Biscay storm

The first voyage in the Arruba, we left in February I think, 1914, and it was in a snowstorm.  When we got to Cherbourg it was a snowstorm and when we got to the Bay of Biscay we was four days in the Bay going a mile an hour.  The seas was about 40 feet high.  We never saw a passenger, all the men was standing by the lifeboats and there was ropes all along the well deck, 'cos the well deck then was not the same as these now then. There was well decks, there was ropes across here so we could walk across because the sea's coming over, and the lookout was up there for eight hours, couldn't get relieved, and I was on the Bridge for five hours...five or six hours and couldn't get relieved from another...'cos us ordinary seaman we used to have to stand on the side of the bridge for an hour for a lookout, that was our duties, you know.  And beside...or we had cabin boys there beside but ordinary seaman used to be on the lookout and do odd jobs around the deck.