130 THE ISLAND OF NANTUCKET. 



the wind did not die away, but stopped, and the sails 

 flapped against the masts. Raising his trumpet to his 

 lips, Pinkham shouted, ' Haul taut, haul of all! ' and 

 the ponderous yards swung to a reversed direction. 

 They had hardly done so when the wind came out from 

 the opposite quarter, and struck the ship like a sledge- 

 hammer. She bent over before it, but shaking the 

 spray from her bows , dashed forward unharmed. Com- 

 modore Downes said not a word, but rushed into his 

 cabin, and presently the orderly came up to Mr. Pink- 

 ham and said the commodore wished him to send to 

 the first lieutenant to relieve him for a few minutes, 

 as he wished to see him in the cabin. Entering the 

 cabin, Pinkham found the commodore seated by a 

 table, with a decanter of wine and two wineglasses 

 before him. Pushing one of the latter towards his 

 visitor, he said, ' Take a glass of wine, Mr. Pinkham. 

 Mr. Pinkham, I consider myself indebted to you for 

 my own life, and for the lives of all on board this ship. 

 Had you not hauled the yards just when you did, and 

 had the wind found the ship unprepared, and taken 

 the sails aback, not all the power on earth could have 

 moved the yards, and the ship would have gone down 

 stern foremost. But I tell you frankly that had the 

 wind not come out as you predicted, I would have put 

 you under arrest in two minutes.' i Commodore 

 Downes,' replied the lieutenant, ' I did not intend any 

 disrespect, and I should be sorry if you thought I did; 

 but I have been in these seas before, and am familiar 

 with these sudden changes of wind. I saw undoubtful 

 indications of such change then, and knew that I had 

 no time for explanation.' " 



