The chorus of which was: " What can't be cu — red, Must be enclu — red." And I have often thought of, and had to apply this drunken chorus many times during my pilgrimage. At about eleven o'clock, I turned in, but had not been in my bed half an hour when my messmate, the gunner, came down. " Well," said he, " Williams has flogged every man on the forecastle, and he is not used up yet." Next morning at daylight, when all hands were called, and the hammocks piped up, there was a rich subject for a painter, more than half were too drunk the night before to hang their hammocks up; they had strewed themselves all about the deck, vomiting, &c, where they lie, and many of them yet too drunk to find their hammocks, and the master's mate flying round among them with a rattan.
The officer of the deck repeatedly singing out. " Mr. Stevens, hurry up those hammocks, sir." " Boatswain's mate, go down there, sir, and start those fellows up." So the whole day after Christmas was one of wild confusion. The Winter passed off pleasantly, although one incident occurred which came very near causing much distress, and probably of fatal results among the inhabitants. The frigate United States, was getting ready for painting, and the gunner had been ordered to draw the shot from the guns, as it was the commodore's intention to discharge them. But through the neglect, or carelessness of the quarter gunner, who had charge of the main deck divisions, a shot was left in us, we had all these difficulties, besides many more to contend with.
When the bad weather commenced, many of these miserable fellows shammed sick. And in a very short time nearly half the berth deck was filled with those who were upon the doctor's list, and it was with much difficulty that able men could be found sufficient for reefing the fore and main-top sails at once. Had it not been for the extra energy and watchfulness of the old Ontario's, both of officers and men, I am not able to say what would have been our fate. After having been out thirty days, our provisions began to give out and we were put on a short allowance of water; and still nothing but hard gales. At length we reached the Western edge of the gulf, having been for a few days favored with a warm, south-east wind and much rain.
Suddenly it shifted round into the old corner again, and whistled away with vengeance. We soon got among the <b lame ducks." The first we fell in with was a sloop forty days from Newbern, N. C, bound to New York, and in a star vino; condition. It was in the night, blowing very heavy, and very dark. She had been thrown on her beam ends, but was now partially righted. — The crew did not wish to be taken off, but only to be supplied with provisions. This we succeeded in doing, although it very much reduced our scanty supply. We next fell in with a vessel bottom up, but saw nothing of the crew. And on the thirty-fifth day we made Cape Henry, ran in and took a pilot Soon after the pilot had come on board, it came up quite thick, we kept along however all that day and the following night, under the sweet expectation of soon having something to eat.
But in this we were disappointed. Early on the morning of the second day, the pilot seemed to be in much perplexity, running from side to side, enquiring the soundings, as we had kept the lead agoing on both sides. All at once he says to the officer of the deck: " We must tack ship, sir; wTe are out of the channel, and I don't know which side of us it is. It has been so thick that I have not been able to see anything, to tell me where I am." So we tacked and went all the way back to Cape Henry, and took a fresh departure, which kept us starving three days longer. At last we arrived at Annapolis, and had scarcely the master-at-arms, to put some crazy fellows in irons; but this functionary was drunk too.