Bradford reporter. [volume] (Towanda, Pa.) 1844-1884, 1855-06-30
The Captains Bathing Tub.


given to mischief, one day made his way into
the captains cabin, while they were engaged
above in making out strange sail in the hori-
zon. Here he finds all sorts of luxures, nclud-
ing wines, of which he drinks enough to raise
his courage not only, but to make him some
| what reckless of consequences
In this state he finds himself in a room ad-
joining the cabin, tin bathing-tub in one cor
ner, luxuriously supplied with rare cosmetics,
and smelling like a barbers shop of the first
class "Now, he says, "I had tried all the 9th
er good things that found in the cabin had
drunk the captains wine and Strengthened my
self out on his sofa, and swung in his hammock
and thought wouldn't quit without taking a
dip in his bath"
Accordingly he stripped, and was just enjoy
ing the first pleasant feel of the water when
he was interrupted by the messenger-boy who
had been sent into the cabin by the Captain
Fortunately he was not discovered this time
but it made him cautious
I" must contrive some way to get out with
my clothes if anybody came along again. |
wasn't long in finding the way. The ports on
the side of the forward cabin were open, and
thro' them could easily get out into the mizcn-
chains, where | could dress myself without be-
ing seen. There was big gun in each port,
carronade, as they call 'em-short but fat--the
biggest klnd-yOu never see such kind of guns.
except aboard ships-of-war Icould Chamber out
alongside one OF 'em easy enough though |
was little fellow then"
He takes his shoes, clothes and hat, sticks
them outside of the port where they couldn't
be seen " and then," he says, I went back to
the tub. All this didn't take more than half a
minute, for worked sharp can tell you The
only thing was afraid of was that the stew
ard would come in and catch me. didn't care
tinker's copper for the captain | knew l
could get out of the port in less time than would
take him to come down the poop-Iadder. Big
bugs are never in a hurry-it wouldn't look
digniied, You know"
Presently, while lying luxuriouSly in the cap
taln's tub, he hears him coming down the cabin
stairs, when he jumped out the receptacle and
makes for the port.
g was fairly outside and safe, as thought,
in the chains, before the captain opened the
cabin door. | sat there a minute, drying my
self, then was going to begin to dress, when |
heard the sound of oars coming round the stern
of the ship | knew by the regular dip in the
water, and by the noise of the oars in the row.
locks, that it was man-O,war's boat, and, of
course, it was the first cutter coming alongside.
though it seemed to me she had come up nigh
ty quick"
g Here | was in a fix They would see me
from the boat as soon as she pulled round the
stern, and should have hard work to tell what
| was doing, stark naked, in the chains. |
couldn't get my clothes on quick enough to be
ready for company-for | couldn't stand up
without considerable risk of being seen from
the poop, in case some fellow happened to be
looking over the larboard side | concluded
pretty soon what to do. | first looked into
the cabin. The captain wasn't in sight, so |
jammed my clothes into the muzzle of the gun,
and then got in after myself, feet foremost. l
told you, you know, that the guns of the kind
they call carronades are short, but have tre-
mendous big bores They are used in close
fighting, and, when nothing else comes handy,
they load them with a cask of nails, and such
sort of things | showed myself in feet fore
most, because | know that if I rammed nv
head in first with my body on top of it for a
wad, it would be rather close quarters for
breathing comfortably. | found it rather a
snug berth as it was | couldn't move an inch
after | got in, but [ knew was out of sight at
any rate.
g | supposed that after the men had come
aboard the boat would be hauled out to the
booms, and that then | could get out of the
gun. But, instead of that, they had the cutter
loaded with something, | don't know what, that
it took pretty near an hour, it seemed to me, to
clear her off. They got sling on the main
yard, and could hear the orders given to hook
on in the boat, and the bosn's mate in the gang
way piping to haul taught and hoist away
and avast hoisting,' and come up over and
over again, until it appeared to me they had
got dozen launch-boats over the side BY
this time my back began to ache with lying in
the bore of that old gun it didn't exactly fit
my shoulders.
| began now to hear talking in the cabin
The gun, you know, was all in the cabin except
the muZZle of it, that ran out of the port.
couldn't hear so well through the iron though,
and it was sometime before | could make out
what the talk was about | could distinguish
the captains voice, and could hear the words
lock- and wafer pretty often, At last he
and the man he was talking with came close
up to the very gun | was in, and then heard
him call the gunner by name in talking to
him, and | recognized him by his growl /
heard him rubbing the gun off with his hand
and playing with the lock, and two or three
times he snapped it that made me feel little
nervous, for didn't know what he might have
put in it,"
He finds out at last what they are talking
about The gunner has been making some per-
cussion waters that he thinks will never miss fire.
He said he would set the charge off without any
printing, and he wasn't sure that there would be
any need even of pricking the cartridge. The
captain tells the gunner to try some of these
new waters on the very gun that the fugitive
is in
e" was just going to sing out" he continues,
"when the captain asked the gunner if he was
sure the gun wasn't loaded
e" Yes sir" says he ; the charges were all
drawn when the ship came in, and these guns