"When the tide falls tomorrow, the captain KZ and first mate Richard Shandon will lead the 'Forward' to set off from New Prince Wharf and sail to unfamiliar seas." That's what people read in the Liverpool Herald of April 5, 1860. For Britain's busiest commercial port, a ship's departure is no big deal.Who would have noticed the difficulty of accommodating so many ships in floating docks among ships of all sizes and countries? On the morning of April 6, however, a large crowd gathered on the New Prince's Wharf, where countless members of the city's sailors' guild appeared to meet.Neighboring workers left their work, wholesalers from their dark counters, merchants from their deserted shops.The colorful stagecoaches that line the dock's outer walls bring in curious passengers every minute; the whole city seems to be busy with one thing: watching the "Forward" set sail.

The Forward was a 170-ton ship equipped with a propeller and a 120-horsepower steam engine.It is easy to confuse it with other ships in the port.But although it held nothing out of the ordinary in the eyes of the public, connoisseurs noticed something special about it that a sailor would not be mistaken for. Moreover, on the "Nautilus" not far away, a group of sailors were talking about the course of the "Forward". "What's the matter with which mast?" said one. "After all, it's unnatural to have such a big sail on a steamship." "Should," replied a corporal with a broad red face, "should the ship be made more by the mast than by the machinery, and if her topsails are so fitted, no doubt because the lowersails often need to be shaded. I have no doubt, therefore, that the 'Forward' is heading for Antarctic or Arctic waters, where icebergs keep out the wind and rain, and a tall and strong ship is necessary."

"You may have a point, Mr. Cornhill," continued the third sailor. "Did you see the stem of the ship that plummeted into the sea?" "Besides," said Mr. Cornhill, "the sharp steel knives cast in the stem, like a razor-knife, could cut in two an ancient galley with three decks and three rows of embrasures, If the 'Forward', at full steam ahead, comes aboard and attacks it." "Of course," replied one of Mercy's navigators, "because the boat has propellers and is fast enough to go 30 knots. It was spectacular to watch her cut through the waves when she was on trial. Believe me, it's a Good boat."

"With the sail, there's no fear of something going wrong," Cornhill went on. "It's smooth sailing, and it's enough to operate by hand. You see, this ship will explore the polar seas, otherwise, I will change my name! Oh, and one more thing! You notice the big rudder passing by the rudder Is there a hole in the rod?" "Exactly," replied Mr. Cornhill's interlocutors, "but what does that mean?" "It shows, my boys," he said contentedly, with a contemptuous expression, "that you neither know how to see nor think; it means that one should leave some play in the bow of the rudder so that it can turn freely. But don't you know that this kind of operation is often performed between icebergs?"

"Totally justified," said the crew of the Nautilus. "Also," said one of them, "the cargo on this ship confirms Mr. Cornhill's point. I heard it from Cliff East, who bravely boarded that ship. The Forward loaded Food for five or six years, and correspondingly, coal. Coal and food are its entire cargo, and a small amount of sheepskin and sealskin clothing." "Well," said Mr. Cornhill, "there's nothing to doubt, but, my friend, since you know Clifton, Clifton hasn't said at all where he's going?" "He didn't say anything; he didn't know; the whole crew was the same. Where was he going? He won't know until he got there."

"And," said a skeptic, "I see, they are gone to the devil." "But what a wages," went on Cliveton's friend, with an agitated look, "what a wages! Five times the usual wages! Oh! where would Richard Sandon get someone to do without that? This kind of thing! A strange-shaped ship, sailing to nowhere, as if gone forever! If I were me, I would not do such a thing." "No way, my friend," retorted Mr. Cornhill, "you can't join the Forward." "why?" "Because you are not eligible. I heard that married people are not considered. However, you belong to a large range. Therefore, there is no need for you to dismiss it. This is really a great opportunity for you." Hard work."

The sailor, thus taught, laughed with his companions, showing that Mr. Cornhill's joke was on point. "Even the name of this ship," said Mr. Cornhill, rather self-satisfied, "is astonishingly daring! Forward, where is it going? Not to mention that people don't even know the captain of this ship." "No, we all know each other," answered a young sailor with a childish face. "Why, do you know each other?" "That's right." "Little man," said Cornhill, "do you think Sandon was the captain of the Forward?" "But," retorted the young sailor.

"Remember that Shandon was only a second mate, that's all; he was a brave and daring sailor, a proven whaler, a reliable companion, and quite capable of commanding, but he wasn't a commander in chief, He is not the captain like you and me, please forgive me! As for who is the master of the ship except God, he doesn't know much. When the time comes, the real captain will appear unconsciously from which corner of the two worlds out, because Richard Sandon did not say, nor was he allowed to say, where on Earth he would take his ship." "But, Mr. Cornhill," continued the young sailor, "I assure you that there will be someone on board who will seriously say that the mate's place is reserved for Mr. Sandon!"

"What!" retorted Mr. Cornhill, shrugging his eyebrows, "you must have convinced me that there was a captain on the 'Forward'?" "Yes, Mr. Cornhill." "You said that to me, to me!" "Indeed, because I heard from Johnson that he was the boatswain." "From Mr. Johnson?" "It is true; he told me himself!" "Did he really tell you, Johnson?" "Not only did he tell me that, but he showed me the captain." "He pointed it out to you!" Cornhill asked back, startled. "He pointed it out to me."

"Did you see him?" "I saw him with my own eyes." "who is it?" "A dog." "A four-legged dog?" "yes!" The sailors on board the Nautilus were astonished.Under other circumstances they would surely have laughed.A dog captain on a 170 ton ship!But something stopped the laugh.No doubt the Forward was a peculiar ship, one had to think twice before laughing and objecting, and not even Mr. Cornhill laughed. "It was Johnson who showed you this novelty captain, this dog?" He turned to the young sailor and asked, "Did you see it?"

"Just as I saw you, pardon me!" "What do you think, then?" asked the sailors to Mr. Cornhill. "I can't see anything," replied the latter flatly, "I can't see anything, unless the 'Forward' is a devil's ship, or—" The sailors continued to watch in silence on the Forward, whose preparations were drawing to a close; but not one of them claimed that Bosun Johnson was taunting the young sailor. Stories of the dog have spread like wildfire in the city, and more than one of the curious has sought out "Captain Dog" with their eyes, almost believing him to be a supernatural animal. After all, for many months, the "Advance" has attracted the public's attention; the ship's construction is somewhat special, the mystery surrounding it, the captain's anonymity, the way Richard Sandon accepted the proposal to command the fleet, the selection of the crew , the suspicious and unknown heading, all of these paint the ship with a strange color. Besides, for a thinker, a visionary, a philosopher, there is nothing more thrilling than the setting sail of a ship; amid battles with the sea, battles with wild winds, and voyages of adventure that do not always reach port. In it, the imagination voluntarily accompanies it, and as soon as an unusual event occurs, the ship assumes a magical tinge and becomes the stuff of fantasy in the eyes of those with a rebellious spirit. This is what the Forward looks like.If most of the audience can't make the erudite comments of Mr. Cornhill, what people have accumulated in three months is enough to be a topic of conversation in Liverpool. The ship was built in the shipyards of Birkenhead, a veritable outskirts of town, on the left bank of the Mersey, and communicated with the port by small steamboats which came and went nonstop. Built both Scott and C0, one of the most ingenious in Britain.He obtained from Richard Sandon an estimate sheet and a detailed chart with detailed descriptions of the ship's tonnage, volume, and model of parts.One can see in this blueprint the insight of a skilled sailor.Sandon had a good deal of money at his disposal, and the work was begun, and by instructions from an unknown shipowner, progressed rapidly. The boat was built strong enough to withstand all trials; it evidently resisted great pressure, for its ribs were made of teak, an Indian oak tree, notable for its extraordinary strength, and were, moreover, joined by strong iron frames. .Even those who work as seamen cannot help wondering why the hull of such a durable ship is not made of sheet iron like other steamships.To this, people reply that the mysterious engineer has his reasons for doing so. Taking shape at the shipyard, the boat astounded connoisseurs with its robustness and refinement.As the sailors on the Nautilus saw, its stem formed a right angle to the keel; instead of a bow breaker, it was added with a steel blade cast in R. Howson's workshop at Newcastle.The metal prow, which glistened in the sun, made the ship stand out even though it had absolutely no military purpose.But in the forward forecastle there is a cannon of 16 caliber; provided it is mounted on a pivot, it is easy to point in any direction, and it should also be noted that the cannon is the same as the bow; it is useless to equip both , the two really have no attempt to fight. On February 5, 1860, the curious ship was launched with complete success before a sea of ​​spectators watched it. But since this ship is not a ship of war, nor a merchant ship, nor a yacht, since it is impossible for people to travel with enough food for six years, what kind of ship is it? Was it to recover Sir John Franklin's Erebus and Terror?Indeed, for the previous year, 1859, Captain Mark Clindock returned from the polar seas with conclusive evidence of the wreck of this ill-fated expedition. Does the "Forward" still want to follow the famous Northwest Passage?what is the benefit?Captain Mark Krull discovered it in 1853, and his lieutenant Cresswell was the first to have the honor of circumnavigating the American continent from the Bering Strait to the Davis Strait. However, in the eyes of those insightful people, the "Forward" is undoubtedly preparing to advance to the land of ice and snow. Is it going to the Antarctic, going further than the whaler Wydel, and going forward more courageously than Captain James Ross?But what is the use, what is the purpose? It is conceivable that although the range of guesses is extremely limited, the imagination always finds room in it. On the second day after the boat was launched, the engine on board was delivered from R. Howson's workshop in Newcastle. The engine was 120 horsepower, drum-type, took up little space, and for a ship of 170 tons with several sails and a fast speed, it was a huge power.In this respect, the trials were so convincing that even Bosun Johnson felt compelled to express his opinion like Cliveton's friend: "If the Forward uses sails and propellers at the same time, it will run faster with sails." Cliffdon's friend knew nothing of the idea, but he believed that anything was possible in a ship commanded by dogs. Once the engines were on board, the food was loaded into the tanks; no small task, as the ship would carry six years' worth of food.Among them were meat and dried meat, smoked fish, biscuits and flour; mountains of coffee and tea were thrown into the hold like a gigantic avalanche.Richard Sandon directed the loading of these precious cargoes with an insider's eye; it was all settled, tagged, numbered, and carried on in good order; and a great deal of Indian dried meat was loaded Cake, which contains many nutrients in a small volume. The characteristics of the food make people have no doubts about the length of the parade, but a good observer only needs to see buckets of lemon juice, calcium tablets, packages of mustard, sour buns and horseradish rapeseed, in a word, a lot of anti-corrosion powerful drugs for blood disease, it would be understood without a second thought that the "Advance" was going to the polar seas, since the effect of these drugs on the South and North voyages was very necessary.Sandon was undoubtedly the man assigned to the careful care of this part of the shipment, for he was as dedicated as a traveling apothecary. If there were not many weapons on board, the powder compartments were, to the reassurance of the faint-hearted, a deterrent.The only cannon on the forward pier couldn't hope to digest these things.This is puzzling.In addition, there are huge saws and strong machinery, including levers, lead weights, hand saws, large axes, etc., not to mention a considerable number, and their explosive power is enough to blow up the customs at Liverpool.It's all weird, even scary, not to mention the assortment of rockets, signals, pyrotechnics and sidelights. The throng of onlookers on the pier of Nova Princesa marveled at a long mahogany whaling skiff, a tin canoe coated with gutta-percha, and something like a rubber cloak, only to be blown in the rubber lining. Be amazed by the boat that can be turned into a boat by air.Everyone was getting more and more confused, even excited, because the tide was out and the "Forward" would soon be going to that mysterious place.

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