278 AUSTRALIA CHAP, XI 
no one else in the ship had seen practised, though all had 
heard of it by the name of fothering a ship, by means of 
which he said he had come home from America in a ship 
which made more water than we did. Nay, so sure was the 
master of that ship of his expedient that he took her out of 
harbour knowing how much water she had made, and trusting 
entirely to it. The midshipman immediately set to work 
with four or five assistants to prepare his fother, which he 
did thus. He took a lower studding sail, and having mixed 
together a large quantity of finely chopped oakum and wool, 
he stitched it down upon the sail as loosely as possible in 
small bundles about as big as his fist; these were ranged in 
rows four or five inches from each other. This was to be sunk 
under the ship. The theory of it was that wherever the 
leak was there must be a great suction which would probably 
catch hold of one or other of these lumps of oakum and wool 
and, drawing it in, either partly or entirely stop up the hole. 
While this work was going on the water rather gained on 
those who were pumping, which made all hands impatient 
for the trial. In the afternoon the ship was got under way 
with a gentle breeze of wind, and stood in for the land. 
Soon after the fother was finished, and applied by fastening 
ropes to each corner, then sinking the sail under the ship, 
and with these ropes drawing it as far backwards as we could. 
In about a quarter of an hour, to our great surprise, the ship 
was pumped dry, and upon letting the pumps stand she was 
found to make very little water, so much beyond our most 
sanguine expectations had this singular expedient succeeded. 
At night we came to an anchor, the fother still keeping her 
almost clear, so that we were in an instant raised from almost 
despondency to the greatest hopes. We were now almost 
too sanguine, talking of nothing but of getting her into some 
harbour where we might lay her ashore and repair her, or 
if we could not find such a place we little doubted of being 
able by repeated fotherings to carry her quite to the East 
Indies. 
During the whole time of this distress, I must say for 
the credit of our people that I believe every man exerted his 
