Page:Twenty years before the mast - Charles Erskine, 1896.djvu/229

 months’ pay and two weeks’ liberty, and that their wages would be raised one-fourth.

Nearly all our ships’ crews had entered for three years, and, as their time had expired, all hands had an idea  that when we left Honolulu it would be to up anchor for  "home, sweet, sweet home."

Like all the young men and boys in the squadron, I felt heartily sick of the navy. We learned nothing but to pull and haul, handle the light sails, holy-stone decks,  clean bright work, do boat duty, etc. None but able  seamen were allowed to go to the wheel, heave the lead,  or work on the rigging. As young as I was, before I entered the navy I had learned to box the compass,  heave the lead, knot a rope-yarn, haul out an earing,  work a Matthew Walker, and Turk’s head, strap a block, knot, hand, reef, and steer. I learned more seamanship on board the merchantman Rainbow, during an eight  months’ voyage from New York to Canton, China, than  in my seven years in the navy.

Quite a number of the men who had families and had not seen their dear ones for years, left, and went on  board three whale-ships which were homeward bound. After listening to many long yarns spun upon deck, I consulted my own mind, and came to the conclusion  that I would not leave the ship short-handed in a foreign  port.

The next morning the purser, Mr. Waldron, told me that the four dollars a month to my mother was for only  three years, and had now expired. I asked him if there was any way for me to send some money to my mother,  and he told me that one of the whale-ships would sail in