companion; "no,
no, Mike--'twould be a sin and a shame to _hide_ it; that's a regular
dare-devil hand--it cares neither for soap nor water. But, Mike, the
voyage is not half over yet. We've had a fair weather passage so far;
but I'm always afeerd of those unkimmon fine beginnings; ev'rything
goes by contraries in this here world, and a good beginning often
brings in its wake a bad ending. It's not in the coorse of nature to
see such a long spell of fine weather; it's quite unnatural; it'll
break out, by and by, in a fresh place--see if it don't. That 'ere
butcher, the sea, lies there a-smiling at us as if we were so many
hinnocent lambs; but he'll maybe have his hand on our throats yet."

"Well, Tom, it's never no use smelling mischief afore it comes; time
enough when it does show its ugly mug, to grin in its face. I'm not
the man to turn my back on it--nor you neither, for that matter, I'll
be bound."

We had run nearly thirty-four degrees to the south of the equator,
when the weather became very variable, and the wind at last settled
into a strong breeze from the northward. One evening, we were spanking
along with the wind in that quarter, with a heavy confused sea, when a
thick gloom gradually overspread the sky, and the mercury, falling in
the barometer, gave warning of approaching bad weather. All our small
sails were taken in, and every necessary precaution adopted to prepare
for a change. Our topsails were reefed, and the mainsail was hauled up
and handled. About 6 P.M. Captain Fleetwood came on deck, and asked
what I thought of the weather.

"Bad enough, sir; it does not seem to have made up its mind what to
do; however, we are tolerably well prepared for a change, whichever
way it may be."

"You must keep a sharp look-out, Musgrave; if it should begin to rain,
depend upon it, the wind will chop suddenly round to southward. You
must not let it take you unawares."

"I'll look for it in time, sir."

He had scarcely left the deck, when a light, drizzling rain came on, a
partial lull succeeded, and the wind veered suddenly round to the
south-westward. We were prepared for it, however, and our yards were
soon trimmed to the wind; but our troubles were only beginning. The
breeze freshened up so rapidly, that we had barely time to take in
sail fast enough; no sooner was one reef in, than it became necessary
to take in another. The sea was running, as landsmen say, mountains
high; the winds howled through our ri