ip on the starboard bridle, gave power to her engines, and rounded
to, very slowly, head to sea, while the men on the ship, who had been
carrying the end of the coiled hawser up the foretopmast rigging,
dropped it and came down hurriedly.

Released from the wind-pressure on her strong side, which had somewhat
steadied her, the ship now rolled more than she had done in the trough,
and with every starboard roll were ominous creakings and grindings
aloft. At last came a heavier lurch, and both crippled topmasts fell,
taking with them the mizzentopgallantmast. Luckily, no one was hurt,
and they disgustedly cut the wreck adrift, stayed the fore- and
mainmasts with the hawser, and resigning themselves to a large
subtraction from their salvage, went to a late breakfast--a savory meal
of smoking fried ham and potatoes, hot cakes and coffee served to
sixteen in the cabin, and an unsavory meal of "hardtack-hash," with an
infusion of burnt bread-crust, pease, beans, and leather, handed, but
not served, to three in the forecastle.

Three days later, with Sandy Hook lighthouse showing through the haze
ahead, and nothing left of the gale but a rolling ground-swell, the
steamer slowed down so that a pilot-boat's dinghy could put a man
aboard each craft. And the one who climbed the ship's side was the
pilot that had taken her to sea, outward bound, and sympathized with
her crew. They surrounded him on the poop and asked for news, while the
three men forward looked aft hungrily, as though they would have joined
the meeting, but dared not. Instead of giving news, the pilot asked
questions, which they answered.

"I knew you'd taken charge, boys," he said at length. "The whole world
knows it, and every man-of-war on the Pacific stations has been looking
for you. But they're only looking out there. What brings you round
here, dismasted, towing into New York?"

"That's where the ship's bound--New York. We took her out; we bring her
home. We don't want her--don't belong to us. We're law-abidin' men."

"Law-abiding men?" asked the amazed pilot.

"You bet. We're goin' to prosecute those dogs of ours forrard there to
the last limit o' the law. We'll show 'em they can't starve and hammer
and shoot free-born Americans just 'cause they've got guns in their
pockets."

The pilot looked forward, nodded to one of the three, who beckoned to
him, and asked:

"Who'd you elect captain?"

"Nobody," they roared. "We had enough o' captains. This sh