{"id":"01KG8AKW62J6D9D87MA53BMQ4A","cid":"bafkreihv7bt4n7m674jpgcnsvw3u74mnjxoix5jlji5dqoj6mlw6gnl4x4","type":"chunk","properties":{"end_line":3493,"extracted_at":"2026-01-30T20:48:15.149Z","extracted_by":"structure-extraction-lambda","label":"Chunk 1","source_file":"01KG89J1H7Y803CZ7X80F0QFHZ","start_line":3429,"text":"CHAPTER XXVI.\r\nWE ENTER THE HARBOUR—JIM THE PILOT\r\n\r\n\r\nExhausted by the day’s wassail, most of the men went below at an early\r\nhour, leaving the deck to the steward and two of the men remaining on\r\nduty; the mate, with Baltimore and the Dane, engaging to relieve them\r\nat midnight. At that hour, the ship—now standing off shore, under short\r\nsail—was to be tacked.\r\n\r\nIt was not long after midnight, when we were wakened in the forecastle\r\nby the lion roar of Jermin’s voice, ordering a pull at the\r\njib-halyards; and soon afterwards, a handspike struck the scuttle, and\r\nall hands were called to take the ship into port.\r\n\r\nThis was wholly unexpected; but we learned directly that the mate, no\r\nlonger relying upon the consul, and renouncing all thought of inducing\r\nthe men to change their minds, had suddenly made up his own. He was\r\ngoing to beat up to the entrance of the harbour, so as to show a signal\r\nfor a pilot before sunrise.\r\n\r\nNotwithstanding this, the sailors absolutely refused to assist in\r\nworking the ship under any circumstances whatever: to all mine and the\r\ndoctor’s entreaties lending a deaf ear. Sink or strike, they swore they\r\nwould have nothing more to do with her. This perverseness was to be\r\nattributed, in a great measure, to the effects of their late debauch.\r\n\r\nWith a strong breeze, all sail set, and the ship in the hands of four\r\nor five men, exhausted by two nights’ watching, our situation was bad\r\nenough; especially as the mate seemed more reckless than ever, and we\r\nwere now to tack ship several times close under the land.\r\n\r\nWell knowing that if anything untoward happened to the vessel before\r\nmorning, it would be imputed to the conduct of the crew, and so lead to\r\nserious results, should they ever be brought to trial; I called\r\ntogether those on deck to witness my declaration;—that now that the\r\nJulia was destined for the harbour (the only object for which I, at\r\nleast, had been struggling), I was willing to do what I could toward\r\ncarrying her in safely. In this step I was followed by the doctor.\r\n\r\nThe hours passed anxiously until morning; when, being well to windward\r\nof the mouth of the harbour, we bore up for it, with the union-jack at\r\nthe fore. No sign, however, of boat or pilot was seen; and after\r\nrunning close in several times, the ensign was set at the mizzen-peak,\r\nunion down in distress. But it was of no avail.\r\n\r\nAttributing to Wilson this unaccountable remissness on the part of\r\nthose ashore, Jermin, quite enraged, now determined to stand boldly in\r\nupon his own responsibility; trusting solely to what he remembered of\r\nthe harbour on a visit there many years previous.\r\n\r\nThis resolution was characteristic. Even with a competent pilot,\r\nPapeetee Bay, is considered a ticklish, one to enter. Formed by a bold\r\nsweep of the shore, it is protected seaward by the coral reef, upon\r\nwhich the rollers break with great violence. After stretching across\r\nthe bay, the barrier extends on toward Point Venus, in the district of\r\nMatavia, eight or nine miles distant. Here there is an opening, by\r\nwhich ships enter, and glide down the smooth, deep canal, between the\r\nreef and the shore, to the harbour. But, by seamen generally, the\r\nleeward entrance is preferred, as the wind is extremely variable inside\r\nthe reef. This latter entrance is a break in the barrier directly\r\nfacing the bay and village of Papeetee. It is very narrow; and from the\r\nbaffling winds, currents, and sunken rocks, ships now and then grate\r\ntheir keels against the coral.\r\n\r","title":"Chunk 1"},"relationships":[{"peer":"01KG8AJHQP10ZN67ZSN8W9JS8F","peer_type":"chapter","predicate":"in"},{"peer":"01KG89J1H7Y803CZ7X80F0QFHZ","peer_type":"file","predicate":"extractedFrom"},{"peer":"01KG89HMDZKNY753EZE1CJ8HZW","peer_type":"collection","predicate":"collection"},{"peer":"01KG8AKW62V4S1HTHE18MZAAZA","peer_type":"chunk","predicate":"next"}],"ver":2,"created_at":"2026-01-30T20:48:18.626Z","ts":"2026-01-30T20:48:26.051Z","edited_by":{"method":"manual","user_id":"01KFF0H3YRP9ZSM033AM0QJ47H"}}