them in
the most brutal fashion. It was no unusual occurrence for the first
mate to heave a handspike at one of the men when he did not go about his
work in a way to please him, and both captain and mates swore at the men
on all occasions in the most fearful way.

At first I was horrified, but in time I got as much accustomed to it as
they were, and was only thankful that the oaths were not accompanied by
a rope's-ending.

All this time the discipline was really very slack, and the men behaved
to each other as they pleased, and never failed to neglect their duty
whenever the mates' eyes were off them. Still they resented,
notwithstanding, the treatment they received, growling fiercely, if not
loudly, when the quality of their provisions had begun to fall off. At
first the food had been pretty good, but it now became worse and worse,
and the men swore that they would stand it no longer. At last, when
some rancid pork had been served out with musty peas and weevilly
biscuits, the men went aft in a body, headed by the boatswain, Sass
Jowler, and Growles, who were deputed to be spokesmen, to the
quarterdeck, where the captain was walking.

"I axes you, Captain Longfleet, whether you think this ere stuff is fit
food for British seamen?" said the boatswain, holding up a piece of the
pork at the end of a two-pronged fork.

"It makes um sick to cook it," said Caesar, who was standing behind the
rest.

"And I wants to know, in the name of the crew, whether this 'ere biscuit
as is all alive with maggots, is the stuff we poor fellows forward
should be made to put into our mouths?" cried Growles.

"What's that you're talking about, you mutinous rascals?" cried the
captain; "stop a bit, and I'll answer you."

Saying this, he sprang back into the cabin, and while the men stood
staring at the door without advancing, he reappeared with a pistol in
the one hand and a cutlass in the other. I observed that he had a
second pistol in his belt.

"You know I never miss my aim, you scoundrels. The first man that
utters a word on the subject I'll shoot through the head. The food's
good enough for better men than you, so be off forward, and let this be
the last time I hear any complaint. If not, look out for squalls."

The men stood irresolute, and no one liked to run the chance of having a
pistol-bullet sent through his head.

"Are you going, you villains?" thundered the captain, pointing his
pistol at the boatswain.

He