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Hardly was the jib secured before the great mainsail ripped open from top to bottom, and in the same puff the close-reefed foretopsail split in two with a bang, from earing to earing. Now came the orders fast and loud: "Down yards! Haul out reef tackle! Lay out and furl! Lay out and reef!"
When he had heard the sound of the boatswain's whistle on board of her, eagerly had he stretched his earing to catch the order given and given, he was convinced, in his father's voice. Nor had his eyes been less called to aid in his attempt to discover the features and dress of those moving on her decks.
Like a desperate adventurer, who had cast his fortunes on some hazardous experiment, he appeared to await the issue with a resolution that was as haughty as it was unconquerable. "That topmast is bending like a whip," muttered the careful Earing, at his elbow. "Let it go; we have spare spars to put in its place," was the answer.
It's a man as was kinder fond o' me, and we understood each other's lingo. That's it he was afraid of my 'earing things that mightn't be wholesome for me to know. The man hadn't done no harm. And Durnovo comes up and begins abusing 'im, and then he strikes 'im, and then he out with his revolver and shoots 'im down." Durnovo gave an ugly laugh.
Shoes and stockings in hand you ford the shallow river, then, shod again, you begin the long ascent. You will need four good hours, or five, for you are not a landsman, your shoes hurt you, and you would rather reef top-sails aye, and take the lee earing, too, in any gale and a score of times, than breast that mountain. It cannot be helped.
By hauling the reef-tackles chock-a-block, we took the strain from the other earings, and passing the close-reef earing, and knotting the points carefully, we succeeded in setting the sail, close-reefed.
At length the word came, ``Haul out to leeward, and we seized the reef-points and hauled the band taut for the lee earing. ``Taut band knot away, and we got the first reef fast, and were just going to lay down, when ``Two reefs two reefs! shouted the mate, and we had a second reef to take, in the same way.
The "blood" came from a fine brick-dust matter afloat in the air from the deserts. A rain-storm setting in brought down this dust simply as mud; it fell in such quantities that a bucketful was collected from the sloop's awnings, which were spread at the time. When the wind blew hard and I was obliged to furl awnings, her sails, unprotected on the booms, got mud-stained from clue to earing.
Some are strong, and some are weak. And the strong ones are always expecting the weak ones to stand upright as they do, and go straight on their way without earing for praise or blame. And, of course they can't it's not in them they stumble and turn aside at little things that the others wouldn't notice.
In this brief interval of expectation and inactivity, the mates again approached their commander. "It is an awful night, Captain Wilder!" said Earing, presuming on his rank to be the first to speak. "I have known far less notice given of a shift of wind," was the answer.
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