He came up on the full gallop, reined up near us,
addressed a few words to us, and receiving no answer, wheeled around
and galloped off again.
He was nearly as dark as an Indian, with a
large Spanish hat, blanket cloak or surreppa, and leather leggins,
with a long knife stuck in them. "This is the seventh city that
ever I was in, and no Christian one neither," said Bill Brown.
"Stand by!" said Tom, "you haven't seen the worst of it yet."
In the midst of this conversation the captain appeared; and we
winded the boat round, shoved her down, and prepared to go off.
The captain, who had been on the coast before and "knew the ropes,"
took the steering oar, and we went off in the same way as the other
boat. I, being the youngest, had the pleasure of standing at the bow,
and getting wet through. We went off well, though the seas were high.
Some of them lifted us up, and sliding from under us, seemed to let
us drop through the air like a flat plank upon the body of the water.
In a few minutes we were in the low, regular swell, and pulled for a
light, which, as we came up, we found had been run up to our trysail gaff.
Coming aboard, we hoisted up all the boats, and diving down into
the forecastle, changed our wet clothes, and got our supper.
After supper the sailors lighted their pipes, (cigars, those
of us who had them,) and we had to tell all we had seen ashore.
Then followed conjectures about the people ashore, the length of
the voyage, carrying hides, etc., until eight bells, when all hands
were called aft, and the "anchor watch" set.
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