foresail with the gale that was
blowing sending her at such a rate through the water as to prevent any
of the following seas from pooping her. The fear alone of this had
prevented him doing so before, "Old Jock" being as fond of scudding as
he was of carrying on when he had a fair wind.

Adams and the hands forward, though, were busy getting ready the storm
staysails I had seen the former cutting out some days previously so as
to be prepared to hoist them on the first available opportunity, as it
would never do to run too far off our course, which many hours going at
that rate before the nor'-easter would soon have effected; and so,
during a slight lull that occurred about breakfast-time, a mizzen
staysail and foretopmast staysail, each about the size of a respectable
pocket-handkerchief, were got aloft judiciously and the foresail as
carefully handed, when the ship was brought round again head to wind and
lay-to on the port tack.

A little later there was one terrific burst, the tops of the waves being
cut off as with a knife and borne aboard us in sheets of water, while
the Silver Queen heeled over to starboard so greatly that it seemed as
if she would "turn the turtle" and go down sideways with all hands; but
it was the last blast of the storm, for each succeeding hour lessened
its force, although the sea continued high. After that it grew
gradually calmer and calmer, until we were able to make sail again and
bear away eastwards, rounding the Cape two days afterwards, our fifty-
sixth from England, in 37 degrees south latitude--the meridian of the
"Flying Dutchman's fortress," as Table Mountain has been termed by those
who once believed in the Vanderdecken legend, being a little over 18
degrees east longitude.

"Begorra, that's a good job done wid anyhow," said Tim Rooney on "Old
Jock" telling us that all danger of weathering the Cape was past and
that we were well within the limits of the Southern Ocean, whose long
roll, however, and the cold breath of the Antarctic ice-fields had
already betrayed this fact to the old hands on board. "I once knocked
about in a vessel as were a-tryin' to git round this blissid place for a
month av Sundays, an' couldn't."

"And what did you do, measter?" asked Joe Fergusson, who had a great
respect for the boatswain and was eyeing him open-mouthed. "What did
you do when you couldn't sail round it?"

"Be jabers we wint the other way, av course, ye nanny goat," cried Tim,
rai