Pagina-afbeeldingen
PDF
ePub

blue. This was at Plymouth, shipmates; | blowed if I warn't regularly fitted out for but, as we wur expecting to go around to a three months' cruise! Well, by the Spithead, I saves my cash-'cause why? I'd an ould father and mother, from whom I'd parted company when a boy, and I thought, if I could get long leave-thinks I, mayhap I can heave alongside of 'em, with a cargo o' shiners, and it'll cheer the cockels o' their ould hearts to see their son Jack togg'd off like a jolly tar, and captain of a frigate's maintop; and, setting a case, why it's just like this here: I didn't want anything on 'em, but meant to give 'em better ground tackle to hould on to life by."

"That was very kind of you, shipmate," said the serjeant.

[ocr errors]

Well," continued the boatswain's mate, without heeding the serjeant's observation, “I has a bit of a spree ashore at Dock, in course; but soon arter we goes round to Portsmouth. I axes for long leave, and, as I'd al'ays done my duty to Muster Gilmour's-he was first leeftenant-to Muster Gilmour's satisfaction, I gets my fortnight and my libertyticket, and the large cutter lands me at Sally port; so I hauls my wind for the Blue Poster on the Pint, and enters myself on the books of a snug-looking craft, as was bound through my native village. Well, shipmates, in regard o' my being on liberty, why, I was a gemman at large; so I buys a few duds for ould dad, and a suit of new sails, and some headgear for the ould woman: for, thinks I to myself, mayhap we shall cruise about a bit among the neighbours, and I'll let 'em see we arn't been sarving the king or hammering the French for nothin.' And, mayhap, thinks I, they arnt' never got too much of grub, so I gets a bag, and shoves in a couple of legs o' mutton and a whole shole of turnips, a full bladder of rum, and, as I knew the ould uns loved catlap, there was a stowage of sugar and tea, with a bottle o' milk; and, having plenty of the ready, I buys a little of everything useful in the small way, that the ould chap at the shop showed me: and, my eyes! but there was thousands of packages twisted and twined in true-blue paper; there was 'bacca, mustard, snuff, salt, soft tommy, pepper, lickerice, matches, ginger-bread, herrings, soap, pease, butter, candles, cheese, in short, something of everything, not forgetting a Welsh wig and a mousetrap; and I'm

time I'd got all my consarns ship-shape, I twigs the signal for sailing, and so gets aboard; and in course, in regard o' my station in the maintop, I goes aloft, as high as possible upon the upper-deck, and claps myself upon the luggage; but when the governor as had charge comes to take the twiddling-lines, he axes me to berth myself on the fokstle, and so, not to be outdone in civility, or to make 'em think I'd let slip my edication, I comes down, and goes forud, and stows myself away just abaft the pilot; when we made sail there was a party o' boys from the ould Hibernia gives me three cheers, and I waves my bit o' tarpaulin, sports a fresh morsel o' 'bacca, and wondered what made the houses and everything run past us so quick; but I soon found out it was the craft for I remembered the comb of the sea did just the same when the frigate was walking along at a spanking rate. So, for the first hour, I sits quiet and alone, keeping a sharp look out on the pilot, to see how he handled the braces, rounding 'em in to starboard, or to portfor thinks I to myself, it's best to learn everything-'cause why? who can tell but Jack Sheavehole mayn't someday or other command just such a consarn of his own! and how foolish he'll look not to know which way to turn his course, or how to steer his craft! But, I'm blowed! shipmates, if the horses didn't seem to savvy the thing just as much as the man at the helm; for the moment he tauten'd the gear, the hanemals slued round o' themselves all ship-shape, and Bristol fashion."

66

Why, it was the reins that guided them," said the serjeant, laughing.

"Then I'm blessed if it was !" returned old Jack; "for there warn't a drop o' rain fell that arternoon-it was a bright sunshiny day."

"What you call twiddling-lines, they call reins," explained the serjeant; "and the horses are steered by them.'

"Mayhap so, brother, mayhap so," responded the boatswain's mate; for I arn't much skilled in them matters'cause why? I never sail'd in one on 'em afore, and only once since; the first was a happy trip, the last was melancholy;" and Jack sighed like an eddy wind in the galley funnel. "But to heave a-head"—

[graphic][subsumed][ocr errors][merged small][merged small]
« VorigeDoorgaan »