On Turning Round To Come Aft, He Pretended
Surprise At Seeing The Master On Deck.
This would not do.
The captain was too "wide awake" for him, and beginning upon him
at once, gave him a grand blow-up, in true nautical style - "You're
a lazy, good-for-nothing rascal; you're neither man, boy, soger,
nor sailor!
You're no more than a thing aboard a vessel! you don't
earn your salt! you're worse than a Mahon soger!" and other still
more choice extracts from the sailor's vocabulary. After the poor
fellow had taken the harangue, he was sent into his state-room,
and the captain stood the rest of the watch himself.
At seven bells in the morning, all hands were called aft and told
that F - - - was no longer an officer on board, and that we might
choose one of our own number for second mate. It is usual for the
captain to make this offer, and it is very good policy, for the
crew think themselves the choosers and are flattered by it, but have
to obey, nevertheless. Our crew, as is usual, refused to take the
responsibility of choosing a man of whom we would never be able
to complain, and left it to the captain. He picked out an active
and intelligent young sailor, born near the Kennebee, who had been
several Canton voyages, and proclaimed him in the following manner:
"I choose Jim Hall - he's your second mate. All you've got to do is,
to obey him as you would me; and remember that he is Mr. Hall."
F - - - went forward into the forecastle as a common sailor, and lost
the handle to his name, while young fore-mast Jim became Mr. Hall,
and took up his quarters in the land of knives and forks and tea-cups.
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