It is true, little effected
this object, when the knife could be applied, the threads of the stout
canvass snapping at the touch.
As soon as the ship was under bare poles, though at the sacrifice of
two of her sails, I had leisure to look out for the other
vessel. There she was, more than half a mile ahead of us, yawing
wildly, and rolling her lower yard-arm, to the water's edge. As we
drew nearer, I got better glimpses of this vessel, which was a ship,
and as I fancied, an English West Indiaman, deep-loaded with the
produce of the islands. Deep-loaded as I fancied, for it was only at
instants that she could be seen at all, under circumstances to judge
of this fact; sometimes her hull appearing to be nearly smothered in
the brine, and then, again, her copper glistening in the sun,
resembling a light vessel, kept under the care of some thrifty
housewife.
The Dawn did not fly, now all her canvass was gone, as fast as she had
previously done. She went through the water at a greater rate than the
vessel ahead; but it required an hour longer to bring the two ships
within a cable's length of each other. Then, indeed, we got a near
view of the manner in which the elements can play with such a mass of
wood and iron as a ship, when in an angry mood. There were instants
when I fancied I could nearly see the keel of the stranger for half
its length, as he went foaming up on the crest of a wave, apparently
ready to quit the water altogether; then again, he would settle away
into the blue abyss, hiding everything beneath his tops.
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