LIFE ON BOARD AND OFF 205 



" I got strung up by the wrists once, when we was down off 

 the Horn. It was like this. The cook give us cracker hash for 

 breakfast and all the men in the forecastle was grumbling about 

 it. The cook, he took the hardtack and set it in water to float 

 the maggots off, then when he'd skimmed out what floated easy, 

 he'd warm the crackers in a frying pan and serve it up for hash. 

 'Well,' I says to the men, 'what are you growling about here? 

 This won't do you no good. Why don't some one go aft and 

 talk to the captain about it? ' 



"'All right,' they says, 'you go.' 



"'No,' says I. 'I'm the youngest here. It ain't fitting for 

 me to go.' 



"'Oh,' says they, 'you go. We'll all stand behind you.' 



'"Will you really stand by me?' I says, and they all says 

 they will. 



"So I took my plate of cracker hash and started aft, and the 

 captain saw me coming and come to the break of the poop. 



"'Well,' says he, 'what to hell do you want?' 



'"If you please, sir,' says I, for I was only a boy then, 'this 

 hash ain't fit to eat.' 



"He looks at it hard and says, 'That hash is all right. You 

 go for'ard.' 



"'No,' says I, 'it ain't all right.' 



"Then he roars at me, 'You go for'ard.' And at that I set 

 my plate of hash down on the deck in front of him and turned 

 round and went for'ard. 



"He called the mate and sent for all hands to come aft so we 

 all come back again. And there was my plate of cracker hash 

 setting on the deck where I'd left it. And when all hands was 

 lined up, the Old Man took that plate of hash and walked up 

 to the first man and stuck the plate of hash under the man's 

 nose, with one hand, and shook his fist in the man's face with 

 the other hand, and says, 'Ain't this hash good enough for you, 

 blank — blank you? ' 



"And the man says, 'Yes, sir.' 



"And the Old Man walks up to the next one and does the 

 same to him, and the next one says, 'Yes, sir,' too. And he 



