I asked Marble's permission to release the old man's
arms, and the mate granted it, though not without growling a few
curses on him, and on all who had been concerned in the late
occurrences on board the ship.
There was too much duty to be done, to render all secure, to suffer us
to waste much time in mere sympathy. All the top-mast rigging,
backstays, &c., had to be set up afresh, and gangs were sent about
this duty, forward and aft. The blood was washed from the decks, and a
portion of the crew got along the top-gallant-masts, and pointed
them. The topsails were all close-reefed, the courses hauled up, the
spanker and jib taken in, and the ship hove-to. It wanted but two
hours of sunset when Mr. Marble had got things to his mind. We had
crossed royal-yards, and had everything set that would draw, from the
trucks down. The launch was in the water towing astern; the ship was
then about a mile from the southern passage into the bay, towards
which she was steering with the wind very much as it had been since an
hour after sunrise, though slightly falling. Our guns were loose, and
the crew was at quarters. Even I did not know what the new captain
intended to do, for he had given his orders in the manner of one whose
mind was too immovably made up, to admit of consultation.
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