The Annotated Two Years Before the Mast

Richard Henry Dana

• Publisher: Sheridan House
• Year: 2013
• eBook ISBN: 9781574093193
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: Historical Biographies
• Index: History

A true story of the battered life of a foremast crewman, Two Years Before the Mast is Richard Henry Dana’s classic travel narrative, which inspired canonical works such as Moby Dick and Sailing Alone Around the World. As Rod Scher follows Dana (the Harvard dropout-turned-sailor) on his voyages around North America, he annotates Dana’s tale with critiques, tie-ins to today, and little-known facts about both the book and the milieu of Dana’s time.

Table of contents

• Introduction
• Preface
• I DEPARTURE
• II FIRST IMPRESSIONS—“SAIL HO!”
• III SHIP’S DUTIES—TROPICS
• IV A ROGUE—TROUBLE ON BOARD—“LAND HO!”—POMPERO—CAPE HORN
• V CAPE HORN—A VISIT
• VI LOSS OF A MAN—SUPERSTITION
• VII JUAN FERNANDEZ—THE PACIFIC
• VIII “TARRING DOWN”—DAILY LIFE—“GOING AFT”—CALIFORNIA
• IX CALIFORNIA—A SOUTH-EASTER
• X A SOUTH-EASTER—PASSAGE UP THE COAST
• XI PASSAGE UP THE COAST—MONTEREY
• XII LIFE AT MONTEREY
• XIII TRADING—A BRITISH SAILOR
• XIV SANTA BARBARA—HIDE-DROGHING—HARBOR DUTIES—DISCONTENT—SAN PEDRO
• XV A FLOGGING—A NIGHT ON SHORE—THE STATE OF THINGS ON BOARD—SAN DIEGO
• XVI LIBERTY-DAY ON SHORE
• XVII SAN DIEGO—A DESERTION—SAN PEDRO AGAIN—BEATING THE COAST
• XVIII EASTER SUNDAY—“SAIL HO!”—WHALES—SAN JUAN—ROMANCE OF HIDE-DROGHING—SAN DIEGO AGAIN
• XIX THE SANDWICH ISLANDERS—HIDE-CURING—WOOD-CUTTING — RATTLE-SNAKES —NEWCOMERS
• XX LEISURE—NEWS FROM HOME—“BURNING THE WATER”
• XXI CALIFORNIA AND ITS INHABITANTS
• XXII LIFE ON SHORE—THE ALERT
• XXIII NEW SHIP AND SHIPMATES—MY WATCHMATE
• XXIV SAN DIEGO AGAIN—A DESCENT—HURRIED DEPARTURE—A NEW SHIPMATE
• XXV RUMORS OF WAR—A SPOUTER—SLIPPING FOR A SOUTH-EASTER—A GALE
• XXVI SAN FRANCISCO—MONTEREY
• XXVII THE SUNDAY WASH-UP—ON SHORE—A SET-TO—A GRANDEE—“SAIL HO!”—A FANDANGO
• XXVIII AN OLD FRIEND—A VICTIM—CALIFORNIA RANGERS—NEWS FROM HOME—LAST LOOKS
• XXIX LOADING FOR HOME—A SURPRISE—LAST OF AN OLD FRIEND—THE LAST HIDE—A HARD CASE—UP ANCHOR, FOR HOME!—HOMEWARD BOUND
• XXX BEGINNING THE LONG RETURN VOYAGE—A SCARE
• XXXI BAD PROSPECTS—FIRST TOUCH OF CAPE HORN —ICEBERGS—TEMPERANCE SHIPS—LYING-UP—ICE—DIFFICULTY ON BOARD—CHANGE OF COURSE— STRAITS OF MAGELLAN
• XXXII ICE AGAIN—A BEAUTIFUL AFTERNOON—CAPE HORN—“LAND HO!”—HEADING FOR HOME
• XXXIII CRACKING ON—PROGRESS HOMEWARD—A PLEASANT SUNDAY—A FINE SIGHT—BY-PLAY
• XXXIV NARROW ESCAPES—THE EQUATOR—TROPICAL SQUALLS—A THUNDER STORM
• XXXV A DOUBLE REEF-TOP-SAIL BREEZE—SCURVY—A FRIEND IN NEED—PREPARING FOR PORT—THE GULF STREAM
• XXXVI SOUNDINGS—SIGHTS FROM HOME—BOSTON HARBOR—LEAVING THE SHIP
• CONCLUDING CHAPTER
• ACKNOWLEDGMENTS