The Count gave his orders quickly, and his men went off to carry them out.
“Good,” said the skipper coolly. “That’s smart.”
“What next?” cried the Count.
“Well, sir, as quickly as I can, I want to do something to lighten the ship.”
“No; I must protest!” cried the Count excitedly. “You are going to throw the guns overboard?”
“Humph!” grunted the captain. “Who said so? I didn’t. Nay, that’d be a pity. I wouldn’t do that till the very last.”
“Ah!” sighed the Count, as if deeply relieved.
“Well, the next thing is, sir, just you leave me and my men alone and let yours look on till I want their help.”
The Count was silent, and all looked on whilst in obedience to the skipper’s orders the English sailors, led by the carpenter, set busily to work, seized upon the new spare sails that were brought up on deck, and cast loose the coils of fresh hemp line that were placed ready. Then with the skipper putting in a word here and there, resulting in the lines being attached to the corners of the largest square-sail, these latter were seized by a couple of the men, who dragged the sail forward as the brig glided very gently along, for it was nearly calm, and then passing the new sail deftly beneath the bowsprit, two of the men climbing out and seeming to cling with their feet to the bobstay until little by little they had got the edge right beneath the stay. Then while their mates at the corners helped at the lines, they passed down the sail right into the sea till they had lowered it to its full extent and they could do no more, save once or twice when they hung down from the stay and gave the canvas, which was slowly growing saturated, a thrust or two with the foot where it seemed disposed to hitch against the brig’s keel.
And now the skipper took his post upon the bowsprit and gave his orders by word or sign to the men who governed the movement of the great square of canvas by means of the lines attached to the corners, the two at the fore corners of the sail getting outside the bulwarks, barefooted, to walk along the streak, and hauling just as much as was necessary to drag the sail right beneath the keel, their two messmates preparing to follow, and under the captain’s guidance keeping all square and exact in the effort to get the keel to act as the dividing line to mark the oblong into two exact portions.