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So overboard a keg of nails And anvils three we threw, Likewise four bales of gunny-sacks, Two hundred pounds of glue, Two sacks of corn, four ditto wheat, A box of books, a cow, A violin, Lord Byron's works, A rip-saw and a sow. A curve! a curve! the dangers grow! "Labbord! stabbord! s-t-e-a-d-y! so! Hard-a-port, Dol! hellum-a-lee! Haw the head mule! the aft one gee! Luff! bring her to the wind!"
The helm swung over alternately from hard-a-starboard to hard-a-port; the stern-wheel ground savagely into the sand, first one way and then the other; and the gutter, which she had delved for herself in the bank, grew gradually wider and more deep. Then slowly she began to make real progress astern.
Frank and I ran full tilt against a gentleman who was coming full sail before the wind. "Hard-a-port!" Frank cried. There was an awful smash. My hat blew off; and we hid in a doorway till Frank got it back again. At Nan's earnest entreaties, her younger sister at last consented to take off her outer garments and robe herself in some of Nan's meantime shaking a good deal of snow on to the carpet.
This took the mutineers so completely by surprise, that not a gun was then fired at us. Sir Harry next ordered the helm to be put "hard-a-port," which caused the ship to shoot ahead of the Inflexible we were once more outside our enemies. Springing immediately on deck, he took the command, crying out, in his encouraging tone, "Well done, my lads well done!"
His muscles swelled tense and rigid the sweat poured from his face; but he laughed when Lincoln, with reckless drollery, began to shout a few nautical words. Hard-a-port, there, you'll have us playin' on the sand yet. That's right. All we got to do is to hard-a-port when the wind blows."
We were by this time close to the chase, on board which all was dark and silent as the grave. "Stand by to heave the grapplings, fore and aft. Now port your helm, my man Jones, isn't it? That's right, hard-a-port and run her alongside. This way, lads, our cat-head is your best chance.
It's hard-a-port or hard-a-starboard every minute; and if your coat-tail jibes, away goes something, and whatever it is that smashes, Mrs T always swears it was the most valuable thing in the room. I'm like a bull in a china-shop. One comfort is, that I never come in here except when there's company. Indeed, I'm not allowed, thank God.
"Breakers ahead!" roared the man at that moment "port! hard-a-port!" The order was sharply repeated, and promptly obeyed, and the vessel came round in time to escape destruction on a ledge of rocks, over which the water was foaming furiously. Instantly Malines went forward and began to give hurried directions to the steersman.
Hard-a-port, and let her have it as we cross her stern!" The keen eye of the little commander had seen the surface ripple, which told of a passing breeze. He had used it to dart across the big Frenchman and to rake her with every gun as he passed. But, once past her, the Leda had to come back into the wind to keep out of shoal water.
"Jump for'ard, lad," he shouted, "and keep yer eye sharp ahead." Billy obeyed at once, with the seamanlike "Ay, ay, sir," which he had acquired on board the whaler. "Port, port! hard-a-port!" shouted the boy a moment after taking his place in the bow. "Port it is," answered Gaff.
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