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PAPERS OF AN OLD DARTMOOR PRISONER.

EDITED BY NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE,

CHAPTER III.

VESSEL AND OFFICERS-LIFE ON BOARD A PRIVATEER.

BEING now fairly out at sea, I had an opportunity to look around me and survey our motley crew of officers and men. Our vessel I have already described, in language which may seem to partake largely of hyperbole and burlesque; but in all sober earnestness, I believe that a more unsuitable craft, for all purposes of safety or comfort, never swam the water. Our first attempt to go to sea in her, had, as has been related, well-nigh proved fatal to all the crew; and although the alteration of her bottom had added not a little to her capacity of keeping afloat, yet she sat so low in the water, that, when there was anything of a stiff breeze, and a smart sea running, she was, almost the whole time, under water-just emerging, now and then, as a whale occasionally comes up to the surface to blow. Until we had reached the tropical latitudes, we were almost continually submerged, and our decks not being tight, the water was continually leaking in below-even when it did not come down through the hatchway -wetting our bunks or sleeping-places; and our clothes-bags were, much of the time, completely saturated with the salt-water. Our vessel being small, (only about 120 tons burthen,) and remarkably deficient in stowage capacity, we were not allowed to take on board any chests or trunks, but were restricted to a bag, which would hold about a bushel by measure, to keep our clothes in; so that we had no means of securing our few duds, (as the sailors call all articles of clothing,) from the saltwater; they were thus continually reeking with the wet, as was also our bedding. This was our case in the wardroom, and also in the fore-castle,

VOL. XVIII.-NO. XCII.

and in the main hold, where the sailors lived. In the cabin, the case was somewhat better; for the Dons who messed there took care to have the decks well caulked, and being further aft, when the vessel pitched bows under, the water would be likely to expend itself in the forecastle and wardroom before it reached the domicil of those potent Seignors, the officers of the cabin.They were allowed to have chests on board, which, with a covering of tarpaulin, may be made water-tight. I have, many a time, come down from the deck drenched to the skin in water, and turned into my bunk with my reeking clothes on-the bedding completely saturated likewise, and turned out again in the morning, to go through my various duties of the day, as wet as a drowned rat, and this for days and days consecutively. Notwithstanding the discomfort of our situation, we had many a hearty laugh at each other, when some poor fellow got more than an ordinary ducking, for Jack is a lighthearted animal and kicks care behind him, and contrives to extract fun even out of his own annoyances. Many a hearty laugh have we had at each other, when sitting below around our kid of salt beef, so hard that one might have sharpened his knife on it, and as salt as if the salt-pits of Salina had concentrated all their saline and antiseptic powers upon it, when the companionhatchway-slide had been slipped back for a minute, to let some tardy messmate dive down to dinner, to have at least a barrel of salt water pour down at his back, floating away our kid of salt junk and potatoes, and driving us against one another in the scramble to regain it. However, we were like the old 2

woman's eels, when she was skinning them they doesn't mind it, poor creatures, they are used to it.' So was it with us; we minded a wetting as little as does a spaniel.

The cabin, as I have said, is the aftermost apartment on board a vessel; in this resided the captain, the two lieutenants, the doctor and sailing-master. We gentlemen of the wardroom were invited, one at a time, each day to dine with the skipper and his mess; and this was a red letter day in our calendar, for he was a gourmand, and having command of every thing appertaining to the craft, and a first-rate steward to wait upon him and compound his messes, we had always a good dinner when we dined with the captain. The little man would then unlace his dignity and condescend to be facetious. It was, as a matter of course, expected that we should laugh at his jokes, and at least affect to believe his stories.

I have seen it said, somewhere, that every man has two characters, viz., his Sunday character, in which he dresses himself up and appears before the world, and his week-day character, in which he shows himself to those to whose praise or censure he is indifferent. I have often thought of this remark in connection with our captain; for, on the quarter-deck, he was as stately and unbending as the most strenuous stickler for dignity could desire him to be-walking the weather side of the quarterdeck with slow and measured tread, sole "monarch of all he surveyed," and woe to the luckless wight who should be caught napping in duty. He had a hawk's eye to all imperfections and derelictions, and was prompt to reprove and severe to punish. And yet this man, over his glass of wine after dinner, was as playful as a child, ringing his jocund laugh till the very deck resounded with it, telling the most facetious jokes, spinning the most incredible yarns himself always the hero of his own tales-and exerting all his powers of amusement upon one who, perhaps only a short hour before, had been the object of his most bitter censure or withering rebuke. He was a sailor, and a ripe and good one; had been supercargo and captain in merchant vessels to almost every port where an American flag was ever displayed; had seen much; read much;

observed much, and had a happy faculty of communicating what he knew; and if we had only known when to believe him, he would have been a very instructive, as he certainly was a very entertaining companion.

Our first lieutenant was a fine specimen of a man, and of a sailor. He was a native of Marblehead, a town renowned in American history for the sturdy patriotism of its sons. He was a fine, well proportioned, man, of a frame capable of enduring the greatest fatigue, sinewy, and well knit; and his temper and disposition of the greatest placability and equanimity. Yet, there was no weakness about him, he was resolute and bold, would state his orders with clearness and precision. and would insist on their being obeyed promptly and effectually. During my short sea pilgrimage, I observed a wonderful difference in the way in which officers get along with sailors. Some are continually fussing and fidgeting about, making a great show of activity, swearing at this man, and raging at that one, and yet bring very little to pass; for Jack understands the thing well enough, and can play the old soldier when he pleases, making a show of doing something, and yet accomplishing very little. And with an officer of this description, he will play the old soldier; and, however well satisfied the officer may be that he is a wonderful smart fellow, Jack will roll his tobacco over in his mouth, give a knowing wink with one of his blinkers, sing out "Aye, aye, sir;" and laugh in his sleeve at the fussy and fidgety dignitary. Now, nothing of this kind belonged to Lieut. D.; he would go calmly to work, surveying every thing with the eye of a seaman, give his orders with dignity and propriety; and they were always obeyed, as the sailors call it, “with a will," for there was not a man on board from the captain to the cook, who had not the utmost confidence in, and respect for our lieutenant.

Our second lieutenant was from Newburyport, a little, smart, dark complexioned man, a perfect contrast to our first lieutenant, being one of your fussy, bustling sort. He was, however, a capable officer, a brave man, and a good sailor. He was, generally, pretty well liked by the crew, but not by our captain. These two were al

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most at variance, and the lieutenant exhibited his dislike for the skipper in all the modes he dared; our captain being a man who brooked no indiguity from any one under his command. After our capture, and when the skipper had doffed his official character, they got along better together. They, perhaps, thought it best to forego all former dissensions and adopt the policy recommended to his crew, by the skipper of a Marblehead fishing vessel. My men," said he, "we are bound on a three months' fishing cruise, and for that length of time we have got to put up with each other's company, whether we like it or not-now, it may be that some of you don't like one, and one don't like t'other, but I can tell you there must be no quarreling aboard this schooner; so what I recommend is this, that each one should leave his dislikes behind him, and veer and haul a little, veer and haul a little, grease the spugger and live loving." The spugger is, I believe, an instrument with which the fishermen turn the rashers of pork while being fried. I do not know, whether our captain and lieutenant had ever heard of this advice of the fisherman. They, however, acted upon it, and greased the spugger and lived passably loving.

Our sailing-master was a little bustling man about five feet high, born in Marblehead, and bred as a fisherman, though he had sailed, likewise, in the merchant-service; and had been one or two privateering cruises. He talked the dialect which was peculiar to Marblehead some fifty years since, and by which a Marbleheadman might be distinguished the world over. They have changed all that now, and the dialect remains with but a few antiquated inhabitants, and will soon be entirely extinct. During my privateering days, I saw much of these gallant sons of the ocean, and I found them to be such sterling good fellows, notwithstanding their eccentricities-so full of the milk of human kindness-ever ready to share with those poorer than themselves, and to do a poor fellow a brotherly kindness-that I contracted such a respect for the character of a Marbleheadman, that it sticks to me yet; my heart warms to the brogue whenever I hear it, as the Duke of Argyle's heart warmed to the tar

tan when he saw it worn by Jeanie Deans.

Our sailing-master was a prompt and efficient officer, and had a very responsible office, for the sailing-master has charge of all the sails, rigging, and every thing appertaining to the stowage of the hold, and is obliged, under the direction of the captain, to sail the craft and to keep the log-book. He had, in our vessel, two mates to assist him. It appears to me to be an absurdity in these days, when the captain and lieutenants of an armed vessel are, or are supposed to be, thoroughbred sailors, to have such officers as a sailing-master and mates. The present system grew up, some centuries ago in England, when there were no regular government vessels of war; but merchant vessels were taken into the service, and soldiers were put on board to do the fighting, the sailing-master being the sailor, captain or commander of the vessel, and the captain and his lieutenants being the commander and officers of the soldiers; this was all very well then, and in fact could not be otherwise, but the practice now is entirely different; and, yet, in the English and American service, the officers are continued. I believe that most naval men are convinced of the necessity of a reform in this particular; and the practice, now, is to take passed midshipmen as masters and mates, so that the office is, in fact, abolished, and yet the name continued. Our sailing-master, when irritated, (and it was not seldom,) would swear all manner of strange oaths, which, when not absolutely shocking, were amusing enough; as his imagination was very prolific in odd conceits for imprecations. And yet, he was very superstitious, believed in ghosts and goblins, in haunted houses and haunted ships. and the smallest doubt of the actual incarnation of Satan, would have been to him rank blasphemy. I used to go on deck sometimes when he had the night-watch and pace the deck with him, and listen to his wonderful stories of the witches of the North Cape, of ghosts which had appeared in various shapes and manners, how one appeared to "Lucky Nick," of Marblehead, and led him a dance, at night, among the stones of the grave-yard; and how old sailors, when they died at sea, turned into Mother Carey's chick

ens. All this he as firmly believed, as he did his Bible, and was thoroughly convinced, that if any one killed a Mother Carey's chicken, his own life would be the forfeit, and that he would have to go to supply the place of the dead bird. Poor fellow, he, too, has sailed his last voyage, and has gone where his good and bad qualities are entered on the log-book above.

Next comes the doctor. This was not the knight of the fiddle mentioned in our last, for he had become satisfied with his near approach to a watery grave, and had consulted his safety by going into the country, "to seek for patients on dry land."

Our present Physic, as the sailors nickname the doctor, (for "Doctor" is the nautical appellation of the cook,) was a tall, lank, raw-boned man from the interior of New-Hampshire. Where he studied, whether he studied at all, from what college he got his diploma, or whether he had any, I do not know; and I know nothing of his medical or surgical skill. I presume the owners were satisfied on that score, when they engaged him; but, I believe, from some specimens that I saw, that owners were not, generally, very scrupulous as to qualifications. The law required a surgeon, and somebody must go in that capacity, whatever might be his knowledge of physiology, pathology, or therapeutics. Our doctor had but one opportunity to display his science while on board our schooner, and that was, in the operation of philebotomy. He bled the man well enough; and when he removed the tourniquet from the arm, he applied to the orifice a quid of tobacco fresh from his mouth, which he said was a most excellent styptic. The practice was a novel one to me, and I commend it to the tobaccoeating professors of the art of healing of the present day, as a styptic always at hand to some of them. Our present physico was the occasion of a good deal of fun to the sailors. He had never, before engaging in this cruise. seen a vessel or salt water; every thing was new to him, and it was some time before he could become addicted to his situation. He was intolerably sea sick for several days after our sailing, and used to wish himself at home again in the bush, a hundred times a day. After he had somewhat recovered from

his sea-sickness, it was some time before he got his sea-legs on. Our little schooner would pitch and roll to a great degree even when there was but little sea or wind, and I have often seen him come up on deck in his "long togs," (i. e., long coat and pantaloons,) when he would soon go his full length into the lee scuppers.

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But the doctor, after he got wonted,' as he used to term it, to a sea life, proved to be a very pleasant and agreeable companion. He would conform with the utmost good humor to the rough jokes of the sailors, and make the best of the discomforts of his situation. He had a vein of quaint, dry humor about him, which was sometimes irresistibly comic; and when telling one of his stories, which would set the table in a roar, not a muscle of his own countenance would be moved, but his face would appear as grave as a Methodist parson's. He was one of the innumerable instances which abound all over New-England, of one, who, born to no inheritance but poverty, and seemingly destined all his life long to a life of toil and labor, had yet contrived some how or other to pick up a very tolerable education, and to become a professional man. How this was accomplished, I have forgotten, if I ever knew; but I remember that he used to tell us many a pleasant story of his school keeping days; for, while obtaining his education, he supplied his wants by keeping a country school during the winter season.

Having spent so much of my readers' patience in describing the Dons of the cabin, I shall pass over my companions of the wardroom, (who were four prize-masters and two master'smates,) by saying that they were pleasant and companionable men, and good officers. We lived in the utmost harmony, and made the very best of our very uncomfortable quarters. To one of them I owe many thanks for his kindness to me, particularly after our capture. He is still living, a respectable and prosperous shipmaster, from Newburyport; and should these lines ever reach his eye, I beg him to be assured of my undiminished gratitude and respect.

The wardroom was a small apartment, directly forward of the cabin, the store room only intervening. It'

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was, as nigh as I can now recollect, about 14 feet square, within the bunks or sleeping places, of which there were four on each side; and it was so low, that the tallest of our mess could not stand upright in it. The reader may conceive, that what with our very limited accommodations, and the juicy character of our vessel, we did not live a very comfortable, much less a luxurious life; but we were a happy-golucky' set of fellows, and contrived to wear away the time as well as if we had been in, (as Jack calls it,) a white limed chamber.' I have often since wondered why I went to sea in this little vessel; for there was at that time fitting out one of the largest and most successful privateer ships that ever swam the ocean; she was commanded by a relation of mine, who made me a very favorable offer to go with him; but I preferred the little schooner. I suppose my choice was influenced by the fact, that I had been the short cruise before with my little captain, and liked him; and that the chance of a larger amount of prize money, was better in a small vessel, with a few men, in the event of our being able to capture a valuable prize.

I will here remark, for the information of the generation which has grown up, in these piping times of peace,' that privateering was a joint stock concern. The owners provided the vessel, and all the equipments and munitions of war, provisions, &c., for which they received one half of all the prize money; the other moiety was divided among the officers and crew. The captain received from 8 to 10 shares, the lieutenants and sailing-master, 5 or 6; prize-masters and master's-mates. 3 to 4; boatswain, gunner, and carpenter, 2 to 3; able seamen, one, and landsmen and boys, from to ths of a share.

Forward of the wardroom was the main hold, in which the crew lodged; for in fair weather they took their meals on deck. The crew were divided into messes of six each, and each mess was provided with one or more kids, and each man with a tin pot and iron spoon. Every sailor has a jackknife or claspknife of his own. One of the mess, is alternately, the caterer, or he is styled the cook; although he has nothing to do with the cooking, any fur

ther than to put the beef and potatoes into the net, and to put the mess-tally on it, carry it to the galley or cookhouse, deliver it to the cook, and receive it again when sufficiently cooked. A sailor's allowance is a pound of beef and a pound of bread per day, an allowance of cocoa for morning and evening meals, a little salt, and occasionally some butter. This was our every day allowance, varied only on banion days, when in lieu of beef and potatoes, we had stewed beans with pork, and on Sundays a duff, or flour pudding. The sailors, as I have said, ate their meals generally on deck, squatting, tailor fashion, around their kids. I know these details are trivial to those who are familiar with life afloat, but I believe a large majority of those who have never been to sea, have almost as false a conception of a sailor's life, as had the old lady, who asked her son, after his return from a voyage, if they stopped every night, and put up at a tavern.

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The first day at sea, it was my duty, under direction of the captain, to make out the quarter bill; that is, a record of every man's place in time of action, su many men to this gun, and so many more to that, assigning to each man his proper station at the guns and in the rigging, specifying the boarders, and the divisions to which they belonged. Our captain was a martinet in his way, and prided himself on carrying on things in man-of-war fashion; and also in having everything nice and tidy about the schooner-or, as he termed it, ship-shape and Bristol fashion.' Our decks were holystoned every morning; that is, they were well-sanded, then wet a little, and a large flat stone, called a holy-stone, drawn all over it by ropes. until it was as free from dirt as it is possible to conceive. More water was then thrown over them to wash off the sand, and the operation was completed by scrubbing them dry. This was the duty of the morning watch; for the whole crew, (with the exception of a few, such as steward and some others, whom ship custom allows to sleep all night, and who are therefore denominated idlers, though commonly the busiest men on board,) is divided into two watches, styled the starboard and larboard watches. The watches are four hours each, in which one half of the

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