58 THE SEA. 



One of the drawbacks of a stay at Tinian was the roadstead, which, with its coral 

 bottom, afforded a bad anchorage during the western monsoons. This was convincingly 

 proved to the people of the Centurion. In the third week of September the wind blew 

 with such fury that all communication with the shore was cut off, as no boat could live 

 in the sea raised by it. The small bower cable, and afterwards their best bower, parted. 

 The waves broke over the devoted ship, and the long-boat, at that time moored astern, 

 was on a sudden canted so high that it broke the transom of the commodore's cabin on 

 the quarter-deck, and was itself stove to pieces, the poor boat-keeper, though extremely 

 bruised, being saved almost by a miracle. The end of all this was that the ship was 

 driven to sea, leaving Anson, several officers, and a great part of the crew on shore, 

 amounting in the whole to one hundred and thirteen persons. The poor wretches on the 

 ship expected each moment to be their last, as they were altogether too few and weak 

 to work a large vessel. 



"The storm which drove the Centurion to sea blew with too much turbulence to 

 permit either the commodore or any of the people on shore to hear the guns which she 

 fired as signals of distress ; and the frequent glare of the lightning had prevented the 

 explosions from being observed ; so that when at daybreak it was perceived from the 

 shore that the ship was missing, there was the utmost consternation amongst them, for 

 much the greatest part of them immediately concluded that she was lost." Anson, 

 whatever he thought himself, did all in his power to reason them out of the idea, and 

 immediately proposed that if she did not return in a few days they should cut in half a 

 small bark, a Spanish prize they had taken, and lengthen her about twelve feet, which 

 would enable her to carry them all to China. After some days the men began to consider 

 this their only chance, and worked zealously at their allotted employments. These were 

 interrupted one day by "A sail!" being announced. Presently a second was descried, 

 which quite destroyed the conjecture that it was the ship herself. The revulsion of 

 feeling in Anson's bosom was so strong, that for once he was quite unmanned, and retired 

 to his tent, with the bitter feeling that now he could not hope to signalise the expedition 

 by any great exploit. He was, however, soon relieved by finding that the boats were 

 Indian proas, which, after cruising off the island for a time, suddenly departed, and 

 were lost to sight. The recital of the details connected with the transformation of the 

 bark would be tedious ; suffice it to say, that they had to manufacture many of 

 the necessary tools, cut dow r n trees, and saw them into planks, and dig a dry dock, while 

 others were employed in collecting provisions. They were much mortified to find that all 

 the powder ashore did not amount to more than ninety charges. What if the Spaniards 

 should appear at this juncture? 



However, in spite of all obstacles, they had proceeded so far with their work as to 

 have fixed upon a date for their departure from the island. " But their project and 

 labours were now drawing to speedier and happier conclusion; for, on the llth of October, 

 in the afternoon, one of the Gloucester's men, being upon a hill in the middle of the 

 island, perceived the Centurion at a distance, and, running down with his utmost speed 

 towards the landing-place, he in the way saw some of his comrades, to whom he hallooed 

 out with great ecstasy, 'The ship! the ship!' J It was indeed the ship; and when 



