I found Captain Coffin standing just forward of the house, nursing his bandaged ankle and gazing at the Virginia. I took my stand beside him, and we watched while the Virginia got her anchor up smartly, and got under way smartly, without the smallest mistake or mishap. Her canvas fell into place swiftly and with the precision of a machine, and she was soon well on her way to sea under a veritable cloud of snowy canvas, and going like a race-horse. There was no sound from Captain Coffin until the Virginia was almost out of sight. Then he heaved a long sigh, and turned to me, almost with tears in his eyes. “Well, Tim,” he said, with a smile, “she ’s a great vessel—a great ship, and as sweet a sailer as I ever saw.” I grinned in return, from ear to ear. “That ’s what Captain Marshall says, sir, and he ’s just right. I spent one whole day just watching her sail.” “I ’d give a leg,” he said, “to command a vessel like that. But there ’s the Annie Battles sailing these seas somewhere. She ’s almost as good, and she ’s mine. Help me below, Tim.” So I lent him my shoulder until he was deposited on the cabin sofa. A glance showed me the same blue-white pitcher on the cabin table, with three empty glasses, and three empty chairs. The pitcher was empty too, and cold, but it had been neither empty nor cold. I knew. {295} At Batavia we left poor Mr. Snow in hospital, under the charge of the American consul. Although we were sorry for him, there was no one in the ship who was not glad to have him out of it. Soon after we left, a homeward-bound whaler called whose master was willing to take him. He was already better, and recovered pretty well before they reached New Bedford, but he never went to sea again. I remember that I saw him, more than ten years later. I said a few words to him, but found that he did not know me, and I had no wish to recall myself to him. He was night watchman for one or two of the banks then on Water Street, and was a little “queer,” but not queer enough to prevent his being a good enough night watchman. We were in Batavia about a week, although I could see no reason for our staying more than a couple of days. The two men that we had picked up at Amsterdam Island with Captain Coffin left us there, and none were shipped in their places, as the old man did not like the looks of any of the candidates. This rejoiced me in particular, for I was practically put back in my boat. It was no cause of rejoicing to the sailmaker, however, for it put him back in his boat too; but Captain Nelson, I believe, expected to pick up a man or two later on. We sailed at last, expecting to look around the Java Sea a bit, and if there were no whales there, which Captain Nelson hardly expected, we would stand up the China Sea, past the Philippines, to the Japan grounds. The captain hoped to do well on the Japan grounds.