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…He took charge of the tiller by stationing three Chinese on each side of it, and standing a little forward , gathered their pigtails into his hands, three right and three left, as though they had been the yoke lines of a row-boat…The more way they could get on the junk the better would she steer, and as soon as he felt a little confidence in her, Jim ordered the stiff, rustling sails to be hauled up tighter and tighter… |
This is from “An Unqualified Pilot” in Land and Sea Tales for Scouts and Guides. Young Jim Trevor’s father is a skilled pilot on the Hoogli, which runs down from Calcutta to the Bay of Bengal, one of the most treacherous rivers in the world. Jim passionately wants to follow in his footsteps, but has had no encouragement from his father. Here he is – secretly and highly illegally – piloting a junk down the river, by following his father in the ship ahead. |
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