creaking noise, that I thought the masts had gone over the side, and
the next moment the wind had caught the sails; and the ship, which for
a moment or two had been on an even keel, careened over to her gunwale
with its force. The captain, who stood upon the weather hammock-rails,
holding by the main-rigging, ordered the helm a-midships, looked full
at the sails, and then at the cable, which grew broad upon the
weather-bow, and held the ship from nearing the shore. At last he
cried, "Cut away the cable!" A few strokes of the axes were heard, and
then the cable flew out of the hawse-hole in a blaze of fire, from the
violence of the friction, and disappeared under a huge wave, which
struck us on the chesstree, and deluged us with water fore and aft.
But we were now on the other tack, and the ship regained her way, and
we had evidently increased our distance from the land.

"My lads," said the captain to the ship's company, "you have behaved
well, and I thank you; but I must tell you honestly that we have more
difficulties to get through. We have to weather a point of the bay on
this tack. Mr. Falcon, splice the main-brace, and call the watch.
How's her head, quartermaster?"

"S.W. by S. Southerly, sir."

"Very well; let her go through the water;" and the captain, beckoning
to the master to follow him, went down into the cabin. As our
immediate danger was over, I went down into the berth to see if I could
get anything for breakfast, where I found O'Brien and two or three more.

"By the powers, it was as nate a thing as ever I saw done," observed
O'Brien: "the slightest mistake as to time or management, and at this
moment the flatfish would have been dubbing at our ugly carcasses.