Ashtabula telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1874-1880, 1875-10-22

I
they could be of no use, and took
away our beauties, and we gave our
names to appear against them atthe
police court in the morning.
"Come down here and take some
thing, mate" said the man had
helped. You are an old salt l
know it by the cut of your jib."
! l could not deny the soft impeach-
ment and we adjourned to a res
taurant near at hand, and, overa glass
of ale, made the acquaintance of each
other. He was a man about fly
years old, grizzled and tough look
ing, but a true blue sailor if 1 am
any judge of character.
'1'm Captain John Manly, of
the schooner Jefferson" he said, 81
own my own barkey. Look here !
who did you sail with last ?"
| Itold him.
81 know the chap you sailed
with good man and it was your
second voyage as mate ?"
eyes sir"
"Do you want to ship ?"
| "WelI," 1 said, 81 can't say ]
really banker after it, but 1 might
ship. PVe just landed from a China
voyage. and man wants little run
on shore after that"
"Not if he 8 offered first mate of a
crack schooner" replied the cap
tain. "Jack Ratlin is your name,
eh Pa good seamanlike name 1T IL,
too." -!
sEThat's the reasonI went TO sea
first" said /. "It ran in my head it
was the only thing my name was
suited to, and l went out as cabin
boy at thirtren."
"Bet you dollar you run away
from home"
| I could not deny it and did not
try. to do so. Let it suffice that
made an appointment with him on
board the Jefferson" for the next
morning at ten !; and at the appoint
ed time l got boat to take me OA
to the schooner, which was over on
the Brooklyn side. The captain was
waiting for me, and almost dragged
me up the side.
"The first mate, Mr.. Ratlin," he
said, turning to the men. 81 expect
you to obey him as you would me.
81 understood that Bill Epps was
to be first mate, captain ?'' said one
of the men.
"You know how Bill Epps lost the
chance" said the captain. 81 don't
care to talk about the matter ; Mr..
Ratlin is first mate now."
| l looked at the man who had spok-
eD-a dark-browed, ssurIy looking
fellow-and saw him go aft and
speak to man who was making a
splice in a piece of three inch. He
started and looked at me, and / had
no doubt it was the worthy Epps,
who had been discarded for me.
"Once for all, Ratlin," said the
captain, Il don't allow my crew to
be captain and all hands. Bill Epps
would have been first mate and you
second, but he got drunk and quar-
relsome in the streets, and was put
in the Tombs. If he goes out with
me, he goes as second mate"
''He won't take it.'
'Here he comes, anyhow" said the
captain.
The man was slim built fellow,
with touch of the Indian in his
blood, high cheek bones, small black
eyes, and sort of snaky way with
him that I didn't like in the least.
81 havn't come to complain, cap
tain," he said. 81 only wanted to
know, if you was going to take me
with you"
"You can take second mate if you
like" replied the captain.
'Thank you better half a loaf
than no bread, and I'll take the berth.
1 deserve to- lose my rafting for get
ting into arow."
So we sailed at last, with ten men
in the crew, and three officers. l
always study my crew, and when I
looked over that lot, l wondered
what the old man had been thinking
of when he shipped them. Ifound
out afterwards that Captain Manly
liked to take out seemingly hope
less crew, and make good sailors of
them, by using them as men. All
he asked was that they should be
able seamen, and, under six months,
he would have them in such shape
that he had only to lift a finger when
he wanted them to jump, and they
jumped. l made up my mind that
four men, at least, of the crew could
not be reclaimed in any way. One
was Epps, Pat Nc Carly, the man
he had spoken to, when first board
ed the schooner, huge Dutchman
rejoicing in the sobriquet of
Schnapps, and a long-geared Maine
man, called Yankee. They were
villains all, or 1 am no Judge of men,
and told the captain so, but he only
laughed.
"You wait awhile, Jack" he said,
81 am going to the Marquesas for a
cargo of palm oil, and if IdOn't train
down this lot of beauties before we
get there, I'm no sailor. Pve done
the trick time and again"
you'll have them running away
with the schooner among the island s,
1 said.
"No, 1 won't, Jack they'd better
not try any game with me-"
never saw man, in all the time
1 have sailed the sea, who knew how
to govern men better than Captain
Manly. He never struck a man
blow, never clustered, nor threaten
ed, but he had such way with him,
that at look from him any man en-
gagged in any work which was wrong
stopped it, and never needed
second look to convince him that it
was unsafe to fool with Captain
Manly. BY the time he had round
ed the Cape l was easier, for l saw
that six of the men had made up