NIGHTS IN THE GALLEY. 2J7 



moves, Sir/ reported the quarter-master. ' Heave, lads, heave ! she'll 

 go directly ;' and after a little, off she went. We soon got our an- 

 chors up, and in an hour we were in Vourla harbour. We carried 

 two hundred tons of water, and as we were in a hurry we began di- 

 rectly after dinner, and were full the next forenoon that warn't bad 

 work, was it, lads ?" 



" No, no/' said Will Gibbon, " that was smart enough ; did you 

 water all night." 



" No, lad, that we didn't ; we worked no later nor four bells in 

 first watch." 



" Well, after we completed our water, we got under weigh, and off 

 we went to Smyrna; the wind was dead on end, so we had to beat 

 up ; but, however, we got up all right in about six hours, and were 

 all ready to take our convoy. We had a laughable thing happened 

 here ; an Irishman we had on board was named M'Clair, and a wild 

 scamp he was ; there was no taming him, do what you would ; he had 

 been flogged about a dozen times, and I don't think he was out of 

 the black list for a week tog ether all the time the ship was in commis- 

 sion. Well, o' course, when we anchored at Smyrna, we put sentries 

 on the gangways, and none, only the ' hofficers/ were allowed to go 

 on shore ; so one night, as it might be to-night, we were going to sail 

 to-morrow morning with the convoy it was the last dog-watch, there 

 were no luffs on deck, 'cause they usen't to keep watch in harbour 

 up comes somebody by the companion, with a cocked hat and sword, 

 and a great boat-cloak, and says to the reefer of the watch, 'Man the 

 jolly-boat.' ' Ay ! ay ! Sir," said the reefer ; he did'nt know him, 

 but he thought he was some strange luff from the flag-ship, as a num- 

 ber of them had been on board dining in the gun-room. Well, the 

 jolly was manned and all ready ; up goes the reefer to the luff, 

 touches his hat, and says, ' The boat's man'd, Sir/ ' Very well/ 

 say the luff, and walks to the gangway to go over the side ; the sen- 

 try shouldered arms, and he was just going to step over the side, 

 when the sentry sings out, * Who are you ? you've got no shoes or 

 stockings on !' and immediately seizes hold of the feller by the collar, 

 and pulls him aboard. ' G d d n it/ says the feller, ' I'm caught, 

 I forgot to put on shoes / when he said that, he threw off his cloak, 

 and who should it be but Paddy M'Clair ! He was put under the 

 sentry's charge while the reefer went down to tell the first-luff what 

 had happened. Up he comes : ' Bring M'Clair aft here.' Aft he comes. 

 ' You're a pretty blackguard, ar'n't you now ?' says the first-luff. 

 ' Pray were were did you get that cocked hat, sword, and cloak ?' 

 * Why, please, Sir/ says Paddy, ' I wanted to go on shore very much, 

 and as I was passing the midshipman's berth I saw there was nobody 

 there,. so I just went in and took these things; but I assure you, Sir, 

 I meant to put them back to-morrow I hope your honour will for- 

 give me.' ' Forgive you, you d d rascal, for trying to desert; why, 

 if I was to try you by a court-martial, you'd be hanged.' And so he 

 would you know, then, in the war time. s Put him both legs in irons, 

 master-at-arms.' And the next day the skipper had him brought to 

 the gangway, and gave him five dozen. But here's Jack Murray 



M.M. No. 105. 2 O 



