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As soon as the sea had washed by , all hands sprung out of the forecastle to see what had become of the ship and in a few moments the cook and old Bill crawled out from under the galley , where they had been lying in the water , nearly smothered , with the galley over them . Having kept close in shore , for the land-breeze , we passed the mission of San Juan Capestrano the same night , and saw distinctly , by the bright moonlight , the hill which I had gone down by a pair of halyards in search of a few paltry hides . They sang in the true sailor 's style , and the rest of the crew , which was a remarkably musical one , joined in the choruses . Being so far out from the deck , I could look at the ship , as at a separate vessel ; - and there rose up from the water , supported only by the small black hull , a pyramid of canvas , spreading out far beyond the hull , and towering up almost , as it seemed in the indistinct night air , to the clouds . Some laughed at the " scholars , " and went over the other side of the forecastle , to work , and spin their yarns ; but I carried the day , and had the cream of the crew for my hearers . For more than an hour she was driven on at such a rate that she seemed actually to crowd the sea into a heap before her ; and the water poured over the spritsail yard as it would over a dam . I did very well for some time , but began at length to feel very unpleasantly , though I had never been sick since the first two days from Boston , and had been in all sorts of weather and situations . - " Stand by the royal halyards ; " - the man at the wheel keeps a good weather helm , so as not to be taken aback . A pretty young girl was dancing , named , after what would appear to us the sacrilegious custom of the country - Espiritu Santo , when a young man went behind her and placed his hat directly upon her head , letting it fall down over her eyes , and sprang back among the crowd . As we pulled under the stern , the clerk held up the package , and called out to the mate , who was leaning over the taffrail , that the California had arrived . A cloud of smoke came out of our bows ; the echoes of the gun rattled our farewell among the hills of California ; and the two ships were covered , from head to foot , with their white canvas . His singular character and story had excited our interest ever since the ship came into the port . I took my last look of their familiar faces as they got over the rail , and saw the old black cook put his head out of the galley , and wave his cap over his head . At the same time he cashed the order , which was endorsed to him , * and the next morning , the lad went aboard the brig , apparently in good spirits , having shaken hands with each of us and wished us a pleasant passage home , jingling the money in his pockets , and calling out , " Never say die , while there 's a shot in the locker . Mr. Brown 's plan had a good effect , for there was no more quarrelling among the boys for the rest of the voyage . This chapter is written after the lapse of a considerable time since the end of my voyage , and after a return to my former pursuits ; and in it I design to offer those views of what may be done for seamen , and of what is already doing , which I have deduced from my experiences , and from the attention which I have since gladly given to the subject . Here we found the Ayacucho and the Pilgrim , which last we had not seen since the 11th of September , - nearly five months ; and I really felt something like an affection for the old brig which had been my first home , and in which I had spent nearly a year , and got the first rough and tumble of a sea life . He went to see him , but said that he had so little medicine , and expected to be so long on the coast , that he could do nothing for him , but that Captain Arthur would take care of him when he came down in the California , which would be in a week or more . The commandant of the Presidio , Don Gaudaloupe Villego , a young man , and the most popular , among the Americans and English , of any man in California , was on board when we got under weigh . He was horror-struck , as his countenance showed ; yet he had been among the worst cases in our naval hospitals . You're frightened by the ducking you got in the scuppers , and ca n't take a joke !