rigging. The Brazilian Government had given permission
to use one of their ship-houses to work in. Every day a gang of us were
taken ashore to fit up the standing rigging. We were at that work for
two months. The experience and knowledge I acquired in that brief time
made me a good sailor. The English Government had the lease of a small
island in the harbour on which were erected a number of buildings
containing supplies for the navy. As we returned to the ship at night,
our boat would stop there and bring off the paymaster. One evening we
had to wait for him. As was the English custom, the boat was rowed a few
hundred yards from the dock, then "Peak oars!" was the order, each man
holding his oar straight up, the handle resting on the bottom of the
boat, the blade in the air. It was the second cutter with fourteen
oars, two men on each seat, quite a fine sight, but very tedious for the
men. We had a sudden change from the sublime to the ridiculous that
time. Two of the crew had got into an argument. One of them, getting
excited, emphasized his remarks by lifting his oar and bringing it down
on the bottom of the boat. That ended the debate abruptly. The boat,
being old and rotten, could not stand such treatment. The force of the
blow knocked a big hole in the bottom. In a few seconds all hands were
in the water, men and oars badly mixed up. Those of us who could swim
struck out for dry land, the remainder saving themselves by clinging to
the wreck.

We had very little work to do after the old frigate was newly rigged. I
would look out of the gun-ports and watch the shipping in the harbour.
One day the United States brig Perry came in from a cruise on the
African coast and anchored close to us. She was a beautiful vessel. All
the crew appeared to be happy and contented. They were a fine, active
lot of men. I should have liked to exchange places with any of them.
Finally they went on another cruise in quest of slavers. The next time I
saw the Perry was in Boston during the war, and I was then one of her
officers, in a position I little dreamed of holding when I watched her
leaving the harbour of Rio de Janeiro.

I soon became discontented and homesick on the old frigate. My
messmates, knowing me to be a "blawsted Yankee," as they called me, made
me ill-natured. I usually returned what they gave. After several fights
they let me alone, but I was punished by being put on the black-list for
fighting. That meant being kept a