16 The Wine-Dark Sea - Libro della tutto

Patrick O'Brian The Wine-Dark Sea
bowlines twanging taut, and the tack hauled
aboard, brought down to the chess-trees and
well bowsed upon. When all this is done in a
seaman-like manner there is precious little
give – flat as a board – and a stiff, welltrimmed
ship fairly flies along. Surely there is a
parallel here?'
'Certainly. If you will come next door I will
show you the bones in question and their coalescence,
and you will judge the degree of rigidity
yourself, comparing it with that of your
sheets and chess-trees. I was called away before
the dissecting was quite complete – before
everything was as white and distinct as a
specimen or example mounted for an anatomy
lesson – but you will never dislike a little
blood and slime.'
Stephen was not a heavy, impercipient man
in most respects, yet he had known Jack Aubrey
all these years without discovering that he