and as like as not when ordered to heave the buoy overboard to heave the boy. I have seen many laughable mistakes occur amongst our boys when first out; do not think I take a sailor’s privilege and draw a long bow, as I am at the same time included with these worthies--I being, at the time of leaving home, as verdant as any of the rest. I have seen them when ordered to haul down the flying jib, grasp the spanker halyards, and spend any quantity of pulling and hauling upon it, wondering at the same time why the darned thing did not come down; their only mistake in this case was hoisting the aftermost sail in the ship instead of lowering the foremost. With our officers, as a general thing, these errors passed off good humoredly; but, as I said before, they were required to use all their forbearance to repress their anger at our lubberly mistakes; nor would it have been surprising, all things taken into consideration, had they let out at us occasionally, and I doubt much if Job, who, by the Book of books, is spoken of as the most patient man of antiquity, were he afloat with a green crew, who misunderstood all he said to them, and who in the multiplicity of their ideas would attempt to haul up the mainsail with the spanker vang, or clew down a topsail with the slab line--I say, I doubt whether even he, the said Job, would not find his stock of patience, noted as he was for that virtue, oozing out at his fingers ends, and be tempted to anathematize their lubberly eyes in a heartfelt and seamanlike manner. In a short time, however, things began to wear a totally different aspect; improvement was the order of the day--each tried to excel the other. This spirit of emulation was productive of the most beneficial results to everybody, and in a short time we had an efficient crew, perfectly competent to battle with the combined forces of Boreas and Neptune. When three days out, we spoke the ship Monmouth, of Bath; she was a fine-looking ship, running free, with the wind on her quarter, and everything alow and aloft drawing, presenting a beautiful sight. On the fourth day out, whilst crossing the Gulf Stream, we were struck by a squall, prevalent in that latitude. All hands were called, and as this was our first trip aloft, we ascended the rigging with fear and trembling--holding on to the shrouds as if it was our intention to squeeze all the tar out of the rigging. When on the yards we were of little use, carrying out the landlubbers’ motto to the letter, of both hands for yourself and the rest for the owners. We all hung on like good fellows, and if it had depended upon us to reef the sail it would not have been done till now.