rboard
quarter, fortunately. "Hard-a-starboard." "Hanl aft port fore staysail
sheet," I called. But before she could gather way she was thrown down by
the wind like a reed. She was "coming to" instead of "going off," and
I tried to get the main storm staysail down but could not make myself
heard. She was lying on her broadside. Luckily the water was smooth as
yet. The main staysail shot out of the boltropes with a report like a
twelve-pounder, and this eased her so that if the fore staysail would
only hold she would go off. For a few minutes all we could do was to
hold on, our lee rail in the water; but the plucky little brig rallied
a little, her head went off inch by inch, and as she gathered way she
righted, and catching the wind on our quarter we were off like a shot
out of a gun. I knew we were too near the vortex of the disturbance for
the wind to hang long in one quarter, so watched anxiously for a change.
The sea rose rapidly while we were running to the northward on her
course, and after a lull of a few minutes the wind opened from the
eastward, butt end foremost, a change of eight points. Nothing was to
be done but heave to, and this in a cross sea where pitch, weather roll,
lee lurch, followed one another in such earnest that it was a wonder her
masts were not switched out of her.

I passed an anxious night, most concerned about the poor creatures under
hatches, whose sufferings must have been terrible. To prevent their
suffocating I kept two men at the main hatch with orders to lift one
corner of the tarpaulin whenever possible, even if some water did go
below. Toward morning the wind and the sea went down rapidly, and as the
sun rose it chased the clouds off, giving us the promise of a fine day.
When the cook brought me a cup of coffee, I do not know that I ever
enjoyed anything more. Hatches off, I jumped down into the hold to look
after my prisoners. Battered and bruised they lay around in heaps.
Only the shifting boards had kept them from being beaten into an
indistinguishable mass. As fast as possible they were sent on deck, and
the sun's rays, with a few buckets of water that were thrown over them,
accomplished wonders in bringing them to life and starting them to care
for their sore limbs and bruises.

One boy, when I motioned for him to go on deck, pointed quietly to
his leg, and upon examination I found a fracture just above the knee.
Swelling had already commenced. I had seen limbs set, and had so