During the worst of the gale one man was
washed overboard but his loss was not discovered for nearly twenty
minutes, and even if it had been, nothing could have been done to
save him in such tremendous seas. Clark Russell says that the
grandeur and sublimity of the ocean can be best seen on a yard arm
during a gale of wind, but somehow I have not been able to make
those words applicable to the gales through which I have passed.
Through our ninety degrees of Easting I had but little exercise. The
lee side of the cabin usually found me with my books, work and
numerous small articles for ready use. I think the most exercise I
had during those days was when I tried to dress, as it was almost
impossible to stand in one spot any length of time on account of the
rolling and pitching of the ship. With a firm stand I would place
myself in front of my mirror, only to gradually slide away across
the room to a lounge where I would sit down, then I would climb back,
and with as much speed as possible do what I could before
disappearing again. In a length of time I was able to make my toilet,
and when made it was not changed during the day in those latitudes.
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