--for
us, who will now have to share two men's weight in working our heavily
sparred barque.

Two new apprentices have joined. Poor little devils! they don't know
what it is. It seemed all very fine to that wee chap from Inverary who
came with his father to see the ship before he joined. How the eyes of
him glinted as he looked about, proud of his brass-bound clothes and
badge cap. And the Mate, all smiles, showing them over the ship and
telling the old Hielan' clergyman what a fine vessel she was, and what
an interest he took in boys, and what fine times they had on board
ship, and all that! Ah yes--fine times! It's as well the old chap
doesn't know what he is sending his son to! How can he? We know--but
we don't tell.... Pride! Rotten pride! We come home from our first
voyage sick of it all.... Would give up but for pride.... Afraid to
be called 'stuck sailors' ... of the sneers of our old schoolmates....
So we come home in a great show of bravery and swagger about in our
brass-bound uniform and lie finely about the fine times we had ... out
there! ... And then nothing will do but Jimmy, next door, must be off
to the sea too--to come back and play the same game on young Alick!
That's the way of it! ...

Then when the Mate and them came to the half-deck, it was: "Oh yes,
Sir! This is the boys' quarters. Well! Not always like that,
Sir--when we get away to sea, you know, and get things shipshape. Oh,
well no! There's not much room aboard ship, you see. This is one of
our boys--Mister Jones." (Jones, looking like a miller's man--he had
been stowing ship's biscuits in the tanks--grinned foolishly at the
Mate's introduction: 'Mister!') "We're very busy just now, getting
ready for sea. Everything's in a mess, as you see, Sir. Only joined,
myself, last week. But, oh yes! It will be all right when we get to
sea--when we get things shipshape and settled down, Sir!"

Oh yes! Everything will be all right then, eh? Especially when we get
down off the Horn, and the dingy half-deck will be awash most of the
time with icy water. The owners would do nothing to it this trip, in
spite of our complaints. They sent a young man down from the office
last week who poked at the covering boards with his umbrella and wanted
to know what we were growling at. Wish we had him out there--off Diego
Ramirez. Give him something to growl at with the ship working, and
green seas on deck, and the water lashing about th