NIGHTS IN THE GALLEY. 391 



such stuff; I am almost laughing, though I can't understand half the 

 five-deckers you have been launching ; I wonder now, sarjeant, 

 whether them ere fine words are any use to a feller ; rough and 

 ready's the best, lad, depend upon it ; I always think a feller's spin- 

 ning me a devil of a twister when he doesn't speak plain English 

 what do you say, Tom ?" 



" Ay to be sure, when a feller's upright and downstraight he's 

 no need to hide his meaning behind a parcel of fine words that 

 nobody but himself, nor himself either sometimes, understands ; 

 besides, who'd veer when he could tack? why none but a d d land- 

 lubber ; so whenever I hears a feller going on with them ere long 

 word?, I always thinks him either a rogue or a fool ; because he's 

 a rogue if he wants to deceive you, and a fool if he says that in 

 twenty which he might say in two words." 



" To be sure, to be sure, lad ; but come, let's have a good yarn, 

 and don't stand argifying here with fellers what would prove you 

 were never born, without you gave them a dig in the eye to prove 

 they lied. Come, come, let's come to an anchor on this ere gun ; Jack 

 Murray's not here yet, so we'll have his yarn by and by, and I'll 

 try what I can do in the mean time, eh, lads?" 



" Oh, ay do, Will, tip us a good yarn to-night ; you used always 

 to be spinning yarns, and now you only give us a short one now 

 and then/' 



" Well, well, I'll try what I can do, bo's/' said Will, evidently 

 much flattered at their blaming him for not talking enough ; " well 

 I'll try what I can do. I could spin a yarn once I don't deny." 



(e And so you can now, Will, so go on, my bo'; I'd rather hear 

 you for an hour on a bowline than that sarjeant with all his fine 

 words for five minutes heave a-head, lad." 



" Did I ever tell you, lads, of the ghost what we heard when we 

 were cruising off Lisbon in the Weel-'em-along (Ville de Milan) ? 

 she was a seventy-four, and taken in the war time in America : we 

 commissioned her at Plymouth, and went to cruise off Lisbon. When 

 we got out we went on at the usual cruising work, backing and filling. 

 One night when we were standing off shore it was a fine moonlight 

 night, with just a five-knot breeze a number of the hofficers were 

 standing on the poop, and the skipper with 'em, not thinking o' no- 

 thing, when all at once the look-out man in the starboard waist sung 

 out, ' Somebody hailing the ship, Sir, on the starboard beam.' ' Hail- 

 ing the ship what?' cried the skipper; ' silence fore and aft.' The 

 voice was more distinctly heard to come from the water on the star- 

 board quarter. ' Ship a-hoy !' we heard a third time as plain as pos- 

 sible. ' It's a man overboard,' said the skipper ; ' man the weather 

 main-brace, maintopsail-brace quick ; pipe the lee cutter away 

 cast off your gripes, lads ; bear a hand, lower away ; let go the main- 

 top bowline, top-gallant bowline, square away the main-yard/ The 

 first-leaftenant went in the cutter himself, and after they'd been away 

 about a quarter of an hour, ' Burn blue lights/ says the skipper ; ' up 

 with a couple of lanterns at the peak, and fire a musket for the boat 

 to return.' Well, we did as we was told, o' course, and aboard she 

 came ; but she hadn't found nobody, though she'd pulled in all direc- 



