Chapter 51
1272 Words
e it to save mylife. When I got back to the berth, there were all my three messmatesseated round the table, taking their tea, and pretending to be very muchastonished at hearing all which had happened to me. Of course, I saidnothing about Tom Hansard, and they pretended that they could not makeout how I had got loose. I found out, however, that the whole plan wasarranged beforehand by Dicky Snookes and my other messmates with thecaptain of the top, just to see what I was made of, and what I would do,it being understood that he was to keep whatever he could get out of me.Had I cried or made a fuss about the matter, or said that I wouldcomplain to my uncle, I should have been looked upon as a regular sneak.The fellows hate telling of one another here just as much as we did atschool. From the way I took the trick I believe they liked me betterthan they did before. Of course, all about the garden and thevegetables was nonsense, and I should have been green to have believedit, which I didn't. Away we went rolling along with a westerly swelland a northerly wind, while many of the fellows in the berth weresinging: "There we lay, all the day, in the Bay of Biscay, O;" andothers "Rule Britannia," old Gregson not forgetting his standing joke of"Bless the old girl; I wish, while she was about it, that she had ruledthem straighter." The very next morning the gale, of which the swellwas the forerunner, came down upon us with a sudden gust. "All handsshorten sail," was shouted along the decks. The men flew aloft, thatis, they climbed up so nimbly that they looked as if they were flying,and they lay out on the yards to reef the sail. Snookes had to go also,as he was stationed in the foretop. "Any greens up there to-day?" Iasked as he passed me, not looking happy, for the ship was tumblingabout, the spray was flying over us, and the wind was howlingterrifically in the rigging. It was altogether very different to whatit had been on the previous evening. Still poor Snookes had to go up.The boatswain's whistle and the voices of the officers sounded loudabove the gale, and so did the cries of the midshipmen. I contrived tomake myself heard, though, of course, I only sung out what I was told tosay, and wasn't alway
s certain what would happen after I had said it,any more than does a person in a fairy tale, who has got hold of somemagic words and doesn't know what effect they will produce. Thetopgallantsails and royals were quickly furled--those are the sailshighest up, you know; and then the huge topsails came rattling down themasts, and the men lay out on the yards and caught hold of them, as theywere bulging out and flapping fearfully about, to reef them. One of thetopmen, Tom Hansard, was at the weather yardarm, and had hold of theearing, which isn't a bit like those gold things our sisters wear intheir ears, but is a long rope which helps to reef the sails. Suddenlythe ship gave a tremendous lurch, I heard a cry, I looked up, and therewas Tom Hansard hanging by one hand to the earing from the yard-arm,right over the foaming ocean. I felt as if I had swallowed a bucketfull of snow. I thought the poor fellow must be dropped overboard, andso did everybody else, and some were running to one of the boats tolower her to pick him up. He swung fearfully about from side to side.No human power could save him. I was watching to see him drop, when hemade a great effort, and springing up, he caught the rope with his otherhand. Still he was only a degree better off. Fancy dangling away atthe end of a thin rope, jerked backwards and forwards high up in theair, with certain death were he to fall on board, and very smallprospect of escape if he fell into the foaming, tumbling sea, throughwhich the ship was flying at the rate of some ten knots an hour. I feltinclined to shriek out in sympathy, for I am sure that I should haveshrieked out, and very loudly too, had I been up there in his place. Ifelt sure that he would come down when I saw two of the topmen going outto the end of the yard-arm and stretching out their arms towards him tohelp him. He saw them, and began to climb up the thin rope till theycould catch hold of his jacket, then up they pulled him, though thesails flapping about very nearly tore him out of their hands. They heldhim on to the yard for a minute till he could recover himself, and thenhe scrambled in on to the top. There was a general shout fore and aftwhen he was safe. Another man went to the weather earing, and threereefs were taken in the topsails. I heard the first lieutenant observeto Uncle Tom that he was very glad to get the ship snug at last; but Icannot say that I thought her snug, or anything snug about her, forthere we were among clouds of sleet and spray, tumbling and rollingabout in that undignified way in which I had not thought it possible sofine a frigate could have been tumbled and rolled about. It broughtdown the ship a peg or two in my estimation, and took the shine out ofmany of us, let me tell you. That fellow Snookes was continuallyoffering me a lump of fat bacon, and at dinner he contrived to slip allthe most greasy bits into my plate. I held out manfully, and tried tolook very heroic, or, at all events, indifferent; but, oh Harry, I didfeel very wretched, and began to reflect that I might possibly have beenrather happier on shore. I suspect that the way my lips curled, and theyellow look of my eyes, betrayed me. The gale lasted for three days. Iwas very glad when it was over; so you understand it is not all sunshineat sea.
It was reported that we were to touch at one or two places on the coastof Africa, and then to stand across to the Brazils. The first land wemade was that near Sierra Leone. I always thought that n*****s lived inthatched huts, and wore bits of white cloth round their loins. Webrought up before Free Town, the capital of the colony, when what was mysurprise to see really a very handsome place, containing between fifteenand twenty thousand inhabitants, the greater number black or brown men,and as well-dressed and comfortable-looking as any white people couldbe. What is more, they have schools and colleges where they arecapitally taught, and all the little black children go to school; sothat the truth is, that they are far better educated than are thechildren of the working classes in many parts of England, and are alljust as good Christians as we are. Sommers told me all this, and agreat deal more. I haven't spoken about him before. He's a mate--sucha good-natured, kind fellow, and is very merry, though he can be veryserious; and do you know, when he's in the berth, none of the others,big or little, swear and talk about things they oughtn't to. I likeSommers, and so even does Snookes and My Lord; and he never lets anybodybully Polly when he's near. I think that I should have been bullied agood deal, but I took everything that was said or done in good part, orpretended to be unconscious of it, and lost no opportunity ofretorting--good-naturedly of course--it would not have done
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