The ship is lying over half upon
her beam-ends; lee scuppers under water, and forecastle all in a
smother of foam.- Rigging all let go, and washing about decks; topsail
yards down upon the caps, and sails flapping and beating against the
masts; and starboard watch hauling out the reef-tackles of the main
topsail. Our watch haul out the fore, and lay aloft and put two reefs
into it, and reef the foresail, and race with the starboard watch, to
see which will mast-head its topsail first. All hands tally-on to the
main tack, and while some are furling the jib, and hoisting the
staysail, we mizen-topmen double-reef the mizen topsail and hoist it
up. All being made fast- "Go below, the watch!" and we turn-in to
sleep out the rest of the time, which is perhaps an hour and a half.
During all the middle, and for the first part of the morning watch, it
blows as hard as ever, but toward daybreak it moderates considerably,
and we shake a reef out of each topsail, and set the top-gallant sails
over them and when the watch come up, at seven bells, for breakfast,
shake the other reefs out, turn all hands to upon the halyards, get
the watch-tackle upon the top-gallant sheets and halyards, set the
flying-jib, and crack on to her again.
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