On Board the "Rocket"Adams, Robert C. (Robert Chamblet)
History
On Board the "Rocket"
Adams, Robert C. (Robert Chamblet)
Seafaring life
Mr. Smith hastened back to report that they still refused duty, and
the captain hailed a passing boat and procured some Russians from the
"Captain of the 'Branvault,'" as the harbor-master is called. With
their assistance the ship was hauled to the Mole-head, and gave her
hawser to the towboat that was waiting outside. Then the Russians
stepped ashore, I took the wheel, the mates cast off the lines, and we
proceeded in tow of the steamer.
When fairly off, the captain told the mate to call all hands aft.
Standing by the cabin door he made an address to them, offering to
divide among them the wages that would have come to the dead sailor,
had he lived to complete the voyage.
Some of the men were inclined to give in, but Brock muttered, "We don't
want a dead man's wages."
"Well," said the captain, "I'll give you what I should have paid
another man if I had shipped one."
"Oh, we've been humbugged that way before, Cap'n," said Brock, who
turned and went forward, followed by the rest of the crew, leaving the
captain in the midst of another conciliatory harangue.
The ship was soon abreast of Tollbaken, ten miles from Cronstadt. The
wind was dead ahead; and having nominally sailed, the captain decided
to come to anchor and wait for the wind and crew to favor him.
The mate asked the men if they would turn to and let go the anchor; and
thinking they would thus gain their point, and also their dinner, they
consented. The steamer was cast off and the ship brought to anchor.
The crew were then allowed to get their dinner, but when called on to
work, they again refused. The captain was greatly troubled, and so much
at a loss what to do, that he appealed to me for advice. I felt rather
flattered by his consideration, and suggested that he should put the
men in irons. He was afraid to try that, so I proposed that he should
give them nothing to eat till they resumed duty. When supper-time came
they went to the galley, and being refused, Brock marched aft with his
tin pot in hand, and with the coolest impudence, asked the captain if
they were not to be allowed any supper.
"Not till you turn to," was the reply.
The man then put on an air of injured innocence and declared it was a
shame to try to starve men to death. But he sauntered forward, and the
men turned in, laughing at the way they had "waxed the old man," but
feeling a little concerned on the score of eating.
At nine o'clock in the evening, the wind hauled fair. The captain went
to the forecastle, and after fifteen minutes spent in argument upon the
propriety of their going to work, the promise of some tea, and other
fair words, prevailed upon the men to get the ship under way, and the
passage was fairly begun.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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