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Article PENCILLINGS EROM THE SKETCH-BOOK OE A MA... ← Page 4 of 9 →
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Pencillings Erom The Sketch-Book Oe A Ma...
The regulation that cadets do not land by themselves is in all respects a good one ; as , with a total ignorance of the country they have come to , they would , had they no dry-nurse to initiate them into its mysteries , be infallibly fleeced by the designing natives . By ten o ' clock a . m ., a Musoolah boat , which is contracted of large
planks sewn together with rope made of the cocoanut-tree , and well pitched in the seams , the same being the only kind used for conveying passengers and baggage across the surf , which rolls in with portentous vehemence on this part of the Ooromandel coast , and made very deep , for the double purpose of safety and
accommodation , was seen to put off from the beach , and make towards us . Ugly and clumsy though it looked , this , a Government one , painted red , was of the best description , having an awning spread over the stern to shelter us from the burning sun . This style of boat is very seldom upset ; but aship ' s-gig would have no chance of
withstanding the force of the waves , and imminent danger is there from an accident in these roads , owing to the number of sharks with which they are infested . An active-looking messenger from Fort St . George , in the person of the cadet Serjeant , having arrived , gave us to understand that we , the cadets , were to proceed ashore under his charge . In a few minutes , our baggage being transferred to other boats under the care of some Government servants , we bid adieu to our ship , and accompanied our military conductor , whose office it was to carry us through the usual preliminaries of visiting the town-major ' s and adjutant-general's offices . The Bengal cadets also were with us , to be our companions at the quarters till the John should proceed on her voyage to Calcutta .
The long succession of breakers on the beach , which we were now speedily approaching , is unique of its kind in the world of phenomena . The surf ' s cause , though Captain Basil Hall suggests its origin , it is true , seems likely to be for all time an unsolved problem , and has puzzled many a searcher in the field of science ; but
no buddings from the plant of philosophical inquiry have on this speculative point become better than mere blights . The months of October , November , and December are those when it is usually most powerful The flagstaff in the fort is annually struck on the 15 th of the first-named month , and hoisted again on the 25 th of the last ; and in the interval , should vessels choose to remain in the roadstead , the underwriters will not be answerable for damages . The signal of a gun being fired from the battery , which it behoves
all commanders to obey , acts as a tocsin for vessels to put to sea without delay . Immediately our native oarsmen , ten or twelve in number , felt our proximity to the first long rolling swell , they commenced shouting out with " a madman-like din , repeatedly and quickly , an invocation to the Deity , " Allah , Allah ! - —Allah , Allah !—Allah , Allah !" at tho same time concentrating all their strength to pull with
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Pencillings Erom The Sketch-Book Oe A Ma...
The regulation that cadets do not land by themselves is in all respects a good one ; as , with a total ignorance of the country they have come to , they would , had they no dry-nurse to initiate them into its mysteries , be infallibly fleeced by the designing natives . By ten o ' clock a . m ., a Musoolah boat , which is contracted of large
planks sewn together with rope made of the cocoanut-tree , and well pitched in the seams , the same being the only kind used for conveying passengers and baggage across the surf , which rolls in with portentous vehemence on this part of the Ooromandel coast , and made very deep , for the double purpose of safety and
accommodation , was seen to put off from the beach , and make towards us . Ugly and clumsy though it looked , this , a Government one , painted red , was of the best description , having an awning spread over the stern to shelter us from the burning sun . This style of boat is very seldom upset ; but aship ' s-gig would have no chance of
withstanding the force of the waves , and imminent danger is there from an accident in these roads , owing to the number of sharks with which they are infested . An active-looking messenger from Fort St . George , in the person of the cadet Serjeant , having arrived , gave us to understand that we , the cadets , were to proceed ashore under his charge . In a few minutes , our baggage being transferred to other boats under the care of some Government servants , we bid adieu to our ship , and accompanied our military conductor , whose office it was to carry us through the usual preliminaries of visiting the town-major ' s and adjutant-general's offices . The Bengal cadets also were with us , to be our companions at the quarters till the John should proceed on her voyage to Calcutta .
The long succession of breakers on the beach , which we were now speedily approaching , is unique of its kind in the world of phenomena . The surf ' s cause , though Captain Basil Hall suggests its origin , it is true , seems likely to be for all time an unsolved problem , and has puzzled many a searcher in the field of science ; but
no buddings from the plant of philosophical inquiry have on this speculative point become better than mere blights . The months of October , November , and December are those when it is usually most powerful The flagstaff in the fort is annually struck on the 15 th of the first-named month , and hoisted again on the 25 th of the last ; and in the interval , should vessels choose to remain in the roadstead , the underwriters will not be answerable for damages . The signal of a gun being fired from the battery , which it behoves
all commanders to obey , acts as a tocsin for vessels to put to sea without delay . Immediately our native oarsmen , ten or twelve in number , felt our proximity to the first long rolling swell , they commenced shouting out with " a madman-like din , repeatedly and quickly , an invocation to the Deity , " Allah , Allah ! - —Allah , Allah !—Allah , Allah !" at tho same time concentrating all their strength to pull with