about ship return to duties.
Abraham may have caught young Isaac Melville compares the Captain's private conference with Billy to Abraham's intimate discussion with Isaac, his condemned son, in Genesis 22:1–8 of the Old Testament.
according to the Articles of War As stated in Article XXII of the Principles and Practice of Naval and Military Courts Martial, enacted in 1749: "If any officer, mariner, soldier, or other person in the fleet, shall strike any of his superior officers, or draw, or offer to draw, or lift any weapon against him, being in the execution of his office, on any pretence whatsoever, every such person being convicted of such offence, by the sentence of a court martial, shall suffer death."
afterguardsman a watchman in the stern of the ship.
Aldebaran bright red star in the eye of the constellation Taurus and the brightest of the Hyades.
Alfred in his funeral ode Alfred, Lord Tennyson, England's poet laureate, wrote "Ode on the Death of the Duke of Wellington."
an ambidexter implement for effecting the irrational a deceitful method of pretending to be logical.
Anacharsis Cloots The Baron de Cloots, according to Thomas Carlyle in his French Revolution, amassed a group of men from a variety of countries at the French National Assembly.
Apollo the ancient Greek sun god revered for his physical beauty.
as much in sanctuary . . . under the altar During the Middle Ages, a person pursued by law enforcement officers could escape capture by taking refuge in a church, convent, or monastery.
Assyrian priests . . . grand sculptured Bull Priests in Babylonia, a great kingdom on the banks of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, worshipped Baal, the god of fertility and rain, in the form of a great bull.
became obsolete with their wooden walls the refinements in cannons greatly affected the design of warships.
belay rope tied around a rock or some other secure item.
Bellipotent The ship takes its name from an archaic adjective meaning "mighty in war."
Benthamites Utilitarians who, like Jeremy Bentham (1748–1832), believed that pleasure is a major criterion of happiness.
the bluejackets slang term for English sailors.
boatswain the ship's officer charged with summoning the crew for duty.
Bucephalus the favorite horse of Alexander the Great.
buffer of the gang a malcontented or incompetent crew member.
bulwarks walls of the ship.
by-blow an illegitimate child.
Cain's city In Genesis 4:17, Cain, a son of Adam, commits the first murder against his own brother, is exiled, and founds a city.
Calvin's dogma as to total mankind the philosophy of John Calvin, founder of the Presbyterian faith, that the fate of each person is determined from birth.
Camoëns' Spirit of the Cape an allusion to Camoëns' Lusiad, the Portuguese epic describing the exploits of Vasco de Gama. In one interlude, the giant Adamastor is transformed into a vast rock, which represents the spirit of the Cape of Good Hope.
the capital founded by Peter the Barbarian St. Petersburg, the capital of Russia established by Peter the Great (1672–1725), an autocratic czar.
capstan an upright, revolving post around which rope is wound.
Caspar Hauser a wandering youth of unknown origin who appeared in Nuremberg in 1828.
Chang and Eng famous Siamese twins who lived from 1811 to 1874.
chevalier adventurer, or con man.
Chiron . . . his young Achilles an allusion to the learned centaur in Greek mythology who tutored Achilles.
close-reefing topsails in a gale climbing out on a yardarm during bad weather to tie up the sails so that they will not be ripped by strong winds.
coadjutor an assistant.
Coke and Blackstone English lawyers who produced influential legal commentaries.
a coronet for Nelson at the Nile . . . crowns for him at Trafalgar rewards which Nelson earned for his victories.
coxswain a steersman.
cutter a rowboat.
