The daily morning journal and courier., 1905-07-04
OFF THE HORN.

was our purpose to SlSdL Ah oA eAlS | reach, and while the knots reeled off the wind grew, and the great seas of the Horn were rising Ominously.
 It was the second mates watch, and the officer had propped himself under the weather mizzen rigging, his eyes watchful on the gear. At the standard compass, holding to the pinnacle with both hands, the captain verified the course, and the light of the pinnacle lamps gleamed in streaks on his wet oilskins, and threw a half-circle or radiance on his chest, and the thick | beard that cascaded over it. At the lee | side of the poop, under shelter of the | eharthouse, we crouchSd-we, the | watch, stiff in our oilskins and wet clothes. waiting the call that was sure to come to bestir ouselves about the watery deck and aloft. And in the meantime we watched the captain, as schoolboys watch 9 remote taciturn master, and read hundred meanings into every expression of his face and every lift of his head.
 The second mate said something that was blown from his lips. We caught a word or two about them preventer backstays," and the captain nodded.
 Gall all hands and reef tops'ls he ordered, and sighed. For we were clearing the Horn this leg, at the | twentieth time of trying, and he was 10th, for all the old ships rottenness, | to strip a single knot from her gait. The port watch took charge of the forward gear, and we tallied on the gear of the upper mizzen topsail. The reef-tackles squealed, and, though it was little handkerchief of kite, it Tapped and fought like the main- sail of frigae. There were only five of us in the starboard watch, and one boy-all bone-weary and muscleslack with toll and cold and wetness. We led the hauling end of the weather tackle through snatchblock, and passed it out. s t.......
 "Luff, there!" shouted the captain, and as soon as the wind spilled her, we tallied on. Old Duggan, the Galway man, gave the tune shrilly, and we lifted her-we lifted her, till she was choclx-a-block, and we were free to lift the main upper topsail.
 It was done at last, Now, boys, up and hand her!" cried the second mate, and went aft to relieve the wheel, to send the man there aloft to help us, The wind was blowing great guns by now; as we climbed on to the rail and into the weather rigging, we felt that it came not unarned, for snow blew into our faces and stung like nettles. The ratlines were an affliction to hands already raw with sea salt and soaked rope. and as she rolled and the lam yards rendered stiffly, the very swift CTS swung under our feet. Into the fut- tock shrouds we went, and as soon as one raised ones face above the rim of the top, and turned to climb the top- mast rigging, the driving snow blind- ed one, bouncing venomously on all bare skin.
 On to the yard at last, where, braced half-in to spill the wind from the sail, it rocked and slapped the width of it's parallel, and the work to be done was at hand. Old Duggan, with sixty hard years of sea-seryice behind him, and the buoyant pride of good sailor aI- ways young in his blood, was first to windward on the foot rope. followed, and next was ''Dutchman'' '-as we called Teutons-a mild and callow: Ger man. Duggan edged out adroitly to take the weather earring, and as we went, the prisoned canvas beloved and slapped at the foot rope we stood on, while it's head parked our fingers las we gripped for a hold on the iron jackstay. Duggan straddled the yard arm, the slack lift against his chest, and deftly cast loose the earring and took turn through the bolt.
 l "All together, boys" he cried, land lift her up to win'ard. Up wid her!'
 And he started the shrill yell to (which sailornen haul in time. 4 Chests against the. yard, our feet strecthed far behind us against the taunt foot rope, while. the snow, swirl ed over and the wind snatched at us, we fumbled for hold on the slatting canvas. It was like digging vain fing- CTS into 8 sheet of wood; it had life and the cruelty of live intelligence, It dog ged our grasping hands, or tore the I skin from our desperate fingers; it rose and buffeted at our heads, while on my left the Dutchman sobbed and gibbered, and on my right old Duggan blarneyed and cursed.
 Smother her, me lads" he was cry ing. Smother her, now. There we've got her!"
 The wind emptied itself from the sail as the ship swung and pointed the yard to the eye of the gale, and we were swift to seize the occasion ex- Ipertly. Fold after fold we dragged the wet frozen canvas up, lifting it to windward where old Duggan took in the earring We packed it under our Chests as we gathered it, till we heard the shout that told us that the reef was up and seized, and then we grop- ed for the reef-points and were con- lcerned to finish the business.
 A neat reef-knot that does not jam and is readily 1oosed does the business, land it is foul crime to blunder at it Tiff blunder be possible to sailor in so simple a matter as this. I was sitting on the foot rope passing up the reef points to old Duggan when heard the next man but one curse aloud. Then came the sound of a savage blow and a scream from the Dutchman. He had been caught buter-fingered over a lgranny knot.