Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1895-09-13

place OF the man that owned 1t.
How | was to GET aboard | didn't
know. There was no ballast to
keep her steady. There wasn't
deck to land on or cockpit into
which could jump. There was
ID thort about as big as duff-plate
made of leather dashed over little
iron frame. | was expected to
straddle it, and squat down with
one leg hanging over the port rail
and the other over the starboard.
Phoebe Ann offered to steady me
when | was gettin' aboard, but !
told her | was too old a sailor to
need a woman's help to get on a
small craft like that, and l would
do it alone if | sunk"
" How did you succeed?" asked
Cap'n Melchisidek Starbuck.
Back your mainyard. and in a
minute Ill tell you. | tried it
alone. put one foot on the port
outrigger, but as there was nothing
below the waterline to keep the
thing on an even keel, my weight
pulled the thing over onto me and
first l knew l was tryin' to get out
from under the wreckage. Well,
the girl laughed in a most pro-
vokin' way. l didn't say anything
about that, but l told ner when we
got the burned thing afloat agin'
I'd let her help nee aboard. She
held up the wheel until 1 straddled
the thort. Then l realized that l
was in command of the awk'ardest
craft that had ever been aboard
of. A three-barreled catamaran
on Great Point Rip would have
been play for a Nantucket boy to
manage compared to it. What
bothered me was that the steerin'
gear was for'ard instead of aft and
the rudder was rugged under the
bowsprit. Then there was a two.
pronged tiller which it took both
hands to work. l would as soon
think of putting the galley on the
maintop as to change things
around as they do in buildin'
wheels.
When | wanted to get under
way l put my helm aport and
reached over to haul in the main
sheet. But l found that there
wasn't any mainsheet. AS there
wasn't any oars or oarlooks, I had
to row with my feet treadin' the
outriggers. Then I got all mixed
in the steerin'. Half the time
when l wanted to 60 to port l
sheered off to starboard and vics
Cersa. Once when I was doin'
this 1 came near runnin' foul OF a
nurse girl who was pushin' baby
carriage. l just cleared her port
quarter, but as 1 was afraid I'd
done some damage, 1 looked astern
to see. When / was dOin' this, l
run ahead onto a big bush and l
took another tumble. When 1 did
get under way didn't move fast
enough to give me Storage way.
l forged ahead little at a time,
and even then the burned thing
lurched to win'ward or le'ward,
that half the time I thought I'd
land in the scuppers. This was
bad enough, but when 1 ran bows
on to a big elm tree and took
another tumble and stove in the
back Of my right hand, 1 did get
a little discouraged. I saw Phoebe
Ann tryin' to keep from laughin',
but she helped me up and told me
that that ended the first lesson.
Il hauled off to repair damages,
hoping that that cruise would be
the last. Not a bit of it. That
girl kept me at it three or four
mornin's a week, when it was
pleasant, until l got 50 that 1 could
sail wheel alone even in a mar
row channel with plenty OF other
craft runnin' 'thort my bows. But
I want plenty of ROOM"
Would you advise us to learn
to sail such a craft!" asked Capt.
Eben Hussey.
WE'LL" said Capt. Peleg, a." that
depends. I'm too old to tackle to
new things. But when young
life is about to be launched on the
ocean Of practical experience, I
think we should soap the ways so
that she'll slide down easy. What
better can we old fellows do than
to start our young ones on the
voyage of life under good condi-
tons, and let them, with experience,
get strength to help them sail
through unknown and mebbe
dangerous waters?"