The steward came forward under the skylight as she entered her cabin, and said—
"I will fight for my life, sir."
"That is my advice to you."
"I will do my best. I have been thinking of my wife and child, sir."
"Hush!" I cried. "Not so loud. If your courage fails you, there is a girl in that cabin there, who will show you how to be brave. Remember two things—act quickly and strike hard; and for God's sake don't fall to drinking to pull up your nerves. If I find you drunk I will call upon the men to drown you."
And with this injunction I left the skylight.
The men remained a great while in the forecastle, all so quiet that I wondered whether some among them were even now below scuttling the ship. But they would hardly act so prematurely. To be sure, it would take a long time for the ship to fill, bored even in half a dozen places by an auger; but until the evening fell, and they were actually in the boats, they could not be sure that a wind would not spring up to oblige them to keep to the ship.
I remained on deck, never thinking of dinner, watching the weather anxiously.
An ordinary seaman came aft to relieve the wheel; but finding that the ship had no steerage way on her, he squatted himself on the taffrail, pulled out a pipe and began to smoke. I took no notice of him.
Shortly afterwards Stevens came along the main-deck and mounted the poop.