As We Were To Be Here Over Sunday, And Monterey Was The Best Place
To Go Ashore On The Whole Coast, And We Had Had No Liberty-Day For
Nearly Three Months, Every One Was For Going Ashore.
On Sunday morning,
as soon as the decks were washed, and we had got breakfast, those who
had obtained liberty began to clean themselves, as it is called,
to go ashore.
A bucket of fresh water apiece, a cake of soap,
a large coarse towel, and we went to work scrubbing one another,
on the forecastle. Having gone through this, the next thing was
to get into the head, - one on each side - with a bucket apiece,
and duck one another, by drawing up water and heaving over each
other, while we were stripped to a pair of trowsers. Then came
the rigging-up. The usual outfit of pumps, white stockings,
loose white duck trowsers, blue jackets, clean checked shirts,
black kerchiefs, hats well varnished, with a fathom of black
ribbon over the left eye, a silk handkerchief flying from the
outside jacket pocket, and four or five dollars tied up in the
back of the neckerchief, and we were "all right." One of the
quarter-boats pulled us ashore, and we steamed up to the town.
I tried to find the church, in order to see the worship, but was told
that there was no service, except a mass early in the morning; so we
went about the town, visiting the Americans and English, and the
natives whom we had known when we were here before.
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