At Night, After We Had Knocked Off,
And Were Sitting Round In The Forecastle, Smoking And Talking
And Taking Sailor's Pleasure, We Congratulated Ourselves Upon
Being In That Situation In Which We Had Wished Ourselves Every
Time We Had Come Into San Diego.
"If we were only here for the
last time," we had often said, "with our top-gallant masts housed
and our sails unbent!" - and now we had our wish.
Six weeks, or
two months, of the hardest work we had yet seen, was before us,
and then - "Good-by to California!"
CHAPTER XXIX
LOADING FOR HOME - A SURPRISE - LAST OF AN OLD FRIEND - THE LAST
HIDE - A HARD CASE - UP ANCHOR, FOR HOME! - HOMEWARD BOUND
We turned-in early, knowing that we might expect an early call;
and sure enough, before the stars had quite faded, "All hands ahoy!"
and we were turned-to, heaving out ballast. A regulation of the port
forbids any ballast to be thrown overboard; accordingly, our long-boat
was lined inside with rough boards and brought alongside the gangway,
but where one tub-full went into the boat, twenty went overboard.
This is done by every vessel, for the ballast can make but little
difference in the channel, and it saves more than a week of labor,
which would be spent in loading the boats, rowing them to the point,
and unloading them. When any people from the Presidio were on
board, the boat was hauled up and ballast thrown in; but when the
coast was clear, she was dropped astern again, and the ballast
fell overboard.
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