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With one swipe it smashed the foregaff to splinters, and half the canvas hung down flapping like a great wing. "I couldn't understand it. I knew the topm'st was in a weakened condition, but not as rotten as punk, and I supposed my foregaff was as solid a piece of timber as ever went into a vessel. "But listen!" as Elsa started to speak. "That isn't all.
Some Gloucester men were in sight, too, though most of the fleet, we guessed, were still outside of us. The coasters were colliers, three-masters both, and reefed down, wallowing in the sea. One had her foretopmast snapped short off, and such patched sails as she had on looked lonesome. The gang, of course, had to make fun of her. "There's one way to house a topm'st!"
And once again he described the crashing calamity aboard the overloaded boat as she struggled home to Freekirk Head with the last of her strength. "You, squire, you've sailed your boats in your time! You know that never could have happened even to the old May unless something had been done. And something was done! Burns had weakened the topm'st and the mainstay!"
Duncan, as we shot into the dock after beating the Eastern Point. "No, the balloon was all right 'twas the topm'st was a bit light," answered Maurice. Old Mr. Duncan smiled at that. "But what do you think of her, Captain Blake?"
Why, Elsa, that topm'st must have been sawed a quarter of the way through and that mainstay as much again. I don't really believe he did anything to the foregaff; it appeared to be the natural result of the topm'st's falling, but the damage he did resulted in the wreck of the schooner " "And the death of his own father.
She had lived her life and that last great strain, combined with the race the week before, was too much for her. I simply could not explain those things happening." "Yes, but you can now, can't you?" she asked coolly. Reluctantly he faced the issue, but he faced it squarely. "Yes, I can. Nat expected me to sail the May in a race, so he weakened my topm'st and mainstay.
"Everything went all right for three hours, with the wind getting fresher all the time, and the vessel under four lowers, which was a pretty big strain on any schooner. As I say, she should have stood it, but all of a sudden, on a big lurch, the fore topm'st that hadn't a rag on her broke off short and banged down, hanging by the guys.
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