"Here he comes, stem on for Dover Castle!" said the second mate, as the canoe's bow struck in the waist with considerable force, and then, snubbed by her warp, she swung fore and aft, while the savages, taking the line in to one of the thwart timbers, "bowed her off" with much skill, for the ship was going at a smart rate through the water. By this time other canoes were crowding upon the first one, all anxious to be the first to make a trade with us; each with a line of its own ready to throw to us, or else clamoring for a rope's end to be thrown from the ship. Some fell short, and the ship flew past them; but, nothing daunted, they fell into her wake, knowing that she would heave to soon. Some ran into others, doing considerable damage to their frail structures and increasing the clamor and confusion. I noticed one strapping fellow in the first canoe, who, with both hands full of "truck," was making the most urgent signs and cries for a rope to be thrown to him. Curious to see how he would manage, I flung him one which he seized with his teeth, and without hesitation threw himself overboard, still holding his wares in both hands and five or six "sennit" hats upon his head. He swung alongside towing by the vice-like grip of his teeth upon the rope, the ship moving at a rate that I should suppose would have torn any white man's jaws out of his head, unless he opened them and let go his hold. I jumped into the chains and reaching down, managed to relieve one of his hands of its load, so that he could have one arm and his teeth to tow by, for it was hardly possible to get him on board until the ship's way was stopped. A canoe was now driving right upon him, having swung in against the ship in consequence of collision with another, but he paid little heed to her, simply diving under and rising again the other side of her, seemingly as much at home in the water as a porpoise.
Faster and faster the reinforcements of canoes gather, and the Babel of guttural shouts and yells exceeds all descriptive powers. Each canoe contains at least one representative of the gentler sex; some of them two or three; but the women, contrary to all rules among civilized communities, have but little to say. Crash! I run to the other side of the deck to see what has happened; an unfortunate canoe has filled and swamped alongside, torn her thwart out by the strain upon the warp, and the apparent wreck is drifting into our wake, the crew swimming off with her, for the women are as amphibious as the men, their yells rise louder than ever, while screams of derisive laughter greet them on every side from their unsympathizing consorts. As Manoel the Portuguese expressively says, it is "every man for myself" in this crowd. Anxious to know how they will conduct under these circumstances, I jump up on the shearpole and follow them with my eye. As soon as they wind their way out of the thickest crowd of the pursuing canoes, they seize their own by the head and stern, and shooting her violently fore and aft a few times, she slops about half the water out over the two ends; a man then jumps lightly into her, and commences baling; soon she will bear another man; and it is not many minutes ere she takes her place in the fleet, though now occupying a rear position, a bit of seizing stuff completes her repairs, and they are after us again, joining in the general laugh, and eager as ever.