J\ 
 
 OLIN 
 PN 
 6071 
 .S4 
 
 1898 
 
 
 \ 
 
 \ \i. 
 
 >^\: 
 
 
 
Why Voa Should Use 
 Cleveland's Baking PouudeP 
 
 It is beyond question perfectly wholesome, being com- 
 posed only of pure cream of tartar and soda, with enough 
 flour added to keep the strength, no ammonia, no alum, 
 no adulteration whatever. 
 
 It is the strongest. A rounded teaspoonful 
 of Cleveland's Baking Powder does more and better work 
 than a heaping teaspoonful %^//~"][V of others. A large 
 saving on a year's baking. ^^^^I^ 
 
 Cake and other articles of food keep moist and fresh 
 and do not dry up as when made with baking powders 
 containing ammonia or alum. 
 
 Housekeepers will be interested to know that Cleve- 
 land's Baking Powder is sp>ecified in the latest recipes of 
 
 MARION HARLAND, 
 
 Author Common Sense in the Household. 
 
 MARIA PARLOA, 
 
 Lecturer on Domestic Science. 
 Mrs. S. T. RORER, 
 
 Principal Philadelphia Cooking School. 
 
 Mrs. D. A. LINCOLN, 
 
 Author of Boston Cook Book . 
 
 Miss BEDFORD, 
 
 Late of Domestic Dept., 
 Pratt Institute, Brooklyn. 
 
 Mrs. DEARBORN, 
 
 Principal Boston Cooking School. 
 Mrs. GILLETTE, 
 
 Author of *' White House" Cook Book. 
 Miss HOPE, 
 
 Teacher in Public School Kitchen, Boston. 
 MARGARET WISTAR, 
 
 " Parlor and Kitchen," Philadelphia. 
 Mrs. GESINE LEMCKE, 
 
 Principal German-American Cooking 
 School, Brooklyn, 
 
 and many other prominent teachers of cookery. 
 
 ANOTHER VICTORY FOR CLEVELAND'S. 
 
 jg^ On March 4th the contract for supplying the U. S. Army with 
 baking powder was again awarded to the Cleveland Baking Powder Co. 
 This makes the sixth consecutive order for Cleveland's Baking Powder 
 from the goi'ernment, and now the proposals specify that baking powder 
 offered must be " in quality equal to Cleveland's." That is commendation 
 that speaks volumes 
 
CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARV 
 
 3 1924 074 476 452 
 
 CHRISTMAS AT SEA 
 
 EDITED BY 
 
 U. S. NAVY 
 
 PHILADELPHIA 
 L. R. HAMERSLY & CO. 
 
 iSio Chestnut Street 
 1892 
 
Copyrighted, 1892, by L. R. Hamersly & Ca 
 
" Gentle breath of yoyrs my sails 
 Must fill, or else my project fails, 
 Which was to please." 
 
 Tempest. 
 
 " Fahtaff. Have you provided me here half ^ a dozen sufficient 
 men ? 
 Shallow. Marry have we, sir. 
 Fahtaff. Let me see them, I beseech you. 
 Shallow. Where's the roll ? where's the roll ? 
 .... Let them appear as I call." 
 
 Shakspeare. 
 
The " yarns " in this little volume are contributed by- 
 Rear-admiral Alexander Murray, who wrote Mr. 
 Hawse's story, another officer of equally high rank, who 
 remains anonymous, but, who wrote the " Admiral's 
 Story," and the " Flag-officer's Story. Capt. C. H. 
 Rockwell, who contributes the Captain's story. Ensign 
 F. R. Brainard, who writes " An Amulet." Lt. T. B. M. 
 Mason is the author of " The Secretary's Story." Pay- 
 director Casper Schenck furnishes " Queen Annie " and 
 the poem at the end of the book, while Capt. Charles 
 King is the author of the Marine-officer's story. Medical 
 Director Edward Shippen is the editor of the volume, 
 the author of the introductions and condensation, and 
 the Paymaster's and Assistant-surgeon's story. All the 
 gentlemen named are officers of the navy, except Capt. 
 King, who, as all the world knows, is an officer of the 
 army. 
 
A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 A FINE taunt frigate, homeward bound from the East 
 Indies, is in the Northeast Trades. The second dog- 
 watch is far spent, and high in the eastern sky rides a 
 lovely moon, across the face of which the soft billowy 
 trade clouds are swiftly passing, as the strong breeze 
 freshens with the night. 
 
 The ship carries all plain sail, with topmast studding- 
 sails beside; which latter at times just lift enough to 
 justify the ancient quartermaster at the "con" in re- 
 proachfully growling " No higher ! " to which the seaman 
 at the weather-wheel promptly answers, " No high !" and 
 gives a spoke or two of weather-helm. " Werry Well 
 dice ! " says the quartermaster, after a moment ; while 
 the officer of the deck, roused from a reverie of home by 
 the incident, looks aloft, and then to windward, tells 
 the petty officer to " keep her a good full," and once 
 more steadies himself against the swifter of the mizzen 
 rigging, and resumes the thread of pleasant thoughts. 
 
 Away forward, on both spar- and gun-decks, many 
 groups of men, with folded arms, are pacing the planks 
 in that restless, cat-like fashion which seamen have, — ten 
 shuffling steps one way, and ten the other, — reminding 
 one of the movements of animals in a menagerie. Others 
 are gathered about some fiddler, or singer, or noted 
 spinner of yarns ; and now and then from these come 
 
 5 
 
6 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 snatches of chorus or bursts of hearty laughter. The 
 officers, in pairs, are smoking on the gun-deck or pacing 
 the lee-poop, or perhaps engaged in the after-dinner chat 
 and chaff of the wardroom and steerage. 
 
 A listener near any of these groups, whether composed 
 of officers or men, would find the one subject of conversa- 
 tion, song, or story to be home, with speculations innu- 
 merable upon the three months' news of which they are 
 in arrears. The talk is mostly cheery and hopeful ; but 
 among those five hundred souls there must, of course, be 
 some who have either dreary reminiscences or forebod- 
 ings of bad news on arrival, — and these are the silent 
 ones who, withdrawing from the crowd during this hour 
 of recreation, brood in such dark nooks and quiet places 
 as they can find, — while, far down in the sick-bay (silent 
 at this hour, save for the creak of bulkheads and the 
 plash of waters as the ship divides the seas), sways back 
 and forth in his lonely cot one to whom all times will 
 soon be alike, and whose mortal part will be consigned 
 to the deep long before the welcome Land-ho ! is heard 
 on those decks. But these sad ones are few, — not 
 enough even to leaven the mass of their shipmates, — and 
 so the cheery talk and bustle goes on. Almost all have 
 some plan, some joyful anticipation. The first lieutenant 
 is to see his three-year-old boy for the first time. The 
 third lieutenant is to be married. The paymaster is to 
 resign and enter a great banking firm as soon as his ac- 
 counts are settled. Others expect orders to the Naval 
 School, the Observatory, or some hospital, if no " Co- 
 burgs " have cut them out during the period which has 
 elapsed since the last mail was received on board. 
 
 Be sure that " Jack " has his plans, too, as well as his 
 
A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 7 
 
 master. With the exception of one Jerseyman, from, 
 Barnegat, who is to " buy into " a coaster and make a 
 fortune, and of one or two Yankees, who are going lush- 
 ing, not a soul of that ship's company is ever going to 
 sea again. Many intend to purchase farms and plow the 
 prairie ; while those who doubt their ability as agricul- 
 turists are to work along shore as stevedores and riggers. 
 The scapegrace landsman intends reform and a fresh start 
 in life. The runaway boy is going home to his old 
 mother, and means to ease his conscience by filling her 
 lap with dollars ; while the mainmast-man and the cap- 
 tain of the forecastle — grizzled tars — are going to the big 
 house, as they call the Naval Asylum, to lay up in ordi- 
 nary for the rest of their lives. The ship's cook, always 
 a capitalist, is to open a canning establishment in Balti- 
 more ; while the barber, apt in a big ship to be another 
 capitalist, has visions of a " tonsorial establishment " in a 
 first-class city hotel, resplendent with plate-glass and ma- 
 hogany, and profusely decorated with bottles of pink 
 hair tonic. 
 
 Good resolutions swell most bosoms in that ship. The 
 gun-deck of a homeward-bound man-of-war can be cov- 
 ered, tenfold, with the same material which is said to pave 
 the lower regions. Nautical good intentions are, how- 
 ever, even less permanent than those formed on shore ; 
 and, in a few weeks, most of these busy planners will be 
 shipped again, and outward-bound, leaving most of their 
 hard-earned cash in the hands of whisky-sellers and 
 sharpers, male and female, whose business in life is to 
 prey upon " Jack," as gulls do upon herrings, or dolphins 
 upon flying-fish. 
 
 It is a pity that the closing verse of the " Homeward- 
 
8 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 Bound " song is not laid more to heart by those who 
 follow the sea. It runs thus : 
 
 " For when our money's gone and spent, 
 And no more's to be found or lent, 
 The landlord comes in with a frown, 
 Says ' Jack, get up ! let John sit down ! ' 
 
 For he knows we're outward bound ! 
 
 He knows we're outward bound ! " 
 
 But for the present, at least, the glamour of hope is 
 upon all. Hope, long deferred, is seldom noisy, and 
 the talk, though cheerful, is carried on in a subdued 
 and earnest tone, the blended voices making a murmur 
 throughout the crowded hull like the thrill and hum of 
 bees in a hive. 
 
 Meanwhile the weary orderly at the cabin-door has 
 been keeping a bright lookout upon the deck time- 
 piece, — for his relief is near, — and eight o'clock having 
 been duly reported, the officer of the deck suddenly 
 breaks in upon the drowsy hum of voices with the 
 sharp order, " Strike the bell eight ! Call the watch ! " 
 The sound is not out of the bell ere the boatswain (who 
 has been lingering for some time in the weather gang- 
 way, abreast the fore hatch), with a sharp, short chirrup, 
 admonitory and preparatory, — answered immediately, in 
 the same manner, by his mates, — proceeds to blow, in 
 unison with them, a long-drawn winding " call," uniting 
 the notes of the canary, the lark, and the cat-bird, and 
 winding up abruptly with " All the watch ! " His mates 
 in turn sing out the same, — one bass voice deeper than 
 another, until the last seems really to come from under- 
 neath the keel, " five fathoms deep." Now come up 
 from the hatches, like ants fron^ their holes, the watch 
 
A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 9 
 
 whose turn it is for duty. The lookouts and wheel are 
 relieved, and the midshipmen go on with the muster. 
 
 Midst all this orderly bustle the lieutenant who has 
 the first watch ascends from below with due dignity and 
 deliberation, takes over the trumpet, receives the orders, 
 course, and state of the weather from the officer he re- 
 lieves, hails for a " bright lookout ahead," sees the 
 braces taut, the rigging clear for running, admonishes 
 the helmsman to keep her " full and bye," and settles 
 matters generally for a comfortable fair-weather watch. 
 Just then, too, emerges from the hatchway the form of 
 the first lieutenant, who, having received the reports of 
 the warrant-officers, and having interviewed the master- 
 at-arms for about the twentieth time that day, is pro- 
 ceeding to make his last report to the commanding 
 officer. 
 
 Captain Tangent is seated at the round table in the 
 centre of the poop-cabin, the chart spread out before 
 him under the swinging-lamp, waiting, not so much for 
 the first lieutenant's report (the purport of which he 
 knows beforehand) as for the appearance of the navi- 
 gator with his work, showing the course and distance 
 run since noon. The night orders are already written 
 and lying upon the table, and the strong light shines 
 upon a partly bald and grizzled head, a white but wrin- 
 kled forehead, in strong contrast with the deeply- 
 bronzed cheeks, and an expression of countenance 
 which shows that life has few illusions left for him, 
 and that his temper has not improved with years. 
 
 Just now the captain is idly swinging his compasses 
 round by one leg in the left hand, while, with a pencil 
 in his right, he musingly makes an experimental dab at 
 
10 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 the supposed position on the chart. To him enters the 
 first heutenant, gives the stereotyped report, and asks if 
 there are any orders. The official interview being then 
 over, conversation begins. 
 
 " Fine night, Mr. Pawl. Glorious run these twenty- 
 four hours ! Pay for it by and by, though. Have it 
 rough upon the coast at this time of year. Hope all are 
 well at home. Christmas-eve, you know." 
 
 " Yes, sir. I was about to inquire if the men should 
 have their Christmas as usual. They have made great 
 preparations, and some of the messes will be well worth 
 looking at." 
 
 " Certainly, Mr. Pawl, certainly ! No work or drill ! 
 And let the band play at the men's dinner, and for 
 dancing in the afternoon, if the weather permits." 
 
 This point settled, the first lieutenant then proceeds 
 formally to request the captain to honor the wardroom 
 mess with his company at dinner on the next day. The 
 captain affects great surprise at the invitation, although 
 for some days it has been an open secret that the admi- 
 ral and captain were to be invited to dine out on Christ- 
 mas-day; and neither of those veterans had made the 
 slightest preparation to keep Christmas in their own 
 quarters. In fact, their stewards had been furtively and 
 busily engaged in assisting the wardroom steward in 
 making boned fowls, pastry, and cunning devices in 
 sweets, rivalling each other in the skill shown, after the 
 manner of such gentry. Speedily recovering from his 
 assumed surprise, the " skipper " politely assures Mr. 
 Pawl that he " will have great pleasure," and the first 
 lieutenant bows himself out. Thence, after a look at the 
 weather, he descends to the gun-deck, and, after sending 
 
A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 11 
 
 in his name by the orderly, is ushered into the admiral's 
 cabin, where, with all due formality, the same invitation 
 is extended and accepted. 
 
 "Christmas dinner, hey? Yes, pleasure! Ward- 
 room mess must be better off for grub than I am, after a 
 passage like this ! In my time ward-room would be 
 upon junk and duff! " 
 
 The gallant flag-officer is nearly sixty-two, — a smart 
 officer still, and always a favorite in the service. San- 
 guine, courteous, amiable, hearty, he has a dark com- 
 plexion, twinkling brown eyes, and hair, once jet-black, 
 still so thick-set in his scalp that it stands up, as if in a 
 state of surprise, in spite of all brushing or pomading. 
 Powerful, square shoulders, deep chest, and rather long, 
 nervous limbs gave the walk and bearing of an Indian, 
 often making people suspect some trace of Cherokee 
 blood in him. 
 
 As already remarked, everybody liked " Whisky," as 
 he was frequently called behind his back, — nobody ever 
 called him that to his face, not even his contemporaries. 
 His father had been a noted Western distiller, of great 
 wealth, and when his son entered the navy he was sup- 
 plied with more money than fell to the lot of most 
 young midshipmen. This, in the days when midship- 
 men's pay had not very much advanced from " nineteen 
 and one," caused some envy, and he was at once nick- 
 named " Whisky," even by those who borrowed his 
 money. 
 
 This was not seriously resented by him at the time ; 
 but by and by " Whisky " passed, and, being a bright 
 fellow, passed high, and was ordered as master or navi- 
 gator of a brig. One of his old messmates was ordered 
 
12 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 to the same vessel, and he, when all met at the time of 
 reporting, at once hailed the master as " Whisky, old 
 fellow ! " But he was hauled up very short. " Shak- 
 ings," said the master, " nicknames were all very well in 
 the steerage, but now that I am of some account, I wish 
 you to know that the man who calls me ' Whisky ' 
 must fight. You know that I don't mind you, old fellow, 
 but I think it necessary to my dignity as an officer." 
 
 As it was well known that " Whisky " would fight, — 
 indeed, had been a principal in more than one steerage 
 duel, with ship's pistols, — he was never nicknamed to his 
 face again, but resumed thenceforth his patronymic of 
 Bluegrass. 
 
 The times have greatly changed since " Whisky " was 
 a midshipman, when he and others would go on shore 
 in the market-boat, pop at each other on the beach with 
 ship's pistols, and with the stewards and the coxswain 
 for witnesses, returning on board for breakfast little the 
 worse for the operation. Or when the first lieutenant, 
 " getting wind " of the proceeding, d — d them for young 
 fools and quarantined them, while, three mornings after- 
 ward, he himself went out, and shot the doctor through 
 the heart with his own hair-triggers. 
 
 But this is running away from our dear old flag- 
 officer, whose genial nature renders the isolation en- 
 forced by his position rather irksome, and who is, in con- 
 sequence, much given to entertainmg the officers at his 
 well-spread table. This it is easy for him to do, not only 
 on account of comfortable private means, but because 
 his children are long settled in life and off his hands ; 
 while his next in rank, the captain, has a large family 
 still dependent upon him, is a trifle soured by the strug- 
 
A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 13 
 
 gle of life, and avails himself of his solitary cabin to live 
 quietly and economically, and seldom extends hospitality 
 to any one. 
 
 And now to return to the dinner. 
 
 The invitations being accepted, a consultation of great 
 import takes place between the first lieutenant and the 
 caterer as to who is to be invited from the steerage, and 
 how the table is to be made large enough for such an 
 influx of guests. For, be it known, a wardroom table 
 is, for the sake of compactness, not usually capable of 
 comfortably seating more than the members of the mess. 
 One of these is always on watch, so as to make a va- 
 cancy for a strange diner; while in port, when more 
 strangers are apt to be present, some of the mess are 
 sure to be absent on leave. 
 
 The caterer is a shrewd and wary veteran, who has, 
 in the early part of the cruise, seen some willing and 
 many unwilling members of the mess try their hands 
 and fail, — for the most part ignominiously. Then he 
 stepped in with plenary powers, and proving himself, by 
 a reduction of expenses and an increase of comfort, 
 eminently worthy, has ruled the mess ever since as a be- 
 nevolent pater familias, — not denying his children rea- 
 sonable comforts and indulgences, but for their own 
 good limiting as far as possible things unwholesome 
 both for stomach and purse. The important points 
 referred to being settled, the caterer summons the stew- 
 ard. That important functionary appears at once, emerg- 
 ing from the pantry, his hands covered with flour and 
 his whole person enveloped in a snow-white apron, being, 
 in fact, in the act of " setting " the bread. 
 
 Domingo is a character, well known in the service. 
 
14 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 I fear there are very few left like him. A native of 
 Madeira, he had spent thirty years of his life in the navy; 
 yet his English, though fluent enough, was hardly in- 
 telligible to a stranger, partly on account of his strong 
 accent, but principally because it was largely made up 
 of nautical idioms and expressions. Always respectful, 
 though never servile ; serving twenty masters well ; 
 thoroughly honest, trustworthy, and respectable ; an 
 economical marketer and excellent cook ; with a reserve 
 of force and dignity which enabled him to meet the 
 vagaries of junior officers and easily control the crowd 
 of negro wardroom boys ; and with an experience and 
 sharpness which confounded the devices of " galley- 
 rangers," lucky was the mess which secured Domingo 
 for a cruise. 
 
 Short and very square-built, close-shaven, with the 
 blue-black beard showing through his olive, swarthy skin, 
 with raucous, deep-toned voice, he was a type of his 
 race. Neatly dressed at all times and in all weather, he 
 was the one man on board ship who seemed always 
 superior to the vicissitudes of sea-life. Bad indeed must 
 the weather be when the wardroom table over which 
 Domingo watched was not furnished forth at the ap- 
 pointed time ; and low indeed must be the sea-stores 
 when he had not some palatable dish ready to eke out 
 the standing sea-fare. Such things are of less importance 
 in these days of steam, short passages, and canned pro- 
 visions ; but in his early service they proved not only 
 capability, but genius. 
 
 Remarkable as Domingo's English was, after a certain 
 manner he was polyglot in tongue, and could hold his 
 own in any market, from Singapore to San Francisco. 
 
A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 15 
 
 But especially did he pride himself upon speaking our 
 language ; and, during this very cruise, had taken great 
 delight in teaching English, as he pronounced it, to some 
 China boys who had filled vacancies among the ward- 
 room servants, and was heard constantly to stir them up 
 " becoz dey no bear a han' larnun Inglis." 
 
 Domingo assures the caterer that he is well forward in 
 his preparations, and that he can turn in with the assu- 
 rance th^t the reputation of the mess will be amply sus- 
 tained, and that everything will go off well. 
 
 Christmas morning dawns with the same fine trade- 
 wind blowing, but a little more moderate than during 
 the hours of darkness, and the ship tears on, with lurch 
 and send, and a " bone in her mouth," flushing coveys of 
 flying-fish from time to time, and keeping the spray 
 diamonds dancing in the rising sun about her weather 
 cat-head. The usual preliminary slopping, holy-stoning, 
 squilgeeing, and swabbing is rather prolonged, in honor 
 of the day, so that the ship may be pronounced thor- 
 oughly clean. During these processes the captains of 
 the after-guard, the mastmen, quarter-gunners, and other 
 petty officers exchange remarks of a pungent and even 
 profane nature, little in keeping with the day, while the 
 officer of the deck, with swinging trumpet, paddles fore 
 and aft with bare feet and trousers tucked up ; and the 
 first lieutenant surveys the scene from the break of the 
 poop, attired in pea-jacket and gum boots, and vaguely 
 thinks he is aiding the work by sending for the boatswain 
 and blowing him up, and by shouting for the foretopmen 
 to bear a hand in the port gangway. 
 
 After breakfast the quarter-gunners put the last touch 
 upon the guns, coil the lock-strings, and adjust the cap- 
 
16 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 squares, while the " black-hsters " polish the bright-work 
 until it won't stand another rub, and then the word is 
 passed, after due preliminary of boatswain's call, for the 
 crew to dress in clean mustering clothes, the usual work 
 and exercises being dispensed with. At ten o'clock there 
 is service on the gun-deck for those who choose to attend, 
 — church being '" rigged " by ranging chairs in a semi- 
 circle for the officers, directly in front of which semi- 
 lunar arrangement is the chaplain's desk, covered with 
 bunting. The officers may be supposed to be in a state 
 of grace, since the exhortations of the chaplain are 
 directed point-blank in front of him. Here division- 
 tube and hatch-coamings support capstan-bars, which 
 form rather precarious and exceedingly uncomfortable 
 seats for " Jack ; " the latter, however, barring a vacant 
 glance now and then, through the gun-deck ports, at the 
 dancing blue-water to leeward, or an occasional general 
 slide, during a lee lurch, pays all due attention to the 
 chaplain's simple and touching story of the day. During 
 the service the flag flies from the gaff, with the church pen- 
 nant above it, for the benefit of the sea-birds and flying- 
 fish we must suppose, for not a sail is in sight over all 
 that grand expanse. Nothing, indeed, impresses one 
 more with the immensity of the ocean than the fact that 
 one may sail for days over a recognized and frequented 
 route and yet never see a ship. 
 
 Soon after church is over seven bells strike, and there 
 promptly appears at the fife-rail by the mainmast the fat 
 and important-looking ship's cook with a great mess-pan 
 full of the cooked ration for the day, in which, stuck 
 upright, bristle and quiver a brightly-polished knife and 
 spoon. The officer of the deck, tucking his trumpet 
 
A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 17 
 
 under his left arm, with a deliberate and supercilious 
 manner which implies that the thing is a bore, proceeds 
 to inspect and taste the appetizing mess. Being hungry- 
 after his forenoon watch, he really makes quite a hearty, 
 if furtive meal. Then he pronounces it good, — the cook 
 receives orders to " serve out," and, with his charger 
 borne high, disappears down the fore hatch. A short 
 pipe is heard, and then begins a clattering of mess-tins 
 on the gun-deck as the mess-cooks lay the board, — in 
 this case literally, for there is nothing but a tarpaulin 
 between the pots and pans and the deck, — while a savory 
 odor rises from the galley, and eddies aft upon the 
 quarter-deck out of the big belly of the mainsail. At 
 this time, too, appears the navigator, sextant in hand, 
 with a swarm of " young gentlemen " similarly provided, 
 and all intent upon the meridian altitude. 
 
 A lull of voices and a general suspension of move- 
 ment now takes place for a few minutes, during which 
 silence a tinkling of silver against glass is heard plainly 
 upon the quarter-deck, transmitted up the hatches from 
 the depths of the ward-room, and recognized by the 
 initiated as the sound caused by the paymaster in pre- 
 paring the " medicine " which he always takes at this 
 houi", and they smile knowingly. 
 
 A few moments more, and the navigator lays his 
 instrument upon the arm-chest, figures a little, and 
 announces the latitude, — some of the young gentlemen 
 being a few seconds behind him, for the look of the 
 thing. " Orderly ! " sings out the officer of the deck, 
 "report to the captain 12 o'clock, latitude 19° 34'." 
 
 The orderly goes in, in one time and two motions, and 
 reappears instantaneously with " Make it so^ sir !" 
 2 
 
18 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 "Strike the bell eight! Pipe to dinner ! Heave the 
 log!" 
 
 Alas for old-fashioned sailors ! the last line of the old 
 sea-rhyme no longer holds good. It used to run thus, — 
 
 " Strike the bell eight ! 
 Heave the log! 
 Pipe to dinner ! 
 And roll to grog!" 
 
 Since 1864 the marine drummer's roll to grog has 
 ceased, and the main brace is now spliced in hot coffee, 
 Jack's throat never experiencing the pleasant titillation 
 of Old Rye save upon those rare occasions when it is 
 served out by the surgeon in carefully measured and 
 even niggardly doses as — medicine ! 
 
 As the first lieutenant had said, some of the men's 
 messes on the gun-deck are really well worth looking at. 
 Their tins are scoured to a silvery polish, and their 
 dishes are decked with curious paper devices from China 
 and dried chrysanthemums of many colors from the 
 Cape of Good Hope, — all carefully preserved under diffi- 
 culties for this crowning feast of the cruise. Beside the 
 standing ration of the day few there are without some 
 dainty dish or succulent sea-pie, redolent of garlic and 
 onions, while all have a well-cooked " duff," full of 
 raisins. The petty officers' mess has even a roast pig, — 
 rather large for stuffing and cooking whole, it is true, 
 but not too much for the sturdy boatswain's and gunner's 
 mates and swarthy, sun-browned quartermasters who 
 surround it. Ever since the last port they have been 
 furtively maintaining a small porker, and stuffing him 
 with dainty bits, so that he has almost grown beyond 
 the limits of galley ovens. All this time, too, they have 
 
A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 19 
 
 been " working Tom Coxe's traverse " to keep the ani- 
 mal out of the first lieutenant's sight. Indeed, it is 
 reported that he has made most of the passage in a 
 division-tub, muzzled, to keep him from squealing. 
 Perhaps Mr. Pawl has not chosen to be too keen-sighted 
 in the matter of piggy, now that they are homeward 
 bound, and the " Boston girls have got hold of the tow- 
 rope," and so the animal has survived to fulfill his mis- 
 sion. 
 
 At the sergeant's mess, on the deck below, they have 
 not only a table, let down from between the carlines, and 
 camp-stools to sit upon, but also glass tumblers and 
 knives and forks. Their dinner is served quite in form, 
 and seasoned by genuine chutney, presented by the 
 apothecary — an honored and influential member of the 
 mess — in a disused leech jar ; while another member, the 
 yeoman, makes an offering for dessert of a pot of pre- 
 served Canton ginger, originally intended for his grand- 
 mother. Carried away by the spirit of the festive 
 occasion, he determines to present her instead with a 
 cheap Canton work-box, already so warped by change of 
 climate that it will neither open nor shut. 
 
 Dinner over, the men lounge and smoke, sing, dance, 
 and skylark, while the band gives them their own favor- 
 ite airs. Some of them take out their ditty-bags, and 
 take a sailor's comfort in patching and turning and 
 mending, like thrifty housewives, although public opin- 
 ion rather discourages anything of the kind on such a 
 holiday, and when homeward bound, as savoring of 
 meanness. It is past comprehension how an old sailor 
 will deny himself tobacco and submit himself to repri- 
 mand for wearing patched and shabby clothing, and he 
 
20 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 may save a few more dollars to go into the maw of the 
 land-shark predestined to meet him in Water Street or 
 Cherry Street, and lead him off like a sheep to be shorn. 
 Meanwhile the fair trade lasts well. Hardly a brace 
 is touched; the temperature is perfect, and the ship 
 bowls along with just enough of send, and lurch, and 
 stagger to make one realize that she is going her best 
 pace, and that every hour knocks off eleven knots from 
 the distance home. The band has ceased to play, but 
 no evening quarters disturb the holiday, which those 
 who have no watch on deck pass as best pleases them. 
 In the port gangway the foretopmen are playing " bull 
 in a ring," in the other the maintopmen are singing of a 
 frigate, " a frigate of fame, which in the East Indies she 
 bore a great name." Listen to them for an instant: 
 
 " Now all in one moment this work must be done. 
 It's ' all hands reef topsails and tack ship in one ; ' 
 It's ' lay aloft topmen,' as the hel-lum goes down, 
 ' Trice up and lay out and take two reefs in one.' " 
 
 A worthy set of solemn and grizzled forecastlemen are 
 exchanging reminiscences as to whether the "Ironsides" 
 or the " Pelter " first opened fire at Fort Fisher ; and 
 how they got the " Teaser's " anchor when she slipped 
 after a blockade-runner off Mobile in '6'i) ; with occa- 
 sional diversions to settle whether it was Tom Scott or 
 Bill Scott who kept a sailor boarding-house in Cherry 
 Street in 1850, and whether the name of the captain of 
 the forecastle of the " Ripsnorter," round the Horn in '49, 
 was Henry Jones or Eliphalet Robinson. Upon the 
 gratings about the stern of the launch is gathered a 
 group of sentimental and imaginative youths, who are 
 listening with open ears and mouths to one of those in- 
 
A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 21 
 
 terminable yarns or narratives so dear to the nautical 
 mind. . . . " ' Now, says the Prin-cess,' says she, ' this 
 here beats the speckled Jews ! ' And she got right up 
 and called for her elephant, and went off mad ; and all 
 her harpoon-guard went with her." 
 
 So passes the time on deck. In the wardroom the 
 event of the afternoon is the throwing for choice of cer- 
 tain lots of plated ware, books of reference, and a fine 
 painting of the ship, — owned in common by the mess, 
 and valuable intrinsically, as well as souvenirs of the 
 cruise. Before six all the officers are dressed and ready 
 for dinner, and, on the stroke of the bell, the fife and 
 drums play " Roast Beef; " the first lieutenant goes for 
 the admiral, and the caterer for the captain, who are, 
 with naval punctuality, all ready ; and these high offi- 
 cials are escorted below in due state. Upon entering 
 the wardroom they are received by the mess, all stand- 
 ing and executing a general chassez across. " Good- 
 evening " and remarks upon the weather then succeed, 
 as if the visitors had just come on board from some 
 neighboring island and no one had seen or heard of 
 tHem for months. 
 
 By a nautical fiction the flag-officer is supposed to be 
 only a passenger on board the flag-ship, — having his 
 headquarters and establishment there, but not command- 
 ing her any more than any other vessels of his com- 
 mand : so the intercourse between himself and the cap- 
 tain need be only formal and official, he telling the cap- 
 tain where he wishes to go, and the latter taking him to 
 his destination. Thus these two gentlemen meet in the 
 wardroom as in the house of a mutual friend ; and now 
 remarks upon the weather, and upon the prospects for a 
 
22 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 good passage, are exchanged by them. The sea-stores 
 of the steerage have long since run low, and there is no 
 danger of the invited guests from the mess not knowing 
 when dinner is ready, although no one is sent for them. 
 Messieurs Mid, Fid, Forward, and Chuckles therefore 
 slide quietly in and skirmish in the rear, while the high 
 dignitaries are exchanging compliments and meteorolo- 
 gical remarks. 
 
 The proper moment having now arrived, the company 
 go to dinner. The admiral is seated in the middle of the 
 table, with the captain opposite to him. The rest take 
 their accustomed places, with a midshipman sandwiched 
 in here and there. The chaplain says grace, — rather 
 longer than usual, as befits an occasion of high festivity, 
 — at the conclusion of which the bandmaster, who has 
 been peering down the hatch to observe the exact mo- 
 ment, waves his baton (an octave flute), and the band on 
 the half-deck crashes into the " March in Norma," with 
 entirely too much trombone. Then the wardroom boys 
 advance from a dim and gloomy space in the rear, bear- 
 ing dishes, and showing inches of black wrist, in sharp 
 contrast with the white cotton gloves some sizes too 
 small for them. 
 
 Soup is served, and consumed in silence ; and then 
 the sherry glasses are filled; apropos of which act the 
 admiral— who is, as usual, in a gracious mood — relates a 
 little story of Peter Domecq, Xeres, and the year 1826. 
 This the captain straitway supplements by a reminis- 
 cence of Messina, anno 1838, and of some Bronte 
 wine, " which no one could tell, begad ! from March's 
 best navy Madeira." 
 
 The appositeness of the latter anecdote is not ap- 
 
A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 23 
 
 parent, but it is received with great appearance of 
 interest, and, the ice being broken, conversation be- 
 gins. Members of the mess ask when the captain 
 thinks he will get in. Non-committal answer, and a 
 reference to the superior wisdom of the admiral. 
 Admiral thinks it uncertain, especially at this time of 
 year; and so that subject seems exhausted at its very 
 inception, which is a pity, for mess jokes and topics 
 are of course excluded ; and this one seemed thoroughly 
 conservative and safe. 
 
 Another member of the mess cheerfully remarks 
 that "they are having their health drank at many a 
 dinner at home to-night." The captain, still non-com- 
 mittal, remarks that " that's as may be ; " after which 
 comes a prolonged silence, and a determined a;ttack 
 upon the dinner, during which Mr. Gasket, the third 
 lieutenant (who had been suspended, not long before, 
 for carrying away a top-mast studding-sail boom), re- 
 marks sotto voce, to his next neighbor, that " the skip- 
 per is as cross as a bear with a sore head ; " at which, 
 in the midst of the silence, his neighbor laughs out, 
 but immediately puts on preternatural solemnity as 
 all eyes are tui-ned in his direction. In fact, the din- 
 ner promises to be very stiff, and the promoters of 
 the festivity are beginning to feel very blue, when the 
 caterer comes to the rescue by ordering champagne, 
 which appears properly cooled in a cunning mixture 
 devised by the assistant surgeon. There are only six 
 bottles of it left, and the members of the mess have 
 been privately admonished to touch it lightly; while 
 the steward, in serving it, passes over one of the mid- 
 shipmen altogether, to his great disgust. 
 
24 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 With the appearance of the wine the condition of 
 affairs rapidly improves ; and, in a few minutes, the cap- 
 tain, with a glance at the admiral, vouchsafes the remark 
 that he " hopes to get in about the twelfth." The ad- 
 miral adds, condescendingly, " tenth to fifteenth." The 
 champagne is passed round again, and neither the first 
 lieutenant nor the caterer take any this time, while 
 Domingo deliberately passes over the chaplain and an- 
 other midshipman. Conversation soon becomes gen- 
 eral and easy, and the elaborate dessert is consumed 
 amidst universal chat and hilarity, the midshipmen, 
 meantime, making play at the decanters, as they know 
 their time is short. 
 
 By and by eight o'clock lights are reported out by the 
 master-at-arms at the wardroom door. 
 
 This functionary is a character. A sort of Ishmael, 
 he has no sympathy with any soul on board. He does, 
 to be sure, slightly defer to the first lieutenant, as his 
 proper superior, but really, and at heart, he pities him 
 for his weaknesses. He reports " ten o'clock lights out," 
 " John Brown is dead," " Peter Smith is in double irons," 
 or the " berth-deck's on fire " in the same tone, and with 
 the same wooden face and manner. 
 
 As the master-at-arms disappears (having shown by 
 his looks that he deeply disapproves of any such unbend- 
 ing and frivolity), the bustle of relieving the watch is 
 faintly heard, and the guests from the steerage discreetly 
 rise and excuse themselves. Claret and Madeira are 
 now placed upon the table by the steward, who stations 
 himself behind the caterer's chair, and glows with the 
 consciousness of duty well performed, as well as with the 
 heat of the pantry, from which he has emerged. 
 
THE ADMIRAL'S STORY. 25 
 
 As both admiral and captain like a cigar, special per- 
 mission for smoking below is granted, for this occasion 
 only, and trays of Manillas, the only cigars possible in 
 that ship, are placed upon the table. 
 
 The two important guests are by this time beaming 
 with good nature, and — plenum vini ciboque — light their 
 cigars, while the admiral says, " If you don't mind, gen- 
 tlemen, I will tell you a little story of a Christmas night 
 long ago, of which I am reminded forcibly by contrast 
 with the pleasant weather we are now enjoj'ing. It has 
 a spice of the supernatural about it, and is, in fact, the 
 only approach to communication with the spirits which 
 ever occurred to me. This is the more remarkable, as I 
 paid due heed to their communications on that occasion; 
 and I have been given to understand by latter-day pro- 
 fessors that they seldom leave those who do so. Well, 
 on this occasion I certainly had a warning from a mys- 
 terious voice ; and, although by no means superstitious, 
 am still inclined to think that 
 
 ' There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, 
 Than are dreamt of in your philosophy.' 
 
 In the year i8 — I found myself attached as a watch- 
 officer to the ' V ,' one of the ships belonging to a 
 
 squadron stationed on the west coast of Africa, cruising 
 there for the suppression of the infamous slave-trade. 
 
 This 'V ' was a stanch, old-fashioned, deep-waisted 
 
 sloop-of-war of nearly eight hundred tons burden, carry- 
 ing twenty guns, with a complement of more than two 
 hundred souls in her ship's company. She had been 
 built years previously, during the regime of the ' Navy 
 Commissioners,' but at this time, from the many repairs 
 
26 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 that had been made upon her hull, there was scarce a 
 stick of the original timber remaining, although her model 
 had been sacredly preserved 
 
 ' Through all the changes of the changing years.' 
 
 There was a report current in naval circles relative to the 
 modeling of this vessel and of her sister-ships, — for we 
 had six of these naval beauties in our service, — that the 
 said Navy Commissioners, when they had assembled to- 
 gether for the purpose of examining plans and deciding 
 upon the model by which the vessels should be con- 
 structed, had selected that one from which they were af- 
 terwards built, by first reducing their length of keel, as 
 on the original plan,/"w7« one hundred and sixty \.o one 
 hundred and thirty feet, and this reduction in their length 
 was made by cutting those thirty feet square off from the 
 
 after part of the model. As the 'V ' had very full 
 
 quarters, and anything but a clear run, this current report 
 was in all probability correct. 
 
 Notwithstanding this reduction of length the ' V ' 
 
 was a comfortable ' old tub,' that could run along from 
 six to eight knots under favorable conditions of wind and 
 sea, while with a quartering gale she could go ten. 
 
 Our captain was a tall, thin, nervous old gentleman, 
 who had not seen much service afloat, and consequently 
 was not a practical seaman. He had grave doubts as to 
 the stability of any ship of war when under canvas, and 
 was particularly fearful that this one which he com- 
 manded would either be capsized during some squall, or 
 else wrecked by running upon rocks or shoals. These 
 dangers to navigation, although not laid down upon our 
 charts, nevertheless existed, in his imagination, on every 
 
THE ADMIRAL'S STORY. 27 
 
 mile of the broad Atlantic. It was his standing order 
 that the officers of the deck should reduce sail whenever 
 in their opinion it was necessary to do so, reporting the 
 facts afterwards. But no one, not even the first lieuten- 
 ant, could make sail ; the captain, and the captain only, 
 could order sail to be made after it had once been taken 
 off the ship. In consequence of this order the officers 
 were very chary in reducing sail, and did so only when 
 in their opinion it was absolutely necessary. 
 
 In the wardroom we had six line-officers and four 
 idlers as messmates. The former were old ' sea-dogs,' 
 each one of whom, from long experience, knew how to 
 handle a ship under any and every occurring circum- 
 stance, and the latter were jolly fellows, who always kept 
 the first watch when at sea under the starboard side of 
 the top-gallant forecastle, there smoking their pipes and 
 spinning their yarns. 
 
 After a very warm day, hot even for the African 
 coast, the sun had disappeared behind the horizon, leav- 
 ing a breeze which seemed to us smokers, who were 
 forward enjoying our pipes, to be deliciously cool; then, 
 as star after star appeared, there was every promise of a 
 lovely night. Eight bells were struck, and the watch 
 was called, as I went aft to relieve the officer of the deck, 
 who, after passing me the orders, the sail set, and the 
 courses to be steered, started forward for my vacated 
 seat, there to have a whiff from his pipe, and to enjoy the 
 lovely night ere turning in. I walked around the deck, 
 examined the weather-head braces, the trim of the yards, 
 and the set of the sails. After satisfying myself on each 
 of these points I looked at the compass, and went upon 
 the poop to scan the horizon as to the present and future 
 
28 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 prospects of the weather. Everything appearing to be 
 fair, I settled myself into a steady walk, which was to 
 continue, as I supposed, during the four hours I was to 
 be the guardian of the ship and her crew. The weather 
 at this time was delightful, the stars were shining with 
 remarkable brilliancy; indeed, they were so very brilliant 
 that each particular star appeared to be the star that out- 
 shone all the others, and to be the one that singly and 
 alone gave all the light illuminating the heavens. 
 
 Not a cloud could be seen in any direction ; there 
 was nought to mar the brightness of the sky above, and 
 the waters beneath were scarcely ruffled by the gentle 
 breeze that silently moved our ship over their surface. 
 Under royals and flying-jib, with the wind abeam, our 
 ship sailed over this ' summer sea ' almost as noiselessly 
 and gracefully as an albatross skimming the ocean's 
 crest. 
 
 It was the custom on board, owing to the excessive 
 heat during the daytime, to grant the ship's company the 
 privilege of singing and smoking until nine o'clock, 
 which is an hour later than the time usually allowed on 
 board ships of war when at sea. This hour having ar- 
 rived, orders were given to pipe down, and for the watch 
 to lie aft on the quarter-deck, and stow themselves on 
 the weather side, between the guns ; the log was hove 
 and the lights reported out ; five knots was the speed of 
 the ship. Everything then became quiet about the 
 decks ; and there was at this time no appearance, in any 
 quarter, of any change either in wind or weather. 
 
 The night was so very beautiful, and the stars so 
 very bright, that I could not refrain from repeating to 
 myself, — 
 
THE ADMIRAL'S STORY. 29 
 
 ' If yon bright stars which gem the night 
 Be each a bhssful dwelling-place, 
 Where kindred spirits reunite 
 
 And live to meet the loved of this — ' 
 
 Thus far only had I spoken, when a voice whispered 
 gently in my ear, — 
 
 ' You had better shorten sail.' 
 
 The words were spoken very distinctly, and I turned 
 around expecting to see the speaker ; but I was alone at 
 the break of the poop, and there was no one near me. 
 As I was certain that I had heard the words, it was some 
 time before I could satisfy myself that I might have been 
 mistaken, for if I was not, from whence could the voice 
 have proceeded? Resuming my walk and cogitating 
 over the matter, the time passed quickly, and four bells 
 were reported and struck ; then I gave the usual orders 
 to— 
 
 ' Relieve the lookouts 1 Heave the log ! Muster 
 the watch ! Report the ten o'clock lights out ! ' 
 
 The log again gave five knots as the speed, and 
 there was still no change of wind or of weather. After 
 this I took a stroll around the deck, felt of the weather- 
 head braces, and looked at the yards ; finding everything 
 ' taut and trim,' I went upon the poop, and stood at the 
 starboard quarter scanning the horizon, and while in this 
 position looking to windward, the same gentle voice again 
 whispered in my ear, — 
 
 ' You had better shorten sail.' 
 
 This time there was no mistake, and I looked around, 
 as I had upon the previous occasion, expecting to see 
 the speaker, but there was no one in sight who could 
 possibly have spoken ; indeed, the only person on the 
 
30 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 poop besides myself was the lookout, stationed at the 
 ' life-buoy ' on the port quarter, and he was standing, 
 facing to leeward, watching the phosphorescence of the 
 sea, utterly oblivious of everything save of his own 
 thoughts. 
 
 He certainly was not the mysterious speaker. Who 
 was ? I am not easily startled, nor am I superstitious, 
 but is it to be wondered at that I felt, to say the least, 
 queerly, knowing mysterious beings were around who 
 could make themselves heard, yet could neither be seen 
 nor felt ? Then I argued to myself, this whisperer is 
 evidently friendly, as accidents do not result from being 
 under short sail, while many terrible ones have resulted 
 from carrying too much. Reasoning thus, although the 
 stars were still as brilliantly shining, the wind as gently 
 blowing, and the ship as quietly sailing as when my 
 watch commenced, and although there was not a cloud 
 to be seen, I gave orders, — 
 
 'Furl the royals and stow the flying-jib;' then 
 ordered the watch to remain on their feet, not to lie 
 down any more, but to see and keep everything clear for 
 shortening sail ; after this I went forward on the top- 
 gallant forecastle, looking at the horizon from all points 
 of view there ; but nothing could be seen indicating a 
 change. 
 
 As I passed down the forecastle-ladder on my way 
 aft, each one of the idlers seated forward greeted me 
 with, — 
 
 ' Halloo, Bluegrass, what's the matter ? ' 
 
 ' Why are you taking in sail ? ' 
 
 ' Are there any squalls brewing ? ' 
 
 As I could give these questioners no good reasons 
 
THE ADMIRAL'S STORY. 31 
 
 for my action, I preserved a dignified silence and con- 
 tinued on my way, resuming my walk upon the poop, 
 where, in less than five minutes' time and while I was in 
 the act of walking the deck, that same mysterious voice 
 whispered once more, — 
 
 ' You had better shorten sail.' 
 
 This was the third time of the warning, and as at 
 the previous time, so now, there was no one in sight or 
 near who could have spoken. I was alo?te I 
 
 Hesitating no longer, I made every preparation for 
 stripping the ship of her canvas, but before giving the 
 final orders to do so, examined again the horizon to 
 windward, and there in the far distance perceived a 
 misty appearance, as of an Indian summer haze, and I 
 also thought I could hear a sound like unto that made 
 by wind as it soughs through a forest in winter-time. 
 Ordering the quartermaster to make a judicious luff and 
 lift the weather-leaches of the topgallant-sails, I took 
 them in, and was about ordering them furled when 
 there came a sound, a rushing sound, increasing in- 
 stantly to a roaring like unto that made by Niagara's 
 mighty fall, and with time only to order, ' Hard up the 
 helm ! Let go the main-sheet ! Let go the lee topsail- 
 sheets ! Let go the topsail-halliards ! ' when a furious 
 blast struck the ship, forcing her over under its mighty 
 power, until the muzzles of our lee guns were buried in 
 the water, while at the same time a dense mass of spray 
 or mist was driven over the rail with a force that 
 blinded every one. As the ship herself was almost 
 thrown on her beam-ends by the first puff of the squall, 
 so all on deck were thrown down, and found themselves 
 struggling in the lee-scuppers. For a few moments. 
 
82 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 what with the howling of the wind, the slapping of can- 
 vas, and the impossibility of standing upright, it ap- 
 peared to me doubtful whether or no I should be able 
 to save either the sails or the spars ; but our stanch old 
 ship paid off slowly and surely, and as the force of the 
 wind was brought abaft the beam the crew picked them- 
 selves up and worked with a will in carrying out my 
 orders. 
 
 At length discipline, combined with the preparations 
 that I had made, enabled me to triumph over the fury 
 of the squall, and by the time the ship was before the 
 wind the topsails had been clewed up and the mainsail 
 hauled snugly up to the yard ; then close-reefing the 
 topsails, I set the fore and main and furled the mizzen, 
 then sent the topgallant and royal yards on deck. 
 Looking around to see what damage had been done, I 
 found the foresail and jib were split, and the fore-top- 
 gallant-sail blown away from the jack-stay ; there were 
 also a few bruised limbs among those who had been 
 pitched to leeward. All the smokers forward lost their 
 pipes and tobacco, and received a thorqugh drenching, 
 while the watch-officers who had ' turned in,' being on 
 the weather side of the ship, were all ' turned out ' in a 
 most unceremonious manner, finding themselves sud- 
 denly sprawling on the deck in their state-rooms. 
 
 Everything was ' to rights ' at last, the ship running 
 before the wind, when as suddenly as the squall had 
 begun, so as suddenly it ceased, passing away in a cloud 
 of mist, and disappearing in the distance to leeward, 
 leaving nothing to mark its pathway save our good ship 
 stripped of her canvas and lying almost motionless on 
 the water. I went to the cabin to report, and found the 
 
THE ADMIRAL'S STORY. 33 
 
 captain standing at the door, looking very pale and very 
 miserable. After giving him the details of the squall 
 and of my actions in regard to the ship, he remarked, — 
 
 ' That was a terrific squall, Mr. Bluegrass.' 
 
 ' Yes, sir,' I answered, ' it was quite heavy. I think 
 it must have been a '' white squall" ; but it is all over 
 now ; it has passed ahead ; and as the weather is as it was 
 previous to its advent, with every indication of continuing 
 fair, shall I make sail ? ' 
 
 ^ Make sail, sir / /' he answered, with indignation ex- 
 pressed in his tones, — 'make sail, sir / f ! No, sir//!' 
 Thus the interview ended, and sail was not made on the 
 ship in a hurry. 
 
 White squalls, so called, are of very rare occurrence. 
 No seafaring person of my acquaintance has ever experi- 
 enced one. Even with my fifty years of service, this was 
 the first and last I have ever met. Showing, as they do, 
 few or no signs of their approach, and traveling with 
 great velocity, they are particularly dangerous, and woe 
 betide that unfortunate vessel overtaken by one, if un- 
 prepared to meet it, for she must either be dismasted at 
 the first fury of the blast, or else forced over by its 
 mighty power, be capsized, and 
 
 ' In the deep bosom of the ocean buried.' 
 
 From the time when I discovered the far-distant mist 
 that heralded the approach of this one until the time 
 when it had passed away not an hour elapsed, and it left 
 us with the stars as brightly shining, the wind as gently 
 blowing, and the sea almost as smooth as it had been 
 before its coming. 
 
 As I have stated, sail was not made again on the 
 
 3 
 
34 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 'V ' in a hurry, for, during the space of four days 
 
 and nights, she remained under the short sail that I had 
 reduced her to, the captain not permitting any more to 
 be made, being fearful lest another white squall might be 
 ' bottled up ' somewhere in the universe, only to be let 
 loose upon his devoted head. At last, to the surprise of 
 every one, sail was ordered to be made, and in due time 
 we arrived safely at Porto Prayo, where, finding the com- 
 mander-in-chief, our captain reported 
 
 ' The dangers he had passed.' 
 
 In conclusion, I ask, whence came that mysterious 
 voice, but for whose repeated warnings I should not in 
 all probability have discovered the approach of that 
 squall in time to prevent at least serious damage to the 
 ship, or perhaps her loss altogether ? I ascribe the voice 
 and those warning words to that 
 
 ' Sweet little cherub 
 That sits up aloft, 
 And looks out for the life of 
 Poor Jack.' " 
 
 The flag-officer having finished his story, said, " I have 
 spun rather a long yarn, for me, but Christmas times 
 always bring that night vividly before me. I feel now 
 that I have a right to call upon Captain Tangent to give 
 us a reminiscence of his own.'' 
 
 " What ! " says the captain. " Why, sir ! I never told 
 a yarn in the whole course of my life." 
 
 And, indeed, no one had ever known the " skipper" to 
 do so in the whole of a long cruise, at least, he being 
 perhaps the most matter-of-fact and taciturn person on 
 board, however sensible and reliable. 
 
THE CAPTAIN' S STORY. 35 
 
 When he heard the captain thus called upon, Mr. 
 Gasket, the third lieutenant, at his end of the table, in a 
 voice only audible to those immediately around him, 
 remarked " Umph ! his reminiscences consist of different 
 ' horsings ' of officers of the deck, and quarantining of 
 midshipmen for not having their journals written up." 
 Great indeed, then, was the astonishment of the company 
 when the captain, with a preliminary glass of Madeira, 
 actually began a story. 
 
 " If you like," he said, " I'll give you a yarn of the 
 old times, about a very well-known man to old officers, 
 — Captain Thomas Tempest. It was a dark gloomy 
 morning in the month of March, 1844. Off the Battery 
 in the harbor of New York, lay the sloop-of-war 
 Champlain, about to sail for the West Indies and the 
 Spanish Main. The wind was raw and fresh from the 
 N. N. W. The sky was overcast, and there was a feel- 
 ing of snow in the air. The chain had been hove short, 
 the topsails were set, and the courses, top-gallant sails, 
 jib and spanker were loose, and ready for making sail. 
 The ship had been put under ' sailing orders ' for mid- 
 night, the day previous, which meant that everyone 
 should be on board at that time. Before lifting the 
 anchor, the captain directed the first lieutenant to beat to 
 quarters, to see if every officer and man was on board 
 and at his station. 
 
 The lively music of the drum and fife started every- 
 one hurrying to his station, and the men were rapidly 
 mustered, and the division officers passed aft to report 
 all accounted for to the executive officer. 
 
 All reported but one officer. The waist division 
 
36 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 seemed to have its full complement of men, but Lieutenant 
 Singleton, the officer in charge, was not at his quarters. 
 
 ' Corporal of the Guard,' sang out Mr. Draper, the 
 first lieutenant, ' go below, and see if you can find Mr. 
 Singleton.' The corporal soon returned, saluted, and 
 reported. 
 
 ' Mr. Singleton is nowhere below, sir.' Hurried in- 
 quiries revealed the fact that no one had seen the lieu- 
 tenant, and so the executive reported to the captain. 
 
 ' Officers and men all accounted for, sir, except Lieu- 
 tenant Singleton, who is not on board the ship.' 
 
 Captain Tempest was a ' Tartar.' Fierce and rigid 
 in his ideas of discipline, he was stern and exacting, 
 and inflicted punishment with an unsparing hand when 
 he deemed it necessary. He had given orders on the 
 preceding day that all the officers should be on board 
 by midnight, and here was one missing, and his orders 
 had been disregarded. 
 
 ' Were all the officers informed of the fact that the 
 ship was under sailing orders at midnight ? ' he sternly 
 asked the first lieutenant. 
 
 ' They were, sir,' answered that officer. 
 
 ' Has the Navy Yard boat shoved off yet ? ' in- 
 quired the captain. 
 
 ' No, sir.' 
 
 ' Detain her, sir, I have a letter to send,' and retiring 
 to his cabin he wrote the following despatch to the Hon- 
 orable Secretary of the Navy. 
 
 U. S. Si-irp ' Champlain,' 
 New York Harbor, March 14, 1844. 
 Sir : —Lieutenant Gustavus Singleton of this ship went on shore yester- 
 day with directions to return on board by midnight. He failed ts do so, 
 in direct violation of my orders. 
 
THE CAPTAIN'S STORY. 37 
 
 I trust that the Honorable Secretary will see that suitable punishment, 
 is inflicted upon this delinquent. I shall sail without him. 
 Very Respectfully, 
 
 Thomas Tempest, Captain Commanding. 
 The Honorable J. R. Mason, Secretary of the Navy. 
 
 ' Send this letter by the Navy Yard boat. Get under 
 way, sir,' said the captain. 
 
 On the preceding day, Lieutenant Singleton had 
 gone on shore to make a few purchases, and to have a 
 ramble through the streets, intending to return on board 
 the Champlain in the sunset boat. He had finished his 
 business, and was sauntering slowly down Broadway, 
 when he saw a carriage drawn by a pair of spirited 
 horses, which were evidently unmanageable, come dash- 
 ing up the street towards him. Without an instant's 
 hesitation he sprang at the heads of the frightened ani- 
 mals, and caught the one nearest him by the bridle. The 
 velocity of the horses dragged him for some distance, 
 but his weight finally threw the horse, which fell heavily 
 upon the young man. The struggling animals were 
 quickly secured, and the lieutenant was borne insensible 
 into a drug store. 
 
 The occupants of the carriage were two ladies, evi- 
 dently mother and daughter. They were much fright- 
 ened, but unhurt, and, procuring another carriage, were 
 driven rapidly away, without seeming to know just how 
 their vehicle had been stopped, or what had happened. 
 
 Lieutenant Singleton fell into good hands. His 
 wounded head was plastered and bandaged, and regain- 
 ing consciousness, he soon fell asleep under the influence 
 of opiates, and slept until morning. 
 
 When he awoke, he shouted : 
 
38 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 ' Hello ! where am I ?' 
 
 ' In the surgery of Hobson's drug store,' said an 
 attendant coming forward. 
 
 ' How came I here, and what is the matter with me ? ' 
 he asked. 
 
 The case was explained to him, and then he remem- 
 bered who he was, and about the ship. 
 
 'What time is it?' he said, anxiously. 
 
 ' Nearly eight o'clock in the morning,' was the answer. 
 
 ' Get a carriage instantly,' he cried. ' My ship will 
 sail without me.' • 
 
 So he drove rapidly to the Battery, and saw the 
 Champlain, under all sail, going down the harbor. 
 
 He chartered a tug and started in chase, and finally 
 caught the ship off the Romer, and was assisted on 
 board. 
 
 He was a sorry sight. His head was bandaged, his 
 left arm was in a sling, and his clothing was soiled and 
 torn. 
 
 Captain Tempest, rigid, wrathful and neat in his un- 
 dress uniform, stood upon the quarter deck as Mr. 
 Singleton came on board. The latter was weak, and tot- 
 tered as he reached the deck. 
 
 The Captain blazed at once. 
 
 ' Sir, you are a disgrace to the service. You are evi- 
 dently intoxicated, and have probably been in some 
 drunken brawl. Go below, sir, and consider yourself 
 under arrest. Deliver your sword to the First Lieu- 
 tenant, and confine yourself to the quarters that will be 
 assigned you.' 
 
 ' Captain,' faltered Singleton, ' an unfortunate acci- 
 dent ' 
 
THE CAPTAIN'S STORY. 39 
 
 'Silence, sir ! ' thundered the Captain ; obey the order 
 I have given you instantly.' 
 
 Singleton turned to go below, but the excitement had 
 been too much for him, and he fell fainting to the deck, 
 and was carried to his quarters. 
 
 Captain Thomas Tempest, although a rigid disci- 
 plinarian, was a fine officer. He had a gallant record, 
 and stood very high with his superiors. His subordi- 
 nates respected his abilities, but would prefer to serve in 
 some other ship. His fierce temper and unyielding dis- 
 position made him many enemies, but any duty entrusted 
 to him was certain to be performed well, and as he was 
 not afraid of responsibility, his reputation was good. 
 
 The surgeon promptly placed Lieutenant Singleton 
 upon the sick list, and reported him as suffering from 
 ' contusion of the head, lacerated left arm, and many 
 bruises.' 
 
 Captain Tempest sent for the surgeon. 
 
 ' Doctor, how was this officer injured?' he inquired. 
 
 ' I am unable to find out, sir,' said the surgeon. ' He 
 is feverish and slightly delirious.' 
 
 ' These young men have very bad habits,' said the 
 captain. ' He has undoubtedly been on a spree, and has 
 been engaged in a disgraceful brawl. I shall make an ex- 
 ample of him. He was drunk when he came on board.' 
 
 The doctor was a man of experience and made no 
 answer. He kept his counsel and retired. 
 
 The Champlain made good speed southward. The 
 gloomy weather was soon left behind, and the balmy 
 breezes and azure skies of the ocean beyond the Gulf 
 Stream made all on board soon forget the March blasts 
 and the chilling clouds of the coast. Heavy clothing 
 
40 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 was put away, and a summer brightness filled the air, 
 The trade winds were met well north, and the noble ship, 
 with every sail drawing, stood up gallantly to her work, 
 and on the tenth day after leaving New York, swept 
 majestically into the harbor of St. Thomas, and saluted 
 the flag officer in command of the squadron with thirteen 
 guns. 
 
 Captain Tempest went on board the Flag-Ship in full 
 uniform, to report to the Commander in Chief. An 
 officer's guard was paraded on the quarter deck, which 
 presented arms as he came over the side, and he was con- 
 ducted to the cabin with much ceremony, where he was 
 received by the kind-hearted old Flag-Officer. After 
 presenting his report of the passage out, the Captain 
 handed in a paper giving in detail the circumstances of 
 the case of Lieutenant Singleton. 
 
 The Commander in Chief had grown old in his 
 country's service. His venerable head was crowned 
 with a glory of grey hair, and a more honorable, upright 
 man, never wore the Naval uniform. He was always 
 just, but dearly loved mercy. He remembered that he 
 had once been young, and that youth is a season of high 
 spirits and generous impulses. The case, by Captain 
 Tempest's report, was a grave one, but the venerable 
 Officer desired to sift the matter thoroughly before taking 
 action. ' Captain,' said he, ' this is a very serious 
 report. What is the reputation of this officer? ' 
 
 ' He has never sailed with me before sir, and has 
 recently joined my ship. There was no cause of com- 
 plaint against him until this occasion, when he deliber- 
 ately disobeyed my orders, came on board in a disrepu- 
 table condition, and was so drunk that he fell insensible 
 
THE CAPTAIN'S STORY. 41 
 
 on the deck before me, as the report recites. These 
 occurrences are becoming too common, and I trust you 
 will bring him to trial by a court martial.' 
 
 Captain Tempest really believed that his statements 
 were true. The rigid condition of his mind and temper 
 led him to suppose that the requirements of justice and 
 discipline could not be satisfied, unless this young officer 
 was severely punished ; and so, by every argument in his 
 power he endeavored to persuade the flag officer to order 
 a court martial. 
 
 Lieutenant Singleton recovered his bodily health under 
 the care of the surgeon, but his mind cherished deep 
 resentment for the unjust treatment that he was subjected 
 to. He brooded over his troubles, and sometimes felt 
 impelled to resign his commission and leave a service 
 where arrogance could inflict such hurtful blows, and 
 where his proud spirit could be so wounded. He kept 
 his counsel strictly, made no confidants, and nourished 
 his wrongs in his own heart, but gave no sign of what 
 he suffered. 
 
 He was furnished a copy of the captain's report to 
 the flag-officer, and was given an opportunity of making 
 any explanation that he saw proper. 
 
 Smarting under a sense of wrong, he contented him- 
 self with a brief answer, disclaiming any disobedience of 
 orders, accounting for his appearance by an accident that 
 temporarily disabled him, and emphatically denying any 
 intoxication. 
 
 When this communication, which was curt and not 
 particularly respectful, reached the commander-in-chief, 
 that officer read it several times, and reluctantly convened 
 a general court-martial to try Lieutenant Singleton. 
 
42 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 On the succeeding week a small blue ball was run 
 up to the mizzen royal masthead, a gun was fired, the 
 stops were broken, and the Union jack floating on the 
 breeze showed that a naval general court-martial was in 
 session on board the flag-ship. It was composed of nine 
 officers, all senior to the accused, and they assembled in 
 full uniform to perform their grave and important duties. 
 
 At a long table in the cabin the court sat. The presi- 
 dent, in this case the captain of the flag-ship, was at 
 its head. On his right sat the officer next in rank, the 
 second on his left, the third on the right, and so on. At 
 the foot of the table sat the judge advocate, a captain 
 of marines. Before each member was placed writing 
 materials, and the various law books in use, were on the 
 table for reference if necessary. At a smaller table, on 
 the right of the judge advocate sat the accused. 
 
 The court was organized, and the first officer to be 
 tried was asked if he objected to any member of the 
 court, sitting on his trial. 
 
 Lieutenant Singleton had no objection to any mem- 
 ber present, and the president of the court administered 
 the oath to the judge advocate, and then the members 
 standing in a circle, each with his ungloved right hand 
 resting on the Bible, were sworn to ' well and truly try, 
 without prejudice or partiality, the case now before the 
 court.' Then, beginning with the president, each in 
 turn kissed the book, and the court was in session. 
 
 The accused was offered an opportunity to introduce 
 counsel, if he wished to employ any one in that capacity, 
 but he declined the offer and sat down. 
 
 There were three charges, and to each charge one 
 specification. 
 
THE CAPTAIN'S STORY. 43 
 
 The charges were : 
 
 1st. Disobedience of orders. 
 
 2d. Drunkenness. 
 
 3d. Conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentle- 
 man. 
 
 It is unnecessary to state the specifications in the 
 case. Each was an exact recital of the facts as given in 
 the report of Captain Tempest, alleging that the accused 
 had wilfully disobeyed his order, in not returning on 
 board within the time directed. That when he did 
 return he was intoxicated : — 
 
 And that the condition of his clothing and person 
 was such, in addition to his intoxication, as to show con- 
 duct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman. 
 
 Called upon to hearken to the reading of the charges 
 and specifications, the accused stood at attention, while 
 they were read, and to each and all pleaded in a firm 
 voice, ' Not Guilty.' 
 
 The court regarded the accused with interest. To 
 most of them he was personally unknown. They saw a 
 tall erect figure, with curly brown hair, well knit frame 
 and a singularly intelligent countenance. A clear blue 
 eye calmly looked upon the court, and none of the 
 evasive glances of guilt could be discerned. 
 
 The prosecution then proceeded. Captain Tempest 
 being called as a witness, and duly sworn by the presi- 
 dent of the court, testified to giving the order putting 
 the ship under sailing orders ; to finding the accused 
 missing at quarters in the morning ; to his drunkenness 
 on coming on board, and to his appearance generally. 
 The captain gave his evidence with much emphasis, and 
 regarded the accused sternly as he did so. 
 
44 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 The lieutenant did not wish to cross-examine this 
 witness, who, after approving his testimony, withdrew. 
 
 The executive officer testified to the same effect as 
 the captain, except that he could not be certain as to 
 the fact of intoxication. 
 
 The accused took a few notes, but did not cross- 
 examine. 
 
 The court then adjourned, and as the flag was hauled 
 down, a clipper schooner was seen entering the harbor, 
 bringing the mails from the United States. 
 
 The one soft spot in Captain Tempest's soul, was 
 love for his wife and daughter. The latter, a lovely girl of 
 eighteen years was her father's idol. She was devoted to 
 him, and could soothe and calm his fiercest moods ; and 
 there was nothing that he would not do at her bidding. 
 
 The captain sat in the cabin of his ship, on the even- 
 ing of the day that he had given his evidence before the 
 Court Martial, reading his letters from home. A shaded 
 lamp shed a soft radiance about the place, and lighted up 
 a pretty interior that was more like a boudoir on shore 
 than the cabin of a ship. Loving hands had, with much 
 care, added those soft touches which none but woman 
 can give, and pretty articles of luxury and beauty were 
 everywhere visible. 
 
 The captain opened a bulky letter in the delicate 
 handwriting of his daughter. After detailing all the 
 minute home news of friends and relative^;, the letter 
 went on as follows : 
 
 ' After taking you to the wharf, dear Papa, in the 
 carriage, the afternoon before you sailed, we stood on 
 the Battery watching your boat until you reached the 
 ship. Then Mamma and I looked at each other, and 
 
THE CAPTAIN' S STORY. 45 
 
 both burst into tears. We could not help it, Papa; we 
 felt so very lonesome and desolate. 
 
 ' The air was cold and piercing, and the horses 
 seemed very restive. We did not notice it particularly, 
 but after we had entered the carriage they started at a 
 very rapid rate up Broadway, and we soon knew by the 
 swaying of the vehicle that the horses were running 
 away. We threw our arms about each other and clung 
 convulsively, riot knowing what our fate would be. Near 
 Trinity Church our speed was abruptly checked, and 
 then we stopped. We were helped from the carriage, 
 and were so frightened that we took a hack standing 
 near and hurried home, neither of us hurt, but frightened 
 and excited very much. 
 
 ' The carriage came home in a little while. One of 
 the horses was hurt and lame, but is recovering now. 
 What a narrow escape we had. 
 
 ' But this is not all the story, and it seems wonderful 
 sometimes, Papa, how things occur. Only think of it ! 
 we were saved from danger, and perhaps death, by one 
 of the officers of your ship. 
 
 ' The coachman said that after starting the horses 
 took the bits in their teeth and began a mad run up 
 Broadway. He could not control them. Suddenly a tall 
 young man sprang at the head of the horse nearest him, 
 caught the bridle, and held on with all his might. The 
 horse soon fell, and we were horrified to hear that he 
 had fallen upon our preserver, and that he was taken up 
 insensible and carried into a neighboring drug store. 
 
 ' Fancy our feelings ! Mamma immediately sent for 
 Uncle Tom, but he was away, and we could not see him 
 until the next morning. He at once went in search of 
 
46 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 our deliverer, but found that he had left in haste, and 
 that he was Lieutenant Singleton, of the Champlain. 
 
 ' We were very sorry not to be able to express our 
 gratitude to him, and fear very much that you sailed be- 
 fore he was able to get on board. 
 
 ' Some gentlemen, friends of Uncle Tom, who saw 
 the whole scene, say that Mr. Singleton acted with great 
 bravery, and that he was severely injured. 
 
 ' Uncle Tom went to Washington a day or two after- 
 ward and saw the Secretary of the Navy, and told him 
 the whole story. Mr. Mason was much interested, and 
 said that he would take such steps as were necessary, 
 and that as Lieutenant Singleton had not reported to the 
 Department, he had probably rejoined his ship before 
 she sailed.' 
 
 When Captain Tempest had read so far in his daugh- 
 ter's letter, he stopped. His agitation was great. The 
 officer whom he had relentlessly pursued in his strict 
 interpretation of his duty, and of the maintenance of 
 discipline, had actually saved his dear ones from injury, 
 and perhaps death ; had been severely hurt himself, and 
 at the earliest moment had used every effort to rejoin 
 his ship. 
 
 He saw it all now. He was a very proud man. To 
 find himself in such a wrong position was a bitter expe- 
 rience to him. He recalled how his efforts had been 
 used with the commander-in-chief to have the supposed 
 culprit tried by court-martial, and had heaped indignity 
 and official insult upon the preserver of his wife and 
 daughter. He was utterly and absolutely in the wrong, 
 and he knew it, and furthermore, everyone else must know 
 it. Remorse and humiliation touched him to the heart. 
 
THE CAPTAIN'S STORY. 47 
 
 While the captain was in this mental condition, the 
 orderly entered the cabin, saluted, and presented a letter, 
 saying, ' From the flag-ship, sir.' 
 
 Opening it he read the following : 
 
 Navy Department, April 8th, 1844. 
 Sir : — The receipt of your letter to the Department, dated March 14th, 
 in reference to Lieutenant Gustavus Singleton, is hereby acknowledged. 
 The Department has been informed that the absence of Lieutenant Single- 
 ton on this occasion was caused by injuries received while, performing an 
 act of great personal bravery, whereby he probably saved the lives of two 
 ladies, who proved to be your wife and daughter. 
 
 The Department highly appreciates the daring displayed by this officer 
 upon the occasion mentioned, and desires that you will communicate to him 
 its commendation for his conduct. Very respectfully, 
 
 J. R. Mason, 
 
 Secretary of the Navy. 
 Captain Thomas Tempest, U. S. N., 
 
 Commanding U. S. S. Champlain St. Thomas, West Indies. 
 
 The court-martial met the next morning pursuant to 
 adjournment. The gun was again fired, the jack hoisted 
 at the mizzen, and the accused presented himself before 
 the court. 
 
 After the assembling of the members, the orderly 
 informed the judge advocate that Captain Tempest de- 
 sired a private interview with him. Retiring together, 
 the captain laid before the officer of the court the com- 
 munication from the Honorable Secretary of the Navy, 
 and also informed him of the contents of his daughter's 
 letter. 
 
 The judge advocate returned and addressed the court 
 as follows : 
 
 ' May it please the court, the prosecution will call no 
 more witnesses, and will close its case here. It is 
 entirely within the province of the court to call any wit- 
 
48 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 nesses at any time to make clear any desired point, but 
 I do not think it will be necessary. 
 
 ' Information has reached me that alters, very mate- 
 rially, the question and bearing of the charges and speci- 
 fications, and it is necessary, for the just determination 
 of the case, that evidence for the defense shall be intro- 
 duced at once.' 
 
 At the suggestion of a member the court was cleared^ 
 and the judge advocate explained the new aspect of the 
 case, and his course was approved. 
 
 The court was re-opened, and the first witness called 
 was the surgeon, who testified most emphatically that 
 the accused was not intoxicated at the time specified : — 
 that when he fell upon the deck he had fainted from loss 
 of blood and exhaustion : — and further, that from several 
 years' acquaintance and association with him he knew 
 Lieutenant Singleton to be an absolute teetotaler. 
 
 This evidence created some sensation in the court 
 and several members asked questions to make the evi- 
 dence more exact and pertinent. 
 
 The judge advocate of a naval court-martial may act 
 in a dual capacity. First, he is the prosecutor, and after 
 the prosecution has closed, he may advise the accused 
 as to his defense, if he has no counsel. That officer, 
 therefore, retired with Mr. Singleton, and soon convinced 
 him that his case could be left in the hands of the court. 
 Great was the astonishment among the spectators 
 when the judge-advocate directed the orderly to call 
 Captain Thomas Tempest as a witness for the defense. 
 
 The captain came gravely in, and took his seat as a 
 witness before the court. 
 
 With a pale face and a quiet manner. Captain Tem- 
 
THE CAPTAIN'S STORY. 49 
 
 pest gave his evidence. He told of the news that he had 
 received from home, that had led him to believe that his 
 former conclusions in regard to the conduct of the ac- 
 cused had been wrong, and produced and offered in evi- 
 dence the letter of the Secretary of the Navy, which was 
 admitted and a copy appended to the record. The wit- 
 ness did not spare himself, and amid a breathless silence 
 detailed the circumstances as described in the letter of 
 his daughter. This was irregular evidence, but so great 
 was the interest excited in the court, that it was decided 
 to admit it, in order to make the case clear to the revis- 
 ing authority. 
 
 At the time of' which I speak, the accused could 
 not testify in his own behalf, a custom that is now 
 changed. Lieutenant Singleton was unable to procure 
 witnesses to testify for him in relation to the accident, 
 but the letter of the Secretary of the Navy, an official 
 paper, could be admitted, and was emphatic in its nature- 
 A written defense, embodying all the facts of the case, 
 was submitted to the court, and that body of officers 
 unanimously declared the accused ' most honorably ac- 
 quitted.' 
 
 The proceedings and finding of the court were 
 promptly approved by the commander-in-chief, and pro- 
 mulgated in a general order to the squadron. 
 
 Two days afterward, on board the Chainplain Cap- 
 tain Tempest ordered, ' All hands called to muster.' 
 
 The boatswain and his mates, with their shrill pipes, 
 sounded ' Attention,' and then their hoarse summons : 
 'AH hands to muster,' resounded through the ship. 
 
 The officers in undress uniform with swords assem- 
 bled on the starboard side of the quarter deck. In the 
 4 
 
50 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 starboard waist the petty officers, neat and spotless in 
 their attire, stood in two ranks. The marine guard, 
 under arms, were on the port side of the quarter deck, 
 while just forward of them was the remainder of the 
 crew in four ranks. 
 
 All hands were reported ' up and aft' The national 
 standard floated from the mizzen peak. The decks were 
 spotless in their purity. A row of glistening hammocks 
 capped the rail on either side. Carefully spread awnings 
 shaded the deck, while aloft the rigging and spars made 
 accurate and sharply defined lines against the blue sky. 
 The guns shone with their bright polish, and the brass 
 work was refulgent in its brilliancy. It was a sight to 
 charm a seaman's eye and heart, and was full of a roman- 
 tic beauty that is now fast passing away. 
 
 In the midst of absolute stillness Captain Tempest 
 came from his cabin and stepped upon the quarter deck. 
 Officers and men uncovered and stood at attention. 
 
 After a short pause, the captain slowly and distinctly 
 read the general order from the commander-in-chief, 
 giving the decision of the court martial in the case of 
 Lieutenant Singleton, and the flag-officer's approval 
 thereof. 
 
 Then with a pale face and quivering lips, this violent 
 but just officer spoke as follows : 
 
 ' The order that I have just read has given to you all 
 the official record of this case, in which, I am forced to con- 
 fess, a gallant and meritorious officer was most unjustly 
 brought to trial, and profoundly humiliated, mainly by 
 my personal efforts. 
 
 ' But there is another side to the matter, which con- 
 cerns me alone. It is justice and a necessity, so the 
 
THE PAYMASTER'S STORY. 51 
 
 character of Lieutenant Singleton may be fully vindi- 
 cated, that I should say before the officers and crew of 
 this ship, who have witnessed his treatment at my hands, 
 that my action was most unjust to him, and unmerited 
 by him. In my earnest desire to maintain discipline, and 
 to perform my duty as I understand it, I have wilfully 
 injured the man who had ventured his life to preserve to 
 me those whom I love dearer than life itself I have 
 deemed this public reparation due as well to him as to 
 myself Pipe down, sir.' 
 
 Captain Tempest turned away with a quivering lip to 
 re-enter his cabin, and old Tommy Turner, the master- 
 at-arms, sung out : 
 
 ' Boys, we knows a man when we sees one. Three 
 cheers for Captain Tempest' " 
 
 The captain's story was received with great interest 
 and applause, and, after a moment, he looked round for 
 the next victim. 
 
 Somewhat to the right of the captain sat the fleet- 
 paymaster, — Mr. Balance, — the only person on board 
 with whom the captain could be said to be intimate. 
 They had sailed with each other more than once before, 
 and had a mutual respect, and even regard, which was 
 rather unusual. So the captain, having been betrayed 
 into giving a yarn, naturally wished to pass it on to his 
 old shipmate. 
 
 The paymaster is a man of mature years, of quiet and 
 unobtrusive manners, and a genial, pleasant nature. 
 Exceeding liberal in his dealings with his shipmates 
 (sometimes too much so for his own interests), he was a 
 great favorite in the mess, but was seldom heard from 
 as a " mess orator." He never was suspected of posting 
 
52 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 up on encyclopedias, or special works, and then cun- 
 ningly leading the conversation to his point of depart- 
 ure. He never drank too much, but always enough, 
 and was ready, every night, to smoke with the last man 
 on the half-deck, — properly alleging that he had plenty 
 of time for sleep. 
 
 The old fellow had a habit, derived from the custom 
 obtaining during his early service, of sitting down at 
 the wardroom table at seven bells in the forenoon with 
 hard bread and cheese, and a black bottle supposed to 
 contain " sherry " placed before him. His boy hovered 
 about with the sugar-bowl and plated water-pitcher. 
 First the paymaster would take a little nibble of bread 
 and cheese, blandly addressing, meanwhile, any who 
 might be near upon the news of the day, — purely local 
 news, of course, — " galley news," indeed, when at sea. 
 Then the paymaster would begin to mix a drink of am- 
 ber liquid from the black bottle with sugar, water, and 
 nutmeg, and then to stir it with his own particular spoon, 
 — an apostle spoon, from his old place in Virginia (for 
 the paymaster was really from one of the " first families," 
 although not of the kind who are always letting you 
 know about it). 
 
 Sometimes he would be heard to wish for mint and 
 ice, all the time stirring his mixture, and smiling blandly 
 on the society around him. Then he would taste it. 
 Too much water, more " sherry." Then too much 
 " sherry," very little more water. The same toddy all 
 the time, for the dear old fellow prided himself upon 
 never taking more than one. Before the end of the 
 cruise his long apostle spoon, tinkling in his glass, was 
 considered as good a mark of time as the deck time- 
 
THE PAYMASTER'S STORY. 53 
 
 piece, — " It must be seven bells, for the paymaster is 
 making his toddy." 
 
 When called upon for a yarn he modestly attempted 
 to be exempted on account of the lateness of the hour. 
 This was a ridiculous excuse to those who knew his 
 habits, as every one then present of course did ; for no- 
 where on this sphere is one side of a man better known 
 than by those who sail with him. His futile attempt at 
 excuse was promptly met by the captain, who had just 
 then lighted his fourth cigar, and had nodded at the 
 first lieutenant, who, in his turn, had nodded at the mas- 
 ter-at-arms, — that ubiquitous functionary having just 
 then appeared at the wardroom door again with his 
 " Ten o'clock, gentlemen." 
 
 When the master-atrarms had retired, — evidently 
 under protest, and with a strong conviction that the ser- 
 vice was going to the devil, — Mr. Balance said, — 
 
 " Well, I do remember one Christmas eve which was 
 a serious time for me, and during which, indeed, I came 
 very near losing the number of my mess. I dare say I 
 have told the story to you before, but as there are some 
 here who certainly have not heard it, I will tell it again. 
 
 The incident occurred in China, — the very station we 
 have so lately left. I was then attached to the ' Kiskimi- 
 netas,' a fine, comfortable, roomy, old-fashioned sloop-of- 
 war. In those days members of my corps were still 
 called pursers. It was before Japan was opened by 
 Commodore Perry, and our vessels spent most of the 
 time in the Canton waters, — between Macao, Whampoa, 
 and the new English town of Hong-Kong, — with an oc- 
 casional trip to Shanghai, Amoy or Manilla, when the 
 
54 A C//R/ST.VAS AT SEA. 
 
 monsoon served. These visits were looked upon as 
 quite a cruise, for we had no steamer on the station then. 
 But the ships composing the squadron were always in. 
 splendid order, and, if the duty was easy-going, and even 
 a little sleepy, we could do sailor-work when the occa- 
 sion required. We used to back and fill all the way 
 through the mass of shipping in Whampoa Reach, and 
 never graze another ship. We used to furl all sail to- 
 gether, from studding-sails, and make a flying moor at 
 the same time ; and all in a way that would surprise the 
 present generation. 
 
 The officers then wore big topped caps, with a wide 
 gold band, and no device, and swallow-tailed coats, with 
 buttons on the hips and cuffs. Jack wore sennit hats or 
 tarpaulins always. Caps were then only surreptitiously 
 introduced by progressive captains and first lieutenants." 
 
 "And a bad thing, too," interjected Captain Tangent; 
 " no sailor-men since that time." 
 
 " The Tae-ping rebellion," continued the paymaster, 
 "was then in its very inception, and the populace of 
 Canton, where our principal interests then were, was very 
 unruly and dangerous, rendering it almost impossible to 
 leave Whampoa, even for a day or two, without a man- 
 of war there ready for emergencies. The Chinese would 
 not allow any white man to enter the walls of any of the 
 towns, and the walks of foreigners were confined to a 
 few lanes of shops in the immediate vicinity of the for- 
 eign factories at Canton. Indeed, many Americans and 
 English were seriously injured, and some even killed for 
 transgressing these bounds. 
 
 The river was full of skulking robbers and pirates, 
 and mysterious disappearances were not unfrequent, es- 
 
THE PAYMASTER'S STORY. 55 
 
 pecially among the foreigners who inhabited the floating 
 houses and hulks moored at Whampoa, which habita- 
 tions belonged to the brokers, ship-chandlers, sail-makers 
 and others, who depended upon the large business 
 brought by the immense number of vessels which then 
 came to that one port for tea cargoes. The ' Tea Fleet ' 
 it was called, — the finest vessels of the whole being our 
 own unrivaled clippers, — such as the Sea Witch, the 
 Sea Serpent, the Challenge, the //. B. Palmer, the 
 Sam Russell, and many others. No such ships had 
 ever been seen before in any part of the world, and no 
 passages like theirs had ever been made. The Storna- 
 way and many other Scotch clippers were built to rival 
 them, but when it came to a tea-race to London, the 
 Yankee clipper generally took the annual reward. 
 
 The boat-work of vessels on that station was seldom 
 done by the ship's boats, — on account of the deleterious 
 influences of climate and samslm, — and all men-of-war 
 had a ' fast-boat,' — a masted, half-decked, native craft, 
 generally of some size, and carrying a head-man and a 
 crew of eight or ten sturdy fellows. This boat was 
 usually owned by the head-man, and lay moored at the 
 stern buoy ready for any service, night or day. The 
 head-man of our boat bore the very common name of 
 Assam, — a muscular, broad-faced, bronzed, good-natured 
 fellow, most obliging and useful, and an excellent boat- 
 man. His little wife, Ati, was worth more than two of 
 him, however. She generally took charge of the boat, 
 — her face always wreathed in smiles, her hair neatly 
 dressed, and her scanty but decent dress starched and 
 clean. She cooked the men's rice, scrubbed every 
 plank in the boat every day, and attended to her baby 
 
56 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 beside, — a little chap about a year old, who was gener- 
 ally slung at her back, and whose shaven head wabbled 
 about in the blazing sun as his mother stood at the great 
 sculling-oar, scarcely able to grasp the loom with her 
 little brown hands, gay with brass rings. 
 
 On account of the bad characters generally to be 
 found upon the river at night, it was usual, in going to 
 Canton from VVhampoa, either for business or pleasure, 
 to take a tide which was favorable during daylight. 
 Otherwise, on account of the sun, it would have been 
 much more pleasant to select the hours of darkness. 
 
 Early on the morning of the day before Christmas, 
 1 8 — , I started for Canton with the tide in our fast-boat, 
 — my object being to obtain ' chop dollars' in exchange 
 for a draft on Barings' for two thousand pounds, — 
 partly for ship's expenses, and partly to enable me to 
 pay the men their monthly money and stopped rations, 
 and, by advancing the money, to enable them to keep 
 the holiday properly. I was accompanied by our assist- 
 ant surgeon and one of the midshipmen, — these young 
 gentlemen wishing to go shopping in Canton and buy 
 some curios for their friends and sweethearts. 
 
 A sergeant and four marines were ordered to accom- 
 pany me, — with muskets, bayonets, and forty rounds, — a 
 usual precaution when carrying money in that part of 
 the world, as it was impossible to make a secret of the 
 big bags of silver carried down to the boat on coolies' 
 shoulders. As was usual, also, some pieces of small- 
 stuff, fitted with wooden buoys, were taken along, to be 
 made fast to the bags, as a precaution in case of a capsize 
 or other accident, 
 
 We reached Canton about ten o'clock in the forenoon, 
 
THE PAYMASTER'S STORY. 57 
 
 without other incident than the seeing, and smelling, of 
 four ghastly heads stuck upon poles just at the water's 
 edge, where a narrow but deep creek emptied into the 
 river. ' Four piecee dead man,' Assam said they were, 
 which was evident to more than one sense. They were 
 the heads of ' ladrones,' or river-pirates, who had lately 
 robbed a boat at that place. Not that it at all followed 
 that they were precisely the people who had committed 
 the offense, but, as the Chinese police had been com- 
 manded to make an example, they had decapitated four 
 fellows who might have committed the act, and here were 
 their heads. 
 
 In those days the influx of two or three strangers at 
 ' tiffin ' made no great demand upon the proverbial hos- 
 pitality of the foreign 'factories' at Canton, but was 
 rather welcomed as a pleasant break in the monotony of 
 the lives led by the merchants, tea-tasters, and clerks. 
 As soon, therefore, as I had transacted my business below- 
 stairs, we ascended to the first floor of the commodious 
 establishment of Russell & Company, and, after an in- 
 terchange of news and gossip, were soon seated at a 
 sumptuous and welcome luncheon. 
 
 While thus pleasantly engaged I received a ' chit ' 
 from down below, informing me that the 'shroff' had 
 some difficulty in raising the amount of coin I needed at 
 such short notice, but would hurry the business as much 
 as possible. Uneasy, and anxious to be off, I left the 
 table as soon as I could, and sauntered down toward the 
 boat. There were the marines, just where I had left 
 them, all right, perfectly sober, and having a comfortable 
 smoke, while they chaffed the group of Chinamen and 
 Parsees who were gazing on them from the ' bund.' At 
 
58 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 last, about four o'clock, the money came down, borne 
 upon the shoulders of several trotting coolies, marshaled 
 by the solemn old ' shroff,' with his slender pig-tail, long 
 finger-nails, and immense spectacles looped behind his 
 ears. 
 
 The tide was now more than three-quarters done, 
 and less than two hours of daylight remained. Perhaps 
 it would have been wiser to remain at the factories all 
 night, especially as intelligence of any movement is con- 
 veyed by the swarming river population with marvelous 
 speed, but I was very anxious to get down to the ship, 
 knowing how the money was looked for by the men, and 
 also desirous of having my business over, and being thus 
 enabled to attend a grand Christmas 'tiffin' on board the 
 Commodore, and dine in our own pleasant mess in the 
 evening. I was younger then, and was willing to take 
 more risks, and so I resolved to start. 
 
 When all was ready, and the bags properly buoyed 
 and stowed under the cockpit, I was delayed by the vex- 
 atious disappearance of my companions, who had strolled 
 out again to the lanes of shops, promising to be back 
 ' in ten minutes.' We all know what a youngster's ' ten 
 minutes ' are. Messengers were sent for them, but they 
 did not appear until near five, being then very profuse in 
 apologies for delaying me. At last we shoved off, almost 
 at the last of the ebb. It was dead calm, and the crowd 
 of boats and junks of all sorts, which literally covered 
 the stream for a long distance down, rendered our pro- 
 gress so slow that it was a good half-hour before the 
 men could settle down for a steady pull. 
 
 The sun soon went down, and the night came on 
 with the suddenness peculiar to the latitude. It became 
 
THE PAYMASTER'S STORY. 53 
 
 very dark and overcast, and Assam, in answer to my in- 
 quiry, said he thought the tide was done, and that we 
 would meet the flood before we reached the Barrier Forts. 
 I saw from his manner that the man was uneasy. Every 
 now and then, at a muttered word from him, the crew 
 would cease pulling and listen intently, when a belated 
 fast-boat or sampan would be heard approaching in the 
 darkness, and a mutual hail would pass, our men then 
 giving way again, evidently very much relieved. 
 
 Little Ati all this time stood at the steering-oar, her 
 baby sound asleep at her feet in a bundle of cloths. Ati 
 did all the hailing, and was virtually captain of the craft, 
 for honest old Assam trusted more to her eyes and ears 
 than his own, and tugged away manfully at the stroke- 
 oar. Hugging the right bank as our guide, we had 
 nearly reached the creek where we had seen the dead 
 men's heads that morning, when Assam, after a word 
 from Ati, held up his hand for a moment's silence. Then 
 he suddenly hissed out to his crew to give way strong, 
 and at that moment the rest of us heard the plash of 
 many oars coming down the creek and the creaking 
 noise of the bamboo grummets in which the oars were 
 pulled. 
 
 As our boat, with freshened way, darted across the 
 mouth of the creek, we could dimly perceive a long, 
 snaky, ' pull-away boat,' such as the ladrones used. 
 These boats are very fast, and often carry forty or fifty 
 desperate, opium-soaked ruffians, armed to the teeth. 
 Revolvers were not then used in the navy, but we all had 
 pistols of the old type, which were noted for never hitting 
 anything, with their big round balls, at more than five 
 paces. We got them out, however, and the old sergeant, 
 
60 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 was as cool as his bayonet, stood up with his four men 
 and covered the advancing boat, ready to fire at the 
 word. It was a comfort to see the old fellow take it as 
 a part of the day's work and of the duty he had been sent 
 upon. Thinking it possible it might be a mandarin- 
 boat, or patrol (although they did not bear the best rep- 
 utation, and a boat with Fanquis and dollars was a great 
 temptation), still, to be sure, I said to Ati, who was steer- 
 ing a straight course and perfectly cool, — 
 
 ' Hail them, Ati.' 
 
 This she shrilly did, and was answered by a volley of 
 Chinese oaths and anathemas, and by an ominous clash 
 of knives and swords. 
 
 ' Him say stop ! S'pose hab throat cut,' said Ati. 
 
 'Fire, sir?' said the sergeant, calmly sighting just 
 over our heads as we stood in the cockpit. 
 
 ' Fire, sergeant ! ' — and we could hear the balls strike 
 the planking of the strange boat, now very near us, and 
 a yell, as of some one badly hit, while our fire evidently 
 caused some confusion and a temporary increase of dis- 
 tance between us. In a moment, however, they came 
 on again, with yells and curses, while the many oars 
 tossed the water into foam, and our own men, with set 
 teeth and heavy breath, and bare heels fairly straining 
 the stretchers, pulled for their lives. 
 
 ' Fire again, sergeant ! Pull, Assam ! Hold your 
 pistol-fire, boys ! If we allow them to get alongside 
 they'll cut all our throats.' 
 
 Apparently they were only four or five boats' lengths 
 off, our men pulling desperately, but losing all the time, 
 when I remembered the money. Determined that they 
 should not get that at any rate, I raised the hatch, and, 
 
THE PAYMASTER'S STORY. 61 
 
 with the help of my companions, quietly eased the heavy 
 bags overboard. The youngsters at the same time 
 dropped the treasured bronzes and other curios which 
 they had bought that day. At the very moment we did 
 so I became aware that our foes were dropping astern, 
 leaving us, in fact, about as rapidly as they had been 
 approaching. Looking round, I beheld another boat, 
 pulling at least forty oars, coming obliquely across the 
 river, her outline shown by the bright light of" several 
 lanterns, which disclosed, beside the rowers, a fellow 
 high up in the stern, who began to pound away on a 
 gong as if his life depended upon it. 
 
 ' He mandarin-boat,' said Assam, when the stranger 
 hailed us ; ' wanchee stop, — occasion talkee.' 
 
 Darting by us up-stream at a tremendous rate, we 
 saw him soon overhaul the ladrone, the crew of which 
 ran her ashore and took to the swamp, but not before 
 about a dozen of them had been captured, two of them 
 so badly wounded by our fire that they could not at- 
 tempt to escape. With the pirate-boat in tow, the man- 
 darin-boat now pulled down to the spot where we had 
 run the fast-boat's nose upon the mud, forced down a 
 bamboo, and made the painter fast. After explaining 
 the whole affair, through Assam and Ati, who fairly 
 cowered before the officer, he said that he had just pa- 
 trolled from the neighborhood of Whampoa, and that no 
 ladrones were likely to be below that night. 
 
 While thus conversing with him we heard the un- 
 mistakable regular beat of a double-banked man-of-war's 
 boat coming up the stream, and almost immediately, to 
 my great joy, the hail of a familiar voice. In a moment 
 there shot within the circle of light our first cutter, with 
 
€2 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 the senior passed midshipman (who, poor fellow, was 
 killed at New Orleans afterwards) standing in the stern- 
 sheets ; six marines, with their polished musket-barrels, 
 surrounded him, while sixteen bronzed sailors, with 
 pistol and cutlass belted on, were just tossing their oars. 
 Mr. Vang soon explained that the captain, rendered 
 anxious by our non-appearance before dark, had dis- 
 patched the armed boat to meet us, and that they had 
 come up rapidly with the young flood. The Chinese 
 officer, rather a young man, and a good type of the mil- 
 itary mandarin, with his blue button, hearty bronzed 
 face, and alert, pleasant manner, now prepared to depart 
 for Canton with his prisoners and the ladrone-boat in 
 tow. The wounded men had been attended to by the 
 assistant surgeon, — rather against the wishes of the 
 officer, who seemed to think it very unnecessary 
 trouble ; and he soon shoved off, and disappeared 
 around a bend in the river. 
 
 By this time it was almost ten o'clock. All river 
 traffic had entirely ceased for the night, and the stream, 
 which was such a thoroughfare by day, was' now as 
 still and silent as the grave. I mentioned to Vang 
 that about ten thousand dollars, in bags, were now re- 
 posing at the bottom of the river. Lighting lanterns, 
 we put the marines on post on the embankment 
 abreast of us, for fear of another visit of ladrones, at 
 once proceeded to search for the small buoys, and after a 
 long time, discovered and raised all the bags but one. 
 Of this the buoy-rope had either slipped, or the buoy 
 itself was run under by the tide, which was now strong 
 flood. Making fast again to the bank, — as near as 
 possible to the place where we supposed the bag to 
 
THE PAYMASTER'S STORY. 63 
 
 be, — we stretched out under the awnings to wait for 
 daylight and slack water. There was bread and a 
 beaker of water in the cutter, and we passed a long, 
 dreary night in nibbling hard-tack and dozing. 
 
 I must say that I did not sleep much — not particu- 
 larly on account of the missing sum for which I was 
 responsible as because I blamed myself for starting down 
 the river with treasure at so late an hour, and thus put- 
 ting the lives of myself and so many others in such fear- 
 ful jeopardy. Finally, however, thankfulness for our 
 escape from such a death as these pirates would have in- 
 flicted became uppermost in my -mind, and seemed to 
 render the money responsibility very light. It had, in- 
 deed, been a narrow shave for us. 
 
 At last the day broke, with a sickening, malarious 
 fog and disagreeable odor arising from the paddy-fields, 
 which admonished us to be off as soon as possible. By 
 the very first tanka-boat which came stealing along 
 through the mist we sent a note down to the captain, 
 with promise of a dollar to the boat people if it was de- 
 livered soon, and then we went to work to try to recover 
 the missing bag. The tide being by this time ebb again, 
 the cutter and fast-boat swept up river with a loaded line 
 to endeavor to entangle the buoy which was supposed to 
 be ridden under by the tide ; but, after a long trial, we 
 reluctantly came to the conclusion that there had been a 
 ' slippery hitch,' and that there was no buoy there. 
 
 While consulting as to further operations, Assam 
 came to us and said that his wife would like to make an 
 effort to recover the bag by diving. Like most Tanka 
 women, Ati swam like a fish, and we very gladly availed 
 ourselves of her proffered services. Anchoring the fast- 
 
64 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 boat just above where the bag was supposed to be lying, 
 the little woman carefully unslung and packed away her 
 long-suffering and patient baby. She then made a bow- 
 Ime in one of the halliards, and gave her husband a coil 
 of the same to hold, stripped to her broad trousers, and 
 dove straight down. The depth was only about two 
 fathoms, but the water very muddy, as it always is there. 
 In a short time she reappeared, the beads of water rolling 
 off her tawny, firm, velvety skin, as she climbed into the 
 boat, where she appeared entirely unconscious that the 
 ■pijammas' were showing the full outline of her shapely 
 lower limbs. In fact, she was now thoroughly excited, 
 and, with her nervous, agile movements and glittering 
 eye, put one in mind of an otter emerging from his 
 favorite element. 
 
 Quickly causing them to drop the boat about a 
 length (the men always obeyed her rather more quickly 
 than Assam), she dove in again like a beaver, remaining 
 this time about a minute. Thrice she repeated this 
 operation, shifting the position of the boat a very little 
 each time, until, finally, Assam, who was ' twiddling ' at 
 the slack of the line, suddenly sang out ' Can secure !' 
 
 Sure enough ! When Ati appeared above the surface 
 again, and had recovered her breath, she grinned so as 
 to show all her white teeth, and laughed out, ' Haul 
 away ! Can secure ! ' The bowline was indeed round 
 the bag, and the dollars were soon lying in the bottom 
 of the boat, — covered with river ooze to be sure, but 
 safe enough. 
 
 Long before this time the river was alive with cargo- 
 boats and sampans, and a vigorous cross-examination 
 was made of our Chinamen by each passing craft, re- 
 
THE PAYMASTER'S STORY. 65 
 
 sponded to by our fellows at the top of their voices, after 
 the manner of Chinese watermen. No doubt some of 
 the passers were fellows of the marauders who had 
 attacked us during the previous night, and they knew 
 perfectly well that in those two boats we had what was 
 to them great treasure, but daylight, and our numbers 
 and firearms, removed any apprehension of attack from 
 any source. 
 
 Having satisfied myself that the bags were all right, 
 we gave away down the river, and found ourselves safe 
 on board in a couple of hours. My first business, of 
 course, was to lock up the wet bags, and then to report 
 in writing the details of yesterday's proceedings, which 
 occupied considerable time, so that I did not go to the 
 ' tiffin ' after all. A bath and a good nap put me in 
 readiness for our own Christmas dinner, however, which 
 I enjoyed the more from not having been at the 'tifiin.' 
 
 Before dinner I sent for Ati to come on board. She 
 had never been upon our deck, some sense of propriety 
 restraining her, and when she came it was difficult to get 
 her to go below, although she knew us all very well. 
 When she came down and was seated, I told her that 
 this was 'Big Joss day! Alia same China New-Year!' 
 and then I made her supremely happy with as many of 
 the ' chop ' dollars as she could scoop up and carry in 
 her two hands. Wages in China were excessively low, 
 and what I gave her was a small fortune to her, and went 
 very far towards building a larger and better boat, in 
 which they would get the service of a frigate. 
 
 Not long after this event, in fact, just at New- Year, 
 our captain received, through the consul, a formal mes- 
 sage from the Tautae, or governor of Canton, to say that 
 5 
 
66 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 the pirates who had been taken at the time of their 
 attack upon us were to be executed upon the spot where 
 the offense had been committed, and the governor re- 
 quested that we should send some witnesses on our part 
 to the bona fides of the Chinese authorities in punishing 
 pirates. Accordingly, two cutters with their crews, and 
 four or five officers with side-arms, were at the spot I 
 knew so well at the time appointed in the consul's note. 
 
 We had not long landed on the levee, or embank- 
 ment, when a mandarin-boat, with streamers flying and 
 gongs beating, as was their custom then, came dashing 
 down the stream, her many oars making her look like a 
 centipede. The officer in charge stood upon the poop, 
 and shook his own hands, and exchanged ceremonial 
 ' chin-chins ' and formal bows with our party. Then the 
 prisoners were brought out, and marched on shore with 
 their hands tied behind their back. They looked like 
 common river people, only very dirty and emaciated, 
 from the days spent in a Chinese prison, where they had 
 been crowded, starved, and eaten by vermin. They were, 
 to all outward appearance, entirely unconcerned, how- 
 ever, and did not raise their eyes nor utter a word. 
 
 Without any reading of warrant, or more ado of any 
 kind, they were caused to kneel in a row at the side of 
 the pathway along the top of the embankment. A man 
 then passed along, firmly pressing their heads toward 
 the ground, and throwing the plait, or 'pig-tail,' of each 
 one forward, so as to reach the ground in front. Each 
 criminal's hands rested on his knees. At a sign from the 
 mandarin the executioner — a fat, brawny, good-natured- 
 looking old fellow, in no way differing in dress or 
 appearance from those about him, except that he was 
 
THE PAYMASTER'S STORY. 67 
 
 stouter, and had a short, ragged cue — stepped to the left 
 of the first man, and, with an instrument something 
 between a broadsword and a cleaver, — exceedingly heavy 
 and sharp, — struck off his head at a blow. 
 
 Not a movement was made by the next man, though 
 he must have seen, or at least heard, the cleaver chop- 
 ping off his fellow's head. In a few seconds his own 
 followed, and rolled down the bank. So expert was the 
 executioner that eleven were thus put to death in less 
 time than I have taken to tell about it, and almost all 
 had their heads cleanly cut off. These were all gathered, 
 and planted along the dyke on bamboos. What became 
 of the bodies I don't know. They were all lying there, 
 with the blow-flies already upon them, when we left the 
 spot." 
 
 " Speaking of the impassable conduct of Chinamen in 
 such circumstances," said the fleet-surgeon, when the 
 paymaster had finished his story, " reminds me of the 
 four Chinamen who were executed by the English 
 authorities at Green Point, Hong-Kong, just before we 
 sailed. As I was taking an early morning walk in that 
 direction, I was attracted by the small cortege, and 
 approached the place. They were to be hung on four 
 separate gallows. Few Chinamen were present, and 
 those of the very lowest class. About a dozen sepoy or 
 Cingalese policemen formed the escort, and one of them 
 acted as executioner. There appeared to be only two 
 white men there, — a sort of sheriff and his deputy, — who 
 had general charge. 
 
 When all was ready, and the signal given, three of 
 the culprits were dropped at once, and seemed to expire 
 without a struggle. But the pin holding the platform 
 
68 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA, 
 
 under the fourth one was jammed, — owing to rust and 
 neglect, — and did not yield until after some minutes' 
 pounding with a stone from the shingle beach. The 
 curious part of the whole affair was that the fourth China- 
 man, standing there with his eyes unbandaged and the 
 halter round his neck, merely patted his foot and said 
 several times, and in rather a petulant tone, ' Fi-tee 1 ' 
 Hurry ! 
 
 The whole proceeding was beastly, and put one in 
 mind of the slaughter of animals, and was not really so 
 efficient, or so humane, as the decapitation which the 
 paymaster has just described." 
 
 " Mr. Balance, by the way, had even a narrower 
 squeak than our purser had, when I was out there in the 
 
 ' M ,' in 1850,'' said the captain. " He was coming 
 
 from Hong-Kong with a good deal of money, in dollars, 
 to our ship, at Cum-singmoon. Two ladrone-boats 
 chased him through the passages in broad daylight. 
 They came out from the clefts of the rocky, perpendicu- 
 lar cliffs, and he was only saved by suddenly coming, at 
 an abrupt turn of the passage, upon a large bark at 
 anchor and waiting the tide. The skipper of the bark, 
 a bright fellow, promptly took in the situation, and 
 trained his six-pounder upon the rascals, when they 
 quickly vanished behind the rocks again. Our purser 
 then wisely stuck to the bark, which towed him up 
 within sight of our ship before casting him off." 
 
 Intently listening to the paymaster's old-world story 
 was a lieutenant seated to the right of the admiral. Bur- 
 ton by name, som.etimes called " Spanish Burton," on 
 account of his dark eyes, complexion, and hair. His 
 eyes had been fixed upon a raisin in a heel-tap of cham- 
 
THE LIEUTENANTS STORY. 69 
 
 pagne, rising with its load of gas, discharging it, and 
 descending again for a fresh supply; and one would 
 have supposed he was thinking of nothing else, when he 
 suddenly pushed the glass away, and addressing the last 
 speaker, said, " I would like to relate a story." 
 
 " Go on, Mr. Burton, by all means," said the caterer. 
 
 " Well, it is a story of love and faith, — a story of one 
 we called ' Queen Annie : ' — 
 
 The United States ship Atchafalaya, in the summer 
 of 1864, was cruising off the Atlantic coast of the United 
 States with the object of picking up any thing that might 
 offer in the way of a prize but with particular orders to 
 look out for the rebel cruiser Tallahassee , supposed to 
 be in those waters. 
 
 The wardroom dinner was just over and the officers 
 were cr.icking nuts and jokes, the latter venerable enough 
 to have earned the sobriquet of 'chestnut' had that phrase 
 been then invented. The paymaster had told the forget- 
 ful-man's story for the seventeenth time, one of the 
 acting masters had related his experience on a whaler 
 with an accuracy born of long practice and a careful 
 study of Herman Mellville, and the Doctor was clear- 
 ing his voice to begin an account of an amputation of 
 the hip joint so familiar to his mess-mates that most of 
 them could have performed it, if not as skillfully, at 
 least with as good results as the Doctor himself since, 
 by his own admission, the patient died. 
 
 Joe Graydon the handsome navigator of the ship 
 was startled from a gentle doze into which these bar- 
 nacle backed narratives had lulled him, by a hail from the 
 main top which came floating down the open skylight. 
 
70 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 ' There's something looks Hke a boat on the weather 
 bow, sir.' 
 
 In less time than it takes to tell it Joe was in the 
 top with his binocular at his eye. 
 
 ' What do you make of her Mr. Graydon ? ' hailed 
 the captain from the bridge. 
 
 ' She is a boat right enough, sir,' was the answer, 
 ' and — and — yes with people in her ' then, after a pause, 
 ' By Jove I almost think I can make out a woman's 
 dress.' 
 
 ' Keep the ship off and run down to her, Mr. 
 Smith,' said the Captain quietly to the officer of the 
 deck and a few minutes later Joe who had kept his eyes 
 glued to his binocular, hailed 
 
 ' By Jove, sir, it is a woman, sure as you're born, sir, 
 it's a woman.' 
 
 Orders were given to clear away the second cutter 
 and Joe's offer to go in charge of her was accepted. 
 
 ' Give way men, give way for your lives ' was Gray- 
 don's order as they shoved off, and give way they did 
 though, as they approached them, the wrecked crew did 
 not seem to be suffering any great hardship. The boat 
 was found to contain a bluff weather-beaten old captain, 
 four hale and hearty-looking seamen and last but not 
 least, so far as my story is concerned for without her it 
 would not have been told was the girl. I wish I 
 could describe her as she sat there in the stern sheets 
 looking as calm and collected as if she were out for a 
 summer's afternoon sail. It warms the cockles of my 
 old heart now as I see her come over the gangway of 
 the Atchafalaya. She was not one of those beauties 
 with black eyes, raven locks and, entre nous, a deuce of 
 
THE LIEUTENANT'S STORY. 71 
 
 a temper, about which poets rave, but her figure was 
 petite, with hands so small that when I gave them a 
 fatherly squeeze, and I was old enough to feel that I had 
 a perfect right to do so, they were lost in my great red 
 flipper, her feet — such feet — 
 
 ' That 'neath her petticoats 
 Like little mice crept in and out.' 
 
 Her features, as I have been told by several amiable 
 ladies, were not regular, her cheeks were too red, her 
 mouth too large, her ears too small, her teeth, well they 
 must have been too white, and one feline female spoke 
 of her red hair but it was such red as Titian loved to 
 paint. I am not prepared to dispute the good ladies 
 referred to with regard to the individual features but 
 combined they certainly formed the loveliest face it had 
 ever been my good fortune to look upon. She was the 
 daughter of Geoffrey La Cour, one of New York's mer- 
 chant princes, a widower who idolized his two children. 
 The boy had utilized some nautical knowledge gained 
 on his father's yacht in obtaining an appointment as 
 master's mate in the Navy. Mr. La Cour having some 
 business in San Domingo and knowing little of that island 
 unwisely took his daughter Annie with him but, finding it 
 no place for her, sent her home in a small brig loaded 
 with logwood and mahogany, the only vessel then 
 bound for the States. The brig caught fire four days 
 before we picked up the boat. The crew took to the 
 boats ; one in charge of the mate, was lost sight of the 
 first night, but was afterwards picked up by a homeward 
 bound steamer ; the other was out four days but, as the 
 weather was good and she was well provided with water 
 
72 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 and provisions the castaways suffered no great hard-, 
 ship. 
 
 The rescue proved a blessing to us, as we were short- 
 handed, and the four sailors, out of a job, gladly signed 
 the ship's articles, while the captain volunteered to stand 
 the watch of a sick officer, which he did so efficiently 
 that when he reached port he was recommended for and 
 received the appointment of acting master. As for little 
 Annie, she took up her quarters in the captain's spare 
 state-room and her position as queen of the ship. In- 
 deed, in less than a week she was known fore and aft as 
 ' Queen Annie,' and I verily believe that had her will run 
 counter to that of the Secretary of the Navy, the captain 
 would not have hesitated to obey it, and as for the men, 
 though the Atchafalaya was a well-disciplined ship, she 
 had but to say the word and a mutiny would have fol- 
 lowed. She took her dainty little meals with the utmost 
 impartiality in the cabin or in the ward room, and the 
 two stewards vied with each other in devising delicate 
 sea-messes which gladdened the hearts of the officers. 
 
 Fortunately the captain's wife, who was in Europe, 
 had left a couple of trunks in the cabin to save storage, 
 so that her majesty, with some assistance from her deft 
 needle, was well provided with royal robes. Joe Gray- 
 don, as the youngest and handsomest man in the ship, 
 naturally dropped into the position of prime minister, and 
 never was a minister more devoted to his royal mistress. 
 No sooner did she poke her pretty little nose out of the 
 cabin door than he was by her side ; he walked with her, 
 talked with her, waited on her, brought her shawls when 
 she was cold and fanned her when warm, and all this he 
 did not only cheerfully but joyfully, for he had learned 
 
THE LIEUTENANTS STORY. 73 
 
 to love ' Queen Annie ' with the whole of his big, noble 
 heart. An obstacle, however, came into Joe's mind 
 which a less scrupulous man would have pushed aside or 
 considered an advantage. Annie was, or would be, rich, 
 while Joe had not a cent except his lieutenant's pay. A 
 kind old uncle had supported him and his sister Nettie 
 until, on his graduation from the academy, he was able 
 to do so himself, and having come into possession of 
 several thousand dollars prize money, he deemed it his 
 duty, Quixotically, Nettie thought, to return this money 
 to his uncle, who, while he did not ask it, did not refuse 
 it. Joe had always made a confidant of me, and after 
 imparting the above particulars one night in the mid- 
 watch, he said: 
 
 ' What right have I to drag such a woman into pov- 
 erty, and what right have I, coxcomb that I am, to be- 
 lieve that this peerless woman cares for me except as an 
 instrument to while away the tedium of an involuntary 
 sea voyage.' 
 
 ' There is a quotation trite but true,' said I : 
 
 ' He either fears his fate too much. 
 Or his deserts are small, 
 Who fears to put it to the touch 
 And win or lose it all.' 
 
 ' Aye, my dear old friend,' said Joe, ' and I would put 
 it to the touch, but for another quotation as trite and 
 true as yours : 
 
 ' I could not love her half so much, 
 Loved I not honor more.' 
 
 I cannot imagine anything meaner than to ask this dear 
 girl to join her fate to one who has so little to offer in 
 
74 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 return, simply because I have been able to take her from 
 a boat without any danger to myself and render her 
 some little attention for which she is unduly grateful.' 
 
 I could make no answer to this, and poor Joe con- 
 tinued to singe his wings in the light of ' Queen Annie's ' 
 smiles. 
 
 The weather up to this time had been faultless, but 
 now the sky betokened a storm, and before night it came 
 piping out of the northeast. The sails were furled, fires 
 spread, topmast housed, yards lowered on the caps and 
 every preparation made for a gale. The sky was black 
 as ink, the mountain waves capped with snowy foam 
 which drifted before the wind, forming the grandest sight 
 given to those ' who go down to the sea in ships,' but one 
 which most seamen would willingly forego. As I was 
 hurrying aft in the pursuit of my duty I noticed Annie 
 standing under the break of the poop ; her arm was 
 thrown around a stanchion and the wind was playing 
 havoc with her lovely tresses, but the roses on her cheeks 
 were deepened rather than diminished, and the wonted 
 smile parted her lips. 
 
 ' You do not seem alarmed, Miss Annie,' said I. 
 
 ' No,' was her smiling reply, ' why should I be ? The 
 ship is stanch, the officers and crew know their duty 
 and will protect their queen and,' dropping her playful 
 tone, ' the same Providence watches over us on water as 
 on land.' 
 
 For three days and nights the gale blew with terrible 
 force. Seldom have I seen a fiercer one, but through it 
 all the brave girl was calm and smiling, and many a wet 
 and weary sailor remembers to this day how he was 
 cheered and encouraged by her words and actions. 
 
THE LIEUTENANT'S STORY. 75 
 
 At last the storm was over and the bright sun came 
 out again. Scarcely had the ship been put in order when 
 the hail, always exciting at sea, of ' Sail ho ! ' was heard 
 from aloft. 
 
 ' Where away ? ' from the officer of the deck. 
 
 ' Right ahead, sir ; looks like a man-o'-war.' 
 
 ' Take a look at her, Mr. Graydon,' said the captain, 
 who was on the bridge. And after Joe had gone aloft 
 with his glass : ' What do you make of her, sir ?' 
 
 ' She is certainly a man-'o-war, sir ; about the size, 
 I should think of the Tallahassee, and is steaming 
 slowly across our bows as if waiting for us.' 
 
 ' So,' remarked the skipper, ' he wants a fight, does 
 he ? Well, he shall have it. Beat to quarters and clear 
 the ship for action.' 
 
 Now all was excitement without the slightest con- 
 fusion. The drum beat to quarters and each man went 
 to his station as quietly as if he was going there for 
 drill, though all of them expected to be in the midst of 
 death and carnage in a few minutes. Then the decks 
 were strewn with sand to absorb the blood which was to 
 flow, and all was ready for the conflict. Joe Graydon had 
 just left the poop where he had been to receive some 
 final instruction when, coming out of the cabin door, he 
 met ' Queen Annie.' There was no smile on her lips now, 
 her cheeks were pale as death and she trembled like an 
 aspen. ' Oh, Mr. Graydon,' she exclaimed with tears in 
 her voice which overflowed and dropped from her eyes ; 
 ' Oh, Mr. Graydon, are we going to have a battle ? ' 
 
 ' I fear so,' said Joe ; ' and I am very sorry for your 
 sake. You had better go into the hold, it is not very 
 comfortable, but below the water line and compara- 
 
76 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 tively safe. I will ask the captain to let me take you 
 there.' 
 
 ' Safe ! ' exclaimed she, 'do you think I am a coward 
 to run away from danger to which you — to which,' with 
 a blush, 'my friends are exposed ? I do not fear for my- 
 self, but for those I love.' 
 
 We continued to steam down towards the other ves- 
 sel, which still kept broadside to us until we made out 
 her ensign, which, to the disgust of every one except 
 Annie, proved to be the stars and stripes ; but it was 
 worth the disappointment to see the light come back to 
 our darling's eyes and hear her merry laugh ring through 
 the ship once more. The vessel we took for the Talla- 
 hassee was one of the ninety-day gunboats, as they 
 were called, which had been sent out to find us and de- 
 liver orders for us to proceed to Norfolk, there to refit, 
 preparatory to the contemplated expedition against Fort 
 Fisher. Under ordinary circumstances this news would 
 have been hailed with delight, but, since it involved 
 parting from our ' Queen,' I verily believe every soul in 
 the ship, from the captain to the cook, would have pre- 
 ferred remaining at sea; but there was no help for it, so 
 we steered for the capes of the Chesapeake, and in three 
 or four days, after barely stopping, without letting go 
 our anchor, at Hampton Roads, to communicate with 
 the admiral, we reached Norfolk Navy Yard. Here 
 Annie telegraphed to know whether her father had re- 
 turned from San Domingo. He had ; and had also 
 learned from the mate of the burning of the brig and the 
 separation of the boats, but no more; therefore his joy 
 knew no bounds when he learned of his daughter's 
 safety, and not many hours elapsed before he arrived in 
 
THE LIEUTENANTS STORY. 77 
 
 Norfolk. He proved a dignified old gentleman full of 
 gratitude, and brimming over with the milk of human 
 kindness. I think he would have liked to have devoted 
 half his fortune to the crew ; and the canvas-backs, ter- 
 rapins, Lynn Haven oysters, champagne and other lux- 
 uries that he lavished upon the officers unfitted them for 
 the wardroom mess for months afterwards. His son, 
 Charley, who was attached to one of the ships at Hamp- 
 ton Roads, got a couple of days' leave to visit his father 
 and sister. We made him a wardroom officer with an 
 occasional meal in the cabin, for nothing was too good 
 for ' Queen Annie's ' brother, or ' Prince Charley,' as we 
 called him. But kind and hospitable as Mr. La Cour 
 was, we would have been willing to forego it all if he 
 could have spared us our darling, but this, of course, 
 was impossible, and, all too soon, the afternoon came 
 when she was to leave us. All hands were called and 
 our ' Queen ' stood upon the horse-block to bid us fare- 
 well. 
 
 ' Messmates and shipmates,' she said, ' I am about to 
 bid you farewell. I do not know how to thank you for 
 all that you have done for me. I — ' and the tears fell 
 thick and fast ; in vain she tried to recover herself until 
 she gave up the effort, and her whole frame shook and 
 trembled with her sobs. There was not a dry eye in the 
 ship, and many a weather-beaten old seaman wept like a 
 child. At length she became somewhat calmer, and, after 
 shaking hands with every man in the ship, returned on 
 Joe Graydon's arm to the cabin. She went on board the 
 boat in the gig with her father, the dear old captain him- 
 self steering the boat, while the rest of us followed in the 
 first cutter. 
 
78 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 Why dwell upon that sad parting ? Enough that 
 she sailed away and Joe Graydon, whose love of honor 
 was greater than love itself, uttered no word. Joe was 
 not one ' to wear his heart upon his sleeve,' and no one 
 except myself, I being, as I have said, his confidant, 
 knew the sacrifice he had made. Perhaps he was less 
 gay and playful and less fond of amusements than of old, 
 but the executive officer was sent to the hospital with a 
 sprained ankle about this time, and as Joe had to take 
 his place in fitting out the ship, his duties became so 
 important that he had little time for amusement, and 
 those duties were performed as conscientiously and 
 thoroughly as ever. 
 
 At length our repairs were completed. The execu- 
 tive officer, though still a little lame, managed to get 
 discharged from the hospital and we joined the fleet 
 in Hampton Roads, whence we soon sailed for Fort 
 Fisher. 
 
 The fierce bombardment of the 24th-25tn of De- 
 cember, successful as a bombardment but useless in 
 its result, has nothing to do with my story, and I 
 have no intention of describing it. It is sufficient to 
 say that after it was over we withdrew temporarily to 
 Port Royal, where after repairing damages, we returned, 
 when, on the isth of January, 1865, a land attack 
 was made by the sailors and marines on foot, which 
 proved one of the bloodiest and most disastrous of 
 the war. The detachment from the Atchafalaya was 
 commanded by Joe Graydon. On reaching shore the 
 men were formed, and marched across the beach, to face 
 such a fire as few men have ever been called upon to 
 encounter. Time after time they were hurled against the 
 
THE LIEUTENANT'S STORY. 79 
 
 fort only to be forced back, with terrible loss, while their 
 sheltered foe was utterly unharmed. At last the order 
 was given to retreat, but by that time it had ceased to be 
 a battle and became a massacre ; what with death and 
 demoralization there were few left to retreat, and every 
 man shifted for himself. As Joe retraced his steps 
 through that hell of fire, he noticed that some of his 
 own men had thrown up a small breastworks of sand to 
 form a partial protection against the fire of the enemy. 
 When within about a hundred yards of this shelter a 
 young officer, hardly more than a boy, passing within a 
 few yards of him, threw up his hands and fell forward 
 upon the sand. Though every moment's delay was 
 fraught with terrible danger, Joe unhesitatingly knelt 
 beside the wounded man and recognized the features of 
 Charley La Cour. ' Leave me, Mr. Graydon and save 
 yourself,' said the brave boy. But Joe Graydon was not 
 the person to desert any man under such circumstances, 
 and certainly not ' Queen Annie's ' brother, so he hoisted 
 him upon his back while Charley set his teeth with pain 
 but uttered no cry. He struggled through the sand 
 with bullets screaming and whistling all around, but not 
 one harmed them, though two pierced the visor of Joe's 
 cap and several went through Charley's coat. At last 
 they reached the breastwork and were in comparative 
 safety, where, the men all being 'Atchafalayas,' Charley 
 was as welcome as Graydon himself. Joe was delighted 
 to find that Charley's wound was no more serious than a 
 ball through the fleshy part of the leg, which he bound 
 up as best he could with his handkerchief until he was 
 able to reach the beach and convey his patient on board 
 the Atchafalaya, where he surrendered his own room. 
 
80 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 and the good old doctor could hardly have been more 
 attentive had the case involved his pet amputation of the 
 hip joint. As our ship had been considerably damaged 
 during the bombardment, it was decided to send 
 her to Norfolk with such of the less severely wounded 
 as had not gone to the hospital immediately after 
 the engagement. Charley was one of them, and, of 
 course, he continued to occupy Joe's room while 
 its owner deemed it a privilege to swing in a cot 
 for his accommodation. As soon as she heard of our 
 arrival Annie came down to meet her brother, but he 
 did not require her services, and the hospital was so 
 crowded that the doctors discouraged very frequent 
 visits. So, as Yankees were not looked on with much 
 favor there, her principal amusements were long walks 
 with Joe. The scenery around Norfolk and Portsmouth 
 is not very romantic, but with ' Queen Annie ' for a com- 
 panion Joe found the dusty roads, corn fields and truck 
 patches more attractive than the wildest glades in the 
 Adirondacks. But all this could not last. Charley was 
 soon able to hobble on board the Old Dominion steamer 
 and sail away with ' Queen Annie ' for their home in New 
 York. 
 
 It was found that the Atchafalaya needed so many 
 repairs that, as the war was virtually over, it was deemed 
 best to put her out of commission. So the old ship 
 went into rotten-row and many dear friends parted — 
 some of them forever. Joe went to the little nest he had 
 built for himself and Nettie on Long Island. He loved 
 his sister dearly, and though, had he not been blinded by 
 his affection for her, he would hardly have gone to her for 
 sympathy, he needed it so much that he could not help 
 
THE LIEUTENANT'S STORY. 81 
 
 thinking that she would give it as freely to him as he 
 would to her, so he told her of his love and its obstacle. 
 
 ' Well, of all the idiotic things I ever heard of,' ex- 
 claimed Nettie, ' that beats ! Not marry a girl because 
 she is rich ; why don't you go into the street and marry 
 a beggar ? ' 
 
 ' But Nettie, my honor is at stake,' said poor Joe. 
 
 ' Honor fiddlesticks ! Will honor buy bread and 
 cheese ? ' said Miss Nettie, with more force than elegance, 
 as she flounced out of the room. 
 
 That afternoon Joe received a telegram announcing 
 an intended visit from his friend Bob Wilson. Bob had 
 been his room-mate at the academy and his dearest 
 friend since graduation, and few things could have given 
 him greater pleasure than the promised visit, nor had he 
 long to wait, for in less than an hour ' Breezy Bob,' as 
 we used to call him, burst into the house. 
 
 ' Well, Joe, how are you, old man ?' shouted Bob, as 
 if he were hailing the main topmast-cross-trees in a gale 
 of wind, at the same time giving his friend a blow upon 
 the shoulder that the great John L. would not have 
 blushed for. 
 
 Joe returned his greeting more quietly. Bob again 
 threw his arms around his host and hugged him until he 
 fairly gasped. 
 
 ' I am hugging you now, you dear old hero,' he ex- 
 claimed, ' for saving my little sweetheart and her brother ; 
 I always said that you were worth all the rest of the 
 Navy put together.' 
 
 ' Your sweetheart ! ' faltered Joe. ' Are you engaged 
 to her, then ? ' 
 
 ' Well I can't say that there is any formal engage- 
 6 
 
82 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 ment, but it has been an understood thing ever since she 
 was a child, and I should be a cur to go back on it now. 
 Don't you think so ? ' 
 
 ' Not unless you loved her, Bob.' 
 
 ' But suppose she loved me, my dear Joe, as I have 
 every reason to believe she does. Besides, I certainly 
 like her better than any one in the world except 
 you.' 
 
 ' And so,' thought Joe, ' that the cup of my sorrow 
 may be more bitter, my dearest friend must unconsciously 
 hold it to my lips.' 
 
 Nettie, who was a born flirt, began to work her wiles 
 on Bob with such success that he soon discovered that 
 he loved her. This greatly distressed him, for he felt as 
 much bound by honor to marry Annie La Cour as Joe 
 felt bound for the same reason not to. Bob was not the 
 man to shrink from what he thought was right, and with 
 a sad but unflinching heart he fled from the lair of the 
 enchantress and sought the stern path of duty. Arrived 
 at the La Cour's country-seat, with which he was as 
 familiar as any member of the family, he turned into the 
 grove, where he found the object of his search, as he ex- 
 pected, on her favorite rustic seat. 
 
 ' How are you. Bob,' said she ; ' just in time for lunch. 
 Charley has gone to town but father will listen to your 
 stories ; only try to moderate your voice, one of the 
 dining-room windows is cracked.' 
 
 ' Annie,' he said very gravely, ' I have come to say 
 something to you.' 
 
 ' Well, Master Bob, what is it ? I hope you've not 
 been getting into debt' 
 
 ' I have come Annie,' and he looked very much as 
 
THE LIEUTENANTS STORY. 83 
 
 if he were about to take a pill, ' I have come to ask you 
 to be my wife.' 
 
 ' What,' long drawn out, 'your wife. Why Bob Wil- 
 son, I suppose I ought to call you Mr. Wilson on this 
 momentous occasion but I can't, we've been brother and 
 sister too long.' Then peal after peal of laughter wakened 
 the echoes of the gi'ove. 
 
 ' Excuse me. Bob,' said Annie, between her laughs, 
 ' but I can't help it, it is too funny.' 
 
 ' You don't care for it then,' said Bob, in a tone very 
 unlike that of a despairing lover. 
 
 ' Why, Bob, you know you do not love me in that 
 way the least bit and I love you quite as little.' 
 
 Bob thought it the proper thing to propound a ques- 
 tion which his reading had taught him was the usual one 
 on such occasions, so he said : ' May I ask if there is any 
 prior attachment ? ' 
 
 ' Now, Master Bob,' said ' Queen Annie ', shaking her 
 finger at him ' you got that out of a novel, you know 
 very well you did, and the answer is " None of your 
 business." 
 
 Bob now felt so happy at the result of his proposal 
 that he thought to indulge in alittle badinage and, simply 
 because Joe Graydon's name was the iirst that occurred 
 to him, he said, ' Perhaps my friend Graydon may be the 
 happy man.' 
 
 The rudeness of the remark could only be excused 
 by his close intimacy with the lady but even that did uot 
 excuse it in this case. Tears sprang to Annie's eyes and 
 her cheeks grew crimson. 
 
 ' Shame on you,' she cried amid her sobs, ' to insult 
 a poor girl who has always been your friend. You have 
 
84 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 no right to say such things to me ; leave me I never wish 
 to see you again.' 
 
 Bob did not remain long to soothe the angry beauty, 
 but trusting that time would obtain his pardon he hurried 
 back to Long Island on the wings of love more rapidly 
 than he left it on those of duty. Bob, as his late adventure 
 had showed, was not exactly an expert in love matters, 
 but on thinking over matters as he sped over the Hudson 
 River Rail Road he concluded that there was more in 
 his chance question than he had supposed ; he duly 
 arrived at his destination where he lost no time in making 
 hay in the light of Miss Nettie's smiles, and as the crop 
 was nearly cured before duty bore him away, in a very 
 few days she had promised to be Mrs. Wilson. Fortun- 
 ately for the lovers, Joe was in the city that day, so they 
 were not disturbed in the endearments to which engaged 
 people are prone. 
 
 After billing and cooing for an hour or two Bob 
 said, ' I wish dear old Joe was in love and as happy as 
 we are.' 
 
 ' He is in love but I think he does not take it as we 
 do. I'm sure it makes us happy enough, &c. &c. &c.,' 
 which no one has a right to hear or see. 
 
 And then from Bob. " But who is he in love with, 
 pet,' ' and why isn't he happy ?' 
 
 ' He's in love with that chit of a girl he took out of a 
 boat and he won't marry her, of all reasons in the world, 
 because she is rich and he is poor. I could understand 
 it if it were the other way.' 
 
 ' But Nettie, darling, you are going to marry me on 
 my pay.' 
 
 ' Yes, you dear old boy,' said the practical Nettie, 'but 
 
THE LIEUTENANTS STORY. 85 
 
 I would not love you any less if you had a nice little 
 fortune.' 
 
 The next day Nettie lunched with a neighbor and the 
 two friends had the house to themselves. 
 
 ' Joe,' said his friend, ' I have proposed to Annie La 
 Cour.' 
 
 ' And the result was, I suppose, what you expected.' 
 
 ' Well, at least it was what I ought to have expected,' 
 answered Bob. ' I was laughed at for a coxcomb, and 
 deserved every bit of it, too. But, Joe, I will tell you a 
 secret. While I was thinking like a fool that I was 
 bound in honor to marry Annie La Cour because she 
 was in love with me I was myself in love with your sister 
 Nettie, who has now promised, with your permission, to 
 be my wife.' 
 
 'My dear Bob,' exclaimed Joe heartily, shaking his 
 friend's hand, ' I need not tell you that there is no man on 
 earth to whom I would rather entrust Nettie's future than 
 the friend I have loved and honored for so many years.' 
 
 ' Now, my dear friend,' continued Bob, ' I have an- 
 other secret to impart. I have learned that you are 
 attached to Annie La Cour, but restrained by a sense of 
 honor from declaring yourself. Now I can assure you 
 that the obligations of honor are entirely the other way. 
 I discovered in my interview with her that you have won 
 her love and that unless you tell her that she has yours 
 you will allow her to think she has given her love un- 
 sought. If you are a gentleman, and I know you are, 
 you will save this poor girl from the sorrow and mortifi- 
 cation which she now suffers. 
 
 ' Save her,' exclaimed Joe, ' I would give my life to 
 save her from a moment's pain or sorrow.' 
 
86 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 Bob continued his argument with such good effect 
 that the next morning found Joe setting forth on that 
 mission of which he had so often dreamed, but which, in 
 his waking hours, he had never hoped to accomplish. 
 On his arrival at the La Cour's he inquired for Miss 
 Annie and, on learning that she was in the grounds, he 
 went himself to seek her and found her seated on the 
 same bench that had been the scene of the love, or 
 rather lack-love, passage a few days before. 
 
 ' Oh, how glad I am to see you,' exclaimed Annie, 
 starting up, and her eyes expressed her delight more 
 eloquently than her words. 
 
 ' And I am equally glad to see you, Miss La Cour,' 
 said Joe awkwardly, for now that the longed-for moment 
 had arrived, 
 
 ' He feared to put it to the touch.' 
 
 ' Miss La Cour,' said Annie, reproachfully. ' Has 
 " Queen Annie " been deposed then ? ' 
 
 'No, never,' exclaimed her lover, '"Queen Annie" will 
 reign in my heart forever. Oh, Annie ! I have tried so 
 hard to keep it back ; honor has warned me that I had 
 no right to ask you to leave this luxury and share pov- 
 erty with me, but love is the stronger. Annie, dearest 
 Annie, Annie, my queen, I love you. Will you be the 
 wife of one so poor, in all save love, as I ? ' 
 
 ' Oh, Joe, dear Joe,' said Annie, as she rested in the 
 arms to which he had clasped her, ' why have you never 
 told me this before and saved me the many tears I have 
 shed because I thought I had given my love unsought.' 
 
 The minutes flew, as lover's minutes will, until the 
 unromantic sound of the tea-bell called them to the 
 house. Annie conducted her lover at once to her father, 
 
THE LIEUTENANT'S STORY. 87 
 
 from whom she had never had a secret, and told him the 
 happy news. Mr. La Cour kissed his daughter upon the 
 forehead, and then, taking Joe by the hand, said, in a voice 
 trembhng with emotion, ' My young friend, to you, under 
 God, I owe the lives of both of my children ; but for you 
 I should have been a broken-hearted old man in a deso- 
 late home. In the course of nature I must soon leave 
 my daughter to the protection of others, and who so fit 
 to shield her from sorrow as you. Take her, my son, 
 and may God in his infinite mercy bless and protect you 
 both.' 
 
 Though Joe had returned, as nearly as he could, all 
 the money expended upon him by his uncle, he loved the 
 old man dearly and was deeply grateful for his kindness. 
 He therefore took occasion that very evening to write to 
 him announcing his engagement. On his arrival on 
 Long Island he rather expected an answer to his letter, 
 but was thoroughly surprised, on opening it, to find a 
 cheque for a large amount and the following in his uncle's 
 handwriting and peculiar style : 
 
 ' My dear Joe ; — Glad you're not going to be an old bachelor like your 
 uncle. Marriage is best spite of St. Paul. Of course I'd no idea of keep- 
 ing your prize-money. Thought young men likely to be improvident, con- 
 cluded to invest it for you until you needed it. You probably need it now 
 and I am enabled to send you enclosed cheque ^3842,31 instead of ^(3000 
 you sent me. I have always intended that you should be my heir, but I 
 had to wait for my money until I was too old to enjoy it. I see no good 
 reason why you should. I shall, therefore, give you on your wedding-day 
 a hundred thousand dollars on account of your inheritance. Want a man 
 to look after rents and attend to my business. Give any good man twice 
 what U. S. gives you. War over, no career in navy, better resign and take 
 it. Longest letter I've written in ten years. 
 
 ' Your affectionate Uncle, 
 
 'JosiAH WiLKINS.' 
 
88 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 My story is ended, the wedding bells have sounded, 
 ' Queen Annie ' has received a crown of happiness, Joe 
 Graydon has accepted his uncle's offer and the navy has 
 lost one of its best and brightest officers." 
 
 " A capital story, well told, Mr. Burton, and we are 
 much obliged to you," said the flag-officer, who then 
 turned to the fleet-surgeon, and said, 
 
 " Come, doctor, you have been so long in the service, 
 and in so many parts of the world, that you must re- 
 member something worthy of note occurring at this 
 season." 
 
 " I remember," said the fleet-surgeon, " a frightful 
 gale of wind at Christmas on our own coast, when we 
 were very nearly lost by going to sea against the advice 
 of the pilot; but I fancy we don't want yarns about bad 
 weather to-night. We may have it in reality soon 
 enough, as we are going on the coast in midwinter. 
 My pleasant recollections are all connected with my 
 early service, and therefore rather hazy, while those of 
 the late war are all more or less painful. 
 
 " I think I had better read you a love-story written 
 by a young friend of mine. It is much better than any- 
 thing I could tell yoii." 
 
 Stepping to his state-room, the doctor returned in a 
 moment, and began : 
 
 " I have often wondered why it was that a sailor, be 
 he young or old, is so frequently such an irresistible 
 attraction for the fair sex. It may be because ' all the 
 world loves a lover,' and nearly all sailors are lovers, 
 and then again a sailor, a true sailor, is of necessity a 
 brave man, and ' None but the brave deserve the fair.' 
 
THE DOCTOR'S STOIiV. 89 
 
 These, of course, do not answer the why, and the fact 
 remains that reeling, rolling, rollicking Jack is a great 
 success in winning the admiration of the ladies. 
 
 As a rule he is as susceptible as he is successful. 
 The major part of his life being spent outside of the so- 
 ciety of ladies, they never become common-place to 
 him ; they are ever fresh and attractive to him, and he 
 is naturally lost in admiration of them, when a fair wind 
 puts him in their midst. No sooner does he anchor in 
 a new port than some bright pair of eyes, some soft 
 wavy head of hair, some captivating dimple, some trim 
 figure knocks him off his feet, and he is again, perhaps 
 for the hundredth time, heels over head in love. 
 
 The day comes, the houi comes, the woman comes, 
 however, when his manly soul is stirred to its very 
 depths, and then, no matter what his wanderings may 
 be, no matter who may cross his path, no matter what 
 temptations may beset him, ' His heart is true to Polly.' 
 Blown here and there by the winds, carried hither and 
 thither by the currents, tempest-tossed and knocked 
 about on the social sea as well as the- salt sea, his heart 
 is as true as his compass-needle. 
 
 Lieutenant John George Hartley, or Jack, as he was 
 familiarly called, was one of those large, broad-shoul- 
 dered, athletic fellows, as strong as an ox, as lithe as a 
 cat ; not handsome, but with a heart as big as his body, 
 and a hand-shake that made you realize his ponderous 
 good nature. You felt his whole soul in the palm of 
 his hand, and no one ever grasped his hand that did not 
 become his firm friend. You should have seen him on 
 the deck of a ship to have known his grand character. 
 The sailors worshipped him as a god ; yet at times, I 
 
90 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 must confess, he would seem, to the casual observer, 
 more like a fiend, so intense was he. With perfect con- 
 trol over himself and his men, he was ever master of the 
 situation. He was so honest, sincere and candid in all 
 he did and said that he gained the life-long allegiance of 
 every man with whom he came in contact. 
 
 Jack was a great success socially. His quiet dignity 
 and self-possession, his thorough good-heartedness and 
 open frankness, and his fine manly appearance won for 
 him an enviable position. It was but natural that he 
 should have little affairs on hand nearly all the time. 
 He knew, only too well, how to treat all the characters 
 one meets in society. He knew how to amuse the 
 prude, abuse the flirt, and use the tattler. 
 
 Jack had a sister whom he worshipped. There was 
 no other woman in the world quite her equal in his esti- 
 mation, and he seriously doubted if there ever would be. 
 When she returned from a long trip through Europe and 
 Asia Minor, she brought with her many little pieces of 
 stone as souvenirs of her travels. They were chippings 
 from famous buildings, from the pedestals of monuments, 
 from great engineering works ; a piece from the Acropolis, 
 a piece from the leaning Tower of Pisa, a piece from Sa- 
 vonarola's fountain, a piece from the Roman aqueduct, a 
 piece from the ruins of Ephesus, and a piece from Mars 
 Hill. These pieces she caused to be ground perfectly 
 flat on both sides and about a sixteenth of an inch in 
 thickness. These flat pieces were then piled one on the 
 other and firmly cemented together. The pile was cut 
 through the centre, making two small composite stones, 
 the cut faces of which represented a cross section of each 
 little piece. These faces were ground and polished, each 
 
THE DOCTOR'S STORY. 91 
 
 forming a very pretty striped flat seal for a ring. The 
 ring in which each was mounted was made of three small 
 wires : a gold, a platinum and an aluminum one, braided 
 together. 
 
 Having made two of these rings, she gave one to 
 Jack, assuring him that with it she gave a sister's deepest 
 affection, and admonishing him never to part with it, un- 
 less he should find some one whom he loved better than 
 himself, and in whom his very life became absorbed. 
 To her he might present it. 
 
 It is, perhaps, needless to say that Jack was much 
 affected by this little present, and that he treasured it 
 above all his possessions. He never wore the ring on 
 his finger, but, with a strong silken cord passed through 
 it, he wore it about his neck under his clothing as one 
 does a charm. 
 
 The day after we arrived at Villefranche, we, Jack 
 and I, received an invitation to dine with Mrs. Hamnel 
 and her daughter. Although we had planned to spend 
 the afternoon and evening at Monte Carlo, and had made 
 all arrangements so to do, yet we were not long in drop- 
 ping that plan when we received the invitation to dine at 
 the Hotel D'Angleterre, in Nice. I must confess that 
 my heart jumped when I thought of it, for I was con- 
 siderably interested in Miss Nita Hamnel, and I had 
 asked myself time and time again in my reveries and 
 musings if I really was in love with her or not. I had 
 had so many little bewilderments and enchantments that 
 I had come to doubt even myself and my own heart. 
 
 We left the ship early and arriving at Nice, squan- 
 dered a little time at the Mediterranean Club, and then 
 went out to stroll [on the Promenade des Anglais. On 
 
92 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 our way to the Promenade we passed the well-known 
 little glove store kept by Madame Garrett. Jack in- 
 sisted on going in to buy gloves, although I was sure he 
 had twenty pairs of gloves he had already bought here 
 in Nice during the past six months. In we went and we 
 looked over many different shades and styles, and he had 
 tried on a half dozen gloves before he purchased a pair. 
 I noticed that he waited for a certain demoiselle de inaga- 
 sin to serve him, and I also noticed a mellow expression 
 of delight, in his large brown eyes, as he rested his 
 elbow on the counter, and she with more patience and 
 care than the case warranted, but with delicate, soothing 
 touch smoothed glove after glove on his generously 
 large hand. This then was one of his little affairs, as he 
 chose to call them. I knew of many another affair, and 
 knowing him as well as I did, I somehow envied the 
 girls on whom he thus smiled. 
 
 We were about to leave the store when who should 
 enter but Mrs. and Miss Hamnel. Before he had even 
 exchanged courtesies, I saw that Miss Nita was first 
 startled, then pleased, then fascinated by the expression 
 she had caught on Jack's face. Greetings followed, and 
 hearty ones too, and, as the ladies were out for a short 
 promenade before dinner, they invited us to join them. 
 
 It happily fell to my lot to walk with Miss Nita, but 
 we had not gone far before I was sure she was preoccu- 
 pied with her own thoughts, yet keeping up a lively, 
 joyous conversation with me. Presently she said, 
 ' Lieutenant Hartley seems to have changed somewhat 
 since you all left here in February to go to Tangier.' I 
 replied that I had noticed no change in him, but sup- 
 posed if there had been any it had come so gradually 
 
THE DOCTOR'S STORY. 93 
 
 that a shipmate would not notice it. Here was a pointer, 
 and I began to believe I was not in the race for her affec- 
 tion, or even her interest or consideration. 
 
 A most delightful little dinner was served in their 
 apartments, and our hostess was so genial and jolly and 
 entertaining that I began to feel that, perhaps, I was 
 more interested in her than I was in her daughter. Dear 
 friend, remember what old Weller said, and beware of 
 widows. We were sipping pousse cafes and chatting 
 merrily, when, unannounced and with exquisite grace, 
 glided into the room the handsomest man I ever laid 
 eyes upon. Miss Nita welcomed him with a smile, but 
 her face and lips were white as marble, and apparently as 
 hard and cold. 
 
 Mrs. Hamnel greeted him with a pleasant word, and 
 we were introdued to Surgeon McElbaine, of the Royal 
 Naval Reserve. 
 
 Up to that time our party seemed quite complete, 
 yet he certainly was an addition, for a more polished, 
 refined, witty and entertaining man I had never met. 
 The evening passed all too quickly ; we had what one 
 might call a progressive tete-a-tete party, and then Miss 
 Nita and the surgeon sang for us, their voices blending 
 in melodious harmony. Through it all, the color never 
 returned to Miss Nita's face, and I thought her eyes 
 looked sad and sorrowful, wild and bewildered. 
 
 Jack did, now, look different from what I had ever 
 seen him before, and, after we returned to the ship that 
 night, we sat up over a bottle of navy sherry and talked 
 it all over for a couple of hours. 
 
 As I lay in my bunk, sleepless and nervous, the 
 beads of perspiration on my brow, the cool air froni over 
 
94 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 the water fanning through my air-port, I figured out the 
 result of our deHberations. 
 
 Jack was in love with Miss Nita, that was certain^ 
 and perhaps she was in love with him. 
 
 Jack was jealous of the surgeon, who he had said 
 was a sneaking, snaky scoundrel. He was sure of the 
 latter point, for, when I protested, he insisted that it was 
 written all over his face, that it was in his walk, in his 
 talk, in his finger tips and in his voice. 
 
 Miss Nita was the most charming young lady we 
 had ever met. 
 
 Mrs. Hamnel, it seemed to me, was a most estimable 
 lady, while to Jack's mind, she was a little queer. 
 
 I finally went to sleep, or rather to dream-land, for 
 my sleep was full of visions of the surgeon. Miss Nita, 
 Jack, duels, scenes, love-making bowers, weddings, hor- 
 rors and ghosts. 
 
 Jack went on duty the next day, and I'll warrant it 
 was a long tour of duty to him. I went ashore, and 
 taking advantage of Jack's imprisonment, I paid my 
 respects to the Hamnels. 
 
 Miss Nita and I had a cozy little time, and I was 
 getting hopeful of being at least entertaining, when I 
 foolishly introduced the subject of the surgeon. I spoke 
 of how I admired him, but how Jack mistrusted him. 
 With more feeling, energy and fire than I supposed any 
 woman had, she jumped to her feet and said, ' I hate him, 
 despise him, loathe him, but I cannot resist him. Ex- 
 cuse me, please.' She hastily left the room, but as she 
 passed through the portiere she turned and half-smiled, 
 which I took for a sort of an apology for her abruptness. 
 
 Mrs. Hamnel explained to me that the surgeon was 
 
THE DOCTOR'S STORY. 95 
 
 one of the most talented and polished gentlemen she had 
 ever met, that he had an occult power that was mysteri- 
 ously wonderful, and she was very happy that he was 
 interested in Miss Nita. She was sorry that her daugh- 
 ter tried to repulse him, but hoped this childishness, as 
 she termed it, would soon pass away. It was evident to 
 my mind that the surgeon had great power and influence 
 over those two persons, and I began to believe with Jack, 
 that he was not, perhaps, as good as he might be. 
 
 Several days later Jack returned on board ship in an 
 excited, troubled state, and taking me into his confidence, 
 told me an incident which caused a cold wave to sweep 
 down my back. 
 
 He had had a long talk with Miss Nita, and had 
 declared his deep interest in her, his affection for her, 
 his love to her. Though she did not fully reciprocate, 
 she gave him to understand his address was most 
 pleasing to her, and that she was far from rejecting his 
 suit. Jack's whole heart had gone out to her, and he 
 asked her to accept the stone ring which he carried, after 
 explaining the history and sentiment connected with it. 
 She consented, but insisted on his taking as a guarantee 
 of her liking, fondness and predisposition for him, a small 
 but very fiery opal. She solemnly promised to wear his 
 ring as long as her heart was true to him, and to remove 
 and return it whenever he was dethroned as her suitor 
 and lover. 
 
 From the ring they drifted to talking of the reception 
 which was to take place that evening, and to which he 
 was to be her escort. While they were thus chatting, 
 perfectly happy in each other's presence, unannounced 
 again, and this time certainly unwelcomed, entered the 
 
96 A CHRJSTiUAS AT SEA. 
 
 surgeon. In his affable manner he declared himself 
 much pleased to see Miss Nita looking so well, and with 
 a hearty, yet hollow laugh, he greeted Lieutenant Hart- 
 ley. Jack was sorely tempted to knock him down, 'just 
 for luck,' as he said. However, a light and airy conver- 
 sation was indulged in for a few minutes, in which Mrs. 
 Hamnel soon joined them. 
 
 Suddenly Miss Nita, her face ashy white, her eyes 
 sparkling with a few tears that had gone adrift, and her 
 lower lip slightly quivering, said, ' Lieutenant Hartley, 
 it was very kind of you to ask me to go to the reception 
 with you, but I am sorry I shall have to ask you to 
 excuse me. I will have the pleasure of seeing you there, 
 however.' Stunned and bewildered. Jack exclaimed, 
 ' What ?' and quietly the sentence was repeated. Beneath 
 the calm exterior a terrible storm of passion, of fright, 
 of hope, of will was raging within Miss Nita. 
 
 The surgeon adroitly shifted the conversation, and 
 soon all were apparently in good, animated spirits. Mrs. 
 Hamnel invited both the gentlemen to remain to tea. 
 The surgeon excused himself, alleging that he had a few 
 minor affairs to attend to, and gracefully, courteously, 
 bowed his adieu, and as quietly and noiselessly as he 
 had entered, he passed out through the portiere. Jack 
 remained. Miss Nita gradually calmed and quieted 
 down, and became mistress of herself and said, ' Lieu- 
 tenant, I will go with you this evening if, after what has 
 been said, you will take me. You do not know, and I 
 doubt if you can know, what a strain I suffer at times, 
 and how quickly and surely thought travels without visi- 
 ble sign. The surgeon, unknown to you or mamma, 
 made me refuse to go with you, and yet, before he left, 
 
THE DOCTOR'S STORY. 97 
 
 he gave his permission. Now don't look at me so, 
 please, please don't, but remain the strong friend you 
 have always been. You don't know what a help you 
 have been to me, my dear Mr. Hartley, in my struggles, 
 and please don't act rashly, or with the vigor your eyes 
 express. It will all be right ; I am sure it will, and, to 
 assure you, I will swear now, by this ring, that I shall 
 do all that I can, and I hope to gain strength from this 
 talisman, to rid myself of the despotic power of that 
 man.' Jack in his turn promised that, as long as she 
 wore that ring, he would do whatever she said, as she 
 said, and when she said. He declared himself absolutely 
 and completely at her service, from the broadest matters 
 to the slightest detail. The subject was gradually 
 dropped, and after tea Jack left her, to return a couple of 
 hours later to take her to the reception. She must have 
 been a beautiful sight, as she was dressed for the recep- 
 tion, if Jack's description was at all truthful, and I will 
 warrant that he was the happiest man in the world as he 
 placed her opera cloak around her shoulders and fastened 
 the clasp. 
 
 The reception was a most brilliant affair and Miss 
 Nita was second to none in beauty, toilet and pose. She 
 was radiant with charms, and Jack, standing beside her, 
 was in paradise. It was during the second quadrille that 
 the much dreaded pallor came over her again and lean- 
 ing against her partner, almost fainting, she whispered, 
 ' Jack, my dear Jack, do nothing rash, do nothing 
 without my advice, no matter what happens. You know 
 what I mean. He is here.' 
 
 With ball-room floor pitching £nd tossing like the 
 deck of a ship, with the lights flickering and pulsating, 
 
 7 
 
98 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 now bright now dark, Jack staggered across the room 
 and soon found himself seated in an easy chair at the 
 door of one of the anterooms. Nita was gone, where, 
 he did not know. He only remembered the smooth 
 politeness of the surgeon, and the ' excuse me, please ' 
 of Nita. That was all. 
 
 Dazed and bewildered, he took his cloak and left, 
 wandering down the promenade, thence to the Pont 
 Neuf, thence to the Cafe of the Mason Dore, where he 
 drank and thought, thought, dreamed and drank. Oh 
 shame, that man in his hour of need should appeal to the 
 god who will forsake him, who will betray him. The 
 occupants of the cafe were growing fewer and fewer, jet 
 after jet was being turned out and he was soon alone, 
 alone with his troubled spirit. The gar9on kindly 
 touched him on the shoulder, and asked, ' Does Monsieur 
 wish to retire?' Placing a few francs on the table. Jack 
 left the cafe and with the aid of the gar9on procured a 
 cab. ' Drive anywhere, drive anywhere,' were his orders, 
 but later on, chance brought him, in the early morning, 
 just before break of day, to the Hotel D'Angleterre. 
 
 Not knowing why, he wandered up the staircase to 
 the apartments of the Hamnels. All was confusion. 
 Chairs and tables were on their beams ends ; trinkets and 
 bric-a-brac were gone ; everything was topsy-turvy and 
 not a soul to be seen. Jack, stunned and dumfounded, 
 hardly believing in his own sanity, rushed down stairs 
 to the hotel office and from the clerk, in answer to his 
 queries he learned that the Hamnels had left about mid- 
 night, bag and baggage. Where they had gone, no one 
 knew. 
 
 Here Jack was, before me, practically a wreck, still 
 
THE DOCTOR'S STORY. 99 
 
 trembling, still agitated. A great, strong, powerful man 
 as weak as a child, a generous, happy soul in the depth 
 of sorrow. I shall never forget him as he sat there on 
 my bunk. I could not comfort him for I knew not 
 how. 
 
 That fall he was promoted to be a Lieut. Commander 
 and given command of the gun boat Peoria. He asked 
 me, in fact insisted, on my going with him as executive 
 officer. We were sent to the West Indies and made a 
 complete circuit of the Windward Islands, then drifted 
 off to the more westerly ones. We narrowly missed 
 several heavy cyclones and on September lOth, we 
 anchored off ' Porpoise Key,' near Jamaica. Jack was 
 the same good fellow he had always been and if there 
 was any change in him he had become more tender, less 
 light-hearted, more despondent, less hopeful, more of a 
 cynic, but still a philosopher. 
 
 We were walking along the beach and nearing the 
 end of the Key when we saw the wreck of what had been 
 a fine steamer. She had gone pretty well to pieces and 
 was undoubtedly blown ashore during one of the recent 
 gales. Wreckage was to be found all along the beach 
 and some of it was pretty well back from the high tide 
 mark. We sauntered along examining piece after piece 
 but finding nothing of special interest at first. Presently 
 we found the bruised and mangled body of a man. It 
 was a horrible sight, the tropical sun having helped to 
 make it repulsive, but Jack examined it closely. Finding 
 no means of identification further than that the man 
 was probably a Spaniard, he simply remarked, ' We must 
 send some men up here to-morrow and bury this poor 
 fellow.' We continued up the beach and found, first, the 
 
100 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 body of a child which we moved back further from the 
 water, then the body of a man who, though badly 
 used by the sea, so much resembled our former acquain- 
 tance, the sneaking, snaky Surgeon, that I called Jack's 
 attention to it. In the same quiet, cool, calm manner, 
 that characterized him, he examined the body and shreds 
 of clothing and simply said, ' Yes, I am sure it is the 
 Surgeon.' 
 
 Jack was a little unnerved, I think, by the thoughts 
 this discovery awoke. 
 
 We proceeded, each of us too much occupied with 
 our own thoughts to exchange any, and had gone per- 
 haps a quarter of a mile when we came to the body of a 
 woman. It was, or had been, lashed to a bale of cotton. 
 The rolling of the bale in the heavy surf had pounded 
 and bruised the body and head so that it was impossible 
 to tell what the face must have looked like in life. 
 Quietly, slowly, methodically. Jack examined the cloth- 
 ing and body. He had taken her poor, bruised left hand 
 in his, — a violent shudder shook his whole frame, — he 
 held the hand for me to see, — large crystal tears were in 
 his eyes, — his lips quivered, — on his face was the sad- 
 dest expression I had ever seen, — a picture of deep, rack- 
 ing, hopeless, profound sorrow. There, on her finger, 
 was Jack's ring. 
 
 How the thoughts ran riot through my brain. I 
 seemed burning with excitement and chilled with horror. 
 Ah, well, then Miss Nita had been true to Jack all this 
 time. Whatever else she had done, wherever she had 
 been, she had been loyal, even to the last moment of her 
 life, to her most worthy lover, Jack. I believed in the 
 truth of the ring and its sentimental significance. 
 
THE DOCTOR'S STORY. 101 
 
 Around the mound of Nita's grave were placed 
 King and Queen conchs, and the head-stone consists of 
 a large white-winged piece of coral. A bayonet marks 
 the surgeon's grave. 
 
 Tenderly restoring the opal ring to her finger, Jack 
 took and kept his stone ring, and I often thought how 
 much it now meant to him. 
 
 Poor, dear fellow, how I pitied him, how my heart 
 suffered for and with him. 
 
 No, my story is not ended. 
 
 It was two months later, long dreary months they 
 were, too, that,' arriving at Havana, Jack received in the 
 mail a letter which he showed me. 
 
 My Dear Jack : — I am coming to you now. By the goodly help of 
 the ring you gave me, I am coming to you with a pure heart and free hand. 
 The world is so bright to me now. Have you kept the opal, and has it 
 kept you mine ? The steamer leaves at five for St. Thomas, where I hope 
 to find you, but, if I do not, I shall follow on, for I intend to follow you to 
 the end of the earth. Surely your ring will not fail me now, it will and it 
 must lead me to you. With a heart full of love and hope , 
 
 Your own, true, 
 
 NiTA. 
 
 This seemed the last straw. How terrible this all 
 was and how I did admire Jack. How any man could 
 stand the strains to which he had been subjected, how 
 anything less than a god. could do it, was beyond my 
 knowing. It was evident she had lost her life in search- 
 ing for her lover, when hopes were highest, when she 
 had so much to live for. 
 
 The day before we left Havana, an English tramp 
 steamer arrived from Trinidad, and, that afternoon, I had 
 the pleasure of escorting to the cabin and announcing to 
 Jack, Miss Nita Hamnel. 
 
102 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 You may doubt the existence of a heaven in the 
 next world, if you will, but some people have found 
 heaven in this. The scene that I witnessed was far too 
 sacred for me to profane with an attempt at description. 
 
 The surgeon had prevailed upon Mrs. Hamnel and 
 her daughter to leave Nice, and had carefully avoided 
 leaving a trace as to where they had gone. He no 
 doubt feared Jack. He had had a fac-simile of Jack's 
 ring made because he had admired it, and was unable to 
 persuade Miss Nita to give it to him. Through the 
 kindly influence of the ring, Miss Nita had been enabled 
 to gradually extricate herself from the control of the 
 surgeon. He, finding his power over her waning, re- 
 luctantly gave her up. The last Miss Nita knew of him 
 he had eloped with the weak but handsome wife of a 
 wealthy old miller. Poor Mrs. Hamnel had died at 
 Florence, Italy, of fever, and, after recovering from the 
 fatigue of caring for her mother and the shock her 
 death caused. Miss Nita set out to find Jack. 
 
 Commander John George Hartley and Miss Nita 
 Hamnel were married at the house of Mrs. Neilson 
 Upton Butterworth, sister of Commander Hartley. 
 
 I believe in the power of amulets, the fidelity of 
 woman's love, the grand possibilities of man's character, 
 and a heaven on earth," 
 
 A silence, followed by a murmur of applause, followed 
 Mr. Digit's story, and then the steward filled the glasses 
 for the last time. 
 
 The "Amulet" was voted a great success, although 
 some of the younger men giggled a little at the reader, 
 
MR. HAWSE'S STORY. 103 
 
 whom they had not associated with such a story, even as 
 its reader. 
 
 Then the Doctor, " having the call," looked along the 
 table, and said : " I think we will all like to hear from 
 Mr. Hawse, who won't give a love story, I am sure." 
 
 Mr. Hawse^ the gentleman referred to, was sitting near 
 the end of the table — a curly-haired, blue-eyed man, 
 with an alert manner and good-humored expression 
 which made him the favorite of every one on board, 
 from the flag-officer to the captain of the head. He was 
 the sort of man a ship's company will always work for 
 without driving ; his two expressions when carrying on 
 duty being, " Cheerily, men ! " and " Handsomely ! hand- 
 somely, lads ! " and he had to use the last most frequently, 
 to keep from springing something. 
 
 Coming from a respectable New England family, some 
 of whom, in each generation, had been sailors, he had, 
 previous to the late war, been mate of an Indiaman. 
 Entering the service as an acting master, he had, by 
 good conduct and hard fighting, as well as ability as a 
 navigator, attained the rank of lieutenant in the regular 
 navy. Still a young man, and proud of his success, 
 when so • many had failed, he never forgot the service 
 from which he had sprung ; so that, while not a great 
 talker, he occasionally held forth upon the achievements 
 of our merchant sailors in all parts of the world ; and 
 was, besides, a perfect encyclopedia of the great ocean 
 routes, prevailing winds and currents, and of rapid pas- 
 sages under sail. He always deprecated the prejudices 
 which exist, more or less, between the navy and the mer- 
 chant service, and was wont to say that they were nearer 
 to each other, and more essential to each other, than 
 
104 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 either would admit. In fact, Mr. Hawse maintained, 
 with great abihty and perfect truth, that they were only- 
 specialties of the same profession. 
 
 In illustration of the material, for officers alone, de- 
 rived from the merchant service during the late war, he 
 said: 
 
 " I do not adduce the many able merchant captains 
 and mates who, as acting officers of the navy, reflected 
 credit upon it and upon themselves, but I will tell you of 
 an ordinary seaman (entirely illiterate, though a Yankee, 
 born and bred) who became an officer, and sustained his 
 position without discredit until honorably discharged at 
 the close of the war. 
 
 It was during the ' Burnside Expedition ' that I first 
 saw the man of whom I speak. During this expedi- 
 tion — one of the first 'joint,' or combined ones of the 
 war — the army and navy had very mixed duties, and the 
 lines of distinction between soldier and sailor were not 
 very closely drawn, — but no matter about that. The 
 rendezvous of the expedition was Hatteras Inlet, where 
 the vessels began to assemble in the latter days of i86[. 
 
 The gunboat to which I was attached was early upon 
 the scene, and, one by one, during the stormy Christmas 
 week, and all the January following, reinforcements came 
 in, now in the shape of an East River ferry-boat, with 
 heavy nine-inch guns mounted on either end, and now a 
 yacht, with the gentleman owner in command ; and now 
 again, a transport, with troops, stores, or munitions of 
 war, — the latter generally requiring our aid to pull them 
 over the outer bar. Not all of them, despite our care, 
 got in safely. Several were wrecked, with great loss of 
 
MR. HAWSE'S STORY^ 105 
 
 important stores and not a few lives. After a time, how- 
 ever, all that were expected arrived at the rendezvous, 
 and soldiers and sailors then moved harmoniously to 
 their appointed work. 
 
 In the early part of February, 1862, we advanced 
 upon Roanoke Island, and soon drove behind the works ; 
 we were to attack Commodore Lynch, of the Confederate 
 navy, which gentleman had been using us as a target for 
 the past month of preparation without much reply upon 
 our part. After a long day's battle the works surren- 
 dered, with their garrison of three thousand men, and it 
 was during that day's fight that I had occasion to notice 
 the ordinary seaman of whom I spoke. Ephraim Boomer, 
 
 his 
 
 as he signed himself four years after that, or E. X Boomer, 
 
 mark 
 
 as it was signed for him in the shipping register in Bos- 
 ton, a few months before, was the person in question. 
 His ' descriptive list ' might run as follows : 
 
 ' Place of birth, Massachusetts ; age, twenty ; occupa- 
 tion, the sea ; complexion, fair ; height, five feet ten 
 inches ; eyes, dark ; hair, brown. Marks or scars : Hope, 
 with foul anchor, on left forearm, in Indian ink; no 
 colors ; no scars. To serve three years, unless sooner 
 discharged. ' 
 
 This would pretty well describe our gallant young 
 sailor on the 7th of February, 1862. On the next day 
 he had earned the position of an officer, and this is how 
 it came about : 
 
 Our present Vice-Admiral Rowan, then a com- 
 mander, in organizing the Flotilla of the Sounds, under 
 Admiral Goldsborough, turned a little coasting sloop, 
 called the 'Granite,' into a magazine; her business being 
 
106 A CHR IS TMA SAT SEA . 
 
 to keep out of harm's way, and yet convenient enough 
 to supply the gunboats with ammunition when they had 
 exhausted the first supply in their small magazines. Of 
 course every officer begged to be excused from taking 
 charge of the Granite, as in her there appeared to be 
 no chance of distinction in the coming fight. And so it 
 finally happened, in the stress of affairs, that the young, 
 fresh-looking, intelligent Yankee boy, who had been 
 working fore-and-afters round Cape Cod all his life, and 
 thoroughly understood them, was actually left in this 
 important charge, with stringent orders to work up to a 
 position, but to keep out of fire. 
 
 On the morning of the battle, after the fight had 
 raged hotly for three or four hours, the gunboat to 
 which I was attached obtained permission, by signal, to 
 temporarily withdraw and run down to the magazine, 
 for the purpose of replenishing her exhausted ammuni- 
 tion. While alongside we put on board the sloop a 
 small pop-gun of a cannon which we had captured some 
 time before, and which we found only to encumber our 
 decks while engaged with the works. The fire was so 
 hot, and lasted so long, that by the afternoon the maga- 
 zine had been visited by almost all the vessels, and then 
 forgotten, when, close in under the land (closer than any 
 of us could go on account of the shoal water), was seen 
 a small sailing-vessel hotly engaged with a battery of 
 the enemy. She was soon recognized, to our horror, as 
 the sloop Granite, — the magazine, — and E. Boomer was 
 distinctly seen, with his four men, coolly serving our 
 discarded small piece. 
 
 Of course E. Boomer was next morning formally 
 reported as guilty of gross disobedience of orders in the 
 
MR. HAWSE'S STORY. 107 
 
 face of the enemy. But, in the mean time, we had 
 gained a victory, and our flag-officer, Goldsborough, 
 intimated to the reporting officer that he could afford to 
 be lenient toward those who had only erred through 
 excess of zeal and courage. Indeed, upon consideration, 
 he determined that we wanted just such men at that 
 time, and E. Boomer's pluck was allowed to entirely 
 overbalance his disobedience of orders, and he was re- 
 commended for an appointment. 
 
 The Navy Department being at that time fully alive 
 to the policy of stimulating the youthful American naval 
 mind, acted promptly on the flag-officers recommenda- 
 tion, and Boomer mounted his shoulder-straps in a very 
 few days, and was respected and heartily obeyed during 
 the whole war. I may say, moreover, that he learned 
 to read and write, and a good deal more than that, be- 
 fore he was honorably discharged ; and wherever he 
 may be now, I know that he is worthily upholding the 
 character of a Yankee sailor." 
 
 " You must have had more than the usual number of 
 curious characters in that improvised ' Flotilla of the 
 Sounds,' Mr. Hawse," said the admiral, knocking the 
 ashes from his cigar and taking a sip of Madeira. 
 
 " Yes, indeed ! Plenty of them, sir ! " said Hawse ; 
 "but the other one that I remember best was David 
 Davis." 
 
 " David Davis ! — Davis ! Wasn't he the fellow in the 
 
 magazine that Aleck M used to tell the yarn 
 
 about ? " 
 
 " Yes, sir ! the very man ! I think there is no record 
 of this hero in the Navy Department at all ; and yet he 
 was more entitled to honorable mention tha,n many who 
 
108 A CBR/SrJfAS AT SEA. 
 
 received it. Few indeed during the whole war per- 
 formed an act of such signal gallantry. 
 
 David Davis had been a merchant seaman all his 
 life, and at the time I speak of was past middle age. 
 He was very square-built, especially that part of him 
 which in a sailor is supposed to be small and snug. In 
 fact, D. D. was built like a Dutch galliot, very full in 
 the counter. Being too heavy to move easily aloft, or 
 even about the deck, his commanding officer — poor 
 Chaplin, of the Valley City — made him a gunner, and 
 he was stationed in the magazine, of course, in time of 
 action. This magazine in the purchased gunboat was a 
 curious arrangement, and very much exposed. It was 
 simply a large box hung under the deck, and extending, 
 about amidships, clean across the little vessel. Divided 
 into two parts, the powder, in large cartridges, was 
 stowed on one side, and the blue-lights, rockets, Cos- 
 ton's signals, and other pyrotechny were on the other. 
 
 During the short but terribly severe little fight at 
 Elizabeth (the one which brought Rowan to the front, 
 and eventually made him vice-admiral, as he deserved), 
 our friend David was at his post, cool and imperturba- 
 ble, filling boxes and passing powder for the big gun, 
 when a shell from a Confederate gunboat passed through 
 both parts of the magazine, exploding in and setting fire 
 to that part which contained thfe blue-lights and other 
 combustibles. If the shell had not made a big hole in 
 the bulkhead between the two parts there would have 
 been but little comparative urgent danger. But in the 
 actual position of affairs — with sparks and spits of fire 
 flying freely, and not confining themselves to their own 
 compartment — David Davis may be said to have been 
 
MR. HAWSE'S STORY. 109 
 
 in a ' fix.' He was equal to the occasion, however. In- 
 stead of jumping on deck to report damages and leaving 
 the magazine to blow up, he, with pluck, presence of 
 mind, and perfect reliance upon his personal qualities, 
 promptly placed the broadest part of his person against 
 the hole in the bulkhead, and held it there firmly, so as 
 to arrest the shower of sparks. 
 
 Of course, with the noise of guns and the excite- 
 ment on deck, they were totally ignorant of what had 
 occurred in the rhagazine, and soon all hands, from cap- 
 tain to powder-boy, were cursing David for not passing 
 powder. At last, as no boxes were produced by objur- 
 gation, an officer was sent below to find out the reason. 
 Then the truth came out ; but D. Davis still stuck to his 
 post until the fire division with their hose had relieved 
 him of care. 
 
 D. Davis had to be put under the surgeon's care, for 
 his injuries were quite painful. All on board felt that 
 their lives had probably been saved by his coolness and 
 courage, although these qualities had been exhibited in 
 such an extraordinary way, and for this act he was 
 recommended to the Department for an appointment as 
 acting master. At his own urgent request, however, the 
 letter was canceled, so that he might not be restricted 
 from his favorite pleasure — getting drunk on liberty." 
 
 " It's well the man Davis was so big in those parts," 
 solemnly remarked the captain, when Mr. Hawse had 
 finished his yarn. 
 
 " Humph ! " added the admiral. " I hope his com- 
 manding officer gave him a new pair of breeches." 
 
 "Sailors are queer creatures," continued the admiral. 
 " I remember hearing old Captain McC relate how, 
 
no A CHR1ST,][AS AT SEA. 
 
 when he, as first heutenant of the Enterprise, boarded 
 and captured the EngHsh Boxer, he found an old 
 ' shell-back ' of the English ship carefully stowing away 
 a bundle wrapped in canvas. 
 
 ' What have you there, my lad ? ' said McC , 
 
 having visions of bullion being secreted. 
 
 ' Pig-tail, to keep from the d — d Yankees ? ' replied 
 the unterrified son of Albion to his captor. 
 
 Tobacco was then, to the English, very precious, 
 while to our people, in consequence of the blockade, it 
 was a mere drug ; and the busy way of the queer old 
 fellow over a trifle, at such a time as that, struck Mc- 
 
 C 's fancy, and he had the old fellow looked out for, 
 
 and saw that he had his grog. 
 
 " Poor old McC ," continued the admiral, with his 
 
 eyes cast up retrospectively at the beams ; " they used to 
 tell a story about him that, at the court-martial of an 
 officer for drunkenness, in the old three-bottle days, he 
 was summoned as a witness, and asked whether he had 
 ever seen the accused drunk. 
 
 ' Yes,' said McC ; ' yes, gentlemanly drunk, as I 
 
 have seen all this honorable court' 
 
 As may be supposed, the Judge-Advocate did not 
 
 pursue McC 's examination very much further." 
 
 " By George, Mr. Hawse ! " continued the flag-officer, 
 who was by this time enjoying himself thoroughly, " I 
 am tempted to cap your story of David Davis by another, 
 which, though perhaps not very refined, is equally true, 
 and resulted in the saving of a good ship and many lives. 
 It happened thus : 
 
 " About twenty-five years ago, during the winter sea- 
 
THE FLAG-OFFICER'S STORY. Ill 
 
 son, the steamer Persia, of the Cunard line, arrived in 
 New York from Liverpool upon her first trip. She was 
 a new vessel, modeled and built for speed as well as 
 strength, and intended to compete with the time which 
 the vessels of the famous Collins line of American 
 steamers were making in their passages over the At- 
 lantic. 
 
 One of the steamships of this Collins line had been 
 advertised to leave Liverpool at or near the same hour 
 as the Cunarder mentioned, and heavy bets had been 
 made as to which of these vessels would make the 
 quickest passage, opinions differing in every case in ac- 
 cordance with the nationality of the persons interested. 
 As several days elapsed after the arrival of the Persia 
 with no appearance of the American ship, the chagrin 
 which her backers felt gave place to a fear lest an acci- 
 dent of grave import should have happened. The feeling 
 intensified as vessels arriving about this period reported 
 falling in with heavy field-ice, and also as having seen 
 bergs far to the southward of the latitude in which they 
 are usually met with. It likewise became known that 
 the Persia had, on her passage, ran into a small berg 
 or heavy field-ice, and that in this collision her bow- 
 plates were crushed to a considerable extent, from which 
 damage, but for the fact of having been built with com- 
 partments, she would in all probability have gone to the 
 bottom. 
 
 Under these circumstances, prominent citizens of 
 New York requested the Navy Department to send a 
 vessel in search of the missing steamer. The only avail- 
 able one the Department had at this time was the little 
 steamer Arctic, then lying at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, 
 
112 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 and she was promptly placed at the disposal of the appli- 
 cants, and the navy-yard authorities were directed to get 
 her in readiness with all dispatch. This vessel had re- 
 turned from a cruise in the Polar regions only a short 
 time before, having been cruising there in search of Dr. 
 Kane's expeditionary party. Originally intended for use 
 as a light-ship, to be anchored on the ' Sow and Pigs ' 
 shoal, her hull had been constructed with great strength, 
 to enable it to withstand the heavy seas that are always 
 raised on those shoals by the violent gales of winter. 
 Owing to this strength of build she had been selected, 
 while yet on the stocks, by the officer who was to com- 
 mand the Polar party, as being the most suitable vessel 
 he could find for the service on which he was to be sent, 
 and as one which, with some alterations, would have the 
 requisite strength to resist any ice-squeezes she might 
 have to undergo during the cruise in those northern 
 latitudes. 
 
 The Navy Department had therefore, on his sugges- 
 tion, purchased the vessel and altered her into a steamer, 
 with a small auxiliary engine and propeller, having power 
 enough, in perfectly smooth water, to give a speed of 
 four knots. She was rigged as a brigantine, and under 
 sail could make eight knots if the wind and sea were fa- 
 vorable. Owing to the weight of boiler, engine and coal, 
 when stowed for sea, she trimmed very much by the 
 stern, so much so, in fact, that while aft her deck was not 
 more than four feet clear of the water, forward it was at 
 least seven feet. From this description it will readily be 
 perceived that the Arctic was in no respect fitted to be a 
 cruiser or capable of rendering aid to any vessel needing 
 it during bad weather. She was an cdd-looking craft, — 
 
THE FLAG-OFFICER'S STORY. 113 
 
 ' And, taking her all in all, 
 We ne'er shall look upon her like again.' 
 
 A volunteer crew of five officers and forty men was 
 soon made up from those on board the receiving-ship 
 North Carolina, and while they were hurriedly getting 
 their traps together for this sudden departure, the navy- 
 yard authorities were as hurriedly preparing the vessel 
 for sea. After stowing her full of coal, provisions, and 
 stores, they filled her spar-deck, or rather the waist, with 
 lumber even with the rail : for what purpose this was to 
 be used not one of us on board could imagine, and even 
 to this day I have been unable to find out. Perhaps it was 
 for building rafts or in lieu of life-preservers. In a few 
 hours everything was in readiness, and we steamed away 
 from the yard amid the cheers of at least a thousand per- 
 sons who had assembled on the docks to see the little 
 craft depart upon her errand of mercy. 
 
 Early in the evening we arrived outside the bar, dis- 
 charged the pilot, and stood to the eastward, with a light 
 southerly wind, clear weather, and sea as smooth as a 
 mill-pond. During the first twenty-four hours our time 
 was fully occupied in finding where things were stowed, 
 in putting them to rights, and getting into a ship-shape 
 condition. We found a number of boxes filled with fresh 
 provisions packed in ice, sufficient in quantity to last a 
 year's cruise, the friends who had sent these contribu- 
 tions to our larder evidently determining that our ' inner 
 man' should not suffer, no matter what hardships the 
 outer man might have to undergo. These friends had 
 also provided a cook, who, if appearances indicated any- 
 thing, indicated good living, for he weighed at the least 
 three hundred pounds ; in stature he was about five feet. 
 
114 A CHRIS TATAS AT SEA. 
 
 These solid qualifications proved eventually to be of the 
 greatest importance. 
 
 On the second day the wind freshened, and banking 
 fires, we trusted entirely to the sails ; but as the wind in- 
 creased in force so did the sea in height, and an occa- 
 sional comber breaking over the rail proved to us that 
 the Arctic was not to be much of a sea-boat in case 
 really bad weather should be encountered. Shortly after 
 the sea had commenced to break on board a leak was 
 reported, the water entering the fire-room through the 
 port coal-bunker ; it did not amount to much, as the oc- 
 casional use of the ' donkey-pump,' running at half speed, 
 served to keep the water down. As the day wore on the 
 wind gradually increased in force until it became a gale, 
 with a heavy sea accompanying, and by night it was 
 blowing a hurricane from the south-southeast, and the 
 rain descending in torrents. We had shortened sail as 
 required from time to time, until we were ' lying-to ' 
 under a close-reefed foretopsail and balance-reefed main- 
 sail. The leak by this time had certainly become troub- 
 lesome, if not dangerous, requiring the donkey-pump to 
 be run continuously at full speed, and this barely served 
 to keep the water from rising over the fire-room floor. 
 With much labor we inanaged to secure a sail with heavy 
 mats outside the hull, over that position where the leak 
 was supposed to be ; but it was of no use, for the water 
 still continued to pour into the fire-room through the 
 port coal-bunker. 
 
 Knowing that southeasters upon our coast are short- 
 lived, winding up with heavy rain and then with a sudden 
 shift of wind to the northward and westward, we wore 
 ship, and kept a bright lookout for the expected change. 
 
THE FLAG-OFFICER'S STORY. 115 
 
 It cama at midnight, — due northwest and butt-end fore- 
 most, — bringing bitterly cold weather along with it, 
 which, very shortly, coated everything above hatches 
 with ice. The sea, from the shift of wind, became very 
 irregular, breaking on board at all points, from aft as well 
 as forward, with almost a continual swash from either 
 side. 
 
 As the water came on board so did the leak increase, 
 and the donkey-pump not being capable of freeing us, 
 we were obliged to hook the 'bilge-injection.' We then 
 prepared the boats for lowering, placing a bag of bread 
 and a bundle of blankets in each, it being, in the opinion 
 of the officers, only a question of time — and that not a 
 very distant period — before the vessel must go down. 
 These boats were two in number, and large enough to 
 hold all hands in case nothing was placed in them in ad- 
 dition to the bread and blankets mentioned. We deter- 
 mined, however, to stick to the ship until the last moment 
 that we possibly could, as it was very doubtful if boats 
 could live in such a sea, and if they did, it was still more 
 doubtful whether any one in an open boat could survive 
 the intense cold. So we bailed as well as pumped, anx- 
 iously looking for daylight. 
 
 The weather at this time was clear, the barometer 
 very low, rising slowly, if at all, this indicating that the 
 gale would be of long continuance. As the sea became 
 more regular it did not break on board so frequently, 
 and our hopes were correspondingly increased. Sud- 
 denly a green sea curled over the bows, flooding the 
 decks ; the leak increased, the fires were extinguished, 
 and the engine, with one long-drawn sigh, ceased to 
 work, and the Arctic, with ten feet of v/ater in her 
 
IIG A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 engine-room, but with not one drop forward, was sink- 
 ing, going down stern foremost. A rush was made by 
 the crew for the boats ; but the stern voice of command 
 was heard above the din of the elements, ' Be quiet, men ! 
 Mr. Bluegrass, take charge of the port boat. I will take 
 charge of the starboard. Now, starboard watch, star- 
 board side ; port watch, port side. Clear the decks ! 
 throw everything overboard ! Work with a will, men ; 
 work for your lives ! ' 
 
 They did so, and in an incredibly short space of 
 time the decks were cleared, both the wind and the sea 
 seeming to aid us in our struggle for existence, as the 
 one lulled temporarily and the other ceased to break on 
 board. When the last plank of the deck-load of lum- 
 ber was thrown clear of the side, the cause of all our 
 trouble was plainly in view. The source of the leak was 
 apparent. A coal-bunker plate had been left off, and was 
 not on board, and careless workmen at the navy-yard 
 had stowed lumber over the hole. Consequently, every 
 drop of water that came upon the decks went below 
 through the open bunker down to the vitals of the ship. 
 My action was* taken instantly, for should another sea 
 roll over us, or a swash merely come on board before 
 that bunker was closed, sink we must. 
 
 ' Cook, sit on that hole ! ! ' 
 
 He did so, covering the aperture completely ! The 
 leak was stopped ! Fortunate for us that it was, for 
 scarcely had he taken his seat ere another green sea 
 tumbled over the rail, deluging our decks ; but our cook 
 sat firm, and ocean's proud waves were stayed effectually 
 from ingress to the depths of the vessel. I protected 
 the fat man from the water and the wedther as much as 
 
THE FLAG-OFFICER'S STORY. 117 
 
 possible, covering him with blankets, and at daylight re- 
 lieved him from, that uncomfortable position, sealing the 
 bunker with tarred canvas and sheet lead. 
 
 ' Imperial Csesar, dead and turned to clay, 
 Might stop a hole to keep the wind away; ' 
 But our great cook, though no imperial lout, 
 ' Did stop a hole, and keep the water out.' 
 
 We bailed all night and until noon of the day, and, 
 as no more water came into the vessel's hold, every drop 
 we discharged told. Having lowered it sufficiently, we 
 started fires, and steam soon freed us from all that 
 remained, and the Arctic was ' as tight as a bottle.' 
 
 Eor three days the gale continued, during which 
 time we were compelled to ' lie to,' all hands being as 
 uncomfortable as can well be imagined, the decks being 
 continually under water. When it moderated we made 
 sail and stood to the eastward, keeping as near to the 
 track taken by ocean steamers as possible. Occasionally 
 we met and spoke a vessel, but could learn nothing 
 from them in regard to the missing steamer. 
 
 When we arrived off Sable Island the weather was 
 fine, so standing in to the northwestern end, we an- 
 chored, and sent a boat on shore to inquire if aught had 
 been heard in regard to her. As this island is in the 
 track of vessels bound to and from Europe, it was de- 
 cided to examine the shores thoroughly, as many ves- 
 sels have been lost thereon. We did so, but could see 
 nothing lately wrecked. Then we stood to the eastward 
 and cruised. Days passed, weeks passed, and still we 
 cruised ; finally giving up all search as hopeless, we 
 turned the vessel's head westward, and arrived back at 
 the navy-yard after an absence of nearly two months. 
 
118 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 I may add that the steamer Pacific, of the CoUins 
 hne, never was heard of after her departure from Liver- 
 pool. Her fate is one of the secrets of the great sea. 
 
 Conversation now naturally turned to that fruitful 
 source of speculation among all sailors, the probable fate 
 of the transatlantic steamers which have from time to 
 time disappeared, without leaving a trace behind them. 
 From those thus engaged must be excepted Mr. Gasket 
 and a select group of two or three in his immediate 
 neighborhood, to whom that lively lieutenant was recit- 
 ing {sotto voce, and apropos of the flag-officer's story of 
 the lumber on the deck of the Arctic) the old coaster's 
 answer (when hailed, in distress, in the Gulf Stream), — 
 
 ' My name is John Turner, 
 I'm master and owner 
 Of the high-deck-4d schooner 
 Called the Julian-ner, 
 Bound from North-Carliner 
 To Berrauder, 
 "With a deck-load o' staves 
 And a hold full o' lumber.' 
 
 " When requested to send his boat for supplies." said 
 Gasket, " he merely finished with, — 
 
 ' My long-boat is stove. 
 And I h'aint got no other ! ' 
 
 and all the time the poor fellow was not conscious 
 that he was dropping into rhyme, however halting." 
 
 After a little private giggle over the quaint jingle, 
 Gasket said, " Let's draw out the young doctor. I 
 never heard him tell a story, and I never heard him 
 laugh. Now's the time or never." 
 
 The " doctor " referred to was the passed assistant 
 
THE ASSISTANT SURGEON'S STORY. 119 
 
 surgeon, a man m'uch more devoted to microscopy, 
 photography and botany than to telling yarns. Not 
 at all a bad fellow, ready and willing to do a good 
 turn or to take a part in any general action of the 
 mess, he still principally preferred to be let alone to 
 pursue his own favorite studies. 
 
 Being called upon, the doctor, to the surprise of 
 all, and especially of Gasket and his set, who had 
 never been able to make anything of him, actually 
 began to talk as if he intended to keep it up. 
 
 " I think I remember no very striking event at 
 Christmas," said the doctor, " but I did spend one an- 
 niversarj' of the day, three or four years ago, almost 
 alone, and amid as glorious scenery and surroundings 
 as the earth can produce. If you don't mind I will 
 try to recall the day." 
 
 " Go on, doctor ! " said the flag-officer, with whom 
 the quiet, saturnine medical officer was a prime favor- 
 ite, perhaps from the mere doctrine of opposites. 
 
 " We were in the brig Plunger" said the doctor, 
 " and lying at St. Catherine's, on the coast of Brazil, 
 — a favorite resort of our vessels then. It was a great 
 place for fishing, especially with the seine, and the 
 men used to enjoy it extremely. We also used to get 
 lots of native, or ' raccoon ' oysters, about as big as a 
 dollar, which tasted remarkably well to those who had 
 had none of those bivalves for a year or two. On 
 the occasion I speak of the mess was to have a din- 
 ner and general Christmas jollification, which promised 
 to be pretty heavy, and I had a special reason to avoid 
 anything of the kind just then, having within a day 
 
120 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 or two received news of the death of a near and dear 
 relative. So I determined to pass the day in a long 
 ramble over the island, and the evening with a friend 
 on board one of the other ships of the squadron, not 
 returning to our brig until everything was settled for 
 the night. 
 
 As most of you know, Saint Catherine's is an 
 island, and yet so near the mainland as to fully share 
 its wonderful flora and fauna; so situated as to enjoy 
 many of the pleasures of the tropics while escaping 
 some of its pains ; without a regular rainy season, yet 
 having showers equal to any under the line ; just be- 
 yond the Tropic of Capricorn ; with fresh and irregu- 
 lar breezes ; with lovely and diversified scenery, and a 
 climate which makes it a selected point for poitrin- 
 aires in that empire. One would suppose, from such 
 a description, that Santa Catherina was a paradise upon 
 earth. And so it would be if certain reptiles and in- 
 sects, and other drawbacks, inseparable from this lower 
 sphere, were absent. 
 
 The name of the capital town of the island, which is 
 also the capital of a small province of Brazil, is certainly 
 not a promising one, being ' Nossa Senhora do Desterro,' 
 — Our Lady of Banishment. Yet the foreigners who 
 have lived there come to like it as a residence, while the 
 natives look upon it as the centre of all comfort, delight, 
 and joy. 
 
 It was raining as I started in the early morning for a 
 day's ramble over the island, but I did not mind that, for 
 it rained more or less every day, and I knew it would 
 hold up and be lovely weather in an hour or two. 
 
 Being put on shqre from the ship at one of the sandy 
 
THE ASSISTANT SURGEON'S STORY, 121 
 
 bights within view, my first discovery on foreign soil was 
 a huge pile of anthracite coal, stored upon a flat ledge 
 of rock a few feet above the water, which might have led 
 me to suppose myself in Pennsylvania if I had not strong 
 evidence to the contrary in the surrounding scene. This 
 coal, I was told, belonged to the United States govern- 
 ment. 
 
 At the sandy cove, the termination of a quebrada, a 
 small stream came down from the mountain, and some 
 houses were snuggled away among bananas and plan- 
 tains, dwarf palms and orange-trees. The houses were 
 of one story, of quite solid masonry, washed with bright 
 blue, yellow, or white, and with window-casings and 
 doors of some violently-contrasting colors. The roofs 
 were generally of heavy red tiles, and this being a village 
 of quite well-to-do people, many had iron gratings or 
 bars in their windows. 
 
 A large number of cur dogs met me, and welcomed 
 me with barks and snarls, until some negroes, who were 
 hanging about, came to my assistance and drove them 
 away. Real negroes, these ! without any pretense to be 
 anything else, — with tufted heads and great prognathous 
 jaws, with woolen caps and clay-colored shirts and 
 breeches of a coarse material, made on purpose for slave 
 wear, and almost as distinctive a badge of their condition 
 as is the striped suit of a jail-bird that of his. I saw no 
 white people, — indeed, few purely white were there. 
 There was one shop, — the principal wares in which 
 seemed to be potable ones, — presided over by a bright 
 mulatto dame, of about two hundred pounds weight, in 
 a brilliant, short, striped petticoat, white chemise, thrown 
 well off" one shoulder, and a long cigar in her mouth. 
 
122 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 In one of the houses, the door of which was open, 
 were evidences of civilization, in the shape of an argand 
 lamp and some illustrated newspapers, as well as a 
 rocking-chair. I made out that this establishment be- 
 longed to an American, long a resident of the island, 
 who was also the owner of a plantation to the southward. 
 He sometimes came here to sell fruit and vegetables to 
 whalers or men-of-war, and also had charge of the little 
 mountain of coal, which I had seen near the landing. 
 The whole of the mongrel population was for the 
 moment absorbed in the slaughtering of two half-wild 
 beeves, which had been driven down from the hills to the 
 beach and there shot, to afford a supply of fresh beef to 
 the few ships in the bay. Although my Portuguese was 
 deficient, I found that I made out better here than in 
 more civilized localities, — gestures going a long way, — 
 and, approaching the little crowd surrounding the 
 butchers, I was not long in engaging a remarkably 
 monkified old negro to accompany me for the day as a 
 guide. Although he looked excessively like a gray- 
 haired baboon, I found him intelligent in his way, and, 
 after he had secured his share of the tripas, or offal, of 
 the slaughtered cattle and confided it to the care of a 
 small boy who looked exactly like him, we started up 
 the hill-side by a well-beaten but narrow path. 
 
 By the time we had ascended about fifty feet above 
 the water we came upon a little plateau, which contained 
 the graves of most of the foreigners who had died on 
 board ship here for years past. Among others were 
 
 those of two young sisters, daughters of General S , 
 
 who was formerly governor of Washington Territory, 
 and the same who met his death at Chantilly during the 
 
THE ASSISTANT SURGEON'S STORY. 123 
 
 late war. He was on his way out to his post, by sailing- 
 ship, — the only mode of proceeding at that period, — and, 
 calling at Rio, they contracted yellow fever, of which 
 these poor girls died, after the arrival of the ship at 
 Desterro, in distress. I was told that an inscription on 
 copper had been placed over their grave, but the material 
 proved an irresistible temptation to the half-civilized 
 neighbors, and it was carried off; as was another plate 
 placed there by one of our men-of-war. I believe a 
 more permanent monument has been placed there since 
 my visit. 
 
 The spot, though neglected, was naturally a lovely 
 one, inclosed by dense vegetation, but still affording 
 glimpses of the blue waters of the bay. The surround- 
 ing bush was overrun with wild vanilla, which has a 
 most graceful twining stem, a pretty leaf, and a profusion 
 of star-shaped flowers. As it does not produce the bean 
 of commerce the people do not disturb it. 
 
 After showing me this peaceful spot my guide in- 
 sisted, in a queer sort of way, upon my following him to 
 a neighboring ravine, where he made me understand 
 most of the slaves were buried in a pit, apparently chuck- 
 ling over the idea that the white strangers and his own 
 people were equally excluded from consecrated ground. 
 
 Passing upwards and inland, we found bananas and 
 dwarf palms in the little valleys, while the ridges were 
 mostly occupied either by the virgin forest or by coffee- 
 trees, some in cultivation and some far beyond that, for 
 no colt runs wild sooner than a coffee-tree. Negroes, 
 with heavy hoes and machetes, were working among the 
 young trees, plantations of which ran up the hills on all 
 sides in clearings made in the forest. 
 
124 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA._ 
 
 The coffee-plant requires constant and tender care. 
 Farther north, within the tropic, it (hke the cacao) flour- 
 ishes best in the shade of other trees, but in this favored 
 clime it stands forth by itself and takes the sun. It 
 must be carefully weeded during its early growth, — no 
 small labor in such a climate and soil, — and it is seldom 
 allowed to grow to more than ten or twelve feet in 
 height if the cultivator is a careful one, but in abandoned 
 plantations, it straggles up to three times that height. 
 They bear from three years old, and their useful life is 
 about twenty years. The bloom is beautiful and very 
 odorous, but short-lived, and the berry, when ripe, is of 
 the size and color of a large cranberry. The harvest is 
 usually made three times a year, when the hull is 
 pounded off, and the grains, as we know them, spread 
 out every day on the terreno, or terrace, — a spot in full 
 sunshine all day long, paved and coped with dressed 
 stone, or sometimes laid in cement. Here the drying 
 and picking goes on at the hands of women and chil- 
 dren, or of old and disabled men. A sharp owner or 
 overseer hovers about these with a bright lookout for 
 showers, so as to have the coffee under cover in time. 
 
 Orange plantations were common, but small in ex- 
 tent, for the fruit grows so finely that almost everyone 
 has his own trees, — the only outside demand being from 
 an occasional whaler or some chance man-of-war. 
 
 In most suitable localities the mandioc was growing, 
 — Jatropha manihot, — about the most important Brazilian 
 staple, as, with the great mass of the people, it takes the 
 place of wheat flour. It is not an easy plant to culti- 
 vate, requiring not only care and labor, but patience, for 
 it takes from twelve to eighteen months to come to ma- 
 
The assistant surgeon's story. 125 
 
 turity, and during that time it has to be gone over 
 twelve or fifteen times with the heavy hoe to prevent its 
 shoots from being crowded out of existence by its more 
 lush tropical and semi-tropical neighbors, — one can 
 hardly call them weeds. But the plant is worth the 
 labor, for it produces six times as much food to the acre 
 as the best wheat. The root is in appearance not unlike 
 a parsnip. Its preparation is one of the most important 
 operations of South American domestic economy, quite 
 as much so as milling with us. But the private maker 
 has the advantage here, — that his preparation is better 
 than that made upon a large scale and for sale. The 
 mandioc trough, grater, and curiously plated bag of 
 grass-fibre for pressing out the juice form a part of the 
 utensils of every country establishment, large or small. 
 The roots are boiled, and the rind then removed, after 
 which they are grated on a huge grater, the fragments 
 falling into a trough dug out of hard wood, which is be- 
 straddled by the operator. The mass is then collected 
 from the trough, and squeezed in the long bag until all 
 the juice is expressed, this being very poisonous. It is 
 then thoroughly beaten in large iron-wood mortars, with 
 long and heavy pestles, and, as a final operation, it is 
 dried over the embers in shallow pans. The product is 
 a coarse but very white powder. The juice deposits, 
 upon standing, a fine substance, which, after treatment, 
 becomes tapioca, and is sent to form sick diet and to 
 make bad puddings all over the world. There is another 
 kind of mandioc, called aipim, which is not poisonous. 
 It is simply roasted like a potato or plantain, but it is 
 by no means so much valued as the other variety. 
 
 Beside the staple I have just described, a good deal 
 
126 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 of maize is raised, which is used in much the same way 
 as in our Southern States. There is great variety in the 
 color of the grain, as, in addition to the usual rich yel- 
 low, pure white, black, red and violet ears are seen hang- 
 ing in bundles from the beams and rafters of the huts, 
 and forming about the only ornament of many of them. 
 Passing beyond the plantations we surmounted a 
 ridge six or seven hundred feet high, and then began to 
 descend toward the centre of the island, which is nearly 
 surrounded by this mountainous rim. The central por- 
 tion contains a lake of some size, the home of the ibis, 
 with plumage of most delicate pink and crimson, as well 
 as of myriads of water-fowl. Huge herons and cranes 
 of lovely colors — snowy-white, stone-blue, or gray and 
 pink — are also common, as are plovers of several varie- 
 ties. Black-necked geese and ducks innumerable rose 
 from the small ponds and marshes as we disturbed them, 
 and made toward the great lake ; while soaring high 
 over all, like spots in the clear blue sky, were the cara- 
 caras, or vulture eagles, ready to pounce upon any 
 maimed beast or solitary bird, or to devour any carrion. 
 The lake is surrounded by a rich rolling country, not 
 only beautiful, but remarkable for the fact that almost 
 anything will grow there, either of the tropic or temper- 
 ate zone. There was, however, but little cultivation, and 
 the eye ranged over forests alternating with savannas, 
 the first containing trees of great size and beauty, many 
 of them loaded with bloom, and bearing, in addition, 
 quantities of parasites in the form of orchids. Almost 
 every trunk and branch supported some of these, in ad- 
 dition to convolvuli of surprising growth and grace. 
 On the edge of the savannas, bignonias flourished, 
 
THE ASSISTANT SURGEON'S STORY. 127 
 
 charming masses of color, and the passion-flower emu- 
 lated the convolvulus in vigor of growth and bloom. 
 
 Anything more gloriously beautiful and wonder- 
 fully varied than the orchids cannot be found, and 
 although now so common in the conservatories, espe- 
 cially in England, no transplantation to Kew or Chats- 
 worth can give one a proper idea of them, — their gor- 
 geous colors, rare odor, and prodigious variety, — as 
 seen in this belt of country, where they are nourished 
 by the constant moisture and semi-tropical sun. These 
 air-plants are the more curious from the frequent imi- 
 tation of the forms of butterflies, birds, and insects, 
 although, perhaps, we should put it the other way, and 
 say, with Darwin, that the birds and insects imitated 
 the flowers. There is one orchid flower which is held in 
 high estimation and honor among the natives, — the 
 ' Flor do Espiritu Santo.' It is the perfect representation 
 of a white dove descending, with a background of lovely 
 rich-colored petals. The ' air-plants,' if removed with 
 any care at all, will live for weeks and months on board 
 ship, and the wonder is that more are not brought to our 
 country, and houses built for them where they can have 
 the requisite heat and moisture combined. 
 
 Beside these glorious creations we found, in the 
 deeper forest, ferns which seemed to emulate in growth 
 the trees which bore the orchids, while every rock and 
 trunk and stem afforded curious lichens and mosses. 
 
 In these deeper woods are no flowers or birds, and 
 few insects, — there is too much shade for them, — but in 
 the little campos to which we came, now and then, there 
 are plenty of all of these, besides grasses of giant size, and 
 splendid, lithe beauty, growing, in places, into a genuine 
 
128 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 bamboo. The cactus takes the place of the grasses 
 wherever a very rocky or sandy spot repels other vegeta- 
 tion. Harpy eagles, vultures, kites and hawks soar over 
 the campos. Woe to the small owl, or parrot, or rock- 
 pigeon, which attempts to cross the open, instead of skirt- 
 ing the wood ! woe to the small monkey who exposes 
 himself in the too eager search for mimosa-pods or palm 
 grubs ! Sharp eyes are sure to see him, and sharp talons 
 to seize him, and he is borne off, in spite of fearful squeals 
 and gibberings. The war of nature goes on briskly 
 here, both in the animal and vegetable world. 
 
 In the campos and savannas are seen plenty of hum- 
 ming-birds, of course, Brazil being the real home of the 
 Trochilidce. And here, too, are butterflies, the largest 
 and most beautiful in the world, with high, rapid flight, 
 like birds, going straight to their destination, not feeding 
 much near the ground, but sucking the flowers upon the 
 higher trees. As we cross a campo we frequently come 
 upon the holes of the armadillo, with heaps of fresh earth 
 thrown up around them, like mole-earths on a large scale. 
 A queer-looking mongrel dog belonging to my guide 
 sniffs and yaps at the holes, and would dig in if we had 
 time to wait. The armadillos, as well as agoutis and 
 opossums, are plentiful, and are all sought for, in modera- 
 tion, by the Brazilians and negroes, who roast them, or 
 bake them encased in clay. The smaller monkeys and 
 the huge water-rats, which are so common, are frequently 
 cooked in the same way, and considered very good eat- 
 ing. Of these animals, the monkeys, which pilfer fruit, 
 and the opossums, which kill chickens, are considered 
 vermin, while the agoutis and water-rats may be consid- 
 ered as game. But the littoral Brazilian has a very hazy 
 
THE ASSISTANT SURGEON'S STORY. 129 
 
 idea about game at the best. As we pass along we see 
 more birds, not only the ever-present humming-bird, 
 poised before a flower, or darting like a bullet across our 
 path, but many others of such brilliant plumage as to 
 confound, in that respect, all the rest of the world. The 
 doves and pigeons, of themselves, are sufficiently numer- 
 ous and various to occupy an ornithologist for months. 
 We heard a bell-bird, too, not very common on this 
 island. The creature made a noise almost as loud and 
 disagreeable as the ordinary steam-whistle, but, although 
 he was evidently on the edge of the campo, and quite 
 close to us, we could not see him. My guide seemed 
 rather cowed by the cry, and I confess it was startling 
 enough, at first, to make one feel a little ' spooky.' 
 
 There are huge spiders on the border of the campo, 
 with thick, far-spreading, glutinous nets, almost fit to 
 hold a calf. These giants of the Arachnidcs prey upon 
 great beetles and small birds, sucking their life-juices as 
 our spiders suck flies, and leaving their dried wing-cases 
 and shriveled skins and bones and feathers, of azure, gar- 
 net, emerald and jet, flashing in the sunshine, but appar- 
 ently useless in warning off others. 
 
 Bees of many kinds are busy among the flowers ; 
 the result of their labors, for the most part, never to be 
 enjoyed by man. Many of them, indeed, most of them, 
 are stingless. None of them are very large, and some 
 are not larger than our house-fly. They make many 
 kinds of honey, too, which is stored in hollow trees, or 
 in clefts of rocks, or even in the earth. Some of it is 
 perfectly liquid, and contained in sacks of wax, some is 
 in combs ; some of it is very sweet, some bitter. Some 
 is green, some amber, some brown, or nearly black. A 
 9 
 
130 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 book about the bees of Brazil, if any man could find out 
 all about them, would be a very large volume indeed. 
 
 I have already remarked thkt we found the remains 
 of gorgeous beetles in the spider-webs, but this is not 
 the hour to see the insects themselves in motion. They 
 come out at nightfall, and rival the humming-birds in 
 colors, and almost exceed them in size. Indeed, from 
 this part of the empire come the beautiful coleoptera 
 which are made into flowers and sprays and other orna- 
 ments, so celebrated, and now so dear. From these 
 southern provinces, too, come most of the pearly fish- 
 scales, shells and feathers, which are made into beautiful 
 ornaments by the ' sisters ' at Santos, Rio de Janeiro and 
 Bahia, although much of the work is produced at Sta. 
 Catherina. People often wonder how they can imitate, 
 from these materials, many of our flowers, such as roses 
 and pinks and hyacinths, but it must be remembered that 
 in this favored clime many of the flowers of the temper- 
 ate zone flourish. The air is salubrious, and man flour- 
 ishes too, when he lives according to ordinary sanitary 
 rules, don't get wet too often, aod does not take too 
 much cachaca (the juice of the caae). 
 
 Having attempted hastily to describe some of the 
 things which strike a stranger pleasantly in this seques- 
 tered spot, it is only fair to speak of some of the reptiles 
 which infest these lovely scenes and constitute the disa- 
 greeable part of the subject. Of alligators, boas and 
 anacondas, St. Catherine can show but few specimens, 
 and those small and puny of their kind. But there 
 are jararacas, — snakes whose bite is nearly always fatal, 
 and they are quite plentiful withal. The " cobra coral " is 
 a beautiful little snake, quite like the finest Neapohtan 
 
THE ASSISTANT SURGEON'S STORY. 131 
 
 bracelet in color. It is said by the natives that he sel- 
 dom, when suddenly come, upon in the bush, lying among 
 the flowers, allows one time to admire him, but darts 
 forward and inflicts upon the face and neck a little nip, 
 after which ' the subsequent proceedings ' interest his ad- 
 mirer no more. Then there is the ' cobra sipo,' a much 
 larger snake, four or five feet long, and the exact color 
 of the 'sipos,' or lianas, among which he twines. He is 
 capable of finishing, in short order, any animal, large or 
 small, which comes within his reach. Another ghastly 
 creature is the ' cobra fria,' or cold snake, which ' chills 
 man's heart with cold ' when crawling over him, and, if 
 he moves, bites him to ' mors frigida.' Beside these 
 there appears, on rough hill-sides and sandy, washed 
 places, the rattlesnake, which most of us are apt to think 
 of as confined to our northern hemisphere. When it 
 was put upon one of the early Revolutionary flags of 
 New England, I have no doubt that the makers thereof 
 thought they were employing a local reptile to represent 
 an idea. Instead of that the Crotali are distributed 
 quite profusely in the southern as well as the northern 
 hemisphere. 
 
 The day being now more than half spent, we turned 
 westward again toward a point on the sound, where a 
 boat was to meet me at sunset. The low range was 
 again surmounted and crossed, the path leading us to the 
 slippery stepping-stones of mountain streams and rivu- 
 lets every few minutes. These little water-courses are 
 kept full by the numerous showers, and are, even the 
 largest, entirely unbridged. If a heavy rain temporarily 
 swells them, the Brazilian merely sits down and waits un- 
 til the excess of water has run off, as it does very soon, 
 
132 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 and the stepping-stones appear again. Upon reaching 
 lower ground we began to find cultivation once more, 
 mostly in small patches. There was sugar-cane, tobacco 
 and cotton ; palma Christi, for lamp-oil, — although the 
 olive is not unknown in Southern Brazil, — and large 
 patches of beans and vetches. Oranges again in plenty, 
 and guavas, various useful palms, and always mandioc. 
 Under the wild plantain or some forest-tree grows the 
 cacao, — ' food for the gods.' 
 
 Soon we came to huts, and then to houses, — and not 
 too soon, for the usual afternoon rain came on, and we 
 were glad to be housed during the heavy downpour, 
 watching, meanwhile, the primitive household operations. 
 The houses were all of one-story, terraced into the hill- 
 side, built of stone, and plastered, with tile roofs, and the 
 walls painted or washed in some gaudy color. Almost 
 all had cooking-sheds outside, consisting of thatched 
 roofs, raised upon posts ; and smaller shelter of the same 
 kind contained the huge water-jars and drip-stones, or 
 filters, raised on heavy tripods. Lovely jessamines and 
 other climbing plants of great fragrance ran over the ter- 
 renos, or terraces, in front of these dwellings, growing 
 with such luxuriance as to require frequent cutting, with 
 no sparing hand. The habits of the people are such that 
 no scent of jasmine or orange-blossom would overcome 
 the smell from the household offal, thrown below the 
 terrace, were it not for the scouring effect of the frequent 
 rains on the hill-sides and the untiring exertions of the 
 cur dogs, and the buzzards, and of myriads of ants, which, 
 between them, soon clear off everything, even to the 
 bones. The people were civil, — as those of Portuguese 
 stock are apt to be, — and offered us what they had in the 
 
THE ASSISTANT SURGEON'S STORY. 133 
 
 way of refreshments with perfect hospitality, refusing 
 direct payment therefor. After a repast of flat mandioc- 
 cake, hot from the griddle, goat-milk cheese, oranges, 
 and a little cachaga, native cigars were produced, of very 
 fair-flavored tobacco. These cigars do not keep well, 
 however, for a worm soon attacks them, boring them 
 through and through. 
 
 A perfect picture was the negress, Leocadia (they 
 all have very fine names, — my guide's name was Age- 
 silaus), who, in answer to the shout of ' Traga lume, 
 Leocadia 1 ' brought us in from the cooking-place a live 
 coal, which she rolled leisurely from one horny palm to 
 the other, finally depositing it in the bowl of a spoon, 
 from which we lighted our cigars. The woman was tall 
 and lithe, but muscular, her jet-black skin shining with 
 health, her eyes like sloes set in yellowish-white satin, 
 teeth like a shark, and every one showing as she grins 
 with delight at receiving a few vintems. She wears a 
 bright handkerchief, which entirely conceals her woolly 
 head, and, for all other clothing, a snow-white chemise, 
 worn well off one shoulder, as usual, and a short, striped 
 skirt. 
 
 When the shower was over we thanked our hosts, 
 and pushed on toward the bay. The whole landscape 
 was dripping and steaming as the afternoon sun came 
 out, and the heavy rain-clouds floated away seaward. 
 Soon the slippery path leads us to a cluster of tiny huts, 
 perched on rocks, which overhang che waters of the 
 beautiful bay, with several islands dotting its surface. 
 On the largest of these — Rat Island, of course, for there 
 is always a Rat island in every harbor of Brazil — is a 
 dilapidated but picturesque old Portuguese fort. This 
 
134 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 stronghold I found, on subsequently visiting it, to be 
 garrisoned by a garrulous, grizzled old sergeant, with at 
 least a dozen large woolly dogs, looking like a cross 
 breed between Newfoundlands and poddies. They were 
 more amphibious than any dogs I have ever seen, and 
 with good reason, for the sergeant's rations of carne sccca 
 and mandioc and beans not being more than sufficient to 
 support his own little, shrivelled corpus, his dogs would 
 have had a poor lookout on their rock unless they had 
 managed to forage for themselves. This they did by 
 forming line in a little shoal bay and driving before them 
 shoals of tiny fish, like sprats, causing them to leap in 
 their fright upon the sandy beach. They also swam to 
 the mainland, where they searched the rocky shore, and 
 made havoc among the eggs and young of gulls, pelicans 
 and cormorants, having many a fight, and suffering many 
 wounds from the sharp bills of the mother-birds. Some- 
 times they caught land-crabs under the mangroves, or, 
 taking to the woods, they dug out the agoutis from their 
 holes, or cut off some of the litter of a wild sow, or javali. 
 
 The inhabitants of the little village of which I have 
 spoken seemed to be mostly fishermen. Several canoes 
 of most primitive build were moored in a little cove, and 
 near them were some men pottering over a heap of small 
 oysters from the southern reef There was also a pile of 
 the shells of murex, which apparently had some com- 
 mercial value, although, either from my dullness in com- 
 prehending the patois or from ignorance in my interlo- 
 cutors, I could not learn where they were sent to. I 
 suppose they must be used for the dye which they con- 
 tain, like their Tyrian congeners of old. 
 
 Upon seeing me standing above, one of the men 
 
THE ASSISTANT SURGEON'S STORY. 135 
 
 detached himself from the group upon the beach, and, 
 hobbling up the rough path, to my great surprise 
 addressed me in English. 
 
 He was of miserable appearance, as sallow and un- 
 kerppt as any of his associates, but with light eyes and 
 hair, the first contrasting most unpleasantly with his dark 
 face, while the hair was burnt by the sun until it had the 
 appearance of tow. His clothing was filthy and ragged 
 in the extreme, being of the coarse cloth, of yellowish- 
 gray, which is used in Brazil for the slaves. As he 
 walked with difficulty, my attention was attracted to his 
 bare feet and legs, one of which was almost of the size 
 and shape of that of an elephant, with the skin almost as 
 much thickened and carunculated. His hands were 
 scaly, and his fingers crooked like the claws of some 
 obscene bird, — while his ears, behind which he carried 
 one or two corn-shuck cigars, were curiously corrugated 
 and split. He was a hopeless subject of elephantiasis, — 
 the ' mal de San Lazaro.' 
 
 Questioning this poor creature, I found that he was 
 by birth an American. God save the mark ! He said 
 he was forty, — he looked sixty-five. As he talked there 
 was a queer sort of self-assertion and jauntiness about 
 him when he used his mother-tongue, which he did 
 somewhat imperfectly, and an abject whine and grimace 
 when he relapsed into the Portuguese patois, as he con- 
 stantly did. 
 
 ' Give me a few vintems, sir ! For God's sake, senhor ! 
 I have a hard time here — muito malo, senhor — to get a 
 living 1 ' 
 
 As my boat had not yet arrived, I asked him where 
 he lived, and offered to go in the direction of the hut 
 
136 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 toward which he pointed. His face clouded, but as I 
 walked toward the place he was forced to follow, stump- 
 ing along as if he had fifty pounds of lead round his 
 ankle. The hut was situated among huge boulders, 
 which formed a part of the walls. It was built of rough 
 stone, partially plastered, and with a palm thatch. The 
 floor was the ground, damp, and sunken in the middle, 
 and there was no furniture except some raw hides 
 stretched upon sticks, and a few coarse earthenware jars 
 and platters upon a sort of dresser of earth. The place 
 had no light except that from the open door, and the 
 smell was indescribably musty and unwholesome. The 
 noise of our entrance caused a movement and chatter 
 among the bats which were hanging from the thatch, 
 while a lean, scrawny pig, which was rooting about the 
 floor, dashed out with a snort as our shadows darkened 
 the entrance, nearly upsetting us. A glance within was 
 sufficient, and, smelling smoke, I passed- round the 
 corner of the hut and came upon the ' family,' squatting 
 about a fire built between some stones under a palm- 
 thatched shed, and partaking of a frugal meal of bacalhao 
 and boiled yams. Bacalhao is the coarsest kind of cod, 
 or haddock, or stock-fish, salted, and is the refuse, so to 
 speak, of all the salt-fish put up in northern countries 
 for exportation, while yam is not a delicacy, but requires 
 dura ilia to extract from the coarse fibre the nourishing 
 starchy particles. These people have fish for the catch- 
 ing, and eat them when they can get nothing else, but 
 they seem seldom to smoke or salt them. 
 
 The family we found at their meal consisted of a wife, 
 half mulatto and half negro, — a Zambo, — and three 
 nearly naked children, from three to nine years old, with 
 
THE ASSISTANT SURGEON'S STORY. 137 
 
 light eyes and muddy complexion. They all ceased eat- 
 ing and gazed up stupidly in wonder at our appearance, 
 while their lord and master hovered in our rear in evi- 
 dent shame at the appearance of his family. There was 
 no doubt the poor fellow was tied by the foot in more 
 senses than one. 
 
 The place held out no temptation to remain very 
 long, and I must say that I regretted coming at all, and 
 thereby spying out the abject wretchedness of my new 
 acquaintance. As if conscious of the self-reproach I felt, 
 he followed me back to the beach, begging more humbly 
 and persistently than ever for salted meat, American 
 tobacco, and, above all, for vintems, his aspirations not 
 apparently rising higher than those very clumsy and 
 filthy copper coins. He did not say so, but I knew that 
 they would be devoted to the purchase of the potent and 
 nasty native rum, cachaga. A great deal of the sugar- 
 cane of Brazil goes into cacha^a, while in Rio Janeiro 
 and other large towns the white beet-root sugar, from 
 Belgium and France, is imported to fill the coffee-cups 
 of the cafes. As an inducement to me to be charitable, 
 I suppose, the poor cripple told me his miserable story, 
 and, like the wedding-guest, I could not choose but hear, 
 for I expected the boat to come for me at any moment, 
 and I must await it there. The sun went down, and 
 night came on fast, as I sat on a rock, with the goat- 
 suckers and bats whirring and chirping round us while 
 the man talked. 
 
 He said he was born in Rochester, New York, and 
 had gone to school, like most American boys, until he 
 was sixteen, when he had run away from home and 
 become a sailor on the Lakes. Thence he had drifted to 
 
138 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 New York, and was enlisted by an agent for a New Bed- 
 ford whaler. The vessel made a bad voyage, and the 
 skipper determined not to return home, so, running the 
 ship into St. Catherine (a favorite resort for whalers), he 
 committed barratry, selling the vessel, stores, outfit, and 
 all, and leaving the crew (who were shipped on a ' lay,' 
 or shares of the catch) to shift for themselves. Some of 
 them soon shifted themselves out of the world with 
 cachaga and foul living, others went to Santos or to Rio, 
 and thence to sea again, while our friend, who had not 
 strength of mind to do either, met his fate in the shape 
 of that horrid woman of mahogany color and with hair 
 like the stuffing of an old mattress. To complete his 
 misery he soon became the subject of his hopeless and 
 horrible disease. 
 
 He said that he did a little work, when he was able, 
 picking over coffee on the terrenos, fishing or catching 
 prawns, and sometimes interpreting, or selling fruit to 
 chance vessels. But it was evident that he would not 
 be able to do even that much longer, and it was fearful 
 to think of the poor creature, reduced by his infirmity 
 to spending his entire time in and about that damp, fetid 
 cabin, with such surroundings and companionship. In 
 this condition he might live, or rather survive, for 
 years. 
 
 It was evident that there was not much to be done 
 for him. As the coxswain of the boat (which just then 
 came for me) remarked, in pertinent slang, ' His goose 
 was cooked ! ' and here was another American citizen 
 who had lost the chance of being president. 
 
 A lovely day had been saddened by the meeting 
 with this unfortunate, about as great a wreck, in spite of 
 
THE SECOND LIEUTENANT'S STORY. 139 
 
 the moralists, as any great city's most degrading vices 
 could produce. 
 
 " There ! " said the irrepressible Gasket, " I knew the 
 doctor would throw cold water upon us in some way, 
 and here he has made us all feel miserable by his story 
 about that poor devil of a ' beach-comber.' Toggle ! 
 can't you give us something amusing to cheer us up ? " 
 
 This request caused a merry laugh throughout the 
 company at table, for Mr. Toggle, the second lieutenant, 
 was noted not only for solemnity, but for taciturnity. 
 Habitually sparing in words, he was also never known 
 to laugh, for, while all the necessary motions of the 
 facial muscles took place when a good joke was pro- 
 duced, no sound of cachinnation was ever heard to issue 
 from his throat. Use had accustomed his messmates to 
 this peculiarity, and he was held in high estimation by 
 those inclined to talk. After remarking that he " was a 
 poor hand at a yarn," which no one present attempted 
 in the least to controvert, every one expected him to 
 relapse into silence ; but, to the astonishment of his 
 hearers, this last Christmas dinner seemed to have 
 " greased his talking tacks," and he went on to say that 
 he would try to give them some reminiscences of a 
 Christmas he spent in Panama under rather peculiar 
 circumstances, when the temperature and surroundings 
 were little in keeping with the usual ideas concerning 
 the festive season. 
 
 "In 1 8 ," said Mr. Toggle, "the quaint old city 
 
 was occupied by a force from our ships. We had 
 landed quite a large body of men, whose presence 
 prevented the revolutionists, in the ' pronunciamento ' 
 then in action, from plundering or molesting the for- 
 
140 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 eign population, or from damaging native property to 
 any great extent. This we effected without any actual 
 collision with the revolutionists ; and some of the 
 older men, who had been in the war, seemed to think 
 the expedition a very tame one, because there was no 
 shooting. But we had several alarms and a few funny 
 scenes. 
 
 One very dark night I was sleeping in a ham- 
 mock swung between two of the pillars of the old cab- 
 ildo, facing the plaza, when I was awakened by a sen- 
 try's hail, followed by excited whispering quite near me, 
 and strange, unearthly noises in the distance across the 
 square. Of course I was up in an instant, and saw the 
 guard turn out, with a couple of lanterns which feebly 
 lit the scene for a few yards around. The sentry who 
 had hailed was posted over the artillery parked in front 
 of the main entrance of the cabildo. He was a Welsh 
 forecastle-man, nicknamed ' Taffy ' by the men, and his 
 next man was an afterguardsman, named O'Brien, a 
 Milesian, pur sa?ig, who was on post No. I, in front of 
 the main guard. 
 
 From their hurried conversation with each other I 
 gathered that they had both heard some movement on 
 the other side of the plaza, upon which they had hailed 
 and received so unintelligible and unusual a reply that 
 they were about to fire on the intruders. As we were in 
 a delicate position, and acting rather as a police force 
 than as an army of occupation, they were promptly 
 ordered to hold their fire, but to continue on the alert. 
 The disturbing element continued to advance and re- 
 treat, never answering, except by incoherent noises, and 
 keeping all hands upon the qui vive, yet never coming 
 
THE SECOND LIEUTENANTS STORY. 141 
 
 so near the danger-line as to necessitate a shot. Finally, 
 the break of day revealed a grazing donkey, indulging 
 occasionally in the varied notes for which a Panama 
 ' burro ' is so celebrated, and I heard the artillery sentry 
 call out to post No. i, ' Never mind the guard ; it's only 
 an Irish butterfly ! ' 
 
 Paddy, who had made out the enemy by this time, 
 retorted, ' Bedad ! Taffy, me boy, you're mistaken ! for 
 by the length of his ears I know him to be a Welsh 
 rarebit ! ' 
 
 We had orders, continued Lieutenant Toggle, not 
 to allow troops, arms, or ammunition to pass over the 
 Panama Railroad ; and if any of the latter did come, not 
 to deliver them until the troubles were over. 
 
 Miller, our master-at-arms, was acting as sergeant- 
 major of the force, and had been detailed to inspect all 
 freight which might arrive at the depot. One day he 
 came to me in a very mysterious and solemn way and 
 requested my presence at the freight-house. On the 
 way he told me that ten barrels of flour had arrived by 
 train, addressed to a negro who kept a small corner-gro- 
 cery just outside our lines, whom we knew to be one of 
 the principal purveyors to the revolutionists. 
 
 The anxiety shown by this man to get his flour, as 
 well as the unusual weight of the barrels, had aroused 
 Miller's suspicions, and he now wanted my sanction and 
 presence at a closer in.spection. Upon reaching the 
 freight-room the doors were closed, the head of one of 
 the barrels immediately knocked in, and a few prods with 
 a ramrod revealed some hard substance beneath the 
 flour, the removal of which discovered a gunny-bag full 
 of fixed ammunition. An examination of the other nine 
 
142 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA 
 
 barrels gave the same result. There were ten thousand 
 cartridges in all, — quite enough to have kept the revo- 
 lution going for at least a week. 
 
 My first impulse was to seize the consignment, 
 flour and all, as contraband,- but Miller finally induced 
 me to deliver the flour, which was certainly harmless, 
 acknowledging that he had a plan by which he could 
 get square with the consignee, against whom our men 
 bore a heavy grudge for having swindled them in the 
 sale of some cheese. Miller was well known among our 
 crew as a wag, and I withdrew to wait for the fun which 
 I made sure would follow. 
 
 The ship's cooper and two or three men were sent 
 for, and in a short time the cartridges were replaced by 
 old railroad spikes, the barrels headed up neatly, and the 
 traces of flour carefully swept up from thp floor. Miller 
 then sent for Pancho, the grocery-keeper, who had been 
 anxiously waiting outside the lines with a dozen men 
 and a large dray, and told him he could remove his flour, 
 but must not bring his dray any nearer, as it was against 
 orders to have any drays cross the plaza. 
 
 Our men had had a hint of the proceedings from 
 Miller, and all who were not on post turned out to see 
 the ' Greasers ' tugging and perspiring in the scorching 
 Panama sun as they painfully lugged the heavy barrels 
 one by one clear across the plaza. The dray was finally 
 loaded, and Pancho, grinning at the way in which he 
 had ' done ' the Yankees, mounted on the top of his 
 treasure and started for his shop, drawn by his baker's 
 dozen of ragged rascals. The ' bodega ' was surrounded 
 by a crowd of the ' revolutionists,' as eager for cartridges 
 as the boys of a New England village are for fire-crack- 
 
THE SECOND LIEUTENANTS STORY. 143 
 
 ers on the third of July. The barrels were rolled in 
 amidst shouts of joy and jeers of derision at the gulli- 
 bility of the ' Gringos ; ' but the triumph was not of long 
 duration, and the peals of scornful laughter soon gave 
 way to yells of anger and a perfect Pandemonium of 
 gestures and curses, such as could only be gotten up 
 with success in this one locality. 
 
 Pancho himself soon appeared, foaming with rage 
 and making the air blue with curses. He started 
 straight for our lines, apparently with the intention of 
 demanding redress, but he was promptly halted by 
 the sentinels, and received with such jeers and volleys 
 of laughter by our men that, after glaring round him, 
 stamping, and tearing his hair for some minutes, he 
 beat a final retreat, — a poorer, if not a wiser man." 
 
 " Well done, Toggle," said Gasket, by this time 
 quite beyond the ordinary amenities. " I always thought 
 you could talk, if you only tried." 
 
 " Ah, Gasket," replied Toggle, mildly shaking his 
 head, " it isn't always those who talk most who have 
 most to say.'' 
 
 Gasket evidently thought that something was im- 
 plied by this remark; but, before he could bring his 
 mind thoroughly to bear upon it, the flag-officer (who 
 had not forgotten his mess-table experiences) said, in 
 rather more of an official tone than he was wont to 
 assume on such occasions, — 
 
 " If Mr. Gasket has no story to give us, I, for one, 
 shall be glad to hear from Mr. Inkham." 
 
 The slight cloud which had come over the har- 
 mony of the evening instantly cleared away, and all 
 eyes were turned upon the admiral's secretary. 
 
144 ./ CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 The secretary was a character rather well known 
 throughout the whole service. 
 
 A friend, or professing friend, of every one, he was, 
 nevertheless, usually reserved in manner, and diplo- 
 matic and oracular to a degree. 
 
 He never took less than an hour for the composi- 
 tion of any officinl paper whatever; after which the 
 fair copying had to be effected by the clerk, even if 
 it was so simple a document as thanks for a salute, 
 or congratulations upon the birth of a princess. 
 
 The drawing up of " charges and specifications of 
 charges," in the matter of a general court-martial, or 
 some such weighty business, was a case in which he 
 felt constrained to retire for a time altogether from 
 public view, keeping within his own den, or office, on 
 the gun-deck. Here he had beef-tea and strong cof- 
 fee sent him at intervals, while he kept his head 
 wrapped in a wet towel — and thought. After this forti- 
 fication and preparation he was accustomed to consult 
 the " Revised Statutes " and " Harwood's Procedure." 
 
 That kind of thing would be kept up for an unlimited 
 period, according to the disposition of the flag-officer 
 with whom he was serving. When the admiral could 
 not be kept quiet any longer, and began to show decided 
 impatience and annoyance at his secretary's delay, the 
 document was produced, not in sheets, but in fragmen- 
 tary notes ; some such scraps as Shelley or Byron might 
 have written, in their inspired moments, on the first 
 paper at hand. 
 
 The " writer" then went to work to reduce these to 
 order, while the secretary emerged upon the gun-deck, 
 — somewhat disheveled as to his scanty locks, — and, for 
 
THE SECRETARY'S STORY. 145 
 
 hours, puffed volumes of cigar smoke, while, with bared 
 brow, he rested his brain from its labors. 
 
 These mental struggles had been going on for a good 
 many years, and the secretary was, to speak within 
 bounds, not any longer a young man. 
 
 Hirsute as to lip and chin, the dome which had so 
 long contained this pregnant brain was polished like 
 ivorj'-, and had wisps of rusty gray hair brought up from 
 the back and meandering over the top in an artificial 
 manner, — as " Jack" puts it, " the after-guard were 
 obliged to do foretopmen's duty." 
 
 With all these little peculiarities (barring occasional 
 petulance, the usual accompaniment of genius), Inkham 
 was not at all a bad messmate, and had so succeeded in 
 making friends throughout the service that his old com- 
 panions, as they rose to command, always felt them- 
 selves obliged to do something for " Old Ink," and many 
 thought themselves lucky if they could secure his valu- 
 able services for a cruise. 
 
 He was really much more naval in his ideas (except 
 where discipline conflicted with his personal comfort), 
 and more military in bearing and beard, and a greater 
 stickler for forms, than if he had borne a commission. 
 
 His father, a commander in the navy, had died on 
 board one of the old " Commissioner's sloops" (the only 
 command he ever had), being then about fifty-eight. 
 
 He had taken to sea with him his son, aged eighteen, as 
 hisclerk, "with a view to his health and general education." 
 
 The son's health improved, — to the extent that ship's 
 whisky would allow, — and his education (especially in 
 billiards) was so thoroughly finished that Inkham re- 
 mained a captain's clerk for many cruises, 
 lo 
 
146 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 When time, in its benign way, had silvered his hair 
 and beard, and given him an appearance of dignity and 
 wisdom, he " bore up" for a secretaryship, and had been 
 a secretary ever since. 
 
 Inkham was an admirer of Byron, and often wrote 
 verses himself, and his knowledge of naval events and of 
 naval men, of his own tmie, was marvelous, and extended 
 back to the war with Mexico. 
 
 His knowledge of novels and periodical literature was 
 also immense, but he remembered nothing whatever of 
 history, naval or other, in which he had not himself 
 borne a part ; and had always to post up on that kind of 
 thing for the occasion. 
 
 Sometimes he talked of Vattel, Puffendorf, Wheaton 
 and Phillimore ; really knowing nothing about these 
 authorities. But, by these references, wise looks, and 
 the possession of a certain diplomatic slang, he imposed 
 upon youngsters, who considered that they were improv- 
 ing their minds if they could detain him half an hour 
 longer than usual on the gun-deck, by the judicious 
 administration of their choicest cigars and most delicate 
 flattery. 
 
 He was also supposed by these young gentlemen to 
 be the repository of the flag-officer's secrets, and to 
 know, even if he did not inspire, the whole operations of 
 the squadron months in advance ; which was more than 
 anyone else knew, however high in authority. 
 
 After he withdrew from these nightly tobacco parlia- 
 ments, his admirers would wag their heads, and say to 
 each other, " Devilish deep fellow. Old Inkham. Pity 
 he was choused out of that consulrgeneralship at Milo." 
 
 If he had remembered all he had seen and read Ink- 
 
THE SECRETARY'S STORY. 147 
 
 ham would have been a " devihsh deep fellow." In fact, 
 if he had profited by his numberless acquaintances and 
 extended experience, he should have brought up in some 
 safe haven of rest and plenty long before. 
 
 But his life had been perfectly objectless and futile, 
 wasted on petty intrigues for " the next cruise," which 
 was to bring him nothing, and to leave him in the same 
 position, — only so many years older. 
 
 He always spent every penny of his pay on his back 
 and stomach, and never saved a dollar ; but then, to do 
 him justice, he always looked and lived like agentleman. 
 
 Inkham had two maiden sisters, of about his own age, 
 who believed in him, and who received him, whenever 
 he came back from his sea-rovings (much more willingly 
 as he grew older and ceased his wiles), into the mansion 
 where they maintained a select school for young ladies. 
 Here he remained, eating the fatted calf, and fluttering 
 the hearts of those doves, until he got another appoint- 
 ment. 
 
 As time went on he found out that the girls (many 
 generations of whom had passed under his critical eye) 
 had come to call him " Old Ink," and then he cut his 
 sisters, and, when on shore, established himself in grimy 
 lodgings, and lived at a second-rate club. 
 
 Of the luxurious furniture and general gorgeousness 
 of this club he was wont to give glowing descriptions 
 to the junior officers with whom he sailed, thereby be- 
 guiling many a long evening on a tedious passage. 
 
 With all this, as we have said, " Ink " wasn't half a 
 bad fellow. 
 
 Was a midshipman suffering from fever, no one was 
 more ready than " Ink" to volunteer for a night's watch. 
 
148 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 and no one was more willing to sit and read for hours to 
 a sufferer with a broken leg or inflamed eyes, while he 
 vied with the chaplain in writing letters and transacting 
 business for " Jack," if the latter only approached him 
 in the right way. 
 
 The secretary, on being called upon by his immediate 
 chief, at once responded, and said : 
 
 " I have one Christmas recollection which will re- 
 main with me forever, and I will try to give you the 
 event as it occurred. 
 
 In the month of December, 1863, I was captain's 
 clerk in the old Blazer, at New Orleans. Important 
 dispatches were to go North, and, as our way through 
 Dixie was then obstructed, I was selected to carry them 
 by sea. 
 
 In twenty-four hours after receiving the orders I had 
 packed up, bid good-by to my comrades of Farragut's 
 squadron, packed my dispatches in a water-proof bag, 
 and was under way for New York, a passenger in the 
 Mariposa, a propeller of about fifteen hundred tons, 
 built for the New Orleans and Galveston trade just before 
 the war, and then running irregularly between the 
 Crescent City and New York, sometimes calling at 
 Havana. 
 
 Before the Mariposa reached the quarantine ground, 
 I had made the acquaintance of her skipper. Captain 
 Waverly, a handsome, dapper little fellow, of about 
 thirty, very precise in manner, and dandified in costume ; 
 something of a ladies' man, too, if one might judge from 
 the gallant manner in which he pointed out the histor- 
 ical places on either bank of the river to our two lady 
 
THE SECRETARY'S STORY. 149 
 
 passengers, — daughters of a New York banker, who was 
 also on board. 
 
 The mate seemed to be in charge of the ship, and 
 impressed me as being a fair specimen of the merchant 
 seaman, and evidently something of a tartar, from his 
 arbitrary manner and rather profane language when ad- 
 dressing his crew, a nondescript set, made up, to all ap- 
 pearance, about equally of wharf-rats from New York 
 and steamboat-hands picked up at New Orleans. 
 
 The second mate was a mild-mannered youth, whose 
 stupidity in fishing the anchor soon brought him in for 
 a good sound cursing from the lips of the chief officer. 
 
 The latter bustled about in a lively way, completing 
 the stowage of the cargo, securing the boats and loose 
 articles about the decks, and finally, when the pilot left 
 us, at the mouth of the river, setting the course and tak- 
 ing the departure ; the captain not appearing to mterest 
 himself in anything but the comfort of the ladies. 
 
 We had left New Orleans before daylight, and night 
 had fallen when we stood out into the Mexican Gulf, 
 soon after which time we were called to a late dinner, 
 when I made the acquaintance of my fellow-passengers. 
 These were few, and consisted of the New York financier 
 and his two daughters (I strongly suspected that the old 
 gentleman was not remotely connected with the cotton 
 speculations then going on); a young and interesting- 
 looking colonel of Massachusetts Volunteers, who was 
 going home on sick-leave ; a bright young fellow who 
 had been sent down on some business for a New York 
 mercantile house, and a grave, reserved, and rather sad- 
 looking man of about thirty, who was introduced as Mr. 
 Jones, and who appeared to have no particular calling. 
 
150 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 The dapper captain had the banker on his right, and 
 the eldest and prettiest daughter on his left, at the table, 
 and he seemed disposed to monopolize the conversation 
 of the latter, in spite of the endeavors of the young com- 
 mercial traveler to enter the lists against him. 
 
 When I went on deck to smoke my after-dinner cigar 
 I found the first mate on watch, and, as he spoke to me 
 politely and seemed inclined to talk, I joined him in his 
 walk. 
 
 After a few trivial remarks about the fineness of the 
 night, I soon found myself listening to a very fervent 
 growl at the stupidity of " the owners '' in putting such a 
 vessel as the Mariposa in charge of such a captain. 
 The mate went on to inform me that Captain Waverly 
 was the nephew of one of the owners, was a good theo- 
 retical navigator, but had been fifteen years at sea with- 
 out becoming a seaman, and was a good deal fonder of 
 the ladies than he was of his business. 
 
 Nothing more was needed to convince one of the in- 
 efficiency of the skipper than that his chief officer dared 
 to talk in this way to a passenger. 
 
 Of course I did not relish this kind of harangue, and 
 looked to see if the man was drunk, but he was not, and 
 I soon threw away my cigar, bade the old ' shell-back ' 
 good-night, and went below to turn in, my conscience 
 rather reproaching me for listening so long to abuse of 
 the captain from the lips of his subordinate. 
 
 It is just possible that this quickening was hastened 
 by Captain Waverly's sending me a nice glass of grog, 
 with his compliments and best wishes for a good night's 
 rest. It was evident that he knew how to do the honors 
 of his ship, at any rate. 
 
THE SECRETARY'S STORY. 151 
 
 The next day, and the two succeeding ones, passed 
 without incidents of an unusual kind. 
 
 The Mariposa was a fast ship, and we had had a 
 fair wind and an unusually smooth sea, in consequence 
 of which we were making an excellent run, and fully ex- 
 pected to round Cape Hatteras the following night, and, 
 as it was now the 23d of the month, to be at home, in 
 New York, on Christmas-day. 
 
 I had not spent a Christmas at home for several 
 years, and was anxious to drop in on some relations on 
 that day, knowing well how cordially I would be re- 
 ceived. 
 
 Sitting and smoking on deck, and filled with these 
 thoughts of home and friends, and of the happy Christ- 
 mas times passed in my boyhood, I was rather startled 
 by the abrupt approach of the captain, who broke in 
 upon my reverie by saying, ' Well, Mr. Inkham, we are 
 not to escape without a taste of bad weather, after all. 
 I think, from the movements of the barometer, that a 
 northeaster is likely to catch us off Hatteras, and, unless 
 all signs fail, we shall have a good stiff blow to-night. 
 However, it is just possible that we may make Hampton 
 Roads before the gale strikes us.' 
 
 I replied to the captain that both he and myself were 
 somewhat used to rough weather, but that pretty Miss 
 Nellie Banker would probably be dreadfully frightened. 
 
 ' It's an ill wind which blows nobody good, captain. 
 Who knows but this may give you a chance to distin- 
 guish yourself, and may blow you a rich and pretty wife ? ' 
 
 The skipper smiled broadly at the idea, and went 
 across the deck to hold a consultation with his first 
 officer, who was leaning on the weather-rail and casting 
 
152 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 dubious glances, first at the sky and then at the skipper, 
 and, every now and then, looking over at me and shaking 
 his head, as much as to say, ' There'll be the devil to pay 
 soon, and no pitch hot.' 
 
 Not feeling any responsibility in regard to the navi- 
 gation of the ship, I had not observed the weather very 
 closely. Now, however, my attention was aroused, and, 
 on looking at the horizon, I saw in the northeast an inky- 
 black cloud, which looked darker than any squall I had 
 ever seen before. 
 
 Walking to the companion-way, I found to my hor- 
 ror that the barometer which hung there stood at the 
 unusually low point of twenty-eight degrees. The sea 
 was at this time almost perfectly smooth, and the light 
 breeze which had been blowing during the afternoon had 
 died out, so that the smoke from our chimney was trend- 
 ing right aft. 
 
 Whilst I was making these observations I was joined 
 by Mr. Jones, who remarked that ' if he were at home in 
 Delaware County, he should say we were going to have 
 some rain.' 
 
 A few minutes afterward Captain Waverly came on 
 deck, and, after taking a look at the sky, turned to the 
 chief mate and said, ' That cloud looks as if it might 
 give us a wetting, and it may be followed by a little 
 wind. If it comes out fair, get the topsails and fore and 
 aft sails on her.' 
 
 The mate, with a curious expression of doubt clearly 
 depicted on his weather-beaten countenance, suggested 
 that, instead of making a lot of sail, it would be better 
 at once to get the close reef in the main-topsail and stand 
 by for a ' lay-to.' 
 
THE SECRETARY'S STORY. 153 
 
 This the skipper would not listen to, but in a very 
 peremptory manner directed the mate to carry out his 
 orders ; then, turning, he started to go down th'e com- 
 panion-way. 
 
 By this time I had become thoroughly interested in 
 the way things were going, and I was not surprised to 
 see the captain's face turn white as he glanced at the 
 barometer. He at once hurried back to the bridge, and 
 the hands were instantly called to put a close reef in the 
 main-topsail and to bend the fore storm-staysail and 
 storm-mizzen. 
 
 In an instant there was great excitement and some 
 confusion. Even the passengers were sufficiently aroused 
 by this time to lend a hand, and. I found myself first tug- 
 ging aft on the storm-mizzen and then doing my 
 best to assist in bending it. At my side I recognized 
 Jones, who, to my surprise, seemed to be perfectly at 
 home in the operation, and, instead of being only an 
 assistant, soon took charge of the whole business. The 
 unusual noise and bustle soon brought on deck the ladies, 
 who had, with their father and the colonel, been having 
 a game of whist. 
 
 So busy was I at my work that I had not again 
 looked at the weather, and was therefore taken rather 
 aback when a tremendous squall, which struck us all at 
 once, caused every timber in the ship to creak, and spar 
 to buckle. 
 
 The ship went over almost on her beam-ends, and 
 had it not been for the hatch-coamings, houses, and high 
 net-work railings, most of us aft would have been spilled 
 into the sea. 
 
 I heard the engine-room gong strike ' four bells,' and 
 
154 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 the rudder-chains rattle and clank as the helm was put 
 hard up. Then the men scrambled forward to the storm- 
 staysail halliards. 
 
 To my joy I saw that she paid off and was soon run- 
 ning before the wind, which had come out with fearful 
 force from the northeast. 
 
 The sun had gone down by this time and we were 
 soon in pitchy darkness. The main-topsail, which had 
 been loosed, and partly reefed, ballooned, and with the 
 wind which filled it caused the ship to bury forward and 
 to yaw frightfully. 
 
 Fortunately, the sea was still quite smooth. 
 
 The mate and the captain were together on the bridge, 
 but I could plainly make out, by his frenzied gestures, 
 that the latter had quite lost his head, and that the little 
 which was being done originated with the chief officer. 
 
 Jones and I managed to work our way to the after- 
 compass, and a look at that revealed the skipper's inten- 
 tions. 
 
 ' My God ! ' said Jones, as soon as he had a glimpse 
 of the card, ' the man is crazy ! He is setting a course 
 for the capes, directly across the track of a veritable 
 hurricane, blowing him right on the land, to say nothing 
 of the strong current which will soon be trending in the 
 same direction. A very few hours of this work will 
 finish us.' 
 
 With this remark I noticed an entire change in 
 Jones's manner. His lips were compressed, his hands 
 clinched harder than ever the rope to which we were 
 clinging, and he was evidently laboring to control some 
 strong impulse. 
 
 The sea had, by this time, begun to run very high, 
 
THE SECRETARY'S STORY. 155 
 
 and once or twice green water had come over our quar- 
 ter. The ship was yawing fearfully, and more than 
 once almost fell off into the trough of the sea. We had 
 already succeeded in closing and battening all the 
 hatches and companions aft, seeing every one in the 
 cabin on deck, and lashing the banker and his daugh- 
 ters to one of the standing settees on the cabin hatch. 
 The colonel, Jones and myself had secured ourselves 
 just forward of the after wheel-house, and there waited 
 events. 
 
 Suddenly, Jones turned to the colonel and myself, 
 and said, ' You are both in the government service, and 
 presumably brave men. Will you back me if I take 
 command of this ship and try to save her?' 
 
 I had been impressed with Jones's behavior since 
 the beginning of the storm, and had become convinced 
 that he was a seaman in disguise. 
 
 The colonel must have come to about the same 
 conclusion. At any rate, we both promised, at once, 
 not only to back him with moral support, but to lend 
 him our personal assistance. 
 
 Jones, after a look of unmistakable tenderness toward 
 the ladies lashed on the hatch, cast hirnself adrift, and 
 started slowly to make his way to the bridge, followed 
 by the colonel and myself Reaching the bridge-ladder, 
 he turned to us and said, ' I am going on the bridge to 
 take charge. The captain is thoroughly incapacitated 
 through ignorance and fear, and the mate is a sailor- 
 man, but nothing more, and will probably be glad to 
 have some one assume responsibility. You two must 
 get some of the hands together and induce them to go 
 aloft and cut away that maintopsail. Then I shall at- 
 
1.36 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 tempt to bring the ship to ; and you must get a corner 
 of the storm-mizzen on her.' 
 
 With this Jones went up on the bridge, and returned 
 in a moment, followed by the mate, who thoroughly un- 
 derstood the situation, if he could not master it. 
 
 Jones simply told us to carry out his orders ; but, 
 after some time spent in a search for the men, we re- 
 turned to our new captain with only two seamen, whom 
 we had found under the break of the forecastle. The 
 rest had not been used to such emergencies, and had 
 stowed themselves below, securely, in the many places 
 afforded by a vessel built like the Mariposa. These 
 two seamen, when we got them aft, said it was blowing 
 too hard for them to go aloft, and that the sail had bet- 
 ter blow away. But it might not blow away soon 
 enough, and its effect was very bad in the mean time. 
 
 Although I was no sailor, I had been a long time 
 with sailors, and knew about what was to be done; so, 
 turning to Jones, I said, ' I will go on one yard-arm.' 
 The mate at once offered to try the other. Borrowing a 
 knife from one of the recreant seamen, I put it between 
 my teeth and started to get into the rigging. 
 
 Although the wind was fearful in strength to those 
 upon deck, it was nothing to the blast as I attempted to 
 go aloft. My feet were at times blown from under me, 
 and I was straightened out like a pennant ; at other times 
 I was pinned flat against the shrouds for minutes ; and it 
 was only with the utmost exertion, and at the cost of 
 considerable bodily pain and suffering, that I succeeded, 
 in the course of half an hour, in reaching the horns of 
 the trestle-trees. After ten minutes more of hard and 
 exhausting work I reached the yard, and found that the 
 
THE SECRETARY'S STORY. 157 
 
 mate was already slashing away on the weather yard- 
 arm, cutting the robands from the slings out. 
 
 I started to do the same on the lee yard-arm, and 
 was working away with a will, and holding on like grim 
 death as I swayed above the hell of waters below, when, 
 with a report like a cannon, the whole sail was suddenly 
 torn from the yard and disappeared in the inky blackness 
 to leeward. 
 
 Our task was accomplished, and, after long and severe 
 exhaustion, I succeeded in reaching the deck, utterly ex- 
 hausted. 
 
 I found that Jones and the colonel, assisted by the 
 two seamen and the quartermasters, who remained at the 
 wheel, had attempted to heave the ship to, without suc- 
 cess. They had also tried to set the storm-mizzen, but 
 had been unsuccessful, as that sail had followed the top- 
 sail and fore storm-staysail, all of which had gone to lee- 
 ward during my absence aloft. 
 
 The after wheel-house had been washed away, as well 
 as the small saloon over the cabins. The boats were all 
 gone, and every movable object, as well as many sup- 
 posed to be immovable, had followed them. Fortu- 
 nately, the after skylight, with its precious freight, was 
 well secured and remained in place. 
 
 Captain Waverly now came aft from the bridge, and, 
 seeming to regain some little confidence, offered to 
 assist us. 
 
 Jones decided to make another effort to bring the 
 ship to. His idea was, on putting the helm down, to 
 spread something about the mizzen rigging to throw her 
 head up, and so assist the engine and the helm in bring- 
 ing her by the wind. 
 
158 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 I was so bruised and exhausted that I felt that, even 
 to save my life, I could do but little more. 
 
 The colonel now came to the front, and offered to 
 try to spread a tarpaulin, which we found becketed to the 
 skylight, in the mizzen rigging, and Captain Waverly and 
 the mate offered to assist him. 
 
 When all was ready, Jones started for the bridge 
 again, and we soon found the ship's motion changing, 
 and that the new captain was endeavoring to put her 
 round. I got back to my position by the mizzen rigging, 
 where the mate and the colonel had the tarpaulin so 
 made up that the wind itself would assist in unrolling it 
 if they could only succeed in getting it into proper posi- 
 tion in the shrouds. 
 
 Their first attempt was to get up inboard, and was 
 perfectly fruitless. They then attempted to get outboard, 
 but the ship had come-to so much by this time that she 
 was in the trough of the most infernal sea I had ever 
 seen. Our rolling was something fearful. The yard- 
 arms dipped, and green seas were carried whole from one 
 bulwark to the other, and had anything been left about 
 the deck it must have surely gone. 
 
 One roll soon came worse than all the rest, so deep 
 that it seemed hardly possible that we ever could right 
 again. In fact, it was too much for the masts, all three of 
 which snapped off like pipe-stems, and were soon wallow- 
 ing and thumping along our side, to its immediate danger. 
 
 Their fall, however, relieved us considerably, and we 
 redoubled our efforts in consequence. 
 
 The mate succeeded in getting hold of the pole of 
 the mizzen-topmast, which had been broken off, and to this 
 we lashed the tarpaulin with a piece of the signal hal- 
 
THE SECRETARY'S STORY. 159 
 
 Hards, marking a yard of it. This yard, we with infinite 
 trouble, placed up and down the stump of the mizzen- 
 mast and lashed it there by the niiddle, and, having bent 
 on braces to its ends, suddenly swayed it across to wind- 
 ward. Our sail filled against the stump, and to our 
 great joy, did not blow away. 
 
 By this time daylight was with us again, and Jones, 
 on the bridge, was enabled to witness our success. 
 
 Fortunately, during all these long hours the engine 
 and boilers had worked well. Owing to the care and in- 
 genuity of the chief engineer, and to the pluck with 
 which his department had stuck to their work during 
 that terrible night, no water had come into the engine- 
 room, and the hull of the ship had remained tight. 
 
 An extra jump of the engines, aided by our sail, and 
 a judicious use of the helm at a comparatively smooth 
 moment, brought us by the wind. 
 
 Jones now ordered us to rig a similar sail on the 
 stump of the foremast, which we succeeded in doing in 
 much shorter time, owing to having daylight, and we 
 were now hove to and comparatively safe, although the 
 sea was more fearful to look at than ever. 
 
 The hurricane (for it had the force of one, although 
 it did not shift) continued until about an hour before 
 sunset, when it suddenly lulled, and as suddenly chopped 
 round to the northwest, blowing again with fearful 
 violence. 
 
 During the lull we managed to get some hard bread 
 and water from the forecastle, as well as some tarpaulin 
 coats for the ladies, who were shivering in the blast in 
 their drenched garments. 
 
 We shifted our storm-sails, and, being able to do no 
 
IGO A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 more, secured ourselves, and hoped for the best. The 
 effect of the shift of wind was soon apparent. The mo- 
 tion had been bad enough before, but it had now become 
 indescribable, as a cross-sea of tremendous violence arose. 
 We pitched and rolled, turned and twisted, while every 
 timber, bolt, and knee, from stem to stern, and from the 
 keel to our mast-stumps, groaned and complained in a 
 most ominous manner. Worse than all, the ship now 
 began to make water rapidly, numerous leaks occurring 
 from the wrenching she received ; and soon after the en- 
 gines stopped. There seemed now to be no hope for us; 
 but a look at our poor, half-dead lady passengers gave us 
 new strength, and, hauling out the recreant steamboat- 
 hands from their hiding-places, we rigged the deck- 
 pumps, and went to work at them with a will. 
 
 As if to encourage us, the wind now shifted to the 
 westward, and soon subsided to a gentle breeze, while 
 the cross-seas seemed to kill each other, and at two a.m. 
 we were lying, a water-logged hulk, on a comparatively 
 smooth sea. 
 
 A few hours after, by great good fortune, a large 
 navy tug (which had come out of Beaufort after the gale) 
 sighted us, bore down, and took us in tow. 
 
 The men now turned to, and managed to keep the 
 water under ; and, as we had valuable government stores 
 as cargo, the skipper of the tug considered himself justi- 
 fied in taking us into Hampton Roads. The ship was 
 safely brought in, and in twenty-four hours afterwards 
 the passengers were all in New York. 
 
 It so happened that, on the 24th of December, 1864, 
 the vessel to which I was then attached arrived at the 
 Brooklyn Navy- Yard. 
 
THE MARINE OFFICER'S STORY. 161 
 
 When the mail came on board I found an invitation 
 to the wedding of Lieutenant Johns, of the navy, and 
 Miss Banker, accompanied by a very flattering note from 
 the lady, urging my acceptance of the invitation. 
 
 It is hardly necessary to say that I was not only at 
 the church, but afterwards attended the reception, which 
 took place in a stately mansion, filled with flowers, light, 
 and the strains of charming music, while gay crowds of 
 lovely women and comely mqn congratulated the newly- 
 married pair. 
 
 The contrast between this scene and that awful 
 Christmas-eve off Hatteras, only one year before, was a 
 very marked one, and yet several of the persons present 
 had filled a place upon both occasions. 
 
 I am sure that not one of the guests wished more 
 heartily than I did that the gallant groom might find 
 life's voyage, in matrimonial seas, a pleasant one." 
 
 When the secretary hjd finished his story it was evi- 
 dent that the usually imperturbable first lieutenant was 
 blushing furiously, and, although no explanations were 
 given, it wa's not difficult to draw a conclusion as to who 
 was the hero of the story. 
 
 " I notice," said the first lieutenant, " that we have 
 heard nothing whatever from the senior marine officer 
 this evening, and as few people in the mess have a more 
 varied acquaintance and experience, I feel sure he will 
 oblige us with a reminiscence." 
 
 " Yes, Ratchet," said the caterer, " do give us some- 
 thing. There is surely time enough left for that." And 
 he glanced inquiringly at Captain Tangent, who was evi- 
 dently revolving in his mind the propriety of a move. 
 The captain of marines was not a tall man,- — in point 
 II 
 
162 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 of fact he was rather a short man, — but he looked tall, 
 because he stood so very straight that he almost bent 
 backward. 
 
 His orderly sergeant, who was six feet two, looked 
 positively abject and diminutive beside his officer when 
 he brought his morning report to be signed, and heard, 
 with soldierly patience and at strict "attention," the ha- 
 rangue which Captain Ratchet delivered upon the shame- 
 ful state of Private Jenkin's pantaloons at evening quarters 
 on the day before. 
 
 Captain Ratchet had moustaches and imperial, waxed 
 after the manner of the late lamented Napoleon III., and 
 was upon all occasions as neat in dress as it is possible 
 for mortal man to be. 
 
 His most intimate friend could never find out how 
 many shirts and neckties and pairs of white gloves the 
 captain possessed. Perhaps he did not know himself 
 At any rate, the supply was practically inexhaustible. 
 
 His state-room was a model bower, full of photographs, 
 curios, and neat little " kickshaws," and contained, beside, 
 two shelves which held his " library," which consisted of 
 the Bible, Hardee's Tactics, the " School of the Soldier," 
 an elementary treatise on fortification and defense, and two 
 or three odd volumes of the Gentleman's Magazine, with 
 the name, arms, and motto of his grand-uncle, John, of 
 Greencastle, emblazoned on the covers. 
 
 Under these, on a rack, hung his ivory-handled Mame- 
 luke sword, with the white belt swathed around it ; a 
 small silk guidon which he himself had taken in battle ; 
 his favorite Powhatan pipe, with reed stem ; and a to- 
 bacco-bag, embroidered by fair hands, with the captain's 
 monogram in red silk. 
 
THE MARINE OFFICER'S STORY. 163 
 
 Back of his berth he had piles of French novels and 
 of the Spirit of the Turf and Field, a gentleman's news- 
 paper, — for the captain was a great authority upon all 
 " events " in either hemisphere. 
 
 He knew the precise number of rounds in which the 
 " Hoboken Pet " had licked the " Bowery Buster ; "' the 
 figures earned at the first and second innings by the 
 Stenton Cricket Club when playing the Aberdeen pro- 
 fessionals ; how many pigeons Dr. Cutler had to spare 
 when he beat Captain Bogler ; and the exact time of all 
 the trotters from Lady Suffolk to Maud S. 
 
 Captain Ratchet was also an inexhaustible talker upon 
 political subjects, and he had rather a propensity to bet 
 upon elections. 
 
 Besides doing all these things, the captain sang and 
 played on the guitar, and, since he made an European 
 cruise, indulged principally in French military chanson- 
 nettes, such as 
 
 " Ran tan plan, c'est la cantini^re, 
 Un joli soldat! 
 Ran tan plan, qui va la premiere ' 
 
 Quand la tambour bat." 
 
 or, 
 
 " Quand I'zouzou, coiffe de son fez, 
 A par liasard, queuqu' goutt' sous I'nez. 
 
 His messmates got to know some of these songs pretty 
 well, but then that is not surprising in a three years' 
 cruise. 
 
 With all these little weaknesses (and which one of us, 
 let me ask, had fewer ?), the captain was truthful, tem- 
 perate, a good son and brother, and the cheeriest and 
 most obliging of messmates. 
 
1G4 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 He held a brevet for gallant service in the army, where 
 bullets were flying thickly, and death or wounds from 
 them were meeting every second man, and, to tell the 
 truth, when many of those about him were not preserv- 
 ing that coolness, readiness, and serene courage which 
 rendered little Ratchet one of the heroes of the day. 
 
 Ratchet had entered the marine corps from the volun- 
 teer service, and had already seen his share of hard fight- 
 ing when he received his commission ; while every one 
 who knew him knew also that, at any hour of the day or 
 night, at sea or on shore, he stood ready to see hard 
 fighting again, and to attend to the details thereof with 
 the same thoroughness and deliberation with which he 
 was wont to inspect the " kit " of his guard on Friday 
 morning. 
 
 In fact and altogether, Ratchet was one of the kind of 
 people who " wear well," and although his messmates 
 might occasionally smile at some little foible or peculiarity, 
 there were none of them who did not sincerely wish him 
 all good, and feel that they could rely upon him in an 
 emergency. 
 
 Though uniformly patient and good-natured during 
 the trials and annoyances of a cruise. Ratchet at heart 
 hated every other place in the world but Washington. 
 
 " Talk to him of the band of the Twenty-first Austrian 
 Infantry! Had they ever heard the Marine Band at 
 Washington? Fifty-pieces, sir!" 
 
 "Talk about the Tuileries !" the captain would say. 
 " Have you seen the new department buildings at 
 Washington, sir?" 
 
 In his rare naps Ratchet dreamed of passing the autumn 
 of his life at the Washington barracks, and of attending 
 
THE MARINE OFFICER'S STORY. 165 
 
 endless levees, and receptions, while, at the head of a 
 thoroughly well-uniformed and well-drilled battalion of 
 marines, he escorted successive Presidents to their in- 
 auguration. Or, should death perchance have chosen a 
 shining mark, he equally (and equably, in his dreams) 
 escorted the remains to their destination. 
 
 Without more ado, and taking a preliminary sip of 
 claret, his favorite wine, the captain proceeded as follows : 
 
 " Well, to begin with, I'm no hand at this sort of thing. 
 Story-telling is not my forte ; and if it were, it would 
 long ago have become a lost art for want of practice. 
 You all know very well that, for a modest man like my- 
 self, it is impossible to get in a word edgewise in this 
 wardroom. 
 
 Another thing, the yarn I'm going to tell you doesn't 
 redound to the credit of. the naval reputation for acute- 
 ness very hugely. On the contrary it shows that how- 
 ever much some men may circumnavigate the world, they 
 really know precious little of it. You'll all call me a 
 vilifier, no doubt, for the authorities quotable scout all 
 idea of a landsman outwitting a sailor, — Marryatt and 
 Cooper, Gringo, in his ' Tales for the Marines,' Davy 
 Llewellyn, in ' The Maid of Sker,' will tell you no end 
 of instances where Jack Tar overreaches the lobsters to 
 one where any man, from lord high sheriff to bumboat- 
 man, can outwit him. It's only when the other sex takes 
 hold that you capitulate. 
 
 But you were sold this time, and no mistake. It was 
 away back in '66, so soon after the war that uniforms 
 were still familiar sights all over the Northern towns and 
 cities; even on Fifth Avenue and Broadway a fellow 
 
166 A CHRISTiifAS AT SEA. 
 
 could appear in the garb of his profession without being 
 treated with indignity; and in the bright September of 
 that year it was my luck to be, for a few days, in the 
 harbor of New London. Two or three of our ships had 
 been there off and on, and just at this time one of our best, 
 with as smart a set of officers, in their own opinion, as is 
 often found even in our navy, was lying off Fort Trum- 
 bull. Two batteries of the First Artillery were stationed 
 in the old fort at the time, and among their officers was 
 a particular friend of mine, a first lieutenant and a West- 
 Pointer, a graduate of the class of '63, and I'll call him 
 Ford. 
 
 Ferguson, over there is beginning to look conscious 
 and uneasy already. Never mind, old fellow, I'll name 
 no names, even of the ships ; but you remember, don't 
 you, the day a whole batch -of you juniors went over to 
 call upon the officers of the Themis, the flag-ship of 
 the French squadron ? I see you do, so we'll go ahead. 
 
 It seems that while aboard the flag-ship, and having a 
 most enjoyable, not to say convivial, time with the 
 Frenchmen, there came into their midst a party of people 
 from shore, young gentlemen of the vicinity, apparently, 
 who were desirous of seeing the ship, but, being unac- 
 quainted with the French language or the French officers, 
 might have been at a loss how to proceed but for the self- 
 possession and savoir faire of a handsome little fellow in 
 a jaunty artillery uniform, who promptly introduced him- 
 self as Captain Dyer, of the regular army, was greeted 
 with the utmost civility by the officers of the ship, was 
 by them presented to our fellows there present; and, in 
 a few minutes, the entire party was on terms of delight- 
 ful companionship, the young New-Englander showing 
 
THE MARINE OFFICER'S STORY. 167 
 
 as keen an appreciation of the bountiful supplies of Bor- 
 deaux, Sauterne, or Cognac as though they never ex- 
 pected to see the outside of the " land of steady habits." 
 But the central figure, the hero of the occasion, to judge 
 from the talk of Ferguson and his friends when they re- 
 turned to us that evening Oh ! beg pardon, Fer- 
 guson. I did say I'd mention no names, but you see 
 Mark Twain is responsible for the slip. Ever since the 
 birth of the ' Innocents Abroad ' your name has become 
 the universal symbol of an unknown person, as X is of 
 an unknown quantity. The central figure, as I was say- 
 ing, was that of young Captain Dyer. He could not 
 speak French, but he was so full of life, enthusiasm, and 
 — well, they did say — cheek, that he kept the ball of con- 
 versation rolling, and the Frenchmen hung around him 
 with absolute fascination. He had astonished them, on 
 his first appearance, it seemed, by the extreme juvenility 
 of his face and figure, and, seeing this, he had modestly 
 hastened to explain, ' I'm not a full captain of artillery, 
 gentlemen, and don't expect to be for twenty years; these 
 bars are won only by brevet. I only graduated this last 
 June from West Point.' 
 
 One of our youngsters, a year or so out of Anna- 
 polis, could not understand how a fellow just out of 
 West Point could have seen the service to entitle him 
 to a brevet, and ventured to suggest that he did not 
 know that the class of '66 had any chance in the late 
 war, but was put to utter rout and confusion by the 
 calmly courteous reply, ' You are right, as a class, but 
 three or four of us during cadet furlough went to the 
 front, and I had the further good luck to serve a month 
 on the staff of General Terry, just at the time of Fort 
 
168 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 Fisher, and to get a little scratch there that won me 
 these bars.' In fact, he seemed so thoroughly genial 
 happy, and modestly proud of his rapid advancement, so 
 brimming over with good luck and good spirits, so 
 handsome and natty, that he speedily became the pet of 
 the whole party. When the old admiral came on board 
 he was presented in due form, and that grizzled veteran 
 made even more of him than the youngsters, and so it 
 happened that when our fellows came away they felt 
 that the Frenchmen had far exceeded them in hospital- 
 ity, in that they could only secure from Captain Dyer a 
 conditional acceptance of their pressing invitation to 
 come and dine with them two days after. ' I cannot 
 promise,' said he, ' because General Terry has received 
 orders to proceed at once to Santa Fe, New Mexico. I 
 am to go with him as aide-de-camp, and I expect orders 
 any minute to join him.' 
 
 The next morning half a dozen of us went ashore, 
 among us being a young officer who had a first cousin 
 in the West Point class of '66, and he was particularly 
 desirous of meeting this ' brave jeune capitaine^ as the 
 Frenchmen called him; and, sure enough, the first uni- 
 form we caught sight of as we strolled up toward the 
 Metropolitan (which seemed to be the only hotel in New 
 London just then) was that of Captain Dyer, and I took 
 a good look at him out of sheer curiosity. Why, he 
 looked no older than a boy of seventeen ! He was not 
 five feet five in height, but slender as a girl, elegantly 
 shaped, with a smooth, clear-cut, boyish face, large and 
 brilliant eyes, dark, close-cropped hair, and carrying 
 himself straight as an arrow, he was soldierly in every 
 movement. The instant he caught sight of us he had 
 
THE MARINE OFFICER'S STORY. 169 
 
 come jauntily forward, with a wave of his delicate kid- 
 gloved hand, and an uplifting of his natty forage-cap, 
 with its gold crossed cannon and silver five. He was 
 dressed in the nattiest possible shell-jacket, then worn 
 by light artillery officers, with the straps of a captain 
 upon the shoulders, and wore dark-blue trousers, with a 
 heavy gold cord, as then worn by staff-officers of the 
 army. Nothing could exceed the frank bonhommie of his 
 greeting. He and Preston (as we'll have to call our 
 Annapohs boy who was so eager to meet him) seemed 
 to chum at once. ' What, you a cousin of Will Dixon's ! 
 You don't say so ! He is one of the noblest fellows in 
 the class, and the happiest days I spent at the Point 
 were those when he and I were room-mates.' 
 
 Such were Captain Dyer's words almost verbatim, 
 and, as we strolled along, the two youngsters monopo- 
 lized the conversation, which was all about West Point 
 and the class of '66, and after a while it occurred to me 
 that it would be a nice day to run out to the fort and see 
 my friend Ford. I left three or four of our party (in- 
 cluding Preston), Captain Dyer, and three of the French 
 officers all playing billiards together in the j oiliest pos- 
 sible frame of mind. 
 
 Ford was not in his quarters. An orderly told me 
 I would find him on the ramparts somewhere, and soon 
 I came upon him, showing the sights to a brace of young 
 gentlemen in civil garb, who were duly presented by 
 him as lieutenants, — I forget their names, but one was of 
 the engineers and the other of Ford's own regiment, the 
 First Artillery. In the course of conversation it trans- 
 pired that they were on their graduating leave, and that 
 they too were of the West Point class. of '66, of which I 
 
170 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 was beginning to know so much. Ford had known 
 them both as young cadets when he was a first-class- 
 man, and it so happened that the engineer had been ca- 
 det first captain, and the artilleryman cadet adjutant. 
 Why, I had heard Dyer and Preston talking about them 
 in the most intimate way for the past hour ! Their 
 names, as I say, have escaped me after this lapse of 
 years, but as they've got to have names to make the 
 story work, I'll call them Brown and Jones. 
 
 Brown, the engineer and ex-first captain, was short, 
 thick-set, squarely built, with a deeply-lined face, full of 
 character and force, a heavy moustacTie and imperial, 
 while Jones, the artilleryman and ex-adjutant, was, 
 though straight and soldierly, as slender and almost as 
 youthful-looking, and quite as smooth-faced, as the 
 ' brave jeune ' himself 
 
 Thinking to make myself better acquainted, I pres- 
 ently remarked, ' Gentlemen, I had the pleasure of meet- 
 ing Captain Dyer this morning ; ' but the announce- 
 ment seeming to make no impression of the kind antici- 
 pated, I added, ' A classmate of yours, I believe.' 
 Messrs. Brown and Jones politely replied that there was 
 probably some mistake. No man of the name of Dyer 
 had been at West Point as a cadet during their time. 
 
 ' Why ! but he's here,' I persisted, somewhat irrrele- 
 vantly; ' he's been talking about you both for an hour 
 this morning with Preston, who is a cousin, of Dixfln's, 
 of your class.' 
 
 ' Certainly,' said Jones, promptly ; ' we know Dixon 
 well. He is one of our most intimate friends.' 
 
 . ' Well,' I continued, ' that's what Dyer says about 
 you. I cannot be mistaken about the name. He 
 
THE MARINE OFFICER'S STORY. 171 
 
 says that he lived one year with Mr. Dixon and one 
 year with you, Mr. Jones.' 
 
 ' I cannot understand it at all,' said Mr. Jones, 
 speaking very courteously ; ' the only men of my 
 class who were regularly my room-mates were Brown 
 here, and Smith, of the Fourth Artillery. Did you 
 say General Terry's staff? A captain ! Why, Smith 
 has a brother with General Terry, but he himself 
 never served with Terry during the war, and wouldn't 
 be masquerading around under the name of Dyer, 
 anyhow.' 
 
 I gave them a complete history of the case so far 
 as I knew it. Told them I had seen his name regis- 
 tered at the Metropolitan Hotel, ' Brevet Captain F. 
 Harry Dyer, First Lieutenant Fifth Artillery ; ' that 
 he had served with General Terry at Fort Fisher, and 
 won his brevet there ; that he had had the good luck 
 to be assigned to the Fifth and got his first lieutenancy 
 at once, — to all of which they listened with deep in- 
 terest and grave politeness, but with evident incredulity. 
 
 Unconsciously I found myself growing argumenta- 
 tive in behalf of the hero of my comrades aboard ship. 
 Nothing could have seemed straighter than his story. 
 I even went so far as to say, ' Why, Mr. Brown, he 
 said that he had dined with you at your father's 
 house in New Haven, only last week. Isn't your 
 fatRer C. S. A. Brown, of New Haven ? ' 
 
 ' Yes,' said Lieutenant Brown ; ' but that doesn't 
 help matters. No officer of the army dined with us 
 last week, or for the last month, for that matter, ex- 
 cept Jones here, who is visiting me at home.' 
 
 This began to look queer. Ford, too, was getting 
 
172 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 interested. The youngster might be an officer of ar- 
 tillery, — lots of appointments were being made at that 
 time ; but, so far as his statement about West Point 
 was concerned, he must be lying, and, falsus in wio 
 falsus in omnibus, we four soon concluded to go to 
 town and settle the question. 
 
 At the billiard-room we found Preston, who said 
 that Dyer had gone up-town to call on some friends, 
 but would soon return. I at once introduced ' my old 
 friend Ford, of the artillery,' and he in turn presented 
 his old friends. Lieutenants Brown and Jones, of the 
 last graduating class. Preston at once recognized the 
 former, whom he had met in company with Dixon 
 some two years previous. ' Why,' said he, ' this is 
 luck ! I've been talking half the morning with Dyer, 
 of your class. Won't he be delighted to find that you 
 and Mr. Jones are here ! ' 
 
 ' Hardly,' said I. ' The fact is, Preston, that's just 
 what I came to see you about.- There's something 
 wrong here. These gentlemen say that there was no 
 such man as Dyer in the whole corps of cadets in their 
 time, and that this fellow is an impostor.' 
 
 Preston was thunderstruck. He could not believe it ; 
 but our plan was soon made. 
 
 We took with us a shipmate who happened in at the 
 ' moment, and who pronounced his inability to belipve 
 the young officer a fraud, but was willing to see him put 
 to the test. It was arranged that we should stroll up 
 the main street, and, on meeting Dyer, introduce Lieu- 
 tenants Brown and Jones as Messrs. Wilson and Tom- 
 kins, or something of that sort, — gentlemen from New 
 York, — and let them draw him out. 
 
THE MARINE OFFICER'S STORY. 173 
 
 In ten minutes we met our soi-disant lieutenant and 
 aide-de-camp coming toward us jauntily as ever, intro- 
 duced our civilian friends Wilson and Tomkins, and 
 then, turning, accompanied him back down the street, 
 he walking in front, between his ' classmates,' and Ford, 
 Preston, the gentleman whom I won't name (so don't 
 blush, Ferguson), and myself in rear, where we could 
 overhear the conversation. 
 
 It opened briskly. The engineer officer casually re- 
 marked that he understood Captain Dyer was a recent 
 graduate, and his tone of voice implied that he looked 
 upon him as a superior being in consequence. 
 
 ' Yes, sir,' said the victim, with much complaisance 
 of manner; ' I graduated at West Point last June.' 
 
 'Did you indeed?' broke in ' Mr. Tomkins.' 'Why, 
 I knew a man who must have been in your class, — 
 Brown, from New Haven.' 
 
 ' You don't say so ! ' said the unsuspecting Dyer. 
 ' I'm delighted to meet you then. Brown was one of 
 my warmest friends, — most intimate, in fact. I left him 
 in New Haven last week.' 
 
 ' Brown was a good deal of a man, wasn't he ? ' que- 
 ried ' Mr. Tomkins.' 
 
 ' Indeed he was ! He was our first captain, and a 
 splendid fellow, — one of the best scholars, and decidedly 
 the wittiest man in the class.' 
 
 ''What sort of a fellow was Jones ? He was a class- 
 mate too, wasn't he ? ' asked ' Mr. Wilson,' who, as 
 Brown, must have been no end pleased with so spon- 
 taneous a tribute to his worth. 
 
 ' Jones was a splendid adjutant, a very " military " fel- 
 low, as we say at West Point ; but he was too conceited 
 
174 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 to be generally popular, like Brown. Yet I liked him. 
 He was my room-mate a whole year.' 
 
 And so it went on. All the way back to the Metro- 
 politan that young fellow discoursed volubly of West 
 Point and West-Pointers, astonishing Brown and Jones 
 with the depth and variety of his information on points 
 they supposed utterly unknown except among the cadets 
 themselves. 
 
 Presently we reached the hotel, and there we found 
 assembled a knot of our fellows, who cordially greeted 
 the young captain, and were about to suggest ' having 
 something,' when Ford stepped forward. ' Gentlemen, 
 I beg a moment's indulgence,' said he ; ' I have a ques- 
 tion to ask Captain Dyer. What battery do you be- 
 long to ? ' 
 
 For an instant an ashy pallor shot across the boyish 
 face ; he gulped at the attempt to speak, but recovered 
 himself quick as a flash, and stoutly answered, ' I don't 
 know. You see I've never joined, — am even now going 
 on the staff, and have not been assigned.' 
 
 ' What is the name of your colonel ? ' asked Ford. 
 
 ' The colonel — the colonel's name is — is Barnum,' 
 stammered the boy. 
 
 ' There is no such colonel in the army,' calmly re- 
 plied Ford. 
 
 'And I say there is!' loudly and defiantly answered 
 Dyer. 'What do you mean by contradicting me? Gen- 
 tlemen, who is this man ? ' He turned eagerly, appeal- 
 ingly, to the party of naval officers who stood looking 
 on, petrified with astonishment. For an instant there 
 was a painful stillness. Then Lieutenant Brown, the 
 engineer, stepped forward. 
 
THE MARINE OFFICER'S STORY. 175 
 
 ' Look here, youngster ! In plain words, you are an 
 impostor. You have represented yourself to be a grad- 
 uate of the class of '66 at West Point, an intimate friend 
 of Brown and Jones of that class. Now, here we are ! — 
 I am Brown, of New Haven, with whom you took din- 
 ner last week, and this is your room-mate, Jones. I 
 denounce you as a liar and a fraud, whether you belong 
 to the Fifth Artillery or not ! ' 
 
 Pale as a sheet now, panting with excitement and 
 dread, the little adventurer stuck to his colors, — he 
 made a desperate rally. 
 
 ' Gentlemen of the navy,' he shouted, ' will you per- 
 mit this outrage ? I am here, your guest, an officer of 
 the army in my uniform, and here I am blackguarded 
 by total strangers. How dare you say I am not a 
 West-Pointer ? Who are you ? Where is your uni- 
 form ? You are a pair of beggarly civilians ! How 
 dare you affront me ? By God, I won't submit to it ! ' 
 
 The scene was certainly dramatic. 
 
 Then outspake the gallant tar (Ferguson, dorit blush, 
 or was it that last glass of claret?). ' Look here, gen- 
 tlemen, this won't do. Fair play now ! Captain Dyer 
 is right, by thunder ! Who are you who accuse him ? ' 
 
 ' I vouch for the identity of these gentlemen,' said 
 Ford, striding into the group in his artillery uniform, 
 ' and that young scamp is a liar, as they say.' Still the 
 navy party looked dangerously unconvinced, and rallied 
 around their little protege in a body. 
 
 'So do I vouch for them,' said \, 'and so does Pres- 
 ton here. He has known Lieutenant Brown for two 
 years at least.' 
 
 ' And here is further proof, if you need it,' quoth 
 
376 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 Lieutenant Jones, drawing off a heavy seal ring from his 
 finger. ' Here is our class ring. Look at my friend's, 
 it is the same ; and there are our names engraved inside.' 
 The rings were passed around. There was no mis- 
 taking them. The castle of the engineers, the shell and 
 flame of the ordnance, the crossed arms of the line, all 
 were wrought of heavy gold, while on the onyx stone 
 was cut the motto, ' Non sibi sed patrim', and within the 
 loop each ring was engraved with its owner's name and 
 the letters' U. S. M. A., Class of 1866.' But, even now, 
 our chevalier d' Industrie was not beaten. 
 
 ' They are frauds ! ' he cried ; ' our class had no 
 ring ! We split and decided not to wear it.' Then in 
 came some Frenchmen, and there was more confusion 
 and hubbub ; but presently one of our number spoke : 
 ' Gentlemen, this is no easy question to decide. It 
 is a painful business, but each side has its rights. Cap- 
 tain Dyer is under our protection, and shall not be mo- 
 lested.' And with that he turned, and followed by all of 
 the naval representation, except Preston and myself, led 
 Dyer to the door ; there the youngster halted. 
 
 ' I go at once to the telegraph office, to send a dis- 
 patch to my uncle, the chief of ordnance — General Dyer 
 — in Washington, and 1 shall not rest until the police 
 have lodged those two scoundrels in jail.' 
 
 So ended the first innings. Messrs. Brown and Jones 
 had only come to New London for the day, and were 
 compelled to return to New Haven by an afternoon 
 train. Twice before they departed, and while still in 
 their company we caught sight of Dyer With a knot of 
 'blue-jackets,' French and American, around him, and 
 angry glances were cast at our party, but no further col- 
 
THE MARINE OFFICER'S STORY. 177 
 
 lision occurred. Brown and Jones left their addresses 
 with Ford, Preston, and myself, in case anybody had 
 ■ anything further to say on the subject,' and went their 
 way. 
 
 The next day, when we met aboard ship, the subject 
 of Captain Dyer and the outrage perpetrated upon him 
 by my army friends was not, to my surprise, the imme- 
 diate topic for discussion. In fact, both Preston and 
 myself were struck by the extreme taciturnity of the 
 shore party of the day before. After a while their con- 
 duct struck me as suspicious, so I hailed one who had 
 been a prominent spokesman, and asked — 
 
 ' What answer did your protege receive to his dispatch 
 to General Dyer ? ' 
 
 ' Don't know,' was the somewhat gruff reply, as the 
 gentleman turned impatiently away. So I accosted an- 
 other with a cheery ' Well, Mr. , did you dine with 
 
 Captain Dyer last evening ? ' The only reply was a 
 glare of wrath. This was becoming mysterious ; so, 
 presently, Preston and I tackled a third member of the 
 
 party with ' Look here, F , what's got into you all 
 
 this morning ? Have you found that little rascal out at 
 last ? ' 
 
 F turned upon us suspiciously. ' Haven't you 
 
 heard ? ' he asked ; and when we swore we hadn't, he 
 explained, reluctantly. 
 
 ' Well,— he jumped the town last evening, d — n him ! 
 and left his bills behind.' 
 
 A week afterward, in the Army and Navy Journal^ 
 under the head of Personals, we read a notice something 
 like this : ' Brevet Captain F. Harry Dyer, First Lieu- 
 tenant Fifth Artillery, left the city yesterday, en route for 
 
 12 
 
178 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 Santa Fe, New Mexico, where he is to join the staff of 
 General Terry ; ' and a week after that came another to 
 this effect: 'A correspondent has called our attention to 
 the fact that there is no such officer as Brevet Captain 
 Dyer, First Lieutenant Fifth Artillery, in the army ; and, 
 after reading his letter, we are prompt to confess our- 
 selves the victims of an impostor. We received and 
 published the notice in all good faith, not thinking it 
 possible that any trickery was intended.' 
 
 Next we got a letter (at least Preston did) from Lieu- 
 tenant Brown. In a few words he told us that he had 
 traced Dyer's antecedents completely. ' He was a very 
 smart boy who, some years before, had so interested a 
 wealthy resident of New Haven that the latter sent him 
 to Russell's Military School, supplied him with money, 
 and meant to educate and bring him up as his own. 
 The youngster had taken a notion that he would like to 
 go to West Point, and so," wrote Brown, " he came to 
 my father and told him he had an appointment, and my 
 father encouraged him to come to the house or his office, 
 talked to him by the hour of myself and classmates, 
 which accounts for so much that he knew. Now it 
 seems that a large number of petty thefts at the school, 
 that had been going on for months, were traced to him 
 a month ago, and he cleared out, and, last of all, it has 
 just been discovered that he has forged his benefactor's 
 name for several hundred dollars.' 
 
 So much for Captain Dyer. Any time, for a year after 
 that, that you wanted to get half a dozen fellows on the 
 Witinebago, fighting inad, you had only to mention that 
 name. Ferguson, your face to-night reminds me vividly 
 of an inflamed countenance I once saw away back in '66. 
 
THE MARINE OFFICER'S STORY. 179 
 
 Now, this isn't a Christmas story so far, I admit. 
 These are only prefatory remarks, however. We'll come 
 to Christmas presently. You see, as I warned you at 
 the outset, I have no practice as a talker, and so, once 
 started, my tongue runs away with me. 
 
 Of Captain Dyer nothing more, to my knowledge, was 
 ever heard ; but, in the course of the next few years, the 
 Army and Navy Journal contained frequent allusion to a 
 mysterious character who turned up unexpectedly, like an 
 inland Flying Dutchman, in all manner of places where 
 the junior officers and midshipmen of the navy had rela- 
 tives; invariably to the financial detriment of those warm- 
 hearted people. For months the columns of the journal 
 were graced with sketches of the flying visits paid by 
 this erratic party, who was described to be young, grace- 
 ful, handsome, stylishly dressed, ordinarily in undress 
 naval uniform, particularly easy and winning in his man- 
 ners, and invariably out of cash and in need of a tempo- 
 rary loan. 
 
 What father could refuse it to the intimate friend of 
 his boy at sea? What mother did not eagerly listen to 
 his stories of their laughable adventures, or bless him for 
 his touching recital of some instance of her boy's noble- 
 heartedness ? Time and again we read of his swindling 
 somebody or other, and one night Preston, looking up 
 from his paper, accosted a chatting group with ' I say, 
 you fellows ! what do you want to bet this " Bilged Mid- 
 shipman," as they call him, isn't your old New London 
 acquaintance, the brave jeune capitaine ? ' 
 
 Well, Christmas holidays of '6.8 had come ; and, with 
 a short leave, I had run out to Detroit to visit some rela- 
 tives and army friends then living there. Gay times they 
 
180 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 were having that winter. The city was full of pretty- 
 girls. Parties, dances, balls, and dinners were crowding 
 upon one another. A regiment of infantry and a light 
 battery, quartered at Fort Wayne, and a dozen engineer 
 officers in town, made the item of beaux an easy one. 
 I fell into the music naturally enough, though I only got 
 there three days before Christmas, and was having the 
 thoroughly delightful time that, in my opinion, a fellow 
 of either service only has in its full perfection in that 
 hospitable 'City of the Straits.' The army men know 
 it ten times better than we do, but I never yet saw a man 
 in the navy who didn't want to get back to Detroit, — 
 once having paid it a visit. 
 
 On Christmas morning, as we were coming out of 
 church, I was suddenly seized upon by one of the most 
 genial and charming ladies in society. Old enough to 
 be the mother of one of our most dashing young ensigns 
 (which accounts for her seizing upon me), but so young 
 and kindly in her disposition as to be the favorite of all 
 the young people in society. 
 
 ' Oh, Mr. Ratchet ! ' she exclaimed, ' we only heard 
 of your arrival last night, and my husband went down 
 to call upon you the first thing this morning, but you 
 had left the hotel. Now, don't tell me you are en- 
 gaged for Christmas-dinner or I shall be in despair. 
 Now that my Jack is away in the Pacific Squadron, 
 I have no comfort so great as meeting his friends. 
 You will dine with us, won't you ? We have quite a 
 little party of pretty girls and army men, but I do 
 want one more of my boy's friends with us. Mr. 
 Walton is the only one, and he'll be so rejoiced to 
 see you.' 
 
THE MARINE OFFICER'S STORY. 181 
 
 ' Walton ? ' said I. ' What Walton ? ' forgetting for 
 an instant the invitation. 
 
 'Why, George Walton. Jack's classmate at Anna- 
 polis. He said that you were marine officer on the 
 Winnebago with them in '66, but he had no idea you 
 were in this part of the country.' 
 
 ' No more had I that he was here,' answered I, 
 and with that we strolled off down Jefferson Avenue 
 together, chatting about Jack and his voyages and 
 comrades. I had accepted her invitation gladly enough, 
 for I knew that my bachelor friends would excuse me. 
 The avenue was crowded with people walking blithely 
 homewards in the keen frosty air, and with brilliant 
 sleighs dashing to and fro to the music of their merry 
 bells. Suddenly Mrs. Britton exclaimed, 'There's Mr. 
 Britton now, — and our sleigh, — and Mr. Walton ! ' 
 
 I glanced quickly as the sleigh darted by, but only 
 in time to catch a fleeting glance of the occupants. 
 I saw Mr. Britton's jovial face and silvery hair, and 
 by his side a handsome young fellow jauntily raising 
 a navy undress cap from his shapely head. Not. Mr. 
 Walton by a good deal, as I remembered him, but — 
 where the mischief had I seen that face before ? 
 
 No chance was given me to ask further questions. 
 Mrs. Britton was joined by friends, to whom I was 
 presented ; and when we parted at her door I had 
 only time to ask where Mr. Walton was staying. 
 Ten minutes after I was overhauling the register of 
 the Russell House, and there, ambng the arrivals for 
 the 23d, was the name George Walton, U. S. N. He 
 had gone sleigh-riding with Mr. Britton, said the clerk ; 
 but would I leave my card ? No, I wouldn't leave 
 
182 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 my card, but would wait. I did wait, — something like 
 two hours, it seemed to me, staring out at the snow- 
 covered street, feverishly reading the newspapers, and 
 keeping vigorous watch all the time for the return of 
 this Mr. Walton. The genuine possessor of the name 
 and rank I believed to be far away in the China seas. 
 Now, who was the handsome youngster I had seen in 
 Britton's sleigh ? The face haunted me. 
 
 But, after all, my watch had to be broken. An en- 
 gagement took me up-town again, and then I had just 
 time to dress and hurry to the Brittons. 
 
 A bright party of young people were there assembled, 
 and chatting away with far more jollity than is usually 
 the case when waiting for dinner. 
 
 But where was Walton ? Every now and then Mr. 
 Britton would fidget and look at his watch. ' I wonder 
 what keeps Mr. Walton ? ' he said. ' We are only wait- 
 ing for him.' A quarter of an hour passed, and the 
 missing guest came not. A messenger was sent to the 
 hotel, and meantime dinner was announced. We were 
 discussing turkey and the inconstancy of sailors in gen- 
 eral, when the messenger returned, and handed Mr. 
 Britton a note, which, with an apology, he opened and 
 read. ' Bless my soul ! ' he exclaimed, ' what can this 
 mean ? ' and then read aloud, — 
 
 ' Russell House, 
 ' Dec. 25, 6.45 p. M. 
 ' My dear Sir,— Mr. George Walton, U. S. N.,took his valise and left 
 the house immediately after returning from his drive with you. He left no 
 word as to his destination. (Signed) Briggs, C'lk.' 
 
 I could hold in no longer. ' Will you pardon me for 
 a very impertinent question, Mr. Britton ? I have earn- 
 
THE MARINE OFFICER'S STORY. 183 
 
 est reasons for asking if Mr. Walton made any mention 
 to you of being in need of a little pecuniary assistance ? ' 
 
 ' Why,' said our host, reddening and stammering, ' it 
 is a matter I'd rather not speak of I — I — in fact, 
 cannot! 
 
 ' You need not fear harming George Walton's good 
 name, sir. You have simply been victimized by the 
 " Bilged Midshipman." I met him in '66 as ' Captain 
 Dyer.' " 
 
 By the time that the marine officer had finished his story 
 the commanding officer was evidently becoming uneasy, 
 and at once broke in with the remark that it was very 
 late for ship hours, and that he feared he must excuse 
 himself 
 
 " Oh, Tangent," said the admiral laughingly, " the old 
 ship won't run away from you, and Christmas only comes 
 once a year." 
 
 " Well, admiral," said the captain, " before we separate 
 I am glad of the opportunity of calling upon my old 
 messmate, the paymaster, for his own ' Saturday Night ' 
 song, as appropriate to-night as on the last evening of 
 the week. Some few of us are old enough to remember 
 another song — addressed to a member of your corps, by 
 the way, paymaster, which was as good a thing of the 
 kind as ever was written, — 
 
 ' Here's a health to thee, Tom Breese, 
 Tom Breese of the bounding billow ! ' " 
 
 But Mr. Balance's lines seem to me to come nearer 
 to our hearts than even that. " Tom Breese " was an oui- 
 ward-bound song, while this is a real homeward-bounder. 
 And I know, too, that for some reason the paymaster has 
 
184 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 never sung it during this cruise, and therefore the prob- 
 abihty is that no one present, except myself, has ever 
 heard it. 
 
 In a moment (to the surprise of every one but the 
 captain) the paymaster, in a mellow, but rather overripe 
 tenor, began the following verses : 
 
 Come, messmates, fill the cup once more ; 
 
 We'll drink, before we part, 
 The toast that long has sacred been 
 
 To every sailor's heart. 
 
 The toast that's passed our trembling lips 
 
 On many a distant shore, 
 And sounded in our loyal hearts 
 
 Above the ocean's roar. 
 
 The toast that all the gallant dead 
 
 And all the living brave. 
 That sleep beneath the ocean's breast 
 
 Or float upon its wave, 
 
 Have pledged so oft with faltering voice. 
 
 And with a glistening eye, 
 On many and many a distant sea, 
 
 'Neath many a foreign sky. 
 
 The toast that bears our spirits back 
 
 On memory's wings to-night. 
 To homes where loved ones, clustering 
 
 Around the firesides bright, 
 
 With gentle voices murmur 
 
 Fondly of those who roam ; 
 Where little ones are lisping, 
 
 " When will papa come home ? " 
 
 Where wives beloved and loving, 
 
 And maidens pure and fair, 
 To-night our names are breathing 
 
 In earnest, holy prayer. 
 
THE MARINE OFFICER'S STORY. 185 
 
 And not a doubt is whispered 
 
 Of those so far away ; 
 They ask not God to keep us true. 
 
 But for oiu' safety pray. 
 
 Then drink tlie toast, it cheers our hearts, 
 
 And lightens all our cares ; 
 It mingles with our daily thoughts, 
 
 And with our nightly prayers. 
 
 Mid calm or storm, on land or sea. 
 
 Whenever we may roam, 
 With heart and lip we'll pledge the toast, 
 
 " Sweethearts and wives at home." 
 
 For some time before Mr. Balance ceased his song the 
 ship's motion had been felt to change, and ominous 
 sounds of incoming studding-sails and of" working ship" 
 had come faintly down the hatch, causing the captain to 
 fidget a little, and the admiral to glance at the beams for 
 a tell-tale compass, which was not there. 
 
 These sounds, and the change of motion, would, prob- 
 ably, not have attracted the attention of a landsman 
 seated at the table, and yet every soul there present 
 knew what they meant. 
 
 Just then appeared a midshipman to say, " Captain 
 Tangent, the officer of the deck reports that the wind 
 has come out ahead, and ship's head is off to south- 
 sou'west." 
 
 "Very good, Mr. Butt!" said the captain, in a cool 
 and perfunctory tone and manner ; and then, rising, he 
 said, " Gentlemen, we've lost the Trades early, and this 
 is the last pleasant weather we shall have," and up on 
 deck he went without another word. 
 
 " Good-night, gentlemen ! " said the admiral. " I 
 
186 A CHRISTMAS AT SEA. 
 
 thank you for a pleasant dinner. We've a long pull yet 
 before us, and more than one northeast snow-storm, and 
 northwester to' follow, before you see your sweethearts 
 and wives." 
 
 And they were both right ! 
 
^There.'8 
 
 No Doubt 
 
 about the curative effects of 
 Scott's Emulsion of Pure Nor- 
 wegian Cod Liver Oil and Hy- 
 pophosphites of Lime and Soda 
 in the first stages of consump- 
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 Scott's Emulsion cures Coughs, Colds, 
 Consumption, Scrofula, General Debility, 
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 It prevents wasting in children. It is 
 palatable as milk,. Scott's Emul- 
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 Se sure you get the genuine. It 
 
 is prepared only by Scott and Bowne,New 
 York, and sold by all Druggists. 
 
 Scolfs 
 Etnidsion 
 
A happy thought, that, to print a whole story in 
 each number of a magazine ; not a short story, 
 either, but a full-fledged novel, such as magazines 
 used to take a year to complete. Only a wide- 
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 stories ! 
 
 The new idea came in with a whoop with a 
 story of Habberton, entitled " Brueton's Bayou." 
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 Well, they've been coming once a month ever 
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 Chock full of bright articles on popular subjects, 
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 It pays to be wide-awake. 
 
 Single numbers, 25 cents. $3.00 per year. 
 Address 
 
 LIPPINCOTT'S MAGAZINE, 
 
 Philadelphia. 
 
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 Prepared only by Van Houten & Zoon, Weesp, Holland. * 124 
 
 T<m,y Weller, 
 
The 
 
 Philadelphia ||^^ 
 Record^^ 
 
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 LEADING MORNING NEWSPAPER 
 
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 Circulation, 140,ooo. 
 
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M 
 
 ILITARY NOVELS BY 
 
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 CAPTAIN BLAKE. 
 
 With Illustrations. l2mo. Cloth, S1.25. 
 
 " It is like a long draught of clear, cool spring water after a 
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 Captain King has done much to give the people at large, who 
 have known next to nothing of the dangers and privations and 
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BY LAND MND SEM- 
 
 Edited by Capt. CHARLES KINO. 
 
 A collection of short stories of Military and Naval adventure, written by 
 Otticers of the Army and Navy. Among the contributors are: 
 Capt. CHAS. KING, U.S.A. Capt. H. D. SMITH, U.S.R.M. 
 
 Capt. EDWARD FIELD, U.S.A. Mr. E. L. KEYES, late U.S.A. 
 
 Lieut. T. H. STEVENS, U.S.N. Capt. WM. C. BARTLETT, U.S.A. 
 
 Lieut. F. S. BASSETT, U.S.N. Lieut. JOHN P. WISSER. U.S.A. 
 
 Capt. HENRY ROMEYN, U.S.A. 
 
 and several other officers, including one of high rank in the navy, whose names 
 will be announced in due time. The book will be a companion volume to the 
 " ClolonePs Christmas Dinner," although somewhat larger in size than that book, 
 and the price will be 50 cents a copy, postage frre. 
 
 The stories are all new, and written expressly for this book. 
 
 TH^ C010HW6 CHRISTMAS PINNER, 
 
 Edited by Capt. CHAS. KINO, U.S.A. 
 PAPER, 200 PAGES. 12mo. PRICE, 50 CENTS. 
 
 LIST OF contributors: 
 
 Introduction By Capt. CHAS. KING, U.S.A. 
 
 The Adjutant's Story " Capt. CHAS. KING, U.S.A. 
 
 The Senior Lieutenant's Story . . " Lieut. THOS. H. WILSON, U.S.A. 
 The Senior Captain's Story . . . " Capt. EDWARD FIELD, U.S.A. 
 
 The Junior Captain's Story, . . " Capt. HENRY ROMEYN, U.S.A. 
 
 The Colonel's Daughter's Story, . " Miss CAROLINE F. LITTLE. 
 
 A Captain's Story, " Capt. W. C. BARTLETT, U.S.A. 
 
 The Quartermaster's Story . . " Mr. EDW^ARD L. KEYES. 
 
 The Major's Story " Major. WM. H. POWELL, U.S.A. 
 
 A Guest's Story, . " ALICE KING LIVINGSTON. 
 
 The Colonel's Story " Col. H. W. CLOSSON, U.S.A. 
 
 These stories are all of military adventure. They are supposed to be told 
 over the walnuts and the wine at a dinner given by the Colonel of the regiment. 
 
 The publishers venture the assertion that no book of the kind, published 
 here or abroad, excels in literary merit or exceeds in typographical beauty this 
 dainty volume. 
 
 The picture on the title-page was drawn for us by Mr. T. S. Sullivant. 
 
 TRIALS OF A STAFF-OFFICER. 
 
 By Captain CHARLES KIXO, U.S.A. 
 
 This volume is composed of the sketches Captain King has contributed at 
 intervals during the past five years to the United Service. It contains 
 "THE ADJUTANT." "THE ORDNANCE OFFICER." 
 
 "AT WEST POINT." 
 "THE TELEPHONE AS AN ADJUNCT TO THE NATIONAL GUARD." 
 
 "MILITIA INSPECTIONS." 
 "MILITIA CAMPS OF INSTRUCTION." "SHAM BATTLES." 
 
 "THE ADVANTAGES OF ONE'S OWN WORKSHOP." 
 
 "HOW WE ELECTED THE MAYOR OF OGLETHORPE." 
 These sketches are written in Captain King's happiest vein, and one critic 
 has pronounced them the t'est literary work the author has ever done. 
 
 "The book is handsomely issued in paper, 200 pages, 12mo., at 50 cents, and 
 will be sent by mail, postage paid, at this price. 
 
 L. I HflpiERSLY & CO., PuBlistiers, 151 Cfjestnut St., Pl|ilaila. 
 
 THE THREE VOLUMES WILL BE SENT FREE OF POSTAGE FOR $1.00. 
 
Safest, pastest, and Finest 
 Trains in flmefiea. 
 
 RUN VIA 
 
 Baltimore and Obio Railroad 
 
 BETWEEN 
 
 HEW YORK, PHILADELPHIA, 
 
 BALTIMORE, and WASHINHTOH. 
 
 All trains vestibuled from end to end, and protected by Pullman's Anti-Telescoping 
 
 Appliance, including Baggage Cars, Day Coaches, Parlor Cars, and Sleepers. 
 
 All Cars heated by Steam, and lighted by Pintsch Gas. Pullman Dining Cars attached 
 
 to famous five-hour trains between New York and Washington. 
 
 THE BflliTHWOt^H RfiO OHIO l^HIIil^ORD 
 
 Maintains a Complete Service of Vestibuled Express Trains between 
 
 NEW YOBK. 
 
 ClflCIflflflTI, 
 ST. LOUIS, 
 and CHIGflGO, 
 
 EQUIPPED WITH 
 
 PULLMAN 
 
 PALACE 
 
 SLEEPING CARS 
 
 Running through 
 without change. 
 
 ALL 
 B.#0. TRAINS 
 
 BETWEEN THE 
 
 East and West, 
 RUN MiK lAlKSHINGTON. 
 
 ^K 
 
 an Washineton Street, Boston, Mass. 
 
 415 BroarlAvay, New York. 
 
 N. E. Cor. gth and Chestnut Sts., Phila- 
 delphia, Pa. 
 
 Cor. Baltimore and Calvert Sts., Balti- 
 more, Md. 
 
 PRINCIPAL OFFICES: 
 
 1351 Pennsylvania A v., Washington, D.C- 
 Corner Wood St. and Fifth Ave., Pitts- 
 
 buTg, Pa. 
 Corner 4th and Vine Sts., Cincinnati, O. 
 193 Clark Street, Chicago, 111. 
 105 North Broadway, St.. Louis, Mo. 
 
 T. ODELL, 
 
 General Manager. 
 
 BALTIMORE, MD. 
 
 CHAS. O. SCULL, 
 
 General Passenger Ageni. 
 

 Facsimiles 
 
 Etchings 
 
 Proof Engravings 
 
 Water Colors 
 
 Oil Paintings 
 
 Mirrors 
 
 French Miniature Frames 
 
 Tasteful Picture Frames 
 
 For Borne Decoriilion ^ BriJcI Gift5 
 
DOBBINS' 
 
 Electric Soap 
 
 Is for sale everywhere, and has been ever since 1869. 
 Acknowledged by all to be 
 
 THE BEST FAMILY SOAP IN THE WORLD. 
 
 We ask every woman using it, to save the OUTSIDE WRAPPERS and send 
 them to us. We will mail her, postpaid, the following Beautiful Presents, gratis : 
 
 For each Twenty-five complete outside wrappers, a lovely panel picture, " La 
 Petite," by a foreign artist, superior to our "Two Sisters" or "L'Hiver" for beauty 
 and artistic merit. 
 
 For each Twenty complete outside wrappers, any volume of the "Surprise Series " 
 of twenty-five-cent novels. Nearly 200 volumes, and about 200 pages each. 
 
 If Preferred y two wrappers and ten cents in stamps or cash may be 
 
 sent instead of twenty wrapperSy for these books only. 
 
 Send one cent for catalogue of novels. 
 
 M^^Very best Autkors."^^ 
 
 For each Sixty complete outside wrappers, we will mail a Worcester Pocket 
 Dictionary, 298 pages. 
 
 To those who prefer to assist Religious or Charitable Institutions we make the 
 following offer : Instead of sending the above presents, we will pay cash at the 
 rate of fifty cents for each 100 complete outside wrappers sent us. It makes no dif- 
 ference whether they are sent us direct by the lady using the Soap, or saved, and 
 given by her to her favorite institution, no matter what denotnination, and by them 
 sent to us. We will send the money to the person sending us the wrappers. This will 
 give needed financial assistance to worthy charities, at no expense to you. We pro- 
 pose to donate thus, at least one hundred thousand dollars a year. Among himdreds 
 of worthy institutions are all the Little Sisters of the Poor, Orphan Asylums, Sisters 
 of Charity, Hospitals, Women's Relief Corps, G. A. R. or S, of V. Soldiers' Homes, 
 W, C. T, U., "King's Daughters" Circles, etc. 
 
 I. L. CRAGIN & CO., 
 
 Manufacturers Dobbins' Electric Soap, 
 
 No. 119 S. Fourth Street, Philadelphia, Pa. 
 
Why 
 
 Should the Penn Mutual Life Insur- 
 ance Company pay the publishers of 
 this volume for the privilege of 
 occupying this space ? Why should 
 it advertise at all ? 
 
 IT HAS OVER EIGHTEEN MILLION 
 DOLLARS OF ASSETS. 
 
 Its clear sur])liis over all liabilities, present or future, is 
 nearly Two and a half Million Dollars. 
 
 In 1 89 1 it received for premiums and interest, ^'5,001,508.34. 
 
 It paid to Widows and Orphans, and to living members, 
 12,312,042.97. 
 
 It applied to reserve, so as to make absolutely certain the 
 payment of all other contracts as they mature, gi, 682, 907. 
 
 It wrote ^25,600,000 of new insurance. 
 
 It pushed the total of Insurance in force to $104,000,000. 
 Quite a little responsibility, to be sure ! 
 
 It doesn't need business — don't have to have it, and won't 
 accept it unless it comes on such terms as will promote the 
 prosperity of every member of the corporation. 
 
 It advertises that YOU may participate in its benefits, and 
 it invites you to become a member solely because an extension 
 of its business may come to mean a reduced cost to all, A 
 merchant knows that he can sell a million dollars' worth of 
 goods at a less ratio of expense than a half million. 
 
 -ADDRESS- 
 
 The Penn Mutual Life Insurance Co., 
 
 921, 923, and 925 CHESTNUT STREET, 
 PHILADELPHIA.