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They're busy getting the stunsails upon her now, sir." "All right; stay where you are, and let's hear, if you see anything worth reporting," replied Bowen. A few minutes later another report was made to the effect that the other sail a full-rigged ship had filled, and was standing to the northward under all plain sail.
He gave the necessary instructions to the helmsman, and then, turning again to me, continued: "We may as well get this business over as soon as possible, George; so get the stunsails, big gaff-topsail, and main-topmast-staysail on her at once, my lad, and give the little hooker a chance to go through the water."
And the result proved the soundness of his theory, for on the sixteenth day of our quest, about seven bells in the afternoon watch, the look-out hailed the deck with: "Large sail two points abaft the weather beam, steerin' to the west'ard under stunsails!" "How far away is she?" hailed the skipper. "Her r'yals is just showin' above the horizon, sir," answered the man.
"I have already been up the Mediterranean once, and without for a moment attempting to decry the " "Hands, trim sails. In with the stunsails on the starboard side; rig in and secure the booms, ease up the larboard braces, and take a small pull upon the starboard, rig out the booms on the port side and get the stunsails on her again.
Who knows? Perhaps we might knock away one of his spars and so help our own craft to get alongside. My eye! ain't they carrying on, too; topgallant-s'ls and stunsails on both sides. What a strain upon their spars and rigging! Cut away a brace or a backstay, now, aboard that Frenchman, and away would go a whole heap of his canvas. What a splendid craft she is!
We were already under stunsails, so I could do no more in the way of making sail; but we mounted eight brass nine-pounders, very pretty pieces they were, too, so I had them cleared away and loaded, in readiness for the worst; for I took her to be a French or Spanish privateer, and I had no notion of yielding my ship to any such vermin without making a fight for it; and my own lads were quite of the same mind as myself, not liking the idea of being locked up for years in a French or a Spanish prison.
In stunsails! Down top-gallant-sails! Stand by three boats. Mr. Starbuck, remember, stay on board, and keep the ship. Helm there! Luff, luff a point! So; steady, man, steady! There go flukes! No, no; only black water! All ready the boats there? Stand by, stand by! Lower me, Mr. Starbuck; lower, lower, quick, quicker!" and he slid through the air to the deck.
"Svorenssen sung out, of course," replied the boatswain, "but he couldn't leave the wheel, for 'twas pipin' up a freshish breeze on our port quarter, and we was doin' about seven, or seven and a half knots, with topmast and lower stunsails set to port, and of course we had to take 'em in, clew up the royal and to'ga'ntsail, and haul down the gaff- tops'l before we could round to; and that took us so long that at last, when we'd brought the hooker to the wind, hove her to, and had got the jolly-boat over the side, we knowed that it'd be no earthly use to look for either of 'em.
"T'gallant sails! stunsails! alow and aloft, and on both sides!"
"My stunsails!" ejaculated the old fellow, dashing his cap to the ground in a fever of excitement; and, seizing both my hands in his, he shook them up and down so forcibly that he almost lifted me off the seat. "Think of that now; but, I could ha' known it from the sort o' feeling that drew me to you when I saw you curled up here, all lonesome, like a cock sparrow on a round of beef!
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