[word="35" | □]
[word="35" | □=□]
[word="35" | □ & □]
At night , some of us got a boat and went on board , and found a large , roomy forecastle , ( for she was squarer forward than the Alert , ) and a crew of a dozen or fifteen men and boys , sitting around on their chests , smoking and talking , and ready to give a welcome to any of our ship 's company . We had need of every finger God had given us . It was in sight all the afternoon ; and when we got to leeward of it , the wind died away , so that we lay-to quite near it for a greater part of the night . Sometimes , - generally towards noons , - it fell calm ; once or twice a round copper ball showed itself for a few moments in the place where the sun ought to have been ; and a puff or two came from the westward , giving some hope that a fair wind had come at last . He had been in the house several weeks , working hard at his trade , upon orders which he had brought with him , and talked much of his resolution , and opened his heart to us about his past life . Toward the middle of the week , the wind hauled to the southward , which brought us upon a taught bowline , made the ship meet , nearly head on , the heavy swell which rolled from that direction ; and there was something not at all encouraging in the manner in which she met it . Many a time , when blocked up in the ice , with everything dismal and discouraging about us , had we said , - if we were only fairly round , and standing north on the other side , we should ask for no more : - and now we had it all , with a clear sea , and as much wind as a sailor could pray for. " Battle-songs , drinking-songs , boat-songs , love-songs , and everything else , they seemed to have a complete assortment of , and I was glad to find that " All in the Downs , " " Poor Tom Bowline , " " The Bay of Biscay , " " List , ye Landsmen ! As we were to be here over Sunday , and Monterey was the best place to go ashore on the whole coast , and we had had no liberty-day for nearly three months , every one was for going ashore . This was a windfall for us , for they had a set of new songs for the capstan and fall , and ours had got nearly worn out by six weeks ' constant use . We congratulated one another upon finding what we had long talked over and wished for , thus brought about ; and none on board the ship were more glad than ourselves to see the old brig standing round the point , under full sail . The last night they kept it up in great style , and were getting into a high-go , when the captain called us off to go aboard , for , it being south-easter season , he was afraid to remain on shore long ; and it was well he did not , for that very night , we slipped our cables , as a crowner to our fun ashore , and stood off before a south-easter , which lasted twelve hours , and returned to our anchorage the next day . Beside this difficulty , the yard over which we lay was cased with ice , the gaskets and rope of the foot and leach of the sail as stiff and hard as a piece of suctionhose , and the sail itself about as pliable as though it had been made of sheets of sheathing copper . Upon the whole , ours was the best berth ; for though the water was nipping cold , early in the morning and late at night , and being so continually wet was rather an exposure , yet we got rid of the constant dust and dirt from the beating of the hides , and being all of us young and hearty , did not mind the exposure .