All day the
vessel ran down the French coast; and although he was a captive, and
every mile reeled off the log took him further from home, Ralph could
not help admiring the speed at which the brig slipped through the
water, cutting the waves with her sharp bow and leaving scarcely a
ripple behind her, so fine and clean was her run. Very different was
this smooth, gliding motion from the quick plunge and shock of the
bluff-bowed fishing boat to which he was accustomed. The sails had
been scrubbed until there was not a speck upon them. The masts were
lofty and tapering, the rigging neat and trim, and every stay as taut
as iron.
We could fight our ships better than the French, but as far as
building and rigging went they were vastly our superiors; and La Belle
Marie looked to Ralph almost like a gentleman's yacht in its cleanness
and order, and in these respects vied with the men-of-war that he had
so often watched from the heights of Dover. He had, however, but
little time for admiration; for he was kept at work rubbing and
polishing the guns and brass-work, and was not idle for a minute from
the time he came on deck dressed as a cabin-boy on the morning after
he was picked up until sunset. There were two French boys about his
own age forward, and as soon as his work was done and the evening
watch set they began to torment him; for, acting as they did as
servants to the officers, they did not take share in the watch.
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