Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1856-03-21
Steering by the Nortnstar.

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Steering by the Nortn star.
The best account we have seen
Of Virginia seamanship is given by
Olmstead, in his " Seaboard Slave
States" in the history of the fast
sailing putty-bottomed, packet sloop
Abstraction, Capt. Jerry S, manned
by one negro boy, named MoPus,
and aged sixty
Mopus was proper slave, pa
tient, meek. stupid, and stubborn
talking donkey. He never had
been taught to read or comprehend
figures. He could not understand
the dial, and the binuacle-compass
was a sort OF fetish to him the
mystery of which he was too hum
bic to desire to penetrate. He pl-
ously left these great things in the
hands of his owner, aud resigned
himself to the will of that Provi-
deuce which had given him q mas
ter to take care of him, who was
responsible for his safety and prof
its, as well as the sloops.
The resignation aud faith of the
good Mopus, however, often gave
Capt. Jerry deal of trouble, for it
obliged him to bs nearly always on
deck aud wide awake, aud he some
times thought he might better sell
Mopus, and buy Niger that was
not so good, Captain Jerry, as /
heard it, used to put in a word be-
tween so aud good, and bear down
Oh it, but the danger that such a
one would prove entirely reckless
of all moral suggestions, as smart
niggers are very apt to, and go and
steal himself, prevented his doing
so, and he tried to make the best of
Mopus muscles, aud to supply the
necessary brain-power for the sloop
from his own private skull.
One night, Captain Jerry having
been up all the previous night, and
having just worked the sloop ont of
Hampton Roads, against wind an1
tide, and being quite ovo~vome with
fatigue, thought he might venture
to trust Mopus with the helm for
a few hours, the sloop's course be-
ing now due North, up Chesapeake
Bay, wind light aud quauerIug, a
clear sky, aud nothing IN the way
for fifty miles.
Mopus knew the North Star
very well, as niggers generally do,
and telling him to keep the bow
spirit pointing suaight to it, and not
to disturb him until he saw land to
srarboard, Captain Jerry put out the
binnacle light to save oil, aud turn
ed in.
CAPTAIN Jerry had the habit,
which small crnft men are apt TO
get, of consulting aloud with HIM
self. No sooner had he closed the
companion sclttle than Mopus,
with head to the stove-pipe heard
Moon fulled Thursday-sIack wa
ter at six-North Star-that'll do
ull daylight, sartiu-due North
Tanger lsland-not aiore meridian
can't go wrong till arter daylight,
no how-good snooze this time
90 in-oh boots
Nope was a capital helmsman
and for two hours, while the breeze
held, he kept on a bee-line to the
, norlhward. Then il fell calm and
then there came little caispaws
from northwest, and Nope, after
p giving a pull Of the main sheet, left
the helm a minute to flatten the
lib. While he was forward, flaw
from the northeast took him all a.
back. Delaying jib sheet, he came
aft, and put helm mp to wear round.
Just as he jibed, came another flaw
/ from the southeast, and a pretty
smart one. Nope met it, trimmed
close, and seeing it was going to bo
| steady, left the helm again, and
showed down the centre. board. -
Then he went to the hatchway and
got his coat, after which he took a
pull at the scuttle-butt, and struck
, a light for a smoke
All this time old Abby, with her
head southeast, was shaking like a
= nail-mill. Nope finally hauled the
jib up to port, till the mansall fill
led, then took the helm again, and
, kept her rap full heading south, but
running off to the westward, now
, aud then, in search for the Norlh
Star, which, as he could not see it
/ anywhere else, he thought for long
time must have get behind the main
sail.
He had smoked out two pipes be-
, fore he found it, and then II was
! rigM OUer The stern, which at first
struck him as singular clrcum-
stance. There it was, pointers ana
all > he could not be mistaken. Bu.
( how did it get there?
Nope pondered over it for two
pipes more, all the while giving her
a good full and nothing off lie
was at first inclined 10 treat it as a
mystery but when, about two o.
clock, the moon rose, he grew bold,