The boat being hoisted out, the names of certain of the officers and crew
were called, and these were ordered to enter her. Bligh was compelled to
follow, and she was then dropped astern. Christian handed Bligh a sextant
and a book of nautical tables, saying, as he did so, "This book is
sufficient for every purpose, and you know, sir, my sextant is a good
one." Four cutlasses, a 28-gallon cask of water, 150 pounds of bread, 6
quarts of rum, 6 bottles of wine, 32 pounds of pork, twine, canvas, sails,
some small empty water-casks, and most of the ship's papers were put in
the boat, and she was cast adrift.

At the last moment, according to Bligh, Christian, in reply to a question
as to what sort of treatment was this in return for all the commander's
kindness, said, "That, Captain Bligh, that is the thing: I am in hell";
according to the evidence at the court-martial, not of mutineers, but of
the master and other officers who were cast adrift from the _Bounty_, what
Christian did say was in reply to entreaties to reconsider what he was
doing, when his words were--"No, no. Captain Bligh has brought all this on
himself: it is too late; I have been in hell for weeks past."

With Bligh in the boat were eighteen persons, and twenty-five remained on
the _Bounty_. The boat was 23 feet in length, 6 feet 9 inches in breadth,
and 2 feet 9 inches in depth. When loaded with all these people and her
stores, she had not seven inches of freeboard.

From the morning when the boat was cast adrift till forty-two days later,
when her unhappy company were safely landed at Timor, Bligh's behaviour
and the behaviour of those under him is a noble example of courage,
endurance, and resourcefulness.

They first attempted to land at Tofoa, one of the Friendly Islands, but