The North-Carolina standard., 1843-05-17

; aSta1ld UP !' was the order given to the
boatsteerer sGive him the iron J! 4
s Immediately we felt ourselves going along az
ra;lroasI sneed. over hills and down the valleys,
that diversified old Neptune's liquid demaln.-
The wind being against us, and the whale having
nothing butone light boat to tow after him, was
enabled to keep the boat at safe distance, show
ing nothing to practice on but his fukes, Wnleh
were as inYulnerable as an India rubber ball:---
The excitement of all. in this chase had been
such that we never thought of our ship, ana
when the thought did strike us, we were airaid
to look hest we would discover that she was out
of sight! Oh! heavens how appalling the
thought! !-in the middle of the Indian Ocean, in
an open shell-like boat-nop oproyisions, and--oh,1
horror we heard the tub-oarsnlan exelaln,
'.The boat keg is empty y -4sfsv. , ,-, -aa.aS
The after-earsman, whose duty it was TO MI
the keg, had neglected it, = s5sSsss
ssNeyer mind, boys here's 'black Betty, = sex-
claimed one. 27tssks ~ sFSs 8 *
A bottle of rum in. those days was considered
of paramount importance TO revive exhausted ma
ture in long chase. g .Ssaas'. e's@.z'5 5y.t
s.1Vhat say you, rnef?'' asked the mate, 'have
we done all in our power to save the whale F.
shall cut and try for the ship pr.
The assent of the crew was reluctantly given
s'There goes three thousand dollars !" eXclainl-
ed the mate as the severed line disappeared in
smoke. = .4zs .. .i..s,s.z- -e:s~s s.ss-4s < 81
!, In those days. sperm oil was, thirty dollars a.
barrel. .s. 90. e...s -. -: sysss- ~ s~zS4
.sNow for home boys said the mates;4 and
sezing the steering-oar, he shaped the boats.
course as near as he could tell to where he had
last seen the ship. Each man stretched to his
oar, to escape a night on the ocean in an open,
boat anything but desirable at the best of times.
peanut said the mate to his black Portu-
guese boat-steerer, '.look at the boats compass,
and see how we head?''
'Norf by souS" answered St. Jago.
ssHand that compass here, you choWder=head-
ed 'Guee. We head east; the ships head was
north, on the larboard tack, when we left her; if
the wind has not changed it viii bring us across
her wake -, .-,...-. ....s..,.,5..
'EAhead or astern?" asked one of the crew.
cay, there's the rub'-neyer mind, my lads
don't give up the shiP~ -, Fl. y,s.s
Our exertions would have been greater had
not the idea that we had no water acted as aepa-
ralysis. Heavens how Icould sympathise with
Capt. Riley in the thrilling emotions that were
his when arriving the the verge of the desert,
his guide pointed out to him spring in the rock
how he luxuriated in its refreshing GOODNESS
To show how much value the rum possessed in
our eyes, after an harangie from the mate on the
dangers of tasting rum when without water, that
it was only adding fuel to the fire, we had sense
enough left to pitch it into the ocean. / would
have been willing to have given all had coming
to me for drink of that which always had pos
sessed secondary value in sailors eyes.
Night fell in, and found us still eXerting our
every muscle to reach the ship.
81 hope they wont forget to tricet their lights
as high as the main royal-mast hcad,'' said. the
mate. Cay ia technical, meaning for stop row
ing,l and scour the horizon, all You that have
sharp eyes"
= Each man bending himself to his task, and ea-
gerly shading his organs of sight from eXtraneous
objects that might interfere, busted himself,
until they were startled by ST. Jago, whose eyes
were superior to any spy-giass on board the
ship exclaining,
.'Dare him is--tlare him is w .s' -
''Where ?" asked the mate. - ',@5 -'.
''Why dare; miassa mate-don't you see um %
pointing with his frger to the whereabouts Of
the object. .-.-.. -.-...
''Why, that's too red for signal lantern that's
old Mars leering down upon us with his sanguin-
ary phiz, as if in mockery of our dismal plight"
'sDat a.star?' shouted Ebony. "Den de- star
is drunk-you no see UNI bob"
'sThe 'Guee must be right-starsdo waltz"
said the mate, quizzingy ~'Fhat light is first up
and then down.
Presently, we heard something that sound
ed ike the creaking of yards and "a rush of a
heavy body through the water.
= 'Lsten,'' whispered the mate. ''That's the
noise of a5vessel going in stays. 1t may be the
Flying Dutchman, driven from her old cruising
ground by succession of ofwesterly gales Hur-
rah ~ shouted he, as the dark arch of night was
rendered visible by sudden fash ''There
goes our Long Tom!' '...--
Presently, the report came laundering over
the bosom of the great deep.
There's our barky," ioyfully exclaimed the
mate. 81 wonder if she's within hail here goes
ship ahoy!" and the bosom of the deep, as if
in mockery, re-echoed the same / felt inward
ly thankful that it was night, had it been day, my
reputation would have suffered for firmness. 1
could feel cold sweat stand out in big drops from
my forehead, asI awaited in breathless silence
the success of the next hail.
'Ship ahoy ahoy!'' again shouted forth the
mate, in voice that might have rivalled the roar
Of northeastern.
''Halloe !'' came whistling family down the
wind. 81
~rhat sounds as if it came al the way from
Nantucket e
= I