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We Encounter a Gale The mild blue weather we enjoyed after leaving the Marquesas gradually changed as we ran farther south and approached Tahiti. In these generally tranquil seas, the wind sometimes blows with great violence; though, as every sailor knows, a spicy gale in the tropic latitudes of the Pacific is far different from a tempest in the howling North Atlantic. We soon found ourselves battling with the waves, while the before mild Trades, like a woman roused, blew fiercely, but still warmly, in our face. For all this, the mate carried sail without stint; and as for brave little Jule, she stood up to it well; and though once in a while floored in the trough of a sea, sprang to her keel again and showed play. Every old timber groaned every spar buckledevery chafed cord strained; and yet, spite of all, she plunged on her way like a racer. Jermin, seajockey that he was, sometimes stood in the forechains, with the spray every now and then dashing over him, and shouting out, Well done, Juledive into it, sweetheart. Hurrah! One afternoon there was a mighty queer noise aloft, which set the men running in every direction. It was the maintgallantmast. Crash! it broke off just above the cap, and held there by the rigging, dashed with every roll from side to side, with all the hamper that belonged to it. The yard hung by a hair, and at every pitch, thumped against the crosstrees; while the sail streamed in ribbons, and the loose ropes coiled, and thrashed the air, like whiplashes. Stand from under! and down came the rattling blocks, like so many shot. The yard, with a snap and a plunge, went hissing into the sea, disappeared, and shot its full length out again. The crest of a great wave then broke over itthe ship rushed byand we saw the stick no more. While this lively breeze continued, Baltimore, our old black cook, was in great tribulation. Like most South Seamen, the Julias caboose, or cook house, was planted on the larboard side of the forecastle. Under such a press of canvas, and with the heavy sea running the barque, diving her bows under, now and then shipped green glassy waves, which, breaking over the headrails, fairly deluged that part of the ship, and washed clean aft. The caboosehousethought to be fairly lashed down to its placeserved as a sort of breakwater to the inundation. About these times, Baltimore always wore what he called his gale suit, among other things comprising a Souwester and a huge pair of wellanointed seaboots, reaching almost to his knees. Thus equipped for a ducking or a drowning, as the case might be, our culinary highpriest drew to the slides of his temple, and performed his sooty rites in secret. So afraid was the old man of being washed overboard that he actually fastened one end of a small line to his waistbands, and coiling the rest about him, made use of it as occasion required. When engaged outside, he unwound the cord, and secured one end to a ringbolt in the deck; so that if a chance sea washed him off his feet, it could do nothing more. One evening just as he was getting supper, the Julia reared up on her stern like a vicious colt, and when she settled again forward, fairly dished a tremendous sea. Nothing could withstand it. One side of the rotten head bulwarks came in with a crash; it smote the caboose, tore it from its moorings, can after boxing it about, dashed it against the windlass, where it stranded. The water then poured along the deck like a flood rolling over and over, pots, pans, and kettles, and even old Baltimore himself, who went breaching along like a porpoise. Striking the taffrail, the wave subsided, and washing from side to side, left the drowning cook high and dry on the afterhatch: his extinguished pipe still between his teeth, and almost bitten in two. The few men on deck having sprung into the mainrigging, sailorlike, did nothing but roar at his calamity. The same night, our flyingjibboom snapped off like a pipestem, and our spankergaff came down by the run. |
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