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Updated: May 4, 2025
The lone soldier was to take heart of grace, remembering that he had a son; remembering also that the son was now a man grown, stout of arm, steady of head, and otherwise fighting-fit. If the storm should come, the watchword must be to hold on all, keeping steerage-way on the Chiawassee Consolidated craft at all hazards.
As the day wore on, the wind fell lighter, until by sunset the ship scarcely had steerage-way; consequently it was not until the next morning that we found ourselves off the island of Amsterdam, past which we drifted so slowly that, had there been anyone on the island, they would have had ample time to make their presence known. But we saw no one, nor anything in the least resembling a signal.
But, in spite of the baffling airs, such good progress did we make, that by two o'clock that afternoon we were gliding slowly through a fleet of about forty sail of vessels which were so completely becalmed that they were heading in all directions, utterly without steerage-way.
All hands worked with desperate energy, and it required all their strength to prevent the canvas from being blown out of their hands. The savage wind upon her bare hull and spars had given the brig steerage-way, and when the man at the helm threw the wheel over, the head of the vessel began to come up to the wind.
"Has the ship steerage-way on her, Captain Marble?" "Just that, and nothing more to boast of." "Then ask no questions; but try to follow the boat. It is the only hope; and it may succeed." I got no answer; but I heard the deep, authoritative voice of Marble, ordering the "helm up," and the men "to man the weather-braces."
It was some six weeks after the occurrence of the above event that, while cruising off Cape Gallinas, on the Costa Firme, with our head to the westward, we found ourselves so nearly becalmed that it became necessary for us to set all our flying kites in order to retain steerage-way.
The deck under our feet was fairly steady, the vessel having barely steerage-way, rolling slightly to the heave of the sea. No sound readied us from above, and the silence of the cabin was profound. Indeed the stillness irritated me with its mystery, rendered me reckless to penetrate its meaning. Murder had been committed for a purpose it was the first step in an effort to retake the ship.
The sun went down in a heavy bank of clouds that had been gathering on the western horizon all the afternoon and slowly working up against the wind, an almost certain precursor of a thunderstorm, and as the dusk closed down upon us the wind began to grow steadily lighter, until by the end of the first dog-watch the air was so scant as to barely give us steerage-way.
At four bells in the afternoon watch the wind had fined down to such an extent that the frigate was making no more than a bare four knots through the water, although we had by this time got up the fore-topgallant and royal-masts again and were once more under all plain sail; while, as for the two Indiamen, built as cargo-carriers rather than for speed, they appeared to scarcely have steerage-way, and seemed to maintain their luff only with the utmost difficulty indeed, there were times when they fell so broad off as to present their full broadsides to us.
At last, by the time that tea was ready, the Lily was "boxing the compass," having lost steerage-way altogether; so, as our big sails were no use, we took them in and stowed them away, not knowing from whence or how strong the breeze might next come. We took a good look all round at the weather, and then left the Lily to take care of herself, whilst we went below to our evening meal.
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