Clinton by Walter Aimwell

For the first few hours at sea, Jerry was little better than a piece of / lumber, in everybody's way. Nobody told him what to do, and, indeed, / he was pretty diligently employed in watching the quick movements of / the sailors, for the purpose of dodging out of their path. But, with / all his alertness, he was not quick enough to avoid being sometimes / rudely shoved one side, with a muttered imprecation on his head for / getting in the way. The city now began to recede rapidly from view. / The State House dome, the church spires, and the forest of ship-masts / along the water-side, were all that could be distinguished in the city / proper. East Boston, with clouds of smoke ascending from its numerous / foundries, was in full view in the distance; while nearer at hand, on / the right, was South Boston, with its highlands, its large public / buildings, and its many work-shops with tall chimneys. The last sound / that came from shore, was the striking of the church clocks. There / was a brisk north-west wind, before which the brig dashed along at a / rapid rate. Soon they were sailing between two fortresses, situated / on islands about a mile apart, and commanding the only channel by / which large vessels can enter or leave the port. Several other islands / were in sight, on some of which there were large buildings. They / also passed near two light-houses-tall towers built on islands, with / dwelling-houses near by for their keepers. Towards noon, the pilot, / whose business it is to guide vessels in and out of the harbor, took / leave of the brig, and returned to port in a small sail-boat. But / little land was now in sight, and the broad ocean, dotted with white / sails, was spread out before them.

The sun shone pleasantly upon the waters, but the wind was raw and / cold, and Jerry began to realize that he must stir about to keep warm. / He was slowly sauntering along, to see for the fiftieth time if he / could find anything to do, when he was accosted in a rough voice by one / of the men, who said: -