Richardson smiled at the movement.

‘Stinks right enough, sir,’ he said.

‘Going well, Mr Richardson?’

‘We’ll be completed on time tomorrow,’ the first mate assured him.

‘Any problems?’

‘Certainly not in stowage.’

‘What then?’ asked Briggs, detecting the reservation in the man’s voice.

Richardson walked nearer the hoists, taking the captain with him, and gestured down into the hold.

‘Red oak barrels,’ identified Richardson. ‘Leaky stuff.’

‘We’ll have to be mindful of the danger,’ agreed Briggs.

‘Bad time of the year for weather,’ Richardson reminded him. ‘And there have been storms enough as it is.’

‘I’d considered as southerly a course as possible.’

‘Probably best.’

‘How much inboard?’ Briggs gestured into the hold.

‘One thousand, three hundred barrels,’ said Richardson, consulting the consignment board in his hand.

‘Another four hundred to come, then,’ said Briggs. ‘What about the ballast figure?’

‘Thirty tons of stone.’

‘Should be sufficient,’ said Briggs. He indicated the fo’c’sle: ‘What about the crew?’

‘Fine lot,’ judged Richardson. ‘We’ll have no trouble there.’

‘My thinking, too,’ said Briggs, pleased at the other man’s assessment.

‘I gather that the German, Arien Martens, is a qualified mate.’

‘Seems like we’ll have a very expert crew,’ said Briggs.

Richardson obviously appreciated the reference to his recently obtained master’s ticket.

‘Then it should be an easy voyage,’ he said.

‘One of the easiest I’ve undertaken, I hope,’ said Briggs. He moved away from the hold, towards the companion-way leading to the quayside. ‘I’ve to go ashore,’ he said, passing over command. ‘I’m minded it will take me about three hours.’

Because he was on official business and would therefore be reimbursed for the expense, Briggs had ordered a private carriage. Despite the ban on horse-cars, the streets of the city still shifted and heaved with movement; perhaps it was because there were so many immigrants, but Briggs always felt that, instead of being just one port, New York was a mixture of all he had ever visited, a kaleidoscope of cultures and sounds and accents.