going to have the work done in
ship-shape style, if we drill till morning. All hands, furl sails,"
said he to the first lieutenant.

The boatswain's call sounded through the ship. The necessary orders
were given in detail, and after considerable confusion, the sails were
all furled, and the ship restored to its original condition.

"Pipe to muster," continued the captain.

Under this order all the officers assembled on the quarter-deck.
Captain Shuffles addressed them in the mild tones in which he usually
spoke, as though he was not seriously disturbed by the ill conduct of
the crew. Assigning a lieutenant, a master, and a midshipman to each
mast, he directed them to set each sail separately, without regard to
others. They were to set the topsails first, then the other sails up to
the royals. Other officers were directed to drill the seamen stationed
at the head sails and the spanker.

During this conference Howe and his associates were congratulating
themselves upon the success of their vicious schemes, and encouraging
each other to persevere if another drill was ordered. They were curious
to know what the captain was doing with the officers on the
quarter-deck; but they concluded that it was only a meeting to "howl"
over the miserable discipline of the ship. But their wonderings were
soon set at rest by the boatswain's call of "All hands, make sail,
ahoy!"

They sprang to their stations as zealously as though they had no
thought but for the honor of the ship. They soon discovered that a new
order of proceeding had been introduced. The masters and midshipmen
perched themselves in the rigging, where they could see the movements
of every seaman. The adult forward officers--Peaks, the boatswain,
Bitts, the carpenter, and Leech, the sailmaker--also went aloft, and
stationed themselves on the topmast-stays, so that, besides the
lieutenants on deck, the commodore, and the past officers, there were
three pairs of sharp eyes aloft to inspect the operations on each sail.

Howe and his associates were not a little disconcerted at this array of
inspectors, and still more so when the order was given to loose only
the topsails. Peaks, on the main topmast-stay, caught Howe in the very
act of passing the gasket through the bight of the buntline. The
veteran tar came down upon him with such a torrent of sea slang, that
he did not attempt to repeat the act. The topsails were then set as
smartly and as regularly as ever before.