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Updated: June 9, 2025
These, with new braces and clew-lines fore and aft, gave us a good suit of running rigging.
The attentive men flew to their proper posts some to the tacks and sheets, the bunt-lines and clew-lines, others swarmed aloft like bees on the yards, and with vigorous arms hauled out the earings and secured the sails with the gaskets. They did their work manfully, for they well knew there was no time to lose.
"Man the fore and main tops'il clew-lines and bunt-lines," sung out Bowse, laying his hand on the main. "Away with it, my lads." The topsails were clewed up, the reef tackles hauled out, and the hands aloft lying in, in as short a time almost as it has taken to describe. Both sails were close reefed, and again sheeted home.
If he be a man of sense, and wishes the work to be done quickly and well, he must not now hesitate about starting the topsail sheets, and it will certainly be all the better if one or both the clew-lines be likewise hauled close up.
The ship lay nearly over upon her beam-ends; the spars and rigging snapped and cracked; and her top-gallant-masts bent like whip-sticks. ``Clew up the fore and main top-gallant-sails! shouted the captain, and all hands sprang to the clew-lines.
Canvass began to fall and open all over the ship, the top-sails were mast-headed, and, as I looked down from the fore-top-mast cross-trees, where I remained to overhaul the clew-lines, I saw that the ship was falling off, and that her sails were filling with a stiff north-west breeze.
Weather sheet's home! ``Lee sheet's home! ``Hoist away, sir! is bawled from aloft. ``Overhaul your clew-lines! shouts the mate. ``Aye, aye, sir! all clear! ``Taut leech! belay! Well the lee brace; haul taut to windward, and the royals are set. These brought us up again; but, the wind continuing light, the California set hers, and it was soon evident that she was walking away from us.
By and by, an order is given; ``Aye, aye, sir! from the forecastle; rigging is thrown down on deck; the noise of a sail is heard fluttering aloft, and the short, quick cry which sailors make when hauling upon clew-lines. ``Here comes his fore top-gallant-sail in! We are wide awake, and know all that's going on as well as if we were on deck.
To a man quite inexperienced, a squall may look in the highest degree threatening; he will order the top-gallant clew-lines to be manned, place hands by the topsail haulyards, and lay along the main clew-garnets.
Accordingly, the clew-lines, down-haul-tackle, and weather-brace being manned, the halliards were let go, the weather-brace hauled in, the weather-sheet started and clewed up; then the bowline and lee-sheets being let go, the sail caught aback, and the men springing on the yard, grasped it in their arms as they hung over it.
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