# Life in India/The Ocean

The Ocean.
“The sea! the sea! the open sea! The blue, the fresh, the ever free,
Without a mark, without a bound,
It runneth the earth's wide region round;
It plays with the clouds; it mocks the skies; Or like a cradled creature lies.”
Often had I thus sung when little dreaming of ever making my home for months upon the ​rolling deep. Indeed, I had supposed that poetry, rather than reality, gave birth to these bright visions of a "life on the ocean wave;" but a few days of sea life, to me all novelty, fulfilled what the poet promised. It was a glorious thing to see the huge billows come rolling from the distant horizon, wave following wave in ceaseless succession, each threatening to engulf us, and yet to feel the deep-laden ship beneath our feet mount to the summit of each as it passed onward in its unchecked course.
The unbounded view of sea and sky, except as each was limited by the other; the loneliness of our ship as it ploughed its way through the trackless expanse of waters; the beauty of the waves, sparkling and glittering in the sunlight, changing from the deep blue of the gulfs from which they rose to green and fleecy white, like hillocks of emerald crested with pearls starting from sapphire beds; sun-risings and sun-settings; the moon obscured by clouds or shining full and mellow on the watery world around, with a thousand changing lights and shades,—are all so full of beauty, that he must be dull indeed who can look on these forms of loveliness and power, and find no gushings of joy and wonder within his soul. How fair must be the mind ​of Him who devised and framed this ever-varying scene! How loving, to spread them before the eyes of man! How mighty, to hold the seas in the hollow of his hand!
Within a week of leaving America, favouring breezes had borne us more than a thousand miles up on our way. Steering to the south and east, we daily entered a warmer climate, and left farther and farther behind us the winter that was stealing upon our friends at home. As I suffered very little from sea-sickness, I was able to enjoy the fresh breeze that filled our sails and pressed our ship through the white-capped waves that tossed their heads before, behind, and on every side of us, seeming to long to enter, and now and then succeeding in pitching their crests headlong over our bulwarks. Of our company of fourteen, some sat upon the bulwarks wrapped in their cloaks and basking in the sunshine, too sick to enjoy the romance of ocean life; others walked the deck for exercise; while a few, unequal to any effort, sought deliverance from the horrible nausea of sea-sickness by lying quietly on their backs in their berths.
Our first Sabbath at sea was by no means a quiet one. The weather was squally and the wind high. Our ship rolled from side to side ​in a way that was far from agreeable to voyagers so inexperienced as we were. We had a service in the morning, however, conducted by the senior member of our company. The motion of the ship was so great that we dispensed with many of the formalities of more stable churches, the preacher firmly holding to an upright post, while the audience braced themselves against cleeted chests and table-legs.
That night we had our first experience of a gale at sea. We turned into our berths, but not to sleep. The roar of the wind in the rigging, the furious pitching of the ship, the crash of boxes and trunks, thrown from their places and dashed from side to side of our state-rooms, the rush and tramp of men overhead, the quick, fierce orders of the captain, the cries of the sailors, and the swashing of water as it rolled in over the sides and down the deck of our ship, conspired to impress with a feeling of terror all who were not quite insensible to fear. Happy they who in such an hour rejoice to know that a Father's hand controls the winds and waves, making all things work together for their good!
A few weeks at sea made us feel quite at home in our new residence. Our ship was an ordinary merchantman of six hundred and fifty ​tons burden. Her deck, extending from the bow to the stern in one unbroken level, gave a walk of nearly a hundred and forty feet; but passengers are not expected on ordinary occasions to go forward of the mainmast, so that only the after half of the ship was ours. Below, we had a series of little cabins against each side of the vessel, separated from each other by partitions of white pine, and a central cabin common to all. The little rooms, appropriated one to each family, were but six feet six inches square, giving just space enough for berths, a trunk, and washstand, both firmly secured. They were lighted, each by a single thick glass bull's eye, let into the deck overhead. But close as were our quarters, we were a cheerful and happy company. Many a pleasant evening did we pass around our pine table, and many a pleasant walk did we have up and down the quarter deck.
Our ship was manned by a captain, two officers, and fourteen men and boys. The officers live aft with the passengers; the men forward in a small cabin in the bow of the ship called the forecastle. Supreme authority is vested in the captain; from his will there can be no appeal at sea. It is the sailor's part to obey. ​There is no greater mistake than to suppose that the sailor's life is an idle or an easy one. When on deck he is always at work, (except at night,) either on the rigging or hull of the ship. Shifting the sails is but a fraction of his duty. In a long voyage scarcely a rope or thread is left untouched. The wear and tear of sunshine and storm call for a constant overhauling and repairing. Scraping, scrubbing, painting, tightening, tarring, bracing, furling, and loosening, are continually going on, and there is always something still to be done.
With many of the young there is a passion for sea life. They have read of its stirring scenes of adventure, and dwelt on its excitements till their minds are filled with eagerness for a sailor's berth. How many a lad, captivated by the poetic idea of being a “sailor boy," has left his parents' roof to seek his fortune on the ocean! And oh how wofully are they disappointed! It sounds well; but what is a sailor boy, and what are his duties? They are as truly and really work as the duties of the plough boy. His duty is to sweep the deck when dry, and swab it when wet; to feed and water the fowls and hogs, and keep their pens clean; to carry, fetch, and run on errands be​tween the forecastle and the cabin, the deck and the masthead; to do every dirty job, and be sworn at, and called fool and blockhead, by captain, mates, and men; and through it all to be civil and cheerful, and jump and run with a ready “ay! ay! sir !" at every call.