we should now be full. Moreover, he offered--nor would he
take any denial--to come with the whole of his crew and help us finish.

For the next four days and nights, during which the wind prevented the
CHANCE from leaving us, our old ship was a scene of wild revelry, that
ceased not through the twenty-four hours--revelry entirely unassisted
by strong waters, too, the natural ebullient gaiety of men who were
free from anxiety on any account whatever, rejoicing over the glad
consummation of more than two years toil, on the one hand; on the other,
a splendid sympathy in joy manifested by the satisfied crew under the
genial command of Captain Gilroy. With their cheerful help we made
wonderful progress; and when at last the wind hauled into a favourable
quarter, and they were compelled to leave us, the back of our work was
broken, only the tedious task of boiling being left to finish.

Never, I am sure, did two ships' companies part with more hearty
good-will than ours. As the ungainly old tub surged slowly out of the
little harbour, her worn-out and generally used-up appearance would have
given a Board of Trade Inspector the nightmare; the piratical looks of
her crowd were enough to frighten a shipload of passengers into fits;
but to us who had seen their performances in all weathers, and under all
circumstances, accidental externals had no weight in biassing our high
opinion of them all. Good-bye, old ship; farewell, jolly captain and
sturdy crew; you will never be forgotten any more by us while
life lasts, and in far other and more conventional scenes we shall
regretfully remember the free-and-easy time we shared with you. So she
slipped away round the point and out of our lives for ever.

By dint of steady hard work we managed to get the last of our greasy
work done in four days more, then faced with a will the job of stowing
afresh the upper tiers of casks, in view of our long journey home. The
oil bought by the skipper on private venture was left on deck, secured
to the lash-rail, for discharging at the Bluff, while our stock of
water-casks were carefully overhauled and recoopered prior to being
stowed in their places below. Of course, we had plenty of room in the
hold, since no ship would carry herself full of casks of oil; but I
doubt whether, if we had borne a "Plimsoll's mark," it would not have
been totally submerged, so deep did we lie. Wooding and watering came
next--a different affair to our casual exercises