The Gentleman

There she lays, in the Channel off the Boulder Bank, whispered the old man, pointing to the privateer, dull-black against the glitter. And it’s my belieft there’s not a sober man aboard of her. All stow’d away dead drunk under hatches–that’s my belieft, sir. They kep it up from dark till midnight–dancin, drummin, fightin, and all manner. More like a cage full? wild beasties from Bedlam than a Christian ship. And for the last hour she might ha been a hulk full o corpuses.