350 TEE CRUISE OF THE " CACHALOT." 



putting all of us in the best of humours, and provoking 

 quite an entertainment of song and dance until nearly 

 four bells. 



During the grey of dawn the anchor was weighed. 

 There was no breath of wind from any quarter, so that 

 it was necessary to lower boats and tow the old girl out 

 to her field of duty. Before she was fairly clear of the 

 harbour, though, there came a "snifter" from the hills 

 that caught her unprepared, making her reel again, and 

 giving us a desperate few minutes to scramble on board 

 and hoist our boats up. As we drew out from the land, 

 we found that a moderate gale was blowing, but the sky 

 was clear, fathomless blue, the sun rose kindly, a heavenly 

 dream of soft delicate colour preceding him ; so that, in 

 spite of the strong breeze, all looked promising for a good 

 campaign. At first no sign could be seen of any of the 

 other ships, though we looked long and eagerly for them. 

 At last we saw them, four in all, nearly hull down to 

 seaward, but evidently coming in under press of sail. 

 So slow, however, was their approach that we had made 

 one "leg" across the ground and halfway back before 

 they were near enough for us to descry the reason of 

 their want of speed. They had each got a whale alongside, 

 and were carrying every rag of canvas they could spread, 

 in order to get in with their prizes. 



Our old acquaintance, the Chance, was there, the three 

 others being her former competitors, except those who 

 were disabled, still lying in Port William. Slowly, pain- 

 fully they laboured along, until well within the mouth of 

 the Straits, when, without any warning, the wind which 

 had been bringing them in suddenly flew round into the 

 northward, putting them at once in a most perilous posi- 

 tion. Too far within the Straits to " up helm " and run 

 for it out to sea ; not far enough to get anywhere that an 



