Vietnam or Thailand ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
Updated: May 14, 2025
Quick, lads, for your lives!" shouted the boatswain. "Range our spare cable! Get the second bower-anchor from the hold! Now you, Ali Tomba, see that your men work," he added, turning to the serang. The English seamen worked away energetically; but in the dark it was a difficult business to get up the heavy anchor and chain cable.
The coxswain offered to go in the boat and examine; and, with four men, he set off, and in about an hour returned, stating that there was plenty of water, and that it was as smooth as a mill-pond, being land-locked on every side. As they could not weigh the bower-anchor, they bent the kedge, and, running in without accident, came to in a small bay, between the islands, in seven fathoms water.
Lieutenant Pellowe had been already directed to drop the best bower-anchor, as a means of getting the ships apart; and by the time half the prisoners had been removed, the prize separated, and fell astern. The crew fought with a steadiness and gallantry above all praise. A lad, who had served in the Winchelsea as barber's boy, was made second captain of one of the main-deck guns.
It continued to blow very strong till yesterday noon, when the wind suddenly shifted to N. and N. by E. I immediately got under sail, and stood out of the bay; the Pompée leaving a bower-anchor, her cable having parted in endeavouring to weigh it.
In the meantime the strain put upon the Hecla’s hawsers being too great for them, they snapped one after another, and a bower-anchor was let go as a last resource. It was one of Hawkins’s, with the double fluke, and immediately brought up, not merely the ship, but a large floe of young ice, which had just broken our stream-cable.
The coxswain offered to go in the boat and examine; and, with four men, he set off, and in about an hour returned, stating that there was plenty of water, and that it was as smooth as a mill-pond, being land-locked on every side. As they could not weigh the bower-anchor they bent the kedge, and running in without accident, came to in a small bay, between the islands, in seven fathoms water.
Having communicated to the assembled officers and ships’ companies my views and intentions, and moreover given them to understand that I hoped to see the Hecla’s top-gallant-yards across before we slept, we commenced our work; and such was the hearty goodwill and indefatigable energy with which it was carried on, that by midnight the whole was accomplished, and a bower-anchor and cable carried out in the offing, for the double purpose of hauling out the Hecla when requisite, and as some security to the Fury, if we were obliged to leave her.
And does actually accomplish it, in the course of this Year 1751, with a great deal of punctuality and severe painstaking; which readers of our day, fallen careless of the subject, are little aware of, on Voltaire's behalf. Voltaire's reward was, that he did NOT go mad in that Berlin element, but had throughout a bower-anchor to ride by. That latter, however, shall still be my function.
On Sunday 25 fathoms of water were found over the taffrail, and six fathoms over the larboard gangway; only nine feet on the starboard side, and 12 feet over the bows. One of the boats was immediately got out, with a bower-anchor; but on sounding, at the distance of ten fathoms from the ship, no ground could be found with sixty fathoms of line.
But Neb seized the hawser by which we were riding, and hauled the launch ahead her length, or more, before the frigate's larboard bower-anchor settled down in a way that menaced crushing us. As it was, I actually laid a hand on the muzzle of the third gun, while the ship went foaming by. At the next instant she was past; and we were safe. Then all three of us shouted together.
Word Of The Day
Others Looking