ster, it was disappointing to discover that our lee
drift had been so excessive as to have caused us to lose ground, while
the slow but steady downward tendency of the mercury seemed to indicate
that, so far from our being justified in expecting any immediate
improvement in the weather, there was but too good reason to fear that a
change from bad to worse was imminent.

And it needed but a few hours' further experience to prove how well
founded were those apprehensions. For, as the day wore on, the aspect
of the sky to windward grew increasingly menacing, the hue of the thick
canopy of vapour becoming hourly darker and more louring, while the
shredded clouds packed ever closer together in larger masses and of
wilder and more threatening form and colour, and the wind strengthened
until it was blowing a full gale, while the already heavy sea gathered
weight so fast that by eight bells in the afternoon watch it had, in my
opinion, become perilous to continue sailing the brig, and I accordingly
proposed to O'Gorman that we should stow the topsails, and heave-to
under storm staysails.

Now, the experience of the first day or two after the fight in the
forecastle had led me to hope that the tragedy of the occurrence had
frightened and sobered the men so thoroughly that there would be no more
trouble with them, so far at least as drink was concerned; but therein I
gave them credit for a higher standard of feeling than they possessed;
such sobering influence as the incident had exercised upon the fellows
had quickly evaporated, and on the particular day to which I am now
referring the demon of drink had once more brought them under his
influence with just enough effect to render them, one and all, reckless,
defiant, and utterly unmanageable. Consequently, my proposal to shorten
sail and heave-to was met with scornful jeers and a point-blank refusal
to do any work whatsoever. And the worst of it was that I had held on
with the canvas so long that the whole available strength in the ship
was now needed to successfully handle it, any attempt to do anything
unaided, or with the assistance of only one or two men, being worse than
useless. There was nothing for it, therefore, but to let the two
double-reefed topsails stand as they were, and blow away or not as fate
might decide.

There was one comfort--and only one--to be found in the condition of
affairs that I have endeavoured to indicate, and that was that the brig,
heavily