal mas- 
 ter," returned the stern old tar. " Give it to him, 
 my men ! Scatter the rogues from their guns ! and 
 let them know the danger of approaching a lion, 
 though he should be crippled !" 
 
 Wilder saw that remonstrance was now too late; 
 for a fresh broadside was hurled from the " Dart," to 
 defeat any generous intentions that the Rover might 
 entertain. The ship of the latter received the iron 
 storm, while advancing, and immediately deviated 
 gracefully from her course, in such a way as to pre-
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 03 
 
 vent its repetition. Then she was seen sweeping to- 
 ward the bows of the nearly helpless cruiser of the 
 King, and a hoarse summons was heard ordering her 
 ensign to be lowered. 
 
 " Come on, ye villains !" shouted the excited Big- 
 nail. " Come, and perform the office with your own 
 hands !" 
 
 The graceful ship, as if sensible herself to the taunts 
 of her enemy, sprung nigher to the wind, and shot 
 across the fore-foot of the "Dart," delivering her fire, 
 gun after gun, with deliberate and deadly accuracy, 
 full into that defenceless portion of her antagonist. 
 A crush like that of meeting bodies followed, and then 
 fifty grim visages were seen entering the scene of 
 carnage, armed with the deadly weapons of personal 
 conflict. The shock of so close and so fatal a dis- 
 charge had, for the moment, paralyzed the efforts of 
 the assailed ; but no sooner did Bignall and his lieu- 
 tenant see the dark forms that issued from the smoke 
 on their own decks, than, with voices that had not 
 even then lost their authority, each summoned a baud 
 of followers, backed by whom they bravely dashed 
 into the opposite gangways of their ship, to stay the 
 torrent. The first encounter was fierce and fatal, both 
 parties receding a little, to wait for succor and recover 
 breath." 
 
 " Come on, ye murderous thieves !" cried the daunt- 
 less veteran, who stood foremost in his own band, 
 conspicuous by the locks of gray that floated around 
 his naked head, " well do ye know that heaven is with 
 the right 1"
 
 94: STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 The grim freebooters in his front recoiled and 
 opened ; then came a sheet of flame, from the side of 
 the " Dolphin," through an empty port of her ad- 
 versary, bearing in its centre a hundred deadly mis- 
 siles. The sword of Bignall was flourished furiously 
 and wildly above his head, and his voice was still 
 heard crying, till the sounds rattled in his throat : 
 
 " Come on, ye knaves ! come on ! — Harry — Harry 
 Ark ! O God !— Hurrah !" 
 
 He fell like a log, and died the unwitting possessor 
 of that very commission for which he had toiled 
 throughout a life of hardship and danger. Until now 
 Wilder had made good his quarter of the deck, 
 though pressed by a band as tierce and daring as his 
 own ; but, at this fearful crisis in the combat, a voice 
 was heard in the melee, that thrilled on all his nerves, 
 and seemed even to carry its fearful influence over the 
 minds of his men. 
 
 " Make way there, make way !" it said, in tones 
 clear, deep, and breathing with authority, " make way, 
 and follow ; no hand but mine shall lower that vaunt- 
 ing flag; !" 
 
 " Stand to your faith, my men !" shouted Wilder in 
 reply. Shouts, oaths, imprecations, and groans formed 
 a fearful accompaniment of the rude encounter, which 
 was, however, far too violent to continue long. Wilder 
 saw, with agony, that numbers and impetuosity were 
 sweeping his supporters from around him. Again and 
 again he called them to the succor with his voice, or 
 stimulated them to daring by his example. 
 
 Friend after friend fell at his feet, until he was
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 95 
 
 driven to the utmost extremity of the deck. Here he 
 again rallied a little band, against which several furi- 
 ous charges were made in vain. 
 
 " Ha !" exclaimed a voice he well knew ; " death 
 to all traitors ! Spit the spy, as you would a dog ! 
 Charge through them, my bullies ; a halbert to the 
 hero who shall reach his heart !" 
 
 " Avast, ye lubber f" returned the stern tones of the 
 staunch Richard. "Here are a white man and a 
 nigger at your service, if you've need of a spit." 
 
 " Two more of the gang !" continued the general, 
 aiming a blow that threatened to immolate the top- 
 man as he spoke. 
 
 A dark, half-naked form was interposed to receive 
 the descending blade, which fell on the staff of a half- 
 pike, and severed it as though it had been a reed. 
 Nothing daunted by the defenceless state in which 
 he found himself, Scipio made his way to the front 
 of Wilder, where, with a body divested to the waist 
 of every garment, and empty handed, he fought with 
 his brawny arms, like one who despised the cuts, 
 thrusts, and assaults, of which his athletic frame im- 
 mediately became the helpless subject. 
 
 " Give it to 'em, right and left, Guinea," cried Fid : 
 " here is one who will come in as a backer, so soon 
 as he has Btopped the grog of the marine." 
 
 The parries and science of the unfortunate general 
 were at this moment set at naught, by a blow from 
 Richard, which broke down all his defences, descend- 
 ing through cap and skull to the jaw. 
 
 " Hold, murderers !" cried Wilder, who saw the
 
 96 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 numberless blows that were falling on the defenceless 
 body of the still undaunted black. " Strike here ! and 
 spare an unarmed man !" 
 
 The sight of our adventurer became confused, for 
 he saw the negro fall, dragging with him to the deck 
 two of Ms assailants ; and then a voice, deep as the 
 emotion which such a scene might create, appeared to 
 utter in the very portals of his ear — 
 
 " Our work is done ! He that strikes another blow 
 makes an enemy of me." 
 
 The recent gust had not passed more fearfully and 
 suddenly over the ship, than the scene just related. 
 But the smiling aspect of the tranquil sky, and bright 
 sun of the Caribbean sea, found no parallel in the 
 horrors that succeeded the combat. The momentary 
 confusion which accompanied the fall of Scipio soon 
 disappeared, and Wilder was left to gaze on the 
 wreck of all the boasted poAvers of his cruiser, and on 
 that waste of human life, which had been the attend- 
 ants of the struggle. 
 
 Within a few yards of the place he was permitted 
 to occupy himself, stood the motionless form of the 
 Rover. A second glance was necessary, however, to 
 recognize, in the grim visage to which the boarding- 
 cap already mentioned lent a look of artificial ferocity, 
 the usually bland countenance of the individual. As 
 the eye of Wilder roamed over the swelling, erect, 
 and still triumphant figure, it was difficult not to 
 fancy that even the stature had been suddenly and 
 unaccountably increased. One hand rested on the 
 hilt of a yataghan, which, by the crimson drops that
 
 STO l: I i:s 01 III E SEA. 
 
 " "'"' ' ''"""' "' ''- ; »W1«!« another blow male, „„ ,,„.„ 1V » 
 
 Page 'jr..
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 97 
 
 flowed along its curved blade, had evidently done 
 fatal service in the fray ; and one foot was placed, 
 seemingly with supernatural weight, on that national 
 emblem which it had been his pride to lower. His 
 eye was wandering sternly, but understanding^, over 
 the scene, though he spoke not, nor in any other 
 manner betrayed the deep interest he felt in the past. 
 At his side, and nearly within the circle of his arm 
 stood the cowering form of the boy Roderick, un- 
 provided with weapon, his garments sprinkled with 
 blood, bis eye contracted, wild, and fearful, and his 
 face pallid as those in whom the tide of life had just 
 ceased to circulate. 
 
 Here and there were to be seen the wounded cap- 
 tives, still sullen and unconquered in spirit, while many 
 of their scarcely less fortunate enemies lay in their 
 blood, around the deck, with such gleam ings of feroc- 
 ity on their countenances as plainly denoted that the 
 current of their meditations was still running on ven- 
 geance. The uninjured and the slightly wounded, of 
 both bands, were already pursuing their different ob- 
 jects of plunder or of secretion. 
 
 But so thorough was the discipline established by 
 the leader of the freebooters, so absolute his power, 
 that blow had not been struck, nor blood drawn, 
 since the moment when his prohibitory mandate was 
 heard. There had been enough of destruction, how- 
 ever, to have satisfied their niosl gluttonous longings 
 had human life been the sole object of the assault. 
 Wilder felt many a pang, as the marble-like features 
 of bumble friend or faithful servitor came, one after 
 7
 
 98 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 another, under his recognition ; but the shock was 
 greatest when his eye fell upon the rigid and still 
 frowning countenance of his veteran commander. 
 
 " Captain Heidegger," he said, struggling to main- 
 tain the fortitude which became the moment, " the 
 fortune of the day is yours : I ask mercy and kindness 
 in behalf of the survivors." 
 
 " They shall be granted to those who, of right, may 
 claim them."
 
 STOEIES OF TIIE SEA. 99 
 
 THE WATER-WITCH. 
 
 Ik Cooper's romance of the "Water- Witch" we have 
 a most stirring and thrilling account of a sea-fight, a 
 ship on fire, and the rescue of the survivors from a 
 raft. There is nothing in all of Mr. Cooper's numer- 
 ous volumes more vivid and graphic than the descrip- 
 tion of these successive incidents, which form within 
 themselves a complete and perfect story, needing but 
 few introductory words. The period of the story 
 was something more than a hundred years ago, and 
 the locality the bays and shores of Long Island and 
 New York. The English sloop-of-war, "Coquette," 
 Captain Ludlow, was stationed in the American wa- 
 ters, with especial instructions to look out for, and 
 capture, if possible, a brigantine, known by the name 
 of the " Water- Witch," engaged in smuggling on the 
 American coast. But the " Water- Witch" was a re- 
 markably fast sailer, and was commanded by a man 
 so adroit and skilful, known by the appellation of 
 " The Skimmer of the Seas," that the utmost exertions 
 of Captain Ludlow were of no avail, and the brigan- 
 tine continually eluded and escaped him. The " A\ r a- 
 tcr-Witch" is described as no common vessel, ex- 
 quisitely moulded, with delicate and tapering masts 
 and spars, and remarkable for a female figure under 
 its bow, with an open volume in her hand, in which it 
 was said the questioner would find written the oracu-
 
 100 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 lar and prophetic response to his question, while the 
 face of the figure was said often to lighten up with 
 a dazzling and mysterious intelligence. In fact, the 
 " Water- AVitch" soon became an object of supersti- 
 tious dread to all the sailors of the "Coquette." 
 
 But no less remarkable than the vessel, was her 
 commander. He was by no means a common or 
 vulgar smuggler, but a man of address, daring, cul- 
 ture, who pursued his unlawful trade with great bold- 
 ness and profit, secretly aided in his purposes by some 
 of the wealthiest men of the city of Manhattan. A 
 companion by the name of Seadrift, a gay, dashing, 
 handsome young person, who visits in behalf of the 
 Skimmer the houses of his wealthy patrons, proves in 
 the end to be a woman in disguise — the daughter of a 
 friend of the smuggler's, whom, since her childhood, 
 he had protected and befriended. The other charac- 
 ters which appear in the story are Alderman Van 
 Beverout, and his niece, Alida. Our sketch opens on 
 the deck of the " Coquette." The Alderman and Alida 
 are by chance Captain Ludlow's visitors; and this 
 Master Seadrift, so called, is his prisoner, having been 
 captured in one of his expeditions to the shore, and 
 is supposed by Ludlow to be the famous Skimmer 
 himself. 
 
 There had been a spirited chase after the " Water- 
 Witch" through East River, the Hell-Gate, and Lung- 
 Island Sound. The " Coquette" had spread her sails 
 in pursuit of the wary brigantine at a moment when 
 full half of her crew were in the boats in search of 
 the smuggler among the inlets and coves of the bay.
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 101 
 
 The sudden appearance of the ""Water-Witch" in an 
 unlooked for quarter left no time to recall the boats, 
 and off Captain Ludlow started with a reduced crew, 
 and the alderman and his niece on board. The 
 chase was exciting, but after leading the " Coquette" 
 through the waters of the sound and out into the 
 Atlantic again, the nimble brigantine disappeared. 
 When the "Coquette" had passed Montauk, and 
 reached a point past the Cape where she felt the 
 breeze and waves of the Atlantic, not a sign of the 
 smuggler could be seen — she had either by her great 
 speed disappeared in the offing, or had slipped in 
 among the coves and bays of Long Island. 
 
 While still searching for the swift-sailing "Wa- 
 ter-Witch," a cry of " sail, ho !" was heard, and a 
 full-rigged ship under easy canvas was discovered in 
 the offing. This, to the chagrin of Captain Ludlow, 
 proved to be a French ship, for England and France 
 at the time were at war. Under ordinary circum- 
 stances he would have been glad to encounter the 
 Frenchman, but his crew did not number more than 
 half their full number, and the French ship was a 
 larger vessel and mounted more guns than his own. 
 
 " Would to Heaven our people were all here," said 
 Captain Ludlow, to Trysail, the sailing-master of the 
 vessel, "What number can we count ?" 
 
 " We are short of seventy — a small muster for four- 
 and-twenty guns, with yards like these to handle." 
 
 " And yet the port may not he insulted. We are 
 known to be on this coast " 
 
 "We are seen," interrupted the master, "the fel-
 
 102 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 low has worn ship, and he is already setting his top- 
 gallant-sails." 
 
 There no longer remained any choice between 
 downright flight and preparations for 
 
 THE COMBAT. 
 
 The order was therefore given for "all hands to 
 clear ship for action !*' It was in the reckless nature 
 of sailors, to exult in this summons ; for success and 
 audacity go hand in hand, and long familiarity with 
 the first had, even at that early day, given a confi- 
 dence that often approached temerity to the seamen 
 of Great Britain and her dependencies. The mandate 
 to prepare for battle was received by the feeble crew 
 of the Coquette, as it had often been received before, 
 when her decks were filled with the number necessary 
 to give full efficiency to her armament ; though a few 
 of the older and more experienced of the mariners, 
 men in whom confidence had been diminished by time, 
 were seen to shake their heads, as if they doubted the 
 prudence of the intended contest. 
 
 Whatever might have been the secret hesitation of 
 Ludlow when the character and force of his enemy 
 were clearly established, he betrayed no signs of irres- 
 olution from the moment when his decision appeared 
 to be taken. The necessary orders were issued calm- 
 ly, and with the clearness and readiness that perhaps 
 constitute the greatest merit of a naval captain. The 
 yards were slung in chains ; the booms were sent 
 down ; the lofty sails were furled, and, in shoi't, all
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 103 
 
 the preparations that were then customary were made 
 with the usual promptitude and skill. Then the drum 
 beat to quarters, and when the people were at their 
 stations, their young commander had a better oppor- 
 tunity of examining into the true efficiency of his ship. 
 Calling to the master, he ascended the poop, in order 
 that they might confer together Avith less risk of being 
 overheard, and at the same time better observe the 
 manoeuvres of the enemy. 
 
 The stranger had, as Trysail perceived, suddenly 
 worn round on his heel, and laid his head to the 
 northward. The change in the course brought him 
 before the wind, and, as he immediately spread all 
 the canvas that would draw, he was approaching fast. 
 During the time occupied in preparation on board the 
 Coquette, his hull had risen as it were from out of 
 the water ; and Ludlow and his companion had not 
 studied his appearance long, from the poop, before the 
 streak of white paint, dotted Avith ports, which marks 
 a vessel of Avar, became A r isible to the naked eye. As 
 the cruiser of Queen Anne continued also to steer in 
 the direction of the chase, half an hour more brouffhl 
 them sufficiently near to each other to remove all 
 doubts of their respective characters and force. The 
 stranger then came to the wind, and made his prepara- 
 tions for combat. 
 
 "There is something manly and becoming in seeing 
 a ship strip herself, as she comes into action, sir," 
 said Trysail to Captain Ludlow; "it is like a boxer 
 taking off his jacket with the intention of making a 
 fair stand up light of it. That fellow is filling away
 
 104: STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 again, and means to manoeuvre before he comes up 
 fairly to his work." 
 
 The eye of Ludlow had never quitted the stranger. 
 He saw that the moment for serious action was not 
 distant ; and bidding Trysail keep the vessel on her 
 course, he descended to the quarter-deck. 
 
 The Coquette was built after a fashion much in 
 vogue a century since. The accommodations of the 
 commander were on the same deck with the batteries 
 of the ship, and they were frequently made to contain 
 two or even four guns of the armament. When Lud- 
 low entered his cabin, therefore, he found a crew 
 stationed around the gun which was placed on the 
 side next the enemy, and all the customary arrange- 
 ments made which precede a combat. The state-rooms 
 abaft, however, as well as the little apartment which 
 lay between them, were closed. Glancing his eye 
 about him, and observing the carpenters in readiness, 
 he made a signal for them to knock away the bulk- 
 heads, and lay the whole of the fighting part of the 
 ship in common. While this duty was going on, he 
 entered the after-cabin. 
 
 Alderman Van Beverout and his companions were 
 found together, and evidently in expectation of the 
 visit they now received. Passing by the former, Lud- 
 low approached his niece, and, taking her hand, he led 
 her to the quarter-deck, making a sign for her female at- 
 tendant to follow. Descending into the depths of the 
 ship, the captain conducted his charge into a part of 
 the berth-deck, that was below the water line, and as 
 much removed from danger as she could well be,
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 105 
 
 without encountering a foul air, or sights that might 
 be painful to one of her sex and habits. 
 
 " Here is as much safety as a vessel of war affords, 
 in a moment like this," he said, when his companion 
 was silently seated on a mess-chest. " On no account 
 quit the spot, till I — or some other, advise you it may 
 be done without hazard. I know your strength of 
 mind, and that you have a resolution which exceeds 
 the courage of your sex ; else I would not venture so 
 freely to point out the danger which may beset one, 
 even here, without a self-command and discretion that 
 shall restrain all sudden impulses of fear." 
 
 " Notwithstanding your generous interpretation of 
 my character, Ludlow, I am but woman after all." 
 
 " I did not mistake you for an Amazon," returned 
 the young man smiling. " All I expect from you is 
 the triumph of reason over female terror. I shall not 
 conceal that the odds — perhaps I may say that the 
 chances, are against us ; and yet the enemy must pay 
 for my ship, ere lie lias her! She will be none the 
 worse defended, Alida, from the consciousness that 
 tliy liberty and comfort depend in some measure on 
 our exertions. " 
 
 lie would have continued the discourse, but a gun 
 fired from the enemy recalled him to the serious busi- 
 ness of the hour. He raised her hand to his lips, 
 and rushed upon derk. 
 
 "The monsieur is beginning to bluster," said Try- 
 sail; "although his shot fell short, it is loo much to 
 let a Frenchman have the credit of the first word." 
 
 "lie has merely given the weather-gun, the signal
 
 106 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 of defiance. Let him come down and he will not find 
 us in a hurry to leave him," said the young com- 
 mander, motioning to Master Seadrift and the alder- 
 man to follow him to the poop. 
 
 " How far," he said, addressing his prisoner, " you 
 have trifled with the laws I do not wish to say : but 
 here is an opportunity to redeem some of the public 
 favor. You are a seaman, and need not be told that 
 my ship is not as strongly manned as one could wish 
 her at this moment, and that the services of every 
 Englishman will be welcome. Take charge of these 
 six guns, and depend on my honor that your devotion 
 to the flag shall not go unrequited." 
 
 " You much mistake my vocation, noble captain ;" 
 returned the dealer in contraband, faintly laughing. 
 " Though one of the seas, I am one more used to the 
 calm latitudes than to these whirlwinds of war. You 
 have visited the brigantine of our mistress, and must 
 have seen that her temple resembles that of Janus 
 more than that of Mars. The deck of the Water- 
 Witch has none of this frowning garniture of ar- 
 tillery." 
 
 Ludlow listened in amazement. Surprise, incredu- 
 lity, and scorn, were each, in turn, expressed in his 
 fr< >wnin£ countenance. 
 
 " This is unbecoming language for one of your call- 
 ing," he said, scarce deeming it necessary to conceal 
 the contempt he felt. " Dc you acknowledge fealty 
 to this ensign — are you an Englishman ?" 
 
 " I am such as Heaven was pleased to make me — 
 fitter for the zephyr, than the gale— the jest, than
 
 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 107 
 
 the war-shout — the merry moment, than the angry- 
 mood." 
 
 " Is this the man whose name for daring lias pass- 
 ed into a proverb ? — the dauntless, reckless, skilful 
 ' Skimmer of the Seas !' " 
 
 " North is not more removed from south, than I 
 from him in the qualities you seek ! It was not my 
 duty to undeceive you as to the value of your captive, 
 while he whose services are beyond price to our mis- 
 trass was still on the coast. So far from being him 
 you name, brave captain, I claim to be no more than 
 one of his agents, who, having some experience in the 
 caprices of woman, he trusts to recommend his wares 
 to female fancies. Though so useless in inflicting in- 
 juries, I may make bold however to rate myself as 
 excellent at consolation. Suffer that I appease the 
 fears of la belle Barberie during the coming tumult, 
 and you shall own that one more skilful in that mer- 
 ciful office is rare indeed !" 
 
 " Comfort whom, where, and what thou wilt, mis- 
 erable effigy of manhood ! — but hold, there is less of 
 terror than of artitice in that lurking smile and trea- 
 cherous eye !" 
 
 " Discredit both, generous captain ! On the faith 
 of one who can be sincere at need, a wholesome fear 
 is uppermost, whatever else the disobedient members 
 may betray. I could tain weep rather than be thought 
 valiant, just now I" 
 
 Ludlow listened in wonder. He had raised an arm 
 to arrest the retreat of the young mariner, and by a 
 natural movement his hand slid along the limb it had
 
 108 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 grasped, until it held that of Seadrift. The instant 
 he touched the soft and ungloved palm, an idea, as 
 novel as it was sudden, crossed his brain. Retreating 
 a step or two, he examined the light and agile form of 
 the other, from head to feet. The frown of displeasure, 
 which had clouded his brow, changed to a look of un- 
 feigned surprise ; and for the first time, the tones of 
 the voice came over his recollection as being softer 
 and more melodious than is wont in man. 
 
 " Truly, thou art not the ' Skimmer of the Seas !' " 
 he exclaimed, when his short examination was ended. 
 
 " No truth more certain. I am one of little account 
 in this rude encounter, though, were that gallant sea- 
 man here," and the color deepened on the cheeks of 
 Seadrift as he spoke, " his arm and counsel might 
 prove a host ! Oh ! I have seen him in scenes far more 
 trying than this, when the elements have conspired 
 with other dangers. The example of his steadiness 
 and spirit has given courage even to the feeblest heart 
 in the brigantine ! Now, suffer me to offer consola- 
 tion to the timid Alida." 
 
 " I should little merit her gratitude, were the re- 
 quest refused," returned Ludlow. " Go, gay and gal- 
 lant Master Seadrift ! if the enemy fears thy presence 
 on the deck as little as I dread it with la belle Barberie, 
 thy services here will be useless !" 
 
 Seadrift colored to the temples, crossed his arms 
 meekly on his bosom, sunk in an attitude of leave- 
 taking, that was so equivocal as to cause the attentive 
 and critical young captain to smile, and then glided 
 past him and disappeared through a hatchway.
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 109 
 
 The eye of Ludlow followed the active and grace- 
 ful form, while it continued in sight ; and when it was 
 no longer visible, he turned to the alderman. 
 
 " And is this example of heroism to go any farther, 
 or may I count on the assistance of Mr. Alderman 
 Van Beverout? — he has the reputation of a loyal 
 citizen." 
 
 " I have heard artillery in my time," replied the Al- 
 derman, " having in my younger days led a band of 
 city volunteers in many a march and countermarch 
 around the Bowling-Green ; and for the honor of the 
 second ward of the good town of Manhattan, I am 
 now ready to undertake to show, that all knowledge 
 of the art has not entirely departed from me." 
 
 " That is a manly answer. Choose your position 
 among any of these guns, and we will make an effort 
 to disappoint yon servants of Louis." 
 
 Myndert descended to the quarter-deck, and hav- 
 ing deliberately deposited his coat on the capstan, 
 replaced his wig by a handkerchief, and tightened 
 the buckle that did the office of suspenders, hesquint- 
 ed along the guns, with a certain air that served to 
 assure the spectators he had at least no dread of 
 the recoil. 
 
 "You see your enemy, and you know your work !" 
 said the clear, deep, manly voice of Ludlow, who, as 
 he passed among the people of the Coquette, spoke 
 to them in that steady, unwavering tone which, in 
 moments of danger, goes to the heart. "I shall not 
 pretend that we are as strong as I could wish; but 
 the greater the necessity for a strong pull, the readier
 
 110 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 a true seaman will be to give it. There are no nails 
 in that ensign. When I am dead, you may pull it 
 down, if you please ; hut, so long as I live, my men, 
 there it shall fly ! And now, one cheer to show your 
 humor, and then let the rest of your noise €ome from 
 the guns." 
 
 The crew complied, with a full-mouthed and hearty 
 hurrah ? Trysail assured a young, laughing, careless 
 midshipman, who even at that moment could enjoy 
 an uproar, that he had seldom heard a prettier piece 
 of sea-eloquence than that which had just fallen 
 from the captain — it being both neat and gentleman- 
 like. 
 
 The vessel which appeared so inopportunely for the 
 safety of the ill-manned British cruiser, was, in truth, 
 a ship that had roved from among the islands of the 
 Caribbean sea, in quest of some such adventure as 
 that which iioav presented itself. She was called la 
 belle Fontange, and her commander, a youth of two- 
 and-twenty, was already well known in the salons of 
 'the Marais, and behind the walls of the Rue Basse 
 des Remparts, as one of the most gay and amiable of 
 those who frequented the former, and one of the most 
 spirited and skilful among the adventurers who some- 
 times trusted to their address in the latter. Rank, 
 and influence at Versailles, had procured for the 
 young Chevalier Dumont de la Rocheforte a com- 
 mand to which he could lay no claim either by his 
 experience or his services. 
 
 He was brave, but his courage was not the calm 
 and silent self-possession of a seaman. Like himself,
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. Ill 
 
 it was lively, buoyant, thoughtless, bustling, and full 
 of animal feeling. He had all the pride of a gentle- 
 man, and, unfortunately for the duty which he had 
 now for the first time to perform, one of its dictates 
 taught him to despise that species of mechanical 
 knowledge, which it was, just at this moment, so im- 
 portant to the commander of the la Fontange to pos- 
 sess. He could dance to admiration, did the honors 
 of his cabin with faultless elegance, and had caused 
 the death of an excellent mariner, who had accident- 
 ally fallen overboard, by jumping into the sea to 
 aid him, without knowing how to swim a stroke 
 himself — a rashness that had diverted those exertions 
 which might have saved the unfortunate sailor, from 
 the assistance of the subordinate to the safety of his 
 superior. 
 
 It was perhaps fortunate for the safety of all in her, 
 that la belle Fontange possessed an inferior officer, in 
 the person of a native of Boulogne-sur-Mer, who was 
 quite competent to see that she kept the, proper 
 course, and that she displayed none of the top-gal- 
 lants of her pride at unpropitious moments. The 
 ship itself was sufficiently and finely moulded, of a 
 light and airy rig, and of established reputation for 
 speed. If it was defective in any thing, it had the 
 fault, in common with its commander, of a want of 
 sufficient solidity to resist the vicissitudes and dan- 
 gers of the turbulent element on which it was des- 
 tined to act. 
 
 The vessels were now within a mile of each other. 
 The breeze was steady, and sufficiently fresh for all
 
 112 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 the ordinary evolutions of a naval combat ; while the 
 water was just quiet enough to permit the ships to 
 be handled with confidence and accuracy. La Fon- 
 tange was running with her head to the eastward, 
 and, as she had the advantage of the wind, her tall 
 tracery of spars leaned gently in the direction of her 
 adversary. The Coquette was standing on the other 
 tack, and necessarily inclined from her enemy. Both 
 vessels were stripped to their top-sails, spankers, and 
 jibs, though the lofty sails of the Frenchman were 
 fluttering in the breeze, like the graceful folds of 
 some fanciful drapery. No human being was dis- 
 tinctly visible in either fabric, though dark clusters 
 around each mast-head showed that the ready top- 
 men were prepared to discharge their duties, even in 
 the confusion and dangers of the impending contest. 
 Once or twice, la Fontange inclined her head more 
 in the direction of her adversary ; and then, sweeping 
 up again to the wind, she stood on in stately beauty. 
 The moment was near when the ships were about to 
 cross each other, at a point where a musket would 
 readily send its messenger across the water that lay 
 between them. Ludlow, who closely watched each 
 change of position, and every rise and fall of the 
 breeze, went on the poop, and swept the horizon with 
 his glass, for the last time before his ship should be 
 enveloped in smoke. To his surprise, he discovered 
 a pyramid of canvas, rising above the sea, in the di- 
 rection of the wind. The sail was clearly visible to 
 the naked eye, and had only escaped earlier observa- 
 tion in the duties of so urgent a moment. Calling
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 113 
 
 the master to his side, he inquired his opinion con- 
 cerning the character of the second stranger. But 
 Trysail confessed it exceeded even his long-tried 
 powers of observation to say more than that it was 
 a ship running before the wind, with a cloud of sail 
 spread. After a second and longer look, however, 
 the experienced master ventured to add that the 
 stranger had the squareness and symmetry of a 
 cruiser, but of what size he would not yet presume 
 to declare. 
 
 " It may be a light ship, under her top-gallant and 
 studding-sails, or it may be, that we see only the lofty 
 duck of some heavier vessel, Captain Ludlow. Ha ! 
 he has caught the eye of the Frenchman, for the 
 corvette has signals abroad !" 
 
 " To your glass ! — If the stranger answer, we have 
 no choice but our speed." 
 
 There was another keen and anxious examination 
 of the upper spars of the distant ship, but the direc- 
 tion of the wind prevented any signs of her communi- 
 cating with the corvette from beincr visible. La Fon- 
 tango appeared equally uncertain of t lie character of 
 the stranger, and for a moment there was some evi- 
 dence of an intention to change her course. I.nl the 
 moment for indecision had passed. The ships were 
 already sweeping up abreast of each other, under the 
 constant pressure of the breeze. 
 
 " Be ready, men!" said Ludlow, in a low but firm 
 voice, retaining his elevated post on the poop, while 
 he motioned to his companion to return to the main- 
 deck. " Fire at his flash !" 
 8
 
 114 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 Intense expectation succeeded. The two graceful 
 fabrics sailed steadily on, and came within hail. So 
 profound was the stillness in the Coquette, that the 
 rushing sound of the water she heaped under her 
 bows was distinctly audible to all on board, and might 
 be likened to the deep breathing of some vast animal, 
 that was collecting its physical energies for some un- 
 usual exertion. On the other hand, tongues Avere loud 
 and clamorous among the cordage of la Fontange. 
 Just as the ships were fairly abeam, the voice of 
 young Dumont was heard, shouting through a trum- 
 pet, for his men to iire. Ludlow smiled, in a seamen's 
 scorn. Raising his own trumpet, with a quiet gesture 
 to his attentive and ready crew, the whole discharge 
 of their artillery broke out of the dark side of the 
 ship, as if it had been by the volition of the fabric. 
 The answering broadside was received almost as soon 
 as their own had been given, and the two vessels passed 
 swiftly without the line of shot. 
 
 The wind had sent back their own smoke upon the 
 English, and for a time it floated on their decks, 
 wreathed itself in the eddies of the sails, and passed 
 away to leeward, with the breeze that succeeded to 
 the counter-current of the explosions. The whistling 
 of shot, and the crash of wood, had been heard amid 
 the din of the combat. Giving a glance at his enemy, 
 who still stood on, Ludlow leaned from the poop, and, 
 with all a sailor's anxiety, he endeavored to scan the 
 gear aloft. 
 
 " What is gone, sir ?" he asked of Trysail, whose 
 earnest face just then became visible through the
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 115 
 
 drifting smoke. " What sail is so heavily flap- 
 ping ?" 
 
 " Little harm done, sir — little harm — bear a hand 
 with the tackle on that fore-yard-arm, you lubbers ! 
 you move like snails in a minuet. The fellow has shot 
 away the lee fore-top-sail-sheet, sir ; but we shall soon 
 get our wings spread again. Lash it down, boys, as 
 if it were butt-bolted ; — so ; steady out your bowline, 
 forward. — Meet her, you can ; meet her you may — 
 meet her 1" 
 
 The smoke had disappeared, and the eye of the 
 captain rapidly scanned the whole of his ship. Three 
 or four top-men had already caught the flapping can- 
 vas, and were seated on the extremity of the fore- 
 yard, busied in securing their prize. A hole or two 
 was visible in the other sails, and here and there an 
 unimportant rope was dangling in a manner to show 
 that it had been cut by shot. Further than this, 
 the damage aloft was not of a nature to attract his 
 attention. 
 
 There was a different scene on deck. The feeble 
 crew were earnestly occupied in loading the guns, 
 and rammers and sponges were handled, with all 
 the intenseness which men would manifest in a mo- 
 ment so exciting. The alderman was never more 
 absorbed in his leger than he now appeared in his 
 duty of a cannoneer; and the youths, to whom the 
 command of the batteries had necessarily been con- 
 fided, diligently aided him with their greater author- 
 ity and experience. Trysail stood near the capstan, 
 coolly giving the orders which have been related,
 
 116 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 and gazing upward with an interest so absorbed as 
 to render him unconscious of all that passed around 
 his person. 
 
 These were the observations of a single minute. 
 The different circumstances related had been ascer- 
 tained with so many rapid glances of the eye, and 
 they had even been noted without losing for a mo- 
 ment the knowledge of the precise situation of la 
 Fontange. The latter was already in stays. It be- 
 came necessary to meet the evolution by another as 
 prompt. 
 
 The order was no sooner given, than the Coquette, 
 as if conscious of the hazard she ran of being raked, 
 whirled away from the wind, and, by the time her 
 adversary was ready to deliver her other broadside 
 she was in a position to receive and to return it. 
 Again the ships approached each other, and once 
 more they exchanged their streams of fire when 
 abeam. 
 
 Ludlow now saw, through the smoke, the ponder- 
 ous yard of la Fontange swinging heavily against 
 the breeze, and the main-topsail come flapping against 
 her mast. Swinging off from the poop by a back- 
 stay that had been shot away a moment before, 
 he alighted on the quarter-deck by the side of the 
 master. 
 
 "Touch all the braces!" he said, hastily, but still 
 speaking low and clearly; "give a drag upon the 
 bowlines — luff, sir, luff; jam the ship up hard against 
 the wind !" 
 
 The clear, steady answer of the quarter-master,
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 117 
 
 and the manner in which the Coquette, still vomiting 
 her sheets of flame, inclined toward the breeze, an- 
 nounced the promptitude of the subordinates. In 
 another minute, the vast volumes of smoke which 
 enveloped the two ships joined, and formed one 
 white and troubled cloud, which was rolling swiftly 
 before the explosions, over the surface of the sea, but 
 which, a.s it rose higher in the air, sailed gracefully to 
 leeward. 
 
 Our young commander passed swiftly through the 
 batteries, spoke encouragingly to his people, and re- 
 sumed his post on the poop. The stationary position 
 of la Fontange, and his own efforts to get to wind- 
 ward, were already proving advantageous to Queen 
 Anne's cruiser. There was some indecision on the 
 part of the other ship, which instantly caught the 
 eye of one whose readiness in his profession so much 
 resembled instinct. 
 
 The Chevalier Dumont had amused his leisure by 
 running his eyes over the records of the naval history 
 of his country, where he had found this and that 
 commander applauded for throwing their topsails to 
 the mast, abreasl of their enemies. Ignorant of the 
 difference between a ship in line and one engaged 
 singly, he had determined to prove himself equal to 
 a similar display of spirit. At the moment when Lud- 
 low was standing alone on the poop, watching with 
 vigilanl eyes the progress of his own vessel, and the 
 position Of his enemy, indicating merely by a look or 
 a gesture to the attentive Trysail beneath, what he 
 wished done, there was actually a wordy discussion
 
 118 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 on the quarter-deck of the latter, "between the mariner 
 of Boulogne-sur-Mer, and the gay favorite of the 
 saloons. They debated on the expediency of the step 
 which the latter had taken, to prove the existence of 
 a quality that no one doubted. The time lost in this 
 difference of opinion was of the last importance to the 
 British cruiser. Standing gallantly on, she was soon 
 out of the range of her adversary's fire ; and, before 
 the Boulognois had succeeded in convincing his su- 
 perior of his error, their antagonist was on the other 
 tack, and luffing across the wake of la Fontange. 
 The topsail was then tardily filled, but before the 
 latter ship had recovered her motion, the sails of her 
 enemy overshadowed her deck. There was now every 
 prospect of the Coquette passing to windward. At 
 that critical moment, the fair-setting topsail of the 
 British cruiser was nearly rent in two by a shot. The 
 ship fell off, the yards interlocked, and the vessels 
 were foul. 
 
 The Coquette had all the advantage of position. 
 Perceiving the important fact at a glance, Ludlow 
 made sure of its continuance by throwing his grap- 
 nels. When the two ships were thus firmly lashed 
 together, the young Dumont found himself relieved 
 from a mountain of embarrassment. Sufficiently 
 justified by the fact that not a single gun of his own 
 would bear, while a murderous discharge of grape 
 had just swept along his decks, he issued the order 
 to board. But Ludlow, with his weakened crew, had 
 not decided on so hazardous an evolution as that 
 which brought him in absolute contact with his ene-
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 119 
 
 my, without foreseeing the means of avoiding all the 
 consequences. The vessels touched each other only 
 at one point, and this spot was protected by a row of 
 muskets. No sooner, therefore, did the impetuous 
 young Frenchman appear on the taffrail of his own 
 ship, supported by a band of followers, than a close 
 and deadly lire swept them away to a man. Young 
 Dumont alone remained. For a single moment his 
 eye glared wildly ; but the active frame, still obedi- 
 ent to the governing impulse of so impetuous a spirit, 
 leaped onward. He fell, without life, on the deck of 
 his enemy. 
 
 Ludlow watched every moment, with a calmness 
 that neither personal responsibility, nor the uproar 
 and rapid incidents of the terrible scene could dis- 
 compose. 
 
 " Now is our time to bring the matter hand to 
 hand!" he cried, making a gesture to Trysail to de- 
 scend from the ladder, in order that lie might pass. 
 
 His arm was arrested, and the grave old master 
 pointed to windward. 
 
 "There is no mistaking the cut of those sails, or 
 the lofty rise of those spars ! The stranger is another 
 Frenchman !" 
 
 One glance told Ludlow thai his subordinate was 
 right ; another sufficed to show what was now neces- 
 sary. 
 
 "Cast loose the forward grapnel — cut it — away 
 with it, clear!" was shouted, through his trumpet, in 
 a voice that rose commanding and clear amid the roar 
 
 of the combat.
 
 120 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 Released forward, the stern of the Coquette yielded 
 to the pressure of her enemy, whose sails were all 
 drawing, and she was soon in a position to enable her 
 head-yards to he braced sharp aback, in a direction 
 opposite to the one in which she had so lately lain. 
 The whole broadside was then delivered into the 
 stern of la Fontange, the last grapnel was released 
 and the ships separated. 
 
 The single spirit which presided over the evolu- 
 tions and exertions of the Coquette still governed her 
 movements. The sails were trimmed, the ship was 
 got in command, and, before the vessels had been 
 asunder five minutes, the duty of the vessel was in its 
 ordinary active but noiseless train. 
 
 Nimble top-men were on the yards, and broad folds 
 of fresh canvas were flapping in the breeze, as the 
 new sails were bent and set. Ropes were spliced, or 
 supplied by new rigging, the spars examined, and in 
 fine all that watchfulness and sedulous care were ob- 
 served which are so necessary to the efficiency and 
 safety of a ship. Every spar was secured, the pumps 
 were sounded, and the vessel held on her way, as 
 steadily as if she had never fired nor received a shot. 
 
 On the other hand, la Fontange betrayed the inde- 
 cision and confusion of a worsted ship. Her torn 
 canvas was blowing about in disorder, many import- 
 ant ropes beat against her masts unheeded, and the 
 vessel itself drove before the breeze in the helpless- 
 ness of a wreck. For several minutes there seemed 
 no controlling mind in the fabric ; and when, after so 
 much distance was lost as to give her enemy all the
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 121 
 
 advantage of the wind, a tardy attempt was made to 
 bring the ship np again, the tallest and most import- 
 ant of her masts were seen tottering, until it finally 
 fell with all its hamper into the sea. 
 
 Notwithstanding the absence of so many of his 
 people, success would now have been certain, had not 
 the presence of the stranger compelled Ludlow to 
 abandon his advantage. But the consequences to 
 his own vessel were too sure, to allow of more than a 
 natural and manly regret that so favorable an occa- 
 sion should escape him. The character of the stranger 
 could no longer be mistaken. The eye of every sea- 
 man in the Coquette as well understood the country 
 of the high and narrow-headed sails, the tall, taper 
 masts and short yards of the frigate whose hull was 
 now distinctly visible, as a landsman recognizes an 
 individual by the distinguishing marks of his features 
 or attire. Had there been any lingering doubts on 
 the subject, they would have all given place to cer- 
 tainty, when the stranger was seen exchanging sig- 
 nals with the crippled corvette. 
 
 It was now time for Ludlow to come to a speedy 
 determination on his future course. The breeze si ill 
 held to the southward, hut it was beginning to lessen, 
 with every appearance that it would fail before night- 
 fall. The land lay a few leagues to the northward, 
 and the whole horizon of the ocean, with the excep- 
 tion of the two French cruisers, was clear. Descend- 
 ing to the quarter-deck, he approached the master, 
 who was seated in the chair, while l lie surgeon 
 dressed a severe hurt in one of his lejjs. Shaking
 
 122 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 the sturdy veteran cordially by the hand, he ex- 
 pressed his acknowledgments for his support in a 
 moment so trying. 
 
 " God bless you ! God bless you ! Captain Ludlow ;" 
 returned the old sailor, dashing his hand equivocally 
 across his weatherbeaten brow. " Battle is certainly 
 the place to try both ship and friends, and, Heaven be 
 praised ! Queen Anne has not failed of either this 
 day. No man has forgotten his duty, so far as my 
 eyes have witnessed; and this is saying no trifle 
 with half a crew and an equal enemy." 
 
 " I have come to ask thy advice, my old friend, 
 concerning our next movements. There is no doubt 
 that the fellow who is coming down upon us is both 
 a Frenchman and a frigate." 
 
 "A man might as well doubt the nature of a fish- 
 hawk, which is to pick up all the small fry, and to 
 let the big ones go. We might show him our canvas 
 and try the open sea, but I fear that fore-mast is too 
 weak, with three such holes in it, to bear the sail we 
 should need !" 
 
 " What think you of the wind ?" said Ludlow. 
 " Should it hold, we might double Montauk, and re- 
 turn for the rest of our people ; but should it fail, is 
 there no danger that the frigate should tow within 
 shot ? We have no boats to escape her." 
 
 "The soundings on this coast are as regular as the 
 roof of an out-house," said the master, after a mo- 
 ment of thought ; " and it is my advice, if it is your 
 pleasure to ask it, Captain Ludlow, that we shoal 
 our water as much as possible, while the wind lasts.
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 123 
 
 Then, I think, we shall be safe from a very near visit 
 from the big one ; as for the corvette, I am of opinion 
 that, like a man who has eaten his dinner, she has no 
 stomach for another slice." 
 
 Ludlow applauded the advice of his subordinate, 
 for it was precisely what he had determined on do- 
 ing ; and after again complimenting him on his cool- 
 ness and skill, he issued the necessary orders. The 
 helm of the Coquette was now placed hard a-weather, 
 the yards were squared, and the ship was put before 
 the wind. After running in this direction for a few 
 hours, the wind gradually lessening, the lead announc- 
 ed that the keel was quite as near the bottom as the 
 time of the tide, and the dull heaving and setting of 
 the element, rendered at all prudent. The breeze 
 soon after fell, and then our young commander order- 
 ed an anchor to be dropped into the sea. 
 
 His example, in the latter respect, was imitated by 
 the hostile cruisers. They had soon joined, and boats 
 were seen passing from one to the other, so long as 
 there was light. When the sun fell behind the west- 
 ern margin of the ocean, their dusky outlines, distant 
 about a league, gradually grew less and less distinct, 
 until the darkness of night enveloped sea and hind in 
 its gloom. 
 
 Tin: NIGHT ATTACK. 
 
 Three hours later, and every noise was hushed on 
 
 board the royal cruiser. The toil of repairing dam- 
 ages hail ceased, and most of the living, with the
 
 124 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 dead, lay alike in common silence. The watchfulness 
 necessary to the situation of the fatigued mariners, 
 > however, was not forgotten, and though so many 
 slept, a few eyes were still open, and affecting to he 
 alert. Here and there, some drowsy seaman paced 
 the deck, or a solitary young officer endeavored to 
 keep himself awake, by humming a low air, in his 
 narrow bounds. The mass of the erew slept heavily, 
 with pistols in their belts and cutlasses at their sides, 
 between the guns. There was one figure extended 
 upon the quarter-deck, with the head resting on a 
 shot-box. The deep breathing of this person denoted 
 the unquiet slumbers of a powerful frame, in which 
 weariness contentled with suffering. It was the 
 wounded and feverish master, who had placed him- 
 self in that position to catch an hour of the repose 
 that was necessary to his situation. 
 
 There was one little group on the raised deck in 
 the stern of the vessel, in which the ordinary inter- 
 ests of life still seemed to exercise their influence. 
 Hither Ludlow had led Alida and her companions, 
 after the duties of the day were over, in order that 
 they might breathe an air fresher than that of the 
 intei-ior of the vessel. The negress nodded near 
 her young mistress ; the tired alderman sat with his 
 back supported against the mizzen-mast, giving audi- 
 ble evidence of his situation ; and Ludlow stood erect, 
 occasionally throwing an earnest look on the sui 1 - 
 rounding and unruffled waters, and then lending his 
 attention to the discourse of his companions. Alida 
 and Seadrift were seated near each other, on chairs.
 
 STORIES OF TIIE SEA. 125 
 
 The conversation was low, while the melancholy and 
 the tremor in the voice of la helle Barberie denoted 
 how much the events of the day had shaken her 
 usually firm and spirited mind. 
 
 " There is a mingling of the terrific and the beauti- 
 ful, of the grand and the seducing, in this unquiet 
 profession of yours !" observed, or rather continued 
 Alida, replying to a previous remark of the young 
 sailor. " That tranquil sea — the hollow sound of the 
 surf on the shore — and this soft canopy above us form 
 objects on which even a girl might dwell in admira- 
 tion, were not her ears still ringing with the roar 
 and cries of the combat. Did you say the commander 
 of the Frenchman was but a youth ?" 
 
 "A mere boy in appearance, and one who doubt- 
 less owed his rank to the advantages of birth and 
 family." 
 
 "Perhaps he has a mother, Ludlow — a sister — a 
 wife — or — " 
 
 "He may have had one, or all! Such are the sail- 
 or's hazards, ami — " 
 
 " Such the hazards of those who feel an interest in 
 their safety!" uttered the low but expressive voice 
 of Seadrift. 
 
 A deep and eloquent silence succeeded. Then the 
 voice of Myndert was heard muttering indistinctly, 
 "twenty of beaver, and three of marten — as per in- 
 voice." The smile which, spite of the train of his 
 thoughts, rose <>n the lips of Ludlow, had scarcely 
 passed away, when the hoarse tones of Trysail, ren- 
 dered still hoarser by hi- sleep, were plainly heard in
 
 126 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 a stifled cry, saying, " Bear a hand, there, with your 
 stoppers ! — the Frenchman is coming round upon us, 
 again." 
 
 " That is prophetic !" said one, aloud, behind the 
 listening group. Ludlow turned, quick as the flag- 
 fluttering on its vane, and through the darkness he 
 recognized, in the motionless but manly form that 
 stood near him on the poop, the fine person of the 
 ' Skimmer of the Seas.' 
 
 " Call away !" 
 
 " Call none !" — interrupted Tiller, stopping the hur- 
 ried order which involuntarily broke from the lips of 
 Ludlow. " Let thy ship feign the silence of a wreck, 
 but, in truth, let there be watchfulness and preparation 
 even to her store-rooms! You have done Avell, Cap- 
 tain Ludlow, to be on the alert, though I have known 
 sharper eyes than those of some of your look-outs." 
 
 " Whence come you, audacious man, and what 
 mad errand has brought you again on the deck of 
 my ship?" 
 
 " I come from my habitation on the sea. My busi- 
 ness here is warning !" 
 
 "The sea!" echoed Ludlow, gazing about him at 
 the narrow and empty view. " The hour for mockery 
 is past, and you would do well to trifle no more with 
 those who have serious duties to discharge." 
 
 "The hour is indeed one for serious duties — duties 
 more serious than any you apprehend. But before I 
 enter on explanation, there must be conditions be- 
 tween us. You have one of the sea-green lady's 
 servitors, here ; I claim his liberty, for my secret."
 
 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 127 
 
 "The error into which I had fallen exists no 
 longer ;" returned Ludlow, looking for an instant 
 toward the shrinking form of Seadrift. " My con- 
 quest is worthless, unless you come to supply his 
 place." 
 
 " I come for other purposes — here is one who 
 knows I do not trifle when urgent affairs are on 
 hand. Let thy companions retire, that I may speak 
 openly." 
 
 Ludlow hesitated, for he had not yet recovered from 
 the surprise of finding the redoubtable free-trader so 
 unexpectedly on the deck of his ship. But Alida and 
 her companion arose; like those who had more confid- 
 ence in their visitor, and, arousing the negress from 
 her sleep, they descended the ladder and entered the 
 cabin. When Ludlow found himself alone with Tiller, 
 he demanded an explanation. 
 
 " It shall not be withheld, for time presses, and that 
 which is to be done must be done with a seaman's care 
 :m<l coolness;" returned the other. "Youhavehad a 
 close brush with one of Louis's rovers, Captain Lud- 
 low, and prettily was the ship of Queen Anne handled ! 
 Have your people suffered, and are you still strong 
 enough to make good a defence worthy of your con- 
 <ln ■! this morning?" 
 
 "These are facts you would have me utter to the 
 ear of one who may be false ; — even a spy !" 
 
 "Captain Ludlow — but circumstances warrant thy 
 
 suspicious !" 
 
 "One whose vessel ami lite I have threatened — an 
 outlaw !"
 
 128 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 " This is too true," returned the ' Skimmer of the 
 Seas,' suppressing a sudden impulse of pride and re- 
 sentment. " I am threatened and pursued — I am a 
 smuggler and an outlaw : still am I human ! "You 
 see that dusky object, which borders the sea to the 
 northward !" 
 
 " It is too plainly land, to be mistaken." 
 
 " Land, and the land of my birth ! — the earliest, per- 
 haps I may say the happiest of my days, were passed 
 on that long and narrow island." 
 
 " Had I known it earlier, there woidd have been a 
 closer look among its bays and inlets." 
 
 " The search might have been rewarded. A can- 
 non would easily throw its shot from this deck to 
 the spot where my brigantine now lies, snug at a 
 single anchor." 
 
 " Unless you have swept her near since the setting 
 of the sun, that is impossible ! When the night drew 
 on, nothing was in view but the frigate and corvette 
 of the enemy." 
 
 " We have not stirred a fathom ; and yet, true as the 
 word of a fearless man, there lies the vessel of the 
 sea-green lady. You see the place where the beach 
 falls — here, at the nearest point of the land — the island 
 is nearly severed by the water at that spot, and the 
 Water- Witch is safe in the depths of the bay which 
 enters from the northward. There is not a mile be- 
 tween us. From the eastern hill, I Avitnessed your 
 spirit this day, Captain Ludlow, and though condemn 
 ed in person, I felt that the heart could never be out-
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 129 
 
 lawed. There is a fealty here that can survive even 
 the persecutions of the custom-houses !" 
 
 " You are happy in your terms, sir. I will not con- 
 ceal that I think a seaman, even as skilful as yourself, 
 must allow that the Coquette was kept prettily in 
 command !" 
 
 " No pilot-boat could have been more sure, or more 
 lively. I knew your weakness, for the absence of all 
 your boats was no secret to me ; and I confess I could 
 have spared some of the profits of the voyage, to have 
 been on your decks this day with a dozen of my truest 
 fellows !" 
 
 " A man who can feel this loyalty to the flag, 
 should find a more honorable occupation for his 
 usual life." 
 
 " A country that can inspire it, should be cautious 
 not to estrange the affections of its children, by mo- 
 nopolies and injustice. But these are discussions un- 
 suited to the moment. I am doubly your countryman 
 in this strait, and all the past is no more than the rough 
 liberties which friends take with each other. Captain 
 Ludlow, there is danger brooding in that dark void 
 which lies to seaward!" 
 
 " On what authority do you speak thus?" 
 
 '• Sight. I have been among your enemies, and 
 have seen their deadly preparations. I know the cau- 
 tion is given to a brave man, and nothing shall be ex- 
 tenuated. You have need of all your resolution and 
 of every arm — for they will be upon you, in overwhelm- 
 ing numbers!" 
 
 "True or false, thy warning shall not be neglected." 
 9
 
 130 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 " Hold !" said the Skimmer, arresting a forward 
 movement of his companion, with his hand. " Let 
 them sleep to the last moment. You have yet an hour, 
 and rest will renew their strength. You may trust 
 the experience of a seamen who has passed half of the 
 life of man on the ocean, and who has witnessed all its 
 most stirring scenes, from the conflict of the elements 
 to every variety of strife that man has invented to 
 destroy his fellows. For another hour, you will be 
 secure. After that hour, God protect the unprepared ! 
 and God be merciful to him whose minutes are num- 
 bered !" 
 
 " Thy language and manner are those of one who 
 deals honestly ;" returned Ludlow, struck by the ap- 
 parent sincerity of the free-trader's communication. 
 "In every event, we shall be ready, though the man- 
 ner of your having gained this knowledge is as great 
 a mystery as your appearance on the deck of my 
 ship." 
 
 " Both can be explained," returned the Skimmer, 
 motioning to his companion to follow to the taffrail. 
 Here he pointed to a small and nearly imperceptible 
 skiff, which floated at the bottom of a stern-ladder, 
 and continued — " One who so often pays secret visits 
 to the land, can never be in want of the means. This 
 nut-shell was easily transported across the narrow slip 
 of land that separates the bay from the ocean, and 
 though tlic surf moans so hoarsely, it is easily passed 
 by a steady and dexterous oarsman. I have been 
 under the martingale of the Frenchman, and you see 
 that I am here. If your look-outs are less alert than
 
 STORIES OF TIIE SEA 131 
 
 usual, you will remember that a low gunwale, a dusky 
 side, and a muffled oar, are not readily detected, when 
 the eye is heavy and the body wearied. I must now 
 quit you — unless you think it more prudent to send 
 those who can be of no service, out of the ship, before 
 the trial shall come ?" 
 
 Ludlow hesitated. A strong desire to put Alida 
 in a pla«e of safety, was met by his distrust of the 
 smuggler's faith. He reflected a moment, ere he an- 
 swered. 
 
 "Your cockle-shell is not sufficiently secure for 
 more than its owner. Go, and as you prove loyal, 
 may you prosper !" 
 
 " Abide the blow !" said the Skimmer, grasping his 
 hand. He then stepped carelessly on the dangling 
 ropes and descended into the boat beneath. Ludlow 
 watched his movements with an intense and possibly 
 with a distrustful curiosity. When seated at the 
 sculls, the person of the free-trader was nearly in- 
 distinct; and as the boat glided noiselessly away, 
 the young commander no longer felt disposed to 
 censure those who had permitted its approach with- 
 out a warning. In less than a minute the dusky ob- 
 ject was confounded with the surface of the sea. 
 
 Left to himself, the young commander of the Co- 
 quette seriously reflected on what had passed. The 
 manner of the Skimmer, the voluntary character of 
 his communication, iis probability, and the means by 
 which his knowledge had been obtained, united to 
 confirm his truth. Instances of similar attachment 
 to their Hag, in seamen whose ordinary pursuits were
 
 132 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 opposed to its interests, were not uncommon. Their 
 misdeeds resemble the errors of passion and tempta- 
 tion, while the momentary return to better things is 
 like the inextinguishable impulses of nature. 
 
 The admonition of the free-trader, who had en- 
 joined the captain to allow his people to sleep, was 
 remembered. Twenty times, within as many min- 
 utes, did our young sailor examine his watch, to note 
 ths tardy passage of the time ; and as often did he 
 return it to his pocket, with a determination to for- 
 bear. At length he descended to the quarter-deck, 
 and drew near the only form that was erect. The 
 watch was commanded by a youth of sixteen, whose 
 regular period of probationary service had not passed, 
 but who, in the absence of his superiors, was intrusted 
 with this delicate and important duty. He stood 
 leaning against the capstan, one hand supporting his 
 cheek, while the elbow rested against the drum, and 
 the body was without motion. Ludlow regarded 
 him a moment, and then lifting a lighted battle- 
 lantern to his face, he saw that he slept. Without 
 disturbing the delinquent the captain replaced the 
 lantern and passed forward. In the gangway there 
 stood a marine, with his musket shouldered, in an 
 attitude of attention. As Ludlow brushed within a 
 few inches of his eyes, it was easy to be seen that 
 they opened and shut involuntarily, and without con- 
 sciousness of what lay before them. On the top- 
 gallant-forecastle was a short, square, and well-bal- 
 anced figure, that stood without support of any kind, 
 with both arms thrust into the bosom of a jacket,
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 133 
 
 and a head that turned slowly to the west and south, 
 as if it were examining the ocean in those direc- 
 tions. 
 
 Stepping lightly up the ladder, Ludlow saw that it 
 was the veteran seaman who was rated as the captain 
 of the forecastle. 
 
 " I am glad, at last, to find one pair of eyes open, 
 in my ship," said the captain. " Of the whole watch, 
 you alone are alert." 
 
 "I have doubled cape fifty, your honor, and the 
 seaman who has made that voyage, rarely wants the 
 second call of the boatswain. Young heads have 
 young eyes, and sleep is next to food, after a heavy 
 drag at gun-tackles and lanyards." 
 
 "And what draws your attention so steadily in 
 that quarter ? There is nothing visible but the haze 
 of the sea." 
 
 " 'Tis the direction of the Frenchmen, sir — does 
 your honor hear nothing?" 
 
 "Nothing;" said Ludlow, after intently listening 
 for half a minute. "Nothing, unless it be the wash 
 of the surf on the beach." 
 
 " It may be only fancy, but there came a sound 
 like the fall of an oar-blade on a thwart, and 'tis but 
 natural, your honor, to expect the mounsheer will be 
 out, in this smooth water to see what has become of 
 us. There went the flash of alight, or my name is 
 not Bob Cleet !" 
 
 Ludlow was silent. A light was certainly visible 
 in the quarter where the enemy was known to be 
 anchored, and it came and disappeared like a moving
 
 134 STORIES OF TIIE SEA. 
 
 lantern. At length it was seen to descend slowly, 
 and vanish as if it were extinguished in the water. 
 
 " That lantern went into a boat, Captain Ludlow, 
 though a lubber carried it !" said the positive old 
 forecastle-man, shaking his head and beginning to 
 pace across the deck, with the air of a man who 
 needed no further confirmation of his suspicions. 
 
 Ludlow returned toward the quarter-deck, thought- 
 ful but calm. He passed among his sleeping crew, 
 without awaking a man, and even forbearing to touch 
 the still motionless midshipman, he entered his cabin 
 without speaking. 
 
 The commander of the Coquette was absent but 
 a few minutes. When he again appeared on deck, 
 there was more of decision and of preparation in his 
 manner. 
 
 " 'Tis time to call the watch, Mr. Reef;" he whis- 
 pered at the elbow of the drowsy officer of the deck, 
 without betraying his consciousness of the youth's 
 forgetfulness of duty. " The glass is out." 
 
 "Ay, ay, sir. Bear a hand, and turn the glass!" 
 muttered the young man. " A fine night, sir, and 
 very smooth water. I was just thinking of " 
 
 "Home and thy mother! 'Tis the way with us all 
 in youth. Well, we have now something else to oc- 
 cupy the thoughts. Muster all the gentlemen, here 
 on the quarter-deck, sir." 
 
 When the half-sleeping midshipman quitted his 
 captain to obey this order, the latter drew near the 
 spot where Trysail still lay in an unquiet sleep. A 
 light touch of a single finger was sufficient to raise
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 135 
 
 the master on his feet. The first look of the veteran 
 tar was aloft, the second at the heavens, and the last 
 at his captain. 
 
 " I fear thy wound stiffens, and that the night air 
 has added to the pain?" observed the latter, speaking 
 in a kind and considerate tone. 
 
 " The wounded spar cannot be trusted like a sound 
 stick, Captain Ludlow ; but as I am no foot-soldier 
 on a march, the duty of the ship may go on without 
 my calling for a horse." ' 
 
 " I rejoice in thy cheerful spirit, my old friend, for 
 here is serious work likely to fall upon our hands. 
 The Frenchmen are in their boats, and we shall 
 shortly he brought to close quarters, or prognostics 
 are false." 
 
 "Boats!" repeated the master. "Iliad rather it 
 were under our canvas, with a stiff" breeze! The 
 play of this ship is a lively foot, and a touching leech; 
 but when it comes to boats, a marine is nearly as 
 good a man as a quarter-master!" 
 
 " We must take fortune as it offers. Here is our 
 council! It is composed of young heads, but of 
 hearts thai might do credit to gray hairs." 
 
 Ludlow joined the little group of officers that was 
 by this lime assembled near the capstan. Here, in a 
 few words, lie explained the reason why he had sum- 
 moned them from their sleep. When each of the 
 youths understood his orders, and the nature of the 
 new danger that threatened the ship, they separated, 
 and began to enter with activity, but in guarded 
 silence, on the necessary preparations. The sound of
 
 136 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 footsteps awoke a dozen of the older seamen, who 
 immediately joined their officers. 
 
 Half an hour passed like a moment, in such an 
 occupation. At the end of that time, Ludlow deemed 
 his ship ready. The two forward guns had been run 
 in, and the shot having been drawn, their places were 
 supplied with double charges of grape and canister. 
 Several swivels, a species of armament much used in 
 that age, were loaded to the muzzles, and placed in 
 situations to rake the deck, while the fore-top was 
 plentifully stored with arms and ammunition. The 
 matches were prepared, and then the whole of the 
 creAV was mustered, by a particular call of each man. 
 Five minutes sufficed to issue the necessary orders, 
 and to see each post occupied. After this, the low 
 hum ceased in the ship, and the silence again became 
 so deep and general, that the wash of the receding 
 surf was nearly as audible as the plunge of the wave 
 on the sands. 
 
 Ludlow stood on the forecastle, accompanied by the 
 master. Here he lent all his senses to the appearance 
 of the elements, and to the signs of the moment. 
 Wind there was none, though occasionally a breath 
 of hot air came from the land, like the first efforts of 
 the night-breeze. The heavens were clouded, though 
 a few thoughtful stars glimmered between the masses 
 of vapor. 
 
 " A calmer night never shut in the Americas !" said 
 the veteran Trysail, shaking his head doubtingly and 
 speaking in a suppressed and cautious tone. " I am 
 one of those, Captain Ludlow, who think more than
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 137 
 
 half the virtue is out of a ship when her anchor is 
 down !" 
 
 "With a weakened crew, it may be better for us 
 that the people have no yards to handle, nor any 
 bowlines to steady. All our care can be given to 
 defence." 
 
 " This is much like telling the hawk he can fight 
 the better with a clipped wing, since he has not the 
 trouble of flying. 'Tis a gloomy night, Captain Lud- 
 low, and one that is sparing of its stars. I never knew 
 luck come of an expedition on which a natural light did 
 not fall !" 
 
 " So much the worse for those who seek to harm 
 us. I surely heard an oar in the rullock !" 
 
 " It came from the shore, and had the sound of the 
 land about it;" quietly returned the master, one sure- 
 ly s]>oke — here, in a line with yonder low star !" 
 
 " Was it not a water-fowl ?" 
 
 "No gull — ha ! here we have the object, just within 
 the starboard jib boom-guy. There comes the French- 
 man in his pride, ami 'twill be lucky for him who lives 
 to count the slain, or to boast of his deeds !" 
 
 The master descended from theforcastle, and passed 
 among the crew, with every thought recalled from its 
 excursive flight to the duty of the moment. Ludlow 
 continued on the forecastle, alone. There was a low, 
 whispering sound in the ship, lik< that which is made 
 by the murmuring of a rising breeze — and then all 
 was still as death. 
 
 The Coquette lav with her head to seaward, the 
 stern necessarily pointing toward the land. The dis-
 
 138 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 tance from the latter Avas less than a mile, and the 
 direction of the ship's hull was caused by the course 
 of the heavy ground-swell, which incessantly rolled 
 the waters on the wide beach of the island. The 
 head-gear lay in the way of the dim view, and Lud- 
 low walked out on the bowsprit, in order that nothing 
 should lie between him and the part of the ocean he 
 wished to study. He had not stood a minute, when 
 he caught, first a confused and then a more distinct 
 glimpse of a line of dark objects, advancing slowly to- 
 ward the ship. Assured of the position of his enemy, 
 he returned in-board, and descended among his people. 
 In another moment he was again on the forecastle, 
 across which he paced leisurely, and, to all appear- 
 ance, with the calmness of one who enjoyed the re- 
 freshing coolness of the night. 
 
 At the distance of a hundred fathoms, the dusky line 
 of boats paused, and began to change its order. At 
 that instant the first puffs of the land breeze were felt, 
 and the stern of the ship made a gentle inclination 
 seaward. 
 
 " Help her with the mizzen ! Let fall the topsail !" 
 whispered the young captain to those beneath him. 
 Ere another moment, the flap of the loosened sail 
 was heard. The ship swung still further, and LudloAV 
 stamped on the deck. 
 
 A round fiery light shot beyond the martingale, 
 and the smoke rolled along the sea, outstripped by a 
 crowd of missiles that were hissing across the water. 
 A shout, in which command was mingled with shrieks, 
 followed, and then oar-blades were heard dashing the
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 139 
 
 water aside, regardless of concealment. The ocean 
 lighted, and three or four boat-guns returned the 
 fatal discharge from the ship. Ludlow had not spoken. 
 Still alone on his elevated and exposed post, he watch- 
 ed the effects of both fires, with a commander's cool- 
 ness. The smile that struggled about his compressed 
 mouth, when the momentary confusion among the 
 boats betrayed the success of his own attack, had been 
 wild and exulting; but when he heard the rending of 
 the plank beneath him, the heavy groans that succeed- 
 ed, and the rattling of lighter objects that were scat- 
 tered by the shot, as it passed with lessened force 
 along the deck of his ship, it became fierce and resent- 
 ful. 
 
 "Let them have it!" he shouted, in a clear, ani- 
 mating voice, that assured the people of his presence 
 and his care. "Show them the humor of an English- 
 man's sleep, my lads ! Sjieak to them, tops and 
 decks 1" 
 
 The order was obeyed. The remaining bow-gun 
 was fired, and the discharge of all the Coquette's 
 musketry and blunderbusses followed. A crowd of 
 boats came sweeping under the bowsprit of the ship 
 at the same moment, and then arose the clamor and 
 shouts of the boarders. 
 
 The succeeding minutes wore full of confusion, and 
 of devoted exertion. Twice were the head and bow- 
 sprit of the ship idled with dark groups of men, 
 whose grim visages were only visible by the pistol's 
 Hash, and as often Were they cleared by the pike and 
 bayonet. A third effort was more successful, and the
 
 140 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 tread of the assailants was heard on the deck of the 
 forecastle. The struggle was but momentary, though 
 many fell, and the narrow arena was soon slippery 
 with blood. The Boulognese mariner Avas foremost 
 among his countrymen, and at that desperate emer- 
 gency Ludlow and Trysail fought in the common 
 herd. Numbers prevailed, and it was fortunate for 
 the commander of the Coquette, that the sudden 
 recoil of a human body that fell upon him, drove him 
 from his footing to the deck beneath. 
 
 Recovering from the fall, the young captain cheered 
 his men by his voice, and was answered by the deep- 
 mouthed shouts which an excited seaman is ever 
 ready to deliver, even to the death. 
 
 " Rally in the gangways, and defy them !" was the 
 animated cry — " Rally in the gangways, hearts of 
 oak," was returned by Trysail, in a ready but 
 weakened voice. The men obeyed, and Ludlow saw 
 that he could still muster a force capable of resist- 
 ance. 
 
 Both parties for a moment paused. The fire of the 
 top annoyed the boarders, and the defendants hesitated 
 to advance. But the rush from both was common, 
 and a fierce encounter occurred at the foot of the fore- 
 mast. The crowd thickened in the rear of the French, 
 and one of their number no sooner fell than another 
 filled his place. The English receded, and Ludlow, 
 extricating himself from the mast, retired to the 
 quarter-deck. 
 
 " Give way, men !" he again shouted, so clear and 
 steady, as to be heard above the cries and execra-
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 141 
 
 tions of the fight. " Into the wings — down — between 
 the guns — down — to your covers !" 
 
 The English disappeared, as if by magic. Some 
 leaped upon the ridge-ropes, others sought the protec- 
 tion of the guns, and many went through the hatches. 
 At that moment Ludlow made his most desperate ef- 
 fort. Aided by the gunner, he applied matches to the 
 two swivels, which had been placed in readiness for 
 a last resort. The deck was enveloped in smoke, and, 
 when the vapor lifted, the forward part of the ship 
 was as clear as if man had never trod it. All who 
 had not fallen, had vanished. 
 
 A shout, and a loud hurra ! brought back the de- 
 fendants, and Ludlow headed a charge upon the top- 
 gallant-forecastle, again, in person. A few of the as- 
 sailants showed themselves from behind covers on 
 the deck, and the struggle was renewed. Glaring 
 balls of fire sailed over the heads of the combatants, 
 and fell among the throng in the rear. Ludlow saw 
 the danger, and he endeavored to urge his people on 
 to regain the how-guns, one of which was known to 
 be loaded. But the explosion of a grenade on deck, 
 and in his rear, was followed by a shock in the hold, 
 that threatened to force the bottom out of the vessel. 
 The alarmed and weakened crew began to waver, 
 and as a fresli attack of grenades was followed by a 
 tierce rally, in which the assailants brought up fifty 
 men in a body from their boats, Ludlow found him- 
 self compelled to retire amid the retreating mass of 
 his own crew. 
 
 The defence now assumed the character of hope-
 
 142 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 less but desperate resistance. The cries of the enemy 
 were more and more clamorous ; and they succeeded 
 in nearly silencing the top by a heavy fire of mus- 
 ketry established on the bowsprit and sprit-sail-yard. 
 
 Events passed much faster than they can be re- 
 lated. The enemy were in possession of all the for- 
 ward part of the ship to her fore-hatches, but into 
 these young Hopper had thrown himself, with half 
 a dozen men, and, aided by a brother midshipman in 
 the launch, backed by a few followers, they still held 
 the assailants at bay. Ludlow cast an eye behind 
 him, and began to think of selling his life as dearly 
 as possible in the cabins. That glance was arrested 
 by the sight of the malign smile of the sea-green lady, 
 as the gleaming face rose above the taffrail. A dozen 
 dark forms leaped upon the poop, and then arose a 
 voice that sent every tone it uttered to his heart. 
 
 "Abide the shock!" was the shout of those who 
 came to the succor ; and " abide the shock !" was 
 echoed by the crew. The mysterious image glided 
 along the deck, and Ludlow knew the athletic frame 
 that brushed through the throng at its side. 
 
 There was little noise in the onset, save the groans 
 of the sufferers. It endured but a moment, but it 
 was a moment that resembled the passage of a whirl- 
 wind. The defendants knew that they were succored, 
 and the assailants recoiled before so unexpected a 
 foe. The few that were caught beneath the fore-cas- 
 tle were mercilessly slain, and those above were swept 
 from their post, like chaff drifting in a gale. The 
 living and the dead were heard falling alike into the
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 143 
 
 sea, and in an unconceivably short space of time, the 
 decks of the Coquette were free. 
 
 The hurried dash of oars followed, and before the 
 defendants had time to assure themselves of the 
 completeness of their success, the gloomy void of the 
 surrounding ocean had swallowed up the boats. 
 
 From the moment when the Coquette fired her 
 first gun, to the moment when the retiring boats be- 
 came invisible, was just twenty minutes. Of this 
 time, less than half had been occupied by the inci- 
 dents related in the ship. Short as it was, in truth, 
 it seemed to all engaged but an instant. The alarm 
 was over, the sound of the oars had ceased, and still 
 the survivors stood at their posts, as if expecting the 
 attack to be renewed. Then came those personal 
 thoughts which had been suspended in the fearful 
 exigency of such a struggle. The wounded began to 
 feel their pain, and to be sensible of the danger of 
 their injuries ; while the few who had escaped un- 
 hurt turned a friendly care on their shipmates. Lud- 
 low, as often happens with the bravest and most ex- 
 posed, had escaped without a scratch; but he saw 
 by the drooping forms around him, which were no 
 longer sustained by the excitement of battle, that his 
 triumph was dearly purchased. 
 
 " Send Mr. Trysail to me ;" he said, in a tone that 
 had little of a victor's exultation. "The land breeze 
 has made, and we will endeavor to improve it, and 
 get inside the cape, lest the morning light give us 
 more of these Frenchmen." 
 
 The order for " Mr. Trysail !" " the captain calls the
 
 144 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 master !" passed in a low call from mouth to mouth, 
 but it was unanswered. A seaman told the expecting 
 young commander, that the surgeon desired his pres- 
 ence forward. A gleaming of lights and a little 
 group at the foot of the foremast, were a Deacon not 
 to be mistaken. The weatherbeaten master was in 
 the agony ; and his medical attendant had just risen 
 from a fruitless examination of his wounds, as Lud- 
 low approached. 
 
 " I hope the hui't is not serious ?" hurriedly whis- 
 pered the alarmed young sailor to the surgeon, who 
 was coolly collecting his instruments, in order to ad- 
 minister to some more promising subject. " Neglect 
 nothing that your art can suggest." 
 
 " The case is desperate, Captain Ludlow," returned 
 the phlegmatic surgeon. 
 
 "Would to God, that some portion of these in- 
 juries had befallen those who are younger and 
 stronger!" murmured the captain, as he leaned over 
 the dying master. " Can I do ought to relieve thy 
 mind, my old and worthy shipmate ?" 
 
 " Take care of the ship — I have been thinking of 
 our people — you'll have to cut — they can never lift 
 the anchor." 
 
 " All this is ordered. Trouble thyself no further 
 about the vessel ; speak of thy wife, and of thy wishes 
 in England." 
 
 " God bless Mrs. Trysail ! She'll get a pension, and 
 I hop© contentment ! You must give the reef a good 
 berth in rounding Montauk " 
 
 The voice of the master sunk to a whisper, and
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 145 
 
 became inaudible. Ludlow thought he strove to 
 speak again, and he bent his ear to his mouth. 
 
 "I say — the weather-main-swifter and both back- 
 stays are gone ; look to the spars, for — for — there 
 are sometimes — heavy puffs at night — in the Ameri- 
 cas!" 
 
 The last heavy respiration succeeded, after which 
 came the long silence of death. The body was re- 
 moved to the poop, and Ludlow, with a saddened 
 heart, turned to duties that this accident rendered 
 still more imperative. 
 
 Notwithstanding the heavy loss, and the originally 
 weakened state of her crew, the sails of the Coquette 
 were soon spread, and the ship moved away in silence, 
 as if sorrowing for those who had fallen at her an- 
 chorage. When the vessel was fairly in motion, her 
 captain ascended to the poop, in order to command a 
 clearer view of all around him, as well as to profit by 
 the situation to arrange his plans for the future. He 
 found he had been anticipated by the free-trader. 
 
 "I owe my ship — I may say my life, since in such 
 a conflict they would have gone together, to thy 
 succor!" said the young commander, as he approach- 
 ed the motionless form of the smuggler. " Without 
 it Queen Anne would have lost a cruiser, and the 
 flag of England a portion of its well-earned glory." 
 
 "May thy royal mistress prove as ready to remem- 
 ber her friends, in emergencies, as mine. In good 
 truth, there was little time to lose, and trust me, we 
 well understood the extremity, If we were tardy, 
 it was because whale-boats were to be brought from 
 10
 
 146 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 a distance ; for the land lies between my brigantine 
 and the sea." 
 
 "He who came so opportunely, and acted so well, 
 needs no apology." 
 
 " Captain Ludlow, are we friends ?" 
 
 "It cannot be otherwise. All minor considera- 
 tions must be lost in such a service. If it is your in- 
 tention to push this illegal trade further, on the coast, 
 I must seek another station." 
 
 " Not so. Remain, and do credit to your flag, and 
 the land of your birth. I have long thought that 
 this is the last time the keel of the Water-Witch will 
 ever plough the American seas." 
 
 THE SHIP ON" FIRE. 
 
 The Skimmer paused, for at that moment a fierce 
 light glared upon the ocean, the ship, and all in it. 
 The two seamen gazed at each other in silence, and 
 both recoiled, as men recede before an unexpected 
 and fearful attack. But a bright and wavering light, 
 which rose out of the forward hatch of the vessel 
 explained all. At the same moment, the deep still- 
 ness which, since the bustle of making sail had ceased, 
 pervaded the ship, was broken by the appalling cry 
 of "Fire!" 
 
 The alarm which brings the blood in the swiftest 
 current to a seaman's heart, was now heard in the 
 depths of the vessel. The smothered sounds below, 
 the advancing uproar, and the rush on deck, with the 
 awful summons in the open air, succeeded each other
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 1-iT 
 
 with the rapidity of lightning. A dozen voices re- 
 peated the word the " grenade !" proclaiming in a 
 breath both the danger and the cause. But an in- 
 stant before, the swelling canvas, the dusky spars, 
 and the faint lines of the cordage, were only to be 
 traeed by the glimmering light of the stars ; and now 
 the whole hamper of the ship was the more conspicu- 
 ous, from the obscure background against which it 
 was drawn in distinct lines. The sight was fearfully 
 beautiful — beautiful, for it showed the symmetry and 
 fine outlines of the vessel's rig, resembling the effect 
 of a group of statuary seen by torchlight — and fear- 
 ful, since the dark void beyond seemed to declare 
 their isolated and helpless state. 
 
 There was one breathless, eloquent moment, in 
 which all were seen gazing at the grand spectacle in 
 mute awe — and then a voice rose, clear, distinct, and 
 commanding, above the sullen sound of the torrent ot 
 fire, which was roaring among the avenues of the ship. 
 
 "Call all hands to extinguish fire! gentlemen, to 
 your stations. Be cool, men ; and be silent!" 
 
 There was a calmness and an authority in the tones 
 of the young commander, that curbed the impetuous 
 feelings of the startled crew. Accustomed to obedi- 
 ence, and trained to order, each man broke out of his 
 trance, and eagerly coninienced the discharge of his 
 allotted duly. At thai instant, an ereel and unmoved 
 form stood on the combings of the main-hatch. A 
 hand was raised in the air, and the call, which came 
 from the deep chest, was like that of one used to 
 speak in the tempest.
 
 14:8 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 " Where are my brigantines ?" it said — " Come 
 away there, my sea-dogs ; wet the light sails, and 
 follow !" 
 
 A group of grave and submissive mariners gather- 
 ed about the " Skimmer of the Seas," at the sound of 
 his voice. Glancing an eye over them, as if to scan 
 their quality and number, he smiled, with a look in 
 which high daring and practised self-command were 
 blended with a constitutional galte de coeur. 
 
 " One deck, or two !" — he added ; " what avails a 
 plank, more or less, in an explosion ? — Follow !" 
 
 The free-trader and his people disappeared in the 
 interior of the ship. An interval of great and reso- 
 lute exertion succeeded. Blankets, sails, and every 
 thing which offered, and which promised to be of use, 
 were wetted and cast upon the flames. The engine 
 was brought to bear, and the ship was deluged with 
 water. But the confined space, with the heat and 
 smoke, rendered it impossible to penetrate to those 
 parts of the vessel where the conflagration raged. 
 The ardor of the men abated as hope lessened, and 
 after half an hour of fruitless exertion, Ludlow saw, 
 with pain, that his assistants began to yield to the in- 
 extinguishable principle of nature. The appearance 
 Of the Skimmer on deck, followed by all his people, 
 destroyed hope, and every effort ceased as suddenly 
 as it had commenced. 
 
 " Think of your wounded ;" whispered the free- 
 trader, w T ith a steadiness no danger could disturb. 
 " We stand on a raging volcano !" 
 
 " I have ordered the gunner to drown the magazine."
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 149 
 
 " He was too late. The hold of the ship is a fiery 
 furnace. I heard him fall among the stoi-e-rooms, 
 audit surpassed the power of man to give the wretch 
 succor. The grenade has fallen near some combusti- 
 bles, and, painful as it is to part with a ship so loved, 
 Ludlow, thou wilt meet the loss like a man. Think 
 of thy wounded ; my boats are still hanging at the 
 stern." 
 
 Ludlow reluctantly, but firmly, gave the order to 
 bear the wounded to the boats. This was an ardu- 
 ous and delicate duty. The smallest boy in the ship 
 knew the whole extent of the danger, and that a 
 moment, by the explosion of the powder, might pre- 
 cipitate them all into eternity. The deck forward 
 was getting too hot to be endured, and there were 
 places even in which the beams had given symptoms 
 of yielding. 
 
 But the poop, elevated still above the fire, offered a 
 momentary refuge. Thither all retired, while the 
 \v<ak and wounded were lowered, with the caution 
 circumstances would permit, into the Avhale-boats of 
 tin' smugglers. 
 
 Ludlow stood at one ladder and the free-trader at 
 the other, in order to be certain that none proved 
 recreant in so trying a moment. Near them were 
 Alida, Seadrift, and the alderman, with the attend- 
 ants of tin- former. 
 
 It seemed an age, before this humane and tender 
 duty was performed. At length the cry of "All in 1" 
 was uttered, in a manner to betray the extent of the 
 self-command that had been necessary to effect it.
 
 150 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 " Xow, Alida, we may think of thee !" said Lud- 
 low, turning- to the spot occupied by the silent 
 heiress. 
 
 " And you !" she said, hesitating to move. 
 
 " Duty demands that I should be the last " 
 
 A sharp explosion beneath, and fragments of fire 
 flying upward through a hatch, interrupted his words. 
 Plunges into the sea, and a rush of the people to the 
 boats, followed. All order and authority were com- 
 pletely lost, in the instinct of life. In vain did Lud- 
 low call on his men to be cool, and to wait for those 
 who were still above. His words were lost, in the 
 uproar of clamorous voices. For a moment, it seemed 
 however, as if the Skimmer of the Seas would over- 
 come the confusion. Throwing himself on a ladder, 
 he glided into the bows of one of the boats, and hold- 
 ing by the ropes with a vigorous arm, he resisted the 
 efforts of all the oars and boat-hooks, while he denounc- 
 ed destruction on him who dared to quit the ship. 
 Had not the two crews been mingled, the high autho- 
 rity and determined mien of the free-trader would 
 have prevailed ; but while some were disposed to obey, 
 others raised the cry of "Throw the dealer in witch- 
 craft into the sea !" — Boat-hooks were already pointed 
 at his breast, and the horrors of the fearful moment 
 were about to be increased by the violence of a mu- 
 tinous contention, when a second explosion nerved 
 the arms of the rowers to madness. With a common 
 and desperate effort, they overcame all resistance. 
 Swinging off upon the ladder, the furious seaman saw 
 the boat glide from his grasp, and depart. The exe-
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 151 
 
 cration that was uttered, beneath the stern of the 
 Coquette, was deep and powerful ; but, in another 
 moment, the Skimmer stood on the poop, calm and 
 undejected, in the centre of the deserted group. 
 
 " The explosion of a few of the officers' pistols has 
 frightened the miscreants ;" he said, cheerfully. " But 
 hope is not yet lost ! — they linger in the distance, and 
 may return !" 
 
 The sight of the helpless party on the poop, and 
 the consciousness of being less exposed themselves, had 
 indeed arrested the progress of the fugitives. Still, 
 selfishness predominated; and while most regretted 
 their danger, none but the young and unheeded mid- 
 shipmen, who were neither of an age nor of a rank to 
 wield sufficient authority, proposed to return. There 
 was little argument necessary to show that the perils 
 increased at each moment ; and, finding that no other 
 expedient remained, the gallant youths encouraged the 
 men to pull toward the land ; intending themselves 
 to return instantly to the assistance of their command- 
 er and liis friends. The oars dashed into the water 
 again, and the retiring boats were soon lost to view 
 in the body of darkness. 
 
 While the fire had been raging within, another 
 element, without, had aided to lessen hope for those 
 who were abandoned. The wind from the land had 
 continued to rise, and, during the time lost in useless 
 exertion, the ship had been permitted to run nearly 
 before it. When hope was gone, the helm had been 
 deserted, and as all the lower sails had been hauled 
 up to avoid the flames, the vessel had drifted, many
 
 152 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 minutes, nearly dead to leeward. The mistaken youths, 
 who had not attended to these circumstances, were 
 already miles from that beach they hoped to reach so 
 soon ; and ere the boats had separated from the ship 
 five minutes, they were hopelessly asunder. Ludlow 
 had early thought of the expedient of stranding the 
 vessel, as the means of saving her people; but his 
 better knowledge of their position, soon showed him 
 the utter futility of the attempt. 
 
 Of the progress of the flames beneath, the mariners 
 could only judge by circumstances. The Skimmer 
 glanced his eye about him, on regaining the poop, and 
 appeared to scan the amount and quality of the physic- 
 cal force that was still at their disposal. He saw that 
 the Alderman, the faithful Francois, and two of his 
 own seamen, with four of the petty officers of the 
 ship, remained. 
 
 "The flames are in the state-rooms!" he whis- 
 pered to Ludlow. 
 
 " Not further aft, I think, than the berths of the 
 midshipmen — else we should hear more pistols." 
 
 " True — they are fearful signals to let us know the 
 progress of the fire ! — our resource is a raft." 
 
 Ludlow looked as if he despaired of the means ; 
 but, concealing the discouraging fear, he answered 
 cheerfully in the affirmative. The orders were in- 
 stantly given, and all on board gave themselves to 
 the task, heart and hand. The danger was one that 
 admitted of no ordinary or half-conceived expedi- 
 ents ; but, in such an emergency, it required all the 
 readiness of their art, and even the greatness of that
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 153 
 
 conception which is the property of genius. All dis- 
 tinctions of rank and authority had ceased, except as 
 deference was paid to natural qualities and the intelli- 
 gence of experience. Under such circumstances, the 
 " Skimmer of the Seas" took the lead ; and though 
 Ludlow caught his ideas with professional quickness, 
 it was the mind of the free-trader that controlled, 
 throughout, the succeeding exertions of that fearful 
 night. 
 
 The cheek of Alida was blanched to a deadly pale- 
 ness ; but there rested about the bright and wild eyes 
 of Seadrift, an expression of supernatural resolution. 
 
 "When the crew abandoned the hope of extinguish- 
 ing the flames, they had closed all the hatches, to 
 retard the crisis as much as possible. Here and 
 there, however, little torch-like lights were beginning 
 to show themselves through the planks, and the whole 
 deck, forward of the main-mast, was already in a 
 critical and sinking state. One or two of the beams 
 had failed, but, as yet, the form of the construction 
 was preserved. Still the seamen distrusted the 
 treacherous footing, and, had the heat permitted the 
 experiment, they would have shrunk from a risk 
 which at any unexpected moment might commit 
 them to the fiery furnace beneath. 
 
 The smoke ceased, and a clear, powerful light 
 illuminated the ship to her trucks. In consequence 
 of the care and exertions of her people, the sails and 
 masts were yet untouched ; and as the graceful can- 
 vas swelled with the breeze, it still urged the blazing 
 hull through the water.
 
 154 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 The forms of the Skimmer and his assistants were 
 visible, in the midst of the gallant gear, perched on 
 the giddy yards. Seen by that light, with his pecu- 
 liar attire, his firm and certain step, and his resolute 
 air, the free-trader resembled some fancied sea-god, 
 who, secure in his immortal immunities, had come to 
 act his part in that awful but exciting trial of hardi- 
 hood and skill. Seconded by the common men, he 
 was employed in cutting the canvas from the yards. 
 Sail after sail fell upon the deck, and, in an incredi- 
 bly short space of time, the whole of the fore-mast 
 was naked to its spars and rigging. 
 
 In the mean time, Ludlow, assisted by the Alder- 
 man and Francois, had not been idle below. Passing 
 forward between the empty ridge-ropes, lanyard after 
 lanyard parted under the blows of their little board- 
 ing-axes. The mast now depended on the strength 
 of the wood and the support of a single backstay. 
 
 " Lay down !" shouted Ludlow. " All is gone aft, 
 but this stay !" 
 
 The Skimmer leaped upon the firm rope, followed 
 by all aloft, and, gliding downward, he was instantly 
 in the hammock-cloths. A crash followed their de- 
 scent, and an explosion, which caused the whole of 
 the burning ftibric to tremble to its centre, seemed to 
 announce the end of all.' Even the free-trader re- 
 coiled before the horrible din ; but when he stood 
 near Seadrift and the heiress again, there was cheer- 
 fulness in his tones, and a look of high, and even of 
 gay resolution, in his firm countenance. 
 
 " The deck has failed forward," he said, " and our
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 155 
 
 artillery is beginning to utter fearful signal-guns ! Be 
 of cheer ! — the magazine of a ship lies deep, unci 
 many sheathed bulk-heads still protect us." 
 
 Another discharge from a heated gun, however, 
 proclaimed the rapid progress of the flames. The 
 fire broke out of the interior anew, and the fore-mast 
 kindled. 
 
 "There must be an end of this!" said Alida, 
 clasping her hands in a terror that could not be con- 
 trolled. " Save yourselves, if possible, you who have 
 strength and courage, and leave us to the mercy of 
 iliiii whose eye is over all!" 
 
 " Go ;" added Seadrift, whose sex could no longer 
 be concealed. " Human courage can do no more : 
 leave us to die !" 
 
 The looks that were returned to these sad re- 
 quests, were melancholy but unmoved. The Skim- 
 mer caught a rope, and still holding it in his hand, 
 he descended to the quarter-deck, on which he at 
 first trusted his weight with jealous caution. Then 
 looking up, he smiled encouragingly, and said: 
 " Where a gun still stands, there is no danger for the 
 weight of a man !" 
 
 " It is our only resource ;" cried Ludlow, imitating 
 his example. " On, my men, while the beams will 
 still hold us." 
 
 In :i moment, all were on the quarter-deck, though 
 the excessive heat rendered it impossible to remain 
 stationary an instant. A gun on each side was run in, 
 it- tackles loosened, and its muzzle pointed toward 
 the tottering, unsupported, but still upright foremast.
 
 156 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 " Aim at the cleets !" said Ludlow to the Skimmer, 
 who pointed one gun, while he did the same office at 
 the other. 
 
 "Hold!" cried the latter. "Throw in shot— it is 
 but the chance between a bursting gun and a lighted 
 magazine!" 
 
 Additional balls were introduced into each piece, 
 and then, with steady hands, the gallant mariners 
 applied burning brands to the priming. The dis- 
 charges were simultaneous and, for an instant, vol- 
 umes of smoke rolled along the deck and seemed to 
 triumph over the conflagration. The rending of 
 wood was audible. It was followed by a sweeping 
 noise in the air, and the fall of the fore-mast, with 
 all its burden of spars, into the sea. The motion of 
 the ship was instantly arrested, and, as the heavy 
 timbers were still attached to the bowsprit by the 
 forward stays, her head came to the wind, when 
 the remaining topsails flapped, shivered, and took 
 aback. 
 
 The vessel was now, for the first time during the 
 fire, stationary. The common mariners profited by 
 the circumstance, and, darting past the mounting 
 flame along the bulwarks, they gained the top- 
 gallant-forecastle, which though heated was yet un- 
 touched. The Skimmer glanced an eye about him, 
 and seizing Seadrift by the waist, as if the mimic 
 seaman had been a child, he pushed forward between 
 the ridge-ropes. Ludlow followed with Alida, and 
 the others imitated their example in the best man- 
 ner they could. All reached the head of the ship in
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 157 
 
 safety ; though Ludlow had been driven by the 
 flames into the fore-channels, and thence nearly into 
 the sea. 
 
 The petty officers were already on the floating 
 spars, separating them from each other, cutting away 
 the unnecessary weight of rigging, bringing the 
 several parts of the wood in parallel lines, and lash- 
 ing them anew. Ever and anon, these rapid move- 
 ments were quickened by one of those fearful signals 
 from the officers' berths, which, by announcing the 
 progress of the flames beneath, betrayed their in- 
 creasing proximity to the still-slumbering volcano. 
 The boats had been gone an hour, and yet it seemed, 
 to all in the ship, but a minute. The conflagration 
 had, for the last ten minutes, advanced with renewed 
 fury ; and the whole of the confined flame, which 
 had been so long pent in the depths of the vessel 
 now glared high in the open air. 
 
 " This heat can no longer be borne," said Ludlow ; 
 " we must to our raft, for breath." 
 
 "To the raft, then!" returned the cheerful voice of 
 the free-trader. "Haul in upon your fasts, men, and 
 stand by to receive the precious freight." 
 
 The seamen obeyed. Alida and her companions 
 were lowered safely to the place prepared for their 
 reception. The fore-mast had gone over the side, 
 with all its spars aloft; for preparation had been 
 made, before the fire commenced, to carry sail to the 
 utmost, in order to escape the enemy. The skilful 
 and active stamen, directed and aided by Ludlow 
 and the Skimmer, had made a simple but happy dis-
 
 158 STOKIES OF TIIE SEA. 
 
 position of those buoyant materials on which their all 
 now depended. In settling in the water, the yards, 
 still crossed, had happily fallen uppermost. The 
 booms and all the light spars had been floated near 
 the top, and laid across, reaching from the lower to 
 the top-sail yard. A few light spars, stowed outboard, 
 had been cut away and added to the number, and 
 the whole were secured with the readiness and inge- 
 nuity of seamen. On the first alarm of fire, some of 
 the crew had seized a few light articles that would 
 float, and rushed to the head, as the place most re- 
 mote from the magazine, in the blind hope of saving 
 life by swimming. Most of these articles had been 
 deserted, when the people were rallied to exertion by 
 their officers. A couple of empty shot-boxes and a 
 mess-chest were among them, and on the latter were 
 seated the females, while the former served to keep 
 their feet from the water. As the arrangement of 
 the spars forced the principal mast entirely beneath 
 the element, and the ship was so small as to need 
 little artificial work in her masting, the part around 
 the top, which contained the staging, was scarcely 
 submerged. Although a ton in weight was added to 
 the inherent gravity of the wood, still, as the latter 
 was of the lightest description, and freed as much as 
 possible of every thing that was unnecessary to the 
 safety of those it supported, the spars floated suffi- 
 ciently buoyant for the temporary security of the 
 fugitives. 
 
 " Cut the fast !" said Ludlow, involuntarily starting 
 at several explosions in the interior, which followed
 
 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 159 
 
 each other in quick succession, and which were suc- 
 ceeded by one which sent fragments of burning wood 
 into the air. "Cut, and bare the raft off the ship 
 — God knows, we have need to be further asun- 
 der !" 
 
 " Cut not !" cried the half frantic Seadrift— " My 
 brave ! — my devoted ! — " 
 
 " Is safe !" calmly said the Skimmer, appearing in 
 the rattlines of the main-rigging, which was still un- 
 touched by the fire — " Cut off all ! I stay to brace 
 the mizzen top-sail more firmly aback !" 
 
 The duty was done, and for a moment the fine fitr- 
 ure of the free-trader was seen standing on the cdire 
 of the burning ship, looking with regret at the glow- 
 ing mass. 
 
 " Tis the end of a lovely craft !" he said, loud 
 enough to be heard by those beneath. Then he ap- 
 peared in the air, and sunk into the sea — "The last 
 signal was from the ward-room," added the dauntless 
 and dexterous mariner, as he rose from the water, 
 and, shaking the brine from his head, he took his 
 place on the stage — " Would to God the wind would 
 blow, for we have need of greater distance!" 
 
 The precaution the free-trader had taken in adjust- 
 ing the sails, was not without its use. Motion, the 
 raft had none, but as the topsails of the Coquette 
 were still aback, the (laming mass, no longer arrested 
 by the clogs in the water, began slowly to separate 
 from the floating spars, though the tottering and half 
 burnt masts, threatened at each moment to fall. 
 
 Never did moments seem so long, as those which
 
 160 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 succeeded. Even the Skimmer and Ludlow watched 
 in speechless interest, the tardy movements of the 
 ship. By little and little, she receded ; and, after ten 
 minutes of intense expectation, the seamen, whose 
 anxiety had increased as their exertions ended, be- 
 gan to breathe more freely. They were still fear- 
 fully near the dangerous fabric, but destruction from 
 the explosion was no longer inevitable. The flames 
 began to glide upward, and then the heavens ap- 
 peared on fire, as one heated sail after another kin- 
 dled and flared wildly in the breeze. 
 
 Still the stern of the vessel was entire. The body 
 of the master was seated against the mizzen-mast, 
 and even the stern visage of the old seaman was 
 distinctly visible, under the broad light of the con- 
 flagration. Ludlow gazed at it in melancholy, and 
 for a time he ceased to think of his ship, while 
 memory dwelt, in sadness, on those scenes of boyish 
 happiness, and of professional pleasure, in which his 
 ancient shipmates had so largely participated. The 
 roar of a gun, whose stream of fire flashed nearly to 
 their faces, and the sullen whistling of its shot, which 
 crossed the raft, failed to awaken him from his 
 trance. 
 
 " Stand firm to the mess-chest !" half whispered 
 the Skimmer, motioning to his companions to place 
 themselves in attitudes to support the weaker of their 
 party, while with sedulous care, he braced his own 
 athletic person in a manner to throw all of its weight 
 and strength against the seat. " Stand firm, and be 
 ready !"
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 161 
 
 Ludlow complied, though his eye scarce changed 
 its direction. He saw the bright flame that was 
 rising above the arm chest, and he fancied that it 
 came from the funeral pile of the young Diunont, 
 whose fate, at that moment, he was almost disposed 
 to envy. Then his look turned to the grim coun- 
 tenance of Trysail. At moments, it seemed as if the 
 dead master spoke ; and so strong did the illusion 
 become, that our young sailor more than once bent 
 furward to listen. While under this delusion, the 
 body rose, with the arms stretched upward. The 
 air was filled with a sheet of streaming fire, while 
 the ocean and the heavens glowed with one glare 
 of intense and fiery red. Notwithstanding the pre- 
 caution of the "Skimmer of the Seas," the chest was 
 driven from its place, and those by whom it was 
 held were nearly precipitated into the water. A 
 deep, heavy detonation proceeded as it were, from 
 the bosom of the sea, which, while it wounded the 
 ear less than the sharp explosion that had just be- 
 fore issued from the gun, was audible at the distant 
 capes of the Delaware. The body of Trysail sailed 
 upward for fifty fathoms, in the centre of a flood of 
 flame, and, describing a short curve, it came toward 
 the raft, and cut the water within reach of the cap- 
 tain's arm. A sullen plunge of a gnu followed, and 
 proclaimed the tremendous power of the explosion ; 
 while a ponderous yard fell awthart a part of the 
 raft, sweeping away the four petty officers of Ludlow, 
 as if they had been dust driving before a gale. To 
 increase the wild and fearful grandeur of the dissolu- 
 11
 
 162 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 tion of the royal cruiser, one of the cannon emitted 
 its fiery contents while sailing in the void. 
 
 The burning spars, the falling fragments, the blaz- 
 ing and scattered canvas and cordage, the glowing 
 shot, and all the torn particles of the ship, were seen 
 descending. Then followed the gurgling of water, as 
 the ocean swallowed all that remained of the cruiser 
 which bad so long been the pride of the American 
 seas. The fiery glow disappeared, and a gloom like 
 that which succeeds the glare of vivid lightning, fell 
 on the scene. 
 
 THE RESCUE. 
 
 " It is past !" said the " Skimmer of the Seas," 
 raising himself from the attitude of great muscular 
 exertion, which he had assumed in order to support 
 the mess-chest, and walking out along the single mast, 
 toward the spot whence the four seamen of Ludlow 
 had just been swept. "It is past ! and those who are 
 called to the last account, have met their fate in such 
 a scene as none but a seaman may witness ; while those 
 who are spared, have need of all a seaman's skill and 
 resolution for that which remains ! Captain Ludlow, 
 I do not despair ; for, see the lady of the brigantine 
 has still a smile for her servitors !" 
 
 "Ludlow, who had followed the steady and daring 
 free-trader to the place where the spar had fallen, 
 turned and cast a look in the direction that the other 
 stretched his arm. Within a hundred feet of him, he 
 saw the image of the sea-green lady, rocking in the
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 163 
 
 agitated water, and turned toward the raft, with its 
 usual expression of wild and malicious intelligence. 
 This emblem of their fancied mistress had been borne 
 in front of the smugglers, when they mounted the 
 poop of the Coquette ; and the steeled staff on which 
 the lantern was perched, had been struck into a horse- 
 bucket by the standard-bearer of the moment, ere he 
 entered the melee of the combat. During the con- 
 flagration, this object had more than once met the eye 
 of Ludlow ; and now it appeared floating quietly by 
 him, in a manner almost to shake even his contempt 
 for the ordinary superstitions of seamen. While he 
 hesitated in what manner he should reply to his com- 
 panion's remark, the latter plunged into the sea, and 
 swam toward the light. He was soon by the side ot 
 the raft again, bearing aloi't the symbol of his brigan- 
 tine. There are none so firm in the dominion of rea- 
 son, as to be entirely superior to the secret impulses 
 which teach ua all to believe in the hidden agency of 
 a i^ood or an evil fortune. The voice of the free-trader 
 was more cheerful, and his step more sure and elastic, 
 as he crossed the Stage :ind struck the armed end of 
 the stall' into that part of the top-rim of the Coquette, 
 which tloated uppermost. 
 
 "Couragel" he gaily cried. "While this light 
 burns, my star is not set ! Courage, lady of the land ; 
 for here is one of the deep waters, who still looks 
 kindly on her followers! We are at sea, on a frail 
 craft it is certain, but a dull sailer may make a sure 
 passage." 
 
 Although so imminent and so pressing a danger as
 
 164 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 that of the explosion had passed, the situation of 
 those who had escaped was scarcely hetter than that 
 of those who had been lost. The heavens showed a 
 few glimmering stars in the openings of the clouds ; 
 and now, that the first contrast of the change had 
 lessened, there was just enough light to render 
 all the features of their actual state gloomily im- 
 posing. 
 
 It has been said, that the fore-mast of the Coquette 
 went by the board, with most of its hamper aloft. 
 The sails, with such portion of the rigging as might 
 help to sustain it, had been hastily cut away as related; 
 and after its fall, until the moment of the explosion, 
 the common men had been engaged, either in secur- 
 ing the staging, or in clearing the wreck of those 
 heavy ropes which, useless as fastenings, only added 
 to the weight of the mass. The whole wreck lay 
 upon the sea, with the yards crossed and in their 
 places, much as the spars had stood. The large 
 booms had been unshipped, and laid in such a manner 
 around the top, with the ends resting on the lower 
 and top-sail yards, as to form the foundation of the 
 staging. The smaller booms, with the mess-chest and 
 shot-boxes, were all that lay between the group in the 
 centre, and the depths of the ocean. The upper part 
 of the top-rim rose a few feet above the water, and 
 formed an important protection against the night- 
 breeze and the constant washing of the waves. In 
 this manner were the females seated, cautioned not to 
 trust their feet on the frail security of the booms, and 
 supported by the unremitting care of the Alderman.
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 165 
 
 Francois had submitted to be lashed to the top by one 
 of the brigantine's seamen, while the latter, all of the 
 common herd who remained, encouraged by the pres- 
 ence of their standard-light, began to occupy them- 
 selves in looking to the fastenings and other securities 
 of the raft. 
 
 " We are in no condition for a long or an active 
 cruise, Captain Ludlow," said the Skimmer, drawing 
 Ludlow out of hearing of their companions. " I have 
 been at sea in all weathers, and in every description 
 of craft ; but this is the boldest of my experiments on 
 the water. I hope it may not be the last!" 
 
 "We cannot conceal from ourselves the fright- 
 ful hazards we run," returned Ludlow, however 
 much we may wish them to be a secret to some 
 among us." 
 
 " This is truly a deserted sea, to be abroad in, on a 
 raft. Were we in the narrow passages between the 
 British islands and the Main, or even in the Biscay 
 waters, there would be hope that some trader or 
 roving cruiser might cross our track ; but our chance 
 here lies much between the Frenchman and the 
 brigantine." 
 
 " The enemy has doubtless seen and heard the ex- 
 plosion, and, as the land is so near, they will infer 
 that the people are saved in the boats. Our chance 
 of seeing more of them is much diminished by the ac- 
 cident of the fire, since there will no longer be a motive 
 for remaining on the coast." 
 
 " And will your young officers abandon their captain 
 without a search ?"
 
 166 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 " Hope of aid from that quarter is faint. The ship 
 ran miles while in flames, and, before the light returns, 
 these spars will have drifted leagues, with the ebbing 
 tide, to seaward." 
 
 " Truly, I have sailed with better auguries !" ob- 
 served the Skimmer — "What are the bearings and 
 distance of the land ?" 
 
 " It still lies to the north, but we are fast setting 
 east and southerly. Ere morning we shall be abeam 
 of Montauk, or even beyond it ; we must already be 
 some leagues in the offing." 
 
 " That is worse than I had imagined ! — but there 
 is hope on the flood ?" 
 
 " The flood will bear us northward again — but — 
 Avhat think you of the heavens ?" 
 
 "Unfavorable, though not desperate. The sea-breeze 
 will return with the sun." 
 
 " And with it will return the swell ! How long will 
 these ill-secured spars hold together, when agitated 
 by the heave of the water ? Or, how long will those 
 with us bear up against the wash of the sea, unsup- 
 ported by nourishment ?" 
 
 " You paint in gloomy colors, Captain Ludlow," 
 said the free-trader, drawing a heavy breath, in 
 spite of all his resolution. " My experience tells me 
 you are right, though my wishes would fain contra- 
 dict y ou - Still, I think we have the promise of a 
 tranquil night." 
 
 " Tranquil for a ship, or even for a boat ; but haz- 
 ardous to a raft like this. You see that this top- 
 mast already works in the cap, at each heave of
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 167 
 
 the water, and as the wood loosens, our security 
 lessens." 
 
 " Thy counsel is not flattering ! — Captain Ludlow, 
 you are a seaman and a man, and I shall not attempt 
 to trifle with your knowledge. With you, I think the 
 danger imminent, and almost our only hope depend- 
 ent on the good fortune of my brigantine." 
 
 " Will those in her think it their duty to quit their 
 anchorage, to come in quest of a raft whose existence 
 is unknown to them ?" 
 
 " There is hope in the vigilance of her of the sea- 
 green mantle ! You may deem this fanciful, or even 
 worse, at such a moment ; but I, who have run so 
 many gauntlets under her favor, have faith in her 
 fortunes." 
 
 " I see but little that we can do to aid our chances, 
 except it be to clear away all unnecessary weight, and 
 to secure the raft as much as possible by additional 
 lashings." 
 
 The " Skimmer of the Seas" assented to the pro- 
 posal. Consulting a moment longer, on the details 
 of their expedients, they rejoined the group near the 
 top, in order to see them executed. As the seamen 
 on the raft were reduced to the two people of the 
 brigantine, Ludlow and his companion were obliged 
 to assist in the performance of the duty. 
 
 There was an air of hope, and a feeling of increased 
 security, in this employment. Even the Alderman 
 and Francois aided in the task, to the extent of their 
 knowledge and force. But when these alterations were 
 made and additional lashings had been applied to keep
 
 168 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 the topmast and the larger yards in their places, Lud- 
 low, by joining those who were around the mast-head, 
 tacitly admitted that little more could be done to 
 avert the chances of the elements. 
 
 During the few hours occupied in this important 
 duty, Alida and her companion addressed themselves 
 to God, in long and fervent petitions. With woman's 
 faith in that divine being who alone could avail them, 
 and with woman's high mental fortitude in moments 
 of protracted trial, they had both known how to con- 
 trol the exhibition of their terrors, and had sought 
 their support in the same appeal to a power superior 
 to all of earth. Ludlow was therefore more than re- 
 warded by the sound of Alida's voice, speaking to 
 him cheerfully, as she thanked him for what he had 
 done, when he admitted that he could now do no 
 more. 
 
 " The rest is with Providence !" added Alida. " All 
 that bold and skilful seamen can do, have ye done ; 
 and all that woman in such a situation can do, have 
 we done in your behalf!" 
 
 " Thou hast thought of me in thy prayers, Alida ! 
 It is an intercession that the stoutest needs, and which 
 none but the fool derides." 
 
 "And thou, Eudora! thou hast remembered him who 
 quiets the waters !" said a deep voice, near the bend- 
 ing form of the counterfeit Seadrift. 
 
 " I have." 
 
 " 'Tis well. There are points to which manhood 
 and experience may pass, and there are those where 
 all is left to one mightier than the elements !"
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 169 
 
 Words like these, coming from the lips of one of 
 the known character of the " Skimmer of the Seas," 
 were not given to the winds. Even Ludlow cast an 
 uneasy look at the heavens, when they came upon his 
 ear, as if they conveyed a secret notice of the whole 
 extremity of the danger by which they were environed. 
 None answered ; and a long silence succeeded, during 
 which some of the more fatigued slumbered uneasily, 
 spite of their fearful situation. 
 
 In this manner did the night pass, in weariness and 
 anxiety. Little was said, and for hours scarce a limb 
 was moved, in the group that clustered around the 
 mess-chest. As the signs of day appeared, however, 
 every faculty was keenly awake, to catch the first 
 signs of what they had to hope, or the first certainty 
 of what they had to fear. 
 
 The surface of the ocean was still smooth, though 
 the long swells in which (he element was heaving and 
 setting, sufficiently indicated that the raft had floated 
 far from the land. This fact was rendered sure, when 
 the light, which soon appeared along the eastern mar- 
 gin of the narrow view, was shed gradually over the 
 whole horizon. Nothing was at first visible, but one 
 gloomy and vacant waste of water. But a cry of joy 
 from Seadrift, whose senses had long been practised in 
 ocean sights, soon drew all eyes in the direction oppo- 
 site to that of tin; rising sun, and it was not long he- 
 fore all on the low raft had a view of the snowy sur- 
 faces of a s|ii]>"s sails, as the glow of morning touched 
 the canvas. 
 
 " It is the Frenchman !" said the free-trader. " lie
 
 170 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 is charitably looking for the wreck of his late ene- 
 my !" 
 
 " It may he so, for our fate can he no secret to him ;" 
 was the answer of Ludlow. " Unhappily, we had run 
 some distance from the anchorage, before the flames 
 broke out. Truly, those with whom we so lately 
 struggled for life, are bent on a duty of humanity." 
 
 " Ah, yonder is his crippled consort ! — to leeward 
 many a league. The gay bird has been too sadly 
 stripped of its plumage, to fly so near the wind ! 
 This is man's fortune ! He uses his power, at one 
 moment to destroy, the very means that become ne- 
 cessary to his safety, the next." 
 
 " And what think you of our hopes ?" asked Alida, 
 searching in the countenance of Ludlow a clue to 
 their fate. "Does the stranger move in a direction 
 favorable to our wishes ?" 
 
 Neither Ludlow nor the Skimmer replied. Both 
 regarded the frigate intently, and then, as objects 
 licc.une more distinct, both answered, by a common 
 impulse, that the ship was steering directly toward 
 them. The declaration excited general hope, and 
 even the negress was no longer restrained by her 
 situation from expressing her joy in vociferous ex- 
 clamations of delight. 
 
 A few minutes of active and ready exertion suc- 
 ceeded. A light boom Avas unlashed from the raft, 
 and raised on its end, supporting a little signal, made 
 of the handkerchiefs of the party, which fluttered in 
 the light breeze, at the elevation of some twenty 
 feet above the surface of the w r ater. After this pre-
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 171 
 
 caution was observed, they were obliged to await the 
 result in such patience as they could assume. Min- 
 ute passed after minute, and, at each moment, the 
 form and proportions of the ship became more dis- 
 tinct, until all the mariners of the party declared 
 they could distinguish men on her yards. A cannon 
 would have readily sent its shot from the ship to the 
 raft, and yet no sign betrayed the consciousness of 
 those in the former of the proximity of the latter. 
 
 "I do not like his manner of steering!" observed 
 the Skimmer to the silent and attentive Ludlow. " He 
 yaws broadly, as if disposed to give up the search. 
 God grant him the heart to continue on his course 
 ten minutes longer!" 
 
 "Have we no means of making ourselves heard?" 
 demanded the Alderman. "Methinks the voice of a 
 strong man might he sent thus far across the water 
 when life is the stake." 
 
 The more experienced shook their heads ; but, not 
 discouraged, the burgher raised his voice with a 
 power that was sustained by the imminency of the 
 peril. He was joined by the seamen, and even 
 Ludlow lent his aid, until all wvrv hoarse with the 
 fruitless efforts. M.ii were evidently aloft, and in 
 some numbers, searching the ocean with their eyes, 
 hut still no answering signal came from the vessel. 
 
 The ship continued to approach, and (he raft was 
 less than half a mile from her bows, when the vasl 
 fabric suddenly receded from the breeze, showed the 
 whole of its glittering broadside, and, swinging its 
 yards, betrayed by its new position that, the search
 
 172 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 in that direction was abandoned. The instant Lud- 
 low saw the filling-off of the frigate's bows, he cried — 
 
 " Xoiv raise your voices together ; this is the final 
 chance !" 
 
 They united in a common shout, with the excep- 
 tion of the " Skimmer of the Seas." The latter lean- 
 ed against the top with folded arms, listening to their 
 impotent efforts with a melancholy smile. 
 
 " It is well attempted," said the calm and extra- 
 ordinary seaman when the clamor had ceased, ad- 
 vancing along the raft and motioning for all to be 
 silent ; " but it has failed. The swinging of the 
 yards, and the orders given in wearing ship, would 
 prevent a stronger sound from being audible to men 
 so actively employed. I flatter none with hope, but 
 this is truly the moment for a final effort." 
 
 He placed his hands to his mouth, and, disregarding 
 words, he raised a cry so clear, so powerful, and yet 
 so full, that it seemed impossible those in the vessel 
 should not hear. Thrice did he repeat the experi- 
 ment, though it was evident that each successive ex- 
 ertion was feebler than the last. 
 
 " They hear !" cried Alida. " There is a move- 
 ment in the sails !" 
 
 " 'Tis the breeze freshening ;" answered Ludlow, 
 in sadness, at her side. " Each moment takes them 
 away !" 
 
 The melancholy truth was too apparent for denial, 
 and for half an hour the retiring ship was watched 
 in the bitterness of disappointment. At the end of 
 that time, she fired a gun, spread additional canvas
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 173 
 
 on her wide booms, and stood away before the wind, 
 to join her consort, whose upper sails were already 
 dipping to the surface of the sea, in the southern 
 board. With this change in her movements, van- 
 ished all expectation of succor from the cruiser of 
 the enemy. 
 
 Until the stern of the French frigate was seen re- 
 tiring from the raft, those who were on it had not 
 been fully sensible of the extreme danger of their 
 situation. Hope had been strongly excited by the 
 return of dawn; for while the shadows of night lay 
 on the ocean, their situation resembled that of one 
 who strove to pierce the obscurity of the future, in 
 order to obtain a presage of better fortunes. With 
 the light had come the distant sail. As the day 
 advanced the ship had approached, relinquished her 
 search, and disappeared, without a prospect of her 
 return. 
 
 The stoutest heart among the group on the raft 
 began to sink :ii the gloomy fate which now seemed 
 inevitable. 
 
 "Here is an evil omen!" whispered Ludlow, di- 
 recting his companion's eye to the dark and pointed 
 fins of three <>r four sharks, thai were gliding above 
 the surface of the water, and in so fearful a prox- 
 imity to their persons, as to render their situation on 
 the low --pars, over which the water was washing 
 and retiring at each rise and fall of the waves, 
 doubly dangerous. "The creature's instinct speaks 
 ill for our hopes !" 
 
 "There is a belief among seamen, thai these
 
 17-i STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 animals feel a secret impulse, which directs them to 
 their prey ;" returned the Skimmer. " But fortune 
 may yet balk them — Rogerson!" calling to one of 
 his followers — " thy pockets are rarely wanting in a 
 fisherman's tackle. Hast thou, haply, line and hook, 
 for these hungry miscreants? The question is getting 
 narrowed to one, in which the simplest philosophy is 
 the wisest. When eat or to be eaten, is the mooted 
 point, most men will decide for the former." 
 
 A hook of sufficient size was soon produced, and 
 a line was quietly provided from some of the small 
 cordage that still remained about the masts. A piece 
 of leather, torn from a spar, answered for the bait ; 
 and the lure was thrown. Extreme hunger seemed 
 to engross the voracious animals, who darted at the 
 imaginary prey with the rapidity of lightning. The 
 shock was so sudden and violent, that the hapless 
 mariner was drawn from his slippery and precarious 
 footing, into the sea. The whole passed with a 
 frightful and alarming rapidity. A common cry of 
 horror was heard, and the last despairing glance of 
 the fallen man was witnessed. The mutilated body 
 floated for an instant in its blood, with the look of 
 agony and terror still imprinted on the conscious 
 countenance. At the next moment, it had become 
 food for the monsters of the sea. 
 
 All had passed away but the deep dye on the sur- 
 face of the ocean. The gorged fish disappeared ; 
 but the dark spot remained near the immovable raft, 
 as if placed there to warn the survivors of their 
 fate.
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 175 
 
 " This is horrible !" said Ludlow. 
 
 "A sail!" shouted the Skimmer, whose voice and 
 tone, breaking in on that moment of intense horror 
 and apprehension, sounded like a cry from the heav- 
 ens. " My gallant brigantine !" 
 
 " God grant she come with better fortune than 
 those who have so lately left us !" 
 
 " God grant it, truly ! If this hope fail, there is 
 none left. Few pass here, and we have had sufficient 
 proof that our top-gallants are not so lofty as to 
 catch every eye." 
 
 All attention was now bestowed on the white speck 
 which was visible on the margin of the ocean, and 
 which the " Skimmer of the Seas" confidently pro- 
 nounced to be the Water- Witch. None but a seaman 
 could have felt this certainty; for, seen from the low 
 raft, there was little else to be distinguished but the 
 heads of the upper sails. The direction, too, was un- 
 favorable, as it was to leeward; but both Ludlow and 
 the freetrader assured their companions, that the 
 vessel was endeavoring to beat in with the land. 
 
 The two hours that succeeded lingered like days 
 of misery. So much depended on a variety of events 
 that every circumstance was noted by the seamen of 
 the party, with an interesl bordering on agony. A 
 failure of the wind might compel the vessel to remain 
 stationary, ami then both brigantine and raft would 
 be at the mercy of the uncertain currents of the 
 ocean ; a change of wind might cause a change of 
 course, and render a meeting impossible; an increase 
 of the breeze might cause destruction, even before the
 
 176 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 succor could come. In addition to these obvious 
 hazards, there were all the chances which were de- 
 pendent on the fact that the people of the brigantine 
 had every reason to believe that the fate of the party 
 was already sealed. 
 
 Still fortune seemed propitious ; for the breeze, 
 though steady, was light, the intention of the vessel 
 was evidently to pass somewhere near them, and the 
 hope that their object was search, so strong and 
 plausible, as to exhilarate every bosom. 
 
 At the expiration of the time named the brigantine 
 passed the raft, to leeward, and so near as to render 
 the smaller objects in her rigging distinctly visible. 
 
 " The faithful fellows are looking for us !" exclaim- 
 ed the free-trader, with strong emotion in his voice. 
 " They are men to scour the coast, ere they abandon 
 us!" ' 
 
 " They pass us — wave the signal — it may catch 
 their eyes !" 
 
 The little flag was unheeded, and, after so long and 
 so intense expectation, the party on the raft had the 
 pain to see the swift-moving vessel glide past them, 
 and drawing so far ahead as to leave little hope of her 
 return. The heart of even the " Skimmer of the Seas" 
 appeared to sink within him, at the disappointment. 
 
 " For myself, I care not," said the stout mariner 
 mournfully. " Of what consequence is it, in what 
 sea, or on what voyage a seamen goes into his watery 
 tomb? — but for thee, my hapless and playful Eudora, 
 I could Avish another fate — ha ! — she tacks ! — the sea- 
 green lady has an instinct for her children, after all !"
 
 STOEIE8 OF THE SEA. 177 
 
 The brigantine was in stays. In ten or fifteen min- 
 utes more, the vessel was again abeam of the raft, 
 and to windward. 
 
 " If she pass us now, our chance is gone, without a 
 shadow of hope," said the Skimmer, motioning sol- 
 emnly for silence. Then, applying his hands to his 
 mouth, he shouted, as if despair lent a giant's volume 
 to his lungs : 
 
 " Ho ! The Water-Witch !— ahoy !" 
 
 The last word issued from his lips with the clear, 
 audible cry, that the peculiar sound is intended to 
 produce. It appeared as if the conscious little bark 
 knew its commander's voice; for its course changed 
 slightly, as if the fabric were possessed of the con- 
 sciousness and faculties of life. 
 
 "Ho! The Water- Witch !— ahoy !" shouted the 
 Skimmer, with a still mightier effort. 
 
 " — Hilloa!" came down faintly on the breeze, and 
 the direction of the brigantine again altered. 
 
 "The Water-Witch!— the Water-Witch !— ahoy !" 
 broke out of the lips of the mariner of the shawl, with 
 a supernatural force — the last cry being drawn out, 
 till he who uttered it sunk back exhausted with the 
 effort. 
 
 The words were still ringing in the ears of the 
 breathless party on the raft, when a heavy shout 
 swepl across the water. At the next moment the 
 boom of the brigantine swung oil", and her narrow 
 bows were seen pointing toward the little beacon of 
 white that played above the sea. It was but a mo- 
 ment, but it was a moment pregnant with a thousand 
 12
 
 178 STOKIES OF TIIE SEA. 
 
 hopes and fears, before the beautiful craft was gliding 
 within fifty feet of the top. In less than five minutes 
 the spars of the Coquette were floating on the wide 
 ocean, unpeopled and abandoned.
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 179 
 
 ADVENTURES IN THE PACIFIC. 
 
 AN ENCOUNTER WITH INDIANS. 
 
 The ship " Crisis" on a trading voyage up the Pa- 
 cific, proceeded to the north-west coast,' with the in- 
 tention of exchanging with the natives, beads, knives, 
 and other handy articles for valuable furs. She was 
 commanded by Captain Williams, her first officer 
 was Moses Marble, and her second, Miles Walling- 
 ford, by whom the story is related in Mr. Cooper's 
 " Afloat and Ashore." The Crisis stopped at many 
 points along the coast, doing a very good business 
 with the natives, reaching as far north as 53°, which 
 is pretty much all, says Mr. Wallingford, I ever knew 
 of our last position. 
 
 We got a very secure berth, having been led to it 
 by a native pilot who boarded us several leagues at 
 sea, and who knew enough English to persuade our 
 captain that he could take us to a point where Bea- 
 otter skins might be had for the asking. Nor did the 
 man deceive us, though a more unpromising-looking 
 guide never had charge of Christians. He carried us 
 into a very small bay, where we found plenty of water, 
 capital holding-ground, and a basin as smooth as a 
 dock. Uut one wind — that which blew from the 
 north-west — could make any impression on it, and the 
 effects of even that were much broken by a small
 
 180 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 island that lay abreast of the entrance ; leaving good 
 passages, on each side of it, ont to sea. The basin 
 itself was rather small, it is true, but it did well 
 enough for a single ship. Its diameter may have been 
 three hundred yards, and I never saw a sheet of nat- 
 ural water that was so near a circle. Into a place 
 like this, the reader will imagine, we did not venture 
 without taking the proper precautions. Marble was 
 sent in first, to reconnoitre and sound, and it was on 
 his report that Captain Williams ventured to take the 
 ship in. 
 
 At that time, ships on the north-west coast had 
 to use the greatest precautions against the treachery 
 and violence of the natives. This rendered the size 
 of our haven the subject of distrust; for, lying in the 
 middle of it, Avhere we moored, we were barely an 
 arrow's flight from the shore, in every direction but 
 that which led to the narrow entrance. It was a 
 most secure anchorage, as against the dangers of the 
 sea, but a most insecure one as against the dangers 
 of the savages. This we all felt, as soon as our 
 anchors were down ; but, intending to remain only 
 while we bartered for the skins which we had been 
 told were ready for the first ship that should offer, we 
 t lusted to vigilance as our safeguard in the interval. 
 
 J never could master the uncouth sounds of the 
 still more uncouth savages of that distant region. 
 The fellow who carried us in had a name of his own, 
 doubtless, but it was not to be pronounced by a Chris- 
 tian tongue, and he got the sobriquet of the Dipper from 
 us, owing to the manner in which he ducked at the
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 181 
 
 report of our muskets, which had been discharged 
 by .Marble merely with the intention to renew the 
 cartridges. We had hardly got into the little basin, 
 before the Dipper left us, returning in an hour, how- 
 ever, with a canoe loaded to the water's edge, with 
 beautiful skins, and accompanied by three savages as 
 wild-looking, seemingly as fierce, and certainly as 
 avaricious as he Avas himself. These auxiliaries, 
 through A-arious little circumstances, Avere known 
 among us that same afternoon, by the several appella- 
 tions of Smudge, Tin-pot, and Slit-nose. These Avere 
 not heroic names, of a certainty, but their owners had 
 a- little of the heroic in their appearance, as usually 
 falls to the lot of man in the savage state. I cannot 
 tell the designation of the tribes to which these four 
 Avorthies belonged, nor do I knoAV any more of their 
 history ami pursuits than the few facts which came 
 under my own immediate observation. I did ask 
 some questions of the captain, with a A'iew to obtain 
 a few ideas on this subject, but all he knew Avas, that 
 these people put a high value on blankets, beads, gun- 
 powder, frying-pans, and old hoops, and that they set a 
 remarkably low price on sea-otter skins, as Avell as on 
 the external coverings of sundry other animals. 
 
 I had often seen our own Indians alter they had 
 become degraded by their intercourse with the 
 whites and the use of rum, but never had I beheld 
 any beings so low in the scale of the human race, 
 as the north-western savages appeared to lie. Still 
 they were not altogether withoul the means of com- 
 manding our respect. As physical men they were
 
 182 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 both active and strong, and there were gleams of fe- 
 rocity about them that all their avarice and art could 
 not conceal. I could not discover in their usages, 
 dress, or deportment, a single trace of that chivalrous 
 honor which forms so great a relief to the well-estab- 
 lished cruelty of the warrior of our own part of the 
 continent. Then, these sea-otter dealers had some 
 knowledge of the use of fire-arms, and were too well 
 acquainted with the ships of us civilized men to have 
 any superstitious, dread of our power. 
 
 The Dipper, and his companions, sold us one hun- 
 dred and thirty-three sea-otter skins the very after- 
 noon we anchored. This, of itself, was thought to 
 be a sufficient reward for the trouble and risk of 
 coming into this unknown basin. Both parties 
 seemed pleased with the results of the trading, and 
 we were given to understand that, by remaining at 
 anchor, Ave might hope for six or eight times our 
 present number of skins. Captain Williams was 
 greatly gratified with the success with which he had 
 already met, and having found that all the Dipper 
 had promised came true, he determined to remain 
 a day or two, in his present berth, in order to wait 
 for more bargains. This resolution was no sooner 
 communicated to the savages than they expressed 
 their delight, sending off' Tin-pot and Slit-nose with 
 the intelligence, while the Dipper and Smudge re- 
 mained in the ship, apparently on terms of perfect 
 good-fellowship with everybody on board. 
 
 Marble and myself observed that the canoe, in 
 which the messengers left us, did not pull out to sea,
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 183 
 
 but that it entered a small stream or creek, that com- 
 municated with the head of the bay. As there was 
 no duty on board, we asked the captain's permission 
 to explore this spot ; and, at the same time, to make 
 a more thorough examination of our haven, gener- 
 ally. The request being granted, we got into the 
 yawl, with four men, all of us armed, and set out 
 on our little expedition. Smudge, a withered, gray- 
 headed old Indian, with muscles, however, that re- 
 sembled whipcord, was alone on deck, when this 
 movement took place. He watched our proceed- 
 ings narrowly, and, when he saw us descend into 
 the boat, he very coolly slipped down the ship's side, 
 and took his place in the stern-sheets, with as much 
 quiet dignity as if he had been captain. Marble was 
 a good deal of a ship's martinet in such matters, and 
 he did not more than half like the familiarity and 
 impudence of the procedure. 
 
 " What say you, Miles," he asked, a little sharply, 
 " shall we take this dried ourang-outang ashore with 
 us, or shall we try to moisten him a little, by throw- 
 ing him overboard ?" 
 
 " Let him go, by all means, Mr. Marble. I dare 
 say the man wishes to be of use, and he has only a 
 bad manner of showing it." 
 
 "Of use! lie is worth no more than the carcass 
 of a whale thai lias been stripped of its blubber. I 
 say, Milrs, there would be no need of the windlass to 
 heave the blanket off of this fish." 
 
 This professional witticism put Marble in good hu- 
 mor with himself, and he permitted the fellow to re-
 
 184 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 main. I remember the thoughts that passed through 
 my mind, as the yawl pulled toward the creek, on that 
 occasion, as well as if it had all occurred yesterday. 
 I sat, looking at the semi-human being who was 
 seated opposite, wondering at the dispensation of 
 Divine Providence which could leave one endowed 
 with a portion of the ineffable nature of the Deity, 
 in a situation so degraded. I had seen beasts in 
 cages that appeared to me to be quite as intelligent, 
 and members of the diversified family of human 
 caricatures, or of the baboons and monkeys, that I 
 thought were quite as agreeable objects to the eye. 
 Smudge seemed to be almost without ideas. In his 
 bargains, he had trusted entirely to the vigilance of 
 the Dipper, Avhom we supposed to be some sort of a 
 relation ; and the articles he received in exchange for 
 his skins, failed to arouse in his grim, vacant coun- 
 tenance, the smallest signs of pleasure. Emotion and 
 he, if they had been acquainted, noAV appeared to be 
 utter strangers to each other ; nor was this apathy in 
 the least like the well-known stoicism of the Ameri- 
 can Indian ; but had the air of downright insensibil- 
 ity. 
 
 We found the inlet deep, but narrow and winding. 
 Like the bay itself, it was fringed with trees and 
 bushes, and this in a way to render it difficult to get 
 a view of any thing on the land ; more especially 
 as the banks were ten or fifteen feet in height. 
 Under the circumstances, Marble proposed that we 
 should land on both sides of the creek, and follow its 
 windings on foot, for a short distance, in order to get
 
 STORIES OF THE SE\. 185 
 
 a better opportunity to reconnoitre. Our disposi- 
 tions were soon made. Marble and one of the boat's 
 crew, each armed, landed on one side of the inlet, 
 while Neb and myself, similarly provided, went 
 ashore on the other. The two remaining men were 
 ordered to keep abreast of us in the boat, in readiness 
 to take us on board again, as soon as required. 
 
 "Leave that Mr. Smudge in the boat, Miles, 1 ' Mar- 
 ble called out across the creek, as I was about to put 
 foot on the ground. I made a sign to that effect to 
 the savage, but when I reached the level ground on 
 the top of the bank, I perceived the fellow was at my 
 elbow. It was so difficult to make such a creature 
 understand one's wishes, without the aid of speech, 
 that, after a fruitless effort or two to send him back 
 by means of signs, I abandoned the attempt, and 
 moved fir ward, so as to keep the whole party in the 
 desired line. 
 
 There was nothing, however, to excite alarm, or 
 awaken distrust. We found ourselves in a virgin 
 forest, with all its wildness, dampness, gloomy shad- 
 ows, dead ami (alien trees, and unequal surface. On 
 my side of the creek, there was not the smallest sign 
 of a footpath; and Marble soon called out to say, be 
 was equally without any evidences of the steps of 
 man. I should think we proceeded quite a mile in 
 this manner, certain that the inlet would be a true 
 guide on oin- return. At length a call from the boat 
 Lei us know there was no longer water enough to 
 float it, an-1 that it could proceed no farther. Mar- 
 ble and myself descended the banks at the same mo-
 
 ISO STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 ment, and were taken in, intending to return in the 
 yawl. Smudge glided back to his old place, with his 
 former silence. 
 
 It was a matter of surprise to us that we had met 
 no traces of any thing like a residence near the creek, 
 not the smallest sign of man having been discovered 
 by either. It was reasonable to expect that some 
 traces of an encampment, at least, would have been 
 found. Everybody kept a vigilant look-out at the 
 shore as we descended the creek ; but, as on the 
 ascent, not even a footprint was detected. 
 
 On reaching the bay, there being still several hours 
 of daylight, we made its entire circuit, finding no- 
 where any proof of the former presence of man. At 
 length, Marble proposed pulling to the small wooded 
 island that lay a little without the entrance of the 
 haven, suggesting that it was possible the savages 
 might have something like an encampment there, the 
 place being more convenient as a look-out into the 
 offing, than any point within the bay itself. In order 
 to do this, it was necessary to pass the ship ; and we 
 were hailed by the captain, Avho wished to know the 
 result of our examinations. As soon as he learned 
 our present object, he told us to come alongside, in- 
 tending to accompany us to the island in person. On 
 getting into the boat, which was small and a little 
 crowded by the presence of Smudge, Captain Wil- 
 liams made a sign for that personage to quit the 
 yawl. He might as well have intimated as much to 
 one of the thwarts! Lauidiino; at the savage's stu- 
 pidity, or obstinacy, we scarce knew which to term
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 187 
 
 it, the boat was shoved off, and we pulled through the 
 entrance, two hundred yards outside perhaps, until 
 our keel grated agrainst the low rocks of this islet. 
 
 There was no difficulty in landing ; and Neb, who 
 preceded the party, soon gave a shout, the proof that 
 he had made some discovery. Every man among us 
 now looked to his arms, expecting to meet an en- 
 campment of savages ; but we Avere disappointed. 
 All that the negro had discovered were the unequivo- 
 cal traces of a former bivouac ; and, judging from a 
 few of the signs, that of a very recent occupation. 
 The traces were extensive, covering quite half of the 
 interior of the island ; leaving an extensive curtain 
 of trees and bushes, however, so as completely to 
 conceal the spot from any eyes without. 
 
 At firsf, nothing was discovered in this encamp- 
 ment, which had every appearance of not having 
 been extensively used for years, though the traces 
 of numerous (ires, and the signs of footsteps, and a 
 spring in the centre, indicated the recent occupation 
 of which I have just spoken. A little further scru- 
 tiny, however, brought to light certain objects that 
 we did not note without much wonder and concern. 
 Marble made the first discovery. It was impossihle 
 for seamen to mistake t lie object, which was the head 
 of a rudder, containing the tiller-hole, and which 
 might have belonged to a vessel of some two hundred 
 ind fifty or three hundred tons. This set all hands 
 of us ,il work, and in a few minutes we found, scat- 
 tered about, fragments of plank, top-timbers, floor- 
 timbers, and other portions of a ship, all more or less
 
 1SS STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 burnt, and stripped of every particle of metal. Even 
 the nails had been drawn by means of perseverance 
 and labor. Nothing was left but the wood, which 
 proved to be live-oak, cedar, and locust — the proofs 
 that the unfortunate craft had been a vessel of some 
 value. We wanted no assurance of this, however, as 
 none but a north-west trader could well have got as 
 high up the coast, and all vessels of that class were 
 of the best description. Then the locust, a wood un- 
 known to the ship-builders of Europe, gave us the 
 nearly certain assurance that this doomed craft had 
 been a countryman. 
 
 At first, we were all too much occupied with our 
 interesting discovery to bethink us of Smudge. At 
 length, I turned to observe its effect on the savage. He 
 evidently noted our proceedings ; but his feelings, if 
 the creature had any, were so deeply buried beneath 
 the mask of dulness, as completely to foil my pene- 
 tration. He saw us take up fragment after fragment, 
 examine them, heard us converse over them, though 
 in a language he could not understand, and saw us 
 
 © © ' 
 
 throw them away, one after another, with seemingly 
 equal indifference. 
 
 We looked carefully in all directions, in the hope 
 of discovering something that might give us an in- 
 sight into the nature of the disaster that had evi- 
 
 © 
 
 dently occurred, but for some time without success. 
 At length, I strolled to a little distance, and took a 
 seat on a flat stone, which had been placed on the 
 living rock that faced most of the island, evidently to 
 form a resting-place. My seat proved unsteady, and
 
 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 1S9 
 
 in endeavoring to adjust it more to my mind, I re- 
 moved the stone, and discovered that it rested on a 
 common log-slate. This slate was still covered with 
 legible writing, and I soon had the whole party 
 around me, eager to learn the contents. The melan- 
 choly record was in these precise words, viz. : 
 
 " The American brig Sea-Otter, John Squires, mas- 
 ter, coaxed into this bay, June 9th, 1797, and seized 
 by savages, on the morning of the 11th. Master, 
 second-mate, and seven of the people killed on the 
 spot. Brig gutted first, then hauled up here, and 
 burnt to the water's edge for the iron. David King, 
 first-mate, and six others, viz., George Lunt, Henry 
 Webster, Stephen Stimpson and John Harris, sea- 
 men, Bill Flint, cook, and Peter Doolittle, boy, still 
 living, but God only knows what is to be our fate. I 
 shall put this slate beneath the stone I now sit on, in 
 the hope it may one day let our friends learn what 
 has happened." 
 
 We looked at each other, astounded. Both the 
 captain and Marble remembered to have heard that a 
 brig in this trade, called the Sea-Otter, was missing; 
 and, here, by a communication that was little short 
 of miraculous, we were let into thejsecret of her dis- 
 appearance. 
 
 " Coaxed in — " repeated the captain. " Yes, yes — 
 I now begin to understand the whole matter. If 
 there were any wind, gentlemen, I would go to sea 
 this very night." 
 
 "That would be hardly worth our while, Captain 
 Williams," the chief-mate answered, since we are
 
 190 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 now on our guard, and I feel pretty certain that 
 there are no savages in our neighborhood. So far, 
 the Dipper and his friends have traded with us fairly 
 enough, and it is likely they have more skins to dis- 
 pose of. This chap, whom the people have christ- 
 ened Smudge, takes matters so coolly, that I hardly 
 think he knows any thing about the Sea-Otter, which 
 may have been cut off by another gang, altogether." 
 
 There Avas good reason in these remarks, and they 
 had their effect on the captain. The latter, however, 
 determined to put Smudge to the proof, by showing 
 him the slate, and othei*wise bringing him under such 
 a cross-examination as signs alone could effect. I 
 dare say, an indifferent spectator would have laughed 
 at witnessing our efforts to confound the Indian. 
 We made grimaces, pointed, exclaimed, hallooed, 
 swore, and gesticulated in vain. Smudge was as un- 
 moved at it all, as the fragment of keel to which he 
 was confronted. The fellow either did not, or would 
 not understand us. His stupidity defied our tests; 
 and Marble gave the matter up in despair, declaring 
 that " the beast knows nothing of any thing, much 
 less of the Sea-Otter." As for the slate, he did not seem 
 to have the smallest notion what such a thing meant. 
 
 "We returned to the ship, carrying with us the 
 slate, and the report of our discoveries. All hands 
 were called, and the captain made us a speech. We 
 were told how ships were lost by the carelessness of 
 their crews ; reminded that we were on the north-west 
 coast, where a vessel with a few boxes of beads and 
 bales of blankets, to say nothing of her gunpowder,
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 191 
 
 fire-arms, and metals, was as valuable as a vessel la- 
 den with gold-dust would be in one of our own ports. 
 Vigilance while on watch, and obedience to the or- 
 ders of the vessel, in the event of an alarm, were the 
 principal things dwelt on. By observing these two 
 great requisites, we should all be safe enough ; where- 
 as, by disregarding them, we should probably share 
 the fate of the people of the brig, of which we had 
 just discovered some of the remains. 
 
 I will confess I passed an uncomfortable night, 
 An unknown enemy is always a formidable enemy. 
 but nothing came of it all. The Dipper and Smudge 
 ate their supper with the appetites of injured inno- 
 cence, and slept like tops. If guilty, we all agreed 
 that they must be utterly destitute of consciences. 
 As for ourselves, we were on the alert until near 
 morning, the very moment when the danger would 
 probably be the greatest, provided there were any at 
 all ; and then weariness overcame all who were not 
 on the look-out, and some who were. Still, nothing 
 happened. The sun returned to us in due season, 
 gilding the tree-tops with its beams ; our little bay 
 began to bask in its glory, and with the cheerfulness 
 thai usually accompanies such a scene, vanished most 
 of our apprehensions for the moment. 
 
 Smudge and the Dipper behaved admirably all next 
 day. Beef, pork, and bread seemed to engross their 
 thoughts • and when they were not eating, they were 
 busy with sleep. At length we grew ashamed of 
 watching such mere animals, and turned our thoughts 
 toother subjects. We had understood the Dipper,
 
 192 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 that eight-and-forty hours must elapse before we 
 might expect to see any more skins ; and Captain 
 Williams, passing from alarm to extreme security, 
 determined to profit by a lovely day, and send down, 
 or rather strip, all three of the topmasts, and pay 
 some necessary attention to their rigging. At nine 
 o'clock, accordingly, the hands were turned-to, and 
 before noon the ship was pretty thoroughly en desha- 
 bille. We seut as little down as possible, keeping 
 even the topsail-yards aloft, though without their 
 lifts or braces, steadying them by guys ; but the top- 
 masts were lowered as far as was found possible, 
 without absolutely placing the lower yards on the 
 hammock-cloths. The security of the haven, and the 
 extreme beauty of the weather, emboldened the cap- 
 tain to do this ; apprehension of every sort appearing 
 to have quite taken leave of him. 
 
 The work proceeded merrily. By sunset, the 
 chafes were examined, and parcelled, and served 
 anew ; and the topmast rigging was all got up and 
 put over the mastdieads again, and every thing was 
 ready to sway upon in the morning. But an uncom- 
 monly active day required a good night's rest ; and 
 the people were all ordered to turn in, as soon as they 
 had supped. The ship was to be left to the vigilance 
 of the captain and the three mates, during the night. 
 
 The anchor-watch was set at eight, and ran from 
 two hours to two hours. My turn commenced at 
 midnight, and was to last until two ; Marble suc- 
 ceeding me from two until four, when all hands were 
 to be called to get our sticks aloft. When I turned
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 193 
 
 out at twelve, I found the third mate conversing, as 
 •well as he could, with the Dipper; who, with Smudge, 
 having slept so much of the day, appeared disposed 
 to pass the night in smoking. 
 
 " How lon<x have these fellows been on deck ?" I 
 asked of the third mate, as he was about to go below. 
 
 " All my watch ; I found them with the captain, 
 who passed them over to me for company. If that 
 chap, the Dipper, only knew any thing of a human 
 language, he would be something of society ; but 
 I'm as tired of making signs to him, as I ever was 
 with a hard day's work. 
 
 I was armed, and felt ashamed of manifesting fear 
 of an unarmed man. Then the two savages gave no 
 additional cause of distrust ; the Dipper having taken 
 a seat on the windlass, where he was smoking his pipe 
 witli an appearance of philosophy that would have 
 done credit to the gravest-looking baboon. 
 
 I took charge of the decks with a very lively sense 
 of the peculiarity of our situation. The security that 
 prevailed on board struck me as unnatural ; and yet I 
 could detect no particular reason for immediate alarm. 
 I might be thrown overboard or murdered by the two 
 savages on deck, it was very true ; but of what use 
 would it be to destroy me, since they could not hope 
 in destroy all the rest on board without being discov- 
 ered. The night was stardit, and there was little 
 chance of a canoe's approaching the ship without my 
 seeing it ; a circumstance that, of itself, in a great 
 measure, removed the danger. I passed the first 
 quarter of an hour in reflecting on these things ; and 
 13
 
 194 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 then, as use accustomed me to my situation, I began 
 to think less of them, and to revert to other subjects. 
 
 It was seldom I passed a tranquil watch at night 
 without revisiting the scenes of my boyhood. On the 
 present occasion, I was lost in ruminations on the past, 
 and in imagining events for the future. I was not par- 
 ticularly expert at building castles in the air; but 
 what youth of twenty never reared some sort of fabric 
 of this nature ? I was completely entranced by one 
 of these fanciful structures, when something suddenly 
 was passed between my teeth, and drawn so tight as 
 to prevent my calling out, at the same moment my 
 arms were seized from behind, and held as if grasped 
 by a vice. Turning, as well as I was able, I found 
 that rascal Smudge had been breathing within an inch 
 of my ear, while he passed the gag ; and the Dipper 
 was busy in lashing my arms together behind my 
 back. The whole had been done so suddenly, and yet 
 with so much skill, that I was a helpless prisoner, as 
 it might be, in a single instant ! 
 
 Resistance being as much out of my power as it 
 was to give any alarm, I was soon secured, hands and 
 feet, and placed carefully in the waist, a little out of 
 the way ; for I probably owed my life solely to the 
 wish of Smudge to keep me as his slave. From that 
 instant every appearance of stupidity vanished from 
 this fellow's countenance and manner, and he became 
 the moving spirit, and I might say the soul, of all the 
 proceedings of his companions. As for myself, there 
 I sat, lashed to a spar, utterly unable to help myself, 
 an unwilling witness of all that followed. I felt the
 
 
 STMK IKS OF Til K SKA. 
 
 rholi had been done to suddenly and pel with w much skill, that I 
 wai H belpleu i i tier, u it might be, In a itnglc instant,"— l*age 194.
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 195 
 
 imminent danger of our situation, but 1 think I felt 
 the disgrace of having such a surprise occur in my 
 watch, more even than the personal risks 1 ran ! 
 
 In the first place, I was disarmed. Then, the Dip- 
 per took a lantern which stood on the binnacle, light- 
 ed it, and showed it, for half a minute, above the 
 taffrail. His signal must have been instantly an- 
 swered, for he soon extinguished the light, and moved 
 about the deck, in attentive watchfulness to seize; any 
 straggler who might happen to come on deck. Little 
 fear of that, however, weariness chaining the men to 
 their berths as closely as if they had been bolted down 
 with iron. I now expected to see the fellows fill the 
 yawl with effects, and run away with them, for, as 
 yet, I could not believe that two men would have the 
 hardihood to attack such a ship's company as ours. 
 
 I reckoned without my host. It might have been 
 ten minutes after I was seized, that dark-looking fig- 
 ures began to climb tin' ship's sides, until more than 
 thirty of them were on her decks. This was done so 
 noiselessly, too, that t lie most vigilant attention on my 
 part gave DO notice of their approach, until (hey stood 
 among as. All these men were armed; a few with 
 muskets; others with clubs, and some with bows and 
 arrows. So far as I could discover, each had some 
 SOrl of a knife, and a few had hatchets, or tomahawks. 
 To my greal regret, I saw that three or four were 
 immediately stationed at the companion-way, aft, 
 and as many more at the booby-hatch, forward. This 
 was effectually commanding the only two passages 
 by which the officers and men would be likely to as-
 
 190 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 cend, in the event of their attempting to come on 
 deck. It is true, the main hatch, as well as that of 
 the steerage, was used by day, but both had been 
 covered overnight, and no one would think of using 
 either, unless aware of the danger that existed on deck. 
 
 I suffered a good deal, both from the gag and the 
 ropes that bound my limbs, and yet I hardly thought 
 of the pain, so intense was my curiosity as to what 
 was to follow. After the savages were all on board, 
 the first quarter of an hour passed in making their 
 dispositions, Smudge, the stupid, inanimate, senseless 
 Smudge, acting as leader, and manifesting not only 
 authoi'ity, but readiness and sagacity. He placed all 
 his people in ambush, so that one appearing from, be- 
 low would not at once be apprised of the change 
 that had taken place on deck, and thus give the sav- 
 ages time to act. After this, another quarter of an 
 hour j^assed, during which the fall of a pin might al- 
 most have been heard, so profound was the silence. I 
 shut my eyes in this terrific interval, and endeavored 
 to pray. 
 
 " On deck, here — forward, there !" said a voice sud- 
 denly, that, at once, I knew to be the captain's. I 
 would have given the world to be able to answer, in 
 order to warn him of the danger, but this was impos- 
 sible. I did groan, and I believe the captain heard 
 me ; for he moved away from the cabin-door, and call- 
 ed out " Mr. Wallingford — where have you got to, 
 Mr. Wallingford ?" He was without his hat, having 
 come on deck half-clad, simply to ascertain how went 
 the night, and it makes me shudder, even now, to
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 197 
 
 write about the blow that fell on his unprotected skull. 
 It would have felled an ox, and it crushed him on the 
 spot. The caution of his murderers prevented his 
 falling, however, for they did not wish to alarm the 
 sleepers below ; though the plash on the water that 
 followed, could not fail to reach ears which took in 
 every sound with the avidity of mine. Thus perished 
 Captain Williams, a mild, well-meaning man, an ex- 
 cellent seaman, and one whose principal fault was 
 want of caution. I do not think the water was neces- 
 sary to complete his fate, as nothing human could 
 have survived such a blow. 
 
 Smudge had been the principal actor in this fright- 
 ful scene ; and as soon as it Avas over he caused his 
 men to return to their ambushes. I now thought the 
 officers and men were to be murdered, in this manner, 
 as one by one they appeared on deck. It would soon 
 be time for Marble to turn out, though there was the 
 hope he might no1 unless called, and I could not do 
 this office, situated as I was. But, I was mistaken. 
 Instead of nit icing any men on deck, the savages pur- 
 sued a differenl course. Having destroyed the cap- 
 tain, they closed the doors of the companion-way, 
 drew over the booby-hatch, and adopted the safe ex- 
 pedient of making all below prisoners. Tins was not 
 done altogether without noise, and the alarm was 
 evidently given by the means taken to secure the fas- 
 tenings. I heard a rush at the cabin-doors, which 
 was soon followed by one at the booby-hatch; but 
 Smudge's Ingenuity had been sufficient to prevent 
 either from being successful.
 
 19S STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 As soon as certain that their prisoners were safe, 
 the savages came and loosened the ropes of my arms 
 sufficiently to put me more at my ease. They remov- 
 ed those which hound my feet entirely, and, at the 
 same instant, the gag was taken from my mouth. I 
 was then led to the companion-way, and, by a sign, 
 given to understand I might communicate Avith my 
 friends below. In the management of all this, I found 
 that Smudge, the semi-human, dull, animal-seeming 
 Smudge, was at the head. I also came to the conclu- 
 sion my life was to be spared, for a time at least, and 
 for some purpose that, as yet, baffled my conjectures. 
 I did not call out immediately, but waited until I 
 heard a movement on the ladder, when I complied 
 with the orders of my captors and masters. 
 
 " Mr. Marble," I cried, loud enough to be heard 
 below ; " is that you ?" 
 
 " Ay, ay — and is that you, Master Miles ?" 
 
 " This is I. Be cautious how you act, Mr. Marble. 
 The savages are in j)ossession of the upper deck, and 
 I am their prisoner. The people are all below, with 
 a strong watch at the fore-scuttle." 
 
 I heard a long, low whistle, within the companion- 
 way doors, which it was easy enough to interpret into 
 an expression of the chief-mate 1 s concern and wonder. 
 For myself, I saw no use in attempting concealment, 
 but was resolved to speak out fully, even though it 
 might be at the risk of betraying some of my feelings 
 to my captors, among whom I thought it probable 
 there might be more than one who understood some- 
 thing of English.
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 199 
 
 "We miss Captain Williams below here," Marble 
 resumed, after a short delay. " Do you know any 
 thing of his movements ?" 
 
 " Alas ! Mr. Marble — poor Captain Williams can be 
 of no service to any of us, now." 
 
 " What of him ?" was demanded in a clear, full 
 voice and as quick as lightning. " Let me know, 
 at once." 
 
 " He has been killed by a blow from a club, and is 
 thrown overboard." 
 
 A dead silence followed, and it lasted near a 
 minute. 
 
 " Then it has fallen to my duty to decide what is 
 to be done!" Marble at length exclaimed. "Miles, 
 are you at liberty ? — dare you say what you think ?" 
 
 " I am held here, by two of the savages, whose 
 prisoner I certainly am. Still, Mr. Marble, they en- 
 courage me to speak, but I fear some among them 
 understand what we say." 
 
 There was another pause, during which the mate 
 was doubtless reflecting on the best course to pursue. 
 
 "Harkee, Mies," 1 Marble continued, "we know 
 each other, and can tell what is meant without blab- 
 bing. How old are you, out there, on deck." 
 
 "Quite thirty years, Mr. Marble — and good stout 
 years they are, too." 
 
 "Well provided for with sulphur and the pills, or 
 only with Indian tools, such as our boys sometimes 
 play with?" 
 
 "A little of the first — half-a-dozen, perhaps; with 
 some of the last, and a plenty of carvers."
 
 200 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 An impatient push from the Dipper warned me to 
 speak plainer, and satisfied me that the fellow could 
 comprehend what passed, so long as we confined our- 
 selves to a straightforward discourse. This discov- 
 ery had the effect to put me still more on my guard. 
 
 " I understand you, Miles," Marble answered, in a 
 thoughtful manner ; " we must be on our guard. Do 
 you think they mean to come below ?" 
 
 " I see no signs at present — but understanding — " 
 emphasizing the word, "is more general than you 
 imagine, and no secrets must be told. My advice is 
 " Millions for defence, and not a cent for tribute.' " 
 
 As this last expression was common in the mouths 
 of the Americans of the day, having been used on 
 the occasion of the existing war with France, I felt 
 confident it would be understood. Marble made no 
 answer, and I was permitted to move from the com- 
 panion-way, and to take a seat on the hen-coops. My 
 situation was sufficiently remarkable. It was still 
 dark ; but enough light fell from the stars to permit 
 me to see all the swarthy and savage forms that were 
 gliding about the decks, and even to observe some- 
 thing of the expression of the countenances of those, 
 who, from time to time, came near to stare me in 
 the fiice. The last seemed ferociously disposed; but 
 it was evident that a master-spirit held all these 
 wild beings in strict subjection ; quelling the turbu- 
 lence of their humors, restraining their fierce dis- 
 position to violence, and giving concert and design 
 to all their proceedings. This master-spirit was 
 Smudge ! Of the fact, I could not doubt ; his ges-
 
 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 201 
 
 tures, his voice, his commands, giving movement and 
 method to every thing that was done. I observed 
 that he spoke with authority and confidence, though 
 he spoke calmly. He was obeyed, without any partic- 
 ular marks of deference, but he was obeyed implicitly. 
 I could also see that the savages considered them- 
 selves as conquerors ; caring very little for the men 
 under hatches. 
 
 Nothing material occurred until day dawned. 
 Smudge — for so I must continue to call this revolt- 
 ing-looking chief, for want of his true name — would 
 permit nothing to be attempted, until the light be- 
 came sufficiently strong to enable him to note the 
 proceedings of his followers. I subsequently ascer- 
 tained, too, that he waited for reinforcements, a yell 
 being raised in the ship, just as the sun appeared, 
 which was answered from the forest. The last seem- 
 ed fairly alive with savages; nor was it long before 
 canoes issued from the creek, and I counted one hun- 
 dred and seven of these wretches on board the ship. 
 This was their whole force, however, no more ever 
 appearing. 
 
 All this time, or, for three hours, I had no more 
 communication with our own people. I was certain, 
 however, that they were all together, a junction be- 
 ing easy enough, by means of the middle-deck, which 
 
 had no other cargo than the light articles intended 
 for the north-wesl trade, and by knocking down the 
 forecastle bulk-head. There was a sliding board in 
 the last, indeed, that would admit of one man's passing 
 at a time, without having recourse to this last expe-
 
 202 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 client. I entertained, no doubt Marble bad collected 
 all bands below; and, being in possession of plenty 
 of arms, tbe men having carried the muskets and 
 pistols below with them, with all the ammunition, 
 he was still extremely formidable. What course he 
 would pursue, I was obliged to conjecture. A sortie 
 would have been very hazardous, if practicable at all; 
 and if was scarcely practicable, after the means taken 
 by Smudge and the Dipper to secure the passages. 
 Every thing, so far as I was concerned, was left to 
 conjecture. 
 
 The manner in which my captors treated me, ex- 
 cited my surprise. As soon as it was light, my limbs 
 were released, and I was permitted to walk up and 
 down the quarter-deck, to restore the circulation of 
 the blood. A clot of blood, with some fragments 
 of hair, marked the spot where poor Captain Wil- 
 liams had fallen ; and I was allowed to dash a bucket 
 of water over the place, in order to wash away the 
 revolting signs of the murder. For myself, a strange 
 recklessness had taken, the place of concern, and I be- 
 came momentarily indifferent to my fate. I expected 
 to die, and I am now ashamed to confess that my 
 feelings took a direction toward revenge, rather than 
 toward penitence for my past sins. At times, I even 
 envied Marble, and those below, who might destroy 
 their enemies at a swoop, by throwing a match into 
 the magazine. I felt persuaded, indeed, it would 
 come to that before the mate and men would submit 
 to be the captives of such wretches as were then in 
 possession of the deck. Smudge and his associates,
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 203 
 
 however, appeared to be perfectly indifferent to this 
 danger, of the character of which they were probably 
 ignorant. Their scheme had been very cunningly 
 laid ; and, thus far, it was perfectly successful. 
 
 The sun was fairly up, and the savages began to 
 think seriously of securing their prize, when the two 
 leaders, Smudge and the Dipper, approached me in a 
 manner to show they were on the point of commenc- 
 ing operations. The last of these men I now discov- 
 ered had a trifling knowledge of English, which he 
 had obtained from different ships. Still he was a 
 savage, to all intents and purposes, the little informa- 
 tion thus gleaned serving to render his worst propen- 
 sities more dangerous, rather than, in any manner 
 tempering them. He now took the lead, parading 
 all his men in two lines on the deck, making a signifi- 
 cant gesture toward his fingers, and uttering with 
 emphasis the word, " count." I did count the 
 wretches, making, this time, one hundred and six, 
 exclusively of the two leaders. 
 
 "Tell him, down there," growled the Dipper, 
 pointing below. 
 
 I called for Mr. Marble, and when he had reached 
 the companion-way, the following conversation took 
 place between us: 
 
 "What is it now, Miles, my hearty ?" demanded 
 the chief-mate. 
 
 "I :ini ordered to tell you, sir, that the Indians 
 number one hundred mid eight, having just counted 
 them, for this purpose." 
 
 "I wish there were a thousand, as we are about
 
 20i STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 to lift the deck from the ship, and send them all into 
 the air. Do you think they can understand what I 
 say, Miles ?" 
 
 " The Dipper does, sir, when you speak slow and 
 plain. lie has only half a notion of what you now 
 mean, as I can see by his countenance. 
 
 " Does the rascal hear me now ? — is he anywhere 
 near the companion-way?" 
 
 " He does, and is — he is standing-, at this moment, 
 on the larboard side of the companion-way, kneeling 
 one knee on the forward end of the hen-coop." 
 
 "Miles," — said Marble, in a doubting sort of a voice. 
 
 Mr. Marble — " I hear what you say." 
 
 " Suppose — eh — lead through the companion-way 
 — eh — what would happen to you?" 
 
 " I should care little for that, sir, as I've made up 
 my mind to be murdered. But it would do no good 
 just now, and might do harm. I will tell them, how- 
 ever, of your intention to blow them up, if you 
 please : perhaps that may make them a little shy." 
 
 Marble assented, and I set about the office, as well 
 as I could. Most of my communication had to be 
 made by means of signs ; but, in the end, I succeeded 
 in making the Dipper understand my meaning. By 
 this man the purpart was^ told to Smudge, in terms. 
 The old man listened with grave attention, but the 
 idea of being blown up produced no more effect on 
 him, than would have been produced by a message 
 from home to tell him that his chimney was on fire, 
 supposing him to have possessed such a civilized in- 
 strument of comfort. That he fully comprehended
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 205 
 
 his friend, I could see by the expression of his ou- 
 rangr-outansr-lookingj countenance. But fear was a 
 passion that troubled him very little; and, sooth to 
 say, a man whose time was passed in a condition as 
 miserable as that in which he habitually dwelt, had 
 no great reason to set a very high value on his life. 
 
 I was astonished at seeing the intelligence that 
 gleamed in the baboon-like face of Smudge, as he lis- 
 tened to his friend's words. Incredulity was the in- 
 tellectual meaning in his eye, while indifference seem- 
 ed seated in his whole visage. 
 
 It was evident the threat had made no impression, 
 and I managed to let Marble understand as much, and 
 that in terms which the Dipper could not very well 
 comprehend. I got no answer, a death-like stillness 
 reigning below decks, in lieu of the bustle that had 
 so lately been heard there. Smudge seemed struck 
 with the change, and I observed he was giving or- 
 ders to two or three of the elder savages, apparently 
 to direct a greater degree of watchfulness. I confess 
 to some uneasiness myself, for expectation is an un- 
 pleasant guest, in a scene like that, and more espe- 
 cially when accompanied by uncertainty. 
 
 Smudge now seemed to think it time to commence 
 his operations in earnest. Under the direction of the 
 Dipper, a quantity of line was thrown into the yawl, 
 studding-halyards, and such other rope of convenient 
 sixe as could be found in the launch, and the boat 
 was towed by two or three canoes to the island. Here 
 the fellows made whal seamen call a " guess-warp," 
 of their rope; fastening one end to a tree, and pay-
 
 206 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 ing out line as the yawl was towed hack again to the 
 ship. The Dipper's calculation proved to he suffi- 
 ciently accurate, the rope reaching from the vessel 
 to the tree. 
 
 As soon as this feat was accomplished, and it was 
 done with sufficient readiness, though somewhat 
 luhherly, twenty or thirty of the savages clapped on 
 the warp, until they had tautened it to as great a 
 strain as it would hear. After this they ceased pull- 
 ing, and I observed a search around the galley in 
 quest of the cook's axe, evidently with a design to 
 cut the cables. I thought this a fact worth commu- 
 nicating to Marble, and I resolved to do so at the risk 
 of my life. 
 
 " The Indians hav r e run a line to the island, and are 
 about to cut the cables, no doubt intending to warp 
 the ship ashore ; and that, too, at the very spot where 
 they once had the Sea-Otter." 
 
 " Ay, ay — let them go on; we'll be ready for them 
 in time," was the only answer I received. 
 
 I never knew whether to ascribe the apathy the 
 savages manifested to this communication, to a wish 
 that the fact might be known to the people below, or 
 to indifference. They certainly proceeded in their 
 movements with just as much coolness as if they had 
 the ship all to themselves. They had six or eight 
 canoes, and parlies of them began to move round the 
 vessel, with precisely the same confidence as men 
 would do it in a friendly port. What most surprised 
 me were the quiet and submission to orders they 
 observed. At length the axe was found secreted in
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 207 
 
 the bows of the launch, and Marble was apprised of 
 the use to which it was immediately applied, by the 
 heavy blows that fell upon the cables. 
 
 "Miles," said the chief-mate — "these blows go to 
 my heart ! Are the blackguards really in earnest ?" 
 
 " The larboard bower is gone, sir, and the blows 
 you now hear are on the starboard, which is already 
 half in two — that finishes it ; the ship now hangs only 
 by the warp." 
 
 " Is there any wind, boy ?" 
 
 " Not a breath of it in the bay, though I can see a 
 little ripple on the water, outside." 
 
 " Is it rising or falling water, Miles?" 
 
 "The ebb is nearly done — they'll never be able to 
 get the ship up on the shelving rock where they had 
 the Sea-Otter, until the water rises ten or twelve feet." 
 
 " Thank God for that ! I was afraid they might get 
 her on that accursed bed, and break her back at once." 
 
 " Is it of any importance to us, Mr. Marble? What 
 hope can we have of doing any thing against such 
 odds, and in our circumstances?" 
 
 "The odds I care nothing for, boy. My lads are 
 screwed up so tight, they'd lick the whole north- 
 wot coast, if they could only get on deck without 
 having their fashion-pieces stove in. The circum- 
 stances, I allow, nnisi counl for a great deal." 
 
 "The ship is moving fast toward the island — I sec 
 no hope for us, Mr. .Marble!" 
 
 " I say, Miles, it is worth sonic risk to try and save 
 the craft — were it not for fear of you, I would have 
 played the rascals a trick hall' an hour since."
 
 208 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 " Never mind me, sir — it was my fault it has hap- 
 pened, and I ought to suffer for it — do what duty and 
 discretion tell you is best." 
 
 I waited a minute after this, in intense expectation, 
 not knowing what was to follow, when a report made 
 me fancy for an instant some attempt was making to 
 blow up the deck. The wails and cries that suc- 
 ceeded, however, soon let me into the real state of 
 the case. A volley of muskets had been fired from 
 the cabin-windows, and every individual in two 
 canoes that were passing at the time, to the number 
 of eleven were shot down like bullocks. Three were 
 killed dead, and the remainder received wounds that 
 promised to be mortal. My life would have been the 
 instant sacrifice of this act, had it not been for the 
 stern authority of Smudge, who ordered my assail- 
 ants off, with a manner and tone that produced im- 
 mediate compliance. It was clear I was reserved for 
 some peculiar fate. 
 
 Every man who could, rushed into the remaining 
 canoes and the ship's yawl, in order to pick up the 
 killed and wounded, as soon as the nature of the ca- 
 lamity was known. I watched them from the taffrail, 
 and soon ascertained that Marble was doing the same 
 from the windows below me. But the savages did 
 not dare to venture in a line with a fire that had 
 proved so fatal, and were compelled to wait until the 
 ship had moved sufficiently ahead to enable them to 
 succor their friends, without exposing their own 
 lives. As this required some distance, as well as 
 time, the ship was not only left without a canoe, or
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 209 
 
 boat of any sort, in the water, but with only half her 
 assailants on board of her. Those who did remain, 
 for want of means to attack any other enemy, vented 
 their spite on the ship, expending all their strength 
 in frantic efforts on the warp. The result was, that 
 while they gave great way to the vessel, they finally 
 broke the line. 
 
 I was leaning on the wheel, with Smudge near me, 
 when this accident occurred. The tide was still run- 
 ning ebb, and with some strength ; and the ship was 
 just entering the narrow passage between the island 
 and the point that formed one termination of the bay, 
 heading, of course, toward the tree to which the 
 warp had been secured. It was an impulsive feeling, 
 rather than any reason, that made me give the vessel 
 a sheer with the helm, so as to send her directly 
 through the passage, instead of letting her strike the 
 rocks. I had no eventual hope in so doing, nor any 
 Other motive than the strong reluctance I i'elt to have 
 the good craft hil the bottom. Luckily, the Dipper 
 was in the canoes, and it was not an easy matter to 
 follow the ship, under the tire from her cabin-win- 
 dows, had he understood the case, and been disposed 
 to d<> so. But, like all the rest in the canoes, he was 
 busy with his wounded friends, who were all carried 
 off toward the creek. This left me master of the 
 ship's movements for five minutes, and by that time 
 she had drawn through the passage, and was actually 
 shooting out into the open ocean. 
 
 This was a novel, and in some respects an embar- 
 rassing situation. It left a gleam of hope, but it was 
 • 14
 
 210 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 a hope without a direction, and almost without an 
 object. I could perceive that none of the savages on 
 board had any knowledge of the cause of our move- 
 ment, unless they might understand the action of the 
 tide. They had expected the ship to be run ashore at 
 the tree ; and here she was gliding into the ocean, and 
 was already clear of the passage. The effect was to 
 produce a panic, and fully one-half of those who had 
 remained in the ship jumped overboard and began to 
 swim for the island. I was momentarily in hope all 
 would take this course ; but quite five an d-t went y re- 
 mained, more from necessity than choice, as I after- 
 ward discovered, for they did not know how to swim. 
 Of this number was Smudge, who probably still 
 remained to secure his conquest. 
 
 It struck me the moment was favorable, and I went 
 to the campanion-way, and was about to remove its 
 fastenings, thinking the ship might be recovered dur- 
 ing the prevalence of the panic. But a severe blow, 
 and a knife gleaming in the hands of Smudge, admon- 
 ished me of the necessity of greater caution. The 
 affair was not yet ended, nor was my captor a man 
 as easily disconcerted as I had incautiously supposed. 
 Unpromising as he seemed, this fellow had a spirit 
 that fitted him for great achievements, and which, 
 under other circumstances, might have made him a 
 hero. He taught me the useful lesson of not judging 
 of men merely by their exteriors. 
 
 The ship did not lose her steerage-way. As soon 
 as past the point of the island, a gentle southerly 
 breeze was felt ; and, acting on the spars and hull,
 
 STOEJES OF THE SEA. 211 
 
 it enabled me, by putting the helm a little up, to keep 
 her head off shore, and thus increase her distance 
 from the bay. The set of the tide did more for her 
 than the wind, it is true; but the two, acting in uni- 
 son, carried her away from the coast at a rate that 
 nearly equalled two knots in the hour. This was 
 slow moving, certainly, for a vessel in such a strait ; 
 but it would require fifteen or twenty minutes for the 
 canoes to return from the creek, and make the circuit 
 of the island by the other channel. By that time we 
 should be near half a mile at sea. 
 
 Smudge, beyond a question, understood that he 
 was in a dilemma, though totally ignorant of some ot 
 the leading difficulties of his case. It was plain to 
 me he could not comprehend why the ship took the 
 direction of the oiling, for he had no conception of 
 th<' power of the rudder. Our tiller worked below, 
 am! it is possible this circumstance mystified him ; 
 more small vessels in that day managing their helms 
 without the aid of the wheel, than with it. At length 
 tin- movement of the vessel became too palpable to 
 admit of further delay; and this savage approached 
 me, with a drawn knife, and a manner that proved nat- 
 ural affection had not been the motive of his previous 
 moderation. After nourishing his weapon fiercely 
 before my eyes, and pressing it most significantly, 
 
 once or twice, against my breast, he made signs for 
 me to cause the ship to turn round and re-enter the 
 port. I thought my last moment had come, but nat- 
 urally enough pointed to the spars, giving my master 
 to understand that the vessel was -not in her usual
 
 212 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 trim. I believe I was understood as to this part of 
 my excuses, it being too apparent that our masts and 
 yards were not in their usual places, for the fact to 
 be overlooked even by a savage. Smudge, however, 
 saw that several of the sails were bent, and he pointed 
 to those, growling out his threats, should I refuse to 
 set them. The spanker, in particular, being near 
 him, he took hold of it, shook it, and ordered me to 
 loosen it forthwith. 
 
 It is scarcely necessary to say, I obeyed this order 
 with secret joy. Casting loose the brails, I put the 
 out-hauler in the hands of a dozen of the savages, 
 and set the example of pulling. In a minute we had 
 this sail spread, with the sheet a little eased oif. I 
 then led a party forward, and got the fore and main 
 stay-sails on the ship. To these were added the miz- 
 en stay-sail, the only other piece of canvas we could 
 show, until the topmasts were fidded. The effect of 
 these four sails, however, was to add at least another 
 knot to the Avay of the ship, and to carry her out 
 sooner to a point where she felt the full force of the 
 light breeze that was blowing from the south-east. 
 By the time the four sails were set, we were fully a 
 quarter of a mile from the island, every instant get- 
 ting more fairly into the true currents of the air. 
 
 Smudge watched me with the eyes of a hawk. As 
 I had obeyed his own orders in making sail, he could 
 not complain of that ; but the result evidently disap- 
 pointed him. He saw we were still moving in the 
 wrong direction, and, as yet, not a canoe was visible. 
 As for these last, now the vessel had way on her, I
 
 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 213 
 
 was not without hopes of being able to keep them 
 exposed to the fire from the cabin-windows, and, fin- 
 ally, of getting rid of them by drawing off the land 
 to a distance they would not be likely to follow. The 
 Dipper, however, I was aware, was a bold fellow — 
 knew something of vessels — and I was determined to 
 give a hint to Marble to pick him off, should he come 
 within range of his muskets. 
 
 In tliemean time the alarm and impatience of Smudge 
 and his companions, very sensibly increased. Five 
 minutes were an acre in the circumstances in which 
 they were placed, and I saw that it would soon be 
 necessary to adopt some new expedient, or I might 
 expect to be sacrificed to the resentment of these 
 savages. Necessity sharpens the wits, and I hit upon 
 a scheme which was not entirely without the merit of 
 ingenuity. As it was, I suppose I owed my life to 
 the consciousness of the savages, that they coidd do 
 notliing without me. 
 
 Smudge, with three or four of the fiercest of his 
 companions, bad begun again to menace me with the 
 knife, making signs, at the same time, for me to turn 
 the ship's head toward the land. I asked for a little 
 ro< .in, and then describing a long circle on the deck, 
 pointing to the four sails we had set, and this in a 
 way to tell them that under the canvas we carried, 
 it would be necessary to go a great distance in order 
 to turn round. When I had succeeded in communi- 
 cating this idea, T forthwith set about giving them to 
 understand that by getting up the top-masts, and 
 making more sail, we might return immediately.
 
 214 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 The savages understood me, and the explanation ap- 
 pearing reasonable to them, they went aside and con- 
 sulted together. As time pressed, it was not long 
 before Smudge came to me with signs to show him 
 and his party how to get the remainder of the sails 
 set. Of course, I was not backward in giving the de- 
 sired information. 
 
 In a few minutes, I had a string of the savages 
 hold of the mast-rope, forward, a luff-tackle being 
 applied. As every thing was ready aloft, all we had 
 to do was to pull, until, judging by the eye, I thought 
 the spar was high enough, when I ran up the rig- 
 ging and clapped in the fid. Having the topmast 
 out of the way, without touching any of its rigging, 
 I went down on the fore-yard, and loosened the sail. 
 This appeared so much like business, that the savages 
 gave sundry exclamations of delight ; and, by the 
 time I got on deck, they were all ready to applaud 
 me as a good fellow. Even Smudge was complete- 
 ly mystified ; and when I set the others at work at 
 the jeer-fall to sway up the fore-yard, he was. as ac- 
 tive as any of them. We soon had the yard in its 
 place, and I went aloft to secure it, touching the 
 braces first so as to fill the sail. 
 
 The reader may rest assured I did not hurry my- 
 self, now I had things in so fair a way. I could 
 perceive that my power and importance increased 
 with every foot we went from the land ; and the ship 
 steering herself under such canvas, the wheel being 
 a trifle up, there was no occasion for extraordinary 
 exertion on my part. I determined now to stay aloft
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 215 
 
 as long as possible. The yard was soon secured, 
 and then I went up into the top, where I began to 
 set up the weather-rigging. Of course, nothing was 
 very thoroughly done, though sufficiently so for the 
 weather we had. 
 
 From the top I had a good view of the offing, and 
 of the coast for leagues. We were now quite a mile 
 at sea, and, though the tide was no longer of any 
 use to ns, we were drawing through the water quite 
 at the rate of two knots. I thought that the flood 
 had made, and that it took us a little on our lee-bow, 
 hawsing us up to windward. Just as I had got the 
 last lanyard fastened, the. canoes began to appear, 
 coining round the island by the farther passage, and 
 promising to overtake us in the course of the next 
 twenty minutes. The crisis demanded decision, and 
 I determined to get the jib on the ship. Accordingly, 
 I was soon on deck. 
 
 Having so much the confidence of the savnges, 
 who now fancied their return depended on me, I 
 soon had them at work, and we had the stay set up 
 in two or three minutes. I then ran out and cast 
 off tin- gaskets, when my boys began to hoist at a 
 signal from mo. I have seldom been so happy as' 
 when I s:iw that large sheet of canvas open to the 
 air. The sheet was hauled in and belayed as fast as 
 possible, and then it struck me I should not have 
 time to do any more before the canoes would over- 
 take us. It was my wish to communicate with .Mar- 
 ble. While passing aft, to effect this object, I paused 
 a moment to examine the movement of the cano«s ;
 
 216 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 old Smudge, the whole time, expressing his impa- 
 tience that the ship did not turn round. I make no 
 doubt I should have been murdered a dozen times, 
 had I lives enough, were it not that the savages 
 felt how dependent they were on me, for the govern- 
 ment of the vessel. I began to see my importance, 
 and grew bold in proportion. 
 
 As for the canoes, I took a look at them through 
 a glass. They were about half a mile distant ; had 
 ceased paddling, and were lying close together, seem- 
 ingly in consultation. I fancied the appearance of 
 the ship, under canvas, had alarmed them, and that 
 they began to think we had regained the vessel, and 
 were getting her in sailing condition again, and that 
 it might not be prudent to come too near. Could 
 I confirm this impression, a great point would be 
 gained. Under the pretence of making more sail, in 
 order to get the ship's head round, a difficulty I 
 had to explain to Smudge by means of signs some 
 six or eight times, I placed the savages at the main- 
 topmast mast-rope, and told them to drag. This 
 was a task likely to keep them occupied, and what 
 was more, it kept them all looking forward, leaving 
 me affecting to be busied aft. I had given Smudge 
 a segar too, to put him in good humor, and I had 
 also taken the liberty to light one for myself. 
 
 Our guns had all been primed, levelled, and had 
 their tompions taken out the night before, in readi- 
 ness to repel any assault that might be made. I 
 had only to remove the apron from the after-gun, 
 and it was ready to be discharged. Going to the
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 217 
 
 wheel, I put the helm hard up, until our broadside 
 bore on the canoes. Then glancing along my gun, 
 until I saw it had a tolerable range, I clapped the segar 
 to the priming, springing back to the wheel, and put- 
 ting the helm down. The explosion produced a gen- 
 eral yell among the savages, several of whom actually 
 leaped into the chains ready to go overjboard, while 
 Smudge rushed toward me, fiercely brandishing his 
 knife. I thought my time had come ! but, perceiving 
 that the ship was luffing fast, I motioned eagerly for- 
 ward, to draw the attention of my assailant in that 
 quarter. The vessel was coming-to, and Smudge was 
 easily induced to believe it was the commencement 
 of turning round. The breathing time allowed me to 
 mystify him with a few more signs; after Avhich, he 
 rejoined his people, shoAved them exultingly the ship 
 still luffing, and I make no doubt, he thought himself, 
 and induced the rest to think, that the gun had a ma- 
 terial agency in producing all these apparent changes. 
 As for the canoes, the grape had whistled so near 
 them, that they began to paddle hack, doubtless under 
 the impression that we were again masters of the 
 ship, and had sent them this hint to keep aloof. 
 
 Thus far T had succeeded beyond my must sanguine 
 
 expectations; and I began to entertain lively hopes 
 
 of not only saving my life, but of recovering the 
 command of the vessel. Could I manage to get her out 
 of sight of land, my services would be so indispensa- 
 ble, as almost to insure success. The coast was very 
 low, and a run of six or eight hours would do this, 
 provided the vessel's head could be kept in the right
 
 218 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 direction. The wind, moreover, was freshening, and 
 I judged that the Crisis had already four knots' way 
 on her. Less than twenty miles would put all the 
 visible coast under water. But it was time to say 
 something to Marble. With a view to lvdl distrust, 
 I called Smudge to the companion-way, in order that 
 he might hear what passed, though I felt satisfied, 
 now that the Dipper was out of the ship, not a soul 
 remained among the savages who could understand 
 a syllable of English, or knew any thing of vessels. 
 The first call brought the mate to the door. 
 
 " Well, Miles, what is it ?" he asked, u what meant 
 the gun, and who fired it ?" 
 
 "All right, Mr. Marble. I fired the gun to keep 
 off the canoes, and it has had the effect I wished." 
 
 " Yes ; my head was out of the cabin-window at 
 the time, for I believe the ship was wearing, and 
 thought you had given up, and were going back into 
 port. I saw the round shot strike within twenty fath- 
 oms of the canoes, and as for the grape, some of it 
 flew beyond them. Why, we are more than half a 
 league from the land, boy ! Will Smudge stand that 
 much longer ?" 
 
 I then told Marble precisely how we were situated 
 on deck, the sail we were under, the number of sav- 
 ages we had on board, and the notion the savages en- 
 tertained on the subject of turning the ship round. 
 It is not easy to say which listened with the most at- 
 tention, Marble or Smudge. The latter made fre- 
 quent gestures for me to turn the ship toward the 
 coast, for by this time she had the wind abeam
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 219 
 
 again, and was once more running in a straight line. 
 It was necessary, on more accounts than one, to 
 adopt some immediate remedy for the danger that 
 began to press on me anew. Not only must Smudge 
 and his associates he pacified, but, as the ship got 
 into the offing, she began to feel the ground-swell, 
 and her spars, aloft were any thing but secure. The 
 main-topmast was about half up, and it was begin- 
 ning to surge and move in the cap, in a way I did 
 not like. It is true, there was not much danger yet; 
 but the wind was rising, and what was to be done 
 ought to be done at once. I was not sorry, however, 
 to perceive that five or six of the savages, Smudge 
 among the number, began to betray signs of sea-sick- 
 ness. 
 
 I now endeavored to make Smudge understand the 
 necessity of my having assistance from below, both 
 to assist in turning the vessel and in getting the 
 yards and masts into their places. The old fellow 
 shook his head, and looked grave at this. I saw he 
 Avas not sick enough yet to be indifferent about 
 his life. After a time, however, he pronounced the 
 names of Neb and Yo, the blacks having attracted 
 the attention of the savages, the last being the cook. 
 I understood him, he would Buffer these two to come 
 to my assistance, provided it could be done without 
 endangering his own ascendency. Three unarmed 
 men could hardly he dangerous to twenty-live who 
 were armed ; and then I suspected that he fancied 
 the negroes would prove allies to himself, in the 
 event of a struggle, rather than foes. As for Neb,
 
 220 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 lie made a fatal mistake ; nor was he much nearer the 
 truth in regard to Joe — or Yo, as he called him — the 
 cook feeling quite as much for the honor of the 
 American flag, as the fairest-skinned seaman in the 
 country. 
 
 I found means to make Smudge understand the 
 manner in which these two blacks could be got on 
 deck, without letting up the rest. As soon as he 
 fairly comprehended the means to be used, he cheer- 
 fully acquiesced, and I made the necessary communi- 
 cation to Marble. A rope was sent down, over the 
 stern-boat, to the cabin-windows, and Neb took a 
 turn round his body ; when he was hauled up to the 
 gunwale of the boat, into which he was dragged by 
 the assistance of the savages. The same process was 
 used with Joe. Before the negroes were permitted 
 to go aloft, however, Smudge made them a brief 
 oration, in which oracular sentences were blended 
 with significant gestures, and indications of what 
 they were to expect in the event of bad behavior. 
 After this, I sent the blacks into the main-top, and 
 glad enough I thought they were both to get there. 
 
 Thus reinforced, we had the main-topmast fidded 
 in a very few minutes. Neb was then directed to 
 set up the rigging, and to clear away the yard, so it 
 might be got into its place. In a word, an hour 
 passed in active exertions, at the end of which we 
 had every thing rove, bent, and in its place, on the 
 main-mast, from the top-mast head to the deck. I 
 ordered the men to loosen both sails, and to overhaul 
 down their rigging. In the eyes of Smudge, this
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 221 
 
 looked highly promising; and the savages gave a 
 yell of delight when they saw the top-sail fairly filled 
 and drawing. I added the main-sail to the pressure, 
 and then the ship began to walk off the coast, at a 
 rate that promised all I hoped for. It was now ne- 
 cessary for me to stick by the wheel, of the uses of 
 which Smudge began to obtain some notions. At 
 this time, the vessel was more than two leagues from 
 the island, and objects began to look dim along the 
 coast. As for the canoes, they could no longer be 
 seen, and chasing us any farther was quite out of 
 the question. I felt that the crisis was approaching. 
 Smudge and his companions now became more and 
 more earnest on the subject of turning the ship 
 round. The indistinctness of the land began seri- 
 ously to alarm them, and sea-sickness had actually 
 placed four of their number flat on the deck. I could 
 see that the old fellow himself was a good deal af- 
 fected, though his spirit, and the risks he ran, kept 
 him in motion, ami vigilantly on the watch. It was 
 necessary to seem t<> do something; and I sent the 
 negroes up into the fore-top, to get the top-sail-yard 
 in its place, and the sail set. This occupied another 
 hour, before we were entirely through, when the 
 land was getting nearly encash. As soon as the miz- 
 zen-top-sail was set, I braced sharp up, and brought 
 the ship close upon the wind. This caused the In- 
 dians to will down, like flowers under a burning sun, 
 just as 1 expected; there being by this time a seven- 
 knot breeze, and a smart head-sea on. Old Smudge 
 felt that his forces were la>t, deserting him, and he
 
 222 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 now came to me in a manner that would not be de- 
 nied, and I felt the necessity of doing something to 
 appease him. I got the savages stationed as well as 
 I could, hauled up the main-sail, and put the ship in 
 stays. We tacked better than I could have believed 
 possible, and when my wild captors saw that we 
 were actually moving in the direction of the land, 
 again their delight was infinite. Their leader was 
 ready to hug me ; but I avoided this pleasure in the 
 best manner I could. As for the consequences, I had 
 no apprehensions, knowing we were too far off to 
 have any reason to dread the canoes, and being cer- 
 tain it was easy enough to avoid them in such a 
 breeze. 
 
 Smudge and his companions were less on the alert, 
 as soon as they perceived the ship was going in the 
 proper direction. They probably believed the danger 
 in a measure over, and they began to yield a little to 
 their physical sufferings. I called Neb to the wheel, 
 and leaning over the taffrail, I succeeded in getting 
 Marble to a cabin-window, without alarming Smudge. 
 I then told the mate to get all his forces in the fore- 
 castle, having observed that the Indians avoided that 
 part of the vessel, on account of the heavy plunges 
 she occasionally made, and possibly because they fan- 
 cied our people were all aft. As soon as the plan 
 was understood, I strolled forward, looking up at the 
 sails, and touching a rope, here and there, like one 
 bent on his ordinary duty. The savage stationed 
 at the fore-scuttle was as sick as a dog, and with 
 streaming eyes, he was paying the landsman's tribute
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 223 
 
 to the sea. The hatch was very strong, and it was 
 secured simply by its hasp and by a bit of iron thrust 
 through it. I had only to slip my hand down, 
 remove the iron, throw open the hatch, when the 
 ship's company streamed up on deck, Marble lead- 
 ing. 
 
 It was not a moment for explanations. I saw at a 
 glance that the mate and his followers regarded the 
 situation of the ship very differently from what I did 
 myself. I had now been hours with the savages, had 
 attained a little of their confidence, and knew how 
 dependent they were on myself for their final safety; 
 all of which, in a small degree, disposed me to treat 
 them with some of the lenity I fancied I had received 
 from them, in my own person. But Marble and the 
 crew had been chafing below, like caged lions, the 
 whole time, and, as I afterward learned, had actually 
 taken a unanimous vote to blow themselves up, be- 
 fore they would permit the Indians to retain the con- 
 trol of the vessel. Then poor Captain "Williams was 
 much beloved forward, and his death remained to be 
 avenged. I would have said a word in favor of my 
 captors, but the first glance I got at the flushed face 
 of the mate, told me il would be useless. I turned, 
 therefore, to the sick savage who had been left as a 
 sentinel over the fore-scuttle, to prevent his inter- 
 ference. This man was armed with the pistols that 
 had been taken from me, and he showed a disposition 
 to use them. I was too quick in my motions, how- 
 ever, falling upon him so soon as to prevent one 
 who was not expert with the weapons, from using
 
 224 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 them. We clenched, and fell on the deck together, 
 the Indian letting the pistols fall to meet my 
 grasp. 
 
 As this occurred, I heard the cheers of the seamen ; 
 and Marble, shouting out to " revenge Captain Wil- 
 liams," gave the order to charge. I soon had my own 
 fellow perfectly at my mercy, and got him so near 
 the end of the jib down-haul, as to secure him with a 
 turn or two of that rope. The man made little resist- 
 ance, after the first onset ; and, catching up the pistols, 
 I left him, to join in what was doing aft. As I lay 
 on the deck, I heard several plunges into the water, 
 and then half-a-dozen of most cruelly crushing blows 
 succeeded. Not a shot was fired by either party, 
 though some of our people, who had carried all their 
 arms below the night the ship was seized, used 
 their pikes with savage freedom. By the time I got 
 as far aft as the main-mast, the vessel was our own. 
 Nearly half the Indians had thrown themselves into 
 the sea ; the remaining dozen had been knocked in 
 the head like beeves. The dead bodies followed the 
 living into the sea. Old Smudge alone remained, at 
 the moment of which I have spoken. 
 
 The leader of the savages was examining the move- 
 ments of Neb, at the moment the shout was raised ; 
 and the black, abandoning the wheel, threw his arms 
 round those of the old man, holding him like a vice. 
 In this situation he was found by Marble and myself, 
 Avho approached at the same instant, one on each side 
 of the quarter-deck. 
 
 "Overboard with the blackguard!" called out the
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 225 
 
 excited mate ; " overboard with him. Neb, like a 
 trooper's horse !" 
 
 " Hold — " I interrupted, " spare the old wretch, 
 Mr. Marble ; — he spared me." 
 
 A request from me would, at any moment, outweigh 
 an order from the captain himself, so far as the black 
 was concerned, else Smudge would certainly have gone 
 into the ocean, like a bundle of straw. Marble had 
 in him a good deal of the indifference to bodily suf- 
 fering that is generated by habit, and, aroused, he 
 was a dangerous, and sometimes a hard man ; but in 
 the main, he was not cruel ; and then lie was always 
 manly. In the short struggle which he had passed, 
 he had actually dropped his pike, to knock an Indian 
 down witli his fist ; bundling the fellow through a 
 port without ceremony, ere he had time to help him- 
 self. But he disdained striking Smudge, with such 
 odds against him; and he went to the helm himself, 
 bidding Neb secure the prisoner. 
 
 Not a cheer was given for our success. When all 
 was over, the men stood gazing at each other, stern, 
 frowning, and yet with the aspects of those who felt 
 they had been, in a manner, disgraced by the circum- 
 stances which led them to the necessity of thus re- 
 gaining the command of their own vessel. As for 
 myself, I ran and sprangupon the taffrail, to look into 
 the ship's wake. A painful sight met me there! 
 During the minute or two passed in the brief strug- 
 gle, the Crisis had gone steadily ahead, like the earth 
 moving in its orbit, indifferent to the struggles of 
 the nations that are contending on its bosom. I 
 15
 
 226 ST0KIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 could see heads and arms tossing in our track for 
 a hundred fathoms, those who could not swim strug- 
 gling to the last to preserve their existence. Marble, 
 Smudge, and Neb, were all looking in the same direc- 
 tion, at that instant. Under an impulse I could not 
 control, I ventured to suggest that we might yet tack 
 and save several of the wretches. 
 
 " Let them drown," was the chief-mate's senten- 
 tious answer. 
 
 " No — no — Masser Mile," Neb ventured to add, 
 with a remonstrating shake of the head — " dat will 
 nebber do — no good ebber come of Injin. If you 
 don't drown him, he sartain drown you." 
 
 I saw it was idle to remonstrate ; and by this time 
 one dark spot, after another, began to disappear, as 
 the victims sank in the ocean. There was too much 
 duty to be done, to render all secure, to suffer us to 
 waste much time in mere sympathy. All the topmast 
 rigging, backstays, &c, had to be set up afresh, and 
 gangs were sent about this duty, forward and aft. 
 The blood was washed from the decks, and a portion 
 of the crew got along the topgallant-masts, and point- 
 ed them. The topsails were all close-reefed, the courses 
 hauled up, the spanker and jib taken in, and the ship 
 hove to. It wanted but two hours of sxmset when 
 Mr. Marble had got things to his mind. We had 
 crossed royal-yards, and had every thing set that 
 would draw, from the trucks down. The launch 
 was in the water towing astern ; the ship was then 
 about a mile from the southern passage into the bay, 
 toward which she was steering with the wind very
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 227 
 
 much as it had been since an hour after sunrise, 
 though slightly falling. Our guns were loose, and 
 the crew was at quarters. Even I did not know what 
 the new captain intended to do, for he had given his 
 orders in the manner of one whose mind was too im- 
 movably made up, to admit of consultation. The lar- 
 board battery was manned, and orders had been given 
 to see the guns on that side levelled and ready for 
 firing. As the ship brushed past the island, in enter- 
 ing the bay, the whole of this broadside was delivered 
 in among its bushes and trees. We heard a feAV yells, 
 in reply, that satisfied us the grape had told, and that 
 Marble had not miscalculated the position of some of 
 his enemies, at least. 
 
 "When the ship entered the little bay, it was with a 
 moderate and steady movement, the breeze being 
 greatly broken by the forests. The main-yard was 
 thrown aback, and I was ordered into the launch, with 
 its crew armed. A swivel was in the bows of the 
 boat, and I pulled into the creek, in order to ascertain 
 if there were any signs of the savages. In entering 
 the creek, the swivel was discharged, according to 
 orders, and we soon detected proofs that we disturb- 
 ed a bivouac. I now kept loading and firing this little 
 pieve into the bushes, supporting it with occasional 
 volleys of musketry, until pretty well satisfied that 
 we had swept the shore effectually. At the bivouac, 
 I found the canoes, and our own yawl, and what was 
 some little revenge for what had happened, I also found 
 a pile of no less than six hundred skins, which had 
 doubtless been brought to trade with us, if necessary,
 
 228 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 in order to blind our eyes until the favorable moment 
 for the execution of the conspiracy should offer. I 
 made no scruple about confiscating these skins, which 
 were taken on board the ship. 
 
 On my return, I met the ship coming out, Captain 
 Marble being determined not to trust her inside an- 
 other night. The wind was getting light, and, the 
 tides running fiercely in that high latitude, we were 
 glad to make an offing again while there was still day. 
 The success with the skins greatly mollified the new 
 captain. 
 
 We will close Mr. Wallingford's account of this 
 remarkable adventure at this point, adding only that 
 Captain Marble ordered their only prisoner, Smudge, 
 to be hanged from the yard-arm the next day. Wal- 
 lingford would have prevented this summary proceed- 
 ing, if he could, but Captain Marble was resolute, 
 and it must be confessed that the treachery of the 
 man appeared to justify even this extreme measure. 
 It is certain that the " Crisis" and all on board came 
 terribly near experiencing the fate of the hapless 
 11 Sea-Otter."
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 229 
 
 LONG TOM COFFIN AND THE AEIEL. 
 
 Long Tom Coffix, who is introduced in the tale 
 of " The Pilot," is the most famous and original of 
 Mr. Cooper's sea-characters. Long Tom was cock- 
 swain of the good schooner Ariel, in commission 
 during our war of the Revolution by the American 
 Congress, and employed in connection with other 
 vessels, in the German ocean, on the eastern shores of 
 the island of Great Britain. Long Tom was of New 
 England descent, was born on the sea, had been many 
 years a whaler, and in fact had passed nearly his entire 
 life on ship-board. Mr. Cooper's description of him 
 is as follows : When erect, he stood nearly six feet 
 and as many inches in his shoes, though, when elevated 
 in his most perpendicular attitude, there was a for- 
 ward inclination about his head and shoulders, that 
 appeared to be the consequence of habitual confine- 
 ment in limited lodgings. His whole frame was 
 destitute of the rounded outlines of a well-formed 
 man, though his enormous hands furnished a display 
 of bones and sinews which gave indications of gigan- 
 tic strength. Od his head he wore a little, low, brown 
 hat of wool, with an arched top, that threw an ex- 
 pression of peculiar solemnity and hardness over his 
 harsh visage, the sharp prominent i'eat ures of which 
 were completely encircled by a set of black whiskers, 
 that began to be grizzled a little with age. One of
 
 230 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 his hands grasped, with a sort of instinct, the staff of 
 a bright harpoon. 
 
 The Ariel was in command of Captain Barnstable. 
 At the time of the incidents we are about to select, 
 she, accompanied by a frigate, was off the coast of 
 England, for the purpose of a secret descent on the 
 island and the capture of some persons of nobility 
 known to be collected in that vicinity. It was the 
 object of the American commissioners at Paris, one of 
 whom was the renowned Benjamin Franklin, to se- 
 cure the persons, if it were possible, of sundry English 
 personages of note, with the intention of holding 
 them as hostages for the good treatment of American 
 prisoners in the hands of the British government. 
 With this object in view, a frigate, accompanied by 
 the Ariel, approached the shore of England ; and a 
 party from the frigate, under the command of the first 
 lieutenant, Mr. Griffiths, secretly landed, and proceeded 
 to the accomplishment of the plan. Meanwhile Cap- 
 tain Barnstable of the Ariel, in the whale-boat of the 
 schooner, was to remain in a little cove of the shore, 
 and await the return of the adventurers. Unfortu- 
 nately the scheme was not successful ; the party were 
 surrounded and captured, and one of the captors, a 
 man of the name of Dillon, hurried along the coast 
 several miles to a bay where one of the king's cutters 
 was at anchor, and solicited the commander to proceed 
 at once to the capture of the party in the whale-boat, 
 who had been seen from the shore. The captors, it 
 seems, knew nothing of the proximity of the Utile 
 Ariel, nor of the fact that an American frigate was
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 231 
 
 not many miles from the shore. The Alacrity, which 
 was the name of* the king's cutter, was soon under 
 way. As the little vessel rounded the point behind 
 which she had been anchored, her guns were cleared, 
 and the usual preparations were completed for im- 
 mediate and actual service. 
 
 Dillon, sorely against his will, was compelled to 
 continue on board, in order to point out the place 
 where the unsuspecting boatmen were expected to be 
 entrapped. Everything being ready, when they had 
 gained a safe distance from the land, the Alacrity was 
 kept away before the wind, and glided along the 
 shore, with a swift and easy progress, that promised 
 :t speedy execution of the business in which her com- 
 mander had embarked. 
 
 Let us now return to Captain Barnstable and Long 
 Tom Coffin. Barnstable, after finding the hour ex- 
 pired for the appearance of Griffith and his companion, 
 reluctantly determined to comply with the letter of 
 his instructions, and have them to their own sagacity 
 and skill to regain the Ariel. The boat had been suf- 
 fered to ride in (lie edge of the surf, since the appear- 
 ance of the sun, and the eyes of her crew were kept 
 anxiously fixed on the cliffs, though in vain, to discover 
 the signal thai was to call them to the place of land- 
 ing. After looking at his watch for the twentieth 
 time, and as often casting glances of uneasy dis- 
 satisfaction toward the shore, the lieutenant ex- 
 claimed — 
 
 "A charming prospect, this, Muster Collin, but 
 rather too much poetry in it for your taste ; 1 believe
 
 232 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 yon relish no land that is of a harder consistency than 
 mud !" 
 
 " I was born on the waters, sir," returned the cock- 
 swain, from his snug abode, where he was disposed 
 with his usual economy of room, " and it's according 
 to all things for a man to love his natyve soil. I'll not 
 deny, Captain Barnstable, but I would rather drop my 
 anchor on a bottom that won't broom a keel, though, 
 at the same time, I harbor no great malice against 
 dry land." 
 
 " I shall never forgive it, myself, if any accident 
 has befallen Griffiths, in this excursion," rejoined the 
 lieutenant ; " pull more from the land, and let her run 
 down, at an easy stroke, to the schooner. Keep a 
 look-out at the cliffs, boys ; it is possible that they are 
 stowed in some of the holes in the rocks, for it's no 
 daylight business they are on." 
 
 The order was promptly obeyed, and they had 
 glided along for near a mile, in this manner, in the 
 most profound silence, when suddenly the stillness 
 was broken by a heavy rush of air, and a dash of the 
 water, seemingly at no great distance from them. 
 
 THE WHALE. 
 
 " By heaven, Tom," cried Barnstable, starting, 
 " there is the blow of a whale." 
 
 " Ay, ay, sir," returned the cockswain with undis- 
 turbed composure ; " here is his spout, not half a mile 
 to seaward ; the easterly gale has driven the creater 
 to leeward, and he begins to find himself in shoal
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 233 
 
 water. He's been sleeping, while he should have been 
 working to windward !" 
 
 "The fellow takes it coolly, too ! he's in no hurry to 
 get an offing !" 
 
 "I rather conclude, sir," said the cockswain, rolling 
 over his tobacco in his mouth, very composedly, "the 
 gentleman has lost his reckoning, and don't know 
 which way to head, to take himself back into blue 
 water." 
 
 " 'Tis a fin-back !" exclaimed the lieutenant, " he 
 will soon make head-way, and be off." 
 
 " No, sir, 'tis a right whale," answered Tom ; " I 
 saw 1 lis spoilt ; he threw up a pair of as pretty rain- 
 bows as a Christian would wish to look at." 
 
 Barnstable laughed, turned himself away from the 
 tempting sight, and tried to look at the cliffs ; and 
 then unconsciously bent his longing eyes again on the 
 sluggish animal, who was throwing his huge carcass, 
 at times, tor many feet from the water, in idle gambols. 
 The temptation for sport at length prevailed over his 
 anxiety in behalf of his friends, and the young officer 
 inquired of his cockswain — 
 
 "Is there any whale-line in the boat, to make fast 
 to that harpoon which you bear about with you in fair 
 weather or foul '.■' ,, 
 
 " I never trust the boal from the schooner without 
 part of a shot, sir," returned the cockswain ; ''there 
 is something nateral in the Bight of a tub to my old 
 eyes." 
 
 Barnstable looked at his watch, and again at the 
 cliffs, when he exclaimed, in joyous, tones —
 
 234 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 " Give strong way, my hearties ! There seems 
 nothing better to be clone ; let us have a stroke of a 
 harpoon at that impudent rascal." 
 
 The men shouted spontaneously, and the old cock- 
 swain suffered his solemn visage to relax into a small 
 laugh, while the whale-boat sprung forward like a 
 courser for the goal. During the few minutes they 
 were pulling toward their game, Long Tom arose from 
 his crouching attitude in the stern-sheets, and trans- 
 ferred his huge form to the bows of the boat, where 
 he made such preparations to strike the whale as the 
 occasion required. 
 
 Their approach was utterly unnoticed by the mon- 
 ster of the deep, who continued to amuse himself with 
 throwing the water, in two circular spouts, high into 
 the air, occasionally nourishing the broad flukes of 
 his tail with a graceful but terrific force, until the 
 hardy seamen were within a few hundred feet of him, 
 when he suddenly cast his head downward, and, with- 
 out an apparent effort, reared his immense body for 
 many feet above the water, waving his tail violently, 
 and producing a whizzing noise, that sounded like 
 the rushing of winds. 
 
 The cockswain stood erect, poising his harpoon, 
 ready for the blow ; but when he beheld the creature 
 assume this formidable attitude, he waved his hand to 
 his commander, who instantly signed to his men to 
 cease rowing. In this situation the sportsmen rested 
 a few moments, while the whale struck several 
 blows on the water, in rapid succession, the noise of 
 which re-echoed along the cliffs, like the hollow re-
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 235 
 
 ports of so many cannon. After this wanton exhi- 
 bition of his terrible strength, the monster sunk again 
 into his native element, and slowly disappeared from, 
 the eyes of his pursuers. 
 
 " Winch way did he head, Tom ?" cried Barnstable, 
 the moment the whale was out of sight. 
 
 "Pretty much up and down, sir," returned the 
 cockswain, whose eye Avas gradually brightening with 
 the excitement of the sport ; " he'll soon run his nose 
 against the bottom, if he stands long on that course, 
 and will be glad to get another snuff of pure air ; 
 Bend her a few fathoms to starboard, sir, and I prom- 
 ise we shall not be out of his track." 
 
 The conjecture of the experienced old seaman 
 proved true, for in a few minutes the water broke 
 near them, and another spout was cast into the air, 
 when the huge animal rushed, for half his length, in 
 the same direction, and fell on the sea, with a turbu- 
 lence and loam equal to that which is produced by 
 the launching of a vessel, for the first time, into its 
 proper element. After this evolution, the whale 
 rolled heavily, and seemed to rest from further 
 efforts. 
 
 His slightest movements were closely watched by 
 Barnstable and his cockswain, and when he was in a 
 state of comparative rest, the former gave a signal to 
 his crew to ply their oars once more. A few long 
 and vigorous strokes sent the boat directly up to the 
 broadside of the whale, with its bows pointing to- 
 ward one of the fins, which was, at times, as the 
 animal yielded sluggishly to the action of the wave-,
 
 236 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 exposed to view. The cockswain poised his harpoon 
 with much precision, and then darted it from him with 
 a violence that buried the iron in the blubber of their 
 foe. The instant the blow was made, Long Tom 
 shouted, "Starn all!" 
 
 " Stern all !" echoed Barnstable ; when the obedient 
 seamen, by united efforts, forced the boat in a back- 
 ward direction, beyond the reach of any blow from 
 their formidable antagonist. The alarmed animal, 
 however, meditated no such resistance ; ignorant of 
 his own power, and of the insignificance of his ene- 
 mies, he sought refuge in flight. One moment of 
 stupid surprise succeeded the entrance of the iron, 
 when he cast his huge tail into the air, with a violence 
 that threw the sea around him into increased commo- 
 tion, and then disappeared with the quickness of 
 lightning, amid a cloud of foam. 
 
 " Snub him !" shouted Barnstable; " hold on, Tom ; 
 he rises already." 
 
 "Ay, ay, sir," replied the composed cockswain, 
 seizing the line, which was running out of the boat 
 with a velocity that rendered such a manoeuvre rather 
 hazardous, and causing it to yield more gradually 
 round the large loggerhead that was placed in the 
 bows of the boat for that purpose. Presently the 
 line stretched forward, and rising to the surface, with 
 tremulous vibrations, it indicated the direction in 
 which the animal might be expected to re-appear. 
 Barnstable had cast the bows of the boat toward 
 that point, before the terrified and wounded victim 
 rose once more to the surface, whose time was, how-
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 237 
 
 ever, no longer wasted in his sports, but who cast the 
 waters aside, as he forced his way, with prodigious 
 velocity, along their surface. The boat was dragged 
 violently in his wake, and cut through the billows 
 with a terrific rapidity, that at moments appeared to 
 bury the slight fabric in the ocean. When Long Tom 
 beheld his victim throwing his spouts on high again, 
 he pointed with exultation to the jetting fluid, which 
 was streaked with the deep red of blood, and cried — 
 
 " Ay ! I've touched the felloAv's life ! it must be 
 more than two feet of blubber that stops my iron 
 from reaching the life of any whale that ever sculled 
 the ocean !" 
 
 " I believe you have saved yourself the trouble of 
 using the bayonet you have rigged for a lance," said 
 his commander, who entered into the sport with all 
 the ardor of one whose youth had been chiefly 
 passed in such pursuits: "feel your line, Master Cof- 
 fin ; can we haul alongside of our enemy ? I like not 
 the course he is steering, as he tows us from the 
 schooner." 
 
 " 'Tis the creater's way, sir," said the cockswain ; 
 " you know they need the air in their nostrils, when 
 they run, the same as a man ; but lay hold, boys, and 
 let us haul up to him." 
 
 The seamen now seized the whale-line, and slowly 
 drew their boat to within a tew feet of the tail of the 
 fish, whose progress became sensibly less rapid, as he 
 grew weak with the loss of blood. In a few minutes 
 he stopped running, and appeared to roll uneasily on 
 the water, as if Buffering the agony of death.
 
 233 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 "Shall we pull in, and finish him, Tom?" cried 
 Barnstable ; " a few sets from your bayonet would 
 do it," 
 
 The cockswain stood examining his game, with cool 
 discretion, and replied to this interrogatory — 
 
 " No, sir, no — he's going into his flurry ; there's no 
 occasion for disgracing ourselves by using a soldier's 
 weapon in taking a whale. Starn off", sir, starn off ! 
 the creater's in his flurry !" 
 
 The warning of the prudent cockswain was prompt- 
 ly obeyed, and the boat cautiously drew off to a dis- 
 tance, leaving to the animal a clear space, while under 
 its dying agonies. From a state of perfect rest, the 
 terrible monster threw its tail on high, as when in 
 sport, but its blows were trebled in rapidity and vio- 
 lence, till all was hid from view by a pyramid of foam, 
 that was deeply dyed with blood. The roarings of 
 the fish were like the bellowings of a herd of bulls, 
 and to one who Avas ignorant of the fact, it would 
 have appeared as if a thousand monsters were engaged 
 in deadly combat behind the bloody mist that ob- 
 structed the view. Gradually these effects subsided, 
 and when the discolored water again settled down 
 to the long and regular swell of the ocean, the fish 
 was seen exhausted, and yielding passively to its 
 fate. As life departed, the enormous black mass 
 rolled to one side, and when the white and glistening 
 skin of the belly became apparent, the seamen well 
 knew that their victory was achieved. 
 
 "What's to be done, now ?' said Barnstable, as he 
 stood and gazed with a diminished excitement at
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 239 
 
 their victim; "lie will yield no food, and his carcass 
 will probably drift to land, and furnish our enemies 
 with the oil." 
 
 " If I had but that creater in Boston Bay," said 
 the cockswaiu, " it would prove the making of me ; 
 but such is my luck forever ! Pull up, at any rate, 
 and let me get my harpoon and line — the English 
 shall never get them while old Tom Coffin can blow." 
 
 " Don't speak too fast," said the strokesman of the 
 boat ; " whether he get your iron or not, here he 
 comes in chase !" 
 
 " What mean you, fellow ?" cried Barnstable. 
 
 " Captain Barnstable can look for himself," returned 
 the seaman, " and tell whether I speak truth." 
 
 The young sailor turned, and saw the Alacrity 
 bearing down before the wind, with all her sails set, 
 as she rounded a headland, but a short half-league to 
 windward of the place where the boat lay. 
 
 " Pass that glass to me," said the captain, with 
 steady composure. "This promises us work in one 
 of two ways ; if she be armed, it has become our 
 turn to run; if not, we are strong enough to carry 
 her." 
 
 A very brief survey made the experienced officer 
 acquainted with the true character of the vessel in 
 sight ; and, replacing the glass with much coolness, 
 he said —   
 
 "That fellow shows long arms, and ten teeth, 
 beside King George's pennant from his top-mast- 
 head. Now, my lads, you are to pull for your 
 lives."
 
 240 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 The men well understood the manner and meaning 
 of their commander ; and, throwing aside their coats, 
 they applied themselves in earnest to their task. For 
 half an hour a profound silence reigned in the boat, 
 which made an amazing progress. But many circum- 
 stances conspired to aid the cutter; she had a fine 
 breeze, with smooth water, and a strong tide in her 
 favor; and, at the expiration of the time we have 
 mentioned, it was but too apparent that the distance 
 between the pursued and pursuers was lessened 
 nearly half. Barnstable preserved his steady coun- 
 tenance, but there was an expression of care gather- 
 ing around his dark brow, which indicated that he 
 saw the increasing danger of their situation. 
 
 "That fellow has long legs, Master Coffin," he 
 said, in a cheerful tone ; " your whale-line must go 
 overboard, and the fifth oar must be handled by your 
 delicate hands." 
 
 Tom arose from his seat, and, proceeding forward, 
 he cast the tub and its contents together into the 
 sea, when he seated himself at the bow oar, and bent 
 his athletic frame with amazing vigor to the task. 
 
 " Ah ! there is much of your philosophy in that 
 stroke, Long Tom," cried the commander. "Hang the 
 whale ! but for the tow the black rascal gave us, we 
 should have been out of sight of this rover ! These 
 Englishmen have not slept the last night, and I fear 
 Griffith will fare but badly. That fellow brings a cap 
 full of wind down with him — 'tis just his play, and he 
 walks like a race-horse. Ha ! he begins to be in ear- 
 nest !"
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 241 
 
 While Barnstable was speaking, a column of white 
 smoke was seen issuing from the bows of the cutter, 
 and, as the report of a cannon was wafted to their ears, 
 the shot was seen skipping from wave to wave, toss- 
 ing the water in spray, and flying to a considerable 
 distance beyond them. The seamen cast cursory 
 glances in the direction of the passing ball, but it pro- 
 duced no manifest effect in either their conduct or ap- 
 pearance. The cockswain, who scanned its range 
 with an eye of more practice than the rest, observed, 
 "That's a lively piece for its metal, and it speaks with 
 a good clear voice ; but if they hear it aboard the 
 Ariel, the man who fired it will be sorry it wasn't 
 born dumb." 
 
 " You are the prince of philosophers, Master Cof- 
 fin !" cried Barnstable ; " there is some hope in that ; 
 let the Englishman talk away, and my life on it the 
 Ariels don't believe it is thunder; hand me a musket 
 — ril draw another shot." 
 
 The piece was given to Barnstable, who discharged 
 it several times, as if to taunt their enemies, and the 
 scheme was completely successful. Goaded by the 
 insults, the cutter discharged gun after gun at the lit- 
 tle boat, throwing the shot frequently so near as to 
 wet her crew with the spray, but without injuring 
 them in the least. The failure of these attempts to 
 injure them excited the mirth of the reckless seamen, 
 instead of creating any alarm ; and whenever a shot 
 came nearer than common, the cockswain would utter 
 some such expression as — 
 
 "A ground swell, a long shot, and a small object 
 11
 
 2 ±2 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 make a clean target;" or, "A man must squint 
 straight to hit a boat." 
 
 As, notwithstanding their unsuccessful gunnery, the 
 cutter was constantly gaining on the whale-boat, there 
 was yet a prospect of a speedy termination of the 
 chase, when the report of a cannon was thrown back 
 like an echo from one of the Englishman's discharges, 
 and Barnstable and his companions had the pleasure 
 of seeing the Ariel stretching slowly out of the little 
 bay where she had passed the night, with the smoke 
 of the gun of defiance curling above her taper masts. 
 
 A loud and simultaneous shout of rapture was given 
 by the lieutenant and all his boat's-crew, at this cheer- 
 ing sight, while the cutter took in all her light sails, 
 and, as she hauled up on the wind, she fired a whole 
 1 mi iadside at the successful fugitives. Many stands of 
 grape, with several round shot, flew by the boat, and 
 fell upon the water, near them, raising a cloud of foam, 
 but without doing any injury. 
 
 " She dies in a flurry," said Tom, casting his eyes 
 at the little vortex into which the boat was then en- 
 tering. 
 
 " If her commander be a true man," cried Barnsta- 
 ble, "he'll not leave us on so short an acquaintance. 
 Give way, my souls ! give way !" 
 
 The temptation for exertion was great, and it was 
 not disregarded by the men ; in a few minutes the 
 whale-boat reached the schooner, when the crew of 
 the latter received their commander and his compan- 
 ions with shouts and cheers that rung across the 
 waters, and reached the ears of the disappointed Eng-
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 24-3 
 
 lish troops who, during the chase, had appeared on 
 the verge of the cliffs. 
 
 THE FIGHT. 
 
 The joyful shouts and hearty cheers of the Ariel's 
 crew continued for some time after her commander 
 had reached her deck. Barnstable answered the con- 
 gratulations of his officers by cordial shakes of the 
 hand, and, after waiting for the ebullition of delight 
 among the seamen to subside a little, he beckoned 
 with an air of authority for silence. 
 
 "I thank you, my lads, for your good will," he 
 said, when all were gathered around him in deep at- 
 tention : " they have given us a tough chase, and if 
 you had left us another mile to go, we had been lost. 
 That fellow is a king's cutter, ami though his dispo- 
 sition to run to leeward is a good deal mollified, yet 
 he shows signs of fight. At any rate, lie is stripping 
 off some of his clothes, which looks as if he were 
 game. Luckily for us, we have a good working 
 breeze, tolerably smooth water, and a dead match ! 
 There is a sorl of national obligation on us to whip 
 that fellow, ami, therefore, without more words about 
 the matter, let us turn to and do it, that we may get 
 our breakfast." 
 
 To this specimen of marine eloquence, the crew 
 cheered as usual ; the young men burning for the com- 
 bat, and the few old sailors who belonged to the 
 schooner Bhaking their heads with infinite satisfaction, 
 and swearing by sundry strange oaths that their cap-
 
 s 
 
 244 STOBIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 tain "could talk, when there was need of such thin or, 
 like the best Dictionary that eve?r was launched." 
 
 During this short harangue, and the subsequent com- 
 ments, the Ariel had been kept under a cloud of 
 canvass, as near to the wind as she covdd lie, and as 
 this was her best sailing, she had stretched swiftly 
 out from the land, to a distance whence the cliffs and 
 the soldiers who were spread along their summits 
 became plainly visible. Barnstable turned his glass 
 repeatedly from the cutter to the shore, as different 
 feelings predominated in his breast, before he again 
 spoke. 
 
 "If Mr. Griffith is stowed away among those 
 rocks," he at length said, " he shall see as pretty an 
 argument discussed, in as few words, as he ever lis- 
 tened to, provided the gentlemen in yonder cutter 
 have not changed their minds as to the road they in- 
 tend to journey — what think you, Mr. Merry ?" 
 
 " I wish with all my heart and soul, sir," returned 
 the midshipman, "that Mr. Griffith was safe aboard 
 us ; it seems the countiy is alarmed, and God knows 
 Avhat will happen if he is taken ! as to the fellow to 
 windward, he'll find it easier to deal with the Ariel's 
 boat, than with her mother ; but he carries a broad 
 sail ; I question if he means to show play." 
 
 " Never doubt him, boy," said Barnstable, " he is 
 working off the shore, like a man of sense, and, be- 
 sides, he has his spectacles on, trying to make out 
 what tribe of Yankee Indians we belong to. You'll 
 see him come to the wind presently, and send a few 
 pieces of iron down this way, by the way of letting
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 245 
 
 us know where to find him. Tell the drunimei", sir, 
 to beat to quarters." 
 
 The boy had been expecting this command, and, 
 without waiting for the midshipman to communicate 
 the order, he commenced that short rub-a-dub air, 
 that will at any time rouse a thousand men from the 
 deepest sleep, and cause them to fly to their means of 
 offence, with a common soul. The crew of the Ariel, 
 at the first tap of the drum, spread with steadiness to 
 the different parts of the little vessel, where their 
 various duties called them. The cannon were sur- 
 rounded by small parties of vigorous and athletic 
 young men ; the few marines were drawn up in array 
 with muskets ; the officers appeared in their boarding 
 caps, with pistols stuck in their belts, and naked sabres 
 in their hands. The laugh of the seamen was heard 
 no longer, and those who spoke uttered their thoughts 
 only in low and indistinct whispers. 
 
 The English cutter held her way from the land, 
 until she u r "i an oiling of more than two miles, when 
 she reduced her sails to a yet smaller number, and, 
 heaving into the wind, she fired a gun in a direction 
 opposite to that which pointed to the Ariel. 
 
 " Now I would wager a quintal of codfish, Master 
 Coffin," said Barnstable, "against the best cask of 
 porter thai was ever brewed in England, that fellow 
 believes a Yankee schooner can fly in the wind's c\ e ! 
 If he wishes to speak to us, why does'nt he give his 
 cutter a little sheet, and coiiie down ?" 
 
 The cockswain had made his arrangements for the 
 combat, with much moremethod and philosophy than
 
 2-16 6TOETE.3 OF TTTE PEA. 
 
 any otner man in the vessel. When the drum beat to 
 quarters, he threw aside his jacket, vest, and shirt, 
 with as little hesitation as if he stood under an Ameri- 
 can sun, and with all the discretion of a man who had 
 engaged in an undertaking that required the free use 
 of his utmost powers. As he was known to be a 
 privileged individual in the Ariel, and one whose opin- 
 ions, in all matters of seamanship, were regarded as 
 oracles by the crew, and were listened to by his com- 
 mander with no little demonstration of respect, the 
 question excited no surprise. He was standing at the 
 breech of his long gun, with his brawny arms folded 
 on a breast that had been turned to the color of 
 blood by long exposure, his grizzled locks fluttering 
 in the breeze, and his tall form towering far above the 
 heads of all. near him. 
 
 " He hugs the wind, sir, as if it was his sweetheart," 
 was his answer; "but he'll let go his hold, soon; 
 and if he don't, w.e can find a way to make him fall to 
 leeward." 
 
 " Keep a good full !" cried the commander, in a 
 stern voice, " and let the vessel go through the water. 
 That fellow walks well, Long Tom ; but we are too 
 much for him on a bowling; though, if he continue to 
 to draw ahead in this manner, it will be night before 
 Ave can get alongside him." 
 
 " Ay, ay, sir," returned the cockswain ; " them cut- 
 ters carries a press of canvas when they seem to 
 have but little ; their gafts are all the same as young 
 booms, and spread a broad head to their mainsails. 
 But it's no hard matter to knock a few cloths out
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 247 
 
 of their bolt-ropes, when she will both drop astern 
 and to leeward." 
 
 " I believe there is good sense in your scheme, this 
 time," said Barnstable ; " for I am anxious about the 
 frigate's people — though I hate a noisy chase ; speak 
 to him, Tom, and let us see if he will answer." 
 
 "Ay, ay, sir," cried the cockswain, sinking his body 
 in such a manner as to let his head fall to a level with 
 tiie cannon that he controlled, when, after divers 
 orders, and sundry movements, to govern the direc- 
 tion of the piece, he applied a match, with a rapid mo- 
 tion, to the priming. 
 
 Barnstable sprang lightly on a gun, and watched 
 the instant when the ball would strike, with keen 
 interest, while Long Tom threw himself aside from 
 the line of the smoke with a similar intention; hold- 
 ing one of his long arms extended toward his name- 
 sake, with a finger on the vent, and supporting his 
 frame by placing the hand of the other upon the deck, 
 as iii- eyes glanced through an opposite port-hole, in 
 an attitude that most men might have despaired of 
 imitating with Buccess. 
 
 "There go the chipsl" cried Barnstable. "Bravo! 
 Master Coffin, you never planted iron in the ribs of 
 an Englishman with more judgment; let him have 
 another piece of it, and if he like the sport, we'll play 
 a same of long bowls with him." 
 
 "Ay, ay, sir," returned the cockswain, "if he holds 
 on half an hour longer, I'll dub him down to our 
 own si/.e, when we can close, and make an even tight 
 of it."
 
 248 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 The drum of the Englishman was now, for the first 
 time, heard, rattling across the waters, and echoing 
 the call to quarters, that had already proceeded from 
 the Ariel. 
 
 " Ah ! you have sent him to his guns !" said Barn- 
 stable; "we shall now hear more of it; wake him 
 up, Tom — wake him up." 
 
 " We shall start him an end, or put him to sleep 
 altogether, shortly," said the deliberate cockswain, 
 who never allowed himself to be at all hurried, even 
 by his commander. "My shot are pretty much like 
 a shoal of porpoises,,. and commonly sail in each other's 
 wake. Stand by — fheave her breech forward — so ; 
 get out of that, you young reprobate, and let my har- 
 poon alone." 
 
 " What are you at, there, Master Cofiin ?" cried 
 Barnstable; "are you tongue-tied?" 
 
 " Here's one of the boys skylarking with my har- 
 poon in the lee scuppers, and by-and-by, when I shall 
 want'it most, there'll be a no-man's-land to hunt for 
 it in." 
 
 " Never mind the boy, Tom ; send him aft here, to 
 me, and I'll polish his behavior ; give the English- 
 man some more iron." 
 
 "I want the little villain to pass up my cartridges," 
 returned the angry old seaman ; " but if you'll be so 
 good, sir, as to hit him a crack or two, now and then, 
 as he goes by you to the magazine, the monkey will 
 learn his manners, and the schooner's work will be all 
 the better done for it. A young herring-faced monkey! 
 to meddle with a tool ye don't know the use of."
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 249 
 
 "Hurrah! Tom, hurrah!" cried Barnstable, a little 
 impatiently ; " is your namesake never to open his 
 throat again !" 
 
 " Ay, ay, sir ; all ready," grumbled the cockswain, 
 "depress a little; so — so; a young baboon-behaved 
 curmudgeon; overhaul that forward fall more; stand 
 by with your match — but I'll pay him ! fire." This 
 was the actual commencement of the fight; for, as the 
 shot of Tom Coffin travelled, as he had intimated, 
 very much in the same direction, their enemy found 
 the sport becoming too hot to be endured in silence, 
 and the report of the second gun from the Ariel was 
 instantly folio wed by that of the whole broadside of 
 the Alacrity. The shot of the cutter flew in a very 
 good direction, but her guns were too light to give 
 them efficiency at that distance, and as one or two 
 were heard to strike against the bends of the 
 schooner, and tail back into the water, the cockswain, 
 whose good humor became gradually restored, as 
 the combat thickened, remarked with his customary 
 apathy — 
 
 "Them count lor no more than love-taps — does the 
 Englishman think that we are firing salutes!" 
 
 "Stir him up, Tom ! every blow you give him will 
 help to open his eyes," cried Barnstable, rubbing his 
 hands with glee, as lie witnessed the success of his 
 
 efforts to close. 
 
 Thus tar the cockswain and his crew had the fight, 
 on the pari of the Ariel, altogether to themselves, the 
 men who were siationed at the smaller and shorter 
 guns standing in perfect idleness by their sides ; but
 
 250 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 in ten or fifteen minutes the commander of the Alac- 
 rity, who had been staggered by the weight of the 
 shot that had struck him, steered boldly in such a 
 direction as would soonest bring him in contact with 
 his enemy, without exposing his vessel to be raked 
 by his fire. Barnstable watched each movement of 
 his foe, and when the vessel had got within a les- 
 sened distance, he gave the order for a general fire to 
 be opened. The action now grew warm and spirited 
 on both sides. The power of the Avind was counter- 
 acted by the constant explosion of the cannon ; and 
 instead of driving rapidly to leeward, a white canopy 
 of curling smoke hung above the Ariel, or rested on 
 the water, lingering in her wake, so as to mark the 
 path by which she was approaching to a closer and 
 still deadlier struggle. The shouts of the young 
 sailors, as they handled their instruments of death, 
 became mc*-e animated and fierce, while the cock- 
 swain pursued his occupation with the silence and 
 skill of one. who labored in a regular vocation. 
 
 " Give it them !" cried Barnstable, in a voice that 
 mhdit bo heard amid the bellowing of the cannon ; 
 " never mind their cordage, my lads ; drive home 
 their bolts, and make your marks below their ridge- 
 ropes." 
 
 Jn the mean time, the Englishman played a manful 
 game. He had suffered a heavy loss by the distant 
 cannonade, which no metal he possessed could retort 
 upon his enemy ; but he struggled nobly to repair 
 the error in judgment with which he had begun the 
 contest. The two vessels gradually drew nigher to
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 251 
 
 each other, until they both entered into the common 
 cloud created by their fire. The heavy reports of 
 the cannon were now mingled with the rattling of 
 muskets and pistols, and streaks of fire might be seen 
 glancing like flashes of lightning through the white 
 cloud which enshrouded the combatants, and many 
 minutes of painful uncertainty followed, before the 
 deeply interested soldiers, who were gazing at the 
 sctne, discovered on whose banners victory had 
 alighted. 
 
 We shall follow the combatants into their misty 
 wreath, and display to the reader the events as they 
 occurred. 
 
 The fire of the Ariel was much the most quick and 
 deadly, both because she had suffered less, and her 
 men were less exhausted ; and the cutter stood des- 
 perately on to decide the combat, after grappling, 
 hand to hand. Barnstable anticipated her intention, 
 and well understood her commander's reason for 
 adopting this course. Accordingly, he met the enemy 
 half-way, and as the vessels rushed together, the stern 
 <>i the schooner was secured to the bows of the cut- 
 ter, by the joint efforts of both parties. The voice ot 
 tlic English commander was now plainly to be heard, 
 in the uproar, calling to his men to follow him. 
 
 "Away there, hoarders! repel boarders on the star- 
 board quarter 1" shouted Barnstable through his 
 t ruin pet. 
 
 This was the last order that the gallant young sailor 
 gave, with this instrument, for, as lie spoke, he cast it 
 from him, and seizing his sabre, flew to the spot
 
 252 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 where the enemy was about to make his most despe- 
 rate effort. The shouts, execrations, and tauntings of 
 the combatants now succeeded to the roar of the 
 cannon, which could be used no longer with effect, 
 though the fight was still maintained with spirited 
 discharges of the small-arms. 
 
 " Sweep him from his decks !" cried the English 
 commander, as he appeared on his own bulwarks, 
 surrounded by a dozen of his bravest men ; " drive 
 the rebellious dogs into the sea !" 
 
 " Away there, marines!" retorted Barnstable, firing 
 his pistol at the advancing enemy ; " leave not a man 
 of them to sup his grog again." 
 
 The tremendous and close volley that succeeded 
 this order nearly accomplished the command of Barn- 
 stable to the letter, and the commander of the Alac- 
 rity, perceiving that he stood alone, reluctantly fell 
 back on the deck of his own vessel, in order to bring 
 up his men once more. 
 
 " Board her! gray beards and boys, idlers and all!" 
 shouted Barnstable, springing in adv ance of his crew 
 — a powerful arm arrested the movement of the daunt- 
 less seaman, and before he had time to recover him- 
 self, he was drawn violently back to his own vessel, 
 by the irresistible grasp of his cockswain. 
 
 "The fellow's in his flurry," said Tom, "and it 
 wouldn't be wise to go within reach of his flukes ; 
 but I'll just step ahead and give him a set with my 
 harpoon." 
 
 Without waiting for a reply, the cockswain reared 
 his tall frame on the bulwarks, and was in the atti-
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 253 
 
 tude of stepping on board of his enemy, when a sea 
 separated the vessels, and he fell with a heavy dash of 
 the waters into the ocean. As twenty muskets and 
 pistols were discharged at the instant he appeared, the 
 crew of the Ariel supposed his fall to be occasioned 
 by his wounds, and were rendered doubly fierce by 
 the sight, and the cry of their commander to — 
 
 " Revenge Long Tom ! board her ; Long Tom or 
 death !" 
 
 They threw themselves forward in irresistible num- 
 bers, and forced a passage, with much bloodshed, to 
 the forecastle of the Alacrity. The Englishman was 
 overpowered, but still remained undaunted — he ral- 
 lied his crew, and bore up most gallantly to the fray. 
 Thrusts of pikes, and blows of sabres were becoming 
 close and deadly, while muskets and pistols were con- 
 stantly discharged by those who were kept at a dis- 
 tance by the pressure of the throng of closer combat- 
 ants. 
 
 Barnstable led his men, in advance, and became a 
 mark of peculiar vengeance to his enemies, as they 
 slowly yielded before his vigorous assaults. Chance 
 had placed the two commanders on opposite sides of 
 the cutter's deek, and (lie victory seemed to incline to- 
 ward either party, wherever these daring officers di- 
 rected the struggle in person. But the Englishman, 
 perceiving that the ground he maintained in person 
 was l«»st elsewhere, made an effort to restore the 
 battle, by changing bis position, followed by one or 
 two of his besl nun. 
 
 "Hurrah I" shouted Barnstable, from the edge of
 
 254 STORIES OF TIIK SEA. 
 
 the quarter-deck, where, attended by a few men, lie 
 was driviner all before him. " Revenue — Long Tom 
 and victory !" 
 
 " We have them !" exclaimed the Englishman ; 
 "handle your pikes 1 we have them between two 
 fires." 
 
 The battle would probably have terminated very 
 differently from what previous circumstances had in- 
 dicated, had not a wild-looking figure appeared in the 
 cutter's channels at that moment, issuing from the 
 sea, and gaining the deck at the same instant. It was 
 Long Tom, with his iron visage rendered fierce by his 
 previous discomfiture, and his grizzly locks drenched 
 with the briny element, from which he had risen, 
 looking like Neptune with his trident. Without 
 speaking, he poised his harpoon, and with a powerful 
 effort, pinned the unfortunate Englishman to the mast 
 of his own vessel. 
 
 "Starn all!" cried Tom, by a sort of instinct, when 
 the blow was struck. A few of the Englishmen stood 
 chained to the spot in silent horror at the sight, but 
 most of them fled to their lower deck, or hastened to 
 conceal themselves in the secret parts of the vessel, 
 leaving to the Americans the undisputed possession 
 of the Alacrity. 
 
 Two-thirds of the cutter's crew suffered either in 
 life or limbs, by this short struggle ; nor was the vic- 
 tory obtained by Barnstable without paying the price 
 of several valuable lives. The first burst of conquest 
 was not, however, the moment to appreciate the sac- 
 rifice, and loud and reiterated shouts proclaimed the
 
 STORIES OF TTIE SEA. 255 
 
 exultation of the conquerors. As the flush of victory 
 subsided, however, recollection returned, and Barn- 
 stable issued such orders as humanity and his duty 
 rendered necessary. 
 
 THE WRECK OF THE ARIEL. 
 
 Before proceeding to extract the account of the 
 wreck of the Ariel, we must give a few words of ex- 
 planation as to the presence of one who figured con- 
 spicuously in the scene, and whose terrible fate added 
 to the horrors of the moment. Dillon was anions; the 
 prisoners captured by the Ariel — having been com- 
 pelled, as already stated, to accompany the command- 
 er of the Alacrity on his expedition. This Dillon was 
 a Tory refugee, a man utterly knavish and cowardly, 
 and who, having been false to his country, was now to 
 exhibit a treachery of a much more guilty character. 
 The captain of the Ariel, desirous of securing the free- 
 dom of Mr. Griffiths and men, acceded to the proposal 
 of this Dillon, although with some hesitation, to allow 
 him to proceed ashore and obtain an exchange of the 
 prisoners captured in the Alacrity lor the Americans on 
 shore. Dillon's proposal was so plausible, and the re- 
 peated pledges he gave of his honorable intentions 
 were bo earnest, thai Barnstable consented, sending 
 LongTom with the man on his errand. How Long 
 
 Tom was delivered up to the British soldiers l>y Dil- 
 lon; how he overheard in his confinement a plan to 
 sink the Arid at her anchor by the guns of a shore 
 battery, within range of which she lay; how he sue-
 
 256 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 ceeded in escaping and forcing himself into the apart- 
 ment of Dillon, and, seizing the traitor, carried him oif 
 bodily, threatening to kill him on the spot if he made 
 the least noise ; how he got down to the beach, though 
 hotly pursued, where Captain Barnstable in his boat 
 awaited him — are matters of great interest, it is true, 
 but too long for us to quote. Barnstable with his 
 prisoner reached the Ariel just in time to see the en- 
 emy preparing to put Dillon's treacherous proposal 
 into operation. It was night, and lights began to ap- 
 pear in the battery, and presently the guns poured 
 forth their iron balls at the Ariel. Fortunately young 
 Merry, the midshipman, had during the night shifted 
 the position of the Ariel, so that the gunners, unable 
 to see her exact location in the darkness, fired at her 
 by the day-range. Unfortunately the wind was blow- 
 ing strong into shore from the north-east, and the 
 sullen roaring of the waters and the mournful whis- 
 tling of the winds indicated a danger to the Ariel, in 
 her position, as formidable as the guns of the battery. 
 Though every nerve of Barnstable was thrilling 
 with excitement produced by his feelings passing from 
 a state of the most doubtful apprehension to that of 
 a revived and almost confident hope of effecting his 
 escape, he assumed the command of his vessel with 
 all that stern but calm authority that seamen find it 
 most necessary to exert in the moments of extremest 
 danger. Any one of the heavy shot that their ene- 
 mies continued to hurl from their heights into the 
 darkness of the haven, he well knew, must prove fatal 
 to them, as it would, unavoidably, pass through the
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 257 
 
 slight fabric of the Ariel, and open a passage to the 
 waters, that no means he possessed could remedy. 
 His mandates were, therefore, issued, with a full per- 
 ception of the critical nature of the emergency, hut 
 -with that collectedness of manner, and intonation of 
 voice, that were best adapted to enforce a ready and 
 animated obedience. Under this impulse, the crew of 
 the schooner soon got their anchor freed from the 
 bottom, and, seizing their sweeps, they forced her, 
 by their united efforts, directly in the face of the bat- 
 tery. So long as the seamen were enabled to keep 
 their little bark under the cover of the hill, they were, 
 of course, safe; but Barnstable perceived, as they 
 emerged from its shadow, and were drawing nigh 
 the passage whirl) led into the ocean, that the action 
 of his sweeps would no longer avail them against the 
 currents of air they encountered, neither would the 
 darkness conceal their movements from his enemy, 
 who had already employed men on the shore to dis- 
 cern the position <»f the schooner. Throwing off at 
 once, therefore, all appearance of disguise, he gave 
 forth the word to spread the canvas of his vessel, in 
 his ordinary cheerful manner. 
 
 The sails had been loosened and set; and, as the 
 vessel approached the throat of the passage, the gale, 
 which was blowing with increasing violence, began 
 to make a very sensible impression on the light bark. 
 The cockswain, who, in the absence of most of the in- 
 ferior officers, had been acting, on the forecastle, the 
 pari of one who felt, from his years and experience, 
 that he had some right to advise, if not to command, 
 17
 
 258 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 at such a juncture, now walked to the station which 
 his commander had taken, near the helmsman, 
 as if willing to place himself in the way of being 
 seen. 
 
 "Well, Master Coffin," said Barnstable, who well 
 understood the propensity his old shipmate had to 
 commune with him, on all important occasions, " what 
 think you of the cruise, now? If we fetch to wind- 
 ward of the northern point, we shall lay out into the 
 offing, and in ten minutes we might laugh at Queen 
 Anne's pocket-piece which, you know, old boy, sent a 
 ball from Dover to Calais." 
 
 "Ay, sir, I've heard of the gun," returned the 
 grave seaman, " and a lively piece it must have been, 
 if the streights were always of the same width they 
 are now. But I see that, Captain Barnstable, which 
 is more dangerous than a dozen of the heaviest cannon 
 that were ever cast can be at half a league's distance. 
 The water is bubbling through our lee-scuppers, 
 alreadv, sir." 
 
 " And what of that ? haven't I buried her guns 
 often, and yet kept every spar in her without crack 
 or splinter?" 
 
 "Ay, ay, sir, you have done it, and can do it 
 again, where there is sea-room, which is all that a 
 man wants for comfort in this life. But when we are 
 <nit of these chops, we shall be embayed, with a heavy 
 north-easter setting dead into the bight; it is that 
 which I fear, Captain Barnstable, more than all the 
 powder and ball in the whole island." 
 
 " We will beat her out of the bight, old fellow,"
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 259 
 
 cried the lieutenant ; " we shall have a leg of three 
 leagues in length to do it in." 
 
 " I have known longer legs too short," returned 
 the cockswain, shaking his head ; " a tumbling sea, 
 with a lee-tide, on a lee-shore, makes a sad lee-way." 
 
 The lieutenant was in the act of replying to this 
 saying, with a cheerful Laugh, when the whistling of 
 a passing shot was instantly succeeded by the crash 
 of splintered wood, and at the next moment the head 
 of the main-mast, after tottering for an instant in the 
 <_::i!>', I'll toward the deck, bringing with it the main- 
 sail, and the long line of top-mast, that had been 
 bearing the emblems of America, as the cockswain 
 had expressed it, among the stars of the heavens. 
 
 "That was a most unlucky hit!" Barnstable suf- 
 fered to escape him in the concern of the moment; 
 but, instantly resuming all his colleetedness of man- 
 ner and voice, he gave his orders to clear the wreck, 
 and secure the fluttering canvas. 
 
 The mournful forebodings of Tom seemed to vanish 
 with the appearance of a necessity for his exertions, 
 and he was foremost among the crew in executing 
 the orders of their commander. The loss of all the 
 sail on the main-masl forced the Ariel so much from 
 her course, as to render it difficult to weather the 
 point, that jutted, under her lee, lor some distance 
 
 into the ocean. This desirable object was, however, 
 effected, by the skill of Barnstable, aided by the ex- 
 cellent properties of his vessel ; and the schooner, 
 borne down by the power of the gale, from whose 
 fury she had now no protection, passed heavily along
 
 260 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 the land, heading, as far as possible, from the break- 
 ers, while the seamen were engaged in making their 
 preparations to display as much of their main-sail, as 
 the stump of the mast would allow them to spread. 
 The firing from the battery ceased, as the Ariel 
 rounded the little promontory; but Barnstable, whose 
 gaze was now bent intently on the ocean, soon per- 
 ceived that, as his cockswain had predicted, he had a 
 much more threatening danger to encounter in the 
 elements. 
 
 The Ariel continued to struggle against the winds 
 and ocean for several hours longer, before the day 
 broke on the tempestuous scene, and the anxious 
 mariners were enabled to form a more accurate esti- 
 mate of their real danger. As the violence of the 
 gale increased, the canvas of the schooner had been 
 gradually reduced, until she was unable to show more 
 than was absolutely necessary to prevent her driving 
 helplessly on the land. Barnstable watched the ap- 
 pearance of the weather, as the light slowdy opened 
 upon them, with intense anxiety. On looking to 
 windward, he beheld the green masses of water that 
 were rolling in toward the land, with a violence that 
 seemed irresistible, crowned with ridges of foam ; and 
 there were moments when the air appeared filled 
 with sparkling gems, as the rays of the rising sun 
 fell upon the spray that was swept from wave to 
 wave. Toward the land, the view was still more 
 appalling. The whole coast, from the distant head- 
 land at the south, to the well-known shoals that 
 stretched far beyond their course, in the opposite
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 261 
 
 direction, displayed a broad belt of foam, into which 
 it would have been certain destruction, for the proud- 
 est ship that swam, to have entered. Still the Ariel 
 floated on the billows, lightly and in safety, though 
 yielding to the impulses of the waters, and, at times, 
 appearing to be engulphed in the yawning chasms, 
 which, apparently, opened beneath her to receive the 
 little fabric. The low rumor of acknowledged danger 
 had found its way through the schooner, and the sea- 
 men, after fastening their hopeless looks on the small 
 spot of canvas that they were still able to show to 
 the tempest, would turn to view the dreary line 
 of coast, that seemed to offer so gloomy an alterna- 
 tive. 
 
 At this moment of appalling apprehension, the 
 cockswain exhibited the calmest resignation. He 
 knew all had been done, that lay in the power of man, 
 to urge their little vessel from the land, and it was 
 now too evident to his experienced eyes, that it had 
 been done in vain; but, considering himself as a sort 
 of fixture in the schooner, he was quite prepared to 
 abide her fate, be it for better or for worse. The 
 settled look of gloom that gathered around the frank 
 brow of Barnstable, was in no degree connected with 
 any considerations of himself, but proceeded from 
 that sort of parental responsibility, from which the 
 sea-commander is never exempt. The discipline of 
 the crew, however, still continued perfeel and un- 
 yielding. 
 
 "She can make no head against this sea, under 
 that rag of canvas," said Barnstable, gloomily,
 
 262 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 addressing the cockswain, who, with folded arms, 
 and an air of cool resignation, was balancing his 
 body on the verge of the quarter-deck, while the 
 schooner was plunging madly into waves that nearly 
 buried her in their bosom ; " the poor little thing 
 trembles like a frightened child, as she meets the 
 water." 
 
 Tom sighed heavily, and shook his head, before 
 he answered — 
 
 "If we could have kept the head of the main-mast 
 an hour longer, we might have got an offing, and 
 fetched to windward of the shoals; but as it is, sir, 
 mortal man can't drive a craft to windward — she sets 
 bodily in to land, and will be in the breakers in less 
 than an hour, unless God wills that the wind shall 
 cease to blow." 
 
 " We have no hope left us, but to anchor ; our 
 ground tackle may yet bring her up. Go, get the 
 two bowers spliced, and have a kedge bent to a haw- 
 ser: we'll back our two anchors together, and veer 
 to the better end of two hundred and forty fathoms ; 
 it may yet bring her up. See all clear there for 
 anchoring, and cutting away the mast! we'll leave 
 the wind nothing but a naked hull to whistle over." 
 
 "Ay, if there was nothing but the wind, we might 
 yet live to see the sun sink behind them hills," said 
 the cockswain; "but what hemp can stand the strain 
 of a craft that is buried, half the time, to her foremast 
 in the water?" 
 
 The order was, however, executed by the crew, 
 with a sort of desperate submission to the will of
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 263 
 
 their commander; and when the preparations were 
 completed, the anchors and hedge were dropped to 
 the bottom, and the instant that the Ariel tended to 
 the wind, the axe was applied to the little that was 
 left of her long, raking masts. The crash of the 
 falling spars, as they came, in succession, across the 
 decks of the vessel, appeared to produce no sensation 
 amid that scene of complicated danger, but the sea- 
 men proceeded in silence to their hopeless duty of 
 clearing the wrecks. It was now felt by the whole 
 crew of the Ariel, that their last means of safety had 
 been adopted, and, at each desperate and headlong 
 plunge the vessel took into the bosom of the seas 
 that rolled upon her forecastle, the anxious seamen 
 thought they could perceive the yielding of the iron 
 that yet clung to the bottom, or could hear the vio- 
 lent surge of the parting strands of the cable, that 
 still held them to their anchors. "While the minds of 
 the sailors were agitated with the faint hopes that had 
 been excited by the movements of their schooner, Dil- 
 lon had been permitted to wander about the vessel 
 unnoticed : his rolling eyes, hard breathing, and 
 clenched hands, excited no observation among the 
 men, whose thoughts were ye) dwelling on the means 
 of safety. But now, when, with a sort of frenzied des- 
 peration, he would follow the retiring waters along 
 the decks, and venture his person nigh the group that 
 had collected around and on the gun of the cockswain, 
 glances of fierce or of sullen vengeance were cast at 
 him, that conveyed threats of a nature that he was 
 too much agitated to understand.
 
 264 STORIES OF TIIE SEA. 
 
 u If ye are tired of this world, though your time, 
 like my own, is probably but short in it," said Tom 
 to him, as he passed the cockswain in one of his turns, 
 " you can go forward among the men ; but if ye 
 have need of the moments to foot up the reck'ning of 
 your doings among men, afore ye're brought to face 
 your Maker, and hear the log-book of Heaven, I 
 would advise you to keep as nigh as possible to Cap- 
 tain Barnstable or myself." 
 
 "Will you promise to save me if the vessel is 
 wrecked?" exclaimed Dillon, catching at the first 
 sounds of friendly interest that had reached his ears, 
 since he had been recaptured ; " O ! if you will, I can 
 secure you future ease ; yes, wealth, for the remain- 
 der of your days !" 
 
 " Your promises have been too ill kept afore this, 
 for the peace of your soul," returned the cockswain, 
 without bitterness, though sternly. 
 
 The intercessions of Dillon were interrupted by a 
 dreadful cry that arose among the men forward, and 
 which sounded with increased horror amid the roar- 
 ings of the tempest. The schooner rose on the breast 
 of a wave at the same instant, and, falling off with 
 her broadside to the sea, she drove in toward the 
 cliffs, like a bubble on the rapids of a cataract. 
 
 " Our ground tackle has parted," said Tom, with 
 his resigned patience of manner undisturbed ; " she 
 shall die as easy as man can make her !" While yet 
 he spoke, he seized the tiller, and gave to the vessel 
 such a direction as would be most likely to cause her 
 to strike the rocks with her bows foremost.
 
 
 STORIES Oi THE SEA. 
 
 n the wreck f iho Ariel.— Page 9«4.
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 265 
 
 There was for one moment an expression of ex- 
 quisite anguish betrayed in the dark countenance of 
 Barnstable ; but, at the next, it passed away, and he 
 spoke cheerfully to his men — 
 
 " Be steady, my lads, be calm ; there is yet a hope 
 of life for you — our light draught will let us run in 
 close to the cliffs, and it is still falling water — see your 
 boats clear, and be steady." 
 
 The crew of the whale-boat, aroused by this speech 
 from a sort of stupor, sprang into their light vessel, 
 which was quickly lowered into the sea, and kept rid- 
 ing on the foam, free from the sides of the schooner, 
 by the powerful exertions of the men. The cry for 
 the cockswain was earnest and repeated, but Tom 
 shook his head without replying, still grasping the 
 tillei", and keeping his eyes steadily bent on the chaos 
 of waters into which they were driving. The launch, 
 the largest boat of the two, was cut loose from the 
 "gripes," and the bustle and exertion of the moment 
 rendered the crew insensible to the horror of the 
 scene that surrounded them. But the loud, hoarse 
 call of the cockswain, to "look out — secure your- 
 selves l' 1 suspended even their efforts, and that in- 
 stant the Ariel settled <>n a wave that melted from 
 under her heavily on the rocks. The shock was so 
 violent as to throw all who disregarded the warning: 
 cry from their feet, and the universal quiver that per- 
 vaded the vessel was like the last shudder of animated 
 nature. For a time long enough to breathe, the 
 least experienced among the men supposed the danger 
 to be passed; but a wave of great height followed the
 
 266 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 one that bad deserted them, and raising the vessel 
 again, threw her roughly still further on the bed of 
 rocks, and at the same time its crest broke over her 
 quarter, sweeping the length of her decks, with a fury 
 that was almost resistless. The shuddering seamen 
 beheld their loosened boat driven from their grasp 
 and dashed against the base of the cliffs, where no 
 fragment of her wreck could be traced, at the reced- 
 ing of the waters. But the passing billow had 
 thrown the vessel into a position which, in some meas- 
 ure, protected her decks from the violence of those 
 that succeeded it. 
 
 " Go, my boys, go," said Barnstable, as the mo- 
 ment of dreadful uncertainty passed; "you have still 
 the whale-boat, and she, at least, will take you nigh 
 the shore. Go into her, my boys. God bless you, 
 God bless you all ! go, my friends, while there is a 
 lull." 
 
 The seamen threw themselves, in a mass, into the 
 light vessel, which nearly sunk under the unusual 
 burden ; but when they looked around them, Barn- 
 stable and Merry, Dillon and the cockswain, were 
 yet to be seen on the decks of the Ariel. The former 
 was pacing the wet planks of the schooner, while the 
 boy hung, unheeded, on his arm, uttering disregarded 
 petitions to his commander, to desert the wreck. 
 Dillon approached the side where the boat lay, again 
 and again, but the threatening countenances of the 
 seamen as often drove him back in despair. Tom 
 had seated himself on the heel of the bowsprit, 
 where he continued, in an attitude of quiet resignation.
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 267 
 
 " Now hear me," said the boy, urging his request 
 to tears ; " if not for my sake, or for your own 
 sake, Mr. Barnstable, or for the hopes of God's 
 mercy, go into the boat, for the love of my cousin 
 Katherine." 
 
 The young lieutenant paused in his troubled walk, 
 and for a moment he cast a glance of hesitation at 
 the cliffs ; but, at the next instant, his eyes fell on the 
 ruin of his vessel, and he answered — 
 
 " Never, boy, never ; if my hour has come, I will 
 not shrink from my fate." 
 
 "Listen to the men, dear sir; the boat will be 
 swamped alongside the wreck, and their cry is, that 
 without you they will not let her go." 
 
 Barnstable motioned to the boat, to bid the boy 
 enter it, and turned away in silence. 
 
 " Well," said Merry, with firmness, "if it be right 
 that a lieutenant shall stay by the wreck, it must also 
 be right for a midshipman; shove off, neither Mr. 
 Barnstable cor myself will quit the vessel." 
 
 " Boy, your life lias been entrusted to my keeping, 
 and at my hands will it be required," said his com- 
 mander, lifting the struggling youth, and tossing him 
 into the arms of the seamen. "Away with ye, and 
 God be with you; there is more weight in you, now, 
 than can go sale to land." 
 
 Siill the seamen hesitated, for they perceived the 
 cockswain moving, with a steady tread, along the 
 deck, and they hoped he had relented, and would 
 yet persuade the lieutenant to join his crew. Hut 
 Tom, imitating the example of his commander, seized
 
 288 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 the latter, suddenly, in his powerful grasp, and 
 threw him over the bulwarks, with an irresistible 
 force. At the same moment, he cast the fast of the 
 boat from the pin that held it, and, lifting his broad 
 hands high into the air, his voice was heard in the 
 tempest. 
 
 " God's will be done with me," he cried. "I saw 
 the first timber of the Ariel laid, and shall live just 
 lono- enough to see it turn out of her bottom; after 
 which I wish to live no longer." 
 
 But his shipmates were swept far beyond the 
 sounds of his voice, before half these words were 
 uttered. All command of the boat was rendered im- 
 possible, by the numbers it contained, as well as the 
 raging of the surf; and, as it rose on the white crest 
 of a wave, Tom saw his beloved little craft for the 
 last time. It fell into a trough of the sea, and in a 
 few moments more its fragments were ground into 
 splinters on the adjacent rocks. The cockswain still 
 remained where he had cast off the rope, and beheld 
 the numerous heads and arms that appeared rising, 
 at short intervals, on the waves ; some making 
 powerful and well-directed efforts to gain the sands, 
 that were becoming visible as the tide fell, and others 
 wildly tossed, in the frantic movements of helpless 
 despair. The honest old seaman gave a cry of joy, 
 as he saw Barnstable issue from the surf, bearing the 
 form of Merry in safety to the sands, where, one by 
 one, several seamen soon appeared also, dripping and 
 exhausted. 
 
 Dillon and the cockswain were now the sole occu-
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 2G9 
 
 pants of their dreadful station. The former stood, in 
 a kind of stupid despair, a witness of the scene we 
 have related ; but as his curdled blood began again 
 to flow more warmly through his heart, he crept 
 close to the side of Tom. 
 
 " Do you still think there is much danger ?" he 
 asked. 
 
 " To them that have reason to fear death. Listen! 
 do you hear that hollow noise beneath ye ?" 
 
 "'Tis the wind, driving by the vessel!" 
 
 "'Tie the poor thing herself," said the affected 
 cockswain, " giving her last groans. The water is 
 breaking up her decks, and in a few minutes more, 
 the handsomest model that ever cut a wave, will be 
 like the chips that fell from her timbers in framing!" 
 
 " Why, then, did you remain here !" cried Dillon, 
 wildly. 
 
 "To die in my coffin, if it should be the will of 
 God," returned Tom. " These waves, to me, are 
 what the land is to you ; I was born on them, and I 
 have always meant that they should be my grave.' - ' 
 
 "But I — 1," shrieked Dillon, "I am not ready to 
 die ! — 1 cannol die ! — I will not die !" 
 
 " Poor wretch !" muttered his companion; "you 
 must go like the rest of us; when the death-watch 
 is called, none can skulk from the muster." 
 
 "I can swim," Dillon continued, rushing with fran- 
 tic eagerness to the side of the wreck. " Is there no 
 billet of wood, no rope that I can take with me ?" 
 
 "None; every thing has been cut away, or car- 
 ried oil" by the sea. If ye are about to strive for your
 
 270 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 * 
 
 life, take with ye a stout heart and a clean conscience, 
 and trust the rest to God !" 
 
 The heavy groaning, produced by the water in the 
 timbers of the Ariel, at that moment added its im- 
 pulse to the raging feelings of Dillon, and he cast 
 himself headlong into the sea. 
 
 The water, thrown by the rolling of the surf on the 
 beach, was necessarily returned to the ocean in ed- 
 dies, in different places favorable to such an action of 
 the element. Into the edge of one of these counter- 
 currents that was produced by the very rocks on 
 which the schooner lay, and which the watermen call 
 the " under-tow," Dillon had unknowingly thrown his 
 person, and when the waves had driven him a short 
 distance from the wreck, he was met by a stream that 
 his most desperate efforts could not overcome. lie 
 was a light and powerful swimmer, and the struggle 
 was hard and protracted. With the shore immediate- 
 ly before his eyes, at no great distance, he was led, as 
 by a false phantom, to continue his efforts, although 
 they did not advance him a foot. The old seaman, 
 who, from his position on the bowsprit, at first had 
 watched his motions, understood the danger of his 
 situation at a glance, and shouted aloud, 
 
 " Sheer to-port, and clear the under-tow ! sheer to 
 the southward !" 
 
 Dillon heard the sounds, but his faculties were too 
 much obscured by terror to distinguish their object. 
 The current swept him diagonally by the rocks, and 
 he was forced into an eddy where he had nothing to 
 contend against but the waves, whose violence was
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 271 
 
 much broken by the wreck. In this state he con- 
 tinued still to struggle, but with a force that was too 
 much weakened to overcome the resistance he met. 
 Tom looked around him for a rope, but all had gone 
 over with the spars, or been swept away by the 
 waves. At this moment his eyes met those of the 
 desperate Dillon. Calm, and inured to horrors as 
 was the veteran seaman, he involuntarily passed his 
 hand before bis brow, to exclude the look of despair 
 he encountered ; and when, a moment afterward, he 
 removed the rigid member, he beheld the sinking 
 form of the victim as it gradually settled in the 
 ocean. 
 
 " lie will soon know his God, and learn that his 
 God knows him!" murmured the cockswain to him- 
 self. As yet he spoke, the wreck of the Ariel yielded 
 to an overwhelming sea, and, after a universal shud- 
 der, her timbers and planks gave way, and were 
 swept toward the cliffs, bearing the body of the sim- 
 ple-hen rted cockswain among the ruins.
 
 272 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 THE CRATER ; 
 
 OR, THE CKUSOES OF THE PACIFIC. 
 
 The good ship Rancocus, named after an inlet of 
 the Delaware, on a voyage to the islands of the Pa- 
 cific Ocean, for the purpose of exchanging certain 
 commodities and Yankee notions for sandal- wood, ran 
 at night upon a long line of reefs, supposed at the 
 time to he coral, in a part of the ocean where the 
 chart led the navigator to look only for open sea. 
 The ship was commanded by Captain Crutchely. 
 The first mate was Mark Woolston, who, with the 
 seaman Bob Betts, were the heroes of the incidents 
 of our story. Mark just previous to the sailing of 
 the Rancocus was married to Bridget Yardley — the 
 companion of his youth on the banks of the Delaware. 
 We mention this circumstance in order to render 
 clear numerous allusions which occur in the course of 
 the narrative. 
 
 Mark Woolston had several times called Captain 
 Crutchely's attention to what appeared to be white 
 water ahead, and expressed his fears they were nearing 
 breakers. To this, the captain would not listen, and 
 the second mate, Ililson, loudly scoffed at the idea. 
 Mark had just called the captain from his berth dur- 
 ing the night-watch — a dark and windy night — to 
 repeat to him his fears on this score, when the atmos- 
 phere appeared to be suddenly filled with a strango
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 273 
 
 si^lit : the sea became white all around them, and a 
 roar of trembling waters arose that resembled the 
 sound of a small cataract. The ship was evidently in 
 the midst of breakers, and the next moment she 
 struck ! 
 
 The intense darkness of the night added to the 
 horrors of that awful moment. Captain Crutchely 
 jumped down on the anchor-stock, and was washed 
 off by a wave. The jolly-boat was lowered with the 
 hope of saving the captain, and, with six men in her, 
 she passed ahead of the ship with this benevolent de- 
 sign. Neither the captain nor the boat were ever 
 heard of. Meanwhile the ship kept beating on the 
 reef, thumping against the rocks occasionally, but 
 not very severely. Hilson, the second mate, secretly 
 got some provisions, &c, into the launch. Mark, how- 
 ever, with lead-line in hand, was anxiously watching 
 for the moment when he might safely drop the anchor. 
 So fur, the ship was tight, the pumps revealing the 
 fact that no water was in the hold. After waiting 
 patiently a quarter of an hour, Mark believed the 
 proper time had come to anchor, and he gave the or- 
 der to "let run." The seamen stationed at the stop- 
 per obeyed, and down went the anchor. In swinging 
 t<», a roller came down upon the ship and broke on 
 board her. Hilson at that moment was in the after 
 pari of the ship, with a gang of the seamen around 
 him. Mark afterwards believed that the rush and 
 weight of this sea, which did no serious harm, fright- 
 ened the men into the launch, and thai the boat either 
 struck adrift under the power of the roller, or that the 
 18
 
 274: STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 painter was imprudently cast off in the confusion of the 
 moment. lie had gone as far as the windlass himself, 
 when the sea came aboard ; and, as soon as he recov- 
 ered his sight after the ducking he received, he caught 
 a dim view of the launch, driving off to leeward, on 
 the top of a wave. Hailing was useless, and he stood 
 gazing at the helpless boat until it became lost, like 
 everything else that was a hundred yards from the 
 ship, in the gloom of the night. Even then, Mark 
 was by no means conscious of the extent of the ca- 
 lamity that had befallen him. It was only when he 
 had visited cabin, steerage, and forecastle, and called 
 the crew over by name, that he reached the grave 
 fact that there was no one left on board the Rancocus 
 but Bob Betts and himself! 
 
 The reader may easily imagine with what impa- 
 tience our two mariners waited the slow return of 
 light. Each minute seemed an hour, and it appeared 
 to them as if the night was to last forever. But the 
 earth performed its usual revolution, and by degrees 
 sufficient light was obtained to enable Mark and Bob 
 to examine the state of things around them. No sign 
 of the boats could be seen. It was almost too terri- 
 bly certain that all of the crew of the Rancocus but 
 Bob and Mark were lost. The ship was found to 
 have beaten over a succession of reefs, and appeared 
 to be locked within them, for they were visible in all 
 di lections — not in continuous lines, but in detached 
 parts; one lying within another, as Bob had expressed 
 it, until the eye could not reach their outer limits. 
 How the ship had got so completely involved within
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 275 
 
 their dangerous embraces, without going to pieces on 
 a dozen of the reefs, was a matter of wonder ; though 
 it sometimes happens at sea that dangers are thus 
 safely passed in darkness and fog, that no man would 
 be bold enough to encounter in broad daylight. It 
 had been a sort of miracle by which the Rancocus had 
 escaped ; though it was no more easy to see how she 
 was to be got out of her present position, than it was 
 to see how she had got into it. Bob was the first to 
 make a remark on this particular part of the subject. 
 
 "It will need a reg'lar branch here, Mr. Mark, to 
 carry the old Rancocus clear of all them breakers to 
 sea again," he cried. "Our Delaware banks is just 
 so many fools to 'em, sir !" 
 
 " It is a most serious position for a vessel to be in, 
 Bob," answered Mark, sighing ; " nor do I see how 
 we are ever to get clear of it, even should we get 
 back men enough to handle the ship." 
 
 " I'm quite of your mind, sir," answered Bob, tak- 
 ing out his tobacco-box, and helping himself to a quid. 
 "Nor would I be at all surprised, should there turn 
 out to be a hit of land to leeward, if you and I was to 
 Robinson Crusoe it for the rest of our days. My 
 good mother was always most awarse to my follow- 
 ing the s«-a on account of that very danger ; most es- 
 pecially from a fear of the savages from the islands 
 round about." 
 
 "Do you think it possible for us two to take care 
 of the ship, should we even manage to get her into 
 deep water again?" 
 
 " Well, that is not so soon answered, Mr. Wool-
 
 276 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 ston," returned Bob. "We're both on ns stout, and 
 hearty, and of good courage, Mr. Mark ; but 'twould 
 be a desperate long way for two hands to carry a 
 vessel of four hundred tons, to take the old 'Cocus 
 from this here anchorage, all the way to the coast of 
 America ; and short of the coast there's no ra'al hope 
 for us. Howsever, sir, that is a subject that need 
 give us no consarn." 
 
 " I do not see that, Bob ; we shall have to do it, 
 unless we fall in with something at sea, could we 
 only once get the vessel out from among these reefs." 
 
 " Ay, ay, sir — could we get her out from among 
 these reefs, indeed ! There's the rub, Mr. Woolston." 
 
 "You think, then, we are too fairly in for it, ever 
 to get the ship clear ?" 
 
 " Such is just my notion, Mr. Woolston, on that 
 subject. In my judgment, was poor Captain Crutche- 
 ly alive and back at his post, and all hands just as 
 they were this time twenty-four hours since, and the 
 ship where she is now, that here she would have to 
 stay. Nothing short of kedging can ever take the 
 vessel clear of the reefs to windward on us, and man- 
 of-wnr hedging could hardly do it, then." 
 
 M But what will become of us unless we get the 
 ship into open water ?" 
 
 " Sure enough, sir. I see no other hope for us but 
 to Robinson Crusoe it awhile." 
 
 " Robinson Crusoe it !" repeated Mark, smiling. 
 "Where are we to find an uninhabited island on 
 which to live after the mode of Crusoe ?" 
 
 "There's a bit of a reef to leeward, where I dare
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 277 
 
 say a man might pick up a living after a fashion," 
 answered Bob, coolly; "then here is the ship." 
 
 "And how long would a hempen cable hold the 
 ship in a place like this, where, every time the vessel 
 lifts to a sea, it chafes on a rock? No, no, Bob; the 
 ship cannot long remain where she is, depend on that." 
 
 The reef to which Bob referred was a portion of 
 the rock that rose above the water, and had the ap- 
 pearance of a low, straggling island. It was some 
 eight or ten miles distant. To this reef our mariners 
 resolved to proceed at once, and see what could be 
 made of it. The dingui, a small boat, was on the 
 poop, and they got her at once into the water. It 
 was provided with a small sail. They put in provis- 
 ion-, and started, after a hearty breakfast, on their ex- 
 pedition. 
 
 It is easy to imagine the intense interest with 
 which our mariners approached this reef. The ap- 
 pearances were anything but encouraging, as they 
 drew nearer and nearer. It was about a mile in 
 length, while its breadth varied from half a mile to less 
 than an eighth of a mile. On its shores, the rock 
 along most of the reef rose hut a very few feet above 
 the surface of the water, though at its eastern, or the 
 weather extremity, it might have been of more than 
 twice the visual height. In the centre of the island 
 then- wa- a singular formation of the rock, which ap- 
 peared to rise to an elevation of something like sixty 
 or eighty feet, making a sort of a regular circular 
 mound of that height, which occupied no small part 
 of the widest portion of the island. Nothing like
 
 278 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 tree, shrub, or grass was visible, as the boat drew 
 near enough to render such things apparent. Of 
 aquatic birds there were large numbers. 
 
 At length the little dingui glided in quite near to 
 the island. Mark was at first surprised to find so lit- 
 tle surf beating against even its weather side, but this 
 was accounted for by the great number of the reefs 
 that lay for miles without it ; and, particularly, by the 
 fact that one line of rock stretched directly across 
 this weather end, distant from it only two cable's 
 lengths, forming a pretty little sheet of perfectly 
 smooth water between it and the island. 
 
 In approaching the place, both Mark and Bob had 
 strained their eyes in the hope of seeing some proof 
 that their shipmates had been there ; but no discovery 
 rewarded their search. Mark found that he was 
 treading on naked rock when he had landed, though 
 the surface was tolerably smooth. The rock itself 
 was of a sort to which he was unaccustomed ; and he 
 began to suspect, what in truth turned out on further 
 investigation to be the fact, that instead of being on a 
 reef of coral, he Avas on one of purely volcanic origin. 
 Nakedness and dreariness were the two words which 
 best described the island ; the only interruption to its 
 solitude and desolation being occasioned by the birds, 
 which now came screaming and flying above the 
 heads of the intruders. 
 
 The mound, in the centre of the reef, was an object 
 too conspicuous to escape attention, and our adven- 
 turers approached it at once, with the expectation of 
 getting a better look-out from its summit, than that
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 279 
 
 they had on the lower level of the surface of the or- 
 dinary reef. Thither, then, they proceeded, accompa- 
 nied by a large night of the birds. 
 
 On reaching the foot of this singular elevation, our 
 adventurers found it would not be so easy a matter 
 as they had fancied to ascend it. Unlike the rest of 
 the reef which they had yet seen, it appeared to be 
 composed of a crumbling rock, and this so smooth 
 and perpendicular as to render it extremely difficult 
 to get up. A place was found at length, however, 
 and by lending each other a hand, Mark and Lob 
 finally got on the summit. Here a surprise was ready 
 for them, that drew an exclamation from each. In- 
 stead of* finding an elevated bit of table-rock, as had 
 been expected, a circular cavity existed within, that 
 Mark at once recognized to be the extinct crater of a 
 volcano ! After the first astonishment was over, 
 Mark made a close examination of the place. 
 
 The mound, or barrier of lava and scoriae that com- 
 posed the outer wall of this crater, was almost math- 
 ematically circular. The area within might contain 
 a hundred acres, while the wall preserved a very even 
 height of about sixty feet, falling a little below this at 
 the Leeward side, where there existed one narrow 
 hole, <>r passage, on a level with the bottom of the 
 crater; a sort -of gateway, by which to enter and (|iiit 
 tlir cavity. This passage had no doubt been formed 
 by the exit of lava, which centuries ago hail doubtless 
 broken through at this point, and contributed to form 
 the visible reef beyond. The height of this hole was 
 some twenty feet, having an arch above it, and its
 
 280 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 width may have been thirty. "When Mark got to it, 
 which he did by descending the wall of the crater, 
 not without risk to his neck, he found the surface of 
 the crater very even and unbroken, with the excep- 
 tion of its having a slight descent from the side oppo- 
 site to the outlet, or gateway, to the gateway itself. 
 This inclination Mark fancied was owing to the cir- 
 cumstance that the water of the ocean had formerly 
 entered at the hole, in uncommonly high tides and 
 tempests, and washed the ashes which had once 
 formed the bottom of the crater toward the remote 
 parts of the plain. These ashes had been converted 
 by time into a soft, or friable rock, composing a stone 
 that is called tufa. Rock, however, the bed of the 
 crater could scarcely be yet considered, though it had 
 a crust which bore the weight of a man very readily, 
 in nearly every part of it. Once or twice Mark broke 
 through, as one would fall through rotten ice, when 
 he found his shoes covered with a light dust that 
 much resembled ashes. 
 
 That the water sometimes flowed into this crater 
 was evident by a considerable deposit of salt, which 
 marked the limits of the latest of these floods. This 
 salt had probably prevented vegetation. The water, 
 however, never could have entered from the sea, had 
 not the lava which originally made the outlet left a 
 sort of channel that was lower than the surface of the 
 outer rocks, through which the element no doubt still 
 occasionally entered, when the adjacent ocean got a 
 sufficient elevation. 
 
 Having completed this first examination of the
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 281 
 
 crater, Mark and Bob next picked their way again to 
 the summit of its wall, and took their seats directly 
 over the arch. Here they enjoyed as good a look-out 
 as the little island afforded, not only of its own sur- 
 face, but of the surrounding ocean. Mark now began 
 to comprehend the character of the singular geologi- 
 cal fo: mat ion into the midst of which the Rancocus 
 had been led, as it might almost be by the hand of 
 Providence itself. lie was at that moment seated on 
 the topmost pinnacle of a submarine mountain of 
 volcanic origin — submarine as to all its elevations, 
 heights and spaces, with the exception of the crater 
 where he bad just taken his stand, and the little bit 
 of visible and venerable lava, by which it was sur- 
 rounded. It is true that this lava rose very near the 
 surface of the ocean, in fifty places that he could see 
 at no great distance, forming the numberless breakers 
 that characterized the place ; but, with the exception 
 of Mark's Reef, as Bob named the principal island on 
 the spot — two or three detached islets — no other land 
 was visible, far or Dear, 
 
 As Mark sal there, on that rock of concrete ashes, 
 
 he speculated on the probable extent of the shoals 
 
 and reefs by which he was surrounded. Judging by 
 what he then saw, he supposed that the dangers and 
 difficulties of the navigation must extend, in an east 
 
 and wot direction, at least twelve marine leagues; 
 while, in a north and SOUth, the distance seemed, to 
 be a little, and a very little less. 
 
 From the time of reaching the reef, which is now 
 to bear his name in all future time, our young seaman
 
 282 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 had begun to admit the bitter possibility of being 
 compelled to pass the remainder of his days on it. It 
 is unnecessary to state with what bitter regrets the 
 young bridegroom admitted this painful idea ; but 
 Mark was too manly and resolute to abandon himself 
 to despair, even at such a moment. As for Bob, he 
 was a good deal of a philosopher by nature ; and, 
 having made up his mind that they were doomed to 
 " Robinson Crusoe it," for a few years at least, he was 
 already turning over in his thoughts the means of 
 doing so to the best advantage. 
 
 " We are fairly in for it, Mr. Mark," said Bob, 
 " and differ from Robinson only in the fact that there 
 are two of us ; whereas he was obliged to set up for 
 himself, and by himself, until he fell in with Friday !" 
 
 " I wish I could say that was the only difference in 
 our conditions, Betts, but it is very far from being so. 
 In the first place he had an island, while we have little 
 more than a reef; he had soil, while we have naked rock; 
 he had fresh water, and we have none ; he had trees, while 
 we have not even a spear of grass. All these circum- 
 tances make out a case most desperately against us." 
 
 "You speak truth, sir; yet is there light ahead. 
 We have a ship, sound and tight as the day she 
 sailed ; while Robinson lost his craft under his feet. 
 As long as there is a plank afloat, a true salt never 
 gives up." 
 
 " Ay, Bob, I feel that, as strongly as you can your- 
 self; nor do I mean to give up, so long as there is 
 reason to think God has not entirely deserted us. 
 But that ship is of no use, in the way of returning
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 283 
 
 to our friends and home ; or, of no use as a ship. 
 The power of man could scarcely extricate her from 
 the reefs around her." 
 
 " It's a bloody bad berth," said Bob, " that I must 
 allow. Howsomever, the ship will be of use in a 
 great many ways, Mr. Mark, if we can keep her 
 alloat, even where she is. The water that's in her 
 will last us two a twelvemonth, if we are a little 
 particular about it; and when the rainy season sets 
 in, we can fill up for a fresh start. Then the ship' 
 will be a house for us to live in, and a capital good 
 house, too. You can live aft, sir, and I'll take my 
 swing in the forecastle, just as if nothing had hap- 
 pened." 
 
 " Xo, no, Bob ; there is an end of all such distinc- 
 tions now. Misery, like the grave, brings all upon 
 a level. You .and I commenced as messmates, and 
 we are likely to end as messmates. There is a use 
 to which tlie slii|> may he put, however, that you 
 have not mentioned, and to which we must look for- 
 ward as our best hope for this world. She may be 
 broken up by US, and we may succeed in building a 
 craft large enough to navigate these mild seas, and yet 
 small enough to be taken through, or over the reel's." 
 
 u l like that idee 'specially well, and will lend a 
 hand to help you through with it with all my heart. 
 I'm not much of a carpenter, it's true; nor do I sup- 
 pose you are anything wonderful with the broad-axe 
 and adze; hut two willing and stout men, who has 
 got their lives to save, can turn their hands to al- 
 most anything."
 
 284 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 "I have been thinking, Boh," said Mark, "of the 
 possibility of* getting the ship safely down as far as 
 this island. Could we hut place her to leeward of 
 that last reef off the weather end of the island, she 
 might lie there years, or until she fell to pieces by 
 decay. If we are to attempt building a decked boat, 
 or anything large enough to ride out a gale in, we 
 shall want more room than the ship's deck to set it 
 up in. Besides, we could never gjet a craft of those 
 dimensions off the ship's decks, and must, of neces- 
 sity, build it in some place where it may be launched. 
 Our dingui would never do to be moving backward 
 and forward, so great a distance, for it will carry 
 little more than ourselves. All things considered, 
 therefore, I am of opinion we can do nothing better 
 to begin with, than to try to get the ship down 
 here, where we have room, and may carry out our 
 plan to some advantage." 
 
 Bob assented at once to this scheme, and sug- 
 gested one or two ideas in approbation of it, that 
 were new even to Mark. Thus, it was evident to 
 both, that if the ship herself were ever to get clear 
 of the reef, it must be by passing out to leeward; 
 and by bringing her down to the island so much would 
 be gained on the indispensable course. Thus, added 
 Boh, she might be securely moored in the little bay 
 to windward of the island; and, in the course of 
 time, it was possible that by a thorough examination 
 of the channels to the westward, and by the use of 
 buoys, a passage might be found, after all, that 
 would carry them out to f>ea. Mark saw many ad-
 
 STORIES OF TITE SEA. 235 
 
 vantages in this plan of removing the ship, that in- 
 creased in number and magnitude the more lie thought 
 on the subject. Security to the fresh water was one 
 great object to be attained. Should it come on to 
 blow, and the ship drift down upon the rocks to lee- 
 ward of her, she would probably go to pieces in an 
 hour or two, when not only all the other ample stores 
 thai she contained, but every drop of sweet water at 
 the command of the two seamen, would inevitably 
 be lost. After talking over these several points still 
 more at large, Mark and Bob descended from the 
 summit of the crater, made half of its circuit, and re- 
 turned to their boat. 
 
 As the day continued calm, Mark was in no hurry, 
 but passed half an hour in sounding the little bay that 
 was formed by the sunken rocks that lay off the east- 
 ern, or went her end of the reef Here he not only 
 found abundance of water for all he wanted, but to 
 his surprise he also found a sandy bottom, formed no 
 
 doubt by the particles washed from the surrounding 
 rocks under the never-ceasing abrasion of the waves. 
 On tli^ submerged reef there were only a few indies 
 of water, and our mariners saw clearly that it was 
 able to secure the ship in this basin, in a very ef- 
 fect ual manner. 
 
 After surveying the basin itself, with sufficient 
 care, 1 Job pulled the dingui back toward the ship, 
 Mark Bounding a- they proceeded. But two diffi- 
 culties weii- found between the points that it was so 
 desirable to bring in communication with each other. 
 One of these difficulties consisted in a passage be-
 
 286 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 tween two lines of reef, that ran nearly parallel for 
 a quarter of -a mile, and Avhich were only half a cable's 
 length asunder. There was abundance of water be- 
 tween these reefs, but the difficulty was in the course 
 and in the narrowness of the passage. Mark passed 
 through the latter four several times, sounding it, as 
 it might be, foot by foot. 
 
 The second obstacle was much more serious than 
 that just described. It was a reef with a good deal 
 of water over most of it ; so much, indeed, that the 
 sea . did not break, unless in heavy gales, but not 
 enough to carry a ship like the Rancocusover, except 
 in one, and that a very contracted pass, of less than a 
 hundred feet in width. This channel it would be in- 
 dispensably necessary to buoy, since a variation from 
 the true course of only a few fathoms Avould infal- 
 libly produce the loss of the ship. All the rest of 
 the distance was easily enough made by a vessel 
 standing down, by simply taking care not to run 
 into visible breakers. 
 
 Mark and Bob did not get back to the Rancocus 
 until near three o'clock. They found everything as 
 they had left it, and the pigs, poultry and goat glad 
 enough to see them, and beginning to want their 
 victuals and drink. The two first are to be found on 
 board of every ship, but the last is not quite so usual. 
 Captain Crutchely had brought one along to supply 
 milk for his tea, a beverage he was very fond of. 
 After Bob had attended to the wants of the brute 
 animals, he and Mark again sat down on the windlass 
 to make another cold repast on broken meat — as yet,
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 287 
 
 they had not the hearts to cook anything. As soon 
 as this homely meal was taken, Mark placed a conple 
 of buoys in the dingui, with the pig-iron that Avas 
 necessary to anchor them, and proceeded to the spot 
 on the reef where it was proposed to place them. 
 
 Our mariners were quite an hour in searching for 
 the channel, and near another in anchoring the buoys 
 in a way to render the passage perfectly safe. As 
 soon as this was done, Bob pulled back to the ship as 
 fast as he could, for there was every appearance of a 
 change of weather, and Mark was determined to 
 attempt his difficult task at once. "With great vigi- 
 lance, care and skill, our mariners succeeded in guid- 
 ing the ship through the intricate channels, and 
 anchoring her within the basin. When this Avas 
 done, the ship lay just mid-channel, between the 
 island and the seaside without. Then Bob took 
 off his tarpaulin, and gave three cheers, while Mark 
 walked aft, silently returning thanks to God for the 
 complete sneers-, of this important movement. 
 
 Importanl must truly was this change. Not only 
 was the ship anchored, with her heaviest anchor 
 down, ami her besl cable out, in good holding-ground, 
 and in a basin where very little swell ever penetrated, 
 hut there she was within a hundred and lil'ty feet of 
 the island, at all times accessible by means of the 
 dingui, a boat that it would not do to trust in the 
 water at all outside when it blew in the least fresh. 
 In short, it was scarcely possible to have a vessel in a 
 safer berth, or one that was more convenient to those 
 who used the island.
 
 288 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 Well might Mark and Bob rejoice in the feat they 
 had just performed. That night it blew so heavily 
 as to leave little doubt that the ship never could have 
 been kept at her anchor, outside. The rollers came 
 down in tremendous billows, breaking and roaring on 
 all sides of the island, rendering the sea white with 
 their foam, even at midnight ; but, on reaching the 
 massive, natural wall that protected the Rancocus, 
 they dashed themselves into spray against it, wetting 
 the vessel from her truck down, but doing her no 
 injury. Mark remained on deck until past twelve 
 o'clock, when, finding that the gale was already 
 breaking, he turned in and slept soundly until morn- 
 ing. 
 
 Their breakfast that morning, which included some 
 very respectable ship's coffee, was taken on the cabin- 
 table, the day being cloudless, and the sun's rays 
 possessing a power that made it unpleasant to sit 
 long anywhere out of a shade. While the meal was 
 taken, another conversation was held touching their 
 situation. 
 
 " By the maimer in which it blew last night," 
 Mark observed, " I doubt if we should have had this 
 comfortable cabin to eat in this morning, and these 
 good articles to consume, had we left the ship outside 
 until morning." 
 
 " I look upon it as a good job well done, Mr. 
 Mark," answered Bob. " I must own I had no great 
 hopes of our ever getting here, but was willing to try 
 it ; for them rollers didn't mind half-a-dozen reefs, 
 but came tumbling in over them, in a way to threaten
 
 STORIES OF TIIE SEA. 2S9 
 
 the old 'Cocus with being ground into powder. For 
 my part, sir, I thank God, from the bottom of my 
 heart, that we are here." 
 
 " You have reason to do so, Bob ; and while we 
 may both regret the misfortune that has befallen us, 
 we had need remember how much better off we are 
 than our shipmates, poor fellows! — or how much 
 better we are off than many a poor mariner who loses 
 his vessel altogether." 
 
 " Yes, the saving of the ship is a great thing for 
 us. We can hardly call this a shipwreck, Mr. Mark, 
 though we have been ashore once ; it is more like 
 being docked, than any thing else ! Why, we have 
 water, in plenty, until after the rainy season shall be 
 along, when we can catch a fresh supply. Then, 
 there is beet* and pork enough betwixt decks to last 
 you and me five or six years ; and bread and Hour in 
 good quantities, to say nothing of lots of small stores, 
 both forward and aft." 
 
 " The ship is well-found, and, as you say, Ave might 
 live a long time, years certainly, on the food she con- 
 tains. There is, however, one thing to be dreaded, 
 and to provide againsl which shall he my first care. 
 "We are now fifty days on salted provisions, and fifty 
 more will give us both the scurvy." 
 
 "The Lord in His mercy protect me from that dis- 
 ease!" exclaimed Bob. "But there must be fish in 
 plenty among these rocks, Mr. Mark, ami we have a 
 good stock of bread. By dropping the beef and 
 pork, for a few days at a time, might we not get shut 
 of the danger ?" 
 19
 
 290 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 " Fish will help us, but man requires mixed food, 
 meats and vegetables, to keep him healthy ; and 
 nothing is so good for the scurvy as the last. The 
 worst of our situation is a want of soil, to grow any 
 vegetables in. I did not see so much as a rush, or 
 the coarsest sea-plant, when we were on the island 
 yesterday. If we had soil, there is seed in plenty on 
 board, and this climate would bring forward vegeta- 
 tion at a rapid rate." 
 
 " Ay, ay, sir ; and I'll tell you what I've got in the 
 way of seeds, myself. You may remember the 
 delicious musk and water-melons we fell in with last 
 vVge, in the East. Well, sir, I saved some of the 
 seed, thinking to give it to my brother, who is a 
 Jarsey farmer, you know, sir; and, sailor-like, I for- 
 got it altogether, when in port. If a fellow could 
 get but a bit of earth to put them melon-seeds in, 
 we might be eating our fruit like gentlemen, two 
 months hence, or three months, at the latest." 
 
 " That is a good thought, Betts, and we will turn 
 it over in our minds. If such a thing is to be done 
 at all, the sooner it is done the better, that the 
 melons may be getting ahead while we are busy 
 with the other matters. This is just the season to 
 put seed into the ground, and I think we might 
 make soil enough to sustain a few hills of melons. 
 If I remember right, too, there are some of the 
 sweet potatoes left." 
 
 Bob assented, and during the rest of the meal they 
 did nothing but pursue this plan of endeavoring to 
 obtain half-a-dozen or a dozen hills of melons. Ac-
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 291 
 
 cordingly, as soon as the breakfast was ended, Mark 
 went to collect his seeds. 
 
 There were four slioats on hoard, which had been 
 kept in the launch, until that boat was put into the water, 
 night the Rancocus ran upon the rocks. Since that 
 the time they had been left to run about the decks, 
 producing a good deal of dirt, and some confusion. 
 These sboats Bob now caught, and dropped into the 
 bay, knowing that their instinct would induce them 
 to swim for the nearest land. All this turned out as 
 w:is expected, and the pigs were soon seen on the isl- 
 and, snuffing on the rocks, and trying to root. A 
 small quantity of the excrement of these animals still 
 lay on the deck, where it had been placed when the 
 launch was cleaned for service, no one thinking at 
 such a tnomenl of cleaning the decks. This manure 
 Mark was aboul to put in a half-barrel, in order to 
 carry it ashore, for the purpose of converting it into 
 soil, when Bob told him that he knew where a manure 
 Worth two of that was to be found. Bob, who had 
 reral voyages on the western coasl of America, 
 told Mark that the Peruvians and Chilians made great 
 of the dung of aquatic birds, as a manure, and 
 which they found on the rocks that lined their coast. 
 Now two or three rocks lay near the reef, thai W( re 
 covered with this deposit, the birds still hovering about 
 them, and he proposed to take the dingui, and go in 
 quesl of a little of that fertilizing manure. 
 
 h is scarcely aecessary to say that Bob had fallen on 
 a knowledge of the Use of the article which is now 
 so extensively known under the name of guano.
 
 202 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 While our young mate was getting the boat ready, 
 therefore, Bob collected his tools, provided himself 
 with a bucket, passed the half-barrel, into which Mark 
 had thrown the sweepings of the decks, into the dingui, 
 and descended himself and took the sculls. The two 
 then proceeded to Bob's rock, where, amid the screams 
 of a thousand sea-birds, the honest fellow tilled his 
 bucket with as good guano as was ever found on the 
 coast of Peru. 
 
 While the boat was at the rock, Mark saw that the 
 pigs had run round to the western end of the island, 
 snuffing at everything that came in their way, and 
 trying in vain to root wherever one of them could in- 
 sert his nose. As a hog is a particularly sagacious 
 animal, Mark kept his eyes on them while Bob was 
 picking out his guano, in the faint hope that they 
 might discover fresh water, by means of their instinct. 
 In this way he saw them enter the gate-way of the 
 crater, pigs being pretty certain to run their noses into 
 any such place as that. 
 
 On landing, Mark took a part of the tools and the 
 bucket of guano, while Bob shouldered the remainder, 
 and they went up to the hole, and entered the crater 
 together. To Mark's great delight he found that the 
 pigs were now actually rooting with some success, so 
 far as stirring the surface was concerned, though get- 
 ing absolutely nothing for their pains. There were 
 spots on the plain of the crater, however, where it 
 was possible, by breaking a sort of crust, to get down 
 into coarse ashes that were not entirely without some 
 of the essentials of soil. Exposure to the air and
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 203 
 
 water, with mixing up with seaweed and such other 
 waste materials as he could collect, the young man 
 fancied would enable him to obtain a sufficiency of 
 earthy substances to sustain the growth of plants. 
 While on the summit of the crater-wall, he had seen 
 two or three places where it had struck him sweet- 
 potatoes and beans might be made to grow, and he 
 determined to ascend to those spots, and make his 
 e^say there, as being the most removed from the in- 
 roads of the pig>. 
 
 Our two mariners had come ashore well provided 
 with the means of carrying out their plans. The 
 Rancocus was far better provided with tools suited to 
 the uses of the land than was common for ships, her 
 voyage contemplating a long stay among the islands 
 she was to visit. Thus, axes and picks were not 
 wanting, Captain Crutchely having hud on eye to the 
 possible necessity of fortifying himself against savag< s. 
 Mark now- ascended the erater-wall with a pick on his 
 shoulder, and a part of :i coil of ratlin-stuff around 
 
 hi- neck. As he went up, lie used the pick to make 
 
 steps, and did s ueli in that way, in the course of 
 
 ten minutes, as greatly to facilitate the ascent and de- 
 scent at the particular place he had selected. Once 
 on the summit, he found a part of the rock that over- 
 hung its base, and dropped one end of his line into 
 the crater. To this Boh attached the bucket, which 
 Mark hauled up and emptied. In this manner every- 
 thing was transferred to the top of the crater-wall 
 that was needed there, when Boh went down to the
 
 204 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 dinguito roll up the half-barrel of sweepings that had 
 been brought from the ship. 
 
 Mark next looked about for the places which had 
 seemed to him, on his previous visit, to have most of 
 the character of soil. These places he first picked to 
 pieces with his pick.; then he stirred them well up 
 with a hoe, scattering a little guano in the heaps, ac- 
 cording to the directions of Betts. When this was 
 done, he sent down the bucket, and hauled up the 
 sweepings of the deck, which Bob had ready for him 
 below. Nor was this all Bob had done during the 
 hour Mark was at work, in the sun, on the summit of 
 the crater. He had found a large deposit of sea-weed, 
 on a rock near the island, and had made two or three 
 trips with the dingui, back and forth, to transfer some 
 of it to the crater. After all his toil and trouble, the 
 worthy fellow did not get more than a hogshead full 
 of this new material, but Mark thought it well worth 
 Avhile to haul it up, and to endeavor to mix it with his 
 compost. 
 
 Bob now joined his friend on the crater-wall, and 
 assisted in carrying the sea-weed to the places pre- 
 pared to receive it, when both of the mariners next 
 set about mixing it up with the other ingredients of 
 the intended soil. After working for another hour in 
 this manner, they were of opinion that they might 
 make the experiment of putting in the seed. Melons, 
 of both sorts, and of the very best quality, were now 
 put into the ground, as were also beans, peas, and 
 Indian-corn, or maize. A few cucumber-seeds, and 
 some onions were also tried, Captain Crutchely hav-
 
 STOEIES OF TIIE SEA. 205 
 
 ing brought with him a considerable quantity of the 
 common garden seeds, as a benefit conferred on- the 
 natives of the islands he intended to visit, and through 
 them on future navigators. 
 
 It was dinner-time before Mark and Betts were 
 ready to quit the "Summit," as they now began to 
 t nu the only height in their solitary domains. Bob 
 had foreseen the necessity ot 'a shade, and had thrown 
 an old royal into the boat. With this, and two or 
 three Light spars, he contrived to make a sort of 
 canopy, down in the crater, beneath which he and 
 Mark dined, and took their siestas. While resting 
 on a spare studding-sail that had also been brought 
 along, the mariners talked over what they had done, 
 and what it might he best to undertake next. 
 
 At two o'clock Mark and Bob resumed their work. 
 The latter suggested the necessity of getting food 
 and water ashore for the pigs, as an aet that human- 
 ity imperiously demanded of them ; Mark assented 
 as to I lie food, but was of opinion a thunder-shower 
 was aboul to pass over the reef The weather cer- 
 tainly d'nl wear this aspect, and Boh was content to 
 wait the result, in order to save himself unnecessary 
 trouble. As for the pigs, they were still in the crater, 
 rooting, as it mighl be lor life or death, though noth- 
 ing edible had as pel rewarded them lor their toil. 
 Seeing them al WQrk in this manner, suggested to 
 .Mark to try another experiment. Among the seeds 
 of Captain Orutchely were those of oranges, lemons, 
 
 limes, shaddocks, figs, and grapes ; all plants well 
 
 enough suited to the place, if there were only soil to
 
 296 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 nourish them. Jfow, one of the hogs had been root- 
 ing, as best he might, just under the wall, making a 
 long row of little hillocks of earthy ashes, at unequal 
 distances it is true. Along this irregular row of hil- 
 locks did Mark bury his seeds, willing to try an ex- 
 periment which might possibly benefit some other 
 human being, if it never did any good to himself. 
 When this was done, he and Betts left the crater, 
 driving the hogs out before them. 
 
 Having made his plantation, Mark felt a natural 
 desire to preserve it. He got the royal, therefore, 
 and succeeded in fastening it up as a substitute for a 
 gate, in their natural gate-way. Had the pigs met 
 with any success in rooting, it is not probable this 
 slight obstacle would have prevented their finding 
 their way, again, into the cavity of the crater ; but, 
 as it was, it proA- ed all-sufficient. 
 
 The appearances of the thunder-shower were so 
 much increased by this time, that our mariners 
 hastened back to the ship in order to escape a duck- 
 ing. They had hardly got on board before the gust 
 came, a good deal of water falling. In an hour it 
 was all over, the sun coining out bright and scorch- 
 ing, after the passage of the gust. Bob now sug- 
 gested the expediency of carrying out their heaviest 
 kedge ashore, of planting it in the rocks, and of run- 
 ning out to it two or three parts of a hawser, to 
 which a line of planks might be lashed, and thus give 
 them the means of entering and quitting the ship, 
 without having recourse to the dingui. Mark ap- 
 proved of this plan, and, it requiring a raft to carry
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 297 
 
 ashore the kedge, the dingui being so light they were 
 afraid to trust it, it was decided to commence that 
 work in the morning. For the rest of the present 
 day nothing further was done, beyond light and nec- 
 essary jobs, and continuing the examination of the 
 island. Mark was curious to look at the effect of the 
 shower, both in reference to his plantations, and to 
 the quantity of fresh water that might have lodged 
 on the reef. It was determined, therefore, to pass 
 an hour or two ashore before the night shut in 
 again. 
 
 Previously to quitting the ship, Bob spoke of the 
 
 poultry. There were but six hens, a cock, and five 
 
 ducks left. They were all as low in flesh and spirits, 
 
 as it is usual to find birds that have been at sea 
 
 fifty days, and the honest tar proposed turning them 
 
 all adrift on the reef, to make their own living in the 
 
 best way they could. Now and then a little food 
 
 might be put in their way, but let them have a chance 
 
 for their lives. Mark assented at once, and the coops 
 
 were opened. Each fowl was carried to the taffrail, 
 
 and tossed into the air, when it flew down upon the 
 
 reef, a distance of a couple of hundred feet, almost as 
 
 a matter of course. Glad enough were the poor 
 
 things to be thus liberated. Bob caught the ducks, 
 
 and tossed them overboard, when they floundered 
 
 about and enjoyed themselves in a way that comma- 
 
 nicated a certain pleasure even to the desolate and 
 
 shipwrecked men who had set them at liberty. 
 
 Nothing with life now remained in the ship but the 
 
 goat, and .Mark thought it best not to turn her
 
 298 stories or the sea. 
 
 ashore until they had greater facilities for getting the 
 necessary food to her than the dingni afforded. 
 
 On lauding, every hole in the face of the cliff was 
 found tilled with fresh water. Betts was of opinion 
 that the water-casks might all be filled with the water 
 which was thus collected, the fluid having seemingly 
 all flowed into these receptacles, while little had gone 
 into the sea. This was encouraging for the future, at 
 any rate ; the want of water, previously to this 
 shower, appearing to Mark to be a more probable 
 occurrence than the want of food. The sea might 
 furnish the last, on an emergency, while it could do 
 nothing with the first. 
 
 The rain had certainly done no harm, as yet, to the 
 ] hinting. All the hills were entire, as Mark and Bob 
 had left them, though well saturated with water. In 
 a few, there might be even too much of the element, 
 perhaps, but Mark observed that a tropical sun would 
 soon remove that objection. His great apprehension 
 was, that he had commenced his gardening too late, 
 and that the dry weather might set in too soon for 
 the good of his vegetables. Here was one good 
 soaking secured, at all events. 
 
 That night our mariners had a sounder sleep than 
 they had yet been blest with since the loss of their 
 shipmates, and the accident to the vessel itself. The 
 two following days they passed in carrying out Bob's 
 plan for arranging a plank-way from the ship to the 
 reef. A raft was built, the anchors were got on 
 shore, the planks lashed on the stretchers, and a clear 
 passage from the shore thus secured. Another object
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 299 
 
 in view by our mariners was the more effectual 
 securing of the ship, her former position rendering it 
 possible that, in a heavy blow, she would chafe badly 
 against the rocks of the basin. All this occupied 
 nearly two days, and was not got through with until 
 about the middle of the afternoon of the second day. 
 It was Saturday, and Mark had determined to make 
 a good beginning, and keep all their Sabbaths, in 
 future, as holy times, set apart for the special service 
 of the Creator. When the two knocked off work, 
 Saturday afternoon, therefore, it was with an under- 
 standing that the next day was to be one of rest hi 
 the sense of Christians, and, from that time hence- 
 forth, that the Sabbath was to be kept as a holy 
 day. 
 
 While Mark went rambling around his narrow do- 
 mains, Bob got the dingui, and proceeded with his 
 fishing-tackle toward some of the naked rocks, that 
 lifted their caps above the surface of the sea. Of 
 these naked rocks there were near twenty, all within 
 a mile of the crater, and the largest of them not con- 
 taining more than six or eight acres of dry surface. 
 Some were less than a hundred feet in diameter. 
 Bettfi was very loud of fishing, and could pass whole 
 days, at a time, in that quiet amusement, provided he 
 had a sufficient supply of tobacco. Indeed, one of 
 the greatesl consolations this man possessed, under 
 the present misfortune, was the ample store of this 
 weed which was to be found in the ship. 
 
 Just as the sun was Betting, Bob returned from his 
 fishing excursion. To Mark's surprise, he saw that
 
 300 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 the dingui floated almost with her gunwale-to, and 
 he hastened down to meet his friend, who came 
 ashore in a little bay, quite near the gate-way, and in 
 which the rock did not rise as much like a wall as it 
 did on most of the exterior of the reef. Boh had 
 caught about a dozen fish, some of which were of 
 considerable size. Selecting two of the most promis- 
 ing-looking, for their own use, he threw the others on 
 the rocks, where the pigs and poultry might give 
 them a trial. Nor was it long before these creatures 
 were hard at work on them, disregarding the scales 
 and fins. This experiment satisfied the mariners that 
 there would be no difficulty in furnishing plenty of 
 food for all their stock, and for any length of time, 
 Kitty excepted. 
 
 But the principal cargo of the dingui was not the 
 dozen fish mentioned. Bob had nearly filled the boat 
 with a sort of vegetable loam, that he had found 
 lodged in the cavity of one of the largest rocks, and 
 which, from the signs around the place, he supposed 
 to have been formed by deposits of sea-weed. By an 
 accident of nature, this cavity in the rock received a 
 current, which carried large quantities of floating 
 weed into it, while every storm probably had added 
 to its stores since the mass had risen above the com- 
 mon level of the sea, by throwing fresh materials on 
 to the pile, by means of the waves, nothing quitting 
 
 it. 
 
 " How much of this muck do you suppose is to be 
 found on your rock, Bob ?" asked Mark, after he had 
 examined the dingui's cargo, by sight, taste, and
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 301 
 
 smell. " It is surprisingly like a rich earth, if it be 
 not actually so." 
 
 " Lord bless you, Mr. Mark, there is enough on't 
 to fill the old 'Cocus, ag'in and ag'in. How deep it 
 is, I don't pretend to know ; but it's a good hundred 
 paces across it, and the spot is as round as that there 
 chimbly, that you call a cr'ature." 
 
 " If that be the case, we will try our hands at it 
 next week, and see what can be done with an import- 
 ation. I do not give up the blessed hope of the 
 boat, Bob — that you will always bear in mind — but 
 it is best to keep an eye on the means of living, 
 should it please God to prevent our getting to sea 
 
 again." 
 
 " To sea, Mr. Mark, neither you nor I, nor any 
 mortal man will ever get, in the old 'Cocus, ag'in, as 
 I knows by the looks of things outside of us. 'Twill 
 never do to plant in my patch, however, for the 
 salt water must wash it whenever it blows ; though 
 a very little work, too, might keep it out, when I 
 cuine to think on it. Sparrowgrass would grow 
 there, as it is, desperately well; and Friend Abraham 
 WTiite (the owner of the Rancocus) had both seeds 
 and roots put up for the use of the savages, if a 
 body only know'd whereabouts to look for them, 
 among the lot of rubbish of that sort that he sent 
 aboard." 
 
 "All the seeds and roots are in two or three boxes, 
 in the Bteerage," answered Mark. "I'll just Step 
 up to the crater and bring a slmvel, to throw this 
 loam out of the boat with, while you can clean the
 
 302 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 fish and cook the supper. A little fresh food, after 
 so much salt, will be both pleasant and good for 
 us." 
 
 Bob assented, and each went his way. Mark 
 threw the loam into a wheelbarrow, of which there 
 were no less than three in the ship, and he wheeled 
 it, at two or three loads, into the crater, where he 
 threw it down in a pile, intending to make a compost 
 heap of all the materials of the sort he could lay his 
 hands on. 
 
 As for Bob, he cleaned both fish, taking them on 
 board the ship to do so. He put the largest and 
 coarsest into the coppers, after cutting it up, mixing 
 with it onions, pork, and ship's bread, intending 
 to start a fire beneath it early in the morning, and 
 cook a sort of chowder. The other he fried, Mark 
 and he making a most grateful meal on it, that eve- 
 ning. 
 
 The Sabbath ever dawns on the piously-inclined 
 with hope and a devout gratitude to the Creator for 
 all his mercies. With feelings of this character, did 
 Mark and Betts keep their first Sabbath on the 
 reef. The former read the morning service from be- 
 ginning to end, while the latter sat by, an attentive 
 listener. 
 
 After the religious services, for which both our 
 mariners had shaved and dressed, they took a walk 
 together, on the reef, conversing of their situation 
 and future proceedings. Bob then told Mark, for the 
 first time, that, in his opinion, there was the frame 
 and the other materials of a pinnace, or a large boat,
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 303 
 
 somewhere in the hold, which it was intended to put 
 together, when the ship reached the islands, as a con- 
 venience for cruising about among them to trade with 
 the savages, and to transport sandal-wood. The mate 
 had never heard of this boat, but acknowledged that 
 a part of the hold had been stowed while he was ab- 
 sent at Bristol. Bob confessed that he had never 
 seen it, though he had worked in the stevedore's 
 gang; but was confident he had heard Abraham 
 White and Captain Crutchely talking of it. Accord- 
 in ir to his recollection it was to be a boat consider- 
 ably larger than the launch, and to be fitted with 
 masts and sails, and to have a half-deck. Mark lis- 
 tened to all this patiently, though he firmly believed 
 that the honest fellow was deceiving himself the 
 whole time. Such a craft could scarcely be in the 
 ship, and he not hear of it, if he did not actually see 
 it ; though he thought it possible that the captain and 
 owners may have had some such plan in contempla- 
 tion, and conversed together on it, in Betts's presence. 
 A^ there were plenty of tools on hoard, however, by 
 using Btuff of one sorl or another, thai was to be 
 found in the ship, Mark had strong hopes of their 
 being able, between them, to construct, in the course 
 of time, a crafl of some sort, that should be of suffi- 
 cient Stability to withstand the billows of that ordi- 
 narily mild sea, and enable them to return to their 
 homes and friends. In conversing of things of this 
 sort, in religious observances, mid in speculating on 
 
 the probable fate of their shipmates, did our mariners 
 
 pass this holy day.
 
 30A STORIES OF TIIE SEA. 
 
 The following morning our mariners resumed their 
 more worldly duties with renewed powers. While 
 the kettle was boiling for their tea, they rolled ashore 
 a couple of empty water-casks, and filled them with 
 fresh water, at one of the largest natural reservoirs 
 on the reef, it having rained hard in the night. Af- 
 ter breakfast, Mark walked round to examine his piles 
 of loam in the crater, while Bob pulled away in the 
 dingui, to catch a few fish, and to get a new cargo of 
 the earth ; it being the intention of Mark to join him, 
 at the next trip, with the raft, which required some 
 little arranging, however, previously to its being used 
 for such a purpose. 
 
 The Rancocus had a great many planks and boards 
 in her hold, a part of the ample provision made by 
 her owners for the peculiar voyage on which she had 
 been sent. With some of these planks Mark made a 
 staging for his raft. By the time he was ready, Bob 
 returned with a load of loam, and, on the next out- 
 ward voyage, the raft was taken as well as the dingui. 
 
 Mark found Betts's deposit of decayed vegetable 
 matter even larger and more accessible than he had 
 hoped for. A hundred loads might be got without 
 even using a wheelbarrow ; and to all appearances 
 there was enough of it to give a heavy dressing to 
 many acres, possibly to the whole area of the crater. 
 The first thing the young man did was to choose a 
 suitable place, dig it well up, mixing a sufficiency of 
 guano with it, agreeably to Betts's directions, and 
 then to put in some of his asparagus roots. After 
 this he scattered a quantity of the seed, raking the
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 305 
 
 ground well after sowing. By the time this was done 
 Bob had both dingui and raft loaded, when they pulled 
 the last back to the reef, towing the boat. 
 
 In this manner our two mariners continued to work, 
 most of the time, for the next fortnight, making daily 
 more or less trips to the "loam-rock," as they called 
 the place where this precious deposit had been made. 
 As the distance was short, they could come and go 
 many times in a day, transporting at each trip about 
 as much of the loam as would make an ordinary 
 American cart-load of manure. The entire day, how- 
 ever, was on no occasion given up wholly to this pur- 
 suit. On the contrary, many little odd tasks were 
 completed, which were set by their necessities, or by 
 forethought and prudence. All the empty water- 
 casks, fur one thing, were rolled ashore, and filled at 
 the largest pool; the frequency of the rains admon- 
 ishing them of the wisdom of making a provision for 
 the dry season. As yet no water was given to any 
 of the stock, all the animals finding it in abundance 
 in the cavities of the lava. 
 
 Some of the time, moreover, Betts passed in fish- 
 ing, supplying not only Mark and himself, but the 
 pigs and the poultry, with as much food as was de- 
 sired. A cargo of guano was also imported, tin.' rich 
 manure being mixed up in liberal quantities with the 
 loam. At the end of the first week of these voyages 
 to "• loam-rock," In-tts went out to fi^h in a new direc- 
 tion, passing to windward of the "sea-wall," as they 
 called the reef that protected the ship, lie had been 
 gone a couple of hours, when Mark, who was at work 
 20
 
 30 G STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 within the crater, heard Bob's shout outside, as if he 
 wished assistance. Throwing down the pick, our 
 young man ran out, and was not a little surprised to 
 see the sort of cargo with which Bob was returning to 
 port. It would seem that a great collection of sea- 
 weed had formed to windward of the rock where Bob 
 had gone to fish, at which spot it ordinarily gathered 
 in a pile until the heap became too large to lodge any 
 longer, when, owing to the form of the rock, it inva- 
 riably broke adrift, and passed to the southward of 
 the reef, floating to leeward, to fetch up on some other 
 rock, or island, in that direction. Bob had managed 
 to get this raft round a particular point in the reef, 
 when the wind and current carried it, as near as might 
 be, directly toward the crater. He was calling to 
 Mark to come to his assistance, to help get the raft 
 into a sort of bay, ahead of him, where it might be 
 lodged ; else would there be danger of its drifting 
 past the reef, after all his pains. Our young man saw 
 at once what was wanted, got a line, succeeded in 
 throwing it to Bob, and by hauling upon it brought 
 the whole mass ashore in the very spot Betts wished 
 to see it landed. 
 
 This sea-weed proved to be a great acquisition on 
 more accounts than one. There was as much of it in 
 quantity as would have made two good-sized loads of 
 hay. Then, many small shell-fish were found among 
 it, which the pigs and poultry ate with avidity. It 
 also contained seed, that the fowls picked up as readi- 
 ly as if it had been corn. The hogs moreover masti- 
 cated a good deal of the weed, and poor Kitty, the
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 307 
 
 only one of the domestic animals on the reef that was 
 not now living to its heart's content, nibbled at it, 
 with a species of half-doubting faith in its salubrity. 
 
 At the termination of the second week, Mark and 
 Betts held a council on the subject of their future 
 proceedings. At this consultation it was decided that 
 it would be better to finish the picking up of a con- 
 siderable plot of ground, one of at least half an acre 
 in extent, that was already commenced, within the 
 crater, scatter their compost over it, and spade all up 
 together, and plant, mixing in as much of the sea- 
 weed as they could conveniently spade under. 
 
 Mark proposed to pass the next month in preparing 
 the half acre, and in getting in seed. As soon as 
 done with the tillage, it was his idea that they ought 
 to overhaul the ship thoroughly, ascertain what was 
 actually in her, and, if the materials of the boat men- 
 tioned by Betts were really to be found, to set that 
 crafl up as soon as p issible, and to get it into the 
 water. S lould they not find the frame and planks of 
 the pinnace, as Betts seemed to think they would, 
 they urn -I go to work and get out the best frame 
 they could themselves, and construct such a craft as 
 their own skill could contrive. After building such a 
 boat, it was Mark's opinion that he and Bob could 
 navigate her across that tranquil ocean, until they 
 
 reached the coast of South America, or some of the 
 islands thai were known to be friendly to the white 
 man. 
 
 The following Monday it rained nearly the whole 
 morning, confining our mariners to the ship. They
 
 308 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 took that occasion to overhaul the " 'twixt-deck" more 
 thoroughly than had yet been done, and particularly 
 to give the seed-boxes a close examination. In look- 
 ing over the packages, Mark found white clover seed 
 and timothy seed, among other things, in sufficient 
 quantity to cover most of the mount of the crater. 
 The weather temporarily clearing off, he called to 
 Bob, and they went ashore together, Mark carrying 
 some of the grass-seed in a pail, while Betts followed 
 with a vessel to hold guano. Providing a quantity of 
 the last from a barrel that had been previously filled 
 with it, and covered to protect it from the rain, they 
 clambered up the side of the crater. This was the 
 first time either had ascended since the day they fin- 
 ished their planting there, and Mark approached his 
 hills with a good deal of freshly-revived interest in 
 their fate. The reader will judge of the rapture, as 
 well of the surprise, with which he first saw a hill of 
 melons, already in the fourth leaf. Here, then, was 
 the great problem already successfully solved. 
 
 It would not be easy to portray to the reader all 
 the delight which these specks of incipient verdure 
 conveyed to the mind of Mark Woolston. It far ex- 
 ceeded the joy that would be apt to be awakened by 
 a relief from an apprehension of wanting food at a 
 distant day, for it resembled something of the char- 
 acter of a new creation. He went from hill to hill, 
 and everywhere did he discover plants, some just 
 peeping through the ashes, others already in leaf, and 
 all seemingly growing and thriving. Mark then sent 
 Bob below to bring up some buckets filled with the
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 309 
 
 earth brought from Loam Rock, or island. This soil 
 was laid carefully around each of the plants, the two 
 working alternately at the task, until a bucket-full 
 had been laid in each hill. Mark did not know it at 
 the time, but subsequent experience gave him reason 
 to suspect, that this forethought saved most of his 
 favorites from premature death. Seed might germi- 
 nate, and the plants shoot luxuriantly from out of 
 the ashes of the volcano, under the united influence 
 of the sun and rains, but it was questionable whether 
 the nourishment to be derived from such a soil would 
 prove to be sufficient to sustain the plants when they 
 got to be of an age and size to demand all the sup- 
 port they wanted. 
 
 When Mark was temporarily satisfied with gazing 
 at his new-found treasure, he went to work to scatter 
 the grass-seed over the summit and sides of the crater. 
 Inside, there was not much motive for sowing any- 
 thing, the rock being so nearly perpendicular ; but on 
 the outside of the hill, or "mountain," as Bob inva- 
 riably called it, the first ten or twelve feet excepted, 
 there could be no obstacle to the seeds taking : 
 though, from the want of soil, much of it,' Mark knew, 
 must be lost; but, if it only took in spots, and gave 
 him only a t'^w green patches for the eye to rest on, 
 he felt he should be amply rewarded for his trouble. 
 Bob scattered guano wherever he scattered grass- 
 seed, and in this way they walked entirely round the 
 crater. A genial, soft rain soon came to moisten this 
 seed, and to embed it with whatever there was of soil
 
 310 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 on the surface, giving it every chance to take root 
 that circumstances would allow. 
 
 This preliminary step taken toward covering the 
 face of the mount with verdure, our mariners went to 
 work to lay out their garden, regularly, within the 
 crater. Mark manifested a good deal of ingenuity in 
 this matter. With occasional exceptions the surface 
 of the plain, or the bottom of the crater, was an even 
 crust of no great thickness, composed of concrete 
 ashes, scoria?, &c, but which might have borne the 
 weight of a loaded wagon. This crust once broken, 
 which it was not very difficult to do by means of 
 picks and crows, the materials beneath were found 
 loose enough for the purposes of agriculture, almost 
 without using the spade. Now, space being abun- 
 dant, Mark drew lines, in fanciful and winding paths, 
 leaving the crust for his walks, and only breaking 
 into the loose materials beneath wherever he wished 
 to form a bed. As each bed, Avhether oval, winding, 
 or straight, was dug, the loam and sea-weed was 
 mixed up in it, in great abundance, after which it was 
 sown, or planted. 
 
 Our mariners were quite a fortnight preparing, ma- 
 nuring, and sowing their parterre, which, w T hen com- 
 plete, occupied fully half an acre in the very centre of 
 the crater, Mark intending it for the nucleus of future 
 similar works, that might convert the whole hundred 
 acres into a garden. By the time the work was done, 
 the rains were less frequent, though it still came in 
 showers, and those that were still more favorable to 
 vegetation. In that fortnight the plants on the
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 311 
 
 mount had made great advances, showing the exu- 
 berance and growth of a tropical climate. 
 
 With a view to the approaching summer, our mar- 
 iners turned their attention to the constructing of a 
 tent within the crater. They got some old sails and 
 some spars ashore, and soon had a spacious, as well 
 as a comfortable habitation of this sort erected. The 
 AVJint of wind, or air in motion, formed the most se- 
 rious objection to the crater, as a place of residence, 
 in the hot months ; and this set Mark to work to de- 
 vise expedients for building some sort of tent, or hab- 
 itation, on the mount itself, where it would always be 
 cool, provided one could get a protection from the 
 fierce rays of the sun. 
 
 After a good deal of search, Mark selected a spot 
 on the "Summit," as he began to term the place, and 
 pitched his tent on it. Holes were made in the soil 
 rocks, and pieces of spars were inserted, to answer 
 for posts. With a commencement as solid as this, it 
 was not difficult to make the walls of the tent (or 
 marquee would be the better word, since both habita- 
 tions had nearly upright sides) by means of an old 
 ion '-course. 
 
 In this lent Mark passed most of his time. Thither 
 he conveyed many of his books, liis flute, and a por- 
 tion of his writ in-- materials. There he could sit and 
 watch the growth of the different vegetables he was 
 cultivating. As for Bob, he fished a good 'leal, both 
 in the way of supplies, ;U id for his amusement. The 
 pigs and poultry fared well, and everything seemed 
 to thrive but poor Kitty. She loved to follow Mark,
 
 312 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 and cast many a longing look up at the Summit, 
 whenever she saw him strolling about among his 
 plants. 
 
 The vegetables on the Summit, or those first put 
 into the ground, flourished surprisingly. The melons 
 soon began to run, as did the cucumbers, squashes, 
 and pumpkins ; and by the end of the next month, 
 there were a dozen large patches on the mount, that 
 were covered by a dense verdure. Nor was this all ; 
 Mark making a discovery about this time that af- 
 forded him almost as much happiness as when he first 
 saw his melons in leaf. He was seated one day, with 
 the walls of his tent brailed up, in order to allow the 
 wind to blow through, when something dark on the 
 rock caught his eye. The spot was some little dis- 
 tance from him, and, going to it, he found that large 
 quantities of his grass-seed had actually taken ! Now 
 he might hope to convert that barren-looking, and 
 often glaring rock, into a beautiful grassy hill, and 
 render that which was sometimes painful to the eyes 
 a pleasure to look upon. He did not fail to aid na- 
 ture, by scattering a fresh supply of guano all over 
 the hill. 
 
 While Mark was thus employed at home, Bob 
 rowed out to the reef, bringing in his fish in such 
 quantities that it occurred to Mark to convert them 
 also into manure. A fresh half-acre was accordingly 
 broken up within the crater ; and, as soon as a bed 
 was picked over, quantities of fish were buried in it, 
 and left there to decay. Nor did Betts neglect the 
 sea-weed the while. On several occasions he floated
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 313 
 
 large bodies of it from the outer reefs. This work, 
 however, gradually ceased, as the season advanced, 
 and summer came in earnest. This season, however, 
 did not prove by any means as formidable as Mark 
 had anticipated, the sea-breezes keeping the place 
 cool and refreshed. Our mariners now missed the 
 rain, which was by no means as frequent as it had 
 been, though it fell in larger quantities when it did 
 come. The stock had to be watered for several 
 weeks, the power of the sun causing all the water 
 that lodged in the cavities of the rocks to evaporate 
 almost immediately. 
 
 During the time it was too warm to venture out in 
 the dingui, except for half an hour of a morning, or 
 for as long a period of an evening, Mark turned his 
 attention to the ship again. Seizing suitable mo- 
 ments, each sail was loosened, thoroughly dried, tin- 
 bent, and got below. An awning was got out, and 
 spread, and the decks were wet down, morning and 
 evening. The hold was now entered, and overhauled, 
 for fche first time since the accident. 
 
 One day n- 1),,1> was rumaging about in the hold, 
 and Mark was looking on, the former got hold of a 
 piece of wood, and began to tug at it to draw it out 
 from among a pile that lay in a dark corner. After 
 several efforts, the stick came, when Mark, struck 
 with a glimpse he gol of its form, bade Bob bring it 
 under the light of the hatchway. The instant lie gol 
 a good look at it, WooKt, , n knew that Bob's "fool- 
 ish, crooked stick, which was lit to stow nowhere," 
 as the honest fellow had described it when it gave
 
 314 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 him so much troupe, was neither more nor less than 
 one of the ribs of a boat of larger size than common. 
 
 "This is providential, truly!" exclaimed Mark. 
 " Your crooked stick, Bob, is a part of the frame of 
 the pinnace of which you spoke !" 
 
 " You're right, Mr. Mark, you're right !" answered 
 Bob — " and I must have been oncommon stupid not 
 to have thought of it, when it came so hard. And if 
 there's one of the boat's bones stowed in that place, 
 there must be more to be found in the same latitude." 
 
 This was true enough. After working in that dark 
 corner of the hold for several hours, all the materials 
 of the intended craft w r ere found and collected in the 
 steerage. Neither Mark nor Betts was a boat-builder, 
 or a shipwright ; but each had a certain amount of 
 knowledge on the subject, and each well knew where 
 every piece was intended to be put. What a revo- 
 lution this discovery made in the feelings of our 
 young husband! A tumultuous rushing of all the 
 blood in his body toward his heart almost over- 
 powered him, and the future entirely changed its as- 
 pects. He did not doubt an instant of the ability of 
 Bob and himself to put these blessed materials to- 
 gether, or of their success in navigating the mild sea 
 around them, for any necessary distance, in a craft of 
 the size this must turn out to be. 
 
 The agitation and revulsion of feeling produced in 
 Mark by the discovery of the materials of the pin- 
 nace were so great as to prevent him from maturing 
 any plan for several days. He could anticipate no- 
 thing, talk of nothing, think of nothing, but these
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 315 
 
 new-found menus of quitting the reef, and of return- 
 ing to the abodes of men, and to the arms of his 
 young wife. 
 
 Betts took things more philosophically. He sub- 
 mitted to Mark, however; and when the latter told 
 him that he could wait no longer for the return of 
 cooler weather, or for the heat of the sun to become 
 less intense before he began to set up the frame of his 
 craft, as had been the first intention, Bob acquiesced 
 in the change of plan, without remonstrance. 
 
 Nevertheless, it was far easier bravely to determine 
 in this matter, than to execute. The heat was now 
 so intense, for the greater part of the day, that it 
 would far exceed the power of our two mariners to 
 support it, on a naked rock, and without shade of 
 any sort. The frame of the pinnace must be set up 
 somewhere near the water, regular ways being neces- 
 sary to launch her; and nowhere, on the shore, was 
 the smallest shade to be found, without recourse to 
 artificial means of procuring it. As Mark's impa- 
 tience would no longer brook delay, this artificial 
 shade, therefore, was the first thing to be attended 
 to. 
 
 A portion <>f the ceef having been selected for the 
 ship-yard, the frame of the pinnace, by means of the 
 raft, was towed to this spot, and a sail and spars got 
 out f.,r the purpose of the awning. The labor of 
 erecting the awning was very severe, but when com- 
 pleted, Boh was in raptures with the new ship yard. 
 It was as large as the mainsail of a ship of four hun- 
 dred tons, was complete as to shade, with the ad-
 
 316 STORIES OF THE; SEA. 
 
 vantage of letting the breeze circulate, and had a 
 reasonable chance of escaping from the calamities of a 
 flood. Mark, too, was satisfied with the result, and 
 the very next day after this task was completed onr 
 shipwrights set to work to lay their keel. That day 
 was memorable on another account. Bob had gone 
 to the Summit in quest of a tool left there, and while 
 on the mount, he ascertained the important fact that 
 the melons were beginning to ripen. He brought 
 down three or four of these delicious fruits, and Mark 
 had the gratification of tasting some of the bounties 
 of Providence, which had been bestowed as a re- 
 ward of his own industry and forethought. It was 
 not the melons alone, however, that were getting to 
 be ripe ; for, on examining himself among the vines 
 which covered fully half an acre of the Summit, Mark 
 found squashes, cucumbers, onions, sweet-potatoes, 
 tomatoes, string-beans, and two or three other vege- 
 tables, all equally fit to be used. From that time, 
 some of these plants were put in the pot daily, and 
 certain slight apprehensions which Woolston had be- 
 gun again to entertain on the subject of scurvy, were 
 soon dissipated. 
 
 It was an important day on the reef when the keel 
 of the pinnace was laid, which was named the 
 Neshamony, after an inlet of the Delaware. . On ex- 
 amining his materials, Mark ascertained that the boat- 
 builders had marked and numbered each portion of 
 the frame, each plank, and everything else that be- 
 longed to the pinnace. Holes were bored, and every- 
 thing had been done in the boat-yard that could be
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 31 7 
 
 useful to those who, it was expected, were to put the 
 work together in a distant part of the world. This 
 greatly facilitated our new boat-builders' labors. As 
 soon as the keel was laid, Mark set up the frame, 
 which came together with very little trouble. The 
 wailes were then got out, and were fitted, each piece 
 being bolted in its allotted place. The whole frame 
 was set up, the wailes were fitted and bolted, and the 
 garboard-streak got on and secured ; though a week 
 was necessary to effect these desired objects. 
 
 Our mariners now measured their new frame. The 
 keel was just four-and-twenty feet long, the distance 
 between the knight-heads and the taffrail being six 
 feet greater; the beam, from outside to outside, was 
 nine feet, and the hold might be computed at five 
 feet in depth. This gave something like a measure- 
 ment of eleven Ions. As a vessel of eleven tonsmighl 
 make very good weather in a sea-way, if properly 
 bandied, the result gave great satisfaction, Mark 
 cheering \><>h with accounts of crafts, of much smaller 
 dimensions, thai had navigated the more stormy seas, 
 with entire safety, on various occasions. 
 
 The planking of the Neshamony was no great mat- 
 ter, being completed the week it was commenced. 
 The caulking, however, gave more trouble, though 
 Bob had done a great deal of thai sort of work in his 
 day. It took a fortnight lor the honest fellow to do 
 the caulking to his own mind, and before it was fin- 
 ished another ureal discovery was made by rumaging 
 in the ship's hold, in quesl of some of tie- fastenings 
 which had not al first been found. A quantity of old
 
 31 S STOETES OF THE SEA. 
 
 sheet-copper, that had run its time on a vessel's bot- 
 tom, was brought to light, marked " copper for the 
 pinnace." To work, then, Mark and Bob went to put 
 on the sheathing-paper and copper that had thus 
 bountifully been provided for them, as soon as the 
 seams were well paid. This done, and it was no 
 great job, the paint-brush was set to work, and the 
 hull was completed ! In all, Mark and Betts were 
 eight weeks, hard at work, putting their pinnace to- 
 gether. 
 
 At length, Mark was of opinion they might pro- 
 ceed to launch the craft, and having taken all neces- 
 sary precautions, and made all requisite arrangements, 
 the next day was named for the attempt. But Bob 
 made a suggestion which changed this plan, and 
 caused a delay that was attended with very serious 
 consequences. 
 
 The weather had become cloudy, and a little men- 
 acing, for the last few days, and Bob proposed that 
 they should lower the awning, get up shears on the 
 rock, and step the mast of the pinnace before they 
 launched her, as a means of saving some labor. The 
 spar was not very heavy, it was true, and it might be 
 stepped by crossing a couple of the oars in the boat 
 itself; but a couple of light spars — top-gallant stud- 
 ding-sail booms for instance — would enable them to 
 do it much more readily, before the craft was put into 
 tlic water, than it could be done afterwards. Mark 
 listened to the suggestion, and acquiesced. The awn- 
 ing was consequently lowered, and got out of the way. 
 Then the shears were got up, and the mast was step-
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 319 
 
 ped and rigged ; the boat's sails were found and bent. 
 Mark now thought enough had been done, and that, 
 the next day, they might undertake the launch. But 
 another suggestion of Bob's delayed the proceed- 
 ings. 
 
 The weather still continued clouded and menacing. 
 Betts was of opinion, therefore, that it might be well 
 to stow the provisions and water they intended to 
 use in the pinnace, while she was on the stocks, as they 
 could work round her so much the more easily then 
 than afterwards. Accordingly, the breakers were got 
 out, on board the ship, and filled with fresh water. 
 They were then struck into the raft. A barrel of beef, 
 and one of pork followed, with a quantity of bread. 
 At two trips the raft carried all the provisions and 
 stores that were wanted, and the cargoes were landed, 
 rolled up to the side of the pinnace, hoisted on board 
 of her, by means of the throat-halliard, and properly 
 stowed. Two grapnels, or rather one grapnel and 
 a small kedge, were found among the pinnace's ma- 
 terials, everything belonging to her having been 
 Stowed in the same part of the ship. These, too, 
 were carried round to the ship-yard, got on board, 
 and their hawsers bent. In a word, every preparation 
 was made that might be necessary to make sail on the 
 pinnace, and to proceed to sea in her at once. 
 
 It was rather late in the afternoon of the third 
 clouded day, that Betts himself admitted no more 
 Id be done to the Neshamony, previously to put- 
 ting her into the water. When our two mariners 
 ceased the business of the day, therefore, it, was with
 
 320 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 the understanding that they would turn out early in 
 the morning, wedge up, and launch. 
 
 That night Mark and Betts both slept in the ship. 
 They had a fancy it might be the last in which they could 
 ever have any chance of doing so, and attachment to 
 the vessel induced both to return to their old berths ; 
 for latterly they had slept in hammocks, swung be- 
 neath the ship-yard awning, in order to be near their 
 work. Mark was awoke at a very early hour, by the 
 howling of a gale among the rigging and spars of the 
 Rancocus. Throwing on his clothes, and going out 
 on the quarter-deck, he found that a tempest was upon 
 them. The storm far exceeded anything that he had 
 ever before witnessed in the Pacific. The ocean was 
 violently agitated, and the rollers came in over the 
 reef with a force and majesty that seemed to disre- 
 gard the presence of the rocks. It was just light, 
 and Mark called Bob, in alarm. The aspect of things 
 was really serious, and, at first, our mariners had 
 great apprehensions for the safety of the ship. It 
 was true, the sea-wall resisted every shock of the 
 rollers that reached it, but even the billows after they 
 were broken by this obstacle came down upon the 
 vessel with a violence that brought a powerful strain 
 on every rope-yarn in the sheet-cable. But the pres- 
 ervation of the ship was no longer a motive of the 
 first consideration with them; that of the pinnace 
 being the thing now most to be regarded. Nor were 
 the signs of the danger that menaced the boat to be 
 disregarded. The water of the ocean appeared to be 
 piling in among these reefs, the rocks of which re-
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 321 
 
 sisted its passage to leewar4, and already was wash- 
 ing up on the surface of the reef, in places, threaten- 
 ing them with a general inundation. It was necessary 
 to look after the security of various articles that were 
 scattered about on the outer plain, and our mariners 
 went ashore to do so. 
 
 In the meanwhile the tempest increased in violence, 
 the sea continued to pile among the rocks, and the 
 water actually covered the whole of the outer plain 
 of the reef. Mark was obliged to let all the animals 
 within the crater as security. He then looked after 
 his tent and its contents, all of which were exposed, 
 more or less, to the power of the gale. After se- 
 curing his books, furniture, <fec, and seeing that the 
 stays of the marquee itself were likely to hold out, 
 he cast an eye to the ship, which was on that side 
 of the island also. The staunch old 'Cocus, as Bob 
 called her, was rising and falling with the waves 
 that now disturbed her usually placid basin; but, as 
 yet, her cable and anchor held her, and no harm was 
 done. 
 
 After taking this look at the ship, our mate passed 
 round the Summit, having two or three tumbles on 
 his way in consequence of pull's of wind, until he 
 readied the point over tin' gate-way, which was that 
 nearesl to the ship-yard. To his surprise, on looking 
 round for Bob, whom he thought to be at Avork 
 securing property near the gate-way, he ascertained 
 thai the honest fellow had waded down to the ship- 
 yard, and clambered on board the pinnace, with a 
 view to take care of her. The distance between the 
 21
 
 322 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 point where Mark now, stood and the Neshamoiiy 
 exceeded half a mile, and communication with the 
 voice would have been next to impossible, had the 
 wind not blown as it did. Mark, however, could 
 see his friend, and see that he was gesticulating, in 
 the most earnest manner, for himself to join him. 
 Then it was he first perceived that the pinnace was 
 in motion, seeming to move on her ways. Presently 
 the blockings were washed from under her, and the 
 boat went astern half a length at a single surge. 
 Mark made a bound down the hill, intending to 
 throw himself into the raging surf, and to swim off 
 to the aid of Betts ; but, pausing an instant to choose 
 a spot at which to get down the steep, he looked 
 toward the ship-yard, and saw the pinnace lifted on 
 a sea, and washed fairly clear of the land ! 
 
 It would have been madness in Mark to pursue his 
 intention. A boat, or craft of any sort, once adrift 
 in such a gale, could not have been overtaken by even 
 one of those islanders who are known to pass half 
 their lives in the water ; and the young man sunk 
 down on the rock, almost gasping for breath in the 
 intensity (if his distress. The sturdy old sea-dog who 
 was cast adrift, amid the raging of the elements, com- 
 ported himself in a way to do credit to his training. 
 There was nothing like despair in his manner of pro- 
 ceeding; but he coolly and intelligently set about 
 taking care of his craft. 
 
 Betts knew too well the uselessness of throwing 
 over his hedge to attempt anchoring. Nor was it 
 safe to keep the boat in the trough of the sea, his
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 323 
 
 wisest course being to run before the gale until he 
 was clear of the rocks, when he might endeavor to 
 lie-to, if his craft would bear it. In driving oft" the 
 reef, the Neshamony had gone stern foremost, almost 
 as a matter of course, vessels usually being laid down 
 with their bows towards the land. No sooner did 
 the honest old salt find he was fairly adrift, therefore, 
 than he jumped into the stern-sheets and put the 
 helm down. With stern-way on her, this caused the 
 bows of the craft to fall off; and, as she came broad- 
 side to the gale, Mark thought she would ftill over, 
 also. Some idea could be formed of the power of the 
 wind, in the fact that this sloop-rigged craft, without 
 a rag of sail set, no sooner caught the currents 
 of air abeam, than she lay down to it, as one com- 
 monly sees such craft do under their canvas in stiff 
 breezes. 
 
 It was a proof that the Neshamony was well- 
 modelled, that she began to draw ahead as soon as 
 the wind took her fairly on her broadside, when BettS 
 shifted the helm, and the pinnace fell slowly oft*. 
 When she had got nearly before the wind, she came 
 up and rolled to windward, like a ship, and Mark 
 scarce breathed as In- saw her plunging down upon 
 the reefs, like a frantic steed thai knows not whither 
 he i-- rushing in his terror. Places which were 
 usually while with the foam of breakers, could not 
 now he distinguished from any of the raging caldron 
 around them, ami it was evident that Bob musl run 
 at hazard. Twenty times did Mark expect to see the 
 pinnace disappear in the foaming waves, as it drove
 
 32-i STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 furiously onward ; but, in each instance, the light and 
 buoyant boat came up from cavities where our young 
 man fancied it must be dashed to pieces, scudding 
 away like a sea-fowl. Mark now began to hope that 
 his friend might pass over the many reefs that lay in 
 his track, and gain the open water to leeward. The 
 rise in the ocean favored such an expectation, and no 
 doubt was the reason why the Neshamony was not 
 dashed to pieces within the first five minutes after 
 she was washed ofi" her ways. Once to leeward of 
 the vast shoals that surrounded the crater, there was 
 the probability of Bob's finding smoother water, and 
 the chance of his riding out the tempest by bringing 
 his little sloop up head to sea. 
 
 Mark saw the Neshamony for about a quarter of 
 an hour after she was adrift, though long before the 
 expiration of even that brief period she was invisible 
 for many moments at a time, in consequence of the 
 distance, her Avant of sail, her lowness in the water, 
 and the troubled state of the element through which 
 she was driving. The last look he got of her was at 
 an instant when the spray was filling the atmosphere 
 like a passing cloud; when it had driven away, the 
 boat coul.l no longer be seen! 
 
 Here was a sudden and a most unexpected change 
 for the worse in the situation of Mark Woolston ! 
 Nut only had he lost the means of getting off the 
 island, but lie had lost his friend and companion. It 
 was true, Bob was a rough and an uncultivated asso- 
 ciate; but he was honest as human frailty could leave 
 a human being, true as steel in his attachments,
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 325 
 
 strong iii body, and of great professional skill. So 
 great, indeed, was the last, that our young man was 
 not without the hope he would be able to keep under 
 the lee of the shoals until the gale broke, and then 
 beat up through them, and still come to his rescue. 
 
 The gale still continued with unabated fury. Each 
 instant the water rose higher and higher on the reef, 
 until it began to enter within the crater, by means 
 of the gutters that had been worn in the lava, 
 covering two or three acres of the lower part of its 
 plain. 
 
 Finding that nothing could be done in aid of Bob, 
 Mark descended into the crater, where he found a 
 protection from the wind that no other place afforded, 
 and flung himself into one of the hammocks sus- 
 pended in the tent. Here he remained the rest of 
 that day. During the night there was a shower, and 
 when he awoke in the morning the storm had sub- 
 sided. 
 
 All was still without, ami, rising, he found that the 
 sun was shining, and that a perfect calm reigned in 
 the outer world. Water was lying in spots, in holes 
 on the Mii-facc of the crater, where the pigs were 
 drinking, ami the ducks bathing. Kitty stood in 
 sight, on the topmosi km>]l of the Summit, cropping 
 t! e young sweet grass that had so lately been re- 
 freshed by rain. The garden looked smiling, the 
 plants refreshed, and nothing as yet touched in it by 
 the visitors who had necessarily been introduced. 
 
 Our young man washed himself in one of (he pools, 
 and then crossed the plain to drive out the pigs and
 
 326 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 poultry, the necessity of husbanding his stores press- 
 ing even painfully on his mind. As he approached 
 the gate-way, he saw that the sea had retired ; and, 
 certain that the animals would take care of them- 
 selves, he drove them through the hole, and dropped 
 the sail before it. Then he sought one of the ascents, 
 and was soon on the top of the hill. The sea was 
 calm ; the points in the reefs were easily to be seen ; 
 the ship was at rest and seemingly uninjured, and the 
 whole view was one of the sweetest tranquillity and 
 security. Already had the pent and piled waters 
 diffused themselves, leaving the reef as before ; a 
 great many fish lay scattered about on the island, and 
 Mark hastened down to examine their qualities. 
 
 The pigs and poultry were already at work on the 
 game that was so liberally thrown in their way, and 
 Mark felt indebted to these scavengers for aiding him 
 in what he perceived was now a task indispensable to 
 his comfort. After going to the ship, and breaking 
 his fast, he returned to the crater, obtained a wheel- 
 barrow, and set to Avork in earnest to collect the fish, 
 which a very few hours' exposure to the sun of that 
 climate would render so offensive as to make the 
 island next to intolerable. Never in his life did our 
 young friend work harder than he did all that morn- 
 ing. Each load of fish, as it was wheeled into the 
 crater, was thrown into a trench already prepared for 
 that purpose, and the ashes were hauled over it, by 
 means of the hoe. Feeling the necessity of occupa- 
 tion to lessen his sorrow, as well as that of getting 
 rid of pestilence, which he seriously apprehended
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 327 
 
 from this inroad of animal substances, Mark toiled 
 two whole days at this work, until fairly driven from 
 it by the intolerable effluvium which arose, notwith- 
 standing all he had done, on every side of the island. 
 It is impossible to say what would have been the 
 consequences had not the birds come, in thousands, 
 to his relief They made quick work of it, clearing 
 off the fish in numbers that would be nearly incred- 
 ible. 
 
 One of the annoyances to which our solitary man 
 had found himself most subject was the glare pro- 
 duced by a burning sun on rocks and ashes of the 
 drab color of the crater. The spots of verdure that 
 he had succeeded in producing on the Summit, not 
 only relieved and refreshed his eyes, but they were 
 truly delightful as aids to the view, as well as grate- 
 ful to Kitty, which poor creature had, by this time, 
 cropped them down to a pretty short herbage. The 
 success of this experiment, the annoyance to his eyes, 
 and a feverish desire to be doing, which succeeded 
 the disappearance of Betts, set Mark upon the project 
 of s iwing grass-seed over as much of the plain of the 
 crater as lie thought he should not have occasion to 
 use for the purposes of tillage. To work he went 
 then, scattering the seed in as much profusion as the 
 quantity to be found in the ship would justify. 
 While thus employed, a heavy shower fell, ami think- 
 ing the rain a most favorable time to commit liis 
 grass-seeds to the earth, Mark worked through the 
 wliolc of it, or for several hours, perspiring with the 
 warmth and exercise.
 
 328 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 This done, a look at the garden, with a free use of 
 the hoe, was the next thing undertaken. That night 
 Mark slept in his hammock, under the crater-awning, 
 and when he awoke in the morning it was to experi- 
 ence a weight like that of lead in his forehead, a 
 raging thirst and a burning fever. Now it was that 
 our poor solitary hermit felt the magnitude of his 
 imprudence and the weight of the evils of his peculiar 
 situation. That he was about to be seriously ill he 
 knew, and it behoved him to improve the time that 
 remained to him to the utmost. Everything useful 
 to him was in the ship, and thither it became indis- 
 pensable for him to repair, if he wished to retain even 
 a chance for life. Opening an umbrella, then, and 
 supporting his tottering legs by a cane, Mark com- 
 menced a walk of very near a mile, under an almost 
 perpendicular sun, at the hottest season of the year. 
 Despair urged him on, and, after pausing often to 
 rest, he succeeded in entering the cabin, at the 
 end of the most perilous hour he had ever yet 
 passed. 
 
 How long he remained in his berth, or near it 
 rather — for he was conscious of having crawled from 
 it in quest of water, and for other purposes, on several 
 occasions — but, how long he was confined to his 
 cabin, Mark Woolston never knew. The period was 
 certainly to be measured by days, and he sometimes 
 fancied by weeks. The first probably was the truth, 
 though it might have been a fortnight. Most of that 
 time his head was light with fever, though there 
 were intervals when reason was, at least partially,
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 329 
 
 restored to him, and he hecame painfully conscious 
 of the horrors of his situation. 
 
 At length the fever abated in its violence, though 
 it began to assume, what for a man in Mark Wool- 
 ston's situation was perhaps more dangerous, a 
 character of a Low type, lingering in his system and 
 killing him by inches. Mark was aware of his con- 
 dition, and thought of the means of relief. The ship 
 had some good Philadelphia porter in her, and a 
 buttle of it stood on a shelf over his berth. This 
 object caught his eye, and he actually longed for a 
 draught of that porter. lie had sufficient strength 
 to raise himself high enough to reach it. There was 
 a hammer on the shelf, and with that instrument he 
 succeeded in making a hole in the side of the bottle, 
 and in filling a tumbler. This liquor he swallowed 
 at a single draught. It tasted deliciously to him, and 
 he took a second tumbler full, when he lay down, un- 
 certain as to the consequences. That his head was 
 affected by these two glasses of porter, Mark himself 
 was soon aware, and shortly after drowsiness fol- 
 lowed. Alter lying in an uneasy slumber for half an 
 hour, his whole person was covered with a gentle 
 perspiration, in which condition, after drawing the 
 sheel around him, the sick man fell asleep. 
 
 Our youthful liermil was quite two months in re- 
 covering from this attack of fever and in regaining 
 his strength, though by the end of one he was able 
 t.i look about him, and turn his hand to many little 
 necessary jobs. The first thing he undertook was to 
 set up a gate that would keep the animals on the
 
 330 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 outside of the crater, into which they had penetrated 
 during his sickness, and destroyed many of his veg- 
 etables. 
 
 Mark made his gate out of the fife-rail at the foot 
 of the mainmast, sawing off the stanchions for that 
 purpose. With a little alteration, it answered per- 
 fectly, being made to swing from a post that was 
 wedged into the arch, by cutting it to the proper 
 length. As this was the first attack upon the Ran- 
 cocus that had yet been made, by axe or saw, it 
 made the young man melancholy. It was done, how- 
 ever, and the gate was hung; thereby saving the 
 rest of the crop. It was high time ; the hogs and 
 poultry, to say nothing of Kitty, having already got 
 their full share. 
 
 By the time his strength returned, Mark had given 
 up altogether the hope of ever seeing Betts again. 
 It was just possible that the poor fellow might fall in 
 with a ship, or find his way to some of the islands ; 
 but, if he did so, it would be the result of chance, and 
 not of calculations. The pinnace was well provision- 
 ed, had plenty of water, and, tempests excepted, was 
 quite equal to navigating the Pacific ; and there was 
 a faint hope that Bob might continue his course to 
 the eastward, with a certainty of reaching some part 
 of South America in time. If he should take this 
 course, and succeed, what would be the consequence? 
 Who would put sufficient faith in the story of a simple 
 seaman, like Robert Betts, and send a ship to look for 
 Mark Woolston ? It was a subject he did not like to
 
 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 331 
 
 dwell on, and he kept his thoughts as much diverted 
 from it as it was in his power so to do. 
 
 When he found his health completely re-established, 
 he sat down and drew up a regular plan of dividing 
 his time between work, contemplation, and amuse- 
 ment. Fortunately, perhaps, for one who lived in a 
 climate where vegetation was so luxuriant when it 
 could be produced at all, work was pressed into his 
 service as an amusement. Of the last, there was cer- 
 tainly very little, in the common acceptation of the 
 word; but our hermit was not without it altogether. 
 He studied the habits of the sea-birds that con^re- 
 gated in thousands around so many of the rocks of 
 the reef. He made voyages to and fro, usually con- 
 necting business with pleasure. Taking favorable 
 times for such purposes, he iloated several cargoes of 
 loam to the reef, as well as two enormous rafts of sea- 
 weed. Mark was quite a month in getting these 
 materials into his compost heap, which lie intended 
 should lie in a pile liming the winter, in order that it 
 might he ready for spading in the spring. We use 
 e terms by way of distinguishing the seasons, 
 though <>f winter, strictly speaking, there was none. 
 Of tin' two, the grass grew better at mid-winter than 
 at mid-summer, the absence of the burning heat of 
 the lasl being favorable t<> its growth. As the season 
 advanced, Mark saw his grass very scnsiUy increase, 
 DOt only in surface, but in thickness. There were 
 now spots of some size, where a turf was forming, 
 nature performing all her tasks in that genial climate
 
 332 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 in about a fourth of the time it would take to effect 
 the same object in the temperate zone. 
 
 It was somewhere near mid- winter, by Mark's cal- 
 culations, when the young man commenced a new 
 task that was of great importance to his comfort, and 
 which might affect his future life. He had long de- 
 termined to lay down a boat — one of sufficient size to 
 explore the whole reef in, if not large enough to carry 
 him out to sea. He had learned so much in putting 
 the pinnace together, that he believed himself equal 
 to this new undertaking:. Materials enough remained 
 in the ship to make half a dozen boats, and in tum- 
 bling over the lumber he had found a quantity of stuff 
 that had evidently been taken in with a view to repair 
 boats, if not absolutely to construct them. A ship's 
 hold is such an omnium gatherum — stowage being 
 necessarily so close — that it usually requires time for 
 one who does not know where to put his hand on 
 every thing, to ascertain how much or how little is to 
 be found in it. It happened that Mark had been ab- 
 sent with his young wife during a part of the time 
 the Rancocus was taking in its cargo. As he over- 
 hauled the hold, he daily found fresh reasons for be- 
 lieving that the owners had made provisions, of one 
 sort and another, of which he was profoundly igno- 
 rant, hut which, as the voyage had terminated, proved 
 to be of the greatest utility. Thus it was that, just 
 as he was about to commence getting out these great 
 requisites from new planks, he came across a stem, 
 stern-frame, and keel of a boat that was intended to 
 be eighteen feet long. Of course our young man
 
 ST0KIE3 OF THE SEA. 333 
 
 profited by this discovery, getting the materials of all 
 sorts, including these, round to the ship-yard by means 
 of the raft. 
 
 For the next two months, or until he had reason 
 to believe spring had fairly set in, Mark toiled faith- 
 fully at his boat. Portions of his work gave him a 
 great deal of trouble ; some of it on account of igno- 
 rance of the craft, and some on account of his being 
 alone. Getting the awning up anew cost poor Mark 
 the toil of several days. The model of the boat cost 
 him a great deal of time and labor. Mark knew a 
 good bottom when he saw it, but that Avas a very 
 different thing from knowing how to make one. Of 
 the rules of draughting he was altogether ignorant, 
 and his eye was his only guide. But the work pro- 
 gressed favorably, though slowly, until Mark Avas 
 obliged by the progress of the seasons to quit the 
 ship-yard for the garden. 
 
 It was mid-summer ere he had his boat ready for 
 launching, lie had taken things leisurely, and com- 
 pleted his work in all its parts, before he thought of 
 putting the craft into the water. Afraid of Avonns, 
 he used some of the old copper on this boat, too ; and 
 lie painted her, inside and out, not only with fidelity, 
 but with taste. Although there was no one but Kitty 
 to talk to. In- did not forget to paint the name which 
 he had given to his new vessel, in her stern-sheets, 
 Where lie could always sec it. She Avas called the 
 
 "Bridgel Y"a«tfey;" and. notwithstanding the unfavor- 
 able circumstance! in which she had been put together, 
 Mark thought she did no discredit to her beautiful
 
 334 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 namesake, when completed. When he had every 
 thing finished, even to mast and sails, of the last of 
 -which he fitted her with mainsail and jib, the young 
 man set about his preparations for getting his vessel 
 afloat, which he soon accomplished without great 
 difficulty. 
 
 Mark was delighted with his new vessel, now that 
 it was fairly afloat, and saw that it sat on an even 
 keel, according to his best hopes. The Bridget was 
 not more than a fourth of the size of the Xeshamony, 
 though rather more than half as long. Nevertheless, 
 she was a good boat ; and Mark, knowing that he 
 must depend on sails principally to move her, had 
 built a short deck forward to prevent the seas from 
 breaking aboard her, as well as to give him a place in 
 which -he might stow away various articles, under 
 cover from the rain. Her ballast was breakers filled 
 Avith fresh water, of which there still remained several 
 in the ship. All these, as well as her masts, sails, 
 oars, <fec, were in her when she was launched; and, 
 that important event having taken place early in the 
 morning, Mark could not restrain his impatience for 
 a cruise, but determined to go out on the reef at once, 
 farther than he had ever yet ventured in the dingui, 
 in order to explore the seas around him. Accordingly, 
 he put some food on board, loosened his fasts, and 
 made sail. 
 
 The instant the boat moved ahead, and began to 
 obey her helm, Mark felt as if he had found a new 
 companion. A boat had been the young man's de- 
 light on the Delaware, in his boyhood, and he had not
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 335 
 
 tacked his present craft more than two or three times, 
 before he caught himself talking to it, and command- 
 ing it, as he would a human being. 
 
 It was easy enough to avoid all such breakers as 
 would be dangerous to a boat, by simply keeping out 
 of white water ; but the Bridget could pass over most 
 of the reefs with impunity, on account of the depth 
 of the sea on them. Mark beat up, on short tacks, 
 therefore, until he found the two buoys between 
 which he had brought the ship, and, passing to wind- 
 ward of them, he stood off in the direction Avhere he 
 expected to find the reef over which the Rancocus had 
 beaten. lie was not long in making this discovery. 
 There still floated the buoy of the bower, watching 
 as faithfully as the seaman on his look-out ! Mark ran 
 the boat up to this well-tried sentinel, and caught 
 the lanyard, holding on by it, after lowering his 
 sails. 
 
 It was Mark's wish to learn something of the nature 
 and extent of the shoals in this direction. "With this 
 objecl in view, he continued beating up, sometimes 
 passing boldly through shallow water, at others going 
 about to avoid that, which he thought might be dan- 
 gerous, until he believed himself to he aboul ten miles 
 to windward of the island. The ship's masts were 
 his beacon, for the crater had sank below the horizon, 
 or, if visible at all, it was only at intervals, as the boat 
 was lifted on a swell, when it appeared a low huni- 
 muck, nearly awash. It was with difficulty that the 
 naked Spars eoiild be seen at that distance; nor could 
 they be, except at moments, and that because the com-
 
 33G STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 pass told the young man exactly where to look for 
 them. 
 
 It was now about the middle of the afternoon, and 
 Mark thought it prudent to turn out his reef, and run 
 down for the crater. In half an hour he caught a 
 sight of the spars of the ship ; and ten minutes later 
 the Summit appeared above the horizon. 
 
 It had been the intention of our young sailor to 
 stay out all night, had the weather been promising. 
 His wish was to ascertain how he might manage the 
 boat, single-handed, while he slept, and also to learn 
 the extent of the shoals. The weather, however, on 
 this his first experiment, did not encourage him to 
 remain out the whole night. On the contrary, by the 
 time the crater was hi sight, Mark thought he had not 
 seen a more portentous-looking sky since he had been 
 on the reef. There was a fiery redness in the at- 
 mosphere that alarmed him, and he would have re- 
 joiced to be at home, in order to secure his stock 
 within the crater. From the appearances, he antici- 
 pated another tempest with its flood. 
 
 Jnst as the Bridget was passing the two buoys by 
 which the ship-channel had been marked, her sail flap- 
 ped. This was a bad omen, for it betokened a shift 
 of wind, and the precursor of some sort of a storm. 
 Birds, moreover, seemed uneasy, the air being filled 
 with them, thousands flying over the boat, around 
 which they wheeled, screaming and apparently terri- 
 fied. The sun went down in a bank of lurid fire, and 
 the Bridget was still a mile from the ship. About nine 
 o'clock, and not sooner, the boat was well secured, and
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 337 
 
 Mark went into his cabin. Tired with his clay's work, 
 he got into his berth and endeavored to sleep. 
 
 The fatigue of the day acted as an anodyne, and 
 our young man soon forgot his adventures and his 
 boat in profound slumbers. It was many hours ere 
 Mark awoke, and when he did, it was with a sense of 
 suffocation. At first he thought the ship had taken 
 fire, a lurid light gleaming in at the open door of the 
 cabin, and he sprang to his feet in recollection of the 
 danger he ran from the magazine, as well as from 
 being burned. But no cracking of flames rcachiner 
 his ears, he dressed hastily and Avent out on the poop. 
 He had just reached this deck, when he felt the whole 
 ship tremble from her truck to her keel, and a rushing 
 of water was heard on all sides of him, as if a flood 
 were corning. Hissing sounds were heard, and streams 
 of fire and gleams of lurid light were seen in the air. 
 It was a terrible moment, and one that might well in- 
 duce any man to imagine that time was drawing to its 
 Close. 
 
 .Mark Woolston now comprehended his situation 
 notwithstanding the mtense darkness which prevailed, 
 except in those brief intervals of lurid light. He had 
 
 felt the shock of an earthquake, and the volcano had 
 
 suddenly become active. Smoke and ashes certainly 
 
 filled the air, and our poor hermit instinctively looked 
 lowanl his crater, already SO verdant and lively, in 
 
 th,- expectation of seeing it vomit flames. Every- 
 thing there was tranquil ; the danger, if danger there 
 was, wa.s assuredly more remote. Bui the murky 
 
 vapor, which rendered breathing exceedingly difficult, 
 
 -'2
 
 33S STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 also obstructed the view, and prevented his seeing 
 where the explosion really was. For a brief space 
 our young man fancied he must certainly be suffocated; 
 but a shift of wind came, and blew away the oppres- 
 sive vapor, clearing the atmosphere of its sulphurous 
 and most offensive gases and odors. 
 
 The light was now most impatiently expected by 
 our young man. The minutes seemed to drag ; but, 
 at length, the usual signs of returning day became ap- 
 parent to him, and he got on the bowsprit of the ship, 
 as if to meet it in its approach. There he stood look- 
 ing to the eastward, eager to have ray after ray shoot 
 into the firmament, when he was suddenly struck with 
 a change in that quarter of the ocean, which at once 
 proclaimed the power of the effort which the earth 
 had made in its subterranean throes. Naked rocks 
 appeared in places where Mark was certain water in 
 abundance had existed a few hours before. The sea- 
 wall, directly ahead of the ship, and which never 
 showed itself above the surface more than two or 
 three inches, in any part of it, and that only at ex- 
 ceedingly neap tides, was now not only bare for a long 
 distance, but parts rose ten and fifteen feet above the 
 surrounding sea. This proved, at once, that the earth- 
 quake had thrust upward a vast surface of the reef, 
 completely altering the whole appearance of the shoal I 
 In a word, nature had made another effort, and islands 
 had been created, as it might be in the twinkling oi 
 an eye. 
 
 Mark was no sooner assured of this stupendous 
 fact, than he hurried on to the poop, in order to as-
 
 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 339 
 
 certain what changes had occurred in and about the 
 crater. It had been pushed upward, in common with 
 all the rocks for miles on every side of it, though with- 
 out disturbing its surface! By the computation of 
 our young man, the reef, which previously lay about 
 six feet above the level of the ocean, was now fully 
 twenty. The planks which led from the stern of the 
 vessel to the shore, and which had formed a descent, 
 were now nearly level, so much water having left the 
 basin as to produce this change. Still the ship floated, 
 enough remaining to keep her keel clear of the bottom. 
 
 Impatient to learn all, Mark ran ashore — for by this 
 time it was broad daylight — and hastened into the 
 crater, with an intention to ascend at once to the 
 Summit. As he passed along, he could detect no 
 change whatever on the surface of the reef; every- 
 thing lying just as it had been left, and the pigs and 
 poultry were at their usual business of providing for 
 their own wants. Ashes, however, were strewn over 
 the rocks to a depth that left his footprints as distinct 
 as they could nave been made in alight snow. With- 
 in the crater the same appearances were observed, 
 fully an inch of ashes covering its verdant pastures 
 and the whole garden. 
 
 On reaching the Summit, our young man was en- 
 abled to form a better opinion ,,\' the vast changes 
 which had been wrought around him by this sudden 
 elevation of the earth's crust. Everywhere sea seemed 
 to be converted into land, or, at least, into rock. All 
 the white water had disappeared, and in its place 
 arose islands of rock, or mud, or sand. A good deal of
 
 310 STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 the last was to be seen, and some quite near the reef. 
 Island it could now hardly be termed. It is true that 
 ribands of water approached it on all sides, resembling 
 creeks and rivers and small sounds ; but, as Mark 
 stood there on the Summit, it seemed to him that it 
 was now possible to walk for leagues in every direc- 
 tion, commencing at the crater and following the lines 
 of reefs, and rocks, and sands, that had been laid bare 
 by the late upheaving. It certainly made an immense 
 difference in his own situation. The boat could still 
 be used, but it was now possible for him to ramble 
 for hours, if not for days, along the necks, and banks, 
 and hummocks, and swales that had been formed, and 
 that with a dry foot. His limits were so much en- 
 larged as to offer something like a new world to lus 
 enterprise and curiosity. 
 
 The crater, nevertheless, was apparently about the 
 centre of this new creation. To the south, it is true, 
 the eye could not penetrate more than two or three 
 leagues. A vast dun-looking cloud still covered the 
 sea in that direction, veiling its surface far and wide, 
 and mingling with the vapors of the upper atmos- 
 phere. Somewhere within this cloud, how far or how 
 near from him he knew not, Mark made no doubt a 
 new outlet to the pent up forces of the inner earth 
 was to be found, forming another and an active crater 
 for the exit of the fires beneath. 
 
 Mark now provided himself with a fowling-piece, 
 provisions, &c, and set out to explore his newly ac- 
 quired territories on foot. His steps were first di- 
 rected to the point where it appeared to the eye that
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 341 
 
 the vast range of dry land to the westward, extend- 
 ing both north and south, had become connected with 
 the reef. If such connection existed at all, it was by- 
 two very narrow necks of rock, of equal height, both 
 of which had come up out of the water under the late 
 action, which action had considerably altered and ex- 
 tended the shores of Crater Island. Sand appeared 
 in various places along these shores now ; whereas, 
 previously to the earthquake, they had everywhere 
 been nearly perpendicular rocks. 
 
 Mark was walking, with an impatient step, toward 
 the neck just mentioned, and which was at no great 
 distance from the ship-yard, when his eye was attracted 
 toward a sandy beach of several acres in extent, that 
 spread itself along the margin of the rocks, as clear 
 from every impurity as it was a few hours before, when 
 it had been raised from out the bosom of the ocean. 
 To him it appeared that water was trickling through 
 
 sand, coming from beneath the lava <>1' the reef. 
 Scooping up a little water in the hollow of his hand, 
 he found it sweet, soft, and deliciously cool. Here 
 
 a discovery indeed! The physical comfort for 
 which In- most pined was thus presented to him, as 
 by a direct gifl from heaven; and no miser who had 
 found a hoard of hidden gold could have felt so ffreal 
 
 pleasure, or a tenth pari of the gratitude, of our young 
 hermit. 
 
 Before quitting this new-found treasure, Mark open- 
 ed a cavity in the sand to receive the water, placing 
 Stone around it to make it a convenient and clean little 
 basin. In ten minutes (his place was filled with water
 
 34:2 STORIES OF TIIE SEA. 
 
 almost as limpid as air, and every way as delicious as 
 the palate of man could require. The young man 
 could scarce tear himself away from the spot, but 
 fearful of drinking too much, he did so after a time. 
 
 Mark proceeded. On reaching the narrowest part 
 of the "Neck," he found that the rocks did not meet, 
 but the reef still remained an island. The young man 
 found it necessary to go back to the ship-yard (no 
 great distance, by the way), and to bring a plank 
 with which to make a bridge. This done, he passed 
 on to the newly emerged territory. As might have 
 been expected, the rocks were tolerably well furnished 
 with fish, which had got caught in pools and crevices 
 when the water flowed into the sea; and, what was 
 of still more importance, another and much larger 
 spring of fresh water was found quite near the bridge, 
 gushing through a deposit of sand of some fifteen or 
 twenty acres in extent. The water of this spring had 
 run down into a cavity, where it had already formed 
 a little lake of some two acres in surface, and whence 
 it was already running into the sea, by overfloAving 
 its banks. These two discoveries induced Mark to 
 return to the reef again, in quest of the stock. After 
 laying another plank at his bridge, he called every 
 creature he had over into the new territory. 
 
 Glad enough were the pigs, in particular, to obtain 
 this new range. Here was every thing they could 
 want ; food in thousands, sand to root on, fresh water 
 to drink, pools to wallow in, and a range for their 
 migratory propensities. Mark had no sooner set 
 them at work on the sea-weed and shell-fish that
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 343 
 
 abounded there, for the time being at least, than he 
 determined to erect a gate at his bridge, and keep the 
 hogs here most of the time, the number of which 
 was now much increased. 
 
 Mark now set out in earnest on his travels. He 
 was absent from the reef the entire day. At one 
 time he thought he was quite two leagues in a 
 Straight line from the ship, though he had been 
 compelled to walk four to get there. He kept along 
 the margin of the channel that communicated with 
 the water that surrounded the reef, and, when at the 
 greatest distance from the crater, lie ascended a rock 
 that must have had an elevation of a hundred feet 
 above the sea. Of course most of this rock had been 
 above water previously to the late eruption, and Mark 
 had often seen it at a distance, though he had never 
 ventured through the white water near so fir in the 
 dingui. When on its apex, Mark got an extensive 
 view of the seem; around him. 
 
 Toward the southward Mark found the objects of 
 his greatest wonder and admiration. By the time he 
 reached the apes of the rock the smoke in that quar- 
 ter of the horizon had, in a great measure, risen from 
 the sea, though a column of it continued to ascend 
 toward a vast duu-colored cloud that overhung the 
 place. To .Mark's astonishment he had seen some 
 dark, dense body first looming through the rising 
 vapor. When the last was sufficiently removed, a 
 high, ragged mountain became distinctly visible. II-- 
 thoughl it arose at least, a thousand fed above the 
 ocean, ami that it could not be less than a League in
 
 344 stokies or the sea. 
 
 extent. This exhibition of the power of nature filled 
 the young man's soul with adoration and reverence 
 for the mighty Being that could set such elements at 
 work. 
 
 Mark knew that there must have been a dislocation 
 of the rocks, to produce such a change as that he saw 
 to the southward. It was well for him it occurred 
 there at a distance, as he then thought, of ten or fif- 
 teen miles from the reef — though in truth it was quite 
 fifty — instead of happening beneath him. It was pos- 
 sible, however, for one to have been on the top of 
 that mountain, and to have lived through the late 
 change, could the lungs of man have breathed the at- 
 mosphere. Not far from this mountain a column of 
 smoke rose out of the sea, and Mark fancied that, at 
 moments, he could discern the summit of an active 
 crater at its base. 
 
 After gazing at these astonishing changes for a long 
 time, our young man descended from the height and 
 retraced his steps homeward. 
 
 For the next ten days Mark Woolston did little 
 but explore. By crossing the channel around the 
 reef, which he had named "Armlet," he reached the 
 sea-wall, and, once there, he made a long excursion to 
 the eastward. He now walked dryshod over those 
 very reefs among which he had so recently sailed in 
 the Bridget, though the ship channel through which 
 he and Bob had brought in the Rancocus still re- 
 mained. The two buoys that had marked the nar- 
 row passage were found, high and dry ; and the 
 anchor of the ship, that by which she rode after
 
 STOKIES OF TIIE SEA. 34:5 
 
 beating over the rocks into deep water, was to be 
 seen so near the surface that the stock could be 
 reached by the hand. 
 
 For two days Mark explored in this direction, 
 reaching as far, by his estimate of the distance, as 
 the place where he had bore up in his cruise in the 
 Bridget. Finding a great many obstacles in the way, 
 channels, mud, &c, he determined, on the afternoon 
 of the second day, to return home, get a stock of 
 supplies, and come out in the boat, in order to ascer- 
 tain if he could not now reach the open water to 
 windward. 
 
 On the morning of the fourth day after the earth- 
 quake, and the occurrence of the mighty change that 
 had altered the whole face of the scene around him, 
 the young man got under way in the Bridget. He 
 shaped his course to windward, beating out of the 
 Armlet by a narrow passage that carried him into a 
 reach that stretched away for several miles, to the 
 the northward and eastward, in nearly a straight 
 line. 
 
 When about three leagues from the crater, the 
 "Hope Channel," as Mark named this long and direct 
 passage, divided into two, and Mark tacked into one 
 of them, heading about north-east. The water was 
 deep, and al first the passage was half a mile in width; 
 but, after standing along it fora mile or two, it seemed 
 all at once to terminate in an oval basin, that might 
 have been a mile in its largesl diameter, and which 
 av : i ^ bounded to the eastward by a bell of rock that 
 rose some twenty feet above the water. The hot-
 
 346 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 torn of this basin was a clear beautiful sand, and 
 its depth of water, on sounding, Mark found was uni- 
 formly about eight fathoms. 
 
 Mark had beaten about " Oval Harbor," as he 
 named the place, for half an hour, before he was struck 
 by the circumstance that the even character of its 
 surface appeared to be a little disturbed by a slight 
 undulation which seemed to come from its north-east- 
 ern extremity. Tacking the Bridget, he stood in that 
 direction, and on reaching the place, found that there 
 was a passage through the rock of about a hundred 
 yards in width. The wind permitting, the boat shot 
 through this passage, and was immediately heaving 
 and setting in the long swells of the open ocean. At 
 first Mark was startled by the roar of the waves that 
 plunged into the caverns of the rocks, and trembled 
 lest his boat might be hove up against that hard and 
 iron-bound coast, where one toss would shatter his 
 little craft into splinters. Too steady a seaman, how- 
 ever, to abandon his object unnecessarily, he stood on. 
 After two or three short stretches were made, Mark 
 found himself half a mile to windward of a long line, 
 or coast, of dark rock, that rose from twenty to 
 twenty-five feet above the level of the water, and be- 
 yond all question in the open ocean. Everywhere to 
 leeward of him was land, or rock ; while everywhere 
 to windward, as well as ahead and astern, it was clear 
 water. This, then, was the eastern limit of the old 
 shoals, now converted into dry land. 
 
 The young man might have been an hour in the 
 open sea, gradually hauling off the land, in order to
 
 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 347 
 
 keep clear of the coast, when he bethought him of 
 returning. It required a good deal of nerve to run 
 iu toward those rocks, under all the circumstances of 
 the case. The wind blew fresh, so much, indeed, as to 
 induce Mark to reef, but there must always be a heavy 
 swell rolling in upon that iron-bound shore. Of course, 
 the spray was flying high, and the entire line of black 
 rocks was white with its particles. 
 
 Mark had unwittingly omitted to take any laud- 
 marks to his inlet, or strait. He had no other means 
 of finding it, therefore, than to discover a spot in 
 which the line of white was broken. This inlet, how- 
 ever, he remembered did not open at right angles to 
 the coast, but obliquely ; and it was very possible to 
 be within a hundred yards of it, and not see it. This 
 tact our young sailor was not long in ascertaining; for, 
 standing in toward the point where he expected to 
 find the entrance, and going as close to the shore as 
 he dared, he could see nothing of the desired passage. 
 For an hour did he search, passing to and fro, but 
 without success. 
 
 For lour hours did Mark "Woolston run along those 
 dark rocks, whitened only by the spray of the wide 
 ocean, without perceiving a point at which a boat 
 mighl even land. Hut just as the sun was setting, 
 ] ( iving the evening cool and pleasant, after the 
 Warmth of an exceedingly hot day, the boat doubled 
 a piece of low headland ; and Mark had hall* made up 
 his mind to gel under its lee, and heave a grapnel 
 ashore, in order to ride by his cable during the ap- 
 proaching night, when an opening in the coast greeted
 
 348 , STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 his eyes. It was just as he doubled the cape. This 
 opening appeared to be a quarter of a mile in width, 
 and it had perfectly smooth water a half-gunshot 
 within its mouth. For twenty minutes did Mark 
 stand on through this passage, when suddenly it ex- 
 panded into a basin, or bay, of considerable extent. 
 This bay was a league long, and half a league in 
 width, the boat entering it close to its weather side. 
 A long and wide sandy beach offered on that side, 
 and the young man stood along it a short distance, 
 until the sight of a spring induced him to put his 
 helm down. The boat luffed short round, and came 
 gently upon the beach. A grapnel was thrown on 
 the sands, and Mark leaped ashore. 
 
 The water proved to be sweet, cool, and everyway 
 delicious. This new-born beach had every appearance 
 of having been exposed to the air a thousand years. 
 The sand was perfectly clean, and of a bright golden 
 color, and it was well strewed with shells of the 
 most magnificent colors and size. Our sailor de- 
 termined to make another voyage to this bay, which 
 he called Shell Bay, in order to procure some of its 
 treasures. After drinking at the spring, and supping 
 on the rocks above, Mark arranged a mattress, pro- 
 vided for that purpose, in the boat, and went to 
 sleep. 
 
 Early next morning the Bridget was again under 
 way, but not until her owner had both bathed and 
 broken his fast. After crossing Shell Bay, the Bridget 
 continued on for a couple of hours, running south- 
 westerly, through a passage of a good width, until it
 
 BTOKIES OF THE SEA. 340 
 
 met another channel, at a point which Mark at once 
 recognized, and had only to follow in order to arrive 
 at the reef. About ten o'clock he ran alongside of 
 the ship, where he found everything as he had left it. 
 Lighting the fire, he put on food sufficient to last him 
 for another cruise, and then went up into the cross- 
 trees in order to take a better look than he had yet 
 obtained of the state of things to the southward. 
 
 By this time the vast murky cloud that had so long 
 overhung the new outlet of the volcano was dispersed. 
 Of course, the surrounding atmosphere was clear, and 
 nothing but distance obstructed the view. The Peak 
 was indeed a sublime sight, issuing, as it did, from the 
 ocean without any relief. There it was, in all its 
 glory, blue and misty, but ragged and noble. The 
 crater was clearly many miles beyond it, the young 
 man being satisfied, after this look, that he had not yet 
 seen its summit. He also increased his distance from 
 Vulcan's Peak, as he named the mountain, to ten 
 leagues, at least. After sitting in the cross-trees for 
 fully an hour, gazing at this height with as much pleas- 
 ure as the connoisseur ever studied picture, or statue, 
 th< young man determined to attempt a voyage to 
 that place in the Bridget. 
 
 That afternoon Mark made all his preparations for 
 a voyage that he tilt might lie one of great moment 
 to him. So much did hi- think of the morrow and its 
 possible consequences, that he did not get asleep tin- 
 two or three hours, though he awoke in the morning 
 Unconscious of any want of rot. An hour later, he 
 was in hi.^ boat, and under way.
 
 350 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 The course steered was about a point to the west- 
 ward of south, the boat running altogether by com- 
 pass, for the first two hours. At the end of that 
 time objects began to come out of the mass of the 
 mountain, which no longer appeared a pile of dark 
 outline, without detail. He expected this, and was 
 even disappointed that his eyes could not command 
 more, for he now saw that he had materially under- 
 rated the distance between the crater and the Peak, 
 which must be nearer sixty than fifty miles. 
 
 From that moment eveiy mile made a sensible dif- 
 ference in the face of the mountain. Light and 
 shadow first became visible ; then ravines, cliffs, and 
 colors came into the view. Each league that he 
 advanced increased Mark's admiration and awe ; and, 
 by the time that the boat was on the last of those 
 leagues which had appeared so long, he began to have 
 a more accurate idea of the sublime nature of the 
 phenomenon that had been wrought so near him. 
 Vulcan's Peak, as an island, could not be less than 
 eight or nine miles in length, though its breadth did 
 not much exceed two. Running north and south, it 
 offered its narrow side to the group of the crater, 
 which had deceived its solitary observer. 
 
 The wind had been fresh in crossing the strait, and 
 Mark was not sorry Avhen his pigmy boat came under 
 the shadow of the vast cliffs which formed the north- 
 ern extremity of the peak. When still a mile distant, 
 he thought he was close on the rocks; nor did he get 
 a perfectly true idea of the scale on which this rare 
 mountain had been formed until running along at its
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 351 
 
 base, within a hundred yards of its rocks. Coming 
 in to leeward, as a matter of course, Mark found com- 
 paratively smooth water, though the unceasing heav- 
 ing and setting of the ocean rendered it a little 
 hazardous to go nearer to the shore. For some time 
 our explorer was fearful he should not be able to land 
 at all, when an opening appeared between two cliffs 
 of about equal height, or some hundred feet in eleva- 
 tion, one of which extended farther into the ocean 
 than its neighbor. The water being quite smooth in 
 this inlet, Mark ventured to enter it. On passing 
 this gateway, he found himself nearly becalmed, in a 
 basin that might be a hundred yards in diameter, 
 which was not only surrounded by a sandy beach, 
 but which had also a sandy bottom. The water was 
 several fathoms dee}), and it was very easy to run the 
 bows of the boat anywhere on the beach. This was 
 done, and Mark sprang ashore. 
 
 Not only did a ravine open from this basin, winding 
 it> way up the entire ascent, but a copious stream of 
 water ran through it, foaming and roaring amid its 
 ulcus. At first, -Mark supposed this was sea-water, 
 still finding its way from some lake on the peak; hut, 
 on tasting it, he found it was perfectly sweet. Pro- 
 vided willi his gun, and carrying his pack, our young 
 man entered this ravine, and, following the course of 
 the brook, lie a! once commenced an ascent. 
 
 \ dt w ithstanding his great activity, Mark Woolston 
 was just an hour in ascending to the peak. In no 
 place had lie found the path difficult, though almost 
 always upward; but he believed he had walked more
 
 352 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 than two miles before he came out on level ground. 
 When he had got up about three-fourths of the way, 
 the appearances of things around him suddenly 
 changed. Although the rock itself looked no older 
 than that below, it had, occasionally, a covering that 
 clearly could never have emerged from the sea within 
 the last few days. From that point every thing de- 
 noted an older existence in the air, from which our 
 young man inferred that the summit of Vulcan's Peak 
 had been an island long prior to the late eruption. 
 Every foot he advanced confirmed this opinion, and 
 the conclusion was that the ancient island had lain 
 too low to be visible to one on the reef. 
 
 An exclamation of delight escaped from our ex- 
 plorer, as he suddenly came out on the broken plain 
 of the peak. It was not absolutely covered, but was 
 richly garnished with wood, cocoa-nut, bread-fruits, 
 and other tropical trees ; and it was delightfully ver- 
 dant with young grasses. The warmth in the sun, 
 after so sharp a walk, caused the young man to 
 plunge into the nearest grove, where he had no diffi- 
 culty in helping himself to as many cocoa-nuts, fresh 
 from the trees, as a thousand men could have con- 
 sumed. 
 
 After resting himself for an hour in that delicious 
 grove, Mark began to roam around the plain, to get 
 an idea of its beauties and extent. The former were 
 inexhaustible, offering every variety of landscape, 
 from the bold and magnificent to the soft and be- 
 witching. There were birds innumerable, of the 
 most brilliant plumage, and some that Mark imagined
 
 STOEIES OF THE SEA. 353 
 
 must be good to eat. In particular did he observe 
 an immense number of a very small sort that were 
 constantly pecking at a wild fig, of which there was 
 a grove of considerable extent. Being provided with 
 mustard-seed shot, Mark loaded his piece properly, 
 an. I killed at least twenty of these little creatures at 
 one discharge. After cleaning them, he struck a 
 light by me. ms of the pan and some powder, and 
 kindled a fire. Spitting half-a-dozen of the birds, 
 they were soon roasted. At the same time he roasted 
 a bunch of plantain, and, being provided with pepper 
 and salt in his pack, as well as with some pilot-bread, 
 Ave are almost ashamed to relate how our young ex- 
 plorer dined. Nothing was wanting to such a meal 
 but the sweets of social converse. 
 
 The peak, or highest part of the island, was at its 
 northern extremity, and within two miles of the 
 grove in which Mark had eaten his dinner. Unlike 
 most of the plain, it had do woods whatever, but, 
 rising somewhat abruptly to a considerable elevation, 
 it was naked of vwvy thing lmt grass. Resuming 
 his pack, our young adventurer, greatly refreshed by 
 the delicious repast he had just made, left the pleas- 
 ant grove in which he had firsl rested, to undertake 
 this somewhat sharp acclivity. 
 
 Here, Mark found all his expectations realized, 
 touching the character of the view. The whole plain 
 of the island, with the exception of the covers made 
 by intervening woods, lay spread before him like a 
 map. All its beauties, its shades, its fruits, and its 
 verdant glades were placed beneath his eye, as If 
 23
 
 354 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 purposely to delight him with their glories. A more 
 enchanting rural scene the young man had never be- 
 held, the island having so much the air of cultivation 
 and art about it, that he expected, at each instant, to 
 see bodies of men running across its surface. He 
 carried the best glass of the Rancocus with him, in 
 all his excursions, not knowing at what moment 
 Providence might bring a vessel in sight, and he had 
 it now sluno- from his shoulders. 
 
 It will readily be imagined that our young man 
 turned his glass to the northward, in search of the 
 group he had left that morning, with a most lively 
 interest. It was easy enough to see it from the great 
 elevation at which he was now placed. 
 
 When he had taken a good look at his old posses- 
 sions, Mark made a sweep of the horizon with the 
 glass, in order to ascertain if any other land were 
 visible from the great elevation on which he now 
 stood. While arranging the focus of the instrument, 
 an object first met his eye that caused his heart 
 almost to leap into his mouth. Land was looming 
 up, in the western board, bo distinctly as to admit of 
 no cavil about its presence. It was an island, moun- 
 tainous, and Mark supposed it must be fully a hun- 
 dred miles distant. Still it was land, and strange 
 land, and might prove to be the abode of human 
 beings. The glass told him very little more than, his 
 eye, though he could discern a mountainous form 
 through it, and saw that it was an island of no great 
 size. Beyond this mountain, again, the young man 
 fancied that he could detect the haze of more land ;
 
 STOKIES OF TIIE SEA. 355 
 
 but, if he did, it was too low, too distant, and too 
 indistinct to be certain of it. It is not easy to give 
 a clear idea of the tumult of feeling with which Mark 
 Woolston beheld these unknown regions, though it 
 might best he compared with the emotions of the 
 ast ronomer who discovers a new planet. It was fully 
 an hour before our hermit could turn his eyes in any 
 other direction. 
 
 And when our young mariner did look aside, it 
 was more with the intention of relieving eyes that 
 had grown dim with gazing, than of not returning to 
 the same objects again, as soon as restored to their 
 power. It was while walking to and fro on the peak, 
 with this intent, that a new subject of interest caused 
 him almost to leap into the air, and to shout aloud. 
 lie saw a sail! For the first time since BettS disap- 
 peared from his anxious looks, his eyes now surely 
 rested on a vessel. What was more, it was quite 
 near the island he was on. It was a vessel, under 
 more or less canvas — how much he could not then tell, 
 or even see —but it was most decidedly a vessel. 
 Mark's limbs trembled so much that he was com- 
 pelled to throw himself upon the earth to find the 
 support he wanted. There he lay several minutes, 
 mentally returning thanks to God for this unexpected 
 favor; and, when his strength revived, these signs of 
 gratitude were renewed on his knees. Then he 8J0 56, 
 almost in terror lest the vessel should have disap- 
 peared, or it should turn out that he was the subject 
 of a cruel illusion. 
 
 There was no error. There was the little white
 
 35 G STOKIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 speck, and he levelled the glass to get a better look 
 at it. An exclamation now clearly broke from his 
 lips, and for a minute or two the young man actually 
 appeared to be out of his senses. " The pinnace !" 
 "the Neshamony !" however, were words that escaped 
 him, and, had there been a witness, might have given 
 an insight into this extraordinary conduct. Mark 
 had, in fact, ascertained that the sail beneath the 
 peak was no other than the little craft that had been 
 swept away, as already described, with Betts in it. 
 Fourteen months had elapsed since that occui'rence, 
 and here it was again, seemingly endeavoring to re- 
 turn to the place where it had been launched ! Mark 
 adopted, perhaps, the best expedient in his power to 
 attract attention to himself, and to let his presence 
 be known. He fired both barrels of his fowling-piece, 
 and repeated the discharges several times, or until a 
 flag was shown on board the sloop, which was now 
 just beneath the cliff — a certain sign that he had suc- 
 ceeded. 
 
 Our young man rather flew than ran to the ravine, 
 down which he went at a pace that several times 
 placed his neck in jeopardy. In less than a quarter 
 of an hour the half-distracted hermit was in the boat, 
 nearly crazy with the apprehension that he might yet 
 not meet with his friend; for, that it was Bob looking- 
 for the reef and himself, he did not now entertain the 
 least doubt. The most plausible course for him to 
 adopt was precisely that which he followed. He 
 pushed oft* in the Bridget, making sail on the boat, 
 and getting out of the cove in the shortest time he
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 357 
 
 could. On quitting his little haven, and coming out 
 clear of all the rocks, another shout burst out of Ins 
 very soul, when he saw the Neshamony, beyond all 
 cavil, within a hundred fathoms of him. That shout 
 was returned, and Mark and Bob recognized each 
 other at the next instant. As for the last, he just off 
 tarpaulin, and gave three hearty cheers, while the 
 former sank on a seat, literally unable to stand. 
 
 It was half an hour before Mark was master of 
 himself again. At length tears relieved him; nor 
 was he ashamed to indulge in them, when he saw his 
 old companion not only alive and well, but restored 
 to him. At length Bob began to converse. 
 
 " Well, Mr. Mark, the sight of yon is the pleasant- 
 est prospect that has met my eyes this many a day," 
 exclaimed the honest fellow. "It was with fear and 
 trembling that I set out on the search, and little did I 
 hope to fall in with you so early in the cruise." 
 
 "Thank you, thank you, Bob, and God be praised 
 for this great mercy ! But the miraculous part of all 
 IS, that you should find your way back, since you are 
 no navigator. 1 ' 
 
 "Sartain — hut I may as well tell you of my adven- 
 tures at once, Mr. Mark; though I own I should like 
 to land first, as it i- a long story, and take a look at 
 
 this island that you praise bo much, and taste them 
 
 birds of which yon give so good an account." 
 
 Hut Mark was dying to hear Bob's story, more 
 especially since he understood a ship was connected 
 with it; and Hob, after a dozen preparatory hints, in 
 order to lessen the intensity of his young friend's feel-
 
 358 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 ings, yielded to an appeal from the other's eyes, and 
 commenced his narrative. Bob told his story, as a 
 matter of course, with a great deal of circumlocution, 
 and in his own language. The reader, however, would 
 most probably prefer to hear an abridgment of the tale 
 in our own words. 
 
 When Robert Betts was driven off the reef, by the 
 hurricane of the preceding year, he had no choice but 
 to let the Neshamony drive to leeward with him. As 
 soon as he could, he got the pinnace before the wind, 
 and, whenever he saw broken water ahead, he en- 
 deavored to steer clear of it. This he sometimes suc- 
 ceeded in effecting ; while at others he passed through 
 it, or over it, at the mercy of the tempest. Fortu- 
 nately the wind had piled up the element in such a 
 way as to carry the craft clear of the rocks, and in 
 three hours after the Neshamony was lifted out of her 
 cradle she was in the open ocean, to leeward of all 
 the dangers. It blew too hard, however, to make 
 sail on her, and Bob was obliged to scud until the 
 gale broke. Then, indeed, he passed a week in en- 
 deavoring to beat back and rejoin his friend, but 
 without success, " losing all he made in the day 
 while asleep at night." 
 
 At the end of this week high land was made to lee- 
 ward, and Betts ran down for it, in the hope of find- 
 ing inhabitants. In this last expectation, however, 
 he did not succeed. It was a volcanic mountain, of a 
 good many resources, and of a character not unlike 
 that of Vulcan's Peak, but entirely unpeopled. He 
 named it after his old ship, and passed several days
 
 STORIES OF THE SEA. 359 
 
 on it. On describing its appearance, and its bearings 
 from the place where they then were, Mark had no 
 doubt it was the island that was visible from the peak 
 near them, and at which he had been gazing that very 
 afternoon, for fully an hour, with longing eyes. On 
 describing its form to Bob, the latter coincided in 
 this opinion, which was in fact the true one. 
 
 From the highest point of Rancocus Island land 
 was to be seen to the northward and westward, and 
 Bob now determined to make the best of his way in 
 that direction, in the hope of falling in with some ves- 
 sel, lie fell in with a group of low islands, of a 
 coral formation, about a hundred leagues from his 
 volcanic mountain, and on them he found inhabitants. 
 These people were accustomed to see white men, and 
 tinned out to be exceedingly mild and just. Bob 
 formed a great intimacy with the chief, exchanging 
 names and rubbing noses with him. This chief was 
 styled Betto, after the exchange, and Bob was called 
 Ooroony, by the natives. Ooroony staid a month 
 with Betto, when he undertook a voyage with him, 
 in :i large canoe) to another group, that was distant 
 two or three hundred miles, still farther to the north- 
 ward, ami where Bob was told he should find a ship. 
 This account proved to be true, the ship turning out 
 t<> lie a Spaniard, from South America, engaged in 
 the pearl fishery, and on the eve of sailing for her port. 
 BettS decided to sail in the brig, which went to sea 
 next day. In due time he was landed at Panama, 
 whence he made his way across the isthmus, actually
 
 360 STORIES OF THE SEA. 
 
 reaching Philadelphia in less than five months after 
 he was driven off the reef. 
 
 The owners of the Rancocus gave up their ship, as 
 soon as Betts had told his story, manifesting no dispo- 
 sition to send good money after bad. Bob next sought 
 Bridget with his tale. The young wife received the 
 poor fellow with floods of tears, and the most eager 
 attention to his story, as indeed did our hero's sister 
 Anne. The result of which was that Bridget, Anne, 
 several of their domestics, and one Martha Waters, 
 to whom Betts became united, sailed in a ship bound 
 to the Northwest Coast, in search of our hermit, and 
 found him in the manner we have described. Let the 
 reader imagine with what feelings Mark heard these 
 facts. There was his young wife, whom he fancied 
 thousands of miles away, and whom he feared it might 
 be his destiny never to look upon again, absolutely 
 within a hundred miles of him, and soon to be re- 
 stored to his arms. 
 
 We must bring this story to a close. The reader's 
 imagination must supply a description of Mark and 
 Bridget's meeting, and of the happy days that ensued 
 when the little colony began their life on that reef, 
 which had so long been a hermitage to Mark. In 
 after years the young couple visited their home; 
 friends returned with them to the reef, until at last 
 a numerous colony peopled the islands. 
 
 THE END.
 
 fat 
 
 66 
 
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