Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 21.djvu/176

 168 Southern .Historical Society Papers.

with propeller unshipped and sails up, she often outdid this. At one time sailing down the Indian ocean, she made for four consecutive hours the high average rate of eighteen knots.

FIRST VISITORS.

" The morning of October 2Qth was clear and bright, and was made memorable by our first visitors on board. The stranger showed chase, but quickly changed his mind when a hustling shot across his bows said, ' Do come and see us,' the first of fifty pressing invitations. Of this vessel's complement of ten men, eight joined our crew. I will not stop to enumerate in detail," said Dr. McNulty, who was here interrupted by the writer, " but rise to indignantly deny as a base lie that Captain Waddell ever put a man in irons because he would not join our ship! James I. Waddell was a gentleman, and would never stoop to such conduct. Certainly there must be discipline on board ship, and at times when there were too many prisoners we had to see that they did not rise and take possession of the vessel."

He then resumed his narrative : " After our first capture, sailing steadily to the south seas, and destroying a ship nearly every other day, on the evening of November i5th we were on the equator. Here his most saline and anciently-enthroned majesty came on board and brought with him his numerous retinue, and the ceremony of be- coming naturalized citizens of the deep had to be submitted to, many of the officers, including the assistant surgeon, undergoing the ton- sorial brushing up of old Neptune. In those warm southern waters, with a clear sky and little to do, our quota of men was now nearly made up the hours seemed like links of sunshine. In the enchant- ment of the bright dream one would forget at times that our occupa- tion was less than peace. Then suddenly a sail would be descried, and all would be bustle ; top sails would be shaken out, and, forging ahead, our guns would ring out the iron voice of war. The lower- ing of a flag and transferring of a crew would follow, and then in a sacrificial flame would go up to the blue sky one more of the enemy's ships, leaving a blot in the memory of an otherwise cloudless tropi- cal day.

" One day we overhauled a New Bedford whaler attached to a whale. It was the case of the big fish eating up the little one, and we were the largest in that pond just then. So the whaling barque