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" says another , " and we 'll get an afternoon watch below , by this scrape ; " but in this they were disappointed , for at two bells , all hands were called and set to work , getting lashings upon everything on deck ; and the captain talked of sending down the long top-gallant masts ; but , as the sea went down toward night , and the wind hauled abeam we left them standing , and set the studding-sails . The California had got under weigh at the same moment ; and we sailed down the narrow bay abreast and were just off the mouth , and finding ourselves gradually shooting ahead of her , were on the point of giving her three parting cheers , when , suddenly , we found ourselves stopped short , and the California ranging fast ahead of us . The first thought I had was , that it might be a boat , with the crew of some wrecked vessel , or perhaps the boat of some whaleship , out over night , and we had run them down in the darkness . The Don turned slowly round , the cologne , running down his face , and over his clothes and a loud laugh breaking out from every quarter . The news soon spread through the ship , and all tongues were at work , talking about it . The great amusement of the evenings , - which I suppose was owing to its being carnival - was the breaking of eggs filled with cologne , or other essences , upon the heads of the company . The curse of a people calling themselves Christian , seems to follow them everywhere ; and even here , in this obscure place , lay two young islanders , whom I had left strong , active young men , in the vigor of health , wasting away under a disease , which they would never have known but for their intercourse with Christianized Mexico and people from Christian America . Even the never-failing resource of long yarns , which eke out many a watch , seemed to have failed us now ; for we had been so long together that we had heard each other 's stories told over and over again , till we had them by heart ; each one knew the whole history of each of the others , and we were fairly and literally talked out . When the water ran off , we picked the sheep up , and put them in the long-boat , got the long-boat , got the galley back in its place , and set things a little to rights ; but , had not our ship had uncommonly high bulwarks and rail , everything must have been washed overboard , not excepting Old Bill and the cook . " I knew that this was too true to be answered , but I excused myself from any blame , and told them that I had a right to go home , at all events .