Vietnam or Thailand ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
Updated: June 17, 2025
Sheets and halyards were let go by the run, and the huge cloud of canvas seemed to shrink and shrivel up as the vessel was rounded to with folded wings like a crippled bird, and with her foretopsail to the mast, lay submissively awaiting the commands of her captors. She proved to be the ship Lafayette, of Boston, bound to Belfast, with a full cargo of grain, &c.
In effect he was not deceived; the look-outs on board the revenue craft could trace little of the vessel that was approaching beyond the spars and sails which rose above the shores, and these seemed to be the spars and sails of a common foretopsail schooner.
This man then told his mate, by way of explanation, that he had had a dream in which he dreamt they both tossed up and he had won, and that therefore the one wanting relief was to do the hour's trick. When daylight dawns the 'look-out' is transferred from the topgallant forecastle to the forecross trees, or, if sail is set, to the foretopsail yard.
At 8 set the Foretopsail, single reeft, and loosed all the Reefs out of the Maintopsail, and Steer'd North-East by East 1/2 East in order to make the land. At 10 saw it bearing East-North-East, and appeared to be very high; but, being hazey over it, we could see nothing distinct neither now nor at Noon, when, by Observation, we were in the Latitude of 46 degrees 0 minutes South.
"Hard down with your helm!" the captain commanded the steersman, all the life gone out of his voice. Then to the crew, "Back over the jib and foresail! Run down the flying jib! Clew up the foretopsail! And aft here and swing on to the main-sheet!" The Mary Thomas ran into the eye of the wind, lost headway, and fell to courtesying gravely to the long seas rolling up from the west.
The third lieutenant, though he was severely wounded, went aft to the helm, and in less than three minutes from the time the boats got alongside, the prize, under her foresail and foretopsail, was standing down the harbour. Bill, having got hold of a pistol, kept close to Mr Saltwell, that he might be ready to assist him or obey any orders he might receive.
The sails were closely furled, with the exception of a small foretopsail, and away the stout ship flew now dipping into one sea, the foaming crest of which came rushing over the deck, now rising to the summit of another.
His musket balls reached us in every direction but his large shot either fell short or went considerably over us while our guns loaded with round shot and square bars of iron were plied so briskly and directed with such good judgment that before he got out of range we had cut his mainsail and foretopsail all to rags and cleared his decks so effectively that when he bore away from us there were scarcely ten men to be seen.
Another foresail was now bent, and this time double-reefed, the foretopsail, too, was bent, close-reefed and furled, while the fore and aft foresail was once more stowed, leaving the "Sea Witch" to scud under double-reefed foresail. Five days of steady blow continued before the vessel could again show more than a small portion of her canvass.
"Well, and what does skulking mean, and shirking work?" persisted Ailie. "It means hiding so as to escape duty, my little catechist; but " "Hallo! Glynn, Glynn Proctor," roared the first mate from the deck "where's that fellow? Skulking, I'll be bound. Lay aloft there and shake out the foretopsail. Look alive." "Ay, ay, sir," was the ready response as the men sprang to obey.
Word Of The Day
Others Looking