As Soon As The Sea Had Washed By, All Hands Sprung
Out Of The Forecastle To See What Had Become
Of the ship and in
a few moments the cook and old Bill crawled out from under the
galley, where
They had been lying in the water, nearly smothered,
with the galley over them. Fortunately, it rested against the
bulwarks, or it would have broken some of their bones. When the
water ran off, we picked the sheep up, and put them in the long-
boat, got the galley back in its place, and set things a little
to rights; but, had not our ship had uncommonly high bulwarks and
rail, everything must have been washed overboard, not excepting
Old Bill and the cook.
Bill had been standing at the galley-door, with the kid of beef in his
hand for the forecastle mess, when, away he went, kid, beef, and all.
He held on to the kid till the last, like a good fellow, but the beef
was gone, and when the water had run off, we saw it lying high and dry,
like a rock at low tide - nothing could hurt that. We took the loss
of our beef very easily, consoling ourselves with the recollection
that the cabin had more to lose than we; and chuckled not a little
at seeing the remains of the chicken-pie and pan-cakes floating in
the scuppers. "This will never do!" was what some said, and every
one felt. Here we were, not yet within a thousand miles of the
latitude of Cape Horn, and our decks swept by a sea not one half
so high as we must expect to find there.
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