The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1880-04-14

were let go and she were brought TO with the
main topsail to the mast The boats was
carried onto quarter davits which was swing
ed in and rested on checks, the falls being
racked at the davits and the ends coiled
snug in the boat at each end. So you see it
took matter of 10 minutes for to swing the
boat out and get her into the water, and all
this time the ship, with maintopsail to the
mast, was a-forgin' ahead. I've always
thought that if they'd a let her come all the
way round when the cook ard the boy fust
went over and then braced about the after
yards, leavin' the head yards square, we
should have found 'em, because the drift of
the ship would have been toward 'em all
the time. And it were, bein' after dark, the
second mate, what had charge of the boat. got
confused, and likely as not pulled away from
EN-. Anyhow, arter an hours unsuccessful
search it was Civ up and the boat returned
to the ship and was hoisted up. Even
then we did not Civ it up entirely, but arter
film away we tackled her and reached back
and forth over the spot where the cook and
boy had gone overheard for over two hours.
we see nothin' of EN-, but in one of the
reaches TO the suth'ard we come within an
ace Of runnin' down fshin' schooner as was
bound to the west'ar AS we passed her
the skipper of her hailed US and seemed to
be givin' vent to considerable Indignation
cause we came so nigh him, which were
cheeky to say the least, we havin' been on to
the star board tack and entitled for to hold
our wind, and he had no business for to try
cross our bow. Only but that we had her
right up in the wind and deadened her way
entirely we'd hit this here schooners sure.
"Well, we couldn't understand what the
skipper of her said, but our old man not to be
outdone in politeness cussed hack at him, long
arter he got out of hearin'. Then we tackled
ed and went on our way to the west ard, and
all hands very mournful on accounts of the
loss of the cook AS for the boy, it didn't
make so much difference, cause we had an
other; but, as everybody as has ever been to
sea knows, the loss of the cook is next to thc
loss of the rudder, the most serious one that
can happen to ship. We took Teller out of
the port watch and put MIN into the galley,
but, Lord bless your soul, he wasn't no more
for to be compared with the old niger as had
gone overheard than nothin' at all. The
duff that this chap turned out the next Sun
day were more like lump of putty than
Christian puddin', and the scouse he tried
for to make weren't tito eat. I've no doubts
he done bis best, but cookin', sir, can't be took
nat'ral like swerain'; it are a high art, and
like all other high arts requires fust off
genius for it, and then long and patientap-
plication. Good cooks, sir. isn't appreciated
as they ought for to be, either at sea or ashore,
and very few people recognizes the fact that
more lives are destroyed by bad cooks than
by the sword.
'We helped the new Doctor all we could
split up his wood, brung up his coal and
water and peeled his spuds, but 1t were BAN
yam day continual aboard of the craft arter
we lost the cook. We slowed away his I'D
die, the innocent cause of all the trouble, in
its box, and that and the rest of his dunnage
was took aft by the mate soon arter the acct
dent. He also took aft boy Bills chist, but
strange as it may appear, there weren't no
dunnage into it, although when the boy
come aboard in New York he had an awful
nice lot Of clothes. The mate said as how
some villain had gone through the chist afore
he got it, and it were reported round the ship
that chap of the name of Whitley had
puckerowed all of poor boy Bills dunnage
while the rest of the chaps was gittin' the
boat cleared away for to go to try to pick
him up, and only for the cooks room bein'
locked this here Whitley would got the old
cooks dunnage too, for he was q awful big
thief What ever made the old cook jump
overheard arter the boy we couldn't make
out. Whether it we're from remorseness at
chuckerin' him overheard, and with the in
tent of drowndin' himself, or whether he
wanted for to save the boy, we couldn't make
out. Hows'ever they was both gone, and
that was all there was about il. From this
on we had nice weather and moderately west
erly winds. We got pilot off Nantucket,
and three days arterward got in. Takin'
steam of the Hook, we towed up and made
fast at the foot OF Dover street. As we draw'd
in toward the dock, were startled by
hearin' this here Whitley sing. out, well,
I'm blowedp and lookin' in the direction
where be was pintin' whoever should / see
among the crowd but this here boy Bill and
the old cook what we'd dropped overheard in
the Atlantic ocean. As soon as the ship come
nigh enough, this young whelp Bill climbed
aboard and were soon In among us a tellin us
of the way they got home ahead of US, and
then we found out that this here schooner
what we'd nearly run down had picked up
Bill and the cook, and it were that that the
skipper were tryin' for to tell when he
passed by us.
at seemed that the old cook, repentin'
instantly of havin' chucked the boy over
board, and knowin' that he were a fust-rate
swimmer, had jist jumped arter him. Bills
daddy, who was pretty well fixed, had pre-
sented the old cook with one of the most
spendidest fddles that could be bought, but
for all that the old man rejoiced to recover
his old cremona, sayin' as he took it care
fully out of the box, the new fiddle are
very fine instrument, but / think lub this
one the best arter ALL
"This here chap Whitley were kind of
disappointed to have Bill turn up agin, but
he done the square thing, and Civ him back
all his dunnsge besides claimin' all sorts of
credit for havin' taken care of it for him.
I'm told that this here cook and boy Bill had
crowd up for to be captain Of a ship, and
that the old darkey were never arter that