'Sing ho, for a gay and gallant bark,
A brisk and a lively breeze,
A bully crew, and skipper, too,
To carry us over the seas.
To carry us over the seas, brave boys,
Where dancing dolphins play,
And whales and sharks are up to larks,
Ten thousand miles away.'
With a merry rattle of the pawls the heavy chain cable came in over the barrel of the windlass, and with his young shipmates Jack Clewlin hauled at the tackle which kept the iron links taut, and prevented them from slipping forward through the 'hawse-pipe.'
'Anchor's away, sir!' the mate sang out.
With fastened hawser the attending tug swung the ship toward the harbour entrance.
Several local steamers, filled with the friends of the emigrants, accompanied the vessel for some distance, and amidst much cheering, and the waving of handkerchiefs, the 'Silver Crown' passed out between the forts protecting the harbour.
'Hands aloft and loose canvas,' the captain sang out. Men ran up the rigging like monkeys. The lower topsails were sheeted home, the others were speedily mastheaded, and with all plain sail set the beautiful clipper began her long voyage of 20,000 miles across the ocean.
The tug-boat and the accompanying vessels returned to port. The last notes of 'Auld Lang Syne' were lost on the breeze, while careening gracefully the splendid vessel speedily sank all trace of the land under the horizon astern.
The afternoon was beautifully fine, and the sea almost smooth. The slight movements of the ship, however; presently sent most of the passengers below; but, thanks to his many boating expeditions about Stonewell harbour, Jack felt no inconvenience, and kept to the deck and his duties as closely as his more seasoned messmates, who, on their passage from Liverpool, had got rid of their sea-sickness.
Indeed, so many things required looking after and securing in their places, that none of the hands had one moment's leisure, and all the boys found plenty of work to occupy their attention. Mr. Sennit, the chief mate, had most of the men engaged on the topgallant forecastle securing the anchors, and lashing the cables on deck until the ship had reached blue water.
Shortly before supper all hands mustered about the main capstan, and from them each officer alternately selected a man until the whole had been equally divided into the port and the starboard watches.