DOI Heft:
No. 15 (June, 1894)
DOI Artikel:Tuke, Henry Scott: A day in Falmouth Harbour
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.17190#0091
A Day in Falmouth Harbour
Our course is for the Manacles, the western We wait about for another hour, and turn to run up
boundary of the bay. This being about six miles with the new-comer. Now out with your note-
distant we have leisure to take note of our boat, books, you painters (and poets, if you happen to
which is a good specimen of a class well known work from Nature), for you may go long before you
among boating men by the local name of " quay have a finer theme than this—a white Italian ship
punt." She is 32 feet long, with a 10-inch beam, in full sail; the old flag of red, white, and green
and draws about 6 inches. She has a mainsail, fore- flutters from the mizzen, her rusty sides and belly-
READY TO START BY H. S. TUKE
sail and mizzen, is easily handled, safe, and a hard
goer, and her equal is not to be found on the coast.
Arrived off the Manacle bell buoy, there seems at
first nothing particular to see beyond a coaster or
two running up and a large vessel, hull down, going
up Channel. But presently sharp eyes discover a
little vague blot, warmer in colour than the grey
sky, and a square-rigged vessel is faintly but cer-
tainly made out. The tide and wind being favour-
able, she begins quickly to loom up bigger, a
tug and quay punt being already in attendance.
ing canvas tower above you, and dark faces peer
from behind rigging, ropes and chains. Glad are
they to look on fresh fellow-men after the mono-
tony of a long sojourn with the same people; but
they have little time to be sentimental, for now they
are ordered aloft, and, fortunately for us, the vessel
quickly begins to take in sail, so that we can easily
keep our distance ahead of her. As we near the
harbour mouth a little vermilion steamer comes
cutting her way through the grey-green water, and
the boarding clerks nimbly jump on board with
77
Our course is for the Manacles, the western We wait about for another hour, and turn to run up
boundary of the bay. This being about six miles with the new-comer. Now out with your note-
distant we have leisure to take note of our boat, books, you painters (and poets, if you happen to
which is a good specimen of a class well known work from Nature), for you may go long before you
among boating men by the local name of " quay have a finer theme than this—a white Italian ship
punt." She is 32 feet long, with a 10-inch beam, in full sail; the old flag of red, white, and green
and draws about 6 inches. She has a mainsail, fore- flutters from the mizzen, her rusty sides and belly-
READY TO START BY H. S. TUKE
sail and mizzen, is easily handled, safe, and a hard
goer, and her equal is not to be found on the coast.
Arrived off the Manacle bell buoy, there seems at
first nothing particular to see beyond a coaster or
two running up and a large vessel, hull down, going
up Channel. But presently sharp eyes discover a
little vague blot, warmer in colour than the grey
sky, and a square-rigged vessel is faintly but cer-
tainly made out. The tide and wind being favour-
able, she begins quickly to loom up bigger, a
tug and quay punt being already in attendance.
ing canvas tower above you, and dark faces peer
from behind rigging, ropes and chains. Glad are
they to look on fresh fellow-men after the mono-
tony of a long sojourn with the same people; but
they have little time to be sentimental, for now they
are ordered aloft, and, fortunately for us, the vessel
quickly begins to take in sail, so that we can easily
keep our distance ahead of her. As we near the
harbour mouth a little vermilion steamer comes
cutting her way through the grey-green water, and
the boarding clerks nimbly jump on board with
77