Afloat and Ashore: A Sea Tale

“And I--my joy of life is fled, My spirit's power, my bosom's glow; The raven locks that grac'd my head, Wave in a wreath of snow! And where the star of youth arose, I deem'd li...

During the year that succeeded after I was prepared for Yale, Mr. Hardinge had pursued a very judicious course with my education. Instead of pushing me into books that were to b...

“There's a youth in this city, it were a great pity That he from our lasses should wander awa'; For he's bonny and braw, weel-favoured witha', And his hair has a natural buckle...

“There is a tide in the affairs of men, Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune Omitted, all the voyage of their life Is bound in shallows, and in miseries. On such a ful...

“They hurried us aboard a bark; Bore us some leagues to sea; where they prepared A rotten carcass of a boat, not rigg'd, Nor tackle, sail, nor mast: the very rats Instinctively...

Poor Captain Robbins! No sooner did he regain his bodily strength, than he began to endure the pain of mind that was inseparable from the loss of his ship. Marble, who, now that...

“Oh! forget not the hour, when through forest and vale We returned with our chief to his dear native halls! Through the woody Sierra there sigh'd not a gale, And the moonbeam wa...

“Thou art the same, eternal sea! The earth hath many shapes and forms Of hill and valley, flower and tree; Fields that the fervid noontide warms, Or Winter's rugged grasp deform...

The combat between the Crisis and _la Dame de Nantes_ took place in 42.37'.12” north latitude, and 34.16'.43” west longitude, from Greenwich. This was very near the centre of th...

“How pleasant and how sad the turning tide Of human life, when side by side The child and youth begin to glide Along the vale of years: The pure twin-being for a little space, W...

As Captain Williams wished to show me some favour for the manner in which I had taken care of the brig, he allowed me as much time ashore as I asked for. I might never see Londo...

The stout ship Crisis had, like certain persons, done a good thing purely by chance, Had her exploit happened in the year 1519, instead of that of 1800, the renowned passage we...

“The monarch mind--the mystery of commanding, The godlike power--the art Napoleon, Of winning, fettering, moulding, wielding, banding The hearts of millions, till they move as o...

_Court_--“Brother John Bates, is not that the morning which breaks yonder?” _Bates_.--“I think it be; but we have no great cause to desire the approach of day.” _Will_.--“We see...

_1st Lord_.--“Throca movonsas, cargo, cargo, cargo.” _All_.--“Cargo, cargo, villianda par corbo, cargo.” _Par_.--“O! ransome, ransome:--Do not hide mine eyes” _1st Sold_.--“Bosk...

“The morning air blows fresh on him:” “The waves dance gladly in his sight;” “The sea-birds call, and wheel, and skim--” “O, blessed morning light!” “He doth not hear their joyo...

Half-way between this inlet and the ship-yard, I found Marble, standing with his arms folded, gazing after the receding ship. His countenance was no longer saddened; but it was...

I hope I shall be believed in saying, if Marble had been with us when we retook the ship, I should have been perfectly happy. He was not, however, and regret was left to mingle...

There is but a word to say of the whaler. We spoke her, of course, and parted, leaving her her boat. She passed half an hour, close to us, and then went after her whale. When we...

After every means had been uselessly exhausted to persuade Marble from his design, it only remained to do all we could to make him comfortable and secure. Of enemies, there was...

“Drink! drink! to whom shall we drink? To a friend or a mistress?--Come, let me think! To those who are absent or those who are here? To the dead that we loved, or the living st...

“Ships are but boards, sailors but men: there be land-rats, and water-rats, water-thieves, and land-thieves; I mean pirates; and then, there is the peril of waters, winds and ro...

Next morning, I was early afoot, and I found Grace as much alive to the charms of home, as I was myself. She put on a gypsy, and accompanied me into the garden, where to my surp...

“Your name abruptly mentioned, casual words Of comment on your deeds, praise from your uncle, News from the armies, talk of your return, A word let fall touching your youthful p...

“And so warm in winter, and so cool in summer; with good thick stone walls; while everything they build now is a shingle palace! Besides, you can add your portion, and each addi...

“Or feeling--, as the storm increases, The love of terror nerve thy breast, Didst venture to the coast: To see the mighty war-ship leap From wave to wave upon the deep, Like cha...

“At the piping of all hands, When the judgment signal's spread-- When the islands and the lands, And the seas give up the dead, And the south and the north shall come; When the...

“With look like patient Job's, eschewing evil; With motions graceful as a bird's in air; Thou art, in sober truth, the veriest devil That ere clinched fingers in a captive's hai...

“Hear me a little; For I have only been silent so long, And given way unto this course of fortune, By noting of the lady: I have mark'd A thousand blushing apparitions start Int...

I saw but little of Grace, during the early part of the succeeding day. She had uniformly breakfasted in her own room, of late, and, in the short visit I paid her there, I found...

The next morning I set about the measures necessary for carrying out our plan. Marble was invited to be of the party, the arrangements concerning the ship, allowing of his absen...