In the arctic seas a ship is often warped through loose ice, or along narrow and crooked channels of open water, by means of posts set in the larger and more solid floes. When she is drawn up pretty near to one of these posts, the line is taken off and carried forward to another post, which the sailors have, in the mean time, been getting ready upon another floe farther ahead.
Warping is, of course, a very slow way of getting along, and is only practicable for short distances, and is most frequently employed in confined situations, where it would be unsafe to go fast. You would think, too, that this process could only be resorted to near a shore, or a quay, or a great field of ice, where posts could be set to attach the lines to; but this, as will appear presently, is a mistake.
The warping which had attracted Rollo's attention was for the purpose of bringing a ship up alongside of the quay at the place where she was to be unloaded. The ship had just come into the dock.
"She has just come in," said Rollo, "I verily believe. I wish we had been here a little sooner, so as to have seen her come through the drawbridges."
Just at this instant the rope leading from the ship, which had been drawn very tense, was suddenly slacked on board the ship, and the middle of it fell into the water.
"What does that mean?" asked Rollo.
"They are going to fasten it in a new place, I suppose," said Mr. George. "Yes, there's the boat."
There was a boat, with two men in it, just then coming up to the part of the quay where the end
of the line had been fastened. A man on the quay cast off the line, and threw the end down on board the boat. The boatmen, after taking it in, rowed forward to another place, and there fastened it again. As soon as they had fastened it, they called out to the men on board the ship, "Haul away!" and then a moment afterwards the middle of the rope could be seen gradually rising out of the water until it was drawn straight and tense as before; and then the ship began to move on, though very slowly, towards the place where they wished to bring her.