My Plan Being Approved, We Proceeded To Windward, Having Secured Our
Masts And Bent A New Set Of Sails On The 26th, After Which We Stood To
The Southward, Expecting To Make Our Passage In About Five Weeks.
The
carpenters were now set to work to build a new boat that we might have
the means of watering our ship.
On the 31st, while working the pumps,
the water not only came in in greater quantity than usual, but was as
black as ink, which made me suspect some water had got at our powder;
and on going into the powder-room, I found the water rushing in like a
little sluice, which had already spoiled the greatest part of our
powder, only six barrels remaining uninjured, which I immediately had
stowed away in the bread-room. It pleased God that we now had fair
weather, as otherwise we might have had much difficulty to keep our ship
afloat. We found the leak on the larboard side, under the lower cheek of
the head, where a shot had lodged and afterwards dropt out, leaving room
for a stream of water. We accordingly brought down our ship by the
stern, and secured the leak effectually. At this time we had an abundant
stock of provisions. Each man had a quart of chocolate and three ounces
of rusk for breakfast; and had fresh meat or fresh fish every day for
dinner, having plenty of the latter about the ship, so that we could
almost always make our choice between dolphin and albicore.
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