•h^ ^, v«> .^> IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) k A {./ ^ ^< / 1.0 I.I 11.25 Hi •a 1. M 2.2 2.0 iA 111.6 Pnotographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 87^-4503 ^ K-^' (meaning "CON- TINUED"), or the symbol V (meaning "END"), whichever applies. Un des symboles suivants apparaitra sur la derniire image de cheque microfiche, selon le cas: le symbols — »- signifie "A SUIVRE", le symbole V signifie "FIN". Maps, plates, charts, etc., may be filmed at different reduction ratios. Those too large to be entirely included in one exposure are filmed beginning in the upper left hand corner, left to right and top to bottom, as many frames as required. The following diagrams illustrate the method: Los cartes, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent dtro filmds i dus taux de reduction diff^rents. 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PREFACE. i^Q^ I HAVE often been solicited, by my personal friends, to commit the incidents of my life to paper. It was thought that they contained suf- ficient interest to command public attention. At any rate, there is a novelty in the fact of an unlettered sailor's appearance before the public, detailing the secrets of the naval Main Deck The Quarter Deck has long and often told its own story, and has given its own coloring to naval life. Here, however, is a voice from the main deck, revealing life in a man of war as it appears to the sailor himself. As such, this work Has some claim on the attention of the public. I have endeavored to state facts as they were when I was a sailor, and in the ships to which I belonged. My object is to give a true picture. That, I have done, as far as a remarkably strong memory enabled me. I kept no journals, and consequently some slight mistakes in names, dates and places, may be found in my book ; but I have 1# vi PREFACE. been careful to state nothino- as facts, of which I was not certain. That the naval service has improved since I belonged to it, is, I believe, universally admitted. I rejoice at it. Still, it is not yet what it should be. If this work should, in any degree, stir up the public mind to amend the condition of seamen, I shall feel gratified, and fully repaid for the labor of placing these facts on record. With many prayers that the perusal of these pages may do good, I leave the reader to pursue his way along the track of my experience : assur- ing him, that what may afford him pleasure to read, has cost me much pain to suffer. Samuel Leech. ' which I 1 since I idmitted. it should ir up the eamen, I he labor of these pursue : assur- isure to EECH. RECOMMENDATIONS. From the Hon. Erastus Comins. Albany, December 3, 1842. To WHOM IT MAY CONCERN I I have known and have had intercourse with Mr. Samuel Leech, for the last twenty years, and have always found him honorable in his dealings, and con- sider him entitled to the confidence of the public as a man of strict integrity. ERASTUS CORNING. The undersigned, being acquainted with Mr. Samuel Leech, the author of the following work, do cheerfully vouch for his moral and Christian character ; and assure the public, that the interesting volume, which he here presents to the world, may be relied upon as an honest statement of facts, with which the writer was personally conversant ; and as having no fellowship whatever with those fictitious tales of the sea, which, under the garb and professions of truth, have been proffered to the reading community. CHARLES ADAMS, Principal Wes. Academy, JOHN BOWERS, Pastor Cong. Church, Wilbrahanit ^ass. WiLBRAHAM, May 4, 1843. DAVID PATTEN, Pastor, Providence, R. I. REUBEN RANSOM, P. Elder, Springfield Dis. N. E, C. HENRY CHASE, Preacher to Seamen, N. Y, i % CONTENTS I I 4 i CHAPTER I. The author's father— An unludcy fall—Dying expressions of his father— The author's birth-place— Change in his condition— Early predilection for the sea— An orphan's fate— A cross aunt— A child's home— A sailor cousin- Visit to London— Removal to Bladen— Home— Scenery of Wanstead— English stage-coach described— A sleepy passenger— A sailor's frolics— Woodstock park— Origin of Blenheim house— A kind father-in-law— Bladen vil- lage— Its moral character— Lent— Bladen feast— Dis- content— Advice to young people— The old soldier's jnfluence— Other influences- Visit to Lord Fitzroy— . High hopes— Agreeable news— Preparation— Departure from Bladen, yj CHAPTER II. Visit to Wanstead-Gravesend-High gratification-Goes on board the Macedonian— Disappointment— The sep- aration— A man of war's mess— A disagreeable mess- mate—Rough usage— Swearing— Useless regrets— The Irishman's lament— Addition to the crew— Hint to sail- or boys— Internal arrangements of a ship of war— Top- men— Forecastle men— After-guard, waisters— Scaven- gers— Boys— Wardroom oificers and servants— Watches described-Idlers-The guns-Quarters-Duties of ma- rines-Boarders-Diiference between a merchant ship \ M I * ' CONTENTS. and a man of war-The boatswain-Pipinj. the hands up dcscnbed-The rope's-end argument-Anecdote of iiilly (rarvy— A wise determination-Bill of fare m a man of war-Grog-Wine- A sailor's burial-Thp Macedonian gets under weigh-Arrival at Spifhead-J Floggmg lor drunkenness-Thc scene described- Hon- orable exceptions-Mr. Scott and the marine-Two boys run away-We take troops on board and sail for L,sbon-Sea-sickness-Land-The Tagus-Arrival at Lisbon-The city described-Supply of edibles-An order-A cruise to Corunna-A desertion-Our return to Lisbon-The victim of jealousy-AfTray-Shocking sight--Change of officers-Increase of floggings-Poor Bob Hammond-A flogging scene -Flogging throu-h the fleer-Bad eff^ects of severe discipline-Murder of a marme-Execution-Advantage of mild discipline- Drunkenness-Christmas day on board the Macedonian —Improvemeni among seamen desirable, ... 34 CHAPTER III. An alarm-A bootless cruise-Wreck-Quarrel between the captam and sailing-master-Its result-Chan-e of commanders-Mr. Hope and the boys-Our men de- sert-Bloody Dick-Happy Jack-Attempted suicide- A negro runs away and is rttaken-Good Friday in Lis- bon-A perplexity on shore-Narrow escape from be- mg flogged-The press-gang-Several An^eiicans im- pressed-Another cruise-A terrible stonn— Loss of a man-The author's sicLness-Black Tom's death and burial-Another bare escape from flogging-Another change of commanders-Severity of Captain Garden's admmistration-A brutal sentence on an alleged thief— A man flogged through the fleet-Our drummer de- mands a court-martial-Its unpleasant termination- A question-Danger of attempting mutiny-Change in CONTENTS. 3d the hands :iecdole of >f fare m irial— The Spit head — ed — Hon- ine — Two id sail for Vrrival at bles— An ur return Shocking gs— Poor through furder of cipline — cedonian . . 34 between ange of nen de- Liicide — T in Lis- rom be- ins im- 3SS of a ith and Another arden's thief— aer de- ition — mge in P X:. my situation— The captain's band— Order for a new cruise, gQ CHAPTER IV. A man overboard— A false alarm— Arrive at Madeira- Cruise to St. MichaeFs— Birth of two children-Uef.urn to Lisbon— Short cruises why lilved— Bob Hammond m trouble again— Jack Sadler attempts to desert— Sad- ler and Hammond placed in irons- Bob's defence- The Broomers— Bob Hammond runs away— Rumor of war with America-The Macedonian sails with despatehos to America— Sufferings through ecu— Anecdote of a tyrannical lieutenant— Reach Hampton lloads— Good fare— Refusal to let the crew go asliore— Reason- Exchange of courtesies between Captain Carden and Commodore Decatur— The Leopard and the Chesa- peake—Departure from Virginia— At Lisbon— The mail-bag— Advantage of a litiic education— Macedo- nian sails for England. gg CHAPTER V. Delight at seeing my native land-Plymouth- Use made of shore-liberty by sailors— A Sabbath ashore— Good effects of temperance illustrated-Desire and opportu- nity to run away— I resolve to remain— A man of war a bad place for a boy— Licentiousness in port— Danger follows the sailor everywhere— The loss of the Royal George— Extract Irom Cowper-The Macedonian is hauled up— Repaired— Sailing orders— A bad practice —Getting under weigh— Engaged in the blockade of Brest— Ordered to Plymouth— Order countermanded— Unlucky adventurers— A prize, |^08 f'lT xa CONTENTS, i Hi II CHAPTER VI. Eumor of war_A great mislake-Departure from Torbay ^ Hr'°r """ '""'^-""'-Sabbath at sea-A sail-Haru, ■ beat ,o quarters-Battle between the Mace- l1?e "su^rlf'' V"f " ^•»'— ^-f"! des.rue ion of ft^Tr^ " "^ "'^ Macedonian-Copy of a letter CHAPTER VII. ^TaTof ttr,'''"' ""' ''^"^='«' ^''^^ ">« battle-Arri- botd the Ur ,Tr ""^^J-I""' °f onr crew taken on ,i^f M ^ ^ ^"^ States-Good feeling between all par- manX^'tr" ■'^''f'^-M-'-g "[ the two com- t" the M^ r ^ "l"^'""' °'' "^" ^""^d States inferior twee^ ^/';'=f™'»«-D'fferenee in force and metal be- fovor of LT '^^'="^'«^-T''« influence of motives in favor of the Americans-Arrival at Newport-Burial Visitors at Hurl-gale-Christmas day-The author escapes from the Macedonian-Reaches New York Boards at a widow's in the city-Good news Cel7 bration of Decatur's victory-Dec'atur's wife-llcoum' oMhe fortunes of several of the prisoners whTran away, 141 CHAPTER VIII. The author meets with his old shipmates-A proposition --^ .. t,eii.xO«o oiiCT— ihe author becomes a i M CONTENTS. Xlll )m Torbay at sea — A the Mace- •uction of )f a letter tity office, . . 122 le — Arri- taken on 1 all par- wo com- 5 inferior letal be- Jtives in —Burial shore — author \ork— 5— Cele- (^^ccount 'ho ran . 141 ition — . tate of )mes a ■ boot-maker's apprentice— A pleasant report— A visit to the United States frigate— A pleasant discovery- Change of purpose—Quits the shoemaker— Is robbed by a negro—Goes to Salem— Dreams— Serious emotions —Revival among the Baptists— A fishing excursion- Dangerous proximity to a British brig— The Chesa- peake and Shannon— The author ships in the gun brig Syren— Her armament, &c. described, .... 166 CHAPTER IX. Plan to capture the Nimrod defeated by the wind— Orders to sail for Africa— Leave Boston— Voyage to the Afri- can coast— Death of the captain— An unpleasant catas- trophe—Mr. Nicholson assumes the command— The Grand Turk frightened— Trade with the natives— Short allowance of water— An enemy— Battle of Senegal— A Yankee trick— The Syren reaches St. Thomas— A prize— Another capture— Petty tyranny resisted— The gunner's water keg robbed— The Syren refitted at Angola— She starts for America— Passes the island of Ascension— A sail— Anecdote— Chase— The Syren captured by the Medway seventy-four- Short allow- ance—Landed at Simon's Town— A painful journey —Arrival at the prison in Cape Town, ... 181 CHAPTER X. Description of our prison— Rules adopted— A petty annoy, ance cured— A lesson given to a Dutchman— Quality of our provisions— Dainties— Amusements— A suicide —The slaves of Cape Town— Table mountain and the Lion's Rump— The hospital— The author visits it- Feigns sickness— The Trunk— The surgeon's passion, and Its consequences— A Dutch wedding— A plot— Dis- XIV CONTENTS. covery-Rumorcd visit of a missionary-True feelio^g of seamen on religious subjects-Anecdote-Mr. Thorn's Zt" t^7"' "^eetings-Seriousness-The author's to Mr. Thona-The author's alarm-Embarkation on board the Cumberland-Voyage to St. Helena-A transfer-A cause for great fear-An American ship- Tidings of the renewal of the French war-Its recept^^ by the officers and crew of the Grampus-Arrival at Spit- ^o l~p''"'^'' '". '^' P«^^^sant-Anecdote-Removed to the Rover and conveyed to Plymouth-Placed on board the Royal Sovereign-Transferred to the Wood- rop Simms— Sail for America— A terrible gale— Arrival at New York-Placed on board the Tom Bowlin--The Syren's crew paid off-Life in a boarding-house- Good resolutions evaporate-Money soon expended- I he author ships in the brig Boxer, 20I CHAPTER XI. Landsharks Purser's tricks-The Boxer-Desertions-A man killed-Captain Porter-Hardships-A blow on the head-Saihng orders-The sailing-master-Tyran- ll^fj rT^^"^''''^ ^^ '^' officers-Arrival at Ship Island-Gethng water^-Moschetos and gallinippers- Passage to New Orleans_A man brutaHy flogged-A passionate blow-The Boxer hauled up-Desenions^ Flogging_Return to Ship Island-Work on Captain Porter's land-A murder-Passage to Tampico-Turtle --Privateers-An attack-The privateer hauls off- The Boxer cruises to various ports-The unlucky hand- spike-Danger to seamen on the look-out -Sea-sick^ of ThTr T'"'''"^ ^^vay-My own feelings-Capture 01 the Comet, a privateer-Tom Smith, his philosophy and punishment-Charaoier of our crew-Need of tnristian labor among seanien-A plan suggested, 232 CONTENTS. ue feelings It. Thorn's e author's ■ prisoners "kation on lelena — A ?an ship — 5 reception ^al at Spit- -Removed Placed on lie Wood- — Arrival in g— The j-house — pended — . . 201 XV tions — A blow on -Tyran- 1 at Ship ippers — ?ged— A rtions — Captain -Turtle Is off— y hand- ea-sick- Capture losophy eed of ;d, 232 CHAPTER XII. Homeward passage— Story telling— Their moral effect— The author threatened with a flogging— Smugo-lin«- Arrival at New York— My disconfen't— Escape from the Boxer— Journey to Hartford— Distress— The hos- pitable Presbyterian— Deacon Cook— Woman's kind- ness—A fortunate discovery of an old shipmate— A situation— The author at work on a farm— Anecdote— The funeral— Its moral effects- Seriousness— A prayer- meeting— Profession of religion— A period of backslid- ing—Recovery—A camp-meeting— Father Taylor— The parting scene— Author joins the Methodist church —The crew of the Macedonian— John Wiskey— Hutch- inson— James Day, 256 CHAPTER XIII. Home feelings— Correspondence with home— Letter from my mother— Fear of apprehension leads me to decline gomg to her— My father-in-law's death— A new business —Another change— Rum-selling— Convictions on the subject— The temperance lecture— My marriage— Rum-selling given up— Removal to Wilbraham— Pros- perity-A visit to the Macedonian_An exhortation to her crew— Home correspondence— I^rd Churchill's note— Dr. Fisk's visit to my mother— A mother's present— Resolution to visit England— Preparations, 275 CHAPTER XIV. Departure from home-A cabin in the George Washington —Cheated by^the cook— T! - packet sails— A day's expe- rience from my journal— Religious service on Sabbath —Arrival at Liverpool— The custom-house, Liverpool XVI CONTENTS. -Journey to Stafford-The hackmen-Meeting with my sister— Election day in Stafford-Stafford-Re- mains of a baronial castle—St. Mary's church— The poor-house-A good custom-Beggars and poverty- Drunkenness-Beer, a hindrance to the temperance cause-Departure from Stafford- Arrival at Bladen- iMeeting with my mother--A happy family party- Visit to Oxford-Description of the town-Great Tom- Mr. Wesley's room at college-The martyr's stones- Departure from Bladen-Arrival at London-Trip to Walthamstow and Wanstead-A visit to the citv road nnHw":.'^''"'n^5-^^''^'^' ^^"^^^^' ^^^^°^' ^^^Y^^, and Watts-Co^dition of the English poor-Taxation-! ±.xpenses of royalty-Departure for Boston— Lon? passage-Safe arrival-Closing remarks to the reader —Note— My mother's death, 287 i! ' ii: ietmg with ifford— Re- lurch — The poverty — emperance t Bladen— ly party- eat Tom — s stones — 1 — Trip to J city road » Bunyan, ^axation — on — Long ;he reader . . 287 VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. CHAPTER I. T!he author's father— An unlucky fall— Dying expressions of his father— The author's birth-place— Change in his condition— Early predilection for the sea— An orphan's fate— A cross aunt— A chilrl's home— A sailor cousin — Visit to London— Removal to Bladen— Home— Scenery of "Wanstead— English stage-coach described — A sleepy passenger— A sailor's frolics— Woodstock park— Origin of Blenheim house— A kind father-in-law— Bladen vil- lage—Its moral character— Lcit— Bladen feast— Dis- content— Advice to young people— The old soldier's influence — Other influences — Visit to Lord Fitzroy * High hopes— Agreeable news— Preparation— Departure from Bladen. Were it not that the most common of all inqui- ries, respecting every man who comes before the public, is, " who is he ? whence did he proceed ? who were his parents?" &c., I would not detain the reader with any account of my humble ances- tors and their circumstances. But, since men naturally expect this information, and would hence cc >.?ider my narrative imperfect without it, I shall take the liberty to introduce them. My lather's occupation was that of valet de ckambre to Lord William Fitzroy, son of the Duke 2# 18 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. Ill: Of Grafton. My recollections concerning him are few and indistinct, as he died while I was vet scarcely three years old. One little incident alone reminds me of wearing a mourning dress as a memento of sorrow for his death. Returning from he parish church in Walthamstow, I obterved the larger boys amusing themselves by swino-ing across the rails of the fences ; endeavoring tf join m their amusement, my hands slipped, and faUmg into a muddy ditch, I nearly finished my course, ere it was well begun, by a violent death! A benevolent stranger, however, rescued me, and once safe my grief for the sad condition of my little black frock was excessive and inconsolable. A trifling cause for sorrow, to be sure, yet men and women often grieve for causes equally con- temptible. •' Although my personal remembrances of my fathers death are so indistinct, yet the frequent mention made of him by my mother, has left the pleasing impression on my mind that he died a Christian " I have thought of my numerous sins, but God has forgiven them all. Be not troubled, for the Lord will provide for you and your chil' dren You need not fear to leave me, for I am not alone; God is with me, though you are out of the room," were among his dying expressions: when, after fourteen months' endurance of the pains which accompany a slow consumption, he approached " that bourne frnm ivhic*. ro ' — -"-, returns. I expect to find my honored father in heaven. tl SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 19 ^ him are I was yet lent alone ress as a ling- from observed swinging 'oring to ped, and shed my It death, me, and 1 of my isolable. ^et men lly con- of my requent left the died a us sins, oubled, IT chil- • I am out of 5sions ; of the on, he ,,,-.11 her in Wanstead, in Essex, about seven miles from the great metropolis of England, was the town, and 1798 the year, of my birth. Were it necessary to designate the place more particularly, it might be said that the part of Wanstead where I first strug- gled into being, was called Nightingale Place ; a most musical name, conferred in honor of the nightingales which abounded in the vicinity. Two years subsequently to my father's demise, my mother became an inmate of the family of Lady Francis Spencer, daughter of the Duke of Grafton, and wife of Lord Spencer. As a conse- quence of this event, I was deprived of a mother's care and consigned to the charge of my aunt Turner, whose family amounted to the very re- spectable number of twenty-two sons and two daughters. The transfer of a child from the care of its pa- rent to that of another person, may appear, at first sight, to be a very unimportant incident; but trifling as it seems, it often exerts an influence which very materially changes the destiny of the child : it was so in my case. Most of my cousins were sailors, and some of them were constantly returning home, bringing, with true sailors' munifi- cence, the pleasing and curious productions of distant climes as presents to their parents and friends ; then, seated round the bright hearth-side, they used to tell of wild adventures and hair- breadth escapes, spinning out the winter evening*s tale to the infinite delight of their willing listeners. 20 !■ w iii ill! A VOICE PROM THE MAIN DECK. W I Poor fellows! three of them died at sea; two more, John and Richard, perished in the ill-fated Blen- heim a seventy-four gun ship of the British navy, which went down off the Cape of Good Hope, with seven hundred as brave men on board as ever trod a plank. Notwithstanding these sad recollections, and though none perceived it, my three years' res- idence among these " sailors bold" decided the nature of my future calling; it captivated my im- agination and begat a curiosity, which ultimately ted me to make my "home upon the bounding An orphan is ever exposed to changes. The loss of either parent calls for a degree of sympathy and kindness from others, which they are rarely willing to expend except on their own. Such is Jie almost universal selfishness of human nature. My experience affords a verification of the truth- fulness of the remark. For some cause or other, It became inconvenient for me to remain with my kind aunt Turner, and my next home was with a widowed aunt, at Wanstead. where I did not meet with the same kindness of treatment. The breaking of a cup, or any of the thousand-and-one ofiences found in the list of juvenile defects, was sure to bring upon me the infliction of the rod- and, what was equally painful, my most economi cal aunt exacted the full payment for all th^se losses from the little pocket money I obtaLd by holding a horse, running errands, or as npw.„=„. and Uhnstmas presents ; thus gratifying her tern- CK. .; two more, ■fated Blen- ritish navy, Hope, with as ever trod ^collections, ! years' res- 'ecided the ted my im- ultimately ; boundinof ges. The sympathy are rarely Such is an nature, the truth- 3 or other, 1 with my '■as with a did not nt. The d-and-one feels, was the rod; economi- all these ained by her tem- SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 21 per and her covetousness at once, besides embit- tering, to some extent, the boyish hours of my unfortunate self. There is no evil in the management of children to be more deprecated than that species of treat- ment which tends to destroy their happiness. Correction for obvious faults, in a proper manner, is essential to their proper moral training ; but a habit of incessantly scolding them for every little accident or offence, only serves to excite the 11 growth of evil passions and to make them dislike ' their home; things to be avoided as much as Scylla and Charybdis by the careful mariner. The influence of such mal-treatment follows the child through life, like an evil genius, materially affecting his views of life and the temper of his mind. For aught that now occurs to me, but for this unkindness, my early predilection for the sea would have died within me ; while, as it was, I panted to enjoy the freedom my fancy painted in its pictures of sailor life. To add to my sorrows, lily mother removed my sister, who had been my cheerful companion and true friend, to a lady's school at Woodstock, in Oxfordshire, for the two- fold purpose of affording her greater literary advantages, and of being able to see her more frequently. Several incidents occurred during my abode here, which tended to increase my growing desire. A smart, active sailor, over six feet in height and well pronortioned, one day presented himself at 22 A VOICE PROM THE MAIN DECK. » my aunt's door He told us he had been to Ueorge Turner, who was her nephew and my cousm He proceeded to tell many fine storiel about him and at last inquired if she should not like to see him, and if she should know him. X don t know as I shoul-:," said my aunt, " he iia? been away so lono-." ner'.^'"' "^'"■" ^^P''^^ ^e, "I am George Tur- This fine, bold seaman, then, was my own cousin, son to my aunt Turner; he had been eleven years at sea, and, after visiting his parents, took this method of surprising his aunt. Most likely he has made this adventure the subject of many a forecastle yarn since then. While he remained he was so jolly, so liberal, and so full of pleasant stories, that I began to feel quite sure that sailors were noble fellows. We were also favored with a visit from an uncle, then visiting Europe from the West Indies He was one of two brothers, who were educated at Greenwich for the navy. One of them had entered the British navy, and by dint of merit and hard service rose to the possession of a commis- ^on in the service, but ultimately perished at .ea. IJiis one had chosen the merchant service, but afterwards settled at Antigua. He took me with nira to London, and carried me over the West India docks; he being well acquainted with many 01 the captains, they treated me with playful atten- fi. d been to lan named V and my ine stories should not him. aunt, " he 3rge Tur- in y own en eleven ents, took 3st likely f many a remained pleasant at sailors from an 5t Indies, educated lem had lerit and commis- 1 at sea. ^ice, but me with le West h many il atten- SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 23 tion, inquirino- if I did not wish to be a cabin-boy and the like. When I returned to Wanstead, it was with a stronger desire than ever to be a sailor. My uncle went to Trinidad, and died shortly after. A very pleasant piece of intelligence greeted me soon after these incidents ; it was nothing less than my removal from the care of my unkind aunt to the roof of m, mother. Weary of her widowhood, she had again become a wife. My new parent was a widower with one son • a carpenter by occupation, in the employ of \he Duke of Marlborough. Great was my joy when this fact was communicated to my young mind I hailed it as a deliverance from bondage, and with beaming eyes and cheerful face hurried to bid adieu to my classmates in the day and in the Sunday school-a sad proof of the unfitness of my aunt for her task ; since a child properly treated, will love Its ho7ne too well to quit it without a tear ; and if parents and guardians wish to pre- vent their children from being wanderers and stragglers through the wide world, let me bid them exert the utmost effort to make their home pleasant. Throw a charm round it, make it en- chanted ground, cause it to become, in the lan- guage of a living poet, '^ The fairy ring of bliss ; and then your children will love it too we'i to wander. 24 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. i But r was now about to leave Wanstcad, and, although delighted to be rid of the surveilance of a cross old relation, there were some thino-s which threw an air of sadness occasionally over my mind. There were many pleasant associa- tions connected with the place; its beautiful park, with herds of timid deer grazing under its tall oaks, upon whose green old heads the sun had shone for centuries; the venerable mansion, seated like a queen amid the sylvan scene; the old parish church, with its gorgeously painted windows, to which I had often walked on the Sabbath with my fellow-scholars iu the Sabbath school, and beside whose deep-toned organ I had sat listening to the learned priest ; the annual hunt at Easter, m which I had often joined the crew of idle lads that gave chase to the distracted deer; and the pleasant walks, made cheerful by the songs of mnumerable birds, in Epping forest, were alHo be left— perhaps forever. This thought made me somewhat sad, but it was swallowed up in the joy I felt when my mother appeared to conduct me to Bladen, some sixty miles from London, which was the place of her ujode since her marriage. Behold me then, gentle leader, seated with my mother on the outside of a stage-coach, with some ten fellow-passengers. The stage-coach of Eng- land is quite a different vehicle from the carriao-e known by that name in America. True, it is drawn by four horses, and it runs on four wheels, but here the likeness ends ; instead of being built 1! istead, and, ^^eilance of me thinffs )nally over It associa- itiful park, ler its tall 3 Sim had ion, seated old parish indovvs, to »bath with hool, and t listening" at Easter, ' idle lads ; and the songs of 3 all to be made me in the joy uct me to n, which 'riage. with my ^ith some of Eng- carriage ue, it is • wheels, ing built SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 25 to carry twelve persons inside, it carries but six, while outside it has seats for twelve. Three or four passengers ride very comfortably behind, in what is called the basket, which is the territory of the gup.rd, as the boot before is of the coach- man. All mail coaches, and all others travelling in the night, carry a guard, or an armed man, for the purpose of protecting the coach from the attacks of footpads or highway robbers. The dulness of our journey was somewhat re- lieved, after a long season of silence, by the dis- tress of an unfortunate passenger, who, falling asleep, nodded so violently, that his hat, supposing It was receiving notice to quit, very unceremo"^ niously took leave of the skull it covered, and plunged into the mud. The outcry of the poor passenger, who was soon waked by the wind sporting amid his hair, and his unavailing requests to stop the ^tage put us all into good humor with ou'-selves and with each other. We had another source of relief in the antics of a wild, hairbrained sailor. From spinning yarns, which looked amazingly like new invent tions, he would take to dancing on the roof of the coach ; at the foot of a hill he would leap off, and then sprimr up again with the agility of a monkey, to the no small amusement of the passengers. The more I saw of this reckless, thoughtless tar, the more enamored I became with the idea of a sea life ; and thus this journey to my mother's new abode was another link in the chain that de- 26 cidcd A VOICK FROM THE MAIN DKCK. my futurod.'sfiny in ihr, drama of lifo. How st.nin,d n.si.jts. A maich may firo a city and lay desolate the work of aq-ps ; a siricrh, leak may sink a hark and carry dosolation to'^a hun- dred firos.dos— and tri/los in th(> dailv scenes of himian life, irive character to our iiunortality. Wc cannot, therefore', too carefully watch I he influence of small ('vent.s, especially on vounir minds. *^ ^ At Woodstock, famed in the annals of Eno-land as the scene of the loves of Kin- Henry ancfRos- amond Cliflhrd, we quitted our staire companions, and proceeded on foot to BladcMi, two miles distant. Our road lay throu-h Blenheim or Woodstock park, which wo entered throujrh the triumphal arch, a spacious portal, erected ""to the memory of John, Duke of Marlborouirh, by Sarah, his duchess. On enterino- the park, which ij nearly twelve miles in circumference, one of the most beautiful prospects imao-inable disclosed Itself. Blenheim Palace, which is amornr the most magniticent piles of architecture in Enr'land appeared in front ; on the left were to be s"'een a part of the village of Woodstock, and on the ri-ht a broad and spacious lake, crossed by a superb bridge;^ a lofty column on the risinir jrround erected in honor of John, Duke of JVIarlborou-h, *Neai' this bridge is a spring, called Rosamond's Well _ 1^ a. lo O.MU lu iKive conirivca a labvrinth. bv which his guilty fair one communicated with the castle. f I c. life. How vents itmd lire a city infrl(! leak to a liun- sccuos of snortality. tatch the )n young England and Ros- iipanions, vo miles iheim or 3ugh the id to the y Sarah, .vhich is one of lisclosed ong the i^ngland, } seen a he right superb ground, orough, i's Well, rinth, by castle. SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 27 on which is the statue of that noble warrior; a delightful valley, hills, plantations, herds of deer feeding, shady groves and ancient trees, all con- spired to render the scene enchantingly beautiful. iilenheim Palace, or Castle, was built at the public expense, in the reign of Queen Anne, and was given, with its annexed demesnes, in concur- rence with the voice of parliament, to John, Duke of Marlborough, as a testimony of royal favor and nati(mal gratitude for his successes over the French and Bavarians , particularly for his victory at Blenheim, on the banks of the Danube, on the 2d of August, 1704. Crossing the park towards Bladen, Ave were met by my father-in-law, who received me with a kindness which prepossessed me at once in his favor ; he conducted us home, where, to my no small gratification, I met my sister. My father-in-law appeared to be in comfortable circumstances. He resided in a very neat house, built of stone, shaded by a noble apricot tree, and ornamented with a small but pretty garden. This, together with another similar tenement, was his own property. To add to my satisfaction, I per- ceived that he was very kind to my mother, and also to myself. She one day expressed a desire to have the cold stone floor of the kitchen removed, and boarded instead ; my father, at considerable expense, gratified her wish ; this assured me of his regard for her comfort. With the village itself, I was equally well I 98 !il l( ! 4 VOICE PROM THE MAIN DECK. horn hedges; and old farm-houses, wkh thel' thatched roofs, and massive wheat rickTl I pleased eye on all sides ; while cuhi S Z n! and numerous wild flowers, especially the modes cowshp and humble violet, scented'he aTr and perfumed the breeze. Thus far, perhans R J oat/i school was not thprp p« f Sabbath was spent in 1 ' ^°^'"^"^"%' the wa& bpent m roaming- about thp fioi^c. • amusements, in yisitino- in t.t • ^' ^" place called HZ a ^'"" excursions to a Place called Ramsden, some seven miles distant Tue there was . parish church, with two cW men belonging to its altars, but there was sTrvke Sin?L Tl ^""'^^ ^^^^^- '^^ anciemTal inuring Lent, however, both priests and Zl'i' were more relio-ious • ih. \. P^°P^® tended- thp !ifi '^"''^' ^''^^ better at- wll;v-^'/^/^^^?" "^^^ -^--ed as to their .l„j-- .,. ., : "."" c-vcuiiiea as to their -"go oi me cliurch catechism ! They were I I ises, it was with large hill-sides; ^rant haw- with their ^s, met the ed gardens the modest le air and ps, Bladen t aspects it rd for the 'ulture of at blessed ewed the orous pul- 'ome pro- ts, which the tall ing Sab- ntly, the fields, in ions to a distant. 5 clergy- 3 service ^t walls. I people etter at- to their ey were SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 29 even excited to diligence in committing it to memory by the inducement of reward. A Bible and two prayer books were given to the lads who excelled in answering the questions. At the first Lent examination after my coming to Bladen, the Bible, the highest prize, was awarded to me, and the second year the minister assigned me the task of hearing the others recite — a striking proof of the benefit of Sunday school instruction ; it gave me both a moral and mental superiority over all my compeers in the little village of Bladen. This special attention to religion only lasted durinr: the term of Lent ; when, with a return to the uso of meat, the people returned to the neglect of the Sabbath. The inhabitants of Bladen were very social in their habits. They held an annual feast, called Bladen feast, to which they invited their ^rietuds from other towns ; it commenced on Sabbath and continued three days. Eating, drinking, talking, fortune-telling, gambling, occupied three days of wassail and jollity; after which the visitors re- turned to their respective towns, and the people to their occupations. The neighboring villages gave similar feasts in their turn. They were occasions of much evil and folly. My time flew very rapidly and pleasantly away for two or three years, until, like most children, I began to sigh for deliverance from the restraints vi xiv^iiic. X nau. iiueauy leii scnooi, ana lor some time, being now about thirteen vears of age, had 3=^ * ii' f i ^0 ^ VOICE EROU THE MAIN DECK. been employed in the pleasure-grounds of Rl.n heim Palace. This, however ZTi I business for a lad of my sSs TLT T. ^ of the sea from m.. .. -^.^ P'"^^' ^ bad heard tales my mind w Z]?/ ?•"' ^^^ "^^^^^^ ^^d filled 0' """« wim the exp oits of mv o-rinrlf^fi, imagination painted a life 1 fu^ ^'' '' ""^ the most glowin" eolor, ' *"' ^^^''^ ''^<=P '» every dav mlltv ' ^ """'' 8''"^^ ""«asy; goin. to sea inH ,71 ';''""»™"y '='1^"^ about '«.' 4 E -r^hf . - :r • r ■ hnf or. sjmsliine, all sweets, a 1 flowers the wishes of theirnaZs wP '"''' ."''^y'"^ ;he.best,oodathe^n:;;£rr5t:; . *^y Pf ^'°n for a seaman's life was not •, lit.Io increased by a soldier, who was servant to a company ,n Lord Francs Snencer'.^- !!„?.? cavauy. Seated by my father'. hearthrsld^'lhTs ds of Blen- too tame a heard tales T had filled ifather; my !at deep in •w uneasy ; 3 more and !king about If unhappy of the dif- ent's roof 3uble they the world, t. They fancy the 1 flowers, ed, when ^cy. Let to escape uietly at 5 obeying ^ly have ley may ' what is t a little int to a tiAv;xXfc Oi ide, this SIX YEARS IN A WAN OF WAR. 31 old soldier, who had once been a sailor, would beguile many an evening hour with his endless tale, while I sat listening in enrapt attention. My mother, too, heedlessly fanned the flame by her descriptions of the noble appearance of the ships she had seen when at Brighton. Besides this, a footman at Blenheim House used to sing a song called "the poor little sailor boy;" which, although somewhat gloomy in its descriptions,' only served to heighten the flame of desire within me, until I could think of nothing else, day or night, but of going to sea. Finding my desires so strong, my kind-hearted mother mentioned them to Lady Spencer. Just at that time, her brother. Lord William Fitzroy, who was then expecting the command of a frin-ate, and with whom my departed father had live°d as valet, happened to visit Blenheim, previously to going to sea. Anxious to serve my mother, Lady Spencer mentioned me to Lord Fitzroy. He sent for me. Trembling in every joint, I was ushered into his presence. He inquired if I should like to go to sea. " Yes, my lord, I should," was my ready answer. He dismissed me, after some fur- ther questionings ; but was heard to say, before he left, that he would take me under his care, and see to my future advancement. These dazzling prospects not only well nigh turned my brain,^but decided my parents to send me to sea. To have their son an officer in the navy wa.^ an unlooked-for honor; and they now 32 iiiii: VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. entered mto my plans and feeli much ardor as myself. Alas! We gs with almo:,t as were all J 1 •' ^•'** -t^iaa ; vv e were all doomed to learn how little confidence can be placed m the promises of nobles • Not long after Lord Fitzroy's departure, we received a letter stating the fact of his Appointment to his majesty's fr.gate Macedonian, which, being out of dock, was rapidly preparing for sea. This intelligence was the signal for bustle, excitement, preparation, and I know not what. Friends and gossips constantly crowded in to administer their gratuitous advice ; some predicting, to my infinite dehght, that certainly so smart a boy would make a great man; others wore very grave counte- nances, and gave certain expressive shrugs of the feel* Jr'f r '' '^'^ '"'-^ '^ ""^S-'-g *^°»?h the J wn / u^ " f''^ "P " ^°' ™^^«'V ^ look or a word; in short, but for a strong eviction in my own breast that this was all sai. .or effect, it IS doubtful whether they would not have sue ceeded in deterring me from my purpose. At last, after much ado, the long-expected day arrived when I was to bid farewell to home and friends, to venture abroad upon an unknown future. It would only vex the reader by its common-place character, or I would reveal all the nice little acts which took place. Suffice it to say, that my part- ing was very much the same as that of all other boys of twelve, when they leave home for fC^Z t.me-a mixture of hopes and fears, of "teais ;tod smiles, of sunshine and cloud. ^ I h almo^jt as e were all ice can be >arture, we ppointment hich, being sea. This excitement, riends and lister their ny infinite ould make ^e counte- ugs of the trough the T a look or viction in r effect, it lave sue- I 5cted day lome and m future, nton-place little acts affection my part- all other sars SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 33 i Attended by my mother and her infant daugh- ter, on he 12th day of July, 1810, I turned my back on the quiet hamlet of Bladen. Henceforth my lot was to be cast amid noise, dissipation, storms and danger. This, however, disturbed my mind but little ; brushing away a tear, I leaped gaily on to the outside of the coach, and in a few minutes, enveloped in a cloud of dust, Avas on my way to London, filled with the one absorbing idea, " I am going to sea ! I am going to sea ! " Should the reader take the trouble to read the following chapters, he will learn the mishaps, hardships'! pleasures and successes that befel me there ; and though my narrative may not be filled with the witching tales, and romantic descriptions, that abound in the v/orks of the novelist, it shall at least commend itself to his notice for its truthful- ness. Illjt ill I 'I!!!! ill! hI''!; I ! :i|l CHAPTER II. on board he Macedonmn-Disappointment-Tlie seo- m^-Roth u". "' 'T ""^-^ Oi-greeable m2- ma e— Kough usage—Swearing— Useless re-rPt« tk^ rines-Boarders-Difference between a merchant s^n Bmy Ga vv 7 "''. '"™'* "^•""^"'-Anecdote of fmL r^ "^"^ determmaiion-Bill of fare in a man of war-Grog-Wine-A sailor's burial-Tbe Macedonian gets under weigh-Arrival at Spithead- Fbgg.ng for drunlcenness-The scene describe^-^;: orable except.ons-Mr. Scott and the marine-Two LXn'trT^" "''r^ '^"""^ »" •^°-'' -"-'^^° LsborTh. ^T~^^"''-^'''= Tagus-Arrival at order 7?'- "f ^^^""'ed-Supply of edibles_An order-A cruise to Corunna-A desertion-Our return Mght-Change of officers-Increase of floggings-fpoo? Bob Hammond— A flogein" scenp Pi„„t „ .u ■ the fleet B,^ ««• . was absent, until his re- my spirits, right on his ded by the Y agreeable it scarcely :ed. What he strained ion's purest 3 ream that er arms ; a light boat 5s, on her afTrail and n it disap- put into a is divided ht, called r, and are, 5 to which I SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAH. T 1 37 weather-beaten, old tars. But for one of its inem- bers, it would have suited me very well ; this one, a real grulfold " bull-dog," named Hudson, took into his head to hate me at first sight. He treated me with so much abuse and unkindness, that my messmates soon advised me to change my mess a privilege which is wisely allowed, and whicy tends very much to the good fellowship of a ship crew ; for if there are disagreeable men amonff them, they can in this way be got rid of; it is no unfrequent case to find a few, who have been spurned from all the messes in the ship, obliged to mess by themselves. This unkindness from the brutal Hudson rather chilled my enthusiasm. The crew, too, by some means had an impression that my mother had brought me on board to get rid of me, and there- fore bestowed their bitterest curses on her in the most profuse manner imaginable. Swearing I had heard before, but never such as I heard there. Nor was this all ; in performing the work assigned me, which consisted in helping the seamen take in provisions, powder, shot, &c., I felt the insults and tyranny of the midshipmen. These little minions df power ordered and drove me round like a dog, nor did I and the other boys dare interpose a word. They were officers ; their word was our law, and wo betide the presump- tuous boy that dared refuse implicit obedience. These things reminded me of what had heen said to' me of the hardships of sea life in a man 4 ij 'M 38 A VOICR InoM TIIK MAIN DKCK. !"""■'••■:,""•»'• "I " '•"• This, |,„w..v..r, w,,^ ■>';pil.--a„d...„.l.l,omy.lis,-,,„r,,,..„,,.Mt.h,.v "1.1 ..»• I was ,.„tnv.| „„ ,|,„ ,|,i,,., ,,„„|,^ ,.„^ ,.,.f l)ivnry|,rosj„...t! I iMl „„„v ll „|f .Iis,,„s,..i; Inslnm,,., „«.„„. I,,. ,„y sl.ipn.atrs. T..,;,p„.,| ,„„1 '";«,'."'■•' "■'" " """xi.-au..l, I,., |.a., ,„|i,,;..| r.,r „ ''^^.L.T, l,,„ (.„„ul ,1,, sor,...„.t at ,l,o ncruith,^ fee ,,n.l llu- .sorff,.,mt on the rfnV/-/?,/,; vry .li'^ loront porsonagcs. H.- is Iumu-o ma.lo ... say, " ft WAS cnily ,„.xl mnrni,,.; ,„ ,lr,il I was sent, Cniinot y,.ii Iv aisy ,,i„l l.-t i,„. „l,„„. , K..»'l y.m sec I 've Kot anas, l..gs, „„,( t,ct of my own ?" But altlinuffl. sonu-what priovo.l will, ,ny fir.t n^amst ,ny foolin^s, an.l wi.l. .,,« („„,^ ^^;l sopluc ship', stores wore all on bonr.1, ami o.ir frisate was ready for sea. Then two hundred more men, dr.tu-hted from receivincr ships, came on board, to oon.j.lete the number of full th oe Itnndred men. The joclarity, pleas- antry, humor and irood feelins, that now prevailed on board our frigate, somewhat softened the un- pleasantness of my lot, and cultivated a feelin<. of xeconciitution to my circumstances. Various little J »«'!»' in my vcvcr, was >l*s for lifo, 1 disposed, iniro of lli(> •Mip((>(l and i."^((Ml lor a nrruithii^ I V(»ry dil- o .sny, SIX YEAUS IN A MAN OF WAR. 39 my own?" I my first strunrirlod >st philo- e best of nt work ■0 all on I' Then roceiviniT iniber of limbered J^ pleas- )revailed the un- cling" of ms little friendships, which f^prajipf up between mo and my shipiiiateM, threw a ^ learn of ^rladnewH across my path; a habit of alteiiiion, respect and obedience in a short time secured nie universal good will. I bepm to be tohirably satisfied. Many boys comidain of HI usa^c at sea. I Know they are subjected to it in many instances; yet, in most cases, they owe it to their own bold- ness. A hoy on shipboard, who is habitually saucy, will be kicked and culfen by all with whom ho has to do; he will be made miserable. The reason is, I imay-ine, that sailors, being treated as inferiors themselves, love to find opportunity to act the superior over some one. They do this over the boys, and if they find a saucy, insolent one, they show him no mercy. Permit me, then, to advise boys who go to sea, to be civil and oblig- ing to ai.; they will be amply repaid for the effort it may cost them to make the trial, especially if they gain the reputation, as I did, of being among the best boys in the ship. A vessel of war contains a little community of human beings, isolated, for the time being, from the rest of mankind. This community is governed by laws peculiar to itself; it is arranged and di- vided in a manner suitable to its circumstances. Hence, when its members first come together, each one is assigned his respective station and duty. For every task, from getting up the anchor to unbending the sails, aloft and below, at the mess-tub or in the hammock, each task has its 40 A VOlCIi I'HOM Tin: MAIN VVU'K. ''« innn nn,l ,.,.,-h ,«„., lus ,,l,„v. A .1,1,, oonlnins a .-ot o( /,«„,„„ ,„„..|,i„„ry. i,, ,vl,i,-|, ,.v,.,y man is „ 'I'Tlnl r,..r»l,„ily nn,l pr.visio,, |„ ,1,„ ,,„•« „,• j,, inm-liinisl— ili,.„ll.p,.w,.||iil .-apliiin. Tho „„.., ,nv .lislnluil,.,! i„ ,,ll pnrls ..C Hw- vos- Wl; tlms,. „. Il„- l,.ps an. .-all,.,! Con-Ua,.,,,,.,, ma.n-lop-,n,.n, a,>,l ini/zon-iop-,,,..,,, will, two .-nn- tnm.s to on.'l, (op, ouo lor oaci, wal.'h. 'ri„.s,. to .- •n.;n 1...V0 (0 loos,., .aI, «„cl, as tho top-,valla„t .sails, lop-sails, top-sallanl ,-oyaI. ao.l lop-sail sto,l,li„,...sails ()i|,. ors aro oalloj loi-o.-astl.. „„.„, wai.stors, an.l .|,o nfter-guanl ; tl.oso havo lo looso. to,ul, and f„rl the con,-.sos, that is, tho loro-.sail, tho ,„ai,..s„i|, ,aid lower .. U.I. ino-.sails; ,I,,y ,|so have lo set tho JiK, (ly.i,.:-nl., and .spai,k..r; llio al(er-!iuard have n .-'pe.-ial cha,-e to coil „p all rop.-s io tho after part ol the ship. (),ho,.s are oalL-d scuvm^ers: hose, as their .u.t very altraclivo „a,n.. imports, have to sweep an.l piok up the .lirt that may chance to grdhev through ,1,., J.^,, „„, ,|„.„,^ fj over hoar. . Then co,ue th.. hoys, who are mostly employed as servaiUs to the ollicers. Our can- tan, had a s.ew,r.l an.l a hoy ; these acle.l as his ihiniesiK., ser<-,.nts m his larce and stately cabin wh.ch to .noet the i.leas of landsmen, ".nay be' eal e.i »us house. The li.M.tonants, pn,scr, surt^eon, .-.n, sa,l,n.j.master. had each a hoy ; thev, together will, the two iieulena.its of mariues. "who „,o,„ waited upon by two marines, form what is called UK. i|) conhiins a i'ly man is n ir wiih woii- «' //'?V^ of iis ^ of tlip vcs- >n'-lo|>-rn('n, illj two oap- Tlu'so top- ><1 lurl I lie Is, top-sails, •sails. Olli- rs, and tlio d, and furl .in-sail,sind to set the ruard have I tho after cave?f,irers; 10 imports, til at may d throw it are mostly Our cap- 'tod as his oly cabin, I, may be ', suriT^eon, ■y together t is called SIX YKAKS IN A MAN OF VVAK. 41 tho ward-room ollioers. The ward-room is a larffo cabin, (I mejui larn^c; for a ship, of course,) below the captain's, where they all mess to^^ciher; aft of this cabin is a smaller oiu;, which serves as a sj)ecios of store-room. JJesidcs thes(! accommo- dations, every ward-room ofiiccr has his state- room, containin.r his cot, wash-stand, writing- desk, clothes, cVc. Tlie irunner, boatswain, and SOUK! others, are also allowed a boy; and a man and boy are apj)ointed to be the servants of a cer- tain nundjer of midshi])men. Another arrauircMnent is, that of forminjr the ship's company into watches. The captain'^ first lieutenant, surofeon, purser, boatswain, gunner, carpenter, armorer, toq-ether with the stewards and boys, are excused from belonging to them, but are liable to be called out to take in sail; some of the last mentioned are called idlers. All others are in watches, called the larboard and starboard watches. Stations are also assigned at the guns, to the whole crew. When at sea, the drummer beats to (piarters every night. This beat, by which the men are summoned to quarters, is a regular tune. I have often heard the words sung which belono- to it ; this is the chorus : ^ "Hearts of oak arc our ships, jolly tars are our men, \Ve always are ready, steady, boys, steady, To fight and to conquer again and again." ... ,„,^ evening Qium, aii nands hurry to the guns. Eight men and a boy are stationed 4^- 42 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. lliilliiliil at each gun, one of whote is captain of the mn another sponges and loads it, the rest take hold of the SKle tackle-falls, to run the gun in and out; jhtle the boy is employed in handing the cartridges, for which he is honored with the sin- gularly euphonious cognomen of powder-monkey. iiesides these arrangements among the men. there are from thirty to forty marine^ to be dl posed of These do duty as sentries at the cap- tarns cabm, the ward-room, and at the galley tioni TJr "' ^<'°'''"=" They are Jo J. tzoned at the large guns at night, as far as their numbers run. When a ship is i„ action, and small arms can be brought to bear on the enemy, fxnir.f "°"''* °\*' ''^'''■^''^' *^y-^e als^o expected to assist m boarding, in conjunction with sevoral seamen from each gun, who are armed wjA pistols and pikes, and called boarders The great disparity of numbers between the crew of a merchant ship and that of a man of war occasions a difference in their internal arrange- ments and mode of life, scarcely conceivable by those who have not seen both. This is seen throughout, from the act of rousing the hands in the morning to that of taking in sail. In the merchantman, the watch below is called up bv a few strokes of the handspike on the forecastle! mates The boatswain is a petty officer, of con- siderable importance in his way; he and his maies cany u small silver whistle or pipe, sus- T» I I of the gun, t take hold ?un in and anding the th the sin- sr-monkey. ■ the men, to be dis- at the cap- the galley e also sta- ir as their ction, and he enemy, jy are also ction with ire armed srs. tween the m of war, ' arrange- livable by s is seen hands in > In the up by a )recastle ; and his ') of con- and his ipe, sus- SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 43 pended from the necli^ by a small cord. He receives word from the officer of the watch to call the hands up. You immediately hear a sharp, shrill whistle ; this is succeeded by another and another from his mates. Then follows his hoarse, rough cry of "All hands ahoy ! " which is forth- with repeated by his mates. Scarcely has this sound died upon the ear, before the cry of " Up all hammocks ahoy I " succeeds it, to be repeated in like manner. As the first tones of the whistle penetrate between decks, signs of life make their appearance. Rough, uncouth forms are seen tumbling out of their hammocks on all sides, and before its last sounds have died upon the air, the whole company of sleepers are hurriedly prepar- ing for the duties of the day. No delay is per- mitted, for as soon as the before-mentioned officers have uttered their imperative commands, they run below, each armed with a rope's-end, with which they belabor the shoulders of any luckless wight upon whose eyes sleep yet hangs heavily, or whose slow-moving limbs show him to be but half awake. ^ With a rapidity which woulcF surprise a lands- man, the crew dress themselves, lash their ham- mocks and carry them on deck, where they are stowed for the day. There is system even in this arrangement ; every hammock has its appropriate place. Below, the beams are all marked ; each hammnrk is mnrL-Pfl ■nrjtli o nrkyvr^c-^^-^A:-^^ ber, and in the darkest night, a sailor will go 44 A VOICE fKOM tllE MAIN DECK. unhesitatingly to his own hammock. Thev are a so kept exceeding clean. Every man is pri! vided with two so that while he is 'scrubbing ad c eaning one he may have another to use. Nc. thing but such precautions could enable so many men to live in so small a space " evetluif Tl''"'^ ","'"/' '^' performance of every duty. The word of command is given in orcedTv":r""' ''"' '^ P™"-?' '"^^'•■-- - lorced by the same unceremonious rope's-end. To skulk IS therefore next to impossible; the least tardiness is rebuked by the cry of "Hurrah lC'"%i'"^ " ^-^^ ^-- 'long. We IZ. M '^"'™ "^ ''"^'■"S i^ f" from being agreeable ; it perpetually reminds you of youf want 1. erty ; it makes you feel, sometimeras with th^f 1 "■"'/' *' ""'' ^'"^^Sed garmems, with the freedom of your own native hills, would be preferable to John Bull's "beef and duff" Z^r '' '-'' ''' ^"^^'^-'^ ^^ ^'^ 'i-n. We had one poor fellow, an Irishman, named HeL.7^' ""^1^ '"'^ ""-^^^y '•"d unhappy. He was the victjfi of that mortifying system of imp^ssment prevalent in Great Lfai/ in^im with he m T' °" ^""^ ^"'^"-''^y ""'acquainted with the mysteries of sea life. One of his first inquiries was, where he sh6uld find his bed sun- "4' "..«'!. ™-^»«'-. -ith true sailor rOsJ.-..ny=^, iieui mm to tiie boatswain. "And They aire nan is pro- ubbing- and • use. No- e so many rmance of s g-iven in dience en- rope's-end. sible ; the f " Hurrah ig.' heave rom being i of your etimes, as garments, lis, would nd duff," e driving 1, named unhappjr. rstem of in time quainted his first )ed, sup- he same e sailor "And SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 45 I where shall I find a bed, sir ?" asked he of this rugged son of the ocean. The boatswain looked at him very contemptu- ously for a moment, then, rolling his lump of tobacco into another apartment of his ample mouth, replied, " Have you got a knife ? " "Yes, sir." "Well, stick it into the softest plank in the ship, and take that for a bed ! " Poor fellow ! what was sport for others was pain to him. He had been used to kind treat- ment at home. After he had received his ham- mock, when turning out in the morning, with the boatswain's mates at his heels, he used to exclaim, " When I was at home, I would walk in my father's garden in the morning, until the maid would come and say, ' William, will you come to your ta, or your coffee ta, or your chocolarata ? * But oh ! the case is altered now ; it 's nothing but bear a hand, lash and carry. Oh dear ! " I confess that Billy Garvy was not the only one who contrasted the present with the past, or who found the balance to be greatly in favor of the former. I often looked back to the village of Bladen, and thought how preferable would be the bright hearth-side and pleasant voices of that quiet home, to the profane, rough, uncomfortable life we led on shipboard. As these reflections were T.VXX J liiiiii^ i^ut pieasurauit;, i L-uiiioiiua liiem as quickly as possible, with a determination to be as i iiii' ' 48 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. happy as I could in my station of servant to the doman a resolution which I commend to all lads who, like me, are foolish enough to quit the quiet scenes of a native village, for the noisy, pro- fane atmosi)here of a mu„ of war. As ., .are was novel and so different from snore h -.,g. It was some time before I could get fully reconciled to it: it was composed of hard and salt beef at sea, pea soup and burgoo. Bur- goo, or as it was sportively called, skiUagallee, was oatmeal boiled in water to the consistency of hasty pudding. Sometimes we had cocoa iL.ead of burgoo. Once a week we had flour and raisins served out, with which we made " duff" or pud- dmg. To prepare these articles, each mess had Its cook, who drew the provisions, made the duff, washed the mess kids, &c. He also drew the grog tor the mess, which consisted of a gill of rum mixed with two gills of water for each man. o clock, RM each man received half a pint of wine. The boys only drew half this quantity, but were allowed pay for the remainder, a regula- tion wnich could have been profitably applied to th« whole supply of grog and wine for both boys and men. But those were not days in which Temperance triumphed as she does now; thouo-h, I beheve, the British naw bns not -- --■ - ^ant to the :ate Mace- 2nd to all ;o quit the noisy, pro- irent from could get d of hard salt pork 30. Bur- allee, was Y of hasty istead of Ld raisins " or pud- ness had the duff; Irew the 1 gill of ich man. .* at four I pint of quantity, L regula- 'plied to >th boys I which though, ■ascu to SIX YEARS IN A M^^N OF WAR. 47 dispense the "drink that's in the drunkard's bowl " to her seamen. Shortly after our captain came on board, his servant died somewhat suddenly, so that I had an early opportunity of seeing how sailors are dis- posed of in this sad hour. The corpse was laid out on the grating-, covered with a flag ; as we were yet in the river, the body was taken on shore and buried, without the beautiful burial-service of the church of England being- read at his grave— a ceremony which is not omitted at the interment of the veriest pauper in that country. I have purposely dwelt on these particulars, that the reader may feel himself initiated at once into the secrets of man-of-war usages. He has doubt- less seen ships of war with their trim nQ;gmn- and frowning- ports, and his heart has swelled with pride as he has gazed upon these floating- cities— the representatives of his nation's character in foreign countries : to their internal arrangements, however, he has been a stranger. I have endeav- ored to introduce him into the interior : a desire to make him feel at home there, is my apology for dwelling so long on these descriptions. After various delays, we were at last ready for sea and under sailing orders. The tide and wind were both propitious ; then came the long-expected cry of the boatswain, "All hands up anchor ahoy ! " The crew manned the capstan in a trice, ,,,.,, ^..xxiiiiiy iwuxiu lu the tune ojt a lively air played by the fifer, the huge anchor rapidly left I !! ,Nl!il! ij! l! 48 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. the mud of tlio Thmnos, and hunir at tlic bows of our taut fri^T-ato. Tlion cainc the cry of "All Lands uiako sail ahoy!" As if by Hla^ri(•, she was imuicdiattdy covered willi canvass ; the favor- innr breeze at once filled our sails, and the form that had lain for weeks inert and motionless on the waters, now bounded along- the waves like a thino- of life. Rapidly we ran' down tlie channel, and before we had Avell ^ot under weiah came to an anchor an-ain at Spitlu^ad, under shelter of the g-arden of Enoland— the Isle of Wight. Short as was the ])eriod between weighing- anchor ofFGravesend and our arrival at SpilheacF, it gave opportunity for one of those occurrences which are a disgrace to the naval service of any nation, and a degradation to our common human- ity, which the public opinion of the civilized world should frown out of existence : I allude to the brutal practice of flogging-. A poor fellow had fallen into the very sailor- like offence of getting drunk. For this the captain sentenced him to the punishment of four dozen lashes. He was first placed in irons aW night: the irons used for this purpose were shackles fitting round the ankles, through the ends of which was passed an iron bar some ten or twelve feet it length : it Avas thus long because it was no unfrequent case for half a dozen men to be ironed at once. A padlock at the end of the bar held the nrisouer sf^r'nrnlTr TKiic, y,i„„^^ ,\, u j vile," he was guarded by a marine until the cap- I ! SIX yi^ARS IN A MAN OF WAR, 49 c bows of f of " All iaiL|:ic, she the ijivor- tbc form onless on ves like a ^ channel, I came to ter of the weiiifhInGf SpitheatI, currenccs 'e of any ti human- sed world le to the ry sailor- le captain ►ur dozen II night: shackles ends of )r twelve t was no )e ironed bar held it J • uuress the cap- tain bade llio fir.st lioutonant proparn the hands to witness the punishtncMit. Upon this the lieuten- ant transiniltcd the order to tlie master at arms. He then ordered tlie rrratinir or hatcli full of square holes to be rigof.d : it was placed accordingly be- tween the main and spar dcck.s, not far from tho mainmast. While these preparations were j^oino- on, the officers were dressimr themselves in full uniform and armin,^ themselves with their dirks: the prisoner's messmates carried him his best clothes, to make him appear in as decent a manner as possible. This is aUvays done, in the hope of moving- the feeling-s of the captain favorably towards tho prisoner. * This done, the hoarse, dreaded cry of " All hands ahoy to witness punishment!" from the lips of the boatswain, peals along- the ship as mournfully as the .notes of a funeral knell. At this signal the officers muster on the spar deck, the men on the m?Jn deck. Next came the pris- oner ; guarded by a marine on one side and the master at arms on the other, he was marched up to the grating. His back was made bare and his shirt laid loosely upon his back ; the two quarter- masters proceeded to seize him up; that is, they tied his hands and feet with spun-yarns, called the seizings, to the grating. The boatswain's mates, whose office it is to flog on board a man of TTU.X, ov-u^a leady vvuii liieir dreadful weapon of punishment, the cat-o'-nine-tails. This instru-* 5 I Mi ll 1 w I ! li' 1 60 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. ment of torturo was composed of nine cords, a quarter olan incli round uiul about two feet lono-, the cuds wliipt with (int' twi.ie. To these cords was aflixed a stock, two leet in lenqth, covered with red haize. Tlie reacU-r may be sure that it is a most formidable instrument in the hands of a stronir, skilful man. Indeed, any man who should whip his horse with it would connnit an outrao-e on humanity, which the moral feelinir of any com- munity would not tolerate ; he would be prosecu- ted for cruelty; yet it is used to whip men on board ships of war ! The boatswain's mate is ready, with coat off and whip in hand. The captain gives the word. Carefully spreadinnr the corcls with the fingers of his left hand, the executioner throws the cat over Jus right shoulder; it is brought down upon the now uncovered herculean shoulders of the man. His flesh creeps— it reddens as if blushing at the indignity; the sufferer groans ; lash follows lash, until the first mate, wearied with the cruel em- ployment, gives place to a second. Now two dozen of these dreadful lashes have been inflicted : the lacerated back looks inhuman; it resembles roasted meat burnt nearly black before a scorching fire; yet still 'he lashes fall; the captain con- tinues merciless. Vain are ihe cries and prayers of the wretched man. " 1 would not forgive the Saviour," was the blasphemous reply of one of these naval demi-gods, or rather demi-fiends, to a plea for mercy. The executioners keep on. Four I ne cords, a fc'ct long", llu'sc cords th, covered re that it is liands of a who should an outrag-e )i' any com- )e prosecu- ip MEN on th coat o(r the word. fingers of le cat over upon the f the MAN. ling at the Hows lash, cruel em- Now two 1 inflicted : resembles scorching >tain con- id prayers »rg-ive the 3f one of ends, to a •n. Four SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 51 dozen strokes have cut tip liis flesh and robbed him of all sclf-rcspcct ; there he hangs, a pitied, self-despised, groaning-, bleeding wretch ; and now the captain cries, forbear ! His shirt is thrown over his shoulders ; the seizings are loosed ; he is led away, staining his path with red drops of blood, and the hands, "piped down" by the boat- swain, sullenly return to their duties. Such was the scene witnessed on board the Macedonian, on the passage from London to Spit- head; such, substantially, is every punishment scene at sea ; only carried, sometimes, to a greater length of severity. Sad and sorrowful were my feelings on witnessing it; thoughts of the friendly warnings of my old acquaintance filled my mind, and I inwardly wished myself once more under the friendly roof of my father, at Bladen. Vaia wish ! I should have believed the warning voice when it was given. Believe me, young man, you will often breathe that wish, if ever you wander from a father's house. Flogging in the navy is more severe than in the army, though it is too bad to be tolerated there, or indeed anywhere. Other modes of punishment might be successfully substituted, which would deter from misconduct, without de- stroying the self-respect of the man. I hope the day will come, when a captain will no more be allowed to use the "cat" than he is now to use poison. It should be an interdicted weapon. Though I have spoken severely of the officers 52 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. of the navy, let it not be thought that the class of naval officers are lost to the finer feelings of humanity. There are many humane, consid- erate men among- them, who deserve our highest respect. This was the case with the first lieuten- ant of the Macedonian, Mr. Scott. He abhorred flogging. Once, when a poor marine was under sentence, he plead hard and successfully with the captain for his respite. This was a great victory ; for the captain had a profound hatred of marines. The poor soldier was extremely grateful for his intercession, and would do anything for him to show his sense of the obligation; indeed, the sailors, in their odd way, showed their preference for him by describing him as a man who had a soul to be saved, and who ought to go to heaven ; while of the captain, they Avhispered that if he did not go to perdition, " the devil would be cheated of his due." These are, in a manner, proverbial expressions of like and dislike, on board a Britijh man of war. One of the effects of this exhibition of cruelty was seen during the short time we lay at Spit- head. The two boys, who were servants to the first and second lieutenants, conceiving a special dislike to the idea of being flogged, took it into their heads to run away. Being sent on shore, they shaped their course for the country. It was well for them that they were not retaken.. Our frio-ntP. Iinrl nrrlors; in rnr\^rf^^T hr^twrnnn ixnm and three hundred troops from Portsmouth to T whole ■ i elinsfs ^ J m SIX YEAltS IN A MAN OF WAR. 58 he whole r feelings e, consid- r hin shore, It was louth to i Lisbon, to assist the Portuguese against the French. The soldiers were stowed on the main decks, with very few conveniences for the voya^ «: — j.^ assist in the defence of the place. SIX YEARS IN A MAW OF WAR. 65 sloops of ; all de- iinst the e harbor, le stand- ng on its t to be a admira- he plod- t almost streets. )erambu- loticed a 3, which id friars, id people counted ontained re, with h much it repre- denomi- edonian 3 troops, a field scaping landed ; • While we lay here, our ship was well sup- plied with fruits from the shore. Large bunches of delicious grapes, abundance of sweet oranges, water-melons, chestnuts, and also a bountiful sup- ply of gigantic onions, of peculiar flavor, enabled our crew to gratify their palates in true Eno-lish style. Poor fellows ! they feasted, laughed,°and joked, as if the future had nothing to develop but fairy scenes of unmixed delight. Little thought, indeed, does your true tar take of the morrow. Amid these feastings, however, there rose some- thing to trouble Macbeth, in the shape of an order from the admiral to prepare for a cruise. This was peremptory ;— for a cruise therefore we pre- pared. Our boats' crews came on board • the officers stored their larder with the means of gustatory gratifications ; and we stood out to sea again. The port of Corunna, in Spam, was the next place at which we anchored. While lying in this spacious and safe harbor, our little world was thrown into temporary confusion by the loss of the ward-room steward, Mr. Sanders. This man could speak in the Spanish tongue ; he had accu- mulated a considerable sum of money by long service, prize money, and an economy little known among sailors. For some cause or other he had become dissatisfied ; so, one day, he engaged a opaniard to run his boat under the stern of our frigate ; dropping from one of the stern ports into » 66 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. the boat, iinperceived by the officers, the wily Spaniards covered him with their loose garments and sails, and then conveyed him to the shore. This was running- a great risk ; for had he been detected in the act, or taken afterwards, he would have felt the cruel strokes of the lash. Fortu- nately for himself, he escaped without detection. From Corunna, w^e returned to Lisbon, where, at the cheerful cry of » All hands bring the ship to an anchor, ahoy!" we once more placed our frigate, taut and trim, under the battlements of the city. As servant to the surgeon, it was one part of my duty to perform the task of carrying his clothes to be washed. As great attention to cleanliness, in frequently changing their linen, is observed among naval officers, a good washerwo- man is considered quite a desideratum. In attend- ing to this matter for my master, I had frequent opportunities to go on shore. This gave me some means of observation. On one of my visits to our pretty laundress, I saw several Portu- guese running along, gesticulating and talking with great earnestness. Being ignorant of their language, my washerwoman, who spoke good English, told me that a man had been stabbed, in consequence of some ground for jealousy, afforded by the conduct of the deceased. Hast- ening to the spot, I saw the wounded man, --^„.... ,. ^.,,, „,, a Duu, vviiii iwo gapjng wounds in his side—the long knife, the instrument of the SIX YEARS m A MAN OF WAR. 57 the wily garments he shore. I he been he would Fortu- 3tection. n, where, the ship aced our Tients of 3 part of y'mg his sntion to linen, is Eisherwo- n attend- frequent ^ave me ny visits I Portu- . talking of their ife good stabbed, ealousy. Hast- ed man, wounds t of the deed, lying by his side. The poor sufferer soon died. What was done to the murderer, I could not discover. Though very passionate, and addicted to the use of the knife, for the purpose oi^ taking sum- mary vengeance, the Portuguese are nevertheless arrant cowards. Indeed, it is a question by no means settled, whether all classes of men, in any country, who fly to cold steel or to fire-arms in every petty quarrel, are not cowards at heart. We had an evidence of Portuguese cowardice in an affray which occurred between some of the citizens of Lisbon and a party of our marines. Six of the latter, ignorant of the palace or mu- nicipal regulations, wandered into the queen's gardens. Some twenty of the Portuguese, on witnessing this bold intrusion on the privacy of the queen, rushed upon them with long knives. The marines, though so inferior in number, faced about Avith their bayonets, and, after much cursing and chattering, their enemies, considering perhaps that the better part of valor is discretion, took to their heels, leaving the six marines masters of a bloodless field. These rencontres were quite common between them and our men ; the result, though sometimes more serious, was uniformly the same. As an illustration of the manners of this peo- pie, I cannot forbear the insertion of another fact, I was one day v/alking leisurely along the streets, quite at my case, y/hen the gathering of a noisy 68 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. multitude arrested my attention. Looking up, I was shocked at seeing a human head, with a pair of hands beneath it, nailed to a pole ! They had just been taken from the body of a barber, who, when in the act of shaving a gentleman, was seized with a sudden desire to possess a beautiful watch, which glittered in his pocket : to gain this brilliant bauble, the wretched man cut his victim's throat. He was arrested, his hands were cut off, then his head, and both were fastened to the pole as I have described them. Upon inquiry, I ascertained that this was the ordinary method of punishing murder in Portugal ; a striking evidence that civ- ilization had not fully completed its great work among them. Civilization humanizes the feelings of society, throwing a veil of refinement and mercy over even the sterner acts of justice ; at any rate, it never tolerates such barbarism as I saw at Lisbon. While in port we experienced a change of offi- cers by no means agreeable to the crew. Mr. Scott, our first lieutenant, an amiable man, de- cidedly hostile to the practice of flogging, left us ; for what cause, we could not ascertain. His suc- cessor, Mr. Hope, though bearing a very pleasant name, was an entirely different person, in manners and conduct, from his predecessor. He was harsh, severe, and fond of seeing the men flogged. Of course, floggings became more frequent than be- fore • for, although a lieutenant cannot flog upon his own authority, yet, such is the influence he exerts SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 69 dng up, I 'ith a pair They had :ber, who, v^as seized ful watch, s brilliant I's throatc ', then his 3ole as I icertained Dunishing" that civ- eat work 3 feelings nd mercy any rate, [ saw at e of offi- w. Mr. man, de- ', left us ; His suc- pleasant manners as harsh, •ed. Of than be- upon his tie exerts over a captain, that he has the utmost opportunity to gratify a thirst for punishment. It may appear strange to the reader that any gentleman— and all officers of the navy consider themselves gentlemen —should possess such a thirst ; yet such was the case with Mr. Hope. Nor was his a solitary exam- ple ; many a man, who, on shore, in presence of ladies of fashion, appeared too gentle to harm an enemy, too kind to injure an insect, was strangpiy metamorphosed into a genuine unprincipled tyrant, upon assuming command in a man of war. We had already witnessed a number of punish- ments, especially at sea : in port, the officers were more condescending, lest their men should desert ; but at sea, when this was impossible, they flogged without mercy. Cases of ofTence which occurred while in the harbor, were looked up ; sometimes a half dozen were flogged at once ; every man trem- bled lest he should be a victim ; the ship's crew were made wretched ; a sword seemed impending- over every head. Who, in such a case, could be happy ? Not even a sailor, with all his habitual thoughtlessness. Yet it is said we must flog, to maintain discipline among sailors. Pshaw ! Flog- ging may be needful to awe a slave writhing un- der a sense of unmerited wrong, but never should a lash fall on a freeman's back, especially if he holds the safety and honor of his country in his keeping. ^ Poor old Bob Hammond ! Never was man more reckless than this honest-hearted Irishman ; never was sailor more courageous under punish' M < I ■ lUM ' miimmmmfmtmmmmitmailmtm €0 A voicR fhom the main peck. ment. For bciiinf drunk ho received four dozen lashes; he bore tlie inllictiou with profound silence, uttering neither irronn nor sin-h; neither casting one imploring kiok at his tormentors. On being taken down, he a])])licd himself most lustily to his bottle, ajid before night was drunk again. Rush- ing to the quarter deck, with a madness peculiar to a phrensied drunkard, he ran up against the ca^aiu with such force thet he nearly knocked him down. With a boldness that seemed to strike the great man dumb, Bob hiccupped and said, " Halloo, Billy, my l>oy, is that you ? You are young and foolish ; just fit for the launch. You are like a young lion— all your sorrows are to come." The captain was excessively proud ; even his officers scarcely dared walk the quarter deck on the same side with him. He never allowed him- self to be addressed but by his title of " my Lord." HI Should a sailor, through design or forgetfulness, reply to a command, " Yes, sir," the lordly man would look at him Vv'itli a glance full of dignity, and sternly reply, " What, sir ? " This, of course, w^ould put the olTender in mind to correct Mmself hy saying, " Yes, my Lord.'' Judge then of his surprise, indignation, nay, of his lordly horror, when poor old drunken Bob Hammond called hhn ^^ Billy, my boy!" Doubtless it stirred up his nobility within him, for, with a voice of thun- uer, ixe T„.vv,i.iimcu, 1 ut uiia man in irons!" it was done. The next morning, his back yet sore, ^ 1 SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAU. 61 ur dozen 1 silence, r casting )n being ly to his Rush- peculiar linst the Ivnockod to strike said, You are 1. You s are to !ven his deck on ed him- r Lord." tfulness, :lly man dignity, ' course, himself fi of his horror, . called rred up >f thun- SI" it et sore, poor Bob received five dozen more strokes of the hated cat-o'-nine-tails. Most heroically was it borne. No sound escaped him ; the most pro- found silence was observed by all, broken only by the dead sound of the whip, as it fell every few moments on the wounded back. The scene was sickenmg in the extreme. Let me throw a veil over Its details, simply remarking that it is ques- tionable which of the two appears to the best ad- vantage ; poor drunken Bob, suffering degradino- torture with heroic firmness, or my Lord Fitzrov, gloating on the scene with the appetite of a vul- ture ! Let the reader decide for himself. ^ These statements may at first sight appear incredible. It may be asked how a man could endure whippings which would destroy an ox or a horse. This is a very natural question, and but lor the consciousness I feel of being supported in my statements by the universal testimony of old men-of-war's-men, I should hesitate to publish them. The loorst species of this odious torture, however, remains to be described^flogging through the fleet. This punishment is never inflicted without due trial and sentence by a court-martial, for some aggravated offence. After the offender is thus sentenced, and the day amves appointed by his judges for its execution, the unhappy wretch is conducted mto the ship's launch-a laro-p honf— which lias been previously rigged up with poles and grating, to whi'ch he is seized i4 up; he IS I Mi 62 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. attended by the ship's surgeon, whose duty it is to decide when the power of nature's endurance has been taxed to its utmost. A boat from every ship in the fleet is also present, each carrying one or two officers and two marines fully armed. These boats are connected by tow lines to the launch. These preparations made, the crew of the vic- tim's ship are ordered to man the rigging. while the boatswain commences the tragedy. When he has administered one, two or three dozen lashes, according to the number of ships in the fleet, the prisoner's shirt is thrown over his gory back ; the boatswain returns on board, the hands are piped down, the drummer beats a mournful melody, called the rogue's march, and the melancholy pro- cession moves on. Arriving at the side of another ship, the brutal scene is repeated, until every crew in the fleet has witnessed it, and from one to three hundred lashes have lacerated the back of the broken-spirited tar to a bleeding pulp. He is then placed under the surgeon's care, to be fitted for duty — a ruined man — broken in spirit ! all sense of self-respect gone, forever gone ! If he survive, it is only to be like his own brave bark, when winds and waves conspire to dash her on the pitiless strand, a wretched, hopeless wreck; a living, walking shadow of his former self. Shame- ful blot! most foul and disgraceful stain on the worse than barbarism will disappear before the mild influences of civilization and Christianity? SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 63 ity it is durance n every ing one armed. to the the vic- r, while /hen he lashes, ieet, the ck ; the 'e piped melody, oly pro- another ry crew to three of the ) is then tted for ,11 sense survive, k, when on the reck ; a Shame- on the . — *i.* UC liilB ■ore the nity ? No plea of necessity can be successfully urged in behalf of whipping men ; for, if subordination or faithful adhesion to orders is expected to follow such terrible examples, I know, from my acquaint- ance with the sufferers themselves, that the ex- pectation is vain. One of two results always follows. The victim either lives on, a lone, dark- minded, broken-spirited man, despising himself and hating every one, because he thinks every one hates him ; or he lives with one fearful, un- yielding purpose ; a purpose on which he feeds and nourishes his galled mind, as food affords life and energy to his physical constitution — that pur- pose is REVENGE. I havo heard them swear — and the wild flashing eye, the darkly frowning brow, told how firm was that intent— that if ever they should be in battle, they would shoot their officers. I have seen them rejoice over the misfortunes of their persecutors, but more especially at their death. That it has frequently led to mutiny, is well verified. I have known such severity to result in actual murder. While we lay at Lisbon, a sergeant of marines, on board a seventy-four, made himself obnoxious by repeated acts of tyran- ny. Two marines determined upon his death. One night, unperceived by any, they seized him, hurried him to the gangway, and pitched him overboard. The tide was running strong; the man was drowned ! But for themselves his fate would have remained a secret until the great day of judgment; it was discovered by an officer, who If 64 A VOiCE FEMI THE WAIN DECK. If ''! accidentally overheard them congratulating each other on their achievcnunt. He betrayed them. A court-martial sentenced them. They were placed on deck with halters on their necks. Two guns were fired, and, when the smoke cleared away, two men were seen dangling from the fore- yard-arm. Only one day previous, a letter had brought a discharge from the service for one of them. Poor fellow! it came too late. He was fated to a summary discharge from all service, in a manner appalling and repulsive to every finer human feeling. Such are the actual consequences of severity of discipline on board men of war. Punishment leads to revenge ; revenge to punishn.jnt. What is intended to cure, only aggravates the disease ; the evil enlarges under the remedy; voluntary subordination ceases ; gloom overspreads the crew ; fear fills the breasts of the officers ; the ship be- comes a miniature of the house of fiends. While, on the other hand, mild regulations, enforced without an appeal to brute force, are easily carried into operation. The sailor has a warm heart; show him personal kindness, treat him as a man, he will then be a man ; he will do anything for a kind officer. He will peril his life for him ; nay, he will cheerfully rush between him and danger. This was done at Tripoli, when the brave James offered his own arm to receive the fell stroke of a Turkish scimitar, aimed at the life of the bold Decatur, on board the frigate Philadelphia. Let SIX YEARS IN A MAN OP WAR. 65 naval officers, let all ship-masters, once fairly test the efet of kind treatment, and I am sure they will never desire to return to severity ; unless, indeed, they are tyrants at heart, in which case, the sooner they lose their commands the better for their country; for no tyrant is truly brave or trustworthy. Cowardice and meanness lie curled up in the heart of every tyrant. He is too des- picable, too unsafe to be trusted with the responsi- bihties of a naval command. Such, at least, is the opinion of an old sailor. ^ One of the greatest enemies to order and hap- piness in ships of war is drunkenness. To be drunk is considered hy almost every sailor as the acme of sensual bliss; while many fancy that swearing and drinking are necessary accomplish- ments in a genuine man-of-war 's-man. Hence It almost universally prevails. In our ship the men would get drunk, in defiance of every restric- tion. Were it not for -the moral and physical ruin which follows its use, one might laugh at the various contrivances adopted to elude the vigilance of officers in their efforts to procure rum. Some of our men who belonged to the boats' crews pro- vided themselves with bladders; if left ashore by their officers a few moments, they would slip into the .irst grocery, fill their bladders, and return with the spoil. Once by the ship's side, the favorable moment was seized to pass the inter- uicteu Diaaaers into the port-holes, to som3 watch- lul shipmate, by whom it was carefully secreted, (3# 66 A VOICE FROM Tllti, iVAIN DECK. i:ii to be dninlc at the first opportunity. The liberty to go on shore, which is always granted while in port, was sure to be abused for drunken purposes. The Sabbath was also a day of sensuality. True, we sometimes had the semblance of religious ser- vices, when the men were summoned aft to hear the captain read the morning service from the church prayer-book ; but usually it was observed more as a day of revelry than of worship. But at Christmas our ship presented a scene such as I had; never imagined. The men were permitted to have their " full swing." Drunkenness ruled the ship. Nearly every man, with most of the offi- cers, were in a state of beastly intoxication at night. Here, some were fighting, but were so insensibly drunk, they hardly knew whether they struck the guns or their opponents; yonder, a party were singing libidinous or bacchanalian songs, while all were laughing, cursing, swearing or hallooing; confusion reigned in glorious tri- umph ; it was the very chaos of humanity. Had we been at sea, a sudden gale of wind must have proved our destruction ; had we been exposed to a sudden attack from an enemy's vessel, we should have fallen an easy prey to the victor ; just as the poor Hessians, at Trenton, fell before the well- timed blow of the sage Washington, during the war of the revolution. Of all places, the labors of temperance men are most needed among sailors ; and I am glad to know that much has been accomplished among them SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 67 J liberty while in urposes. True, ous ser- to hear rom the )bserved But at ich as I nitted to uled the the ofR- ation at were so ler they )nder, a lanalian wearing ous tri- r. Had 1st have posed to 3 should !t as the le well- ing the I already. From what I know of the sufTerings and difTiculties growing out of intemperance at sea, I most heartily desire to see a temperance flag float- ing at the mast-head of every ship in the world. When this is seen, sailors will be a happier class than ever they have yet been, from the time when the cautious Phenicians crept timidly round the shores of the Mediterranean, to the present day of bold and fearless navigation. men are to know g them CHAPTER III. An alarm— A bootless cruise— Wreck— Quarrel between the captain and sailing-master— Its result— Change of commanders— Mr. Hope and the boys— Our men de- sert — Bloody Dick— Happy Jack— Attempted suicide— A negro runs away and is retaken— Good Friday in Lis- bon — A perplexity on shore— Narrow escape from be- ing flogged— The press-gang— Several Americans im- pressed—Another cruise — A terrible storm— Loss of a man— The author's sickness— Black Tom's death and burial — Another bare escape from Hogging — Another change of commanders— Severity of Captain Carden's administration — A brutal sentence on an alleged thief— A man flogged through the fleet— Our drummer de- mands a court-martial— Its unpleasant termination A question— Danger of attempting mutiny— Change in my situation- The captain's band— Order for a new cruise. Shortly after the Christmas debauch, men- tioned in the preceding chapter, news was brought to the admiral that nine French frigates were cruising on the Spanish coast : immediately, all was excitement, bustle, preparation through the fleet. The Hannibal and Northumberland, both seventy-four gun ships, the Caesar of eighty guns, called by the sailors the Old Bull-dog, a gun brig, and some others, I forget the names, and the Macedonian, were ordered to sail in pursuit of the French. This formidable force dropped down III SIX YEAllS IN A MAN OF WAR. 69 [ between hange of men de- suicide — ly in Lis- from be- cans im- Loss of a leath and -Another Garden's 2d thief — imer de- ination — hange in r a new 1, men- brought ;s were tely, all igli the id, both y guns, in brig, ind the suit of d down the river, every man composing it eagerly desiring to meet the enemy. The enterprise however was unsuccessful; after cruising in vain for several days, the admiral signalled the fleet to return. Before reaching port we fell in with a Scotch ship from Greenock, in a most perilous condition ; her masts and rudder were gone, while her nurner- ous leaks were fast gaining on the labors of the already exhausted crew at the pumps. Finding It utterly impossible to save the vessel, we took off the crew ; and thus our cruise, though defeated m Its main design, proved the means of rescuing several poor wretches from a watery gra\e. It is a question worthy of consideration, whether this was not a really higher result than if we had found and beaten the French, and had returned in a crippled state, leaving some hundreds killed and wounded. Humanity would answer, yea. So far as the effects of this cruise concerned our own little frigate, they were really quite seri- ous. We were reefing topsails one night, at sea, when the sailing-master, Mr. Lewis, in a fit of ill- humor, threatened to flog some of the men. The captain overheard him. Feeling himself hurt by this assumption of his own prerogative, he told Mr. Lewis that he was captain in that ship, and It was his business to flog the men. Sharp words followed ; the captain was exasperated ; he ordered the sailing-master to be put in irons. Here, how- ever, he exceeded his own power, for, though he might place the common sailor in irons, he might •\ ! 70 A VOICE FROBI THE MAIN DECK. ill' 'i ill I not do so by an officer with impunity. Accord- ingly, when we reached Lisbon, a court-martial sat on the case, which resulted in their both being broken or cashiered. This was a hard blow for Lord Fitzroy, and he obviously felt it most keenly. It also cut off my expectations of being elevated to the quarter deck '- for, although I had never received any direct encouragement from his Lordship, yet I had always nourished the hope that ultimately he would keep the promise he made to my mother, and do something for my advancement. Now, however, my hopes were destroyed. I was doomed to the forecastle for life. Lord Fitzroy was succeeded by Captain Carson. He however was soon removed to make way for Captain Waldgrave, who proved to be far more severe than Fitzroy. He and Lieutenant Hope were kindred spirits : cruelty seemed to be their delight, for at the presence of culprits tied to the gratings, a gleam of savage animation stole over their faces. Punishment was now an almost every-day scene ; even the boys were not per- mitted to escape. A lad was appointed boatswain over them, and they were consigned to the care of Mr. Hope, who took especial delight in seeing them flogged. What a mean, dastardly spirit for a British officer ! How utterly contemptible he appears engaged in whipping a few helpless sailor bovs ! Yet thus he did constnnt.1v annear. causing* them to be flogged for every trifling oflence. One Accord- t-martial )th being j^ and he it off my ter deck ; ly direct t I had ately he ' mother, ;. Now, I was I Carson. way for far more int Hope be their ed to the tole over 1 almost not per- oatswain e care of n seeing spirit for ptible he 3SS sailor , causing* ;e. One SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 71 I poor little fellow, unable to tolerate the thought of the lash, hid himself in the cable tier for several days. He was discovered, only to be most shame- fully punished. These severities filled our crew with discour- agement. A sailor dreads the dishonor of the lash. Some, urged by a nice sense of honor, have preferred death to its endurance. I have heard of one man who actually loaded himself with shot and deliberately walked overboard. Among our ship's company the effects of these severe meas- ures showed themselves in frequent desertions, notwithstanding the great risk run by such a bold measure ; for, if taken, they were sure to meet with a fearful retribution. Still, many preferred the chance of freedom ; some ran off when on shore with the boats, others dropped overboard in the night, and either swam on shore or were drowned. Many others were kept from running away by the strength of their attachment to their old messmates and by the hope of better days. Of those who escaped, some were retaken by the Portuguese, who delighted to hunt them up for a small sum of money. Two of my messmates, named Robert Bell and James Stokes, were taken in this manner. I felt, greatly affected at losing their company, for they were pleasant fellows. I felt a peculiar attachment to poor Stokes ; he had taught me many things which appertain to sea- manship, and had cared for my interests with the faithfulness of a parent. how anxiously did I 72 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. !i|''; desire they might not be detected, because I knew, if they were, that they were doomed men. But they were taken by a band of armed Portuguese ; barefooted, desponding, broken in spirit, they were brought on board, only to be put in irons immedi- ately. By a fortunate chance they escaped with fiftij lashes, instead of being flogged through the fleet. We had another man who escaped, named Richard Suttonwood; he was very profane, and was much in the habit of using the word " bloody ;" hence he was nicknamed " Bloody Dick " by his shipmates. Well, Dick ran off. He succeeded in getting on board an English brig in the mer- chant service. But how chop-fallen was poor Dick when he found that this brig was laden with powder for his own frigate ! Resolving to make the best of the matter, he said nothing of his rela- tion to our frigate, but as soon as the brig dropped alongside of the Macedonian, he came on board and surrendered himself; by this means he es- caped being flogged, as it was usual to pardon a runaway who voluntarily returned to his duty. The crew were all delighted at his return, as he was quite popular among them for his lively dispo- sition and his talents as a comic singer, which last gift is always highly prized in a man of war. So joyous were we all at his escape from punishment, that we insisted on his giving a concert, which went oiF vvreli. Seated on a gun surrounded by scores of the men, he sung a variety of favorite songs, I V \ ■ ft ■m # SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 73 I knew, n. But ;uguese ; ley were immedi- )ed with ►ugh the , named ane, and Dloody;" " by his icceeded he mer- ^as poor ien with to make his rela- dropped on board 3 he es- )ardon a lis duty, •n, as he ly dispo- hich last ^■ar. So ishment, t, which nded hy ,te songs, amid the plaudits and encores of his rough audi- tors. By such means as these, sailors contrive to keep up their spirits amidst constant causes of depression and misery. One is a good singer, another can spin tough forecastle yarns, while a third can crack a joke with sufficient point to call out roars of laughter. But for these interludes, life in a man of war, with severe officers, would be absolutely intolerable; mutiny or desertion would mark the voyages of every such ship. Hence, officers in general highly value your jolly, merry-making, don't-care sort of seamen. They know the effect of their influence in keeping away discontented thought from the minds of a ship's company. One of these official favorites paid our frigate a visit while we lay at Lisbon. We had just finished breakfast, when a number of our men were seen running in high glee towards the main hatchway. Wondering what Avas going forward, I watched their proceedings with a curi- ous eye. The cause of their joy soon appeared in the person of a short, round-faced, merry-look- ing tar, who descended the hatchway amid cries of '< Hurrah I here 's happy Jack ! " As soon as the jovial little man had set hts foot on the berth deck, he began a specimen of his vocal powers. The voice of song was as triumphant on board the Macedonian, as it was in days of yore in the halls of Ossian. Every voice was hushed, all work was brought to a stand still, while the crew gath- i i 'J 11 ■ m M 74 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. cred round their favorite, in groups, to listen to his unequalled perforniiinces. liajipy Jack suc- ceeded, while his visit lasted, in communicalinff Jiis own joyous feelin^rs to our people, and they parted from him at night with deep regret. A casual visitor in a man of war, heholding the song, the dance, the revelry of the crew, might judge them to be happy. But I know that these things are often resorted to, because they feel miserable, just to drive away dull care. They do it on the same principle as the slave population in the South, to drown in sensual gratification the voice of misery that groans in the inner man — that lives within, speaking of the indignity offered to its high nature by the chain that eats beyond the flesh — discoursing of the rights of man, of liberty on the free hills of a happier clime : while amidst the gayest negro dance, not a heart among the laughing gang but would beat with high emotions, and seize the boon with indescribable avidity, should it be offered its freedom on the spot. So in a man of war, where severe disci- pline prevails, though cheerfulness smiles at times, it is only the forced merriment of minds ill at ease; minds that would gladly escape the thraldom of the hated service to which they are bound. Nor is this forced submission to circumstances universal. There are individuals who cannot be reaciieu. uy tnese pleasantries ; in spite of every- thing, their spirits w^ill writhe under the gripe J SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 76 istcn to licaling id they mg the , might it these oy feel 'hey do ition ill ion the man — ofTered beyond lan, of : while among 1 high :ribable on the 2 disci- iles at inds ill pe the ley are stances mot be every- gripe of merciless authority. Wo had a melancholy instance of this species of mind on board our frigate. His name was Hill, the ward-room stew- ard. This mnn came on board with a resolute purpose to give satisfaction, if possible, to his superiors. He tried his utmost in vain. He was still scolded and cursed, until his condition seemed uncM lurablo. One morning a boy entered the after ward-room, when the first object that met his astonished eye was the body of the steward, all ghastly arul bleeding. He had cut his throat,' and lay weltering in his gore. The surgeon was called, who pronounced him to be yet alive. The wound was sewed up, the poor sufferer carried to the hospital-ship, which v/as in attendance on the fleet, where he recovered, to be returned to his former ship, though in another and worse capa- city, that of common sailor. We had on board a colored man whose name was Nugent, who possessed a remarkably fine person, was very intelligent, exceedingly polite in his manners, and easy in his address. He soon grew weary of the caprices of our officers, and ran away. He was taken, however, in rather a curi- ous manner. The officers frequently walked the deck with their spy-glasses. As one of them was spending a few leisure moments in looking at the surrounding shipping, what should appear withm the field of his glass, but the person of the fugitive Nugent on the deck of an American vessel ! Upon this, a boat was desj^atched, which Tf I 76 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. Hi soon returned 'witli the crest-fallen deserter, who was unceremoniously thrown into irons. By some fortunate chance, liowever, he escaped a ilogging. Of course, my situation was as unpleasant as that of any other person on board. I could not witness the discomfort and ill-usage of others, without trembling for my own back. I, too, had thoughts of running away, as opportunities fre- quently offered themselves. But, being ignorant of the Portuguese language, I wisely concluded that my condition among them, if I got clear, would, in respect to my present state, bear about the same analogy as the fire does to the frying- pan. My little adventures on shore gave me full assurance of this fact. I remember going ashore on Good Friday. Like good Catholics, the Por- tuguese had the masts of their vessels crossed, with effigies of the trnitor Judas hanging very significantly at their jib-booms. On shore, they were exhibiting the blasphemous mimicry of the solemn scene of the crucifixion. One was bear- ing till cross, another a sponge, a third the vine- gar. The streets were crowded with images of the saints, to which all reverently bowed. Wo betide that sacrilegious wretch who refused this tribute to their darling images. He was sure of being knocked down ; he tvas not sure of getting home alive. I was fain to vield mv knees to save my skull; so for the time I was as good a Catholic as ai •- of them, at least in the matter ; V' ar, who .. By aped a sant as uld not others, 00, had ies fre- Dfnoraiit icluded t clear, r about frying- me full ashore le Por- :rossed, g very •e, they ' of the s hear- le vine- ges of 1. Wo ed this sure of gettingf lees to good a matter SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 77 of bowing and crossing: it wtis done, however willi tnuj JVotc'staiit menljii reservfition, and wit a sincere (Icterininalion to prefer my man-of-war' life to a life in Portugal. On an(;ther occasion, some of our officers took mc on shore to help them attend to some pur- chases. After following them a considerable distance, they gave me a small commission to execute, with directions to return to the ship as soon as it was attended to. This was no easy task, however : they had conducted me to a strange part of the city, and I knew scarcely a word of Portuguese. There I stood, then, sur- rounded only by foreigners, who neither understood my language nor I theirs. All I knew of my destination was, that our boat lay near the Fish- market ; so, for the Fish-market I inquired. Speaking in English, I asked the first man I met to direct me. He looked at me with the empty stare of an idiot, and passed on. To the next, I said, partly in broken Portuguese and partly in my own tongue, "John," (they call everybody John, whose true name they do not know,) "do show me the fish-market." He could not under- stand me ; so, shrugging his shoulders, he said, " No entender Enghs," and passed on. I asked several others, but invariably received a shrug of the shoulder, a shake of the head, and a " no entender Englis," for an answer. I grew des* perate, and began to feel as if I had lost my- self, when, to my unutterable satisfaction, I saw an 7# 78 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN I>ECK. English soldior. I ran up to him and said, "Good ^.'<•^' to you; do tell mo where the fish-inarket is, these stupid Portuouese, bad hick to them, can't understand a word I say ; but it is all, no entender En^lis." My countryman laughed at seeing my English tempei ru filed, and placed me in the way of reaching the fish-market. I hurried thither, when, to my chagrin, the boats were all gone. Here, then, was another difficulty; lor, though there were plenty of Portuguese boatmen, they could not understand which ship I wished to reach. Here, however, my fingers did what my tongue refused; our ship had its mainmast ou^ «o, holding up two fingers and pointing to the mast, they at last comprehended me md con- veyed me on board. Coming alongside, I gave them what I thought was right ; but they and I differed in opinion on that point ; they demanded more, with considerable bluster, but the sentry shouted, " Shove oil* there ! " and pointed his mus- ket at them. Whether they thought a reasonable fee, and a timely retreat, better than a contest which might give them the taste of a musket-ball, I cannot determine ; at all events, I know that boat ne\ er left ship faster than theirs, when they beheld the gleam of the sentry's; musket flashing on their dark faces. Just after this adventure, I came very near being flogged, to my no small alarm. Happening on shore w^ith two more of the officers' servants, named Yates and Skinner, we stayed so late, the SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 79 "Good irket is, ') them, all, no ▼hrd at iced me hurried i^ere all ty; for, "latmen, wished d what liniiiast ting to [id con- I gave ' and I [nanded sentry is mus- sonable contest cet-ball, )w that 3n they lashing y near ipening jrvants, ite, the ship's boats had all gone off. Finding the boats gone, we strayed back into the city; night came on, and oi r return until morning was impossible. We had to wander about the city all night, in con- stant fear of being apprehended by the Portuguese as deserters. To prevent this no very desirable result, my comrade; made me a midshipman ; for the satisfactory reason, that if an officer was sup- posed to be in our company, no one would trouble us. The sum »ary process by which I was inducted into my new st; lion, was by means of . stripe carefully marked on my collar with a piece of chalk, to imitate the silver lace on a middy's coat. hus exalted, I marched my com- pany about Lisbon until dawn, when I again found myself the self-same Samuel Leech, ser- vant to the surgeon of H. M. Frigate Macedonian, that I was the previous evening, with this addi- tional fact, however, I was now liable to be flog- ged. So, in the true spirit of a J( ^emy Sneak, we went on boar ., v/here, with due v remony, we were parted for separate examinations. What tale my fellow- wanderers invented, I know not ; for my own part, 1 told the truth of the liiatter, excepting thav 1 suppressed that part of it which related to mv transformation into an officer. Luckily for u. all, one of the pu ly was liie tirst lieutenant's servant ; if he flogged one, he must flog the wnole. To save the back c f his own 'loy, he let us all escape. We wei now ordered on another cruise. Bei-ig 80 I I I A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. in want of men, we resorted to the press-rranir, which was made up of our most loyal men, armed to the tteth ; by their aid we obtained our full numbers. Among them were a few Americans; they were taken without respect to their protec tions, which wore often taken from them and destroyed. Some were released throu"-h the influence of the American consul; others, less fortunate, were carried to sea, to their no small chagrin.^ The duties of the press-gang- completed, we once more weighed anchor, and were soon ca- reering before the gales of the bay of Biscay. Our reception in this proverbially stormy bay was by no means a civil one. We met with an extraor- dmarily severe gale, in which we came very near foundering. We had just finished dinner, when a tremendous sea broke over us, pouring down the hatchway, sweeping the galley of all its half- cooked contents, then being prepared for the ofH- cers' dinner, and covering the berth deck with a perfect flood. It seemed as if old Neptune really intended that wave to sink us to Davy Jones' locker. As the water rolled from side to side wuhin, and the rude waves without beat a^^ainst her, our good ship trembled from stem to "stern, * To prevent the recovery of these men by their consul he press-gang usually went ashore on the night previous our going to sea ; so that before they M'ere missed they were beyond hi. protection. Sometimes thev wPr. .i.^fJ on our return to port. ' *^" " <0 . ss-g-ang, 1, armed our full ericans; protec- )m and gh the irs, less small ted, we )on ca- ^ Our was by xtraor- ■y near , when down ;s half- 16 ofH- ^vith a really Jones' 3 side gainst stern, :onsul, evious d they I ' t ': ■ u Wm 82 SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. and seemed like a human bcinrr gasping for breath m a stniffglo with death. The women (there were several on board) set up a shriek, a thin^ they had never done before ; some of the men turned pale ; others cursed and tried to say witty ihmgs ; the officers started ; orders ran along the ship to man the chain-pumps, and to cut holes through the berth deck to let the water into the hold. These orders being rapidly obeyed, the ship was freed from her danger. The confusion of the moment was followed by laughino- and pleasantries. That gale was long spoken °of as one of great danger. It is strange that sailors, who see so much peril, should treat religion with such neglect as it is usual for them to do. When danger is imminent, they send up a cry for help ; when it is past, they rarely return a grateful thank-offering. Yet how truly and eloquently has the Psalmist shown, in the 107th Psalm, what should be the moral effect ot the wonders of the deep. What but a deep- rooted spiritual perversity prevents such an effect? The next incident that disturbed the monotony of our sea-life, was of a melancholy character. We had been giving chase to two West Indiamen the whole of one Sabbath afternoon ; at night it blowed so hard we had to reef top-sails ; when a poor fellow, named John Thomson, was knocked from the yard. In falling, he struck some part of the ship, and the wave which opened to receive him, never disclosed his form again. He was a SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAK. 83 pressed man, an American by birth, greatly be- loved by his messmates, by whom his death was as severely felt as when a member of a family dies on shore. His loss created a dull and gloomy atmosphere throughout the ship: it was several days before the hands regained their wonted elas- ticity of mind and appearance. My recollections of this cruise are very feeble and indistinct, owing to a severe injury which confined mo to my hammock nearly the whole penod. The accident which ended in a severe illness had its origin in the following manner. The duty of cleaning knives, plates, dish-covers, &c., for the ward-room, devolved alternately on the boys employed in the ward-room. Having fin shed this task, one day, in my regular turn, the ward-room steward, a little hot-headed Malay, came to me at dinner time to inquire for the knives. Not recollecting for the moment, I made no reply ; when he angrily pushed me over a sack of bread. In falling, my head came in con- tact with the corner of a locker. Feeling much pain, and the blood flowing freely, I went to Mr. Marsh, the surgeon's mate, who dressed it, and bade me take care of it. Probably it would have healed speedily but for the freak of a sailor a few days after, while holy-stoning the decks. By holy-stoning, I mean cleaning them with stones, which are used for this purpose in men of war. Ihese stones are, some of them, large, ivith a rino- at each pnH "nfV» *» ^r^-n^ ^n-iii.. i i ^ . , . . -„-i_ ,..a „i.« ^ iv/|/c auaci|p«j oy wilicll it IS *■< ' !?■# I I 84 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. pulled backwards and forwards on the wet decks. These large stones are called holy bibles ; the smaller hand ones are also called holy-stones, or prayer-books, their shape beinir sometliing like a book. After the decks are well rubbed with these stones, they are wiped dry with swabs made of rope-yarns. By this means the utmost cleanliness is preserved in the ship. It was customary in our ship, during- this scrubbing process, for the boys to wash themselves in a large tub provided for the purpose on the main deck. The men de- lighted in sousing us with water during this ope- ration. After bf^jng wounded, a? just mentioned, I endeavored to avoid their brjr y libations ; but one morning, one of the sailors, seeing my anxiety, crept slily up behind me, and emptied a pail of water directly over my head. That night 1 Itegan both to look and to feel sick. My messmates m\d I was sea-sick, and laughed at me. Fe^m^ violent pains in my head, ears and neck, I (tM relieved when it was time to turn in. The next morning, being rather behind my usual time in waiting upon the surgeon, ho began to scold me. I told him I was unwell. He felt my pulse, ex- amined my tongue, and excused me. Growing worse, my messmates got down my hammock. I entered it very sick ; my head and face swelling very Iprge, and my eyes so sunken I could scarc;ely see. 1 I remained in this sad situation seVerol^l-eeks, carefully attended by the surgeon, anitoatched bv ^^ SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 85 t decks, es ; the ones, or T like a th these lade of mliness nary in for the rovided len de- lis ope- ioned, I but one inxiety, paii of ( \>eg3.fi , I m le next ime in )ld me. Ise, ex- rowing amock. »vellmg carcaely ^eeks, liedbv the men as tenderly as their rough hands could perform the office of nurse. My destiny was considered as being sealed, both by the crew and by myself. I was much troubled at the thought of dying: it seemed dark and dreary to enter the valley of the shadow of death without the pres- ence of a Saviour. To relieve my feelings, I frequently repeated the Lord's prayer, taugk me by my indulgent mother in my earlier and brighter years. But my mind was dark and disconsolate ; there were none among that kind-hearted but profligate crew to point my soul to its proper rest. While lying in this state, my life hanging in a doubtful balance, one of the crew, named Black Tom, an African, was taken sick. His hammock was hung up in the sick bay, a part of the main deck appropriated to hospital purposes. Poor Tom, having a constitution already undermined by former excesses, soon fell under the attack of disease. He was then sewed up in his hammock, with some shot at his feet : at sundown the ship's bell pealed a melancholy note, the ship was « hove to," all hands mustered on deck, but myself; and, amid the most profound silence, the body of the departed bailor was laid upon the grating and launched into the great deep, the resting-place of many a bold head. A plunge, a sudden openino- m the water, foliowod by an equally sudden return of the disparted waves, and Black Tom was gone forever from hit shipmates ! In a few momenta the vards w^ra hmnc^A v«,.,^.i j -..^ 86 }.' . i. A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. frigate was cutting her way again through the wide ocean waste. It seemed to me that she was soon destined to heave to again, that I might also be consigned to nn ocean grave. But in this I was happily disappointed. By the blessing of a watch- ful Providence, the aid of a sound constitution, assisted by the skill of our surgeon and the kind- ness of my shipmates, I was at last able to leave my hammock. Shortly after our return to Lisbon, I was pronounced fit for duty, and the surgeon having obtained another boy, I was placed on the quarter deck, in the capacity of messenger, or errand boy for the captain and his officers. With my return to active life, came my expos- ure to hardships, and, what I dreaded still more, to punishment. Some of the boys were to be punished on the main deck ; the rest were ordered forward to witness it, as usual. Being so far aft that I could not hear the summons, as a matter of course, I remained at my post. The hawk-eye of the lieutenant missed me, and in a rage he ordered me to be sent for to receive a flogging for my absence. Excuse was vain; for, such was the fiendish temper of this brutal officer, he only wanted the shadow of a reason for dragging the poor helpless boys of his charge to the grating. While I stood in trembling expectation of being degraded by the hated cat, a summons from the captain providentially called off* our brave boy-flogger, and I escaped. The offence was never mentioned afterwards. The reader can easily nerceive how ^!* r?! if SIX YEARS IN A MAN OP WAR. 87 igh the she was ^ht also is I was . watch- titiition, le kind- ;o leave Lisbon, mrgcon on the ger, or expos- l more, ! to be 3rdered far aft matter wk-eye age he :ing for va's the e only- he poor While graded captain er, and itioned re how such a constant exposure to the lash must em- bitter a seaman's life. ^ Already, since the Macedonian had been in commission, had she changed captains twice. Why It so happened, it is not in my power to explain ; but while at Lisbon, after the cruise last mentioned, our present captain was superseded by Captain John S. Garden. His arrival excited a transitory hope of a brighter lot, as he was an older man than the others, and, as we vainly trusted, a kinder one. Here, however, we were mistaken; he was like all the rest, the same heartless, unfeeling lover of whip discipline. At hrst tne men under sentence tried their powers at flattery with the grave old man; but he was too experienced a soa-dog. to be cajoled by a lone laced sailor under sentence-: when, therefore, they told him he was a kind-hearted fatherly o-entle- man, he only replied by a most provoking lauo-h, and by saying, they were a set of very undutiful sons. ^ Captain Garden was mercilessly severe in pun- ishing theft. He would on no account forgive any man for this crime, but would flog the thief almost to death. Of this, we soon had a cruel instance. A midshipman named Gale, a most rascally, unprincipled fellow, found his pocket handkerchief in possession of one of the crew He charged the man with stealing it. It was in yam that the poor wretch asserted that he found it. uwuci liis iiammock IV le was reported as a I A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK* 88 thief; a court-martial sat upon him, and returned the shamefully disproportionate sentence of three hundred lashes through th^ fleet, and one year's imprisonment ! Any of my shipmates who are living, will certify to the truth of this statement, brutal and improbable as it may appear. Nor was that sentence a dead letter ; the un- happy man endured it to the letter. Fifty were laid on alongside of the Macedoniar,, in conformity with a common practice of infl:icing the most strokes at the first ship, in order that the gory back of the criminal may strike the more terror into the crews of the other ships. This poor tortured man bore two hundred and twenty, and was pronounced by the attending surgeon unfit to receive the rest. Galled, bruised, and agonized as he was, he besought him to suffer the infliction of the remaining eighty, that he might not be called to pass through the degrading scene again ; but this prayer was denied ! He was brought on board, and when his wounds were healed, the captain, Shy lock-like, determined to have the whole pound of flesh, ordered him to receive the remainder ! But for my desire to present the reader with a true exhibition of life on board a British man of war, it would be my choice to suppress these dis- gusting details of cruelty and punishment. But this is impossible; I must either draw a false picture or describe them. I choose the latter, ii^^ the hope that giving publicity to these facts will*^ '^m /^f SIX YEARS IN A MAN OP WAR. 3turned )f three J year's rho are tement, ;lie un- y were formity 3 most e gory terror s poor ty, and unfit to ^onized fliction not be again ; ight on jd, the ve the ive the with a nan of se dis- But 1 false tter, ij|i ts will 89 I exert a favorable influence on the already improv- ing discipline of ships of war. The case of our ship's drummer will illustrate the hopelessness of our situation under such officers as commanded our ship; it will show that implicit, uncomplaining submission was our only resource. This drummer, being seized up for some petty offence, demanded, what no captain can refuse, to be tried by a court-martial ; in the hope, probably, of escaping altogether. The officers laughed among each other, and when, a fevv days afterwards, the poor, affrighted man offered to withdraw the demand and take six dozen lashes, they coolly remarked, " The drum- mer is sick of his bargain." He would have been a wiser man had he never made it ; for the court-martial sentenced him to receive two hun- dred lashes through the fleet :— a punishment ostensibly for his first offence, but really for his msolence (?) in demanding a trial by court-mar- tial. Such was the administration of justice (?) on board the Macedonian. "Why did not your crew rise in resistance to such cruelty?" is a question which has often been proposed to me, when relating these facts to my American friends. To talk of mutiny on shore is an easy matter ; but to excite it on ship- board is to rush on certain death. Let it be known that a man has dared to breathe the idea, and he is sure to swing at the yard-arm. Some of our men once saw six mutineers hanging at I 90 A VOICE FROK THE MAIN DECK. the yard-arm at once, in a ship whose crew exhib- ited the incipient beginnings of mutiny. Let mutiny be successful, the government will employ its whole force, if needful, in hunting down the mutineers; their blood, to the last drop, is the terrible retribution it demands for this ofTence. That demand is sure to be met, as was the case with the crew of the Hermion=>^ frigate, and with the crew of the ill-fated Bounty, whose history is imprinted on the memory of the whole civilized world. With such tragedies flitting before our eyes, who need ask why we did not resist ? Just before we left Lisbon for another cruise, my position was once more changed by my ap- pointment to the post of servant to the sailing- master ; whose boy, for some offence or other, was flogged and turned away. Here, too, the captain procured a fine band, composed of Frenchmen, Italians and Germans, taken by the Portuguese from a French vessel. These musicians con- sented to serve, on condition of being excused from fighting, and on a pledge of exemption from being flogged. They used to play to the captain during his dinner hour ; the party to be amused usually consisting of the captain and one or two invited ♦The crew of this vessel mutinied, killed their officers, and run the ship into a Spanish port, where she fell into the hands of the Spaniards, then at war with England. Large rewards were offered for these mutineers ; many were taken, and all who were taken suffered the penalty of death. SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 91 IV exhib- f. Let employ 3vvn the , is the offence, the case .nd with istory is civilized fore our > • • cruise, my ap- sailing- ler, was captain ichmen, tuguese ns con- ed from m being I during usually invited guests from the ward-room ; except on Sundays, when he chose to honor the ward-room with his august presence. The band then played for the ward-room. They also played on deck whenever we entered or left a port. On the whole, their presence was an advantage to the crew, since their spirit-stirring strains served to spread an occasional cheerful influence over them. Soon after they came on board, we had orders to pro- ceed to sea again on another cruise. 'i f * officers, : fell into 5]ng]and. ; many ; penalty .1 * J ll CHAPTER IV. A man overboard— A false alarm— Arrive at Madeira- Cruise to St. Michael's— Birth of two children— Return to Lisbon— Short cruises why liked— Bob Hammond in trouble as^ain-Jack Sadler attempts to desert— Sad- ler and Hammond placed in irons— Bob's defence— The Broomers— Bob Hammond runs away— Humor of war with America— The .Macedonian sail.; with despatches to America— Sufferings through cold— Anecdote of a tyrannical lieutenant— Ileach Hampton Roads— Good fare— Refusal to let the crew go ashore— Reason- Exchange of courtesies between Captain Cardcn and Commodore Decatur— The Leopard and the Chesa- peake—Departure from Virginia— At Lisbon— The mail-bag— Advanta-o of a little education— Macedo- nian sails for England. A FEW days after we had fairly g-ot out to sea, the thrilling cry of " A man overboard ! " ran through the ship with electrical effect; it was followed by another cry of, " Heave out a rope ! " then by still another, of " Cut away the life buoy ! " Then came the order, " Lower a boat ! " Notwithstanding the rapidity of these commands, and the confusion occasioned by the anticipated loss of a man, they were rapidly obeyed. The ship was then hove to. But that time, however, the cause of all this excitpmpnt wnc nf a ^^r,c,*/i«- 1 J ladeira — — Relurii [ammond erl— Sad- nce — The or of war espatches iote of a Is — Good Reason — rdcn and ! Chesa- lon— The ■Macedo- to sea, !" ran it was rope ! " :he life boat ! " mands, cipatcd The )wever, SIX YEARS IN A MAN F WAR. 93 able distance from the ship. It was a poor Swede, iianui] Lofrholm, who, while en<. .rred n ' ling the lark^-^rd anchor stock, lost his hold a.,d fell ^" ^' He could not swim ; but, somehow, he man i^^od to keep afloat until the boat reached him, when he began to sink. The man at the bow ran his boat hook down, and caught the drowning man by his clothes : his clothes tear- ing, the man lost his hold, and the Swede once more sunk. Again the active bowsman ran the hook own, leaning far over the side; fortunately, he got hold of his shirt collar: dripping, and apparently lifele.ss, they drew him into the boat. He was soon under the surgeon's care, whose skill restored him to animation and to life. It was a narrow escape ! Rising one morning, I heard the men talking about having been called to quarters during the night. They said a strange vessel having ap- peared, the drums beat to quarters, the guns were got ready, those great lanterns, which are placed on the main deck, called battle lanterns, were got out, and the officers began to muster the men at each division ; when they discovered the supposed vessel of war to be nothing .ore than a large merchant ship. Upon this the hands were sent below. All this was news to me ; I had slept through all the noise, confusion and bustle of the night, utterly ignorant of the whole matter. It was fortunate for me that the real character of the i ip '.vas uiscovered before my name was I IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) «^ // 4r We fo (/j 1.0 ^""2i H I.I 1.25 2.5 ui Hi u 1^ III 2.0 1.8 iA lilli.o ^ <^ ^ /} ^;; ■CT ^ %. ^ «k.^ w ^ 7 Photographic Sciences Corporation ^ *" # ,\ ;\ \ ^9> .V 0~ 'Bi^V J^ 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. MS80 (716) 872-4503 i/x 94 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. k called, otherwise the morning would have found me at the gratings under punishment. Never was boy happier than myself, when made acquainted with my hair-breadth escape from the lash. We had now reached the island of Madeira, occupied by the Portuguese, and producing line oranges, grapes and wine. It is some sixty miles in length, about forty in breadth ; the climate is hot, but salubrious ; its harbor, or rather roadstead, IS by no means commodious or safe— so that our stay was short. Here, the Portuguese lad who had supplied my place as servant lo the surgeon, was sent on shore, for attempting a crime unfit to be mentioned in these pages, but quite common among the Spaniards and Portuguese. My old master made an effort to obtain me again, but did not succeed. Sailing from Madeira, we next made St. Mi- chael's. At this place we had an increase to our crew, in the person of a fine, plump boy— born to the wife of one of our men. The captain chris- tened the new comer, Michael, naming him after the island. This birth was followed by another. Whether the captain did not like the idea of such interesting episodes in sea life, or whether any other motive inspired him, I cannot tell ; but when, shortly after, we returned to Lisbon, he ordered all the women home to England, by a ship just returning thither. Before this, however, one of our little Tritons had died, and found a -rave un- der the billows, leaving its disconsolate mother in I SIX YEAHS IN A MAN OF WAR. 9^ ve found ever was quainted h. Madeira, zing fine cty miles limate is )adstead, that our lad who surgeon, unfit to common My old , but did St. Mi- e to our -born to 1 chris- m after mother, of such er any t when, Drdered ip just one of Lve un- ther in n a state little short of distraction. A man of war is no place for a woman. Short ciuises are very popular with man-of- war's-men. On many accounts they love being in harbor ; on others they prefer being at sea. In harbor they have to work all day, but in return for this they have the whole night for sleep. At sea, the whole time is divided into five watches of four hours each, and two shorter ones, called dog watches, of two hours each, or from four to six and from six to eight, P. M. The design of these dog watches is to alternate the time, so that each watch may have a fair proportion of every night below. While at our station this time, our old friend, Bob Hammond, met with some little difficulty, which we will here make matter of record. He was below, and one of his messmates did some- thing that vexed him exceedingly. Now Bob was not a man to bear vexations tamely, where he had the power to resist them ; so, lifting his huge fist, he struck at the ofifender; missing his real oppo- nent, the blow fell upon another who stood near him. Bob was too much of a bully to offer any apology ; he merely laughed, and remarked that he had " killed two birds with one stone." Whether the bird, who, in Bob's figurative lan- guage, was killed, did not hke being called a bird, or whether he conceived a strong dislike to being a mark for Bob to shoot at, is not for me to say ; but he certainly disliked the one or the other, for 96 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. ' '♦ii ' t^ next morning: he reported the matter to the officers, which complaint was considered a most unsailor-like act by the whole crew. Fighting- was a punishable offence, so Bob was called up the next morning. The captain men- tioned what was reported concernino- him He acknowledged it was all true, and without any signs of contrition said, "I only killed two birds with one stone." The angry captain ordered two dozen lashes to be laid on ; it was done without extorting a sigh or a groan. He was then loosed from the gratmg, and questioned ; but he merely replied, in a grufT tone, that " the man who report- ed him was a blackguard ! " For this, he was seized up again and another dozen lashes inflicted • he bore them with the same dogged and imper- turbable air. Finding it impossible to extort any acknowledgment from the stubborn tar, the cap- tain ordered him below. About the same time one of our crew, named Jack Sadler, a fine, noble-hearted seaman, growing weary of the service, determined to desert. Drop- ping into the water, he began swimming towards the shore. It was not very dark, and he was dis- covered ; the sentry was ordered to fire at him which he did, but missed his prey. A boat was next lowered, wh ich soon overtook and drago-ed him on board. The officer commanding the b°oat said, " Well, Mr. Sadler, you thought you had o-at away, did yon ? " " You are not so sure that you have me now," replied Sadler, as he sprung over the side of the boat. Nor viroM]A tu^.r k Lie. ".AM. ViXC V iliXVKS cap- I' i SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 97 tter to the ed a most ) Bob was >tairi men- him. He thout any two birds iered two e without en loosed e merely io report- , he v/as inflicted ; d imper- xtort any the cap- '■j named growing Drop- towards was dis- at him, >oat was dragged the boat had got hat you ng over 1^ 'I "i tured him, had not another ship's boat arrived to their assistance. The next day, he was seized up and received three dozen lashes, which, considering his offence, was a very light punishment. I suppose that his noble bearing, his lion-hearted courage, and his undaunted manner, produced a favorable feelinir in the captain's mind ; especially as he afterwards became his favorite— a fancy man— as those men are called who win the favor of their superior officer. One of Sadler's failings was that loo prevalent evil among seamen, drunkenness. Soon after the above affair, he got drunk. Being seen y the captain, he was ordered to be put in irons. Sad- ler was Bob Hammond's messmate ; this worthy, finding his comrade in trouble, made himself drunk,' and purposely placed himself in the way of the officers, that he might be put in irons also, to keep his friend Sadler company. The plan succeeded. Bob had his wish, and the two fearless tars were soon ironed together. Nothing daunted, they began to sing, and through the whole night they kept up such a hallooing, shouting and singing as might have served for a whole company of Idle roysterers. Being near the ward-room, they pre- vented the officers from sleeping nearly all night. As usual, after being in irons, they were brought up for punishment the next morning. « Well Mr Sadler," said the captain, " you were drunk, were you, last night ? " 9 98 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN -DECK. hi 1. " I was, sir," replied the oflfendcr. Had lie been any other man, he would have been ordered to strip : as it was, the captain pro- ceeded, — *' Do you feel sorry for it, sir ? " "I do, sir." *' Will you try to keep sober if I forgive you ? " continued Captain Garden. "I will try, sir." • " Then, sir, I forgive you :" and no doubt he was glad to witness that contrition in his favorite which made it consistent to forgive him. Having dismissed Sadler, he turned to Hammond : as- sumirg a sterner look and a harsher voice, he said, in a tone of irony, " Well, Mr. Hammond, you got drunk last night, did you, sir ? " Bob shrugged up his shoulders, and removed his enormous quid into a convenient position for speaking, and then replied, " I can't say but that I had a horn of malt." The captain looked thunder at the stalwort man, as he answered, *' A horn of malt, you rascal! what do you call a horn of malt ? " " When I was in Bengal, Madras, and Bata- via," said he, " I used to get some stuff called arrack — we used to call it a horn of malt; but this was some good rum." Bob's manner was so exquisitely ridiculous while delivering this harangue, that both officers and men broke out into an involuntary laugh. The captain looked confounded, but recovering SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 99 lid have aiii pro- ; you ? » oubt he favorite Having nd : as- oice, he tnmond, 'emoved ition for but that 3rt man, rascal I d Bata- f called but this liculous officers laugh. overing himself, he said to Mr. Hope, the first lieutenant, "Put that rascal in irons; it is of no use to flog him.'' One of the peculiarities of Captain Garden was an ardent desire to have a crow of picked, first- rate men. The shiftless, slovenly seaman was his abhorrence. Had he dared, he would gladly have given all such their discharge; as it was, he never attempted their recovery, by offering a reward for their detection, if they ran away ; while he spared no pains to catch an able, active, valuable man like Sadler. He even gave these drones opportunity to escape, by sending them on shore at Lisbon, to cut stuff to make brooms for sweeping the deck. The men sent out on these expeditions were nicknamed "broomers." Now, although Bob Hammond was as expert a sailor as any man in the ship, yet his unconquerable au- dacity made the captain fear his influence, and wish to get rid of him ; hence, a few days after this drunken spree. Bob was called on deck to go with the broomers. " You may go, Mr. Ham- mond," said the captain, eyeing him in a very expressive manner, "with these fellows to cut broom." Bob understood the hint perfectly, and replied, ** Aye, aye, sir, and I will cut a long handle to it." I 'scarcely need remark that the broomers returned without Bob. Whether he remained on shore to cut the long handle, or for some other purpose, he never informed us: certain it is. t ,'** 100 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. however, that the presence of Bob Hammond never darkened the decks of the Macedonian agam. About this time the prevailing topic of conver- sation among our men and officers was the proba- bility of a war with America. The prevailing feeling through the whole fleet was that of confi- dence in our own success, and of contempt for the inferior naval force of our anticipated ene- mies. Every man, and especially the officers, predicted, as his eye glanced proudly on the fine fleet which was anchored off Lisbon, a speedy and successful issue to the approaching conflict. We now received orders to sail to Norfolk, Virginia, with despatches. The voyage was ac- complished without any occurrence of note. We found ourselves on the American coast, with no very pleasant impressions. It was late in the fall, and the transition from the mild, soft climate of Spain and Portugal, to the bleak, sharp atmos- phere of the coast of Virginia, was any thing but delightful. The most disagreeable duty in the ship was that of holy-stoning the decks on cold, frosty morn- ings. Our movements were never more elastic than when at this really severe task. As usual, it gave occasion to a variety of forecastle yarns about cold stations. Among these was one which was attested by many witnesses, and there can be no doubt of its truth. A British frigate was once stationed in a cold SIX YEAYS IN A MAN OF WAR. 101 ammond :edonian convcr- le proba- :evailing of confi- 3mpt for :ed ene- officers, the fine ;edy and :t. Norfolk, was ac- ;e. We with no the fall, mate of atmos- ling but hip was ;y morn- } elastic s usual, e yarns le which 3 can be 1 a cold climate. The first li I mtenant was a complete ty- rant, delighting in everything that caused the crew to suffer. Among other things, he took especial care to make the work of holy-stoning as painful as possible, by forcing them to continue at it much longer than was necessary. Although he had no watch on deck, he would contrive to be up in season to annoy the men with his hated presence. One morning, the weather being un- usally severe, the men sprang to their task with unwonted agility, and contrived to finish it before the appearance of their persecutor. To their vex- ation, however, just as they had completed their work, he bounced on deck, with a peremptory order to wash the decks all over a second time. The men dropped on their knees with the holy- stones, and prayed, as the tyrant went below, that he might never come on deck again alive. Whether God heard the cry of the oppressed crew, or whether it was the action of the ordinary natural laws, the reader must determine for him- self; but when the lieutenant again appeared on deck, he was brought up " feet foremost," to be buried. He was taken sick that morning: his disease baffled the skill of the surgeon, and in a few days he was a corpse. The opinion that he died a monument of the divine displeasure against cruel, hard-hearted men of power, and of disregard for the miseries and tears of the oppressed poor, is at least worthy of serious consideration. Soon after we had descried land, an American 9^ 102 V A VOICK FROM THE MAIN DKCK. pilot came on board to pilot us into Hampton Koads. Tho sound of our own familiar tonguo from a stranger, was very airrccaMo to mm who had been accustomed to hear tho semi-barbarous Imgo of the Porluiruese, and a thrill of home re- membrances shot thr()uo;h our hearts, as, ste])ping on deck, the pilot excliiimed, " It is very cold !" While at anchor in Ifnmpton Koads, we fared well. ]?oats were alonq-.sidc every day with plenty of beef and pork, wliich was declared, by univer- sal consent, to be inlinitely superior to what wc obtained from Porluiral. Our men said that the Yankee pork would swell in the pot, wh'uih they very sagely accounted for on the supposition that the pigs were killed at the full of the moon. But I suppose that Virginia corn had more to do in this matter than lunar influences: thoudi our men most doggedly maintained the contrary and more mystical opinion. The principal draw-back on the enjoyment of our stay at Norfolk, was the denial of liberty to go on shore. The strictest care was takoij to prevent all communication with the shore, either personally or by letter. The reason of this pro- hibition was a fear lest we should desert. Many of our crew vi^ere Americans : some of these were pressed men ; others were much dissatisfied with the severity, not to say cruelty, of our discipline ; so that a multitude of the crew were ready to give "leg bail," as they terfned it, could they have planted their feet on American soil. Hence our liberty was restrainod. KiX YEAUS IN A MAN OF WAK. 103 Flampton r tonguo nvn who arbaroiis lome re- stoppiiior cold ! " *vc fared th plenty r iiniver- ^vliat wc that the loh they tioii that n. But ;o do in icfh our 'ary and mcnt of iberty to ikejj to e, either bis pro- Many se were ed with cipline ; ■ to give ;y have nee our Our ofTiccrs never enjoyed better cheer than durin^of mer- L humor, of pecu- calls the cise. It action in ound, as nounced f by the to hide r to buy 5 mess- j I had , which afTorded me much satisfaction. To these I had faithfully replied. I now experienced the advan- tage of the primary education I had received when a boy. Many of my shipmates could nei- I ther read nor write, and were, in consequence, ■ either altogether deprived of the privilege of inter- i course with their friends, or were dependent on the kindness of others, to read and write for them. For these I acted as a sort of scribe. I also solaced many weary hours by reading such works as could be obtained from the officers ; and some- times I perused the Bible and prayer book which my mother so wisely placed in my chest, on the eve of my departure. The pack of cards, which so inappropriately accompanied them, I had loaned to one of the officers, who tcok the liberty to keep them. This was, perhaps, more fortunate than otherwise, since their possession might have led to their use, and their use might have excited a propensity to gambling, which would have ended in my ruin. After remaining a very short time at Lisbon, we one morning fired a gun to give notice to our convoy to get under weigh. Immediately the harbor was alive with noise and activity. The song of the sailors weighing anchor, the creaking of pulleys, the flapping of the sails, the loud, gruff voices of the officers, and the splashing of the waters, created what was to us, now that we were " homeward bound," a sweet harmony of sounds. Amid all this animation, our own If! 106 :t,|: 'hi A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. Stately frigate spread her bellying sails to a light but favoring breeze ; with colors flying, our band playing lively airs, and the captain with his speak- ing trumpet urging the lagging merchan^ships to more activity, we passed gaily through the large fleet consigned to our care. In this gallant style we scudded past the straggling ruins of old Lis- bon, which still bore marks of the earthquake that destroyed it. Very soon the merry fishermen, who abound in the Tagus, were far at our stern. Next, v/e glided »ast the tall granite pinnacles of towering mount Cintra ; the high-lands passed from our vision like the scenes in a panorama, and in a few hours, instead of the companionship of the large flocks of gulls, which abound in this river, we were attended by only here and there one of these restless wanderers of the deep. We were fairly at sea, and, what was the more inspir- iting, we were enjoying the luxury of fond an- ticipation. Visions of many an old fire-side, of many a humble heartn-stone, poor, but precious, flitted across the visions of our crew that night. Hardships, severe discipline, were for the time forgotten in the dreams of hope. Woald that I could say that everything in every mind was thus absorbed in pleasure! There were minds that writhed under what is never forgotten. Like the scar, that time may heal, but not remove, the flogged man forgets not that he has been degraded; the whip, when it scarred the flesh, went farther ; it wounded the spirit ; it struck the 91 c; 01 a] ir I^ w be I SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 107 to 1 light our band lis speak- t-ships to the large lant style old Lis- lake that shermen, ur stern, lacles of s passed morama, nionship d in this id there !p. We e inspir- fond an- side, of irecious, it night, he time i that I ind was J minds . Like remove, IS been e flesh, uck the I 7nan ; it begat a sense of degradation he must carry with him to his grave. We had many such on board our frigate ; their laugh sounded empty, and sometimes their look became suddenly vacant m the midst of hilarity. It was the whip enter- ing THE SOUL ANEW. But the most of our crew were, for the time, happy. They were homeward bound ! it ^ l/f? Jl .1 I CHAPTER V. Delight at seeing my native land— Plymouth— Use made of shore-liberty by sailors— A Sabbath ashore— Good eflects of temperance illustrated— Desire and opportu- nity to run away— I resolve to remain— A man of war a bad place for a boy — Licentiousness in port— Danger follows the sailor everywhere— The loss of the Royal George— Extract from Cowper— The Macedonian is hauled up— Repaired— Sailing orders— A bad pn ctice —Getting under weigh- Engaged in the blockade of Brest— Ordered to Plymouth— Order countermanded— Unlucky adventurers — A prize. After running a few days before a fair wind, the delightful cry of " Land ho ! " was heard from the mast-head; a cry always pleasant to the inhabitant of a ship, but most especially so when the distant hills are those of his native land. Soon after the cry of the man aloft, the land became dimly visible from the deck, and our eyes glistened, as the bright, emerald fields of old Eng- land, in all the giory of their summer beauty, lay spread out before us. Ascending the British Channel, we soon made the spacious harbor of Plymouth, where we came to an anchor. One of our convoy, however, by some unskilful' manage- ment, ran ashore at the mouth of the harbor, where she went to pieces. SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 109 •Use made Dre — Good I opportii- an of war t — Danger the Royal donian is d pn ctice )ckade of manded — lir wind, ard from ; to the ially so [\e land, he land our eyes >ld Eng- LUty, lay British irbor of One of nanage- h arbor, »#■' I We found Ply;nouthno be a naval station of considerable imporMnce, well fortified, possessing extensive barracks for the accommodation of the military, and having a magnificent dock-yard, abundantly supplied with the means of building and refitting the wooden walls. Nothing would have afforded me a higher grati- fication, than a trip to the pleasant fields and quiet hearth-sides of dear old Bladen. I longed to pour out my pent-up griefs into the bosom of my mother, and to find that sympathy which is sought in vain in the cold, unfeeling world. This privi- lege was, however, denied to all. No one could obtain either leave of absence or money, since a man of war is never " paid off" until just before she proceeds to sea. But, feeling heartily tired of the service, I wrote to my mother, requesting her to endeavor to procure my discharge. This, with the promptitude of maternal affection, she pledged herself to do at the earliest possible opportunity. How undying is a mother's love ! When a man of war is in port, it is usual to grant the crew occasional liberty to go on shore. These indulgences are almost invariably abused for purposes of riot, drunkenness and debauchery; rarely does it happen, but that these shore sprees end in bringing "poor Jack" into difficulty of some sort ; for, once on shore, he is like an un- caged bird, as gay and quite as thoughtless. He will then follow out the dictates of passions and appetites, let them le^d him whither I .} : 10 they may. 110 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. ili-i ^lliiM I Still, there are exceptions ; there are a few who spend their time more rationaily. Were the prin- ciples of modern temperance fully triumphant among sailors, they would all do so. I resolved not to abuse my liberty as I saw others doing ; so when, one fine Sabbath morning, I had obtained leave from our surly first lieuten- ant, I chose the company of a brother to a mess- mate, named Rowe, who lived at Plymouth. At the request of my messmate, I called to see him. He received me very kindly, and took me in com- pany with his children into the fields, where the merry notes of the numerous birds, the rich per- fume of the blooming trees, the tall, green hedges, and the modest primroses, cowslips and violets, which adorned the banks on the road-side, filled me with inexpressible delight. True, this was not the proper manner of spending a Sabbath day, but it was better than it would have been to follow the example of my shipmates generally, who were carousing in the tap-rooms of the public houses. At sunset I went on board and walked aft to the lieutenant, to report myself. He appeared sur- prised to see me on board so early and so perfectly sober, and jocosely asked me why I did not get drunk and be like a sailor. Merely smiling, I retired to my berth, thinking it was very queer for an officer to laugh at a boy for doing right, and feeling happy within myself because I had escaped temptation^ By and by, three other boys, who had been '"%.. SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. Ill few who '' the prin- iumphant as I saw morning, t lieuten- ) a mess- •uth. At see him. 3 in com- /here the rich per- i hedges, I violets, de, filled this was )ath day, to follow ^ho were louses. ;d aft to ired sur- perfectly not get oiling, I [ueer for ght, and escaped ad been i ashore, returned, in a state which a sailor would call " three sheets in the wind." They blustered, boasted of the high time they had enjoyed, and roundly laughed at me for being so unlike a man- of-war's-man ; while they felt as big as any man on board. The next morning, however, they looked rather chop-fallen, when the captain, who had accidentally seen their drunken follies on shore, ordered them to be flogged, and forbade their masters to send them ashore while we remained at Plymouth. Now, then, it was pretty evident who had the best cruise; the joke was on the other side ; for while their drunken behavior cost them a terrible whipping and a loss of liberty, my temperance gained me the real approbation of my officers, and more liberty than ever, since after that day I had to go on shore to do errands for their masters, as well as for my own. The young sailor may learn from this fact the benefit of temperance, and the folly of getting drunk, for the sake of being called a fine fellow. My frequent visits to the shore gave me many op- portunities to run away; while my dislike of every- thing about the Macedonian, inspired me with the disposition to improve them. Against this meas- ure my judgment wisely remonstrated, and, happily for my well being, succeeded. Such an attempt would inevitably have been foUowec'. ' -y my recov- ery, since a handsome bounty was paid for the delivery of every runaway. There are always a sufficient number to be found who will engage in ■"% i t' I i I 112 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. pursuit for the sake of money — such men as the Canadian landlord, described by Rev. Wm. Ligh- ton, in his interesting narrative, a work with which, no doubt, most of my readers are acquainted, since it has enjoyed an immense circulation. En- durance, therefore, was the only rational purpose I could form. Perhaps the hope of a speedy discharge, through my mother's efforts, tended somewhat to this result in my case; besides, my situation had become somewhat more tolerable from the fact, that by dint of perseverance in a civil and respectful be- havior, I had gained the good will both of .the officers and crew. Yet, with this advantage, it was a miserable situation. There are few worse places than a man of war, for the favorable development of the moral charac- ter in a boy. Profanity, in its most revolting aspect; licentiousness, in its most shameful and beastly garb ; vice, in the worst of its Proteus-like shapes, abound there. While scarcely a moral restraint is thrown round the victim, the meshes of temptation are spread about his path in every direction. Bad as things are at sea,lhey are worse in port. There, boat-loads of defiled and defiling Women are permitted to come alongside; the men, looking over the side, select whoever best pleases his lustful fancy, and by paying her fare, he is allowed to take and keep her on board as — I ••.. , aiitii liiL oiiip la oncu mure uruered to sea. Many of these lost, unfortunate creatures i SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 113 len as the '"m. Ligh-- ork with :quainted, ion. En- I purpose ?, through ;his result I become , that by 3ctful be- th of .the ge, it was n of war, II charac- revohing leful and )teus-like a moral ; meshes in every ire worse I defiling de ; the )ver best her fare, board as i ordered creatures are in the springtime of life, some of them are not without pretensions to beauty. The ports of Plymouth and Portsmouth are crowded with these fiillen beings. How can a boy be expected to escape pollution, surrounded by such works of darkness ? Yet, some parents send their children to sea because they are ungovernable ashore! Better send them to the house of correction. There is one aspect in which life at sea and hfe in port materially differ. #At sea, a sense of danger, an idea of insecurity, is ever present to the mind ; in harbor, a sense of security lulls the sailor into indulgence. HiJ feels perfectly safe. Yet, even in harbor, danger sometimes visits the fated ship,, stealing upon her like the spirit of evil. This remark was fearfully illustrated in the loss of the Royal George, which sunk at Spit- head, near Portsmouth, on the 29th of August. 1782. ^^ This splendid line of battle ship, of onr hun- dred and eight guns, had arrived at Spithead. Needing some repairs, she was " heeled down,'' or inclined on one side, to allow the workmen to work on her sides. Finding more needed to be done to the copper sheathing than was expected, the sailors were induced to heel her too much. While in this state, she was struck by a slight squall ; the cannon rolled over to the depressed side ; her ports were open, she filled with water. .J _ 4 *, I. : anu suiiK to tne bottom ! This dreadful catastrophe occurred about ten 10=*<^ ■J-i ,1 ^1 I 114 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. o'clock in the morning. The brave admiral Kem- penfeldt was writing in his cabin; most of the crew, together with some three hundred women, were between decks : these nearly all perished. Captain Waghorne, her commander, was saved ; his son, one of her lieutenants, was lost. Those who were on the upper deck were picked up by the boats of the fleet, but nearly 07ie thousand souls met with a sudden and untimely end. The poet Cowper has celebrated th^=5 melancholy event in the following beautiful lines : } Toll for the brave ! The brave that are no more ! All sunk beneath the wave, Fast by their native shore. Eight hundred of the brave, Whos'i courage well was tried, Had made the vessel heel. And laid her on her side. A land breeze shook the shrouds, And she was overset ; Down went the Royal George, "With all her crew complete. Toll for the brave — Brave Kempenfeldt is gone, His last sea fight is fought — His work of glory done. It was not in the battle j No tempest gave the shock j Shp. STtrnno- no fatal loolr. She ran upon no rock. %' ■#'S^'' i/ SIX YEARS IN A MAN OP WAR. 115 *al Kem- t of the women, )erished. 5 saved; Those 1 up by housand 1. The •ly event M %' >«^' ». His sword was in its sheath ; His fingers held the pen , When Kerapenleldt went down, With twice four hundred men. Weigh the vessel up, Once dreaded by our foes ! And mingle with our cup The tear that England owes. • Her timbers yet are sound. And she may float again, Full charged with England's thunder, And plough the distant main. But Kempenfeldt is gone, His victories are o'er ; And he, and his eight hundred. Shall plough the wave no more. To return to my narrative. Our ship, having been at sea two years, needed overhauling. She was therefore taken into one of the splendid dry docks in the Plymouth dock-yard, while the crew were placed, for the time being, on board an old hulk. A week or two sufficed for this task, when we returned to our old quarters. She looked like a new ship, having been gaily painted within and without. We, too, soon got newly rigged; for orders had reached us from the admiralty office to prepare for sea, and we were paid off. Most of the men laid out part of their money in gettihg new clothine" ; some of it went to buv nictnrps, looking-glasses, crockery ware, &c., to ornament JRi M ! W. \V 116 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. our berths, so that they bore some resemblance to a cabin. The women w^re ordered ashore, and we were once more ready for sea. The practice of paying seamen at long inter- vals, is the source of many evils. Among these, is the opportunity given to pursers to practise ex- tortion on the men — an opportunity they are not slow in improving. The spendthrift habits of most sailors leave them with a barely sufficient quantity of clothing, for present purposes, when they ship. If the cruise is long, they are, conse- quently, obliged to draw from the purser. This gentleman is ever ready to supply them, but at ruinous prices. Poor articles with high prices are to be found in his hands ; these poor Jack must take of necessity, because he cannot get his wages until he is paid off. Hence, what with poor arti- cles, high charges and false charges, the purser almost always has a claim which makes Jack's actual receipts for two or three years' service, wofully small. Were he paid at stated periods, he could make his own purchases as he needed them. The sailor is aware of this evil, but he only shows his apprehension of it in his usually good-humored manner. If he sees a poor, ill-cut garment, he will laugh, and say it " looks like a purser's shirt on a handspike." These are small matters, but they go to make up the sum total of a seaman's life, and should therefore be remedied as far as possible. Our preparations all completed, the hoarse * SIX YEARS IN A MAN OP WAR. 117 ♦ voice of the boatswain rang through the ship, crying, ** All hands up anchor, ahoy ! " In a trice, the capstan bars were shipped, the fifer was at his station playing a lively tune, the boys were on the main deck holding on to the " nippers," ready to pass them to the men, who put them round the " messenger" and cable ; then, amid the cries of " Walk round ! heave away, my lads!" accompanied by the shrill music of the fife, the anchor rose from its bed, and was soon dangling under our bows. The sails were then shaken out, the ship brought before the wind, and we were once more on our way to sea. We were directed to cruise off the coast of France this time ; where, as we v/ere then at war with the French, we were likely to find active service. We first made the French port of Rochelle; from thence, we sailed to Brest, which was closely blockaded by a large British fleet, consisting of one three-decker, with several seventy-fours, be- sides frigates and small craft. We joined this fleet, and came to an anchor in Basque Roads, to assist in the blockade. Our first object was to bring a large French fleet, greatly superior to us in size and numbers, to an engagement. With all our manoeuvring, we could not succeed in enticing them from their snug berth in the harbor of Brest, where they were safely moored, de- fended by a heavy fort, and by a chain crossing the harbor, to prevent the ingress of any force that might be bold enough to attempt to cut them out. %i .v;' II • if ij M t A. 118 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN VECK. Sometimes we sent a frigate or two as near their fort as they dared to venture, in order to entice them out ; at other times, the whole fleet would get under weigh and stand out to sea ; but with- out success. The Frenchmen were either afraid we had a larger armament than was visible to them, or they had not forgotten the splendid victories of Nelson at the Nile and Trafalgar. Whatever they thought, they kept their ships beyond the reach of our guns. Sometimes, how- ever, their frigates would creep outside the forts, when we gave them chase, but seldom went beyond the exchange of a few harmless shots. This was what our men called " boy's play ;" and they were heartily glad when we were ordered to return to Plymouth. After just looking into Plymouth harbor, our orders were countermanded, and we returned to the coast of France. Having accomplished about one half the dist^e, the man at the mast-head cried out, « Sail M!" "Where away?" (what direction ?) responded the officer of the deck. The man having re- plied, the officer again asked, "What does she look like?" " She looks small ; I cannot tell, sir." In a few minutes the officer hailed again, by shouting, " Mast hoad, there ! what does she look like ? " This was rather a novel announcement; for I fm w. SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 119 I what could a small sail-boat do out on the wide ocean ? But a few minutes convinced us that it was even so ; for, from the deck, we could see a small boat, with only a man and a boy on board. They proved to be two French prisoners of war, who had escaped from an English prison, and, having stolen a small boat, were endeavoring- to make this perilous voyage to their native home. Poor Tollows ! they looked sadly disappointed at finding themselves once more in British hands. They had already been in prison for some time ; they were now doomed to go with us, in sight of their own sunny France, and then be torn away again, carried to England, and imprisoned until the close of the war. No wonder they looked sorrowful, when, after having hazarded life for home and liberty, they found both snatched from them in a moment, by their unlucky rencontre with our frigate. I am sure we should all have been glad to have missed them. But this is only one of the consequences of war. Having joined the blockading fleet again, we led the same sort of life as before : now at an- chor, then giving chase ; now standing in shore, and anon standing out to sea ; firing, and being fired at, without once coming into actio* i. Determined to accomplish some exploit or other, our captain ordered an attempt to be made at cutting out some of the French small craft that lay in shore. We were accustomed to send out our barges almost every night, in search of what- . i. : i! ■*«|lilf 120 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. ever prey they might capture. But on this occa- sion the preparations were more formidable than usual. The oars were muffled ; the boat's crew increased, and every man was armed to the teeth. The cots were got ready on board, in case any of the adventurers should return wounded. Cots are used to sleep in by ward-room officers and captains ; midshipmen and sailors using ham- mocks. But a number of cots are always kept in a vessel of war, for the benefit of wounded men ; they differ from a hammock, in being square at the bottom, and consequently more easy. The service on which the barge was sent being extremely dangerous, the cots were got ready to receive the wounded, should there be any ; but notwithstanding these expressive prepa- rations, the brave fellows went off in as fine spirits as if they had been going on shore for a drunken spree. Such is the contempt of danger that prevails among sailors. We had no tidings of this adventure until morning, when I was startled by hearing three cheers from the watch on deck ; these were an- swered by three more from a party that seemed approaching us. I ran on deck just as our men came alongside with their bloodless prize — a lug- ger, laden with French brandy, wine and Castile soap. They had m.ade this capture without difficultv ; for the crew of the lue-o-er made their escape in a boat, on the first intimation of danger. As this was our first prize, we christened her the e until y three ere an- seemed ur men -a lug- Castile without le their danger, her the 4 i SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 121 IS occa- ile than .'s crew e teeth, any of Cots 3rs and y ham- ys kept 'ounded I being f more ras sent 2re got iiere be ; prepa- ; spirits irunken er that Young Mr ?edonian. She was sent to the admi- ral ; but what became of her, I never heard. Before sending her away, however, the officers, having a peculiar itching for some of the brandy, took the liberty of replenishing their empty bottles from the hold. This, with true aristocratic liber- ality, they kept to themselves, without offering the smallest portion to the crew. Some of them showed, by their conduct afterwards, that this brandy possessed considerable strength. We had no further opportunity tO signalize either ourselvt j or our frigate by our heroism at Brest ; for we were soon after ordered back to Plymouth, where, for a short time, we lay at our old anchorage ground. 11 )V< n if I I iiPI ! Ill II' m I |li ^ CHAPTER VI. Rumor of war— A v^wai mistake— Departure IVom Torbay with a convoy— A strict look-out— Sabbath at sea— A sail— ILiiuls beat to quarters — Battle between the Mace- donian and the United Stales— Awful destruction <^ life- -Surrender of the Macedonian— Copy of a letter fl-om Captain Cardcji, to the British admiralty office, describing the action, with a list of the killed and wounded. At Plymouth wo heard some vague rumors of a declaration of war against America. More than this, we could not learn, since the utmost care was taken to prevent our being fully informed. The reason of this secrecy was, probably, because we had several Americans in our crew, most of whom were pressed men, as befove slated. These men, had they been certain that war liad broken out, would have given themselves up as prisoners of war, and claimed exemption from that unjust ser- vice, which compelled them to act with the ene- mies of their country. This was a privilege which the magnanimity of our officers ought to have offered them. They had already perpetrated a grievous wrong upon them in impressing them ; it was adding cruelty to injustice, to compel their service in a war against their own nation. But ■1 SIX I'MRS IN A MAN OF WAR. 1* 123 m Torbay It sea — A the Mace- uction (^ f a letter Ity office, :illed and imors of ore than :are was J. The luse we ^f whom se men, ken out, oners of just ser- the ene- )rivilege night to petrated g them ; )el their n, But I ■i the (lifTicuhy witn naval officers is, that they do not treat with a sailor as with a man. They know what is fitting between each other as offi- cers ; hut thoy treat their crews on anotlier prin- ciple ; they are apt to look at them as pieces of living mechanism, horn to serve, to obey their orders, and administer to their wishes without complaint. This is alike a bad morality and a bad philosophy. There is often more real manhood in the forecastle than in the ward-room ; and until the common sailor is trcatrMJ ns a man, until every feeling of human nature is conceded to him in naval discipline — perfect, rational subordination will never be attained in ships of war, or in mer- chant vessels. It is needless to tell of the intel- lectual degradation of the mass of seamen. " A man 's a man for a' that ;" and it is this very sys- tem of discipline, this treating them as automatons, which keeps them degraded. When will human nature put more confidence in itself? Leaving Plymouth, we next anchored, for a brief space, at Torbay, a small port in the British Channel. We were ordered thence to convoy a huge East India merchant vessel, much larger than our frigate, and having five hundred troops on board, bound to the East Indies, with money to pay the troops stationed there. We set sail in a tremendous gale of wind. Both ships stopped two days at Madeira to take in wine and a few other articles. After leaving this island, we kept her company two days more ; and then, according 124 A VOICK FROM TRR MAIN DECK. ft, 1 \ i ' i ! 1 ' lili! to orders, havintr wished her success, we left her to pursue her voyag'^ while we returned to finish our cruise. Thoui^^h without any positive information, we now felt pretty certain that our government was at war with America. Among other things, our captain appeared more anxious than usual ; he was on deck almost all the time ; the " look-out" aloft was more rigidly ohserved ; and every little while the cry of " Mast-head there ! " arrested our at- tention. It is customary in men of war to keep men at the fore and main mast-heads, whose duty it is to give notice of every new ohject that may appear. They arc stationed in the royal yards, if they are up, but if not, on the top-gallant yards : at night a look-out is kept on the fore yard only. Thus we passed several days ; the captain run- ning up and down, and constantly hailing the man at the mast-head : early in the morning he began his charge " to keep a good look-out," and contin- ued to repeat it until night. Indeed, he seemed almost crazy with some pressing anxiety. The men felt there was something anticipated, of which they were ignorant ; and had the captain heard all their remarks upon his conduct, he would not have felt very highly flattered. Still, everything went on as usual ; the day was spent in the ordi- nary duties of man-of-war life, and the evening in telling stories of things most rare and wonder- ful ; for your genuine old tar is an adept in spin- i SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 125 3 left her to finish Ltion, we nent was ings, our ; he was >ut" aloft tie while [ our at- ) men at y it is to ' appear, they are t night a ain run- the man le began 1 contin- seemed y. The )f which leard all >uld not ^rything he ordi- evening wonder- in spin- ning yarns, and some of ihem, in respect to variety and len;;rtli, m\s;hi safely aspire to a place beside the great magician of the north, Sir Walter Scott, or any of those prolific heads that now bring forth such abundance of fiction to feed a greedy public, who read as eagerly as our men used to listen. To this yarn-spinning was added the most humor- ous singing, sometimes dashed with a streak of the pathetic, which I assure my readers was most touching; especinlly one very plaintive melody, with a chorus beginning with, "Novv if our ship should be cast away, It would be our lot to see old England no more," which made rather a melancholy impression on my boyish mind, and giive rise to a sort of presen- timent that the Macedonian would never return home again ; a presentiment which had its fulfil- ment in a manner totally unexpected to us all. The presence of a shark for several days, with its attendant pilot fish, tended to strengthen this prev- alent idea. The Sabbath came, and it brought with it a stiflf breeze. We usually made a sort of holiday of this sacred day. After breakfast it was common to muster the entire crew on the spar deck, dressed as the fancy of the captain might dictate; some- times in blue jackets and white trowsers, or blue jackets and blue trowsers ; at other times in blue jacxiets, scarlet vests, and blue or white trowsers ; with our bright anchor buttons glancing in the 11^ I 1S6 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. ? ^. in I H i -I \m sun, and our black, glossy hats, ornamented with black ribbons, and with tlie name of our ship painted on them. After muster, \vc frequently had church service read by the captain ; the rest of the day was devoted to idleness. But we were des- tined to spend the Sabbath, just introduced to the reader, in a very different manner. We had scarcely finished breakfast, before the man at the mast-head shouted, *' Sail ho ! " The captain rushed upon deck, exclaiming, "Mast-head there!" "Sir!" " Where away is the sail ? " The precise answer to this question I do not recollect, but the captain proceeded to ask, " What does she look like ? " "A square-rigged vessel, sir," was the reply of the look-out. After a few minutes, the captain shouted again, *' Mast-head there ! "Sir!" " What does she look like ?" " A large ship, sir, standing toward us ! " By this time, most of the crew were on deck, eagerly straining their eyes to obtain a glimpse of the approaching ship, and murmuring their opinions to each other on her probable character. Then came the voice of the captain, shouting, ** Keep silence, fore and aft ! " Silence being secured, he hailed the look-out, who, to his ques- tion of " What does she look like ? " replied, " A large frigate, bearing down upon us, sir ! " I SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAB. 127 ited with our ship jntly had 3st of the rere des- ed to the ;fore the ;laiming| I do not , " What he reply id again, )n deck, glimpse ig their laracter. houting, e being lis ques- ied, " A j A whisper ran along the crew that the stran- ' ger ship was a Yankee frigate. Ine thought was confirmed by the command of " All hands [I clear the ship for action, ahoy!" The drum and fife beat to quarters; bulk-heads were knocked away; the guns were released from their con- I finement ; the whole dread paraphernalia of battle was produced ; and after the lapse of a few min- utes of hurry and confusion, every man and boy was at his post, ready to do his best service for his country, except the band, who, claiming ex- emption from the affray, safely stowed themselves away in the cable tier. We had only one sick man on the list, and he, at the cry of battle, hur- ried from his cot, feeble as he was, to take his post of danger. A few of the junior midshipmen were stat-'oned below, on the berth deck, with orders, g" ;n in our hearing, to shoot any man who attempted to run from his quarters. Our men were all in good spirits ; though they did not scruple to express the wish that the com- ing foe was a Frenchman rather than a Yankee. We had been told, by the Americans on board, that frigates in the American service carried more and heavier metal than ours. This, together with our consciousness of superiority over the French at sea, led us to a preference for a French antag- onist. The Americans among our number felt quite disconcerted, at the necessity which compelled them to fight against their own countrymen. i.^f. m 128 A voirr vium thk main dkck. m f i Ojio of llioin, uniruMl John Card, ns bravo n soa- miiii as v.\'vv hod a plaiiK, vnjlumd to prosont himself lo th(> ra|)taiM, as a prisonor, CranUy iloclariiio; his ol.jcrlioiis to linht. That od'KUT, very uiincnorously, orch'rcd him to his ipmrtcrs, tliroati'MJtis; to shoot him if ho ma(h' the request airain. IVior leHow ! Il(> ol)ey(>(l the iiiijusi com- inaiid, and was U'lWrd hy a sliot from his own countrymen. This fact is mor(> disirraceful to tho captain of the Maee(h)nian, tlian oven the loss of his ship. It was a i^ross and a i)alpablo violation of file riohts of man. As the approacliinn- ship showed American colors, all douht of her character was at an end. *' We must lioju her," was the conviction of every breast. Every possible arranoenicmt that could insure success, was accordinoly made. The guns were shotted; the matches liohted; for, although our j2-uns were all furnished with lirst-ratc locks, they were also provided with matches, attached by lanyards, in case the lork should miss firo. A lieutenant then passed throuirh the ship, directing, the marines and boarders, who were furnished with pikes, cutlasses, and pistols, how to proceed if it should be necessary to hoard the enemy. He was followed by the captain, who exhorted the men to fidelity and courage, urging upon their consideration the well-known motto of the brave Nelson, "England expects ev^ man to do his duty." In addition to all tliese nrennrntinns on deck, some men were stationed in the tops with SIX YRAns IN A MAN OF WAR. 129 vo n. sca- I) prosont •, Iran lily it od'KH^r, (luartors, e request jusi com- his own fill lo tho e loss of violation American an end. of every lat could riie i>-uns although te locks, attached fire. A [lirecting, urnished proceed ny. He rted the on their le brave ) do his ps with Li small-arms, whose duty it was to attend to trim- ming the sails, and to use their muskets, provided we came to close action. There were otliers also helovv, called sail trimmers, to assist in working the ship, should it he necessary to shift hei position during];- the ])attle. My station was at the fifth frxm on the main deck. It was my duty to supply my ^un with powder, a boy beinir appointed to each gun in the ship on the side we engaged, for this purpose. A woollen screen was placed before the entrance to the magazine, with a hole in it, through which the cartridges were passed to the boys ; we received them there, and covering them with our jackets, hurried to our respective guns. These precau- tions are observed to prevent the powder taking fire before it reaches the gun. Thus we all stood, awaiting orders, in motion- less suspense. At last we fired three guns from the larboard side of the main deck ; this was fol- lowed by the command, " Cease firing; you are throwing away your shot !" . Then came the order to " wear ship," and pre- pare to attack the enemy with our starboard guns. Soon after this I heard a firing from some other quarter, which I at first supposed to be a dis- charge from our quarter deck guns; though it proved to be the roar of the enomy's cannon. A strange noise, such as I had never heard before, next arrested my attention; it sounded like the tearing of sails, just over our heads. This ■til ■-■■, 130 A VOICE FRO:^ THE MAIN DECK. I I iiii ■'- .'III , I • .?! 1 1 I 'h ill ill I soon ascertained to be the wind of the enemy's shot. The firinc:, after a few minutes' cessation, recommenced. Tlie roaring of cannon could now be heard from all parts of our trembling ship, and, minoflinn: as it did with that of our foep it made a most hideous noise. By-and-by I heard the shot strike the sides of our ship ; the whole scene grew indescribably confused and liorrible ; it nas like some awfully tremendous thunder-storm, whose deafening roar is attended by incessant streaks of lightning, carrying death in every fla'^h, and strewing the ground with the victims of its wrath : only, in our case, the scene was rendered more horrible than that, by the presence of torrents of blood which dyed our decks. Though the recital may be painful, yet, as it will reveal the horrors of war, and. show at what a fearful price a victory is won or lost, I will pre- sent the reader with things as they met my eye during the progress of this dreadful fight. I was busily supplying my gun with powder, when I saw blood suddenly fly from the arm of a man stationed at our gun. 1 saw nothing strike him ; the effect alone was visible ; in an instant, the third lieutenant tied his handkerchief round the wounded arm, and sent the groaning wretch below to the surgeon. The cries of the wounded now rang through all parts of the ship. These were carried to the cockpit as fast as they fell, while those more for- tunate men, who were killed outright, were imme- H SIX VEARS IN A MAN OF WAIi. 131 enemy's cessation, ould now ship, and, !, it made 1 the shot ene grew ^vas like n, whose t streaks ^la'^h, and ts wrath : red more rrents of yet, as it at what a will pre- t my eye t. I was , when I )f a man :ike him ; stant, the ound the tch below rough all ;d to the more for- ;re imme- f diately thrown overboard. As I v/as stationed but a short distance from the main liatchway, I could catch a glance at all who were carried below. A glance was all I could indulge in, for the boys belonging to the guns next to mine were wounded in the early part of the action, and I had to spring with all my might to keep three or four guns supplied with cartridges. I saw two of these lads fnll nearly together. One of them was struck in the log by a large shot; he had to suffer amputation above the wound. The other had a grape or canister shot sent through his ancle. A stout Yorkshireman lifted him in his arms, and hurried him to the cockpit. He had his foot cut off, and was thus made lame for life. Two of the boys stationed on the quarter deck were killed. They were both Portuguese. A man, who saw one of them killed, afterwards told me that his powder caught fire and burnt the flesh almost off his face. In this pitiable situation, the agonized boy lifted up both hands, as if imploring relief, when a passing shot instantly cut him in two. I was an eye-witness to a sight equally revolting. A man named Aldrich had one of his hands cut off by a shot, and almost at the same moment he received another shot, which tore open his bowels in a terrible manner. As he fell, two or three men caught him in their arms, and, as he could not live, threw him overboard. One of the officers in my division also fell in my sight. He was a noble-hearted fellow, named 1 r ■ ] 132 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. Nan KivcU. A grape or canister shot struck him near the heart : exclaiming, " Oh ! my God !" he fell, and was carried below, where he shortly after died. Mr. Hope, our first lieutenant, was also slightly wounded by a grummet, or small iron ring, prob- ably torn from a hammock clew by a shot. He went below, shouting to the men to fight on. Having had his wound dressed, he came up again, shouting to us at the top of his voice, and bidding us fight with all our might. There was not a mail in the ship but would have rejoiced had he been in the place of our master's mate, the unfor- tunate Nan Kivell. The battle went on. Our men kept cheering with all their might. I cheered with them, though I confess I scarcely knew for what. Cer- tainly there was nothing very inspiriting in the aspect of things where I was stationed. So ter- rible had been the work of destruction round us, it was termed the slaughter-house. Not only had we had several boys and men killed or wounded, but several of the guns were disabled. The one I belonged to had a piece of the muzzle knocked out ; and when the ship rolled, it struck a beam of the upper deck with such force as to become jammed and fixed in that position. A twenty- four pound shot had also passed through the screen of the magazine, immediately over the ori- fice through which we passed our powder. The schoolmaster received a death wound. 1 ue brave I ruck him Jod ! " he )rtly after ) slightly nsr, prob- hot. He fiirht on. up again, X bidding ras not a d had he he unfor- cheering th them, at. Cer- ig in the So ter- •ound us, only had wounded, The one I knocked k a beam ) become L twenty- Dugh the r the ori- er. The L ae brave SIX YEAHS IN A MAN OF WAR. 133 W| boatswain, who came from the sick bay to the din of battle, was fastening a stopper on a back-stay which had been shot away, when his head was smashed to pieces by a cannon-ball ; another man, going to complete the unfinished task, was also" struck down. Another of our midshipmen also received a severe wound. The unfortunate ward- room steward, who, the reader will recollect, at- tempted to cut his throat on a former occasion, was killed. A fellow named John, who, for some petty offence, had been sent on board as a punish- ment, was carried past me, wounded. I distinctly heard the large blood-drops fall pat, pat, pat, on the deck ; his wounds were mortal. Even a poor goat, kept by the ofTicers for her milk, did not escape the general carnage ; her hind legs were shot off, and poor Nan was thrown overboard. Such was the t*3rrible scene, amiu which we kept on our shouting and firing. Our men fought like tigers. Some of them pulled off their jackets, others their jackets and vests ; while some, still more determined, had taken off their shirts, and, with nothing but a handkerchief tied round the waistbands of their trowsers, fought like heroes. Jack Sadler, whom the reader will recollect, was one of these. I also observed a boy, named Cooper, stationed at a gun some distance from the mao-a- zine. He came to and fro on the full run, and appeared to be as "merry as a cricket." The ;d him along, occasionally, ♦•r\ii»/^ l»/%Ti"if^ .■v\ *% *-\ 1 ^T |o 'f liii "til ilil 134 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. by saying, " Well done, my boy, you are worth your w.eight in gold." I have often been asked what were my feelings during this fight. I felt pretty much as 1 suppose every one does at such a time. That men are with- out thought when they stand amid the dying and the dead, is too absurd an idea to be entertained a mo- ment. We all appeared cheerful, but I know that many a serious thought ran through my mind : still, what could we do but keep up a semblance, at least, of animation? To run from our quarters would have been certain death from the hands of our own officers; to give way to gloom, or to show fear, would do no good, and might brand us with the name of cowards, and ensure certain defeat. Our only true philosophy, therefore, was to make the best of our situation, by fighting bravely and cheer- fully. I thought a great deal, however, of the other world ; every groan, every falling man, told me that the next instant I might be before the Judge of all the earth. For this, I felt unprepared; but being without any particular knowledge of religious truth, I satisfied myself by repeating again and again the Lord's prayer, and promising that if spared I would be more attentive to religious duties than ever before. This promise I had no doubt, at the time, of keeping ; but I have learned since that it is easier to make promises amidst the roar of the battle's thunder, or in the horrors of shipwreck, than to keep them when danger is absent, and safety smiles upon our path. I SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 135 e worth feelings suppose ire with- ; and the d a mo- low that id: still, at least, s would our own )w fear, vith the t. Our lake the d cheer- be other me that ^e of all It being eligious lin and that if s duties ^oubt, at rice that r of the p wreck, nt, and While these thoughts secretly agitated my bosom, the din of battle continued. Grape and canister shot were pouring through our port- holes like leaden rain, carrying death in their trail. The large shot came against the ship's side like iron hail, shaking her to the very keel, or passing through her timbers, and scattering terrific splinters, which did a more appalling work than even their own death-giving blows. The reader may form an idea of the effect of grape and canister, when he is told that grape shot is formed by seven or eight balls confined to an iron and tied in a cloth. These balls are scattered by the explosion of ihe powder. Canister shot is made by filling a powder canister with balls, each as large' as two or three musket balls ; these also scatter with direful efiect when discharged. What then with splinters, cannon balls, grape and can- ister poured incessantly upon us, the reader may be assured that the work of death went on in a man- ner which must have been satisfactory even to the King of Terrors himself. Suddenly, the rattling of the iron hail ceased. We were ordered to cease firing. A profound silence ensued, broken only by the stifled groans of the brave sufferers below. It was soon ascer- tained that the enemy had shot ahead to repair damages, for she was not so disabled but she could sail without difficulty ; while we were so cut up that we lay utterly helpless. Our head braces were shot away; the fore and main top-masts 336 r ; A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. were gone; the mizzen mast hung over the stern, having carried several men over in its fall : we were in the state of a complete wreck. A council was now held among the officers on the quarter deck. Our condition was perilous in the extreme : victory or escape was alike hope- less. Our ship was disabled ; many of our men were killed, and many more wounded. The enemy would without doubt bear down upon us in a few moments, and, as she could now choose her own position, would without doubt rake us fore and aft. Any further resistance was the. j- fore folly. So, in spite of the hot-brained lieu- tenant, Mr. Hope, who advised them not to strike, but to sink alongside, it was determined to strike our bunting. This was done by the hands of a brave fellow named Watson, whose saddened brow told how severely it pained his lion heart to ' do it. To me it was a pleasing sight, for I had seen fighting enough for one Sabbath; more than I wished to see again on a week day. His Britannic Majesty's frigate Macedonian was now the prize of the American frigate United States. Before detailing the subsequent occurrences in my history, I will present the curious reader with a copy of Captain Garden's letter to the govern- ment, describing this action. It will serve to show how he excused himself for his defeat, a^ kell as throw some light on those parts of the |Jon test which were invisible to me at my station. My mother presented me witl^ this document, 'I my SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 137 he stern, fall : we ficers on rilous in ke hope- our men [. The upon us V choose rake us IS the» j- ed lieu- strike, strike ids of a iddened heart to )r I had )re than . His as now States, nces in er with g"overn- to show Well as ^ontest .■■ My on my I ;■ return to England. She had received it from Lord Churchill, and had carefully preserved it for twenty years. " Admiralty Office, Dec. 29, 1812. " Copy of a letter from Captain John Surman Carden, late commander of His Majesty's ship the Macedonian, to John Wilson Croker, Esq., dated on board the American ship United States, at sea, the 28th October, 1812 : — " Sir : It is with the deepest regret, I have to acquaint you, for the information of my Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty, that His Majes- ty's late ship Macedonian was captured on the 25th instant, by the United States ship United States, Commodore Decatur commander. The detail is as follows : " A short time after daylight, steering N. W. by W., with the wind from the southward, in latitude 29° N., and longitude 29° 30' W., in the execu- tion of their Lordships' orders, a sail was seen on the lee beam, which I immediately stood for, and made her out to be a large frigate, under American colors. At nine o'clock I closed with her, and she commenced the action, which we returned ; but from the enemy keeping two points off the wind, I was not enabled to get as close to her as I could have wished. After an hour's action, the enemy backed and came to the wind, and I was then enabled to bring her to close battle. In this situation I soon found the erem'^'s 12=^' 138 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. . i i I force too superior to expect success, unless some very ibrtunate chance occurred in our favor; and with this liopo I continued the battle to two hours and ten minutes ; when, having the mizzen mast shot away by the hoard, topmasts shot away by the caps, main yard shot in pieces, lower masts badly wounded, lower rigoino- all cut to pieces, a small proportion only of the fore-sail left to the fore- yard, all the cfuns on the quarter deck and fore- castle disabled but two, and filled with wreck, two also on the main deck disabled, and several shot between wind and water, a very great proportion of the crew killed and wounded, and the enemy comparatively in good order, who had now shot ahead, and was about to place himself in a raking position, without our being enabled to return the fire, being a perfect wreck and unmanageable log ; I deemed it prudent, though a painfuf extremity, to surrender His Majesty's ship; nor was this dreadful alternative resorted to till every hope of success was removed, even beyond thereach of chance; nor till, I trust their Lordships will be aware, every effort had been made against the enemy by myself, and my brave officers' and men, nor should she have been surrendered whilst a man lived on board, had she been manageable. I am sorry to say our loss is very severe ; I find by this day's muster, thirty-six killed, three of whom lingered a short time after the battle ; thirty- six severely wounded, many of whom cannot recover, and thirty-two slightly wounded, who may all do well ; total, one hundred and faui. } SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 139 3SS some TOr; and ^vo hours zen mast ly by the sts badly , a small the fore- md fore- 'cck, two 'ral shot oportion 5 enemy low shot a raking urn the ble log-; tremity* vas this hope of each of will be nst the id men, ivhilst a igeable. ; I find iree of thirty- i, who fauc. " The truly noble and animating conduct of my ofTicers, and the steady bravery of my crew, to tho last moment of the battle, must ever render them dear to their country. " My first lieutenant, David Hope, was severely wounded in the head, towards the close of the battle, and taken below ; but was soon again on deck, displaying that greatness of mind and exer- tion, which, though it may be equalled, can never be excelled. The third lieutenant, John Bulford, was also wounded, but not obliged to quit his quarters ; second lieutenant, Samuel Mottley, and he deserves my highest acknowledgments. The cool and steady conduct of Mr. Walker, the mas- ter, was very great during the battle, as also that of Lieutenants Wilson and Magill, of the marines. " On being taken on board the enemy's ship, I ceased to wonder at the result of the battle. The United States is built with the scantling of a seventy-four gun-ship, mounting thirty long twenty-four pounders (English ship-guns) on her main deck, and twenty-two forty-two pounders, carronades, with two long twenty-four pounders, on her quarter deck and forecastle howitzer guns in her tops, and a travelling carronade on her upper deck, with a complement of four hundred and seventy-eight picked men. " The enemy has suffered much in masts, rig- ging, and hull, above and below w^ater. Her loss in killed and wounded I am not aware of; but I 140 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. know a lieutenant and six men have been thrown overboard. Jno. S. Garden. "To J„ W. Croker, Esq., Admiralty." Lord Churchill sent the above letter, with a list of the killed and wounded annexed, to inform my mother that the name of her ^ -r ^-as not among the number. The act show^ ; .vv much he could sympathize with a mother's feelings. t 'ii ♦ CHAPTER VII. Scenes in the cockpit and steerage, after the battle — Arri- val of the victors on board — Part of our crew taken on board the United States — Good feeling between all par- ties — Macedonian refitted — Meeting of the two com- manders — Sailing qualities of the United States inferior to the Macedonian — Difference in force and metal be- tween the two frigates — The influence of motives in favor of the Americans — Arrival at Newport — Burial of Thomas Whittaker — The wounded taken on shore — Visitors at Hurl-gate — Christmas day — The author escapes from the Macedonian — Reaches New York — Boards at a widow's in the city — Good news — Celebra- tion of "Decatur's victory — Decatur's wife — Account of the fortunes of several of the prisoners who ran away. I NOW went below, to see how matters appeared there. The first object I met was a man bearing a limb, which had just been detached from some suffering wretch. Pursuing my way to the ward- room, I necessarily passed through the steerage, which was strewed with the wounded : it was a sad spectacle, made more appalling by the groans and cries which rent the air. Some were groan- ing, others were swearing most bitterly, a few were praying, while those last arrived were beg- ging most piteously to have their wounds dressed 142 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. next. The surgeon and his mate were smeared with blood from head to foot : they looked more like butchers than doctors. Having so many patients, they had once shifted their quarters from the cockpit to the steerage ; they now removed to the ward-room, and the long table, round which the officers had sat over many a merry feast, was soon covered with the bleeding forms of maimed and mutilated seamen. While looking round the ward-room, I heard a noise above, occasioned by the arrival of the boats from the conquering frigate. Very soon a lieutenant, I think his name was Nicholson, came into the ward-room, and said to the busy surgeon, " How do you do, doctor ? " "I have enough to do," replied he, shaking his head thoughtfully ; " you have made wretched work for us ! " These officers were not strangers to each other, for the reader will recollect that the commanders and officers of these two frigates, had exchanged visits when we were lying at Norfolk, some months before. I now set to work to render all the aid in my power to the sufferers. Our carpenter, named Reed, had his leg cut off. I helped to carry him to the after ward-room ; but he soon breathed out his life there, and then I assisted in throwing his mangled remains overboard. We got out the cots as fast as possible ; for most of them were siiciuiicu. uut xjU. mc; gui^. uuCk. v/iuj puur itJiiuw who lay with a broken thigh, begged me to give i ( smeared ced more so many ters from removed id which sast, was maimed I heard il of the { soon a on, came surgeon, shaking wretched strangers : that the ates, had Norfolk, d in my *, named arry him Lthed out ^ving his out the 3m were _„ ^. n L>r lyauw to give SIX YEARS IN A MAN OP WAR. 143 t him water. I gave him some. He looked unut- terable gratitude, drank, and died. It was with exceeding difficulty I moved through the steerage, it was so covered with mangled men, and so slippery with streams of blood. There was a poor boy there crying as if his heart would break. He had been servant to the bold boatswain, whose head was dashed to pieces. Poor boy ! he felt that he had lost a friend. I tried to comfort him by reminding him that he ought to be thankful for having escaped death himself. Here, also, I met one of my messmates, who showed the utmost joy at seeing me alive, for, he said, he had heard that I was killed. He was looking up his messmates, which he said was always done by sailors. We found two of our mess wounded. One was the Swede, Logholm, who fell overboard, as mentioned in a former chapter, and was nearly lost. We held him while the surgeon cut off his leg above the knee. The task was most painful to behold, the surgeon using his knife and saw on human flesh and bones, as freely as the butcher at the shambles does on the carcass of the beast! Our other messmate suffered still more than the Swede ; he was sadly mutilated about the legs and thighs with splinters. Such scenes of suffering as I saw in that ward-room, I hope never to witness again. Could the civilized world behold them as they - "-"^J uiicii die, iuiixiiieiY vvuiBt; uxaii TT %;i.-U) UXI.-V3. CIO I on that occasion, it seems to me they would for- 144 A VOICE FTIOM THE MAIN PECK. i lis ' i I t ever put down the barbarous practices of war, by universal consent. Most of our oflicers and mm were taken on board the victor ship. I was left, with a few others, to take care of the wounded. My master, the sailinc^-inaster, was also ainonjif the officers, who continued in their ship. Most of the men who remained wore unfit for any service, hovinj^ broken into the spirit-room and made themselves drunk ; some of them broke into the purser's room and helped themselves to clothing; while others, by previous ac^recment, took possession of their dead messmates' property. For my own part, I was content to help myself to a little of the officers' provisions, which did me more good than could be obtained from rum. What was worse than all, however, was the folly of the sailors in giving spirit to their wounded messmate; , since it only served to aggravate their distress. Among the wounded, was a brave fellow named Wells. After the surgeon had amputated and dressed his arm, he walked about in fine spirits, as if he had received only a slight injury. In- deed, while under the operation, he manifested a similar heroism — observing to the surgeon, "I have lost my arm in the service of my country ; but I don't mind it, doctor, it 's the fortune of war." Cheerful and gay as he was, he soon died. His companions gave him rum ; he was ottoplron nir -fotrar unA AiaA PV»nc! h-Je moccmnfoQ actually killed him with kindness. SIX yi:aks in a man of vvak. 145 war, by aken on li a few r master, officers, tlie men !, having smselves purser's y, while jssion of my own ;le of the ood than IS worse ailors in ef , since w named ited and e spirits, iry. In- ifested a I eon. (( country ; rtune of he soon he was occTTtnt'oci Wc had all sorts of dispositions and tempera- ments amon_i>- our crew. To rne it was a matter of great intfivst to watch thoir various manifes- tations. Some who had lost tlioir messmates appeared to care notliinuf about it, while others were grieviii'r wiih all the tenderness of women. Of these, was the survivor of two seamen, wlio liad formerly heen soldiers in the same regiment; he bemoaned the loss of his comrade with expres- sions of })rofoundest grief. There were, also, two boatswain's mates, named Adams and Brown, who had been messmates for severe! years in the same ship. Brown was killed, or so wounded that he died soon after the battle. It was really a touch- ing spectacle to see the rough, hardy features of the brave old sailor streaming with tears, as he picked out the dead body of his friend from among the wounded, and gently carried it to the ship's side, saying to the inanimate form he bore, " O Bill, we have sailed together in a number of ships, we have been in many gales and some bat- tles, but this is the worst day I have seen ! We must now part ! " Here he dropped the body into the deep, and then, a fresh torrent of tears stream- ing over his weather-beaten face, he added, " I can do no more for you. Farewell ! God be with you ! " Here was an instance of genuine friendship, worth more than the heartless profes- sions of thousands, who, in the fancied superiority of their elevated Dosition in the social circle, will 13* ^^m .*#* 146 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. deign nothing but a silly sneer at this record of a sailor's grief. The circumstance was rather a singular one, that in both the contenilinGf frigates the second boatswain's mate bore the name of William Brown, and that they both were killed ; yet such was the fact. The great number of tuc wounded kept our surgeon and his mate busily employed at ih^nr liorrid work until late at night; and it was a ).)ng time before they had much leisure. I remember passing round the ship the day after the battle. Coming to a hammock, I found some one in it apparently asleep. I spoke ; he made no answer. I looked into the hammock ; he was dead. My messmates coming up, we threw the corpse over- board: that was no time for useless ceremony. The man had probably crawled to his hammock the day before, and, not being perceived in the general distress, bled to death ! O War ! who can reveal thy miseries ! When the crew of the United States first boarded our frigate, to take possession of her as their prize, our men, heated with the fury of the battle, exasperated with the sight of their dead and wounded shipmates, and rendered furious by the rum they had obtained from the spirit-room, felt and exhibited some disposition to fight their captors. But after the confusion had subsided, and part of our men were snugly stowed away in the American ship, and the remainder found SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 147 ;ord of a jlar one, 3 second n Brown, L was the kept our at tb/ur IS a ).)ng smember le battle. )ne in it answer, id. My 3se over- iremonv. ammock i in the ar! who tes first f her as y of the ^ir dead rious by rit-room, ^ht their ubsided, away in r found themselves kindly used in their own, the utmost good feeling began to prevail. We took hold and cleansed the ship, using hot vinegar to take out the scent of the blood that had dyed the white of our planks with crimson. We also took hold and aided in fitting our disabled frigate for her voyage. This being accomplished, both ships sailed in company toward the America.i coast. I soon felt myself perfectly at home with the American seamen; so much so, that I chose to mess with ihcm. My shipmates also particinated in similar feelings in both ships. All idea that we had been trying to shoot out each other's brains so shortly before, seemed forgotten. We eat together, drank together, joked, sung, laughed, told yarns ; in short, a perfect union of ideas, feelings, and purposes, seemed to exist among all hands. A corresponding state of unanimity existed, I was told, among the officers. Commodore Deca- tur showed himself to be a gentleman as well as a hero in his treatment of the officers of the Mace- donian. When Captain Carden oflJered his sword to the commodore, remarking, as he did so, " I am an undone mjin. I am the first British naval officer that has struck his flag to an American :" the noble commodore either refused to receive the sword, or immediately returned it, smiling as he said, " You are mistaken, sir ; your Guerriere has been taken by us, anrl the flaxr nf n frirr«ifc» wa« Struck before yours." This somewhat revived the 148 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. ■J ill I spirits of the old captain ; but, no doubt, he still felt his soul stunp;- with shame and mortification at the loss of his ship. Participalintr as he did in the haughty spirit of the British aristocracy, it was natural for him to feci galled and wounded to the quick, in the position of a conquered man. We were now making the best of our way to America. Notwithstanding the patched-up condi- tion of the Macedonian, she was far superior, in a sailing capacity, to her conqueror. The United States had always been a dull sailer, and had been christened by the name of the Old Wagon. Whenever a boat came alongside of our frigale, and the boatswain's mate was ordered to " pipe away " the boat's crew, he used to sound his shrill call on the whistle, and bawl out, " Away, Wago7iers, away," instead of " away, United States men, away." This piece of pleasantry used to be rebuked by the officers, but in a man- ner that showed they enjoyed the joke. They usually replied, " Boatswain's mate, you rascal, pipe away United States men, not Wagoners. We have no wagoners on board of a ship." Still, in spite of rebuke, the joke went on, until it grew stale by repetition. One thing was made certain however by the sailing qualities of the Macedo- nian ; which was, that if we had been disposed to escape from our foe before the action, we could have done so with all imaginable ease. This, however, would have justly exposed us to d""- grace, while our capture did not. There was SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 149 he still ification e did in y, it was d to the way to p condi- ior, in a United nd had Wagon. frigale, " pipe md his ' Away, United ;asantry a man- They rascal, Lgoners. ' Still, it grew certain klacedo- lisposed ^e could This, to d-- re was I every reason why the United States should beat us. She was larger in size, heavier in metal, more numerous in men, and stronger built than the Macedonian. Another fact in her favor was, that our captain at first mistook her for the Essex, which carried short carronades, hence he engaged her at long shot at first ; for, as we had the weather gage, we could take what position we pleased. But this manoeuvre only wasted our shot, and gave her the advantage, as she actually carried larger metal than wc did. When we came to close action, the shot from the United States went "through and through" our ship, while ours struck her sides, and fell harmlessly into the water. This is to be accounted for both by the superiority of the metal and of the ship. Her guns were heavier and her sides thicker than ours. Some have said that her sides were stuffed with cork. Of this, however, I am not certain. Her superiority, both in number of men and guns, may easily be seen by the following statistics. We carried forty-nine guns ; long eighieen-pound- ers on the main deck, and thirty-two pound car- ronades on the quarter deck and forecastle. Our whole number of hands, including officers, men and boys, was three hundred. The United States carried four hundred and fifty men and fifty-four guns: long twenty-four pounders on the main deck, and forty-two pound carronades on the quarter deck and forecastle. So that in actual force she was immensely our superior. 13# I 150 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. To these should be added the consideration that the men in the two ships foug-ht under the influ- ence of different motives. Many of our hands were in the service against their will ; some of them were Americans, wrongfully impressed, and inwardly hoping for defeat: while nearly every man in our ship sympathized with the great prin- ciple for which the American nation so nobly contended in the war of 1812. What that was, I suppose all my readers understand. The Brit- ish, at war with France, had denied the Ameri- cans the right to trade thither. She had impressed American seamen, and forcibly compelled their service in her navy ; she had violated the Ameri- can flag by insolently searching their vessels for her runaway seamen. Free trade and sailors' rights, therefore, were the objects contended for by the Americans. With these objects our men could but sympathize, whatever our officers might do. On the other hand, the crew of our opponent had all shipped voluntarily for the term of two years only ; (most of our men were shipped for life.) They understood what they fought for; they were better used in the service. What wonder, then, that victory adorned the brows of the American commander ? To have been defeat- ed under such circumstances would have been a source of lasting infamy to any naval officer in the world. In the matter of fighting, I think there is ]DUt little diflference in either nation. SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 151 ition that he influ- ir hands some of ?sed, and ly every eat prin- 50 nobly hat was, he Brit- Ameri- apressed 'ed their ; Ameri- ssels for sailors' ided for our men rs might pponent of two pped for ^ht for; What 'OWS of L defeat- been a Rcer in I think nation. Place them in action under equal circumstances and motives, and who could predict which would be victor? Unite them together, they would subject the whole world. So close are the alli- ances of blood, however, between England and America, that it is to be earnestly desired, they may never meet in mortal strife again. If either will fight, which is to be deprecated as a crime and a foil}'-, let it choose an enemy less connected by the sacred ties of consanguinity. Our voyage was one of considerable excitement. The seas swarmed with British cruisers, and it was extremely doubtful whether the United States would elude their grasp, and reach the protection of an American port with her prize. I hoped most sincerely to avoid them, as did most of my old shipmates ; in this we agreed with our cap- tors, who wisely desired to dispose of one con- quest before they attempted another. Our former officers, of course, w^ere anxious for the sight of a British flag. But we saw none, and, after a pros- perous voyage from the scene of conflict, we heard the welcome cry of " Land ho ! " The United States entered the port of New London ; but, owing to a sudden shift of the wind, the Mace- donian had to lay off and on for several hours. Had an English cruiser found us in this situation, we should have been easily recovered ; and, as it was extremely probable we should fall in with one, 1 felt quite uneasy, until, after several hours, we made out to run into the pretty harbor of 152 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. Newport. We fired a salute as we came to an anchor, which was promptly returned by the peo- ple on shore. With a few exceptions, our wounded men were in a fair way to recover by the time we reached Newport. The last of them, who died of their wounds on board, was buried just before we got in. His name was Thomas Whittaker ; he had been badly wounded by splinters. While he lived, he endured excessive torture. At last his sufferings rendered him crazy, in which sad state he died. He was sewed up in his hammock, by his messmates, and carried on a grating to the larboard bow port. There Mr. Archer, a mid- shipman of the Macedonian, read the beautiful burial service of the church of England. When he came to that most touching passage, " we commit the body of our brother to the deep," the grat- ing was elevated, and, amid the most profound silence, the body fell heavily into the waters. As it dropped into the deep, a sigh escaped from many a friendly bosom, and an air of passing mel- ancholy shrouded many a face with sadn ss. Old recollections were busy there, calling up the losses of the battle ; but it was only momentary. The men brushed away their tears, muttered " It 's no use to fret," and things once more wore their wonted aspect. At Newport our wounded were carried on shore. Our former officers also left us here. When my master, Mr. Walker, took his leave of me, he ap- SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 153 me to an ' the peo- Qcn were reached of their e we £:ot ; he had l^hile he ; last his sad state nock, by ^ to the , a mid- beautiful IVhen he ! commit he grat- profound crs. As ed from ing mel- ss. Old le losses \f. The 'It's no re their n shore, hen my , he ap- peared deeply affected. Imprinting a kiss on my cheek, the tears started from his eyes, and he bade me adieu. I have not seen him since. While we lay here, a few days, several of our men contrived to run away. I should have done so too, but for the vigilance of the prize officers, who were ordered to keep us, that we might be exchanged for those Americans who had fallen into British hands. After staying a short time in this port, we got under weigh and ran into New London. Here we fired a gun as a signal ; it was answered by the United States, and both ships were presently sailing in company to New York. We found the sound plentifully dotted with sloops, carrying pas- sengers, for this was before the days of modern steamboating. After we reached Hurl-gate, ves- sels here gave us plenty of employment. Most of them honored us with three cheers, as they passed. Of course, the prize crew could do no less than cheer again, so that we passed our time amidst continued cheering. While here, we were favored with abundant visitors, curious to see the captive frigate. Finding these visitors extremely inquisitive, and being tolerably good-natured my- self, I found a profitable business in conducting them about the ship, describing the action, and pointing out the places where particular individu- als fell. For these services, I gained some money and more crood will. Tl peoph had been to see us, used to tell on shore how they had been i > 111 hi 1 1 1' 154 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. on board of us, and how the English boy had conducted them over the ship, and told them the particulars of the fight. It soon became quite common for those who came to inquire " if I was the English boy that was taken in her." This civility on my part was not without a motive ; it was productive of profit, and I wanted money to aid me whenever I got clear, which I was fully determined to do, the first opportunity. To this step I was encouraged by our pilot, who brought us from New London, Mr. Tinker. He promised to take me as his apprentice, if I ran away. Also a gentleman who visited us told me to call at his house in Pearl street, and he would give me a dinner. Many others advised me to get away if por sible. But I was so closely watched that my mind was haunted with fear, lest, after all, I should be sent back to England in the Cartel, which was expected every day for the release of the prisoners. To fail in the attempt, exposed me to the danger of being reported to the officer who might come for us, and thus I was liable to be flogged whenever I arrived in a British port. Great caution was therefore necessary in making the effort; since it was better not to try at all, than to fail of success. Christmas was now drawing near. The day before Christmas day, the Americans contrived to get well supplied with wine from a barrel they found below. As thp\T Vmr] nn fu^']" T ]--"-i>* messmates some apples and a turkey, so that on J SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 155 L boy had I them the ime quite " if I was r." This Tiotive ; it money to was fully- pilot, who iker. He , if I ran IS told me he would ed me to J watched , after all, le Cartel, elease of posed me hcer who ble to be ish port. 1 making 'y at all, The day itrived to rrel they r-UgllL liJ Y D that on the morrow they were quite taken up with feast- ing. We also had a great many visitors that day ; many of them were ladies, and the officers got a chair out, which Captain Carden had rigged up, to lift ladies on board. It was made from an old hogshead, in the following manner. One head was knocked out and the barrel scooped out in front ; a seat was then inserted, with a flag thrown over the whole ; so that when it was lowered into a boat alongside, the lady had but to step in and throw the flag round her feet ; in a trice, the chair was whipt upon deck by the halyards, when the lady could step out with perfect ease. This con- trivance aflbrded a great deal of amusement, and kept the officers busily occupied in waiting upon their lady visitors. Now then, thought I, is my time for escape, or not at all. I had already made a friend of the American boatswain, Mr. Dawson, who promised to carry my clothes to New York, if I got clear. So, looking over the ship's side, I saw a small colored boy in a boat. " Can you tell me," said I, hailing him, " where I can get some geese and turkeys on shore for our officers?" " I guess you can at some of the houses," res- ponded the lad. "Well, then," I continued, "wilfyou set me ashore ? I want to get some for our officers." To this he replied, " Yes, if you will go and ask my master, who is on board your, ship." This was a damper on my young hopes, since it was not likely that his master would give per- 156 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. mission. I went below, somewhat disconcerted. There I met a boy named James Day, two years younger than myself. I told him I was going to run away, and urged him to go with me. He declined at first, saying, " I have no money to pay my expenses." " But I have money," returned I, " and as long as I have a shilling, you shall have half of it." " Besides," continued he, " I am afraid we can- not get away without being caught, and so get a thorough flogging." /' Never mind that," said I; "I have contrived that business. The boat 's waiting to set us ashore. Come along-i Jim ; do n't be frightened ; ' Nothing venture, nothing have,' you know. Come, come° here 's the boat alongside." At length he con- sented ; we returned to the ship's side, and told the boy his master was willing, provided he would make haste. We jumped into the boat, and were soon hurrying towards the shore, full of the hope of freedom. Never did my heart misgive me as it did when we v/ere on our way to the shore ; the voice of the boy's master came echoing along the.- waves. "Where are you going with that boat?" he shouted. Recovering myself, I persuaded the boy he was only bidding him to make haste. So the lad rciplied, " I am going to get some geese, sir ! " and pulled on. A few minutes more, and, to my unspeakable delight, I stood on American soil. Giving the boy a half dollar, we pushed on for New York, some ten miles distant. concerted, two years s going to me. He ley to pay id as long of it." d we can- so get a contrived IS ashore. ' Nothing ne, come, L he con- and told he would and w^ere the hope lid when voice of e waves, at?" he 1 the boy So the se, sir ! " d, to my :an soil, i on for 14 158 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. m For this act of running away, I have never blamed myself; for the means by which it was effected, I have frequently done so. As the reader has seen, it was done at the expense of truth. I told several deliberate lies to the deceived boy in the boat. This is inexcusable, and the only palliation that can be offfered is, my want of reli- gious instruction. I was not then a Christian. Still, ihe act of lying was an offence before God, and no man should purchase his liberty at the price of a lie. He who saves his life at the cost of offending God, pays dearly for the purchase. I am thankful I have since learned this lesson, at the foot of the cross of Jesus Christ. Not having our land legs on, we soon became excessively fatigued. When within two or three miles of the city, we concluded to stop all night at a tavern on the road. The inmates looked somewhat surprised to see two sailor lads inquiring for lodgings ; so I at once told them we were runaways from the captured frigate. This made them our friends ; the even- ing passed quite pleasantly ; we relating the par- ticulars of the battle, and singing sea songs, and they listening with the utmost good humor! It seemed strange to us to find ourselves in a bed, after sleeping two years and a half in a ham- mock ; nevertheless, we slept soundly, and to our inexpressible pleasure arose in the morning at our leisure, without being driven by the swearing boatswain at our heels. After breakfast, our gen- SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 159 ve never :h it was be reader of truth, ived boy the only t of reli- 'hristian. 3re God, y at the e cost of hase. I esson, at became or three ill night ;d to see [ at once captured le even- the par- igs, and r. ^es in a a ham- l to our 2f at our ^ve.aring ur gen- erous host having refused to receive any payment for his hospitality, we set out for the city of New York. Here I very fortunately alighted on one of the crew of the Macedonian, named Fitzgibbons, who informed me that most of our men had been landed at New London, and confined as prison- ers in an old barn ; but that, not being over closely guarded, most of them had run away. He also introduced me to a sailors' boarding-house, kept by a widow named Elms, near the old Fly Mar- ket in Front street. After spending a week in roving about the city, I heard a tremendous roaring of cannon in the harbo - ; it proceeded from the two frigates — which had dropped down from Hurl-gate and hauled up off the navy yard. What was more to my satis- faction, however, was the news that the cartel had arrived and carried off the British crew, or, rather, the fragment that remained of them. Had I delayed my escape three days longer, instead of spending the rest of my days in America and in the American service, I should have been chained to the obnoxious discipline of the British navy. The reader may be assured that the narrowness of my escape very greatlj enhanced the value I set upon my freedom. I now ventured on board the Macedonian again to obtain my clothes. As I stepped on board, my mind miso-nvp mp. ns Tiipntf^nqYit lVjr'l^/^Ur«>^ «„«j me somewhat sternly ; but I was reassured, when, 160 i* A VOICE FROM TIIK MAIN DECK. I kindly spoakinof, lio inrorincd inc tliat tlic cartel was !;oi)c, and I was safe. 'J'lic sailors, also, con- gratiilaled mo on iny success in irctlinir dear. The odicers and crew were about to have a public dinner, and to visit the theatre in commem- oration of their achievement. Tiie sailors invited me to join them. To this I np^reed. But ever- hauling my clothes, and contriving liow I should appear as well as my shipmates, who were all going to have new suits for the occasion, the bright anchor buttons, which shone on my best suit, presented an ins-iperablo ol)jection. For how could I appear among them with the badge of the British service on my coat? This dilemma was removed, however, by the skill of my land- lady, the widow, who very carefully covered the buttons with blue cloth. There was great excitement in New York, when the brave tars of the victorious United States, walked in triumphant procession through the streets, in the presence of countless citizens. First, came Captain Garden's band, Avhich had now shipped with Decatur; they were followed by the commodore and his officers, and these by the crew. At the City Hotel, all hands partook of a sumptuous dinner. This was followed by rather more than a usual amount of drinking, laughing, and talking; for as liquor was fur- nished in great abundance, the men could not resist the lemntntion to p-et drunk- As thpv left the room to go to the theatre, the poor plates on I SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 161 Q cartel so, con- s'lr. Imve a nimem- invited lit over- should .'ere all on, the ny best . For J badge ilemma y land- red the York, United hrough itizens. ch had Dllowed lese by partook ,ved by inking, as fur- ild not lev left ites on I the sideboard proclaimed that " Jack was full three sheets in the wind." Ahnost every one, as he passed, gave tlnnn a crack, crying out as they fell, " Save the pieces;" thus illustrating the old proverb, " Wiien rum is in, wit is out." The visit to the theatre passed ofl' very much like the dinner, to wit, there was an abundance of shouting and clieering all the evening. After the close of the play, all hands scattered to see their friends, with orders to be on board next day. It was a vveek before they all returned. I was much struck with the appearance of Decatur that evening, as he sat in full uniform, his pleasant face flushed with the excitement of the occasion. He formed a striking contrast to the appearance he made when he visited our ship on the passage to New York. Then, he wore an old straw hat and a plain suit of clothes, which made him look more like a farmer than a naval commander. Never had men more friends than the crew of the United States at this period. Every board- ing-house was open to them ; every merchant would trust them ; every one was willing to lend them money. What was it that gained them such public favor ? " 0, their victory, of course," replies the reader. Stop ; I will reveal the secret. They had some prize money coming to them in a few weeks ! That was the key that unlocked cof- fers : the warmth that melted the heart ; the snirit that clothed the face with smiles. But for that — 14# I r - \ 1 • I 'i'i ! ., 162 A VOICE FROM THE I\iAIN DECK. THE PRIZE MONEY — poor Jaclc's crcclit and favor would, fs usual, have been hclow pa?\ Of course, this profusion, this universal popu- larity, almost turned the brains of some of those old tars ; and at every opportunity they would steal ashore for a spree. This brought them into trouble ; it brought some of them to the gangway to be Hogged. These floggings, however, were not very severe ; they were rather a species of farce, enacted to preserve alive the forms of disci- pline. To avoid even these forms, the men were accustomed, after staying on a spree for several days, to visit the commodore's lady, with some piteous tale, begging her to intercede for them with their captain. This she did with almost constant success. The lucky tar would then go on board, telling his messmates that she was the sailor's friend, and using the usual saying in such cases, " Good luck to her — she has a soul to be saved." By this time, the late crew of the Macedonian, or those of them who had not c"one home with the cartel, were pretty well scattered over the coun- try. One of the marines, named Luke Oil, went to Springfield, Mass,, where he was employed as a file-cutter by Colonel Lee, of the U. S. armory, at the rate of $75 per month. This prosperity, and an unfortunate marriage, led him into un- steady habits. He enlisted into the U. S. army ; but growing sick of that, Colonel Lee procured his discharge. He afterwards enlisted again, SIX YEARS IN A MAN OP WAR. 163 nd favor al popu- of those y would liem into gangway er, were ecies of of disci- leii were : several th some br them 1 almost then go was the • in such ul to be edonian, with the le coun- )il, went loyed as armory, asperity, into un- I. army ; procured 1 again, I which is the last I ever heard of Luke Oil. Two more of our marines, named Shipley and Taylor, also went to Springfield, and were employed by a Mr. Ames. Several of the others enlisted to serve in the fort at New London. One of these, whose name was Hawkins, was very highly esteemed for his excellences as a soldier, and was soon made ser- jreant. But being an inveterate drunkard, he lost his office, and was degraded to the ranks. I have a characteristic anecdote to record of Sadler, the messmate of Bob Hammond. He en- listed in the American army, and was quartered at Hartford. He was so delighted with everything American, that he had grown to be an enthusiast in his encomiums on the government, as was ex- hibited one day in a somewhat peculiar way. The company to which he belonged was marched to church, one Sabbath, to hear (I think it was) priest Strong. The text was, " Fear God and honor the king." This was too much for the newly-made American ; and he put the congre- gation into a broad grin, by exclaiming aloud, *' Do n't k . us hear about the king, but about congress." The good people of Hartford would have pardoned tlys violation of Puritan propriety, if they had seen that brave fellow flogged, as I had, in the king's service. Our fifer, Charles Robinson, also enlisted in the same regiment. Perhaps some of the inhabitants of Hartford still remember the soldier who amused I r Li I 104 A VOICE rilOM Tllli MAIN DKCK. : m thorn, (lurlnir Iiis stny, ))>' pluy'unr on the hiirrlo in tho moniiiii.-, Iicin ll,.. i,,,, ,,r \Ur coun-lmii.sf. KoI)iMS()ii was pcrCri m.-isi.-r (,1 s.-vcnil iustru- UUMils, c.sp.-cijilly llic (iCc and tli<. I)ii<>lr. One of our l.oys, w.uuni Willini.rjVIiuldcM, but iM'tlor Known hy tin; IVIiiccdoiiijins hy ili(. nick- »»»»"<' or-nilly O'KooK," Cro.u l.is 'pmnico of sinoino- u .suiju- nhoiil, ihal Ikmo, ."iilislcd in the nnny, and nCuM-WMrds pcHonncd a sional .service ibr liis adoplod conntry, at Jacket's Harl.or. 'IMio AnuM-icans wi>ro in InJl rchval hcCoro lli(. Urilisli li'm>ps, whoso oviuM-al, mounted (Mnisu|)orf)cliarir head, shoulino-, - llii/za,niy hoys.'iho day is ours!" whon youno' Ma.Klcn, ren'donMl des- perate by the cerlai.ity of l,ein,n- shot, if taken by his countrymen, chdiberately aimed his rille at the freneral. The shot struck liim, lie lidl, and tho ]Jritish retreated. This brave lad k)st his hie in a subseipuMJt action. 1 make this statement on the uiUhority of (Captain Badirer, of Williamstown, Mass., conlirmed by the testimony of several otlier persons. TJie reader has jirobably not foro-otten the name of Bh)ody Dick. He shipped on board the Hor- net, sh)op of war, and with that vessel very narrowly escaped fallino- into the liands of the English. I met him afterwards in New York. He told me how lio tn^nbled durinsr the chase, knowinir that if captured he should be hung for entering the American service ; the British hav- ing given express orders for a strict look-out after SIX YKAllS IN A MAN OF WAU. 165 n ]m(r\c in uri-lioiisc. ul iiistni- iddcii, but \hv. nick- ruclice of L'd in the !il scrvico .or. Tli(3 10 IJrilisli l»clmroor, lioys, tlio Icnul dos- takcii l)y He at th(3 , and the lis lifo ill nnent on unstown, 'I'al other Lho name the Hor- se 1 very s of the ^v York, e chase, iiing for ish hav- out after our crew, tliut tlicy rrii<.';ht lunUc exarriph\s of ihrm. licsidcs the irif'n just rru'ritionf'd, olherH of our crew shipped arid waii(h'red in every direction; some in men of wnr, sonu; in merchant V(*ss(ds ; some, fearful of the risk of heiri/^ r(.'tak(?n, setth-d ashore. In short, i;. is ijiipossiUe to trace them, so vari(Misly did tliey divcu'^^e from each other. I hav(; been pjirticnlar in menlioninfr the Ijistory of a f(!W, to i»:ratify th(^ parti(!s, should th(>y he living, and ever see my hook ; to confirm tin; read(!r in the truthfulness of my account, and to show some of the chanires tliat followed in consequence of the victory of the United States over the Macedonian. It would h » an intc^reslinir task, were it possible, to trace out all the results of that victory. Ilav- iiy,^ detained the reader tfms loiiir \n followin^r the fate of my shipmates, I will resume the record of my own in the following*- chapter. ir J «f yvi- !" CHAPTER VIII. The author meets with his old shipmates— A proposition— An a^v-lvward (lilemma—Refiisal to ship— Low state of his funds-A generous oflTer-The author becomes a boot-maker's apprentice— A pleasant report— A visit to the United States frigate— A pleasant discovery- Change of purpose— Quits the shoemaker— Is robbed . by a negro— Goes to Salem— Dreams—Serious emotions —Revival among the Baptists— A fishing excursion- Dangerous proximity to a British brig— The Chesa- peake and Shannon— The author ships in the gun brig Syren— Her armament, &c. described. Nearly two weeks had passed since I left the Macedonian. I and my companion were living upon the sums I had saved from the presents I received for my civilities to her numerous visitors. One day, as I was sauntering round the wharves, with my protege, I met a number of men-of- war's-men. Stepping up to them, I perceived some of the old Macedonians. Of course, I hailed them. They were glad to see me. They had shipped on board the John Adams, guard ship, to which they were returning, having been enjoying a few days' liberty. Nothing would satisfy them, but for us to accompany them, and ship too. The midshipm.an who was with them, joined his en- treaties to theirs, and we at last consented. SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 167 •oposition — o\v state of becomes a rt — A visit liscovery — —Is robbed IS emotions 'xcursion — ^he Chesa- le gun brig I left the Te living jresents I s visitors, wharves, men-of- perceived , I hailed 'hey had 1 ship, to enjoying sfy them, )o. The I his en- i. To avoid being detected Ly the British, it was usual for our men to assume new names, and to hail from some American port, on shipping in an American vessel. My shipmates advised me to do the same. To this I had some objections, because I knew that changing my name would not make me a Yankee, while it mifjht brino: me into as awkward a position as it did an Irishman, who was found by an English cruiser on board an American vessel. After he had declared himself an American, the officer asked him, " What part of America did you come from ?" " I used to belong to Philamadelph, but now I belong to Philama York," replied paddy, conceal- ing his brogue as much as possible. " Well," continued the officer, " can you say pease ? " " Pase, sir," said Pat in true Irish style. The officer laughed and replied, " Mr. Pase, you wiU please to get into the boat." The poor Irishman was unsuccessful in playing the Yankee. Mentioning these fears, the midshipman said, " Call yourself William Harper, and hail from Philadelphia;" then turning to my companion, he added, " and call yourself James Wilson." " But," said I, " suppose the officer should ask any questions about Philadelphia, what should I do^' " 0, say you belong to Pine street." *' But what if he asks me in what part of the city Pine street is situated, and what streets join it ? " I answered, determined not to take a step in the dark if I could avoid it. 168 A VOICK riiOM THE MAIN DJiCK. i^umi i'i: I The midshipman assured me that no such questions would be put; and, partly confiding and partly doubting-, I resolved to make the experi- ment. Goinn- on board, we were paraded before the officers. Addressing me, one of them said, " Well, my boy, what is your name ?" Mustering all the confidence I could command, I boldly answered, " William Harper, sir." " What part of America do you belono- to, my boy ? " " Philadelphia, sir." Here one of the officers smiled and remarked, "Ah, a townsman." I trembled at hearing this, inwardly hoping that they would ask me no more questions. To my increased alarm, however, he continued by asking, " What street in Philadel- phia?" " Pine street, sir," said I, with the air of a man who feels himself drawn toward a crisis he can- not escape. " What street joins Pine street, my lad ?" asked my tormentor, with a knowing laugh. This w^as a poser; for further than this my instructions had not proceeded. However, I ral- lied the little confidence which remained, and said, " I don't remember, sir." The officer wdio had claimed me as a towns- man, mentioned the next street, and my examiner went on by asking me what street joined the one montinnorl \\fr fV)r« f\ff^r,^-^ My colors, which had fallen to half-mast before, 1 t-»t"l- t no such ifiding and he expen- ded before ihem said, command, ir." mg to, my remarked, aring this, e no more )wever. he Philadel- r of a man IS he can- i ? " asked . this my ver, I ral- ined, and a towns- examiner id the one ast before. SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 169 were now fairly struck. I had to surrender at discretion ; but thinking to get oft' with the hon- ors of war, I answered, " Gentlemen, it is so long since I was in Philadelphia, I have forgotten all about it." This point blank shot might have saved me, v/hen, as if Providence had determined to make my attempt at lying a total ''ailum, one of them detected a glittering anchor button, which had contrived to get rid of the covering placed over it by the fingers of the widow. Pointing it out to the others, he said, " Where did you get that English button ? Did you pick it up in Phila- delphia?" This was a shot which raked me fore and aft. I hauled doAvn my colors and stood silent. The officers laughed heartily as one of them said, " Go below, my lad ; you will make a pretty good Yankee." Through all this procedure the reader will per- ceive how perfect was the disregard of truth among all parties, from my humble self to the officers, who were evidently rather pleased than otherwise at my attempt to pass for an American. Such an absence of moral rectitude is deplorable ; it exhibits the unfitness of the parties for a man- sion in His kingdom who is a God of truth : it lays the foundation for a mutual distrust and sus- picion among men, and it leaves the offender to meet a fearful weight of responsibility in the day that 3hall try every man's work. I am thankful 15 170 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. I I ^;ii^' that the influences of Christianity have fallen upon me since that time, in such abundance as to renew the spirit of my mind, and to fill me with abhorrence towards a violation of truth. The next morning I and my companion, who had escaped the ordeal that had proved too much for me, were summoned to go ashore to the ren- dezvous, that we might sign the sliip's articles ; or, in sailor phrase, get shipped. The officer of the watch shouted, " Boatswain's mate !" " Sir," answered a deep, gruff voice. " Pipe away the cutter," said the officer. *' Aye, aye, sir." " Pass the word for James Wilson and William Harper." " Aye, aye, sir." Then followed a loud, shrill whistle, accom- panied with the cry of, " Away, there, cutters, away!" We were also summoned to appear, and told to take our seats in the cutter, which by this time lay alongside, manned by her crew of six men, who sat each with liis oar elevated in the air, waiting the word of command. We were soon seated, the lieutenant passed the vvords, " Let fall, and give way;" the oars fell into the water with admirable precision, and away we flew to- wards the shore. On our way to the rendezvous, T told my com- panion I should not ship in the John Adams, nfi/»QnQO or* rVjriiTir r\t ir\f\ 111 o r»/->n<->V>''n nc" xi J- /->■»• .-^ n l»«y>r« /!■•» there, and it was impossible for as to pass for SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 171 B fallen ce as to Tie with Dn, who )o much the ren- irlicles ; fhcer of r. William accom- cutters, appear, "hich by :rew of /ated in \^e were Is, " Let e water flew to- ny corn- Adams, pass for Americans. After some debate, we agreed to- gether not to sign the articles. On entering the house where the stars and stripes were flying over the door, in token of its being the naval ren- dezvous, being anxious to have my friend Wilson pass the ordeal first, I affected to stumble, and then continued apparently engaged in fixing my shoe-string. " Well, my boy, what is your name ? Just sign it here, will you ?" said the officer. I took no notice, but remained very busy with my shoes. My shipmate replied in a low, bashful voice, " I don't like to ship, sir." " Very well, then go below," said the officer. At this juncture, feeling encouraged by his re- mark, I looked up ; when, to my discomfiture, the officer, fixing his eyes on my retreating com- panion, observed, " That fellow will certainly be hung ;" meaning that he would get caught by the English. Then, addressing me, he said, " Now, my lad, just sign your name." " Sir," said I, " I had better not ship alone. The other boy is only frightened ; let me talk to him a little, and I can persuade him to ship with me.*' The shipping officer was too old a bird to be snared with such chaff as this. So, speaking rather sharply, he said, " Let him go, sir, and ship yourself; then he'll come back and join you ; and" — he smiled as he spoke — " I will let you come ashore to persuade him, in a day or two." Still I pretended not to be convinced, and, after 172 A VOTOK FROM THE MAIN DECK. m\ I considerable deb; lc, he let me ofT. Once more clear, I joined my young shinmnte, and we pro- ceeded together to our bourdiiig-house, congratu- lating ourselves on our Ibitunatc escape, as it appeared to us. Two weeks of idleness had nearly exhausted the little stock of funds I had picked up on board my old ship, and it was becoming necessary for me to nnd some means or other of supporting my- self; for although the prim widow, with whom I boarded, was quite obliging while her bills were paid, it was altogether probable that she would become a little crusty if they should be neglected. At this crisis I fortunately met with an English- man, who had visited our frigate at Hurl-gate. His name was Smith ; he was a deserter from the British army ; but was now settled in New York, as a boot-maker, in the employment of the firm of Benton & Co., Broadway. He offered to take me and initiate me into the art, science and secrets of boot-making. Seeing no better opportunity before me, I accepted his kind offer, and at once entered on my novitiate. Behold me then, kind reader, transformed from the character of a runaway British '^^ailor, into that of a quiet scholar, at the feet of St. Crispin, where in the matter of awls, w^ax-ends, lapstones and pegs, I soon became quite proficient. It is altogether probable that the rest of my life "TtrrkTlIn notrp o*'"''Pn oiTro-tr -tn il-iio ctill r»ir«H /^m/-»f TT •w'l-i.ivi iiLi T C^ iriiv.t.C\i ci^Tuy ill lino oliii ciiiu vJuiv:;b manner, but for a report that reached me, one Sabbath, as I was wasting its precious hours in SIX YEARS IN A MAN OP WAR. 173 more as It J Wfindorin.rf n^jont nmonc: tli^ shipping. This wns, tliat there was a tall, stout seaman on hoard the United States, named Geor^^c Turner. From the name and description, T l)ad no douht that liis was my cousin, who (the reader has not forgotten I presinnc) presented himself so unceremoniously to my aunt at Wanstcad. This intelligence determined me to pay that frJL'-nte a visit, (roing on hoard, I found her crew living in a complete Pvlysium of sensual enjov- ment. They had recently received their prize money. Salt beef and pork were now rejected with disdain : Jack's messkids si soked with more savory viands, such as soft tack (bread) and but r, fried, eggs sausages, &('. ; the whole well soaked with copious streams of rum and brandy. Those of the crew who had been m the Mace- donian, hailed me with a hearty welcome ; those for whom I had bought tne turkey and apples at Christmas repaid me fourfold, so thnt when I went ashore that night my puri:e was as heavy as r i the afternoon when I quitted my ship. My cou - in di'^ not recognise me at first; but by referring him to his visit to mv old abode, he at last felt satisfied that I was hi cousin. He then charged me not to mention our relationship, oecause he wished to pass for an American. Having 'ven me this charge, he surveyed me from head to foot, and then said, "W lat are you doing in ■New X uiii V " I am learning to make Loots and shoes.'* 15^ I . ! 174 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. Il^; " I am sorry you are bound to a shoemaker," £aid he ; " I don't like that business." " I am not hoimd to Mr. Smith, but can leave him when I please." "Well, then," he remarked thouo-htfully, ''I don't want you to go to sea again. Go to Salem, in the state of Massachusetts. I have a wife and chil- dren there, and shall be at home in a few weeks." This was a kind offer, and I at once agreed to take his advice. I had already grown somewhat weary with the confinement of my new mode of life, though, on the whole, considering my educa- tion, and the character of the influence exerted upon me in the Macedonian, I was a steady lad. Mr. Smith had left me pretty much to my own inclinations during the two months of my resi- dence with him ; yet my utmost misconduct had been the drinking of a little spirit, and the viola- tion of the Sabbath by roaming about the docks and wharves. My Sabbath evenings I had usu- ally spent in a more profitable manner, it being my habit to spend them at the Methodist chapel in Duane street. On returning to the house of my kind employer, I lost no time in communicating to him my change of purpose. He objected, and justly too, to be left just as the pains he had taken to instruct me were about to be requited by my usefulness. However, as I offered him five dollars, he con- sented to my departure. At that time there were no steamboats plough- I \i SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 175 jmaker," an leave "I do n't m, in the .nd chil- weeks." C^reed to )me\vhat node of Y educa- exerted ady lad. my own my resi- iuct had le viola- le docks tad usu- it being" t chapel nployer, ' change 0, to be ruct me (fulness, he con- f pi ough- ing the waters of the sound, so I engaged a steer- age passage to Providence, for five dollars, on board a packet sloop, and, with a light heart and elas- tic step, carried my clothes-bag on board. Here, however, I met with a trifling loss. AVhile ashore waiting for a fair wind, a negro, who had engaged a passage in the sloop, robbed my bag of several articles of wearing apparel, and took French leave. In consideration of this mishap, the cap- tain exacted only three dollars passage-money. From Providence a stage, chartered exclusively by a party of i^ailors, conveyed me to Boston; from whence I soon reached the house of my cousin in Salem. Mrs. Turner received me with great kindness ; indeed, she pretended not to ue surprised at my visit, assigning as a reason the very satisfactory fact that she had seen me with my bag on my shoulder in the grounds of a teacup I She was a believer in fortune-telling and dreams, having, for aught I know, received her convictions as an heirloom from her witch-burning ancestors. At any rate, she was stiongly confirmed in her favor- ite theoiy by my tiniely arrival ; verifying, as it did, to the very particular of the bag on the shoul- der, the truth-telling tea-grounds. She gave me another proof, after I had been there a few weeks, of the truthfulness and verity of dreams, by calling me up one morning, with an injunction to makp hnsfp \r\ tlip Y^oc,f_«ffi«^ "V^ she had dreamed of catching Jish. Sure enough, P i ,1^ 176 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. if she ?ano:ht no fish in hor dvonms, she cantrht a very liiu^ oik? in {lie loltor 1 broni^^lit to her, lor it contained a one hundred dollar hill from her hus- band, with information that his ship was blockaded in the port of New London by Commodore Hardy. Accident or cnriosity, I foroet whicli, led me to attend the relio-ious services of the Baptists in Salem. They were eiijoyinor a season of reliirions refreshintr: several were baptized. The hymn beg-inniniif with the line — " Oh how happy arc they who their Saviour obey," was sung as the converts came out of the water, and made a stron;^^ impression on my mind. Had some devoted Christian made himself acquainted with my feelinrrs, and given me suitable advice, there is no doubt but that I should have been led to embrace the Lord Jesus Christ. How many divine impressions are destroyed, through lack of faithfulness in Christians ! Perhaps the great reason why tliese serious impressions were so transient, was because the company I kept was so unfavorable to their growth. Most of my time was spent about the shipping: among these were many privateers, the profanity of whose crews was such that it had passed into a proverb. It w^as usual to say to a gross swearer, "You swear like a privateer's-man." Eeligion could not flourish in an atmosphere tainted by their vices. Amons: mv favorite pursuits wns tbnt n(^ ficTiinrr Sometimes I went with mixed parties of males )}r action nth. In md sev- linshield of those em with ne, was ne busi- er ; but • to sea ^ir, and ands in rds old d with ed that ■■'Sj^S^'' orFicer so strongly, that I was induced to join his ship, in company with the quartermaster and sev- eral of the former hands of the United States. My cousin also overruled my design of shipping in a false name ; so that, in defiance of my fears, I suffered myself to be entered as Samuel Leech, on the books of the U. S. brig Syren, of sixteen guns. The payment of three months' advance, with the sum I brought with me from New York, enabled me honorably to discharge my board bills at my cousin's, and to purchase the little clothing neces- sary to fit me for sea. I was then in the seven- teenth year of my life. Once more in a man of war, my seriousness all vanished like mist before the sun. Alas, it was poor soil to nourish the seed of life ! barren of everything that related to purity, religion, and immortality. My first imfi!^««ions of the American service were very favoraHe. The treatment in the Syren was more lenient and favorable than in the Mace- donian. The captain and officers were kind, while there was a total exemption from that petty tyranny exercised by the upstart midshipmen in the British service. As a necessary effect, our crew were as comfortable and as happy as men ever are in a man of war. While we lay in Boston harbor, thanksgiving- day arrived. Some of our Salem men inquired if I was not going home to keep thanksgiving, for they all supposed I belonged to Salem. Wimt 180 A VOICE EfiOM THE MAIN DECK. #*- they meant by " thanksgiving," was a mystery to me, but, dissembling my ignorance, I obtained leave, determined to learn what it meant. The result of my visit was the idea that thanksgiving- day, was one m which the people crammed them- selves with turkeys, figese, pumpkin-pies, &c. ; for, certainly, that wa^he chief business of the day, so far as I could perceive. With too many people, I believe that this is the leading idea associated with the day even now. Our brig had before this taken in her guns, consisting of two long nine-pounders, twelveg^ twenty-four pound carronades, and two forty- two pounders. Our crew was composed of some one hundred and twenty-five smart, active men. We were all supplied with stout leather caps, something like those used by firemen. These were crossed by two strips of iron, covered with bearskin, and were designed to defend the head, in boarding an enemy's ship, from the stroke of the cutlass. Strips of bearskin were likewise used to fasten them on, serving the purpose of false whiskers, and causing us to look as fierce as hungry wolves. We were also frequently exer- cised in the various evolutions of a sea-fight ; first using our cannon, then seizing our cutlasses and boarding-pikes, and cutting to the right and left, as if in the act of boarding an enemy's ship. Thus we spent our time from early in the fall until after Christmas, when we received orders to hold ourselves in readiness for sea. # r t] b a c c t] ii o d ^ ystery to obtained nt. The ksgiving- ed them- es, &c. ; ss of the 00 iDariy ing idea er guns, , twelve ro forty- of some ive men. ler caps, These covered fend the fie stroke likewise rpose of fierce as tly exer- :ht; first sses and and left, ■). Thus ill until 1 to hold W ^ CHAPTER IX. Plan to capture the Nimrod dweated by the wind— Orders to sail for Africa— Leave Boston— Voyage to the Afri- can coast — Death of the captain — An unpleasant catas- trophe — 3Ir. Nicholson assumes the command — The Grand Turk frightened— Trade with the natives— Short allowance of water — An enemy — Battle of Senegal — A Yankee trick — The Syren reaches St. Thomas — A prize — Another captuic— Petty tyranny resisted— The gunner's water keg robbed— The Syren refitted at Angola — She starts for America — Passes the island of Ascension— A sail — Anecdote— Chase— The^yren captured by the Medway seventy-four— Short dlow- ance — Landed at Sunmond's Town — A painful journey — Arrival at the prison in Cape Town. As we lay waiting for our final orders, a report reached us that a large English brig of war, called the Nimrod, lay in a cove somewhere near Boston bay. Upon this information, our officers planned a night expedition for the purpose of ejecting her capture. Our intended mode of attack was to run close alongside, pour a broadside upon her, and then, without further cerern joy, board her, cutlass in hand. So we took in our powder, ground up our cutlasses, and towards night got under weigh. A change in the wind, however, defeated our designs, and we put into Salem harbor, with no 16 Ip 182 A VOICE mpM THE MAIN DECK. Other result than the freezing of a man's finpfors, which Iiappened wliilo we were IVirliiin^ our sails. Thus ended our iirst warlike ex])edilion in the Syren, Shortly after this alliiir, we received orders to start on ii cruise to the coast of Africa, and, in company with the (Jrwid Turk, a privateer, set sail from Salem. Passinir the fort, we received the usual hail from the sentry, of " Brig- ahoy ! where are you hound to?" To this salutation the first lieutenant jocosely answered, " There, and hack aufain, on a man of war's cruise." Such a reply would not have sat- isfied a British soldier; but we shot past the fort unmolested. After two days we parted company with the Grand Turk, and by the aid of a fair wind soon found ourselves in the Gulf Stream ; where, instead of fearinpf frozen finc^ers, we could go barefooted and feel quite comfortable. We now kept a sharp look-out at the mast- head, but met with nothings until we reached the Canary Islands, near which we saw a boat-load of Portuguese, who, coming alongside, talked in their native tongue with great noise and earnest- ness, but were no more intelligible to us than so many blackbirds. While off the African coast, our captain died. His wasted body was placed in a coffin, with shot to sink it. After tlie service had been read, the plank on which the coffin rested was elevated, and ii slipped into the great deep. The yards SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 183 finpfcrs, ur sails. 1 in the rders to and, in *eer, set received T- ahoy ! jocosely man of ave sat- the fort onipany f a fair Stream ; re could 5 inast- hed the oat-load .Iked in earnest- than so n died, ith shot 3ud, the levated, 3 yards t were braced round, and we were under weigh ajT^ain, when, to our surprise and p^rief, we saw the coinn floating on the waves. The reason was, the carpenter had bored holes in the top and bot- tom ; he should have made them only in the top. After the funeral, the crew were called aft, and the first lieutenant, Mr. Nicholson, told us that it should be left to our decision whether he should assume the command and continue the cruise, or returi . home. We gave him three hearty cheers, in token of our wish to continue the cruise. He was a noble-minded man, very kind and civil to his crew ; and the opposite, in every respect, to the haughty, lordly captain with whom I first sailed in the Macedonian. Seeing me one day with rather a poor hat on, he called me aft and present- ed me with one of his own, but little worn. " Good luck to him," said I, in sailor phrase, as I returned to my messmates ; " he has a soul to be saved." We also lost two of our crew, who fell victims to the heat of the climate. One morning the cry of "Sail ho!" directed our attention to a strange sail, which had hove to, with her courses hauled up. At first, we took her for a British man-of-war brig. The hands were summoned to quarters, and the ship got ready for action. A nearer approach, however, con- vinced us that the supposed enemy, was no other than our old friend, the Grand Turk. She did not appear to know us ; for no sooner did she see that our craft was a brig of war, than, supposing I ?*;*S'*:~ ■•"-' i^^i I #* 184 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. t US to belong to Johnny Bull, she crowded nil her canvass, and nmdo the best of her way off. Know- ^ ing what she was, we permitted her to escape without further alarm. The iirst land w(! made was Cape Mount. The natives came olfto a considerable distance in their canoes, clothed in nothing but a piece of cloth fastened round the waist, and extending downward to the feet. As we approached the shore, we saw several fires burning; this, we were told, in the broken English spoken by our sable visitors, was the signal for trade. We bought a quantity of oranges, limes, cocoamits, tamarinds, plantains, yams and bananas. We likewise took in a quan- tity of cassada, a species of ground root, of which we made tolerable pudding and bread ; also a few hogs and some water. We lay here several days, looking out for any English vessels that might come thither for pur- poses of trade. Meanwhile, we began to experience the incon- venience of a hot climate. Our men were all covered with blotches or boils, probably occasioned by so sudden a transition from extreme cold to extreme heat. What was worse than this, was tlie want of a plentiful supply of water. In the absence of this, we were placed on an allowance of two quarts per diem, to each man. This occa- sioned us much suffering ; for, after mixing our Indian for puddings, our cassada for bread, and our whiskv for p-rosr. we hnd hnt li'ttj^ i^a ♦ - SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 185 nil her Knovv- > escape It. The in their of cloth wnward we saw , in the )rs, was lUity of antains, a quan- f which a few for any for pur- incon- ere all isioned cold to is, was In the jwance s occa- ng our nd our SSUagd ;^. our burninpr thirst. Some, in their distress, drank \u.riro f|nanlitics of soa water, which only increased their thirst and made them sick; others sought relief in chewing lead, tea-leaves, or anything which would create moisture. Never did wo feel more delighted than when our boat's crew an- nounced the discovery of a pool of fine clear water. We received it with greater satisfaction than ever prodigal did tidings of the death of some rich old relative, to whose well-laden purse he was undis- puted heir. We could have joined in the most enthusiastic cold-water song ever sung by either hermit or Washingtonian. While cruising along the coast, we one night perceived a large ship lying at anchor near the shore. We could not decide whether she was a large merchantman or a man of war ; so we ap- proached her with the utmost caution. Our doubts were soon removed, for she suddenly loosed all her sails and made chase after us. By the help of their glasses, our officers ascertained her to be an English frigate. Of course, it was folly to engage her ; so we made all the sail we could carry, beat to quarters, lighted our matches, and lay down at our guns, expecting to be prisoners of war before morning. During the night we hung out false lights, and altered our course ; this baifled our pursuer ; in the morning she was no more to be seen. The next sail we made was not so formidable. She was an English vessel at anchor in the Swii-< 16^ I 186 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. egal river. We approached her and hailed. Her officer returned an insolent reply, which so exas- perated our captain that he passed the word to fire into her, but recalled it almost immediately. The countermand was too late ; for in a moment, every- thing being ready for action, we poured a whole broadside into our unfortunate foe. The current carried us away from the stranger. We attempted to beat up again, but our guns had roused the garrison in a fort which commanded the river; they began to blaze away at us in so expressive a manner, that we found it prudent to get a little beyond the reach of their shot, and patiently wait for daylight. The next morning we saw our enemy hauled close in shore, under the protection of the fort, and filled with soldiers. At first, it was resolved to man the boats and cut her out; but this, after weighing the subject maturely, was pronounced to be too hazardous an experiment, and, notwithstand- ing our men begged to make the attempt, it was wisely abandoned. How many were killed by our hasty broadside, we never learned, but doubt- less several poor fellows were hurried to a watery and unexpected grave, affording another illustra- tion of the beauty of war. This affair our men humorously styled " the battle of Senegal." After visiting Cape Three Points, we shaped our course for St. Thomas. On our way, we lost a prize through a display of Yankee cunning in her COmmnndpr. Wp haA Vinicforl F-Mn-lioVi /«/^1r.ra • SIX YEARt i:. A MAN ' v WAR. 1^^ the officer in r Maand of the stranrjfer was pretty- well versed " uiC secrets of false colors, and ia return, he i up the Aniericii flag. The bait took: suppc 11, her to I Ar eric- we showed the star^ and strijjes. This v ut merchant- man desireu. It told him what w were, and he made all possible sai' or St. Thomas. We fol- lowed, crowding every stitch of canvass our brig could cftrry ; we also got out our sweeps and swept her along, but in vain. The merchantman was the better sailer, and succ ^ded in reaching St.' Sthomas, which, being a neua'al port, secured her safety. Her name was the Jane, of Liverpool. The next morning, another Liverpool merchant- man got into the harbor, unseen by our look-out until she was under the protection of the laws of neutrality. Our next business was to watch the mouth of the harbor, in the hope of catching them as they left port. But they were too cautious to run into danger, especially as they were expecting a con- voy for their protection, which might make us glad to trust more to our canvass than to our can- non. Shortly after this occurrence, we made another sail standing in towards St. Thomas. Hoisting English colors, our officers also donning the Brit- ish uniform, we soon came near enough to hail her ; for, not doubting that we were a British brig, the merchantman made no effort to escape us. I IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) /> t^7 / 7i 1.0 II *"- IIP t 1^ ||||/o i 1.8 1.25 l!U lA — Ill — = ^ 6" ► V] e /a ^ej. ^/. ^' ->*>' /; # /^ '/ Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, NY. 14580 (716) 872-4503 #>. :/j . / . i i i i !, m I 188 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. , ♦ ^. " Halloa ! " "What ship is that?" « The ship Barton." " Where do you belong ? " " To Liverpool." " What is your cargo ? " " Red-wood, palm oil and ivory." " Where are you bound to ? " " To St. Thomas." Just at that moment our English flag was hauled down, and, to the inexpressible annoyance of the officers of the Barton, the stars and stfipes supplied its place. " Haul down your colors ! " continued Captain Nicholson. The old captain, who, up to this moment, had been enjoying a comfortable nap in his very com- fortable cabin, now came upon deck in his shirt -sleeves, rubbing his eyes, and looking so exquis- itely ridiculous, it was scarcely possible to avoid laughing. So surprised was he at the unex- pected termination of his dreams, he could not command skill enough to strike his colors ; which was accordingly done by the mate. As they had two or three guns aboard, and as some of the men looked as if they would like to fight, our captain told us, if they fired, to not " leave enough of her to boil a tin pot with." After this expressive and classical threat, we lowered our boats and took possession of this our first prize. After taking out as much of her cargo as we SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 189 *#^ g was oyance stfipes aptain nt, had y com- s shirt 2xquis- ► avoid unex- ild not which ey had le men captain of her ve and d took as we desired, just at night we set her on fire. It was an imposing sight, to behold the antics of the flames, leaping from rope to rope, and from spar to spar, until she looked like a fiery cloud resting on the dark surface of the water. Presently, her spars began to fall, her masts went by the board, her loaded guns went off, the hull was burned to the water's edge, and what, a few hours before, was a fine, trim ship, looking like a winged crea- ture of the deep, lay a shapeless, charred mass, whose blackened outline, shadowed in the clear, still waves, looked like the grim spirit of war lurking for its prey. This wanton destruction of property was in accordance with our instructions, " to sink^ burn and destroy" whatever we took from the enemy. Such is the war-spirit ! Sink, burn and destroy ! how it sounds ! Yet such are the instructions given by Christian (?) nations to their agents in time of war. What Christian will not pray for the destruction of such a spirit ? The crew of the Barton we carried into St. Thomas, and placed them on board the Jane, excepting a Portuguese and two colored men, who shipped among our crew. We also took with us a fine black spaniel dog, whom the men called by the name of Paddy. This done, we proceeded to watch for fresh victims, on which to wreak the vengeance of the war-spirit. The next sail we met, was an English brig, called the Adventure ; which had a whole mena- A^ 190 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. gerie of monkeys on board. We captured and burned her, just as we did the Barton. Her crew were also disposed of in the same manner. One of them, an African prince, who had acquired a tolerable education in England, and who was remarkably polite and sensible, shipped in the Syren. His name was Samuel Quaqua. We now remained at St. Thomas several days, carrying on a petty trade with the natives. Our men bought all kinds of fruit, gold dust and birds. For these things, we gave them articles of cloth- ing, tobacco, knives, &c. For an old vest, I obtained a large basket of oranges; for a hand of tobacco, five large cocoanuts : a profitable exchange on my side ; since, although I drew my tobacco of the purser, I fortunately never acquired the habit of using it ; a loss I never regretted. My cocoanuts were far more gratify- ing and valuable when we got to sea, parckpd with thirst, and suffering for water, than all the tobacco in the ship. While in this port, I had to throw myself on the protection of the officers, to avoid the disposition to abuse which existed in one of the petty ofl[icers. Several of these gentlemen, who messed together, had a large boy to wait on them. He was unac- quainted with naval usages, and somewhat awk- ward withal. This led them to oppress him: they frequently knocked him round, and even ventured to flog him with a rope's-end. The poor lad used to cry, and fret about it, leading i SIX YEAiS IN A MAN OF WAR. 191 red and [er crew r. One quired a ho was i in the ral days, s. Our id birds. of cloth- [ vest, I a hand )rontable . I drew ly never I never gratify- parchpd I all the If on the sposition officers, together, as unac- lat awk- ss him: nd even I. The leading ? quite a miserable life. Ey some means, it hap- pened that I was ordered to take his place ; and I determined to resist their habit of punishing their servant ; so, one day, when the gunner came below for his share of the whisky, and found i\ was gone, his messmates having drank the whole, and asked me for his whisky, I boldly answered. " I know nothing about it." At this, he broke out into a furious passion, declaring that if I did not find his whisky h« would have my heart's blood. To this dignified and manly threat I made no reply, but proceeded forthwith to the first lieuten- ant, and laid the facts before him. Th^ gunner was sent for, reprimanded, and threatened with degradation, if ever he either struck or offered to strike me again. Of course, I had no further trouble with these would-be tyrants. The only other difficulty I ever had on board the Syren, was with a young midshipman, who was on his first voyage — who was, in sailor's language, "a real green-horn." He ordered me, one day, to wash his clothes. I refused, saying it was not my duty. Putting on the air of a pompous man, lie told me it was my duty to obey an officer, and I should do it. I persisted in resisting this sprig of American aristocracy, and as I heard no more of it, I suppose he learned that he was in the wrong. 15"* The effect of my conduct ,on the gunner was seen a .short time afterwards, in the following "Jit.. i'l 192 A VOICE FROM THE iIaIN DECK. !| ii.i !|« little incident, which will also show the reader the nature of the pranks practised in men of war, by the hands. The o^unner was a very selfish man, and somehow, when we were on short allowance of water, he contrived to keep a keg" filled, which ho kept in a small state-room ; and a man might choke before he would part with a drop. One night, when my throat was parched with thirst, I met the boatswain's mate, and said, " If I were minded to play the rogue, I could hook some water." The mate, who was as dry as myself, looked mightily gratified at this piece of news, and asked, "Where?" " I have a key that will fit the lock of the room where the gunner keeps his water keg." " Well," said he, " give me the key. I will be the rogue, while you keep watch for the old gunner." After drinkinsr all we desired, we locked the door and returned to our posts, wondering hov the gunner would feel when he found that soniw one had been practising the arithmetical rule, called reduction, on his water keg. The next day the offended gunner threw out sundry hints to his messmates about his loss, indi- rectly charging them with the robbery. This drew down their wrath upon him, and he was compelled to be content with swallowing his choler, and getting a new lock for his state-room. In all his rage he never uttered a word to me : be had not forgotten my appeal to his superiors. i "I i SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 193 3 reader I of war, y selfish n short p a keg" )m ; and t with a parched nd said, I could *, looked id asked, ;he room I will the old iked the inq" hov» lat soniw :al rule, irew out OSS, indi- f. This he was 'ing his Lte-room. to me: )eriors. From St. Thomas we proceeded to Angola, where we staid lonrr enough to clean, paint\nd refit our brig, from stem to stern. This was the last port we intended to touch at on the coast of Africa. Our next anchorage was to be in Boston harbor— at least so we purposed ; but Providence and the British ordered it otherwise. To accomplish our object, we had to run the gauntlet through the host of English cruisers that hovered about, like birds of prey, along both sides of the Atlantic coast. This enterprise appeared so impossible to my mind, while we lay at Angola, and the fear of being retaken and hung operated so strongly on my imagination, that, more than once, I determined to run away and find a refuge among the Africans ; but my better judgment pre- vailed at last, and I continued at my post. Still, I used every possible precaution to escape detection in case of our capture. In accordance with the custom of our navy at that period, I let my hair grow long behind. To change my looks more eflfectually, instead of tying mine in a cue as the others did, I let it hang in ringlets all round my face and neck. This, together with the effect of time, caused me to appear quite a diflferent lad from what I was, when a boy, on board the Mace- donian. I also adopted that peculiarity of dress practised by American men-of-war's-men, which consisted in wearing my shirt open at the neck, with the corners thrown back. On these corners a device was wrought, consisting of the stars of 17 !'<1 fl 194 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK, •■! I the American flag, with the British flag under- neath. By these means I hop(;d to pass for a genuine Yankee, without suspicion, in case we should fall into English hands. Having finished our preparations, we left An- gola for Boston. We reached the island of As- cension in safety, where was a post-office of a truly patriarchal character. A box is nailed to a post near the shore. Ships that pass send to the box and deposit or take out letters, as the case may be. This is probably the cheapest general post-office establishment in the world. We had scarcely left this island before the cry of " Sail ho ! " arrested every ear. Supposing her to be a large merchantman, we made towards her ; but a nearer approach made it doubtful whether she was an Indiaman or a man of war. The cap- tain judged her to be the latter, and tacked ship immediately. He was unwilling to place himself in the situation of an American privateer, who, mistaking a seventy-four for a merchantman, ran his ship close alongside, and boldly summoned her to haul down her colors. The captain of the other ship coolly replied, " I am not in the habit of strik- ing my colors." At the same moment the ports of his ship were opened, and disclosed her long ranges of guns, yawning over the decks of the priva- teer. Perceiving his mistake, the privateer, with admirable tact and good humor, said, " Well, if you won't, I will," and pulling down his banting, sur- rendered to his more powerful foe. To avoid ^ under- iss for a case we left Ari- el of As- fice of a tiled to a nd to the the case t general 3 the cry ingherto irds her ; whether The cap- ;ked ship 3 himself 3er, who, ;man, ran loned her the other t of strik- the ports her long the priva- teer, with ell, if you I ting, sur- lo avoid SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 195 such a mistake as this, our captain made all sail to escape the coming stranger, which was now bearing down upon us under a heavy pressure of canvass, revealing, as she gained upon our little brig, that she bore the formidable character of a seventy-four gun ship, under English colors. Of course, fighting was out of the question. It would be like the assault of a dog on an elephant, or a dolphin on a whale. We therefore crowded all possible sail, threw our guns, cables, anchors, hatches, &c., overboard, to increase her speed. But it soon became apparent that we could not escape. The wind blew quite fresh, which gave our opponent the advantage : she gained on us very fast. We shifted our course, in hopes to baffle her until night, when we felt pretty sure of getting out of her way. It was of no use, she still gained, until we saw ourselves almost within gun- shot of our opponent. In this extremity, the captain ordered the quar- termaster, George Watson, to throw the private signals overboard. This was a hard task for the bold-hearted fellow. As he pitched them into the sea, he said, " Good-bye, brother Yankee ;" an ex- pression which, in spite of their mortifying situa- tion, forced a smile from the lips of the officers. The sound of a gun now came booming through the air. It was a signal for us to heave to, or to look out for consequences. What might have been, we learned afterwards, for a division of the crew of the seventy-four had orders to sink us if we made the least show of resistance. Findin"* it Hff * h I, i 1 i ii^ I .'' HI: I ■m 1 // ^^•^ «i SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF "WAR. 197 useless to proloncr the chase, our commander re- luctantly ordered the flag to be struck. We then hove to, and our foe came rolling down upon us, looking like a huge avalanche rushing down the mountain side to crush some poor peasant's dwell- ing. Her officers stood on her quarter deck, glancing unutterable pride, while her captain shouted, " What brig is that ? " " The United States brig Syren," replied Cap- tain Nicholson. *' This is his Britannic Majesty's ship Med- way ! " he answered. " I claim you as my lawful prize." Boats were then lowered, the little brig taken from us, and our crew transferred to the Medway, stowed away in the cable tier, and put in messes of twelve, with an allowance of only eight men's rations to a mess; a regulation which caused us considerable suffering from hunger. The sight of the marines on board the Medway made me tremble, for my fancy pointed out several of them as having formerly belonged to the Macedonian* I really feared I was destined to speedily swing at the yard-arm ; it was, however, a groundless alarm. This event happened July 12, 1814. Only eight days before, we had celebrated the indepen- dence of our country, by dancing and splicing the main-brace. Now we had a fair prospect of a rigorous imprisonment. Such are the changes which constantly occur under the rule of the war- epirit, 17# m\ i 198 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. Tho Hay snbspquont to our rnnfnrc, we were marclji'd lo tlie (|U!irler tlcck wiih our clolhes- bags, where we underwent a strict search. We were ordered lo remove our outside garments for this purpose. They expected to find us in pos- session of large quantities of gold dust. What little our crew had purchased was tak'3n from them, with a spirit of rapacity altogether beneath the dignity of a naval commander. Our short allowance was a source of much dis- comfort in this our prison-ship. But, in the true spirit of sailors, we made even this a subject of coarse jests and pleasant remark. Some would sit and paint the luxuries of shore life until our mouths watered at the idea of soft tack, fried eggs, sausages, and those other delicacies which go to make up a sailor's idea of a sensual para- dise. Others would discourse about roast beef, boiled lamb, and caper sauce ; to which some old weather-beaten tar would answer, " Give me the lamb and a knife and fork, and I will cut capers enough." This would draw out peals of laughter, to be followed by various yarns of feasts gone by, and of sprees enjoyed on liberty and pay-days. Thus we beguiled our time; though, with all our laughing, we could not laugh away the clamors of our hungry stomachs; and when I took my turn of a few minutes on deck, the gift of a piece of hard, dry biscuit, afforded me more gustatory delight, than would the taste of the richest pound- cake, now that I have an abundance of food. SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 199 we were r clolhes- •ch. We ments for s in pos- . What k'3n from r beneath nuch dis- i the true ubject of ne would until our Lck, fried es which ual para- )ast beef, some old e me the ut capers laughter, gone by, pay-days. th all our iamors of : my turn piece of gustatory St pound- Dod. Enduring this evil, we proceeded on our course. When the Medway arrived at Simon's Town, about twcntj-ono miles from the Cape of Good Hope, we met the Denmark, seventy-four, on her way to England, with prisoners from Cape Town. The captain had hitherto intended to land us at the latter place, but the presence of the Denmark led him to change his purpose, and land us at Simon's Town. The journey from this place to the Cape was one of great suffering to our crew. We were received on the beach by a file of Irish soldiers. Under their escort we proceeded seven miles, through heaps of burning sand, ooeing nothing worthy of notice on the way, but a number of men busily engaged in cutting up dead whales on the sea-shore. After resting a short time, we recommenced our march, guarded by a new detachment of sol- diers. Unused to walking as we were, we began to grow excessively fatigued ; and, after wading a stream of conjjiderable depth, we were so over- come, that it seemed impossible to proceed any %rther. We lay down, discouraged and wretched, on the sand. The guard brought us some bread, and gave half-a-pint of wine to each man. This revived us somewhat. We were now placed under a guard of dragoons. They were very kind, and urged us to attempt the remaining seven miles. To relieve us, they carried our clothes- bags on their horses ; and overtaking some Dutch r i 200 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. i I V ,i ! farmers, going to the Cape with broom-stuff and brush, the officer of the dragoons made them carry the most weary among us in their wagons. It is not common for men to desire the inside of a prison, but I can assure my readers we did most heartily wish ourselves there, on that tedious journey. At last, about nine o'clock, P. M., we arrived at Cape Town, having left one of our number at Wineburg, through exhaustion, who joined us the next day. Stiff, sore, and weary, we hastily threw ourselves on the hard boards of our prison, wliere, without needing to be soothed Of rocked, we slept profoundly until late the next morning. For a description of our prison, with what happened to us there, the reader is referred to the succeeding chapter. t I'i .It' stuff and de them wagons, nside of did most tedious . M., we of our on, who i weary, oards of soothed the next on, with referred CHAPTER X. Description of our prison— Rules adopted— A petty annoy- ance cured— A lesson given to a Dutchman— Quality of our provisions — Dainties— Amusements— A suicide —The slaves of Cape Town— Table mountain and the Lion's Rump— The hospital— The author visits it- Feigns sickness— The Trunk— The surgeon's passion, and its consequences— A Dutch wedding— A plot— Dis- covery — Rumored visit of a missionary— True feelings of seamen on religious subjects— Anecdote— Mr. Thorn's visit— Religious meetings— Seriousness— The author's dream — A pleasant rumor— Presents of the prisoners to Mr. Thorn- The author's alarm— Embarkation on board the Cumberland — Voyage to St. Helena A transfer — A cause for great fear — An American ship Tidings of the renewal of the French war — Its reception by the officers and crew of the Grampus — Arrival at Spit- head — Transfer to the Puissant — Anecdote — Removed to the Rover and conveyed to Plymouth — Placed on board the Royal Sovereign— Transferred to the Wood- rop Simms — Sail for America— A terrible gale — Arrival at New York— Placed on board the Tom Bowling— The Syren's crew paid off— Life in a boarding-house- Good resolutions evaporate — r>loney soon expended The author ships in the brig Boxer. The next morning wc took a survey of our new quarters. We found ourselves placed in if f^ ifi 202 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. II 1 -> r' '"A > : I' I -r a large yard, surrounded, by high walls, and strongly guarded by soldiers. Within this inclos- ure, there was a building, or shed, composed of three rooms, neither of which had any floor. Round the sides stood three benches or stages, one above the other, to serve for berths. On these we spread our hammocks and bed-clothes, making them tolerably comfortable places to sleep in. A few of the men preferred to sling their hammocks, as they did at sea. Here, also, we used to eat, unless, as was our frequent practice, we did so in the open air. Our officers had been sent thirty mile;^ inland, so that we had lost the natural exactors of disci- pline among seamen. To remedy this deficiency, our first step was to adopt a set of regulations in respect to order, cleanliness, &c., and to appoint certain of our number to enforce them. We experienced some unpleasantness, at first, from the insolence of some of the sergeants com- manding the prison guard. Most of these petty oflicers were very friendly and kind, but two or three of them manifested a surly, tyrannical tem- per, annoying us in many little things, enough to embitter our enjoyment, while they were on duty. This petty despotism we soon cured, by returning their abuse in a rather provoking kind of coin. We used to plague them by causing a long delay when the hour arrived for them to be relieved. Thsy were required to muster us every morning, that we might be counted before the new guard SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAK. 203 ►vails, and his inclos- nposed of my floor, or stages, "ths. On jd-clothes, ^s to sleep ling their also, we t practice, 3; inland, 1 of disci- leficiency, lations in appoint 3, at first, ants com- ese petty It two or lical tem- jnough to on duty, returnincr of coin. ng delay relieved. morning, 5W guard took us in charge. On those occasions some would purposely absent themselves ; others were sent to find the absentees ; these, in their turn, would hide themselves, and require to be sought by others. This was excessively vexatious to the soldiers, and as it occurred only when a tyranni- cal sergeant was on guard, they soon understood its meaning. The plan was successful, and we thus got rid of one source of discomfort. Our next difficulty was with the old Dutchman, named Badiem, who furnished our prison with provisions. He had already learned the difficulty of cheating a Yankee; for the Americans who were carried away in the Denmark had been in this same prison, and had taught the old man that they were rougher customers than the Frenchmen who had preceded them. We gave him another lesson. He undertook to wrong us and benefit himself, by furnishing a very inferior article of bread. After counselling among ourselves, we took the following plan to bring him to his senses. We were visited every day by a superior offi- cer, called the officer of the day. He was a kind old man, who had seen service in the war of the revolution, and was at the battle of Bun- ker Hill. He had a profound respect for the American character, and could not speak of that great action without tears. One day, a friendly sergeant being on duty, we gave him a piece of the old Dutchman's bread, complaining bitterly of J. 204 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. '^^' i I its quality. When the old officer came round, as usual, on a fine, dashing charger, and asked his customary question of " All right ?" our friend the sergeant replied, " No, sir ! " "What is the matter?" asked the venerable old gentleman. " The prisoners complain of their bread, sir," said the sergeant. " Let me sec it," answered the general. The sergeant gave nim a small piece. He examined it, wrapped it up carefully in some paper, clapped the spurs to his horse, and rode off. The next day, we had better bread than ever before, and an order came for a man from each room to go with the sentry to the town every morning, to examine our daily provision ; and, if not what it should be, .;;'^ to reject it. This completely upset the goldenV*' visions of the old Dutchman. With much choler he exclaimed, "I had rather have one tousand Frenchmen, than one hundred Yankees." We could not now complain of our fare. We had an abundance of beef and mutton, beside a full allowance of bread, &c. The beef, to be sure, was poor, lean stuff, but the mutton was excellent. The sheep at the Cape have a peculiarity, which may cause the reader to snr.ile. They have enor- mously large, flat tails, weighing from twelve to twenty pounds. These are regularly sold by the pound for purposes of cookery. Should any one treat this statement as a forecastle yarn, 1 SIX YEAES IN A MAN OF WAR. 205 round, as Lsked his riend the venerable sad, sir," il. The sxamined , clapped rhe next !, and an go with examine lould be, . 5 golden'' 'h choler tousand I •e. We beside a be sure, xcellent. ^ which ve enor- velve to 1 by the lid any yarn, 1 refer him to the descriptions of these sheep, given by travellers and naturalists.^ Besides our prison allowance, we had opportu- nity to purchase as many little luxuries and nice- ties as our slender finances would permit. These were furnished by a slave, who was the property of the old Dutchman, and who was so far a favor- ite as to be indulged with two wives, and the privilege of selling sundry small articles to the prisoners. This sable polygamist furnished us with coffee, made from burnt barley, for a double- gee (an English penny t) per pint; the same sum would purchase a sausage, a piece of fish, or a glass of rum. On equally reasonable terms, he furnished us with blackberries, oranges, &:c. Our men, who, by the way, had eaten fruit in every quarter of the globe, and were therefore competent judges, pronounced the latter the best in the world. The berries afforded me a rich treafat Christmas. To obtain means for the purchase of these dainties, our men braided hatsi wrought at me- *• The Barbary sheep entirely resembles the tame kind, excepting in the tail, which is very much loaded with fat, is often more than a foot broad, and weighs upwards of twenty pounds. Among this kind of broad-tailed sheep, there are some whose tails are so long and heavy, that the shepherds are obliged to fasten a smnll board with wheels, to support them as they walk along. This tail, which is a substance b^etween marrow and fr., .j considered a great delicacy.— 5'££ System of Natural History. Boston : Carter, Hendee 4- Co., 1834. t Twenty-four doublegees made a rix dollar. 18 206 A VOirK FUOM TIIK MAIN DKCK. ohnnicul (Mnployinciils, or at .such pursiiil.s as ihoir respective Insles and eapai'ilies siii^Ljfestcd. Tlieso (XHMipations served to iM'j^uiK* our conlimMiUMit of nuu'h of ils ttMliousiiess. Still, w«» had manv vacant, ii.sllcss hours. To lill ihem, we resorted to the demoralizing: practico of i^ttuihliuo'. A innne with halls, called shal(t3- bag, loo, venture, all-lours, iVc, occu|)i(Ml our cveniuiif hours, and sonietinu^s lh(» whole ni,i*"hl. It was not unconiuion for the lyanie to he protract(Ml beyond the niidtiiuht hour ol' Saturday, into the sncrcd moments of the holy Sahhath. On 0!ic of these i^uilty morninii's, som(> of ns, on retirini*- to a slied, found th(» deail body of a black slave, hani^ino; by the rope, with which, in a nionuMU of impardonahlt^ tb^spair, he had counnitt(Ml the horrid crinio of suicide. The hour, the scene, the place, our ri'cent lyuilty profanation of (Jod's holy day, conspired to till many of us with ])rolbun(l dread. In my own mind it led to a few transient ]>urposes of amendment. Alas ! when the brii»ht sun arose, thci^e purposes had vanished. The inlluence of vice triumphed. I i^rew nuM*c and more hardened in wickedness. Cape Town contained a lary^e shivc population. These poor wretches bad been extremely deij^raded under the rule of the Dutch. It was said that their J condition bad been essentially improved since the conquest of the place by the English. Still, as the suicide just mentioned demonstrated, slavery was a bitter draught. The British have done SIX YKAUS IN A MAN OF WAR. 207 .s as ihrif . Til ('SO iMlU'Ut of urs. To i: prnclico (1 shnke- \)'uh\ our niolit. It irolmcli'd , into ll)o h\ o\\{) of Miriiit*- to L*k sliivo, onicnt of \\v horrid \\o. placo, loly day, id dread. ])urposes un arose, uoiico of hardened pulation. LJeii^raded hat their since the Still, as , slavery Lve done wisrly since then in ^rni„ti„ir froedorn to the slaves in nil lli(ildly asked ^' if it was peace with Hea- ven;" assuring us that it was a matter of the greatest importance for us to be at peace with God. Aj a memento of our esteem for Mr. Thorn, we made him several little presents. One of them was a hat made from a bullock's horn. The horn was peeled into narrow slips, these were scraped, split, and braided like straw, and then sewed to- sm 216 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. f *-1 gether. We also made him a model of a ship, fully rigged from stem to stern. The missionary received these marks of our regard with evident pleasure ; and, no doubt, when looking upon them afterwards, offered many a prayer for the salvation of the prisoners, who were, for many weeks, the subjects of his anxiety and labors. Blessings rest on him, if he yet lives ! Peace to his ashes, if he slumbers among the dead ! Great was the joy of my companions, when the news reached us that we were to embark shortly, in the Cumberland, ceventy-four, for England. Little was now said or done, except what related to our departure. With strange, yet common per- versity of conduct, serious matters were laid aside for the one absorbing thought, " We shall soon be free ! " Thus, an event which should have given birth to gratitude and religious service, only served for an occasion of further neglect and unthank- fulness. How strangely wicked is the human heart ! For myself, the tidings filled me with fear. Directly to America I would Have gladly gone ; but to be carried to England, in one of her ships of war, was like going to certain death. How was it possible for me to escape detection ? How could I avoid meeting with some old Macedo- nians, who would, of course, recognise and betray me ? These questions had resolved me to volun- teer to remain at the Cape, a short time before, when some of our number were sent to England. Now, ;k. SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 217 1 of a ship, missionary ith evident ■ upon them he salvation Aveeks, the essings rest ashes, if he s, when the ark shortly, • England, ^hat related )mmon per- e laid aside lall soon be have given only served d unthank- the human with fear, adly gone ; f her ships ath. How ion ? How d Macedo- and betray e to volun- efore, when ,nd. Now, they tortured me beyond endurance. I felt like an escaped criminal with the officers of justice at his heels. Death at the yard-arm haunted me day and night, like the fancied ghost of a murdered man, staring ghastly at the window of his mur- derer. No one can imagine my uneasiness, unless he has been placed in a similar situation. I made many promises to God that if he would carry me in safety to America, I would cease to be a swearer, and would most punctually attend his house every Sabbath. These things constituted my highest ideas of human duty at that time ; but even these promises, like those made during the heat of the battle in the Macedonian, were made to be broken. After a little delay, we were conveyed on board the Cumberland, where we soon heard the well- known summons of " All hands up anchor, ahoy ! " A cloud of canvass dropped from her gigantic yards ; the sportive breeze came obedient to our wish ; and the huge form of the Cumberland, ac- companied by a large convoy of merchant vessels, was borne rapidly along upon the yielding waves. Cape Town, Table Mountain, the Lion's Rump, and our prison-yard, were soon left far behind, leaving no traces of their existence on the distant horizon ; they were to be known to us hereafter only among the images of the brain — as recollec- tions, not as realities. We had spent eight months in the prison of Cape Town. Our treatment iu this ship was superior to what 19 218 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. we received in the Meclway. Instead of the cable tier, we had berths on the upper gun deck, and our allowance of food was sufficient for our wants. Arriving at St. Helena, we remained a few days in port. This rough, rock-bound island had not yet received its future prisoner, the em- peror of France. Here we were removed from the Cumberland. Twenty-four of us were sent on board the Grampus, of fifty guns, the rest were sent home in our old conqueror, the Med- way ; my lot being cast among the former. This transfer to the Grampus greatly alarmed me ; since the more men I saw, the greater, of course, was my chance of detection. I had already escaped being known on board of two seventy- fours ; but I could not promise myself the same impunity much longer. However, as I saw no one whose face was familiar, when I w^ent on board, I felt a little more easy. But that night, I had occasion for great trepidation and alarm. About nine o'clock, I heard the order from an officer, of "Pass the word for the boy Leech." This was followed by several voices hallooino-, " Boy Leech ! boy Leech ! " My heart beat like a trip-hammer against my bosom, and a cold sweat crept over my whole body. My shipmates said they meant me ; but I would not reply. After a few moments, I breathed more freely, and the le^x -^i a^avii pacacu uvvay. i neara some one saying, " Your master wants you ;" which con. SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 219 d of the jiin deck, It for our id a few id island the em- ved from veve sent the rest the Med- 3r. alarmed eater, of d already seventy- :he same . saw no went on t night, I i alarm, from an Leech." allooing, beat like I a cold bipmates r. After and the wne one ich con- vinced me that there was a "boy Leech" among the crew of the Grampus, as well as another boy Leech among the American prisoners. On our passage, we made a strange sail. Com- ing up to her, to our infinite satisfaction we beheld the stars and stripes at her mast-head. " Brother Jonathan has come to town," said one of our men. "He is a most welcome visitor," the rest replied; for indeed "the old gridiron" never looked so pleasant as it did then. This meeting confirmed us in the report of peace between the two nations. This was as gratifvinor to the crew of the Grampus as to us ; for they had recently heard that the war with France was ended, and they were all hoping to get discharged. This expectation was defeated, however, by intelligence from some passing ship, that Napoleon was at Paris again, v/ith a force of sixty thousand men. Nothing could exceed the joy of the officers, and the vexation of the crew, at this piece of information. The former dreaded a peace, be- cause it would place many of them on half-pay ; while the chances of war inspired them with hopes of promotion; hence they ran alongside almost every ship in the fleet, shouting, " Have you heard the news ? Bonaparte has got to Paris with sixty thousand men!" Really, some of them seemed crazy with joy at the idea of pro- tracted war. Not so, however, the seamen ; they longed for peace, since war only brought them hard usage, wounds and death. While, therefore, 220 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. I 4 ' # the officers were rejoicing, they were muttering curses and oaths, wishing Bonaparte and his army at perdition. Nor was it strange that they felt thus ; for the discipline on board the Grampus was excessively severe. They were constantly flogging in the most harsh and cruel manner. The Syrens were astonished at what they saw ; for, on board our brig, we seldom saw more than a dozen lashes inflicted at one time, and that not very often. At last we came in sight of the white cliffs of old England. To avoid suspicion, I appeared much interested in everything I saw on the coast, and asked the men all those questions which are natural to a stranger, when he sees a new coun- try for the first time. These inquiries they answered with the utmost good humor; for an Englishman is proud of his country, notwith- standing he may find hard usage from her hands. My American friends have frequently asked if my language diu not excite suspicion that I was English. It never did to my knowledge ; indeed, so free was I from English provincialisms, that it was often remarked to me, that I "needed no protection ;" meaning, that I should be taken for a Yankee, without offering proof. With all this in my favor, I could not behold myself approaching my native soil, without many misgivings. To a man who knows a halter is hanging over his head, everything furnishes cause for alarm ; a piercing look, a whisper, or the SIX YEARS LN A MAN OF WAR. 221 Tiuttering and his that they Grampus onstantly manner. ley saw; lore than that not cliffs of appeared :he coast, hich are 3W Conn- ies they ; for an notwith- jr hands, asked if lat I was ; indeed, s, that it eded no aken for t behold ut many iialter is es cause or the sudden mention of his name, is a cause of dis- quietude, su/ilcient to stir his inmost soul. Cap- tain Nicholson gave me no little uneasiness, by sending for me one day, just before we arrived in port, to make some inquiries about Mr. Crownin- shield, of Salem, Mass. Luckily, I could say I had seen him ; beyond that, I could give no fur- ther information. He supposed me to be a native of Salem, while I was quaking, through a fearful expectation of being found nearly as ignorant of that city, as I had been, on another occasion, of the city of Philadelphia. At length we reached Spithead, and were removed to an old prison-ship, called the Puissant, which had once belonged to the French. Here we were treated with great lenity ; we were even allowed liberty to go on shore. Had I dared, I wouH have run away ; the dread of the halter restr aed me ! I did not even venture to write, lest my mother should be tempted to visit me, or even to write ; since even a letter from any place in England, might awaken suspicion concerning my true character. An instance of maternal imprudence was said to have occurred in this port on board another ship. A poor woman went on board and inquired for her son, who had run from the British service, and was then among the captive crew of an American prize. They told her there was no one of that name among the crew. "He is among the Yankees," said she. Hearing this. Im Ipl 222 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. jij the prisoners were called up, and the poor, aflfec- tionato, but ill-jiulgiri!:'' mother, singled out her son, and embracing him, said, " I have brought you a clean shirt ! " The lieutenant, who stood by them, stepped up, remarking to the thunder-stricken man, " It 's a clean shirt you want, is it ? I will give you a clean handkerchief" — meaning that he would be hung. The unhappy youth was accordingly ironed, in presence of the astounded mother, who now beheld herself the unintentional murderess of her son. A court-martial was held, and the brutal prediction of the lieutenant verified. After a stay of several weeks in the old Puis- sant, orders came for our transfer to the Rover, a gun-brig, which had orders to carry us to Ply- mouth. Here was a double risk again before me. I had to risk being known by the crew of the Rover, and by the many persons who had known me at Plymouth. However, the good hand of Providence was with me to preserve me. We reached our port in safety, where, to our great delight, we heard that the Woodrop Simms, of Philadelphia, was to be the cartel to convey us to America. Before we were allowed to tread her decks; however, we had to spend two or three days on board the Royal Sovereign, of one hundred and ten guns, because the Woodrop Simms was not quite ready to receive us. Here I was exposed to the gaze of eight hundred men ; but none of * SIX YEAns IN A MAN OF WAR. 223 )r, aflfec- out her brought pped up, " It 's a c you a rould be ordingly icr, who urderess and the • Id Puis- Rover, a to Ply- fore me. V of the 1 known liand of e. We ar great Tims, of ey us to r decks, days on [red and was not exposed none of them knew me. Indeed, this was irly most haz- ardous situation ; for the Sovercii^u and Macedo- nian had sailed in company before the capture of the hitter. Whent^ver any of her men came near our quarters, I endeavored to h)ok cross-eyed, or closed one eye so as to appear partially blind ; and in various other ways altered my appearance, so that even an old shipmate would have been puz- zled to recognise m(; at first. At last, the grateful news reached us that the cartel was ready. We went on board with great gaiety, where we met our shipmates who had left the Cape before us. They had been confined in the celebrated Dartmouth prison, with a number of other prisoners, where they had met with rather rough treatment and rougher fare. They were present at what they called the Massacre. Sev- eral of the prisoners were detected in an efTort to escape. To strike terror into the poor victims, Captain Shortland ordered his men to fire in upon them. Quite a number were killed, and more wounded, by this cold-blooded act; the rest sought the sheftter of the prison walls. Several Ameri- cans suffered in this wanton assault. Our meet- ing at this juncture was a source of mutual gratulation. Our ship was now surrounded with boats con- taining provisions of all descriptions. To our surprise, the Dartmouth men bought freely of everything. Where they obtained their money, we could not imagine. We learned afterwards M S24 A VOICE FUOM Tin: MAIN DECK. tlint thoir stock oonsislnl of co\mlorfoit coins, rnauuructunul by iho prisoiu^rs I It was well for tluMii that our ship ])ut to sea Ix^forc John Hull's peace ollicers received infonnalioii of liie fraud. What a school for every species of vice is opened by war! The corruptions aiul vice, occasioned by the operatimi of this system, are beyond the power of the inui<;ination to conceive. J\ly feeliniifs were peculiar as 1 hehelil my native land recedini; from my vision. I was happy, and yet sad. Happy, because I was now safe; sad, because 1 was ao:ain leavii.j}^ the soil which lield my mother and my friends. On the whole, my joyous feelinf;s prevailed. A few days out, we were hailed by an Entrlish frigate. She sent a boat alonpfside to make some in(|uiries, and left us to pursue our way in peace. We were all in i>ood spirits ; our men being divided into watches to assist the crew of the ship ; our ofhcers all snui^^ly quartered in the cabin, and myself appointed to assist the steward; an oflice quite agreeable to one who had lived on prisoners' fare more than a ycar,"^ because it brouoht me a few of the spare luxuries from the othcers' table. One morning, shortly after the English frigate had boarded us, Captain Nicholson asked me something about Salem. I smiled. He inquired •a. tTr_ " wc wcrc cupturGu juIj x-,} lui 1815. % SIX VKARS IN A MAN OP WAR. 225 it COIMfl, well for in Hull's 10 IVinul. ks opoucd •ousionrd yond the held my I uas was now ;• iho soil On the 1 English akc some in peace, en being w of the d in the steward ; [ lived on ecause it from the sh frigate Lsked me ) inquired why I lantrhed. " Sir," said I, *' Salem is not my Tialiv(« pla('(» hy considerahh?." "What do you mean?" asked the captain, lookinir somewhat puzzled at my manner of treat- ing the subject. 1 (hen unfolded the secn^t of my having been ono of the crew captured in the Mactedonian. They seemed amazed at th(^ risks I had encountered since the capture of the Syren, and congratulated me very warmly on my really hair-breadth escape from the halter. It was a fortunato escape in- deed, for which I can never be sufficiently thank- ful to that All-seeing Eye, that watched for my safety in the moment of pcjril. During this voyage, a great deal was said about quitting tlie seas and settling down in qui- etness ashore. One of our shipmates, named William Carpenter, who belonged to Rhode Island, had a particular enthusiasm in favor of farming. He promised to take me with him, where I could learn the art of cultivating the soil. Many of us made strong resolutions to embark in some such enterprise. The pleasures of agriculture were sung and praised among us in so ardent a man- ner, that he must have been incredulous indeed, who could have doubted, for a moment, the cer- tainty of quite a number of our hands becoming farmers, whenever we should gain the land. One night we lay in our hammocks, talking Witix great earnestness about our favorite theme, the wind blowing quite freshly on deck. Said 226 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. one, *' If I ever ^ot homo, you won't catch me on board of a ship ati^aiii." " Yos," said another; •' farmers live well, at any rate. They are not put on allowance, but have enouu:h to eat : if they work hard all day, they can turn in at night ; and if it blows hard, the house won't rock much, and there 's no sails to reef." While this and similar conversation was goin^ on, the wind was blowing harder and harder : from occasional heavy puffs, it at last grew to be a tremendous gale. Hearing so much wind, though there were hands enough on deck to manage the ship, some of us got up to assist if we were needed. It was now blowing most fearfully ; the wild howling and whistling among the rigging, the wilder roar of the angry sea, the hallooing of the captain, and the impene- trable darkness which lent its horrors to the scene, Avere appalling even to a sailor's breast. Just as I stepped upon deck she shipped o. heavy sea, which drenched me to the skin. Presently, we heard the crash of falling: timbers, and away went a top-mast, and a yard in the slings. There were now so many men on deck that we were in each other's way ; some of us went beljjfv and turned in, with the full expectation that our ship would founder before morning ; and thinking it would be as well to go down in our hammocks as on deck. While this state of gloomy foreboding contin- ued, some of my shipmates manifested great alnrm nhmit eternitv. Thov nraved aloud, in deep distress. Others only cursed, and said, as if h me on mother ; are not : if they i^ht ; and uch, and [I similar blowing vy puffs, Hearing I enough jTot up to blowing ;vhistling 16 angry impene- hc scene, Just as !avy sea, sntly, we vay went lere were i in each d turned lip would would be )n deck, g contin- ed great aloud, in >aid, as if SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 227 I in bravado, " We arc all going to hell together." For my own part, I kc])t repeating the Lord's prayer, and renewing those promises so often made in the moment of apparent destruction. At length the day dawned, revealing the sad havoc made by the wind, of our masts and rig- ging. We also saw a number of those dwellers on the ocean, called Mother Carey's chickens. Our shattered aspect reminded me of the Macedo- nian after the battle, excepting that we had no wounded and dead about us now. Captain Jones, who had not left the deck a moment during the night, declared that, though he had been twenty- five years at sea, he had never witnessed such a gale before. Our ship was nearly new, and an excellent sea-boat, or she would have shared the fate of many a ship in that terrible gale. As the wind abated with the approach of day, we re- paired our damages and proceeded on our voyage, frequently passing vessels which had suffered°as severely as ourselve.^. This gale was on the 9th and 10th days of August, 1815. Probably many, both sailors and landsmen, will recollect this and the September gale of that year, which occasioned such destruction of life and shipping. Sailors are superstitious. Our men attributed this mishap to the presence of some Jonah in the ship. The man they pitched upon, as the proba- ble offender, was an old sea-captain, who had been cast awav several times. Thnt ho haA Ar^r.^ c.«,^^ fearful deed, was a matter of undoubted truth 228 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. among them; but not being so resolute as the mariners of Tarshisli, they did not cast him into the sea ; neither did this liberality on their part cost us our lives, for; after several day^ of pleasant weather, we one morning found ourselves safely anchored at the quarantine ground, near the city of New York. The crew of the Syren having obtained leave to go on shore, full of my good purposes to lead a steady life on the land, I hurried directly to Broadway, to inquire for my former employer, the kind-hearted boot-maker. To my disappointment, he had gone to Philadelphia ; so that I returned on board, somewhat chagrined at the failure of my plan. The next morning we were conveyed, in a large sail-boat, on board the Tom Bowling, an her- maphrodite brig. Here I was congratulated by the old quartermaster, Lewis Deal, who was with me when we narrowly escaped capture at the mouth of Salem harbor, while on a fishing excur- sion. He said he had felt much anxiety for my safety all the voyage, especially as it was reported that my former captain had made strict search for the Macedonians among all the American prison- ers who were carried to England. The kind- hearted old man wept tears of gladness at my safe return. While we staid in the Tom Bowling, the Sep- tember gale, mentioned above, took place. We were right glad, as it broke its fury over our an- SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 229 3 as the iiim into leir part pleasant ?s safely ' the city ed leave ; to lead rectly to oyer, the )intment, returned ire of my n a large an her- ilated by was with e at the ig excur- :y for my ! reported learch for n prison- he kind- ,t my safe the Sep- ice. We r our an- chorage in vain, to think we were so safely housed in a good harbor, instead of being exposed to its wrath on the deep. Many a brave heart perished in that memorable storm. The two years having expired for which we shipped, we were paid off. With the sum of one hundred dollars, I hurried on shore and deposited my funds in the hands of my landlord, at a sailor's boarding-house. Now followed a life of dissipa- tion and folly. The grave resolutions, passed at sea, to settle down as steady farmers, vanished into air. Drinking, swearing, gambling, going to the theatre, and other kindred vices, took up all our time as long as our money lasted. Our religious vows were equally slighted and forgotten : instead of being better, we became worse than ever. We felt as if New York belonged to us, and that we were really the happiest, jolliest fellows in the world. For my own part, I fell deeper into wickedness than ever before : drinking, swearing, and gam- bling as I had never done on any former occasion. How could it be otherwise ? Who cared for the sailor then ? Not one. He was left to his own de- praved heart's promptings. Bethels and religious boarding-houses did not then throw their genial influences round his path, to charm his footsteps to the shrines of virtue and religion. Near the very spot where the bethel church now stands in New York, I have frequently gambled for hours, with a bottle of spirits on the table, uncaring and uncared 20 230 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. for by any human being. Thrice blessed be the man who first established bethels and temperance boardini^-houses ! They are the sailor's life-boats, which snatch him from the gory jaws of the un- principled landsharks who fatten on his ruin. Sometimes, in a sober moment, I thought I would break away from this wicked mode of life. I even engaged myself to a boot-n;aker, to com- plete my knowledge of his business ; but the dread of the confinement to the shoe-bench, which my riotous fancy painted as being worse than a prison, ; drove me from my purpose, and left me still among my shipmates. At last my landlord told me my money was all expended, and that I must look out for some- thing to do. My shipmates were in a similar di- lemma, their number decreasing every day, as one after another shipped in the various merchant ves- sels preparing for sea. Alas ! for our farmers in perspective ! Their dreams of ploughing the land evaporated, leaving them what they were before, and what most of them remained until death, the ploughmen of the ocean. My landlord's gentle hint put a stop to my excesses, for the very sufficient reason that it was attended with a protest on my further checks for funds. For a while, I found employment in loading and unloading ships, and in assisting to fit them for sea. But this proving an uncertain employment, I w^as induced to join a number of my fellow-boarders in going to the ren- dezvous of the United States brig Boxer. Here SIX YEAKS IN A MAN OF WAR, 231 ;ed be the jmperance life-boats, of the un- ruin. thought I de of life, r, to com- ; the dread which my n a prison, till among loney was for some- similar di- lay, as one •chant ves- fn rmers in g the land ire before, death, the Tentle hint r sufficient :est on my J, I found ships, and is proving d to join a to the ren- er. Here we shipped for two years more. I was then eighteen years of age, and was rated as an or- dinary seaman, with ten dollars per month wages. Behold me then, dear reader, once more on board a man of war, in spite of all the dangers I had escaped, and the promises I had made to risk myself no more on the ocean ! The next chapter will unfold the events which transpired while I sailed in the Boxer. ♦ % # CHAPTER XI. It I Landsharks — rurscr's tricks — The Boxer — Desertions — A man killed — Captain Purler — Hardships — A blow on the head — Sailinji]^ orders — The sailinfi^-master — Tyran- nical oflicers — Flopjjifingby the olficers — Arrival at Ship Island — Getting water — Mosehetos and p^allinippers — Passage to New Orleans — A man brutally flogged — A passionate blow — The Boxer hauled up — Desertions — Flogging — Return to Ship Island — Work on Captain Porter's land — A murder — Passage to Tampico — Turtle ^* — Privateers— An attack — The privateer hauls off— ^^yp Boxer cruises to various ports — The unlucky hand- ^|ke— Danger to seamen on the look-out — Sea-sick- ness — More running away — My own feelings — Capture ot- the Comet, a privateer — Tom Smith, his philosophy and punishment — Character of our crew — Need of Christian labor among seamen — A plan suggested. On shipping in the Boxer, I received three months' advance, which, excepting" a small sum expended for clothing, fell into the hands of my rapacious landlord. How much this gentleman contrived to filch from me, it is not in my power to say; but that he was well paid, I have no doubt. He had my hundred dollars, my advance, all I earned for working on the wharves, and nine dollarsJ)eside, which I obtained from the purser. All tiw according to his account, I spent in a .11 f8T with the exception of sum laid out for clothing. As I had no means sertions — A ■A blow on tcr — Tyran- ival at Ship llinippers — flof^^cd — A )esertions — on Captain >ico — Turtle hauls off — lucky hand- L — Sea-sick- !;s — Capture philosophy —Need of ^gested. ved three mall sum ids of my Gentleman my power have no r advance, , and nine le purser, pent in a eT'tr omnll X y oiixaii. no means SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 233 of proving his statements false, there was no alternative but submission, and a return to a life of toil and damper, to earn a fresh supply. As the method by which I obtained the nine dollars,^above mentioned, from the purser, will exhibit one of the modes in which seamen are sometimes cheated, 1 will relate it. While in the Syren I drew but half my allowance of grog-. By the rules of the snrvice, I could claim the bal- ance in money. This I overlooked when we were paid off, but, when my funds got low, it came into my mind. I proposed to some of the boys, who had a similar claim, to visit the purser. They only laughed at me, and said it would be of no use, for he would not pay it now we were discharged. Finding they would not join me, I went alone to the City Hotel, where the purser boarded, and inquired for him of the bar-tender. He came down stairs, and I spread out my com- plaint before him. He blustered and said I had no such claim allowed ; I insisted, and told him it was my right, and he must pay it. Hoping to get rid of me, he told me to call again the next day. This I did, when he paid me nine dollars. This will show the reader one of the ways in which poor Jack is plundered, and that too by GENTLEMEN ! The Boxer lay at the navy yard, whither we were conducted. The vacillation of a seaman's Ciiaracter was illustrated before we got on board, by one of our hands running away: another 2^^ ■•f ■ 234 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. went a little beyond the first. He went on board, where he pretended to lose his hat overboard. Begging permission to recover it, he seized the rope which fastened the boat to the shore, dropped over the stern into the boat, and pushing up to the wharf, leaped ashore and made off'. SucTi fickle- mindedness is not uncommon ai.. sailors. We lost another of our crew in « more melan- choly manner ; he was in my mess, an English- man by birth, who had just left a British vessel to enter the American service. He was at work on the main yard, and by some means or other, losing his foothold, he fell. Unfortunately, he struck a carronade screw in his descent, which inflicted a terrible " jund. The poor man suf- fered excruciating agonies for a short time, and died. We buried him on shore, in a plain coffin, without form or ceremony. Such are the con- tingencies which wait to hurry seamen to the grave ! We were kept busily at work upon the brig for some time; after which our commander, Captain Porter, came on board. We soon found him to belong rather to the race of Fitzroys and Gardens, than to that of Decaturs, Parkers or Nicholsons. He was inclined to tyranny and severe disci- pline. He soon gave us a specimen of his character in a most illegal act of punishment. We lay along- Siuc tuG xxornct or Peacock, I lorget wniCii. It happened that her captain and most of her officers SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 235 t on board, overboard, seized tbe e, dropped ^ up to the urTi fickle ' lilors. ire melan- i English- ish vessel IS at work 3 or other, nately, he snt, which man suf- time, and lain coffin, } the con- en to the he brig for !r, Captain nd him to d Gardens, ucholsons. /ere disci- haracter in lay along- VVIllUii. fi. Xi. ler officers were gone ashore one day. Our captain acci- dentally saw one of her men engaged in some act of misconduct: instead of entering a complaint against the man to his own officers, he ordered him to^be seized up and severely flogged, notwith- standing the earnest entreaties of the offender for pardon. Why the captain of that vessel did not call Captain Porter to an account for this manifest invasion of his prerogatives, I never knew, for we put to sea shortly afterwards. An officer who would thus gratuitously volunteer his services to punish a man, must be a tyrant at heart. So at least we thought ; while many misgivings, con- cerning the future, troubled our minds. As I was now rated an ordinary seaman, and not a boy, as heretofore, I had a station assigned me in the fore-top, instead of being a servant to any of the officers. I was also appointed to be one of the crew of the captain's gig. This made my lot one of more fatigue and exposure than in any former voyage ; a proof of which, I very soon experienced. It being now late in the fall, the weather became very cold. One afternoon, the pennant having got foul of the royal mast, an officer ordered me to go up and clear it. I had no mittens on ; it took me some time to perform my task, and before I came down one of my fin- gers was frozen. Thus it is, however, with the poor tar ; and he thinks himself happy to escape iiiij vitxii^^jo vTilii ilijUiicO OU DllgnL Uo ifllS. The disposition of our commanding officer was \ r 236 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. Still furtlier rcvralcMl to iny discomfort one day, while we were at work on the cahles. Some- thing I did, not liappening to suit him, he gave me a severe blow on the head with his list, not far from the place where I had been previously injured by the malice of the Malay boyl* This unmanly blow occasioned me violent pains for several days. Since that time, I have felt a peculiar hostility to a practice, which is lamentably common in some schools and flimilies ; I mean that of rap- ping children on the head with a thimble, or with the knuckles, or anything else. The practice is the result of: irrational passion, it is dangerous, and cannot therefore l)e too severely reprobated. If it is pleaded as necessary to enforce obedience and ensure respect, I know it will fail of such effects ; it will only excite feelings of revenge, ill-will and malice. We now received sailing orders, and were very soon under weigh, bound to the Balize at the mouth of the Mississippi. On this passage we had further opportunities of learning the character of our officers. Although Captain Porter was stern and severe, yet he never used bad language. He always spoke with the utmost deliberation, but with such obvious indications of feeling, that we often trembled to hear his voice. Most of the other officers were by no means novitiates in the art of swearing; but our sailing-master exceeded all the rest in this diabolical habit. Whenever it t one day, !S. Sonie- 1, he gave lis iist, not previously )oy!* This pains for .r hostility amnion in lat of rap- Ic, or with practice is crous, and ted. If it ience and ch effects ; U-will and were very ze at the issage we character orter was language, liberation, Bling, that 'ost of the tes in the exceeded lenever it SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 237 was his watch on deck, he exercised his voice, and practised the use of his choice and varied vocabu- lary of oaths, by hallooing and threatening the men continually. Whenever wo had to set on sail, or^to reef, he was especially diligent in these matters ; mingling with his curses, threats of the lash to those who were tardy, or whose move- ments did not exactly suit his taste. If such offi- cers could only apprehend the profound contempt and bitter hatred with which they are regarded by their maddened crew, they would both tremble for their safety, and despise their own littleness of soul. No really great man would enact the child- ish vagaries of a petty tyrant. There was one respect in which we were more annoyed in the Boxer than I had been in the Macedonian. In this latter ship, none but the captain could order a man to be flogged ; in the Boxer, the lieutenant or the officer of the watch could send a man to the gangway, and order the boatswain to lay on with a rope's-end. This is a liberty which the laws of the navy should prohibit. A man should be secured the rights of a citizen, as well on the planks as on the soil of his country. True, it may be said, severity of discipline is necessary to good order in a ship. Not severity, but strictness, is what is wanted. Let a strict dis- cipline be enforced, with pleasant looks, and a " Hurrah my lads, bear a hand ! " and obedience will be mnrp! nrnrnnf nnfl mpra ^p^f^pt fl^-,^ ,,.i — , every order is accompanied with a " Damn you," 'J w 238 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DFCK. > I '.'J I and with an exhibition of the rope's-end or cat-o'- ninc-tails. Common sense, as well as experience, will sustain this opinion. While these matters were passing on board, our little bri<^ was dashing through the waves in fine style. We arrived at the Balize, from whence we dropped down to Ship Island, where we took in water. A share of this severe task fell to my lot, for I was here taken out of the gig, and placed in the jolly-boat, to make way for a smaller and lighter lad in the former. We obtained our water by digging large holes in the sand, into which we placed our casks; the salt water, by passing through so much sand, would be so thoroughly filtrated, that by the time it reached our casks it was fit for use. We then emptied it into ten-gallon kegs, called breakers, which we carried on our shoulders to the boat. This of itself was hard work, but we had certa'n torment- ors on this island, which made it a task of much sufTering. These were hosts of hungry, gigantic moschetos, which assailed our persons, and es- pecially our naked feet, in flying squadrons, with a ferocity that indicated an uncontrollable thirst for biood. But even these were not our worst persecutors. They were attended by armies of large, yellow horse-flies, which our meii called gallinippers. These merciless insect savages w ere always sure to attack the very spot we had rubbed sore, after the bite of a moscheto. Their bite felt like the thrust of a small sword ; I still SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 239 or cat-o'- xperience, on board, ; waves in in whence :e we took fell to my and placed nailer and ained our sand, into water, by Lild be so it reached emptied it which we This of n torment- K: of much y, gigantic IS, and es- Irons, with able thirst our worst armies of neii called ;t savages pot we had to. Their )rd; I still re'ain scars on my feet occasioned by these fierce gallinippers. This island bore marks of the battle of Orleans ; for we found various articles bearing the broad arrow and stamped G. R. We also remarked several mounds, which had the appearance of being large jraves. We afterwards learned that this was the place where the British brought their dead, after their unsuccessful attack on the city of New Orleans. From Ship Island, we proceeded to New Or- leans. This was a laborious passage; the cur- rent ran down the river with iimazing force, bear- ing huge logs on its bosom, which, if suffered to strike either our bows or cables, were capable of doing much damage : to avoid them required no trifling exertions. Sometimes we endeavored to truck her, or draw her along with ropes, as canal- boats are drawn by horses. But, as this brought us into shallow water, it was abandoned. The banks of the river displayed large numbers of alligators, luxuriating on tne numerous logs that Vv'ere fast in the mud. We made many attempts to get near enough to these scaly mon- sters to pierce them with a boat-hook ; but they kept too sharp a look-out for us ; invariably diving into the stream before our boat got near enough for us to strike them. But, if we failed in captur- ing alligators, we obtained an abundance of palm- leaf, from the shore, with which we furnished ourselves with hats. i r r?" 1 240 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. An instance of our commandor's tyranny occur- red while we were ascendiiiiTf the river. He had requested a seaman, named Daily, who was some- what acquainted with the river, to act as pilot. By accident or neq-ligence, he su fibred ihe brig to strike the bottom, though without llie least injury. The captain flew into a passion, ordered him to the gangway, and commanded thci boatswain's mate to lay ou with his rope's-end. I did not witness this flogging, for the hands were not called up to witness, punishment, unless adminis- tered by the cat-o '-nine-tails, but one of my mess- mates said that he received at least one hundred lashes. I saw him several days afterwards, with his back looking as if it had been roasted, and he unable to stand upright. He wore the same shirt in which he was flogged for some time afterwards. It was torn to rags, and showed the state of his back beneath. His object in wearing it was to mortify and shame the captain for his brutality. The severity of flogging with the rope's-end is justly described in Mr. Dana's excellent book, called " Two Years before the Mast." Though not so cruel as the cat, it is nevertheless a harsh, degrading punishment. Our men used to say that " they would as lief be cut up on the bare back with the cat, as have back and shirt cut up together, as was poor Daily's. In truth, that flog- ging was both unjust and illegal. The articles of war provide, that not more than twelve lashes shall be given for a crime j but here one hu?idred 8IX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 241 iny occur- He had was some- ; as pilot, he brig to ist injury. ?d him to Datswaiii's I did not weit not I a.dminis- my rness- e hundred ards, with ?d, and he same shirt ftervvards. ate of his it was to rutality. )e's-end is [ent book, Though s a harsh, ;o say that bare back :t cut up that flog- tie articles he lashes e hu7idred were inflicted for no crime — for an accident, which might have happened to the best pilot who ever ascended the Mississippi. But though the captain was thus rendered amenable to the law, who would believe a poor sailor ? Had he complained, it would doubtless have been to his own injury ; for law, and especially naval law, is always on the side of the strong. This was not the only case of illegal flogging; but the justification of these excessive whippings, was found in the pre- tended existence of several crimes in the helpless offenders. On one occasion we were at our quarters, exer- cising in the various evolutions of war ; now at our guns, and then going through the forms of boarding an enemy ; now running aloft, as if in the act of cutting down our enemy's rigging, and then rushing below, as if to board her, firing our pistols, stabbing with our boarding-pikes, and cut- ting on all sides with our cutlasses. In the midst of this excitement, the movements of one of the men not happening to please the captain, he seized a cutlass and struck him a tremendous blow with its flat side ; heated with passion, he let it glance as he struck, and the edge, entering the man's back, made a deep flesh wound, which was very sore a long time. Some of our men swore that if they had been the sufferer, they would have shot the captain dead on the spot ! Are men of such brutal temnprs fit in rnmrr\ar\A a rrso« nf ■«Tro^9 T~ it not wonderful that mutiny is so rare under such 21 i iii' pi I m A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. a discipline ? Such an officer might do to com- mand a ^TC'W of pirates, but not of freemen, such as Americans feel proud to entrust with the keep- ing of their national honor on the deep. On reaching New Orleans, our ship was over- hauled and repaired. We were sent on board the Louisiana, an old guard-ship, but had to cross the river every morning to assist in working on the brig. Several of our men, and myself among them, were quite sick here, owing to the free use of river water. The Louisiana had a number of men confined on board, for some crime ; they wore chains round their legs, which were fastened to a large ball : the nature of their offence J. did not ascertain. The effects of Captain Porter's severity were seen here in the loss of tw^o of the crew. They belonged to the gig, and ran away while he was on shore. He made a strict, but unsuccessful, search after them. To deter others from a like attempt, or because he wanted an object on which to wreak his vengeance, he gave one poor fellow a cruel flogging for what, in sober fact, was no offence at all. The man was on shore, with some others, fixing the rigging, and, for some purpose or other, had w^alked a short distance from the rest, without the slightest intention to run away. But the captain wanted a victim, and this served for an excuse. ' ' *■ fe v^iiit. Jii xilf-^livl' VI , T T V-' A V- t vii ix^— ■ VI. v/ir v."vrs,ix Vl J and were soon back at our old station off Ship SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 243 to com- nen, such the keep- vas over- board the cross the ig on the If among } free use umber of ne ; they 1 fastened nee J. did rity were T. They e he was iiccessful, m a like on which tor fellow ;, was no dth some 1 purpose from the an away, is served off Ship Island, where we found several other small naval craft. While here I saw a man. flogged through the fleet, or, as this might more properly be called, the squadron. His was the only instance of the kind I saw while in the American navy, and, although his back was most brutally mangled, yet I do not think he suffered equal to those who are flogged through an English fleet. Still, the indignity and brutality are the same in kind^ though differing in degree : a man should never be made to endure it. Not far from our station, at a place called St. Lewis' Bay, our captain purchased some land, and actually sent some of our men to make a clear- ing upon it, and to erect a log house. Whether this was a legal employment of the strength and skill of his men or not, I cannot decide ; but it struck me as being a perversion of the national resources to his own private benefit. Why should a captain of a ship of war be permitted to employ the time and energies of his men for private uses, while an officer of the government, who should employ its funds for his own advantage, would be charged with embezzlement and fraud ? The cases are precisely alike, except that one uses the public money, the other what costs that money. It is a fraud on the country, and an imposition on the men. A tragic event occurred at Lewis' Bay on the 4th of July, which occasioned a fearful sensation throughout the ship. I was sent thither that day iiK: ^m f'- I S44 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. in tho launch. Feeling fntipfucd, I remained with another in tho boat, which was nncliored near tho shore. After some time ono of the crew, named Thomas Hill, came back for a pistol, for there were several in tho boat, and deliberately charged it. My companion, an old Macedonian, named Cox, asked him what he wanted with a pistol. Hill, who was a very desperate fellow, told him to mind his own business, or he would shoot him. Cox, knowing his character, thought it best to let this insult pass, supposing he was only going off to shoot a dog or snake, as the latter creature abounded there. Having loaded his pistol, Hill went olf, and we thought no more of the matter. Presently a man came running down to the boat to inform us that two of our men were quarrelling. Just at that moment, we heard the report of a pis- tol : hurrying to the spot, described by our inform- ant, we found a shipmate, by the name of Smith, bleeding on the ground, with a pistol-shot lodged in his breast by Hill. We gathered round him ; in his agony he begged us *o shoot him dead, for his suffering was not to be endured. Supposing he was dying, our testimony to his statement that Hill was his murderer, was taken on the spot. The victim was then removed to a suitable place to be taken care of; the next day he was carried on board the brig, and from thence to a sort of hospital on shore, where, after lingering a few Uttj-C, iiC UiCU. The nrarderer w^as seized and placed in irons on board t^e brig. He was after- SIX YEAKS IN A MAN OF WAR. 245 lined with i near the w, named for there y charged in, named a pistol. told him hoot him. best to let going off • creature istol, Hill e matter. the boat arrelling. t of a pis- ir inform- of Smith, LOt lodged ind him ; dead, for Supposing ment that the spot, ble place IS carried a sort of ig a few ized and vras after- wards romovod to anothnr ship, but what was done willi him 1 nover heard with certainty; i was reporlod that hf3 was pardonnd. Th«3 cause of this fatal affray was that great insliirator of crimes. Rum. The men were both under its iriflueuco; lirod willi its fumes, they lost all disrrclion, and couunenced a quarrel : from words they proc.cHMlcd to bh)ws. In this struggle Smith had the advantage. Finding himself worsted, the other ran down to the boat for a pistol. With this, he returned and threatened to shoot his adversary. Smith demanded a pistol for himself, that, as he said, he might have fair play. At that instant his cowardly opponent shot him ! Had they both been sober, this tragedy would never have been enacted. Who can reveal the ellects of alcohol ? From this station we sailed to Tampico, where we lay but a short time, meeting with nothing worthy of remark, except that we found abundance of turtle in the river ; during the day we could see their heads peeping up from the river in all directions. At night we used to send our men ashore to take them. This was done by tracking them on the sand, whither they went to deposit their eggs. We used to turn them over on to their backs, and drag them down to the boat. When alongside they were hoisted on board with a tackle ; some of them weighing four or five hundred weight. They were then killed, and converted into a soup for the whole ship's com- I ifi pany. 21=^ i^ 246 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. M: i i I The day after we left Tampico on our passage ^ to Vera Cruz, I was lookincf out on the cat-head or starboard bow; seeinc^ a sail, 1 shouted, " Sail ho ! " when three other vessels hove in sight. These were all patriot privateers, so we were ordered to our quarters ; but the vessels, discovering our character, kept clear of our guns, and we pursued our own course. About ten o'clock, A. M., we saw two more of these privateers, crowded with men, but mounting only one long gun. Mistaking us for a Spanish brig, with money on board, they fired most lustily for us to heave to. We mounted short carron- ades, excepting two long nines at the bows, so wo bore down, all hands being at their quarters, to bring our short guns to bear upon them. Mean- while we kept one of the long nines in full blast. I was stationed at this gun ; and it being my duty to sponge and load, I had to exert every muscle and strain every nerve, as, firing only one gun, it was necessary to discharge it as often as pos- sible. Before, however, we came near enough to injure them, they discovered what we were, fired a leeward gun in token of friendship, and hauled off. If they had not, our men very elegantly observed, they would have found they had taken the wrong pig by the ear. We soon came in sight of the beautiful revolv- ing light, which throws its friendly beams on the port of Vera Cruz, where, as in the former places, we lay a short time, and then, after visit* BIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 847 f passage it-head or Sail ho!" . These )rdered to (ring our 3 pursued more of mounting I Spanish )st lustily rt carron- wa, so we larters, to . Mean- full blast. r my duty ry muscle le gun, it 1 as pos- 3nough to ^ere, fired id hauled elegantly liad taken ill revolv- beams on le former fter visit- ing some other ports, we returned to our former station at Ship Ishuul. llore, however, wo ro- muined for only a brief period, before wo were under weigh for New Orleans, from which place we sailed to Havana. Such is tliu constant change kept up by mtui of war on a cruise. On this passage, 1 was placed in a position which exposed mo to tlu^ punishment of the lash, though by a mere accident I escapi'd. There was a habit in(lulg(!d in among us, which is common among all sailors at sea ; i mean that of stealing a nap during our watch at night. Seated on tho carriage of a gun, or on a shot-locker, with folded arms, we indulged in nuuiy u minute of sweet sleep, notwithstanding it was contrary to the rules of the ship. To ])revent this as much as possi- ble, tho ollicer of tho watch used to give the first man he caught napping, a liandspike, with which he wns compelled to walk tho deck until he found another sleeper, to whom he was allowed to trans- fer his burden. One night I was caught dozing, and had to perform the consequent march with the handspike. After walking about, without success, in search of a sleeper, for some time, I thought it might be well to try my fortune in the tops. Scare (ily had I set foot on tho top, before the officer below cried, " Fore-top, there ! " "Sir?" " Aloft, and take in the fore-top-gallant sail)" This order caused every man to spring to his Station. Supposing no one would pass before the »^ 248 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. mast, I stood my handspike upright against it. But there happened to be a man, by the name of Knight, dozing there ; and when he was aroused by the command of the officer, he passed before the mast to get on to the starboard side. As sai- lors usually grasp something when aloft, he missed his hold of what he intended to catch, and seized my handspike, which of course fell. To my con- sternation, he fell with it. Tumbling out of the fore-top, he fortunately struck the foot-rope of the fore-yard, which broke the force of his fall. When he reached the deck, he came bouncing on a tall, stout Irishman, named Tom Smith, who, not imagining the cause of so rough and sudden an assault, roared out, as they both fell together on the deck, " Och ! indeed you have killed me ! " Here, however, he was mistaken; he was more frightened than hurt ; and the innocent cause of his fright was able to resume his duties, after two or three days' respite. Very fortunately for my back, the unlucky handspike was not sus- pected ; and my share in this serio-comic accident remained a secret within my own breast. It has often been a subject of surprise to my mind, that men so seldom fall from the tops, in the long night-watches they keep there. Often have I stood two hours, and, sometimes, when my shipmates have forgotten to relieve me, four long, tedious hours, on the royal yard, or the top-gallant yard, without a man to converse with. Here, overcome with fatigue and want of sleep, I have SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 249 ainst it. name of aroused d before As sai- e missed d seized my con- It of the De of the . When on a tall, vho, not 3dden an ether on ed me !" ;^as more cause of ies, after ately for not sus- accident ?e to my e tops, in . Often when my bur long, ►p-gallant Here, p, I have fallen into a dreamy, dozy state, from which I was roused by a lee lurch of the ship. Starting up, my hair has stood on end with amazement at the danger I had so narrowly escaped. But, notwith- standing this sudden fright, a few minutes had scarcely elapsed before I would be nodding again. How wonderful that more are not swallowed in the hungry deep ! When the weather was rough, we were in- dulged with permission to stand on the fore-top- sail yard, or on the top-gallant cross-trees ; and, if the ship rolled heavily, we lashed ourselves to the mast, for greater safety. I can assure my readers, there is nothing desirable in this part of a sailor's duty. In whatever the pleasure of a life at sea consists, it is not in keeping a look-out from the mast-head at night. But the most disagreeable of all is, to be com- pelled to stand on these crazy elevations, when half dead with sea-sickness. Some suppose that sailors are never sea-sick after the first time they go to sea. This is a mistake ; it is very much with them as it is with landsmen, in respect to being sick in a coach. Those who are of bilious temperaments, are always affected, more or less, when they ride in a stage or sleigh ; while others are never sick on these occasions. So with sea- men ; some are never sea-sick, others are sick only when going out of port, while some are so in every gale of wind. Mr. Dana mentions some of the crew in his ship, who were sick, after being mmn 250 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. fl ! j ■I A .'l!> at sea two years, as they came to Boston. I was usually sick after laying some time in port, and have often stood at the inast-head when so sick that any landsman on shore, in a similar state, would think it hard if he could not lie abed. For a sailor, there is no allowance made for sea-sick- ness ; he must remain at his post until it is time to he relieved. When we entered Havana, we came to anchor near the Spanish fort, and fired a salute, which was courteously returned by the Spaniards. We had been here but a short time, before an Irish- man, named Dougherty, who had formerly de- serted from the Spanish garrison, took it into his head to run away from our brig. This he accom- plished by the assistance of some Spaniards, to Avhom he made himself known. Several others also left us, in this port, among whom was our swearing sailing-master; and a great deal was said about running away throughout the ship. The man who was flogged on suspicion at New Orleans, now endeavored to get off in reality. He strayed from the boat, but the officer, meeting him, endeavored to force him back. He resisted ; a struggle ensued ; the officer fell to the ground, and the man called to the Spaniards to assist him. They left him, however, to fight his own battles ; and the officer, having succeeded in getting the advantage, presented a pistol to his breast, and he surrendered. For this offence, he was flogged most fearfully. In the British service, he would SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 251 1. I was port, and n so sick ilar state, bed. For sea-sick- it is time to anchor to, which rds. We an Irish- merly de- it into his be accom- niards, to ral others L was our deal was the ship, n at New n reality. r, meeting ; resisted; le ground, Lssist him. n battles; etting the reast, and as flogged he would have been hung ! It is certain death with them, to strike an ofliccr. Hearing so much said about running away, and feeling ahnost as unhappy as when in the Macedonian, 1 began to think of it myself. Some- times I thought of trying to get into the Spanish garrison as a soldier ; at others, of joining some of the numerous slavers that lay there, and in which our men said a good chance could be had. SjkI chances, as they now appear, especially the latter ; but I was young and ignorant. My feel- ings and the advice and opinion of my shipmates influenced me more than the dictates of an enlight- ened understanding. Resolving to make a trial, if opportunity oflfered, I one day put on an extra shirt and drew on a second pair of pantaloons. When thus prepared, the oflicer of the deck hap- pened to discover the two waistbands of my trou- sers ; he questioned me with a suspicious curios- ity. I told him as specious a tale as I could invent on the spot ; which was, that I had been mending my trousers, and, before they were fin- ished, was called to go ashore in the boat, and not having time to put them away, had slipped them on. Fortunately, a needle and some thread which I had about me, confirmed my story and saved me from difficulty. It was pretty obvious, however, that the officer, though silenced, was not satisfied ; for I was so closely watched, after that day, I gave up the idea of escape as utterly futile and hopeless. tti It ■;M 252 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN 1)ECK. , '**» t i 1 1 ■ ,1 I I si From Havana we returned to the mouth of the Mississippi, where we captured the Comet, a patriot schooner, on suspicion that the patriotism of her crew had degenerated into something less respectable. Harsh as it must have sounded in the ears of her officers, we charged them with piracy; took possession of the vessel, and brought her hands, as prisoners, on board our brig. Her master's name was Mitchell ; his crew were all stout, fierce-looking blacks, having all sorts of odd names, such as Monday, Friday, &c. She had a rich cargo, and contained large sums of money. It was reported that they had attacked an island somewhere in the Gulf of Mexico, and murdered its governor. We put them in irons, with sentries over them, who were charged to cut off their heads if they dared to lift them above the hatchway. I performed this duty a part of the time, parading round the hatch with a drawn cut- lass ; but they showed no symptoms of resistance, and were sent in their vessel to New Orleans. Their fate I never ascertained. This adventure cost one of our own crew, an Irishman, by the name of Tom Smith, a severe flogging. Smith was quite a moral philosopher in his way ; though it is to be regretted that his philosophy was a little infected with lunacy. Its premises were certainly sound, but, unfortunately, its conclusions bore but little relation to the parent of whom they boasted. He taught that man was bom to do good; that his chief good was the 141 S'JC YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 253 ith of the Comet, a patriotism thing less >unded in bem with d brought rig. Her were all sorts of &c. She sums of I attacked exico, and in irons, ged to cut above the art of the Irawn cut- resistance, ' Orleans. 1 crew, an , a severe hilosopher d that his nacy. Its 3rtunately, the parent t man was i was the : promotion of his own interests; and that, per consequence, he should help himself to whatever he could lay his hands on, without regard to the rights of others. With these views, Tom ear- nestly defended the rightfulness of piracy, and could he have managed to get on board a pirate vessel, or even have contrived to wrest our own sliip from the hands of her officers, and hoist the black flag, he would have cheerfully done so. But somehow, although he had made a number of disciples among his shipmates, our captain paid no manner of respect to his theories; for, when Tom, in consistency with his ofter declared principles, deliberately carried off a large sum of money from our capture, to his own quarters, the captain, who perceived the theft himself, ordered him to the gangway, and administered as many hard lashes, as if Tom had had no philosophy at all. ^4; But, although Tom Smith's philosophy did not save its unlucky advocate from the unphilosophic punishment of the whip, it nevertheless exerted a baneful influence on the morals of our crew. Many of them were doubtless bad enough when they came on board ; but a more complete school for the practise of iniquity never existed, than that on board our brig. Profanity, blasphemy, lying, licentious conversation, and even a system of petty stealing, were practised on a large scale. iTxany of the men were ripe for any crime within the power of depraved humanity to commit, and 22 m R * if I 254 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. f'. I I have often thought that even the decks of a pri- vateer or a pirate, could not lead one faster and deeper into the extremes of wickedness, than did the influence of our main deck. With wh^t a voice do such pictures of sailor immorality, call for exertion on the part of an enlightened Christian community, in behalf of seamen? Where is the presence of the meek spirit of Christianity more needed, than on the decks of our merchant and naval vessels ? Where wouM missionaries and Bibles accomplish more than here ? There is no sphere of Christian use- fulness so important, so promising as this. Every vessel in the navy should have its chaplain. Not one of your proud, fun-loving, graceless wine- bibbers, but a humble, devoted man, who would not think it beneath his dignity to mingle with the common sailors, as a pastor among the flock of his affections, moulding their rough, but sus- ceptible natures into the image of virtue, by the force of his pious example, and the influence of his effectual prayers. Then, in the merchant ser- vice, a species of itinerant missionary might be indefinitely useful. He might be sent out by a society, pledged for his support ; and, by permis- sion of the owners, sail in a ship on her outward passage. Arrived at her port, he might sail to another place, in a different ship, and then return home in a third. In this way, a score of devoted men of the right stamp, could exert an unparal- leled influence on the character of sailors. Yicoi SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 255 s of a pri- faster and 3, than did s of sailor part of an behalf of the meek an on the s ? Where plish more •istian use- is. Every lain. Not less wine- vho would ingle with ^ the flock b, but sus- tue, by the ifluence of rchant ser- r might be it out by a by permis- er outward ght sail to then return of devoted in unparal- ors. VicGi irreligion, profanity, and insubordination, would presently flee away before the beautiful purity of religion, and our ships, instead of being desig- nated as floating hells, would become houses of God, arks of holiness, consecrated bethels ! Pray, Christian, that this desirable consummation may be speedily attained ; and be not satisfied with merely praying ; add actio7i to your prayers. Stir up your church to the claims of seamen ! Give your money to assist in supporting sailors' mis- sionaries, bethels, and the like. Make it the set- tled purpose of your heart, not to rest until you behold the sailor elevated to his proper position, which is that of a Christian man ! w CHAPTER XII. Homeward passage — Story telling — Their moral effect — The author threatened with a flogging — Smuggling — Arrival at New York — My discontent — Escape from the Boxer — Journey to Hartford — Distress — The hos- pitable Presbyterian — Deacon Cook — Woman's kind- ness — A fortunate discovery of an old shipmate — A situation — The author at work on a farm — Anecdote — The funeral — Its moral effects — Seriousness — A prayer- meeting — Profession of religion — A period of backslid- ing — Recovery — A camp-meeting — Father Taylor — The parting scene — Author joins the Methodist church — The crew of the Macedonian — John Wiskey — Hutch- inson — James Day. After a short stay at the Balize, we put to sea once more, for the purpose, as it was understood, of touching at Havana, and then returning to New York. This was a cheerful voyage ; the idea of a speedy return to America, spread a feeling of exquisite delight over the whole crew, and con- verted the performance of our duty into a pleas- ure. One effect was, to set those hands, who were gifted with the talent, so highly prized in a man of war, of " spinning yarns," busily at work during every spare moment, when a group could be gathered to listen. Foremost among these SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 257 oral effect — Smuggling- Escape from s — The hos- man's kind- shipmate — A -Anecdote — 5 — A prayer- of backslid- er Taylor — lodist church key — Hutch- i put to sea inderstood, ng to New- he idea of feeling of ^ and con- to a pleas- ands, who prized in a ily at work roup could long these intellectual time-killers was Richard Dickinson, a messmate of mine, a good-natured Englishman. He called himself the son of Old Dick, by which epithet he was usually called. Dick's powers were now in great demand, and he exercised them to our universal satisfaction, but with how great regard for truth I cannot determine. It is proba- ble, however, that truth entered very little into Dick's productions. Ho was a sort of off-hand novelist ; all he cared for was effect, and where truth failed him, fiction generously loaned her ser- vices. So bewitching were Dick's stories, that I used to long for the hour when we could lay in our hammocks and listen. My first salutation, when we lay for the last time in the port of Ha- vana, was, " Come, Dick, tell us a yarn." " What is the use ? you will go to sleep," he used to reply. " No I won't, Dick ; I can listen to your yarns all night," was my usual answer. Dick would then begin some yarn, which, if not so interesting as the thousand-and-one stories in the Arabian Knights' Entertainments, was at least as true to nature, and, in respect to its humor, might be compared to some of the sayings of that illustrious personage, Sancho Panza, the renowned squire of the immortal Don Quixote ; but, in spite of my promises, I usually gave notice of my condi- tion after a short time, by performing a concord of nasal sounds, vulgarly called snoring, which 22^ 258 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. would set Dirk to swcarinc:, ^irid often put an end to his performances for the night. I need scarcely say, that these " yarns" were by no means favorable in their moral elFccts on the listener. They generally consisted in fictitious adventures on the sea and on the shore, plenti- fully interlarded in their recital with profane oaths and licentious allusions. When seamen become elevated, and are properly instructed, these filthy stories will be superseded by reading- good and useful literature, with an abundance of which every ship should be supplied by the be- nevolence of the Christian public. On the passage to Havana, Dick and myself fdl under the displeasure of the captain. We were stationed one night in the fore-top, where we were comfortably dozing away the time. The captain was on deck. The ofTicer of the watch hailed the fore-top. We did not hear him until the call was repeated two or three times. For this we were ordered below, and told by the cap- tain that we should be flogged the next day be- fore the whole crew. With this consolatory in- formation we returned to our station, without the least inclination to sleep again for that watch. With a sort of philosophic desperation, I laughed and said, " Dick, which would you rather do — have your grog stopped awhile, or take a flog- ging?" Dick \Vn<5! VPrv fn-nrl nf Tiic (rrnrr * en Tio rfinlt/a/l " Oh, I had rather they would stop my wind than SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 259 ut an end " were by cts on the fictitious re, plcnti- 1 profane 1 seamen nstructed, y reading" ndance of ly the be- d myself lin. We op, where me. The he watch [lim until les. For r the cap- t day be- latory in- thout the It watch. [ laughed her do — e a flog- iltA/l irind than my grog, and would sooner be flogged by consid- erable than lose that." I question, however, if he had been left to choose between grog and whip at the gangway, whether he would not have altorcd his tone in favor of his grog. Still, his answer shows, how strongly sailors are attached to their beloved rum. I am happy to know that this regard is tying away, and that temperance is doing something among sailors. May it go on, until cold water is as popular in a man of war, as grog Avas twenty years since. We never heard, however, of our offence again. Dick was quite a favorite with the officers, and, except a blow in the head, given me by the captain, I had never been punished. Perhaps these were the reasons why we escaped the gangway. At Havana we got a large amount of Spanish dollars aboard for some merchants in New York. These were smuggled from the shore. Our men were sent off in the boats, with their pockets and bosoms well stuffed with the precious metal ; and in this way we soon got it all safely lodged in our hold, except that the captain's servant, falling des- perately in love with them, furnished himself with all he could carry, and ran away from the ship. After adding to our freight of dollars a fine sup- ply of oranges, lemons, pine apples, &c., we cheer- fully weighed anchor and set sail for New York. We reached that port after a short and prosperous VnvtiCrfi : mpptinrr \irith r>0 ii-»nC/1rt«+ ^-^^^-^i 4.U_*. it- _ ■-.;~o~- "^ o "^'^* i^^ •«ii«-.i-wtciil, c-vv^cpi liiui Hi© cold weather caused us a little suffering, and ena- 260 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. :l * if bled the purser to add a few dollars to the profits of the voyage, by supplying us with a lot of red flannel shirts. When I was on board the Syren, I was con- tented. The officers were kind, the crew were peaceful and well-behaved ; but in ihe Boxer, some of the officers were severe, and the crew corrupt, and I did not enjoy myself at all. Some said that in time of war the men were better treated than in time of peace ; but though this may be true to a limited extent, yet I think the difference in these two brigs was owing more to the charac- ter of their respective officers than anything else. Be this as it may, my experience in the Boxer had completely sickened me of man of war life, and I determined, if possible, to get free of it at once and forever. My station, as one of the crew of the jolly-boat, gave me frequent opportunities to accomplish my purpose. So, one day, at the solicitation of a ship- mate, I resolved to make the attempt. Cruel treatment was my excuse ; yet I have sometimes been ashamed of my course in this instance ; and -would heartily advise all boys in the naval service to stay their time out. We were successful in escaping; and as we had but little money, I there- fore proceeded directly from the shore to a pawn shop, and there disposed of our pea-jackets, which were new, and for which the purser had charged us ten dollars nnlprp. Wp nKtm'nofl tl-io rM^iAJ sum of six dollars for the two. With this, we t -M SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 261 the profits lot of red was con- rew were )xer, some w corrupt, 5ome said er treated s may be difference le charac- hing else. Boxer had life, and I ; once and jolly-boat, iplish my of a ship- t. Cruel ometimes tice ; and al service essful in ', I there- a pawn ts, which charged \(\ r\itrff%} iC; Lrxlxiui this, we started in a hack, which was to carry us outside of the city. We then travelled hard all day, resting at night in a barn, where we suffered extremely from the cold. The next day we pur- sued our way towards New Haven. The day after, we were still on the road. This was the Sabbath, and we felt strangely at seeing the good people of the village, through which we passed, going to meeting. The foot-stoves, that the grave matrons bore in their hands, were things I had never seen before ; so, to the great merriment of my companion, I observed that they were excel- lent contrivances to carry their books in to meet- ing ! We reached New Haven on Monday even- ing, where we put up at a sailor's boarding- house for the night. Here my shipmate left me, and I proceeded alone to Hartford, begging my support by the way, for my money was by this time all exhausted. At Hartford I tried to ship on board some mer- chant vessel. Not succeeding, I strove to find some one to take me as an apprentice to instruct me in the art of bootmaking, but with no better success. These repulses discouraged me. It was Christmas day, and the associations connected with the day— the merry-makings of my early boyhood— were anything but pleasant to me in my distress. The bell was tolling for the funeral of priest Strong, and it seemed as if the melan- CixGij Oi the niourncrs fully accorded with my feelings, and was preferable in my mind to the 'I, 262 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. I spirit of rejoicing that prevailed among those who were keeping merry Christmas in merry mood. Perhaps, if they had invited me to partake of their cheer, I should have changed my opinion. As it was, with only five cents in my pocket, I wan- dered lonely and sad through the city. With a feeling of despair I stepped into a cellar for something to drink. They charged me five cents, and left me at once friendless and penniless. At the bridge, the toll-keeper demanded a cent. I looked at him fiercely, and told him I had nothing. He let me pass over toll free. Towards night, feeling tired and hungry, I endeavored to hire myself. But who would employ an utter stranger ? I went to a number of houses, implor- ing a lodging for the night. With freezing cold- ness, I experienced repulse after repulse, until my heart chilled with horror, with the fear of spend- ing that long, cold night out of doors. At last I called on a kind-hearted Presbyterian, who gave me a supper, lodging and breakfast. Their morn- ing and evening devotions were peculiarly inter- esting to me ; for, excepting while a prisoner at the Cape of Good Hope, I had never listened to an extemporaneous prayer. The next morning I left this truly hospitable family, and pursued my inquiries for employment. Some asked if I could chop wood; others, if I knew anything about farming ; and \/hen I an- swered " No," they shook their heads, and I trudged on. Sometimes I offered to work for my SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 263 lose who y mood. ; of their L. As it , I wan- Witha 3llar for ve cents, ess. At a cent. 1 I had Towards Lvored to an utter , implor- ing cold- antil my f spend- At last I ho gave lir morn- ly inter- isoner at tened to 5spitable loyment. ers, if I m I an- , and I i for my board, but, being a sailor, and having no recom- mendations, people were afraid to take n\c into their families. Still I pushed on. A man over- took me in the town of Coventry, ami began a very interesting and faithful discourse about religion. I listened respectfully ; he took me home with him, where, although he was a deacon, he gave me some cider-brandy : but these were not the days of temperance. After this he sent me to Pomeroy's tavern, where h(^ tbounht they would hire me. This application failing, he advised me to apply at the glass works which wrre a little distance from that place. With this advice, I took leave of Deacon Cook, and proceeded towards the glass houses. Before reaching them, however, night came. A family, who occupied a red house, received me, whose hospitality I returned by singing a number of sea songs. Early the next morning, I tried to get work at the glass house, but though I was willing to stay for my board, they would not take me. Mr. Turner, the agent, very kindly gave me a breakfast, and then I left him, determined to gel to Boston if possible, and go to sea once more. My situation was really a trying one : my only clothing was a blue jacket and trousers ; shoes more than half worn out, and a little tarpaulin hat stuck on the back of my head, in genuine sailor fashion.=^ Mittens and money were alike far off * If the reader wishes to knew why seamen wear their hats on the back of their headS; let him put his hat on as ..M 264 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. "♦ from my fingers, and friends wore as scarce as money. People, too, seemed afraid of a sailor; and this, in addition to all my other troubles, ren- dered me an object of suspicion. At such times, I assure my young reader, that the picture of a kind mother and a good home, are but too faith- fully presented to the mind, filling it with a thou- sand vain and useless regrets. No young man need desire to be in the outcast prodigal con- dition in which I stood, in the depth of that cold winter. When I reached the town of Mansfield, I called at the house of a Mr. Nathaniel Dunham ; the kind manners and friendly language of whose lady I shall never forget. She told me that if I was honest. Providence would shortly open some way by which I could live. Her words fell on my ear like a prophecy, and I left the house, con- fident of some favorable turn in my aflfairs before long. At Mansfield four corners, I inquired of Dr. Waldo, who, with several others, sat under a. piazza, and afterwards of a Mr. Edmund Freeman, for employ. They gave me no encouragement. Persevering, I at last met with ^ Mr. Peter Cross, who, seeing my sailor garb, asked what ships I had sailed in. Hearing me mention the Macedonian, he said, " There is a man here whose name is usual and ascend a ladder. He will find himself unable to look up until he places it on the back of his head as a sailor does. Sailors wear their hats thus, because they could not otherwise ascend the rij^ jing of a ship. SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 265 scarce as a sailor; bles, ren- ch times, ture of a too faith- 1 a thou- ung man igal con- that cold , I called I am ; the of whose that if I pen some s fell on luse, con- irs before [uired of t under jl Freeman, ■agement. ter Cross, dps I had cedonian, name is self unable s head as a cause they William Hutchinson. He was taken in her. Do you know him ? " " Yes," said I, after a moment's recollection ; " he was our armorer's mate." Of course, I lost no time in seeking for my old shipmate. After crossing various lots, and getting vexed and perplexed for want of proper direction, I reached his comfortable homestead. He did not recognise me at first, on account of the great alter- ation a few years had made in my size and appearance; but, when he did recall me to his recollection, with the generous frankness of a sailor, he offered me all the hospitality and assist- ance in his power. A good supper was speedily spread; and then, seated before his ample fire- place, sparkling and crackling with a cheerful blaze, we recounted our adventures. He had wandered into Connecticut, and married a very respectable woman. They now owned a house and some land, and were in tolerably comfortable and thriving circumstances. With such discourse, we talked away the better part of the night, when the old tar showed me my chamber, archly ob- serving that " my bed would not rock much." The next morning, he said I should not leave him until I was provided for in some way or other. Through his influence, a Mr. James, his brother-in-law, employed me to work in his cloth- dressing establishment. As I w^s ignorant of the business, and was not really needed, my board was to be my only compensation. 23 .4| ■-m 266 A VOICE FKOM THE MAIN DECK. My now situation soon grew delightful to me, and I iblt happier than I had ever done since I left Bladen. My tiuif^ parsed very pleasantly, especially my evening?, when the neighbors came in to hear me spin sea yarns and forecastle songs. Some of the young men of the "baser sort" judged me to be a fit instrument to act Sampson for their enjoyment, in the house of God. So they invited me to attend the meetings of the Methodist Episcopal church in thai place. But they greatly misjudged the character of seamen; who, as before remarked, usually pay respect to the ordinances and ministers of religion. I attended the meeting, but not to make sport. The result of this ill-desig .ed invitation on my- self will appear hereafter. The winter months fled, and the spring found me unfurnished with means co-extensive with my wants. Determined to remain ashore, if possible, I hired myself to a farmer for my board. In the evenings I braided straw hats, and thus obtained a scanty supply of clothing. A little incident, illustrative of the thoughtless playfulness of sailor character, may not be displeasing to my young readers. Whoever has seen a perfect novice undertake to guide an ox-team, may form some idea of the ludicrous adventures through which I passed during my agricultural novitiate with these horned animals. Perseverance, however, gave me some little control over our team, when, as fate would m « SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 267 ill to me, ie since I leasantly, bors came !tle songs, ser sort" Sampson God. So Ts of the ace. But ' seamen; respect to igion. I ike sport, •n on my- 'ing found sive with Lshore, if my board, and thus A little layfulness ing to my undertake iea of the I passed ;se horned me some fate would have it, my employer " swapped " them for another pair. When tliey came home, after some little hallooing and whipping, I succeeded in " yoking" them ; then seizing the goad-stick, w ih as much dignity as ever Neptune wielded his trident, I mounted the tongue, (which I called the bowsprit,) and with the ladders riggod up at both ends, I gave the word of comrnand to my team. They, however, showed .signs of mutiny, and, taking to their heels, bore me off in triumph. This was sport indeed; there 1 stood, my head and shoi ders passed between the rent rigging, laughing as if my sides would burst, wh'^ rakes, forks and boards were playing leap-frog, at the tail of my cart, and m^ master's boy was half fri^. tened out of Lis wits. At length the angry voice of my master rousod me from my sportive mood; he did not relish the rough usage his farming tools were receiving, and ( )ming up with my horned steeds, he speedily stopped their speed and my ?port. I need only add that ais rebukes made me mon careful afterwards. When the haying season commenced, I It .. my first employer, and obtained the sum of eight dol- lars per month, a board ; the wages, however, in accordance with the rue Yanlee method of making money out of everything, were to be pay- able at the village store. This change led me into a situation which ^ roved another link in the chain, which ended in my conversion to God. The son of my employer died ; he was about fourteen 268 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. ■m years of age ; in company with a pious member of the Methodist church, I sat up one night with the corpse. With the faithfulness of a true Christian, he improved the occasion by seriously conversing with me on the great concerns of immortality. His discourse, together with the funeral services, had a very softening and gracious influence on my feelings, though the only present, practical effect was a more punctual attendance on the services of the sanctuary. Towards winter, I went to live with Mr. Joseph Conant, to learn the business of filing augers and steelyards. Here my acquaintance was con- siderably enlarged, as several young men were attached to the establishment. Among them was one who made a profession of religion. As is usual among the young, we were devoted triflers ; and he, to my astonishment, was as jocose and merry as the rest. Ignorant as I was of religion, his conduct appeared strangely inconsistent; I wondered he did not converse with me about my soul. One day I took him aside and faithfully expressed my views of his conduct. He acknowl- edged his guilt. Afterwards we attended meetings in company, and he was faithful in speaking with me about the things that belonged to my salvation. He urged upon me the importance of giving my- self up to God at once, and affectionately invited me to attend class-meeting. My mind was seri- ously inclined, but I could not yet venture upon 60 close an intercourse with the people of God. 5 member light with if a true seriously icerns of with the 1 gracious y present, ndance on [r. Joseph ig augers ; was con- men were them was 1. As is ;d triflers ; ocose and if religion, isistent ; I about my faithfully 3 acknowl- d meetings iking with r salvation, giving my- ely invited i was seri- of God, SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 269 One Sabbath evening, my friend, Ella Dunham, who had dealt so faithfully with me, when we watched together over the corpse of Orson Kidder, asked me, " When do you intend to set out and seek religion?" I replied, somewhat evasively, " Any time." " Well," said ^e, " are you willing we should pray for you, and will you go forward for prayers to-night?" To this I replied, that I would think of it. The meeting proved to be intensely interesting. My desire to express the inward workings of my mind, grew strong. Of the forms and practices of Christians in revivals, I was altogether ignorant, having never witnessed a conversion in my life ; still, it seemed to me highly proper to declare lAy feelings in the presence of Christians, that they might give such instructions as were necessary to lead me into the right way. With these views, I determined to rise and speak, though the evil one whispered, " Not yet ! not yet !" in my ears. Just as I stood up, some one, not seeing me, began to sing ; this, I took to be a suitable excuse for further delay, and sat down, heartily wishing that no one had seen me. Fortunately, my friend Dunham had witnessed my movement. He re- quested them to stop singing, because a young man wished to speak. Thus encouraged, I told them I was then nineteen years of age, and it seemed to me too much of life to spend in sin ; that eternity was a solemn idea, and I desired 28^ m m :in . . I 270 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. them to tell me how to prepare to enter upon it with joy. They proposed to pray with me. We then all kneeled down toirelher. Most fervently did they pray for the diviMc blessini^ to rest on the strano^er youth, ixiwed in penitence Iwfore them, and most sincerely did I join my prayers with theirs before the throne of God. After prayer, they siing a few Christians at a camp-meeting, my heart w^ mh as a woman's, and my tears flowed like mm. Does the reader inquire what made the difference ? I answer, it was the love of God. When 1 returned home, one of my first acts was to unite myself with the Methodist Episcopal church : an act which has led to the formation of many pleasant friendships, and which has proved the source of much religious enjoyment to my soul. My mind often reverts, with a mixture of joy and sorrow, to the fate of the three hundred men Ml 274 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. and boys who sailed with me in the Macedonian, when I left England for the first time. Of these, alas ! how many perished in battle ! The rest were scattered over the four quarters of the globe. Be- side myself, I never heard of but one of them who embraced religion. This was John Wiskey, one of our quarter-masters. He settled in New London, and when he met in class, for the first time, he said he blessed God he had got out of that floating hell, the Macedonian. He after- wards removed to Catskill, on the North River, where he maintained a good Christian reputation. My shipmate, who received me so hospitably in Mansfield, became unfortunate, lost his property, and died, but not before I had the satisfaction of ofTering a prayer at his bedside. The little fellow who escaped from the Macedo- nian with me met with a melancholy fate. This I learned one day from the following paragraph in a newspaper : " Drowned, out of a pilot boat, off Charleston Bar, Mr. James Day, one of the crew of His Britannic Majesty's late frigate Mace- donian." Thus have I been signally favored— a brand plucked from the fire. For this special favor I hope to render my heavenly Father the eternal tribute of a grateful heart. Lcedonian, Of these, rest were obe. Be- them who Wiskey, d in New the first rot out of He after- fth River, eputation. spitably in property, faction of e Macedo- ite. This paragraph pilot boat, ne of the ^ate Mace- avored — a lis special ^ather the CHAPTER XIII. Home feelings — Correspondence with home — Letter from my mother— Fear of apprehension leads me to decline going to her — My father-in-law's death— A new business — Another change — Rum-selling — Convictions on the subject — The temperance lecture — My marriage — Rum-selling given up— Removal to Wilbraham— Pros- perity — A visit to the Macedonian — An exhortation to her crew— Home correspondence — Lord Churchill's note— Dr. Fisk's visit to my mother— A mother's present — Resolution to visit England— Preparations. During the various scenes, dangers nd wan- derings of these years of my youth, I had not for- gotten the home of my boyhood ; and, now that I was becoming somewhat settled in my prospects, I wrote an affectionate letter to my mother. After a delay of several months, I received two letters in reply, one from my mother, and the other from my sister. That from my mother is inserted in this narrative, for the purpose ofeKhibitingto the young reader, who may fancy tha' his parents feel no very great interest in his welfare, another instance of the deep, undying love of a mother's heart. 276 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. : i I Bladen, December 23, 1818. My dearly beloved Child : — I cannot describe the sensations I felt when I received a letter from your dear hands. It was the greatest pleasure I have enjoyed since you left me. I have never been sorry but once since you left, and that has been ever since ; but I hope the Almighty has ordered it all for the best. I have never forgotten to pray for you morning, night, and many times in the day, though I talked very little about you to any one, because I did not wish to make any one else uncomfortable. But that God, who knows the secrets of all hearts, sees how sincerely thankful T am because he has been pleased to hear my prayers that I might hear from you again ; for I was fearful I never should. But now I have great hopes that the blessed Lord will protect you, and spare our lives to see each other again. My dear child, you have not stated how you came to be separated from the crew when the ship was taken, nor how you have been employed since. You must be the best judge whether it will be safe for you to venture home. It would be a great pleasure for me to see you, but if there is danger of bad consequences, on account of your having been in the service against your country, and if any bad consequence should follow your coming home, it would make me more unhappy than I have ever been yet. If there is no danger, I should be very happy to have you come home SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 277 3, 1818. 3lt when I Lands. It )yed since y but once nee ; but I the best. I ling, night, alked very d not wish But that s, sees how has been t hear from ould. But i Lord will each other d how you 7 when the n employed whether it . It would but if there )unt of your lur country, follow your re unhappy 1 no danger, come home and learn a trade ; as, thank God, I have it in my power lo do something for you ; and nothing shall be wanting to make you comfortable, that I can do. You say it may be one or two years before you come; but pray come the first opportunity, as you will be gladly received by us all. If it is a want of money that prevents you from coming, and you cannot work your passage, perhaps you can get one by showing the captain of some ship my letter, and he may depend on being paid as soon as you arrive in England. If neither will do, send me word ; and if there is any place in London where your passage money can be paid, I will pay it there for you. You are right in supposing yourself twenty-two years of age on the nineteenth of March, (1S19.) Your sister Maria is twenty. She is grown a fine young woman; I am happy to say is very steady and thoughtful ; though not of a very strong constitu- tion. She is at service in London. She has Avritten to you, and I hope you will receive her letter with this. ^ # # # ^ :5(: # I hope, my dear child, you will not fail to come home. Send me all the particulars of your life, at the first opportunity. I am afraid you have gone through a great deal of trouble and hardship since I saw you. But the merciful Lord has been pleased to bring you through the whole, and He is able to carry you through more, if you put your trust in Him. It gave me great comfort to III 278 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. mM I hear that you are so well disposed, as I am sure you are, from the spirit of your letter ; it was more pleasure to me than if you had gained all the riches in the world. I wish I was as well acquainted with religion as yourself; but I will try to make a better use of my time, and should it please God to let you come home, I hope you will be the means of great good to me. There are a number of Methodist meetings about us. The people who live in our yard are very strict ones. I never disliked the Meth- odists; I think they have a great gift of religion. I sent your letter to Lady Churchill, formerly Lady Francis Spencer. Both Lord and Lady Churchill were glad to hear from you, and are your well-wishers. The Duke and Dutchess of Marlborough are both dead. Blenheim is much altered for the worse, since his son has become Duke. Lord Francis, that was, makes a very good master ; and when the Duke died, he left Blen- heim. His country house is in the forest. Your father is his carpenter in the timber yard ; he has filled this situation six weeks. He comes home every Saturday ; and next spring they are going to place me and the children in a lodge near him. We hope to have the happiness of seeing you there. .U, .M. 4t. .u. ^&. 4b 4fr ?ff ^ W TV •Tf- W TT It is eight years the twelfth of last July, since you left us. =^ # =J^ Your father, brothers and sisters all join with me in hearty prayers to I am sure r ; it was ^ained all LS as well 3Ut I will nd should hope you meetings r yard are he Meth- f religion. formerly and Lady ;, and are itchess of I is much IS become es a very J left Blen- st. Your d ; he has mes home are going near him. eeing you Fuly, since ', brothers prayers to SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 279 Almighty God, that his blessing may be upon you ; and if it is his blessed will, we shall see you again ; if it is not, we must be resigned to what is fitting for us, and pray that we may all meet in heaven, where all tears shall be wiped away. That God may bless you, my dear child, is the sincere prayer of Your ever loving mother. Susan Newman. Notwithstanding the earnestness of my moth- er's spirit, breathed out so ardently for my return in this letter, I dared not risk myself on British soil. Her expression of sorrow, if bad conse- quences should ensue, had its weight in deter- mining me to remain ; but a conversation with the celebrated Lorenzo Dow, who had recently returned from his English tour, settled the ques- tion. He said he had seen four men hung, who, like me, had been in the service of some other country, after deserting from their own. This was quite sufficient ; for, much as I longed to visit the homes of my childhood, I had no disposition to do it with a gallows suspended over my head. I therefore wrote my mother, that, not having a regular discharge from the navy, it would be best for me to continue where I was ; but I begged them to seriously think of emigrating themselves ; since my father-in-law, being an excellent carpenter, could do well in New England. Alas I it was not for him ever to consider of this proposition ; 280 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. tffl f rM f j ' for, when my letter arrived, they were performing the sad obsequies of death over his breathless corpse. A prevailing- fever had terminated a life of iifty-seven years, after a sickness of two weeks. My mother, now a widow the second time, after twelve years of- pleasant union with her last hus- band, thouglit it unfitting, at her time of life, to venture across the ocean ; and therefore all my plans for collecting my relatives on American soil, were blasted in the bud. Perhaps, after following me through the changes of my life at sea, the reader may feel a little in- terest in knovv'in"' how I succeeded as a landsman. He has seen me escaping the breakers that met me on my fu'bt approach to the shore ; and now, if his patience be not entirely exhausted, he may pursue my fortunes a little further. He left me, when my episode about home led him away from the thread of the narrative, busily at work as a filer of steel-yards, at Mansfield, Conn. From thence, I returned to Ashford, where I continued a year or two. At last, doubt- ing the stability of my employer, and fearing lest what he owed me might be lost, I took up the whole in the shape of a w^aggon and a stock of steel-yards ; then, purchasing a horse, I travelled from place to place to sell them; and in this manner got into a business which I have followed more or less ever since. After acquiring, by economy and diligence, a few hundred dollars, 1 opened a small store in Mansfield, with the in- tention of leading a still more settled life ; though SIX YtARb N A AN OF "\\ AR. 281 n* forming jreathless ited a life io weeks, ime, after last hus- of life, to e all my rican soil, e changes I little in- andsman. that met and now, [, he may home led ive, busily Mansfield, Ashford, ist, doubt- jaring lest ok np the , stock of [ travelled d in this e followed liring, by dollars, 1 di the in- e; though about that tinr- my mind was strongly exercised with a dcsir to devote myself to the religious benefit of >nen. My sense of unfitness for so great a w» k, at last pnvaile< and I proceeded with my p is of world ^ \v nr The davs ot which T .vere those on which the bright star of temperaace had scarcely shone. Minist-rs, aeons, Christians, all used the deadly drinks. Was it surprising, therefore, that I, hut so short a time before a rum-loving sailor, fell into the common current, and became a rumseller? No, it was not 'range ! but it was a strange, a glorious display oi restraining frrace, that prevented me from being drawn nito the snare I was thus thoughtlessly spreading for the poor drunkard. But even in those early days of temperance, I was not without my trials of mind in respect to the unholy traffic. Once, when at Hartford, making purchases for my store, of which rum formed no inconsiderable article, I accidentally heard of a lecture on temperance, to be delivered at Dr. Hawes's church. This was the first dis- course on the subject I ever heard. The speaker excited a deep interest in my mind, as he told of the origin of rum, its primary costliness and rank among medicines, of the growth of distilleries, the consequent decline in its price, and the attending spread of drunkenness. So deadly a plot against the peace of the world, he said, could only have been contrived in hell. !MAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) /. / / fe ^ y^:%' ^^ me dark Ling, dis- my eyes our team Tien, pub- Dry other The lat- rebuked; a member We re- continued at caution nind. At pite of the ten drank, »ite of the of loss to ! poor, un- ifice to the •3 imitated the grace resolution, ose lashed rum barrel profit, that ig the best flapted to a )sed up my Mass., the place of my present abode ; a pleasant town, but which is rendered more so by the very superior opportunities it affords for the education of chil- dren, in its most excellent and nourishing acad- emy. Here my life glided pleasantly and quietly along, affording no incidents worthy of special record. Happiness presided at my domestic board, prosperity accompanied my tempoial en- terprises, and religion reigned as the ruling genius over the whole. My ways were committed unto the Lord, and he directed my steps ; for which I praise him with my whole heart. In this delightful manner several years fled away ; when, my business having led me, on one occasion, to New York, I heard that my old ship, the Macedonian, was in port. Animated with that regard for an old ship, which always inspires a genuine seaman, I went on Doard. She was so altered, I scarcely recognised her. Change, with an unsparing hand, had remodeled the decks and cabins, so that I felt somewhat lost where once every timber was familiar. This was rather a disappointment ; however, I stood on the spot where I had fought in the din of battle ; and with many a serious reflection recalled the horrors of that dreadful scene. The sailors, on witnessing the care with which I examined every thing, and supposing me to be a landsman, eyed me rather closely. Seeing their curiosity, I said, " Ship- mates, I have seen this vessel before to-day : probably before any of you ever did." 284 A VOICE FROM '^IIE MAIN DECK. The old tars gathered round me, eagerly listen- ing to my tale of the hattle, and they bore patiently, and with becoming gravity, the exhor- tation to lead a religious life, with which I closed my address. They appeared to be very suscep- tible of religious feeling; as, indeed, sailors are generally. Should any doubt this fact, let them hear the Rev. Mr. Chase, in New York, or Rev. E. T. Taylor, in Boston, in whose usually crowded houses of worship, the face of the rough, weather- beaten son of the ocean may be seen bedewed with penitential tears ; especially at the church of the latter gentleman — than whom none know better how to adapt discourse to a sailor's soul. During the flight of these years a constant cor- respondence had been kept up between me and my mother. She had constantly urged me lo revisit my native land. To remove the last obstacle, she addressed a letter to Lady Churchill, to ascertain if I might safely return. She sent her the following note, the original of which is still in my possession : R Lower Brook Street, Nov. 7, 1821. Mrs. Newman, — I consulted my brother William upon the sub- ject on which you wished for advice, as neither Lord C. nor myself could undertake to answer your inquiry ; and I am glad to hear from him the following explanation in reply : " There is nothing ?.rhj listen- they bore the exhor- :h I closed ry suscep- sailors are t, let them •k, or Rev. ly crowded 1, weather- 1 bedewed he church lone know r's soul, nstant cor- ;n me and ^ed me lo B the last Churchill, She sent f which is i Street, 7, 1821. n the sub- as neither to answer )m him the t is nothing SIX YEAUS IN A MAN OF WAR. 285 to prevent Mrs. Newman's son from coming home ; for when the war ivas terminated, he was safe, even if he had entered into the enemy's service ; but he will of course forfeit the pay and any prize money duo to him." *= =^ # :?(: # I am, much yours, F. Churchill. This note relieved me of all foar, but now it had become no small undertaking for me to go to Europe. To go alone would be very expensive; but to take my Aimily, consisting now of a wife and three children, was much more so. Hence, I put it off year after year, still writing and beg- ging them to visit me. When the late lamented Dr. Fisk was in England, he visited my mother and brother, and related to them some of the facts in my life, which he had often heard me mention. She sent me two silver table spoons, which had belonged to my father, by the Doctor's hands. My mother wrote about this visit of that " great, good man " with evident satisfaction. At last, I received a letter from home, which decided me to undertake the often postponed and long delayed voyage to my native land. This letter stated that there was a young man in Albany, with whose friends they were all well acquainted, and that he was about to visit his mother. I found this gentleman, whose name was "William Warrington, and agreed to join 286 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. him with my family in his intended voyage. This agreement made, we set about making pre- parations for the undertaking. If the reader desires to know the events of that visit, he must consult the ensuing chapter. > ed voyage. Tiaking pre- the reader sit, he must CHAPTER XIV. Departure from home— A cabin in the George Washington —Cheated by the cook— The packet sails— A day's expe- rience from my journal— Religious service on Sabbath —Arrival at Liverpool— The custom-house, Liverpool —Journey to Staflbrd — The hackmen— Meeting with my sister— Election day in Staflbrd— Stafford— Re- mains of a baronial castle— St. Mary's church— The poor-house — A good custom — Beggars and poverty Drunkenness— Beer, a hindrance to the temperance cause— Departure from Stafford— Arrival at Bladen— Meeting with my mother— A happy family party- Visit to Oxford— Description of the town— Great Tom- Mr. Wesley's room at college— The martyr's stones- Departure from Bladen— Arrival at London— Trip to Walthamstow and Wanstead— A visit to the city road chapel— Tombs of Wesley, Clarke, Benson, Bunyan, and Watts— Condition of the English poor— Taxation- Expenses of royalty— Departure for Boston— Long passage— Safe arrival— Cloying remarks to the reader — Note — My mother's death. Weighed down under a pressure of despon- dency, arising partly from temporary illness, and partly from the greatness of the enterprise I had undertaken, and whose event was so uncertain, I left Wilbraham on Thursday morning, June 3d, 1841. A pleasant passage, by the way of Spring- field and Hartford, brought us into New York im a 288 A VOICE FROM THE M7\IN DECK. ^k I L' I H ■ early the next morning. By the following Mon- day, the 7th of June, we were all snugly stowed in a state-room of the second cabin on board the splendid packet-ship, George Washington, bound for Liverpool. Before we sailed, however, I was fleeced of seven dollars by the cook of the ship. As pas- " sengers in the second cabin, we had the privilege of furnishing ourselves with provisions. For the sum just mentioned, the cook had agreed to do all our cooking at the galley, insisting, however, J on being paid in advance, because, he averred, several passengers, on former occasions, had ob- tained his services and failed to pay him ; besides, he wanted to leave all the money he could with his wife. These arguments were, of course, un- answerable, and I paid him the sum demanded. Judge, then, of my surprise, when, a few minutes before we hauled off, the captain engaged another cook ; the first having suddenly made himself among the missing. Should the reader ever have occasion to voyage, he may profit by the remem- brance of this anecdote. We then hauled off into the stream ; towed by a steamboat, we soon cleared the harbor of New York. Sandy Hook speedily lay behind us ; the pilot wished us a pleasant voyage, and away we dashed into the wide Atlantic, buoyed up by the confidence of the hope that a few weeks would behold us safely landed on the shores of dear old England. (wing Mon- igly stowed n board the gton, bound fleeced of p. As pas- le privilege s. For the jrecd to do g, however, he averred, ins, had ob- m; besides, could with course, un- demanded. ew minutes ged another de himself ir ever have the remem- L ; towed by bor of New ind us ; the id away we I up by the eeks would of dear old SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 289 The details of a voyage across the Atlantic have been so often laid before the public by trav- ellers, that they have now lost most of that interest which they would possess were they less familiar. 1 shall not, therefore, detain the reader with the particulars of my passage, except to quote the experience of one day from my journal. Saturday, June 12th. Went on deck early in the morning ; found it very warm. We passed two ships on the same course with ourselves. I saw a rainbow on our starboard quarter, which reminded me of the old saying among sailors, " Rainbow in the morning, sailors take warnino-." It was then blowing a stiff breeze from the west. All the sails were up, studding sails out below and aloft. The wind increased during the morn- ing, with rain. We soon had heavy thunder, with sharp lightning ; the weather growing squally, we took in our studding sails. Passed another ship ; wind increasing with violent rain. One o'clock, P. M. Sailors have plenty to do to shorten sail. Furled top-gallant sails, reefed mizen topsail, fore topsail, and main topsail. We are running before the wind like a race-horse, at the rate of twelve knots an hour. Two o'clock, P. M. More thunder and light- ning, which threatened vengeance on our poor ship. The lightning is very sharp ; we have no conductor up ; it plays all around us, and, as it strikes the water, it hisses like red-hot iron. Sev- eral of the sailors felt a shock in descending the 25 290 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. Tigging, especially the first and second mates. We expected it would strike us every moment, but a kind Providence protected us. The sea runs very high, and the ship flies about as if crazy. We liave two men at the helm, who can scarcely keep her riglit ; it seems that she will pitch under every moment. Eight and one-half o'clock, P. M. Sea still roll- ing heavily ; we have shipped several heavy seas. Nine o'clock, P. M. Wind has shifted, and the weather is clearing oil'. During the whole of this gale, many of the pas- sengers were much alarmed, and some of them spent their time in praying and crying to the Lord. How strange that men will leave their eternal interests to an hour of danger, and forget them again the moment it passes away ! The first Sabbath of our life at i^ea, by permis- sion of Captain Barrows — who, by the way, was a very gentlemanly, kind commander — I held a religious meeting on the quarter or poop-deck. My audience contained all the cabin passengers, with most of those in the steerage, the captain and his mates, together with most of the crew. I told them I was not a parson, but I would talk to them as well as I could. After singing and prayer, I spoke from Jonah i. 6 ; alluding, among other things, to the late storm, and ex- horting them not to trust to storm religion, but to become the followers of God from genuine prin- ciple. My audience favored me with profound K. ond mates. •y moment, The sea [ibout as if m, who can at she will ea still roll- heavy seas, ed, and the ' of the paa- ne of them 'iug to the leave their , and forget rl by permis- way, was a ~I held a poop-deck, passengers, the captain he crew. I would talk singing and ; alluding, m, and ex- gion, but to nuine priri- ;h profound SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 291 attention. Whether they were benefitted or not, the groat day must determine. It was in this same ship that the eloquent Robert Newton returned to England. Jle favored her crew and passengers, every Sabbath of the voyage, with one of his excellent and powerful discourses. The following Sabbaths, owing to the weather and adverse circum.stances, I contented myself with distributing tracts and with discoursing per- sonally with the passengers and crew. On the 2(k\\ of June, w(! saw the Irish coast on our weather-beam, and on the evening of the 27th, we came to an anchor off Liverpool, after a short passage of twenty days. Here, a steam- boat came alongside, bringing several custom- house officers, who came on board, and carrying our cabin passengers ashore. The next morning we hauled into the magnificent docks of this cele- brated city of commerce, where our baggage was landed under the spacious sheds that surround the wharves. From thence it was conveyed, in small carts, drawn by donkies, to the custom- house for inspection. This tedious process over, the passengers separated, each bound to his re- spective home; for, having passed the ordeal of the custom-house, every man is left at full liberty to go whither he pleases. I and my family pro- ceeded to a tavern, contrasting, as we went along, the dark, dingy aspect of Liverpool, everywhere discolored by the fumes of coal-smoke, with the light, cheerful aspect of our American cities ; and ^^^ r!^ OQO A VOICK FROM TIIR MAIN DKCK. 4 I'lK, I giving the prot'oriMice? to the latter, notwithstand- ing my Kni^lislj j)r('jiulioes. The next inorning we all look seats in the rail- road cars lor StalTord, some jjeventy miles distant from Liverpool. After passing tliroiigh tiic tun- nel, under the city, ol more than a mile in length, we emerg(Ml into a heautifnl country, adorned on all sides with a!iti<|ue buildings and mnil scenery. These passed before us like the scenes in a jJMno- rama, and, by ten o'clock, A. M., we reached the stopping-place, a short distance^ from Stafford. Here we were lit-^rally in danger of being torn asunder by the eagerness of two hackmen, who, as we were the only passengers left at the depot, were especially zealous for our patronage. A police oflicer, one of whom is stationed at every depot on the road, speedily relieved us from their importunity. Stepping up, he asked me which man I would employ. Pointing to one of them, the other dropped my baggage, and in a few minutes, we were at the door of my brother-in- law, Mr. William Tills. Although I had not seen my sister for thirty years, yet, no sooner did she see me, than, throw- i^ , ing her arms around my neck, she exclaimed, " Oh, my brother!" I need not add, that our re- ception was cordial, and our stay with them char- acterized by every trait of genuine hospitality. The town was alive with the bustle of an elec- tion ; flags and streamers were floating over every tavern-sign and public building. Men, women L'K, SIX YEAHS IN A MAN OP WAR. 293 :)t\vit.hstand- i in the rail- nili's (listniit iirh llic lun- \{i in Icnji^th, adorned on nil sctMicry. s in a i)Mno- reached the !!! Slafford. being torn kinen, wlio, t the depot, ronasTc. A led at every s from their me which lie of them, I in a few ' brother-in- r for thirty han, throw- exclaimed, that our re- them char- >pitality. of an elec- ^ over every [en, women and children crowch'd tlic t-'eets, flushed with the excitement of ])fjrty rivalry, while the continual pealiiiir ol' |||(. |j(.l|s achled a vivacity and liveliness to the scene, of wliich an American, who has never heard the merry dinj^-dong of a full peal of heliss, can form no adequate C()nce])tion. By five o'clock that afternoon, the polls closed, and the ceremony of chniriiiLT the successful candidates took place. First came a hand of music, playing lively airs ; next followed the members elect, richly dressed, with ribbons on their hats, and seated on chairs wreallicd wi'h flowers and rib- bons, and surrounded wit'.i banners bearing vari- ous devices. These chairs were borne on men's shoulders, who proceeded through the streets, amid immense clieering from the crowds who followed, and from the ladies and citizens, who appeared waving their handkerchiefs from the windows ; the members, meanwhile, bowing, with their hats in their hands, until they reached the spot where their chaises waited to convey them to their respective hoines. The sight was one of great interest to a stranger, and I advise every American who visits England, by all means, to witnjss an election day if possible. We remained with my brother-in-law about a week, visiting the various places and buildings whose antiquity or public character clothed them with especial interest. The town itself contains about eleven hundred inhabitants, and is the shire town of the county of Staffordshire. Its chief busi- 25^ m 291 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. ill ncss is the mnnufactnro of shoos. Amonjx its ancient buildinns, art^ iho nMnains of a baronial castle, whose moss-covered battlements insensibly conduct the meditations of the beholder back to the days of feudal o^nindcnir and knip^htly chiv- alry. St. Mary's Church is also a venerable Gothic structure, of solid masonry, whose walls have withstood the storms and chani^n's (>f about ten centuries. They were about to expend £10,000 in repairing- the dilapidations of time. I heard one discourse from t\\o. curate, and was es- pecially deli^rhted with the grandcuir and sublimity of the music from its maijfniliccmt orphan, as it pealed alona; the aisles of the time-worn buildinjr, with an effect never witnessed in our smaller and more modern structures in America. Here also is the county prisvm, modelled, in most of its arranofements, after the state-prisons of America. It contained live hundred prisoners. A lunatic asylum and a hospital, or infirmary, for the poor, are found amoncf the products of its be- nevolence : the former contained three hundred unfortunate occupants. The poor-house is a large commodious building", constructed of brick and stone, surrounded with large airy yards and gardens. It has also yards or courts within its walls, used as play-grounds for the children. The order within was excellent; every room looked remarkably neat and clean ; the children were comfortably clothed, and wore an air of satisfaction and contentment. The . ^ ' i CK. SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 295 Amonn: its if a hamninl Ls insensibly fider back to iipfbtly cbiv- a viMierablo whoso walls [T"os of about to expend s of time. I and was es- nd sublimity orci^an, as it orn building", • smaller and modelled, in ite-prisons of ?d prisoners, infirmary, for cts of its be- irce hundred ous building", •ounded with as also yards y-grounds for as excellent; t and clean; ed, and wore ;ment. The whole house was under the control of a g"overnor and matron, who werci subject to the inspection of the board of overseers, chosen by the people. One excellent ruhj of th(» house struck me as being very useful : it provided for the admission of poor travellers to a supper and lodging; re- quiring them, if dirty, to undergo a thorough ablu- tion and to change their linen. In the morninir two or three hours' work was exacted as payment, and they were sulfered to depart. The house had its teacher and chaplain ; and altogether I thought that a gr(>at improvement had taken place in the poor-laws of th(! courUry. Having been so long away from England, everything peculiarly English struck me with almost as much force as it would a native Ameri- can. Hence, my feelings revolted at the sight of the innumeral)le beggars and vagrants, who crowded the streets. Italians, with their orgfans, Avhite mice, or monkeys ; poor barefooted children, with their baskets of matches ; and, worse than cither, houseless families imploring a crust for their half-naked little ones, with many a tale of sorrow and wo, were sights which greeted my eye and pained my heart every day. A sad spec- tacle indeed, and one which robs the lustre of the British crown of many a brilliant ray. The true glory of a people is their internal prosperity, and not the extension of their territory. The fifth of July renewed the excitement of the day I arrived. It was tiie time appointed for the * 296 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. ^Km:' ■ If ^^K :' .' |. ^D- ' !'! ■ :' ^^Mtm ^ ^1 P lik^ ■^- county election. Similar scenes to those before described took place, accompanied with excessive drunkenness. Every tavern, and the number seemed endless, was crowded, mostly with the •laboring classes, who were spending their hard- earned pence, for foaming tankards of English ale, the favorite beverage of John Bull, and one of the greatest hindrances to the progress of the temperance cause in that country ; though it is hoped that the triumphs of tee-totalism will ulti- mately overcome this national love for John Bar- leycorn, as beer is humorously called in the old song. After spending an extremely pleasant w^ek m Stafford, we bade adieu to my affectionate sister and her husband, and, aided by omnipotent steam, we soon reached the great manufactory of Brit- ain — Birmingham. From thence we took stage for Woodstock, subject, however, to the inces- sant exactions of the host of waiters, guards and coachmen, that constantly assail the traveller in England, with a request to be "remembered" for every little service rendered. The country through which we rode was delightful ; all nature wore her greenest, brightest garments ; the roads were level, an J as smooth as the most thorough Macadamizing could make them. Soon after seven in the evening, the stage drew up at the Marlborough Arms, the very hotel from whence I started thirty years since to go to sea. The first object that arrested my eye, was the revered form )se before excessive number with the leir hard- English , and one iss of the ugh it is will ulti- [ohn Bar- n the old wiek in late sister 3nt steam, y of Brit- took stage the inces- s, guards 3 traveller embered " e country all nature the roads thorough loon after up at the whence I mu„ c — «. rered form SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 297 of my mother, waiting on the sidewalk, eager to embrace her much-loved, but long-absent son. Springing to the ground, I felt myself locked in her fond embrace. That was a moment of exquis- ite enjoyment, both to me and to my mother. Though deeply moved, she maintained a calm dignity of manner. In a few moments, she was showing the way, with the agility of a young woman, leading a new-found grand-child in each hand, to her residence, which was close at hand. Very soon we were all seated round the well- loaded board, the happiest family party in the world. Though it afforded me and my family great pleasure to visit scenes round Woodstock and Bladen, which had been familiar to me in my boyhood, yet, as the description would only prove tedious to the reader, it is omitted. A brief ac- count of our visit to Oxford, so celebrated for its university and colleges, may not be uninteresting. Oxford contains nineteen colleges and five halls. Of these, we visited only Christ Church and Lincoln colle"-es. Christ Church is the larof- est college in Oxford. We were forcibly struck with the magnificence of the octagonal tower, which is over the principal gateway. It has a dome top, and is ornamented in the Gothic style, from designs by that renowned architect, Sir Christopher W^ren. It is also remarkable as con- 4.-1.-: 4.u_ ^„l„i, — i._J 1 — 11 1 — ,, 1,,, fV- *" icliiiiiig liHJ CCivJUiULuQ uuii, ii-iiOwii uy Inis la- miliar name of " Great Tom," and weighing ill' 298 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. it ■'I t ■if' 17,000 pounds. It is 7 feet 1 inch in diameter, 6 feet 9 inches high, 6J irtches in thickness. I got under this massive piece of metal, and found abun- dant room to move about ; by standing on the clap- per I could reach the top over my head. This is the largest bell in England; though Russia con- tains several of a much larger size. I also grati- fied myself by a survey of the splendid picture galleries and the spacious library, the former containing some of the fmest specimens of paint- ing in the country, and the latter a large and valuable collection of books, manuscripts, prints, coins, &c. I made inquiries of our attendant for the room in which Charles Wesley studied while a mem- ber of this college ; but, although quite communi- *cative on other subjects, he manifested a peculiar sensitiveness on this ; and I declined pressing the question. After quitting the college, happening to pass the residence of the Wesley an minister, Mr. Rodgers, I called upon him, and related to him how the porter avoided my questions. He smiled, and said that they regarded the Wesleys as dissenters, and would therefore do them no honor. Mr. Rodgers was extremely obliging; he conducted us over his beautiful chapel, and then bore us company to Lincoln college, where he pointed out the room in which John Wesley studied when a member of this institution. He also showed us the other localities of Oxford, made sacred to me by their association with the K. diameter, 6 ess. I got bund abun- 3n the clap- J. This is Russia con- L also grati- did picture the former IS of paint- large and ipts, prints, )r the room ile a mem- 5 communi- l a peculiar )ressing the happening m minister, I related to stions. He he Wesleys lo them no \r obliging; chapel, and lege, where 3hn Wesley tution. He _ r Oi )n with the SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 299 person of Wesley's grandfather, the preaching of the Wcslcys themselves, and the studies of Dr. Coke, the great missionary hero of the Methodist church. He then led us into Broad street, to the conse- crated spot where Latimer, Ridley and Cranmer sealed their faith by enduring a martyr's death. Three stones mark the spot where their ashes fell; and never did I feel a holier feeling than that which thrilled my heart, while I and my family vStood on those time-worn stones : the spirits of the martyrs seemed to hover around us, breathing the same high, religious determination into our minds that filled their own bold and daring spirits. That moment amply repaid us for all the toil of our journey home. The following Sabbath I attended the chapels of the Wesleyans at Woodstock and Bladen, and in the evening had the pleasure of saying a word to my old Bladen associates, in the prayer-meet- mg. After receiving the utmost kindness, hospitality and evidences of friendship from my family and friends, I took leave of them forever. Many of the neighbors, with my mother, accompanied me to- Woodstock. There I wished her adieu, and when the coach whirled away, she stood following us with her eyes, the last of the company, until a projection of the park wall hid us from each other. Who could forbear a te&.r in such a mo- ment ? I could not, and therefore suffered the big: III 300 A VOICE FROM THE MAIN DECK. drops to roll down my cheeks at '.vill. There is a luxury in such grief. That evening beheld us rolling through Hyde Park into the city of London, where I tarried a few days with my brother, by whom I was very cordially entertained. Here also I found several cousins, in prosperous circumstances, whose kind- ness contributed not a little to my enjoyment. Having visited St. Pauls, tho Museum, Madame Tassard's magnificent collection of wax figures, and other curious and remarkable places, I took a trip to Walthamstow, the former residence of my aunt Turner. This good lady was dead, and almost forgotten by the people ; her twenty-two children were all either dead or wandering, the neighbors knew not whither. Alas for the muta- tions of time ! A walk of two miles farther on, brought us to Wanstead, my birth-place. Here everything seemed natural, though great changes had passed over the people since I lived there, a thoughtless child. My common school teacher and my Sun- day school teacher had both gone to their spiritual destiny. My aunt was yet alive. My brother asked her if she knew^ me. Peering through her spectacles, and summoning up the imagery of the past, she at length called to mind her former prctoge, and clasped me to her arms, with evident gratification. It occasions melancholy feeling *to see the ravages of time on the persons and places one has not visited for years ! K.' SIX YEARS IN A MAN OF WAR. 301 There is )ugh Hyde I tarried a [ was very md several I'hose kind- enjoyment, n, Madame rax fi.qfures, es, I took a sidence of s dead, and twenty-two idering, the ir the muta- ouo'ht us to o everything had passed thousrhtless ad my Sun- leir spiritual My brother through her igery of the her former mth. evident y feeling *to 3 and places After a hasty visit to that noble home for the worn-out sailor at Greenwich, and a glance at the arsenal at Woolwich, I returned to London. We next visited the City Road Chapel, built by the exertions of the great Wesley himself. The sexton told us that when that wonderful man held the collection plate, one Sabbath, it was thrice filled with gold by the enthusiastic generosity of the congregation : a striking example of his per- sonal influence over his hearers. After examin- ing the chapel, I walked over the parsonage ad- joining, and while standing in the room, where, with his dying lips, the immortal founder of Meth- odism exclaimed, " The best of all is, God is with us," I felt inspired with his great spirit, and mentally resolved, like him to laboriously live, that like him I might triumphantly die. From this sacred chamber I visited the tombs of Wesley, Clarke, Benson, Watson, Cooper, and other illus- trious men of the departed army of faithful war- riors in the cause of Christ ; and, as I stood over their ashes, my heart said with Peter on the mount of transfiguration, " Master, it is good for me to be here ! " Crossing the road into Bunhill fields, I stood before the tombstones of the celebrated Dr. Isaac Watts, and the less learned but equally renowned John Bunyan. Here the wicket gate, the wander- in*gs of the pilgrim, the land of Beulah, and the river of death passed vividly before my mind's eye, until, overcome with a rush of powerful feel- 26 302 A VOKK FROM TTIK MAIN DKCK. i» < I I injTt I wept nnd walkrd nAvny, a luMtcr iimn than when 1 (MiltToil llioso .soltMnn rrstinL»--i)liu*e« of the glorious (loud. The tinio alloltod for uiy visit Imvinir nearly expired, iny mind beiran to look towards the eonn- try of my adoption, tilled with a slronu; desire ono(» more to tread its (roe soil. Strontif as is the love of liome, it was not stron^^ (Mionj^h to induce a preference in my mind for iMiixland. America hud hecome the dearer of the two. Indeed, I saw so many unpleasjint thinpfs amidst the t^randeur and pageantry of the ricli, that 1 often felt dis- gusted. Sucli hosts of street beoirars, such troops of poverly-striokon children, such a mass of de- graded laborers, such enormous taxation, made me shrink from bearinu: any jiart of so great a burden, and desire to litdc my future destiny with the rising fortunes of America. How the laborer of England lives, with such low wages, and such high prices for the staple commodities of life, is above my comprehension. Meat w'as from twelve to twenty-four cents per pound ; tea from one to two dollars ; collee from twenty-live to forty cents, and other things in proportion. To this add the intemperate habits of the poor, and how they live becomes a problem I know not how to solve. Yet, with all this poverty and wo, taxation is laid upon the public with merciless severity, to furnish means to maintain the splendor and fatten the minions of royalty. First, they have to pay the annual interest of eight hundred million pounds ; c. filX YKAHS IN A MAN OV WAR. 303 man than nci'n of the iuLi: nearly s ilie conn- onu" (If'sirc fr jia is the I to iiuluco Amorica Jecd, I saw 3 grandeur m I'elt d is- sue h troops nass of de- lion, made so great a ustiny with the laborer s, and such s of life, is Vom twelve 'on\ one to forty cents, liis add the w they live olve. Yet, ion is laid {, to furnish fatten the to pay the on pounds ; then come the enormous snlaries of the monarch and the .snlcjjiivs of \\w ihrone. The cjueen, for her privjile purse, Ims I.IO.OOO pounds ; the (pieen dowa.irer, 1()(),()0() pounds; J>riric(> Alhert, .•jO,()()0 poinuis ; the f.ord Iljnh (Miiincellor, 5>0,00() pounds ; the JJishops, :ni aveniL|-e of 20,000 pounds each. HesiiK's these, follow sinecures and pensions innumenihle, until the resources of the nation iire prc^yed on by the throne, with the unsatisfied nppetite of llx; prnve — takinjr nil, and still cryini, a reprint of aii^ >ngregatioiialism. :♦ *