; "and you mind yours!"

Next day, just at dawn, I was startled from my hammock by the cry of
"_All hands about ship and shorten sail_!" Springing up the ladders, I
found that an unknown man had fallen overboard from the chains; and
darting a glance toward the poop, perceived, from their gestures, that
the life-sentries there had cut away the buoys.

It was blowing a fresh breeze; the frigate was going fast through the
water. But the one thousand arms of five hundred men soon tossed her
about on the other tack, and checked her further headway.

"Do you see him?" shouted the officer of the watch through his trumpet,
hailing the main-mast-head. "Man or _buoy_, do you see either?"

"See nothing, sir," was the reply.

"Clear away the cutters!" was the next order. "Bugler! call away the
second, third, and fourth cutters' crews. Hands by the tackles!"

In less than three minutes the three boats were down; More hands were
wanted in one of them, and, among others, I jumped in to make up the
deficiency.

"Now, men, give way! and each man look out along his oar, and look
sharp!" cried the officer of our boat. For a time, in perfect silence,
we slid up and down the great seething swells of the sea, but saw
nothing.

"There, it's no use," cried the officer; "he's gone, whoever he is.
Pull away, men--pull away! they'll be recalling us soon."

"Let him drown!" cried the strokesman; "he's spoiled my watch below for
me."

"Who the devil is he?" cried another.

"He's one who'll never have a coffin!" replied a third.

"No, no! they'll never sing out, '_All hands bury the dead!_' for him,
my hearties!" cried a fourth.

"Silence," said the officer, "and look along your oars." But the
sixteen oarsmen still continued their talk; and, after pulling about
for two or three hours, we spied the recall-signal at the frigate's
fore-t'-gallant-mast-head, and returned on board, having seen no sign
even of the life-buoys.

The boats were hoisted up, the yards braced forward, and away we
bowled--one man less.

"Muster all hands!" was now the order; when, upon calling the roll, the
cooper was the only man missing.

"I told you so, men," cried the Captain of the Head; "I said we would
lose a man before long."

"Bungs, is it?" cried Scrimmage, the sheet-anchor-man; "I told him his
buoys wouldn't save a drowning man; and now he has proved it!"

CHAPTER XVIII.

A MAN-OF-WAR FULL AS A NUT.

It was necessary to supply the lo