probably strike. It made all
hands feel a little nervous to see the reception which was awaiting us.
It was well known by sailors what a set of cutthroats the people were in
that locality. The officers and crew held a consultation as to what
should be done. My suggestion was acted upon, and that was, to take all
our boats and tow the ship, if possible, or at least to check her from
drifting, in hopes that a breeze might spring up. Strangely enough, I
was the only man on the ship who had ever seen the experiment tried. The
occasion took place when I was in the bushes at San Carlos watching my
old ship, the Courier, leaving the harbour. The wind having died away,
they lowered the boats and towed the ship a considerable distance. But
then the Courier was only half our size and had more and better boats
than we had. Our boats were quickly lowered and fastened in a row to a
rope from the ship's bows. By hard pulling we slowly turned the vessel
head to the current. The drifting was checked, and that was about all we
could do. Within half an hour a breeze sprang up and away started the
ship, swinging the boats around and towing them stern first. We had a
lively time in preventing them from capsizing when the towing business
was reversed.

In a few days we sighted what appeared to be an immense hill of chalk,
perfectly white from the water's edge to the summit. That was Algiers.
Before night we were inside the breakwater and at anchor. That was the
most interesting port I ever saw. A large number of French troops were
stationed in the city. The Italian war was then in progress. Such a
contrast in people and dress was probably never seen before. Only the
Algerian and Moorish women seemed to be without gaiety. They were all
dressed alike, a light gauzy dress and a long veil of the same material
covering the head and face, leaving only the eyes uncovered. The rich
wore shoes; the poor went barefooted. The young had smooth skins on
their wrists; the old were wrinkled. That was the only way we could tell
the difference between them. As to their beauty, we had no means of
judging. Other women were dressed in silk tights and gaily coloured
velvet jackets, the front being completely covered with jewels. In fact,
every conceivable sort of costume was to be seen. The streets were
always crowded; nobody seemed to be at home. The French soldiers were in
their element, all wearing their side-arms. One regiment of Turcos
looked fierce enoug