There were no lights and fans-the engine wouldn't work-nothing worked! No ship ever went to sea with more things wrong with her. And so the unfortunate vessel creaked and groaned its way across the Pacific toward Hawaii, the sport of every wave.
The size of the galley was negligible. It would have been considered small for a clothes closet. Martin said that here the old saw about having to go outside to turn around was literally true-if he had a dish in his hand.
It is difficult for anyone who has never experienced a shortage of water to realize just how inadequate a quart a day is for comfort, especially in the tropics, where one perspires copiously. As the days went by, the thirst became maddening. Martin dreamed of the Saline River and of the old mill. He dreamed of carrying precious water to fill his mother's washtubs. And always as he was about to bury his face in it he would awaken with a gasp.
The situation became more and more acute as the small supply of that life-sustaining fluid dwindled. Twelve hundred miles from land, and no fresh drinking water!
At last a storm was blowing up. They spread a large deck awning to catch as much water as possible. The storm swept toward them. They waited with eager anticipation! Then, to their infinite dismay, some prank of the wind stopped the squall within a few hundred yard! Death seemed a reality. Then they were awakened by the drum of a heavy tropical rain on deck. Again they spread the awnings, and this time they filled the water tanks to overflowing.
In many, many years no vessel had ever attempted to cross the Pacific by this treacherous and isolated route. Some had tried it but had been blown far off their course. Others had never been heard from again. But the Snark and her crew accomplished the impossible, and in sixty-one days out of Hilo, Hawaii, they put safely into Taiohae Bay, in the Marquesas.
For various reasons (Martin suspected it was mainly on account of the cooking, Captain Eames, Bert, and Tochigi all discovered urgent business back in San Francisco and resigned from the cruise. In their stead, the Londons signed on Captain Rosehill. Here was a real navigator! The way he sailed and anchored the Snark was marvelous to those landlubbers who had been handling the vessel as a small boy would a tub.
Martin was advanced to engineer and was beside himself with pride. He had learned all the idiosyncrasies of the seventy-horse-power engine and was undoubtedly worthy of the promotion, but I suspect that Jack did it to get a new cook. Martin wrote to Jess Utz, his cooking teacher, "I guess, Jess, my cooking wasn't so much of a success-they've hired someone else."
Wada, who was Japanese, was a very good cook and could speak fluent English. Nakata, also Japanese, was signed as cabin boy and could speak no English. A Dutchman who gave only the name of Herman was a good natured deep-sea sailor whom they secured to round out the crew. He worked with great goodwill in storm or calm, always singing in one or another of a half-dozen languages.
The size of the galley was negligible. It would have been considered small for a clothes closet. Martin said that here the old saw about having to go outside to turn around was literally true-if he had a dish in his hand.
It is difficult for anyone who has never experienced a shortage of water to realize just how inadequate a quart a day is for comfort, especially in the tropics, where one perspires copiously. As the days went by, the thirst became maddening. Martin dreamed of the Saline River and of the old mill. He dreamed of carrying precious water to fill his mother's washtubs. And always as he was about to bury his face in it he would awaken with a gasp.
The situation became more and more acute as the small supply of that life-sustaining fluid dwindled. Twelve hundred miles from land, and no fresh drinking water!
At last a storm was blowing up. They spread a large deck awning to catch as much water as possible. The storm swept toward them. They waited with eager anticipation! Then, to their infinite dismay, some prank of the wind stopped the squall within a few hundred yard! Death seemed a reality. Then they were awakened by the drum of a heavy tropical rain on deck. Again they spread the awnings, and this time they filled the water tanks to overflowing.
In many, many years no vessel had ever attempted to cross the Pacific by this treacherous and isolated route. Some had tried it but had been blown far off their course. Others had never been heard from again. But the Snark and her crew accomplished the impossible, and in sixty-one days out of Hilo, Hawaii, they put safely into Taiohae Bay, in the Marquesas.
For various reasons (Martin suspected it was mainly on account of the cooking, Captain Eames, Bert, and Tochigi all discovered urgent business back in San Francisco and resigned from the cruise. In their stead, the Londons signed on Captain Rosehill. Here was a real navigator! The way he sailed and anchored the Snark was marvelous to those landlubbers who had been handling the vessel as a small boy would a tub.
Martin was advanced to engineer and was beside himself with pride. He had learned all the idiosyncrasies of the seventy-horse-power engine and was undoubtedly worthy of the promotion, but I suspect that Jack did it to get a new cook. Martin wrote to Jess Utz, his cooking teacher, "I guess, Jess, my cooking wasn't so much of a success-they've hired someone else."
Wada, who was Japanese, was a very good cook and could speak fluent English. Nakata, also Japanese, was signed as cabin boy and could speak no English. A Dutchman who gave only the name of Herman was a good natured deep-sea sailor whom they secured to round out the crew. He worked with great goodwill in storm or calm, always singing in one or another of a half-dozen languages.
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About Jasek Prague: There is no doubt about it, he has a love for popcorn. The Best Popcorn makers. Check out Presto Popcorn Maker.
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