I must confess I felt rather uneasy, as there were many ugly looking places in the building, and I began to think about inquisitions hot pincers, and roasting over a slow fire, which I did not care about enduring at present. So we left Malaga Cathedral unexplored, and walked down towards the Fort. As it was very warm, and the sun shining out very bright, there were lots of Spaniards with their shirts off, " lousing themselves." And of all the miserable wretches on the face of the earth, I think a Spaniard is the worst. We hauled out and got our anchors, and from Malaga we sailed for Barcelona; remained there but a few days, and sailed for Naples.
The day on which we left Barcelona, a Frenchman that had shipped at Marseilles fell from the mizzen-top, and was killed. We also lost a fine English lad, an active young sailor, named Williams. He was truly an amiable young man. He had nearly recovered from a dangerous fever. His appetite having rapidly increased, one of his messmates imprudently gave him a piece of duff, or sailor's pudding, which was as indigestible as a handspike. This produced a relapse, and on the next morning he was a corpse. One of his shipmates produced the following lines, which were very appropriate: THE DYING SAILOR BOY. Dark flew the scud along the wave, Repeated thunders rolled on high; All hands aloft the storm to brave, At midnight was the boatswain's cry.
On deck sprang every soul apace; But one, bereft of human joy,. Within a hammock's narrow space Lay stretched — a hapless sailor boy. Once when the boatswain's pipe would hail, The first was he of all the crew On deck to spring, to trim the sail, To steer, to reef, to furl, or clew. Now fell disease had seized a form, Which Nature cast in happiest mould; The bell struck midnight through the storm, His last, his funeral knell it told. " Oh! God," he cried, and dropped a tear, " Before my spirit mounts the skies, Are there no friends, or messmates dear, To close in death my weary eyes? " All hands aloft, loud blows the wind, Surrounding billows loudly roar; He raised his head, he bowed resigned, Then backward sank to rise no more.
The morning sun in splendor rose, The gale was hush'd, and still' d the wave; The sea-boy found his last repose, In ocean's deep and boundless grave. But He who guards the sea-boy's head, He who can save, or can destroy, Caught the pure spirit as it fled, And raised to heaven the sailor boy. And on the same day a man also fell from the mizzen-topgallant yard. He fell clear of everything into the sea, when a rush was made to clear away the starboard quarter boat. The boat's crew had got in, and all ready to lower away; the fellow who had hold of the bow tackle let it go all at once, and spilled the men out, together with the oars and everything that was in the boat.
Here were now seven men overboard, when orders were given to lower away the captain's gig, that was hanging at the stern davits; and in the hurry, they managed to let her strike against the rudder, and stove her. The only thing now to be done was to clear away the second cutter, which was stowed in the first, and full of spare sails and rigging. We soon cleared her away, and at the same time the yard tackles were got up; the boat was successfully hoisted out, and every man picked up, although they had been overboard near a half hour. We passed through the Straits of Bonifacio between Corsica and Sardinia, as it very materially shortens the distance to Naples.
"We had a fine crew, nearly all of which had served in government ships or privateersmen, and many of them had been in severe battles. There were some from the Essex frigate, some from the privateer, Gen. Armstrong, that so nobly defended herself at Fayal, and some that were on board the President when she was captured by the British fleet off New York. We had also a funny old salt, who was on board a schooner privateer out of New York, mounting one long twenty-four on a pivot, amidships, and eight nine-pounders on her deck. He told us the following story: " One morning, we found ourselves close along-side an English frigate. There was a good breeze from the south-west, the schooner was hauled close on the wind, and the frigate commenced firing, the shot flying around, cutting away the rigging and riddling the schooner.