Leaving one of the officers on shore, the lads pulled back to the ship, looking curiously at the town, and longing perhaps for the liberty which would be allowed them on the morrow.
Engaging a boatman to row us off, the author and his English friend were soon alongside the school-ship, where the former explained that he was a New-Yorker, and was asked to come on board.
Although she had been at anchor only an hour or so, all the running gear was being neatly stowed away, and the loose ends flemished (i.e., coiled down flat) on the deck. But a word as to the vessel herself:
The St. Mary's was an old United States sloop-of-war, the type of a vessel, modernized a little, that had won honor and glory for the country. The Wasp was such a one as this, and every one knows what she did during the war of 1812. The other craft that stung the English so badly when commanded by Lawrence, the gallant little Hornet, was about this type—a sloop-of-war—also. Although the St. Mary's was very peaceful looking, because she lacked the rows of black carronades along her sides, still it required but little stretching of the imagination to change her into a man-of-war.
We spoke to a little wiry youngster, who told us he lived in "West Twenty-thoid" Street, and asked him how he liked being a sailor. The grin that accompanied his answer—"It's bully good fun"—convinced us that he, at least, was happy, and had rightly chosen his calling. In fact, we did not see an unhappy face amongst the crew, and this speaks volumes.
The St. Mary's had stopped at the Azores, on the voyage out, where the boys had had fine times, according to account, and where the people had been looking forward to their coming, for they generally touched there on their cruises. Of course I had to explain to my English friend that these boys had nothing to do with the regular navy, but were intended for the merchant service, unless they wished, of course, to change it for life on board one of the new cruisers. Every one of them hoped to be an officer some day, and there is no reason, if they attend to duty, why this hope should not be fulfilled, for a better training for positions of command could not be had.
WINTER WORK ON BOARD THE "ST. MARY'S."
One of the officers told us of a little adventure that had happened upon one of the former voyages, which not only showed the spirit of the St. Mary's crew, but also proved that most of the lads had profited by New York's being surrounded by water. One of the boys, a little fellow, had fallen off the boat-yard into the water. The tide had swept him quite a distance from the ship before his cries were heard. When "man overboard!" was shouted, in half a jiffy a score or more of the crew had plunged headlong from the railing and bowsprit after him. In fact, it looked as if the whole ship's company was going for an impromptu swim. Two of the rescuers laid hold of the drowning boy and kept him afloat, while the rest paddled about like a flock of ducks. It took some time for the boat that was hurriedly manned to pick them all up, as the tide had carried some of them quite a distance out. But they were all taken aboard safe and sound, and, as everybody writes when telling of a rescue from "a watery grave," "none the worse for their wetting."
From Southampton the St. Mary's was bound to Cherbourg, France; then to Lisbon, Portugal; Cadiz, Spain; and Gibraltar.