Outing . e Lord,said I. I never dreamed of leaving myship as long as shed float. But the matewouldnt hear of standing by any Pathfinder was sinking under our feet,said he, and it was time to take to theboats. The men backed him up, becausehe had put his own rotten fear into was helpless, half crazy, flat on my backlike a bundle of dunnage. And theyhoisted me into a boat—as I sit here, thatswhat they did—me, that would have goneto the bottom with the old Pathfinder soonerthan abandon her afloat. Three days after that an English barkpicked us up and landed us in Rio. I wasclean
Outing . e Lord,said I. I never dreamed of leaving myship as long as shed float. But the matewouldnt hear of standing by any Pathfinder was sinking under our feet,said he, and it was time to take to theboats. The men backed him up, becausehe had put his own rotten fear into was helpless, half crazy, flat on my backlike a bundle of dunnage. And theyhoisted me into a boat—as I sit here, thatswhat they did—me, that would have goneto the bottom with the old Pathfinder soonerthan abandon her afloat. Three days after that an English barkpicked us up and landed us in Rio. I wasclean out of my head, raving with I came to, a week or so later, I lookeddown the bay from the hospital window,and there was the Pathfinder just coming toanchor, riding high, all taut and trim, with-out a rope-yarn started—fit to go to sea atan hours notice. I turned over and criedlike a baby, and it took three nurses tohold me on my cot. When I got clear-headed again thev told me that mv ship. He hammered the cabin roof and thundered, Ive come backto wait—to wait. Drawing by G. M. Haruing. 262 The Outing Magazine had been sighted and boarded by a Brazil-ian man-of-war. A crew was put aboardand her pumps set going, and as I live totell it, Abel Grant, the leak had somehowplugged itself. Ive heard of somethinglike that happening since, of an iron steamer, by , that was abandoned as sinking, and when she was picked up it wasfound that a fish was jammed in the holewhere her rivets had pulled out. Anyhow,it happened to me as I tell you. And acrew of black-and-tan niggers sailed myfine ship into port with the water pumpedoutof her. And I lay there and looked ather. Abel Grant wrung his hands as heglimpsed the depths of the tragedy whichthis tortured man was fitting together. It must ha broke your heart, Capn Hos-ter, he ventured to comment. I knowhow grand she must have looked when shecame sailin into Rio to find you. The mate swore up and down that I d given orders to
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade, booksubjectsports, booksubjecttravel
