mercury began to drop rather rapidly; the
thickness to windward increased, and it began to rain; the wind
freshened steadily, a high, steep sea got up, and everything appeared to
threaten a particularly dirty and unpleasant night. By the end of the
first dog-watch the wind had increased to half a gale, the sea had drawn
abeam, and the ship was rolling her lee hammock-rails under. The
Captain, therefore, ordered the topgallantsails to be clewed up and
furled, the flying-jib to be stowed, and a couple of reefs to be taken
in the topsails; for, as he remarked, we were not bound anywhere in
particular, were in no hurry, and might as well snug the ship down for
the night while we had daylight enough left to see what we were doing.

The night closed down upon us early, and so dark that we could not see
as far as the length of the ship, there being no moon, while the light
of the stars was completely obscured by the dense canopy of storm-wrack
that overshadowed us, the only objects visible outside the bulwarks
being the faintly phosphorescent heads of the breaking seas as they
swept down menacingly upon us from to windward; the air was raw and
chill, although it was only the first week in September; the decks were
wet and sloppy with the driving rain and spray; and those of us who were
on watch looked thoroughly miserable as, encased from head to foot in
oilskins and sou'westers, we paced to and fro, availing ourselves to the
utmost of such shelter as was afforded by the bulwarks and the boats
stowed on the booms. By midnight the wind had further increased to such
an extent that sail was still further reduced, the courses being taken
off the ship, the jib stowed, and the mizen brailed in, leaving nothing
set but the three double-reefed topsails and the fore and main-topmast
staysails. Yet, unpleasant as was the weather, we had at least one
consolation: the ship behaved splendidly, sailing fast through the
water, and going along as dry as a bone, save for the spray that was
blown from the crests of the waves and came driving athwart our decks in
blinding and drenching showers.

When at length the day broke, it revealed the ship hove-to under
close-reefed fore and main topsails, and fore-topmast staysail, the
central object in the midst of a grey and desolate picture, the dreary
character of which it would be difficult to surpass. It was now blowing
a whole gale from the South-West, the wind having backed during the
night