Page:Moonfleet - John Meade Falkner.pdf/255

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CHAPTER XVIII.
IN THE BAY.
"Let broad leagues dissever
Him from yonder foam,
O God! to think man ever
Comes too near his home."—Hood.

The ship that was to carry us swung at the buoy a quarter of a mile off shore, and there were row-boats waiting to take us to her. She was a brig of some 120 tons burden, and as we came under the stern I saw her name was the Aurungzebe.

'Twas with regret unspeakable I took my last look at Europe; and casting my eyes round saw the smoke of the town dark against the darkening sky; yet knew that neither smoke nor sky was half as black as was the prospect of my life.

They sent us down to the orlop or lowest deck, a foul place where was no air nor light, and shut the hatches down on top of us. There were thirty of us all told, hustled and driven like pigs into this deck, which was to be our pigsty for six months or more. Here was just light enough, when they had the hatches off, to show us what sort of place it was—namely, as foul as it smelt, with never table, seat, nor anything, but roughest planks and balks; and there they changed our bonds, taking