Jacob Abbott

“ Rollo, in order to know how near the captain was in his calculations, asked her what o'clock it was. She said twenty-five minutes after eight. How astonishing must be the accuracy of the instruments and the calculations which can enable a man to guide a ship across so utterly trackless a waste, aiming at a lighthouse three thousand miles away, and not only come out exactly upon it, but come there, too, so exactly at the time predicted by the calculation! ”

“ For instance, a passenger on board a packet ship once asked a sailor what time they would heave the log. 'The log,' said the sailor, 'they always heave the log at nine bells. When you hear nine bells strike, go aft, and you'll see them.' So the passenger watched and counted the bells every time they struck, all the morning, in the hopes to hear nine bells; whereas they never strike more than eight bells. It was as if a man had said, on land, that such or such a thing would happen at thirteen o'clock."
Rollo and Jennie laughed. ”

“ It is true that there was a long swell upon the surface of the sea, which produced a continual, though gentle, rocking of the ship, that made many of the passengers sick and uncomfortable. Rollo and Jane, however, felt for the most part quite well. Sometimes, for a short period, one or the other of them looked pale, and seemed dispirited. At such times they would lie down upon the couch in their state room, or upon a sofa in one of the saloons, and remain quietly there an hour at a time. ”

“ On the contrary, to one going to sea in vessels as small as those with which Columbus made the voyage when he discovered America, the loftiest billows would rise and swell, and toss their foaming crests far above his head, as he clung to the deck to gaze at them. ”

“ In the first place, it was necessary to get a permit to go on board the ship. The crowds of people in New York, who are always going to and fro, are so great, and the interest felt in these great steamships is so strong, that if every body were allowed free access and egress to them, the decks and cabins of the vessels would be always in confusion. So they build a barricade across the great pier at which the ships lie, with ponderous gates, one large one for carts and carriages, and another smaller one for people on foot, opening through it, and no one is admitted without a ticket. ”

“ At length he seemed satisfied, and sat down again.
"Well, you have got through all the danger, at any rate," said Rollo, "now that we are inside the land."
"On the contrary," said the captain, "we are just coming into the danger. There is very little danger for a good ship, whether it is a sailing ship or a steamer, out in the open sea. It is only when she comes among the rocks, and shoals, and currents, and other dangers which thicken along the margin of the land, that she has much to fear. Ships are almost always cast away, when they are cast away at all, near or upon the land." ”

“ In fact, the lines of rigging, as seen from the place where Rollo and Jane were seated, looked so fine, and the men appeared so small, that the whole spectacle naturally reminded one of a gigantic spider's web, with black spiders of curious forms ascending and descending upon them, so easily and adroitly did the men pass to and fro and up and down, attaching new lines to new points, and then running off with them, as a spider would do with her thread, wherever they were required. ”

“ Little Jane felt much less uneasiness at the idea of going to sea after hearing Lottie give such favorable accounts of her own experience. Still she was not entirely satisfied. As for Rollo, his eagerness to go independent of all supervision did not arise wholly from vanity and presumption. He was now twelve years of age, and that is an age which fairly qualifies a boy to bear some considerable burdens of responsibility and duty. At any rate, it is an age at which it ought to be expected that the powers and characteristics of manhood should, at least, begin to be developed. ”

“ One night, when the steamer had been some time at sea, Rollo awoke, and found himself more than usually unsteady in his berth. Sometimes he slept upon his couch, and sometimes in his berth. This night he was in his berth, and he found himself rolling from side to side in it, very uneasily. The croaking of the ship, too, seemed to be much more violent and incessant than it had been before. Rollo turned over upon his other side, and drew up his knees in such a manner as to prevent himself from rolling about quite so much, and then went to sleep again. ”

“ The child screamed with terror, and Rollo could now and then catch the sound of her voice above the roaring of the steam. The sailors on board the sloop ran toward the boat, and began to let it down. Others on the shore got ready with poles and boat hooks, and though they were probably shouting and calling aloud to one another, Rollo could hear nothing but now and then the scream of the child. At length a man came running down a flight of stone steps which led from the pier to the water in a corner of the dock, throwing off his coat and shoes as he went down. ”

“ In fact, one source of the illusion which surrounds this vice is, that the interest which it excites, and the hilarity and mirth which attend it during its progress, are all open to view, while the disappointment, the mortification, the chagrin, and the remorse are all studiously concealed. The remorse is the worst ingredient in the bitter cup. It not only stings and torments those who have lost, but it also spoils the pleasure of those who win. ”

“ The Atlantic steamer never flies. She never yields in any way to the fury of the gale, unless she gets disabled. While her machinery stands, she moves steadily forward in her course; and so far as any idea of danger is concerned, the passengers in their cabins and state rooms below [Pg 137] pay no more regard to the storm than a farmer's family do to the whistling and howling of the wind among the chimneys of their house, in a blustering night on land.
So much for the philosophy of a storm at sea, as witnessed by the passengers on board an Atlantic steamer. ”

“ So that, even if a machine could be invented to strike the time on board ship ever so truly, I do not think they would like to adopt it.
"Another difference in striking the time on board ship," continued the surgeon, "is, that they strike it by half hours instead of by hours. Scarcely any of the ship's company have watches. In fact, watches are of very little use at sea, the time is so continually changing from day to day. The sailors, therefore, and nearly all on board, depend wholly on the bells; and it is necessary, accordingly, that they should be struck often. ”

“ It has been well ascertained that they never rise more than twelve or fifteen feet above the general level of the water; and if we allow the same quantity for the depth of the trough, or hollow between two waves, we shall have from twenty-five to thirty feet as the utmost altitude which any swell of water can have, reckoning from the most depressed portions of the surface near it. Now, in a first-class Atlantic steamer, there are two full stories, so to speak, above the surface of the sea, and a promenade deck above the uppermost one. ”

“ Where is your father?"
"My father is in Liverpool, I suppose," said Rollo. [Pg 72]
"Well, your mother, then," said the young lady, "or whoever has the care of you?"
"My mother is in Liverpool, too," said Rollo "and there is nobody who has the care of us on board this ship."
"Why, you are not going to cross the Atlantic all by yourselves, are you?" said the young lady, in a tone of great astonishment.
"Yes," said Rollo, "unless we find somebody to be kind enough to help us."
"La! how queer!" said the young lady. "I am sure I'm glad enough that I am not in your places." ”

“ But after all, in respect to the power of running about among lines and rigging, the spider is superior to man. She can not only run up and down far more easily and readily wherever she wishes to go, but she can make new attachments with a touch, and make them strong enough to bear her own weight and all other strains that come upon them; while the sailor, as Rollo and Jane observed on this occasion, was obliged in his fastenings to wind his ropes round and round, and tie them into complicated knots, and then secure the ends with "spun yarn." ”

“ A sailing vessel, which is always in a great measure dependent upon the wind, is absolutely at its mercy in a storm. When the gale increases beyond a certain limit, she can no longer make head at all against its fury, but must turn and fly—or be driven—wherever the fury of the tempest may impel her. In such cases, she goes bounding over the seas, away from her course, toward rocks, shoals, breakers, or any other dangers whatever which may lie in the way, without the least power or possibility of resistance. ”

“ There was a dim light shining there, which came through a pane of glass on one side of the state room, near the door. This light was not sufficient to enable Rollo to see any thing very distinctly. He however at length succeeded, by holding to the side of Jennie's berth with one hand, while he groped about the floor with the other, in finding the cage and securing it.
"I've got it," said Rollo, holding it up to the light. "It is the cage, and Tiger is in it. Poor thing! she looks frightened half to death. Would you let her out?" ”

“ There were more than one hundred passengers to come on board, and almost every one of these had many friends to come with them, to bid them good by; so that there was a perpetual movement of carriages coming and going upon the pier, and the long plank which led up to the ship was crowded with people ascending and descending in continuous streams. The paddle wheels were all the time in motion, though the ship, being yet fastened to the shore, could not move away. ”

“ Jennie thought that it was a very curious way indeed.
"There is no difficulty," said the captain, resuming his explanations, "in finding the depth of the sea in harbors and bays, or at any place near the shore; for in all such places it is usually much less than a hundred fathoms. So when in [Pg 201] a dark night, or in a fog, the ship is driven by the wind in a direction where they know there is land, they sound often; and when they find that the water is shoal enough, they let go the anchor." ”

“ The spectator, raised above all apparent danger, and moving forward through the scene of wild commotion with a power greater far than that which the foaming surges can exert, surveys the scene around him with wonder and admiration, it is true, but without that overpowering sensation of awe which it could once inspire. ”

“ They were ready to go to dinner, and so they came into the saloon to wait there till the gong should sound. When they saw Rollo lying upon the sofa, they went up to him, but did not speak. Rollo opened his eyes and looked at them. Maria smiled, but still did not speak. Rollo smiled in return, though somewhat faintly, and then shut his eyes again. Then Maria led Jennie away, gently.
"You see," said Maria to Jennie, when they had gone out of Rollo's hearing, "he feels a little sick, and when persons feel seasick they do not like to talk. I am going to get him a bowl of broth." ”

“ There is a very considerable degree of friction produced in drawing a line of any kind through the water; and when the line is some miles in length, and has, besides, a heavy ball at the end of it, the resistance becomes enormous. Whenever they attempt to draw up a sounding line of such a length, it always parts at a distance of a few hundred fathoms from the surface, so that only a small part of the line is ever recovered." [Pg 200]
"I should not suppose it would be so hard to draw up the line," said Rollo. ”

“ The mighty steamer, twice as long, and nearly four times as massive as the ship, surpasses the seas now, as it were, in magnitude and momentum, as well as in power. She not only triumphs over them in the contest of strength, but she towers above and overtops them in position. ”

“ If a very violent storm comes up when the ship is out in the open sea, it can ordinarily do no harm, only to drive the ship off her course, or perhaps [Pg 196] carry away some of her spars or sails. If there is no land in the way, she is in very little danger. But it is very different if a gale of wind comes up suddenly in such a place as this."
"And how is it here?" asked Rollo.
"Why, in the case of a good steamer like this," said the captain, "it makes no great difference here; for we go straight forward on our course, as long as we can see, let it blow as it will. ”

“ When they see the nature of the bottom in this way, it often helps them to determine where they are, in case it is a dark night, or a foggy day, and they have got lost. It is very easy to measure the depth of the sea in this way, where it is not over a few hundred fathoms."
"How much is a fathom?" asked Rollo.
"Six feet," replied the captain; "that is as far as a man can reach by stretching out both hands along a wall. ”

“ George proceeded immediately to New York to engage passage. When Rollo's aunt, who had had the care of him and Jane during the absence of Mr. and Mrs. Holiday, heard how soon the steamer would sail, she said that she did not think that that would afford time enough to get the children ready.
"O, it takes no time," said Mr. George, "to get people ready to go to Europe. Put into a trunk plenty of plain common clothing for the voyage, and the work is done. As for the rest, people can generally find pretty much every thing they want on the other side." ”