Each One Knew That He Must Be A
Man, And Show Himself Smart When At His Duty, Yet Every One
Was
satisfied with the usage; and a contented crew, agreeing with
one another, and finding no fault, was a contrast
Indeed with
the small, hard-used, dissatisfied, grumbling, desponding crew
of the Pilgrim.
It being the turn of our watch to go below, the men went to work,
mending their clothes, and doing other little things for themselves;
and I, having got my wardrobe in complete order at San Diego,
had nothing to do but to read. I accordingly overhauled the
chests of the crew, but found nothing that suited me exactly,
until one of the men said he had a book which "told all about a
great highway-man," at the bottom of his chest, and producing it,
I found, to my surprise and joy, that it was nothing else than
Bulwer's Paul Clifford. This, I seized immediately, and going
to my hammock, lay there, swinging and reading, until the watch
was out. The between-decks were clear, the hatchways open,
and a cool breeze blowing through them, the ship under easy way,
and everything comfortable. I had just got well into the story,
when eight bells were struck, and we were all ordered to dinner.
After dinner came our watch on deck for four hours, and, at four
o'clock, I went below again, turned into my hammock, and read
until the dog watch. As no lights were allowed after eight o'clock,
there was no reading in the night watch.
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