16 The Wine-Dark Sea - Libro della tutto

Patrick O'Brian The Wine-Dark Sea
'There's the foretopmast gone.'
A long discussion of bomb-vessels and the
huge mortars they carried: agreement: contradiction.
'Oh for my coca-leaves,' thought Stephen,
who so very urgently needed a clear sharp
mind untouched by sleep, and a steady hand.
The maintop was broken, injured or destroyed;
but the half-heard voices said they
should have had to get the topmast down on
deck anyhow, with such a sea running and the
poor barky almost arsy-versy every minute...
poor sods on deck... it was worse than the
tide-race off Sumburgh Head... 'This was the
day Judas Iscariot was born,' said an Orkneyman.
'Mr Martin, the saw, if you please: hold back
the flap and be ready with the tourniquet.
Padeen, let him not move at all.' And bending