"You have a fine ship, sir" said Captain Potter. "I've never seen a ship handled so smartly, in such a breeze and under so much sail. You must avail yourself of any help that my crew can give you. My officers are thorough seamen, brought up under sail"
"Thank you, sir—I see that they are" I answered "But after we have things straightened around once more, I think we won't need any assistance" My pride was up, you know, now that the affair was beginning to turn out so well. She was a British steamer, and these officers, fine young Englishmen of the best breed, ambitious and well-trained in the school of sailing ships, were watching me and my vessel with critical eyes. I'd show them what it meant to be picked up by a Yankee clipper.
"I make this passage every year, Captain" I went on "and always carry extra men for it. After leaving my wheat in Liverpool, I have to get back to New York in the quickest possible time, to load again for California. It's much like your steamer with her schedule. With extra men I'm able to carry on sail a little longer, handle her in ordinary weather with one watch, and save the wear and tear on the crew. The wear and tear comes mostly on me. I'll have your crew to fall back on now, and will be able to hold my sail still longer. A sort of reserve force, you know, ready to jump in an emergency"
He glanced over the stern-rail, where the steamer lay blazing in our wake. In falling off we had swung a wide circle around her, to escape the path of the sparks as they whirled down the wind; and now had left her a couple of miles astern.
"She burns well, Captain" I observed "That's the hottest fire I ever felt, or ever wanted to feel"
He gave a bitter laugh. "They loaded her especially for it" said he "Cotton goods, and butter, and bacon, and hams" As if not caring to look at her any longer, he turned forward, mounted the steps to the top of the house, and took up his old position by the mizzen mast.
In twenty minutes after filling away, we had reached the second mate's boat. A look through the binoculars showed me that things were indeed in a bad way with them; there wasn't a moment to lose. The boat seemed momentarily on the point of filling, while half a dozen men along her sides baled frantically with buckets and other utensils. A man in the stern sheets was waving wildly at us, as if to communicate some information. I had a notion what it was; they were trying to tell us that they wouldn't be able to bring the boat into the wind. I saw that plainly. Captain Potter, coming hurriedly to the after end of the house, evidently saw it, too.
"How will you pick them up, Captain?" he asked nervously.
"I think we can do it without difficulty" I answered, as if such measures were a matter of course. In point of fact, I had never executed the manoeuvre that seemed necessary in this pass, and had never heard of its being tried by anyone else. As we approached the boat, I hauled the ship well out on their starboard quarter, passed them several hundred yards to port and left them a quarter of a mile astern; then swung the ship across their course, came up to leeward of them with a shock and a crash, backed the main yard, lost headway, and stopped in exactly the right position for them to fetch our stern as they ran before the wind. In other words, I cut a half circle around them and placed myself athwart their hawse, in the way of an old-fashioned naval manoeuvre.
We looked down on them from the quarter-deck as they raced toward us. Several men seemed disabled, water was washing nearly up to her thwarts, but a few oars were poised in readiness, showing intelligence and discipline somewhere aboard. In a moment she was on the point of our weather quarter, sweeping past our stern.