At
this the oarsmen stopped rowing, and held their oars horizontally over
the water. The boat in the mean time was gliding on toward the shore.
"_Aboard!_" said Forester.
The crew then gently raised their oars into the air, and passed them
over their heads into the boat, laying them upon the thwarts in their
proper position, along the middle of the boat. By this order the crew
supposed that Forester was going to land.
"Bear a hand, Mr. Bowman," said Forester, "and fend off from the
shore."
Forester, by means of his paddle, had steered the boat up to a log
which lay in the edge of the water, and Marco, at first fending off
from the log, to keep the boat from striking hard, and then holding on
to it with his hook, got it into a good position for landing, and held
it securely.
"_Crew ashore_," said Forester.
The crew, who had learned all these orders in the course of the
repeated instructions which Forester and Marco had given them, began
to rise and to walk toward the bow of the boat and to go ashore. Marco
landed first, and held the boat with his boat-hook, while the rest got
out. Forester then ordered Marco to make the boat fast, until they
were ready to embark again.
