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 THE LOG 
 
 ANCIENT MARINER. 
 
 BEING THE LIFE AND ADVENTURES OF 
 
 Captain Edgar Wakeman. 
 
 WRITTEN BY HIMSELF, AND EDITED BY HIS DAUGHTER. 
 
 " None knew him but to love him, 
 None named him but to praise." 
 
 " 'Tis only noble to be good; 
 Kind hearts are more than coronets, 
 And simple faith than Norman blood." 
 
 SAN FRANCISCO: 
 L. BANCROFT & CO., PRINTERS, 
 
 721 Market Street. 
 1878.
 
 Entered according to act of Congress, in the year 1878, 
 
 By MINNIE WAKEMAN-CURTIS, 
 
 In the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
 
 12> 
 
 DEDICATION. 
 
 flfr This work, which is mainly a collection and 
 
 52 arrangement of incidents in the eventful life of 
 
 ia£ Capt. Edgar Wakeman, is gratefully dedicated 
 
 cq to his many friends in California and elsewhere, 
 
 _j 
 
 S3: by the editress, his affectionate daughter, 
 
 !»■ 
 
 <-^ Minnie Wakeman-Curtis. 
 
 28G717
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 The following pages contain the faithful record of an adven- 
 turous life, taken from the log of an old sailor whose name is 
 known in every quarter of the globe. Generous to a fault, ever 
 ready to place himself at the foremost post of duty, utterly re- 
 gardless of danger, however terrible; and, withal, as gentle as a 
 child, in the palmy days of his life, Capt. Wakeman numbered 
 his friends by thousands; and this record will be read by many 
 hundreds of those who knew him and loved him when he was 
 the prosperous and genial ship-master; who extended to him 
 every sympathy and every assistance when he was disabled, em- 
 barrassed and crippled; and who shed tears as they followed to 
 its last resting place the brave, kind and gentle heart. 
 
 The record was written by himself that he might leave a faith- 
 ful account of his life to his children, and is shaped for public 
 perusal in the belief that it will be read with pleasure by the 
 many who remember the warm grasp of his large hand, the cor- 
 dial tones of his cheery voice, and the kindling glance of his 
 kindly eye. 
 
 His was a three-fold nature, as those know who have seen 
 him on the bridge, trumpet in hand and thunder in his tones; 
 who have sat in his state-room and listened to the "yarns" which 
 it is impossible to reproduce now, related as they were, "with 
 his fingers all spread out by way of emphasis," and with a mag- 
 netism in look and tone that carried his hearers spell-bound, to 
 laugh or to cry, as he willed; and know of the affection which 
 he felt for his family, and of his simple-mindedness and utter 
 want of shrewdness in all business transactions.
 
 6 Introduction. 
 
 Captain Wakeman was a true seaman, never so much himself 
 as when upon the quarter-deck; yet, like many another old salt, 
 he always cherished the idea that he could be perfectly happy, 
 besides making a financial success of the enterprise, could he but 
 turn to farming, and settle down, far from the ocean, in one o* 
 the fertile valleys of California; and many verses and poems 
 scattered among his writings breathe the deepest affection for his 
 family, and show how keenly he felt the enforced separation 
 from his children, during the best years of his life and during 
 their childhood. One of these sets of verses is as follows: 
 
 Why am I thus compelled to say, 
 I'm like the hank upon the stay 
 Of some Greenlander's bending mast, 
 That's freezing in an arctic blast ? 
 
 I've seen and felt the hand of God, 
 As o'er the earth and sea I've trod; 
 But never suffered so before 
 As when I left my cottage door. 
 
 No words can tell the weight of woe, 
 As rolling o'er the sea I go 
 From all I love beneath the sky, 
 And all the bliss the Fates deny. 
 
 Ah ! must I always sail and weep, 
 Away from home, upon the deep; 
 Or will I be, in later days, 
 Among my children's happy plays ? 
 
 God grant, among that little band 
 I yet may dwell upon the land; 
 With naught to fear but fleeting time, 
 That ends all things, both life and rhyme. 
 
 Another, which is given below, is inscribed to his eldest 
 daughter: 
 
 Oh! darling, if you only knew 
 How very sad your papa grew, 
 When all alone on deck he sighs 
 Through midnight hours with tearful eyes, 
 At eve I'm sure you'd ne'er forget
 
 Introduction. 7 
 
 The one afar, whose eyes are wet 
 With weeping for his child at home, 
 So far across the ocean's foam. 
 
 Yet well I know it still must be, 
 While I'm compelled to sail the sea: 
 Through weary years I'm doomed to part 
 From Minnie with an aching heart; 
 And ev'ry voyage I still must grieve 
 When my poor Frankie sad I leave; 
 While Eddie asks, with eyes so black, 
 " When shall I look for papa back ? " 
 
 The mother, like an angel, seeks 
 A parting kiss, but never speaks, 
 As closer to her loving breast 
 Her infant angel's fondly pressed; 
 Upon its pillow snowy white 
 It draws its food with all its might, 
 Then falls into a heavenly sleep 
 And dreams of one upon the deep. 
 
 O God, protect this little flock, 
 Bring back their papa safe to dock; 
 And when in time their days be run, 
 Conduct them, with the setting sun, 
 To that dim land where we may be 
 United through eternity. 
 And till we wake to that blessed time 
 Dear God, protect both me and mine. 
 
 Upright and honest in word and deed, simple and pure in 
 heart and habits, he was yet not a believer in the Christian 
 creeds; he had faith neither in the supernatural nor the miracu- 
 lous, and would accept no man's demonstration where he could 
 not solve the problem with his own reason; but he held faith in 
 a future life, and in a "Great Unknowable;" or rather, like the 
 Indian, as he himself would prefer to say, he believed in the 
 Great Spirit, of whom, save through nature, he knew nothing. 
 And his writings show even-where, as do his verses, this belief 
 and his reverence for the unknown God. 
 
 With the same reverence — for it was more than veneration — 
 and with the fondest love, he alwavs held in remembrance his
 
 8 Introduction, 
 
 mother and her tender care during his childhood. Merely his 
 childhood was spent at home, for when only a boy of some fif- 
 teen years he entered upon his sailor's life. Always ready to 
 take the lead in pleasure, duty or danger, he buffetted with Fate 
 and managed to keep upon the wave of prosperity; but his want 
 of judgment in the ways of the world caused him to miss many 
 a chance which another man would have turned into a substan- 
 tial fortune, and as he grew older his iron constitution began to 
 feel all that it had been obliged to bear in a sailor's daily life, 
 and through accidents and the reckless exposure which he had 
 undergone in his younger days, until finally, paralysis short- 
 ened his life and rendered him crippled and almost helpless dur- 
 ing its last few years. Probably no one who has not been sim- 
 ilarly afflicted, can realize the extent of this misfortune, coming 
 to a strong man who has lived out of doors, enjoying life keenly 
 and used alike to command and to accomplish. 
 
 Among his writings is found this reference to his condition as 
 compared with that of his friend, Mr. Hale: 
 
 " There is a man, Hale and vigorous, with no drawbacks to 
 his enjoyment of life; puncture his arm, tread upon his foot, cast 
 the carrion in his way, and his quick sense detects the injury and 
 ferrets out what is offensive. He is a well man in even' sense 
 and his prompt resistance is as quick as feeling. 
 
 " There is another man, a poor brother, under a fearful touch 
 of calamity. His form is that of a man, but his features are a 
 sad mixture of the dead with the living. His right arm, his right 
 foot and leg are useless; his right cheek, too, is stiff and drawn. 
 I touch his limbs or puncture his flesh and he knows it not, for 
 palsy has done his work. Life and death have half fought their 
 battle in that barely living frame, and they stand in an awful 
 truce which lets the victim see one half of his body dressed in 
 the ashy paleness of the tomb. The soul in that body dwells in 
 a sepulchre-yard by day, and sleeps in a grave by night." 
 
 This "life" is not as complete as he intended it to be, but he 
 wrote up to within a few months of his death, and re-wrote, up 
 to that time, many portions; yet, still, many interesting periods
 
 Introduction. g 
 
 are entirely left out, as, details of his share in the Mexican War,\ 
 and in Vigilance days in California. In one place he speaks of i 
 this fact, saying: 
 
 " I have written the account of many of the most prominent 
 incidents of my life, but there are. several voyages that I have 
 omitted altogether, not through design on my part, but because 
 they did not present themselves to my mind at the time of writ- 
 ing. There is much, very much, that I would like to say in con- 
 nection with past voyages, and there are a great many good and 
 prominent men, whom I esteem most highly, in different parts 
 of this world, whom I should like to write about, as I can never 
 forget them, but I am obliged to forego that pleasure; most of 
 my writing has been done while suffering from the fever con- 
 tracted in low latitudes, and now I am paralyzed, and having 
 lost the use of my right side, it is with difficulty and pain that I 
 write at all with my left hand." 
 
 Among the many notices that Capt. Wakeman received in the 
 public journals, is the following: 
 
 "The recent exploit of Capt. Edgar Wakeman, with the 
 "steamer 'John L. Stephens,' has again brought him before the 
 "people. For a crisis, Ned Wakeman is the most prompt and 
 " energetic of men. In 1 847, Lieutenant Hunter took Alvarado, 
 "Mexico; Wakeman was the man who made the exploit suc- 
 cessful. The fortune of a person depended upon getting the 
 " steamer ' New World ' out of New York harbor. After Ned's 
 " engagement he made the discovery; 'I'll save him,' said Ned, 
 " and a Sheriff with several deputies started on a voyage to Cal- 
 " ifornia. 
 
 "The days of 1851 in this city will be long remembered; 
 " Ned Wakeman was indicted as the leading vigilante. Again, 
 " he has once more saved a steamer for his company and the 
 " Call of this city ranks Col. Frank F. Dana at about io° in 
 "the scale of captains, for letting the 'Stephens' slip out of his 
 "fingers. In the Liberal party, Capt. Dana is no doubt a Ney, 
 "but Ned is a Napoleon. 'Tis put down as an axiom, that no 
 " man possesses in his business more than one grand crisis in his
 
 io Introduction. 
 
 "life, but Ned has passed four; though weighing two hundred 
 "pounds, he wears seven-league boots, and possesses as many 
 "lives as a cat. Viva la Captain Ned." 
 
 In a letter to the Alta, Mark Twain speaks of him as follows: 
 
 " I will do him the credit to say that he knows how to tell his 
 "stirring forecastle yarns; with his strong, cheery voice, animated 
 "countenance, quaint phraseology, defiance of grammar, and 
 " extraordinary vim in the matter of emphasis and gesture, he 
 " makes a most effective story even out of unpromising materials. 
 "He is fifty years old, as rough as a bear in voice and action, and 
 "yet as kind hearted and tender as a woman. He is a burly, 
 " hairy, sunburned, stormy-voiced old salt, who mixes strange 
 " oaths with incomprehensible sailor-phraseology and the gen- 
 " tlest and most touching pathos, and is tatooed from head to foot 
 " like a Feejee Islander.* He knows nothing of policy or of the 
 " ways of the world, but he can keep cheered-up any company 
 " of passengers that ever traveled in a ship. He never drinks a 
 " drop, never gambles, and never swears where a lady or a child 
 " may chance to hear him." 
 
 After this description Mark Twain proceeds to transcribe a 
 "Tale of Rats," as told by the Captain. After telling how the 
 rats had scampered ashore, over the hawser, at the last moment 
 before sailing, and how he (Capt. W.) and his traveling com- 
 panion had taken the hint and gone on shore also, he proceeds: 
 "And as sure as you're born that bran-new, beautiful brig sailed 
 out of Honolulu without a rat on board, and was never seen 
 again by mortal- man. We shipped in an old tub, that was so 
 rotten that we had to walk easy on deck to keep from going 
 through — so crazy, sir, that in our berths, when there was a sea 
 on, the timbers overhead worked backwards and for'ards eleven 
 
 * Between the knee and ankle of one leg, was tattooed in colors a figure of the Goddess 
 of Liberty, holding the American flag and standing beside a cannon; between the knee 
 and ankle of tbe other, was a large ship under full sail ; upon his arms were the names of 
 his wife and each of his children, that of the baby whom he lost being up on a tomb- 
 stone with a tree bending over it; he bore a figure of Christ upon the cross, and various 
 Masonic symbols, besides numerous wristlets, bracelets, anklets, garlands and other de- 
 vices.
 
 Introduction. 1 1 
 
 inches in their sockets, just for the world like an old wicker- 
 basket, sir, and the rats were as big as greyhounds and as lean, 
 sir; they bit the buttons off our coats and chawed our toe-nails 
 off while we slept, and there were so many of them that in a 
 gale, once, they all scampered to the starboard side, when we 
 were going about, and put her down the wrong way, so that she 
 missed stays and came monstrous near foundering. But she 
 went through safe, I tell you, because she had rats aboard. 
 Rats! don't tell me nothing about the talents of rats! Its been 
 noticed, sir! Notes has been taken of it, sir! and their judg- 
 ment is better than a human's, sir! Didn't I hear old Ben 
 Wilson, mate of the ' Empress of the Seas' — as fine a sailor and 
 as lovely a ship as ever rode a gale — didn't I hear him tell how, 
 as seventeen years ago, when he was laying at Liverpool docks 
 empty as a jug, and an Indiaman right alongside, full of provisions 
 and corn and everything a rat might prefer, and going to sail 
 next day — how, in the middle of the night, the rats all left her 
 and crossed his decks and went ashore — every bloody one of 
 them, sir! and finally, in the moonlight, he saw a muss going 
 on by the capstan of that other ship; so he slipped around, and 
 there was a dozen old rats laying their heads together, and chat- 
 tering about something, and looking down the forrard hatch 
 every now and then, till finally they appeared to have got their 
 minds made up; and one of 'em went aft and got a piece of old 
 stuns'l half a foot square, and they bored holes in the corners 
 with their teeth and bent on some long pieces of spun-yarn — 
 made a sort of a little hammock of it, you understand — and 
 then they lowered away gently for a time, and stopped; then di- 
 rectly they begun heaving again, and up out of that forrard 
 hatch, in full view of the mate, who was watching them all the 
 time, comes that little hammock, with a poor, old, decrepid, sick 
 rat on it, all gone in with the consumption; and they lugged 
 him ashore, and they all went up town to the very last rat; and 
 that ship sailed the next day for India, or Cape o' Good Hope, 
 or somewheres, and the mate of the ' Empress' didn't sail for as 
 much as three weeks, and up to that time that ship hadn't been 
 heard from, sir!"
 
 1 2 Introdttction. 
 
 Some effort was made to collect the "yarns he spun," but it 
 was finally abandoned as impracticable. The gentleman who has 
 already been mentioned, uses the following' language respecting 
 them: "I can mention some stories, but the happy details have 
 all faded away. * * * His best stories were so dramatic in 
 manner, that they can only be talked, they cannot be written; 
 they talk with fine effect, but they lose a vast amount of their 
 force as soon as they are on paper, for there was a charm about 
 his telling of them which pen and ink cannot convey. * * * 
 He made you cry and laugh at the same time. It is easy to 
 make people laugh; it is very hard to make them do both." 
 
 There are several pages in this record which refer to an es- 
 teemed friend of Captain Wakeman's, Colonel Karge; they were 
 inclosed to that gentleman with a letter begging permission to 
 use them where they occur in this book, but no reply was ever 
 received. The writer, however, ventured to transcribe them, 
 trusting that no objections will be entertained by the Colonel, if 
 he lives and happens to meet the mention of his own life in 
 these pages. 
 
 At the close of an arduous task in copying and arranging, 
 the most sincere thanks are due, for encouragement, suggestions 
 and assistance, to many gentlemen; to H. D. Bacon, Esq., to 
 F. L. Hanks, and others; and to S. L. Clemens, Esq., for per- 
 mission to use certain of his stories. 
 
 M. W. C. 
 
 East Oakland, December, 1877.
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Antecedents — Towhead's Adventures — The First De- 
 parture from Home — And Oh ! to be a Sailor-boy. 17 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 Around the World — A Jolly Captain — Foreign Ports — 
 
 Home Again 33 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 Up the Mediterranean — Up the Baltic — Wrecked on 
 
 the Isle of Guernsey 56 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 The Brig "Forrester" — From Havana to Bremen — 
 Escape from Harwich — Starvation on the High 
 Seas 72 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 Early Days in Vicksburg — Smuggling on the Tabasco — 
 Adrift in the Gulf — Down with the Yellow Fe- 
 ver 92 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 Escape with the " New World" — An Eventful Voy- 
 age Around the Horn — Arrival in San Francisco 
 July ii, 1850 114
 
 14 Contents, 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Land Voyage Extraordinary — Encounter with Griz- 
 lies — All Night in a Tree — Crawling up Hill, 
 and Sliding Down — Return to Civilization 139 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 The Banquet of March 8, 1853 — A Sailor's Courtship — 
 
 A Fall of 8000 Feet 168 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 Australia — A Square Trotter — In Trouble — A Dutch 
 
 Skipper 187 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Launched into Matrimony — Take Charge of the Ade- 
 laide — Am Taken in Charge, with the "J. L. 
 Stephens," by Capt. Dana — The Authorities of 
 acapulco attempt to take charge of the "america" 2 i 2 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 Paradise Valley — Yarns around the Camp Fire — 
 
 Stage Drivers of Nevada 248 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 Wrecked in the Gulf Stream — Epitaph of the "D. C. 
 
 Haskins" — Afloat in an Open Boat — Bermuda. . . . 264 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 To New York — Commodore Vanderbilt — Across the 
 Continent — The " Moses Taylor" — A Tale of Hor- 
 rors 284
 
 Contents. 1 5 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Honolulu — The Survivors of Lucknow — The Feast of 
 
 Lieuwaw — Lines to a Friend 304 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 Sugar Estates — Annu — Symmetrical Sisters — Pushipu- 
 
 cia and clpalanakahela 326 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 A Paradise in the Pacific — Description of Samoan or 
 
 Navigator Islands — Fine Specimens of Natives. . . 342 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 On the Mohongo — Magdalena Bay — Up the Colorado — 
 
 Pearl-fishing in the Gulf — To New York 361 
 
 Conclusion 
 
 374
 
 THE LOG 
 
 ANCIENT MARINER. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 ANTECEDENTS ToWHEAD's ADVENTURES THE FlRST DEPART- 
 URE from Home — And oh! to be a Sailor-boy. 
 
 great-great-great-grand- 
 father, more than two 
 hundred years ago, set- 
 tled at Green 
 Farms, Fairfield county, Connecticut; taking up a 
 farm, as was the custom then, by running two paral- 
 lel lines in a northerly direction from Long Island 
 Sound, so as to inclose a strip of land as long and as 
 wide as he desired. This grant, signed by the Eng- 
 lish king, and always to be exempt from taxes, ex- 
 tended, according to the record on parchment in 
 the Hartford Hall of Records, from the Sound, 
 through Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont. 
 There were plenty of Indians in the country then,
 
 1 8 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 but neither roads nor fences, and the trees 
 were marked with an ax to indicate the boundary 
 lines. 
 
 The old house, the home of my fondest recol- 
 lections, was built by this Joseph Wakeman, and 
 lived in by five Josephs successively, »down to my 
 uncle Joe, who died in 1854. After his death it was 
 sold to the Episcopalian society, and a stone church, 
 the finest religious edifice in Westport, the town 
 which has grown up around it, erected upon its site. 
 The old house measured fifty feet by forty, the stone 
 chimney was eighteen feet square, the kitchen fire- 
 place was ten feet wide at the back, twelve feet wide 
 in front and six feet deep; a horse was employed to 
 haul in the back-log, which was generally about nine 
 feet long by three in diameter. The stone steps 
 into the cellar were immense, and the oak timbers 
 in the chamber floor and around the chimney were 
 sixteen inches square. The original siding and 
 shingles were never changed, but the last time I 
 saw the old place the shingles were worn through 
 in many places and were generally threadbare. 
 
 When the mail-stage road from NewYork to Bos- 
 ton came to be made, it ran close to the house, where 
 the stage always stopped upon each trip, and when 
 the British troops were in this country a number of 
 officers made their headquarters at this house. 
 My father was then a boy, and I have heard him 
 say that he and the other frightened children ran 
 and threw themselves into a bed as the troops ap-
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 19 
 
 proached; and I have seen him laugh as he remem- 
 bered how he trembled when a soldier pulled back 
 the covering, exclaiming: 
 
 " Here they are; black and white, all together!" 
 
 My father's only sister, Abigail, then a little girl, 
 made the beds in the room of one of the officers, 
 which was filled with money in silver coin; she 
 thought she would like to have some of this abun- 
 dance, so she put a coin under each of the four bed- 
 posts, thinking thus to secure it. But this little 
 girl of a former century was disappointed in her 
 plans, for when the soldiers gathered up their 
 money they found and carried off her hoard. 
 
 Down the road and across it, when I was young, 
 stood an old building, which I have heard my 
 father say was the house of a Jenning, a family 
 which intermarried with mine. When the soldiers 
 were leaving Westport they set fire to this building, 
 and left a small squad behind to see that the fire 
 was well kindled. But the boys, my father among 
 them, got an old King's timand loaded it and then 
 crept behind the stone fence, from which place they 
 shot at the soldiers, wounding one and putting all 
 to flight, so that the boys extinguished the flames 
 and saved the house. 
 
 My grandfather Joseph and his wife Mary both 
 died young. His family consisted of my father, 
 whose name was Hezekiah, Seth, Joseph, Gideon 
 and one daughter, Abigail; good, old-fashioned 
 names, that I love to recall, and family histories
 
 20 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 that my father used to relate to me when I was a 
 boy at home, how I love to repeat them! 
 
 My father married Mary Godfrey on the eigh- 
 teenth of February, 1798. He lived to the ripe 
 age of eighty-seven, and my mother died at seven- 
 ty-eight. My father was noted for his skill and 
 strength in wrestling more than for anything else, 
 unless it was for his sturdy honesty. On public 
 occasions in our village, eighty years ago, wrest- 
 ling matches were always held in which my father 
 invariably engaged, while report saith that he was 
 never once thrown by his opponent. It was 
 the custom then for the lad who was the best 
 wrestler to wait upon the county belle, so it may 
 be surmised that my mother was a very pretty 
 girl; and I have often heard her say that Hezekiah 
 was not only the strongest lad, and the only one 
 of her acquaintance who possessed a double row 
 of teeth all around, but also the best-looking 
 young man in the country. 
 
 Before I leave these old times, which my chil- 
 dren will probably consider old-fogyish, but which 
 were stirring times, after all, in their own way, I 
 will go still further back, to the year 1645, when 
 one good wife Knapp was hanged as a witch. The 
 wife of Thomas Staples was the only woman in 
 Fairfield who had the courage and o;ood sense to 
 dare attest that she did not believe in the mark; 
 she even went so far as to assert that she did not 
 believe that there was any such thing as a witch.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 21 
 
 anyway, for which she came very near being 
 hanged as one herself, as it gave offense to the 
 authorities who had condemned Knapp's wife. 
 But Mr. Staples promptly sued these dignitaries, 
 not excepting Mr. Ludlow, who was a great man, 
 for slandering his wife in calling her a witch, and 
 the court awarded him £10 to repair his wife's 
 character. 
 
 My first personal recollections carry me back 
 more than forty years to a little tow- headed fellow 
 living with his kind father and his loving mother 
 in Westport, in the State of Connecticut. His 
 principal occupation at that time consisted in stub- 
 bing his toes and kissing his mother; and I can yet 
 see, in imagination, the bare-footed urchin, a differ- 
 ent colored wrapping around each suffering toe, 
 rushing to the maternal bosom for consolation in 
 a fresh misfortune. 
 
 But in spite of his misfortunes he continued to 
 thrive and grow older, going to school, romping 
 with his playmates, and getting into and out of all 
 sorts of mischief, in one of the most beautiful 
 valleys in the world. 
 
 This youngster was particularly fond of dough, 
 and I distinctly remember one occasion when his 
 mother prepared a short-cake and placed it in the 
 spider, before the fire, to cook; then she slipped 
 off her apron and ran into the parlor to resume an 
 absorping description, to several old ladies, inter- 
 ested listeners, of Emmeline Adam's new bonnet.
 
 22 The Log of an Ancie7it Mariner. 
 
 du 
 
 In due time she ran back again to toss the spider 
 and turn the cake, as it was done 
 in those days, but Towhead had 
 watched his opportunity, and loJ 
 where was the short-cake? My poor 
 mother was not at a loss to guess, but 
 that did not prevent dire consterna- 
 tion from settling down upon the 
 whole household, and the old ladies, 
 disappointed visitors to tea, who had thus lost 
 their short-cake, held up amazed and incredulous 
 hands and eyes towards an unsympathizing ceiling. 
 At one time, even, this graceless urchin ate so 
 much of his favorite short-cake and ate so much 
 apple-dumpling, that after supper his sister, Mary, 
 was obliged to lay him upon the floor before the 
 blazing fire, unbutton his jacket and rub him with 
 goose-grease, that he might be restored to ease 
 without actually bursting. But if Towhead was 
 what was called, at that time, a rogue, receiving 
 the credit of doing it, no matter what was done, he 
 was, at least, an honest one, and was never known 
 to tell a lie to escape blame. Indeed, upon one 
 occasion, two old maids who lived upon the hill, 
 on whose very brink their barn was situated, were 
 so unfortunate as to have that out-building blown 
 from the top of the rising ground to the bottom 
 during a gale one stormy night; and then they put 
 on their bonnets, their capes and their mits, and 
 came, solemnly but indignantly, to remonstrate
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 23 
 
 with this luckless youngster, whose devoted shoul- 
 ders were thus made to bear the sins of the hurri- 
 cane. 
 
 One day, when wading in 
 the brook, he saw and caught 
 a very small turtle; but the 
 turtle resented the liberty and 
 bit him until the blood began 
 to flow. Towhead dropped 
 the turtle, and ran home with 
 all his speed, where he fell 
 flat, pale and breathless, before his mother. 
 
 "Oh! mother, I have come home to die!" he 
 gasped. 
 
 "What in the wide world is the matter with 
 you?" asked his mother. 
 
 "A turtle bit me, a turtle bit me," was all he had 
 strength enough to say, and then he closed his 
 eyes, verily believing that he was already expiring. 
 But his mother took up his little brown hand and 
 saw the place where the turtle had taken a very 
 small nip out of the end of one dirt-stained 
 little finger; she immediately kissed the place and 
 assured him that it would soon be well again. 
 
 ''But, mother, you told me that if a turtle bit 
 me I should certainly die after it," returned her son, 
 venturing to open his eyes again. 
 
 ''Yes, my boy, but many a long year after, I 
 trust; I told you that to keep you from going into 
 the water," his mother was obliged to explain; and
 
 24 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 even then, he had, he thought, been so near the 
 point of death that it hardly seemed proper to him 
 to recover, all in a moment, from the deadly turtle- 
 bite. 
 
 Not long after this, his sister made him a most 
 beautiful cap, bound with a golden cord; the only 
 emblem apparent that he was a boy, for he still 
 wore only a long, coarse, home-spun frock. He 
 was so proud of his new cap that he wore it all the 
 time, and even went to sleep in it. One dark night 
 he was sent to a neighbor's house on an errand, 
 and being afraid that he would fall into the brook, 
 he was crawling across the bridge on his hands 
 and knees when a fierce growl from a big dog, 
 right in his face, brought him instantly to his feet. 
 Some unaccountable impulse caused him to pull 
 his cap off of his head and hold it in his hands in 
 front of his breast ; in a moment more the dog had 
 knocked him down, but instead of taking him by 
 the throat, as he intended, the dog seized and ran 
 away with his cap, which he probably buried some- 
 where, as Towhead could never find it anywhere 
 in the village. Not long after this another big dog 
 bit him severely in the left leg, taking out a 
 mouthful and tearing the flesh fearfully, making a 
 wound whose scar is yet visible. It would appear 
 that the dogs of the village had formed an alli- 
 ance and were determined to eat him up; but 
 Towhead was too valiant to allow this, and he 
 soon had the satisfaction of gaining a great vie-
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 25 
 
 tory over the dogs, pelting one with stones him- 
 self and persuading a friend to shoot the more fe- 
 rocious ones. 
 
 Among his more narrow escapes, occurred this 
 one: In darting suddenly across a log to catch a big 
 chip that had just fallen to the ground, he received 
 the blow of an ax upon his head, cracking his skull 
 nearly from ear to ear; his brother was using the 
 ax at the time, and thinking that he had killed 
 Towhead, he ran and hid and nearly cried himself 
 to death. But oh! if you could have seen his 
 mother ! The poor, dear creature, to see her little 
 Towhead brought like a corpse to her, all covered 
 with blood as he was, and placed in her lap, as they 
 all thought, to die. 'Twas a heart-rending scene 
 and Towhead did, indeed, lose consciousness, for 
 the sight of so much blood made him sick; but 
 when he recovered himself he found that he had 
 been washed clean and was already on the way to 
 recovery, and it was said by many an old lady that 
 he owed his life to the fact that he had no brains. 
 Be that as it may, there is something in his head, 
 for he carries a silver plate in it to this day. 
 
 It was not loner before he was in another trouble. 
 It was winter and a dozen boys were gathered on 
 a high hill with their sleds, but none of them dared 
 coast down it for fear of running right into the river, 
 which was filled with cakes of ice, floating rapidly 
 towards the sea; until Towhead, thinking that he 
 could guide his sled better than could the rest, and
 
 26 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 having less brains or less fear than they, stepped out 
 of the crowd and said that he would try it. In a 
 moment the sled was running swiftly dpwn the hill 
 until she struck the level strip between its foot and 
 the brink of the river ; it was here that our lad ex- 
 pected to show off his generalship in sliding down 
 hill, by steering his sled along this level place, 
 where she could have run some distance ; but, al- 
 though she was brought around so as to face the 
 right way, she went just as fast sideways, and in a 
 moment poor little Towhead was precipitated off 
 the bank into the freezing waters below. 
 
 Terror seized upon all the boys when they saw 
 their companion disappear under a great cake of 
 ice, and they wept and wrung their hands as they 
 ran along the river. But Towhead crawled to the 
 top of the ice and sat, all up in a heap, nearly 
 frozen stiff, until he passed near enough to the 
 shore to jump; again he fell into the water, but 
 this time the larger boys could reach him, and he 
 was finally carried home on a sled, not his own, for 
 that had gone far out to sea. And then you could 
 have seen how a mother loves her child ! This 
 narrow escape was the talk of the village, and 
 again the voice of the old women was heard, this 
 time predicting that Towhead would yet come to 
 some untimely end. 
 
 About this time it occurred to Towhead that if 
 he could but gain the top of the tall button-ball 
 tree, growing in his father's yard, he would be able
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 27 
 
 to see all the rest of the world. But, arrived at the 
 top, his disappointment was bitter when a slight 
 breeze broke the limb and brought him, through 
 all the branches, to the ground. But as he was 
 not much hurt he next climbed a high hill and felt 
 that, at last, he had indeed viewed the other 
 side of the world. 
 
 From this time Towhead entertained a burning 
 desire to go to New York, in his favorite sloop 
 " Mary," that he might view the wonders lying 
 beyond the hills and the tree-tops of his native 
 village.. At last, possessed of his first complete 
 suit of clothes, he gave his parents no peace of 
 mind until he obtained their consent to his depart- 
 ure; this granted, his father gave him a small sum 
 of money and advice worth thousands, while his 
 poor mother cried and kissed him, and felt that 
 she was about to lose her dear little Towhead for- 
 ever. 
 
 At last his "kit" was ready and the night arrived 
 for the sloop to sail. Poor Towhead felt, for the 
 first time, that he was about to leave all that was 
 to him most sacred, his parents and home; but his 
 strong desire to see the world drowned all other 
 feelings, and in a short time he retired to his berth 
 in the sloop's cabin, he being a cabin passenger, 
 and the price of passage fifty cents. After a very 
 pleasant voyage the sloop was tied to the dock at 
 the foot of James street. The city was to him all 
 in a blaze, it being about eight p. m. Before the
 
 28 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 sloop was fast we find that our young man from 
 the country had jumped upon the dock, and, with- 
 out stopping a moment, had run several blocks, 
 until he came to a store that had attracted him 
 from the first; it appeared to be all glass, and shone 
 with a most brilliant light, wholly eclipsing any- 
 thing else in that vicinity. He was not content 
 with admiring its outward beauty, but walked right 
 into the middle of this great emporium. The clerks 
 leaned over the counter from all points of the 
 store, showing the most polite attention and desire 
 to wait upon him; but he stopped in the center of 
 the room, and the first salutation that broke in on 
 his bewildered mind was from a person who sat 
 smoking a cigar, and leaning his chair against a 
 pillar that supported the center of the upper floor. 
 This gentleman, finding that the boy had not per- 
 ceived him, as yet, called his attention, asking 
 what he wanted. 
 
 "Nothing," he was promptly answered. 
 
 ''You are better off than most of us," said the 
 gentleman, " I suppose you are from the country?" 
 
 "Yes, sir." 
 
 "What part?" 
 
 " Connecticut." 
 
 "When did you arrive?" 
 
 "Just now — about five minutes ago." 
 
 "How?" 
 
 '' On the sloop ' Mary,' sir." 
 
 u How would you like to come and live here
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 29 
 
 and work for me? I am owner of these three 
 stores." 
 
 " I should be very glad," says our boy from the 
 country. 
 
 "Then come up here at six to-morrow morning, 
 and that lad," pointing to a young man behind the 
 counter, " will show you how to take down the 
 shutters and sweep out the store." 
 
 This was enough, and this country youth, now 
 about twelve years and a half old, ran, as though 
 for his life, back to the sloop, and astonished the 
 whole crew by telling them that he had found a 
 place to live in, and was about to transport his 
 limited wardrobe up to that great store that was 
 so brilliantly illuminated. Of course the crew 
 could scarcely believe it, as they had but just com- 
 pleted making the sloop fast. This boy had not 
 been idle in the meantime, and had really secured 
 for himself clothes, boarding, and some little money 
 at the end of the year. Oh! what a mail went 
 back to his parents, filled with joy that henceforth 
 he was to make his own way in the world. Oh! 
 how foolish he was ; a mother's love was worth all 
 the world besides. 
 
 Although at first he had a boy to show him all 
 the different streets and numbers to which these 
 three stores directed their orders, he soon became 
 thoroughly acquainted with the whole city. He 
 opened the store at daylight, swept out and cleaned 
 up, always cast his eyes over the papers as he
 
 30 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 spread them upon the counter to dry, and then the 
 older clerks and salesmen began to arrive and he 
 would get his breakfast and carry orders. 
 
 He soon began to observe that the best sales- 
 man was the greatest story teller, and the fear of 
 disobeying his loving mother's advice — -never, under 
 any circumstances, to tell lies — first caused him, al- 
 though treated with great kindness, to think of 
 choosing some other business. He was now about 
 fourteeen years of age, slim and light, but quick. 
 At last an innate desire to see the world became so 
 strong that he determined upon going to sea. It 
 was not long after his mind was made up that an 
 opportunity offered itself. 
 
 As he spread the newspaper upon the counter to 
 dry, for it was so recently from press that it was 
 yet damp, his eye caught sight of the name of a 
 ship that was going upon a long trading voyage 
 around the world. Soon after breakfast he was 
 sent with an order to number one, Stone street, in 
 the south end of the city, near the Battery. As 
 the gentleman was not at home, he, as was his 
 custom at every opportunity, strolled where he 
 could look upon the water and the ships riding at 
 anchor or sailing out and in, wondering where they 
 all went to and what sights they must see. 
 
 At last we find him at the foot of Wall street,, 
 and looking down the dock he sees the name " Pe- 
 ruvian," upon a ship. This was the ship which he 
 had seen mentioned in the paper; she was about
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 31 
 
 to start upon a voyage around the world. He 
 walked right on board 
 and the first person 
 he saw was an old, 
 gray-haired man, en- 
 gaged • in moving an 
 empty flour-barrel to 
 one side. He ad- 
 dressed him at once, 
 after this manner : 
 
 " Are you the cap- 
 tain, sir?" 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 '* Have you all your 
 crew r 
 
 "Have you ever 
 been to sea?" 
 
 "No, sir; but I 
 want to go." 
 
 "Where do you 
 come from?" 
 
 "Connecticut, sir." 
 
 "Well, you look like a good boy, and I will take 
 you; get your clothes quick, and come right on 
 board, as we haul out next tide. You will want 
 some mittens and woolen socks off Cape Horn, 
 but all the rest of the voyage is very pleasant, and 
 duck pants will do." 
 
 All this kind advice was given in a most paternal 
 tone. It is unnecessary to say that I ran to a friend,
 
 32 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 stowed a small chest, went on board, and in less 
 than half an hour was at anchor in the North river, 
 a sailor-boy in the forecastle of a ship bound around 
 the globe. 
 
 No pen can describe my feelings. I had written 
 to my poor mother, asking her consent, and in the 
 same letter, telling her that as she read I should be 
 far out to sea. For you have seen that in Tow- 
 head and the young man from the country is to be 
 recognized the mariner who writes this record of 
 his life. 
 
 And now I am about to write an abstract of my 
 voyages. Some fifty years have elapsed since my 
 advent into this world, and although some thirty- 
 five of them have been spent upon the ocean, I 
 shall, in what I write, relate only the plain facts, 
 to the best of my memory.
 
 Tke Log of an Ancient Mariner. 33 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Around the World — A Jolly Captain — Foreign Ports- 
 Home Again. 
 
 E were in the North 
 river in front of Jer- 
 sey City, all hands be- 
 ing kept busy prepar- 
 ing for sea. The mate 
 spoke to the sailors in 
 ■^v- loud and fierce tones, 
 and was very much put out because I did not un- 
 derstand him when he told me to go aloft and 
 mouse the hooks of the port main clew garnet- 
 blocks. 
 
 At last night settled over the earth and the ship, 
 and we were permitted to go into the forecastle. 
 I heard some of the old salts arranging a scheme 
 for swimming ashore that night; I asked them why 
 they wished to go back so soon, as we had not 
 yet started. The answer was this: 
 
 "Boy, this ship is hell afloat, and we would rather 
 die than go the voyage with those bloody officers," 
 alluding to the mates. With the consent of all the 
 crew I turned into the starboard after upper bunk; 
 this I found to be the best bunk in the ship's fore- 
 castle and it was a generous gift, as those for'ard
 
 34 The Log of an A7icient Mariner. 
 
 were always wet in fresh weather, as she leaked 
 badly around the stem and breast-hooks; and this 
 dry bunk was accorded to me on account of my 
 delicate appearance. 
 
 Next morning we were called at daylight to 
 heave-up anchor and make sail. As we stood out 
 to sea, I observed that none of the sailors had 
 disappeared during the night. Before the pilot's 
 skiff was half the length of the ship away, the 
 captain, who up to this time had kept still, came 
 out on the quarter-deck, and gave all the orders to 
 fill away. Then, seeing a very dandified negro,, 
 who had shipped as steward from one of the Liver- 
 pool packets (or ships that traded to Liverpool, 
 for they had not, at this time, earned the appella- 
 tion of packet-ships), about to pass him on the 
 same side of the quarter-deck, he knocked him 
 
 down with one blow of 
 his fist, where he lay like 
 a dead man. When he 
 came to, the captain re- 
 s' minded him that a week 
 before he had seen black 
 thieves on board who ate 
 his raisins as they passed 
 through the cabin. Then 
 he kicked him most unmercifully, and called him 
 all manner of hard names, the favorite being, " You 
 son of a sea-cook." 
 
 Next he went to the galley, and hauled out the
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 35 
 
 old cook, beating and kicking him until he lay like 
 another dead man ; then he drew off and cleared 
 his throat. Seeing me, he sang out, in the great- 
 est fury: " Up there, you Con- 
 necticut lubber, and loose the 
 main royal!" I never knew 
 how I did it, but the sail was 
 set, and I came safely on deck 
 again. 
 
 We soon found that he was 
 as severe upon the officers as 
 upon the crew, the mates them- 
 selves being terrible men, knock- 
 ing some one down continually. 
 We were put on very short al- 
 lowance, given half an hour to eat in, and then 
 kept busy early and late, for the ship was a leaky 
 one, and instead of having her refitted in port, the 
 captain had brought her to sea to do it. First one 
 thing gave way, and then another; and it kept us 
 busy, night and day, pumping the ship out and re- 
 pairing. 
 
 Off Cape Horn, we came near losing the ship, 
 as we were running right into the breakers; but 
 the mate, who took the watch at daylight, put the 
 helm down just in time to bring her round in safety. 
 
 While pumping ship one night, I had the mis- 
 fortune to smash one of the fingers on my left- 
 hand with the pump-brake; before I was permitted 
 to wrap it around with anything, I was driven up
 
 36 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 on the main-topsail yard to lend a hand to close 
 reef, it hailing and snowing at the time. When I 
 returned on deck, although the nail and the ringer 
 were mashed together with the end of the bone, I 
 could merely tie a piece of coarse duck around it, 
 and was obliged to continue work just the same. 
 
 At last, we anchored at Valparaiso. What a 
 change from the solitude of the sea! This was in 
 1834, and I shall never forget the impression made 
 upon my boyish and inexperienced mind. I could 
 not realize that I was so far from Westport, and 
 almost on the other side of the world from all that 
 was familiar to me. 
 
 We had had a hard day's work, for the two 
 worst days of a sailor's voyage are the day of go- 
 ing out of, and the day of coming into a port; yet 
 I could not sleep, but spent more than half of that 
 still and clear starlight night upon deck, listening 
 to the continuous cries of the venders of fruit and 
 different wares, who told what they carried and 
 solicited customers in an unknown jargon, and at 
 the top of their voices. 
 
 At last, one by one, the lights went out and 
 the criers had screamed until they were hoarse, or 
 until they had the bronchitis so bad that they were 
 obliged to subside into that silence which pervades 
 all nature in the early hours of the morning. The 
 watchman alone sang, "All is well," every fifteen 
 minutes, his cries sounding to me like those of some 
 poor fellow in deep distress. Finally I fell into the
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 37 
 
 sleep and dreams that only the sailor-boy is blessed 
 with. 
 
 Next morning, at four o'clock, all hands were 
 called to wash the decks and get out the long boat 
 and the jolly-boat, or captain's gig, as it is some- 
 times called. I was appointed not only to the 
 captain's gig, but to the post of honor, the after- 
 oar, and when the captain was absent I acted as 
 coxswain and had charge of the boat. I soon 
 learned to feather and. toss, and found that I was 
 quite strong and thick-set to what I had been 
 when I left New York. After breakfast we pulled 
 the captain on shore. I was ordered to follow him, 
 the other three keeping the boat; I always walked 
 about ten steps behind, for we were all filled with 
 a terrible fear of this man. 
 
 And now I saw, for the first time, a Spanish 
 country and people. I met my friends of the night 
 before, and could see how they looked and dressed, 
 and what they made so much noise about. 
 
 The shops were kept in the open street, their 
 stores of fine linen, broadcloth, hardware, and con- 
 fectionery being spread right out upon the road, 
 which was as clean, however, as good brooms 
 could make it. In going upon the Heights, the 
 first thing that attracted my attention was a long 
 row of women upon each side of a stream of water, 
 pounding their linen clothes with clubs. This is 
 the unvarying method of washing clothes, among 
 three-fourths of the inhabitants of the globe; and 
 
 5286717
 
 38 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 here almost everyone, male and female, young and 
 old, wears some article of clean white linen or cot- 
 ton goods, which keeps the women busy, kneeling 
 in those long rows, which have knelt where they 
 are to-day for hundreds of years, and will kneel 
 as longr as the stream runs from the mountains to 
 the sea. 
 
 The next thing that I noticed was a very large 
 drove of very small jackasses. Nothing but their 
 legs, from the knee down, was visible under their im- 
 mense loads, which they had packed from the capi- 
 tal,, Santiago, a distance of ninety-six miles. Their 
 burdens consisted of the wings of large birds, such 
 as the condor, and bundles of small hard-wood 
 branches. 
 
 As I have visited Valparaiso frequently since I 
 have been in command, and so have grown famil- 
 iar with it, I will leave my early impressions to say 
 a few words about the place. 
 
 As you approach from the south, around Point 
 Angels, you see a long sandy beach; the next 
 moment the whole town, the forts, and the ship- 
 ping with colors flying, start, as it were, from 
 behind the rocks. The bright and animated scene 
 may be taken in while you are selecting an an- 
 chorage. 
 
 Valparaiso, or the vale of Paradise, was, a few 
 years before my first visit, of very humble origin. 
 It originally consisted of a few warehouses in 
 which the merchants of Santiago kept their goods
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 39 
 
 stored, for convenience in shipping to Callao, the 
 only inhabitants being the servants left in charge 
 of the warehouses. In the course of time, how- 
 ever, the merchants and their families moved down, 
 in order to be more conveniently situated for trade, 
 until the place has grown into a city of magnitude 
 and wealth. The stores are situated upon the 
 street which lies at the foot of the precipice and 
 along the beach, while the residences have spread 
 out over a great part of the Heights. This preci- 
 pice, which overhangs the town, is composed of red 
 earth and rock, and is divided in one place by a 
 narrow ravine, having at its base a kind of open 
 square from which zigzag streets run up the sides 
 of the hills. The principal streets are well paved, 
 the shops have glazed windows; the whole picture 
 is one of activity and business; the very carts and 
 wagons, the horses, oxen and jackasses having a 
 cheerful appearance of industry. 
 
 But to return to my first visit to Valparaiso. 
 This was my daily occupation in port: to pull the 
 captain on shore and off, and sometimes a dozen 
 times in a day, to return, as coxswain of the boat, 
 ostensibly to carry a note to the mate; but I 
 noticed that I always carried a bandage full of 
 ounces tied around my waist. I was never sus- 
 pected, and was kept, in nearly all the ports of 
 Chili and Peru, in this nefarious business. 
 
 On our return to our ship, one day, the captain 
 learned from the mate that one of our English
 
 4-0 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 sailors had given himself up as a deserter to the 
 English frigate " Blonde," and a boat from that ship 
 had taken him away during our absence. 
 
 "Man the boat!" was ordered, and in ten min- 
 utes we had our irate captain on the deck of the 
 English ship. From the boat, we heard loud and 
 and fierce talking, and in a very few minutes the 
 captain came over the side, and our English sailor 
 was pulled back to our ship by the lieutenant who 
 had taken him out, as our captain refused to take 
 him in our boat. The next day, on shore, some 
 of the crew of the u Blonde" told me that their 
 captain had been "awfully scared" by ours. 
 
 One day, being on shore at the merchant's, I 
 was sent up stairs and into the back end of the 
 loft. In looking around For what I was sent after, 
 I caught sight of a strange image, standing like a 
 marble statue. As soon as I recovered from the 
 first shock and fear enough to decide that it was 
 cut out of stone, I approached and examined its 
 features closely, whereupon it rolled its eyes and 
 closed them. I don't know what else it did, as I 
 touched about three of the steps in descending to 
 the room below. I saw that explanation was un- 
 necessary, as they were already enjoying the trick 
 they had played upon me, with the aid of the first 
 young Chinaman I had ever seen, who had played 
 his part well. 
 
 Some of our men ran away, but, although they 
 were leagues back in the mountains, the reward
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 41 
 
 offered by our captain was a sufficient inducement, 
 and they were all returned but one little boy. Him 
 I had lowered from the bow one dark night, into 
 the wash-deck tub, in which he paddled to a little 
 schooner close to, that sailed at daylight, and little 
 Ned Sprange went down the coast, while we soon 
 sailed up, smuggling at every port and anchorage. 
 Most enormous prices were realized by the captain 
 for everything he put out of the ship. 
 
 At last, we anchored at Callao. Here the cap- 
 tain called a lot of soldiers on board, and sent all 
 our best sailors on shore, including those who had 
 run away in Valparaiso; here their heads, or rather 
 their necks, were put into the stocks for safe-keep- 
 ing, and every morning, when we had pulled the 
 captain on shore, he made us go to the calaboose 
 and look at our ship-mates through the iron bars. 
 When he had enjoyed our fear long enough, he 
 would roar like a lion: "Go on board! I shall 
 have you all here yet!" No grass grew under our 
 feet, I can tell you. We were allowed no lib- 
 erty, not a soul setting foot on shore but the boys 
 and the chief mate, who swam ashore one night 
 and made his escape. 
 
 I was taken to Lima to attend to the captain's 
 orders, and to carry notes back to the ship. It 
 was here that we shipped a lieutenant out of the 
 navy as chief officer; the captain talking to him 
 with such suavity that the lieutenant took him for 
 a good man, and thought he would have a pleasant 
 time on board.
 
 42 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 After we returned to the ship, at Callao, the 
 steward jumped overboard to drown himself, as he 
 had been cowhided almost every day since leav- 
 ing New York. Off Cape Horn, he had been 
 stripped naked and put into the wash-deck tub, 
 and while some poured water upon his head, others 
 had scrubbed him with a hickory broom. I was 
 in the boat at the time he jumped overboard, but 
 the captain would not permit me to catch him un- 
 til after he went down the third time. Then I 
 was ordered to catch him, which I did, throwing 
 myself over the bow of the boat waist deep, and 
 seizing him by the wool. I bent a line around him, 
 and he was hauled to the deck, where he was tied 
 to the windlass all day. His body and limbs were 
 completely cut up by the cowhide floggings he had 
 received. 
 
 On Callao Mole, I got my first glimpse of war. 
 Portions of the crews of two men-of-war had been 
 on shore, and, after engaging in a fight, had broken 
 open the calaboose and liberated the prisoners. A 
 boy named Green, and I, had just gone on shore, 
 when soldiers arrived from Lima to quell the dis- 
 turbance; and the first thing we knew, little Green 
 was kicked a somersault complete. I ran for the 
 boat, and pulled Green in after me. The soldiers 
 struck right and left, thrusting their bayonets and 
 sabers right through the bodies of some of the 
 sailors, splitting the heads of others, and killing 
 some twenty men in less than fifteen minutes. It
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 43 
 
 was a terrible sight, and not first to be forgotten 
 was the expression of the savage who turned upon 
 poor little Green. If he had been larger, he would 
 have been killed, but when the brute saw how 
 small he was, he kicked him heels over head, with 
 the contemptuous scowl of a hyena. 
 
 In crossing the skysail yards, one day, at this 
 port, I was saved by almost a miracle. I was up 
 at the fore, when orders to cross came from the 
 deck. I had hooked the lifts, but had only taken 
 two turns around the port, without tying; so, after 
 the yard was across, and I had gone out to the 
 extreme end, which set outside the newly-tarred 
 lift, I saw that the hook of the lift was out of the 
 eye-bolt, and all that held me were the two turns 
 of the rope-yarn, that happened to be jammed. 
 It would have been a dizzy height to fall from, but 
 I got in safely, feeling, I can assure you, truly grate- 
 ful at my narrow escape. 
 
 We sailed from this port to Payta, one of the 
 most God- forsaken spots along the coast; but I do 
 not here describe the places we visited, as I have 
 deferred it until I can have reference to assist me 
 in the proper way. 
 
 I should observe here that our nice and gentle- 
 manly lieutenant from the navy, who was en route 
 home via East Indies, and who had been so com- 
 pletely deceived by the suavity of our captain as 
 to join the ship as chief officer, now found that he 
 had shipped under one of the most tyrannical
 
 44 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 masters afloat. Before leaving Payta the lappels 
 of his coat and his sleeves to the elbow had been 
 cut off, and he had been set to tarring parsling. 
 He was bullied at every turn, and did not get half 
 the good treatment which we boys received. 
 
 Before leaving the coast of Peru I will -state 
 that being hove to off the coast of Arisca, close to 
 the harbor, a school of whales came in suddenly 
 one night, pressing around the ship and exhibiting 
 every sign of fear; we amused ourselves by strik- 
 ing their backs with our oars, but they would not 
 leave us. Shortly after, the ship shook and trem- 
 bled so that we could not stand, and we heard a 
 most terrific noise upon the land. It soon passed 
 away, and at daylight we found that the place had 
 been destroyed, but few of its inhabitants remain- 
 ing. Ned Sprange, who ran away in the wash-deck 
 tub at Valparaiso, had sailed to Tulcahuana, and 
 was there at the time the place was destroyed by 
 the same earthquake. 
 
 Having now disposed of the part of our cargo 
 intended for this coast, we sailed for Manila. It 
 was on the way to that port that, one day, the car- 
 penter of the ship and I had to shake all the reefs 
 out of the mizzen-topsail. To accelerate the hoist- 
 ing, we took hold of the running part of the top- 
 sail halyards, and both jumped out of the mizzen- 
 top together, but the lower block being unhooked, 
 we, of course, went down by the run. The car- 
 penter fell through the skylight, taking all the
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 45 
 
 frame and glass with him, and fetched up, with a 
 terrible crash, on the table directly 
 underneath. I struck with one leg 
 on the binnacle, and my leg being 
 straight at the time, I was capsized 
 and came head foremost to the 
 deck. After seeing stars for some 
 time I came to, and immediately 
 crawled to leeward of the hurri- 
 cane house, where I set up a most 
 piteous moaning, as though I was 
 nearly dead. In a few minutes the 
 captain was on deck; if his ship 
 had been taken by pirates he would not have been 
 more frightened. Such a crash so close to him as 
 he lay asleep in his cot (just on the starboard side 
 of the skylight), with his uneasy conscience! But 
 as soon as he got on deck and found himself safe, 
 he cleared his throat and commenced a tirade of 
 abuse: 
 
 ^Tf you had only broken your necks, your 
 backs, your legs, your arms, you sons of blank ! — 
 if you have not, I will flay you alive for breaking 
 my glass." 
 
 Next day the carpenter had to make another 
 sash and put in new glass. It was my trick at the 
 wheel, and hence we were close together. The 
 captain bullied him so that at length he trembled 
 so much with fear that he cracked a pane of glass ! 
 The captain went immediately below and returned
 
 46 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 with a cowhide, with which he whipped him so 
 unmercifully that my flesh crawled, and I expected 
 to get the next task; but watching the main-top- 
 sail sharply and steering close to the wind saved 
 me; if I had been off the wind or a little too near, 
 I should have suffered. 
 
 After a run of fifty-seven days, in the finest 
 weather, we anchored at Manila. By this time I 
 was becoming accustomed to seeing strange and 
 unfamiliar places. Here laziness predominated. 
 Pigs and fowls are in all the streets, and urchins 
 with lighted joss-sticks are always ready to rush 
 upon any one having a cigar, not leaving him until 
 it is fairly lighted. The footpaths or sidewalks are 
 of lava, and the universal little shops consist of 
 two bamboo mats, a few bamboo poles, and a 
 thatched roof. Europeans seldom appear on foot 
 in the sun, and men are very often seen carrying 
 parasols. Every shop and every street in Manila 
 is a picture, the groups and the colors being all 
 that an artist could wish for. 
 
 We lay here a long while, and were kept at 
 work taking off the old outside sheathing of the 
 " Peruvian ;" we scratched off seven coats of China 
 paint, which was as hard as earthenware, with dull 
 scrapers, and if we chanced to look up the side of 
 the ship we were sure to get the end of a rope 
 hove at us, while the second mate would growl 
 like a tiger, "Hi there! go on with your work." 
 The only rest we had was when in the boat. But
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 47 
 
 the captain had all his best sailors on the tread- 
 mill for safe keeping, and he would order us boys 
 to pull him down close to that horrid machine, when 
 he would order us to lay on our oars. Then he 
 would give orders in Spanish to the captain of this 
 infernal craft, and we would soon see our poor ship- 
 mates taken from the wheel, stretched out on deck, 
 and almost flayed alive with split bamboo; this 
 is called bambooing. After gloating his soul to 
 its content with the sight of the blood from their 
 backs, he would order them up on the machine 
 again, where they had to keep step or be crushed. 
 After this sight he would act as if filled with ten 
 thousand demons; "pull away, you imps of Satan," 
 he would shout, "and remember that you will be 
 put there too, if you don't keep a bright look- 
 out." 
 
 It was now that I had access to his books, as 
 I was allowed to come aft during my forenoon 
 watch below, to study navigation. ' Several other 
 boys commenced at the same time, but they soon 
 gave it up, for if we did not understand, our amiable 
 master would instantly fly into a passion that 
 would have intimidated a lion; however, I stuck 
 to it, and soon gained an insight into it, when he 
 gave me permission to look over his old logs; he 
 had made thirty-two voyages around the globe. 
 In his early days he had commanded armed ves- 
 sels, and lay in wait for Spanish Manila-men as 
 they sailed between Manila and Acapulco; out-
 
 48 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 ward bound th£y had money, homeward bound 
 they had large cargoes. He even took a twenty- 
 one gun ship, so that he was a great pirate and a 
 great fighter also, having killed many a man in his 
 day; and many a man had been seized and tied to 
 the rigging by his orders, and whipped upon his 
 naked back until the blood would flow. We were 
 kept on short allowance of bread and beef while 
 in Manila, and when thirsty were compelled to go 
 to the main-royalmast-head to get a tin pot, bring 
 it down, drink, and carry it back again; this was 
 to prevent us from drinking too often. In fact, we 
 were so worked and starved that we became per- 
 fectly indifferent to our fate. I fell overboard one 
 day, when my comrades shouted "sharks will get 
 you !" but I lay still until I had eaten some bananas 
 which I held in my hand, when I swam alongside 
 and went up with a rope's end that was passed to 
 me, perfectly careless about the sharks. 
 
 After a long and hard time in Manila, we sailed 
 for Batavia, on the Island of Java, where we ar- 
 rived after a most tedious passage down through 
 the China Sea, where we saw great sea-snakes, 
 like eels, but more dormant, lying on the surface 
 of the water. It was very sickly at Batavia, and 
 nearly all of the crews of the different ships had 
 died. We were the only men who were not al- 
 lowed awnings; and Bishop, an Englishman, and 
 the best singer in the ship, dropped down dead, 
 one day, while hoisting hand-over-fist in the gang-
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 49 
 
 way. Many of our men died, and the second 
 mate, while at work, and being bullied by the cap- 
 tain, fell to the deck and was carried to his ham- 
 mock, from which he was not able to rise again 
 until the ship was in Philadelphia, although the 
 captain visited him every day, and called him all 
 the hard names in his catalogue. 
 
 On shore, I was often given fruit by the New 
 York and Boston captains, who would have been 
 willing to take me with them. Their sailors said 
 they were kind men, and I wanted to go; but my 
 captain soon put an end to these conversations. 
 
 I learned to count in Malay, in receiving coffee; 
 and it was here that, in order to fill some water 
 casks, having pulled the boat many weary miles 
 up a river, toward a burning mountain, to get rid 
 of the dead bodies that the river appeared to be 
 filled with, that I had another narrow escape with 
 my life. I had gotten the boat into a good place, 
 and detailed one man to fill the casks, when the 
 head Malay (the four men with me were Malays) 
 offered to take the rest of us to his house, near by, 
 to give us some coffee. So off we started, myself 
 and three Malays, through a thick jungle having 
 only a muddy foot-path through it, upon which we 
 could see many impressions of the feet of wild ani- 
 mals. I asked Omega, as the head man had been 
 called, if there were not a plenty of beasts here in 
 the night. 
 
 ''A plenty," he said; ''when we arrive at my 
 
 4
 
 50 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 house I will show you how I fasten them out, so 
 that they cannot get my woman." 
 
 But before he ceased speaking, I heard a noise, 
 and saw the head of an enormous tiger close to 
 me, I turned and fell on my face, and knew no 
 more for some minutes. When I recovered my- 
 self, the tiger had been killed, and I was being car- 
 ried, by the natives, back to the boat, where they 
 stowed me away on mats and bathed my right foot, 
 which the tiger had bitten through at the moment 
 they killed him. I was taken on board with all 
 dispatch, and the surgeon of a Dutch man-of-war 
 came on board, and fixed up my wound, the mark 
 of which I yet bear. The weather being warm, it 
 mortified, and the surgeon was desirous of cutting 
 my foot off; but the captain never agreed with 
 anybody about anything, so he objected, and noth- 
 ing but the captain's obstinacy saved my foot. In 
 time it healed, and I took no more excursions into 
 the country, but was kept on board. 
 
 Having finished our business, we sailed for 
 Philadelphia. We picked up a few turtles at the 
 Straits of Sunda, and stood out to sea, leaving the 
 ten thousand green islands and the smooth seas 
 behind us. We passed through one of those ter- 
 rible cyclones, that cannot be described, and out 
 of which but few ships come; but by the best of 
 seamanship, we arrived off the Cape of Good 
 Hope. It was cold enough here for shoes, but 
 not a pair could be found in the forecastle.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 51 
 
 We passed St. Helena and the equator, and at 
 last saw the north star again, and took new life. 
 After about a six months' passage, we took an old 
 gray-haired pilot off the Delaware river, and in a 
 week after tied fast to the dock, where we heard 
 hundreds of boys, who were in bathing, shouting: 
 "The 'Peruvian' is coming!" Ah! who can tell 
 my thoughts on hearing once more my native lan- 
 guage, with the hope of soon escaping from hell 
 afloat to the home of my loved parents. 
 
 We had to wait a week in Philadelphia to get 
 paid off, but our first lieutenant had left in disgust, 
 never calling for his money. During our stay, we 
 formed a league against the captain, and held fre- 
 quent meetings, and finally agreed to be at a cer- 
 tain corner at a certain hour next day; the captain 
 passed this point regularly every day, on his way 
 to dinner. We got all organized to give him a 
 worse whipping than any he had ever bestowed 
 on any of his many crews; but he came suddenly 
 upon us, and, could it be believed ? We all ran for 
 our lives, some one way, some another, and some 
 even stopping to touch their caps to him; so much 
 for two years of the most systematic abuse that 
 could be practiced, until, from force of habit and an 
 innate fear of the man, we were subdued by his 
 presence alone. Of course, he knew nothing of 
 our design, and after I had been paid off. at the 
 rate of five dollars per month, he sent for me, and 
 spoke to me as follows :
 
 52 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 "Boy, you have been paid off, and have more 
 money than I had at your age; now mind what I 
 tell you. You have been around the world with 
 me, and have been a good boy and a smart one, 
 and ought to be paid an able seaman's wages; but 
 you have more money, as it is^ than I had at your 
 age. You may have observed that how ever I 
 treated the others, and often as I threatened you, I 
 have never struck nor kicked you," (for our captain 
 was a great kicker, often kicking the boys right 
 end over end); "now, I shall never make another 
 voyage, but I want you to go to sea until you are 
 twenty-one years old, and then come to my 
 house." He here gave me his address. "If you 
 marry one of my girls you shall never want for a 
 dollar, and, in any case, I will treat you as a son 
 and set you up in life.'' 
 
 I thanked him, and told him that I would em- 
 brace every opportunity to see him and his family. 
 I will say here that he sold his East India cargo at 
 auction, giving half the proceeds to his owners and 
 keeping the other half, which was a fortune in 
 itself. I mention this to show that the position of 
 ship-master was, at the time I embarked in the life, 
 pecuniarily at least, a very respectable one. Now 
 the business is not worth following, as nothing but 
 a bare subsistence can be gained by the few who 
 are employed, and even they can never aspire to 
 educating their children respectably. Whereas, 
 once, a fortune could be secured by a voyage
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 53 
 
 around the world, and five thousand dollars gained 
 in a trip to London; now a master's wages are cut 
 down by the all-absorbing and avaricious ship 
 owners to the sum of from fifty to one hundred 
 dollars in greenbacks. Any blacksmith, any trades- 
 man can do better than this, and the inevitable re- 
 sult of such parsimony as this has followed: nearly 
 all our commerce is conducted by foreigners, and no 
 more ambitious young Americans can be found to 
 spend their lives upon the sea, to be starved and 
 abused; for if, as may be the case, one out of a 
 hundred succeeds in mastering his profession, and 
 establishes the fact that he is an able commander, 
 a skillful seaman, a scientific navigator — knowing 
 all the parts of the world, and understanding com- 
 merce — and is entrusted with the command of a 
 clipper ship, the owners, in consideration of all 
 this, tell him that although they could have secured 
 the services of hundreds of others at fifty dollars 
 per month, they will pay him the munificent salary 
 of one hundred dollars, in greenbacks, monthly. 
 When I was a boy it took two to make a bargain, 
 but now only one has any voice in it whatever, 
 and the poor sailor must take what is offered and 
 go, leaving his family and wearing out his life to 
 enrich his owner, and know that when he dies his 
 family will be beggars, or, what is worse, that 
 should he make an unsuccessful voyage, he will 
 be cast one side, and live to see them reduced to 
 poverty. But I have said enough, and will return
 
 54 The Log of an Ancie7it Mariner. 
 
 to the day when I received my pay and left the 
 " Peruvian." 
 
 After my interview with the captain, I proceeded 
 to New York, arriving at about eight in the even- 
 ing; I went at once to the store which had once 
 attracted me, like a deer, by its lights. There 
 stood the clerks, as they had stood three years 
 before, and there sat the owner, leaning against 
 the pillar and smoking his cigar; seeing that I was 
 not recognized by the clerks, I went up to my 
 former employer, when the errand upon which I 
 had been sent crossed my mind. I touched my 
 cap, with a paw as black as a bear's and as hard 
 as wood, and reported to him that I could not find 
 the gentleman at No. i Stone street. He looked 
 at me for a moment with surprise, then instantly 
 rising, said: 
 
 " Is this the boy Edgar?" 
 
 " Yes, sir." 
 
 u You have been to sea?" 
 
 " Yes, sir." 
 
 " Come up stairs." 
 
 I followed; he felt bad, and gave me the advice 
 of a parent, even promising to set me up in the 
 business, if I would return to the store for three 
 years. I thanked him but told him that it was too 
 late; that I had sailed too far, suffered too much, 
 and was too salt ever to try anything again upon 
 the land. 
 
 Next day I went home to my dear native little
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 55 
 
 village, that was to me, and is to this day, the 
 prettiest spot on earth. I met my father, and put 
 my hand into his; up to this moment I had appar- 
 ently felt little concern, and had shown no emo- 
 tion, but the moment I touched his hand I lost all 
 power of speech; I tore away from him and ran 
 back to the hotel, where I went into the first spare 
 room I came to and threw myself upon the carpet, 
 where I rolled and cried like a child. It was some 
 time before the people would let my father come 
 into that room, but at last he came and sat beside 
 me; I threw myself into his arms and wept, without 
 speaking a word. At last I controlled my feelings 
 sufficiently to be led to the old house; I meant to 
 be very manly when I should meet my mother, 
 but resolutions' were of no avail, and again I 
 found myself upon the floor, roaring and groan- 
 ing like a young cub. When I became a rationally 
 good boy again, and my poor mother came and 
 held my head in her lap, I can tell you there was 
 some kissing done. 
 
 In a few days I began to feel at home again, and 
 things looked natural; but it was not ordered that 
 mortals should remain in Paradise, so, upon the 
 tenth day, I sailed again, bound for London.
 
 56 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Up the Mediterranean — In Havana — Up the Baltic — 
 Wrecked on the Isle of Guernsey. 
 
 MADE one voyage to Liver- 
 pool in a large ship, sailing as 
 able-bodied seaman; I made the 
 second trip as second mate, and 
 was then transferred to a larger 
 ship in the Black Ball line of 
 =^ Liverpool packets as chief mate. 
 vc Although I was not twenty at 
 this time, I was obliged to sign the papers as a 
 much older man, to satisfy the sailors who would 
 have to obey my orders, so I claimed to be twenty- 
 eight, and the deception was never suspected by 
 the men — owing, I suppose, to my wearing a dark 
 beard, which made me look older. 
 
 After making several voyages to Liverpool I 
 became weary of always sailing to the same port, 
 so I shipped and went up the Mediterranean sea, 
 visiting Cadiz, Gibraltar, and Malaga in Spain, Pa- 
 lermo in Sicily, and Trieste at the head of the 
 Adriatic sea. 
 
 It was at this time that I visited the ghastly 
 sepulchres of Sicily and the gloomy catacombs of
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 57 
 
 Rome; from Cadiz I brought four little poodle 
 dogs, snow-white, and presented them to four 
 sisters in Portsmouth; they killed them with kind- 
 ness by leaving them too long in the oven. 
 
 I then returned to New York and visited my 
 parents in Westport, Connecticut, leaving them 
 money for all that they might want. I next sailed 
 for the West Indies; and one day, just as I was 
 landing on the dock, a Spaniard made an attack 
 on me. Before I knew what I had done I had 
 grabbed a great stone pitcher, that was close to 
 me, and hit the man on the head with it. The 
 pitcher broke and flew into a thousand pieces, and 
 cut the man so badly that he died in a few hours, 
 owing to the fact that there had been a law passed 
 by the governor of Cuba, condemning any physi- 
 cian, who should attempt to cure the wounds of 
 any one who had been fighting with a bowie-knife, 
 to suffer death by garrote, that is, by having an iron 
 collar placed around the neck and screwed so 
 tight that death soon follows. This law was passed 
 with a view to prevent so frequent a use of that 
 awful knife, called after its inventor and most suc- 
 cessful operator, Mr. Bowie, a southerner, who 
 stood very high in the estimation of the south 
 about that time, as a very brave and great man. 
 
 As soon as the Spaniard was carried into a drug 
 store close at hand, the druggist, seeing the wound, 
 concluded that it was done with the bowie-knife, 
 and ran for his life. The man asked my pardon,
 
 58 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 and I gave him $20 with which to get assistance ; 
 but it appears that no one dared approach him, 
 and he bled to death. My friends in the mean- 
 time put me into the saddle, and with a guide and 
 a friend I found myself making the best time over 
 the ground towards Matanzas, as my friends said 
 that the Spaniards would soon so swear as to pro- 
 cure for me that iron collar. After making most 
 excellent speed for about six hours, we halted at 
 an innside and refreshed ourselves and animals. 
 Next day we arrived at Matanzas, having passed 
 some of the most beautiful scenery in the world, 
 and many of the finest sugar estates on the Island. 
 The distance traveled was eighty miles, and as 
 we rode it at night, under a full moon, the country 
 around looked its best. I was taken a mile from 
 Matanzas and introduced into a foundry filled with 
 New Yorkers. I was immediately put where 
 nobody could find me, and during the two weeks 
 I was there I enjoyed myself exceedingly. I was 
 one of a party of seventeen who entered a cave 
 and spent the whole of Sunday in it. We walked 
 so far into its recesses that it was dark when we 
 got out. This cave is said to extend sixty miles 
 in its principal avenues, but there are many differ- 
 ent avenues that have never been followed to the 
 end. A party of seventeen entered the cave and 
 have not been heard of since. It is supposed they 
 lost their lights, which consist of great wax candles 
 and flambeaux of pine splinters, and also their 
 way, and so perished.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 59 
 
 The cave is from fifty to one hundred feet high. 
 Enormous bats could be brought down by heav- 
 ing up our caps. I threw a great flambeau down 
 one of the many precipices, where the path took a 
 sharp turn, and also large stones, but all went 
 completely out of sight, and no noise was heard. In 
 some places we would climb up a rope ladder 311 
 feet high, and another time crawl under a great bar- 
 rier of rock. It looked to me like the strata of some 
 coal mine that had been burnt and had left this, one 
 of the most wonderful caves in the world. We ap- 
 proached the great ante- chamber, which was large 
 enough to contain a thousand people, with its gothic- 
 arched roof and immense pillars, as though the hands 
 of the artist had been employed, and all as finished 
 as though it was the design of man rather than of 
 nature. The path that led to this retreat was 
 found by one of the party opening the bushes, and 
 stepping aside from our trail into a little foot-path, 
 that we could just stand erect in, and in which the 
 rays of the sun could not penetrate, owing to the 
 complete interweaving of the shrubbery overhead, 
 and on each side. We partook of three meals in 
 that cave, and enjoyed our night' s repose after the 
 fatigues of the day and wondrous sights ; not the 
 least of which were thousands of the most beauti- 
 ful stalactites, surpassing in splendor anything I 
 had ever seen before. As our flambeaux spread 
 their blazing light upon this formation, it was re- 
 flected back, completely illuminating the arches of
 
 60 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 that dismal, dark spot, with constant changing - of 
 shadows, of all colors. 
 
 When I thought it would be safe for me to do 
 so, I returned to Havana. One night the crew 
 attacked the second mate and nearly killed him. 
 Then they were furious to get at me. I awoke, 
 put on my trousers and boots, picked up an iron 
 belaying-pin, and in ten minutes had every one of 
 the mutinous crew lying upon the deck with a very 
 bad head indeed, I was knocked down during the 
 struggle, and received the wound along the bridge 
 of my nose which has left a black and blue streak 
 there to this day. 
 
 Not a man could leave that ship until carried off 
 next day, and then they all went to the house of 
 the Consul and swore death to me. I went up, 
 together with the second mate, to take part in the 
 examination, and such a sight as we all presented ! 
 The testimony was all in, and the Consul was 
 about to favor the crew, when I made a short 
 speech, and handed my log-book, which I had 
 under my arm, to the captain of an American man- 
 of-war, who had been called. I asked him to do 
 the Consul the favor to read him the account of 
 our passage from New York to Havana. He did 
 jt, and laid down the book. 
 
 ''Now, sir," said he, "Mr. Consul, you think 
 these men have had a hard time of it, and are de- 
 sirous of my shipping them on board my ship. 
 Send them aboard, sir, and I will give each one
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 61 
 
 of them just what he deserves — six dozen lashes 
 on the bare back ; but as for shipping any of them 
 among my crew, it is impossible. Why, sir, one 
 of them would breed a mutiny. Wakeman should 
 have shot them like dogs, as they deserved, judg- 
 ing from their behavior on his ship." 
 
 So I was acquitted, and the crew returned to 
 their duty. I allude to such incidents as these 
 because I do not wish to omit any of the details 
 which illustrate the different phases of a mariner's 
 career, as he sails through his rough and perilous 
 life. 
 
 I next sailed to Denmark, proceeding to Cron- 
 stadt, in Russia. This seaport of Cronstadt is one 
 of the most strongly fortified ports in the world, 
 and the city of St. Petersburg is in sight from the 
 shipping, up the river Neva — which means ice. 
 While at this port, I fell overboard one day into 
 extremely cold water. I swam to the steps, which 
 were close at hand, and was pulled out, quite be- 
 numbed, and carried across the street into a large 
 house, where I was put to bed, severely rubbed 
 by the servants, and given drinks that soon thawed 
 me out. In the evening, the family, consisting of 
 two sons and two daughters, with their mother, 
 was introduced into my room. The father had 
 brought an interpreter with him, who spoke Eng- 
 lish, and no time was lost ; tea and toast, and the 
 best I ever had, were served, and they seemed 
 much amused by the picture of my own country
 
 62 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 which I had drawn for them, and by the incidents 
 of my life which I related. Next day, I found that 
 the cold which I had taken had settled in one of 
 my double teeth. As one was a little decayed, I 
 supposed it was that one, and went to a dentist to 
 have it extracted. He seized upon a molar, and 
 although I told him it was the wrong one, he per- 
 sisted, and broke one of the soundest teeth in my 
 mouth off as smooth as a piece of steel. Being 
 satisfied with this specimen of Russian dentistry, I 
 returned on board. 
 
 We sailed from this spot and met, in the North 
 Sea, a gale, with a bad head-sea, that detained us 
 two weeks. We were close in with the coast of 
 Norway, and one day a fishing-boat came off to 
 the boat, and the head man came on board and 
 persuaded the captain to let him take the ship into 
 port until the storm should be over. The captain 
 had yielded with much reluctance, as we could see 
 nothing like a port where he pointed, but the 
 Norwegian took charge with confidence. 
 
 "Out reefs; set main top-gallant sail," he 
 ordered, steering into a lee shore. As we ap- 
 proached the high, black and barren bluffs, with 
 still no signs of a port, the captain grew uneasy, 
 and suddenly shouted: 
 
 " Put down the helm." 
 
 But the old Norwegian grabbed the wheel, and 
 gave positive orders of " No ! no!" steering the 
 ship right among the rocks, going at least ten miles
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 63 
 
 an hour, before a gale. As we passed one great 
 rock as high as the masthead, with plenty more 
 in front of us, the pilot put the helm hard a-port, 
 braced up the yards and hauled the ship sharp 
 into the wind, in a canal, with high rocks, like 
 walls, on each side. In a few miuutes — 
 
 "Hard a starboard!" was ordered, and round 
 she came, around an elbow in this canal, in which 
 we had no wind, and where the headway that we 
 had, served us; for she ran winding her way 
 through great walls of rock which were close 
 aboard on either side, until, as her headway was 
 nearly done, we opened upon one of the most 
 lovely views that could greet the eyes of a weary 
 mariner. Before us lay a circular bay, in which 
 was good water for the largest ships; green grass 
 and trees were in the amphitheater beyond, shut 
 in by high bleak mountains, making a most beauti- 
 ful picture. As we caught sight of the cottages 
 which previously were hidden to our view, sticks 
 .were driven into the ground, and the ship was 
 hauled alongside the grassy shore and made fast, 
 completely locked up, as it were, in a basin of 
 water. 
 
 We lay here two weeks, during which time the 
 highest peak of the coast range was frequently 
 visited by our pilot with his glass, but still the 
 gale continued. 
 
 During this time I made frequent visits to the 
 villages, back in the interior, and as they were all
 
 64 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 alike, I shall try to describe but one. The huts 
 were one-story high, and low at that; the doors 
 which led from room to room were so low that I 
 had to crawl under; when a fire was built in the 
 house, it was made in the "great room/' and the 
 smoke left to go out at the chimney, that being a 
 hole in the roof. 
 
 The cooking was conducted out of doors, and I 
 saw a girl making- a great griddle of bread; it was 
 made of rye and looked like a big pancake, made 
 of a dark mixture of something stuck together 
 with short pieces of straw. This pancake, which 
 it about eighteen inches in diameter, is thoroughly 
 dried and broken in pieces, and is their bread. 
 
 All the men were absent, engaged in taking 
 stork-fish; this is a fish that may be compared to 
 our own elwives — full of bones. They dry them, 
 pound them up, and make a mess of them. 
 
 The men wear leather trousers and jackets and 
 fur caps; the women, who appear very short, are 
 warmly clad in thick woolen clothes. All the little 
 fishing -skiffs are called ships by these people, 
 although not a mast is in them, nothing but a tree- 
 nail from the blackthorn. On the twentieth of 
 November we picked, in some valleys, ripe black- 
 berries from the bushes, also crab-apples; but the 
 changes here are sudden, and in one day winter 
 drives all appearance of summer away, with a 
 scourge of such furious gales and snow storms 
 that it is six months before the people recover
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 65 
 
 breath, when they are again blessed with the 
 grateful smiles of summer. 
 
 Little did we think, as we sailed out of this 
 haven of peace and quiet, the doom that awaited 
 us. 
 
 On the third of December, 1837, as we were 
 scudding ship up the English Channel one dark 
 night, we suddenly heard the cry, "Breakers 
 ahead! breakers all round!" and the ship struck 
 on the iron-bound coast of the island of Guernsey. 
 It was about half-past two in the morning when 
 we struck, and at eight o'clock there were not two 
 timbers of the ship together. One-half of the crew 
 perished, and the other half washed up high and 
 dry on the rocks. We clung fast until daylight, 
 when we were astonished to see crowds of people, 
 two hundred feet above, looking over the cliff at 
 us. 
 
 A love-sick swain, it appeared, had ridden out 
 to this remote and desolate part of the island, 
 right in the midst of the worst storm ever known, 
 intending to throw himself from the rocks into the 
 seething abyss below; but what was his surprise 
 to see a ship's royal-masthead close to him, and, 
 during the lightning's glare, to perceive that a ship 
 was going to pieces among the reefs and breakers 
 below. He put spurs to his horse and rode back to 
 Guernsey, shouting through all the streets, in the 
 dead of night, and in the pitiless storm, the news 
 that a vessel was being wrecked at this point.
 
 66 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 which he named, and which was well known to 
 all the islanders as one of the most dangerous 
 spots on the whole coast. Only the year before 
 an East India Company's ship had been lost at 
 the same place, and not a soul saved. And so it 
 was that at daylight we saw nearly the whole town 
 of Guernsey looking down upon us. 
 
 We soon discovered that by waiting until the 
 seas ran out we could pass over the adjacent rocks 
 and get to others that connected with the main 
 land. Here we were met by the whole crowd of 
 people, all vieing with each other in offering kind- 
 nesses to us. 
 
 I was dressed in a seal-skin suit of clothes, which 
 consisted of a shirt with a hood, thus fitting tightly 
 around my face and wrists, and a pair of trousers, 
 which were also tight at the waist and ankles ; so 
 I was able to go under water and come up dry. 
 This suit I had put on the night we struck, as I 
 had asked the captain if he would not alter his 
 course, and haul up for the coast of England, as I 
 had been up the channel frequently and knew that 
 we ought to do so ; but lie had told me to mind 
 my own business, and I had dressed for a wetting, 
 and, I need hardly say, in doing so had rendered 
 myself an object of considerable curiosity to the 
 Islanders ; in truth, it was with difficulty that I 
 made my way through the throng of young people 
 who hung around me, looking up into my face, 
 and then at my curious clothes.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 67 
 
 At last, after having been generously fed, and 
 permitted to sleep upon the grass for three or four 
 hours, we were escorted to Guernsey, the distance 
 
 05/ 
 
 being about four miles. I noticed close to me, 
 among the many who walked upon each side, a 
 girl who kept her eyes constantly upon me, and 
 appeared to be much interested in me. She car-
 
 68 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 ried in her hand a small basket. She was one of 
 the handsomest of the girls, but was accompanied 
 by another pretty creature, who relieved her, from 
 time to time, in carrying the basket. 
 
 At length, after a long walk over a most beauti- 
 ful, rolling country, with green grass, and apples 
 in piles under the trees, and all kinds of vegetables 
 in the ground, although it was December, we 
 reached the town. Here our small party was di- 
 vided among the different families; for me, I was 
 taken to the house of an old smuggler, whose wife 
 and daughter were very kind to me. His wife 
 took me into a spare room, and showed me her 
 son's coats, his shirts — in fact, his entire wardrobe, 
 telling me that they were all at my service. So I 
 had to take off my old sealskins, and put on these 
 fine articles that she handed to me. When I was 
 dressed the clothes fitted me as if they had been 
 made for me, and the good wife adjusted her son' s 
 necktie around my neck, and declared that I looked 
 the very picture of him, that my cheeks were just 
 as red as his, and that she must kiss me for her 
 own boy. 
 
 Before tea, I went to the front door, and, al- 
 though the rain was pouring in torrents, who 
 should I see but the pretty girl with the basket 
 who had kept her eyes upon me so intently during 
 our passage across the island. The moment I 
 stopped at the doorsteps, she put her little hand 
 upon my arm, and asked me if I would not be so
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 69 
 
 kind as to receive the contents of her basket. I 
 asked her why she had come out in such a terrible 
 night. She said that, early in the morning, her 
 mother had told her to bestow the contents of the 
 basket upon that one who was struggling in the 
 breakers, who looked so like a fish ; that she had 
 kept close to me from the time I landed, and that 
 she could not go home until she had obeyed her 
 mother. She had been about to give the basket 
 to me a great many times, she said, but always 
 some other person had approached me, and caused 
 her to draw back. So I now took her under one of 
 Capt. Touser's large umbrellas, basket and all, and 
 walked with her. a short distance to her mother's 
 house. 
 
 Here I found the girl's sister and their old 
 mother, whose husband had been lost at sea. I 
 endeavored to tell them how very thankful I was 
 for their attention, and how very comfortable I 
 was at Captain Touser's; but the old lady insisted 
 that I should not remain with the captain, as her 
 accommodations were as good as his, and as, more- 
 over, since her daughter had been the first to call 
 attention to a curiously-dressed man in the water, 
 they had prior claims to me. I had to beg off on 
 a promise to visit them frequently, after which I 
 bid good-night to the pretty sisters, and arrived 
 home in time for tea, as they had waited for me. 
 
 After tea I went to my bedroom, which I found 
 nicely arranged for me. The old lady came in and
 
 /O The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 kissed me good-night, telling me that her son was 
 just my age, and that, therefore, I must excuse the 
 liberties she took; as, although really a stranger, 
 to her I was her son, as she did not know if he 
 would ever return. I told her that I was very 
 grateful for her love and should never abuse it. 
 
 I had been but a little while in bed when the 
 house besfan to shake and tremble in the storm 
 which arose; the thunder roared, the lightning 
 flashed, and the rain poured in a perfect deluge. 
 In the midst of the tumult, a door opened that led 
 out of my bedroom into another — that of the 
 daughter. In she ran, and, to my great consterna- 
 tion, threw herself upon the bed and clasped me 
 in the most frightened manner, screaming- ; ' ' Oh, 
 we shall be destroyed ! the house will fall ! save 
 me! save me!" She appeared to be out of her 
 head and would not return to her room. Like her 
 mother she told me that I was the picture of her 
 brother; that she loved him greatly, and that she 
 had loved me before I landed, upon seeing me in 
 the water, and that I must be a brother to her. 
 At last the gale abated, quiet was restored, and I 
 succeeded in persuading this frightened girl to 
 return to her quarters, which she did after showing 
 me how she kissed her brother o/ood-nio-ht. 
 
 I soon found that although I had been thrown 
 in the most abrupt manner upon this island, I had 
 fallen among friends. Every family in the place 
 insisted upon my staying a part of the time with
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. Ji 
 
 them, and I was led about by the hand, out of one 
 house and into another, until I was glad to escape 
 to my first home with the captain. But I spent 
 my evenings with the two pretty little sisters, and 
 though I stayed, as I frequently did, until a late 
 hour, they would cry when I left; indeed, I am 
 forced to believe that the elder, my first friend, fell 
 quite in love with the fish which she had discovered 
 in the sea, and that the younger always cried also, 
 in sympathy with her sister. 
 
 These islanders spoke French and English alike, 
 as the children are taught the two languages at the 
 same time. After spending the winter among 
 them, and experiencing every kindness, we were 
 taken off, in the spring, by a steamer from France, 
 and carried over the channel; and, after being 
 refused aid by three different American consuls, 
 we were given a passage home by the humane 
 captain of a London packet belonging to New 
 York, where we arrived after a pleasant voyage of 
 thirty days.
 
 72 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 The Brig Forrester — From Havana to Bremen — Escape 
 from Harwich — Starvation on the High Seas. 
 
 was during a trip to the West Indies, 
 upon the brigantine " Forrester," that 
 the crew formed a conspiracy to mur- 
 der the captain and mate, and run off 
 with the brigantine. The captain was 
 one of those good men who allow the 
 crew to do as they please, thereby 
 keeping the mate constantly on the lookout for 
 squalls ahead. 
 
 One of our men, named Louis, was a very dan- 
 gerous-looking fellow, and, as he had a quantity 
 of jewelry on board, I suspected him to be a thief. 
 While we were putting out cargo at St. Thomas, 
 this Frenchman became worse and worse, until, 
 one day, he so insulted me that I called him out 
 and told him that, as soon as eight bells should be 
 struck at noon, he must go upon the beach with 
 me ; for I was going to whip him, and was de- 
 sirous that he should have fair play. 
 
 So, at noon I ordered up the boat and ordered 
 him into her, whereupon he said that he could not 
 fight with his fists, and that, if I was anxious to
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 73 
 
 give him fair play, I would order my two swords 
 into the boat. 
 
 "By the holy poker!" I cried, "here, shipmate, 
 pass me my swords." They were brought, and 
 Louis began to look uneasy. 
 
 " Now pass me that shovel that stands against 
 the galley," said I to the cook. The frog-eater 
 was now thoroughly alarmed, and demanded, 
 " What are you going to do with that ? " 
 
 " Dig your grave, you pirate," I roared ; but 
 my man was out of the boat and into the fo'castle 
 before I had done speaking. 
 
 At this moment, the captain came on board and 
 said we had been robbed. I asked him of what, 
 and he said that all the cargo had been opened, 
 and Chinese shawls and other valuable goods had 
 been stolen. I made immediate search, and found 
 bundles of fine linen and other articles from our 
 plundered cargo in nearly all the chests, although 
 the crew professed complete ignorance. The cap- 
 tain went on shore for soldiers to arrest the crew, 
 but while he was gone I whipped one man until he 
 made a confession. 
 
 He told me that the captain and I owed our 
 lives to him ; for the man Louis had compelled all 
 the crew to go into a scheme to take the brig, but 
 that, on a certain night, when the captain and I 
 were asleep at 4 a.m., Louis had come on deck 
 with two large knives, ground on both edges, and 
 two pistols, loaded to the muzzles, and had already
 
 74 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 commenced descending the stairs, when he, the 
 man who was confessing, being at the wheel, sang 
 out : 
 
 " Hold on, there ! I didn't agree to murder, 
 and if you take another step, I shall call down the 
 skylight ; " whereupon Louis had returned, and it 
 had been finally agreed that the crew should mere- 
 ly run away at St. Thomas with the fine goods 
 which they had secreted ; but they had been 
 watched so closely that this had been impossible. 
 Although I begged to punish Louis myself, he was 
 taken out of the vessel with the rest, and they 
 were all tried and condemned as mutineers and 
 pirates, and sent to New York to await the brig's 
 arrival. 
 
 We picked up a crew of whites and blacks, some 
 being stowed in the bunts of the sails, and went to 
 Porto Rico, where we loaded with tobacco, and 
 then sailed for Bremen, in Germany. 
 
 We got in among the rocks of Scilly, and, it 
 being night, and very foggy, we took them for a 
 fleet of fishing vessels, and hailed some of them. 
 Before daylight a smack passed us and told us 
 where we were. We hauled out very quick. A 
 little after daylight, we saw a cutter with about 
 thirty men rowing after us ; as the wind sprang up 
 we escaped being taken under the hovering act. 
 As we were laden with tobacco, we should have 
 been condemned ; but we arrived safe at our des- 
 tination, Bremen. While we were unloading, a
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 75 
 
 fight took place in port, in which all of the Ameri- 
 can mates were engaged. The next day, orders 
 were issued for their arrest, and I was the only one 
 who was not taken. Two policeman came to 
 arrest me on board the brig, but I took a heaver, 
 or stick of wood, in each hand, and made such 
 extravagant menaces towards them, that they beat 
 a retreat. But my victory was of short duration. 
 They soon returned with four others, and marched 
 immediately on board. Although my actions with 
 my two clubs were now redoubled, and I acted as 
 fierce as a Fiji Islander, threatening the first one 
 who approached me, still they continued drawing 
 nearer, until, while I knew that it would not do for 
 me to strike a policeman, I made such a furious 
 rush at them as to cause them to fall back. In an 
 instant, I threw my clubs on deck, and sprang up 
 the main rigging like a cat, and went up into the 
 cross-trees. This baffled the soldiers, although 
 one did come up until he was close under the 
 cross-trees, when I unhooked a quarter-block from 
 the slings of the topgallant yard, and struck such 
 blows, close to his head, that he went down ; and 
 after watching around the brig some time they all 
 went away. 
 
 After dark I came down and crossed over the 
 dyke and went out into the country, where I stayed 
 all day in a farm-house. Next day I went farther 
 out, and stayed with another farmer. The third 
 day I came to a large windmill; it being dinner
 
 j6 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 time the old folks, the proprietors, asked me in. 
 I accepted the kind offer and made a hearty meal; 
 after which the daughter took me out to the wind- 
 mill, and here I remained a week. There was a 
 large wheel, like a ship's wheel, out back of this 
 mill, high up in the air, and to turn this wheel was 
 the duty of the girl, but I soon relieved her of that, 
 and took full charge, steering the mill myself. I 
 found this family as happy as they could be, and 
 have often wondered what my fate would have 
 been if I had acted on the old people's advice, and 
 married the girl; but such was not my happy lot. 
 
 I soon learned/from the answer to a letter which 
 I had had conveyed to town, that all was settled 
 and I could return. So I said adieu to my kind 
 friends, and kissed the girl who had so willingly 
 taught me to steer a windmill, and who would, no 
 doubt, had I stayed another week, have become 
 Mrs. W., taught me Dutch and made me a miller. 
 
 Arriving in port I found that the second mate, 
 who had been in prison in the town, had made a 
 very favorable impression upon the keeper and his 
 wife, and, more particularly upon their daughter. 
 He was eneaofed to be married to her, and the 
 nuptials were duly performed before we sailed. 
 
 It would be falling short of the truth should I 
 pass over a most ridiculous incident which occurred 
 at this wedding. The circle was limited to the 
 friends of the keeper, but I was not only invited 
 but stood as best man; at midnight most of the
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. J J 
 
 guests were under the table, the drunken songs 
 had about subsided ; our second mate had long 
 been among the slain, and the poor bride had not 
 let go of my hand for a long while past. The 
 fumes of lager beer and tobacco were so thick 
 that I could hardly see across the room, and as I 
 was anxious to escape from the sickly scene I 
 arose and walked into another apartment, which 
 proved to be a bedroom. What was my astonish- 
 ment when the poor bride followed me, and, to my 
 dismay, insisted that I was the man she had mar- 
 ried. It was daylight when I escaped from this, 
 my first experience of a Dutch* wedding, and a 
 very curious impression it left with me, indeed. 
 
 Well, after escaping all the perils of the land, 
 we put to sea, bound to New York, with starch, 
 boxes of dolls, and sand for ballast, in the bottom, 
 and a load of Dutch passengers between decks, 
 the second mate's wife among the rest. We sailed 
 along very well until we came to the Straits of 
 Dover, where we took a gale of wind that soon 
 brought us to double reefs and from that to close 
 reefs. It was an awful night, with high and danger- 
 ous seas, and as black as a tar-bucket. I asked 
 the captain if <he would allow me to wear ship, as 
 I was afraid we were close to the coast of England; 
 this was about three o'clock in the morning, and he 
 rolled over in his berth and said, in a tone of dis- 
 pleasure at being disturbed, that we were nowhere 
 near the coast of England, but were in the mid-
 
 7 8 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 die of the channel, and to let her mull until four 
 o'clock, and then to wear ship. At five minutes 
 to four I called all hands to wear ship, as I had a 
 suspicion, all the watch, that we were too near the 
 land. 
 
 " Square the yards. Hard up the helm." 
 The next moment a big sea took us and sent us 
 crashing among the rocks; nothing could be seen 
 but the fearful breakers; the mast was dancing, the 
 rudder and stern-post were gone, and the brig was 
 half full of water. Every sea swept over the ship's 
 stern, and rushed forward like so many demons 
 seeking their prey. At the first shock the captain 
 came running on deck — 
 
 " O God, O God, where are we?" he cried. 
 " On the coast of England," I replied, drily, and 
 that was the last I saw of him, for he went im- 
 mediately below and fastened his door. All the 
 Dutch passengers were now on deck, upon their 
 knees, praying to the Lord to save them; I found 
 the second mate on his knees beside his frau, and 
 it took considerable shaking: to awaken him to 
 some sense of our situation. 
 
 '' Shake out all the reefs from the for-top-s'l." 
 " Ay, ay, sir/' was the quick and loud response, 
 and in a few minutes we had the whole fore-top-s'l on 
 to her; the mast sprung, but it stood, as the biggest 
 seas would lift her and shove her ahead; my object 
 being to force her up hard on the land. We were 
 lifted and forced ahead several times, the brig
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 79 
 
 broaching- to, and being club-hauled off, until sud- 
 denly what was my surprise to feel her work like 
 a basket, without striking the rocks or bottom any 
 more ; I called the second mate and told him we 
 were afloat in smooth water; he declared this im- 
 possible, but, upon heaving the lead and discover- 
 ing tall water, he was convinced, as was really the 
 case, that we had been beating over a reef. 
 
 It was now nearly daylight, and I had just called 
 the cook and ordered a cup of coffee, when I dis- 
 covered a cutter to the westward, making all sail 
 towards us, she having seen our light, which was 
 a lantern that I had ordered the steward to make 
 fast to the main-masthead when we first struck; 
 and she soon ran alongside, proving to be the 
 cutter •' Scout," Captain Harkins (who afterwards 
 commanded the steamship "Great Western") ; he 
 put fifteen men and a patent pump on board of us, 
 throwing the water out at a rapid rate. 
 
 In half an hour the cutter " Flying Fish" came 
 down and took a stern hawser, and thus, with the 
 " Flying Fish" astern and the " Scout" ahead we 
 were taken, in two hours time, to the harbor of 
 Harwich; where, it being high tide, we were left far 
 up upon the beach, so that, at low tide, the water 
 might run out of our hold. 
 
 I should observe that when the captain heard the 
 cries, "smooth water" and "sail ho!" he had come 
 forward, abreast the galley, where I was drinking 
 my coffee, and I invited him to take a cup of coffee
 
 80 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 and the command of his brig, as strangers would 
 soon be on board; he said that he would comply 
 with the first request and try to do so as regarded 
 the second. After our arrival at Harwich he went 
 overland to London to write from there to New 
 York of our mishap, and to get drafts to repair 
 damages, leaving me to carry on the work of clean- 
 ing out the brig. I found the barrels of beef and 
 pork all ground up and mixed with the sand bal- 
 last, which had prevented our pumps from being 
 used, so I threw the pieces out into the mud, when 
 what was my surprise to see the poor people wade 
 out, knee deep, and pick up every morsel of it and 
 take it to their homes. I soon found that the in- 
 habitants were all ignorant and poor, although 
 kind and hospitable; the men were always clothed 
 in oil-skins and great sea-boots, and were absent 
 from home the greater part of the time, engaged 
 in fishing-. 
 
 Harwich is on the eastern coast of England, and 
 we were the first Americans ever seen there. The 
 story of our escape from a watery grave had been 
 told by the crew of the " Scout," and this made 
 the brig the lion of the town ; and, as I was the 
 mate who had taken command, and carried the 
 vessel over the reef, where eight vessels and sixty 
 men had been lost during a recent storm, I was 
 regarded as a hero, and the brig and I were gazed 
 upon by a crowd of women and children every 
 day. One pretty girl, who ventured on board
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 81 
 
 with her mother, asked if I was an American, and 
 remarked that I did not look like the rest of the 
 Americans, the crew. I told her that they were 
 Dutch, which was another thing. 
 
 It was not long before all the girls in the village 
 got so free that they not only stayed around all 
 day, but a half dozen at a time would remain until 
 an early hour in the morning. I did not know 
 what to make of this. In fact, all the women in 
 the place fell in love with me, and two dozen of 
 the girls were sent up the river to Ipswich, to get 
 them out of my way, though I could not see that 
 they were any worse than their mothers. 
 
 The captain came back from London, and made 
 arrangements for the brig to proceed to Ipswich 
 and go on to the dock there to have a new bottom 
 put in her. So up we went, and were taken out 
 up to the head of the dock, where the jib-boom 
 reached right across the street, close to the upper 
 windows of a Mr. Bulwer's house. As soon as 
 the work was fairly under way, the captain went to 
 London again, and left me in charge of the brig. 
 
 Being out on the jib-boom one day, I saw a 
 lady whom I had been looking at ever since we ar- 
 rived at the head of the dock. She was constantly 
 at Mr. Bulwer's window, and constantly, I felt 
 pretty sure, looking with interest at me upon the 
 brig. This thing went on for some days, when, 
 one Sunday, being out on the jib-boom to take 
 up a gasket, I saw this lady beckon for me to
 
 82 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 come over, so I went. I was let into the house, 
 and introduced to Miss Bulwer, who entertained 
 me handsomely, taking me into the cellar and 
 giving me some of the best wine her father owned. 
 After this, being every moment afraid that her 
 parents would return from church and find a 
 stranger in the house, she filled a basket with fruit 
 for me, and told me to go at once ; but that I 
 might bring back the basket when §he gave the 
 signal, or that, upon the same evening, she would 
 come and get it. 
 
 Although this latter proposition was acceded to, 
 the basket found its way into the old gentleman's 
 cellar so frequently that I was never left without 
 something that was very palatable to the taste of a 
 sea-tossed mariner. 
 
 We remained here a long time, and I was so 
 charmed with the spot, that, when I came to think 
 of parting with the different families who had been 
 so hospitable, I was almost unnerved. However, 
 my little friend across the street was such an 
 adroit thief that she succeeded in making several 
 trips to the cellar, and completely filling one of the 
 berths in my room with wine and fruit, while the 
 old folks were sleeping. After such acts of devo- 
 tion on her part, I ought certainly to have married 
 her, and, if I had done so, I should now, no doubt, 
 be living in that big house with the well-stocked 
 cellar ; but I was a young man and wild at that 
 time, and did not know a great deal.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 83 
 
 We were taken down the river again and went 
 well; for, indeed, with our new bottom, new cop- 
 per, and new rudder, the brig was as good as new. 
 We were now at anchor. The captain returned 
 from London, and took me into the cabin and told 
 me a doleful story; that his house in New York 
 had failed and he could not raise enough money 
 to pay the bills; that the Dutch passengers had 
 all left long ago; and that the authorities would 
 not fit out the brig with running rigging for fear 
 she might run off some night. We waited one 
 mail after another, and, indeed, lay here all sum- 
 mer, the captain being most of the time in Lon- 
 don. I was on shore every night, and at home in 
 every house. The girls were still bewitched and 
 acted badly; I never saw such people before, not 
 even among savages. 
 
 At length the captain came down discouraged, 
 and said that we should all have to be sent home 
 by the consul ; and the carpenter at Ipswich would 
 take the brig for his bill against her. I asked him 
 to step into the cabin, where we sat down. 
 
 "Captain, I have seen a great deal of pleasure 
 in this brig, and some distress," said I; "I am 
 strongly attached to her, and if you will go up to 
 London and stay, as you have done before, until 
 such a day, I will have the brig ready for sea, and 
 then we can slip the cable and go, and nothing out 
 of this port can sail with us." 
 
 "What are your plans?" asked the captain.
 
 84 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 I answered: "You have already heard of rob- 
 beries going on all around the port.' ' 
 
 ''Yes, and a large reward is offered for the ap- 
 prehension of the thief; if caught, he will be trans- 
 ported." 
 
 "Well," I continued, "he will not be caught. 
 If you must know, I have now enough rigging 
 from two Swedish schooners to rig us, and on such 
 a night I shall be ready. A crew will be picked 
 up on that night from the different cutters, as soon 
 as the fog sets in, which it does every night; and 
 I shall invite old Steward, the pilot, to spend the 
 evening with me over some half-and-half, which 
 he is sure to do. As he has no choice he will take 
 us out safely, and get home with that skiff that 
 hangs there." 
 
 He looked at me a long time; at last he said: 
 
 "Can you do this and get off?" 
 
 "Yes," I replied. 
 
 "Then," said he, "I will, go to-morrow, and will 
 return after dark upon the night you have men- 
 tioned." 
 
 The next day he was off. My second mate and 
 I were busy every night, from dark until long after 
 midnight; and at length the appointed evening 
 arrived. As soon as the fog- set in we called 
 around to the different smacks, and took one ap- 
 prentice out of one and two out of another until 
 we had ten of them; then we pulled immediately 
 to our own vessel, put them under hatches, and
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 85 
 
 sent for the pilot, who had promised to spend the 
 evening with us and who was waiting at the place 
 designated. While I went for the pilot the cap- 
 tain was brought on board. 
 
 The second mate and I had bent the gear early 
 in the morning, and now I took Mr. Steward out 
 to the windlass and showed him the chains all 
 parcelled, ready to slip without noise, and told 
 him that if he took us out safely he could take 
 that skiff and be asleep long before daylight, but 
 that if he run us aground that pistol would do the 
 work for him. 
 
 "Then," said he, "this is a matter of life and 
 death ; very well, I will take you out, but what are 
 you going to do at sea without a crew?" 
 
 I slid back the slide of the hatch and called up 
 the crew. He looked at them, recoomizingf them 
 all, and exclaimed, "My God ! " 
 
 "Loose the fore-top-s'l." No sooner said than 
 done. The top-sail and top-gallant-sail were set 
 and the fore-sail already to drop. A good line 
 from the stem to the chain that we slipped turned 
 her right round on her heel; then we cut our 
 hawser and dropped the fore-sail, and in three 
 minutes we passed between the "Scout" and 
 ''Flying Fish," who were stationed to see that we 
 did not get off without paying our debts. As the 
 land-breeze was fresh we slid past them like a 
 flying scud; they were bewildered for a few 
 minutes, and then we heard the boatswain's call 
 and boat tackle fall for their crews from the shore.
 
 86 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 We went out, hove close to the sea-beach, and 
 dispatched the pilot, filled away, and down the 
 channel we flew with a flowing sheet ! 
 
 We had been partly provisioned and fitted out 
 at Ipswich, until the carpenter began to suspect 
 that we could not pay him, when he shut down on 
 us. We soon found ourselves on the broad At- 
 lantic and with heavy weather, which greatly 
 retarded us, but we continued to work the brig to 
 the westward. 
 
 At length our potatoes failed us. We had 
 already been on an allowance and now we had to 
 come still lower, for as one article after another 
 gave out we were compelled to shorten on what 
 was left. At last our meat was all gone and our 
 bread gave out. We had now nothing to eat, but, 
 said I, "we have starch in the hold; we can eat 
 that;" so we got up some boxes, and made a 
 mess and cooked it; but it all turned into chalk 
 and we could not eat it, for what we swallowed 
 made us as sick as dogs. 
 
 We could stand it no longer. I went into the 
 between decks with a mallet, a knife, and a dish; 
 called the dog and told him that 
 I must kill him. The poor beast 
 laid his head in my lap and looked 
 piteously into my face; he under- 
 stood what I meant, and the tears 
 rolled down his cheeks. I struck 
 him a blow with the mallet, cut his throat and
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 87 
 
 caught his blood in the dish. Both the flesh and 
 the blood were equally divided among- us, and 
 served to keep life, if not strength, in our gaunt 
 frames for a few days longer. 
 
 A few days after this, one night about twelve 
 o'clock, it was blowing hard, and the fore-top- 
 gallant sail was set and the brig plunging all under 
 forward. A volunteer was called for who would 
 go up and furl the sail, and after all had agreed 
 that it would be impossible for them to get over 
 the top, I said that I would go up. Although my 
 spirits were greater than my strength, I got up to 
 the top-gallant mast, but the brig rolled so heavily 
 that she threw me out to windward, and I turned 
 a somersault and found myself sitting on the rim 
 of the fore- top, with my hands fast to the top-sail 
 gear on each side of the lower mast-head. I felt 
 very weak and as though a number of my bones 
 were broken; in fact, I thought that I had struck 
 on the starboard forecastle deck and broken my 
 neck; that my ribs were protruding from under 
 my shoulder blades, and that my legs were broken 
 in four places. As my strength returned I realized 
 that I was not on deck, but on the rim of the fore- 
 top, with my feet pointing down over the belly ot 
 the foresail, so that I should have gone over the 
 lee-bow if I had continued my fall; it was a long 
 time before I could persuade myself that I was not 
 broken to pieces, but when I found that I could 
 lift my legs, I crawled into the top and prayed
 
 88 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 from a most grateful heart. In due time I mus- 
 tered courage enough to attempt to get down on 
 deck, and by putting my arms through the rat- 
 lines, and not trusting to my hands, I got down at 
 last, when what did I do but cling with all my 
 might to the spars that were lashed on deck, just 
 as if, should I let go, I would fall up again. When 
 I became more rational I staggered aft to the gal- 
 ley, which had been our rendezvous for many 
 days. 
 
 The dog was gone, and we now looked at each 
 other with eyes that spoke volumes. At last it 
 was suggested that we cast lots. This was done, 
 and the captain drew the short stick; we gave him 
 till the morrow, when he was to be bled to death 
 with his feet in warm salt water, as we were nearly 
 out of fresh. The night passed over and we all 
 looked forward to the hour of two o'clock p. m. 
 At ten o'clock one of the men was heard to sing 
 out ''Sail ho! to the westward!" But there had 
 been so many sails seen that had turned out to be 
 purely imaginative that none of us moved,, until 
 the man crrew so excited that I concluded to crawl 
 out and see. Behold a top-gallant sail above the 
 » water ! and the top-sail lifting all the time, showing 
 that she was bound toward us. 
 
 We immediately brought the captain on deck, 
 and put the ensign, union down, in the rigging. 
 The hull of the vessel was now in sight, and as 
 hope filled our breasts, where only despair had
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 89 
 
 previously been, we found that it had given us 
 strength to stand erect upon the deck, which we 
 had not before been able to do. 
 
 On came our deliverer and hove to, proving to 
 be the brio- " Freighter ;" the mate came on board 
 and silently gazed upon us, and, reading our terri- 
 ble story in our wan faces and wasted skeletons, 
 sat down and cried like a child. When he finally 
 asked us what we had on board, we told him 
 nothing, and that at two p. m. the captain was to 
 have been killed and eaten; again he was so over- 
 come as not to be able to speak; but he pulled 
 back to his vessel and soon returned with every- 
 thing they could spare, and told us that upon the 
 next day we should have a south-west wind, and 
 would have a pilot on board, for we were close to 
 Sandy Hook. We were now a new set of men. 
 and hope filled every heart but the captain's; we 
 ate as sparingly as we could of what had been 
 given us, drank our fill of water, and sent God's 
 blessing after the brig "Freighter." 
 
 Sure enough, on the morrow, at daylight, it was 
 red in the south-west and the wind began to blow; 
 at eight a. m. we took an old gray-haired pilot 
 well off shore, and the captain, telling him of our 
 situation, asked him to run us up, high and dry, 
 anywhere upon the land. 
 
 It began to blow up into a gale, and as we ap- 
 proached the Hook it commenced to snow and get 
 thick; the pilot was steering us by his judgment,
 
 90 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 and finally said: "Mate, we must be above 
 Governor Island; go for'ard and stand by the 
 anchor." 
 
 , I took a few men and hauled up the fore-sail 
 and got the starboard anchor ready; in the mean- 
 time a lantern made fast to the main-boom topper- 
 lift of some schooner just grazed our side, and I 
 heard music and saw the lights of Castle Garden, 
 so I hallooed : 
 
 " Hard down the helm ! we are going into Castle 
 Garden." 
 
 In a minute she was brought around and the 
 anchor let go with fifty fathoms of chain, which 
 was run out before she hauled up. When she 
 was brought up I went aft and found that the pilot 
 and the captain had gone on shore in a Whitehall 
 boat that had happened alongside, on hearing the 
 noise of our chain. The wind now came from the 
 north-east, bringing snow and freezing everything; 
 I let go the other anchor, and, before daylight, the 
 kedge also, with a hawser. At daylight we found 
 ourselves four feet from some rocks off the Bat- 
 tery, the brig pitching bows under, and people 
 flying their handkerchiefs to us, and shouting to 
 us to be of good cheer. For four days we lay 
 here, in peril of our lives, without communication 
 with the shore; but finally the storm moderated 
 and we were taken to a dock, up the East river, 
 and made fast, after which we all went on shore. 
 
 My old friend, the second mate, and I, went
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 91 
 
 staggering up the street — for when the excitement 
 was over we found that we had little strength — and 
 visited all the pie-shops; as soon as the old women 
 saw us they would ask if we were not of the crew 
 of the brig "Forrester," and when we replied in 
 the affirmative all was free to us, and they could 
 not press enough upon us — evidently anxious to 
 console us for the pangs of hunger which we had 
 experienced during our voyage. 
 
 We went into a pie-shop on James street, near 
 Chatham, and whilst indulging in pastry the second 
 mate picked up a newspaper, wherein we found it 
 stated that the brig "Forrester" having been lost 
 at sea, and no witnesses having appeared against 
 her mutinous crew, which had been sent from St. 
 Thomas to New York to await her arrival, they 
 had been discharged; but that one had since been 
 arrested upon new charges, and was serving a term 
 of seven years in the State's prison: this was 
 Louis, the Frenchman, the one who fled the field 
 at St. Thomas at the sight of a shovel. 
 
 Our captain did not make any more voyages, 
 and, indeed, I heard that his mind became affected 
 shortly after landing. I have told of our follies, 
 our sins and our sufferings upon this voyage, and 
 I still feel that *' there is a bitter for every sweet," 
 and a recompense in this life for all; and that for 
 the wrongs we committed there was a speedy and 
 awful balancing of accounts.
 
 92 The Log of an Ancient Mari7ier. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Early Days in Vicksburg — -Smuggling on the Tabasco — 
 Adrift ox the Gulf — Down with the Yellow Fever. 
 
 WAS upon the second ship that 
 ever went up the Mississippi to 
 Vicksburg, and we, therefore, 
 caused a good deal of excitement. 
 I will only say that, at this time, 
 a duel was of daily occurrence, 
 and I had not made the ship fast 
 before necessity compelled me to knock a man 
 over. Time passed very pleasantly, with the ladies 
 of the place visiting the ship and sending us pres- 
 ents of pastry and fruit. I witnessed many duels 
 and more street fights, and was presented with a 
 beautiful, silver-mounted bowie-knife by a young 
 man named Samuel Black, formerly from Philadel- 
 phia. Every afternoon, this young man, who was 
 about my age, would ride down to where the ship 
 lay, about a mile below the town, bringing a red 
 horse for me, and we would ride together through 
 all the adjoining country. 
 
 It was during these pleasant rides that we 
 became acquainted with two very agreeable ladies, 
 who lived in a cottage which was situated in a 
 clearing near the river, about a mile below the
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 93 
 
 ship. We visited this cottage frequently, return- 
 ing to the ship by a path along the river-bank. 
 This path led us near a large pig-pen in the woods, 
 near which a gigantic tree had fallen across the 
 trail; a log had been placed upon each side of it, 
 forming a sort of stile for the convenience of foot 
 passengers, but we, upon our horses, were obliged 
 to ride around the root of it. At length we were 
 loaded, ready for departure, and the last night 
 came. The vessel had been taken a little lower 
 down stream during the day, and I was sitting, 
 tired and listless, upon the rail, thinking of the 
 pleasant evenings I had passed in the little cottage 
 below the pig-pen, when the breeze increased, and 
 brought to my ear the sound of voices from the 
 bank. I recognized the tones as those of the man 
 whom I had knocked down upon the day of my 
 arrival in Vicksburg; he was now waiting at the 
 pig-pen, intending to kill me as I jumped over that 
 tree. This man was accompanied by a friend, who 
 suggested that, as it was the last night, I might not 
 upon this evening visit the cottage at all. 
 
 ''Then," said the first man, excitedly, " I shall 
 go into his cabin and dispatch him." 
 
 It occurred to me that he was as likely to kill 
 the captain as me, and that he, the captain, was a 
 good man, whom I should be sorry to have suffer 
 upon my account. I arose, went into the cabin 
 and looked at the captain, who was asleep; then I 
 took my bowie-knife, concealed it in my breast,
 
 94 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 and made my way into the woods, approaching 
 the pig-pen cautiously, until, after hearing all I 
 cared to, I sprang upon the tree and walked out 
 between the two men. At first the murderer did 
 not recognize me, as I came from the woods, but 
 I looked him closely in the face for a moment, and 
 then two blades flashed past each other; but mine 
 had done its work before there was time for a 
 thought, and his body fell, with a heavy plunge, 
 into the river. His friend immediately sued for 
 his life, protesting that he was a disinterested 
 party, who had been brought out against his will, 
 and averring that I had done quite right; for, if I 
 had not killed his friend, I should myself have 
 been murdered before morning-. I told him that I 
 already knew this, as God had told it me in the 
 breeze, and that he could go. I did not pollute 
 that happy cottage that night with the presence of 
 a man who had just sent a human being into eter- 
 nity with all his sins upon him, and we left upon the 
 next day, all our friends from the town coming to 
 see us off. 
 
 My conscience troubled me for some time, 
 though, in fact, an eight months' residence in 
 Vicksburg at that time would prepare any man for 
 fighting, and I had commenced upon the day of 
 my arrival. The matter weighed upon my mind 
 until I told the whole story to a friend, a physician 
 in Europe, who said that in his opinion it was done 
 in self-defense, and should not occasion a moment's
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 95 
 
 thought; and since that time I have become con- 
 vinced that it is worse than folly to grieve at that 
 which is past. 
 
 After a two years' experience in the Mexican 
 war, carrying dispatches in a pretty armed schooner 
 for the Commodores Kelly and Perry, and being 
 present at all the engagements on the coast, and 
 several of those up the rivers, I took a prize 
 schooner called the " Relampego," which means 
 licrhtninor. 
 
 She was a fast vessel, and we traded to many 
 ports, but principally to Tabasco, about seventy- 
 five miles up a river of the same name. I cannot 
 describe the beauties of this stream of water, con- 
 stituting a complete network of greater and lesser 
 rivers, which traverse thousands of miles of one of 
 the richest countries of the world. One branch 
 leads close up to the ancient city of Palenque, 
 where are to be found all the evidences necessary 
 to establish the fact that this city must have been 
 built prior to the times of the building of the pyra- 
 mids in Egypt. 
 
 What a lesson is taught us by the silent remains 
 of these ancient cities of splendor, whose teeming 
 multitudes thronged their streets thousands of 
 years before this country was discovered by Euro- 
 peans; and to think that these vast multitudes 
 must be swept away, and the places they once oc- 
 cupied come to be known no more, except to the 
 red man of the forest, and their civilization, with
 
 96 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 all their acquirements in the arts and sciences, be 
 lost in barbarism. 
 
 In the rainy season, the current in the river ran 
 strong, and we frequently hauled our schooner up 
 against the current with a line run up to some tree, 
 and I have been down to the bottom of the river, 
 in about forty feet of water, as many as thirty 
 times in a day, to clear the line of some old log, or 
 other obstruction. I refer to this to show how 
 perfectly indifferent to danger of all kinds we 
 become at some periods of our lives, and to prove 
 that I was a stranger to fear at that part of mine; 
 for the river was filled with alligators of the largest 
 kind, which might have seized and devoured me in 
 a minute. One of these monsters we caught by a 
 series of maneuvers, displaying both stratagem 
 and valor, and found, upon divesting him of it, that 
 his hide filled a sixty-gallon cask. 
 
 The first native to greet us, on our trip up the 
 Tobaskeug river, a tributary of the Tabasco, was 
 a young girl, who was rowing across stream in a 
 canoe. This living Pocahontas, who was a second 
 Cleopatra, stood erect for some minutes, regarding 
 us curiously and intently, and displaying to us a 
 form of dignity and grace, regular features, and 
 eyes as large and soft as those of a gazelle ; in 
 short, presenting a complete contrast to her sisters, 
 the natives upon the other side of the continent. 
 
 Upon this river I saw another model for a 
 sculptor, about seventeen years old. It was rain-
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 97 
 
 ing, and this girl was nude, possessing such 
 features, limbs, and graceful movements as are 
 seldom seen. She was as proud and as graceful 
 as was the angel that seduced Mother Eve. I will 
 say here that in the Marquesas, at Point Venus, 
 Tahiti, and on the Friendly Islands, I have seen 
 surprisingly beautiful natives; in the Navigator 
 group thousands of girls are models for a sculptor, 
 and there are some fine figures in New Zealand, 
 while there are but few in the Fijis, and none in 
 New Holland; in New Guina, in Java, and in the 
 Ladrones, few; in New Caledonia and New Heb- 
 rides, none; but in Manila, the Solomon, and Gil- 
 bert groups, many. 
 
 But to return to Tobasco, where we dined upon 
 monkeys and rattlesnakes every day. We smug- 
 gled a great deal and were always successful. On 
 the last trip we had a large amount of money due, 
 and I learned on my arrival that it was all rajfjTy^ 
 for us, so I made all diligence in putting out the 
 cargo and getting the money aboard. I must say 
 here that during the Mexican war I had necessarily 
 become acquainted with a great many people in 
 this vicinity, among whom was a PoUuider by the 
 name of Le Pap, whose house, situated at Fron- 
 tera, near the mouth of the river, had been much 
 frequented by the Americans. His family consisted 
 of one wife, two children, and the wife's mother; 
 they had made money during the war, at the con- 
 clusion of which I had advised Le Pap to sell out
 
 98 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 and leave with the Americans. I told him that the 
 Mexicans would prosecute him and confiscate his 
 property, and that he could not make too great 
 haste in canceling his business, collecting his 
 money and his family, and leaving the country; 
 but he replied that it was impossible that he should 
 come to harm, as he had never committed an 
 illegal act in his life. I represented to him that 
 the authorities were already tying to trees the 
 women who had extended civilities to the Ameri- 
 cans during the war, and whipping them upon the- 
 bare back until life was nearly extinct; unfortu- 
 nately all my arguments were in vain, for I now 
 found that, in accordance with my fears, all his 
 doors had government seals upon them, his prop- 
 erty being confiscated, and he was in prison in 
 Tabasco, sentenced to be shot. 
 
 I went to his wife, who was a French woman, 
 and a smart one, and told her that I had a mind 
 to save Le Pap, and directed her to be in Tabasco 
 prepared to assist me. As I have already said, 
 I then hastened to get out the cargo and secure 
 the gold which was waiting for us; every evening 
 I would go with my crew, which had been with 
 me two years, to the house of the merchant, re- 
 turning on board loaded with gold ounces, each 
 ounce representing sixteen dollars, and being drop- 
 ped, on board, into holes in the taffrail, which had 
 been made with an auger specially for this purpose. 
 We soon had seventy-five thousand dollars safely
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 99 
 
 stowed away, but on my last trip toward the 
 schooner I heard language coming from a dark- 
 ened room, that we passed, which caused me to 
 suspect that we had been watched; the words 
 which I overheard, spoken in the Spanish tongue, 
 and in an undertone, were these: "Here goes 
 another cargo;" and they satisfied me that the 
 sooner I got off the better. 
 
 I had sent Mrs. Le Pap that day to see her 
 husband in the prison, which was situated about 
 half a mile from town, and to convey to him a cord, 
 which she carried concealed under her dress, with 
 word that I should crawl to the roof and open the 
 thatch, when he must throw me the cord, climb up 
 by means of it when I had made it fast to one 
 of the rafters, jump to the ground, and run to a 
 certain point which he knew of on the river, where 
 he would find a canoe for his use; to go down the 
 river and secrete himself in a pile of logwood in 
 the yard of Mr. Shields, an English merchant at 
 Frontera, and that I, having his family on board, 
 and after embarking twenty thousand dollars from 
 the house of Mr. Shields, would take him, the last 
 thing, into the schooner. 
 
 Agreeably to my promise, then, although the 
 night was as dark as pitch and the rain fell heavily, 
 I went out to the prison and succeeded in getting 
 upon the back part of the roof, where I made a 
 small hole, put my arm down, and soon had the 
 cord made fast; up came Le Pap, and we jumped
 
 ioo The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 off the eaves together; but another prisoner who 
 availed himself of the cord, which I should have 
 hauled up, sprained his ankle in jumping and fell 
 out past the corner of the building just as the sen- 
 tinel came to the end of his beat : the prisoner 
 was instantly killed with the bayonet and the alarm 
 given. 
 
 I ran for my life, got on board safely, let go the 
 line, and dropped down the river; as this was the 
 rainy season, the current, which carried with it 
 large masses or blocks of froth from great falls 
 above the city, ran at the rate of six miles an hour, 
 which insured us a quick trip down to the logwood- 
 yard of Mr. Shields. 
 
 We made all arrangements for getting the money 
 off that night, Le Pap's family being already on 
 board, when what was our surprise, at dark, to see 
 two soldiers from Frontera, which was a quarter 
 of a mile up the river, station themselves, one 
 abreast the bow and the other abreast the stern of 
 the schooner, so as to completely prevent any com- 
 munication with the house of Mr. Shields without their 
 knowledge ; at the same moment a canoe from the 
 opposite side of the river came unobserved along- 
 side, and handed me a letter from the English 
 house at Tabasco. I called all hands and read to 
 them as follows: "Captain Wakeman, you are sus- 
 pected of smuggling a large amount of specie, and 
 of breaking prison and releasing Le Pap, a prisoner 
 under the sentence of death ; if you are caught
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 101 
 
 your fate will be: for yourself, death; for your crew, 
 imprisonment, which may be worse than death ; 
 and confiscation of all the property under your 
 command. Ten minutes after you went out, a 
 government boat carrying six officers and soldiers 
 left here, with orders to get six more soldiers from 
 Frontera and take you ; the consequence of being 
 taken you already know — death." 
 
 I looked at my crew for a few minutes and saw 
 that they fully understood the case. "Men," said 
 I, "it is evident that we cannot afford to be 
 taken." 
 
 "Never," replied the crew. 
 
 "Then," rejoined I, "it will be necessary at 
 midnight for two men, with good knives, to put 
 those two sentinels some place else, as that money 
 and Le Pap must come on board at that time." 
 
 "All right," said the crew, "at twelve you will 
 see no more of those two men." 
 
 At one a. m. we were all ready to sail, the 
 money and Le Pap being on board. It was calm, 
 and we could not cross the bar until the land 
 breeze set in; so we hove short with the flying- 
 jib loosed ready to run up, and Le Pap furled in 
 the standing jib, and with both officers and crew 
 armed to the teeth. At daylight it was still calm, 
 and as the sun rose we saw a large boat coming 
 round the point of land up the river, with bright 
 bayonets and muskets shining in the sun. I knew 
 that unless the land breeze came we could not eo
 
 102 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 over the bar, and would have to take the whole 
 party by strategem, which I explained to the 
 crew. 
 
 Every eye was upon me for the signal as this boat 
 pulled straight for the schooner; they came up the 
 gangway, and after drawing up their men to the 
 number of twelve, six officers came aft and asked 
 if I was the captain; I answered in the affirmative, 
 when the spokesman said that he had an unpleasant 
 duty to perform, as the schooner was suspected of 
 having a large quantity of specie on board, and he 
 had been sent to arrest and examine her. He said 
 nothing of my case personally, and I told him, 
 slapping him on the back in the most friendly way, 
 that he must not have any delicate feelings in the 
 case; that I knew he was compelled to do his 
 duty ; and that when the land breeze came in 
 at eleven o'clock we would make sail and run up 
 to the dock, my only regret being that he had not 
 made the examination before, as now we should 
 have to take out all the cargo. 
 
 He said they had just taken twenty-eight thou- 
 sand dollars out of the water cask of a Spanish 
 brig, and had often found gold under the ballast. 
 In the meanwhile I called the steward and ordered 
 breakfast for all the party, and desired a box of wine 
 to be brought up, of which they partook in the 
 most friendly manner. The head officer continued 
 to excuse the service he had to perform, and was 
 as often assured that it was nothing, as he could 
 do no less.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 103 
 
 A land breeze crawled along down the river, and 
 the men walked aft, and to the opposite side of the 
 schooner, with a deck-tackle fall in their hands, 
 with which they tripped the anchor from the 
 bottom, so that the vessel commenced drifting 
 toward the bar. The second box of wine was 
 being sampled, when the time for action arrived. 
 I threw off the coat I had worn all night, disclos- 
 ing six pistols in my belt; Ihad one cocked in my 
 left hand, and a new hatchet in my right, which I 
 held over the head officer; my crew at the same 
 moment covered every man of them, so that the 
 state of things became apparent to them, and they 
 saw that resistance was impossible. 
 
 " Into your boats in a minute, or I will kill every 
 one of you," I shouted, and they went, without 
 their arms, thanking me humbly for their lives, and 
 protesting that they should die my friends; for so 
 sudden a change of matters had completely demor- 
 alized them. I ordered sail to be made, and 
 hoisted the big jib, when in walked Le Pap, on 
 deck, and in sight of all those gallant Mexicans. 
 
 We crossed the bar in safety, and arrived with- 
 out accident in New Orleans, after a most perilous 
 passage across the Gulf, and it is unnecessary to 
 say that I did not return to Tabasco. 
 
 I had been so successful, and had made so much 
 money for my owner, that he promised to make 
 me a present of any brig which I might pick out 
 as a good freighter; but this gentleman, who had
 
 104 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 controlled two million dollars, failed about a week 
 after this offer, and has been a poor man ever 
 since, so I did not get my brig - . However, he 
 made the schooner ''Relampago " into my hands, 
 and I fitted her out to go to California. 
 
 We had fifty passengers on board, and plenty 
 of provisions and water, but we were not out of 
 the river before some of the steerage passengers 
 came aft into the cabin, and swore they had as 
 good a right there as the others, and I soon found 
 them stowing away bread to take on shore with 
 them in California; and my expostulations were in 
 vain, for they were a set of villains, accustomed to 
 the pistol and knife from youth up. 
 
 One night, while carrying double reefs, we split 
 the breast hooks open, which caused the schooner 
 to leak badly. Next day we anchored in Havana, 
 and the custom-house boat came alongside. After 
 examining our papers, the officers told us we 
 would lay at anchor twenty days before we would 
 be allowed to repair. 
 
 "Gentlemen," said I, "I shall never submit to 
 such a gross imposition. When the land breeze 
 blows out of this harbor, I shall go to sea, and 
 shall put in at Key West, where I can have the 
 repairs done." 
 
 " No, Captain," replied the officers;" "for when 
 you attempt to pass the Morro Castle the big 
 cannon will sink you." 
 
 "Sink and be cussed," was my answer; "but 
 out I go."
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 105 
 
 They went on shore, and at eleven p. m. a good 
 land breeze sprang up, and we made sail. Just as 
 we arrived under the Morro, a man o' war came 
 alongside and demanded our hawser, which we 
 gave him, and we were towed out in safety. 
 Next day we went into Key West, but it was 
 some time before we could get any of the boats to 
 approach; for, as we afterward learned, they took 
 us for pirates. 
 
 I called a survey on the vessel and got the de- 
 cision of the inspectors, which was that the vessel 
 could be repaired for a certain sum of money. 
 This left it optional with me whether I abandoned 
 or repaired, and I immediately decided to aban- 
 don. 
 
 The passengers came to me to know if they 
 were to be left at Key West; and I told them that 
 of course that was the case, as it rested with me 
 as to whether I should go on or give up the 
 voyage, and from what I had seen of them, I felt 
 that they knew too much to go any further with 
 me. 
 
 This caused hard feelings; and the passengers 
 retaliated by representing to the wreckers of Key 
 West that I and my crew were pirates, causing us 
 to be looked upon with an eye of distrust on all 
 sides. At length it went so far that the house in 
 which I was living with my crew was attacked one 
 night; but we were all armed, and in ten minutes 
 there was not a man to be found in that part of
 
 106 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 Key West, and after thus showing our mettle we 
 were left unmolested. 
 
 I soon turned to wrecking and repairing wrecks 
 that came in, and found that I had all the wrecks 
 of Key West, and was making money. I soon 
 refitted the schooner, and returned with my crew 
 to New Orleans, where I received the thanks of 
 the insurance company for conducting the voyage 
 as well as they could have done it. 
 
 After declining the command of a brig to go to 
 California, I started upon a six months' trading 
 trip to all the ports in Mexico, where I was well 
 acquainted; always, of course, avoiding Tabasco. 
 I ran down the coast to the river Quasacoalcoas, 
 and crossed the bar, going up to Minatitlan, where 
 we loaded our cargo for New York. 
 
 About this time, my crew commenced dying 
 with yellow fever, until only two boys and a crazy 
 passenger, whom I had taken on at Vera Cruz, 
 were left. I was the last to be taken, and the 
 natives came on board and gave me their yellow 
 fever dose, all the contents of the medicine-chest 
 having been exhausted on the crew before I was 
 sick. This medicine consisted of a bowl of castor 
 oil and lime juice, in which was a quantity of red 
 pepper and salt, and it worked most powerfully 
 upon me. I lay for days upon the cabin floor, out 
 of my head, until one day I heard something right 
 over me, on deck, fall close to the sky-light, down 
 which the last of the crew says to me :
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 107 
 
 u Captain, I am dying. I have rolled off the 
 settee and cannot get on again." 
 
 "Then," said I, "get. close to the side of the 
 vessel, so that I can get you overboard when you 
 are dead." 
 
 Sometime after this a man shook me, and called 
 me loudly by name, saying : 
 
 " Don't you know Captain Foster, of the Alva- 
 rado river ? I am alongside of your brig with my 
 pilot-boat, and I have just thrown the body of one 
 of your men from the quarter-deck, and removed 
 another from the fo'castl^, where it must have 
 been lying a week. Abandon this brig, of which 
 the crew is dead, and come with me.'' 
 
 " No," replied I; "send me the native pilot from 
 the shore." 
 
 Captain Foster went immediately and brought 
 him. 
 
 "What is your order, captain," this man asked. 
 
 " If ever the land breeze comes down this river," 
 I answered, ''get the anchor up, make all sail, 
 take us out to sea, and let us go; I know that all 
 my crew are gone and that I shall follow, but I 
 want to go overboard in clear water." 
 
 He promised, and Captain Foster had to dis- 
 pense with his plan of getting me to abandon the 
 brig. In about a week the pilot sang out down 
 the skylight: 
 
 "Land breeze ! What shall I do?" 
 
 "Do as you promised me."
 
 io8 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 In an hour we were out in the gulf, the pilot and 
 his men had left us, and we mustered our two sick 
 boys and our crazy passenger for a crew, together 
 with myself — not myself half the time. The boy, 
 Alex. Childs, whom I had taught navigation, 
 was the captain, and he steered while the other 
 one cooked, and the passenger manned a capstan 
 bar, with the rest, every time we braced the fore- 
 yard about. The weather was so hot that poor 
 Alex, fairly fainted away at the wheel, and would 
 fall out of the chair in which he was sitting, because 
 he was too weak to stand. One night, upon be- 
 coming conscious, he told me that the wind was 
 hauling so that he could not fetch the north-west 
 pass, which he was steering for; so he and the 
 other boy got me bolstered up against the side of 
 the cabin and I added another piece of paper to 
 the chart and extended it up to Pensacola. Soon 
 after I finished the chart I became blind, and one 
 day Alex, came to me and shook me, saying: 
 
 "Captain, there is a big white thing right 
 ahead." 
 
 "All right," said I; "that is the hospital to which 
 we are all bound; steer straight for it." 
 
 In about an hour the boy came and said : 
 
 " Captain, here is a terrible squall from off the 
 land." 
 
 "All right," I again rejoined, "let go all the 
 halliards and let her lie." 
 
 It came with fury but soon passed over, and in
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 109 
 
 the meantime our flag - of distress had been seen, 
 and a man o' war boat followed close on the track 
 of the squall. They came on board,, put me in the 
 boat and started for the shore, leaving a crew to 
 work the brig up into the river, and I was soon 
 landed upon the dock, where I was left lying upon 
 my back. Some officers who were walking close 
 by remarked: "There is a poor fellow who will 
 soon be past all trouble;" and the negro who 
 drove the dead-cart belonging to the hospital 
 came and put me in it, driving off, after being 
 blasted by the officers for not putting some shav- 
 ings or straw into the bottom of his vehicle for me 
 to lie upon; but I suppose he thought it would 
 soon be all the same with me; and, in fact, I 
 thought so myself, for all this time I could not see 
 a thing. Arriving at the hospital, and being car- 
 ried in, the two physicians who came to examine 
 this new case proved to be doctors who had served 
 on men o' war during the Mexican war, and who 
 knew me well. I was carried into the room of one 
 of these gentlemen, and, thanks to the strict atten- 
 tion I received, in two weeks I was able to sit 
 upon the side of my bed and take a supper of tea 
 and toast with my two friends, while I thanked 
 them for my life. In the meantime they had 
 treated the two boys and the passenger, and had 
 brought them around all right. 
 
 In a few days, I begged the doctor to let me go 
 into town, which was several miles off. I received
 
 no The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 a reluctant consent, and was directed to walk 
 slowly, under a large umbrella, and upon the 
 shady side of the street, down to the dock, there 
 to enter the cabin of the mail boat and lie down 
 upon the cushion, remaining there until she arrived 
 in town; to all of which I agreed. I made frequent 
 stops, even before reaching the schooner, and laid 
 down according to promise. On our arrival, I 
 walked very slowly up a street beautifully shaded 
 with trees and went into a hotel, where I ate more 
 than my allowance of a nice chicken stew, and came 
 out feeling- like a new man. Seeing a Concord 
 coach opposite, with four horses harnessed to it, I 
 walked over and asked the driver where he went 
 to. He said that he went ninety miles through 
 the woods to a river, where a steamer called and 
 took the passengers to Mobile and New Orleans. 
 
 " When do you leave? " I asked. 
 
 " In five minutes," he replied. 
 
 "What is the fare? " 
 
 " So much ; " and in a few moments I had given 
 him his money, directed a letter to the commander 
 of the station, asking him to take charge of my 
 vessel until my return from New Orleans, where I 
 had gone to procure a crew and stores with which 
 to continue my voyage to New York, and had 
 taken my place in the coach, where I found that I 
 was the only passenger. We made good time 
 through a beautiful country, but the driver, who 
 had served as a private in the Mexican war, had
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 1 1 1 
 
 under his seat a bottle of brandy, and, because of 
 his frequent engagements with the Mexicans, and 
 more frequent collisions with the trees, I was much 
 relieved to see him haul up at midnight to change 
 his team ; for I was in hopes that the driver, also, 
 would be changed; but this was not to be, so I 
 did justice to another chicken stew, even better 
 than the last one, and we were off again, over a 
 corduroy road. As this communicative driver 
 drank freely from his bottle after each battle that 
 he refought for my edification, I thought every 
 moment to be dashed to pieces; but the animals 
 knew more than their master, and we arrived next 
 day at ten o'clock, just in time to see the boat 
 going out of sight in the distance; for we were an 
 hour too late, as I found on crawling out of this 
 coach, where I had been stowed down in the cock- 
 pit, with both big leathern cushions on top of me 
 to keep me down; for it had seemed very evident 
 to my mind, as she struck some of the logs, that I 
 would have my brains knocked out against the top 
 of the coach. 
 
 Here was a fine house, where a rich planter 
 lived, with the huts of his slaves at a short distance 
 from his door. I was very innocently approach- 
 ing the verandah of the house, where a family ol 
 children was running about, when the master 
 caught sight of me, and, in an ungovernable rage, 
 motioned me away, and told his slaves to take me 
 down to the river, and put me upstairs in a new
 
 H2 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 house that stood there; at the same time he cursed 
 the stage-driver for bringing such a looking man, 
 dead with the yellow fever, into his family. I had 
 not seen myself, but I must have looked terrible, 
 judging from the way that man acted. Well, I was 
 conducted up a ladder into the unfinished house, 
 the doors and windows of which had not yet been 
 put in, and left upon the floor, where an old slave 
 woman came and gave me a large bowl of some- 
 thing she had cooked for me, all of which I de- 
 voured, and then fell off to sleep, that coach having 
 been nearly the death of me. 
 
 About midnight I was awakened by a crashing 
 of the pine chips which lay plentifully around the 
 house; I sat up and listened, and, from the sound, 
 soon decided that it was some bear that had smelt 
 me, and was now approaching me with all the 
 caution peculiar to that beast. Nearer and nearer 
 it came, and I realized that after all I had escaped 
 by the sea I was about to be devoured by a bear. 
 I was very weak and nervous, and had just finished 
 saying my last prayer when the animal commenced 
 to climb the ladder, and after agonies of suspense 
 I saw his great black head, mounting cautiously 
 and slowly; then I shuddered and closed my eyes, 
 and had scarcely strength enough to answer to the 
 summons: " Massa ! massa!" and could hardly 
 comprehend the fact that instead of a bear it was 
 the old black slave with both hands full. But 
 when I found that instead of a messenger of death,
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 1 1 3 
 
 sent to eat me in that lonely spot, it was, in fact, 
 a black angel of mercy sent to save my life, I was 
 truly grateful, and ate and drank the contents of 
 both bowls, being promised as much more the next 
 day, before the boat left. 
 
 The next morning, at eight o'clock, I went down 
 my roundabout path, which took me as far as pos- 
 sible from the planter's house, and finally arrived 
 at New Orleans, where, several times a day, I 
 drank freely of quinine, until my head rang like a 
 brass kettle. I finally found a man who would 
 lend me what money I wanted, so I chartered a 
 new schooner, put all the provisions on her, shipped 
 a crew for the brig, and had a fifteen days' passage 
 around to Pensacola, where I arrived, tanned up 
 again and with some flesh on my bones. No one 
 knew me, not even the doctors, who were my best 
 friends. I found that the commodore had done all 
 I asked of him, and in a few days I was out on 
 the sea again, all well, and bound to New York.
 
 ii4 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 I Escape with the "New World" — An Eventful Voyage 
 
 Around the Horn — Arrive in San Francisco, 
 
 July ii, 1850. 
 
 R RIVED in New York, I made 
 the brig fast, and noticed a new 
 fi steamer on the dock almost 
 ready to launch. 
 
 "Who owns that steamer?" 
 I asked a man who was pass- 
 
 "I do," he answered; "what 
 ^ do you want of her ?" 
 
 " I want to take her to California," I replied. 
 
 "Who are you, sir?" 
 
 " A sailor, sir." 
 
 "Who have you sailed for?" he then asked; 
 and I mentioned several. Seeing one of these 
 eentlemen at that time not far off he ran to him 
 and came back in a minute, saying: ''Well, young 
 man, you can have her." 
 
 "Thank you, sir," I replied; "then I will run 
 for the train, as I wish to visit my parents in West- 
 port, whom I have not seen for four years." 
 
 " Wait a moment and give me your address, 
 that I may write for you when I want you," he
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 115" 
 
 rejoined, detaining me ; after which I was off for 
 Westport, where I spent one of the happiest weeks 
 of my life among my old schoolmates, and was 
 written for far too soon; but I went down and took 
 charge of the steamer "New World." 
 
 Sunday, the tenth day of February, had been 
 announced as the time for launching this handsome 
 steamer, together with the "Arctic" and the 
 " Boston ;" but in the meantime my vessel had 
 been seized by the sheriff, in virtue of an attach- 
 ment by a gentleman who wished to recover the 
 sum of fifty thousand dollars from her owner, Wm, 
 H. Brown; she had been given into the charge of 
 Deputy Sheriff Cunningham, a man of experience 
 and resolution, who, with a squad of keepers, 
 resolved to remain upon the vessel himself during 
 the ceremony. Upon coming on board he seemed 
 to be surprised to find that my engineer, Billy Van 
 Wirt, had fires under the boilers and was getting 
 up steam. 
 
 "Why, captain," he asked, coming to me, "what 
 are you firing up for?" 
 
 "Well, you see," I told him, "we thought it 
 would add to the interest of the occasion if the 
 finest steamer of the three was launched with 
 steam up ready to work ; and, besides, we want to 
 turn the engine over to work off the rust." 
 
 And the experiment, which was without prece- 
 dent, was entirely successful, the launch being 
 accomplished without accident, and amid the cheers
 
 ' 1 1 6 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 of fully twenty thousand people, who were crowded 
 upon the quays, wharves and houses along East 
 river. And thus the " New World" was the first 
 boat in the world to be launched with steam on. 
 At twelve m. we started on our trial trip, and with 
 every basket of champagne that was emptied she 
 ran faster, until she ran at the rate of twenty-two 
 miles an hour. We returned to our dock at mid- 
 night, and all hands sought the comforts of a hotel 
 near at hand. At one a. m. I returned on board, 
 after an absence of half an hour, and found her in 
 a blaze in the fire-room; but the fire was soon ex- 
 tinguished and the boat saved. 
 
 On Saturday, the sixteenth of February, I was 
 ready for sea, and went on board about dark, 
 although my register had been retained on shore. 
 It was raining heavily, and I found several men on 
 deck whom I did not know, but they were soon 
 introduced to me as the officers who were in pos- 
 session of the boat. I said: 
 
 " Keep out of the rain, gentlemen ; no man 
 could go to sea upon such a night as this, how- 
 ever he might desire it." But in a couple of 
 hours I received a note from the owner, written in 
 even a worse hand than my own, and I read this 
 to the effect: 
 
 "You must go to sea to-morrow morning;" 
 though it appeared afterward that it read, " You 
 must not go." So I soon made all the arrange- 
 ments necessary, and at daylight the weather had
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. I17 
 
 cleared up inside the harbor. At about eight a. m. 
 she began to feel alive with warm pulsations, like a 
 strong man getting ready to do good service 
 against the elements. I locked myself into the 
 pilot-house, and soon saw that our sheriff and his 
 men were getting very anxious. Some ran one 
 way and some another, but they could find none 
 of the crew, the fact being that I had them all 
 below, with the doors locked that led to them. I 
 took off my hat, which was a signal to a man upon 
 the dock to pick up an axe which had been placed 
 there and to cut the hawser, which he did with 
 alacrity. Two bells were rung, and the boat shot 
 out into the river; and now came a great noise 
 from the deck: 
 
 " Stop her, condemn you, stop her, won't 
 you ? " was cried, in all keys. I called a man 
 from below with a given signal, and placed him at 
 the wheel, then I stepped out on deck and in- 
 quired: 
 
 "What is the matter ? " 
 
 " Where have you been, and where are your 
 crew?" cried the marshals. "Who told you to 
 take the boat from the dock ? She is in our 
 charge, and we command you to take her back at 
 once." 
 
 " Keep cool, gentlemen," I said; "you know it 
 rained hard all night, and wet us through, and I 
 want to turn the machinery over a little. Some- 
 time in the future this vessel will doubtless sail for
 
 1 1 8 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 California, and I want to see that everything is 
 still in good order." This pacified the sheriff and 
 his men for a while, but presently Cunningham 
 came to me and said: 
 
 " Say, captain, don't you think your machinery 
 has been turned over enough ?" 
 
 " Oh," I replied, suavely, "don't be afraid, Mr. 
 Sheriff, the day is so fine and we look so well 
 with our new flags flying that I want to cruise 
 around a little; there is no business doing Sunday, 
 and we might as well be doing this as anything 
 else." 
 
 My frankness again reassured the officer, and 
 the fact that, besides his own men and Van Wirt, 
 who was oscillating between the furnace and the 
 engine, I was the only man to be seen, doubtless 
 served to further allay his fears, as I do not sup- 
 pose that I looked the man to run away with a 
 steamboat. 
 
 After going up to Blackwell's Island we turned 
 around again, and, passing the Battery, went up 
 the North river to Canal street, and steamed down 
 again. When off the Battery this time I was again 
 in the pilot-house, and when, instead of going up 
 East river, we steered for Staten Island, conster- 
 nation was once more rife. 
 
 The officer shouted: "Stop her!" and ran all 
 over the boat, but could find no one to perform 
 this service, as my crew was still awaiting my 
 signal below decks. They were not able to stop
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 119 
 
 her themselves, and failed to get the anchors off 
 the bow, as they had been purposely stopped with 
 chains running through the deck pipes into the 
 hold. At last, when we reached the Narrows and 
 were close in to the shore, I stopped her and step- 
 ped out onto the deck. Cunningham instantly 
 rushed to me and said: 
 
 "Captain, you intend taking this vessel to sea!" 
 
 "My dear Mr. Sheriff," said I, "I intend to do 
 so — if the rust comes off the eno-ines." 
 
 The sheriff instantly seized my collar, and cov- 
 ered me with his pistol, as he whistled the alarm, 
 and said : 
 
 "I am the sheriff of New York city and county; 
 this vessel is in my charge, and she shall be taken 
 back to the dock." 
 
 "And I," I answered him, straightening myself, 
 "am master of the good ship 'New World,' 
 afloat upon the high seas. This vessel is in my 
 charge, and let who questions it beware," and I 
 blew a blast on a boatswain's call that made the 
 call of his police whistle sound like the piping of 
 a canary bird. 
 
 "All hands on deck" was quickly answered by 
 the crew, who, armed with pistols, knives and 
 cutlasses, poured from the hold over the deck ; 
 and the utterly astonished landsmen were instantly 
 overpowered. I gave the word, " Put the sheriff 
 and his aids ashore," and the discomfited bailiffs 
 were hustled over the side into a small boat. As
 
 120 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 the first man fell into the bottom, the mate, who 
 was an ugly-looking fellow, having a badly broken 
 nose and deep gashes in his chin, resulting from 
 the exploits of his younger days, grabbed him like 
 a tiger, closing upon him so fiercely that the 
 frightened man asked, "Where are you going to 
 take me to? " 
 
 "To hell, if the captain tells me to," roared the 
 mate, which completely unmanned our United 
 States marshal; and the rest of them being in the 
 boat, I passed a hatchet to the mate, saying : 
 
 "After you land these gentlemen, if you find 
 anything like an incumbrance fast to the gunwale 
 as you are backing out, clear it away with this 
 tool ; ' ' and then I added : 
 
 " Gentlemen, that house you see upon the hill 
 is a half-way inn, where you can get refreshments, 
 as you will probably be tired before you reach 
 Staten Island ferry." 
 
 As these officers were being pitched into the 
 sand, where they would have to wade three miles 
 through the mud to reach the ferry, one of them 
 asked the mate : 
 
 " Would you cut off my hands if I attempted to 
 haul your boat up on the beach ?" 
 
 " Yes, and your damned head, too," replied this 
 ferocious seaman, and that settled the sheriff ; he 
 jumped out, the boat rowed back and was pulled 
 up, and away we flew before a strong north-west 
 wind that was just setting in.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 121 
 
 After looking after us for a long time, all the 
 party of officers went up the hill toward the half- 
 way house that I had called their attention to. 
 
 We had what are called hog-frames to strengthen 
 the boat from the great iron rod, about four inches 
 in diameter. At midnight the sea ran very high, 
 the wind blew hard, and in the midst of the storm 
 the rod on the starboard side broke right in two. 
 I took a small rope in my hand and went on top 
 of the hog- frame, which was in the form of the let- 
 ter A, with its two legs fifty-seven feet long. 
 When I got up, the end of the bower-chain had 
 been brought aft and bent into the line, so that I 
 could haul it up ; this I did, took a round turn, made 
 it fast and came down on it; then I put the bight 
 through the turn-buckle, and set it up taut as the 
 boat sprang up in the middle. 
 
 Next day it was better weather, as we got out 
 of the Gulf Stream, enabling us to make very good 
 time towards Pernambuco. We ran into this port 
 in the night, and when I presented my letter of 
 credit I was told by the merchant never to present 
 that again, as no man could read it, and if he could, 
 no one knew a Mr. Brown; that I could have the 
 supplies I wanted, as I was well known on both 
 coasts, and could doubtless get them anywhere, 
 but not to show that letter to any other merchant. 
 We got our supplies and left the same day, and 
 when sixty miles from Rio Janeiro we saw a large 
 steamship about amidships, steering right for us.
 
 122 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 She came so near that we could see the faces of 
 those on deck. When she was falling astern of us 
 she fired a bow-gun for us to heave to ; I had sail 
 on at the time, and I ordered all steam on that the 
 boilers would stand, in the meantime letting go my 
 halliards, which caused the frigate to think that I 
 was getting ready to bring up in the wind. I 
 ordered the men to take as long in furling the sail 
 as possible, and the English frigate fell quietly 
 astern. When the engineer reported that he had 
 all the steam he could use in safety, I commanded: 
 " Then let that Englishman see a Yankee boat 
 
 o 
 
 run," and she went ahead full power. The men 
 were ordered in, and in another minute all the sails 
 and steering sails were set on the frigate, and a • 
 constant firing was kept up until the shot fell short 
 entirely. They chased me to the harbor, and 
 seeing me go in, hauled off. I ran past all the old 
 hulks and the fort Santa Cruz, all of which fired at 
 me several times, anchored close to an American 
 man-o'war and got into my boat to pull ashore; 
 but when about half way I happened to fall over- 
 board and lose the tin box that held all my papers 
 — except my register, which was detained in the 
 custom-house in New York, and the absence of 
 which would have made me a legal prize to that 
 Englishman, had he caught me. 
 
 I went up to the consul's, all wet through, and 
 stated the loss of my papers. The consul said : 
 '' Well, well, there is no use in grieving. I shall
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 123 
 
 have to give you papers that will take you just the 
 same," so I returned on board to find that I should 
 not have gone on shore until we had been in- 
 spected by custom-house officers. They were 
 now alongside, and they abused me terribly for my 
 ignorance, swearing that I was a blank fool, and 
 didn't know anything, and telling me that I had 
 twenty days in quarantine, and must go to the 
 quarantine grounds and ride it out. 
 
 "Gentlemen," said I, " I am in distress, and 
 shall sink unless I am permitted to go into the 
 ship-yard for repairs." 
 
 "You must lie twenty days first," said they. 
 
 ''That I shall not do," said I. 
 
 "You will," said they, and pulled off. 
 
 I immediately wrote to the consul, representing 
 the case to him and demanding to be let off, as 
 there was no sickness whatever aboard. I also 
 wrote to the captain of the man o'war, and the 
 language of my letters was such as to persuade 
 these gentlemen to use their influence all day in 
 my behalf. Next day a government boat came 
 alongside and demanded to know, if I was leaking 
 so badly, how it was that I had my crew all aloft 
 working at the mast and rigging. Although I had 
 made arrangements with the engineer to let water 
 into her quickly if the officers should attempt to 
 come on board, I was taken a little aback by this 
 question about the crew ; but no time was to be 
 lost, so I grabbed a belaying pin in each hand and
 
 124 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 threw myself into a great passion, thumping those 
 two belaying pins heavily upon an empty water- 
 cask, looking furiously at the officers in the boat, 
 and at last saying to them, in a great rage : 
 
 "Blood and wrath! you blasted land-lubbers, 
 how could those men keep the water out of this 
 ship ? It is all my steam-donkey can do, and if 
 
 anything happens to that we shall go to the bot- 
 
 >> 
 torn. 
 
 After this they again pulled off, and I again 
 wrote to the consul and to the captain of the 
 American man o'war, saying that unless I was 
 taken out of quarantine in my distress, I should stop 
 the steam-donkey, get the anchor up, run along- 
 side of the frigate and sink under her bottom and 
 leave the Brazilian government to pay for her. I 
 also said to the consul that as they were all dying 
 upon the shore, whereas the crew were all in per- 
 fect health, they were the proper party to go into 
 quarantine, not us. But my threat did the busi- 
 ness, and caused the captain and the consul 
 to annoy the emperor so much by reading 
 him all of my startling letters, that upon 
 the third day he flew into a rage and ordered all 
 the quarantine flags in port to be hauled down, so 
 that every one was let out. 
 
 I now went on with my repairs, as she was very 
 much strained ; I took down the A frame and put 
 it into the hold of the steamer and fastened her off, 
 caulked her down below the bilges on both sides,
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 125 
 
 cleaned her out and whitewashed her all through 
 below. 
 
 In the meantime the yellow fever was raging on 
 ' shore, every house being filled with the sick and 
 the dying ; twelve thousand people died in the 
 hospitals in three months, and at the foot of many 
 of the streets were piles of coffins stacked up, 
 waiting for night before they should be taken away 
 for burial ; that is, to be cast into a big hole dug 
 in the ground. 
 
 The custom-house was closed and business at 
 an end. The crews of all the ships in port were 
 dead, and if any of the captains had survived, it 
 was because they had gone well back into the 
 country. The embassador who had come with us 
 as a passenger was sent back into the mount- 
 ains, but death found him* just the same ; and I 
 buried eighteen of my own crew and officers, most of 
 this number dying in one night, and nearly all 
 with my left arm supporting their heads. I was 
 entreated by my agent, who came into the city 
 occasionally, to go into the country with him; but 
 I objected, and worked on, getting my ship ready 
 for sea. 
 
 At last she was coaled, and I had a new crew 
 shipped, at one dollar a month, from men who had 
 come on board and begged me, on their knees, to 
 give them a passage out of this graveyard. Old 
 Mr. Maxwell came into town to see me off, and 
 told me, in a speech which he made at dinner,
 
 126 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 that if any other man but I, making absolutely no 
 exceptions, had been captain of the " New World," 
 she would never have left the port ; a compliment 
 for which I thanked him. 
 
 It was a happy hour when I found myself again 
 out upon the sea; but two more of the crew died 
 after getting away from the land. 
 
 One day when I went into the lower cabin dur- 
 ing a gale of wind, I found that I was wading in 
 water upon the floor. I immediately knocked 
 down all the joiner's work around the rudder cas- 
 ing, and found that the water came in at that 
 point ; we soon fixed that, and got the water out 
 of the ship, after which we proceeded without ac- 
 cident. 
 
 In going through the. Straits of Magellan we had 
 two visits from canoes from Terra del Fuego. 
 The natives had fires burning in these bark 
 canoes, and they all called aloud, "tobac, tobac," 
 meaning tobacco. We received them on board 
 and gave them everything we could spare, as they 
 were naked and the weather was very cold. 
 
 The custom among these people when short of 
 food, which consists of dead seals and fishes, or 
 blubbers from the whale, is to take the oldest 
 woman that they happen to have on hand and 
 hold her head over a fire until she is suffocated by 
 the smoke, the young folks all the time pinching 
 her throat to hasten the operation ; then they eat 
 her, and console themselves with the thought that
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 127 
 
 she was the woman who was of the least use to 
 the tribe, and hence no loss to speak of. An 
 English commander who had been on this station 
 three years told me that they were brutes. We 
 saw many Patagonians ; but they are another race 
 entirely, averaging six feet in height, whereas the 
 Fuegians are only about four feet 
 high. The Patagonians are a race 
 of hunters, and have a tolerably 
 good country to live in. and are 
 generally honest, and can therefore 
 be trusted. They have had the rep- 
 utation from early navigators of be- 
 ing all the way from seven to 
 twelve feet high ; but in these latter 
 years the refraction that affected 
 the eyesight of all the first naviga- ^ 
 tors has disappeared from the at- 
 mosphere, from the fact that the warm rays of light 
 and knowledge that have shone upon the latter- 
 day barbarians, as we are called, have enabled us 
 to see with our eyes, hear with our ears, and judge 
 in accordance. 
 
 We were informed, as soon as anchored in Val- 
 pariso, that we should have to perform a twenty 
 days' quarantine, to which I immediately ob- 
 jected. The officer said that the quarantine laws 
 of Valparaiso had never been relaxed, and never 
 would be ; I told him that I would never stay 
 twenty days in quarantine, but he replied :
 
 128 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 "Cappy, you stay twenty days." 
 
 I immediately wrote to the consul, but he 
 answered that he could do nothing. I wrote to 
 the American minister at Santiago, and he 
 answered that the laws had never been relaxed in 
 regard to quarantine, and in all probability never 
 would be. 
 
 I then hoisted my flag union down, to signify 
 that I was in distress, and boats from all the ships 
 in port hastened to come alongside ; the guard- 
 boat warned them off, but they insisted and de- 
 manded the nature of my trouble. I told them 
 that I must have two casks of fresh water, and a 
 captain in one of the boats answered : 
 
 " You shall have them in an hour, if I have to 
 kill all those dagoes in the guard-boat." 
 
 After some further conversation, which greatly 
 annoyed the guard-boat, they departed. 
 
 We were compelled, when in communication 
 with the shore, to put our letters into the little 
 boat and drop her astern the length of a deep-sea 
 line, or one hundred and twenty fathoms ; then the 
 guard-boat would go alongside and the officer, 
 with a pair of tongs, would take the letter out, dip 
 it in vinegar, which he kept in his boat, in a hole 
 for that purpose ; and then take it to the land, 
 where it was dried and read. 
 
 Every day my flag was union down ; every 
 day a fleet of boats would come in great haste to 
 know if I had mutiny on board ; and every day I
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 129 
 
 would have some most grievous complaint to 
 make. In the meantime my correspondence con- 
 tinued with the American minister, Mr. Bailey 
 Peyton, ninety-six miles in the interior, at Santiago. 
 On the eighth day I was turned out of quarantine 
 in disgust by the authorities, who swore that I 
 was the "blankest" fool or rascal they had ever 
 seen. 
 
 I found that the steamer came around without 
 straining, and that she was in good order, so I 
 was soon coaled and again on my way to Cali- 
 fornia. 
 
 I afterward learned that the authorities at Rio 
 Janeiro and Valparaiso quarantined us because the 
 crews of all the sail vessels that had touched at 
 these ports with passengers for California had 
 given them so much trouble by their conduct on 
 shore that they had resolved in future to keep all 
 California-bound vessels twenty days in quaran- 
 tine ; and thus they had endeavored to punish us 
 for what others had done. 
 
 We left Valparaiso on the eleventh of May, dur- 
 ing a norther. We had not a drop of fresh water 
 on board, but next day we had plenty, as we con- 
 densed more than we used. 
 
 We went into Callao, and I went up to Lima, 
 the capital, and saw Mr. Foster, the head of Alsop 
 & Co.'s house. He told me that I could have 
 what I wanted, but I noticed that he scarcely took 
 his eyes off me ; he watched all my movements,
 
 130 The Log of an A?icient Mariner. 
 
 until one day he called me into a private room, 
 and asked : 
 
 " Wakeman, what is the matter with your 
 boat?" 
 
 I told him that she was very strong, and as 
 tight as a jug — did not leak a drop. 
 
 " No, but," rejoined he, " what was the matter 
 in New York when you left ?" 
 
 I had forgotten that little affair, but now I told 
 him all I knew of it. He informed me that two 
 U. S. marshals were waiting at Panama, and had 
 been there for a month, waiting to arrest me on a 
 United States bench-warrant for piracy ; and that 
 I would be returned to New York in chains, and 
 the steamer prevented from proceeding. All this 
 his letters from New York via Panama had ac- 
 quainted him with, and I was told that the very 
 greatest excitement had prevailed in New York 
 after the officers returned and told their story of 
 our escape. A great newspaper controversy, as 
 well as a lawsuit, had sprung up out of it, and al- 
 together, it was a very unfortunate affair ; but, 
 said my friend, since he knew me, he had de- 
 termined to trust me with what I had ordered. I 
 told him that, now that he had informed me of 
 how matters stood, I should need twice the 
 amount of coal I had ordered, so as to be able to 
 pass Panama, should it be necessary so to do ; he 
 assented, and in a few days I was ready, and 
 sailed with Lady Mary Westley Steward, daughter,
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 131 
 
 and two ladies in waiting, as passengers, to be 
 landed at Panama. 
 
 We ran into that harbor in the night, and kept 
 behind the island of Tobago, with no lights in sight. 
 I pulled right into Panama dressed in a red flan- 
 nel shirt and Scotch cap, as were all my boat's 
 crew. 
 
 I went into every house in town, and found that 
 there were but two men there from New York 
 waiting to seize me, and that but ten soldiers be- 
 longing to the government were stationed there, 
 while, on the contrary, the place was full of pas- 
 sengers willing to pay from three to four hundred 
 dollars apiece for a passage to California. I re- 
 turned to the steamer, and at sunrise we anchored 
 right in front of Panama, took off the covers from 
 the gilt name on the wheel-house, and listened to 
 the cheer, which went up from the crowded battle- 
 ments of Panama, from one of the most motley 
 crowds that was ever huddled together. All ex- 
 pected to be able to go up in the steamer. I got 
 myself ready, and landed, walked up to C. K. Gar- 
 rison' s store, made my arrangements and stepped 
 out into the street, when a man came and put his 
 hand on my shoulder, saying : 
 
 "You are my prisoner." 
 
 In a second, both himself and companion were 
 covered with pistols, cocked, which I had held all 
 the time in my coat pockets, one in each hand. 
 
 " Move a muscle, you villains, and you die in a
 
 132 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 second. You have branded my name as that of a 
 pirate, and now you may take the consequences, 
 blast you." 
 
 It is unnecessary to say that both ran for their 
 lives. Such a noise as went up from the over- 
 crowded streets ! I was highly applauded by 
 Tom Hyer, Country McClusky, and a large party 
 of their fraternity and others, who all offered their 
 services to tar and feather the "two villains." But 
 I said : 
 
 " No, gentlemen, I will take my own part. I 
 am obliged to you, but I prefer to deal with those 
 rascals myself, as I have an account to settle with 
 them, if they will give me a chance without oblig- 
 ing- me to shoot them in the rear." 
 
 These two valiants soon saw how the land lay, 
 and tore up their documents, going up to California 
 on one of the P. M. S. S. line that came along-. 
 
 We sailed from Panama on the twentieth of 
 June, with two hundred and seventeen passengers 
 at three hundred dollars a head, and succeeded in 
 carrying them up safely, though we had a very 
 narrow escape. We had been stopping at Aca- 
 pulco, and took a south-east gale of wind on 
 coming out. We scud with it until we were up 
 with Cape Corrientes; at least, so I judged, but 
 we could see nothing, as the sea was high and the 
 wind blowing hard. At daylight, the engineer re- 
 ported the steam-chest cracked, and the necessity 
 of stopping her. I told him that if we should stop
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 133 
 
 we should go to the bottom in a few minutes, as 
 the boat had already four feet of water in her hold, 
 and the amount was increasing. In a moment, all 
 the berths were pulled down from in front of the 
 steam-chest,, when we saw three sides of a square 
 cracked, and steam issuing with considerable force. 
 
 " Open your valves. Draw the fires. Pass up 
 that chain." 
 
 Three turns were taken around the chest, and 
 iron wedges driven in, so that, with moderate 
 steam on, the piece could not blow out. 
 
 " Put on steam again." 
 
 In the meantime, her head had been hauled right 
 in shore for any shelter that might offer. It blew 
 so hard that I had to put all the passengers down 
 off the upper deck. 
 
 At ten a. m., in a dense fog, all at once high 
 rocks were seen on the starboard bow, although 
 the old mate had just declared these rocks to be 
 eighty miles astern, and me to be out of my reck- 
 oning. In a few moments a little bay opened to 
 our view. 
 
 "Hard a-port the helm." And we ran our bows 
 right up on the sandy beach, and took out three 
 hawsers to as many trees, and made the " New- 
 World " fast.' We backed the engine until we 
 had pumped about five feet of water out, which 
 was all she could hold without foundering. 
 
 We lay here four days in New World Cove, or 
 Bull Bay, as some of us called it, from the fact that
 
 1 34 The Log of ct,7i Ancient Mariner. 
 
 we one day killed a wild bull here, in the thick 
 underbrush, where it had got so caught that it 
 could not escape us. We refilled all our water 
 vessels from a fresh water lagoon just back of the 
 beach, and dried all the provisions and clothes on 
 the ship, starting out on the fourth day with a 
 new ship under us and fine weather above. We 
 crossed the gulf, and kept the shore of Lower Cali- 
 fornia a-board, going into San Diego, where we 
 found that no fuel could be procured. In the 
 meantime, two passengers came on board. One 
 was a lawyer, and I asked him who gave him per- 
 mission to board my vessel. He told me that I 
 was a common carrier, and that he was a lawyer, 
 and that he would compel me to take him to San 
 Francisco. I need hardly say that he was landed 
 in double-quick time, being assured that it was not 
 upon that voyage that I would be compelled to 
 carry him. 
 
 His companion was a German and a gentle- 
 man. He apologized for coming on board when 
 we were already overcrowded, and I asked him to 
 take tea with me. In the course of conversation I 
 learned that he was from San Pedro, that there 
 was a ship at anchor there, and that she had in 
 her bottom, underneath all her cargo, some forty 
 tons of coal. I excused myself for a moment and 
 went on deck to alter the course for San Pedro ; 
 as it was a very dense fog we went slowly, for we 
 were strangers, and the charts good for nothing-.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 135 
 
 At five a. m. we found ourselves alongside a ship 
 at anchor, and made fast to her, the fog being so 
 thick that we could just see the ship that we were 
 fast to. 
 
 Coining aft, I saw my friend, the German, 
 crawling up the side of the ship to see his old 
 friend, the captain, with whom he had spent the 
 week before. I pulled him gently down again by 
 the coat tails, informing- him that he would confer 
 a great favor on me by remaining on board until 
 I had had the first interview with the captain. I 
 went on board, and, as I saw no one on deck, went 
 down into the main cabin, and as there was no one 
 there, proceeded into the cabin on the starboard 
 side, where I saw the captain asleep in his bunk. 
 I put my hand on him and shook him gently ; he 
 opened his eyes, and asked : 
 
 " Who are you ?" 
 
 " Don't get up, captain," returned I; "I am the 
 commanding officer of a vessel alongside, and hear 
 that you have forty tons of coal aboard." 
 
 "Yes," he replied. 
 
 " What will you sell it for ? " I asked. 
 
 "Forty dollars per ton," he answered. 
 
 " I will take it all," said I. " Give me your 
 hand, captain; that binds the bargain." 
 
 '' Very well," he said, " you will have to lie 
 alongside several days, as it is at the very bottom 
 of the cargo." 
 
 " But, captain," I replied, " I have a steamer full
 
 o 
 
 6 The Log of an Ancient Alarhier. 
 
 of passengers, and cannot think of waiting; just let 
 me assist your crew in getting out the cargo." 
 
 " Well, go ahead," said he, calling the first mate 
 and giving the proper orders. 
 
 In a few minutes, his ship was full of my men, 
 even the passengers having volunteered, and at 
 two p. m. we had our forty tons of coal on board, 
 and had paid the forty dollars per ton which it had 
 cost us, instead of the one or two hundred dollars 
 which I would have been obliged to pay if that 
 German had succeeded in getting into the ship 
 first; as I had not fuel enough to take me to San 
 Francisco, and must have taken the lot at any 
 figure. We took our departure, the captain ex- 
 claiming that it was the greatest day's work at sea 
 that he had ever seen. We soon lost sight of him 
 in the fog, and ran along the Santa Barbara chan- 
 nel, carrying our fog all the way to San Francisco.. 
 At seven a. m., being still in a dense fog, I told 
 the mate to hoist all the flags. He was astonished 
 at the idea of hoisting all our flags at sea in such a 
 fog; but I told him that I had determined to run 
 into the first half-inch auger-hole I could find, and 
 if it was not San Francisco, it ought to be; for we 
 had been looking for it long enough. 
 
 In a few minutes more, I saw, for the first time, 
 the mile rock in the entrance of the harbor; next, 
 old Fort Point came in view, and then the fog 
 lifted, the sun came out, and our eyes were greeted 
 with the sight of one of the finest harbors in the
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 137 
 
 world. I took a good look at all that I could see, 
 and came to the conclusion that I would finish the 
 roving life that I had led by settling in this spot. 
 We ran up around Clark's Point at the rate of 
 eighteen miles an hour, and found the ships so 
 thick that we could not anchor and swing, so we 
 made fast to a ship, stem and stern, that being our 
 only alternative, as we were close to the rocks at 
 Clark's Point, and could go no further. At high 
 water, we ran a line out, and hauled into what was 
 Cunningham's dock. The first piles were being 
 driven, and we went close up to the shore and 
 made fast, and then we put out a gang-plank, thus 
 arriving at our destination on the morning of the 
 eleventh day of July, 1850. 
 
 In a few minutes, the shore was crowded, and 
 soon a young man came on board and asked: 
 
 "Are you captain of this vessel? " 
 
 " I am," said I. 
 
 "Then," rejoined he, "give me five hundred 
 dollars retaining fee, or you will be thrown into 
 prison in half an hour. I come from McAllister, 
 the Judge of the Marine Court, who knows your 
 owner well, and it is your duty to retain us at once 
 by giving me five hundred dollars. If you don't, 
 we shall go over to the 1 other side, and you will be 
 deprived of your liberty." 
 
 This he repeated several times, and appeared to 
 dwell with great emphasis upon the loss of my 
 liberty.
 
 138 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 11 Young man," said I, " I have not got the 
 vessel fast yet; moreover, I have not the pleasure 
 of your acquaintance; and, for you and that other 
 man, as far as your going to the other side is con- 
 cerned, you may go right down to the hot regions 
 if you like. As to my liberty, there is not a freer 
 man under the seal of California than I feel myself 
 to be; but, if you and your friend take any special 
 interest in seeing me deprived of that liberty, you 
 had better come here, with some fifty of your 
 friends, and make the attempt, and you will have 
 a good chance to find out how long it will take me 
 to kill that number of people." 
 
 The young man went on shore, amidst jeers 
 from the crowd who had been listening to this 
 harangue, and it is not necessary for me to say 
 that I have not been deprived of my liberty yet, 
 although, at this moment of writing, eighteen years 
 have elapsed; and my friend, the judge, to this 
 day, thinks that I have never received my deserts.
 
 The Log of an A?icient Mariner. 139 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 A Land Voyage Extraordinary — Encounter with Grizzlies 
 — All Night in a Tree — Crawling Up Hill and Slid- 
 ing Down — Return to Civilization. 
 
 WILL not attempt to describe 
 the exciting times that prevailed 
 in San Francisco in particular, 
 and in the whole of California 
 in general, at this period. Suf- 
 fice it to say that I took a lively 
 part in all that I thought would 
 conduce to the future welfare 
 of the State. Of course, I joined the Vigilance \ 
 Committee, and acted as sheriff at the hanging of ; 
 Jenkins and Stewart. I have stood many and 
 many a night's watch in the streets of San Fran- 
 cisco, and at one time had a large fleet of boats 
 afloat on the bay. At this time, I was sometimes 
 called the Emperor of the Port, as all vessels 
 coming in or going out were under my orders and 
 subject to my inspection, the revenue cutter 
 " Polk " being specially at my orders. It was 
 not very long before all the thieves and murderers 
 left, as they found that we were determined to 
 make it unpleasant for them.
 
 140 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 I ran the " New World up to Sacramento for 
 nearly a year, and then took a stroll up into the 
 mountains, where I saw gold-washing in all its 
 phases. Leaving Long Wharf, San Francisco, at 
 four p. m. (Feb. 25, 185 1), on the steamer "Confi- 
 dence," in company with the steamer " Senator," 
 we reached Benicia at half past six, the "Senator" 
 getting in twenty minutes ahead of us. At nine 
 p. M., I took the steamer " El Dorado," and, 
 after one of the most disagreeable passages I 
 ever had, was landed at Stockton at six a. m., 
 on the morning of the twenty-sixth, being almost 
 suffocated with steam and smoke, and shivering 
 with cold, from the fact that the horse-blanket 
 which is afforded each cabin passenger happened 
 to be a little too short to cover me. After I had 
 endeavored in vain to persuade the important per- 
 sonage who filled the place of clerk on this smoke- 
 boat that my name was Captain Wakeman, and 
 that I came aboard at Benicia, he consented to let 
 me off on a consideration of ten dollars, which I 
 gave him. I now flattered myself that I was in 
 good condition to accomplish my intended tour 
 into the interior of the country, being well steamed, 
 well smoked and well frozen, all of which qualities 
 I had become unexpectedly possessed of on board 
 the " El Dorado " for the trifling sum of ten dollars. 
 
 During the day I strolled over about twenty 
 miles of the same kind of a plain as that which 
 Sacramento city stands upon, and which my com-
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 141 
 
 panion, a man who had traveled through all the 
 southern mining country, told me had an extent of 
 more than five hundred miles to the south, and 
 being about thirty miles broad. * 
 
 We took breakfast at the Stockton Hotel, where 
 we had a good breakfast for one dollar, each. 
 After breakfast, we dispatched a man to catch our 
 horses, and as he had not returned at dinner-time, 
 we embraced the opportunity to dine at a French 
 house, kept by a 
 female, where we 
 were waited on with 
 French airs, and 
 eased off in a sea- 
 man-like manner for 
 the small sum of 
 twenty dollars; after 
 which we took 
 French leave, and re- 
 turned to the stables, ^ 
 where we learned 
 that we should have 
 ample time to fortify 
 the body with that 
 which never fails in 
 California, and so ad- 
 journed to El Placer, where, after faithfully testing 
 
 *The paper from which I am copying the account of this trip was written 
 in 1852, at a time when such references to the topography of the State 
 were probably of more value and interest.— Ed.
 
 142 The Log of a?i Ancient Mariner. 
 
 several brandy-toddies, we concluded that Stock- 
 ton was not a bad place, but that business was 
 rather dull for the time, as they charged us only 
 twenty-five cents a glass. As I had not my sea- 
 tack aboard, I left the city without determining 
 either latitude or longitude. At last, our horses 
 being ready, we mounted and shaped our course 
 for the eastward, over one of the most beautiful 
 plains a man ever rode on, and as level as a ship's 
 deck. 
 
 We passed, at a distance of a mile, several neat 
 ranches under cultivation by men from the Western 
 States, who intended settling where they were for 
 life. At eight p. m., we saw a light, and in a few 
 minutes hauled up in front of a very comfortable 
 ranch, kept by a Mr. Caldwell, from Missouri. 
 After seeing: to our animals and bracing ourselves 
 with a good milk-punch, served by our worthy 
 host in front of his house, we entered, and were 
 soon served with supper in the presence of his 
 wife and family of eight children; and in less than 
 half an hour I became satisfied that our host had 
 shown great wisdom in his selection of such a wife 
 for a new country, for her venison steaks, hot rolls 
 and freshly- made butter spoke volumes in her 
 behalf. 
 
 After supper, the table being cleared and the 
 house swept out, our party, including five or six 
 mountaineers and miners, gathered around the fire 
 to spend an hour or two in conversation. After
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 14; 
 
 listeninor to some frightful encounters with men, 
 and hair- breadth escapes from grizzly bears, I forti- 
 fied myself with another milk-punch, and, after 
 giving them time to wind up their engagements 
 with the bears, I opened on them with a sea fight, 
 and, after one well-contended engagement with 
 the enemy in the Gulf of Mexico, and a number of 
 battles in the country, in all of which the enemy 
 suffered extreme loss, my listeners expressed them- 
 selves ready to meet all the bears in the country 
 rather than to take my chances in any one of the 
 battles which I had so narrowly escaped from. I 
 led them through the East and West Indies, 
 Russia, Prussia, Austria, Africa and Asia; Ger- 
 many, Norway, Belgium, Holland, Ire- 
 land, Scotland and Wales; France, 
 Spain, Greece and Australia ; Portugal, 
 Peru and Patagonia; Sicily, Denmark 
 and Chili; touched at England, and 
 came down to an island in the south 
 seas. Here I gave them an account 
 of all that happened on the island dur- 
 ing eighteen months, reinforcing with 
 milk-punch after each perilous advent- 
 ure with natives and wild beasts, and 
 soon leaving my gaping auditors far §P 
 behind, where, with bated breath and 
 staring eyes, they watched my progress S^^^^ 
 through jungles and deserts, hurricanes «?p|i§^' 
 and whirlwinds, through the lairs of wild animals
 
 144 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 and across the war-paths of painted savages, through 
 encounters with winds and waves and tigers and 
 whales and men until two o'clock a. m., when I 
 begged off, and proceeded to stretch my weary 
 bones upon a beast's skin in the corner, with my 
 arm for a pillow; not, however, without promising 
 my friends to relate to them at breakfast the details 
 of my mysterious escape from the island in the brig 
 of a pirate. 
 
 Next morning, after eating a bountiful meal 
 and drinking a pitcher of fresh milk, we paid our 
 bill, amounting to fifteen dollars, and proceeded on 
 our way, striking the hills at about ten a. m. 1 he 
 ride was now more romantic, as we rode up steep 
 ascents and down deep gulches, winding our way 
 around some frightful mountains. During the after- 
 noon we came to the Mountain Gate, kept by four 
 Missourians who had settled in this wild and lonely 
 place, fit only for thieves and cut-throats. Here we 
 played for an hour with three young grizzlies which 
 the proprietor of the ranch had succeeded in taking 
 after a severe struggle with the mother, in which 
 engagement he was more than once obliged to 
 haul off to repair damages, having suffered severely 
 in the hull; but after a running fight of an hour and 
 a half the Missourian was completely victorious, 
 having one man wounded, while the enemy's camp 
 was completely routed, old bruin dead, and the 
 three cubs prisoners of war for life. After shifting 
 horses with my guide, by which I was much the
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 145 
 
 gainer, we continued to wind through narrow de- 
 files along the mountains. My companion, who 
 was a man of few words, looked frequently to his 
 fire-arms, which led me to think that we must be 
 in a dangerous place; after awhile he pointed out 
 to me a spot where a murdered man was buried, 
 and remarked that it was well enough to keep a 
 good lookout all around, as we were in a part of 
 the country frequented by robbers. I agreed with 
 him exactly, and looked to all my arms, while ap- 
 preciating the wisdom of the robbers in selecting 
 such a spot as this in which to cut a man's throat. 
 As we passed along a narrow ravine running at the 
 foot of mountains twenty-five hundred feet high, 
 and so close together that there was hardly the 
 the width of a wagon between them, I confess that 
 I felt a little startled at the sight of three men lurk- 
 ing in the bushes, and who, judging from the quan- 
 tity of silver trappings upon their animals, were 
 either gamblers or robbers. I felt that the time 
 had come for me to show myself a brave man or a 
 coward, and consequently took the precaution of 
 cocking my six shooter, so as to be able to get the 
 second shot any way, when suddenly, on coming 
 around the bushes, we found them dismounted and 
 in anything but warlike attitudes, whereupon we 
 passed them quietly, leaving them to follow the 
 bent of their own inclinations, while we continued 
 to urge our weary animals, with their still more 
 
 weary riders, through the dark glens and passages 
 10
 
 146 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 of the Blue Mountains. As the sun was setting in 
 the west, we came upon what I took to be the 
 highest elevation of this range, and although my 
 in'ards said plainly, "This is dinner time," while 
 my whole body was fatigued with a ride of ninety 
 miles since seven a. m., still I could not refrain 
 from halting- for a few minutes to admire the most 
 beautiful view ever unrolled to the eye of man. 
 The Sierra Nevadas, covered with snow, which 
 looked like so much silver, appeared to be close to 
 us; while blue-tinted hills extended on each side; 
 while below and behind us were the outstretched 
 level plains reaching south to the head-waters of 
 the San Joaquin, west to Mount Diablo, and north 
 to Scott's river. As the sun sank, we remounted 
 and prepared to descend into ravines to which I 
 could see no bottom. I proposed to my friend to 
 oret off and lower the animals down, but he ob- 
 jected on the ground that our ropes were not long 
 enough; so we kept our places in the saddles, and 
 in a lew minutes were safely arrived in the lower 
 regions of this haunt of the beast and robber. 
 
 Being much fatigued and very hungry, I proposed 
 to my guide to hurry the animals, that we might 
 reach our destination as soon as possible, as well 
 as to get out of this horrible spot. I was informed 
 that we might expect to reach our ranch at seven 
 p. m., if we were not stopped on the road. While 
 my companion was speaking we heard a brisk 
 movement in the brush, and at the same time our
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 147 
 
 horses commenced to snort and tremble in a fright- 
 ful manner; although it was now dark, these evi- 
 dences convinced me that we were in the immedi- 
 ate vicinity of .bears, and we immediately forced 
 our horses forward at the height of their speed. 
 In another hour, from a rising ground, I perceived 
 at a distance the light which my friend informed 
 me was the haven of our desires. 
 
 I was in so disabled a state as to have some dif- 
 ficulty in dismounting, but I partook of a hearty 
 meal from a bear lately shot, and the sweetest 
 venison I ever ate, retiring immediately afterward 
 and remaining unconscious of all around me until 
 daylight. 
 
 This settlement was, as nearly as I can judge, 
 about one hundred and thirty miles from Stockton, 
 and was composed of some half-dozen huts or log- 
 houses together with scattered tents in all directions, 
 belonging to the miners who had torn up the earth 
 far and near. As I had nearly recovered from the 
 effects of our journey, my friend proposed that we 
 walk to the mines and over his claims. Here I 
 saw mining in all its various forms, long-toms and 
 cradles, dry diggings and wet; here is a shaft or 
 hole about the size of a frigate's main hatch, cut 
 two hundred feet into the .mountain through rock 
 and ore; here is a quartz vein through this mount- 
 ain full of gold, which is surrounded by water- 
 courses, from which millions have been taken and 
 which still yield in abundance.
 
 148 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 I was here introduced to the chief of a tribe of 
 Indians known as the Digger Indians, from the 
 dexterity they show in digging the graves of their 
 enemies. They resemble the Fuegians in appear- 
 ance, and also in their custom of burning their de- 
 parted friends. They are friendly, but in a most 
 degraded condition. 
 
 The house of my friend was the finest and 
 largest in the place, and is readily distinguished 
 from the others by the heads of thirty-two deers, 
 with their horns on, which are placed at regular 
 distances along the eaves in front. The house 
 was one story high, and otherwise ornamented 
 with the skins of numerous grizzly bears, deers, 
 foxes and coyotes, sundry heads and arms of griz- 
 zlies, and the heads of various kinds of birds. But 
 this is only the outside appearance of this most 
 hospitable mansion ; within were to be found as 
 fine a set of fellows as were ever gathered together, 
 from different parts of the world; and, after dinner, 
 all hands prepared for a bear hunt. At one p. m. 
 we set out, with some of the old hunters in the 
 lead, as this is rather a dangerous pastime. 
 
 We passed hundreds at work at all the different 
 forms of mining, and were told by the majority 
 that they were making, about eight dollars a day. 
 Poor fellows ! They were earning more than 
 twenty, in mud and water all day, and laboring 
 harder than slaves. 
 
 As we penetrated into the glen which our leader
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 149 
 
 was following, we came upon the camp of a 
 wretched-looking set of Indians, who were quite 
 dainty in their choice of food. They live princi- 
 pally upon dead horse, and are frequently to be 
 seen maneuvering for the capture of some poor, 
 deserted mule or jackass, and are never known to 
 steal for food any but unfortunate animals, that are 
 nearly dead with age, or brutal treatment. They 
 see the Americans beat their mules in such a man- 
 ner that they take it for granted that if the animal 
 be old, he has been beaten enough to make him 
 eat well. Their chief, a bold brave, had possessed 
 himself of an old pistol with no lock, which he 
 wore proudly on his rump ; the squaws, with 
 their pickaninnies, looked like beasts or insects of 
 some strange, large order, crawling upon the 
 ground. They had all hideous faces, and were 
 clothed in the cast-off rags from the miners' tents, 
 having, before the advent of the whites, and not- 
 withstanding the cold nights and mornings, gone 
 entirely naked. 
 
 Leaving this mass of human misery, we com- 
 menced ascending a very precipitous mountain that 
 overlooked one of the most convenient lurking- 
 places for wild beasts that I ever saw. Three 
 p. m. found the party very much fatigued, so we 
 seated ourselves and passed around a flask which 
 our Texan private had not forgotten to provide 
 himself with. Feeling very much refreshed, we 
 resumed our ascent of this dangerous mountain,
 
 150 The Log of an Anciefit Mariner. 
 
 following in each other's footsteps along an old 
 bear trail, until, about four o'clock, we came upon 
 what appeared to be a cave. We approached it, 
 and found that it was, indeed, a cavern, and one 
 that would afford shelter to fifty men, but that it 
 was now deserted, or, in other words, there was 
 nobody at home. We decided to enter, and after 
 venturing some fifty feet, to the far end, without 
 finding anything, we proceeded to hold a consulta- 
 tion as to whether we should return for the night, 
 or remain here and go on next morning. Feeling a 
 sort of presentment that we had gone far enough, 
 I advised that we return forthwith, whereupon the 
 whole party agreed, when, as we were again pass- 
 ing the flask of our Texan friend from hand to hand, 
 preparatory to our homeward tramp, we were 
 thrown into the greatest consternation by the sud- 
 den appearance at the entrance of the cave of two 
 enormous grizzlies, who, judging from the manner 
 in which they entered, had been paying the rent 
 of this house for years. In a moment every pistol 
 was cocked, and we were ordered by one of our 
 company to divide our fire ; as soon as they saw 
 us they rushed at us, but the order to fire sent 
 them both back for a second, but only to ap- 
 proach again with redoubled fury, foaming and 
 frothing, and with eyes like fire. At the order, 
 "Fire, and draw your knives," we gave them our 
 second barrels, and the next moment two of our 
 men were thrown to the ground by one of the ani-
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 151 
 
 mals, but the knives of the rest deprived him of all 
 power before he had done any damage to them 
 beyond having knocked them senseless with the 
 first blow he had given them. 
 
 Our retreat brought us into the far end of the 
 cave, with the second bear in our midst, although 
 it was so dark that we could not see him, and were 
 in danger of cutting each other as we struck 
 around us, in momentary fear of our deadly en- 
 emy. A horrible cry from the Texan soon told us 
 in what direction the beast was, and, feeling that 
 there was not a moment to be lost, we all rushed 
 forward, some to be cut by the knives of their 
 companions, some to be torn and mangled by 
 this most dreadful beast of any country ; and all 
 already covered with blood and froth, and frag- 
 ments of the in'ards of the first animal, which we 
 had been so fortunate as to disable at the first at- 
 tack. 
 
 I ran, knife in hand, to rescue my friend, con- 
 cluding that he must already be much damaged ; 
 in a moment I felt that a man was a plaything in 
 the hands of a bear, for he struck me with such 
 force, notwithstanding the fact that he had in him 
 the contents of half a dozen barrels and numerous 
 holes made by our bowie-knives, that I found my- 
 self piled up on top of several men who had been 
 served in the same way ; but we rallied again, and 
 after a bloodv scuffle, lasting- ten minutes, we sue- 
 ceeded in laying the fierce animal powerless at our
 
 152 The Log of a7i Ancient Mariner. 
 
 feet, having cut him literally to pieces before he 
 surrendered. 
 
 We dragged our wounded to the mouth of the 
 cave, and discovered to our joy that they were 
 only stunned by the severe blows which they had 
 received during the contest; so we administered a 
 good dose from the flask all around, and proceeded 
 to collect our force, when we discovered that the 
 six of us could scarcely roll one of the beasts over; 
 but after several trials we succeeded, with the help 
 of limbs of trees, which we used as levers, in 
 getting them to the brink of the cave, where we 
 gave them a sort of a gentle toss, and they went 
 rolling- down, crashing- through all the branches 
 and bushes in their path, and crushing them like 
 straws until they came to the foot of this nearly 
 perpendicular mountain, and directly in front of 
 the Indian wigwams, whereupon the Indians fled 
 in great confusion, and it was some time before we 
 could get down and persuade them to return. By 
 dark, we had succeeded in securing the assistance 
 of the whole tribe, consisting of about sixty men, 
 and with their help we got the beasts to our ranch. 
 We cut one bear into pieces of about one hundred 
 pounds each, and dispatched twenty men with the 
 balance, after leaving half on the ground for the 
 Indians. This one we judged to weigh about two 
 tons; and the other animal we served in the same 
 manner, but, he being the most enormous of the 
 two, it took all the men on the ground to carry
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 153 
 
 him, and, after toiling for two hours over a rugged 
 road, we all arrived at the ranch, where, after de- 
 positing the loads of bear meat, we sent word to 
 all the tents in the vicinity that we intended to 
 hold a meeting that evening and requested their 
 attendance. Accordingly,, at nine o'clock, about 
 two hundred white men and Indians were as- 
 sembled on the ground, and, while some of us 
 were busy in preparing a supper from our late 
 enemies, others were clearing the place for a great 
 fandango, in order to celebrate our brilliant victory 
 over two of the most formidable and desperate 
 bears ever conquered in this country or any other. 
 
 After a gale, a calm; after a battle, peace; and 
 after a famine, a feast; so, three hours after facing 
 the most frightful death a man could suffer, the 
 fiddle is heard, and is in such expert hands that 
 danger and fear were forgotten, and we were 
 instantly whirling around, now in an Indian dance, 
 now in a break-down, and now in a polka a la 
 backwoods, until eleven o'clock, when we went to 
 sup upon as fat, as tender and sweet a grizzly as 
 was ever served, from the very first day old bruin 
 roamed over these hills and vales, now taken pos- 
 session of by the most fearless race of men on 
 earth. 
 
 I should like to describe the company present 
 on that great occasion, but am not able. Some 
 with bandages over an eye, or large scars upon 
 their noses; many, lame; all but a few in rags; and
 
 154 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 all with huge hearts and disheveled hair; altogether. 
 
 as savage a set of men, in 
 appearance, as I ever saw; 
 although our fiddler was 
 an accomplished performer, 
 who had played in many a 
 large theater, and, no 
 doubt, a goodly number of 
 the wild-looking men dan- 
 cing to his music had gone through the same figures 
 at great balls in Washington. 
 
 The next day, March i, I awoke at sunrise, 
 and found the assembly of last night dispersed. I 
 partook of a hearty breakfast of young venison, 
 spun a yarn, and mounted, bound to Murphy's 
 Diggings, and on a cruise through the mountains. 
 I took my departure at eight o'clock, in company 
 with my former companion in arms, and we pro- 
 ceeded to wind our way along the side and near 
 the base of a steep range of mountains, four or five 
 thousand feet high, and following a stream of water 
 about twenty feet wide. Everywhere here was a 
 deep red color, which I found existing on half the 
 mountains in that region, and it is invariably ad- 
 mitted among miners that where the earth is of 
 this color gold is plentiful. We found the river 
 turned from its course in many places, and the 
 gulches being worked by men who were making 
 six or eight dollars a day, in a country which, they 
 told me, had been worked three times before.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 155 
 
 We came, about noon, upon Murphy's Diggings, 
 situated in a valley divided by a stream and sur- 
 rounded by high mountains. Here I met some of 
 my old crew from the " New World," and it was 
 some time before they could believe that I had 
 wandered so far into the wilds of the country. 
 We took lunch, and otherwise secured ourselves 
 against fatigue, and then continued our journey, 
 until we reached Gold Hill, about three hundred 
 feet high, and being completely torn up, the earth 
 paying three hundred dollars per day. Here, just 
 hoisted out of a hole one hundred and fifty feet 
 deep, I saw another of my old crew, who was 
 overjoyed to see me. After a short yarn, we con- 
 tinued our voyage to the south and east, and 
 crossed a range of mountains about four thousand 
 feet hiPfh, following- a deer-track until we came to 
 the heighth, and then commencing to descend into 
 a valley called Sullivan's Flat. It would be im- 
 possible to describe the view from the summit, the 
 weather fine and warm, and the whole country 
 clothed in verdure, the valleys being surrounded 
 by mountains as green as a leak — which leak is a 
 leak of water gushing from their sides and keeping 
 the grass always green. Here we saw a ledge of 
 fine granite and marble in mountains as white as 
 snow, and a quartz vein full of gold running 
 through the country north-west and south-east. 
 
 After examining the wonderful extent of works 
 in Sullivan's Flat, where the river has been turned
 
 156 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 for miles, and millions of money taken out, we 
 continued through the mountains to Coyote Dig- 
 gings, which is a country possessing wealth be- 
 yond description ; and the diggings, together with 
 the country between, being worked by hundreds 
 of miners. We went one hundred and twenty 
 miles in a team from here, crossing mountains and 
 valleys, going through meadow-lands and passing 
 frightful, overhanging rocks. After this we fol- 
 lowed a trail which we knew must lead to some 
 habitation. We passed a tribe of civil, but hideous 
 Indians, tramping after each other for half a mile 
 alone the trail, and at four p. m. came to a bear 
 trail. Our horses began to snort and tremble, 
 and almost immediately we saw a bear of about a 
 ton and a half coming down the hill in awful 
 strides. We soon perceived that she was an old 
 bear returning to the den with three full-grown 
 cubs. We were on the edge of a precipice ten or 
 twelve feet high, so we dismounted, and slung and 
 lowered down our animals and then slipped down 
 ourselves, and had just hauled our ropes from 
 around the tree as the ' terrible beasts came to a 
 full stand on the brink of this led^e of rocks. We 
 hastened into the saddles, the horses being so ter- 
 rified that we could not hold them. Quick as 
 thought, the bears fell off of the ledge, all in a 
 heap, and came rolling down the side of the 
 mountain after us ; the horses, in the meantime, 
 leaping and plunging, and trembling in every
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 157 
 
 limb, rushed headlong into a canyon, the lowest 
 part of which I could not see. However, in a 
 short time we all came to the bottom together, 
 when the bears immediately commenced the at- 
 tack. In ten minutes three lay dead, and it be- 
 came necessary to dispatch the fourth with knives. 
 He rose up and extended his arms to hug me, 
 and in a moment all was over; we had conquered; 
 but as I could not dwell upon the danger of our 
 situation without painful feelings, I dragged my 
 companions away from the spot, only stopping to 
 secure the fore-paws of one of the cubs. 
 
 We caught our horses with some difficulty, after 
 running after them an hour and a half, and, once 
 mounted, as they were willing to leave the spot 
 inhabited by such beasts as those they had seen, 
 we gave them the rein, and at sundown found our- 
 selves on the top of another mountain in the vicin- 
 ity. Here my guide, after a deliberate observa- 
 tion, became satisfied that we were twenty miles 
 from the range which we ought to be upon, and as 
 the fresh impression of a broad hand gave suffi- 
 cient proof that bears were numerous hereabouts, 
 and as it was already dark, my companion said : 
 "We must tree ourselves to-night." 
 Accordingly, and without supper, we got into an 
 oak-tree, and made fast for the night. During the 
 first part of this night, we were disturbed by the 
 immediate vicinity of coyotes, and other dumb 
 beasts; during the middle part, it grew colder, and
 
 158 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 another kind of animal, known by the name of tick, 
 became very troublesome; and during the latter 
 part, about daylight, several overgrown bears 
 passed us, carrying under their hides, hog- fat weigh- 
 ing two and a half tons each. As the sun rose, we 
 got down out of our tree, and measured the track 
 
 of one of these animals, finding it to be two feet 
 broad by a foot and a half long; according to our 
 estimate, therefore, these animals must have been 
 enormous; and indeed, their backs had been close 
 under us as we sat in the tree, which was what we 
 took to be a tall one, as it had taken us three-quar- 
 ters of an hour to get to the top of it.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 159 
 
 After taking up three holes in our belts, which 
 answered instead of a meal, we walked down, or 
 rather slid down, the side of this mountain, when 
 lo! and behold, arrived at its foot, we found that it 
 was the very mountain situated back of the Deer- 
 head house, the animals at home ahead of us, and 
 a good warm breakfast upon the table. 
 
 Having done ample' justice to a grizzly steak, 
 and about two pounds of juicy venison, after feel- 
 ing the cold chills which had taken hold of me grad- 
 ually disappear, and feeding our animals, we took 
 a fresh departure, shaping our course for the Nat- 
 ural Bridge, and finding the trail to lead us over, 
 if possible, mountains more rugged than any we 
 had seen before. We passed several claims, being 
 worked and all paying well; one hill was paying 
 from three hundred and fifty to five hundred dollars 
 per day, although the dirt had to be carted an 
 eighth of a mile. In these wilds, we found a gen- 
 tleman from the South, living with a good-looking 
 colored girl, whom he had brought all that distance. 
 
 On Sunday, the second day of March, I was 
 informed by my companions, who were Col. Ward, 
 Mr. Scribner, and Mr. Nelson, that we should 
 come to rough work; and sure enough, at ten 
 a. m. we found ourselves in a gulch, at the bottom 
 of a precipice, which no animal, even, could have 
 crawled up. But our guide immediately hauled 
 himself up and over the brink, throwing back his 
 tackle, when we proceeded to sling and hoist up
 
 160 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 the horses; here we discovered the convenience 
 of weighing four hundred pounds, which was our 
 average. 
 
 At the top of the precipice, we found quite a 
 good track, principally traveled by bears, which led 
 us through some of the most delightful valleys and 
 romantic canyons I ever saw. At meridian we 
 caught sight of the Natural Bridge, composed of 
 limestone; but I will not tire myself now, by trav- 
 eling that road over again upon paper; suffice it 
 to say, that we crossed a mountain where the trail 
 was so steep that we had to dismount and crawl 
 up, three miles, upon all-fours; and after making 
 this ascent came the tug of war, for, to get down 
 the other side, we were obliged to seat ourselves 
 and slide. Heretofore, I do not know but that I 
 have chosen my terms a little freely in speaking of 
 what I saw upon this trip; but now all looseness of 
 speech ceases, the truth, in the part of country 
 now reached, being fully sufficient. 
 
 We had been on foot and in the saddle since 
 breakfast, and at three p. m. by my watch, the guide 
 told me that it was not the right trail we were on; 
 and I believed it, for we had been on no trail at all 
 for hours. However, we had been traveling 
 through one of the wildest and most picturesque 
 countries in the world, and if I had not been so 
 out of breath and in such a state of perspiration 
 that I could hardly breathe — in short, if I had been 
 less than as tired as I had never been before, I
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 161 
 
 should have made notes of what I saw. At any 
 step, if I or my horse had slipped a single foot, we 
 should have fallen more than a thousand feet into 
 a ravine lined with rocks ; the mountain we were 
 on was at least five thousand feet high, and the top 
 of the next one, opposite us, was not more than 
 five hundred feet away, with this deep and rocky 
 ravine between. My God! where won't a man 
 crawl ! 
 
 At five p. m., after passing many Indian settle- 
 ments, where we stopped a few minutes to see 
 them pound acorns with stones, making a sort of 
 coarse meal, upon which they principally subsist, 
 we continued getting down as best we could, toil- 
 ing like wild beasts, until we came to a large 
 Indian camp, where the dwellings were constructed 
 by digging holes into the side of the hill and mak- 
 ing banks over the top of them, like a bake-oven ; 
 where the ground is level enough, they pile up the 
 branches of trees until they have a hut twenty feet 
 in circumference and four feet high in the middle, 
 which they cover with the barks of trees. They 
 live like the bears, on acorns, worms, insects, and 
 all sorts of dead carcasses, and move their resi- 
 dences once in about six weeks. No beasts in the 
 world look so beastly as they do ; one *of them 
 was said to be one hundred and fifty years old, 
 and looked like an Egyptian mummy ; the little 
 cubs were all lashed on to pieces of the bark of 
 trees to keep them straight. 
 11
 
 1 62 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 Being rested, we continued to descend, and in 
 half an hour were down, and, after drinking from 
 a rivulet two feet wide, with mountains five thou- 
 sand feet high over us on each side, we were com- 
 pelled by fatigue to lie down ; and as it was sun- 
 down, and the animals were given out, we con- 
 cluded to remain where we were all night. Find- 
 ing a deserted wigwam, we crawled in and coiled 
 ourselves away, after rolling a big stone in front 
 of our door to keep out the grizzlies and other 
 animals, allowing our horses to remain where they 
 had fallen. 
 
 During the night we heard our horses stamped- 
 ing up the gulch, and did not doubt that bears had 
 caused the commotion among them. We could 
 feel the ground tremble under us, but we lay still, 
 nearly frozen, and did not venture out till day- 
 light ; then we saw a drove of some ten bears go- 
 ing up the opposite hill, and waited until they were 
 out of sight before we started for our animals. 
 We found them huddled together, terrified by the 
 run the bears must have made at them. We 
 mounted and continued up the gulch until we 
 came to another mountain. Here we had to take 
 off our boots and leave our horses, crawling with 
 fingers and toes up one of the steepest mountains 
 ever crossed by white men. At noon we came to 
 the top, and after tearing up our shirts to bind up 
 our toes and fingers, as they were so chafed away 
 as to bleed, we took a good observation, and then
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 16 
 
 o 
 
 made a long- rope fast to a tree, and began to back 
 down the perpendicular and rocky wall. 
 
 At last we were all safely landed at the bottom, 
 and had the satisfaction to learn that we were close 
 to the mouth of the cave known, from its having 
 an entrance at each end, as the Natural Bridge. 
 We found an old Indian, who had just worked two 
 dollars of gold dust out of four pans of earth, and 
 he led us to the mouth of the most curious of all 
 caves in the world. We had arrived in a ereat 
 perspiration, but upon entering were immediately 
 chilled by the cold atmosphere. 
 
 We had to stoop to enter, but, once in, the cave 
 was twenty feet long and thirty broad, being 
 arched overhead, and ending in a hole as large as 
 a man's body. Through this we crawled, or, 
 rather, swam, as it was half full of water, and in a 
 few minutes came to the north entrance, which 
 baffles all description. At this entrance, is a vesti- 
 bule one hundred feet high and twenty feet square, 
 with the most perfect seats of crystalized quartz 
 and granite arranged upon each side. Extending 
 from this room, is the great hall, arched overhead, 
 and with pillars at regular distances along the 
 sides. Here, also, are water reservoirs, linked 
 into each other, and formed and placed by nature 
 as regularly as they could have been by art. The 
 inside of St. James' Palace, London, is the only 
 interior with which I can compare this most won- 
 derful cave, or bridge. The stream passes through
 
 164 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 this beautiful place, and water gushes out through 
 the side of the rock in many places in the cave. 
 Here we drank; and, after being filled with admira- 
 tion at the wonders of nature, we began to get up 
 out of this almost inaccessible place; and, as my 
 watch was run down, my pistol lost, and my body 
 nearly starved, I resolved, if I should ever get out, 
 I would never get into it again. 
 
 At length, we found our animals and mounted; 
 but, after several hours' riding, being tired and 
 lame, and reaching the top of a mountain a little 
 after sundown, with no possibility of descending 
 in the dark, we selected a tree, and, after eating 
 all the acorns we could find, made fast for the 
 night. 
 
 Before morning we were very nearly frozen to 
 death, being already starved, and at sunrise we 
 got down out of our tree, to find the ground 
 underneath all torn up by bears. As we had been 
 in a tree two hundred feet high, and pretty well 
 up, we had not seen them, though we had noticed, 
 during the night, two balls of fire in several places, 
 which must have been their eyes. 
 
 We found that our horses, mad with terror, had 
 taken the fatal leap, and could now be seen, far 
 down, at the bottom of this steepest of all hills. 
 In two hours' time, we were down, and found 
 them to be nothing but skin and bones, having 
 worn all their rlesh off in rolling such a frightful 
 distance. When we got them upontheir feet, we
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 165 
 
 saw that they had slid so far on their sides as to 
 wear a hole right through; so we bound our 
 saddle-cloths tightly over these holes, to keep the 
 in'ards of our unfortunate animals from coming 
 out, and then, although much fatigued and worn 
 down by hunger, resumed our journey, traveling 
 on over hills and through gulches until nearly 
 dark, when suddenly our horses all rushed, at the 
 top of their speed, through an underwood, tearing 
 through holes that stripped off every soul of us, 
 but keeping on, .like wild horses. 
 
 As it was dark, we took to a tree, and were just 
 making fast when we saw what it was that had 
 frightened our horses so much ; it was a drove of 
 grizzlies, any one of which was much larger than 
 two oxen, and with eyes as big as flour-barrels. 
 
 Next morning we could scarcely walk, but were 
 informed by an Indian that our horses had been 
 seen ten miles further on, going home, having 
 struck a trail which they knew. 
 
 At noon of this day we came to an Indian 
 camp, where we were given some baked acorns, 
 and left quite refreshed. At dark we came to a 
 mountain which we recognized as being between 
 us and our long-sought ranch. Coming in sight 
 of the Deerhead-house at ten p. m., we quickened 
 our steps, and in a few minutes we found ourselves 
 sitting before a bountiful supper, with our horses 
 in the stable, they having arrived the day before. 
 Both we and our clothes being entirely worn out,
 
 1 66 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 the latter, in reality, being nearly torn from us, we 
 retired almost immediately; and next morning, the 
 fourth day of March, we found, from the date, 
 that we had lost one day in the mountains, and 
 must have slept over that length of time, from 
 sheer fatigue, in the wigwam or up one of our 
 trees. 
 
 I should say here that while sojourning in the 
 Deerhead-house I saw much lynching, hanging, 
 shooting and whipping, for all sorts of crimes, from 
 murder to horse-stealing, but principally for the 
 latter. I kept a shark-hook rigged outside of the 
 house, and succeeded by this means in taking a 
 California panther, and the newspapers of the day 
 reported that Capt. W. had caught two grizzlies 
 with a fish-hook. 
 
 After my return from the Natural Bridge, upon 
 the fourth of March, I decided to return to the city 
 as soon as possible, and got into the saddle again 
 at seven a. m., having been through, across, over, 
 under, and around one thousand miles of California, 
 since my departure from San Francisco. 
 
 At noon, we came to a double spring, where we 
 halted, having come thirty miles since breakfast. 
 Here I took leave of my former companions, who 
 had kept me company this distance, and went on 
 alone, being mounted upon an Indian pony. At 
 dark, I put up at a ranch on the roadside, where, 
 during the evening, a very curious company came 
 in. Although I can guess at their trade, they
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 167 
 
 were so social with me, that I refrain from criticis- 
 ing them. We enjoyed ourselves as much as if 
 we had all been robbers together; but when they 
 had left for the road, I did not sleep much as I did 
 not know at what minute a grizzly might haul me 
 out of the hut for a parting hug. 
 
 At daylight; I started on with a good appetite, 
 and after forcing my animal forward for eight 
 hours, I stopped at the ranch of Mr. Caldwell, my 
 former host, and his hospitality compelled me to 
 remain all night; during the evening, the family 
 gathered around me, when, after explaining a little 
 of the mystery of a miner's life, I related to them 
 my narrow and numerous escapes from Old Grizzly 
 and all his retinue.
 
 1 68 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 The Banquet of March 8, 1853— A Sailor's Courtship— 
 A Fall of Eight Thousand Feet. 
 
 FTER my return to San Fran- 
 cisco, much benefited by my 
 voyage into the mountains, I 
 had the pleasure of command- 
 ing a little expedition from 
 San Francisco to the Faral- 
 lones, the group of small rocky 
 islets guarding the Golden 
 Gate, about fifteen miles from 
 the harbor. The trip was 
 made in a large, open launch 
 formerly belonging to the British iron steamship 
 "Sarah Sands," a vessel renowned as having made 
 the longest recorded trip between Panama and 
 San Francisco. She made, as well, a long trip 
 around Cape Horn, and the sea-grass growing upon 
 her bottom, impeded her movements so, that, 
 carrying a full head of steam, she could only make 
 a speed of from four to five knots an hour; and she 
 consumed a frightful daily amount of coal, having 
 to touch at various ports all along the coast, and 
 purchase it at, frequently, from one to two hundred
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 169 
 
 dollars per ton. The expenses caused by the long 
 passages out made by the " Sarah Sands" and the 
 *' New Orleans " (of which I subsequently had the 
 command) were the causes that led to the failure of 
 the owners, J. Howard & Son, of New York ; al- 
 though, on the other hand, .the same causes led to 
 the founding of the fortunes of Mr. C. K. Garrison, 
 at that period located at Panama. 
 
 But to return to our trip in the launch : Leaving 
 San Francisco on Friday evening, we headed out 
 our little craft under sail, and were nearly run down 
 by the steamer "Columbia," on her way in from 
 Oregon. Reaching the main island about day- 
 light, we landed and " gammed " with the parties 
 claiming to own the islands under pre-emption 
 right, and by them were conducted to the haunts 
 of the fur-seals, at that time not entirely extermi- 
 nated in that locality. We killed a dozen, and suc- 
 ceeded in bringing three alive with us to San 
 Francisco. Hunting- fishing and lunching- on the 
 
 0/0 o 
 
 desolate, rocky islands, we enjoyed ourselves 
 hugely, and returned safely to the city, arriving at 
 sundown, Sunday evening, and separated, going, 
 T. Shillaber, R. R. Carrington, F. S. Hanks (for 
 such were my companions) and I, each our own 
 way. 
 
 My new steamer, the "Independence," had now 
 arrived from New York, and was waiting for me. 
 According to a daily paper of that date, not less 
 than twelve thousand people were assembled on
 
 170 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 Long Wharf to witness the hoisting of a beautiful 
 satin flag, made by the ladies of San Francisco, 
 and presented to me, in a kind and eloquent 
 speech, by F. A. Woodworth. Such a hurrah, 
 with cheers that I never shall forget, as went up 
 from that crowd of twelve thousand, most of whom 
 had belonged to the Vigilance Committee, and had 
 done good service in clearing society of the most 
 desperate set of villains that ever infested a com- 
 munity. The next day I sailed amid the boom- 
 ing of cannon, which were saluting the flag at the 
 fore all the way out of the harbor. 
 
 After making a few voyages to San Juan del 
 Nicaragua, and being the recipient of a large gold 
 ring and belt-slide, both of the finest material, and 
 approaching, in value, a thousand dollars, I took 
 the steamer "New Orleans," a large vessel, and 
 ran her also to San Juan and to Panama, carrying 
 passengers both ways. I went over the San Juan 
 route, and saw some of the finest scenery in the 
 world ; Lake Nicaragua, sixty miles by fifty, with 
 its two great mountains rising out of the midst 
 of it, their evergreen tops six thousand feet 
 above the sea, is considered to be as fine a sight 
 as can be found. The river is so beautiful as to be 
 beyond my powers of description ; monkeys are 
 abundant, and parrots fly about in thousands, and 
 the trees are filled with parroquets and birds of 
 highly-colored plumage, while the prettiest insects 
 on the globe are seen in the greatest variety.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 171 
 
 Brazil does not surpass this country. Its soil is 
 very rich, and the inhabitants are very indolent. 
 
 I was blown high and dry in the " Indepen- 
 dence," up in the, woods in the harbor of Realejo, 
 but launched her again without harm. It blows 
 with great fury in the hurricane months, and rains 
 a delude, and the lig-htninof sometimes makes a 
 noise like red-hot iron plunged into water, when 
 the rain is thus copious. 
 
 Monkeys, weighing from forty to sixty pounds, 
 were shot from our deck one day ; one of these 
 unfortunate creatures died by my hand, and I have 
 regretted it ever since, as they looked too human 
 to shoot, unless one were in Vicksburg, where he 
 does not scruple much who or what he shoots. 
 
 We one day took an enormous leopard-shark ; 
 he was twelve feet lone, and of such dimensions 
 otherwise that the largest man on board passed 
 through his jaws, after we had cleaned them, with- 
 out touching them. 
 
 Thousands of passengers at this time found their 
 graves, by both the Panama and the San Juan 
 routes, being a prey to the prevailing fevers. But 
 with the remembrance of these trips from San 
 Francisco upon the " New Orleans," comes the 
 recollection of the incidents preceding and leading 
 to that step, important in any man's life, his launch- 
 ing into the joys and sorrows of matrimony. 
 
 It was sailing-day, and I had steam up, already 
 to start for Panama, when my agent came on
 
 172 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 board and gave me orders to blow off steam and 
 lie quiet until seven o'clock next morning, when a 
 merchant with all his family would come-on board, 
 and I could go immediately after. 
 
 It seems that at this time a little girl lived with 
 her mother in Happy Valley, and that during this 
 evening the brother of the merchant who desired 
 passage upon my vessel, who was an acquaintance 
 and friend of my little girl's mother, called at her 
 house to observe to the mother : 
 
 " Now is a capital chance to send your daughter 
 to Boston to finish her education ; my brother, 
 whom you know, with his family, is to sail to- 
 morrow, and has offered to take charge of her." 
 So it was that before midnight a very small trunk 
 was packed, and at one a. m. a large party passed 
 over the plank and came on board of the " New 
 Orleans," and with them was the little girl with 
 her little trunk from Happy Valley. 
 
 The hawser was let go, and away we went out 
 upon the sea, where we soon found that we had 
 the very worst quality of coal, and, consequently, 
 must go slowly. Every day found my merchant 
 passenger in my room, conversing sociably, and 
 telling me that he should make this my last voyage 
 by steam, as he intended putting me in command 
 of a clipper-ship; and every evening found me in 
 his big state-room, taking tea with him and with 
 his wife and sister-in-law. 
 
 Thus the course of events flowed smoothly on,
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 173 
 
 until one day, while going the usual round of the 
 ship's inspection, with the doctor and the purser, 
 at eleven a. m., in passing around the quarter- 
 deck, I saw something that I had never seen before, 
 asleep in a big arm-chair. I took but half a glance 
 at the occupant of this chair and was already gone 
 past, when I stopped suddenly and asked the 
 purser : 
 
 "Who is that?" 
 
 "That," said he, "is a passenger whom you 
 have not seen before, as she has been confined to 
 her berth with sea-sickness." 
 
 I took a good look at the pretty thing, with her 
 hair stuck up, and then, being impelled by a sort 
 of mysterious presentiment or spirit of prophecy: 
 
 "Gentlemen," I replied, "that is my wife; if, 
 when she opens her eyes, she be not swivel-eyed 
 and with all her head-rails rotted out, I shall 
 marry that girl, if I kill eleven men before break- 
 fast to get up an appetite." They both laughed, 
 so I rejoined: 
 
 " Don't laugh, but stand here a minute and I will 
 soon settle the matter." 
 
 I approached the sleeping innocent and beauti- 
 ful young girl and put my hand upon her shoulder; 
 it had the desired effect, for she opened her eyes 
 and looked up into my face. Good God ! what 
 eyes ! But one thing remained to settle my des- 
 tiny : her mouth must be opened that I might see 
 her teeth and hear her voice. So I asked her if 
 she knew me.
 
 1 74 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 She exposed the most beautiful set of pearls, 
 and replied such in a voice as is heard only among 
 the angels. I held her by the dress at the shoul- 
 der, and now told her to follow me, keeping my 
 hold for fear she should escape me. I led her 
 into the main cabin, and sat down beside her, and 
 asked : 
 
 " Are you engaged to marry anybody? " 
 
 She replied: "No, sir." 
 
 "Then," I continued, " I wish to marry you; 
 turn the matter over in your head for three days, 
 and at the expiration of that time let me know 
 your decision; good morning." And away I went 
 to join Purser Hawes and Doctor Hopper, not 
 seeing the young thing or speaking to it during 
 the three days. She used every day to sit in a 
 chair, near the door of her state-room, for an hour 
 or two, but always during this time the skylights 
 were so crowded by gentlemen looking at her 
 that I could not see her. 
 
 When the third day arrived I made the inspec- 
 tion of the ship at eleven a. m. as usual. The 
 young girl frorn Happy Valley sat aft in the chair 
 where I had found her first, but she was not now 
 asleep. I approached, requesting her to follow 
 me, and again led her to the main saloon, seating 
 her upon the sofa we had occupied before. I 
 looked at her, but she could not look the old 
 weather-beaten mariner in the face ; she looked 
 down.
 
 The Log of an Ancie7it Mariner, 175 
 
 "Well," I commenced, "what conclusion have 
 you arrived at in regard to that proposition I made 
 you three days ago?" 
 
 For some time she continued to look down, but 
 at last she said : 
 
 " The last words my mother spoke were to tell 
 me not to engage myself to anybody." 
 
 "That," I replied, " was very natural and proper 
 advice for a mother to oive to her daughter under 
 the existing circumstances ; but, as you and I are 
 the parties most directly interested, and as your 
 answer will decide my destiny for weal or for woe, 
 
 I want to know your own sentiments in the mat- 
 
 >> 
 ter. 
 
 She continued to look down, but I did not even 
 think that she could say " No; " nor could she, for 
 at last she looked up with her serious expression 
 and let me know, in a whisper, " that to her it was 
 perfectly agreeable." 
 
 Now, thinking all the time that I was on an 
 island, and that no one but God saw me, I kissed 
 her more than once, and was about to fly from her 
 presence, as I was filled with sufficient happiness 
 for that day, when I discovered a circle of ladies 
 and gentlemen standing directly in front of me, 
 and in close proximity to us, too, bad manners to 
 them. 
 
 "Well," said the first, a gentleman from San 
 Francisco, reaching out his hand, " I congratulate 
 you; whom have we here ? " I answered, "My
 
 176 The Log of an A7icient Mariner. 
 
 wife; allow me to introduce you," when it struck 
 me that I did not know the name of my affianced ; 
 I asked it in a whisper, and then continued, 
 " Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to introduce to 
 your kindest attentions my wife, Mary Lincoln," 
 and never did I see ladies enjoy kissing so much 
 as when they pressed around, with, as I thought, 
 an undue amount of it, this poor little girl from 
 Happy Valley, wishing her all the happiness in the 
 world. 
 
 We consumed much cake and wine on the ship 
 that evening, but no one understood how such a 
 little, serious, innocent thing had captured the cap- 
 tain of the vessel, whose look alone was enough 
 to intimidate any but an undaunted spirit. 
 
 Before we arrived in Panama I found that no 
 less than six others had offered themselves and 
 been refused, and some Southern gentlemen, all 
 armed, called upon me the day they left Panama, 
 saying that one man on board had acted badly 
 since being rejected, but that they understood the 
 matter, and should see that neither my intended 
 nor the family of her escort should be molested 
 this side of New York. And they kept their 
 word, but they had to chastise one fellow severely 
 on the route around, and another on the boat 
 bound to New York. Poor fellows! just the look 
 of Mary Lincoln had set them crazy. 
 
 Indeed, while in Panama, a young man from 
 the shore happened to catch a glimpse of her, and
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 177 
 
 the next day the ship was surrounded by a flotilla 
 of boats, bringing mothers and their daughters, 
 coming to see this poor little thing, who little 
 thought what a commotion she left in her wake as 
 she quietly passed along on her way to Boston. 
 
 On my return to San Francisco I one day ex- 
 hibited a gold locket, in which was the shadow of 
 this maid from Happy Valley, with her hair stuck 
 up, to a gentleman, who exclaimed, excitedly: 
 
 "Where did you get that ? " 
 
 " Given to me by my wife," I replied. 
 
 His arms dropped, he turned pale and fell back 
 against a convenient counter, for he had expected 
 to marry her himself ; and he was not alone. On 
 another occasion a gentleman said of this picture : 
 " That is Mary Lincoln." 
 
 When I replied : "It is my wife." 
 
 " Good God !" was all he could say. 
 
 In fact I soon found that I had raised the devil, 
 for everywhere I went armed with that locket, 
 which was equal to a six-shooter, the young gen- 
 tlemen on whom I drew it turned pale, staggered, 
 and fell before me, right and left. 
 
 I now received orders to fit out for Australia, 
 
 and it was not long before the steamer was rigged 
 
 into a complete ship, with three r'yal top-gallant- 
 
 s'ls, top-s'al courser, spanker-jib, flying-jib, and 
 
 plenty of large steering-sails; and with so much 
 
 coal on board that the decks amidships were down 
 
 to the level of the water in the barge. As the 
 12
 
 178 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 ship lay in the harbor, ready to sail on the morrow, 
 I was waited on by a committee of three gentle- 
 men, G. W. Ryckmare, F. A. Woodworth, and C. 
 R. Bond, and requested to make my appearance 
 at eight p. m. that evening at a dinner that had 
 been prepared for me by the merchants of San 
 Francisco. 
 
 When I saw that immense dining-room, with a 
 table so long that I could scarcely see the end of 
 it, and the guests all seated before that board 
 groaning with delicacies, I thought that I could 
 never face such a display of kindness, coming as 
 it did, from so many of our most prominent citi- 
 zens; when F. A. Woodworth led me up to the 
 head of that table and introduced me to the whole 
 assembly, I found^that it required all my nerves to 
 control my feeling; and when Mr. Woodworth set 
 forth the object of the meeting, and spoke of the 
 kind feelings entertained toward me by the friends 
 gathered before me, the salt water came to my 
 eyes in spite of all I could do. 
 
 A cluster of nine large diamonds, elegantly set, 
 was pinned into my breast; a large and heavy 
 silver speaking-trumpet, appropriately inscribed, 
 put under my arm ; and a gold watch — full chro- 
 nometer, with double cases, magic, and a large 
 diamond in the stem — was placed around my neck 
 by means of a heavy chain, seven feet and four 
 inches long, to which were attached a massive 
 anchor and a large ring of California gold. It was
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 179 
 
 not strange that so much kindness should com- 
 pletely overcome me ; but after all the generous 
 speeches, the dinner was discussed and toasts were 
 drank until after midnight, when I was escorted to 
 my hotel in safety by a large concourse of my 
 friends, where, finally, I retired amid so much 
 jewelry that I almost thought that I had strayed 
 into the store of my friend, Mr. Tucker. 
 
 The presentation speech of Mr. Fred. Wood- 
 worth was embodied in the following words : 
 
 " In behalf of a large number of your fellow-citizens of San 
 Francisco, it becomes my pleasing duty to tender for your accept- 
 ance these testimonials of their sincere regard and esteem, and 
 their just appreciation of your many noble qualities as a man, 
 your abilities as a skillful and experienced navigator, and your 
 generous devotion to the cause of public safety as a citizen. 
 
 " In the time of common danger you were among the first to 
 contend for and manfully support the great moral principle that, 
 "self-preservation is the first law of nature," and though none 
 regretted more sincerely than yourself the painful necessity of 
 appealing to this higher law, none were more faithful and fear- 
 less in the discharge of the repugnant and imperative duties 
 attending it. The moral good which has resulted therefrom is 
 too apparent to us all to need any further comment; and allow 
 me to assure you, sir, that your fellow-citizens of San Francisco 
 duly appreciate the value of the services you have performed, 
 and the purity of motive which governed you in their perform- 
 ance. 
 
 "You are now about to embark upon a long and perhaps 
 perilous voyage, and many months must elapse before we can 
 again welcome you in our midst; but while tossed in your frail 
 bark upon the bosom of the deep, the prayers of many grateful 
 hearts of wives, mothers and children will be offered up for your 
 safety and protection. We part from you with feelings of deep
 
 i8o The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 and sincere regret, but with the liveliest feelings of pleasure we 
 commend you to the kind offices and regards of all good men, 
 wherever you may go. 
 
 "Accept, then, these few mementes from your friends in San 
 Francisco, and allow me, at the same time, to express to you my 
 warmest fellings of personal regard. Wishing you a safe, pros- 
 perous voyage, I trust that we shall soon have the pleasure of 
 welcoming your return." 
 
 The following is a synopsis ol the reply I 
 made : 
 
 "Allow me to return to you, sir, and to the gentlemen in 
 whose behalf you have addressed me, my sincere and heartfelt 
 thanks for the overwhelming honors which you have seen fit to 
 confer upon me. My feelings, sir, are too big for utterance, and 
 I am fearful that my lips cannot give expression to the prompt- 
 ings of my heart. When I look around upon this numerous 
 assemblage and see the character and standing of the gentlemen 
 composing it, and when I look at the rich and costly presents 
 which have just been tendered me, it seems to me, sir, that I 
 must be in a dream, for it is difficult for me to believe that any 
 conduct on my part should have merited such reward as this. I 
 have been nearly all my life, sir, a sailor, and have plowed the 
 ocean in every quarter of the globe, since I was thirteen years of 
 age. I have had but little opportunity for the cultivation of 
 refinement, but God has placed within my breast all the feelings 
 of a man, and I am sure you will believe me, sir, when I tell you 
 that those feelings are beyond the power of words to express to 
 you. 
 
 " I can only thank you, gentlemen, with my whole heart and 
 soul, for this unexpected, and I am fearful, undeserved, manifes- 
 tation of your kindness. I shall treasure these valuable tokens 
 most sacredly to the last moments of my existence, and shall 
 hand them down to my children, and my children's children, as 
 household gods. And, now, gentlemen, in taking leave of you,
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 181 
 
 permit me again to thank you, and assure you that I shall ever 
 look back to the present moment as the fondest and happiest of 
 my life." 
 
 The next day my friend, F. A. Woodworth, 
 assisted me to select two diamond rings, to be sent 
 to my little girl who wore her hair stuck up in 
 front. Mr. Woodworth thought that no creature 
 could withstand me after this present, and after 
 knowing of the honors with which I had been 
 dispatched from the port. 
 
 On the eighth of March, 1853, the " New Or- 
 leans" steamed out of the harbor, all the colors 
 flying, and the new satin flag at the fore. We 
 were saluted by all the ships in port, and felt that 
 it was a day not to be forgotten by many who had 
 participated in the troublous times which we had 
 just emerged from. We ran down, under a full 
 pressure of canvass, to the Marquesas Island, having 
 a short and pleasant trip, and remaining four days. 
 This is a high and bold island, covered with verd- 
 ure, having good harbors and a fine population of 
 natives. At the time we were there the French 
 government had sent a man o' war from Tahiti, to 
 take possession and charge of the government of 
 this group. The day I left, the lieutenant of the 
 man o' war was sent aboard to collect port 
 charges; he presented his bill; my anchor being 
 up and steam on. I told him that I did not recog- 
 nize his authority nor that of the French govern- 
 ment over these islands, and ordered him into his
 
 1 82 The Log of an Ancient Mari7ier. 
 
 boat instantly. He jumped over the rail, and 
 burned his hands in sliding down the painter ; he 
 went on board and told his captain that he had 
 narrowly escaped death, as I had been upon the 
 point of killing him. This I learned from Captain 
 Wilcox, who was in command of a whaler at that 
 time in the port. The French captain had sent for 
 him, as soon as I was out of the harbor, to ask him 
 if I was a sample of Americans. 
 
 We ran down to Tahiti, the great island of the 
 South Pacific, where we remained a week, took in 
 coal and water, and had Queen Pomare, with her 
 eighteen sons and daughters, to dine with us. 
 
 The natives were handsome and industrious 
 before the French took the island, but now they 
 are a ruined, indolent, and depraved race of peo- 
 ple. Most of the oranges we get come from this 
 island; and it has always been noted for its broom 
 road of forty miles, one of the pleasantest drives 
 in the world. 
 
 It was at this island that I met with an adven- 
 ture that I must relate. Several miles back of the 
 town was a place of resort, where hundreds of 
 people went in bathing in a pretty stream coming 
 from the mountain, the banks being thickly studded 
 with green trees. The native girls were perfectly 
 at home in the water, and were the most graceful 
 of swimmers; they would frequently climb into 
 the tops of the trees, upon the bank, and then 
 dive off into the water. They all expressed great
 
 The Log of an A?icient Mariner. 183 
 
 astonishment on seeing an American lady, a Mrs. 
 Fisher, who used to swim daily among them, and 
 who showed herself a most accomplished water- 
 nymph. 
 
 In sight from this spot was a mountain eight 
 thousand feet in height, shaped like a cone or 
 sugar-loaf, standing in a ravine, and being, on 
 either hand and in the background, surrounded by 
 ranges of still loftier mountains. Upon the top of 
 this conical mountain the French had built a fort, 
 after cutting a road to the summit, which was just 
 wide enough to allow one foot-passenger to go up 
 at a time. On one side of this passenger would 
 be the steep wall of rock, and on the other a deep, 
 dark chasm, that received the spray of the river 
 that poured itself over the top of the conical 
 mountain, and fully eight thousand feet into the 
 abyss below. It scarcely touched the side of the 
 the mountain in its fall, and was poured out of a 
 basin, or natural reservoir. 
 
 It was a grand and awful sight, which we kept 
 almost always in sight as we toiled up the steep 
 and dangerous path. Upon the day of which I wish 
 to speak we at length reached the peak itself, as 
 we had a full view of the back range of higher 
 mountains, down which came tumbling the river, 
 falling at three different points, in arrowy falls, or 
 rapids, at angles of forty-five degrees, into natural 
 reservoirs about fifty feet in diameter, but of great 
 depth ; and then pouring out its volume again,
 
 184 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 » 
 which was about twenty feet in width, of deep water, 
 and forming a sight which fully repaid us all for 
 our labor. The third and last reservoir that we 
 could see, we all took to be the one that we had 
 watched with such interest on the way up. 
 
 On the right-hand was a column of rock, 
 through which we could see the water run from 
 the reservoir above, and the whole of the fall at 
 this point was filled with rocks from the other side 
 of the stream. Of course, all the rocks were wet 
 or damp, and I ran ahead of my companions, 
 pulled off my boots, and told them to do the 
 same, for fear the stones were slippery. Being 
 anxious to get close to the edge of the water that 
 we all thought poured out over the side of the 
 mountain in its final leap here, I ran in my stock- 
 ing-feet quite to the stream, which was running al- 
 most as fast as it was falling from the last basin. 
 
 The moment my feet struck the wet rocks, 
 which were covered with a substance like soft-soap, 
 they went from under me. I struck on my seat, 
 and bounded right into the water-fall. All was 
 consternation for a moment, for I was lost sight of 
 in a second, and all thought I had gone over the 
 great fall, as I thought myself; but I was reserved 
 for other purposes. I was precipitated twenty 
 feet down into a last, unperceived basin, passing 
 through a cut with fourteen perpendicular columns 
 of rock on either hand, and roofed over with the 
 same material. How deep into this final basin I
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 185 
 
 was carried, I do not know, for the shock and the 
 belief that I had already gone over the great fall, 
 had had their full effect on me ; nevertheless, I 
 swam out from the influence of the fall of water, 
 and approached the rocks forming the sides of this, 
 the last reservoir. It was about thirty feet wide, 
 and in front were the great lips, like those of a 
 pitcher, out of which flowed the river that fell eight 
 thousand feet perpendicularly, and lost itself in 
 mist before it arrived in the great, dark chasm, 
 into whose hidden recesses even the daylight had 
 never penetrated. 
 
 As all the rocks about this spot were filled with 
 cracks, I soon had both my hands into one, which 
 enabled me to hold on while I recovered my 
 breath, and took a little survey of my situation. 
 My companions could not see me, and all was 
 silent but for the roar of the water ; again I can im- 
 agine myself clinging to the rocks, lost in that 
 abyss, swallowed up in that immense solitude. 
 
 None of my party dared approach the edge of 
 the water to get a glimpse of the roadway rock, 
 through which this river empties itself into the last 
 basin. However, word was given and passed with 
 telegraphic quickness, that the captain of the 
 American steamer had gone over the fall. The 
 natives soon came, the women, strange to say, 
 first and most daring, and climbed, by the assist- 
 ance of the fissures in the rocks, to a point where 
 they could see me.
 
 1 86 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 The native women threw me the end of a rope, 
 made by themselves from the bark of some tree, 
 which I made fast around my breast, and was 
 hauled up by those mermaids into safety, much to 
 the joy of my friends, who had given me up for 
 lost. On our arrival in town we found the report 
 was in every mouth that, " The captain had gone 
 over the fall." I rewarded those creatures, who 
 were certainly as much at home in the water as out; 
 and have, in Tahiti, the honor of a man who has 
 fallen eight thousand feet, and escaped unhurt. 
 
 I visited a garden in this place, owned by an ec- 
 centric Scotchman, who had in a pond three eels, 
 of enormous size. The big one would come to 
 him at the ringing of one bell, the second at two, 
 and the third at three bells. They were all much 
 larger than anything of the kind I had ever read 
 of, the largest being about three feet around. 
 
 We bade adieu to this beautiful island, and 
 sailed down past many more, and anchored at 
 Tangatatoo, the residence of King George. Here 
 we found a race of men about six feet high, light 
 copper-colored, and both sexes very handsome. 
 On leaving this island we were presented with 
 many canoe-loads of fruit by the king, who is a 
 very good man. 
 
 We were scarcely under way when we found 
 that our coal was of the worst quality, and our 
 favorable winds also failed us, and so we hauled up 
 for Morton Bay, the nearest point upon the coast 
 ot New Holland.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 187 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Australia — A Square Trotter — In Trouble — A Dutch 
 
 Skipper. 
 
 RRIVED on the 
 coast of New Hol- 
 land, or Aus- 
 tralia, we found 
 thatwehadnot 
 coal enough to 
 take us to the 
 right entrance, 
 ^= some thirty 
 miles to the 
 north, so we ran into a narrow and dangerous 
 passage at the south end of the island, which 
 would lead us to Morton Bay. 
 
 We were obliged to creep along with the boats 
 ahead, sounding our way, but at sundown we 
 anchored in four fathoms of water, in a bay which 
 was large and beautiful, but full of shoals. Being 
 close to a point of land, my passengers, who were 
 using their glasses, soon saw that something of 
 interest was going on, as a large number of natives 
 appeared to be busy in that spot. 
 
 I permitted two boat-loads of passengers to land
 
 1 88 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 and witness an operation which is called tattooing 
 on the other islands, and accomplished by means 
 of needles and dyes, but which is here performed 
 by cutting the person all over with sharks' teeth 
 and sharpened shells, and then throwing hot ashes 
 and embers into the wounds, thus burning the 
 patient all up into the most horrible of sights — 
 no signs of anguish or pain, meanwhile, escaping 
 the lips of the sufferer — who, in this instance, was 
 a woman. 
 
 Many natives came on board, and they were an 
 awful looking set of savages. They stick the 
 quills of some large bird through their scalps, and 
 pitch them around with the gum of some tree until 
 it grows fast between the quills; then they tie 
 their woolly hair up into bundles, like fingers, by 
 winding strings around, until their heads look like 
 the devil. They spear fish in water so muddy 
 that we cannot see one-fourth of an inch into it ; 
 they track a white man on a solid rock; and they 
 throw the boomerang, which is a most remarkable 
 science, or, rather, the last science of the world. 
 
 The next morning after our arrival we started in 
 a whale-boat, with a crew of nine, all told, to look 
 for the mouth of the Brisbane River, which empties 
 into Morton Bay. On leaving the steamer a por- 
 poise, with his back-fin bitten half off, came up 
 frequently, so close that I could have put my hand 
 upon his back. Relieving each other as we tired 
 at the oars we pulled until three p, m., when we
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 189 
 
 discovered a fleet of several large ships, lying at 
 the mouth of quite a large river, and as they all 
 hoisted their colors we did likewise. They were 
 all English ships; and as we approached the 
 nearest one, I perceived, with the aid of a good 
 spy-glass, that there was some excitement on 
 board; that the crew were running to and fro, and 
 several spy-glasses were leveled at us. How- 
 ever, we continued to pull right at her gangway, 
 I being desirous to board her, in order to gain in- 
 formation as to where we could secure the services 
 of a pilot, knowing that one resided somewhere 
 near this end of the bay, which was thirty miles 
 long, and in places twenty miles broad. As we 
 neared the English ship, we perceived »that the ex- 
 citement increased, and that the people on board 
 seemed in great consternation; we forgetting that 
 we were all armed with pistols and bowie-knives, 
 as we had become accustomed to wear them in 
 California, and now, being in a strange wild 
 country, we had of course buckled them on as we 
 left the steamer. We were soon hailed from the 
 ship, and ordered to lay on our oars at a respectful 
 distance. 
 
 "But, captain," said I, "I have business with 
 you and wish to come aboard your vessel;" and in 
 another minute my boat was under the stern and 
 then alongside, and, without going further, I sprang 
 up the mizzen and on the deck, where I saw the 
 captain and all his crew at the gangway, fully
 
 190 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 armed and ready to repulse us. Ordering my 
 people to remain in the boat I asked for the cap- 
 tain, and a large, burly man answered from the 
 open-mouthed crew that he commanded the ship. 
 
 "Then, sir," I replied, "I am the commander of 
 an American steamer, now lying in the lower end 
 of the bay ; we have just anchored, and I desire 
 you to inform me where a pilot can be found ; and 
 I wish to procure some water and fresh provis- 
 ions." 
 
 "Well," he answered, if you will promise to 
 leave my ship and never return, I will give you 
 what you want ; but then, steer off, for I want no 
 Yankee tricks." 
 
 "Captain," I replied, "above all, I shall expect 
 that courtesy that one true sailor always shows 
 another, no matter when and where they meet ; 
 but I will leave." 
 
 The steward was then called to get some pro- 
 visions into our boat, the captain all the while in- 
 sisting upon my crew remaining in the boat, and 
 reminding me frequently of my promise to leave 
 as soon as my business was completed. 
 
 "As for the pilot," said he, " do ye see that 
 sand-patch on the mountain-side, away there, on 
 the north side of the island ? Well, he lives at the 
 foot of that hill ; it is thirty miles from here." 
 
 " Never mind," I rejoined, "we've pulled thirty 
 miles to-day, and don't mind thirty more ; we will 
 be there soon after dark. Now, captain, many
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 191 
 
 thanks for your kind hospitalities, and, being about 
 to leave your ship, should like to drink your health 
 in some British ale or porter ; and, in addition, 
 let me ask what is the cause of all this excitement, 
 and your singular reception of us ? " 
 
 The ale was promptly brought, though no reply 
 was elicited ; but we bade them a hearty good-bye, 
 and pulled away for the sand-patch on the moun- 
 tain-side. We all had a hearty lunch, and plentiful 
 draughts of excellent water, and at dark were not 
 far off the coast. At eight p. m. not seeing any- 
 thing that looked like a house or landing-place, we 
 ran our boat upon a smooth, white beach, where we 
 pulled her up high and dry, and by means of the 
 sails made a comfortable covering, and soon had a 
 hearty supper, washed down with excellent hot 
 coffee. By means of their immense bowie-knives, 
 our men soon had a plentiful number of tree 
 branches off, with which we kept up a roaring fire. 
 We found plenty of fresh running water in the 
 vicinity, and after thanking a kind providence, soon 
 sank into a deep sleep, made sound by the fatigue 
 of the day. At daylight we were all up again, and 
 in five minutes everything was again in its place; 
 the boat was launched and we were pulling around 
 an adjacent point of land, where we soon discov- 
 ered boats, boat-houses and a civilized landing- 
 place — and through a valley, a path up the hill- 
 side. 
 
 I took the lead, and we were all in high spirits,
 
 192 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 expecting soon to be enjoying the hospitalities of 
 the gentlemanly pilot, and perhaps soon to be drink- 
 ing a cup of hot coffee with him. To my dismay, I 
 soon ran upon the muzzle of a double-barreled 
 shotgun, held by a fierce fellow, who peremptorily 
 ordered us to " Halt! " We came to a full stop 
 in double-quick time. The leader was backed by 
 six others, all armed with weapons presented and 
 on full cock, all of them looking as if they were 
 seriously in earnest, and intended business. 
 " Go back to your boat," was the order. 
 " But I want to see Watson, the pilot," I an- 
 swered. 
 
 "Well," said he, "I am Watson, and you will 
 get the contents of both barrels of this gun if you 
 move; and when I fire, my men also pull trigger 
 in the same direction." 
 
 "But," said I, "what's the matter? what have 
 we done? why do you treat us thus?" 
 
 "Blast you," he rejoined, "you are the same 
 crowd, the very same number in the gang, who 
 were here last week and stuck me up and robbed 
 me. I watched you all the afternoon; you have 
 been robbing the ships again. You said you 
 would come back in a week and cut my throat; 
 but we have watched you all night, and could have 
 shot you all while asleep, only we would rather 
 let the authorities do that; now go !" 
 
 " But I can't," said I; " I am an American ship- 
 master, with a steamer under my command lying 
 at the bottom of the bay."
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 193 
 
 " How did you get in there with a steamer?" he 
 replied. 
 
 " Felt my way in," I answered, "with two boats 
 ahead, and the lead cjoina- all the while." 
 
 " That won't do," said he, •' that channel has 
 not been used in nine years, and what you say is 
 impossible." 
 
 " Now, Captain Watson," I said "just put down 
 the muzzle of that gun, take us to your home, give 
 us something to eat, and then get into the boat 
 with us, and go down and bring up the steamer, 
 in order that we may refit and get enough coal 
 to carry us to Sydney, for we are entirely out of 
 fuel." 
 
 At last we were received as friends, having con- 
 vinced Captain Watson that we were only what 
 we represented ourselves to be; and when once 
 we were placed upon a friendly footing we were 
 taken to the pilot station, and treated with real 
 British hospitality; nothing could be too good for 
 us, and with intense interest they listened to the 
 recital of our adventures. It seemed that a party 
 of nine convicts, in a whale-boat, had, several days 
 before, visited that locality — had robbed the ships 
 and pilots — and when they left had vowed, by all 
 the saints in the calender, that in another week 
 they would return and murder all hands. Of course 
 we were taken for the same party, particularly as 
 we were not only nine in number, but were also 
 in a whale-boat. Armed as we were, with lonof 
 
 13
 
 194 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 beards, and the rough appearance gained by a 
 long sea voyage, it was not unreasonable that we 
 should be taken for the party of ruffians; though 
 it took much conceit out of us that we should be 
 mistaken for a set of piratical convicts, and it was 
 anything but a compliment to us. 
 
 In a short time we started back for the " New 
 Orleans," carrying the old pilot with us. As .we 
 came near the steamer, who should welcome us 
 but the same porpoise with the broken fin, herein- 
 before mentioned, coming again very near our boat, 
 being apparently wholly without fear. I could 
 almost have put my hand upon him, and I called 
 out to have the boat-hook passed to me, seeing 
 that I could kill him. To my surprise the old 
 pilot seized the boat-hook and threw it down in 
 the boat again, saying that he would never allow 
 the porpoise to be harmed. 
 
 " Why, my men," said he, " Porpus is a human 
 being. I knew him well; he was one of the Aus- 
 tralian natives, aud he died here about two years 
 ago; he had a hump-back, and in every respect I 
 can see in the porpus a likeness to the man, as I 
 recollect him; only see how very tame he is. His 
 brother lives just across the bay, and if this poor 
 fish should come to harm all your lives would be 
 sacrificed, if the tribe of natives he used to belong 
 to could get at you. They would be more severe 
 in their revenge than if you had hurt one of them- 
 selves in the human form. They all know this
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 195 
 
 fish, and he is not only free from harm, but, in ad- 
 dition, is regularly fed by his own tribe." 
 
 Of course there were many smiles when the old 
 pilot made this astonishing statement, and at the 
 time I looked upon it as only a sailor's supersti- 
 tion ; and here, I will say that no race of people 
 are more superstitious than sailors, for they are all 
 strong believers in ghosts and disembodied spirits. 
 However, the old man was right about the impru- 
 dence of our harming the porpoise, for the natives 
 are exceedingly warlike and implacable in their 
 revenge when their customs are infringed upon by 
 strangers. While we lay in the bay we saw many 
 fish and animals, and birds, all treated by the 
 natives with the greatest kindness, they claiming 
 that they recognized in them the likeness of de- 
 parted friends. 
 
 Finally, arriving again on board our steamer, 
 and generally acknowledging the oft-stated truism 
 that ''There's no place like home," we got under 
 way next morning early, and under guidance of 
 our now friendly pilot, who was more than aston- 
 ished to find that we had worked our way through 
 a channel so intricate and unknown, we ran into 
 the Brisbane river. Our first step was to dispatch 
 two boat-loads of armed men with orders to thor- 
 oughly search the vicinity, and, if possible, to 
 find the Qrano; of nine convicts who had committed 
 such outrages, and to bring them in, dead or alive. 
 They were gone an entire week, but were unsuc-
 
 196 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 cessful, and made no captures ; but .the governor 
 of Brisbane sent me a written letter of thanks for 
 the prompt and energetic means I had taken in 
 trying to clear the vicinity of these ruffians. 
 
 After a time the steamer was run up the bay in 
 regular order, and made fast alongside the bank of 
 a beautiful, clear river (name now forgotten,) ad- 
 jacent to a fine, smoothly rolling country, like an 
 English park, grassy as a lawn, with here and there 
 a tree, exhibiting nature in her holiday attire and 
 most pleasing aspect. The next day a party was 
 formed to ride about one hundred miles into the 
 interior, to an inland town named Harwich — singu- 
 larly enough, the same name as that of the town 
 where several years before I had spent a consider- 
 able period after having been so nearly shipwrecked 
 while on my way in the brig " Forrester," bound 
 from Bremen to New York. 
 
 About daylight we started, all well-mounted, 
 and arrived at midnight, having" ridden so hard 
 that we were completely worn out, and two of the 
 poor horses died before morning ; one of them be- 
 ing the one I rode. After a substantial breakfast 
 we strolled out to see the town, which possessed 
 much natural scenery, and was charmingly situated 
 among the hills, surrounded by vestiges of ancient 
 volcanoes. Upon the outskirts of the place we 
 found encamped two tribes of Australian natives, 
 and they treated us with great kindness. The 
 most wonderful thing for us was to see them throw
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 197 
 
 the boomerang, a piece of hard wood, crescent- 
 shaped, half an inch thick, flat upon the under side, 
 and rounding upon the side held uppermost, sharp 
 at each point and each edge. They are wonder- 
 fully skillful in throwing this missile from the hand, 
 it assuming a rotary motion equal to that of a cir- 
 cular-saw. It goes to a certain desired point in 
 the air, pauses a moment, attains another point, 
 again pauses, and then returns close to the feet of 
 the thrower. Thus, in the hands of the semi- 
 skillful it would be likely to do himself the most 
 harm. It is capable of various movements; in 
 some instances the thrower stands with his back 
 to the object he desires to hit, and throws the 
 boomerang from him. It skips along close to the 
 ground, then takes a right angle straight up into 
 the air,, and returning with terrific force, goes many 
 feet behind the thrower, and seldom fails to hit the 
 thing at which it is thrown. In fact, the boom- 
 erang is a wonder to all civilized observers, and 
 puts to flight many of our preconceived ideas of 
 natural forces. Travelers who first discovered 
 Australia were laughed at when they told of 
 the boomerang, and even in our own day, when 
 one is suspected of telling something after the 
 style of Baron Munchausen, he is told: "Oh! that 
 is a boomerang story." 
 
 During the three days we remained in this place 
 we saw the regular races of the year, attended by 
 people from many miles around. The people
 
 198 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 seemed like their brethren in Old England, pas- 
 sionately fond of racing, and bet heavily upon the 
 result. One poor fellow, who had been a gentle- 
 man of handsome fortune but a few days before, 
 lost his entire means and became a raving maniac. 
 The day after the races terminated we started back 
 for the ship, I being supplied with a new horse, in 
 place of the one that had died from hard riding 
 and over fatigue. This animal was brought from 
 the pasture and handed over to me by the owner, 
 with the promise that if I could get him out of the 
 town of Harwich he should become my property. 
 It would appear that this horse was a celebrated 
 character, for soon a large crowd gathered around to 
 see the fun, which commenced as soon as I had 
 fairly mounted the beast. The first movement 
 was to rear up so straight that he nearly fell over 
 backward; then he wheeled suddenly around and 
 caught himself on his four legs. This nearly did 
 my business, and elicited immense applause from 
 the crowd. Then he threw his head to the ground 
 and kicked his hind legs so high in the air that I 
 very nearly came off, and the crowd roared with 
 delight; but they did not know the clear grit of 
 Yankee sailors in general, or the staying qualities 
 of E. W. in particular. They expected to see me 
 violently thrown off, perhaps killed, for it seemed 
 that the animal had been engaged in many such 
 encounters, and had invariably come off the victor. 
 Now he jumped sideways, first one way, then the
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 199 
 
 other, and came so violently on his feet that it 
 made me fairly grunt, and almost took away my 
 breath; then he tried to bite my leg, and did suc- 
 ceed in tearing away, with his teeth, half of one of 
 my boot-legs; but I gave his bridle such a fearful 
 yank that it was his turn to grunt, and then off he 
 went sideways, across the road, his body going 
 one way, bent in the form of a crescent, and his 
 neck turned in the opposite direction. In this 
 style he took me out of sight of the crowd, and 
 gave me the advantage of no longer hearing thei r 
 jeering laughter, which at times greatly aggravated 
 me, and made me almost demoralized. However, 
 by main strength, I finally got him back to the 
 starting-place, being fully determined to conquer 
 him or break his infernal neck. After nearly an 
 hour of this work, during- which time I was all 
 over him, but always outside of him, he finally 
 made a fearful leap into the middle of the road, 
 and striking into a square trot never relinquished 
 that gait until he brought up under the shed of the 
 hotel, at Brisbane, at eight p. m. the same day; 
 having kept the lead throughout, and always 
 trotting, though many of the other horses gal- 
 loped, and were constantly urged forward in order 
 to keep up, but were always some distance astern. 
 My party all bore testimony that as a square trot- 
 ter this animal excelled anything they had ever 
 before seen in the horse line. I was highly com- 
 plimented upon my victory, as well as upon my
 
 200 The Log of an Ancie7it Mariner. 
 
 exciting display of horsemanship; I having greatly 
 contributed to the amusement of our crowd during 
 the journey. The next morning I was grieved to 
 learn that my square trotter had died during the 
 niodit. 
 
 We found the "New Orleans" all coaled, and 
 ready for sea, and the same day proceeded to the 
 mouth of the river, tying up to the bank during 
 the night. A tribe of Australian natives were en- 
 camped near us; and when moving about their 
 camp-fires with savage voices and gesticulations, 
 the forest in the background, we could not help 
 likening them to our ideas of what demons would 
 look like in certain hotter climes. 
 
 Early next morning we took our departure, after 
 an affectionate farewell from the old pilot, who had 
 become our fast friend. We stood down the coast, 
 and in due time arrived at Sydney, passing up that 
 most beautiful harbor in the world, having made a 
 very pleasant trip from San Francisco in forty-one 
 running days. Here I ought to mention that on 
 this trip, in crossing the equator, in accordance 
 with the ancient and honorable nautical custom, we 
 stopped to let Old Neptune come on board, out of 
 his chariot of fire, in the night. No less than sixty 
 of our passengers were shaved and initiated into the 
 mysteries of Neptune's saline regulations. For 
 two hours the ship was given up to fun, and a scene 
 ensued that I am unable to describe. At four 
 bells, or ten p. m., order was restored, and next
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 201 
 
 morning there was nothing to denote that we had 
 been honored by the presence of such distinguished 
 royal guests. One of the young men had objected 
 to the manner of his initiation, and did not like the 
 style of Old Neptune's lather, nor the size of his 
 razor, having been rather roughly handled, but he 
 soon forgot his moderate punishment and enjoyed 
 the fun as much as the others. 
 
 Immediately upon our arrival at Sydney all the 
 passengers and part of the crew departed to seek 
 their fortunes in the gold mines, which had but 
 lately been discovered in Australia, and were very 
 rich; while the balance of my crew were painting 
 and putting the steamer in order. A few days 
 after our arrival the "Sydney Herald " came out 
 with an editorial, stating that Captain Edgar 
 Wakeman, of the American steamer, lately ar- 
 rived, had assisted in murdering in California some 
 of their best citizens; that he was a most dangerous 
 person, and should have but twenty-four hours in 
 which to leave the country. This alluded to my 
 having taken a prominent part in the action of the 
 San Francisco Vigilance Committee in 1851, at a 
 time when the city was overrun by convicts from 
 the British colonies of Australia. These men, 
 murderers and assassins of the deepest dye, ban- 
 ished from England for the most outrageous crimes, 
 had come to California, where they robbed and 
 murdered right and left. They were so murderous 
 as to overawe the weakly- constituted authorities,
 
 202 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 and the citizens found that they must go to first 
 principles — seek the higher law, and take the ad- 
 ministration of justice into their own hands, or the 
 country would be given up to lawless ruffians, and 
 the fairest country in the world would become un- 
 inhabitable by quiet and respectable people. In 
 such an emergency, I felt it my duty to take the 
 responsibility, and stand boldly to the front; and 
 in this way I came to take a prominent part in 
 clearing California of the scoundrels, and my name 
 has since been frequently mentioned in referring to 
 the doings of those troublous times. 
 
 The next day my servant went to the office of 
 the " Herald" to get a copy of the newspaper, and 
 upon stating for whom he wanted the paper, the 
 editor said : 
 
 " Oh ! your captain don't want a paper ; he has 
 fled the town, as he was ordered to do." 
 
 " I rather guess not," replied my man, "I have 
 been with him a long while in California, and he 
 is not the man to flee from anything in this 
 country." 
 
 The newspapers of Sydney frequently, after this, 
 published articles calculated to bring me into dis- 
 repute with the public; but I continued on in the 
 even tenor of my way, minding my own business, 
 until one day, being in a ship-yard where many 
 men were at work, I heard them make remarks 
 insulting to me. To this I paid no attention for 
 some time, but, with my crew, continued to roll a
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 203 
 
 stick of timber, for which I had come, toward the 
 boat, until a number of the men had approached 
 me with disrespectful remarks and threatening 
 gestures; when I thought it time to corroborate 
 the oft-repeated statement of the Sydney news- 
 papers, that I was a dangerous man and a mur- 
 derer, and so I drew my revolver and bowie-knife, 
 and started toward the crowd. In two minutes 
 not an unfriendly Currency Lad (as the Australian- 
 Englishmen term themselves), was to be found in 
 that ship-yard. I had only advanced toward them, 
 when the cowardly wretches fled like so many 
 huddled sheep. 
 
 The next day the " Herald" contained a long 
 and vituperious account of the murderous assault 
 committed upon the peaceful citizens of Sydney, 
 by the armed and ruffianly commander of the 
 American steamer. A few days after, as I was 
 going to the office of my agent, a large crowd 
 gathered right across the street. My resolve was 
 taken in a moment, and drawing my weapons, I 
 rushed at them; but an Englishman can't get up 
 the courage to face a Yankee bowie-knife, and so 
 thev scattered — each man running as if for his 
 life — and I went quietly and unharmed about my 
 business. Not many days after this several of my 
 former passengers came on board the steamer, in 
 great haste, and told me that several hundred men 
 had just met in a hotel up town, and had vowed 
 to come on board ship and hang me to the yard-
 
 204 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 arm. I immediately called all hands, armed my 
 crew with muskets and pistols, loaded two cannon 
 belonging to the steamer, and got ready to repel 
 boarders. By this time the adjacent wharves were 
 crowded with people, and all the boats in that vicin- 
 ity were manned, ready to come alongside, and 
 were yelling out at us all the horrible language 
 the depraved wretches could lay tongue to. In the 
 meantime all on board my vessel was silent, and 
 our very silence had for them something ominous, 
 and many of them, after getting into the boats, 
 hesitated, and went on the dock again. Some of 
 our passengers had gone ashore and told of the 
 preparations we had made, no doubt exaggerating 
 our warlike condition; and so after waiting awhile, 
 and giving us three groans, the crowd dispersed. 
 It was evident they feared some Yankee trick, and 
 Yankee tricks always operate unfavorably upon 
 the Britishers. 
 
 The next day my agent sent me word that I had 
 best not come ashore as the people were very un- 
 friendly to me; but if I did come, not to pass 
 through the cut in the hill, as they had sworn to 
 throw down rocks and kill me there. When I did 
 go ashore it was by another route. I had not 
 seen my agents for several days, and when they 
 saw me enter their office, with my bowie-knife and 
 two pistols buckled about me, outside all my 
 clothes, they turned pale, and perhaps thought, 
 that, after all, I might be the ruffian I was painted.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 205 
 
 "Why, captain, it is fifteen years' transportation 
 to carry weapons in this country, and all our in- 
 fluence can't get you out of the scrape, if you are 
 indicted for such an offense against the laws." 
 
 "Gentlemen," I replied, "your public journals 
 have incited your mobs to take my life; now, I 
 tell you, I came here to stay, and I am able to 
 protect myself, and if the citizens of Sydney think 
 the contrary they deceive themselves. If I am 
 ever attacked I shall defend myself to the utmost, 
 and before I fall I will promise to make at least a 
 dozen of my assailants bite the dust. I wish to go 
 along quietly and mind my own business, but I 
 will protect myself at all risks. Self preservation 
 is the great law of nature, and no true Englishman 
 will blame me for protecting myself." 
 
 I then left for my ship, taking good care to avoid 
 the suspicious cut through the hill, and to pass 
 through a more respectable part of the town. 
 When I had gone about half way to the dock an 
 elderly gentleman, mounted on a white horse, his 
 own locks white as the driven snow that clusters on 
 the peak of Mauna Loa, rode up to me, and giving 
 a military salute, which I returned with equal 
 respect, said : 
 
 " I presume that I have the honor of addressing 
 the captain of the American steamer?" 
 
 " Yes, sir," I replied. 
 
 "' Then I trust you will pardon me for remind- 
 ing you that, by our local laws, you are forbidden
 
 206 The Log of an A7icient Mari?ier. 
 
 wearing arms, particularly in a manner so open 
 and dangerous." 
 
 '' Sir," I rejoined, " I acknowledge your extreme 
 courtesy; but permit me to say to you that at this 
 moment I recognize no law but the law of self-pro- 
 tection. My life has been threatened by a ruffianly 
 mob, and vituperious attacks have been made 
 upon me by your public journals; and if I am at- 
 tacked, you will have a chance of seeing how 
 dearly an American can sell his life." 
 
 " Sir," said the noble old gentleman, " I respect 
 your actions and admire your words. Allow me 
 the favor of shaking you by the hand. In future, 
 you will be allowed to wear your arms unmolested; 
 and all the officers and soldiers at the different 
 stations will have orders to guard and protect you. 
 They will recognize you by a salute after this man- 
 ner" (putting his hand alongside his face, the palm 
 outward), '' and you may fully rely upon their good 
 offices; and we will see if in future you cannot be 
 treated a little more civilly." 
 
 Then, grasping my hand, he rode away, after I 
 had renewed my thanks for his kindness. 
 
 Thus ended demonstrations that had lasted over 
 the period of three weeks, and had caused great 
 excitement in Sydney. Thus have I passed 
 through many stormy scenes; and, though person- 
 ally kindly disposed toward my fellow men, I have 
 often met bad people, whose conduct has forced 
 me to take aggressive steps for my own safety, 
 though greatly against my own inclination.
 
 TJie Log of an Ancient Mariner. 207 
 
 By this time, our steamer being put in good 
 condition, her name was changed to that of " The 
 Governor General/' and we commenced making 
 trips along the Australian coast, between Sydney 
 and Melbourne. Upon our first trip, we encoun- 
 tered a terrible storm, that lasted three entire days 
 and nights, and, though we were upon a lee shore, 
 we got safely out, though nearly one hundred 
 vessels foundered in our vicinity in the same gale. 
 I ran commander of the steamer upon this coast 
 for about a year, during which time I carried as 
 passengers many of the prominent people of the 
 colony, who acknowledged that they had misunder- 
 stood me, and that they had been prejudiced 
 against me by the continuously-unfriendly articles 
 that appeared in the '' Sydney Herald." Many 
 of them apologized, and 
 wished me every future 
 success. 
 
 At Melbourne, I took 
 passage on a Boston ship 
 bound for Peru. The cap- 
 tain was a Dutchman; and 
 before leaving the bay, 
 I told him that his ship 
 was insufficiently ballasted, 
 and that I would rather 
 not go in her in that con- 
 dition. 
 
 " Oh ! that's all right," said he, " you are a
 
 2o8 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 steamboat man, and I am a regular salt-water 
 sailor-man, and you'll find that I understand my 
 business." 
 
 I replied that no man had served in a better 
 nautical school than myself, as I hoped to prove 
 to him before we reached the coast of Peru. 
 This Dutch skipper was extremely religious, said 
 lengthy grace before every meal, and sang psalms 
 to nigger- minstrel tunes. However, we got along 
 very well until we had reached the latitude of fifty- 
 five degrees south, when I came on deck one 
 morning and found the ship running before a 
 very high sea, with the main-royal set, both 
 main-t' gallant stuns'l-booms riercred out. with 
 their tacks unrove, and the starboard clew of the 
 mains'l down, yards square. I observed to a 
 Scotch captain, who was also a passenger, that this 
 was a new way to scud ship; that, in order to 
 have things ship-shape and Bristol fashion, the 
 mains'l ought to be furled, and the ship put under 
 double reefs. Our Dutch captain, who had been 
 leeward of the house, and heard my remarks, came 
 around, and, addressing me in the most insulting 
 manner, told me I was only a passenger, and 
 begged that I would mind my own business, and 
 not interfere with the working of his vessel. 
 
 "Captain," I returned, '" permit me to kindly 
 thank you for your courteous words and no less 
 courteous manner, and to express my obligations 
 to you for telling me what I am and what my duty
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 209 
 
 is. Now, in the mildest and most polite manner 
 in the world, excuse me for saying to you, in re- 
 turn, that I consider you a " sojer," and no sailor, 
 and such was my impression before I had been 
 fifteen minutes on board your craft. I felt then 
 that your ship was too crank, as I then told you; 
 and I felt that, for want of a little more ballast, 
 you were going over this stormy route with a 
 vessel that would roll so deep down that it was a 
 question if she could right again. Now, sir, were 
 you a sailor, this ship would be under double reefs, 
 that lee clew of the mains'l, instead of being down 
 to catch a sea that is liable to roll into it and break 
 off your mainmast, would be snugly furled, and 
 your ship would be under safe sail and perfect 
 control, and she would go just as fast. There, 
 sir, you have my private sentiments publicly ex- 
 pressed." 
 
 By this time he found I could sail to windward 
 of him, both in using my jaw tackle and also in 
 my nautical knowledge. So he hauled off, and 
 commenced abusing his mate, who, by the way, 
 was much the better sailor of the two. 
 
 After this conversation, and while we were wait- 
 ing the sound of the breakfast-bell, a bie sea rolled 
 into the mains'l, and brought such a heavy strain 
 upon the mainmast that it broke in the truss-bands, 
 just as I had expected, but not quite so soon. The 
 mast fell forward until the backstays and braces 
 
 brought them up, though they were liable to go 
 11
 
 2io The Log of an Aticient Mariner. 
 
 over at every lurch the ship took. After looking 
 on for about five minutes, the Dutchman not say- 
 ing anything, I went to him and asked him why he 
 did not take command of his ship and give the 
 proper orders, as a sailor should do under such cir- 
 cumstances. The poor fellow burst into tears. 
 " Oh, Captain Wakeman," sobbed he, " I have 
 never lost a spar before ; please take full charge, 
 and fix things as you think best." In five minutes 
 not an idle pair of hands were to be found on 
 board the vessel ; sailors, passengers and cook 
 were all set at work. Tackles were put half way 
 up to the top, carried to the backstays, and hauled 
 taut into the mizzen ; all sails were got down, and 
 every proper nautical step taken to get things into 
 the best possible shape. By supper-time all was 
 repaired so that easy sail could probably be carried 
 during the remainder of the passage. I had worked 
 like a Trojan, and rubbed the skin off both my 
 hands, performing feats of strength and wonders of 
 seamanship such as no man on board that ship had 
 ever seen performed before. The Dutch captain 
 thanked me with tears as large as horse-chestnuts 
 in his beautiful violet eyes, and begged my pardon 
 for his rude conduct. That evening, while talking 
 over the affair with the Scotch captain, I regretted 
 that it could not have been the fore or mizzen 
 mast. 
 
 " Oh, captain," said he, " even if it gives out 
 again, we shall still have a big lump of a brig under 
 our feet."
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 211 
 
 Captain Adams, who was also a passenger on 
 board this ship, used to annoy our Dutch skipper 
 when saying grace before meals by jingling the 
 glasses and plates, putting him out of his routine of 
 words, for he had it all by heart, and when he once 
 lost his place he was completely upset, and had to 
 go back to the commencement, or give it up in des- 
 pair ; and he looked upon Captain Adams as a per- 
 fect barbarian, and a lost sinner. When we ar- 
 rived at Callao I noticed that he did not remit any 
 part of my passage money for my services, but he 
 did me the credit of reporting to everybody that I 
 was a great sailor, but that he would never again 
 carry any American shipmasters as passengers. 
 While I was aloft putting things straight, I had 
 found the ship's foremast and several of her yards 
 to be sprung, and the result was that he had to get 
 a new set of spars, at a great expense, which 
 nearly broke his heart, for he was an economical 
 cuss, and said grace over his beans twenty-one 
 times every week. May he rest in peace.
 
 212 The Log of a?i Ancient Mariner. 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 I am Launched into Matrimony — Take Charge of the 
 "Adelaide" — Am Taken in Charge, with the "JohnL. 
 Stephens," by Captain Dana — The Authorities at Acapulco 
 attempt to take charge of the "america." 
 
 EING now in Lima, the principal city 
 of Peru, I took up my quarters with my 
 hospitable friend, Don Carlos Fluca. 
 i While here I was introduced to the 
 President of the Republic of Peru, 
 and entered into a contract with him 
 to go to New York and lit out a 
 steamer, and in the course of five 
 years to introduce four hundred em- 
 igrants into Peru, by way of the Amazon river; 
 and for my services was to have millions of acres 
 of land, anywhere I saw fit to locate the same, east 
 of the Andes mountains. I went to New York, 
 where I found myself without money, and so wrote 
 Mary Lincoln, releasing her from her engagement 
 to splice her fortunes with mine. But suddenly my 
 prospects brightened ; a company was formed, 
 called the Amazon Steam Navigation Company. 
 I consulted Mr. Pierce, then President of the 
 United States, in regard to it, and he told me to 
 go ahead, congratulated me, and said I was inter-
 
 The Log of an A7icient Mariner. 2 1 3 
 
 ested in one of the biggest enterprises of the age, 
 and that he took a lively interest in it. The stock 
 sold rapidly, a steamer was bought, and over four 
 hundred passengers took passage, and paid their 
 passage money in advance, and the steamer was 
 about ready to sail, when, one afternoon at 3 p. m. , 
 just when the President and officers of the com- 
 pany were about to leave the office, at No. 16 
 Trinity Building, Broadway, an envelope was put 
 into my hands, marked, "Adams & Co's Express." 
 I expected a letter from Mary Lincoln, so what 
 was my surprise on opening the envelope to find a 
 long, narrow slip of paper, a telegram, which read 
 as follows : 
 
 "President Franklin Pierce to Captain Edgar Wakeman: — 
 You are hereby commanded to disband your organization and 
 abandon your expedition upon the Amazon, immediately, or be 
 arrested as a filibuster." 
 
 We looked at each other in utter dismay and 
 consternation on receiving this unexpected blow to 
 all our prospects. We paid back the passage 
 money and sold our boat at a heavy loss, and so 
 proved ourselves to be honest men, while we had 
 full proof that our President had sold himself to 
 the India-rubber interests of New York, which 
 were willing to pay a big sum to retain possession 
 of the Amazon trade. 
 
 Thus ended, in the greatest excitement, this en- 
 terprise, in which were interested many of the best 
 men in the United States; and I again found myself
 
 214 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 on my oars, and once more as poor as a church 
 mouse. 
 
 Shortly after this, Commodore Vanderbilt sent 
 me word that he wanted to see me. "Does he," 
 said I, "well, I don't want to see him; I remember 
 writing him a long and not very respectful letter 
 some years ago." My friends, however, urged me 
 to see the Commodore, and so I waited upon him, 
 going up Broadway to a club-room, where the 
 gentleman soon arrived — a tall, noble-looking per- 
 son, quite portly, with a high forehead and an in- 
 telligent countenance, and an extraordinarily large 
 pair of hands. I was introduced, and I found him 
 very friendly, never mentioning the subject of the 
 impertinent letter. He appointed me to the com- 
 mand of his steam-yacht "North Star," then the 
 finest steamship afloat, just returned from carrying 
 the Commodore and a select party of his friends 
 to Europe. So here I was, one day a beggar, and 
 the next day commanding a magnificent ocean 
 steamship, with orders to go to the Commodore's 
 office and draw whatever money I needed. 
 
 " Now," said I, "is the time for me to go to 
 Boston to see Mary;" when the very next day, as 
 I went out of the back door, a United States mar- 
 shal came into the front door, The old U. S. 
 bench warrant for piracy, for running away with 
 the steamer, " New World," in 1S50, had been 
 revived. That night I went to the residence of 
 Commodore Vanderbilt, No. 10 Washington Place,
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 215 
 
 and told him the whole story, and said that I 
 would be obliged to decline command of the 
 " North Star," as I should be arrested and thrown 
 into prison, causing him vexation, annoyance, and 
 probably delay. After a few moments' delibera- 
 tion the Commodore took his pen and wrote a 
 short note. 
 
 "Take the midnight boat to Staten Island, hand 
 this letter to the person whose address it bears; 
 and when the California steamer passes Staten 
 Island to-morrow morning, he will place you on 
 board of a small boat. As you near the steamer 
 hold your hat upon a boat-hook, and the steamer 
 will stop and pick you up," said he. 
 
 Returning to the noble old Commodore my 
 heart felt thanks I took my leave, and followed 
 out his instructions to the letter; joining the Cal- 
 ifornia steamer, off Staten Island, the next day, 
 and was conveyed free to California. When I ar- 
 rived there Com. Vanderbilt's agent waited upon 
 me, and told me that the old gentleman considered 
 me in his employ; from the day I engaged to com- 
 mand the " North Star," that my pay continued. 
 "And, by the way," said he, "captain, no man in 
 the employ gets such a high rate of compensation." 
 I was told to amuse myself until a vacancy oc- 
 curred in the Vanderbilt's steamship line, between 
 New York and San Francisco, via Nicaragua, and 
 that I was to draw my pay regularly, a privilege 
 of which I did not fail to avail myself; as, with
 
 2i6 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 matrimony ahead, I concluded that I ought to be- 
 come more prudent and economical. 
 
 Speaking of this new steamship route, via Nica- 
 ragua, Mr. I. W. Raymond, owner of the steam- 
 ship " New Orleans," and my ever kind and re- 
 liable friend, said a good thing about it. It seems 
 that though the company advertised that elegant 
 Concord coaches would be in readiness to convey 
 passengers across the narrow strip of land, be- 
 tween ocean and ocean, no such coaches were 
 ever found by the passengers ; instead, it was a 
 rough road to travel. So Mr. Raymond named it 
 the " No carriage-way route/' a very cutting re- 
 mark under the circumstances, as there were ab- 
 solutely no conveyances ; indeed, no road what- 
 ever, "No carriage-way" (Nicaragua). Singularly 
 enough Mr. Raymond, who at first was agent of 
 the opposition route, and worked hard against the 
 "No carriage-way" line, finally accepted its agency, 
 and for several years I took my orders from him. 
 He was the best steamboat man that ever went to 
 the Pacific coast — a perfect gentleman, a true friend, 
 and the best agent Mr. Vanderbilt ever had in 
 his employ. 
 
 So, while I lost command of the commodore's 
 steam-yacht " North Star," I did not lose em- 
 ployment. I now had fine prospects before me, 
 and lost no time in renewing my matrimonial en- 
 gagement with Miss Mary Lincoln. 
 
 Soon after my arrival in California I had an at-
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 2 1 7 
 
 tack of neuralgia in the head, which confined me 
 to my room for several days, during which time I 
 suffered untold agonies, and was wretched indeed. 
 The very first day that I went out I met William 
 H. Brown, formerly owner of the celebrated (at 
 least, renowned in this narrative,) steamer " New 
 World." 
 
 "Why, man alive," said he, in an excited man- 
 ner, "where have you been for a week back?" 
 (not for a weak back ! ) "I have been looking 
 everywhere for you. I want you to go directly 
 back to New York and bring- out the new 
 steamer " Surprise ; " that is, if you are not going 
 to die, for you look very ill, indeed — do you think 
 that you will live?" 
 
 "Yes sir," I replied, "many a long year of 
 pain and sorrow, of grief and happiness combined, 
 will I yet survive to punish my enemies and re- 
 ward my friends." 
 
 " Then," he continued, " how much do you want 
 to go home and bring her out ? " 
 
 " I want $500 per month, and every expense 
 paid from date; and, beside, I want an interest of 
 $10,000 ownership in the boat, being convinced 
 that it will be a paying speculation." 
 
 The old man struck his cane down, by way of 
 emphasis, upon a log that lay handy upon the 
 wharf, and rejoined that he could not give it to me; 
 that I was at present unemployed, and ought to 
 bring her out very cheap.
 
 218 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 "Well, Mr. Brown," I replied, " then no smoke- 
 boat will I bring out for you. I have resolved 
 that I will never bring another out unless I have 
 some ownership in her, and as for doing nothing, 
 let me tell, you that I am on pay, and the biggest 
 pay, besides, given to any ship-master on the Pa- 
 cific coast, with authority to draw all the money I 
 wish for my personal expenses." This seemed to 
 startle him, and his eyes distended with surprise; 
 but he congratulated me, and said that he much re- 
 gretted that he could not secure my services. 
 
 I thought the affair settled ; but it seemed that 
 he was not going to let me go thus ; he walked up 
 and down the dock awhile, muttering to himself, 
 and finally said: 
 
 "Confound you, if you must have it, why, I sup- 
 pose I will have to give it to you." 
 
 So we stepped into an adjacent office and drew 
 up the agreement. I took it to Mr. Harrison, 
 then actinof as Commodore Vanderbilt's acrent. 
 
 " This is, indeed, bettering yourself," said he, 
 ''but do you think you can get her out here ?" 
 
 "Certainly," said I, " what man has done he can 
 do again ; and after my experience in sailing river- 
 steamboats on sea voyages, I think I could bring a 
 market-basket around Cape Horn." I got my 
 trunk ready, and by two p. m. the same day, was 
 on my way to New York, via Panama, where we 
 arrived after a pleasant, uneventful passage of four 
 and twenty days. I immediately took charge of
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 219 
 
 the " Surprise," and gave my attention to fitting 
 her for sea. 
 
 At this period I concluded to take the long de- 
 ferred trip to Boston, and the very next morning 
 after my determination found me there, for I have 
 always held it right to act as soon as my mind is 
 made up, considering Davy Crockett's saying, 
 " Be sure you're right, then go ahead," an adage 
 full of wisdom. 
 
 Through the kind offices of my friend, Captain 
 Glidden, I discovered the whereabouts of Miss 
 Lincoln, and soon found myself knocking with pal- 
 pitating heart at the door. It was opened by a 
 young girl of about sixteen, as pretty as a pink — ■ 
 yes, a whole bouquet of pinks, roses and violets as 
 well ; who, upon seeing me, gave a little scream, 
 fainted, and would have fallen to the floor had I 
 not caught her in my arms, a service which I 
 hastened to perform. We were soon seated in 
 conversation, though after a close observation I 
 could not discover in this young creature any re- 
 semblance to the little girl of Happy Valley. An 
 elderly lady soon came in, and I was relieved from 
 my awkward position. Together we entered an 
 adjacent sitting-room, and there stood Mary 
 Lincoln in person — no mistake this time. The 
 first- mentioned young lady proved to be Mary 
 Webber, who had been brought up with my Mary, 
 and in many respects resembled her, and of course 
 had recognized me, and was so startled that she had
 
 220 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 fainted. The kisses I had from her were so much 
 clear gain, and I cannot say that I ever regretted 
 having stolen them from her ruby lips. A few 
 days after this, it was arranged that Mary, with 
 her family, should return to California in the vessel 
 commanded by Captain Glidden, going around 
 Cape Horn. I had the most comfortable quarters 
 in the ship fitted up for them, that they might 
 make the passage with as little inconvenience as 
 possible. 
 
 They sailed a few days before the " Surprise "' 
 was ready to haul out into the stream. Just as I 
 was about to take my departure, I was arrested on 
 that old " New World " affair. The charge against 
 me was for being a pirate, and for contempt of the 
 orders of the U. S. District Court. Accusation 
 had been held against me all this time, and was 
 never forgotten, and the honor of the court was 
 bound to be vindicated, though so many years 
 elapsed before I could be brought face to face with 
 the offended tribunal. The next morning- I fur- 
 nished bail. A few days after I went into court 
 with my bondsman, who gave me up on the bonds. 
 With the crowd, I passed out of court, and when 
 my name and case were called, the bold Edgardo 
 was not to be found. My bondsman, of course, 
 was not responsible, for he had yielded me up, and 
 they had no claims upon him. It was a Yankee 
 trick, and a very cute one, too. When the officers 
 were sent to bring me into court, they were in-
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 221 
 
 formed that I was half way to Sandy Hook, with a 
 wet sheet and a flowing sea, a fine wind and a full 
 head of steam, bound once more for California. 
 Then the Judge said to the bondsman : 
 
 " I shall require you, sir, to enter into new 
 bonds." 
 
 " Excuse us, Judge," the proper lawyer replied, 
 " we deny our further responsibility in this matter; 
 our liability ended an hour ago, when our man 
 was turned over to the court, and, with expres- 
 sions of our profound respect, we bid your Honor 
 a very good morning; " and out they went. 
 
 I carried the u Surprise " out under sail and easy 
 steam, in about four months, entering the heads of 
 the Golden Gate in a furious south-west gale of 
 wind and rain. While making fast to the wharf, 
 Judge Walker, Mary's father, came on board, and 
 asked me if I had not entered port ten days before. 
 He told me that the papers had reported the 
 arrival of the " Surprise " some ten days before, 
 saying that she had gone right out again to avoid 
 further legal proceedings. He then told me that, 
 if I wished to see Mary Lincoln alive, I must go 
 immediately over the bay; for, when she had heard, 
 ten days before, that I had arrived and gone out 
 again without coming to see her, the poor girl was 
 taken sick, and had kept her bed ever since. I 
 lost no time, and found the dear child in bed; 
 she had been so greatly disappointed when she 
 found that I had arrived and o-one out a^ain with-
 
 222 The Log of an Ancient Mari?ier. 
 
 out visiting her. I appointed myself physician-in- 
 chief to Mary Lincoln, and found her a willing 
 patient. My first prescription was a daily carriage 
 ride in my company ; and, when she became 
 stronger, I provided horses, and we took many 
 long horseback rides together. 
 
 One day, as we were riding up the mountains 
 back of Oakland, her horse stumbled, and she was 
 thrown violently to the ground, while the horse 
 ran away like a racer. In a moment, I was by 
 her side, grateful to find that God had preserved 
 her from harm, and that she had sustained no 
 injury excepting the shock; as, fortunately, she 
 had landed in a soft spot, which was remarkable, 
 as the ground in that locality was very stony, and 
 had she fallen almost anywhere else, might have 
 been seriously injured. I called her attention to 
 the cottage, embowered among the trees, as far as 
 we could see in the distance. 
 
 " Mary, that is your good father's home," said 
 I, " and if ever I get you there safe and sound, I 
 am going to marry you without any delay what- 
 ever. I am going to run no more risks." 
 
 I then caught the runaway horse, with the aid 
 of some men working in a field near by, and we 
 were soon at home again, I riding the refractory 
 steed myself, not being willing to run any more 
 risks with my affianced. 
 
 According to promise, we were married on 
 Christmas eve, of the year 1 854, by Judge Walker.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 223 
 
 The ceremony was performed in Mrs. Walker's 
 sitting-room, we being in our usual daily clothes, 
 no particular preparations being made by either 
 high contracting party. A fortnight after, the 
 San Francisco papers announced the marriage, and 
 gave general notice that the wedding reception 
 would be held at the Oriental Hotel. Cards were 
 issued, and the hotel parlors were crowded by 
 kind friends. Thus Mary Lincoln, by her own 
 act, became Mary Wakeman; and, as the old 
 boatswain's mate said, *' she tied a knot with her 
 tongue, that she couldn't untie with her teeth." 
 
 Through the dishonesty of certain unscrupulous 
 persons, I lost my promised $10,000 interest in 
 the steamer " Surprise," which ought to have 
 made me $20,000, and so I got nothing but my 
 salary, which they couldn't very well cheat me out 
 of. Soon after, I took command of the steamer 
 " Sea Bird," and carried her down to the Sand- 
 wich Islands, where we passed six weeks, residing 
 with Mrs. Dominis, a charming old lady, who lives 
 in princely style. I might tell you much about 
 these interesting islands and their delightful 
 climate, the kind-hearted native inhabitants, and 
 the intelligent and hospitable white people who 
 have taken up their residence in this distant little 
 kingdom; but all this has been written by scien- 
 tific and intelligent literary men, far more capable 
 than myself of writing up this subject. I would 
 only mention one noble gentleman, Captain John
 
 224 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 Meek, formerly an American shipmaster, but for 
 the last fifty years located at Honolulu, where he 
 lives a truly patriarchal life, surrounded by children, 
 grand- children, great-grand-children, and great- 
 great-grand-children; surrounded, also, by im- 
 mense landed estates, flocks and herds almost innu- 
 merable. His house is never closed from the begin- 
 ning to the end of the year, and all comers are wel- 
 comed and treated with princely hospitality. This 
 old prince is now about ninety years of age, and 
 the handsomest man I ever placed my eyes upon. 
 He still retains the healthy vigor of his mind and 
 person, and bids fair, as the Wall street broker 
 said, " to go to Parr " (ioo). 
 
 Upon our return to California, I took command 
 of the steamer " Pacific " for a few trips, running 
 again upon the "no-carriage-way" (Nicaragua) 
 route, and then myself and wife went to New 
 York. During our last trip we had a large crowd 
 of small children on board, and they all seemed to 
 have the greatest affection for Mary, and would 
 daily come and stand in a row near her, and never 
 go away contented until she had kissed them all 
 in rotation. When we arrived in New York, we 
 went up to my old homestead in Connecticut 
 (Westport). From here we took a long jaunt 
 through the States, touching at Saratoga, Niagara 
 Falls, Montreal, and so on to Maine, where we 
 acrain visited relatives. The weather now grow- 
 ing cold, we retired to Westport, where it was not
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 225 
 
 long before I received a letter directing me to 
 come on and take command of the three-decked 
 clipper ship "Adelaide," 1800 tons, the finest ship 
 ever built in New York. I found her to be new, 
 elegant, and well fitted in every respect; and my 
 wife and I had the most delightful and commodious 
 quarters that I have ever seen on board ship, even 
 in the finest Liverpool steam packets. We had a 
 delightful passage, and when we arrived in latitude 
 twenty-eight degrees north, Pacific, what was our 
 surprise and delighted happiness one morning to 
 find that, during the night, old Neptune had paid 
 us a visit, and left us a beautiful little angel, which 
 we called Adelaide Seaborn Wakeman. It was a 
 perfect little beauty; in fact, too beautiful for this 
 world, and, when about six months old, God called 
 her back to heaven. 
 
 The ship went from San Francisco to Peru, 
 where we loaded guano, and thence to New York. 
 On this voyage we made the quickest time from 
 New York to Cape Horn ever made, thirty-eight 
 days. 
 
 The "Adelaide" again loaded for San Fran- 
 cisco; went thence to Elide Island, which lies 
 fifty-four miles north-east from the north end of 
 Ceroe Island, on the coast of Lower California. 
 Here we lay eighty-five days, getting a cargo of 
 guano. While lying here, Father Neptune again 
 came on board the " Adelaide," and again pre- 
 sented us with a little angel. A large fleet of 
 
 15
 
 226 The Log of an Ancie7it Mariner. 
 
 vessels were lying at Elide Island, and they 
 hoisted all their flags and fired a series of grand 
 salutes in honor of the distinguished arrival, so 
 that any ship passing would have supposed there 
 was a naval engagement going on in the bay. 
 This little stranger we named Minnie, and she 
 went with us three voyages around Cape Horn, 
 sailing thousands upon thousands of miles across 
 the boundless ocean. Thus, for about two years, 
 we sailed to and fro in the beautiful iSoo-ton 
 clipper ship "Adelaide." We then visited my 
 old home in Westport, Connecticut; and in that 
 old house, built then over one hundred years, and 
 which had once sheltered General George Wash- 
 ington, was born, one cold winter night, during a 
 fearful snow storm, a second little girl, herself as 
 pure as the snowflake. 
 
 Shortly after the birth of this little one, I dis- 
 posed of my interest in the ship "Adelaide," and 
 after selling the old homestead, upon whose site 
 a church was erected, removed, with my family, to 
 California. My parents had died, both good 
 christians, who no doubt have earned the great 
 reward in heaven. My father lived to the ripe age 
 of eighty-seven, and my excellent mother was 
 seventy-eight when she died. And thus I was 
 obliged to sustain the loss of my parents, who had 
 reached the great change we must all pass through. 
 It gave us regret to leave our beautiful ship, on 
 board of which we had passed man)' happy hours,
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 227 
 
 and where we had been presented with two charm- 
 ing little turtledoves, which made it still dearer to 
 us. In point of beauty, speed and comfort our 
 ship had no equal. I sold out at a great sacrifice, 
 urged by the other owners, some of whom were 
 church members in high standing, as well as mem- 
 bers of New York's best society. "An honest 
 man is God's noblest work " — nothing can be more 
 admired and esteemed than a man whose word is 
 as good as his note, and who scorns to do a dishon- 
 est or untruthful act, or to take one penny's ad- 
 vantage of his fellow-man. 
 
 So we embarked for California, and were glad 
 enough to find ourselves once more snugly located 
 in the cosy cottage in which we had been so hap- 
 pily married. It was summer when we arrived, 
 and all the flowers were in full bloom, and their 
 fragrance filled the air with a charming perfume. 
 I soon devoted my time to building that little cot- 
 tage which I finished in about eight months — my 
 own work, entirely unaided. My little girls, with 
 their mother, were accustomed to spend most of the 
 time out with me, watching the progress of my 
 labors, and viewing the gradual development of our 
 future home. I had the whole completed, and 
 painted outside with three coats of paint, before 
 the rainy season came on. I then devoted all my 
 energies to completing the inside work; and de- 
 voted my time early and late until I had it finished, 
 all but the plastering, which job I let out to a
 
 228 The Log of an Aiicicnt Mariner. 
 
 regular mud-dauber. At this time, in 1862, I was 
 offered the job of wrecking the clipper-ship " Sea 
 Nymph," that had been wrecked on Point Reyes, 
 just at the entrance of the harbor of San Fran- 
 cisco. I lived there in charge of the wreckers for 
 eighty-five days, during which time I had a visit 
 from my wife and children; and it almost broke 
 my heart to find that neither of the little girls, whom 
 I loved so fondly, knew me. When the " Sea 
 Nymph" went to pieces it was young flood tide, 
 and all there remained of the cargo came ashore 
 right in front of the tents and was saved. Had it 
 happened to be ebb tide all would have been swept 
 out to sea and lost. I was indeed favored by my 
 lucky star, for only two days previously I had 
 bought the wreck for a very trifling sum, as it was 
 supposed that little or nothing more of value could 
 be saved. As it was we secured enough to load 
 two schooners; and so I abandoned this moist 
 style of life, which I had pursued for over two 
 months, and, with a happy heart, sailed for San 
 Francisco and home. After closing out all my 
 plunder, and paying off my wrecking crew, I found 
 I had done a very profitable business, and had 
 made several thousand dollars. The new house I 
 found all finished, and we moved right in; and it 
 was with feelings of great satisfaction that we took 
 our first meal under our own vine and fi^-tree — a 
 happy and never-to-be-forgotten event. Soon 
 after this I was again appointed to command a
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 229 
 
 steamship, and for nearly five years ran out of San 
 Francisco to Mexico, and northern ports. 
 
 I shall proceed to narrate a remarkable adven- 
 ture that happened to me while I was running to 
 the Mexican coast, during the time of the war be- 
 tween France and Mexico, when the Emperor Na- 
 poleon was trying to gain a foothold upon the 
 American continent, in which intention he was 
 foiled, and finally had to withdraw his troops, ut- 
 terly discomfited. I then commanded the steamer 
 "John L. Stephens." One very dark morning, 
 about three o'clock, we anchored off Cape St. 
 Lucas, the extreme southern point of Lower Cali- 
 fornia, and, as usual, dispatched two large boat- 
 loads of freight for the shore, each with a crew of 
 four men and one officer. Shortly after, a large 
 boat came alongside and approached the gang- 
 way. It happened that I was on deck, and hailed 
 them, when they replied that they were passengers. 
 In the gloom of the early morning I could dis- 
 tinguish but three or four men in the boat, but 
 when they came up to the side I found there were 
 nearly twenty persons, all wrapped up in their 
 serapes, or traveling- wrappers, and wearing broad- 
 brimmed sombreros — a villainous-looking- set of 
 adventurers. At first, I concluded that they had 
 just come down from some of the numerous 
 mines in the interior, and were bound up the coast 
 to spend their money in gambling, horse-racirjg 
 and cock-fighting.
 
 230 The Log of an Ancieiit Mariner. 
 
 When all had reached the deck, a tall man, 
 wearing a sombrero of far wider brirh than the 
 others, stepped up and said : 
 
 "The captain, I understand; if so, I desire a 
 few minutes very private, and very particular con- 
 versation with you." 
 
 I replied that I was only too happy to serve 
 him, thinking that he wanted to make arrange- 
 ments for a cheap steerage passage up the coast 
 for the "honest miners." 
 
 "Captain," said he, "feel of that," for it was yet 
 very early in the morning, scarcely daybreak, and I 
 could not see things plainly. 
 
 " That is the muzzle of a pistol," continued he; 
 "its effects are very sudden ; keep perfectly quiet, 
 or you will die before you have time to say your 
 prayers." 
 
 At the same time two other men stepped one to 
 each side of me, and placed the muzzles of their 
 dreadfully icy-cold pistols to each temple, and 
 peered up in my face with their villainous counten- 
 ances, telling me to obey orders, or prepare to die. 
 You may be sure that I preserved a rigid silence 
 under these circumstances ; though I did much 
 thinking, and my heart went up in gratitude that 
 my dear little flock were not with me, as they had 
 been the previous voyage. I was marched to the 
 upper deck, then into my room, and a guard of three 
 was placed over me with strict orders to kill me if 
 I broke silence ; all communication was interdicted
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 231 
 
 between myself and any other person, and all was 
 soon as still as death. It subsequently became 
 known that the pirates had entered the steamer's 
 bow-ports where the mate and two sailors were 
 waiting the return of the freight-boats, in order to 
 load them again. They were immediately arrested, 
 and the boats sent ashore had been captured on 
 touching the beach, as had been Captain Richie, 
 the U. S. Consul, and our agent at Cape St. Lucas. 
 During this time Captain Dana, who commanded 
 this squad of eighteen of the most villainous-look- 
 ing rascals I ever saw, was engaged in going from 
 one stateroom to another, and putting one hand on 
 the throat of the sleeper, would suddenly awaken him 
 to look, by the light of a dark-lantern, right into the 
 muzzle of a revolver, that was pointed directly at 
 him. " Silence, or you are a dead man ; give up 
 your arms and your money," would be demanded. 
 So he went right through the ship — no noise, nor 
 a loud word spoken. In fact, they had done their 
 work thoroughly, and had confined all the passen- 
 gers to their rooms under penalty of death if they 
 even put their heads outside their doors. At last, 
 Captain Dana came up to my room, and announced 
 that he had found $40,000 worth of contraband of 
 war on board the ship as cargo, and that this was 
 confiscated according to maritime law, and that 
 the American steamship was legally his prize, and 
 gave me notice that he formally took possession 
 of her. Then he went off agfain, and was eone 
 several hours, and when he returned, he said :
 
 232 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 " Captain Wake man, here are my instructions 
 from General Corvona." 
 
 I took a copy of them, and they stated that he 
 (Captain Dana) would " proceed to Cape St. 
 Lucas, and there seize the steamship 'John L. 
 Stephens,' and convey her to the port of Altata; 
 the captain, officers, crew and passengers to be 
 held as prisoners of war, and the vessel and cargo 
 to be delivered to the proper authorities." 
 
 Upon this I called for writing materials, and 
 wrote out a solemn protest against such illegal 
 proceedings, stating that a body of armed men had, 
 by night, clandestinely gained entrance to my ship, 
 without bearing or showing; a flag", and in the 
 waters of a neutral power. I also protested against 
 going to Altata, as it was not a safe port to enter 
 with so large a vessel, and even were he a legal 
 and properly authorized prize-master he had no 
 right to force me beyond the nearest safe port 
 belonging to a friendly power, which, in this in- 
 stance, was La Paz; that I never would convey 
 the ship to Altata; that if he attempted to cross 
 the Gulf of California with the steamer, he would 
 find himself on a floating island, unable to control 
 her movements ; that I had a crew of seventy- 
 five men on board the " John L. Stephens," and 
 while he might compel me to go to La Paz, he 
 never could force me to Altata." To this he re- 
 plied that he was desirous of avoiding violence, 
 yet if his orders were not promptly and fully
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 233 
 
 obeyed, he would use all the force at his com- 
 mand. 
 
 "Captain," said I, "you may shoot me, but you 
 can never cret this boat to Altata." 
 
 He looked fixedly at me for a moment, and then 
 went aside and held a hurried and whispered con- 
 versation with his men, and returning - , told me to 
 get my anchor up for La Paz. In compliance, we 
 got under way, and ran along the coast until 
 about sunset, when I asked Captain Dana for per- 
 mission to confer with my chief engineer, as I had 
 to regulate as to the speed of the ship in going 
 through a dangerous passage that we were now 
 approaching. My request was granted without 
 demur, and sending for the engineer, Mr. Hueston, 
 a Scotchman, he soon came to my room. As the 
 sentinel neared my window, I talked about regu- 
 lating the ship's speed, and as the sentinel walked 
 away from my room, I grasped Hueston by the 
 arm and whispered to him: "Are you ready to 
 die ? " and explained to him that I intended to re- 
 take the ship that night. He turned pale, his lips 
 quivered, and he answered that it seemed hard 
 lines to ficrht against such odds, and against such a 
 lot of bood-thirsty pirates, who seemed to care 
 nothing about taking our lives. I then further ex- 
 plained that during the night they intended to alter 
 the ship's course for Altata, and that he was to go 
 below and cut bars of iron, of a proper size and 
 length — enough to arm the crew, or at least every
 
 234 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 trustworthy man, and when he had done this to let 
 me know. The engineer then left my room, and 
 the chief mate, Mr. Hart, came to me. To him I 
 gave instructions to procure the bolts of iron from 
 the engineer, a nd to arm himself and the crew, and 
 at half past seven to send Captain Dana to see me in 
 my room ; that as soon as the bell struck six the 
 pirates would be called to supper in the mess- 
 room, and after they got fairly at work eating, a 
 man standing behind each pirate would hit him 
 with his bar of iron on the head, at the same time 
 possessing himself of the pistol that protruded 
 from his belt. As for Captain Dana, I was to 
 take 'care of him, and we trusted to good luck, 
 strong hearts and a kind providence for the suc- 
 cess of our plans, which seemed to be all well 
 laid. But luckily, the engineer came up, pale and 
 tremblinor and grave me si^ns that all was discov- 
 ered, and about this time I saw Dana's men run- 
 ning to and fro about the forward deck with their 
 weapons in hand, and forming in line. Then Cap- 
 tain Dana came very coolly to my room, and I 
 quite as coolly asked him to take a seat. When 
 he had seated himself, he began : 
 
 " AVell, Captain Wakeman, all your plans are 
 divulged to me, and if you make any more, I will 
 kill you, and everything that has life on board 
 this steamer; our trade is to take life, and for two 
 years past we have eaten and slept with our arms 
 in our hands."
 
 The Log of an A?icient Mariner. 235 
 
 As he said this I had my hand under a mattrass, 
 holding a cocked pistol, which the boy, Jimmy, 
 had smuggled into my room, and I could have 
 blown Captain Dana into eternity as he sat in 
 front of me, but I considered it discretion to take 
 no such step, which could only result in a general 
 fight, and perhaps in sacrificing the lives of de- 
 fenseless women and children. The time to re- 
 take the ship by one grand coup de grace had 
 past. 
 
 Looking him square in the eye, I said, " Cap- 
 tain Dana, I am informed that, at midnight, you 
 are intending to alter the course of this steamer 
 for Altata. Now, I have before told you, and I 
 tell you again, that you will never see Altata in 
 this ship; now tell me, upon the honor of a man, 
 whether, after your promises to me that we should 
 go to La Paz, you are intending treachery toward 
 us i 
 
 Looking at me, he hesitated a momeut, and 
 then replied, " Captain ; if you will let us alone to- 
 night, we will let you alone," and we shook hands 
 upon it; but we never slept a wink that night, 
 expecting every moment that they would break 
 faith. 
 
 Daylight finally appeared, after one of the 
 longest and most unhappy nights I ever passed, 
 and we found ourselves close into La Paz, where 
 we soon anchored. I then sent for Captain Dana 
 to come to my room, where I was still held a close 
 prisoner.
 
 236 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 "Captain," said I, ''you told me last night in 
 conversation that, at La Paz, you would get fifty 
 recruits, and run the ship over to Altata; there you 
 would get five hundred liberal soldiers, and, putting 
 them below deck, you would run down to Mazat- 
 lan, lay alongside the French admiral's ship, and 
 capture her in five minutes, as all but a quarter- 
 watch are out of her on shore service; then you 
 would go to Guaymas, and take a French frigate 
 lying there; all to be done under American colors. 
 In faith, a well cut-out project; but I must tell 
 you that this is impossible; for, during the fifteen 
 minutes since we anchored here, I have had the 
 steamer's engine so fixed that no earthly power 
 can get steam on her again, so you can never go 
 another mile in this ship. You have made a large 
 haul of arms; and now, if you will take my advice, 
 you will take that schooner that lies off there, and 
 clear out from this before an American man o' 
 war, now momentarily expected, heaves in sight 
 around the point." 
 
 This set him to thinking, and he said, " I will 
 take the schooner; but you must tow me to a 
 o-ood offing in the cfulf." 
 
 " Impossible," said I, " the 'John L. Stephens ' 
 is now so disabled that a gang of engineers with 
 proper tools will have to come from San Francisco 
 and work ten days on her before she can get up 
 steam; and, besides, it will require considerable 
 ship-carpentering to repair a certain hole that is so
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 237 
 
 prepared that, if I say the word, she will be full of 
 water and on the bottom within half an hour." 
 
 Of course, I was telling some big stories; but 
 the end justified the means, and caused the pirati- 
 cal captain to do some rapid thinking within a 
 very short space of time. The result was that he 
 went on shore and sent off about one hundred 
 soldiers to relieve his o^ano- of eighteen filibusters. 
 They took out of the ship all the arms and the 
 hay, and then sent for me to come on shore to 
 bond the ship in the sum of one hundred thousand 
 dollars. But I would sign nothing; and, after 
 spending four hours, and exhausting every threat 
 and argument, and consulting with the collector 
 and other officers of the port, we finally came to 
 a settlement. He promised not to hang the three 
 French passengers we had on board, who had 
 been taken to the beach for execution, and also 
 promised to withdraw his forces to the land, agree- 
 ing not to harm the ship, crew, passengers or cargo 
 any more, leaving us free to sail at our conven- 
 ience; and 1, in turn, agreed to pay him five hun- 
 dred dollars in gold. These terms he only ac- 
 cepted after a great deal of bluster, and after load- 
 ing his schooner full of assorted plunder from the 
 steamer. The forces were finally all withdrawn, 
 and before Captain Dana took his departure he 
 gave me a final interview. 
 
 " Wakeman," said he, "you must not take me 
 for a coward, or for a fool, but I have actually
 
 238 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 given up to you this fine steamer and most of her 
 valuable cargo, which I would not have given to 
 any other living man; and I beg you will accept 
 this pistol as a token of my respect for a brave 
 and determined man." 
 
 I was anxious to terminate the conference and 
 get rid of him, so I thanked him for the polite (?) 
 and gentlemanly (?) manner in which he had con- 
 ducted the whole affair. 
 
 When we had left the steamer and had reached 
 his schooner and stood out at sea I felt greatly re- 
 lieved, for he had told the consul that he would 
 fire the steamer before he left if he heard any in- 
 solent or disrespectful language. 
 
 The next day the citizens of La Paz caught the 
 sparks of bravery and patriotism that had become 
 contagious from their intercourse with the victors, 
 who had held out inducements for these same 
 people to join them when they were en route to 
 the Cape San Lucas, a few days before, for the 
 purpose of capturing our vessel. They had learned 
 how easily it had been done by eighteen men, 
 and now they resolved to organize a party of fifty 
 and capture her as she lay at anchor. The collec- 
 tor of the port had sent for me to call upon him, 
 and I was debating with myself whether or not to 
 go when I observed some of our passengers, who 
 had cone ashore, to run down the wharf in oreat 
 excitement; they rapidly pulled off and warned me 
 of what had been plotted, and begged me on no
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 239 
 
 consideration to go on shore, saying that if I 
 landed I was to be immediately thrown into prison; 
 and that fifty men were under arms, under com- 
 mand of this same redoubtable captain of the port, 
 to capture us and to finish the plunder commenced 
 by Captain Dana and his men. 
 
 Upon this I wrote to the U. S. Consul that I 
 had discovered among the cargo two cases of 
 Henry's repeating rifles, each capable of firing six- 
 teen rounds, with plenty of cartridges, and that 
 with these and my two ship's rifled cannon I was 
 in a condition to repel all attacks, but that I wanted 
 the ship's papers as I should go to sea at five r. m. 
 precisely. To this communication excuse after 
 excuse was sent, the final one being that the clear- 
 ance papers of the steamer could not be made out, 
 as the collector had gone to his country residence. 
 As the time for sailing approached I fired, as sig- 
 nal, my large rifled cannon, heavily loaded, which 
 made such a tremendous report that the captain 
 of the port (as I afterward learned), who was 
 making a warlike speech to his noble compatriots, 
 jumped and ran away, dreadfully frightened, for 
 they did not know we had any ordnance on board, 
 and he thought the American man-of-war had 
 surely arrived, and would make short work of 
 them. My papers, finally, came off and I set sail, 
 glad enough to get away. From La Paz we went 
 to Guaymas and thence to Mazaltan, where the 
 circumstances of our seizure were made generally
 
 240 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 known. I received numerous letters from my 
 passengers, and from merchants owning the goods 
 I had on board, and others, complimenting me in 
 the highest terms for the prudence and bravery 
 with which I had managed this affair, notwith- 
 standing the disagreeable and difficult position in 
 which I had been placed. 
 
 Upon our return to California I was there, also, 
 complimented upon my management of this affair, 
 and all the merchants of San Francisco, who had 
 read the accounts in the journals of that date, 
 added their praises. My owner, however, was not 
 pleased with my course; I had used five hundred 
 dollars of his money, and he would make me pay 
 it back — every cent. I told him he could never do 
 that, I being master of the vessel and authorized 
 to act according to my judgment, in critical cases, 
 for the benefit of all concerned; that if I had made 
 any mistakes no one was so sorry as myself, and 
 that I regretted he was the only person in Califor- 
 nia who disapproved of my management in this 
 affair. Through the whole case he treated me 
 with the discourtesy for which he was notorious, 
 and. in consequence, J left his employ. Going to 
 town next da)- to see Captain Eldridge I received 
 two good offers, but decided to go to New York; 
 and on the trip home I invented the best detach- 
 ing gear, to let go a boat from the davits, that has 
 ever been invented. 
 
 While in New York I was appointed to com-
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 241 
 
 mand the steamship "America," under the Califor- 
 nia agency of my old friend and patron, I. W. Ray- 
 mond, one of the finest gentlemen and truest 
 friends I ever met. 
 
 Upon one voyage in the "America" we broke 
 our shaft on the upward trip, and went into Aca- 
 pulco to get coal, of which we would require a con- 
 siderable quantity, as we should be a long while 
 going up with our damaged shaft. We arrived at 
 five a. m., and was visited by the captain of the 
 port. I told him that we had arrived in distress, 
 and should protest against paying port charges. 
 He replied that he should require the vessel to pay 
 but three dollars and a half, and we could sail at 
 any time we chose, to which I did not demur. 
 We worked all niofht to get the buckets 
 of the wheel, and the wheel itself, secured. I 
 called upon the agent of the Pacific Mail Steam- 
 ship Company, lie being the only party who 
 controlled any coal in the place, and stated my case 
 to him. Both the agent and the U. S. consul 
 urged the necessity of my holding a survey upon 
 my vessel, they insisting that she was not sea- 
 worthy, repeatedly saying that if I went to sea 
 with her in that condition the other shaft would 
 break, she would be lost, and I would be ruined, 
 even if I saved my life. I urged the necessity of 
 my having a supply of coal, but was met with the 
 statement that I ought to have the ship towed up 
 to San Francisco, and the passengers forwarded by 
 
 1G
 
 242 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 other boats, to all of which I most strenuously ob- 
 jected. As I rose to go, the agent said that in the 
 morning he would decide if he could supply my 
 ship with coal or not. Next morning at seven 
 o'clock I called again upon him, and his first re- 
 mark was: "Captain Wakeman, have you yet 
 ordered a survey upon your ship?" To which I 
 replied that I had not brought the "America " into 
 the port of Acapulco to ask a lot of ignorant 
 negroes if she was, or was not, seaworthy. 
 
 "Then," said he, "you can have no coal from 
 me. 
 
 " Very well," I replied, "then I can go without 
 it. I have enough for an ordinary passage, and 
 only wanted from you enough to guard against a 
 possible long passage, with a damaged shaft. I 
 will go to the U. S. consul's office and enter a pro- 
 test against your conduct." Then I turned my 
 back upon the agent of the great Pacific Mail 
 Steamship Company, and went to see the consul, 
 and entered my protest. Just as it was completed 
 by the clerk, in came the consul himself, and look- 
 ing over the document, which I had myself worded 
 and dictated to the clerk, he said: 
 
 "Captain Wakeman, this is pretty forcible." 
 
 " Yes," I responded, "it is severe, yet true and 
 just." 
 
 "Oh! excuse me," said the consul, " but you 
 have never deposited your ship's papers in my 
 office."
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 243 
 
 " No," I answered, " nor do I intend to deposit 
 them with you ; it is but a matter of mere form, 
 and not one steamship in a dozen, entering- this 
 port for supplies, ever does deposit papers with 
 you; it is a custom, as Shakspeare says, "more 
 honored in the breach than in the observance." 
 
 "Well," responded the consul, " then I will not 
 clear your ship, nor give you a clean bill of health, 
 and you will have trouble when you reach San 
 Francisco ; and further, if I had the power, I would 
 issue a compulsory order of survey on your vessel. 
 However, the captain of the port possesses that 
 power, and I understand he is intending to exercise 
 it." 
 
 " In that case," said I, my next step will be to 
 see that official." And sure enough, I soon 
 learned that the documents had been issued, and 
 the captain of the port stated that he should re- 
 move some piece of machinery from my ship to 
 prevent my slipping out to sea until I had com- 
 plied with his requirements. This was like a 
 thunderbolt from a clear sky to me, and the consul 
 and the P. M. Co.'s agent and the captain of the 
 port all called on me, and said that it would be 
 best for me to yield to circumstances, and that 
 they would draw up a document, and all sign it, 
 relieving me from all responsibility in the matter. 
 
 " Gentlemen," I said, " if you are all of this 
 mind, my course is to go right on board the 
 ' America,' and have the fires put out and things 
 made snue."
 
 244 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 The gun had been previously fired for all pas- 
 sengers to be on board, though they had been 
 told on shore that they would be detained in 
 Acapulco for forty days. I then went on board, 
 and found all the passengers there, hoisted up my 
 boat, let go the hawser from the buoys, and was 
 soon standing out at sea, away from the inhospita- 
 ble port of Acapulco; and the captain of the port 
 did not get his three dollars and a half, as he did 
 not give me clearance; nor did the Pacific Mail 
 Steamship Co. make one hundred thousand dollars 
 by towing the" America " to San Francisco and con- 
 veying, the passenger to their destination, as we 
 did all that ourselves. After we got out, it trans- 
 pired that about two hundred of the steerage pas- 
 sengers had been induced to sign a protest against 
 going up in the ship, declaring her to be unsea- 
 worthy, and this precious document had been 
 placed in the consul's hands. Had their prayer 
 been granted, they would have been landed in 
 Acapulco in a penniless condition; and I doubt if 
 one-third of them would have lived to get away 
 from the town, as it always is sickly there for 
 strangers, and at this particular time it was ex- 
 ceedingly unhealthy, and natives as well as for- 
 eigners had been dying off at an alarming rate. 
 Without money, none of these poor wretches 
 could have procured the necessities of life, of 
 which, in fact, there existed in the place no more 
 than was required for the inhabitants themselves.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 245 
 
 There would have been no accommodations for 
 such a multitude, and they would have been com- 
 pelled to sleep in the streets. It looks like one of 
 the most cruel and inhuman acts ever contem- 
 plated, to endeavor to procure by such vile means 
 the condemnation of a fine ocean steamship, and 
 to sacrifice the lives of three hundred inoffensive 
 passengers, merely for the purpose of bringing a 
 few thousand dollars to the U. S. consul, and a 
 few more thousand to the Pacific Mail Steamship 
 Co.; and, of course, the captain of the port, an 
 illiterate and ignorant Mexican negro, would have 
 come in for his share, as the three worthies men- 
 tioned all messed together, and were, to use a 
 gambler's phrase, "all toads of the same puddle," 
 or, to use a sailor's simile, " all tarred with the 
 same brush." But the best laid plans of men (not 
 mice, as usually quoted), often fail, as was the case 
 in this instance; for we ran up to San Francisco, 
 with only one wheel revolving, in twelve days, 
 and the day we got in we scudded for twelve hours 
 before a terrific south-easter. At 6:30 p. m., we 
 found ourselves about one hundred yards from 
 Point Lobos rocks, and the foe so thick that we 
 could not see, even at that short distance, the 
 Pavilion Hotel, located thereabouts. But we 
 passed safely through the breakers, to the great 
 delight of all on board, and found ourselves in 
 smooth water, while just outside it was a howling 
 tempest. To have been outside during that terri-
 
 246 The Log of an Ancie?it Mariner. 
 
 ble night, on a rock-bound coast, would have, 
 doubtless, been our destruction before morning, 
 particularly in our crippled condition. So we 
 came to anchor until daylight, when it was still so 
 foggy that we could almost cut it with a knife, but 
 with lead and line and a brio-fit lookout we felt our 
 way up the harbor, and anchored off Meiggs' 
 wharf in five fathoms of water, and proceeded to 
 set the watch, all being grateful enough to be once 
 more in safety after such an exciting voyage. 
 Feeling very poorly, having been out for twelve 
 hours in a pitiless rain, and being wet to the very 
 skin, and chilled to my very marrow, I went to my 
 room to change my wet clothes, and to lie down, 
 when I found six gentlemen in my room who had 
 been appointed a committee on the part of the 
 cabin passengers to thank me for having safely 
 conducted the ''America" into port after such a 
 terrific storm, for violence never before equaled 
 on the California coast. 
 
 And only to be imagined is the joy I experien- 
 ced at once more escaping all dangers and finding 
 myself again in the bosom of my family, sur- 
 rounded by all the loved ones so dear to me. 
 Never has lived a man so blessed as myself with 
 a family so affectionate and interesting. I am, 
 indeed, grateful to God for all his goodness to me, 
 and in particular for having given me such a loving, 
 devoted, and intelligent family — all blessed with 
 health, none infirm or lacking in mind. How my
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 247 
 
 heart overflows with joy and thankfulness when I 
 find myself in the midst of these angels, after hav- 
 ing passed through the dangers, hardships, and 
 vicissitudes of a long and stormy sea-voyage. I 
 seem blessed beyond other men; certainly, far, far 
 beyond my deserts. May God, in his infinite 
 goodness, long spare our loved circle unbroken.
 
 2 48 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 Paradise Valley- 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 -Yarns arouxd the Camp Fire — Stage 
 Driving of Nevada. 
 
 the year 1868, the steam- 
 ship, "America," was 
 paid off, and the crew 
 ordered to San Francis- 
 co, after having lain at 
 anchor in the Bay of Pa- 
 nama for a period of 
 eight months, during 
 which time I was con- 
 tracting the Panama 
 fever, from which I have 
 since been such a sufferer. I arrived home in the 
 Spring, very feeble and weak, having undergone 
 the pains of the damned, notwithstanding the un- 
 remitting kindness during the voyage up, of Cap- 
 tain Sutton and Purser Leslie C. Hanks, of the 
 steamship "Oregonian." Not long after my ar- 
 rival home, being one day in San Francisco, corner 
 Montgomery and California streets, I observed a 
 dark swarthy gentleman pass me several times, 
 each time looking very intently at me, and finally 
 halting in front of the lamp-post, against which I 
 was feebly leaning ; he said:
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 249 
 
 " Pardon me, sir, but am I not addressing Cap- 
 tain Wakeman ?" 
 
 "Yes," I replied, "this is Captain Wakeman 
 himself." 
 
 "Good heavens ! " he answered, " can it be pos- 
 sible; how changed you are; how thin and wasted! 
 Come along with me and I will make a new man 
 of you; you saved my life once and now I will re- 
 pay the obligation and save yours. I am Colonel 
 Karge; don't you remember me ?" 
 
 "Certainly, colonel, now that you speak and I 
 observe you more particularly, I do remember you; 
 though you have grown very stout since I saw you 
 last." 
 
 " Indeed, Captain Wakeman, I can never forget 
 you, for I once made a passage with you in the 
 little steamer 'Independence,' and was very ill, 
 and you took me into your own room and nursed 
 me, and took such good care of me that I recov- 
 ered, and have ever since enjoyed the same robust 
 health as you see me enjoying now." 
 
 "But," said I, "Colonel Karge, where will you 
 take me ? " 
 
 "To Paradise Valley," he said. 
 
 "Paradise Valley! " I thought, "that must be 
 on the road to Heaven;" and I said, aloud, "I will 
 go with you;" for his manner was so cordial, and 
 his invitation so pressing, that I felt immediately 
 at home with him, and could see that his invita- 
 tion was real and not a complimentary one; for he
 
 250 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 looked and acted in earnest — " on hospitable 
 thought intent," as W. Shakspeare said. Then he 
 told me that to reach Paradise Valley I must take 
 the Central Railway to Winnemucca, then a wagon 
 for fifty miles further, and I would find myself at 
 my destination. Said he : " the nearest station is 
 Camp Scott, where I command a company of the 
 regular United States army, and will take such 
 good care of you that in a very short time you 
 will be a new and well man." 
 
 On my way down the street I met my old friend, 
 James Laidley, who stopped me and bluntly said: 
 " Wakeman, you look like satan himself, and if 
 you don't take good care of yourself I shall soon 
 be called upon to attend your funeral." I told him 
 of my contemplated trip, whereupon he wanted to 
 know how I was off for money. " I have not a 
 great deal," I replied, " but guess enough to pro- 
 vide me in that quiet and naturally inexpensive 
 place." 
 
 " My dear fellow," he answered, "there is noth- 
 ing so handy as to have enough money," and 
 thereupon he placed a buckskin bag in my hand, 
 and before I had time to thank him, he said : 
 
 " It is a long road that you are going to travel, 
 and if you ever get beyond your Paradise Valley, 
 you will probably meet St. Peter at the gate, and 
 it will be necessary for you to fee him liberally," 
 and he walked rapidly away, and then I found 
 that he had left me richer by one hundred dollars,
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 251 
 
 the kind, generous and considerate friend ; and 
 may he be rewarded for his goodness. So, with 
 a grateful heart, I passed on to the office of the 
 Central Pacific railroad, where I met Col. Gray, who 
 presided over the affairs of that road in general, 
 and over the affairs of Leland Stanford in particu- 
 lar, and I told him where I was going, and he 
 ordered free tickets, out and return, to be made 
 out for me. He also gave me a letter of introduc- 
 tion to Mr. Hopkins, in Sacramento, which docu- 
 ment would ensure me good care and every atten- 
 tion alono- the entire line of the road. Thus did I 
 receive kindness from every one of these noble 
 Californians. 
 
 Being so well " fixed," I went home and told 
 Mary Wakeman to pack up my modest little car- 
 pet-bag, as I was off on the morrow, and to en- 
 gage little Tommy Kelly to carry my baggage 
 over to the wharf of the steamer " Chrysopolis," 
 for up the river. My wife protested that I was in 
 no condition to undertake such a journey ; that I 
 was comparatively helpless, and that it would re- 
 sult in my death. 
 
 "Go I must," said I, "for my mind is fully made 
 up; here are my passage tickets, and here" — 
 showing my buckskin purse — " the sinews of war, 
 and you know that my plans, like the laws of the 
 Medes and Persians, are unchangeable." So, with 
 tearful eyes and a heavy heart, this excellent 
 woman saw my things got ready, and, with little
 
 252 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 Tommy Kelly in tow, bearing the carpet-bag, I 
 was soon on board the steamer, and next morning 
 found me safe and sound, and in excellent spirits, 
 at the capital city of our Golden State. Soon 
 after taking my seat in the cars for Winnemucca, 
 Mr. Hopkins came in search of me, having been 
 notified that a certain decrepit old salt had been 
 consigned to his care, and he did not stand upon 
 ceremony, and, kind gentleman that he was, he 
 soon made me feel perfectly at home with him, 
 and presented me an open letter to all conductors 
 and agents of the road. 
 
 Five hours after we were at Summit Station, 
 surrounded on all sides by snow, and many of the 
 young travelers, Californians born and bred, had 
 never seen snow before, and now experienced the 
 novel sensation of a snow-balling match at a height 
 many thousand feet above the level of the sea. 
 
 Next day we reached Winnemucca, and then I 
 took what is called the mud-wacfon, which was to 
 convey me to Paradise Valley, and there we fin- 
 ally arrived about sundown, I having had the very 
 liver and lights jolted out of me on the rough 
 roads. "Jordan was, indeed, a rough road to 
 travel," and we came along at a rattling pace, 
 drawn by magnificent horses, and driven by a 
 man so self-satisfied and proud of his position that 
 I verily believe he would not have relinquished 
 his avocation to be governor of the State of Cali- 
 fornia. At the station at Paradise Valley I was
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 253 
 
 received by a military officer, who treated me with 
 the most agreeable cordiality, saying that I was 
 expected, and that he had instructions to do all in 
 his power to make me comfortable, his first step 
 being to order a substantial supper for me, when 
 he seemed delighted at my hearty appetite. After 
 supper we spun a few yarns, and had a long dis- 
 course concerning - biblical lore. I found that he 
 had a very imperfect understanding of the times in 
 which the Good Book was written, and was obliged 
 to explain to him some of those historical facts 
 which we children of a benighted century hastily 
 term miracles. He frankly owned that he didn't 
 see how a prophet could pray down fire on to an 
 altar, or how men could be lowered into a pit of 
 fire without being singed ; how the children of 
 Israel could walk dry-shod through the Red Sea, 
 nor how Daniel could come unscathed from that 
 lion's den, and I enlightened him in regard to all 
 these things. I showed him how the prophet 
 took advantage of the resources of the country to 
 pour coal-oil all over his altar, when the people 
 thought he was pouring water upon it, and how 
 easily he had applied the match afterward ; I ex- 
 plained the tides of the Red Sea, which the chil- 
 dren of Israel and their parents, too, for that mat- 
 ter, understood thoroughly. "As for Daniel," 
 said I, "that, like all these other little histories, 
 need only be read carefully, and the whole thing 
 will become clear as daylight ; doesn't it say that
 
 254 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 the king ' labored hard until the going down of 
 the sun,' in Daniel's behalf ? He called up seven 
 of his slaves, and told them to take seven sides of 
 beef and throw them to those lions; when they came 
 back and reported the famished lions' eagerness, he 
 shuddered, and called up seven more men, and told 
 them to carry seven more sides of beef to the lions ; 
 when these men came back and reported the lions' 
 diminished appetites, he smiled, and called up 
 seven more men, and sent seven more sides of 
 beef, and so on, until the lions shook their heads 
 and retired from that eating-tournament in despair. 
 Then the king called up Daniel, and threw him 
 down among the beef-bones, and the very sight of 
 him made those stuffed lions as sick as dogs, so 
 the king had him hauled out again." 
 
 After a little further conversation we became 
 better acquainted, and he told me that wherever I 
 should meet him I should be by right entitled to 
 half his rations; and he only regretted that in a 
 few days he should be obliged to leave me for 
 duty on a distant post, in Arizona. After passing 
 three days very agreeably in Paradise Valley, Col- 
 onel Karge joined us. and the captain left us. I 
 was made to feel perfectly at home, and by every 
 one was treated with the very kindest cordiality. 
 Colonel Karge was accompanied by his son, a 
 gentlemanly and intelligent lad, fourteen years of 
 age. Here were stationed a part of the sixth 
 regiment U. S. cavalry; most of the officers and
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 255 
 
 men having come up with me in the "America," 
 it seemed like being- with old friends rather than 
 with strangers. Every morning, before sunrise, a 
 horse, saddled and bridled, was brought to my 
 door, and along with the Colonel and his son I 
 took a long ride, sometimes in one direction, some- 
 times in another; every morning a longer ride, until, 
 finally, we rode out to the mountains, twenty miles 
 or more away, before breakfast at eight a. m., so 
 that the exercise and sharp mountain air gave us 
 rosy cheeks as well as wolfish appetites. 
 
 One day a party of young officers rode over 
 from Camp McDougal, and we enjoyed their visit 
 greatly. Another day we hitched up the team and 
 a score of us rode over to the Big Humboldt river, 
 forty miles away, to have a week's picnic. Camp 
 Scott is situated upon the Little Humboldt river, 
 a small stream but well stocked with trout. Para- 
 dise Valley is about fifty miles long by fifteen miles 
 broad, having three rivers running-- into it: Big - 
 Humboldt, Little Humboldt, and the Martin rivers. 
 It is mostly covered with sage-brush, excepting 
 where a colony of enterprising farmers have lo- 
 cated, and by clearing the land and raising two or 
 three crops of beets, have now got the land into 
 good condition, and can raise, alternately, wheat 
 and hay, as fine crops as are to be seen in any 
 part of the world, and that in a spot where it was 
 said that nothing could be grown. The soil is 
 sandy, and only requires irrigation to " make it
 
 256 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 blossom as the rose." Upon our trip to the Big 
 Humboldt we were accompanied by a young 
 farmer from New York State, who settled here a 
 few years ago, and has made twenty thousand 
 dollars in supplying vegetables and "garden sass" 
 to the neighboring military camps. He also sup- 
 plied them largely with barley, oats and hay, for 
 their horses. His name was Thomas Burns, an 
 intelligent, indeed, witty young fellow, who was 
 intimately acquainted with every foot of the sur- 
 rounding country. Another humorous character 
 was with our party, Pat Flynn, who knew just 
 where to find the big trout, and who also knew 
 how to catch them. These two witty customers 
 supplied our party with an abundance of fish ; in- 
 deed, they would regularly bring in twenty to 
 twenty-five pounds of fish every afternoon, more 
 than all the rest of the party, put together, could 
 get; and two and three-pound trout were com- 
 mon. We had a delightful time hunting and fish- 
 ing, and would sing: " O ! we'll hunt the buffalo," 
 though -never a <; buffler," as the trappers call 
 them, could we probably find within a thousand 
 miles of us. Colonel Karge was an excellent shot, 
 and frequently would fetch seven birds out of a 
 flock of canvas-back ducks, on the wing; and he 
 also furnished us with abundant supplies of excel- 
 lent eating in the shape of sage-hens, quail, teal, 
 snipe, cranes, geese, plover, and jackass-rabbit; 
 and as our cook frequently dished us up some deli-
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 257 
 
 cious Welch rare-bit, we had rabbits in every style 
 and every description and variety. With all my 
 argumentative abilities Pat Flynn could not be 
 brought to believe that when I shot at the ducks 
 they sank to the bottom of the lake with the 
 weight of the lead I had put into them ; and that 
 when he thought he saw the flock flying forward, 
 undiminished in number, it was but the feathers car- 
 ried forward by the momentum of their rapid 
 flight. 
 
 Here was a hot spring with the water running 
 away from it in quite a good-sized brook into a 
 large, circular basin ; and as the brook ran along 
 through the grass, its course could be seen by the 
 smoke therefrom arising. The water was quite 
 tasteless, and had a temperature of about ninety 
 degrees. 
 
 While encamped here a brother of Tom Burns 
 one day rode in and surrendered himself to Colonel 
 Karge, having just killed a noted desperado who 
 had attacked him. After hearing the evidence the 
 Colonel fully exonerated Burns for this act, and, 
 indeed, thanked him for ridding the country of one 
 of the worst characters ever known in the locality. 
 
 After spending about a week very pleasantly 
 upon the Big Humboldt, we broke camp and re- 
 turned to Camp Scott, all very much delighted 
 with the jaunt. Here I will mention that I rode 
 •n the saddle all the way back, although frequently 
 
 17
 
 258 J he Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 solicited to exchange seats with some one in the 
 wagon. 
 
 Being at home again, and our party of visitors 
 having left us, we settled down again into the quiet 
 and regularity of a camp life. The station at 
 Camp Scott is made up of barracks for the soldiers, 
 mess and sleeping quarters, a cook-room, sutler's 
 quarters, mashers' building, hospital, guard-house, 
 surgeon's dispensary, and two large buildings with 
 cook-house and dispensary for the officers. 
 These quarters were all comfortable and conven- 
 ient, built into the form of a square, and kept in a 
 state of perfect neatness, delightful to behold. 
 About a third of a mile distant were quartered 
 some fifty Indians, the young men and warriors 
 beinof absent most of the time. 
 
 I will not comment here upon our keeping up a 
 large force at a great expense to guard a reserva- 
 tion where are located but a handful of Indians. 
 No matter what you give them, or how kindly you 
 treat them, they treat you with scorn, and look 
 upon you with disdain. The Indians at this reser- 
 vation are mostly Piutes and Washoes, whose 
 principal occupation is to hang about the railway 
 stations in hopes of making a raise of whisky or 
 tobacco. 
 
 Colonel Karge is by birth a Pole — a most re- 
 markable man, speaking no less than thirty six 
 languages, tongues and dialects. He fought with 
 the Poles against Russia, being captured and sent,
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 259 
 
 with his 'brother, to Siberia — endeavoring one 
 moonlight night to escape upon an officer's horse, 
 he was recaptured, and, to prevent any further at- 
 tempts to escape, the soles of his feet were cut 
 open and hair from a horse's mane introduced to 
 keep them so sore that he could not walk. Many- 
 months after this the opportunity recurred, and 
 this time, owing to the darkness of the night, 
 he succeeded in making good his escape. He 
 worked his way into Bulgaria, where they were at 
 war, and that being his trade, he enlisted in the 
 ranks, and in due time, was made a captain. Dur- 
 ing a desperate engagement he was wounded, and 
 obliged to retire into the quiet of a hospital located 
 in a camp of which he had command. While 
 located here, one hot afternoon, the wounded were 
 beinof brought in from a battle ra^ina- near by, 
 when a dying soldier requested the attendance of 
 a Polish priest. " Poor fellow," said Karge, " we 
 have no Polish priests here, but I am a Pole; can 
 I be of any service to you ? What is your name ? " 
 
 "William Karge," the wounded man replied. 
 
 " And your father's name ? " 
 
 "Joseph Karge," was the answer. 
 
 Sure enough, it was the brother that had been 
 banished with him into Siberia ; he had subse- 
 quently made his escape, and had also wandered 
 into Bulgaria, and it was under such sad circum- 
 stancesthat the brothers met again, to be soon 
 parted by the hand of death.
 
 260 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 At Camp Scott, the officers' cook was a German 
 Count, who spoke fifteen languages fluently. 
 When he came into Colonel Karge's presence 
 every morning for his daily orders, he would, like 
 enough, salute in Latin or in French; the colonel 
 would answer in Spanish or Russian; and so they 
 would go on, in Greek, Spanish, Persian, Dutch, 
 and a dozen other languages, and it was something 
 to remember, hearing a conversation between these 
 remarkable linguists, so fluent and withal so polite. 
 One day the Count received letters and remit- 
 tances from Germany, and then we had no cook 
 to dish up our food in a dozen different lingos. 
 After this we took turns in cookinof, though the 
 colonel, being, among his other accomplishments, 
 a scientific cook, did most of this work, which was 
 not great, as there were but four of us in the mess. 
 After spending nearly four months in this most 
 agreeable companionship, having fully recovered 
 my health, the colonel having, according to his 
 promise, made a new man of me, I reluctantly bid 
 them all good-bye, and left upon a visit to all the 
 places of interest along the railway. I visited 
 Lake Donner and Lake Tahoe, also Washoe, 
 Virginia City and Carson, Woodville and the 
 various hot springs. During my trip, I met many 
 old acquaintances and formed many new ones. 
 One day I joined a party who went to fish in Lake 
 Tahoe. We spent a pleasant day, but had 
 wretched luck, owing to the fact, as Judge Hamil-
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 261 
 
 ton, who was of the party, put it, " That because 
 of the villainous cooking they got at the hotel, the 
 fish objected to being caught," and so did not 
 even bite. 
 
 I passed a fortnight at Carson Seminary, and I 
 never before saw a school of sixty children under' 
 such perfect management as the one kept in this 
 mountain home by Miss Clapp and Miss Babcock. 
 
 Finally I bid adieu to all my little friends and to 
 their amiable teachers at the Seminary, and took 
 leave of many old friends, among whom were 
 Colonel Curry, one of the pioneers and first dis- 
 covers of the Gould and Curry mine, of world- 
 wide renown; ex-Governor Nye, of Nevada, a re- 
 nowned politician and able speaker, familiarly 
 known as the old war-horse of the Republican 
 party; Mr. Pierce, of Wells, Fargo & Co., an esti- 
 mable man; and ex-Governor Johnson, who was 
 then judge of the Supreme Court, and noted for 
 his talents, which had placed him, at the early age 
 of twenty -five, in the position of governor of the 
 State of California. 
 
 After thus leaving a host of fine gentlemen and 
 sincere friends, I proceeded to go down the 
 mountain, which was at least seven thousand feet 
 high, in a stage coach, traveling at a frightful 
 speed over a grade of, in many places, 45 ° inclina- 
 tion. I will say here that the stage-drivers of 
 Nevada drive their six and eight-horse teams with 
 a skill which I never saw equaled in any other 
 part of the world. I expected every moment to
 
 2 62 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 be my last; and was, indeed, nearly killed. I had 
 taken an inside seat, but, as my ribs were nearly 
 broken and my brains knocked out, at the first 
 half-way house at which we stopped I embraced 
 the opportunity to seat myself alongside the 
 driver, who was a social cuss, and drove his team 
 with a recklessness that was perfectly frightful. 
 
 Every time he stopped I would stand treat, 
 hoping to ingratiate myself with him somewhat, so 
 that he might sympathize with me enough to go 
 slowly over some of the bad spots; but there was 
 no filling him up, and it became a question in my 
 mind if my cash would hold out, for he stopped to 
 water the horses every few miles, taking a drink 
 when he stopped and another when he started 
 again, and all at my expense, for what gentleman 
 could allow a staofe-driver to treat ? 
 
 Mine, however, was a mistaken policy, for in- 
 stead of moderating his speed, after each drink 
 he went more furiously than before. 
 
 " Hold on here, my friend," he said at one time; 
 but it was useless, for I had been holding on all 
 the way. The next moment the iron rails were 
 drawn out of my hands, and I was not only thrown 
 into the air but was turned completely around, and 
 found myself upon the seat above the boot, facing 
 aft, with both hands fast to the railing. The next 
 thing the driver did was to go through a gate into 
 a small enclosure and out again. The gate was 
 just wide enough to admit the coach, and it had 
 hardly gone through when the leaders, being
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 263 
 
 turned short around, passed out again. This ma- 
 neuver was accomplished at full speed, and the 
 coach passed out again through that gate without 
 touching, and dashed away — the driver lashing his 
 horses with a free hand. 
 
 It was after dark when we arrived before the 
 hotel, which was our destination. I climbed down 
 and seated myself upon a roll of canvas that lay 
 close to the lamp-post, sick at the stomach, black 
 and blue in all parts of the body, and completely 
 exhausted. After I had been sitting there an hour, 
 a man came along and said he believed that he 
 would take his tent ; so I was obliged to relin- 
 quish a seat which I felt inclined to occupy until 
 daylight. Here I would advise my friends to 
 select any other seat in or on a Nevada coach than 
 the one alongside the driver; although, as a class 
 of men, and notwithstanding the fact that they hold 
 so much, they are noted for their sobriety, hon- 
 esty and skillful management of their teams, sel- 
 dom meeting with an accident, winter or summer. 
 Upon this particular trip, we had, at starting, 
 twenty-two passengers and nineteen big trunks, 
 besides the musical instruments that belonged to 
 the circus company, eighteen of whom were 
 among our passengers. 
 
 But to proceed ; I took the cars at Reno for 
 Truckee, where I spent a few days; and then, as it 
 was becoming quite cold in the mountains, I re- 
 turned home, where I found my family all in excel- 
 lent health.
 
 264 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 "Wrecked in the Gulf Stream — Epitaph of the 
 Haskins " — Afloat in an open boat — Bermuda. 
 
 D. C. 
 
 EING on Mont- 
 > gomery street 
 fljone day, I was 
 engaged to go 
 to New York 
 and bring out a 
 new steamer, 
 with the under- 
 standing that 
 I was to make no alter- 
 ations in her. I assented 
 to the terms, and in seven days I was in New 
 York, after a pleasant trip across the continent, 
 the cars moving so steadily that a child could run 
 about the decks without being capsized. 
 
 My vessel, the "D. C. Haskins," was a side- 
 wheel steamer, built as a model boat for Commo- 
 dore Vanderbilt, and was originally intended for 
 the route between New York and New Haven, 
 via the Sound, but was never used in that service. 
 She had been laid up for some time in an incom- 
 plete condition, until purchased by the Pacific 
 Railroad Company of California for the Vallejo
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 265 
 
 route. I was more than a month preparing her 
 for sea, and when we were all ready but the coal, 
 we went on a trial trip up the Hudson, making 
 twenty-five miles an hour. 
 
 We then went up the East river, where we took 
 in our coal, and on Sunday, the fourteenth day of 
 November, 1869, we sailed, with a crew of forty 
 men. We proceeded as far as Staten Island, when 
 the machinery got out of order, and we anchored 
 for the night. The next morning, Monday, No- 
 vember fifteenth, we got under way, discharged 
 the pilot and stood to sea. As there was quite a 
 sea on from the southward, we hauled her head to 
 it for an hour to see if she would spring any. At 
 noon the mate and the carpenter reported from all 
 parts of the steamer that she was staunch, strong 
 and tight. I was so pleased with her, myself, as a 
 good sea boat, that at noon we hauled her on to 
 the course for Pernambuco. 
 
 On the seventeenth we had a fine breeze from 
 the north, and set sail ; but at four p. m., as the 
 wind hauled around to the south, we took in all 
 sail again. At five p. m. there was a big sea on 
 from the south, and the wind was blowing a gale, 
 the barometer falling from 30 to 29 in an 
 hour, while the wind and sea increased most 
 fearfully. At six p. m. we got out a drag, made 
 of the fore-yard, tops'1-yard and a spare spar 
 lashed together, with the stream-anchor with ten 
 fathom scope and a bridle on the spars of a six-
 
 266 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 inch hawser. We paid out the hawser two cables' 
 length, when it trended well on the bow. We 
 then threw overboard seventy-five tons of coal 
 from the main deck, and set the mizzen storm- 
 sail. 
 
 At dark a heavy rain came on, with sharp 
 lightning 1 from the southward, and the barometer 
 went down to 2 8° 40'. At seven p. m. the wind 
 blew a perfect hurricane. The engine was turning 
 slowly and the ship was making very good weather 
 of it ; but at eight p. m. the steam-pipe broke, irre- 
 parably, and at half-past eight a sea came on 
 board which stove in the bulwarks and prom- 
 enade deck from the stern to the port wheel- 
 house. 
 
 At nine r. M. the barometer stood at 28° 20'. 
 The night was as black as pitch, and after being 
 illuminated by the lightning for a moment, would 
 become perfectly blinding; and the steam as it was 
 escaping mingled its noise, which seemed to have 
 an ominous tone, with the doleful sound of the 
 beating rain and the furious wind. 
 
 At half-past nine the sea ran in mountains, and 
 nothing could withstand the wind; both smoke- 
 stacks blowing twenty feet clear of the ship. From 
 the time the engine stopped the crew were busy 
 pumping ship, but at ten p. m. the barometer was 
 down to 27 J 30', and the water was gaining on us. 
 The sea was running at all angles from the south 
 to the southwest, and as she lay in the trough of
 
 The Log of an A7iciait Mariner. 267 
 
 the sea we let go the lee bower anchor, and paid 
 out fifty fathoms of chain, in hopes of bringing her 
 head more to the sea, but all we could do was of 
 no avail. 
 
 At half-past ten the starboard hog- frame, which 
 was of twenty-six-inch yellow pine, broke in two 
 places, forward of the wheel, and in a few minutes 
 the one on the port side went in the same way. 
 As the water was still gaining on us, I ordered the 
 . t cook and the steward to take bread, water, wine, 
 hams, and other provisions aft, ready to be put into 
 the boats, in the meantime constantly cheering the 
 crew, telling them that we were gaining on the 
 water, and making every effort to keep them in 
 good spirits. 
 
 I cannot describe the scene, and I doubt if it can 
 be imagined: A pitch-dark night, a deluge of rain. 
 a hurricane of wind, and in their midst a disabled 
 vessel ; on that vessel, in the wild fury of the ele- 
 ments, drenched to the skin, hoarse, hurrying to 
 and fro, anxious with a despairing concern, stifling 
 half-born thoughts of distant friends and families, 
 men who exerted all their energies of mind and 
 body in their battle with the elements of the 
 storm. 
 
 I made the end of a coil of rope, which was 
 fifteen feet long, fast to the forward thwart in the 
 smallest boat, resolving to give the two large boats 
 into the charge of the first and second mates, and 
 to go in this one myself.
 
 268 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 At eleven o'clock the barometer stood 27 , 28', 
 and the hurricane was at its height. As the cabin 
 was full of water and the steamer was settling, I 
 now ordered the boats to be lowered, giving the 
 biggest one to Mr. McDermot, the chief mate; 
 but she was capsized in lowering, and floated off 
 with two men on her bottom. The second mate 
 .took the other large boat, but smashed her in 
 lowering; she also floated off. with the second 
 mate and four seamen clincnno- to her. 
 
 Now came the turn of the smallest and the last 
 boat, in which I had determined to go, although it 
 was doubtful if any man living could keep her 
 afloat in such a sea. I succeeded in o-ettino- her 
 safely into the water, with four men in her, and a 
 painter fast to the steamer. I went into the 
 saloon, where the crew was assembled, and said 
 these words to them: 
 
 " Men, I had anticipated great pleasure in taking 
 this fine boat out to California in your company; 
 but it appears that God has ordered it otherwise, 
 and, as we may not meet again, I will bid you 
 good-bye here. But don't sit waiting for death to 
 come to you. Carpenter, take a gang, and cut 
 and saw this saloon and deck until it will float, as 
 it may moderate in an hour; some of you be lash- 
 ing demijohns and bottles of water, ham, beef and 
 bread to it; while you, Mr. McDermot, take a 
 third gang, and send up rockets and fire the 
 cannon, and a ship may rescue you at the last 
 minute."
 
 The Log of an Ancient Marnier. 269 
 
 Then I went aft. My boat was gone, and when 
 it lightened I could see her about a cable's length 
 off. I stepped into the sea to swim to the boat. 
 The steamer's deck, aft, was in the sea, and as I 
 came out from under a big sea, and was close to 
 her rudder, I saw, by the lightning, that the stern 
 post was split in two. 
 
 I was under a dozen seas before reaching the 
 boat. When a sea ran over me, I would lie still 
 until it was off, and between the steamer's lights 
 and the lightning I managed to keep a pretty 
 good course for it, until, finally, almost exhausted, 
 I perceived it down in the hollow of the very 
 wave that I was on the top of; in a minute, I had 
 both hands on the port quarter of the boat, when 
 I sang out for them to haul me in. But no one 
 moved until some time had elapsed, and I had re- 
 peatedly ordered the crew to draw me in, when I 
 heard a voice say: 
 
 "Well, it is the captain, so I . suppose we shall 
 have to haul him in;" whereupon they lent a hand 
 to pull me in, when, instead of finding four men 
 in the boat, I counted twelve persons. She was 
 loaded down to the gunwales, one man sitting on 
 the forward air-chamber; there were four thwarts in 
 the boat, with two men seated on each, which, with 
 this one on the air-chamber, made nine; the men 
 numbering ten and eleven were lying exhausted 
 upon the after air-chamber, and I, the twelfth, 
 with difficulty made a seat for myself beside them.
 
 270 • The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 The first thing I did was to secure an oar which 
 was drifting in the water alongside of us, and rig 
 it as a steering; oar; the next thing was to get the 
 coil of rope from the forward thwart and make a 
 drag of the two midship oars. I felt something 
 under my feet, and, reaching through the water, I 
 found that it was a ham. I took it, and, after 
 puncturing it, made it fast to the drag, which I put 
 into the sea, the end of the rope being fast in the 
 bow of the boat. It soon ran out, and, with the 
 help of the forward and after oars and my steering 
 oar, we were able to keep her head to the sea. 
 As almost every big wave ran entirely over us, 
 and the boat had too many in her, I ordered two 
 men on each side to jump overboard and hold on 
 to the gunwales of the boat, to lighten and steady 
 her, and enable us to do some bailing. With two 
 men constantly bailing, we kept many a sea out 
 that would otherwise have swamped us; neverthe- 
 less, we always had a plenty of water and to spare 
 in the boat. 
 
 At about midnight, as nearly as I can judge, of 
 the seventeenth of November, 1S69, the " D. C. 
 Haskins" sank, as we lost sight of her mast-head 
 lights and could no longer see her by the light- 
 ning. We were lying to, under the drag, about 
 a mile off, and could plainly see what was proba- 
 bly the last earthly or unearthly roll of the doomed 
 steamer. The white paint and gilding of her wheel- 
 house were conspicuous in the glare of the light-
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 271 
 
 ning, against the appalling darkness of the night 
 in the background; as she rose on the seas I could 
 see that all under the guards was perfect, and as 
 her stern settled her bows lifted high out of water, 
 showing a most beautiful model; then she disap- 
 peared, stern first, into the sepulchre that opened 
 wide to enmjlf into its insatiable and craving 1 maw 
 all that was left of the unfortunate ship and her 
 crew. 
 
 Thus, after struofMinQr for hours against the 
 combined furies of the enraged winds and waves, 
 all eager to engulf, with her precious freight, this 
 innocent creature — so lately wedded to her treach- 
 erous betrothed — helpless, like Samson, the 
 strong, when deprived of his strength, she reared 
 her modest head high toward heaven, as though 
 for succor, and then, white, ghastly, bleeding from 
 too many wounds, she sank in grace and meekness 
 beneath the merciless blows of her unrelentino- 
 conquerors, to find a haven of rest and tranquillity 
 beneath the raging elements that swept so quickly 
 across the grave of as brave a crew as ever floated; 
 who went down in as beautiful a coffin as ever 
 sank into the unknown depths below, where the 
 quiet is serene and everlasting; where destroying 
 monsters, with wide-extending jaws and leering 
 eyes, revel and devour, but may not enter into the 
 gilded saloons and narrow state-rooms, where the 
 mermaids may be imagined, reclining upon the 
 satin sofas and combiner their lono locks before
 
 272 The Log of an Ancient Mariner, 
 
 the costly mirrors; while the genius of the silent 
 depths, charmed with his last and beautiful acqui- 
 sition, orders his myrmidons to enshroud it with 
 moss and sponge, to fringe it round about with the 
 sea-weed that is always green, and to mantle it 
 with shells, whose pearly lustre is reflected in the 
 changing and endless hues of the waters surround- 
 ing the glorious beauty and the splendor of this 
 tomb, never to be seen by mortal eyes. 
 
 At daylight, as we were backing and bailing, and 
 then advancing to meet the sea, we heard a voice 
 crying aloud in agonized and despairing tones : 
 
 " O, for God's sake, take us in ; save us, save 
 us ! " 
 
 The next sea took us so near to a capsized 
 boat, which we took to be that which the mate 
 had endeavored to lower, that we had to back and 
 row with all our strength to keep clear of her, as 
 we should have turned over instantly if we had 
 touched her. There were two men on her, one 
 holding on to the after end of the keel, in the 
 water, and the other one standing up, with his 
 arms extended, shouting with his whole soul for 
 succor. The next sea and we saw each other no 
 more, but I shall never forget the piteous tones of 
 that man, as I left them to the only succor which 
 could reach them : that riven bv God, who was 
 about to give them a grave. It was impossible 
 for us to take them in as we could scarcely, with 
 four men overboard, keep the gunwales above
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 273 
 
 water; and, as it was, I had frequently, during the 
 night, reached out, knife in hand, to despatch the 
 two unconscious men who lay on the air-chamber 
 beside me, but had always desisted, for a loud 
 voice had seemed to say in my ears : " Stop, you 
 will all be saved." 
 
 There was but a gallon of water in the boat, 
 with about five pounds of soda crackers in the 
 bottom of a pillow-case, and this was like mush, 
 being afloat in salt water all the time. I gave 
 about a tablespoonful of this stuff, apiece, to the 
 men twice a day, and wet their tongues twice a 
 day with water, as I could not trust them enough 
 to give them a swallow apiece at a time. I took 
 nothing while I was in the boat, as I felt as if I 
 could live a week without anything. 
 
 Once a man lifted the demijohn containing our 
 water. 
 
 " Put that down," I ordered. 
 
 " Captain, I cannot die ; I have inhaled steam, 
 and must drink," said he. 
 
 " Put that down, or you will die sooner than 
 you expected," I returned. 
 
 He looked at me with an expression which can- 
 not be described, but obeved ; no doubt he suf- 
 fered, as he soon became deranged. The two 
 men beside me still lay exhausted, and all I heard 
 them say during the night was that they could not 
 last much longer. 
 
 At mid-day the sharks came, and had a terrific 
 
 18
 
 274 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 battle for the ham. The sea would lift itself up to 
 a high and topling attitude, forming one of the 
 
 most awful and ap- 
 palling sights that 
 was ever contem- 
 plated by living man, 
 before it came tum- 
 bling down, like an 
 avalanche, upon us. 
 When the sun came 
 | out, as the sea ahead 
 = ran high, it,- as it 
 were, became transparent, and we could see, to 
 our dismay, that it was alive with those monsters, 
 darting, like fiends, in all directions; and then, as 
 the order "overboard" came, in tones which ad- 
 mitted of no trifling, it is easy to judge of the 
 feelings of those who threw themselves into the 
 sea. But reason had not yet entirely left its 
 throne ; hope still fluttered in the breasts of these 
 men, and orders continued to be executed. 
 
 Toward dark a part of the crew had become 
 indifferent to their situation, and neither curses nor 
 blows could arouse them; their heads fell upon 
 their breasts, and I was compelled to allow them 
 to sleep; hoping all the time that some of them 
 might drop off, lightening the boat, so that the 
 rest might hope to be saved, as with so heavy a 
 load it seemed impossible that we could long keep 
 afloat.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 275 
 
 With sundown it had abated so much that, al- 
 though the seas ran high, they no longer broke. 
 I ordered the drag to be drawn in, and, after man- 
 ning four oars, I hove the head of the boat to the 
 sea, which came from the west, and addressed the 
 crew : 
 
 " We are all fresh and young and strong," I 
 told them, " but we are in the middle of the gulf 
 stream, a spot the most unfrequented of all others, 
 and without the provisions necessary for the num- 
 ber in the boat. I want you to pull this boat 
 thirty miles to-night, when we will be in the north- 
 ern edge of the stream, and surrounded with ves- 
 sels, so that, even if we can then pull no more, we 
 shall be picked up by some passing boat. Boys, 
 anybody can pull oars in a smooth sea, but it 
 requires just such seamen as you are to do it in 
 and over this humpy road; will you do it or not?" 
 
 "We will," came from all who could speak. 
 
 " Give way." 
 
 I steered north all night to the best of my judg- 
 ment, but neither star nor moon was to be seen, 
 and the wind and the sea were my principal guides. 
 How the men pulled as they did, with the gun- 
 wales of the boat scarcely three inches out of the 
 water, I cannot tell; but it was fortunate that the 
 boat would hold them now, for if I had compelled 
 them to go overboard in the condition they had 
 reached, both they and their comrades were so 
 dazed and so weak, that they never could have 
 been brought back a£rain.
 
 276 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 It was a continual bail, bail, all night; and when 
 daylight appeared, on the nineteenth, my crew 
 began to see in the thick and murky clouds that 
 swept over the face of the sky, ships, barks, brigs 
 and schooners. One Norwegian, seated in the bow, 
 addressed himself to me, with the most extrava- 
 gant expressions of mingled delight and insanity 
 on his countenance. 
 
 " Captain," said he, pointing with both hands, 
 " here is a lighthouse; oh! don't you see it?" and 
 then he proceeded to describe it in the most 
 minute manner, saying that the top was painted 
 red. 
 
 It was not loner after this that I saw the smoke 
 
 o 
 
 of a steamer. It bore to the north of me, for the 
 sun, which I could see rising behind the clouds, 
 told me that I was heading about north-west. 
 Thinking that I might be getting into the condi- 
 tion of my crew, and that my imagination was 
 leading my senses to play me false, I did not re- 
 port anything; in a few moments I saw it again in 
 the same direction, a black column of smoke close 
 to the water; again I said nothing, fearing that it 
 might be only the blow of a whale; but when I 
 saw it the third time I cried out, saying: 
 
 " Steamer, right ahead ! now pull, my lads, for 
 that steamer is about to take us to New York." 
 
 We soon saw her masts and smoke-stack, and 
 our boat made good speed through the high 
 rolling sea; then we saw the hull, and thought she
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 277 
 
 was steering right for us, but in about two hours 
 we had the disappointment and mortification to 
 see her leave us completely out of sight. This was 
 hard, but I threw the head of the boat to the sea 
 and ordered a rest, during which time I served out 
 the rations — a spoonful of mush and enough water 
 to wet the tongue; I touched nothing as I still 
 felt strong. 
 
 I had frequently during the night been deceived 
 by streaks of cold water, and had told my crew 
 that we were out of the stream and should soon 
 see vessels; but I had as often found hot water 
 again; however, although it continued hot, with 
 plenty of weeds, I kept on cheering the men. 
 
 Duryig the morning we pulled to the north-west, 
 bailing all the time. A sea would run over the 
 weather-side, and if any of the men moved, the 
 lee-gunwale would roll it over the whole length of 
 the boat. After a while it looked as if the wind 
 had shifted to the north, and it began to get colder; 
 I knew that if it came out north our chances were 
 slim of ever getting anywhere; at the same time 
 my crew stopped pulling. 
 
 "We can pull no longer," said they, "and we 
 might as well die here as anywhere." 
 
 "All right," said I, "some of you ought to have 
 died last night, curse you; and I had my knife 
 ready to dispatch four of you, but a voice in my 
 left ear told me to hold on, that I should not be 
 drowned, and could save the most of you; but as
 
 278 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 you are willing to stay here and die, you may have 
 your choice. I am bound for the in-shore, if I have 
 to go alone, and the man who disobeys my orders 
 is the one who will remain here, and blasted quick* 
 as I will kill him instantly; now, pull away, you 
 bloody cowards." 
 
 This, and more like it, had the effect of once 
 more getting the oars in motion, and in a short 
 time I saw, to the south-west, the two top-masts 
 of a schooner. I kept away for her, and in a short 
 time saw the head of a white sail. I now reported 
 it to the crew, and they all saw it, and pulled with 
 renewed vigor. Hope now filled the breasts of 
 all except three or four, who were crazy, and had 
 been for some time. We soon saw the hujl, and 
 found that she was a large schooner, hove to, head 
 to the eastward, under a balanced-reefed mains'l. 
 
 We pulled down upon her in her weather waist, 
 being close to her before we perceived any of the 
 crew; they ran on deck, and motioned to us to 
 come astern, which was quickly done, when a rope 
 was thrown us, and made fast to the bow of the 
 boat; the oars were ordered in, and we all felt that 
 we were saved. Several of the crew now spoke: 
 
 " Well, Captain," they said, " I suppose you will 
 pfive us a swallow of water now." 
 
 " Yes, boys," I answered, " you may now have 
 all you want." 
 
 At this moment, a slight movement of the men 
 forward, in catching the ropes that were thrown
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 2 79 
 
 down to them, capsized the boat, turning it bottom 
 up. Three men sank here to rise no more; most 
 of them had hold of ropes. I was aft, and held on 
 to the side of the boat, being carried under, and 
 held so long that I drank too much water. My 
 head was lifted and taken under as each sea rolled 
 over, and I was sensible that I was drowning; but 
 I let go my hold the next time my head was lifted, 
 and tried to swim for one of the ropes that hung 
 over the stern of the schooner. I succeeded in 
 catching it, .and pulled my head above the sea; 
 but a man further up the rope slipped down, and 
 his feet pressed my hands down until I was sub- 
 merged. When I again came to the surface, I 
 found, that my strength was gone, and that I was 
 drowning. I called to the captain to save me, 
 that I was gone; and then threw my left leg around 
 the rope, as my hands were no longer able to hold 
 on. The schooner again settled her stern deep 
 into the sea, and, as I was again submerged, I let 
 go the rope, and did not rise again. I had been 
 conscious all the time that I was swallowing lar^e 
 quantities of water when my head was under, and 
 I now, with each strenuous effort to breathe, 
 .which was impossible,, took in large draughts. 
 However, I felt no inconvenience from it, but, on 
 the contrary, was perfectly at ease, and had time 
 to repeat, slowly, the names of my wife and each 
 of my children. With the thought of the last 
 name all consciousness left me, and I knew no
 
 280 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 more for two hours, when I dreamed, for a 
 moment, that I was being dragged by the reins, 
 behind a pair of running horses, over a very rocky 
 street, and opened my eyes to find myself on my 
 back on the deck of the " Grasmere." 
 
 Captain Kellin, it seems, dove deep into the 
 water, bent a line around my two ankles, and had 
 me hauled over the rail on to the schooner. The 
 crew had used their knees freely against my abdo- 
 men, pressing out all the salt water, and, by the 
 combined efforts of rubbing and using stimulants, 
 which they poured into my mouth after opening 
 it with great difficulty, they succeeded in reviving 
 the cold, inanimate, black and blue body, and re- 
 storing a life which, to them, was of no particular 
 value; but there was and is a little flock in Cali- 
 fornia, and hundreds of sincere friends, who will 
 never forget to pray for Captain Augustus Kellin, 
 as the sole agent, in the hands of God, through 
 whom a parent and a friend was restored to those 
 who love him. 
 
 I was stripped, rolled in hot blankets, and put 
 into the captain's berth, and in an hour I was fully 
 conscious, and warmth of body and circulation of 
 blood enabled me to begin to realize my situation. 
 I was very weak, and the schooner rolled so 
 heavily as to give me no peace, but my only 
 inquiry was if there was plenty of water on the 
 schooner. The captain assured me that there 
 was, and was as kind and attentive to me as a
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariiier. 281 
 
 c 1 * 
 
 woman could have been; he shed tears at not 
 being able to save the three men who were 
 drowned under the shadow of the schooner. John 
 F. Robinson, John Simons, Patrick Green, John 
 Williams, Henry King - , Charles Johnson, Henry 
 Landry, and Henry Ganstover, were the men who 
 were saved, with me, from the boat's crew. 
 
 We were upon the schooner a week, and all that 
 time but little sail could be made, no observations 
 could be taken, and the captain was nightly lashed 
 to the wheel, and his crew kept under the hatches, 
 as the seas swept over the decks. At last it 
 moderated, sails were made of all the old canvas 
 on board, and we sailed into the harbor of Ber- 
 muda and anchored. I was lowered into a boat, 
 pulled to the shore, and taken to the house of the 
 American consul. Here I was sick for nearly a 
 month, having become reduced to a skeleton, and 
 a fever setting in. At one time, the doctor an- 
 nounced to the consul that in another hour I would 
 have breathed my last; yet, through the efforts ol 
 these two gentlemen, and of Patience, an old, 
 black nurse, circulation was again restored, and 
 warmth returned to this frame, which has been 
 buffeted by so many storms, and has been so often 
 upon the point of permitting the spirit to escape 
 from it. 
 
 When I was able to go out I rode over the 
 island, across a most beautiful and picturesque 
 country of rolling hills and lovely lakes. They
 
 282 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 have here a fine, balmy atmosphere, and all the 
 fruits of the tropics are in season the year round. 
 My friends here urged me to remain and recuper- 
 ate, insisting that I could never survive the change 
 I should incur in oroino- to New York in the mid- 
 die of winter, but there was a strong incentive, a 
 loadstone on the Pacfic, that compelled me to 
 continue in my resolve, and so I was taken aboard 
 the propeller " Fah Kee," bound to New York, 
 being escorted by the American consul and all the 
 American ship-masters in port, and they were quite 
 numerous, as all had been crippled in the same 
 hurricane that was the cause of my presence in 
 this rock-bound harbor, reared up from the depths 
 of the ocean and placed by the foreseeing wisdom 
 of the Great Unknown where thousands of vessels 
 in distress are blown with their tattered sails and 
 broken masts before the north-west winds which 
 prevail on our coast; to act as a boon and a savior 
 to the distressed mariners, after they have felt the 
 heavy blasts of the hurricane, and been suffered to 
 escape in a condition compelling them to run under 
 jury rig before the wind from the rough waters of 
 the gulf stream into this haven of refuge, which 
 has been located here for no other purpose. 
 
 BERMUDA. 
 
 Thou art a jewel on the ocean cast, 
 Beyond the reach of Arctic's frozen blast ; 
 No bergs of ice around thy shores are seen, 
 Thv sunnv hills are ever clad in trreen.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 28, 
 
 With bounding heart from out his murky night, 
 The storm-tossed sailor hails thy beacon light, 
 And thanks the hand Allwise that placed thee here, 
 Where struggling mariners would need thy cheer. 
 
 So far from other lands on ocean's breast, 
 Forever anchored in this spot to rest ; 
 The suns may set, the wat'ry moons may wane, 
 Thou art through an eternity the same. 
 
 Down deep within the shelter of thy vales, 
 Securely guarded from the wintry gales, 
 A thousand lovely flowers forever bloom 
 To guard the portals of a seaman's tomb. 
 
 A stranger here, far from a dear, loved home, 
 Secure amid thy tranquil vales I roam ; 
 And drinking deeply of thy balmy air, 
 Admit, perforce, that God is everywhere. 
 
 From treach'rous waves, and from the hungry sharks, 
 The stream of life ebbing in fitful sparks ; 
 In mercy God did rescue me, 
 Through thee, bright jewel of the sea, 
 Bermuda !
 
 284 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 To New York — Commodore Yaxderbilt — Across the Con- 
 tinent — On the Moses Taylor — A Tale of Horrors. 
 
 AFTER a rough passage of six days, in the 
 propeller " Fah Kee," I arrived in New York, and 
 proceeded to the Washington Hotel, situated at 
 the foot of Broadway. I carried a box of paper 
 collars by way of trunk, and my clothes-bag con- 
 tained all my wardrobe, and room to spare; the 
 wardrobe consisting of one suit of flannel under- 
 clothes. I went into the office and asked for the 
 proprietor, and while waiting his presence set down 
 my clothes-bag, asking the clerk if he could tell 
 me why that bag was like the Cunard line of 
 steamers ? He gave it up, and I told him because 
 it was limited. By this time Mr. Merrill, the pro- 
 prietor, came in, and I told him that I wanted a 
 cheap corner, up in the sky-parlor, and that the pros- 
 pects were that he would never be paid anything. 
 "All right," returned he, " I don't care a mill-site 
 whether I am or not. Here," he called, ringing 
 for a boy, " throw open room No. 1, on the first 
 floor, and build a fire in the grate; for," he added, 
 turning to me, " you look cold and tired." I had 
 toted my bag from the steamer, some blocks off,
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 285 
 
 and had set my load down on the pavement fre- 
 quently while making the voyage. I was taken 
 into the bar-room and given a glass of good wine, 
 after which I went to my room, and when I saw it 
 I rang for Mr. Merrill. He came in and I protested 
 against such a room, telling him again that he 
 would not be paid, as I was under bare poles." 
 
 "The best in my house," said he, "is not too 
 good for you; and as you are as welcome as the 
 flowers in May, I will not have any more chin- 
 music about it." 
 
 I will say here that I had promised that the first 
 thing I would do in New York should be to call 
 upon my old friend, Commodore Vanderbilt ; but 
 I neglected it from day to day, and each day my 
 attention to my duties increased, until I finally 
 sailed in the " Haskins,". without having seen the 
 Commodore. Now he sent for me, and I made 
 my toilet as carefully as the extent of my wardrobe 
 would allow, and went to see him. He received 
 me with his usual kindness. 
 
 "You were in New York," said he, "and went 
 to sea without comincr to see me and eot drowned, 
 which served you right; if you had called upon 
 me you would not have met with the accident." 
 
 We sat down in the office together and talked 
 over old times, until he said : 
 
 " YVakeman, come into the house, I have a new 
 wife since you saw me last." I went with him 
 across the yard, and after showing me his Post-
 
 286 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 boy and Roadster, he led the way into his house 
 and up-stairs. 
 
 " Frank," he called aloud, there being no one in 
 the parlor. 
 
 " Sir;" answered a very pretty and agreeable 
 girl (as she seemed when I looked at her beside 
 her husband), from a long hall, as she came run- 
 ning to him. 
 
 " Here is an old friend from California, Captain 
 Wakeman," said he, placing one of her hands in 
 mine; "sit down on the sofa together and eo to 
 spinning yarns; I will be back directly." Saying 
 which he left. 
 
 I found in Frank a perfect lady, unassuming as 
 though she was not worth millions in her own 
 name, and as social and communicative to me as 
 though I had been worth millions. I could but 
 compare the Commodore and his amiable wife 
 with those of wealth in England, but as compar- 
 isons are sometimes odorous (as some one else 
 says), I will refrain. 
 
 The Commodore returned in about half an hour, 
 and introduced me to his mother-in-law, a lady 
 dignified and yet plain and sociable, of about fifty 
 years. Commodore Vanderbilt sat down on the 
 sofa and made me tell his wife of my courtship and 
 marriage; and after several yarns, at which he 
 laughed until the tears ran down his cheeks, I left, 
 with a promise to spend the morrow with him. 
 The next day I called again.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 287 
 
 " Wakeman," said he, " what do you want to do 
 now ?" 
 
 " I never want to leave my family and go to sea 
 again,' ' I replied. 
 
 "But," said he, "what do you propose? My 
 object in sending for you, was, principally, to give 
 you what you want." 
 
 "Well," I told him, " if I were settled on a good 
 ranch in California, I think I could be happy and 
 contented." 
 
 " Then," said he, " go get what land you want, 
 and I will pay for it." 
 
 After giving me a cast of his head, a steel-plate 
 engraving of himself, taken full length, and a pic- 
 ture taken as he was driving Post-boy and Road- 
 ster, he took me into the house. 
 
 "Frank," asked he, "how is Mrs. Wakeman to 
 know how you look ? " 
 
 So she ran and brought a photograph of herself, 
 and one of her husband. 
 
 "Well," said he, "how is she to know your 
 name ? : ' whereupon she wrote her name, and pro- 
 posed to write that of the Commodore, but he 
 wrote it himself, getting down on one knee, and 
 using a small table. Afterward, going- ' m ^ Q the 
 next room, he came out carrying a gold-headed 
 cane. 
 
 " Do you recognize that stick ? " he asked. 
 
 "I do," I was bound to reply. 
 
 "That," he rejoined, with great courtesy, "I
 
 288 The Log of an Ancient Mari7ier. 
 
 value highly, keeping it locked up, and only show- 
 ing it upon special occasions." 
 
 It was a cane which I had sent him from Cali- 
 fornia, twenty years before, in token of gratitude for 
 his unbounded kindness to me which, to relate, 
 would be an almost endless task. 
 
 I now took leave of my good friend and his es- 
 timable wife, and went to my hotel, No. i Broad- 
 way, where I had time to collect my scattered 
 thoughts, and, upon mature reflection, I came to 
 the conclusion that Commodore Vanuerbilt is the 
 handsomest man I have ever seen among the civil- 
 ized races. He has the eye of a young eagle, and 
 a healthy complexion, such as is unequaled by 
 anything I have ever seen before ; he is as straight 
 as an arrow; tall, but with supple movements, 
 which, with his dignified mien and unbounded 
 capacity of mind, render him entirely master of 
 his situation. During the two days that I spent with 
 him, the outer room contained some ten or twelve 
 men waiting to see him, all gentlemen worth their 
 millions. They would present their heads at the 
 door, but a wave of the fore-finger would send 
 them to the right-about. Only one man did he 
 wave into his presence ; he came up to the table 
 upon which the Commodore had both feet, and 
 without ceremony, commenced by saying that he 
 represented six millions in a certain neighborhood, 
 and that he wanted a street cut through, so and 
 so, making marks upon a chart which he held.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 289 
 
 "I don't care a d — ," said the Commodore, "if 
 you represent six cents; my first object has been 
 to run no streets through that property;" and his 
 fore-finger indicated that the petitioner might go, 
 which he did, without another word. When I 
 went out into the ante-room it was four o'clock, 
 and all the millionaires were gone. 
 
 "What blasted old sailor is that that the Com- 
 modore has got with now ? " the clerk told me he 
 had been asked; and when told that he was from 
 California, "When is he going back?" had been 
 the question. When told "to-morrow," they had 
 gone off, remarking, " Very well, none of us will 
 get an interview with the Commodore while he is 
 here." 
 
 I was told by men who profess to know, that 
 the Commodore is the controlling spirit of three 
 hundred millions of dollars, and it has affected him 
 so little that he bears no wrinkle upon his brow, 
 and can laugh as heartily as a poor man. 
 
 On the last day of December, I took the cars 
 for Baltimore, and spent New Year's, day with my 
 old friend, Captain Hugg. Here I had the 
 pleasure of seeing Captain Bailey, and Captain 
 Wilson of the " Empress of the Sea," and several 
 others whom I esteem very highly. After in- 
 dulging several days in the hospitality of the Bal- 
 timoreans, who are noted for hospitality and hand- 
 some women, I took the cars for Washington, 
 where I spent two days, calling upon my old 
 
 19
 
 290 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 friend, Admiral Alden, then in command of the 
 Bureau of Docks. I found him to be the same 
 courteous gentleman whom I knew in California, 
 twenty years before ; and he introduced me to the 
 Secretary of State, and to several other servants 
 of the people. 
 
 After visiting the Capitol and all the public 
 buildings, I took the cars to Cincinnati, where I 
 stopped a week, calling on Mr. Gilson, the princi- 
 pal owner in the " D. C. Haskins." He was very 
 kind, and took the loss of the boat, and his own 
 loss, which was represented by no inconsiderable 
 sum, as only a great man can. He shed tears, 
 however, at the loss of life, saying that the life of 
 one of those brave men was of more value than 
 all the boats in the world. 
 
 Mr. Gilson introduced me to many of his friends, 
 and paid me all the attention that was possible. 
 He offered me money with which to defray my 
 expenses to California; but I declined, as I had 
 been liberally supplied in New York by his agent, 
 Fred Schmidt. Taking leave of him, and of the 
 beautiful city of Cincinnati, I proceeded in the 
 cars to Chicago, where I stayed a week, gaining 
 strength every day, and preparing for the trip 
 across the continent. 
 
 Snow was about two feet deep all over the 
 country from Jersey City until we came to Chica- 
 go, but here it was comparatively warm, with but 
 little snow, I saw a big city, extensively laid out,
 
 The Log of an Ancie7it Mariner. 291 
 
 and with more extensive suburbs. I stopped a 
 day in Omaha, which is a fine city, with substan- 
 tial buildings, and with a good country around it. 
 The hotel at Laramie was as fine a house as we 
 saw on the whole road; and the Laramie plains 
 are extensive, and rich with black soil, capable of 
 supporting thousands of inhabitants, as it has sup- 
 ported millions of buffaloes, deer and elk. After 
 leaving these plains, where thousands of the over- 
 worked citizens in our large cities could come and 
 camp out during six months of the year, depend- 
 ing on their rifles for a living, and thus adding 
 twenty years to their lives (but, as they could not 
 be on 'change every day, of course they will not 
 think of it), we passed over fifteen hundred miles 
 of sage-brush country, which intervenes between 
 Laramie and Truckee. Although there is a same- 
 ness in it, still there are here a good many places 
 which it would be desirable to live in. 
 
 In the vicinity of Truckee the snow-sheds had 
 been burnt down, and we came through the smould- 
 ering ashes, rushing out of the snow-covered 
 mountains into the green fields and picturesque 
 landscape of the Sacramento valley. The Rocky 
 Mountains I have not mentioned as they are not 
 noticed. The grade over them is so gradual that 
 the traveler has to be told of their vicinity, since 
 there is nothing to denote to him their presence. 
 
 Not so, however, in approaching the Summit, 
 where five engines are tackled on to the train; and,
 
 292 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 although the speed is undiminished, the traveler 
 has but to look out of the window to perceive that 
 he is on a grade which looks to be at least 25° 
 up, and about as steep down on the other side, 
 until Cape Horn is passed, where you look down, 
 from your dizzy, bold and frightful position, upon a 
 little silver thread, which you are told is the Amer- 
 ican river, winding its way through the fertile val- 
 ley and extensive plains until it joins the Sacra- 
 mento river; at the junction of which the beautiful 
 city of Sacramento, with its fine climate, is situated, 
 and where I arrived in a few hours after leaving 
 the Summit, and stopped at the Golden Eagle 
 Hotel. 
 
 I had on at the time a flannel shirt and fur cap, 
 and looked more like a miner of '49 than like any- 
 more civilized man; nevertheless, the proprietor 
 conducted me into the spacious dining-room, and 
 seated me at one end of a long table, and called 
 the head steward — giving him especial orders con- 
 cerning me. I had not been lono seated when a 
 gentleman rose from the other end of the table 
 and came to me. 
 
 " I had the pleasure of spending several days at 
 Lake Tahoe with you, last summer," said he ; " I 
 told you that I should know you again. Don' t 
 you remember that the fish would not bite owing 
 to the villainous cooking they got at our hotel ? 
 Judge Hamilton, Attorney-General of the State." 
 
 I apologized, and after a hearty salutation I had
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 293 
 
 to accompany him to his end of the table, where I 
 was introduced to many of the members of the 
 legislature; and after dinner I went to the capitol 
 with him and visited its rooms, where I met many 
 old friends, among- the rest, my much-esteemed 
 friend, Colonel Jack Hayes, from the Bay. I men- 
 tion my reception at Sacramento to show the dif- 
 ference between Californians and (the majority of) 
 New Yorkers ; the Californian does not look at 
 your flannel shirt but gives you his whole warm 
 hand, while the New Yorker gives you his one 
 finger, as cold as ice. 
 
 I met in Sacramento Mr. Edgerton and his 
 amiable wife, the daughter of my friend, Smith 
 Brown, of Napa Valley, who had treated me with 
 such hospitality at his house, two years before. 
 Henry Edgerton is considered by many to possess 
 the brightest intellect in California, being a pro- 
 found speaker, an eloquent orator, and a splendid 
 writer. 
 
 I arrived home about the middle of February, 
 1870, and found my family all well. After spend- 
 ing a few months in visiting the farming districts 
 of the state, intending to select a ranch for perma- 
 nent residence, I accepted the generous offer of 
 Captain J. D. Farwell, and rented my house in 
 East Oakland for a year; that I might spend that 
 time upon the beautiful farm of Captain Farwell, 
 situated in the hills, twenty-five miles back of 
 Haywards,in Alamedacounty, and become initiated 
 into the modus operandi of farming.
 
 294 Th e Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 I must mention the sheep-thief I stumbled across 
 in the San Joaquin Valley, just prior to this. In 
 crossing a field one day, with the proprietor, we 
 came upon a fellow in the very act of removing 
 the skin from a fine yearling, which he had evi- 
 dently just slaughtered. 
 
 "How is this?" shouted my friend, collaring 
 the butcher. 
 
 " No sheep ever bites me and lives," fiercely and 
 instantly rejoined the fellow, earning his liberty by 
 the wit of his ready and clever excuse. 
 
 I remained during the summer in the lovely val- 
 ley, in the picturesque farm-house, with its stone 
 chimney. A stream of living water ran between 
 the green hills, where quail, hare and deer dis- 
 ported upon the wooded slopes. But I soon dis- 
 covered that a salt-water man could never be 
 happy so far from the sight of a sail. The peace- 
 ful hills seemed to shut around me like prison 
 walls, and my eyes ached to scan a wider horizon. 
 The old sailor had trod a deck so long that he was 
 out of his element upon the land, and would fain 
 up anchor and away for blue water. 
 
 In the fall of 1870 I gave up farming, returning 
 to the bay, and soon after occupied myself in fit- 
 ting for sea the steamer of W. \V. Webb's new 
 line, upon the Australian route. After sending 
 off the ''Nevada" and the " Nebraska," Captains 
 Blethen and Hardy, I went down in the " Moses 
 Taylor," Captain Bennett, to act as superintendent
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 295 
 
 of the line at Honolulu, and to arrange for coaling 
 stations, etc., upon the islands. 
 
 When an hour out of port, being just outside 
 the bar at dark, we collapsed a flue, owing to the 
 absence of water in the starboard boiler. By this 
 sad accident six brave hearts, the first assistant-en- 
 gineer and five men, met their death. At the 
 time I was sitting by the mainmast, in the cabin, 
 and feeling the ship roll down to port, I ran out on 
 deck. Seeing no one, I ran forward, and as I per- 
 ceived that the steerage was full of steam, I had 
 the remaining three-quarters of the hatch removed, 
 and sent a man down to rescue any passengers 
 whom he might find below ; he found one old man 
 there who had lost his way in the steam, the rest 
 of the passengers being on deck. 
 
 In coming aft again to the engine-room I saw 
 the engineer and the captain busily drawing up the 
 scalded; the ship by this time being well down to 
 port. I went on to the promenade-deck; the mate 
 had just put the helm hard to starboard, I asked 
 him what this was for, and he replied that we must 
 get back into port. I countermanded the order, 
 and hove the wheel to port; telling him that we 
 were bound to Honolulu, just then the captain 
 came aft and I accompanied him into his room, 
 where we consulted upon the situation, and he 
 agreed to follow my advice in the matter. I asked 
 him to send for the engineer, and in due time he 
 appeared. " Both boilers are collapsed and we 
 must put back to port," was his report.
 
 296 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 " When the steam gets out of the ship you will 
 find," said I, "that the port boiler is uninjured. 
 Nothing- could heave down a ship so quickly as we 
 were hove down, but the fact that when all the 
 water was blown out of the starboard boiler, the 
 port boiler had remained full, and all the water had 
 run into the port bilge." I then asked the captain 
 to have the sails set, which was done in a few 
 minutes. After this I was called into the captain's 
 room, and again told that we must go back. 
 
 "The first assistant engineer is dead, alone with 
 five others," said the engineer, "and they com- 
 prised half my crew." 
 
 "Well," I replied, "you have only half the 
 duties to perform; and if you want more help. I, 
 for one, and the whole crew, and, if necessary, the 
 passengers, will turn out and help you; but to go 
 back with one whole boiler, when so many ships 
 have gone half around the globe with one boiler; 
 when I, myself, have gone three thousand miles 
 with but one boiler, is entirely without excuse. 
 Why, man," I continued, " you will not only ruin 
 yourselves with Mr. Webb, but you will ruin his 
 interest also." 
 
 "Well," said the engineer, "I am not certain 
 about that port boiler yet." 
 
 "Oh," I answered, "wait till the steam is out of 
 the ship and you will find it all sound." 
 
 In half an hour more the engineer reported the 
 boiler all right; but the captain and A. C.Williams,
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 297 
 
 of Honolulu, Mr. Webb's agent in his guano busi- 
 ness, reported the mutiny of the crew, who refused 
 to work in the bunkers. I asked the captain to 
 give me two pistols, to call the crew on deck, and 
 to introduce me as Mr. Webb's agent in such mat- 
 ters, and I would do the rest. All was done as I 
 requested; and I saw four tall fine-looking men, 
 who appeared to be the ringleaders. I had seen 
 the officers parleying with them half an hour before 
 and had guessed, from their gestures and the shak- 
 ing of their heads, that they were refusing duty; 
 and I had advised ironing them, and separating 
 them from the rest of the crew; this had not been 
 done, and I now addressed myself to these four 
 something after the following style: 
 
 " Men, do you know what you are doing ? In- 
 stead of taking the lead in showing the rest of the 
 crew an example of what brave men can do in an 
 emergency like this, which, from your intelligent 
 looks and superior physical powers I take you to- 
 be competent to do, you are setting at defiance 
 the orders of your captain, when you should be 
 the very first men in the ship to obey them. In a 
 week you will be ashamed of your conduct, and 
 there will not be found a man in this ship who 
 wanted to go back; but I shall not argue with you; 
 you have seen fit to place yourselves in the posi- 
 tion of mutineers on the high seas, and, in our 
 present position, it is a matter of life and death 
 whether the captain's orders are obeyed or not;
 
 298 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 therefore, my men, I want no misunderstanding; 
 I want you to speak up loudly, for I am a little 
 deaf. Captain, I want you to speak up loudly too, 
 so that there will be no misunderstanding; call that 
 man up here and give him positive orders to go 
 into the bunkers and shovel coal, and if he refuses 
 I will blow out his brains." 
 
 The captain did as I requested, and the man 
 whom I had pointed out began to grow pale and 
 to tremble around the lips. 
 
 " Captain," said he, " I have not mutinied ; I am 
 afraid of my life to go into the bunkers, but I will 
 work on deck." 
 
 " That won't do in this case, my man; " returned 
 I, " it is an emergency in which you cannot choose 
 your work, but must obey orders ; an example 
 must be made, and I think one will suffice ; now 
 your captain will put it to you in this final shape : 
 will you, or will you not, go where ordered ? and 
 .then, if you are game to die, I am game to shoot 
 you." 
 
 The captain asked the question, and my man 
 replied : 
 
 " I will ; at least, I am not afraid to go where 
 any other man will go ; " whereupon Mr. Doug- 
 lass, the second officer, volunteered to go into the 
 bunkers, and the man followed him. The rest 
 protested that they had never refused to obey or- 
 ders, and all went to work ; so that, four hours 
 after the accident, we were proceeding, with
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 299 
 
 one boiler and all sail set, on our course for Hono- 
 lulu. 
 
 At daylight the dead went into a sailor's grave, 
 and fair winds followed the steamer during the 
 whole passage. Two days before reaching Hono- 
 lulu, at seven in the morning, we saw a sail upon 
 the starboard bow. Glasses were brought to bear 
 upon her, and much speculation was rife as to who 
 the stranger could be. At eight o'clock she was 
 steering right across the bow, and we made her 
 out to be a water-logged vessel, with close-reefed 
 for'tops'l, the jib set, and the after-masts carried 
 away. 
 
 At nine o'clock, as she had run across our bow, 
 we hauled the steamer for her. Captain Bennett 
 called me on to the bridge, and we watched and 
 discussed the stranger ; we were about five miles 
 off, and could see the sea running off both sides of 
 her, the bulwarks being washed away. I sug- 
 gested that we have two quarter-boats ready, the 
 crews to stand by, ready to board her as soon as 
 we stopped, to fetch on board all that might be 
 found on her. 
 
 The boats were swung, all ready, and we hove 
 to, close under the stern of what had been a fine 
 brig. But she was completely water-logged, her 
 stern-frame was washed out entirely, both bulwarks 
 were gone, the mainmast was gone from just above 
 the deck, and nothing but the night-heads and the 
 for'ard part of the top-gallant fo' castle was out of
 
 3<X) The Log of an Anciefit Mariner. 
 
 the sea. There was an old piece of canvas on 
 the fo'castle, canvas around the fo'top, and strips 
 of old canvas were flowing from the foreto'gallant 
 mast, evidently having been fastened there to at- 
 tract the attention of any ship which might come 
 in sight. 
 
 " Well, it is evident that no living being is on 
 that wreck," remarked Captain Bennett, " the crew 
 has been taken off by some vessel, long ago ; " 
 and he was in the act of bringing the hook on to 
 the bell. 
 
 •'.Captain Bennett." I interposed, " it will not 
 take a boat ten minutes to board her, and you may 
 find dead men in the fore-top; there may be a body 
 under that canvas on the fo'castle; or there may 
 be on board a record of events that will repay you 
 for the time and trouble of answering the specula- 
 tions that have been made." 
 
 So Mr. Smith, one of the officers, was dis- 
 patched, with orders to lift everything that might 
 cover a man's body, and also to search for a 
 record. 
 
 He put off from the steamer, and all hands 
 waited with manifest anxiety until he reached the 
 brig. We saw some of the men run up to the 
 fore-top, and others searched under the old canvas 
 on the fo'castle. At last, Mr. Smith waved his 
 hat to the steamer, and we saw them put a man 
 into the boat and shove off. The boat was soon 
 hoisted up, and this poor skeleton was gotten on
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 301 
 
 board and placed in the hands of the doctor, while 
 some money and a bundle containing papers re- 
 lating to the voyage were placed in the hands of 
 the captain. 
 
 As usual in such cases, the passengers crowded 
 around the almost lifeless man, asking him the 
 most absurd questions; but all were soon excluded 
 from his room save the doctor, that he might have 
 absolute repose and quiet; though his story was 
 ascertained while he was able to tell it, lest he 
 should not recover. 
 
 Thus it may be seen how very badly Captain 
 Bennett would have felt if he had happened to 
 proceed without making the search on the brig, 
 and afterwards had discovered the fact of this 
 man's presence upon it; for the captain is a fine 
 gentleman, with a kind and humane heart. 
 
 As I have said, the history was gathered from 
 the captain's own lips; for it was the captain of 
 the brig whom we had been so fortunate as to 
 save. And it was a long tale, of the suffering and 
 loss of life which had been experienced on his 
 vessel. He had sailed, some four months prior to 
 the date of our picking him up, from Humboldt 
 Bay, with a cargo of lumber, and carrying on deck 
 a heavy load of very large timber. He was bound 
 to Callao, and from there to Apia, on Upalo 
 Island, one of the Navigators. He had a crew of 
 six men and two mates, fifteen passengers, a cook 
 and a steward.
 
 302 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 He progressed very well until near the equator, 
 and longitude no° west, when a hurricane had 
 taken the mainmast away, and the brig, being 
 overloaded, became unmanageable. The deck- 
 load shifted, throwing the brig on her beam-ends, 
 carrying away the bulwarks, washing out the stern 
 frame, and rendering the vessel a completely 
 water-logged wreck. All the nautical instruments 
 were lost, together with all the provisions, except 
 a little cod-fish and one cask of water, which hap- 
 pened to be well secured forward of the deck-load. 
 Thus it will be seen that Providence had saved 
 but one man, and that he was able to repeat the 
 tale of long suffering and endurance which extend- 
 ed through a period of three months. During this 
 time, they had subsisted upon the pittance of 
 water and the little remnant of food while they 
 lasted, and then had come horrors which it makes 
 the blood run cold but to think of. During the 
 whole time, they had not seen a sail, and the cur- 
 rent had drifted the brig through forty degrees of 
 longitude and more than twenty degrees of lati- 
 tude, and how much farther the narrator did not 
 know; for, when we met her, she was going south- 
 ward, with close-reefed topsail and jib, guided by 
 a mysterious pilot in such a way as to intercept 
 the steamer, and, by the rescuing of the last man 
 on board, to transmit a tale the details of which I 
 cannot dwell upon. 
 
 Let it suffice that they endured all that men can
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 303 
 
 endure from hunger and thirst, catching a little 
 rain-water at various times, and the rest, as death 
 came to their relief from time to time, prolonging, 
 for awhile, their miserable existence. Six went 
 overboard in one day, about two weeks before we 
 ran across the brig, and one young man had gone 
 over only the day before, at least, so the captain 
 said; but the probability is of the strongest kind 
 that he had had a tooth in all or most of them, and 
 how all met their deaths will never be known. 
 But humanity compels us to accept the captain's 
 version; while, at the same time, we may draw our 
 own conclusions as to how he had held out for so 
 long a time without something to eat. 
 
 At least I drew my own conclusions; the captain, 
 with whom I "was well acquainted, spent half an 
 hour, in his room, in relating to me the details of 
 the four months, but neither he nor I touched upon 
 the question of how he had subsisted. We drew 
 a veil over the matter, and thanked providence 
 for rescuing one man from a death which was- 
 waiting patiently its victim, seemingly near at 
 hand, and restoring him to his family and friends.
 
 $04 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 Hoxolii.u 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 The Survivors of Lucknow — The Feast of 
 Lieuwaw — Lines to a Friend. 
 
 N the deck, at Hon- 
 olulu, I was met by 
 many old and very 
 dear friends, among 
 them Captain Meek, 
 the harbor master, 
 Governor John Dom- 
 inis and his very 
 agreeable lady, Chief 
 Justice Allen, Doctor McGreuer, and a host of 
 others, all Mad to see me, and all extending invi- 
 tations to their homes, in the kindest and most 
 hospitable manner in the world. 
 
 It must be remembered that the sailing or com- 
 ing into port of a steamer was considered an event 
 in Honolulu life, particularly when the steamer 
 was the "Moses Taylor," as she was commanded 
 by a great favorite; and it was a common thing 
 for the King and his band of music to be present, 
 as was tire case in this instance. 
 
 As I would not accept of a plate at the Gover- 
 nor's table, he and Captain John Meek soon fixed
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 305 
 
 me with Captain T. Long, who was keeping bach- 
 elor' s hall at the time, opposite the King's Palace. 
 Here I found a large square house, situated in a 
 large inclosure, beautifully laid out with trees and 
 shrubbery, and lived in this quiet home, as happy 
 as could be, with Captain Thomas Long, the great 
 oracle of Honolulu in all matters pertaining to 
 water, from the pure stream of which he is the 
 presiding genius, which is laid all over the city in 
 pipes, to the seas which wash the shores of any 
 quarter of the globe; particularly the Arctic Ocean, 
 he having- been further north than most other 
 navigators ; and having discovered and named 
 Kerguelan Island, and more than one other body 
 of land ; besides spending eight years of his life 
 on South Shetlands, or in making voyages to these 
 
 desolate shores in search of seal-skins. Not find- 
 ing the quality or quantity that he was in pursuit 
 of he visited the Navigator Islands and found an 
 abundant supply, where a great scarcity has ex- 
 isted for many years since. 
 
 The island upon which Honolulu stands is of 
 
 volcanic origin, and the hills have not been ex- 
 
 •20
 
 306 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 posed to the sun and rain long enough yet to pro- 
 duce any vegetation ; sugar is raised, with great 
 difficulty, in nearly every valley, and forms the 
 chief article of export. Nothing, however, is 
 raised without irrigation, although it rains some 
 during the winter months. 
 
 Even the limited valley in which Honolulu 
 stands, and which contains about five hundred 
 acres, bears everywhere the strongest evidence of 
 its having been recently produced. To see the 
 place, one of California's ravines must be imagined, 
 running up into high and rugged hills, until it ter- 
 minates, in a deep cut just wide enough for a 
 carriage, at Cape Horn, a jumping-ofl place, where 
 you look out upon the broad Pacific, with nothing 
 to break the monotony of the sight from where 
 you stand until you reach, with the extended vis- 
 ion of your mind's eye, the coast of California on 
 the north-east, the Arctic ocean on the north, and 
 Japan on the north-west. But immediately below 
 lies a most beautiful, panoramic view of an undu- 
 lating, meadowy plain, interspersed with groves of 
 evergreen trees, several shades darker than the 
 Green -swarded earth bearing the sucrar-cane fields 
 and highly cultivated patches of taro, with the 
 native-thatched hut peeping out from among the 
 rich foliage, beneath whose shade these children of 
 nature may be seen lying at full length upon the 
 grass, strangers to want, as to toil ; while their lit- 
 tle ones frolic around them, worshiping God by
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 307 
 
 their unalloyed happiness, dressed, as they are, 
 in a robe that was fashioned by the Great Maker 
 himself, and which fits so perfectly that no wrinkles 
 can be found marring its beauty, and the texture 
 of which is so durable that one suit lasts a lifetime, 
 being scarcely deepened in color by constant ex- 
 posure to a tropical sun. 
 
 The trail turns sharply down the steep, rocky 
 and winding declivities, until, with a sure-footed 
 horse, you find yourself confronting one of the 
 many pictures of this life, wherein distance lends 
 enchantment to the view. This is one end of the 
 Para, the great drive, and about the only one on 
 this island. The view is to the south, and you 
 overlook the town of Honolulu, with its meander- 
 ing- stream of cool water, its hundreds of neat and 
 well-shaded cottages, and beyond, the broad, placid 
 waters upon whose bosom repose those earthly 
 paradises, the islands, above which I would fain 
 hover until I could select one wherein, till waters 
 cease to run, to live the life that Adam "begun," 
 beneath the shade of a cocoa-grove, in heavenly 
 quiet, peace and love. 
 
 In the city, or town, of Honolulu the houses are 
 built of adobe, straw, coral, cement and wood. 
 They are situated in ample yards, thickly clad 
 with green grass and shaded by tall trees, making, 
 sometimes, a foliage so dense as to be almost im- 
 pervious to the sun. The climate being very 
 warm, fresh flowers sflowinQf with the richest colors 
 are always in bloom.
 
 308 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 The streets are narrow, and are formed of coral, 
 leaving no room for street-cars, which, however, 
 there is no need of, as nearly every one rides on 
 horseback or in a carriage. It is a missionary city, 
 having many ministers, who divide the honors with 
 whaling captains, who form a most important part 
 of the population. Sailors are a privileged class 
 in the community, and captains are always treated 
 with respect. 
 
 The present king places the population at about 
 sixty-five thousand. At the time of Cook's re-dis- 
 covery of the islands of this group, there is no 
 doubt that he over-estimated the population of this 
 one. He numbered it at fifty thousand, but was 
 doubtless deceived by having the people follow 
 him from bay to bay, his being one of the first 
 ships they had ever seen. 
 
 King Kamehameha the First, was accompa- 
 nied in his rides by one hundred chiefs, weighing 
 over four hundred pounds each. The last of these 
 nobles was Mr. Parquee, who died not long ago. 
 Under this king, over fifty years ago, there ex- 
 isted a spirit of industry, which was introduced and 
 enforced by the ruler himself, although a lazy 
 man. His subjects were compelled to go forth 
 from their mats to work in the para-patch or in the 
 ship-yard ; and they expended all their skill and 
 ingenuity in building the large war-canoes, which 
 were of such dimensions, (being each one hundred 
 and fifty feet long, and capable of carrying five
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 309 
 
 hundred men,) and constructed in such numbers as 
 to permit the king - to embark accompanied by 
 thousands of strong and brave warriors with their 
 accouterments, which consisted of clubs, mats, 
 wigs, masks, shields, etc., together with clothing, 
 provisions and water. 
 
 With this fleet, with its men and materials, the 
 king navigated among the whole group, subduing 
 armies of rebellious subjects ; and the undaunted 
 spirit of bravery, skill and ingenuity which enabled 
 them to overcome the dangers and difficulties of 
 the sea is a sufficient proof of the great superiority 
 of these people at that time — living under the laws 
 of their own rulers, and in possession of all the 
 blessings of industry — over the people to-day, who 
 merely exist as creatures under the rule of foreign- 
 ers and missionaries, with all the endless miseries 
 which idleness entails upon a people. With a 
 complete loss of anything like a warlike spirit, and 
 of all their energy, skill, and reasoning faculties, 
 they have no longer a voice in the council of war or 
 of peace, but are treated more as slaves than as 
 what they once were — the freest of the free. 
 
 After fifty years of missionary influence they can 
 speak no English, and there is no affinity between 
 the races. The natives, like the Indians in Nevada 
 and other parts of America, and like the natives 
 of almost the whole Polynesian world, while 
 ready to accept all that will be given them, are 
 entirely without that divine attribute which is to
 
 310 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 be found in all other people, and with which even 
 the dogs have been endowed — gratitude. And in 
 all my researches of ancient voyages I cannot dis- 
 cover that they have ever been influenced, in the 
 slightest degree, by any other than that meanest 
 of all human traits — love of self. They will not 
 give you a cocoa-nut nor a banana without manag- 
 ing to get its equivalent; and this same trait of 
 theirs leads them to attempt to appropriate every- 
 thing upon the ship on which they gain footing. 
 The fear of the prisoner's chain-gang, since the 
 laws of the land have been enforced by the foreign 
 population, keep them within bounds, but the 
 spirit is still there. 
 
 Give them what you will, extend to them every 
 kindness and hospitality, and all will be received 
 without gratitude, and with a look which says : 
 " We accept this to accommodate you, since this 
 is what you are for — to give to us and to wait 
 upon us, you, who are slaves, since you work; 
 while we are gentlemen, who never work." And 
 the half-castes are worse than the natives, being a 
 poor specimen of mankind. They have generally 
 been taught to read and write, but, in the mean- 
 time, have been brought up in idleness, and are 
 admitted to be the most worthless race, as a gen- 
 eral thing, that was ever produced by the amalga- 
 mation of two peoples. Delicate in constitution 
 and in structure, they are deceitful, proud, arro- 
 gant, indolent, improvident and faithless.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 311 
 
 I was told by a missionary, who had been a 
 resident of the island for forty years, that it was 
 impossible to make anything of a Kanaka of the 
 present day. As things are, I am not disposed to 
 differ with him, but am loth to believe but that, if 
 they had been taught by these same missionaries 
 the manifold blessings of industry, and that it was 
 God's peremptory order that man should get his 
 bread by the sweat of his brow, and if the only 
 language taught had been English, a different race 
 from the present would have been produced. 
 
 I was talking with another missionary, one day, 
 about the Kanaka's total ignorance of this lan- 
 guage. 
 
 "Captain," said he, "what can you do with a 
 race that has no brains? A Chinaman can come 
 here and make money; but not a Kanaka on the 
 island can keep a store, for not one has any math- 
 ematical ability; even when he is a perfect gentle- 
 man, he is not able to keep accounts." 
 
 I was informed that scarcely more than one- 
 eicdnh or one-tenth of these islands are arable. 
 Notwithstanding this, the cattle have been allowed 
 to eat the herbage from the mountainous districts; 
 but, where, fifty years ago, cattle were imported 
 from Tahiti, they are now exported to that place. 
 
 The yam, which was formerly so abundant on 
 the Sandwich Islands, has now nearly died out. 
 Indeed, the Kanakas, who are particularly fond of 
 a sea life, have left off cultivating their little garden
 
 312 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 spots, and have shipped as seamen on board the 
 whalers that frequent this coast. 
 
 The para is the plant from which is produced 
 that favorite food, poi. The root resembles the 
 sweet potato, but is darker, heavier and firmer. 
 It requires a year to mature, more than half of 
 which time it is kept under water. The green 
 top, when boiled, makes a good and palatable sort 
 of greens. When ready for preparation, the root 
 is mashed and worked, with much labor and time, 
 water being added as it thickens, until it is of the 
 consistency of paste; and one-finger poi is that 
 which is so thick that it may be carried to the 
 mouth by means of one finger; two-finger poi is 
 thinner, and must be eaten with the assistance of 
 two fingers; while three-finger poi can be car- 
 ried only on three fingers. When fresh, it is of a 
 reddish tinge and almost tasteless; but, in a day 
 or so, it acquires an acidity which makes it not 
 only very palatable, but, no doubt, the most 
 healthful and nutritious substance which the human 
 stomach can receive." 
 
 But, after this long interlude, I will return to my 
 arrival at Honolulu, in 1871. The "Nevada" 
 came in from New Zealand upon the next day, 
 and two days afterwards both boats sailed again; 
 the "Nevada" being commanded by Captain 
 James Blethen, an old friend of mine since 1836, 
 
 * I will say that this palatable substance, to an unaccustomed palate, 
 greatly resembleth sour paste. — Ed.
 
 The Log of an Aiicient Mariner. 313 
 
 when I found him in Cronstadt, Russia, he being 
 at the time chief mate of the ship " Pluto," of New 
 York, while I was second mate of the ship "Eliza," 
 of Philadelphia. He was young, and very good- 
 looking, with a physical force superior to that of 
 most young men of the day; and he is now as 
 fine a specimen of an intelligent ship-master as 
 can be found, although, while I am writing this 
 portion of my log, he is not upon a ship, but holds 
 the position of San Francisco Harbor Master. 
 The departure of the steamers left me with a 
 month's leisure, which time was most agreeably 
 spent. 
 
 One day Captain Long had been aboard of one 
 of our coal-ships, and, in returning to the shore, 
 he was so unfortunate as to sprain his ankle. He 
 had been in the habit of running away from me 
 two or three times a week, leaving me alone with 
 my thoughts and with his books, until quite late in 
 the evening. I now found that he had spent the 
 time at the house of a young and beautiful widow, 
 who, now that he was laid up with a very bad foot, 
 showed him all those attentions which only women 
 understand bestowing, in sickness. 
 
 I used to badger him considerably about the 
 lonely life he was leading, and about the debt of 
 gratitude which he owed to his fair friend (for, 
 thanks to her care, he was again around), saying 
 that his heart must be as cold as one of his Arctic 
 winters, instead of being, as I had supposed, as
 
 314 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 warm and susceptible as the soil of the Navigator's. 
 He said nothing, but still waters always run deep, 
 and in due time two hearts were made happy, for 
 he took unto himself a wife and eight children, and 
 I only regretted that I was absent at the time, 
 as I should certainly have claimed the privilege of 
 giving away the bride. I cannot describe the 
 wedding, but I know that it was an enjoyable oc- 
 casion; that the bride, as is a bride's privilege, was 
 the most lovely there, and that my friend, the 
 groom, was a tall, fine, and intelligent-looking 
 man, a widower and the father of a large family, 
 who, in his young days, must have been remarka- 
 bly good-looking; but old Time makes war upon 
 everything that is young and beautiful, and gener- 
 ally manages, although he does not write, to make 
 his mark. 
 
 Mr. Charles Phlenger was our agent, and the 
 head of the house of Hackfelt & Company. The 
 island owes to him, more than to any other man, 
 what prosperity there is among the sugar estates. 
 Owing to his sagacity and liberal mind he ad- 
 vanced, years ago, large sums of money, which, 
 to-day, has given him the consignment of two-thirds 
 of all the sugar on the group, beside making suc- 
 cessful the estates. 
 
 I visited Mrs. Dominis, a lady from Boston and 
 the mother of the governor. She had lived upon 
 this island for half a century. Her husband was 
 an American ship-master, born in Italy, and he was
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 315 
 
 the inventor of the patent truss, with which the 
 lower yards of all ships are slung; and also of an 
 ingenious device whereby the operator, by moving a 
 slide or two, is able to cut any fore and alt-sail or 
 square-sail, and can make out latitude and longi- 
 tude with the same instrument. He built the fine 
 house, in Honolulu, and planted the large trees 
 that are seen upon the entrance to Washington 
 Place. He sailed on a voyage to China, some four 
 years ago, and has never been heard from since; 
 and it has been thought that they brought up 
 among the Piscadores — a dangerous group of 
 islands, inhabited by unfriendly savages. 
 
 It was in this splendid mansion, erected by the 
 father of the governor, that I made a visit some 
 twenty years ago, with Mary Wakeman. It was 
 surrounded, even then, by tropical fruit and shade 
 trees from fifty to seventy-five feet high. All is 
 now, however, much improved, the hostess alone 
 remaining unchanged in kindness and hospitality. 
 
 Indeed, my friends all seemed unchanged, for 
 Time had dealt most leniently with them, and I 
 could hardly realize that twenty years had elapsed 
 since I had seen them before. 
 
 And yet, when I called the daughter of my 
 friend, John Meek, Eliza Meek, I discovered that 
 I was not addressing the one who had been a 
 beauty of sixteen twenty years before, but a 
 younger sister, Becky, and the wife of Mr. Horace 
 Crabb, therefore, Mrs. Crabb. When I came to
 
 
 
 1 6 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 see Eliza, who is married to King William, I was 
 reminded that the wheel of time had rolled over, 
 and that the girl of sweet sixteen no longer is; but 
 in her place is a fine, matronly woman of more 
 than thirty-five years. 
 
 When the " Nebraska " returned from Australia, 
 and the " Moses Taylor" from San Francisco, my 
 duties again called me to the dock, where I re- 
 mained constantly while they were in port, and 
 had a good opportunity to study the character of 
 the natives of both sexes. 
 
 The native passengers that were carried over 
 the route demanded their rights as strenously as 
 if they had been refused them before, and were 
 determined to secure them at all hazards, now that 
 they were traveling upon Yankee boats. They 
 all wear a white cloth with several turns around 
 the hat or cap, and a piece hanging down behind 
 about two feet long and a foot wide. Some of 
 these cloths are merely an old towel or two sewed 
 together, while others are of very fine, open work, 
 ornamented with gold thread, which makes them 
 quite dazzling as they blow out behind, like flags. 
 Being white, I at first thought that these appen- 
 dages were flags of truce, or of peace and friend- 
 ship ; but I soon discovered from their belligerent 
 language and behavior that I was mistaken ; and I 
 was informed that these bandages were emblematic 
 of the battle of Lucknow. It appears that they 
 had suffered greatly in that battle, but by their
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 317 
 
 obstinacy and endurance, the small number that 
 was left finally became victorious, hence the name 
 Lucknow, and the badge, to remind the wearer 
 that, with the same traits of character, there is 
 luck now in store for them, provided they stick 
 together ; therefore, you never see them alone, 
 but in numbers, holding each other by the hand. 
 They never speak to any person unless he 
 wears the flag, and when they come aboard 
 the steamer the first place they visit is the 
 galley, where they all eagerly inquire of the 
 cook what they are going to have for din- 
 ner. Not being answered in a satisfactory man- 
 ner, but being requested in rather an authorita- 
 tive tone of voice to get out of the galley-door, 
 they come aft, and patiently await, in a speculative 
 mood, the different dishes, most of which are en- 
 tirely new to them. They generally complain of 
 the food, and of the way it is served to them, of 
 the want of ventilation, and of the want of a bath- 
 room apiece. 
 
 Thus it may be seen that, although the ships 
 were the best ventilated in the world, carrying the 
 best of provisions and the usual amount of baths, 
 they were not equal to New Zealand, where it 
 rains every day for nine months in the year; and 
 the most of them, being shepherds, could get a 
 bath when they liked; as the atmosphere is in a 
 greater commotion there than on any other part 
 of the globe, it stifled them to come under a roof
 
 31 8 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 at all. As for the manner of cooking and serving, 
 they had never seen anything like it before, so it 
 was natural that they should complain; besides, 
 as the poor fellows had had a hard time all their 
 lives, a state of complaint had become chronic or 
 a sort of second nature. 
 
 But a few years of connection with the world 
 by steam will do away with their prejudices, and, 
 as they become more cosmopolitan, they will be a 
 fine race, physically; much superior to the Ameri- 
 cans. 
 
 While upon the island I was frequently invited 
 to dine with the king at Papaita, a cocoa-nut 
 erove about five miles from Honolulu. At this 
 place, we enjoyed ourselves very highly until a 
 late hour of the night, when we would disperse 
 throuofh the darkness to the carriages in waiting. 
 There would be quite a competition among the 
 party, each striving to arrive first at Honolulu; 
 but Captain John Meek was generally successful, 
 and it puzzled the natives considerably to deter- 
 mine how he could out-drive them, as the road 
 was very rocky and dangerous, and the utmost 
 care was needed to enable any one to drive over 
 it in safety; but, upon close examination, it was 
 found that the clever old captain gave private di- 
 rections to a Kanaka boy to bring out to the 
 grove, every time, his old white horse, and to 
 keep it right ahead of him, in the best part of the 
 road, all the way to Honolulu. So the captain
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 319 
 
 followed the old white horse, at a great rate of 
 speed, and left his friends picking their way along, 
 about a mile behind. 
 
 I will say here that these cocoa-nut groves, such 
 as the one in which we dined, are most beautiful, 
 and differ entirely from any other grove that can 
 be imagined. The trees are some seventy-five feet 
 high, some erect, but many leaning at different 
 angles. They are twelve or fifteen inches in 
 diameter, and not a twig is to be seen upon the 
 smooth bark until the tuft at the top puts forth its 
 long arms in a wild manner, bearing leaves which 
 might be likened to the long fingers of some 
 spectre waiting to clutch a victim, should one be 
 offered at about dusk. 
 
 Among the oldest white residents of the city, 
 none are looked upon with more reverence than 
 Captain John Meeks, an American, who has resided 
 on the island long enough, and with progeny suf- 
 ficient, to be ranked as a patriarch. He is over 
 eighty years of age, and has resided in Honolulu 
 since 1809. He is on terms of intimacy with the 
 king, a nd j s sa id to have taught him the classic 
 game of poker, a favorite pastime with his majesty. 
 
 It was while it was my good fortune to be a 
 guest at the house of Captain Meeks, that I wit- 
 nessed and participated in one of the most beauti- 
 ful and pleasing festivals I ever beheld; this was 
 that of Lieuwaw. 
 
 Looking out of my window, one day ; I noticed
 
 320 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 the erection of a swing in the captain's ample 
 garden. Soon after, another of greater pretense 
 was put up with some ceremony. I was informed 
 that the erection of the swings was the commence- 
 ment of a grand native feast, named as above, and 
 which would be kept up for several days, and I, 
 therefore, felt much interest in watching its pro- 
 gress. 
 
 Every afternoon the swings were kept in 
 constant motion by youths of both sexes, the de- 
 scendants and native friends and acquaintance of 
 the patriarchal American. 
 
 As the pure native custom prevailed in this yard 
 to a greater extent than in any other in Honolulu, 
 I had every opportunity to observe manners and 
 customs, but failed to observe any act by young or 
 old which could be termed objectionable. 
 
 I finally saw an unusual stir among the men, 
 when several large kettles of water were placed 
 over the fires, which were already prepared by dig- 
 ging holes in the ground, some two feet deep, with 
 stones built up to receive the kettles. A large hog 
 and half a dozen fine roasters, all nicely dressed, 
 were produced. The hog was stuffed with hot 
 stones, while the pigs were cut up into pieces, 
 weighing about a pound each, which, together with 
 a dozen chickens, half a dozen each of turke} r s and 
 geese, with a large number offish of various kinds, 
 were all tied up in leaves, having about a dozen 
 wrappings around each bundle. Salt water was
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 321 
 
 poured over each package before it was tied up 
 with the vegetables and fruit. In the meantime, 
 the house, fence and swings had been decorated 
 with evergreens and garlands of flowers. 
 
 The great oven was a large hole dug in the 
 ground and paved with big stones, well swept off, 
 and all being hot, as were those which were inside- 
 of the big hog, constituting its only stuffing. The 
 guests were continually arriving ; the ladies and 
 children being dressed in the finest possible man- 
 ner. Their head-dresses excelled my powers of 
 description, while the great variety of the hues of 
 their dresses and floral decorations — mincrling 
 green, red, pink and yellow — made a most cheerful 
 picture. The gentlemen who dropped in were all 
 arrayed in a picturesque manner, in fine white 
 linen clothes ; also decorated with garlands of 
 flowers. 
 
 At last the great Lieuwaw was pronounced done, 
 the earth was shoveled off, and the several mats 
 removed, until the thick covering of large leaves, 
 with which all had been encased, was reached, all 
 dripping with steam. These having been removed, 
 the numerous bundles of meat, of fowl, and of 
 vegetables, with the fruit and the stuffed hogs, 
 were placed upon the board, which consisted of 
 mats arranged in rows. When the guests, to the 
 number of ninety, were seated, a dish of water was 
 passed around, in which each dipped his or her 
 
 fingers; then the feast commenced in good earnest. 
 
 21
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 323 
 
 A dozen young waiters and half a dozen carvers 
 were kept busy, and at four o'clock in the after- 
 noon, what would have stocked a respectable- 
 sized market in any town in Mexico, had entirely 
 disappeared, and my attention was again turned 
 upon the merry and child-like groups about the 
 swings. The simple pastimes following the feast 
 were kept up until dark, and then the great festival 
 was over. 
 
 To illustrate another phase of native character, 
 I will mention one other incident. Bathing and 
 surf-swimming is a favorite pastime with both 
 sexes, and they have become the most expert 
 swimmers I have ever seen. There were, in 
 town, a number of early risers, who were in the 
 habit of taking promenades before sunrise. One 
 morning in November a number of ladies and gen- 
 tlemen were on the dock, looking at the fish along 
 the bottom. A fish called the squid, which is 
 highly prized there, was seen in about five feet of 
 water, under a piece of coral. In a moment, one 
 of the ladies, a half-caste, had divested herself of 
 nearly all her wardrobe, and, in another moment, 
 would have been in the water, but the fish took up 
 safer quarters in tall water, out of sight. I men- 
 tion the incident to show how impossible it is ever 
 to change that nature which God has implanted in 
 the breast.
 
 324 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 LINES. 
 
 From the lodge of the Hermit of Owyhee, 
 
 I look far over the deep, blue sea, 
 
 And think of my wanderings, far and wide, 
 
 And all I've seen on the rolling tide ; 
 
 While the moon bends out of the charmed night 
 
 To bathe me in floods of mellow light, 
 
 As I look from earth and the peaceful sea, 
 
 Above, to the starry canopy. 
 
 And I ask of the Hermit of this cool lodge 
 
 To tell me why all the natives dodge 
 
 From the light of their God in the full moon's time, 
 
 As though stained dark with the mark of crime. 
 
 For the voice of Nature is calling loud, 
 
 And surely her sprites have hid each cloud, 
 
 While she gilds the meadow and gilds the street 
 
 To-night, for the tread of happy feet ; 
 
 And yet over all a deep silence reigns, 
 
 Deserted the streets and ghostly plains ; 
 
 "While in all of this spot of calm Owyhee, 
 
 My only friend is a cocoa-tree. 
 
 With the whole of the gifts that the Gods bestow 
 
 Upon frail mortals that dwell below, 
 
 Is the Hermit who dwells on this island blest, 
 
 With angels guarding his peaceful rest ; 
 
 While still I am doomed to the lonely deep, 
 
 And must through the years my vigils keep, 
 
 And from reef to reef, and from shore to shore, 
 
 The islands of all this world explore. 
 
 So I pray that my old, and my best of friends, 
 
 Fxert himself till he makes amends ; 
 
 While he never forgets, although Lo.ng and slim, 
 
 Alwavs, how much I have thought of him.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 325 
 
 When at last no longer relentless time 
 
 Compels us to roam in every clime, 
 
 We will settle down on our island blest, 
 
 And sink to the welcome, long, long rest ; 
 
 For I know that my Hermit and all I love 
 
 Will dwell with me in the sky above; 
 
 In a green island home that our heav'n will be, 
 
 Far, far above this green Owyhee — 
 
 When the centre star of the Pleiades 
 
 Is home to the wanderer of the seas. 
 
 Oh ! my friend, when life shall have ceased to be, 
 
 Come thou, on an eagle's wings to me. 
 
 Honolulu, June 30, 1871, 
 
 Full Moon, 11 p. m.
 
 12 6 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 CHAPTER XV 
 
 Sugar Estates — Annu Island — Symmetrical Sisters, 
 pushipucia axd clpalaxakahela. 
 
 NETWEEN steamers, I took a trip to 
 Lahaina, to spend a few days with my 
 old friend, Mr. Campbell, of the 
 firm of Campbell & Turten, of the 
 Pioneer sugar estates. I embarked 
 in their yacht, " Netty Merrill," of 
 two hundred tons burden, and left 
 Honolulu at dark, anchoring at La- 
 haina at seven o'clock next morn- 
 ing, having made the run of about eight miles 
 during the night. I was received at the landing 
 by Mr. Campbell, and was taken to his house, a 
 distance of about an eighth of a mile, through a 
 picturesque country. The greatest hospitality was 
 extended to me, and in no part of the world have 
 I found better beds or a better board than those 
 I found at Lahaina. 
 
 Captain Campbell is a Scotchman by birth, but 
 a cosmopolitan by nature, he and his partner 
 having been roving sailors during thirty years. 
 They have visited nearly every group of islands in 
 the Pacific, and become acquainted with the native
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 327 
 
 character and with the native productions. Com- 
 ing- to Lahaina, they found a spot which their ex- 
 perience told them was so well suited to make 
 what would be a successful experiment, that they 
 soon rented a small piece of land and raised some 
 sugar-cane. Having between them but seventy- 
 five dollars, of course their first year's operations 
 were limited. They cut and made two rollers, and 
 for cog-wheels they used great wooden pegs stuck 
 into a wheel. The next year they hired eight 
 hundred dollars and rented more land, and, with 
 their ox-power and primitive wooden machinery, 
 made several barrels of fine, light-brown sugar, 
 when Mr. Charles Phlenger visited them one day, 
 and seeing what persevering and untiring energy 
 had accomplished, proposed to them to furnish the 
 means with which to purchase five hundred acres 
 of land, right on the former site of Lahaina, when 
 it was the capital, before Honolulu became the 
 residence of the King; and to send them a mill 
 from Boston, which would, between sunrise and 
 sunset, turn out eight tons of sugar daily. Terms 
 were agreed upon, and a mill which, in running 
 order, cost $61,300, was put up; and now, twelve 
 years afterwards, Mr. Campbell and his partner, 
 having paid both principal and interest in five 
 years, have had for seven years the income from 
 twelve hundred tons of sugar a year; besides own- 
 ing the property and other plantations. This 
 estate is the most prosperous one upon the group;
 
 328 The Log of .an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 and Captain McKee tells me that alterations and 
 mistakes have cost the different plantations twenty- 
 five thousand dollars; so it will be seen that they 
 were nearly all started by men who were new to 
 the business. 
 
 About five hundred acres in the Pioneer Estates 
 are under cultivation; and this tract is situated 
 upon the lee side of the island of Morvee, at the 
 landing, or about three cable-lengths back of the 
 beach. It is level land, descending gently toward 
 the beach, and is of a reddish colored earth, which 
 is formed of the washing from the mountains im- 
 mediately in the rear, and is, apparently, the de- 
 composition of volcanic rock. The plantation is 
 watered by a stream that flows through it. It 
 never rains; but a heavy dew collects during the 
 fine, cool nights, and the land is irrigated during 
 the dry season. This makes the sugar earlier and 
 of a better quality than that which comes from the 
 plantations on the weather side of the island, as 
 the sugar will not granulate where there is too 
 much rain, and the cane, although it may be 
 laro-er, contains less saccharine matter. The land 
 is cut into squares and surrounded by gutters; and 
 riffles, in which the seeds are planted, are sunk a 
 few inches lower than the rest, so as to hold the 
 water; and quite a deposit of rich earth, like a red 
 mud, is left on the ground when the water is 
 turned off. 
 
 The borer, on some estates, is a great destroyer,
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 329 
 
 but is killed by throwing ashes into the riffles; then, 
 when the water is turned on lye is formed, which 
 kills them. 
 
 Lahaina has a climate like that of Peru. The 
 mountains, at whose base the plantation lies, con- 
 dense the moisture from the clouds before they 
 pass over to the lee-side, and the peculiar forma- 
 tion of the gulches running into the mountains 
 tends to trend the winds to the east and west, 
 leaving Lahaina between the two, with only gentle 
 breezes. 
 
 The mornings and evenings are quite cold, but 
 at midday the temperature stands at 72 or 82 . 
 During my stay upon the island the southerly 
 breeze was cool and bracing; but as the old set- 
 tlers say that the regular southerly wind is warm, 
 it may be that this was the back or eddy wind 
 from the trades, which blow over the high land 
 and create a cool back-current, which is said to 
 extend only a few miles off shore. Although there 
 is no rain, there never fails to be an abundance of 
 water in the streams for all purposes of irrigation ; 
 and as the ground is overflown no weeds grow, 
 and but little hoeincr is done. 
 
 As seed, three pieces of the cane are planted. 
 These pieces are cut near or at the top, and are 
 put into the ground with a slight covering of earth. 
 Each piece is about a foot long, and the three 
 pieces give a cluster of canes that spread out, when 
 above the ground, as they grow, filling all the
 
 330 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 intervening ground between the hills, or, rather, 
 between the ditches, for the ground is cut into ridges 
 a foot or eighteen inches high, and the seed is planted 
 in the gutters between, about five feet apart, the 
 rows being about the same distance from each 
 other. The cane requires nine months to ripen 
 and is so planted, in the different fields, as to 
 keep the mill running through nine months of the 
 year. 
 
 In some places the joints of the cane are only 
 about two inches long, while in others they are 
 over a foot in leno-th. The cane averages five 
 feet of stalk, with three or four feet of a bushy top 
 of long- blades or leaves, resembling - grass. This 
 top is excellent food for the cattle, after the cane 
 is ripened and cut ; and it is ripe when it tassels, 
 and depreciates in value afterward, as it loses sac- 
 charine matter daily. 
 
 The mill employs two hundred men, fifty horses, 
 and one hundred jacks and mules. As it is not a 
 laborious work, many boys and women are em- 
 ployed in cutting the cane, which is loaded into 
 carts and hauled, over level roads, by two- mule 
 teams, to the mill, which is situated in the middle 
 of the cane fields. Here it is passed under a big 
 iron roller, at once, which presses out the juice, 
 when the crushed cane is dried in the sun and used 
 as fuel in the furnaces. 
 
 The ground under the cane is left covered with 
 dead leaves and other debris, which is burned,
 
 The Log of aft Ancient Mariner. 331 
 
 the ashes serving to kill the insects, which some- 
 times destroy the cane. 
 
 The average yield is two tons of sugar to the 
 acre of cane, and the sugar from the mill is easily 
 and speedily delivered in half barrels, perfectly 
 bright and clean, to a lighter, from a short jetty; it is 
 conveyed a quarter or half of a mile, over the reef, 
 through about five feet of water, to the schooner 
 " Netty Merrill," lying in five fathoms. This ves- 
 sel is of the New York pilot-boat model, cost six- 
 teen thousand dollars, and belongs to the estate, 
 being kept constantly employed between Hono- 
 lulu and this plantation. 
 
 The mill and engine, as I have said, all ready 
 for work, with the rollers, clarifiers, vacuum, cen- 
 trifugal machines, steam-pumps, steam-boilers, 
 coolers, with the buildings for these, together with 
 the tanks and other incidentals, according to the 
 estimate given me by Mr. Campbell, cost sixty- 
 one thousand three hundred dollars. The engrin- 
 eer is paid two thousand dollars per annum, and 
 the men are paid six dollars per month. The peo- 
 ple at Lahaina are very poor, and really have to 
 work to earn enough to procure eatables. Fish 
 are high and scarce ; fishermen are few, and are 
 the only ones who own boats or canoes. Thou- 
 sands of these natives have been off on whalers 
 all their lives, but generally, now, that source of 
 employment is failing, and all those who can pro- 
 cure work on the su^ar estate, do so. And I do
 
 33 2 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 not see, as the Chinese are so numerous, but that 
 the natives will always be compelled to work at 
 the lowest of wages. 
 
 Mr. Campbell owns other plantations, upon the 
 north side of East Morvee, and other mills will 
 probably soon be erected, provided the govern- 
 ment at Honolulu does not overtax the planta- 
 tions, in which case most of them will leave en- 
 tirely, taking their machinery with them to the 
 Navigator Islands. 
 
 The ground at Lahaina, when not under culti- 
 vation, is covered with grass, and the gardens 
 yield every vegetable. Irish potatoes grow in the 
 mountains, but are not cultivated to any extent. 
 The taro and bread-fruit are abundant ; but there 
 are no oranges nor yams, and but few bananas. 
 
 Trees are abundant everywhere, and appear to 
 be of the same species as those growing on the 
 Navigator Islands. Many miles of stone wall have 
 been built here, the stones coming from the mount- 
 ains. 
 
 There are about seven hundred inhabitants in 
 Lahaina; two churches, one a Roman Catholic, and 
 one a Presbyterian; but nearly all the huts are 
 gone to decay, and three-fourths are tenantless. 
 Nearly all the shops are kept by the Chinese, who 
 are also often employed upon the estates. 
 
 Most of the females, here, as elsewhere upon 
 the group, are tatooed, more or less ; the old ones 
 all over the palms of the hands, around the ankles,
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 333 
 
 on the temples and upon the backs of the fingers. 
 But the Chinese seem destined to people this 
 group, sometime in the future. The first king and 
 all his people were very industrious, everybody 
 under his reign being taught to be always em- 
 ployed at something, so that the result was that 
 the land and the sea gave of their plentitude an 
 abundance of everything; but the Chinese now 
 fill all the industries of the country, the missiona- 
 ries, since their rule, having neglected to teach the 
 blessings of labor ; so, as I have already said, the 
 half-castes are worse than useless, and the curse of 
 idleness is already upon the land; and if the sugar 
 interest were taken from Lahaina, the condition of 
 this little place would be the same as that of thirty 
 years ago, with the curse that civilization entails 
 upon them — poor, innocent people — added. 
 
 It is worthy of remark, that, while I was at La- 
 haina, the corpse of Mr. Tread well, an American, 
 and the captain of a whale-ship, who had settled 
 here, and held the office of sheriff of Lahaina for 
 twenty-two years, being beloved by all who knew 
 him, was landed from the steamer, he having died 
 at Honolulu. Being in the midst of the natives, I 
 had been watching their animated countenances, 
 and was surprised to hear, all in an instant, the 
 most mournful wailings, and to see the shedding 
 of floods of tears. The sound made was the most 
 doleful one which I have ever heard, and is called 
 the death-wail. It was joined in by both young
 
 334 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 and old during the presence of the corpse in their 
 midst, after which their former cheerfulness and 
 gayety were immediately resumed. 
 
 In accordance with orders received from Mr. 
 Webb, I embarked on the steamer " Nevada " for 
 the Navigator Islands, to locate a coal-station 
 there. This duty was duly performed; but before 
 I speak of that group, a description of which I will 
 reserve for another chapter, I will mention the 
 incidents of my stay of two weeks upon Annu 
 Island. 
 
 When I landed on the beach of this island I 
 was met by all the villagers, about two hundred 
 men, women and children, all seeming eager to 
 serve me, and to be my friends ; but I had 
 scarcelv landed before one pfirl, about sixteen 
 years old, came to me and made signs of friend- 
 ship, presenting me with a neat wreath of flowers, 
 which I very readily received, when she com- 
 menced to button my waist-bands, to brush my 
 coat and to take care of me generally, my person 
 having been much neglected ; so much so, in fact, 
 that I was quite in pieces. 
 
 I soon observed another girl, who seemed about 
 fourteen years of age, but unlike her sister, she 
 was as wild as a deer; she would come up to 
 within ten feet of me and stop; then, after fixing 
 her eyes on me for a few moments, she would dart 
 off a^ain, like a frightened child of nature, as she 
 was.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 335 
 
 I will attempt to give a description of these two 
 girls, who were the daughters of a Kanaka from 
 the Sandwich Islands, a brother of Kenow, gover- 
 nor of Tahio, the next island north-west of Waho; 
 and who were named Push-i-pu-cia and Cip-a-la- 
 nak-a- he-la. Their father spoke English; and their 
 mother was a very light copper color, and was 
 fully equal, -in every respect, to the Greek Slave or 
 to Cleopatra. 
 
 The girls had high foreheads, which gave every 
 indication of intelligence, with plump cheeks and 
 a chin to match, and lips of just the proper thick- 
 ness. Their eyebrows were well-defined, with 
 more than the usual arch, and long silky eye-lashes 
 were the drapery or window-curtains through which 
 the soul peeped out, employing the crystaline 
 medium of a pair of bright penetrating black eyes, 
 mild as those of the gazelle in Pushipucia, and wild 
 as those of the deer in Cipalanakahela. 
 
 Their teeth were more like pearls than like 
 ivory, while their hair was cut about eighteen 
 inches long, and was dyed or bleached to a golden 
 tinge of auburn, and was very soft and fine. At 
 the time of my arrival they wore it erect, having it 
 neatly done up in lime, and being snow-white it 
 gave them a curious appearance. 
 
 Their features were all delicately formed; their 
 hands and feet were no larger than are those of a 
 well-grown American girl at the age of twelve, 
 and their waists could have been easily spanned
 
 336 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 by a man's two hands. Their bodies and limbs 
 were of the most symmetrical; and the following 
 is the information which is the result of measure- 
 ment : 
 
 Pushipucia is sixteen years old, and is five feet 
 three inches in height; she measures around the 
 breast, thirty-six inches; around the waist, twenty 
 inches; around the thigh, thirty-one inches; around 
 the bottom, forty-seven inches; around the calf, 
 eighteen inches; around the ankle, nine inches; 
 her foot is eisfht inches lono-, and her hand seven 
 inches. Cipalanakahela is fourteen years old, and 
 five feet one inch in height; she measures around 
 the breast, thirty-seven inches; around the waist, 
 twenty inches; around the seat, thirty-three inches; 
 around the thigh, twenty-three inches; around the 
 calf, sixteen inches; around the ankle, eight inches ; 
 her foot is eight inches long, and her hand seven 
 and a half inches. 
 
 They were in a state of complete nudity, with 
 the exception of a fringe of leaves around the 
 waist. These leaves are from the ti-plant, and are 
 pointed, being about eighteen inches long and 
 two inches broad, and as soft as silk-velvet. In 
 color they are deep green, bronze, golden, silver, 
 and straw-color; and when they are placed to- 
 gether, and arranged by their plump brown hands, 
 in the most artistic manner, they constitute one of 
 the prettiest and most appropriate wardrobes that 
 can be seen.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 337 
 
 They were extremely modest and sensitive, and 
 blushes could frequently be seen playing through 
 the rich olive color that mantled their cheeks. 
 Their movements were elastic and sylph-like, and 
 even the virgin Pocahontas, on the score of 
 personal attractions, and tenderness of dispo- 
 sition, would be thrown entirely into the shade by 
 a comparison with these two girls, who were " a 
 staff by day and a pillow by night." 
 
 The little island was one mile in diameter, 
 eight hundred feet high at its southern end, and 
 was literally covered with cocoa-nut trees, bread- 
 fruits, oranges, bananas, pine-apples, and, in fact, 
 all the fruits, vegetables and flowers that are ever 
 produced in the tropics. It abounds with shady 
 groves, which I visited in my ramblings, spending 
 one day in their cool depths, and the next upon an 
 eminence which was my favorite retreat, for from 
 it I could view the whole island, carpeted, as it 
 was, with highly-colored flowers, and clad in ever- 
 green foliage. From here I could extend the vis- 
 ion of my mind far beyond the horizon to the east- 
 ward, and contemplate what the French called the 
 Queen of the Pacific:, Tutuila, once noted for its 
 broom-road and fine-looking natives ; the Mar- 
 quesas and Pomona groups, with their extensive 
 pearl fisheries, and the Friendly Islands, whose na- 
 tives are the only people who can be compared 
 with the Samoan natives. To the westward, I see 
 
 the treacherous Feejee Islands, the people of New 
 22
 
 338 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 Caledonia and New Hebrides, and the Papuians 
 of New Guinea, who have recently become the 
 subjects of Queen Victoria. In imagination, I 
 look upon the black man of Australia, who is 
 lower in the scale of humanity than a Fuegian, al- 
 though he retains the use of the boomerang-, that 
 weapon which defies the scientific world to ex- 
 plain the principle of its action; upon the New 
 Zealanders, who have fought so long and so 
 bravely against great odds, and have never, to 
 this day, been subdued ; until I lose myself in the 
 labyrinth of islands, including the King's Mill 
 group, the Gilbert and Marshal group, the La- 
 drones, with their spicy atmosphere, and New 
 Britain and New Ireland, separated by the beauti- 
 ful straits named for George the Third, under 
 whose reign they were discovered. 
 
 On returning from my excursions I would do 
 credit to a repast of many dishes, among which 
 were fish, fowl, dove, duck, barking-pig and 
 fruits of all kinds, washed down by the delicious 
 beverage of the cocoa-nut. These were meals fit 
 for a king, and prepared and served in a manner 
 that would have been pleasing and satisfactory to 
 a patrician, as they were to the plebeians who 
 partook. 
 
 One day I visited an extinct crater, and strayed 
 to the lee side of the island, where the blue wave- 
 lets rolled to my feet ; and here the fish-like in- 
 stincts of Pushipucia and Cipalanakahela could not
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner, 339 
 
 be retained, and they left me, like an old hen, upon 
 the shore, while they, the young ducks, swam 
 across the strait, about three- fourths of a mile 
 wide, to Tutuila and back again. 
 
 On another dav I went to the weather side of 
 the island, where the great Pacific wages an eternal 
 warfare against this harmless little island, roaring, 
 fretting and chafing, as if to devour it and its 
 human freight. 
 
 In my excursions, Pushipucia and Cipalanaka- 
 hela were my frequent companions, and when it 
 became necessary to rest at noontime, stepping 
 aside a few feet from the trail, they were never at 
 a loss to select a neat little arbor, where, after pre- 
 paring the grass and removing some of the shrub- 
 bery, these girls would arrange a repast, which had 
 been brought, as if by magic, by their brother. He 
 was a lad of eighteen years, and would have 
 been, in the hands of an artist, a fit subject for an 
 Apollo. 
 
 During my stay among them I was suffering 
 severely with rheumatic pains, and was often re- 
 lieved by the native doctors, and by the manipulat- 
 ing process of rubbing and laying-on of hands, em- 
 ployed by all the men and women, while Pushipu- 
 cia and Cipalanakahela were always attentive 
 nurses. A stranger might have supposed that he 
 was the recipient of special favors, but he would 
 soon have learned that there are no people in the 
 world more kind and hospitable, while there are
 
 340 The Log of a?i Ancieiit Mariner. 
 
 none more chaste and virtuous than are the females 
 of the Samoan group. 
 
 But at last I bade adieu to the gentle Pushipucia 
 and her pretty sister, Cipalanakahela, and to all 
 my other native friends ; and, at dark one night, 
 left behind me that gem upon the sea, Annu. As 
 the little, but romantic island sank from my gaze 
 below the horizon, I went to my state-room with 
 the deepest emotions of gratitude toward a people 
 at whose hands I had received so much kindness; 
 and I am constrained to say that, notwithstanding 
 that we, in our ignorance, are pleased to call them 
 savages and cannibals, I felt a strong desire to live 
 and die among- them.* 
 
 * "Evil be to him who evil thinks," is written across this page, in the 
 manuscript. — Ed.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 341 
 
 LINES. 
 
 Dedicated to Pushipucia and Cipalanakahela, daughters of the native pilot of 
 Annu Island: 
 
 Two wavelets cast upon the sea 
 
 Of troubled life that is to be; 
 
 May you roll swift your course of love, 
 And calmly break in realms above. 
 
 In some still cave within my reach 
 May your canoe strand on the beach, 
 Beside of one who'll go before, 
 To wait your coming on that shore. 
 
 And] if there's naught you recognize, 
 
 Nor in my form nor yet mine eyes; 
 
 You'll know me by my tattooed legs, 
 And grant the prayer of one who begs — 
 
 That you will come on wings of love 
 To that green isle, in skies above, 
 
 Where my canoe, with gentle breeze, 
 
 Will sail among the Pleiades. 
 
 Annu still reigns* in those dim nooks, 
 Where we'll drink life from out her brooks, 
 
 And ramble still beside the sea, 
 
 For ave the freest of the free. 
 
 '"Annu is the presiding deity in Heaven," say the Samoans. E. VV.
 
 342 The Log of an Ancient 3fari?ier. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 A Paradise in the Pacific — Description of Samoan or 
 Navigator Islands — Fixe Specimen of Natives. 
 
 \\N the night of Au- 
 ' II gust eighth, at half- 
 y past nine p. m., I was 
 __ _ dropped into a 
 | quarter-boat, with 
 one man, off the 
 ■ ^s^ :- - harbor of Pago-Pa- 
 go, Island of Tutuila, without a deviation, or de- 
 tention of five minutes to the steamer "Nevada." 
 
 We made out the entrance to the harbor, and 
 safely passed Whale Rock, turning to the west, 
 and pulling for the head of the bay. There was 
 no moon, and the air was so hazy that we could 
 see little ; but I had read the descriptions of and 
 directions for this harbor so carefully that I easily 
 kept our whereabouts. But the shadows on each 
 side, cast by the land, so closely resembled land 
 itself, while what little light there was, was so re- 
 flected, in narrow streaks, as to completely repre- 
 sent coral reef; which sort of ignes-fatui so far 
 deceived us as to cause us frequently to stop and 
 take our bearings. At half-past one we arrived at 
 the head of the bay, in six fathoms of water.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 343 
 
 The stillness of the night, and the solemn quiet- 
 ude of everything around, impressed me strongly 
 that nature had intended that the denizens of such a 
 spot should be possessed of quite a different spirit 
 from that given them by many English writers of 
 early days. I imagined the surprise that at day- 
 light would fill the breasts of these secluded peo- 
 ple, when they should see our boat anchored at 
 the head of their bay. But at daylight I found 
 that we were alongside the brig " L. P, Foster," 
 she having arrived the day before. The* next day 
 I found it the most perfectly land-locked harbor 
 that exists in the Pacific Ocean. 
 
 In approaching the harbor from the south, either 
 by night or day, the mariner has unmistakable 
 landmarks to conduct him into port, for on the 
 port-side is a high-peaked conical mountain, two 
 thousand three hundred and twenty-seven feet 
 high; and on the starboard is a flat-topped mount- 
 ain, one thousand four hundred and seventy feet 
 in height; these keep sentinel on either side and 
 can never be mistaken by the mariner. The 
 entrance to the harbor is three-quarters of a mile 
 in width, between Tower Rock on the port-side 
 and Breaker Point on the starboard-hand, with 
 soundings of thirty-six fathoms. 
 
 These islands are in the South Pacific, between 
 the latitudes of 13° 30' and 14° 30', and between 
 the longitude of 168 2d and 172 50' west, 
 containing 2650 square miles, and 56,600 inhabi- 
 tants, all of whom are Christians.
 
 344 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 In speaking of the islands, I shall claim for them 
 neither a continental nor an oceanic climate, but a 
 combination of the two. Like Borneo, Sumatra, 
 Java and Ceylon, they have the maritime climate, 
 which is the best in the world. Here are allied 
 the continental vigor and the oceanic softness in a 
 fortunate union, mutually tempering each. Here 
 the development is more intense, life more rich 
 and more varied in all its forms, and when to the 
 effects we add the advantage of a tropical temper- 
 ature, the»forms of nature are, as it were, raised to 
 their highest degree, and the wealth brought to 
 light surpasses all elsewhere seen. 
 
 Nowhere on the surface of the globe is the 
 blending of the continental and oceanic elements 
 so complete and on so great a scale as on these 
 islands, being located in the midst of the south- 
 west trade winds, and surrounded by seas in the 
 most diversified manner — bathed by the humid 
 atmosphere of the tropics, watered with copious 
 showers of rain, and exposed to the genial rays of 
 a tropical sun. These are all the means of a 
 physical life which nature can receive. 
 
 The soil of these islands is rich ; it is a dark, 
 and in places a reddish-colored, loam. It arises 
 chiefly from the decomposition of volcanic rock 
 and vegetable matter, and is sufficiently indicated 
 by the uniform and luxuriant growth of all the 
 trees. It is here that we find the most prolific 
 and admirable vegetation. We see at the same
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 345 
 
 time plants with broad and numerous leaves, the 
 excessive expansion of which is always the proof 
 of an exuberant humidity, and those shrubs with 
 concentrated and elaborate gums, and those spices 
 and aromata that bear witness to the dry and in- 
 tense heat of the continent. 
 
 The forests are more sombre than those of Brazil, 
 although the same kind of growth appears to pre- 
 vail. The trees do not branch out until near the 
 top, which renders it difficult to obtain botanical 
 specimens, but at the same time facilitates the prog- 
 ress of the equestrian, and enables him to pene- 
 trate m all directions those virgin and luxuriant for- 
 ests, which in Brazil, Central America, Mexico and 
 India would be one impenetrable jungle, filled with 
 the most voracious wild animals, such as the lion, 
 tiger, panther, hyena, etc., that are always seeking 
 something to devour, while myriads of poisonous 
 reptiles and insects would be encountered at every 
 step; until, finally, bitten and stung, poisoned, faint 
 and feverish, the traveler would repose his weary 
 limbs for rest beneath the shade of some friendly 
 tree; where, if he escaped the jaws of the hungry 
 hyena until the evening shades prevailed, he would 
 be almost sure to fall the victim to the insatiable 
 thirst of the vampire bat, who, while he sucked the 
 last drop of blood through his insidious beak, 
 would fan with his enormous wings his unsuspect- 
 ing prey into that sleep from which no sleeper has 
 ever awakened.
 
 346 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 How very different do we find it here. The 
 trunks are covered, and even the summits of the 
 trees are sometimes overgrown with the leaves of 
 a clinging piper and a variety of other creeping 
 vines, some of which contain medical virtues 
 still unknown to the world, and almost invaluable 
 to the human race. The lower parts of the trees 
 are covered with ferns, of which there are many 
 varieties, and with some species of pothos, giving 
 the whole ground a matted, or woven appearance. 
 Among the plants a species of cerlera was ob- 
 served, with beautiful clusters of large, odorous, 
 white flowers that yielded a quantity of viscous 
 sap, which botanists think will manufacture into 
 caoutchouc. 
 
 The species of trees are much more numerous 
 than at Tahiti, and the vegetation, in consequence, 
 much richer and more varied. Among- the most 
 remarkable trees is the banyan, called by the 
 natives "ohwa." Some are seen whose pendant 
 branches take root in the ground, to the number 
 of thousands, forming stems from an inch to two 
 feet in diameter, uniting in the main trunk more 
 than eighty feet above the ground, and supporting 
 a vast system of horizontal branches, spreading 
 like an umbrella over the tops of the other trees. 
 This tree is the symbol of vegetable strength — 
 the elephant of the rooted things. 
 
 Here uplifts its head the majestic palm, a single 
 leaf whereof, sixteen feet broad and forty feet
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 347 
 
 around, will give shade to a score of people at 
 once. Here may be found, on the bosom of these 
 virgin forests, some of the largest flowers in the 
 world, such as the rafflesia, one alone, whose 
 gigantic dimensions, measured no less than three 
 feet across. 
 
 The bread-fruit is the most abundant of all trees, 
 and grows to a large size, attaining twenty to thirty 
 feet in height, and measuring two feet in diameter. 
 There are twenty varieties, and they mature in 
 two years and bear every three months, yielding 
 from two to five hundred of this peculiar fruit to 
 a tree, in a year. This fruit contains seven or 
 eight seeds, about the size of a chestnut, and they 
 are equal, when roasted, to the best of those nuts. 
 The fruit varies in size from that of a small cocoa- 
 nut to that of a large one; and when baked and 
 eaten hot is a very palatable and most perfect sub- 
 stitute for bread. The wood is very valuable, is 
 of a close texture, like mahogany, and receives a 
 high polish. It is used for the bottom of canoes, 
 being impervious to the attacks of insects; and, 
 also, for the paddles and steering-oars, for pulpits 
 and war clubs. 
 
 The cocoa-nut tree extends from the sea far 
 back into the mountains; it grows to a height of 
 eighty feet, is from eight to eighteen inches in 
 diameter, is six years in coming to maturity 
 (although some bear at four), and yields from fifty 
 to two hundred nuts in a year. Throughout the
 
 348 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 South Pacific each tree is estimated to yield its 
 owner one dollar a year. Cobra, which is the 
 sliced cocoa-nut, dried for three days in the sun, to 
 prevent mildew, sells in Hamburg for twenty 
 pounds sterling per ton. It suffers a loss of about 
 ten per cent, in the oil, which surpasses all others 
 for the human hair, and from it is manufactured a 
 soap, which imparts a softness and delicacy to the 
 skin, rendering it so valuable that it is seldom 
 found beyond the toilet of that class in Europe 
 which can afford so great a luxury. The fruit, when 
 young, constitutes one of the principal sources of 
 food; and the milk forms the principal drink, which 
 is very cool and refreshing, and in flavor is sweet 
 and palatable. Both the milk and pulp are cooked 
 in a variety of dishes. In Europe, the pulp that 
 remains after the oil is extracted, is made into 
 confectionery; and the final refuse into oil-cake for 
 cattle. 
 
 The stem which produces the cocoa-nut is fre- 
 quently cut at the end, it being served round with 
 a string, and in a few days it drops the cocoa-nut 
 shell full of very fine wine, which is permitted to 
 remain three days, and becomes a strong, intoxi- 
 cating liquor. Large quantities of molasses are 
 produced from the liquor when fresh, by boiling. 
 The tree, when put to this use, bears no fruit, but 
 all the sap turns into liquor. After each catch of 
 a shell full of this wine, a thin slice is taken from 
 the end of the stem, so as to open afresh the pores
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 349 
 
 which have become glued up, as it were, by the 
 sugar in the liquor. This tree not only feeds, 
 clothes and supplies the people with drink, but it 
 builds their houses and canoes, makes war- spears 
 and clubs, and is almost invaluable to them ; and 
 as its natural life is one hundred years, and as 
 twenty thousand trees are frequently to be found 
 upon quite a limited piece of ground, it becomes ap- 
 parent that it is destined to occupy a very respect- 
 able position among many other valuable articles 
 of commerce. 
 
 The papaia tree is very easily propagated from 
 seed, which is merely strewn upon a moist piece 
 of ground. It grows to be some fifty feet high, 
 and commences to bear in six months, when it is 
 some twenty feet high, and contains ripe fruit, 
 green fruit and fruit in the bud and blossom, to the 
 number of fifty or one hundred, all at the same 
 time. The fruit is suspended from the trunk, one 
 above the other, from short stems. At maturity, 
 which is at an early age (the tree not being a 
 long-lived one), it has the appearance of a cocoa- 
 nut tree, but branches out at the top with a more 
 bushy look, being filled with fruit which in shape 
 is like a bell, and about the size of a musk-melon. 
 In flavor it is sweeter than a musk-melon, and is 
 very palatable when eaten with pepper and salt. ■ 
 
 The orange tree is found here fifty feet high, pro- 
 ducing fruit of a large size and fine flavgr ; the lime 
 and the lemon are both abundant, bearing fruit of
 
 350 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 extraordinary size. A variety of bamboo and 
 rattan is found, some of which grows to be ninety 
 feet high ; citrons are large and fine, and the yams 
 and mangroves the largest in the world, while 
 the flavor is superior to that of small ones else- 
 where. 
 
 Pine-apples are a weed throughout these islands, 
 and the fruit of diminutive size, owing to the im- 
 penetrable growth ol the tropical vines and trees 
 it grows among ; but when cultivated it is large 
 and superior, bearing once a year, from the first of 
 November to the first of February. The plan- 
 tain and banana are plentiful, and grow about nine 
 inches long. I saw eight varieties of the latter, 
 and a lady, a native of the island of Upolu, (who, 
 however, received her education in San Francisco,) 
 told me that there were others, equally delicious, 
 cooked or raw. The small sugar-banana is the 
 best, and is very sweet in flavor. When green it 
 is used very much as a potatoe, and when boiled 
 with other vegetables and eaten with beef, it is an 
 excellent substitute. 
 
 The fig, vi-apple, custard-apple, mamma-apple, 
 quava, mulberry, mango, tamarind, date, indigo, 
 cinnamon, vave, vanilla-bean, sarsaparilla, mace 
 and ava; nutmegs of two kinds; palm oil, which 
 is sixty per cent, oil; the vinegar plant; the tarro, 
 sweet-potato, arrow-root; and the ti-plant, whose 
 leaves constitute the whole wardrobe of both 
 sexes, are all found here, indigenous to the soil.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 351 
 
 Besides these, there are a great variety of trees 
 which produce no fruit, and for which I have no 
 names. Under their luxuriant and evergreen foli- 
 age pendant from their wide-spreading branches, 
 the traveler can roam in every direction, at his 
 will, in nature's park, over a ground which is 
 carpeted with an endless variety of flowers, plants 
 and shrubs. 
 
 Rice, ginger, celery, melons, pumpkins, pease, 
 beans, radishes, turnips, beets, cabbages, tomatoes, 
 spinach, egg-plant, mustard, lettuce, cauliflowers, 
 cucumbers, olives, asparagus, red and black pep- 
 per, berries, and, in fact, all kinds of vegetables 
 and garden products have been cultivated and 
 grow to perfection. 
 
 Two crops of Indian corn are grown in a year; 
 and the Irish potato is said to thrive in the up- 
 lands ; but Professor Wood says that the third 
 generation or crop is to be found only amalgamated 
 with the sweet potato. 
 
 The ti-plant is indigenous, and is a vegetable 
 with a root many times larger than the California 
 beet, and containing ten times the amount of the 
 saccharine matter that is found in the beet. From 
 it the natives, by baking in the oven, supply them- 
 selves with sugar and molasses. The purest liquor 
 is made from this same root, which, in many places, 
 grows to the size of a man's body. It is cooked 
 and eaten by the natives, and tastes well when 
 hot.
 
 352 The Log of an Aiicient Mariner. 
 
 There is a coffee estate upon the Island of 
 Sawii, and at three years old the trees are found 
 seven feet high, with strong out-spreading branches, 
 and in a most healthy condition. Unlike the coffee 
 tree of Central America, Mexico, Brazil and other 
 parts of the world, which is to be found growing 
 only in the shade of trees, which have been planted 
 in rows for the purpose, and have required from 
 four to seven years to arrive at the proper height 
 and condition to protect the coffee-tree, which in 
 many instances requires eight years to bring it to 
 full maturity ; it is here found growing, like that 
 of Mocha, in the sun, and thriving best, like that 
 of Mocha, in the uplands to a height of three 
 thousand feet, giving, at the early age of three 
 years, fifteen pounds of a small red bean, equal in 
 flavor to that of Mocha, Brazil or Java. It is 
 almost impossible to describe the beauties of a 
 coffee estate, with its verdant foliage, jeweled with 
 dew-drops of the deepest red. One billion pounds 
 of these delicious beans are consumed annually, as 
 the richest beverage the human family is heir to. 
 
 The cotton-tree is ten or twelve feet high, and 
 six inches in diameter, having large and spreading 
 branches. The boll is snow-white, and silky, 
 equal in texture and staple to the best Sea Island 
 cotton in the world. It is the size of an apricot, 
 and breaks in three parts. Some of the cotton 
 was sold in Europe at eighty-seven cents per 
 pound, and when we know that it can be produced
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 353 
 
 with profit at one shilling per pound, and a 
 yield of five hundred pounds per acre, it is fair to 
 presume that it is destined to become an impor- 
 tant article of commerce. 
 
 Sugar-cane is abundant, and of good quality, 
 but is used by the natives only in its natural state. 
 
 Besides all that I can mention there are many 
 products for which I have no name, but which 
 flourish with vigor. There are, also, here a great 
 many tropical plants which are very valuable as 
 medicines, and there are several kinds of dye- 
 woods. 
 
 About eight miles from Pago- Pago is Cocoa-nut 
 Valley, where the soil is rich and produces all the 
 tropical vegetation. In this valley I saw bread- 
 fruit of the size of a thirty-two pound cannon ball. 
 There is a heart in this fruit as large as the finger, 
 and the outer covering is very thin; from the heart 
 to this outside, which may be rubbed off with a 
 brush, is the pulp, which is arranged in flakes, as it 
 were, and is broken off to be eaten by the natives, in 
 pieces of a convenient size. The gum that exudes 
 from the bark of the bread-tree is used as a pitch 
 upon the native canoes, and is employed as a 
 plaster upon sores or fractures; as it is tasteless, it 
 is also chewed as gum, that substitute for tobacco 
 used by schoolmistresses and their young ladies. 
 
 In Cocoa-nut Valley is found a nutmeg tree 
 whose wood is valuable and which yields a smooth, 
 egg-shaped nutmeg, equal to that of Borneo in 
 
 23
 
 354 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 all but that the mace which forms the outside is 
 useless except as a native medicine. There is 
 here, also, a sort of nettle, which, when thrown 
 into water, gives a rich indigo dye; and a creeper, 
 a parasite found upon all the trees, is, in taste and 
 to all purposes, sarsaparilla, a decoction of it being 
 used with the happiest results. 
 
 A lagoon lies in front of Cocoa-nut Valley, 
 which, with a little expense and work expended 
 upon the reef, would admit schooners of fifty tons 
 burden, a boat- passage now existing. Most of the 
 land in Cocoa-nut Valley is owned by old families, 
 who reside in the adjacent Count Valley; and a 
 good road could easily be made from this delightful 
 spot, with its natural lagoon for boats, to Pago- 
 Pago bay, where resides the principal chief of the 
 Island, Mongo. He owes his station to missionary 
 influence rather than to any other title, and there 
 are some thirty lesser chiefs residing in Count 
 Valley. 
 
 Birds are not numerous in the Samoan Group, 
 although a rare species is found in the woods, a 
 pair of which sold in Sydney for $750; and the 
 wild duck constitutes a daily food. There are no 
 wild animals nor venomous reptiles that I know 
 of; but fish, in the rivers and in the sea, are abun- 
 dant. 
 
 While upon these islands I called the attention 
 of the authorities in the American navy to the 
 importance of securing possession of the harbor
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 355 
 
 of Pago- Pago for the American government, and 
 this attempt at a public service was successful. 
 Fourteen days after Captain Meade of the U. S. 
 steamer " Narraganset " had concluded a treaty 
 for the possession of the harbor, a German war- 
 steamer arrived to secure it for that government. 
 Happily she was too late. A flag was raised and 
 saluted with fifteen guns by Commander Meade. 
 It has nine stripes, to represent the nine Islands of 
 Samoa, of which Tutuila is the central island and 
 Pago -Pago the key to the whole group. The four 
 white stripes and white stars represent the four 
 large islands of Savii, Upolu, Tutuila and Tan. 
 The five blue stripes represent the small islands. 
 The corner ground is red, and shows the moon, an 
 ancient symbol in Samoa, in the first and last 
 quarters, representing the letter "S," or Samoa. 
 
 Travelers may talk of Italian skies and Sicilian 
 shrubbery; no island or coast in or around the 
 Mediterranean Sea can rival Samoa for salubrity 
 of climate, fertility of soil, or beauty of scenery. 
 Its air is deliciously balmy; its shrubbery luxuriant. 
 Health and beauty here revel together. Nature 
 is dressed in ever-changing but fading charms, and 
 her sunny smiles are ever reflected from the human 
 countenance. From the dawn of day until some- 
 time after sunrise, the most sparkling fable of Tur- 
 key, or Persia, is fully realized. Every leaf and 
 flower and spray and blade of grass is gemmed 
 with dew-drops of extraordinary clearness and
 
 356 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 purity, which have imbibed so much of the vege- 
 table fragrance that when they begin to exhale in 
 the increasing warmth of the solar rays, the whole 
 atmosphere is filled with the most delightful per- 
 fumes, and every passing zephyr scatters grateful 
 odors from its wings. 
 
 This is the hour of recreation, and every by- 
 path is crowded; but when the sun has attained a 
 higher altitude, the potency of his beams sends 
 the wandering groups to their dwellings, with 
 keenly-sharpened appetites for the breakfasts which 
 await them. 
 
 In pursuing the path that led to the highest 
 eminence in this part of the island, we found it no 
 easy task to scale the little precipices which we 
 found in the avenue which led through a forest of 
 gigantic trees, the foliage of which screened us 
 from the livid rays of the sun. But, after a fatiguing 
 ascent of half a day, we reached the summit, when 
 a prospect suddenly opened upon our enraptured 
 view which amply repaid us for all our previous 
 labor. It was, without any exception, the most 
 romantic and beautifully variegated that I ever be- 
 held, and must be seen in the living, breathing, 
 moving colors of nature, to be duly appreciated, 
 for no pen nor pencil can describe it; but I will 
 attempt to convey a faint idea of its outlines: 
 
 Standing on the highest pinnacle, with nothing 
 to interrupt my vision in any direction, at my feet 
 lay a lovely lake, with limpid waters and wood-
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 357 
 
 fringed borders. To the west lay the beautiful island 
 of Sawaii, with its cloud-capped mountains of 
 4,000 feet, the highest in the group, its plains and' 
 green valleys. Here the eye ranges with delight 
 over the fertile extent, diversified with thriving 
 plantations of different kinds, until it reaches the 
 picturesque channel, seven miles wide, with its 
 placid surface reflecting the two small islands which 
 intervene. 
 
 To the east were to be seen the beautiful plains 
 at the foot of the hill upon which we were stand- 
 ing; in' one place a mountain torrent tumbling 
 headlong through its devious course to the plains 
 below, and in another flowing by a glassy river, 
 gently meandering through grassy meadows until, 
 united with its more restive neighbor, it entered 
 the Bay of Apia, where the crystal waters lay at 
 rest, reflecting the inverted scenery with the lu- 
 cidity of a mirror. The scenery along the southern 
 coast I did not visit, and was prevented from see- 
 ing by the dazzling brilliancy of the noonday sun. 
 
 The natives are the finest specimens of mankind 
 that have been found in the Polynesian world. 
 They are moral, intelligent and hospitable, and 
 their language is soft and harmonious. They have 
 pleasing countenances and a modest demeanor, 
 many of the females being lighter than a Spanish 
 brunette, and very handsome. Their forms are 
 symmetrical, never having been screwed up in a 
 machine of torture such as was never heard of
 
 358 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 among all the diabolical inventions on the inquisi- 
 tion, a machine of whalebone and steel, cords, pul- 
 ley and levers, far more mischievous and ridiculous 
 than the iron shoe of China. But they stand out 
 in their beautiful nudity and loveliness, a combina- 
 tion of beauty, grace and innocence, the handiwork 
 of the Great Master himself.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 359 
 
 LINES. 
 
 Written on the Pacific, on passing a deserted raft surrounded by sea-gulls; their con- 
 fused and frantic actions and their dismal noise making it seem as if they were doing 
 penance for some unpardoned sin. 
 
 O tell me, wild spirits, now hovering o'er 
 That fragment of raft that's deserted at sea, 
 
 Of those who will toss on the waters no more, 
 And what was the fate they were all born to see ? 
 
 Oh ! what is the tale of the gallant, strong ship ? 
 
 What port did she leave, to what port was she bound ? 
 And what of the crew that embarked on the trip, 
 
 To sink in a grave where the waves thundered round ? 
 
 Wrecked swift in the dark of some pitiless night, 
 Head-first did she founder with all men on board; 
 
 The storm sweeping past with a pitiless might, 
 
 That drowned the loud prayers for swift help from the Lord. 
 
 Struck she on the fringe of a pink coral reef 
 
 That treach'rously lay underneath the bright wave — 
 
 To seize on its prey like the midnight's sly thief, 
 When nothing was by that could hinder and save? 
 
 On wings of the trades swift she sped to her death — 
 
 A cyclone, a squall, with a terrible blast; 
 The ship that was doomed disappeared in a breath, 
 
 And left on the sea but this fragment of mast. 
 
 And you're what is left of the once happy crew, 
 Embarked in high spirits to roam on the sea; 
 
 On wings of the wind to your stern fate you flew, 
 And now you come telling the dark tale to me.
 
 360 J he Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 Alas! for your screams make it only too plain! 
 
 You sing a wild requiem over the craft; 
 While horrid enough to bewilder the brain, 
 
 The sights you have seen on that barnacled raft. 
 
 O wild restless spirits, that ceaselessly rave, 
 
 You've poured forth your tale in a weird, frantic way; 
 
 While close to the spar that floats high o'er the cave, 
 Where storm-worn your bodies you long ago lay. 
 
 Then cease your wild wailing, and go to your rest, 
 On some lonely island amidst the vast deep, 
 
 Where silence and peace your vexed spirits may bless, 
 In that which is stirred not, the long, dreamless sleep.
 
 The Log of ait Ancient Mariner. 361 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 On the "Mohoxgo" — Up the Colorada — Pearl-fishixg in 
 the Gulf — To New York. 
 
 •HE death of Captain Bennett 
 causing a vacancy, I took com- 
 mand of the " Mohongo," arriving 
 in Honolulu, upon the second trip, 
 ib-)MLjliB on the twenty-ninth of June, 1872. 
 "On the return voyage, on the 
 ninth of July, 1872, being five days and a half 
 from Honolulu, and having commenced in the 
 ship's log the calculations for the day which were 
 destined to remain uncompleted, I fell suddenly to 
 the deck, stricken dumb and motionless, and ever 
 since have suffered from the severe stroke of 
 paralysis which disabled my entire right side. 
 
 In less than a year I had regained my speech, 
 and could walk a little, with the help of a cane, 
 although my arm was still entirely useless. Every 
 remedy of every doctor failed to help me further, 
 and so I determined to take a voyage, attended 
 by a man, to see what change and sea-air would 
 do for me. 
 
 In March, 1873, I kft on ^ e steamer for the 
 Islands and New Zealand, returning in May.
 
 362 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 After about three months had elapsed, I went down 
 to Magdalena Bay to spend a month. Upon the 
 first of September, on anchoring in Royal Roads, 
 we found, where once had been the most desolate 
 spot in the world, a city containing a custom-house 
 and about twelve residences, with some fifty in- 
 habitants, all engaged in compressing the bales of 
 ochilla that filled the warehouses and lay in tiers 
 upon the beach. 
 
 This article grows upon a bush, which is found 
 along the shore for some three miles inland, is 
 conveyed by canal or lagoon to the landing, where 
 it is compressed by Mr. Hale and his hydraulic 
 power, and sent upon the markets of the world, 
 where it brings two hundred dollars per ton. 
 
 There are six officers in the custom house, and 
 six assistants. They are very vigilant, and have 
 a very busy time of it on the arrival of a canoe. 
 
 On the first of October, I embarked upon the 
 " Montana," leaving my friend J. P. Hale and his 
 kind lady, by whom the most unremitting kindness 
 had been bestowed upon me, with much regret. 
 The "Montana" carried a crew of Mongolians, 
 and they are a worthless and indifferent set. If I, 
 who am a cripple, should fall and break a limb, 
 not a helping hand would they reach me; and in 
 case of fire, the Chinaman is panic-stricken, run- 
 ning for his own effects, regardless of the therefore 
 inevitable loss of property, vessel and lives. 
 
 After remaining at home something more than
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 363 
 
 a month, I left San Francisco on the fifteenth of 
 November, 1873, on the " Newbern," Capt. Metz- 
 ger, for Cape St. Lucas and the Colorado river. 
 We had a six days' passage to the cape, where I 
 found the rocks, the bay and the sand the same as 
 when, ten years before, I used so frequently to 
 visit them. And yet, it was no longer the Cape St. 
 Lucas I used to know, for old Capt. Richie was 
 dead. Who, for the past fifty years, of all on 
 whalers, merchant vessels and steamers, has not 
 known him? He was associated, as much as were 
 its rocks, with the thought and the name of Cape 
 St. Lucas, and his kindly and hospitable character 
 and his honest face will be remembered by those 
 who knew him, until they, like him, are called by 
 the great Father. 
 
 On the twenty-eighth of November, we anchored 
 about twenty miles up from the mouth proper of 
 the Colorado river, where, through the kindness 
 of Capt. Polhemus, the general superintendent, I 
 embarked upon the "Colorado" for Yuma. We 
 made fast to the bank of the river every night, for 
 it was impossible to run during the darkness, on 
 account of the low water; a wagon could pass 
 along any where, and it would puzzle the brain of 
 an alligator, to get along without grounding. 
 
 The land up to Fort Yuma has been made by 
 the river, and is a great plain of sand, extending 
 for hundreds of miles, with an intervening patch 
 now and then, of young willow and cotton-wood.
 
 364 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 This wood is cut by the Indians, and piled along 
 the bank, where it is bought by the boats at three 
 dollars per cord. 
 
 These Indians have been taught to earn their 
 own living by this company, and are paid for what 
 they do; it is a pity that the same policy has not 
 been adopted by our government, of paying those 
 who are industrious, and making war upon all who 
 are idle and vicious, thus killing them off instead 
 of harboring them, whilst they in return murder 
 those who protect them. 
 
 In our trip up the river, we soon came upon 
 some of the natives, who are a dirty race in their 
 habits, and a filthy one in appearances. They be- 
 daub their faces with mud and with black and red 
 paint; they wear a tuft of feathers upon the back 
 of the head, and an old, soiled red or white rag, 
 an extension of their breech-cloth, hangs down to 
 their heels behind, and six inches down in front. 
 They have naked legs, but wear an old shirt, 
 blanket or jacket of some sort above. The women 
 wear a petticoat that extends from the waist to the 
 knee and is made from young willow and other 
 materials; but as they wear an old blanket outside 
 of this, and another old cloth above, they prevent 
 their ugly forms from being seen. 
 
 We saw Castle Dome and Pilot Knob, both re- 
 nowned in overland history of early days. Fort 
 Yuma stands on a hill on the north side, and Yuma 
 city, on a hill on the south side of the river, two
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 365 
 
 bluffs, the first seen since we left the mouth. A 
 ferry-boat runs between these two bluffs, being 
 drawn. across by a cable; when the boat comes 
 from up the river, this cable is hoisted up over the 
 smoke-stack, by means of tackles from a high der- 
 rick on each side of the river, here about a cable's 
 length in breadth. The Gila comes in just around 
 the south bluff, but at low water is not navigable. 
 
 We arrived at Yuma on the second of Decem- 
 ber, in the midst of a very cold sand-storm. Here 
 I transferred my effects to the " Cocopah," Capt. 
 Nilim, and will let my diary for the trip tell the 
 story of my voyage upon the Colorado, above 
 Yuma. 
 
 Friday, Dec. 5, 1873. We left Yuma at 2 p.m., 
 having a barge in tow. At 3 o'clock we grounded, 
 laying across the stream with both ends stuck fast, 
 but after an hour's hard work with a cable, we suc- 
 ceeded in heaving her over the shoal; at dark we 
 made fast to a wood-pile. 
 
 Saturday, Dec. 6, 1873. We started at daylight, 
 but ran aground at 8 a. m. The captain sounded 
 with a pole, and finding that there was not enough 
 water for the steamer, turned her around, and 
 cut a channel with the wheel. At 2.30 p. m., we 
 stopped at Castle Dome landing, where there was 
 an adobe house and seven men. The whole 
 country here is as fertile as a brick, being com- 
 posed of rocks and big boulders down to the 
 water's edge. Not an alligator, nor cat-fish, nor 
 eel have I seen.
 
 366 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 Sunday, Dec. 7, 1873. We started at daylight, 
 breaking off about a ton of rock, that projected 
 into the river, in a narrowing called the Gate. At 
 1 1 a. m., we passed through a narrow canyon with 
 the rock one hundred and fifty feet high, perpen- 
 dicular upon one side, and over-hanging the steam- 
 er upon the other. We had a beautiful view of 
 rocks, that looked like a vast cathedral, or a fort- 
 ress, with its turrets and bastions. We also saw 
 what looked like a railroad, but which was a nat- 
 ural grade. 
 
 Tuesday, Dec. 9, 1873. We started at daylight, 
 mud-larking all the way; and succeeded, with 
 hawsers on each bow, a hawser and an anchor 
 ahead with sky-tackle and derricks with tackle 
 running to the capstan, in heaving the boat, which 
 drew twenty inches, through a place where there 
 were but fourteen inches of water. At 1 1 a. m., 
 we reached Erinburg, a town of some sixty mud 
 huts and adobe houses. 
 
 Friday, Dec. 12, 1873. Cast off from our wood- 
 pile at daylight, and hove industriously with haw- 
 sers till 5.30 r. m., when we reached the Indian 
 reservation. There are about eight hundred mis- 
 erable Indians here, the women not being renowned 
 for their virtue, nor the men for their honesty; but 
 both excel all that I have ever seen for uqdiness and 
 dirt, not excepting the Diggers of California. Like 
 the New Zealand colonists they wear the flag of 
 Lucknow, only lower down.
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 367 
 
 Saturday, Dec. 13, 1873. At daylight we pro- 
 ceeded, the river here presenting an entirely new 
 aspect, having mountain scenery close aboard and 
 rocky walls on each side. The stream is narrow, 
 and pursues a tortuous course, and in the canyons 
 it is grand — sublime. 
 
 Sunday, Dec. 14, 1873. We ran aground at 
 eight a. m., when we turned her stern up stream, 
 heaving her up with hawsers, and cutting a canal 
 with the wheel. At noon we stopped at Captain 
 Polhemus's ranch, and at two p. m. came to the 
 grand Mojave pass, having on the west side, look- 
 ing south, the profile of a man's head and face, two 
 hundred feet high, and neatly sculptured in the 
 rock, being the work of the great Master Me- 
 chanic. 
 
 Monday, Dec. 15, 1873. We were aground 
 nearly all day, being obliged to work through six 
 inches of water. We saw several Indians and 
 half-breeds, one girl having her head done up in 
 mud; and being bedaubed in the face with red and 
 black paint, until she looked like the devil. She 
 wore two willow petticoats, and walked the Grecian 
 Bend, a la mode de Kangaroo, to perfection. 
 
 Tuesday, Dec. 16, 1873. To-day we passed 
 some beaver tracks, and better looking Indians, 
 though horribly frescoed. They wear here, out- 
 side of the petticoat, a thick willow matting, hung 
 on behind and coming below the knee, serving as 
 a prodigious bustle and as a seat to sit upon.
 
 368 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 Wednesday, Dec. 17, 1873. At nine a.m. we 
 passed an iron post, the boundary mark for three 
 States, California, Nevada, and Arizona. At half- 
 past nine a. m., we made fast to the bank at Fort 
 Mojave, which is situated on an eminence, and 
 has forty-six cannon and several neat buildings. 
 This fort is situated six hundred miles inland, and 
 six hundred and fifty miles above the level of the 
 sea; it contains about sixty soldiers and three hun- 
 dred Indians; and, for fertility of soil, will compare 
 with Fort Yuma, or any other gravel-bank I ever 
 saw. 
 
 Thursday, Dec. 18, 1873. At daylight, we left 
 Fort Mojave, upon the return trip; we worked un- 
 til eight p. m. before we could get afloat, and then 
 tied up for the night. 
 
 Thursday, Dec. 25, 1873. We have broken 
 our capstan, and knocked a hole in the bottom, 
 and twice been obliged to lie-to in a gale of wind; 
 but to-day the sun is clear and beautiful, and the 
 ice a quarter of an inch thick. For dinner we were 
 served a Cape Cod turkey, with Mojave dressing. 
 The Indians here burn their dead, with all belong- 
 ing to them. 
 
 Wednesday, Dec. 31, 1873. We started at day- 
 light, and arrived at Yuma at twenty minutes past 
 ten a. m., having made the voyage to Fort Mojave 
 and back in twenty-six days, twenty hours and a 
 half. The barge, which has twice been gone back 
 for, and which has once broken its tiller and once
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 369 
 
 its rudder, arrived at eight P. m.; and thus ends my 
 eventful voyage in the "Cocopah, "upon the Upper 
 Colorado. 
 
 On the tenth of January, I embarked upon the 
 " Newbern," bidding adieu to Arizona, and to some 
 old and good friends as e\er a man had. On the 
 sixteenth, I landed at La Paz, or Peace, which has 
 four thousan d inhabitants, and being well watered 
 and hence well wooded, presents a beautiful ap- 
 pearance from the bay; whereas Guaymas, of the 
 same number of inhabitants, has no green thing — 
 no water and no soil, and looks as barren as a 
 brick-kiln; and Mazatlan is nearly as bad. But 
 La Paz has an abundance of water for her shade 
 and fruit trees, which, together with the adobe 
 buildings, painted in every tint of the rainbow, 
 and the neat, thatched cottages of the natives, give 
 the town a decidedly tropical and very picturesque 
 appearance. 
 
 In the season of 1873, about twenty sub-marine 
 suits were used in pearl-fishing, and produced two 
 hundred thousand dollars worth of pearls and 
 shells. A schooner of forty tons burden has four 
 boats, each carrying a sub- marine armor with one 
 hundred and fifty feet of hose, and an air-pump; 
 boat and all complete costing about one thousand 
 dollars, and being manned by a diver, a life-line 
 tender, and four men to work the pumps. The 
 diver, who is a very important man and lives in 
 
 the cabin, generally remains down about four 
 
 21
 
 370 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 hours, sending up shells enough to occupy the 
 crew all the afternoon in opening them. A forty 
 ton schooner carries thirty men, and is anchored 
 while fishing. The shells sell for twenty cents per 
 pound, or four hundred dollars per ton, but one 
 pearl recently brought five thousand dollars. They 
 are found by pressing the oyster with the thumb, 
 the little ones being under the fringe, and the big 
 ones in the centre; when found, they are cut out. 
 
 I visited here a church, which was formerly 
 noted for its wealth. In 1774, it was very rich in 
 paintings, gold, silver, and pearls. The Virgin 
 Mary stood upon a pedestal of solid gold, and her 
 person was literally covered with the finest of 
 pearls, her ornaments being valued at one million 
 dollars, one necklace alone being worth seventy- 
 five thousand dollars. 
 
 One night, at sunset, a strange padre came to 
 this church, and although a stranger, he was so 
 devout, being upon his knees early and late, that 
 he soon came to be the most trusted of the padres, 
 and the keys of the church were given to his care. 
 So great a favorite did he become, not only with 
 the other padres, but with the Virgin herself, that 
 she bestowed upon him, in one night, all her pearls, 
 and even the gold pedestal upon which her divine 
 and beautiful little feet had so long rested in the 
 quiet haven, where moth nor rust ever entered, 
 and where thieves never broke in to steal. 
 
 The dismay and consternation of the other
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 371 
 
 padres may be imagined, but cannot be described, 
 when, at daylight the next morning, they found 
 the church open, and the Virgin divested of all her 
 pearls and gold, almost in a state of nudity, but 
 with a note in her hand, wherein she stated that 
 she had bestowed all upon her devoted friend, the 
 strange padre, an Englishman. 
 
 From La Paz I visited the town of Triumpho, 
 where are twenty mines, all in good fruit. The 
 mill has twenty-eight stamps, a jaw-crusher, twenty 
 furnaces, sixteen barrels, and four large pans. The 
 ore is roasted in reverberatory furnaces, and 
 crushed dry. To expel sulphur, etc., salt is then 
 added, which forms the chloride of silver. After 
 roasting, the ore is treated in barrels with about 
 two hundred pounds of scrap-iron, the iron de- 
 composing the chloride, forming metallic silver. 
 Quicksilver is then added, which forms amalgam, 
 leaving the salts of the base metals to pass away 
 in solution. The ore averages in the mill from 
 seventy-five to eighty dollars per ton, and the 
 product is about one hundred thousand dollars 
 every steamer, or forty days. 
 
 On the twenty-first of March, 1874, I took 
 the "Grenada," off Cape St. Lucas, and was very 
 much gratified to find my old friend, Capt. Sea- 
 bury, whom I had not seen before for twenty 
 years, in command of her. 
 
 On the second of April we made fast to the com- 
 pany's buoy at Panama, and upon the evening of
 
 372 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 
 
 the third I took passage at Aspinwall, in the 
 " Chauncy," for Kingston, Jamaica. We left this 
 port upon the ninth, and upon the seventeenth 
 we passed the Hook and made fast to pier 42, at 
 the foot of Canal street. 
 
 I spent a couple of weeks at the Sailor's Snug 
 Harbor, and the greater part of the month of May 
 at Princeton, N. J.; when I proceeded to New 
 York, where I found my oldest sister in good 
 health. 
 
 Upon the first of June I started for Westport, 
 in company with my old schoolmate, A. S. Hurl- 
 butt, Esq., arriving at sundown at his fine and 
 picturesque mansion, where I was made at home 
 by his amiable wife and interesting family. Dur- 
 ing the evening, after having been a wanderer for 
 more than forty years from my native village, I 
 was much affected by the unlooked for compliment 
 of a serenade by seventeen brass instruments, in the 
 hands of my former schoolmates and their sons. 
 
 I suffered from a severe attack oi illness in 
 June, after which I visited Sangatuck, where I 
 was kindly made at home by Capt. Francis Sher- 
 wood. On the twenty-ninth of July I returned to 
 New York, and soon after, through the kindness 
 of Howard Porter, Esq., I received a pass over 
 the road to California, via Panama, upon the 
 "Colon." On the fifteenth of August, after Mr. 
 Hurlbutt had put a letter from Cub, dated Califor- 
 nia, August 7, into my hands, I bid adieu to Mr. 
 Burr and his wife, who had accompanied me
 
 The Log of an Ancient Mariner. 373 
 
 down to the ship in a carriage, and we steamed 
 down the bay. 
 
 I took a farewell look at the islands and all the 
 shores around New York harbor, clad, as they 
 were, in verdure, and thought of how it all used to 
 look to me when I returned from the East Indies 
 in 1835. I could but reflect upon the improve- 
 ments that had taken place since that time, and 
 then came the consideration that as virtuous and 
 industrious a race as ever lived has given way to a 
 corrupt society — a people gone all astray; a nation 
 whose extravagance and foolishness is fast giving 
 the whole country into the hands of foreigners, 
 who, it is to be hoped, will be an improvement 
 upon the idle and vain people calling themselves 
 Americans. 
 
 I suffered much from the heat before reaching 
 Aspinwall, which made me very weak, but was 
 soon revived by the fine, cool weather upon the 
 other side. We entered the port of San Francisco 
 at daylight, upon the sixth of August, and at seven 
 a. m. were fast to the dock, thus ending a very pleas- 
 ant passage of twenty-two days from New York. 
 
 Thus upon the eighteenth of January, 1875, two 
 years and a half have elapsed, and I am still alive. I 
 can now use my right hand, and I think that my 
 limb and general health are better. I can walk 
 with more ease, and the blood has commenced 
 coming down my right arm, making it quite strong. 
 This is the first day of the New Year, 1875, and 
 we are having a fine winter.
 
 Conclusion. 375 
 
 CONCLUSION. 
 
 Only a few words are necessary before closing 
 this book. 
 
 After meeting with the sad misfortune which 
 rendered him almost helpless, Capt. Wakeman 
 was a broken man, and grew old very rapidly. As 
 he states, when he was able to leave home, he 
 took several sea voyages, in the vain hope of re- 
 covering what scores of physicians and innumer- 
 able remedies had not been able to restore. It 
 was impossible for him to give up the last hope, 
 and he watched the improvement in the use of his 
 disabled hand with an eagerness of expectation 
 which it was painful to see. But when his old 
 friends came into his presence, he realized that his 
 best years were gone, that his opportunity for life 
 was past, and then he would turn his head to the 
 wall and cry like a child. 
 
 He spent much time, while confined to the 
 house, in arranging his letters and papers, in exe- 
 cuting large drawings of favorite or model vessels, 
 which he did with his left hand, and the aid of a 
 ruler, with remarkable facility; and in putting into 
 scrap-books the letters and printed extracts which 
 he valued. Of the former, he had every one, 
 from those received in his boyhood, and during
 
 376 Conclusion. 
 
 his first voyages; and among the latter were 
 numerous cuttings from the Eastern newspapers 
 and those of California, relating to his own adven- 
 tures and shares in public measures. These evi- 
 dences of "honorable mention," he was proud of, 
 and desired to have them preserved for the perusal 
 of his children. One may be found, selected from 
 a great many, and printed in the introduction to 
 this book. 
 
 Capt. Wakeman grew weaker and weaker until 
 he was confined to his bed. During several 
 weeks he continued to sink lower, many times 
 seeming at the point of death, and yet, each time, 
 he rallied; it seemed that his rugged constitution 
 could never succumb. His last words were spoken 
 a day or two before his death, for during his last 
 hours he was not conscious, but seemed in a heavy 
 sleep; and the last breath of the strong man who 
 had passed through a varied life, which had car- 
 ried him to every part of the globe, was a sigh 
 drawn as lightly as that of an infant who has 
 fallen into a gentle slumber. And, verily, he had 
 fallen into the "welcome, long, long sleep." 
 
 This chapter, and this book, may be fitly closed 
 by two extracts written at the time of his death, it 
 is understood, by Vernon Seaman, Esq., an old 
 friend and former purser with Captain Wakeman: 
 
 "Captain Edgar Wakeman, a well known pioneer, died at 
 his residence on Saturday evening last. * * * Deceased 
 was originally a man of strong constitution and large frame, and
 
 Conclusion. $77 
 
 mutinous seamen had frequently occasion to regret his displeas- 
 ure. He was a man of strictly temperate habits, altogether 
 avoiding the use of liquor and tobacco, which was remarkable 
 in one of his calling. He was open-hearted, sociable and gen- 
 erous, and had hosts of friends. * * * All that is mortal of 
 the gallant and generous Captain now rests beneath the soil of 
 Mountain View Cemetery. The funeral services were attended 
 yesterday afternoon from St. John's Episcopal Church. A large 
 delegation from Occidental Lodge of Masons, of which de- 
 ceased was a member, came over from San Francisco in the 
 regalia of the Order, and participated in the funeral rites. The 
 Masonic choir, lead by S. D. Mayer, sang a number of solemn 
 hymns, and chanted the service for the burial of the dead ; Rev. 
 Father Akerly officiating. The pall-bearers were Captains 
 Farwell, Wilcox, Robert Waterman and M. B. Cox; H. D. 
 Bacon, Esq., James Laidley, Esq., and Mr. Atchinson. The 
 services at the grave were conducted by the Master of Occidental 
 Lodge, and were unusually solemn and affecting. * * * 
 Generous to a fault, single-minded, pure-hearted, not professing 
 religion but believing in God, and having faith in His goodness 
 to all who ' steer a straight course,' we may well say of him, ' a 
 <?ood man has gone home.' " 
 
 "Died at his residence in East Oakland, Capt. Edgar Wakeman, aged 
 57 years." 
 
 " The simple announcement of the decease of this well-known 
 pioneer has carried grief to the hearth-stone of many a home. 
 Captain Wakeman was emphatically a representative Californian. 
 Fie came to our shores in the early days of 1S49, an ^ has been 
 identified with our shipping and steamer interests continuously 
 ince then. He was a whole-souled, generous, single-hearted 
 gentleman, genial in disposition, and very popular as a com- 
 mander with the many steamer-loads of passengers who have 
 traveled to and fro with him prior to these days of rapid transit 
 by rail. His many sailor anecdotes would fill a volume brimful 
 of interest. Strong-hearted, "grey-haired men, companions with
 
 378 Conclusion. 
 
 him during his pilgrimage, wept burning tears over his remains 
 — a sincere tribute from those who knew him best in his honest 
 worth. He was buried in the beautiful cemetery located among 
 the hills, and the members of the Occidental Lodge F. and A. 
 M ., consigned his remains to their narrow resting-place. 
 
 " Good husband, faithful father, kind and loving friend, we 
 know that in the dread hereafter such lives as thine shall have 
 well-earned reward; assuring thee that thy memory will remain 
 green with us until reunited beyond the dark river. 
 
 " Calmly he looked on either life, and here 
 Saw nothing to regret or there to fear; 
 From Nature's temperate feast rose satisfied; 
 Thanked Heaven that he had lived and that he died."
 
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